Music and More on Mt . Tam
By Judith M . Wilson
The sound of music on Mt . Tamalpais is magical . And the Mountain Play , a full-scale theatrical show in fresh alpine air beneath the redwoods , makes it an experience that ’ s unforgettable . A Marin treasure , the Mountain Play has been presenting live theater on the mountain since it debuted in 1913 , a year after a group of hikers discovered a natural amphitheater on the mountain ’ s south slope and decided it was a perfect place to put on a play . More than a century later , the Mountain Play has evolved , and this year , as if one production wasn ’ t a big enough challenge , it ’ s mounting two — a five-week run of Disney ’ s Beauty and the Beast , May 21 through June 18 , and the oneday Magic Mountain Music Festival & Hair ( in concert ), a celebration of the 50th anniversary of the Summer of Love , on June 10 .
Kids enjoy a puppet show in the grove at the Mountain Play . Pre-show entertainment also includes ’ Til Dawn on May 21 , Jerry Hannan and Kelly Peterson on May 28 , Shelley Doty on June 4 , Musaic on June 11 and Marin Summer Theater on June 18 .
Kids have fun playing with bubbles at the Mountain Play .
Magic Mountain Music Festival
The musical festival marks a milestone that put Marin in the record books — The Fantasy Fair and Magic Mountain Music Festival , which took place on June 10 and 11 , 1967 , during the “ Summer of Love ,” and was America ’ s very first rock festival . The Human Be-In at Golden Gate Park ’ s Polo Fields was a notable event earlier that year , but it was political rather than musical , and Woodstock and the Monterey Pop Festival were yet to come . LSD , free love , the Hells Angels and new sounds in music were highlights of the love-in on Mt . Tamalpais , which KFRC 610 AM produced as a promotional event for the radio station , with the Doors , the Byrds , Canned Heat and Jefferson Airplane as featured performers .
MARIN ARTS & CULTURE 11