The grandeur of the Sierra beckons. Videos are a cheap and lazy way to fill an evening. The Valley doesn't have the greatest self image. There's this mentality in Fresno that to get something good you have to leave Fresno. Which is why the Lively Arts Foundation, which Mosier heads, has brought in such groups as the Dance Theater of Harlem and the Alvin Ailey Dancers.
Negatives sound daunting.
But deep down, arts lovers must be optimistic. There's an evangelizing streak deep within anyone who devotes his or her livelihood to culture. Like fervent missionaries, they figure there are always potential converts to be reached - and lives to be bettered. The medal for arts optimism, if there were one awarded today, would have to go to the Fresno International Grand Opera. Other cultural groups in the city have been toeing fairly conservative lines in recent years.