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Few tickets left for ‘Casbah’

  Tickets to La Luz Center’s signature fundraiser “Noche en Casbah” on Aug. 11 are a hot-selling item this year.

  For those who still want to jump on the magic carpet and be transported to an enchanted Arabian night, time is running short. 

  According to event chair Marcelo Defreitas, the party is still two months away and more than 70 percent of tickets have already sold. “We don’t want any of our champion supporters to be disappointed. Last year we had to turn many people away,” he said. “We just had no more space.”

  The “Casbah” committee decided this year to move the event to Hanna Boys Center, a new venue that will accommodate more people than the Sonoma Barracks, where the Noche de Luna parties have been held for the past 10 years. Last year’s “Noche en Copacabana” brought in a record amount for La Luz in a year of belt-tightening for many of the Valley’s nonprofits. It was also a year of increased demand for La Luz services. “We are now serving 700 to 800 people a month,” said La Luz Executive Director Yvonne Hall. “Our clients are predominantly recent immigrants, but we have an enormous cross-section of people needing our services.”

  Costumes, or at least “themed attire,” have always been popular at La Luz parties, adding color to the festive ambience. This year’s Arabian theme will likely bring out caftans, glittering jewels, fezes and tunics. “Who knows what people will come up with? For sure it will be colorful and, I think, exotic, ” said Defreitas. “Don’t be shy.”

  “Noche en Casbah” is turning into a magical evening. Hump-Free, Rob and Robin Lyon’s charming camel, will welcome guests as they enter the bazaar to mingle with sheiks, sultans and the glittering crowd. Arabic music by the Pasha band sets the tone, along with the exotic scents of Turkish coffee and Moroccan delicacies from food stalls catered by Elaine Bell. There will be belly dancers, sword dancers, henna tattoo artists – maybe even a snake charmer.

  Rub Aladdin’s lamp, and Sonoma’s special, much loved “chanteuse-genie” will appear to delight you and entice you to bid on some choice auction items. Check out “An Evening Michael Krasny,” “La Vie en Rose” garden party, “Havana Poker Night,” “Elegant Eastside Evening,” “Casbah to Cabo” and even a Fourth of July Fireworks dinner party in the George Ranch. Auction items are already available for advance purchase on La Luz’s website.

  DJ music starts up inside immediately after the auction.

Tickets are $175 and can be purchased at laluzcenter.org or by calling the Casbah Hotline at 938-5010.