Many of you know Magnus Toren.

He goes by many names, including Magnus Toren, The Nice Swedish Guy at the Henry Miller Library, the Scandinavian Hammer, The Assassin, The Scandinavian Assassin, Ol’ Brown Eyes, Magnus Presley, Fluffy, Den Långe Spöke Som Talar i Gåtor, M-Nuts, Ol’ Silver Toes, the Silent German, and the Scandinavian Hammer.

Magus is the Library’s Executive Director, and the brains behind the new stage.

You know the stage we’re talking about, right?  Where we’re working with Kickstarter on to help offset the costs?  And how we’d be so appreciative for any tax-deductible, rewards-included donation you could provide?  Oh good.

Where was I.  Oh yeah, Magnus.  Yeah, actually, he’s the brains behind pretty much everything that goes on at the Henry Miller Library.  Disclaimer: Magnus is also my boss.  (Oh, and did I mention he’s an impeccable dresser, a skilled guitarist, and has great muscle tone [for his age]?)

Anyway, Magnus took some time away from his busy schedule of listening to Abba, reading those Dragon Tattoo books, and making a mess in the kitchen to answer some questions about the new stage, of which there are four.

Me: Hey Magnus.  Lookin’ good, as always.  Have you been working out?

Magnus: …

Mike: ….

Magnus: …

Mike: So why the new stage?

Magnus: The old stage kind was built out of what we had available lying around back about ten years ago.  The stuff we used was not the kind of material that would last. It was an amazing run, but we needed a new one…

Me: How will the new stage differ from the old one?

Magnus: Well, it’ll be bigger and more durable – as you know, the winters can get very rainy here.  And it will look better.  This is going to be done using redwood which we hope will match, almost as a sculpture in itself, the surroundings.   It will add both utility and beauty to the already amazing theater space we have.

Me: The new stage is made of sustainable growth redwood.  What’s that?

Magnus: It’s a good idea to support the idea of sustainable growth – a lot of replanting is happening along the coastal redwood areas.  Combining the replanting with a measured harvest keeps our redwood forests sustained.

Me: Anything else we can look forward to?

Magnus: The new stage will be bigger and a bit higher off the ground which will better feature the performances we have.  In addition there will be a new location for our projection screen – we will have it so we can project behind the performing artists.  It will also make our Big Sur short film series more pleasurable.

Me: Great.  Oh, one last question.  Biggie or Tupac?

Magnus: Ooowhat???