The people in Fresno who have gotten our attention are those who are bored by or tired of Fresno's sad-sack positioning and believe it is already being turned around. We've talked about the mayor and other city officials; and leaders of a downtown tech startup who think Fresno can become the hub of technology for the farming world and go from there to other strengths; and the originators of creative approaches in the elementary and high-school sectors of the public schools.

To which we now add: the city's pioneers in the arts. "The Tower District is the bohemia of Fresno, and Fresno is the bohemia of California," a Fresnan named Heather Parish told us recently. If she were editing in real time, she probably would have said: Fresno should be the bohemia of our most populous and creative state. Here is what she is talking about and why she could dare say such a thing.

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We met Heather Parish and Jonathon Hogan at the Sequoia Brewing Company in Fresno to talk about an effort they both are part of: a multi-day, across-the-city arts festival in Fresno known as the Rogue. (Hogan is one of three producers, along with Amber Strid and executive producer Barbara Coy-Hogan. Parish is a director and head of Rogue's publicity.)

This year was the 14th annual appearance of the Rogue Festival, with a growing number of acts, venues, and attendees year by year. The Rogue was launched in 2002 by a local dramatist, director, and impresario named Marcel Nunis. Since then each year's festival has had a distinctive visual symbol, known as the Muse, which appears on every poster, program, T-shirt, or other bit of information about the festival. That's the current 2015 Muse, "Moving Free," by local illustrator Christopher Cayco at right.

The selection of each year's Muse has itself become an arts-world focus, with a competition among local illustrators to produce image that will be the face of the festival, and then a formal "Muse Reveal" ceremony to announce the winner. (You can watch the 2014 Muse Reveal here and read about some previous competitions on Fresno Beehive.) This year's program also included a "Kid Muse," based on the main Muse theme, to introduce some children's programs.

There is too much going on at the Rogue, at too many venues, by too many performers, for me to do anything more at the moment than say: Keep this festival in mind! The day before the official opening, my wife Deb and I went to a "Teaser" presentation in which some 30 of the festival's acts (out of 70+) gave brief previews of their performances. These were strictly limited to 120 seconds or less, with emcees Jonathon Hogan and Amy Querin walking out to slow-clap each act off the stage the instant the 121st second arrived. It was an effective way to convey the range of material on offer. For more on how this year's festival unfolded, please see follow wrap-ups like one in the Fresno Bee about the "Famous Haydell Sisters" or this in Kings River Life or this compendium in Fresno BeeHive.