Another local independent facing challenges is the Zeitgeist Gallery, a haven for performance and creative artists which hopes to relocate from 1353 Cambridge St. to 186 Hampshire St. in Inman Sq., Cambridge. The multimedia hotspot schedules between 17-20 exhibitions per year, and hosts music, poetry, theatre and film performances nearly every evening, as well as classes and workshops.

On Thursday, Feb. 16, at the Regent Theatre in Arlington, from 7:30-11:30 p.m., the “Battle for the Brattle (and while we're at it, the Zeitgeist Gallery)” will feature seminal Boston rockers Robin Lane and the Chartbusters and Willie Loco Alexander and the Boom Boom Band. Joining the bill will be Dave Maxwell's Maximum Blues, the Twinemen and others. The event will be hosted by “George Bush and Dick Cheney,“ a/k/a Ian MacKinnon and Eric Zinman; food will be provided by the Blue Ribbon Barbecue.

“This fundraiser is a chance for the President and I to make a rare appearance together,“ said Cheney impersonator Eric Zinman. Declaring that “these times call for greater civility and compassion,” he heralded future arts funding from Draper Laboratories and the Pentagon. “There is an audience that supports the war and they're not being served,” he said. “We need more films like Frank Capra’s and Cecile B. Demille’s.” He predicted Jerry Bruckheimer film festivals, John Wayne and Ronald Reagan nights. “We're still in the planning stages.”

Zinman, or was it Cheney, mentioned his wife Lynn’s past chairmanship of the National Endowment for the Humanities. “We often discussed film and history as one of the greatest vehicles of patriotism. Now, with two million new jobs in '05 and unemployment down to 4.9 percent, this success should trickle down into the local arts scene,” he said.

Zinman, 42, holds a Master’s in Music from the New England Conservatory. In 1995, he founded the Zeitgeist’s Playground music series, and in 1999, jazz space Studio 234. He began studying piano at the age of 7, and sang boys’ soprano in opera and musicals. His mother taught art and art history in the Needham Public Schools; music, theater and poetry influenced his family life. Zinman has composed music for dance and theatre and collaborated on several orchestra projects. He attended Temple Israel and sang background vocals on the “Dreams of Safam,” a project directed by local cantor Robbi Solomon. He has been a hardcore Zionist, but now supports those who work toward an Israeli/Palestinian peace movement.

Zinman and theatrical producer, playwright, musician and actor MacKinnon, of the Artezani Theatre, produced 2003’s “The Bush/Cheney Christmas” and 2004‘s “The Apotheosis of George W. Bush” at the Zeitgeist. They began their act in 2002 on Boston Common, before the current Iraqi war, as a reaction to what they felt was inadequate general media coverage.

MacKinnon is married to Rebecca Ostriker, a Boston Globe arts editor and the daughter of Brandeis visiting professor, poet and Midrashist Alicia Ostriker. He produced “The Awannoa Show,“ which explored early Puritans’ identification with Jews and the Old Testament. A colorful street theater figure, MacKinnon ran for Cambridge City Council, pledging to contribute half the annual salary toward art grants for Cambridge residents. His “cultural renaissance” platform and Art and Performance Party stressed bringing more art into Cambridge, along with increased grants, lower rents and cheaper performance space.

The Zeitgeist move was necessitated by both booking policy and mortgage payment issues with the landlord, also a musician seeking performance space. In its new location, the venue will be headed by three Jewish arts organizers. Founders Alan Nidle and Rob Chalfen will continue to manage operations; pianist Gill Aharon will direct and co-own the new headquarters. Aharon lived with his family in Israel for many years, relocating to England for his parents’ medical fellowships, and ultimately to New York. He and his brother Alon were bar mitzvahed at the Western Wall. Aharon hosts the Gallery’s Fishlung Piano Series and produces its Piano Festival, and holds degrees from Duke in mechanical engineering, and from Berklee College of Music. He has performed in Middle Eastern music fests and in Mediterranean and Israeli tours.

Concert performer David Maxwell has played piano with many famous blues musicians who include John Lee Hooker, Bonnie Raitt, Buddy Guy, Freddie King, Muddy Waters, James Cotton and Otis Rush. “Besides blues, jazz, and improvised music I have an abiding interest in traditional music from the Near East and Eastern Europe: Turkish, Persian, Arabic, Macedonian and Klezmer, to name a few,” he said. He won a Grammy in 1997 for “James Cotton ‘Deep in the Blues’,” and has been nominated for several other Grammys and WC Handy awards. Maxwell played 10 concerts in two weeks in Tel Aviv, Jerusalem, and Haifa a few years ago; he has cousins, nieces and nephews there. His mother immigrated from Russia; his father, also a Russian Jew, was born in Brooklyn. In the 1960's, he frequented the legendary Club 47, now Passim. His 2005 release, “Max Attack” on 95NorthRecords, features guest appearances from Ronnie Earl, Duke Robillard, James Cotton and others.

“The president will be in good spirits and is looking forward to saving these cultural monuments in Cambridge,” said Cheney, or was it Zinman?