Marianne Crosby is one busy person. Besides working during the week as the executive assistant to humanities, arts and cultural studies dean Elizabeth Langland, she also holds down a second, weekend job pouring wine at the R.H. Phillips winery.

But up to 15 times a month, Crosby will find time for another job, this one a volunteer post. She'll serve as one of 20 head ushers at the Mondavi Center.

"It is a way to combine my love of meeting people and enjoying the arts," Crosby said.

For her work - overseeing a group of ushers and troubleshooting with center staff - she'll be able to catch a glimpse of the world-class performances soon to be held there. Crosby isn't the only local arts lover who wants to be a part of the Mondavi Center's excitement.

More than 650 community members -- a great number of whom work at UC Davis -- have volunteered to work at the center during its opening season. In exchange for quick glimpses or sound snippets of Mondavi performances, they'll usher, take tickets, staff information booths and direct traffic.

For years UC Davis Presents, the university's previous major performing arts series, was supported by a regular group of 75 volunteers, said Pat Kivela, a Mondavi Center house manager. But the opening of the new center has attracted a far larger group. Art lovers are coming from as far as Cameron Park, Auburn and the Bay Area to offer their assistance, she said.

"Everyone wants to be involved in the first season."

The volunteer group is so large that a special Web site has been set up for helpers to select performances at which they want to help out. Volunteers may select anywhere between one and 15 events a month.

Daniel Ng, who is active in community theatre and dance programs, says he hopes to volunteer at some dance performances. But Ng, a staff research associate in the viticulture and enology department, said he's also not averse to helping out at events with which he's not so familiar.

"Volunteering allows you to see something you normally wouldn't," Ng said. "It expands your horizons."

Volunteers will work every event from major symphony performances in Jackson Hall to intimate chamber concerts in the Studio Theatre. No matter the venue or production, the service the volunteers perform is integral to the success of the Mondavi Center, Kivela said.

"One can have the most fabulous performance on the stage, but if (a patron) is treated roughly or discourteously at the door, it can change how they feel," she said. "First impressions are very important."