Tag archives: UCSB

On Their Mark…
By Richard Mineards   |   May 17, 2018

UCSB Arts & Lectures debuted New York-based Mark Morris Dance Group’s colorful and energized Left Coast premiere of Sgt. Pepper at 50: Pepperland, which it had co-commissioned, at the Granada. The highly entertaining show is a collaboration with composer-arranger Ethan Iverson, who has taken six songs from the Beatles’ seminal 1967 Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts […]

Clam Jam
By Richard Mineards   |   May 3, 2018

Popular Santa Barbara charity The Teddy Bear Cancer Foundation threw its first ever California Clam Bake at Stearns Wharf. The maritime masticatory moment, which was expected to raise $50,000, kicked off at the Natural History Museum’s Sea Center, with canapés by Miso Hungry, before moving to the Harbor Restaurant, a tiara’s toss away for a […]

The Allosphere Science Meets Art
By Joanne A Calitri   |   May 3, 2018

In an unprecedented frame, Nathan Vonk, owner of Sullivan Goss Gallery, accepted a proposal from Dr. JoAnn Kuchera-Morin, director and chief scientist of the AlloSphere Research Facility [UCSB] and her team including Dr. Andres Cabrera, Media Systems engineer; Dennis Adderton, technical director; and Gustavo Rincon, grad student, to present their latest work for free to […]

Read Between the Lines
By Richard Mineards   |   May 3, 2018

To the Kimpton Goodland Hotel in Goleta for a UCSB Arts & Lectures reception for peripatetic New York Times columnist Nicholas Kristof. A winner of two Pulitzer Prizes and a recipient of a Rhodes Scholarship at Oxford University, the 58-year-old Harvard graduate has more followers on Twitter – 1.5 million – than any other print […]

4Q’s: Koh-laborating on Classical Violin
By Steven Libowitz   |   April 26, 2018

Violinist Jennifer Koh has brought her three-part “Bach and Beyond” and the cutting edge “Bridge to Beethoven” recital series to Hahn Hall for several concerts with UCSB Arts & Lectures over the years. Now, the fearless fiddler is returning to town with her most ambitious endeavor to date: “Shared Madness”, a set of 30 short […]

4 into 49 = Bedlam
By Steven Libowitz   |   April 19, 2018

In an offering that wouldn’t appear out of place at a Fringe Festival, New York’s acclaimed theater company Bedlam makes its Santa Barbara debut on April 19-20 with a two-night stand featuring two different programs of classic works. The four actors take on 49 characters in adrenaline-fueled performances unexpectedly funny, stripped-down stagings of Shakespeare’s Hamlet […]

Very Clef-er
By Richard Mineards   |   April 12, 2018

It was certainly an eclectic program when soprano Julia Bullock, accompanied by John Arida on the piano, wowed the audience at the Music Academy of the West’s Hahn Hall. Bullock, who has appeared with many the world’s great orchestras, including the New York and Los Angeles philharmonics, and the London and San Francisco symphonies, sang […]

Funny Females on Film
By Steven Libowitz   |   April 12, 2018

It’s not accurate to term the new film series at UCSB’s Pollock Theater “#MeToo at the Movies”, but there’s also no denying that the increased attention on women in Hollywood played a part in the Carsey-Wolf Center’s “Women in Comedy” screenings that get underway this week. Five different films will be shown during the series, […]

Musician Bringin’ Love at 81
By Joanne A Calitri   |   March 29, 2018

Buddy Guy gave an over-the-top, full-on performance at the Granada Theater on March 16 to a sold-out crowd, as part of the UCSB Arts and Lectures program. At 81, with the energy of an 18-year-old, he shared his passion and music genius with a non-stop, 2-hour gig.  Here in our midst was a wise respected […]

Dance Stance
By Richard Mineards   |   March 15, 2018

Superlatives are not sufficient to describe the Spanish National Dance Company’s performance of Swedish choreographer Johan Inger‘s Carmen at the Granada. The 39-year-old Madrid-based troupe, who last dazzled us six years ago, showed why the quintessentially Spanish work has become one of the most talked-about new ballets of the decade with Japan-born Kayoko Everhart dazzling […]

Gaby Gaby Hey
By Steven Libowitz   |   March 8, 2018

Gaby Moreno moved from Guatemala to Los Angeles at 18 to pursue a career in music, and really never looked back. Not even musically, at least not for almost a decade. The singer-songwriter who blends blues, jazz, ’60s rock ‘n’ roll, and Latin American influences into something she calls “Spanish folk-soul” fell in love with […]

Fine Wine
By Richard Mineards   |   March 1, 2018

Pioneering winemaker Fred Brander was honored as Vintner of the Year at a socially gridlocked gala in aid of Direct Relief at the Ritz-Carlton Bacara. The biennial oenophile bash and wine auction, which attracted 600 guests and was emceed by The Bachelor host Chris Harrison, raised a hefty $1.2 million, with a third of the […]

Mobile Music
By Richard Mineards   |   February 22, 2018

Berlin-based organist Cameron Carpenter, who I first saw two years ago, was back in our Eden by the Beach for another UCSB Arts & Lectures Granada show. The maverick showman, the first organist nominated for a Grammy Award for a solo album, continues to smash the stereotypes of organists, organ, and classical music as a […]

Honorable Mention
By Richard Mineards   |   February 15, 2018

As the Santa Barbara International Film Festival celebrated the debut of its 33rd year at the Arlington across the road, the Anti-Defamation League honored First Responders and SB County Search and Rescue with its third annual bash at Villa and Vine across the way. The 130-guest bash, chaired by Beth Katz, raised $10,000 toward the […]

Get a Load of This
By Richard Mineards   |   February 1, 2018

After the massive cleanup following the devastating Montecito mudslides, where to dump it? More than 20,000 dump truck loads – in excess of seven million pounds – of muck have been taken to the Ventura County Fairgrounds, where it is being stored temporarily. But with the totals increasing daily, officials face a daunting task. One […]

Jazz Musicians Groovin’ High
By Joanne A Calitri   |   January 11, 2018

The Jazz Ensemble at UCSB held its end-of-session concerts in early December, despite being the first day of the Thomas Fire with smoke in the air and evacuations. The 50 musicians and four vocalists range from professionals to students forming into seven mini-orchestral jazz bands. The bands are led by Jazz Ensemble director Jon Nathan […]

Think Pink
By Richard Mineards   |   December 14, 2017

The Arlington Theatre was packed for the much-awaited return concert by Pink Martini, the Portland, Oregon, musicians making their eighth appearance here, all eight of which I have been lucky enough to see. The sold-out show, part of the popular UCSB Arts & Lectures series, featured Harvard graduate China Forbes on vocals singing a wide […]

Samantha Bee
By Lynda Millner   |   November 30, 2017

UCSB Arts & Lectures is at it again! They have brought the cutting-edge comedian Samantha Bee from New York to appear at the Arlington Theatre for a conversation with our own local bombshell writer Starshine Roshell, who is also wise and witty. Samantha is known for her comedic voice on her late night show Full […]

Singer Lvoff Goes to the Head(less) of the Lane
By Steven Libowitz   |   November 23, 2017

If Nicole Lvoff could swing it, she’d rather be singing jazz music full-time for a living than working in the public library system. On the other hand, if it weren’t for her library job, she might never have met Joe Woodard, another Santa Barbara who is well-known in town as an entertainment journalist (The News-Press […]

Misty-Eyed
By Richard Mineards   |   November 23, 2017

Montecito philanthropist Michael Hammer‘s wife, Misty, was feted at a bridal shower hosted by Dolores Johnson at the home of Condor Express owner, Hiroko Benko. After lunch overlooking the ocean and the Channel Islands, a tea ceremony presented by Tom Craveiro and Yuki Nakamura, wife of Nobel Prize winner Shuji Nakamura. Guests included police chief […]