On Friday, May 12, Ventura College Chamber Music (Ashley Walters, Director) presents its talented chamber music students in organically-formed ensembles collaborating to perform highly varied repertoire spanning the classical era to present day. The program for this concert features music by composers including Clara Schumann, Henri Duparc and Francis Poulenc. One performance only!
On Saturday May, 13th the Ventura College Jazz Band pays tribute to legendary American saxophonist Wayne Shorter at 6pm in the Helen Yunker Auditorium. This concert will feature special guest artist tenor saxophonist Randal Fisher. One performance only!
The Santa Paula Art Museum is pleased to present “On the Ranch,” a solo exhibition by Santa Fe artist and longtime Ventura County resident Andrea Vargas. Featuring over 40 all-new paintings and drawings, “On the Ranch” honors the places at the heart of Vargas’ life and art: her familial homes in Santa Paula and Ventura, California. Meet the artist during the exhibit premiere party on Saturday, May 13, 2023, from 4:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. Admission to the premiere reception is $5 for SPAM members and $10 for non-members. Wine, beer, and hors d’oeuvres will be served. “On the Ranch” will be on view at the Santa Paula Art Museum from May 13, 2023, to September 10, 2023. All of the artworks are available for purchase.
This mother’s day join Ventura College Instrumental Ensembles for a very special concert. The Symphony & Chamber Orchestras will perform music including Tchaikovsky’s Serenade for Strings; Copland’s Rodeo, plus music by Duke Ellington. VC is proud to present Juan Pablo Conteras’s Mariachitlán. The composer has been working with VC’s student musicians on this piece and plans to join us for the concert.
UCSB Arts & Lectures (A&L) presents a conversation with Jonathan Greenblatt on Monday, May 22 at 7:30 p.m. at Campbell Hall. As the chief executive of the Anti-Defamation League, the world’s leading anti-hate organization, Jonathan Greenblatt has created innovative approaches to carry out what has been ADL’s mission since its founding in 1913: to fight the defamation of the Jewish people, and to secure justice and fair treatment to all. His recent book, It Could Happen Here, warns that hate and systemic violence are gathering momentum in the U.S. Drawing on ADL’s decades of experience in fighting hate through investigative research, education programs and legislative victories, as well as his own personal story and his background in business and government, Greenblatt offers a bracing primer on how we can strike back against hate.
OPAC is proud to partner with Pinaysphere, a Filipinx Arts Mentorship nonprofit, to present the Second Annual Asian American Pacific Islander (AAPI) Festival, Saturday, May 27, 2023 from 12 noon to 5 pm at Heritage Square in Downtown Oxnard. The event is in celebration of AAPI Heritage Month which recognizes the contributions and influences of Asian Americans and Pacific Islander Americans to the history, culture, and achievements of the United States. OPAC’s event amplifies the narratives of our AAPI community by spotlighting local talent, entrepreneurs, artists, and grassroots leaders.
Join us for an annual Memorial Day Remembrance Ceremony taking place outside at the Veterans Memorial Building in San Luis Obispo on Monday, May 29, at 11:00 a.m. located at 801 Grand Avenue, near the Cal Poly entrance. Co-hosted by American Legion Post 66 and Central Coast Veterans Memorial Museum. San Luis Obispo County residents and visitors of all ages will come together on this special day, to honor and remember all who lost their lives making the ultimate sacrifice during their service to our country.
Please join the City of Oxnard on Monday, May 29, 2023, for a Memorial Day Ceremony in Downtown Oxnard at Plaza Park (500 South C Street), starting at 11:00 a.m.
Memorial Day is a solemn day of remembrance for everyone who has died serving in the American Armed Forces. We welcome the Oxnard community to participate in honoring and remembering our fallen service members.
Proclaimed a “standout” by The New York Times, multidisciplinary artist Nicholas Galanin explores conceptions and misconceptions surrounding Indigenous identity.
The first annual Wild Oaks Country Music Festival will take place Saturday, June 3 in Thousand Oaks and will feature some of Nashville’s favorite country artists.
Performers set to appear include country chart-topping Craig Morgan, grammy-nominated CAM, and local favorites Justin Honsinger and Chris Johnson and the Hollywood Hillbillies (straight from the Cowboy Palace in Chatsworth).
As stewards of the water, the Port of Hueneme is hosting a series of four short sessions on June 8th, seeking to inspire change and celebrate World Oceans Day! The Presenters and topics will showcase individuals whose organizations, projects, and initiatives align with the port’s mission of growing a blue economy while protecting and preserving one of the most critical pieces of our biosphere.
On June 9, we will be hosting a night of laughter and entertainment with some of the best comedians in the business. Our event will be held at the John L. Notter Family Boys & Girls Club, and all proceeds will go directly to supporting our programs and services for youth in our community.
Tickets are available at: funnygirlevents.com
Temple Etz Chaim is proud to announce it will host two critically-acclaimed music groups, Nefesh Mountain Band and Mostly Kosher, on June 11 for a community concert, Cantor Kenny & Friends: An Entertaining Evening Celebrating Jewish Music.
Cantor Kenny Ellis, who will emcee the event, has been a cantor for over 30 years, serving at numerous synagogues in the Los Angeles area. Cantor Kenny produced Hanukkah Swings!, the world’s one-and-only big band Hanukkah album. He has performed at West Point and Avery Fisher Hall at the Lincoln Center. He has played a rabbi on many shows including Curb Your Enthusiasm and Law and Order.
The concert will be held Sunday, June 11 from 6:30 p.m. to 9 p.m. at Temple Etz Chaim at 1080 East Janss Road in Thousand Oaks. The concert will be held in the temple’s newly re-opened state-of-the-art sanctuary and social hall.
The Juneteenth Celebration, presented by the Juneteenth Committee of Ventura County, will be held on Saturday, June 17, 2023, from 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. at Plaza Park, 500 S. C ST., Oxnard.
Simon Spalding presents a sweeping panorama of food at sea, based on his book “Food at Sea – Shipboard Cuisine from Ancient to Modern Times.” Simon offers tantalizing stories of maritime culinary history, from the ingredients and practices of ancient Argonauts and Vikings through Renaissance explorers, sailing navies and merchant ships, steamships, ocean liners, cruise ships, and submarines.
The 67th Annual Conejo Valley Days is set for June 15 through June 25 (dark June 19 and 20) at Conejo Creek Park South (23 Freeway/Janss Rd. exit) in Thousand Oaks.
Festival goers can enjoy carnival rides from Kastl Amusements plus midway games for all ages along with traditional fair and specialty foods. CVD features live rock and country bands including the Colette Lovejoy Band and 805 Social Club, and line dancing led by instructor Kristal Lynn.
Mixteco/Indigena Community Organizing Project (MICOP) is inviting the public to attend its annual Oxnard Guelaguetza Festival on June 25th, 2023, from 11 a.m to 5 p.m at Plaza Park in Oxnard: 500 S. C Street, Oxnard, CA, 93030.
MICOP (Mixteco/Indígena Community Organizing Project) was founded in 2001 “to support, organize and empower the Indigenous immigrant community in California’s Central Coast.” MICOP serves over 12,000 unduplicated Indigenous migrant men, women, and children annually. MICOP organizes and trains the indigenous migrant community to become self-sufficient and successful members of the broader community. MICOP programs and advocacy in California’s Central Coast have created the state’s most advanced network of services available to indigenous farm workers.
SANTA BARBARA — The Cottage Center for Orthopedics will present a free Virtual Meet the Doctor event on Thursday, June 29, from 4 – 5 p.m., featuring Dr. Chris Birch and Dr. Danielle Thomas, orthopedic surgeons affiliated with Cottage Health, who will discuss how to keep joints healthy.
Doctors Birch and Thomas will provide information on joint pain relief, joint replacement, joint preservation surgery, and partial knee replacement. They will also review causes and symptoms, strategies for prevention and treatment, advanced treatment options as well as offer a Q&A session.
SANTA BARBARA – Cottage Health’s Trauma Services, in partnership with Santa Barbara agencies, is thrilled to invite the community to its free Summer Safety and Fun Event on Saturday, July 1, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Ortega Park and Pool located at 604 East Ortega St., Santa Barbara.
Designed to ensure the safety of children during the summer season, the Summer Safety and Fun Event promises a day of excitement, engagement, and education for families. Children of all ages can partake in a wide array of activities while learning important safety tips.
Music At Portside, a new classical concert series in Ventura County, offers monthly chamber music recitals, played by brilliant local and international musicians.
Our opening concert features classical duo Nicole Taylor, soprano and Natasha Marin, piano — performing an intimate program on the different seasons of love, with beautiful songs by Brahms, Rachmaninov, R. Strauss, Chausson, and Hahn.
This is classical music in an intimate, informal, “come as you are” setting, perfect for a relaxing Sunday afternoon, a few steps away from the sea at Portside Ventura Harbor. If you are a classical music lover or if you don’t know very much about classical music, but want to learn more… Come and listen!
Doors open at 5:15PM. The exact location at Portside Ventura Harbor will be shown after ticket purchase.
The Community Environmental Council is opening the Central Coast’s first Environmental Hub – and you’re invited to the party!
Please join us on Thursday, July 6, 2023 at 5:30 p.m. for the Ribbon Cutting and Grand Opening Celebration! Part of Downtown Santa Barbara’s 1st Thursday Art Walk, the grand opening will feature “Return of the Western Monarch Butterfly: A Photographic Exhibit and Scientific Roadmap for Protecting this Endangered Species” by resident artist Elizabeth Weber.
SANTA BARBARA — La LoCA Milonga is back with more tango at 1724 E. Haley St., Santa Barbara.
La LoCA Milonga started back in 2021. And now, in 2023…a whole tango orquesta sprouted in Los Angeles, partly based on the teaching of the very same artist we brought to Santa Barbara, that first time.
If you have not yet attended a “Lost at Sea” Exhibit Talk, The Veterans Museum invites you to attend the upcoming presentation on Tuesday, July 11th at 5:30 pm, in San Luis Obispo.
In partnership with EDD, the Western Ventura County Employer Advisory Council proudly presents a 90-minute seminar on Terminations.
SANTA BARBARA — Get ready to explore the galaxy this summer with UCSB Arts & Lectures’ 2023 FREE Summer Cinema line-up: “Out of This World.” The series continues with Ridley Scott’s feminist space horror classic, Alien, at the Santa Barbara County Courthouse Sunken Garden on Friday, July 14 at 8:30 pm.
SANTA BARBARA — The Music Academy, currently in week four of its 76th annual Summer Festival, presents a timeless classic opera in a brand-new setting.
La bohème will be performed in the original Italian on Friday, July 14 at 7:30 pm and Sunday, July 16 at 2:30 pm at the Granada Theatre in downtown Santa Barbara. The fully staged and costumed production will showcase the 2023 Lehrer Vocal Institute fellows and 50 Instrumental fellows from the Academy Festival Orchestra, joined by a full chorus consisting of Lehrer Vocal Institute fellows and studio artists, and a children’s chorus comprised of members of the Music Academy’s SING! program.
Premiere Party: California Art League’s “The California Scene”
Saturday, July 15, 2023, from 4 PM to 6 PM
$5 SPAM Members • $10 Non-members
Join us at the Santa Paula Art Museum for the premiere of “The California Scene,” a spectacular summer exhibition showcasing 59 quintessential California scenes in a variety of media by 44 artists from the long-established California Art League (CAL). The show is CAL’s 2023 Gold Medal Exhibition and multiple awards will be announced during the premiere party. Meet the artists and delight in a diversity of California scenes: from beaches to barns, from wildflowers to waves, to vineyards, the desert, the High Sierra, and more. Many of the artworks will be available for purchase.
SANTA BARBARA — Get ready for Magnetic by Chris Gocong. In each generation a handful of individuals emerge that resonate and represent the collective. Gocong’s newest portrait series attempts to capture magnetic icons through explorative portraiture.
This event is happening on Saturday, Jul 15, 2023, from 6 – 9 pm at Helena Mason Art Gallery located at 48 Helena Avenue, Santa Barbara, CA 93101.
It will be an unforgettable night filled with art, beats by Diego Rockwell, drinks by Cutler’s Artisan Spirits and Flying Embers. Don’t miss out on this opportunity to be a part of something truly special.
Temple Etz Chaim is proud to host an annual speaker series for the local community. The 2023 Speaker Series is entitled “Our World Evolving: Global Thought Leaders in Our Community.” This is a series of socially relevant conversations with modern thought leaders, authors and scholars. Rabbi Averbach will introduce our speakers and moderate a Q&A with those in attendance after the speech.
Returning to the Museum in what has become a much-anticipated and highly-animated annual event, T.C. Boyle, Santa Barbara’s prolific and perennial favorite, reads from his latest novel, Blue Skies.
THOUSAND OAKS — The Kingsmen Shakespeare Festival (KSF) concludes its 26th season with “King Lear,” running Fridays through Sundays from July 21 through Aug. 6 on the California Lutheran University campus. A novel twist on Shakespeare’s classic tragedy, which is set in a pre-Christian, pagan time and place, the Kingsmen production takes place in the near future, in an abandoned shopping mall after an apocalyptic event.
“We don’t know what this apocalyptic event is, or when it takes place,” said KSF co-founder and Artistic Director Michael J. Arndt, who is directing the play, “but there’s a sense of this person trying to maintain power in his ‘kingdom.’”
SANTA BARBARA — Get ready to explore the galaxy this summer with UCSB Arts & Lectures’ 2023 FREE Summer Cinema line-up: “Out of This World.” The series continues with Tim Burton’s send-up of vintage sci-fi invasion flicks, Mars Attacks! at the Santa Barbara County Courthouse Sunken Garden on Friday, July 21 at 8:30 pm.
The Music Academy’s SING! Children’s Choir and the renowned Young People’s Chorus of New York City (YPC) are excited to announce their joint concert, taking place at the Lobero Theatre in Santa Barbara. The much-anticipated performance will be held on Sunday, July 23 at 3 pm and promises to captivate audiences of all ages.
SANTA BARBARA — At the invitation of the Santa Barbara Museum of Art (SBMA), Awol Erizku, a noted photographer, sculptor, and painter and subject of a recent New Yorker profile, is collaborating with nine 2023 fellows at the Music Academy of Santa Barbara to plan a memorable one-night-only performance on July 23, that will bridge visual art and classical music.
Erizku is a natural choice for Radiant Frequencies project because music threads through his unusually varied and impossible to easily package practice. Nefertiti—Miles Davis Gold (2022) is a gold mirrored mosaic in the form of the ancient Egyptian queen, which also references Miles Davis’s album Nefertiti (1968). Moreover, the artist says that No Hesi(2022), from his new Cosmic Drill series, relates to Drill, a genre of hip hop. Both artworks are in the Museum’s collection and are currently on display. He is also widely known for his photographs of musicians, including Beyoncé, Nipsey Hussle, J-Cole and Bad Bunny.
Dear Korean War Veterans (and their loved ones),
We are inviting our Central Coast Veterans who served during the Korean War Era to join us on July 27th from 9:30 am – 11:30 am at the Central Coast Veterans Memorial Museum in San Luis Obispo. In addition to good coffee sponsored by Coastal Peaks Roasters (local and veteran owned), breakfast treats, and conversation, we are offering the opportunity to sit for a free professional portrait photo to those who attend.
Thursday, July 27th, 2023, marks the 70th anniversary of the Korean Armistice Agreement. Some refer to it as the ‘Forgotten War’ but for those who served, their families, and all Americans, it should always be remembered. Our museum’s mission is to honor our veterans from past and present with emphasis on those from the Central Coast of California.
SANTA BARBARA — Get ready to explore the galaxy this summer with UCSB Arts & Lectures’ 2023 FREE Summer Cinema line-up: “Out of This World.” The series continues with Luc Besson’s outrageous sci-fi adventure, The Fifth Element at the Santa Barbara County Courthouse Sunken Garden on Friday, July 28 at 8:30 p.m.
OXNARD — The Oxnard Performing Arts Center Corporation (OPAC) is proud to present Ventura County’s first one-day convention that brings together the worlds of gaming and anime on Friday, July 28! IchigoCon promises an unforgettable day where gaming and anime enthusiasts of all ages can come together, reveling in the fandom of these captivating worlds.
The convention kicks off at 11 am with the highly anticipated Super Smash Bros tournament. Prepare to witness an intense clash of skills as over 100 players, including both amateur enthusiasts and professional players, battle it out for glory and a handsome $1,000 cash pot. With a diverse range of competitors, the tournament guarantees electrifying matches that will leave you on the edge of your seat. Confirmed players include Missouri’s Apollokage (Top 20 Best World Super Smash BrosPlayer) and Canada’s Ouch!? (Top 50 Best World Super Smash BrosPlayer).
OXNARD — Community Roots Garden, at 1801 Joliet Pl. in Oxnard, will host some beautiful collective workshops and conversations guided by some wonderfully talented individuals. These workshops are geared towards healing and connecting by sharing knowledge of ancestral ways of being through storytelling and cultural art practice shares. All workshops start at 10 a.m. with options to stay to help paint the mural after each workshops.
Bart Devolder discusses the role a conservator plays in the life of an artwork. What does it mean to respect the artist’s original intention during a restoration treatment and can we even know what those intentions were? Using several case studies, Devolder illustrates that restoring a work of art to its former glory is not always straightforward.
