This edition of On Culture was originally emailed to subscribers on September 26, 2025. To receive Leslie Dinaberg’s arts newsletter in your inbox on Fridays, sign up at independent.com/newsletters.
ON the Stage
Paul McCartney takes the stage at the Bowl tonight for what is perhaps the show of the decade in Santa Barbara. If you were lucky enough to score tickets for this intimate, highly anticipated evening, I can’t wait to hear all about it. Essentially a warm-up for Sir Paul’s Got Back Tour 2025 run of stadium and arena dates that begins in Palm Desert with a sold-out show on September 29, there are still limited tickets available for the Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas on October 4. And third party buyers beware: You’d be better off spending your money on flying to Vegas than trying to get into the Bowl with a secondary market ticket. See Izadora Hamm’s story, “Resale Tickets to Paul McCartney Show ‘Won’t Be Honored,’ Warns Santa Barbara Bowl CEO” here.
Looking ahead, Coachella announced its lineup for April 10-12 and April 17-19, 2026, super early this time around. And tickets are already on sale for a lineup that includes Sabrina Carpenter, Justin Bieber, Karol G., Anyma, The XX, The Strokes, Young Thug, and BigBang, among others. Sharp-eyed viewers may notice that none other than the Bob Baker Marionettes, who appeared for FREE in Santa Barbara at the Plaza del Mar Bandshell last May (see story) are on the bill on April 10 & 17! Lesson for entertainers everywhere: play the Bandshell in Santa Barbara, it might make your career. For more festival information and updates, click here.
ON the Walls
Having just finished part one of our Fall Arts Preview (read it here), we’ve been hard at work on next week’s visual arts focused preview. There’s so much innovative work going on right now. Don’t miss the Brill Family Foundation’s Symbiosis or Schism? The AI-Human Odyssey. An AI art exhibit hosted at the Community Arts Workshop (CAW), the event opens October 2 and runs through October 12 and has both artists and guests pondering whether AI should be embraced or rejected. See Meaghan Clark Tiernan’s story here. Another must see is the Brave New Work symposium and public art exhibit October 7-9. I will have a major story about this in next week’s paper, but meanwhile, you can check out the website for more information here.
Absolutely positively definitely topping the must see list on my cultural calendar are Santa Barbara Museum of Art’s two highly anticipated exhibitions — The Impressionist Revolution: Monet to Matisse from the Dallas Museum of Art and Encore: 19th-Century French Art from the Santa Barbara Museum of Art — both opening on October 5. I know that’s a lot of superlatives, but these are some of my favorite artists in the world. Period. Full stop.
We’ll also have a major story about these exhibits in next week’s paper, but meanwhile, if you want to see these notable works from artists such as Claude Monet, Paul Gauguin, Vincent van Gogh, Piet Mondrian, and Henri Matisse — and if you read my newsletter I know you do — exhibition tickets are now on sale at sbma.net. Don’t fret, the work will be on view until January 25, 2026, so there’s enough time to moon over these beauties more than once.
ON the Street
Get ready for the highly anticipated Masq(p)arade! performance progressive to return to downtown Santa Barbara for its fifth year on Friday, October 3, where in conjunction with Pianos on State public art exhibit, there will be free piano-based performances every 15 minutes from 5:30-8 p.m. Participants are encouraged to wear theatrical masks as they join in the festive atmosphere and a lively lineup that includes:
5:30 – 5:45 p.m. Nadine Pearson @ The Red Piano (519 State St.)
6:00 – 6:15 p.m. Haiku in C Minor @ World Market (610 State St.)
6:30 – 6:45 p.m. Out of the Box Theatre Company @ Tondi Gelato (401 Paseo Nuevo)
7:00 – 7:15 p.m. Konrad Kono @ Bank of America (834 State St.)
7:30 – 7:45 p.m. Piano in the Sky @ The Lobero Theatre (33 E. Canon Perdido St.)
ON the Horizon
With the theme “Living Architecture: Santa Barbara” the American Institute of Architects Santa Barbara 16th annual ArchitecTours is a great time for architecture buffs to check out a variety of distinctive homes from a property nestled in the tranquil foothills of the Santa Ynez Mountains to sun-drenched coastal retreats, and thoughtfully designed commercial and public spaces. The tour takes place on October 4 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., with an after party at Ospi from 4-6 p.m. Click here for tickets and details.
ON the (Big) Screen
The Marjorie Luke Theatre presents the premiere of Saving The Foothills, on Sunday, October 5, as part of its Green Film Series. Directed by Cody Westheimer, the film chronicles the inspiring, community-led effort to preserve 100 acres of the West Mesa of the San Marcos Foothills from development. The film highlights the passion, resilience, and dedication of local activists who united to protect and restore this vital landscape for future generations. For more information and tickets, click here.
ON the Calendar
It’s community nature play day on October 4. Join Wilderness Youth Project for a joyful Saturday outside from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Oak Park (at the creekside Sycamore Picnic Area), near Cottage Hospital) where the whole family can enjoy hands-on activities and creative outdoor fun with nature crafts, earth-based skills, and other interactive activities led by Wilderness Youth Project staff and other local community partners, like Yes Yes Nursery, who will be leading a seed planting activity. This year’s free annual event features the Grammy Award–winning musical group, the Alphabet Rockers, who will guide attendees in a collective songwriting experience to find your voice in nature through music and expression.
“We have nearly 20 years of this intentional work making music to inspire culture change. Nature has a similar impact — aiding our mental health, widening our perspectives on life, and creating peaceful memories we can access anytime,” said Kaitlin McGaw of Alphabet Rockers. “We are thrilled to show up with the Wilderness Youth Project and create music that reflects the impact and experience that has changed so many people’s lives.”
Get your FREE tickets and more info here.
For a complete calendar of events this week and beyond, visit independent.com/events/.
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