This edition of ON Culture was originally emailed to subscribers on October 24, 2025. To receive Leslie Dinaberg’s arts newsletter in your inbox on Fridays, sign up at independent.com/newsletters.
ON the Stage
When 20 Buddhist monks come to perform flying kicks, backflips, and shadow-boxing I am ALL IN — so I can’t wait to check out Sutra, featuring the Monks of the Shaolin Temple on October 29 at the Granada! Described by the Daily Telegraph as “An enthralling, mind-expanding piece of theater,” this UCSB Arts & Lectures presentation of the award-winning collaboration between Belgian choreographer Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui, sculptor Antony Gormley, composer Szymon Brzóska, and 20 Buddhist monks from the Shaolin Temple in China’s Henan Province is sure to be unlike anything we’ve ever seen before. Click here for more information about the show.
Editor’s Note: We just received word that Sutra has postponed its U.S. tour. See link for details.
Queens of the Stone Age is coming to the Arlington on November 8 as part of their highly anticipated The Catacombs Tour, which includes stops in New York, Milan, Paris, Copenhagen, London, and lucky us — Santa Barbara! They also made a stop at The Tonight Show to play for Jimmy Fallon and crew, which you can check out here. Tickets and more information are here.
P.S: I just saw that their opening act is Paris Jackson (yes, she’s Michael’s daughter), who I saw at Bottlerock a few years ago and was very taken by.
Speaking of music festivals, they released the 2026 lineup for Stagecoach Festival and it looks pretty impressive, with headline performances from country music stars Cody Johnson, Lainey Wilson, and Post Malone. Also on the bill are Bailey Zimmerman, Riley Green, Brooks & Dunn, Ella Langley, Red Clay Strays, Warren Zeiders, Nate Smith, Sam Barber, Gavin Adcock, Wyatt Flores, Hudson Westbrook, Cameron Whitcomb, and many many more. The festival also welcomes Journey, Pitbull, BigXthaPlug, and Counting Crows. Stagecoach is April 24-26, 2026 (at Empire Polo Club in Indio) and passes are on sale now at stagecoachfestival.com.
We hear a lot about the PCPA theater productions at Solvang Festival Theater, but the outdoor venue also features a nice lineup of concerts, including the Robert Cray Band on Saturday, November 1. With his soulful voice and masterful guitar playing, Cray has sold millions of albums, won five Grammy Awards, been inducted into the Blues Hall of Fame, received the Americana Music Lifetime Achievement Award, and has shared stages and studios with legends including John Lee Hooker, B.B. King, Buddy Guy, Chuck Berry, The Rolling Stones, Eric Clapton, Tina Turner, and Stevie Ray Vaughan. Click here for tickets and more information.
Talk about a happy ending! Sunday’s performance of Romeo and Juliet at the Granada — the dual season opener for the Santa Barbara Symphony and State Street Ballet (see my preview here) — turned Shakespeare’s most famous romantic tragedy around when, during the curtain calls, Romeo (Ryan Lenkey) proposed to his real-life Juliet (Saori Yamashita). The joy and surprise on her face was so much fun to see. And it certainly made this already memorable season-opener one the audience won’t soon forget. Read Josef Woodard’s review here and at independent.com.
ON the Page
Santa Barbara Reads kicks off this weekend with a graphic novel, The Magic Fish by Trung Le Nguyen. Not only does this particular book open the community reading initiative up to a broader audience, it also explores some very timely themes of identity, belonging, self-expression, and immigration, says Adult Services Librarian Paige Sundstrom, who is in her third year of running the popular program (funded incidentally in large part by our fabulous Santa Barbara Public Library Foundation. Read Izzie Hamm’s story here and find out more about all of the S.B. Reads programming here.
ON the (Big) Screen
Ensemble Theatre Company has a cool new partnership with the National Theatre of Great Britain to bring their live productions (NT Live) to Santa Barbara audiences. The program launched this week with Oscar-nominated Rosamund Pike in the new play Inter Alia. Next up is a new production of Oscar Wilde’s timeless comedy The Importance of Being Earnest with Tony nominated actor Sharon D. Clarke in the role of Lady Bracknell on Monday, December 8. This production, which debuted to sold out audiences at the NT, will be opening on the West End this fall with Stephen Fry stepping into the role of Lady Bracknell. Then, the series closes with the multi-Tony Award–winning production War Horse on Monday, February 23, 2026. This beloved theatrical masterpiece has captivated audiences worldwide with its innovative puppetry and powerful storytelling about the bond between a boy and his horse during World War I. For tickets and more information, visit etcsb.org or call the ticket office at (805) 965-5400.
Based on the preview for Jay Kelly, Adam Sandler more than holds his own in a stellar cast that includes George Clooney, Laura Dern, Billy Crudup, and Emily Mortimer, among others. Sandler will receive the Maltin Modern Master Award from SBIFF on February 5, 2026, for the role that critics have praised for his ability to blend warmth, humor and sorrow in this role that’s seen as another step in his evolution as a dramatic actor. “I can’t wait to share the stage with him in Santa Barbara,” said Maltin. See sbiff.org for more information.
ON the Walls
Curator Susan Tibbles is guaranteed to have something interesting on the gallery walls at Santa Barbara Tennis Club and right now the show on view is Western Edge, featuring the work of Nancy Gifford, Ruth Ellen Hoag, Cynthia James, RT Livingston, Cynthia Martin, Kerrie Smith, Marlene Struss, Susan Tibbles, and Veronica Walmsley — all accomplished artists with ties to Santa Barbara and, as Tibbles put it, “bound together by beauty, innovation and serious intent.” The work is on view through December 2, and the gallery is open daily from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Santa Barbara Tennis Club, 2375 Foothill Rd. 2ndFridaysArt.com.
Artist Cassandra C. Jones has a new spot called The Mega Gallery in Ojai, which she describes as “an 8’x10’, sugar cube like exhibition space, to be experienced through the large storefront window 24/7, showcasing artists with deep ties to Ojai and the California Coast.” With an interesting twist on the traditional gallery dynamic, the artwork is available for purchase by scanning a QR code in the window, or by visiting themegagallery.com.
The first exhibit, on view through December 4, is called 10,000 Easy Steps to Achieving Your Best Life: Affirmations, Wishing Implements, Contemporary Incantations, Good Luck Charms, and Words of Collective Encouragement and it brings together over 30 artists and designers, with their work displayed from floor to ceiling and wall to wall. Located at 221 E. Matilija Street, Suite G, in Ojai, the Mega Gallery is supported by a talented group of creatives, including graphic designer Louise Sandhaus (of LSD Design), artist/videographer Joel Fox (of Smile Mountain), and photographer/musician Mikael Jorgensen (of Wilco).
ON the Podium
A good laugh for a good cause is coming to the Lobero on November 20 when Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Jane Lynch, and Brad Hall will come together for Off the Record, a conversation about having a career in comedy, and how comedy connects us all. Moderated by television producer Dante Di Loreto (Fellow Travelers, American Horror Story, Glee), the proceeds from this awesome show will benefit CommUnify (communifysb.org), a 501c(3) serving Santa Barbara County since 1967. CommUnify’s 16 social services programs, including Head Start, serve 7,000-10,000 low-income children, families, youth, and seniors annually. Find out more and purchase tickets here. And learn more about the work of CommUnify here.
ON the Calendar
Maker House ceramics art center has an awesome gallery space with a new exhibition — A Gesture Repeated: A Cross-City Dialogue in Material and Movement — opening tonight (Friday, October 24) from 5-7 p.m. with an artist panel featuring Alan Chin, Addison Woolsey, Cara Levine, Erin Lynn Smith, Kento Saisho, and Hannah Vainstein. Located at 1351 Holiday Hill Road in Goleta, A Gesture Repeated will be on view through November 21, which gives you almost a month go check it out and also get a gander at the 22,000-square-foot community studio featuring state-of-the-art kilns, potter’s wheels, glazing labs, and classroom space. An impressive resource, Maker House is both a community hub and a destination for ceramic artists worldwide. Programs include classes for all levels, workshops, artist talks, private lessons, and community events. Learn more at makerhouse.org.
For a complete calendar of events this week and beyond, visit independent.com/events/.
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