ON Culture: The Seeds of Broadway are Seemingly Everywhere

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ON the Stage

“Music is what’s going to save the world,” said Audra McDonald at last week’s Music Academy of the West  (MAW)“Music Note Gala,” where she flew in from Australia to honor Cheryl Goldberg (whose transformational $20 million commitment as a founding contributor to The Muse will allow MAW to have a home for music education in the heart of downtown Santa Barbara) with a short but oh-so-sweet set of songs from her illustrious Broadway career. McDonald, a Tony– Grammy–, and Emmy–award winner, began with the powerful anthem “I Am What I Am” from the musical La Cage aux Folles, followed by “Summertime” from Porgy & Bess, which she shared was the “most covered song in American history” and a role she played on Broadway. Then it was on to the glorious high notes of “I Could Have Danced All Night,” from My Fair Lady, where she encouraged guests to sing along. 

Then she was on to a well-known mashup of Stephen Sondheim’s “Children Will Listen,” from Into the Woods, and “You’ve Got to Be Carefully Taught” from South Pacific. Next up was the classic “Make Someone Happy,” followed by a lovely finale of “Climb Every Mountain” from The Sound of Music, joined by MAW’s Sing! Youth Choir, one of the many community programs the event was raising funds for.  

McDonald’s appearance came just on the heels of two other excellent — and very, very different — female vocalists in town. Sierra Ferrell’s August 6 show at the Santa Barbara Bowl was just the push I needed, once and for all, to admit that I actually do like country music. The four-time Grammy winner, who I first saw thanks to Arts & Lectures at UCSB’s Campbell Hall in 2024, is now a full-fledged Broadway-meets-Bluegrass unique country star in the making, and I was charmed by her sweet, big-voiced, down home frankness from start to finish. See Joe Woodard’s review here. 

Also making a stop in S.B., on August 9, was the talented, seemingly ageless Shawn Colvin, who wowed a full house at the Lobero with an intimate night of songs and storytelling. Read my interview here, and see Ella Bailey’s review here.  

One of the most iconic artists of our time, Judy Collins, will also be coming to the Lobero on September 27. I had the honor of interviewing her, and you can read the story here. Another legend, making her way to town even sooner, is Diana Ross, who will be at the Santa Barbara Bowl on August 27. I can’t wait for both of these divas to dazzle us!

Our theatrical calendars are beginning to fill up as well. The current Rubicon Theatre season concludes with the musical Ragtime, October 21-November 15, the Tony Award–winning show based on E.L. Doctorow’s acclaimed novel. Fun fact: Audra McDonald won her third Tony Award for her portrayal of Sarah in the original 1998 Broadway production. Tickets are now on sale for the 2026-2027 season at the Rubicon, the inaugural lineup developed by Rubicon Theatre Company’s new producing artistic director, J. Scott Lapp. “Our 2026/2027 season, entitled ‘The Ties That Bind,’ includes a haunting and hope-filled holiday tale featuring a Tony Award–winner in his Rubicon debut; a hilarious musical whodunit; a bold new version of an acclaimed Off-Broadway musical; and two powerful Tony Award–winning shows — an epic American drama, and a joyous musical based on an inspirational true story,” said Lapp in a statement introducing the new season. “In an era marked by division and uncertainty, these stories invite us to reflect on what connects us, what we inherit, and how compassion and responsibility can shape a more hopeful and unified future.” 

Upcoming shows include: Dickens’ A Christmas Carol: A Ghost Story; John & Jen; The Lehman Trilogy; Murder For Two; and Come From Away. For more information and ticket information see rubicontheatre.org.

Santa Barbara Chamber Players will perform a special family concert called Fly Me to the Moon on Sunday, August 30, at 3 p.m. at First Presbyterian Church (21 E. Constance Ave.). Maestro Michael Nowak will conduct this special concert, combining live music with a multimedia presentation documenting the history of flight. Designed especially for families and young listeners, the concert offers an exciting introduction to the orchestra and includes Tchaikovsky’s Serenade for Strings, the first movement of Beethoven’s Symphony No. 6, “Pastoral,” and an interactive introduction to the instruments featuring “Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star.” Vocalist Inga Swearingen and string bassist Ken Husted will bring jazz improvisation to Bart Howard’s “Fly Me to the Moon.” Swearingen will also be featured in the beloved finale, “When You Wish Upon a Star,” with music by Leigh Harline and lyrics by Ned Washington. See sbchamberplayers.org for tickets and more information.

Singer-songwriter Mason Jennings — who counts fellow musicians Jack Johnson and Modest Mouse’s Isaac Brock among his fans — brings his intimate blend of folk, Americana, and heartfelt storytelling to SOhO on Sunday, August 30. Jennings has spent more than two decades crafting songs that resonate with emotional depth, warmth, and quiet wisdom. For more information click here. 

There’s also a great show earlier that day on the SOhO stage at 1 p.m. on August 30, when the nonprofit Your American Songbook group (formerly American Songbook Today) presents Hello, Jerry! — a concert honoring Broadway’s beloved composer, Jerry Herman, who wrote both melodies and lyrics for Hello Dolly, Mame, La Cage aux Folles, and more. Performing in this concert will be some of Santa Barbara’s favorite musical theater actors including Ryan Beaghler, Deborah Bertling, Brian Hoyson, Sage Kimball, Nikki Kurnik, Jane Lockhart, and Nik Valinsky. Music director is David Watkins. Emcee is Michael Estwanik. Click here for more info and tickets. 

ON the Page

One of the most successful producers in memory, Jeffrey Seller (who mounted two Pulitzer Prize–winning musicals,  Hamilton and Rent) has an excellent memoir, Theater Kid, which I got from Santa Barbara Public Library. It’s a coming of age story about him coming to terms with being adopted, being gay, escaping his dysfunctional upbringing, and finding his voice, so to speak, through musical theater. I quite enjoyed it and the audiobook even includes appearances by celebs like Darren Criss, Jesse Tyler Ferguson, Renée Elise Goldsberry, and Lin-Manuel Miranda.

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ON the Walls

Patricia Chidlaw returns to Sullivan Goss with a major new body of work to be shown for the first time in the gallery’s largest space. Blue Room features 18 new paintings of places suspended between memory and observation. The exhibition opens on August 28, with a 1st Thursday reception on September 3. It will be on view through October 26. 

The exhibition’s title refers to an old school cocktail lounge in Burbank, California, a place that has long captured Chidlaw’s imagination. But this exhibition is about the vibe of a rapidly disappearing world that the artist returns to again and again. Her paintings take us into spaces that are undeniably vintage, and just outside the spotlight, where atmosphere becomes the main character. Click here for more information about the exhibit. See Roger Durling’s 2023 feature about her work here. 

Painting group “the Lompoc Ten” honors the memory and art of one of its founding members, Alan Freeman, in a retrospective at the Grossman Gallery during the month of September. Al, as he was known, passed away in March of 2025, after a lengthy illness. He not only left behind his loving wife, Carla, a legacy of compassion, courage, and humor, but also a tremendous output of a lifetime of art. “Alan Freeman, A Retrospective” will be on view the month of September at the Lompoc Library’s Grossman Gallery, Lompoc Library, during library hours. The opening reception is on Saturday, September 5, from 1-3 p.m. 

Out of the Blue, by photographer Patricia Houghton Clarke,is a series of never-before-exhibited landscape photographs taken during the winter and early spring of 2026 in the wondrous moments of the night, pre-dawn, and as dawn was breaking over our local California coastline. This exciting new series of “painterly” photographs was taken from or near Clarke’s home at the beach, and is a testament to her love of our natural environment — and the magic that occurs between dusk and dawn. There will be an opening reception and artist talk on Saturday, August 29, from 3-6 p.m. at 410 Palm Ave., A-18, Carpinteria and the exhibit will be on view through November 21. All proceeds will benefit Clark’s project An American Girl.  For more information please contact Patricia Houghton Clarke, pcphotog@gmail.com, (805)452-7739.

Artist and mindfulness facilitator Kathy Leader is hosting a mindful art experience on co-creating with nature on Tuesday, August 25, at CEC’s Environmental Hub. She says, “this workshop invites participants to slow down, observe the natural world, and explore drawing through a playful, unique, and imaginative lens. Guided by the lines, curves, and textures of plant materials, participants will imagine themselves as insects navigating the landscape, creating lively drawings without the need for prior art experience. As we create together in community, we’ll reflect on our own interconnectedness with all living things.” For more information and registration click here. 

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ICYMI

Joe Spano brings ‘King of the Wild’ to ETC

Siudy Garrido and Company Bring the House Down 

Music Academy of the West closes out its summer season 

Santa Barbara Studio Artists Tour

An Artistic Mystery

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ON the Calendar

Channel City Camera Club photo enthusiasts are displaying their favorite prints in the Faulkner Gallery at the Santa Barbara Public Library through the end of August. Active locally since 1939, the Club strives to advance the knowledge and skill of photography in the Santa Barbara community. This print show features 101 prints by 28 Club members  — including David Auston, Jim Balsitis, Judith Barat, Dave Basso, Pat Birdsell, Katrina Carl, Spencer Dean, Andrew Flanagin, Bill Hallier, Steven Kaplan, Kent Karnofski, Linda Kavanagh, Cena Kregel, Steven Lewis, Ken McKaba, Dana Morrow, Ed Northup, Ken Pfeiffer, Dennis Power, Zoltan Puskas, Gary Robinson, Chris Seaton, Brian Seitz, Jeffrey Sipress, Cynthia Slade, Carrie Topliffe, George Welik, and Ron Williams — continuing its 18+ year tradition of presenting at least one annual exhibition. More information can be found at cccameraclub.com. 

For a complete calendar of events this week and beyond, visit independent.com/events/.