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ON the Stage
The dance scene in Santa Barbara is gearing up quickly. I’m so excited for State Street Ballet’s Dracula season opener tonight. As you read in this week’s cover story, this is an incredible world premiere production by State Street Ballet in collaboration with a score by the celebrated composer Philip Glass, choreography by Nicolas Blanc, and a live, gothically costumed performance onstage by the Kronos Quartet. It’s going to be epic — to say the least! Click here for tickets and info.
The music of Philip Glass will also be onstage at the Lobero, when UCSB Arts & Lectures presents Doug Varone Dancers for two performances on November 14. A co-presentation with the UCSB Department of Theater and Dance (how cool is that?) one of the show’s pieces, Double Octet, will feature students and company members performing to Glass’s music. In addition, the evening also includes No Matter How It Ends, which channels the restless beauty and quiet melancholy of Radiohead’s iconic album In Rainbows through movement that feels visceral and profoundly alive. Doug Varone and Dancers will also do a free community class on November 12 at 6 p.m. at the Carrillo Ballroom. Click here for free registration for the class and here for more information on the Lobero performances.
I’m always grateful to our dance reviewer Jatila van der Veen, who brings a vast amount of knowledge and incredible depth of research to her work. I was particularly impressed by her write-up on Akram Kahn’s Thikra, which I also saw at the Granada this month. I enjoyed the compelling production of contemporary dance and Bharatanatyam traditions in a layperson’s “I don’t know what I’m seeing but it’s very compelling” kind of way, while Jatila’s take was both enlightening and interesting. Read about the show here.
The comedic acrobatics of Circa’s Duck Pond are a bit more in my wheelhouse. The Aussie group’s humorously unique take on the classic Swan Lake and The Ugly Duckling, mashed into a quirky and delightful duck soup of a show, was full of laughter and antics, and it was so much fun to have a lot of kids in the audience. Read my review here.
The Unity Shoppe’s annual telethon celebrates its 40th anniversary this year with a new kick off event. The Voices for Unity Benefit Concert takes place two days before Thanksgiving, on Tuesday, November 24, at 7 p.m. at The Granada Theatre with an amazing lineup, including: Kenny Loggins, Brad Paisley, Michael McDonald, Peter Noone, Glen Phillips, Kevin Cronin of REO Speedwagon, Shelea, and Hunter Hawkins, among others.
“Voices for Unity gives our community a new way to come together and support our neighbors,” said Angela Miller-Bevan, executive cirector/CEO of Unity Shoppe. “This concert, and the Ruby Anniversary Telethon that follows in December [Dec. 11], both carry forward the same commitment that has guided Unity Shoppe since 1917: treating every person who walks through our doors with dignity, respect, and choice.” See unityshoppe.org for more information.
ON the Horizon
There’s a really cool day of artful inspiration coming our way as a benefit for the Santa Barbara Birth Center. On Saturday, November 7, the Creative Revolution Tour, a brand-new, one-day workshop, comes to theCarrillo Recreation Center for a full day of creativity, connection, movement, and exploration. Led by artist Flora Bowley, this artful day for all (no experience required) promises, “You’ll leave with a collection of drawings, writings, and creative discoveries, but more importantly, you’ll walk away with heartfelt connections and the seeds of aliveness that continue to grow long after we’ve packed up the art supplies.” Taking place from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., “for one full, sacred, joyful day, we’ll put down our phones, pick up art supplies, let go of perfection, and remember how good it feels to embrace the tender, honest, beautiful parts of being alive … together,” share the organizers.
Santa Barbara Birth Center is a nonprofit organization dedicated to making compassionate, relationship-based midwifery care more accessible to families throughout the childbearing journey. For more information on the event, click here, and click here for more information on SBBC.
ON the Page
The Ojai Art Center Book Festival launches on November 14 from noon to 5 p.m. on the patio of the Ojai Art Center. “The L.A Times Festival is enormous, which is exciting, but this is something different,” said Kathleen Kaiser, chair of the Ojai Art Center Literary Branch and organizer of the festival. “We want the Ojai festival to feel relaxed and welcoming. People can wander through, meet authors, discover books, and spend some time talking about what they love to read.” Sounds like a lovely Saturday to me. The event is free. For more information, click here.
UCSB Arts & Lectures has two excellent author talks coming up. First up, on November 12, is the author of the international best-seller Pachinko, Min Jin Lee. She’ll discuss her new book, American Hagwon, set in a more contemporary Korea, but with the same sweeping themes of race, ethnicity, immigration, and identity as Pachinko — a New York Times Book Review 100 Best Books of the 21st Century selection. Details here.
Then on November 19, A&L will present Rana Foroohar, author of Sea Change: America’s New Great Game in the Arctic Circle. Foroohar’s book explains how the race for control of the world’s oceans is reshaping the global economy and redefining national security and how, as rapid global warming transforms the Arctic, the region has become one of the world’s most consequential geopolitical flashpoints. Details here.
ON the Big Screen
We’ve got a feast full of film festivals coming our way in the next few weeks. Madeline Slogoff has the scoop on NatureTrack Film Festival (Nov. 5-6), Wild and Free Film Festival (Nov. 6-8), and the Santa Barbara Surf Film Festival (Nov. 12-14). Read her story here.
Just down the road is the Ojai Film Festival. Taking place November 4-9, it has an impressive lineup of special screenings and conversations with big names such as Martin Sheen, Jeff Bridges, Beau Bridges, Melissa McCarthy, Ben Falcone, Ed Burns, and Paul Schrader, who will receive the inaugural Ojai Film Festival Storyteller Award on the 50th anniversary of his seminal film Taxi Driver. Almost more impressive than this starry lineup is the fact that tickets are just $20 per event (with discounts for juniors under 12, seniors over 65, and students and military veterans). For more information and the complete schedule, see ojaifilmfestival.com/2026.
ON the Walls
Working to help pursue permanent conservation of More Mesa, Southern California Artists Painting for the Environment (SCAPE) presents Sea to Summit, a landscape art exhibition benefiting More Mesa Preservation Coalition, October 30–31 at the Music Academy of the West.
This prestigious group of painters, including founders Marcia Burtt and Larry Iwerks, will have 170 paintings, all original artwork celebrating the coast, mountains, and open spaces — including paintings of More Mesa — available for purchase, with a portion of sales supporting the campaign. The exhibition is open Friday, October 30, from 4 to 6:30 p.m., with an opening reception from 4 to 6 p.m. with live music and refreshments, and an awards ceremony at 5 p.m. Saturday hours are 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. For more information on SCAPE, see s-c-a-p-e.org and on the More Mesa Preservation Coalition, see moremesa.org.
A fascinating exhibit, The Willard Suitcases, is coming to Art & Soul Gallery November 5-8. Photographer Jon Crispin has dedicated years to documenting artifacts from The Willard Psychiatric Center in upstate New York. The 100-year-old institution was set to shutter its doors when an employee — tasked with evaluating the property — came across more than 400 abandoned suitcases in the attic, locked away as early as 1960. These suitcases were filled with items from former patients who’d never been given the chance to reclaim their forgotten belongings. It’s a compelling look at the lives of people who were institutionalized, and even more so because the exhibit is being brought to town by nonprofit New Beginnings, which has been raising awareness around mental health, veterans support, and homeless services through theater and the arts for eight years (and has been providing those services in Santa Barbara for more than 50 years). Read Meaghan Clark Tiernan’s feature here.
ON the Web
They had me at David Byrne, but this video with Bryne and Chappell Roan assisting on Olivia Rodigo’s remixed song “expectations” is pretty irresistible. The new-wavey sound echoes the Go-Go’s and Bangles of my formative years. Definitely worth a look.
As you can probably imagine, I get a lot of random email story pitches sent my way. When it comes to music, I try my best to listen to at least a little bit of everything and sometimes I get sucked in. Such was the case with this video “Pang Pang Pang” by J-pop icon and Harajuku kawaii pioneer Kyary Pamyu Pamyu. While EDM is generally not my jam, this catchy track and accompanying visuals — she’s making bread with her whimsical dough boy — I mean, how can you not look! Check it out here and let me know what you think.
ON the Calendar
Opera Santa Barbara kicks off a new season with Rigoletto by Giuseppe Verdi. Set in 16th-century Italy, Verdi’s tragic masterpiece is a gripping story of love, revenge, and heartbreak. A jester’s sharp tongue. A father’s fierce love. A curse that changes everything. See Rigoletto at the Lobero Theatre: Friday, November 6, at 7:30 p.m.; Sunday, November 8, at 2:30 p.m.; and Tuesday, November 10, at 7:30 p.m. Click here for tickets and information. Read Joe Woodard’s season preview interview with Artistic and General Director Kostis Protopapas here.
For a complete calendar of events this week and beyond, visit independent.com/events/.
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