Hi friends,
Certainly, you’ve heard about Donald Trump’s Kennedy Center Honors plans by now. Well, somehow, I got my hands on next year’s shortlist. Let’s just say that Randy Quaid, “Stone Cold” Steve Austin and Charlie Sheen should be getting a special phone call pretty soon.
Now, on with the show.
THIS JUST IN
Call him the Count of the Counterintuitive, the great writer Malcolm Gladwell is set to come to the Rio Theatre on Oct. 14 to talk about his new book, “Revenge of the Tipping Point,” a show presented by Bookshop Santa Cruz. Veteran Northern California rocker Nicki Bluhm drops into Felton Music Hall on Nov. 21. The fine ska band The Slackers are playing Moe’s Alley on Dec. 6. And, Santa Cruz long-timers might remember the 1970s rock band Snail. They’ll perform live at Felton Music Hall on Dec. 20.
Be sure to check out Lookout’s carefully curated and constantly updated planning guide, Down the Line, for the staggering riches and amazing choices awaiting Santa Cruz audiences. It’s our look ahead at the best shows, concerts and events through the rest of the year at clubs, stages and venues all over the county.
California landscapes everywhere
If you are sometimes struck with a great pride and/or gratitude for the privilege of living in California — as I am often — then now’s the time to indulge those feelings a bit at the Santa Cruz Art League. The SCAL’s gallery on Broadway is currently featuring the California Landscape Show, with artists from all over the state presenting their best visions of their most cherished places. It’s an exhibition that’s been going on annually for almost a century. Now’s the time because the show is set to close on Aug. 23.
If that show thrills you, and I’ll bet it will, take that energy and then head on over to the Museum of Art & History. The MAH is opening a show zeroing in on one of the artists featured in the SCAL show. That’s the great Santa Cruz painter Ed Penniman, who sits near or at the top of any list of accomplished landscape painters of California’s Central Coast. “Landscapes of Home” is an exhibit from someone deeply rooted in Santa Cruz — he’s a native and lifelong resident of the area — as well as in art — Ed’s grandmother was not only a talented landscape painter but was also instrumental in the founding of the Santa Cruz Art League.
Ed’s story is an amazing one. A onetime Silicon Valley up-and-comer, he was struck down by a crippling neurological disorder known as Guillain-Barré syndrome, which left him paralyzed for a while. He turned to art as a way to cope, literally holding his paintbrush in his teeth early on.
Now that the great Richard Mayhew has passed on, Ed Penniman remains Santa Cruz’s beau ideal of a landscape painter. Take the trip from SCAL to MAH and find the landscape that resonates most deeply with your vision of California.
Festival of Dreams on the horizon
This week, we reported on the revival of the Santa Cruz Film Festival in October. Turns out, that won’t be the only festival happening at the time. The Santa Cruz Dream Festival, devoted to the serious business of interpreting dreams, comes to the Museum of Art & History on Oct. 10-12 with speakers, dream-inspired art, songs and performances, workshops and even a big gala ball, all hosted by Katherine Bell, who hosts KSQD’s radio show “The Dream Journal,” and therapist Linda Mastrangelo.
CHECK THIS OUT
Best 9: Top events for the week ahead in Santa Cruz County arts & entertainment, Aug. 14-21
THIS WEEK IN A&E
Santa Cruz Film Festival planning a big ‘resurrection’ in October
After having been dark for three years, the Santa Cruz Film Festival is coming back in October with new leadership and new energy. The goal? Not only to entertain and illuminate audiences, but also to build a viable film industry in Santa Cruz County.
Downtown night market debuts Thursday
A new six-week market series hosting local artisans and food vendors is coming to Santa Cruz every Thursday evening starting later this month. The event series, Sunset Market, will run from 5 to 8 p.m. through Sept. 18. It is being […]
Jugs and kazoos, jazz and blues: Santa Cruz gets a new music festival
Four bands including the Santa Cruz-based Trolley Drops come to Abbott Square on Sunday for the Santa Cruz Jug Band Festival, highlighting an often overlooked genre in early 20th-century American folk music. It mixes traditional music with alternatives such as washboards, washtubs and, of […]
That’s all I got, friends. Come at me with comments, ideas, complaints, or thundering insights. Thanks to all Lookout members for your faith and support, and please, spread the word on what we’re doing.