Hi friends,
This weekend, the Cabrillo College Performing Arts Collective is staging four performances of “American Idiot: The Musical,” based, of course, on the monumental Green Day album of the same name. “American Idiot” was released, you’ll remember, hip deep in the anomie and alienation of the post-9/11 Bush years which, in hindsight, look positively subdued compared to the bedlam of 2025. Maybe the Cabrillo PAC is on to something here. Maybe now’s the time to revive “American Idiot” for a new generation. Are you listening, Billie Joe Armstrong?
Now, on with the show.
THIS JUST IN
The Kuumbwa Jazz Center has just announced a bunch of new dates for late summer. Among them are the fine jazz guitarist John Pizzarelli (Aug. 11), the smokin’ big band Lavay Smith & Her Red Hot Skillet Lickers (July 24), the Santa Cruz-born duo the Le Boeuf Brothers (July 28), the reggae band Seven Suns (July 21), jazz vocalist Karrin Allyson (Aug. 4) and the Santa Cruz sitar master and band leader Ashwin Batish (July 31). The Canadian pop band Marianas Trench has booked a show at The Catalyst on Oct. 22. And the mysterious mask-wearing psychedelic trio Glass Beams lands at The Catalyst on Aug. 19.
Festival news: You could call it NorCal’s version of Coachella, though it doesn’t quite have that kind of cultural cachet. So, don’t. Still, Outside Lands in San Francisco’s Golden Gate Park is always a big deal. The star-studded lineup for the three-day event (Aug. 8-10) has been released. Headliners include Doja Cat, Vampire Weekend, Tyler the Creator, Gracie Abrams, Beck and too many more to mention. If you happen to have a money tree in your backyard, you can join the Golden Gate Club; otherwise, expect to pay north of $200 for a single-day general-admission ticket.
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.
CHECK THIS OUT
Best 9: Top events for the week ahead in Santa Cruz County arts & entertainment, May 8-15
THIS WEEK IN A&E
Boardwalk to debut drone show next weekend
The Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk will present a drone show in the night sky on May 17, taking part in a growing trend of using computer-choreographed light shows in place of more dangerous fireworks displays.
Mountain Winery live performance series set to begin next week
From stand-up comics Trevor Noah and George Lopez to all-time greats Diana Ross and Smokey Robinson to tribute acts galore, the annual concert series at the Mountain Winery in Saratoga is a sure harbinger of summer.
Days after cultural celebration, Trump administration revokes Senderos arts grant
Senderos, a Santa Cruz-based nonprofit, faces funding cuts from the National Endowment for the Arts. The nonprofit received an email Friday night from the federal agency that it will no longer receive a $10,000 grant.
Boardwalk announces summer entertainment schedule
A first-ever drone show kicks off summer programming at the Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk on May 17, with free Friday movies and a variety of other acts starting in June.
Tuesday Night Live concert returns to Santa Cruz Wharf starting May 13
Tuesday Night Live, a series of free outdoor summer concerts on the Santa Cruz Municipal Wharf, returns for a third year with shows May 13 through Sept. 9.
Famed Steinbeck boat lives on in guitar and surfboard made of vessel’s reclaimed wood
Wood from the Western Flyer, the boat John Steinbeck and Ed Ricketts chartered for a 1940 trip to the Sea of Cortez, is now a guitar and a surfboard made in a collaboration between Santa Cruz Guitar Company and Ventana Surfboards.
‘He was larger than life’: Remembering Felix Lozano of pioneering Santa Cruz County Latino punk band Los Dryheavers
Felix Lozano, a longtime bartender at the Blue Lagoon whose work with disabled clients and role in Santa Cruz’s Latino punk rock scene made him a respected figure in the county’s artistic community, died on April 19.
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.