Hi friends,
Thinking about the Lincoln-Douglas debates, when people traveled from miles around to hear candidates orate for hours on the fine points of political philosophy, and whatever crude display of fake simian theater is happening tonight, it’s obvious that sometimes evolution works in reverse. Should be fun!
Now, on with the show.
This Just In!
The last week of June isn’t the typical time you start thinking about Christmas. But can you resist something called “A John Waters Christmas”? The always fashionably transgressive filmmaker comes to the Rio with his holiday special on Dec. 1. We had Rainn Wilson come through a couple of months back, and now we have yet another star of “The Office” visiting town: It’s Creed Bratton, playing with his band Sept. 5 at Felton Music Hall. The fun-loving Antsy McClain & the Trailer Park Troubadours, a hot ticket for many years back in the day, returns to Santa Cruz after a long absence July 27 at the Kuumbwa. Look out for the fine singer-songwriter Kate Bollinger rolling into The Catalyst on Nov. 12. And, an interesting event at Bookshop Santa Cruz: Writers for Democratic Action will stage a reading of the landmark 1936 anti-fascist play “It Can’t Happen Here” by Sinclair Lewis in Santa Cruz, one of many staged simultaneously across the country July 19 in protest of … well, you know. Check out our curated list of the best in upcoming performances and appearances in Santa Cruz County in Down the Line.
Here they are, nine necessary know-abouts for the week ahead. Including Lookout Trivia Night, with me!
It’s the summer-warm-up B9:
Frenetic Fourth
How will you spend your Independence Day? Santa Cruz County has a number of options on the parade and party front, but if you must see fireworks at sunset, you’ll have to cross county lines.
Making ‘Sense’
On July 13, at the beautiful Quarry Amphitheater on the campus of UC Santa Cruz, I will be fortunate enough to be on stage for a Q&A session after the screening of the fabulous concert film “Stop Making Sense.” I’ll be chatting with James Mockoski, the UCSC alum who restored the print of the great Jonathan Demme-directed film starring Talking Heads that is now 40 years old.
Bouncing through Bonny Doon
Put it on the calendar: The event known as “DoonArt,” Bonny Doon’s own little breakaway open-studios art tour, is set this year for July 27-28. It’s a real treat taking in the artistic talents of Dooners in the realm of not only painting and sculpture, but also furniture, musical instruments, jewelry and glass.
Are you ready for your Shakespeare?
Live theater is thriving locally, at least at Santa Cruz Shakespeare, poised to open its new and expanded five-production season in mid-July. But is five plays a new frontier for this company? Depends. If you consider the history of Shakespeare Santa Cruz, the current incarnation’s defunct predecessor, this is not the first time that the company has presented five plays in one year. In 2007, SSC staged two Shakespeares, a Beckett and a Synge in the summer season, and a holiday panto at the end of the year.
Coming Sunday
So many in Santa Cruz are talking about it: How has the influx of Silicon Valley money changed the culture of Santa Cruz? How will it continue to change in the age of A.I.? Novelist Olivia Gatwood, for one, has a fascinating take on the issue, through her new novel “Whoever You Are, Honey.” We’ll visit with her on Sunday, in advance of her July 10 appearance at Bookshop Santa Cruz. Check it out.
Earworm of the Week
It’s a long road from youth to old age, and whether that road is a fun ride or a meandering slog can often depend on what you learn along the way. Sure, it’s obvious enough to qualify as fortune-cookie wisdom, but the luckiest people in life are those who reach a point somewhere along the way where they figure out that course correction is called for, that goodness and satisfaction lies beyond the momentary joys of mere pleasure. No singer-songwriter I know does brutal self-assessment better than Mark Oliver Everett, who goes by the stage name E and records as Eels. His song “Mistakes of My Youth” is, in my view, a perfect distillation of the honest mirror-gazing that many discontented people go through at around age 40 — though it’s often earlier or later. It’s that inner voice that doesn’t tear down, so much as it pumps up with a bit of tough love: You’re not a kid anymore, maybe it’s time to grow up. When Everett sings, “I can’t keep defeating myself,” you can hear something being born, the self-awareness that begets true happiness. There’s a better road ahead, if you’re smart enough to read the road signs.
All the Earworms in one place
For those who’ve been following my Earworm of the Week, I’ve assembled a playlist that contains them all.
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.