BOLO Best Bets: Last call for ‘Heisenberg,’ plus Grazing on the Green and more Open Studios

Friends,

It’s last call for the first foray into local live theater post-pandemic. The first show in Jewel Theatre Co.‘s big new 2021-22 season, “Heisenberg,” the two-person worlds-collide drama by Simon Stephens, closes this weekend at the Colligan Theater. (But look for the return of “Pump Boys and Dinettes” on Nov. 17.)

Also, local foodies are already buzzing (or, more accurately, salivating) about Saturday’s big Gourmet Grazing on the Green at Aptos Village Park, featuring a dizzying variety of food and drink from local chefs and vintners. If you’re looking for the perfect “is-this-great-or-what?” experience this weekend, Grazing could be amazing.

— Wallace Baine

See our full BOLO calendar listings for events in Santa Cruz here. And as if that isn’t enough, we have you covered for all the MAJOR events coming up into the next year with Down The Line, a listing assembled by Wallace Baine that’s your key to getting tickets before they sell out.

_{Best Bets is presented by CineLux Theatres.}

Now, here’s what Team BOLO thinks you should know for the weekend and beyond:

(Click category headers for full BOLO listings in that category.)

THEATER

THIS WEEKEND
“Heisenberg”: It’s the final weekend for this lively two-person drama with Paul Whitworth and Erika Schindele, about an unlikely encounter between a free-spirited American woman and a conservative British man at a busy London train station. “Heisenberg” is the first show in Jewel Theatre Co.’s ambitious new season at the beautiful Colligan Theater. This kinda-sorta romance will be staged Thursday at 7:30 p.m., Friday at 8 p.m., Saturday at 2 and 8 p.m., and the closing performance Sunday at 2 p.m.

— Wallace Baine

FOOD & DRINK

FRIDAY
Sip, Savor and Sway with Pana food truck: Every Friday, Stockwell Cellars invites a different food truck and musical act to feed and entertain guests at its Westside tasting room. This week, enjoy a glass or bottle of wine while listening to live music by George Zaferes and Dave Preschutti, with Pana food truck serving up Venezuelan arepas and plantains.

SATURDAY
Gourmet Grazing on the Green — wine, beer and food festival and fundraiser: Taking place in Aptos Village Park, Grazing on the Green will raise funds for the Santa Cruz Cancer Benefit Group. A ticket gives guests access to unlimited food and drink from area wineries, breweries and restaurants including Aptos Vineyard, East Side Eatery, Hula’s Island Grill, Seabright Social and Venus Spirits.

SATURDAY
Felton Lobster Feed: The 26th annual lobster feed brings guests to Henry Cowell Redwoods State Park to feast on Maine lobster served with corn on the cob, garlic bread, salad, drink and dessert. The Wild & Blue band provides the soundtrack for this event supporting environmental and cultural education programs at Henry Cowell Redwoods and Big Basin Redwoods State Park.

— Haneen Zain

VISUAL ARTS

THIS WEEKEND
Open Studios: Welcome to the second of three consecutive weekends of the biggest single visual-arts event of the year. After a year’s pandemic absence, Open Studios is back, providing art lovers an open invitation to visit the work spaces of the county’s staggering roster of painters, sculptors, photographers, jewelers, and other artists, nearly 300 in all. Just grab a guide at spots all over the county, or download the Open Studios app, or just look for the green signs. It’s all free. The self-designed tour unfolds over three weekends. This Saturday and Sunday, the artists of North County (from Davenport to the Santa Cruz Yacht Harbor) are open for visitors. Get out and interact with the community’s creatives, buy something if you’re able, and wear a mask and be courteous.

THIS WEEKEND
Open Studios Preview Show: The Santa Cruz Art League is hosting a kind of one-stop-shopping preview of what Open Studios has in store. The SCAL’s gallery features a diverse sampling of the kind of artworks produced in Santa Cruz County and the artists on the tour who create them, from paintings to sculpture to woodwork to glass to textiles. The exhibit is open Wednesdays through Fridays 1 to 4 p.m. and Saturdays and Sundays 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Art League gallery at 526 Broadway, Santa Cruz.

ONGOING
When We Paint Our Masterpiece: The Art of the Grateful Dead Community: The McHenry Library at UC Santa Cruz hosts an exhibit showcasing the art of the Grateful Dead and Dead Head community. It’s an exploration of how the Grateful Dead’s art and their faithful fan community’s art influenced each other, and how the mutual appreciation between the two groups defined the art they created. Open through Dec. 22 during McHenry Library hours.

ONGOING
“Moving Images: pause … restart”: The Cabrillo Gallery’s latest art endeavor is an ambitious online gallery addressing the profound sense of disruption that individuals and cultures experienced as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. Juried by San Francisco arts curator Clark Buckner, “Moving Images” is a collection of largely impressionistic videos and short films that reflect the period of isolation and extreme introversion that history will forever associate with 2020, the year of the pandemic. Offered here is everything from somber reflection to humor, animations and moments of powerful intimacy. It’s designed as an online experience and it’s free at Cabrillo Gallery’s online portal. Also, keep an eye out for a live event with juror Buckner on Oct. 16.

— Wallace Baine and Max Chun

BOOKS & LECTURES

TUESDAY
Nick Offerman: The actor who first attained household-name status as the magnificently mustached Ron Swanson on NBC’s “Parks and Recreation” is, in fact, also a writer, artist, humorist, and freethinker. He’s also the author of a new book titled “Where the Deer and the Antelope Play,” partly inspired by a cross-country RV trip he made with his wife, Megan Mullally. In this special online-only event sponsored by Bookshop Santa Cruz, Offerman will be in conversation with writer Sarah Vowell (herself a star in the realm of quirky non-fiction authors) to talk about the new book, conservation, community, and the state of the bruised-but-beautiful USA. A $32 ticket gets you into the event and a copy of the new book.

THURSDAY, OCT. 14
Lesley Nneka Arimah: British-born, Nigeria-reared writer Lesley Nneka Arimah has won several prizes (including the O. Henry Prize) and international recognition for her short stories, which often focus on the lives of Nigerian women, at times touching on magical realism, as in her celebrated 2017 collection, “What It Means When a Man Falls from the Sky.” She is featured in this virtual event as part of the UC Santa Cruz Literature Department’s “Living Writers Series: The World Beyond Us.” The event is free and starts at 5:15 p.m.

— Wallace Baine

LIVE MUSIC

FRIDAY
The Quebe Sisters: Straight outta Dallas, Texas, come Grace, Sophia and Hulda Quebe, a trio of sisters, each of whom sings and plays the fiddle in the sweetest of neo-Western swing styles. The Quebe Sisters (rhymes with “baby”) front a five-piece acoustic band that conjures up a winsome mix of country, folk, jazzy swing, and just good old-fashioned fiddle music, really uplifting and thoroughly American stuff. Check them out at the Kuumbwa Jazz Center on Friday. Opening is Santa Cruz singer-songwriter Alex Lucero.

SUNDAY
Anti-Flag: The Pittsburgh-based punk band Anti-Flag has been keeping the flame burning on anti-racism and anti-nationalism movements for close to 30 years now. The band’s name is a reflection of its punk philosophy, being anti- just about anything that ends in -ism. Anti-Flag still burns with musical passions, proof of which comes by way of the band’s 2020 album, “20/20 Vision,” with such in-your-face songs as “A Nation Sleeps” and “Don’t Let the Bastards Get You Down.” Anti-Flag rolls into the Catalyst on Sunday.

WEDNESDAY
Madeleine Peyroux/Paula Cole: Talk about a powerhouse double feature. The Kuumbwa Jazz Center hosts two top-flight contemporary vocalists on the same ticket. American-born Madeleine Peyroux spent her formative teen years in Paris, and eventually became an international star for her distinctive style. She is on the road performing, from start to finish, her landmark 2004 album, “Careless Love.” Paula Cole built an impressive career from a thrilling rise to stardom back in the mid-1990s with a Best New Artist Grammy and hits including “Where Have All The Cowboys Gone?”

WEDNESDAY AND THURSDAY, OCT. 14
Todd Snider: He’s already performed in Santa Cruz countless times since his attention-getting 1994 debut album “Songs for the Daily Planet.” So Todd Snider is certainly no stranger in these parts. Santa Cruz audiences know full well that nobody not named John Prine does tender/funny better than this guy. Snider brings a new dimension to his act with his affecting new album, “First Agnostic Church of Hope and Wonder” with two dates on back-to-back nights at Felton Music Hall. (If he doesn’t play his wonderful Prine tribute “Handsome John,” don’t let him leave till he does.)

— Wallace Baine

RECREATION

SATURDAY
West Cliff Outdoor Market: This Saturday brings the return of the West Cliff Outdoor Market. The local artisans and tasty food trucks will be out on West Cliff Drive from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. accompanied by live music and pleasant October weather. There will be only two more editions of this market in 2021, so make sure you come by before the weather cools off.

SATURDAY
Coast Nature Walk: Get outdoors while the weather is still warm with a two-hour, 2.5-mile nature walk around Wilder Ranch State Park. You’ll have the opportunity to explore the native plants, animals, rock formations, and ocean scenery throughout the park. This is a great outdoor activity for all ages — just make sure to bring some water, closed-toe shoes, sunscreen, and some snacks to keep you going.

— Max Chun

KIDS & FAMILY

THIS WEEKEND
Family Farm Walk at Farm Discovery: Head to Farm Discovery at Live Earth in Watsonville for a family farm walk on any of the three days this weekend. Stroll around the farm grounds to check out the organic fields and the various animal pens. Enjoy the scenery, fresh air, and even pick some of the produce. A number of other local farms will be open to the public this weekend, so visit OpenFarmTours.com for more info.

— Max Chun

FESTIVALS

FRIDAY
West Cliff Food Truck Series: With some of the best views in Santa Cruz, the West Cliff Food Truck Summer Series overlooks Monterey Bay while providing an array of foodie options, including Miches and Ceviches, Union Foodie Truck and Nomad Momo dumplings. Among the musical acts performing are Gaby Castro, Lauren Wahl and Cement Ship.

FRIDAY
Locomotive Breath headlines Midtown block party: Friday’s weekly event in the heart of Midtown features local vendors and food from Tacos El Chuy and Areperia 831, with music from Locomotive Breath, performing songs from the Rolling Stones, Led Zeppelin and Pink Floyd.

— Haneen Zain

HOW TO MAKE THE MOST OF BOLO

Sign up for our weekly Best Bets newsletter, sent every Thursday afternoon.

You can also get our weekly Best Bets text alert by signing up here or texting the word BOLO to (831) 387-7662.

Send arts, entertainment and culture events you think should be listed (for free) to us at bolo@lookoutlocal.com.

If you’re planning or producing your own event, click on the Promote Your Event button on the calendar.

Questions, comments, concerns? Email bolo@lookoutlocal.com.