This edition of ON Culture was originally emailed to subscribers on November 4, 2022. To receive Leslie Dinaberg’s arts newsletter in your inbox on Fridays, sign up at independent.com/newsletters.
ON the (Big Screen)
“Jamie Lee Curtis has long since proven that she has staying power. People want to watch her, whether it’s in a Halloween movie or an offbeat character role. She’s talented and charismatic, and in the process does her movie-star parents proud,” said Leonard Maltin, who will honor Curtis with the prestigious Maltin Modern Master Award at the 38th annual Santa Barbara International Film Festival on February 11. She’s had such an amazing and varied career — from playing Laurie Strode in the Halloween movies for a record 44 years, to her iconic comedic roles in Trading Places and A Fish Called Wanda, and her recent appearance in Everything Everywhere All At Once — I’m looking forward to hearing what she has to say at the Arlington event. For more information, visit sbiff.org.
ON the Stage
DANCE: Always a blast, BASSH is back this year on November 11 and 12 at the New Vic Theater. Now in its 21st year, BASSH is a fabulously fun showcase for all sorts of dance styles, including ballroom, Broadway, belly dance, aerial dance, hip-hop, Chinese classical dance, and flamenco — all choreographed by local dance pros. For more information, visit sbassh.com.
THEATER: The ultimate rags-to-riches story, a new Broadway adaptation of Cinderella comes to life at the Marian Theatre November 10-December 23. A great show for families, it features favorite Rodgers and Hammerstein songs like “Ten Minutes Ago,” “In My Own Little Corner,” and “Impossible; It’s Possible.” For more information, visit pcpa.org.
MUSIC: Canadian duo Tegan and Sara (they’re twins!) — who got a lot of airtime at our house when they did “Everything Is Awesome” with Lonely Island for The Lego Movie back in 2014 — just released a new album, Crybaby, which Rolling Stone called “one of their most compelling albums yet.” You can hear their new songs on November 11 at Majestic Ventura Theater. For more information, visit venturatheater.net/event/tegan-and-sara. And, also check out the TV series High School, based on their lives, on Amazon.
ON the Page
Fiction: I finished Jennifer Egan’s mind-blowingly good book The Candy House just in time for her interview with Pico Iyer on Sunday, November 6, at Campbell Hall. I also got to interview Pico himself for this week’s print edition of the Independent, which was such a thrill. You can catch them both at the A&L event. Here’s the link for tickets.
Poetry: Santa Barbara Poet Laureate Emma Trelles let us know that the Mission Poetry Series opens on Saturday, November 5, at the Faulkner Gallery with an in-person reading (woo-hoo!) at 1 p.m. “A Coming Home: Three Poets in Fall” features three award-winning authors: Chloe Martinez, Sara Borjas, and Rick Benjamin. This free event, in partnership with the Santa Barbara Public Library and made possible by the Academy of American Poets with funds from the Mellon Foundation, offers complimentary broadsides, poets’ books for sale, and the chance to meet and chat with the featured authors.
ON the Web
David Starkey‘s show The Creative Community is back (version 2.0), and I was honored to be a guest on the show last week. I’m in GREAT company. Some of his other guests include: Christopher Buckley, Chryss Yost, Nadya Brown, and Diana Raab. https://vimeo.com/764771036 for tickets.
ON the Calendar
Chumash Elder Puchuk Ya’ia’c (Alan Salazar) presents “Chumash Maritime History — Past, Present, & Future” at the Santa Barbara Maritime Museum on November 17. A storyteller, researcher, and knowledge keeper of Chumash history, Salazar is also a founding member of the Chumash Maritime Association, so this should be a really interesting talk. For more information, visit sbmm.org. For a complete calendar of events this week and beyond, visit independent.com/events.
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