We’re still floating after an inspired winter capped by the thrilling Ballet Festival: Jerome Robbins curated and performed by Tiler Peck. April and May now bring a superbloom of performances and conversations to Arts & Lectures, ushering in a spring season rooted in collaboration, curiosity, and deep engagement with the world around us.
On April 10, one of our most beloved ensembles, the Danish String Quartet, returns with the 50-voice Danish National Girls’ Choir. Their program culminates with in wildness, an Arts & Lectures co-commission and U.S. premiere by David Lang. Later that month, Yuja Wang (Apr 23) takes the Granada stage, leading the Mahler Chamber Orchestra from the piano in what promises to be an unforgettable evening.
On the lecture side, we’ll host a newly-added event with International Rescue Committee President David Miliband (Apr 22) in conversation with Ben Rhodes, former White House staffer and co-host of Pod Save the World. Earth Day holds special resonance in Santa Barbara, and we’ll mark the occasion with environmentalist Bill McKibben (Apr 21), followed by science journalist Ed Yong (May 6) and conservationist Terry Tempest Williams (May 13) in the final Speaking with Pico event of the season.
We’re also looking forward to our gala event, An Evening of Song and Conversation with Jonathan Gro (Apr 27). This special night with Broadway’s sensational leading man will benefit A&L’s education and community outreach programs.
May brings the return of dance world favorites A.I.M by Kyle Abraham (May 12), the boundary-defying Kronos Quartet with pipa virtuoso Wu Man (May 2), and a celebratory 90th birthday tribute, Philip Glass and The Poets (May 17), featuring artists including Timo Andres, Lucinda Childs and Taylor Mac.
Spring is in full bloom, and we hope you will gather with us.
Warmly,
Meghan Bush
Miller McCune Executive Director
Season Sponsor
Community Partners
photo:
Gaël
Cornier
Meghan Bush with New York City Ballet Principal Tiler Peck
photos
1-6 & inset
(this page):
Isaac Hernández de Lipa; cover photo: Tatiana Wills
Find Your Place at Arts & Lectures
Become a member today and enjoy a range of benefits all year long. (See page 29 for details)
1. A&L Council Member Anne Smith Towbes with Aristo Sham 2. A&L Council Co-Chairs Dorothy Largay and Patty MacFarlane with Yo-Yo Ma
3. A&L Partners Nora McNeely Hurley and Michael Hurley with Nicola Benedetti 4. A&L Council Member Susan McCaw with Fareed Zakaria
5. A&L Partner Linda Stafford Burrows with Davóne Tines 6. A&L Partners Mason Morfit and Jordana Brewster with Miranda July
Illuminating a wide spectrum of systemic injustice, the Justice for All programming initiative looks to today’s great minds and creators and to the courageous leaders across the globe who are forging a new path forward. Join us as we learn from those confronting uncomfortable questions, solving difficult problems, and guiding us all toward a more equitable world.
Ibram X. Kendi, Apr 7
Challenging racist ideologies
Masha Gessen, Apr 14
David Miliband, Apr 22
Identifying authoritarian patterns across borders
Championing humanitarian action and dignity
Martín Espada, Apr 29
Countering injustice through poetic action
JUSTICE FOR ALL Lead Sponsors: Marcy Carsey, Eva & Yoel* Haller, Dick Wolf, and Zegar Family Foundation
JUSTICE FOR ALL UCSB Faculty Advisory Committee: Daina Ramey Berry, D. Inés Casillas, Charles Hale, Beth Pruitt, Susannah Scott, Je rey Stewart, Sharon Tettegah
A Benefit for Arts Education
Tony Award Winner
Jonathan
Groff
Mon, Apr 27 / 5 PM
Limited Tables Available
The New York Times
“Few stars today transmit and receive such unadulterated joy in live performance.”
Broadway star Jonathan Groff brings his remarkable versatility and warmth to an intimate evening of song and conversation. Fresh from his “dazzling and immersive love letter to live performance” (The Washington Post) as Bobby Darin in Just in Time and his Tony-winning turn in Merrily We Roll Along, Groff continues to enthrall audiences on stage and screen. Known to millions as the royally hilarious, scene-stealing King George III in Hamilton, as well as for standout work in Spring Awakening, Mindhunter, Frozen and more, he is a performer whose presence lights up every room. Join us for an evening that reveals the heart, humor and artistry behind one of the most captivating performers of our time.
Call Heather Silva, Managing Director of Development, to reserve your table today! (805) 893-3755
Arts & Lectures’ Thematic Learning Initiative (TLI) extends the conversation from the stage into the community, enriching lifelong learning and initiating dialogue and empowerment through special events, book giveaways and more.
2025-2026 Theme: Paradigms at Play
Paradigms shift when we begin to experience the world around us in new ways. This season’s theme highlights artists and thinkers who play with our perceptions and expand how we feel, see, hear and imagine. Through shared experiences, we will play with paradigms to explore how we learn, connect and imagine what’s possible.
Spring Book Giveaway
The Glorians: Visitations from the Holy Ordinary by Terry Tempest Williams
The Glorians is a lyrical meditation on the quiet presences that surround us – animals, landscapes, memories and fleeting moments – that gently shape our sense of belonging in a fragile world. Moving from the red rock desert of Utah to the classroom, Terry Tempest Williams offers a reflective exploration of attention, connection and how subtle changes in perspective can transform the way we understand our lives and our shared future.
FREE copies of The Glorians will be available starting Tue, Mar 24 at Arts & Lectures’ Campbell Hall Box Office at UCSB and the Santa Barbara Public Library (40 E. Anapamu St.). Books available while supplies last.
RELATED EVENT Terry Tempest Williams in Conversation with Pico Iyer, May 13 (p. 22)
With thanks to our visionary partners, Lynda Weinman and Bruce Heavin, for their support of the Thematic Learning Initiative
Paradigms at Play: Free Events
Pre-concert Talk: Danish String Quartet and Danish National Girls' Choir
Fri, Apr 10 / 5:30 PM / The Hub at CEC, 1219 State St
FREE (registration recommended)
Join UCSB musicology professor Derek Katz for a lively pre-concert talk on the thrill of hearing new music come to life. With a U.S. premiere by David Lang on the program, Katz explores what makes the Danish String Quartet so compelling, and how performers, composers and audiences together shape new musical worlds.
RELATED EVENT Danish String Quartet and Danish National Girls’ Choir, Apr 10 (p. 9)
Bird Walk with Santa Barbara Audubon Society
Wed, Apr 29 / 8 AM, 10 AM & 12 PM / Lake Los Carneros
FREE (registration required; space is limited)
Watch for water birds, song birds and more in one of three special guided bird walks led by SBAS’s bird walk coordinator Karl Weis. Lake Los Carneros is one of Goleta’s premier birding hot spots due to its 25 acre lake and varied wooded and grassland habitats. Binoculars and comfortable shoes are encouraged!
RELATED EVENT Ed Yong, The Amazing Nature of Animal Senses , May 6, (p. 20)
UCSB Natural Reserve Guided Hike/Walk
Sat, May 9 / 9 AM / Sedgwick Reserve
3566 Brinkerhoff Ave, Santa Ynez
FREE (registration required; space is limited)
Kick off the morning with a brief introduction from UCSB Natural Reserve System (NRS) Executive Director Dr. Conner Philson about the NRS’ role as a hub for environmental research and the special part Sedgwick Reserve plays. Then set out in small groups for guided walks or hikes of varying intensity, exploring the landscape, ecology and research of this remarkable site. Fun and sunscreen encouraged! Transportation to Santa Ynez not provided.
RELATED EVENT Terry Tempest Williams in Conversation with Pico Iyer, May 13 , (p. 22)
photo: David Levasheff
photo: University of California Santa Barbara
Spring Events
“The greatest service Kendi [provides] is the ruthless prosecution of American ideas about race for their tensions, contradiction and unintended consequences.” The Washington Post
Just added!
National Book Award Winner
Ibram X. Kendi
Chain of Ideas: The Origins of Our Authoritarian Age
Tue, Apr 7 / 7:30 PM / Campbell Hall
$30 / FREE for UCSB students
FREE copies of Kendi’s new book, Chain of Ideas , will be available while supplies last (pick up at event, one per household)
Historian Ibram X. Kendi is one of the world’s leading scholars of racism and antiracism. As the author of Stamped from the Beginning, he became the youngest winner of the National Book Award for Nonfiction and has been one of TIME’s 100 Most Influential People and a MacArthur Fellow. In his highly anticipated work Chain of Ideas, Kendi traces how “great replacement theory” moved from the margins to a dominant force in global authoritarianism, showing how it erodes democratic norms and outlining how we can confront it and strengthen democracy. Books will be available for purchase and signing, courtesy of Chaucer’s Books
Additional support from the Harold & Hester Schoen Arts & Lectures Endowment
photo: Stephen Voss
“They could be grounded in their tone or mystical. They allowed time to stand still, and they could assume the pose of excitingly aggressive rockers. They did it all.”
– Mark Swed, Los Angeles Times on DSQ
U.S. Premiere of New David Lang Commission
Danish String Quartet and Danish National Girls’ Choir
Charlotte Rowan, Conductor
Fri, Apr 10 / 7 PM / Granada Theatre
Tickets start at $50 / $20 UCSB students
A Granada facility fee is included in each ticket price
Two of Denmark’s most celebrated ensembles – the Danish String Quartet and the Danish National Girls’ Choir – return to Santa Barbara for a luminous evening of music old and new. This wide-ranging program weaves Nordic folk songs together with shimmering contemporary works, including in wildness, a U.S. premiere by David Lang co-commissioned by Arts & Lectures. Other highlights include And So by Pulitzer Prize winner Caroline Shaw and Þann heilaga kross by Icelandic composer Anna Thorvaldsdottir. A rare collaboration between virtuosic strings and celestial voices, this performance offers a stirring blend of tradition and innovation.
Event Sponsors: Dorothy Largay & Wayne Rosing and Anonymous
RELATED EVENT Pre-concert Talk by Derek Katz, Apr 10 (p. 7)
photo: Caroline Bittencourt
100 Years in Blue Miles Davis and John Coltrane
“[Terence Blanchard’s] succinct solos are always filled with the right amount of rhythmic crackle and subtle nuance.” JazzTimes
photo: Cedric Angeles
“John Coltrane’s saxophonist son puts a clear distance between his own work and his late father’s by often playing spry and subtly crafted lines in a murmur rather than unleashing cloudbursts of sound.” The Guardian (U.K.)
Terence Blanchard and Ravi Coltrane
Miles Davis and John Coltrane Centennial
Wed, Apr 8 (new date) / 7:30 PM / Granada Theatre
Tickets start at $50 / $16 UCSB students
A Granada facility fee is included in each ticket price
In this rare and powerful collaboration trumpeter Terence Blanchard and saxophonist Ravi Coltrane join forces to celebrate and reimagine the legacies of jazz titans Miles Davis and John Coltrane. A six-time Grammy winner and Oscar-nominated film composer, Blanchard has long drawn inspiration from Miles Davis, channeling his fearless innovation into his own genre-defying body of work. Ravi, the son of John and Alice Coltrane, is a thoughtful, expressive saxophonist whose career has been defined by both deep reverence and fearless individuality. Together, they lead a world-class ensemble in a centennial tribute that’s more than a look back; it’s a bold continuation of jazz’s living tradition.
Event Sponsors: Jody & John Arnhold and Susan & Bruce Worster
Jazz Series Lead Sponsor: The Nora McNeely Hurley Foundation
photo: Erin
O’Brian
The year 1926 marked the birth of two visionaries who would forever transform the sound of American music. A century later, these performances honor their enduring legacy and the revolutionary spirit that still resonates through jazz.
“One of the finest piano players to emerge in decades.”
All About Jazz
Emmet Cohen Quintet
Miles and Coltrane at 100
Sun, Apr 12 / 7 PM / Campbell Hall
Tickets start at $33 / $15 UCSB students
“[A] piano virtuoso with a delicate touch, assured, swaggering swing feel, and debonair flow.” The New York Times
An all-star quintet led by pianist Emmet Cohen celebrates the centennial of jazz geniuses Miles Davis and John Coltrane. As a dedicated champion of musical community, Cohen believes in jazz as a living, evolving conversation that unites people across time and place. Guided by the spirit of the infinite, Cohen continues the journey set forth by the architects of jazz – seeking deeper truths through sound. Join Cohen and his ensemble for a bold, reimagined experience of the music that forever changed the course of jazz.
Jazz Series Lead Sponsor: The Nora McNeely Hurley Foundation
Just added!
George Polk Award-winning Journalist and Author
Masha Gessen
Politics
of
the Past, Politics of the Future
Tue, Apr 14 / 7:30 PM / Campbell Hall
$20 / FREE for UCSB students
“An indispensable voice of and for this moment.” – Timothy Snyder (author of On Tyranny) “When Gessen speaks about autocracy, you listen.” The New York Times Book Review
One of our most incisive observers of democracy, M. Gessen is the author of 11 books, including the National Book Award-winning The Future Is History: How Totalitarianism
Reclaimed Russia. Gessen examines how autocracies “other” vulnerable groups, tracing this tactic in Putin’s Russia and its personal consequences, which caused Gessen to flee to the U.S. a decade ago. Today, Gessen draws a clear throughline to similar currents here. As contemporary autocrats promise a return to an imaginary, safer past, Gessen argues that the antidote to the politics of the past is an inspiring politics of the future. What might that future be, and can we see its early outlines if we look closely?
Books will be available for purchase and signing, courtesy of Chaucer’s Books
Additional support from the Beth Chamberlin Endowment for Cultural Understanding
photo: Damon Winter
Seven-time International Bluegrass Music Association Mandolin Player of the Year
"[Sierra Hull is] a shockingly good player, with more than enough ability to play my admittedly angular and sometimes complex form of bluegrass.” –
Béla Fleck
“Hull is as good a songwriter as a mandolin player, and could give Bill Monroe a run for his money on the latter.” Isthmus
Just added!
Sierra Hull with special guest Mason Via
Thu, Apr 16 / 8 PM / Campbell Hall
Tickets start at $45 / $15 UCSB students
Sierra Hull, a six-time Grammy nominee including Bluegrass Album of the Year for her latest release A Tip Toe High Wire, brings dazzling musicianship, expressive vocals and genre-bending imagination to the stage. Once a prodigy mentored by Alison Krauss, she has become one of acoustic music’s most captivating voices, blending bluegrass roots with adventurous songwriting and chamber-folk finesse. Her command of the stage has led to widely acclaimed performances including the Outlaw Music Tour alongside artists such as Willie Nelson, Bob Dylan and Billy Strings. This concert showcases Hull and her own band at their most intimate, dynamic and emotionally resonant.
“If any book could make a thinking person hopeful about the future, this is it.”
– Elizabeth Kolbert, author of
The Sixth Extinction
Bestselling Author and Climate Journalist
Bill McKibben
Here Comes the Sun: A Last Chance for the Climate and a Fresh Chance for Civilization
Tue, Apr 21 / 7:30 PM / Campbell Hall
Tickets start at $28 / $10 UCSB students
“This is the energizing vision and game-plan so many of us have been waiting for, and of course it comes from one of our era’s most imaginative and trusted voices.” – Naomi Klein, author of This Changes Everything
Pioneering climate journalist and environmental activist Bill McKibben arrives bearing calls to action and optimism. In Here Comes the Sun, McKibben lays out a hopeful path forward driven by the cheapest energy in history: solar power. With urgency and clarity, he traces the stunning global rise of solar and wind energy and exposes the fossil fuel industry’s desperate efforts to resist change. Blending hard science with compelling storytelling and seasoned advocacy, McKibben offers not just a way out of climate catastrophe, but a vision for a more equitable, democratic future fueled by the light from above.
Books will be available for purchase and signing, courtesy of Chaucer’s Books
Event Sponsor: Patricia Bragg Foundation
photo: Paul Richardson
International Rescue Committee President David Miliband
New World Disorder: A Humanitarian Perspective in Conversation with Ben Rhodes
Wed, Apr 22 / 7:30 PM / Campbell Hall
$25 / FREE for UCSB students
“Good politics starts with empathy, proceeds to analysis, then sets out values and establishes the vision, before getting to the nitty-gritty of policy solutions.” – David Miliband
As President and CEO of the International Rescue Committee, David Miliband directs humanitarian relief and refugee assistance across more than 40 crisis zones, bringing aid to millions each year. A former U.K. Foreign Secretary and Oxford/MIT-educated leader who moved to New York to pursue global service, Miliband combines diplomatic insight with frontline urgency. As the son of refugees and author of Rescue: Refugees and the Political Crisis of Our Time, he offers compelling perspectives on leadership, displacement and our shared responsibility in a turbulent world. The evening will feature remarks from Miliband followed by a conversation with Ben Rhodes, co-host of Pod Save the World and former Deputy National Security Advisor.
Event Sponsor: Jillian & Pete Muller
One of Today’s Most Captivating Musicians in a Dual Role
Yuja Wang & Mahler Chamber Orchestra
Thu, Apr 23 / 7 PM / Granada Theatre
Tickets start at $50 / $20 UCSB students
A Granada facility fee is included in each ticket price
Program
Prokofiev: Symphony No. 1
Chopin: Piano Concerto No. 1
Prokofiev: Piano Concerto No. 2
“No one can generate the roof-raising power from a Steinway that she does.”
San Francisco Classical Voice
“This is one of those orchestras in which all are stars.” The Guardian (U.K.)
Fresh off her electrifying 2025 duo tour with Víkingur Ólafsson, superstar pianist Yuja Wang returns to Arts & Lectures to conduct the Santa Barbara debut of the Mahler Chamber Orchestra from the keyboard. This distinctive collaboration represents another daring artistic move for Yuja Wang, who thus asserts a new level of creative leadership. For the MCO, already widely known for its lauded partnerships with pianists, Wang’s involvement magnifies the focus of international attention.
Expect 19th- and 20th-century masterworks delivered with symphonic intensity and crystalline chamber clarity.
Major Sponsor:
The Shanbrom Family Foundation
photo: Wel Lai Beijing
National Book Award-winning Poet and Social Justice Advocate
An
Evening
with Martín Espada
Wed, Apr 29 (new date) / 7:30 PM / Campbell Hall
FREE (registration recommended)
“Martín Espada is a captivating storyteller and memoirist. His great subject is the drama of the Puerto Rican diaspora; his method is meticulously crafted portraiture of lives that intertwine with history, among them his own, radiantly defiant and fearless. One of our most important contemporary poets.” – Joyce Carol Oates
Winner of the 2021 National Book Award for Poetry for Floaters, and the only Puerto Rican winner since William Carlos Williams, Martín Espada is one of America’s most impassioned and urgent advocates. He writes with clarity about inequality, labor and migration, honoring the dignity of working people, especially in his own Puerto Rican community. His most recent collection, Jailbreak of Sparrows, confronts injustice with unflinching power and reaffirms poetry’s ability to bear witness. A former tenant lawyer with Su Clínica Legal in Greater Boston, Espada continues to bring the struggles and resilience of working people to the page. Join us for an evening of readings and commentary by one of America’s most vital literary voices, whose words transform resistance and compassion into unforgettable art.
Books will be available for purchase and signing, courtesy of Chaucer’s Books
Co-presented with the Walter H. Capps Center for the Study of Ethics, Religion, and Public Life; and the UCSB Department of Religious Studies
photo: Lauren Marie Schmidt
“A voice as lush and sumptuous as any singer on the scene.”
San Francisco Classical Voice
“[Lucía] represents the global evolution of jazz, where cultures from all over the world can dance together in harmony.”
Monterey Jazz Festival
Santa Barbara Debut
Vocal Jazz Sensation from Veracruz
Lucía
Thu, Apr 30 / 7 PM / Hahn Hall
$48 / $10 UCSB students (very limited availability)
24-year-old Mexican jazz vocalist Lucía makes her Santa Barbara debut with a luminous blend of tradition, innovation and personal storytelling. A winner of the prestigious Sarah Vaughan International Jazz Vocal Competition, Lucía bridges cultures and generations with her soulful interpretations of jazz standards like “What a Difference a Day Makes” and classics from the Latin American songbook. Expect an evening of expressive vocals, emotional range and genre-crossing artistry from one of jazz’s most compelling new voices.
Supporting Sponsor: Jody & John Arnhold
photo: Shervin Lainez
“Kronos Quartet remains a living, breathing worldheritage site for music.” NPR
“The foremost ambassador of contemporary chamber music.”
Polar Music Prize Citation
Kronos Quartet
- David Harrington, violin
- Gabriela Díaz, violin
- Ayane Kozasa, viola
- Paul Wiancko, cello
Quentin E. Baxter, percussion
Laura Ortman, Apache violin, amplified violin
Wu Man, pipa
West Coast Premiere
Kronos Quartet
Three Bones
Sat, May 2 / 6 PM (note special time) / Campbell Hall
Tickets start at $28 / $15 UCSB students
The game-changing Kronos Quartet presents a semi-staged, multisensory exploration of the histories of Indigenous, Gullah-Geechee and Chinese American communities in the United States. One panel in this musical triptych brings together the visceral, gripping and poignant artistry of Apache violinist and composer Laura Ortman. Another explores connections between West African and American cultures through compositions by Lorenzo Dow Turner and Charlton Singleton, featuring Grammy-winning percussionist Quentin E. Baxter. A third panel welcomes pipa virtuoso Wu Man and other guests for music by Dai Wei alongside personal histories of Chinese Americans who expanded civil and immigrant rights in San Francisco.
photo:
“Yong succeeds brilliantly in shedding light on these alien worlds – worlds that drift around us every day, like plankton around a scallop, but whose richness and extravagant strangeness we rarely pause to examine.”
Bestselling author and Pulitzer Prize-winning science journalist Ed Yong invites audiences on a thrilling journey into the hidden worlds of animal senses. Based on his acclaimed book An Immense World, this eye-opening evening explores how other creatures experience sights, sounds, smells and sensations far beyond our own human perception. With humor, wonder and dazzling storytelling, the winner of the 2021 George Polk Award for science reporting reveals a planet alive with electric messages, magnetic maps and vibrations we cannot feel.
Books will be available for purchase and signing, courtesy of Chaucer’s Books
Event Sponsor: Patricia Bragg Foundation
Word of Mouth Series Sponsor: Laura & Geof Wyatt
Presented in association with Santa Barbara Audubon Society
RELATED EVENT Bird Walk with Santa Barbara Audubon Society, Apr 29 (p. 7)
photo: Deanne Fitzmaurice
“[Abraham] likes to spread the love with his company, A.I.M, and, in doing so, broaden the viewer’s experience of what a dance concert… can be.”
The New York Times
MacArthur Award-winning Choreographer
A.I.M by Kyle Abraham
Kyle Abraham, Artistic Director
Tue, May 12 / 7:30 PM / Granada Theatre
Tickets start at $50 / $20 UCSB students
A Granada facility fee is included in each ticket price
Program
Kyle Abraham:
2x4 (music: Shelley Washington)
If We Were a Love Song (music: Nina Simone)
The Gettin’ (music: Robert Glasper’s interpretation of We Insist! Max Roach’s Freedom Now Suite)
“Lush movement, infectious music, and magnetic dancers.” The New York Times
MacArthur Fellow Kyle Abraham is one of the most dynamic and in-demand choreographers working today. A bold, innovative creator, Abraham has crafted works for New York City Ballet, American Ballet Theatre, Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater and many more. In this, his 20th anniversary season, Abraham returns with three powerful dances set to the live music that inspired them. Genre-blurring pianist Robert Glasper contributes “The Gettin’,” inspired by Max Roach’s Freedom Now Suite. Vocalist Crystal Monee Hall channels the soul of Nina Simone, while saxophonist Shelley Washington scores 2x4, a bold study in contrast. Known for his emotionally charged, socially engaged work, Abraham delivers a powerful portrait of love, loss and transformation – personal, political and deeply human.
Lead Sponsor: Jody & John Arnhold
Dance Series Sponsors: Margo Cohen-Feinberg, Barbara Stupay, Sheila Wald, and Anonymous
“We’re not the only species that lives and dreams on this planet.”
– Terry Tempest Williams
Writer,
Naturalist and Activist
Terry Tempest Williams
in Conversation with Pico Iyer
Wed, May 13 / 7:30 PM / Campbell Hall
Tickets start at $25 / $10 UCSB students
Author and activist Terry Tempest Williams joins Pico Iyer to explore the role of imagination in seeking justice and stewarding the future of the planet. In her book The Glorians: Visitations from the Holy Ordinary, she offers a testament to the power of witness and extends an invitation to engage more deeply with one another and the living world. From wilderness to Congress and from Utah to Rwanda, her work illuminates the deep ties between environmentalism and human rights. This provocative dialogue promises to explore what power could look like when understood as not only within us and between us as humans, but also extending beyond our species.
Event Sponsor: Betsy Atwater
Speaking with Pico Series Sponsors: Martha Gabbert, Robin & Roger Himovitz, and Siri & Bob Marshall
photo:
Zoe Rodriguez
Isidore String Quartet
Adrian Steele, violin
Phoenix Avalon, violin
Devin Moore, viola
Joshua McClendon, cello
Santa Barbara Debut
A Juilliard-born Collaboration
Isidore String Quartet
with Sterling Elliott, cello
Thu, May 14 / 7 PM / Hahn Hall
$53 / $10 UCSB students
“Amazing… The ensemble was tight and all the playing stunning, full of clarity and nuance… Don’t pass up any chances to hear the Isidore.” Boston Musical Intelligencer
Winners of the Banff International String Quartet Competition and 2023 Avery Fisher Career Grant, the Isidore String Quartet brings fresh insight and expressive intensity to the chamber repertoire. They’re joined by their Juilliard classmate and fellow Avery Fisher honoree Sterling Elliott, a cellist whose star power and soulful artistry have earned international acclaim. This probing program traces a path from Haydn at his most unconventional and expressive through Ligeti’s surging dissonances and culminating in Schubert’s luminous Cello Quintet – a masterpiece of emotional unity and complexity.
Program
Haydn: String Quartet in B-flat Major, op. 76, no. 4
Ligeti: String Quartet No. 2
Schubert: String Quintet, D. 596
photo:
Sterling Elliott
90th Birthday Celebration
Philip Glass and The Poets
Featuring Music by Philip Glass
Performed by Timo Andres, piano
Taylor Mac, spoken word
with special guest appearances by Lucinda Childs
San Francisco Girls Choru s
Sun, May 17 / 7 PM / Campbell Hall
Tickets start at $23 / $10 UCSB students
“Philip Glass is one of the dominant, boundary-crossing influences of the past half century.” The Guardian (U.K.)
Approaching the composer’s 90th birthday, Arts & Lectures presents Philip Glass and The Poets. This special event, featuring longtime interpreter and composer Timo Andres and theater artist and MacArthur fellow Taylor Mac, celebrates Glass’ extraordinary relationships and collaborations with poets. Throughout his long career, Philip Glass has drawn inspiration from poets’ words, their lives, and the depths of their creative practice. In particular, his friendship with American beat poet Allen Ginsberg spawned multiple collaborations; this evening will include previously unreleased recordings of Ginsberg reading his poetry set to some of Glass’ most intimate chamber music. Members of the San Francisco Girls Chorus perform songs by Ginsberg and Leonard Cohen and iconic choreographer and performer Lucinda Childs performs poetry from Glass’ 1976 opera Einstein on the Beach. Co-commissioned by Pomegranate Arts. (Philip Glass will not be performing.)
Philip Glass, Kiev Restaurant, New York City, 1993 (photo: Allen Ginsberg)
Timo Andres
Taylor Mac
Lucinda Childs
photos (left to right): Michael Wilson, courtesy of the artist, Rita Antonioli
Michelle Zauner (Japanese Breakfast) shares the moving story behind her memoir Crying in H Mart, a powerful meditation on family, food, identity and loss. Blending lyrical prose and emotional honesty, Zauner’s book explores her Korean-American heritage and her mother’s lasting influence through the tastes and textures of memory. Books will be available for purchase and signing, courtesy of Chaucer’s Books
Co-presented with UCSB Library as part of UCSB Reads 2026, with support from the Office of the Executive Vice Chancellor and Provost
Thu, May 21 / 4:30 PM-6 PM / Granada Theatre
Tickets start at $200 / $20 UCSB students
A Granada facility fee is included in each ticket price
Ticket includes digital access to the 2026 Economic Outlook Publication and a post-event reception
The annual Santa Barbara County Economic Summit features presentations by a panel of experts on the state of the economy and policy in Santa Barbara and California. The Santa Barbara County economic report will be delivered by Peter Rupert, director of the UCSB Economic Forecast Project. Presentations will be followed by a panel moderated by Peter Rupert.
Thank You to Our Top Sponsors:
The Gretler Foundation, U.S. Bank Private Wealth Management, Montecito Bank & Trust
American Riviera Bank, Blackbird Investment Group, Deckers Brands, UCSB Alumni Services, UCSB Foundation
Access for ALL | Arts & Lectures Learning
Through Access for ALL, inspirational, dynamic learning experiences are possible for students and lifelong learners across classrooms, our community and the UCSB campus.
UCSB Students
• Classroom visits
• Master classes
• Panel discussions
• Lecture-demonstrations
• Discounted and free admission to A&L mainstage events
K-12
• Matinee field trips for students from across the county
• Assemblies
• Workshops
• Q&As
Lifelong Learners
• Thematic Learning Initiative (TLI): Extending the conversation through film screenings, special events and book giveaways
• Author signings
• Pre-show talks and post-show Q&As
• Community workshops
Access for ALL serves more than 30,000 students and community members annually.
Please consider a contribution to A&L’s award-winning educational outreach programs. Call Heather Silva, Managing Director of Development, at (805) 893-3755 for more info.
Jake Shimabukuro performs for 2,000 K-12 students at the Arlington Theatre as part of A&L’s Arts Adventures program
commentator Ezra Klein meets with UCSB Yardi Scholars for Environmental Justice
Bass-baritone Davóne Tines teaches a master class for UCSB students
Thank You to our Access for ALL and ¡Viva el Arte de Santa Bárbara! Sponsors
Arnhold A&L Education Initiative
Nancy Barasch
Linda Stafford Burrows
Marcy Carsey
La Centra-Sumerlin Foundation
Audrey & Timothy O. Fisher
Martha Gabbert
Eva & Yoel* Haller
Robin & Roger Himovitz
Hutton Parker Foundation
Dorothy Largay & Wayne Rosing
In Memory of Margaret Zwigard Lavidge
Little One Foundation and Belle Hahn
Lucky One Foundation and Hahn Shining Family
Sara Miller McCune
The Otis Booth Foundation
The Roddick Foundation
Stone Family Foundation
Towbes Fund for Performing Arts, an interest area of the Santa Barbara Foundation
William H. Kearns Foundation
Dick Wolf
Crystal & Cliff Wyatt
The Zegar Family Foundation
* In Memoriam
University Support:
Office of the Chancellor
Office of the Executive
Vice Chancellor and Provost
photo 1: Isaac Hernández de Lipa; photos 2&3: David Bazemore
¡Viva el Arte de Santa Bárbara! brings people together to share the rich cultural heritage of Latin America, serving more than 15,000 students and community members each year throughout Santa Barbara County.
Created in 2006 out of a commitment to arts access for all, Viva works with dozens of local partners to present high-quality artists who share their knowledge and passion. Schools, neighborhood spaces and community centers come alive in these free programs for youth and families.
¡Viva el Arte de Santa Bárbara! is a collaboration between The Marjorie Luke Theatre, Guadalupe Visual & Performing Arts Center, Isla Vista School Parent Teacher Association and UCSB Arts & Lectures, serving Carpinteria, Santa Barbara, Goleta, Lompoc, Santa Maria, Guadalupe and New Cuyama.
Coming in Spring of 2026
Las Cafeteras
March 19-22
Ballet Folklórico
del Rio Grande
April 16-19
Performances are FREE
(no registration required)
For nearly two decades, Viva has brought vibrant cultural performance and educational opportunities to the most underserved in Santa Barbara County.
Join us in securing the future of this vital partnership with a gift to ¡Viva el Arte de Santa Bárbara!
For more information about supporting Viva, contact Elise Erb, Senior Director of Development, at (805) 893-5679.
photos: Isaac Hernández de Lipa
The Benefits of Giving
Become a donor and join a community of arts advocates that enable us to deliver remarkable programming on and off stage.
The Benefi ts of Giving
Bespoke A&L experiences u
Invitations to dinners with artists or lecturers and other A&L members
Opportunity to host reception with an artist or lecturer
Event sponsorship opportunities
Complimentary reserved parking for all ticketed Campbell Hall events
A pair of complimentary guest tickets to an A&L public event
Reserved VIP seating at A&L Summer Cinema Series
VIP Ticketing Concierge Service and Priority Seating
Complimentary ticket exchange when your plans change
Invitations to Producers Circle Receptions
Access to Intermission Lounge at A&L events at The Granada Theatre
Invitation to A&L’s exclusive Season Announcement Party
Opportunity to attend master classes and other educational activities
Invitation to a member appreciation event
Recognition in A&L impact reports or digital media
To learn more about membership, contact Austin Janisch, Annual Giving & Membership Manager, at (805) 893-2174 or Membership@ArtsAndLectures.UCSB.edu.
UCSB Arts & Lectures Calendar, Issue # 2025-2026.3. This free publication is printed quarterly in fall, winter and spring. Arts & Lectures, University of California Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, CA 93106-5030
Patron Information
How to Order
Online
www.ArtsAndLectures.UCSB.edu
Phone (805) 893-3535
Hours: Mon-Fri, 10 AM-5 PM
In Person
Campbell Hall Box Office on the UC Santa Barbara campus
Hours: Mon-Fri, 10 AM-5 PM
A fee is required to park on campus.
Questions?
(805) 893-3535
info@ArtsAndLectures.ucsb.edu
Ticket Donations and Exchanges
Ticket donations or exchange requests must be received at least two full business days prior to the event. Ticket exchanges are available to all patrons for a $5 fee per ticket (no exchange fee for subscribers and Producers Circle members). Tickets are exchanged at face value and are subject to availability. Tickets of a higher value exchanged for a lower value are considered an even exchange; tickets exchanged for a higher value need the difference paid. It is the policy of UCSB and the UC Regents that a modest portion of gifts and/or the income from gifts may be used to defray the costs of raising and administering funds.
Changed, Canceled and Postponed Events
All sales are final. No refunds or returns are permitted, except in the case of an event cancellation. Service charges may not be refundable. In the event of a cancellation, postponement, venue change or schedule change, the A&L Ticket Office will make every effort to notify the purchaser in advance. A&L will not be responsible for losses (monetary or otherwise) if we are unable to contact you in the event of such a change. Please make sure your current email address and phone number are on file with the A&L Ticket Office; they will be used to communicate event guidelines, ticketing info and other important updates.
Purchase of Tickets From Unauthorized Sources
UCSB Arts & Lectures assumes no liability for tickets purchased through unauthorized channels including Tickets Center, StubHub, Event Tickets Center, Vivid Seats and other secondary market or ticket broker services. We strongly advise against purchasing tickets from any source other than the Arts & Lectures Ticket Office, www.ArtsAndLectures.UCSB.edu, or the venue ticket office and official website. Tickets purchased from unauthorized sources may be stolen, counterfeit or otherwise compromised and, if so, are not valid for admission. If you are unsure if a ticket seller has been authorized to sell A&L tickets, please contact the Ticket
Due to the nature of live events, artists, programs and prices are subject to change.
Office prior to purchasing from that source. A&L does not replace or refund tickets purchased through the secondary market.
Student and Youth Discounts
UCSB student-rate tickets are available to full-time UCSB students who have completed enrollment (one ticket per ID). A valid UCSB student ID is required at the time of purchase and at the event. “All Student” ticket holders must show current student ID at the event. “Youth” ticket holders of high school age may be asked to show ID at the event.
Fees
All tickets and orders are subject to service charges and/or facility fees. Ticket prices, service charges and facility fees are subject to change without notice.
Group Sales
Once single tickets are on sale, groups of 20 or more may take advantage of special rates for select events. Contact the A&L Ticket Office with inquiries.
Accessibility
A&L is committed to making events accessible to all who wish to enjoy them. Please contact the A&L Ticket Office in advance to ensure the best possible experience and receive information about accessible seating, assistive listening devices, large-print programs and other accommodations.
Suitability for Children
A&L’s performing arts season is designed primarily for adult audiences. Contact the Ticket Office if you have questions about the appropriateness of an event. All patrons, regardless of age, must have a ticket to enter the theater.
Late Seating
A&L makes every effort to begin events at the published start time. Late seating and re-entry will take place during appropriate points in the program determined by the artist. Reserved seats are not guaranteed after the event begins.
UC
Santa
Barbara
Smoke-Free and Tobacco-Free Policy
Under the authority of California Government Code 7597.1, smoking and the use of all tobacco products, the use of smokeless tobacco products, and the use of unregulated nicotine products (e.g., “e-cigarettes”) are prohibited anywhere at all indoor and outdoor spaces managed by UC Santa Barbara.
Venues
A&L presents events at a variety of locations on the UCSB campus and around Santa Barbara. Visit the A&L website for specific venue details.
Parking at the UCSB Campus
A fee is required to park on campus. Purchase short-term parking on arrival at a permit dispenser (available in all campus parking lots) or using the ParkMobile app. License plate number required; select lots are closed to visitor parking. Parking for A&L’s Campbell Hall events can also be purchased in advance online. Visit the UCSB Transportation & Parking Services website (www.tps.ucsb.edu) for more information.
