Modernizing the Classics
Experimental music is an undefinable art form pushing boundaries and transforming music within classical and electronic genres. The genre is broadly considered to be music that goes against the traditional style in composition and performance and often incorporates mechanical and electronic elements. Indexical, a record...
Partnering the Old and New
Ballet, a form of dance rooted in tradition and discipline, has evolved to blend more interpretive styles of dance and move the body in new ways. Santa Cruz Ballet Theatre (SCBT) performed its 35th annual mixed-repertory concert on April 8 and featured dances ranging from...
The Art and Science of Juggling
A juggler unicycled and tossed clubs to a partner, while a circle of people balanced balls on their heads. An artist rolled a staff over the top of his hand as he built momentum to allow the staff to travel down his arms and shoulders....
Bouquet of the People
Joel Alexander Escobedo’s housemate hung roses off the light fixtures of their home. As the rose chandelier dried and became pale, Escobedo said this inspired him to create his own large-scale rose chandelier as an art installation to bring the student community together. “They looked...
Exploring Gender Identity Through Traditional Asian Theater
Drama, Masks & Gender Fluidity “He or she — love is love,” said Panji, a colorfully clad character played by Naomi Grunst, surrounded by a group of actors in striking and bright Indonesian-style costumes. The performance of “Panji-Candra Kirana” was one of three plays in...
Confronting Racism and Gentrification
Alejandro “Alex” Nieto, a 28-year-old security guard and devout Buddhist, was eating a burrito on the top of Bernal Heights Park when four police officers surrounded him. They had gotten a call that a Latino man in a red jacket was “starting trouble.” Hands still...
Laborers: the Unspoken Narrative
A mother and daughter push against loose mud to haul a ship up a river. A stooped woman shoulders a bale of hay. These frozen figures in resin prints and tapestries line the walls of the Museum of Art and History (MAH) — an homage...
Looking to the Future, Recalling the Past
The Temptations are blasting from an eight-track and a raised, black fist is painted on the wall. It’s 1967 in Detroit, Michigan and Motown is alive onstage at the UC Santa Cruz Second Stage Theater Arts. African American Theater Arts Troupe (AATAT) presents “Detroit ’67,”...
Honoring the Afro-Latinx Beat
Pa-chang-a. Noun. 1. A musical genre derived from the Latin American adoption and integration of African rhythmic music. 2. A Cuban dance of crafty footwork. 3. A term coined in the ‘50s to describe a celebration of music, dance and culture. UC Santa Cruz’s Chicano Latino...
Overcoming Borders
Borderlands — borders in identities, memories, psyches and dreams — are where contradicting elements within religion or gender identity lie. Naima Shalhoub said it is the paradox within borderlands that creates chaos and oppression. Shalhoub gave a keynote speech to a crowd of about 30...