1st Annual Arts Walk

UCSB hosts an open house of visual and performing arts

UC Santa Barbara will shine the spotlight on the campus’s visual and performing arts Wednesday, April 11, with the first annual UCSB Arts Walk.

From 4:30 to 8 p.m. at various locations across campus, faculty and staff members, students and Santa Barbara area residents will have opportunities to visit galleries and artist studios, watch preview performances and behind-the-scenes rehearsals and participate in programming designed to highlight the artistic creativity and talent of the UCSB community.

Hosted by the UCSB Library, the Department of Music, the Department of Art, the Department of Theater and Dance, the College of Creative Studies, the Art, Design & Architecture Museum and the MultiCultural Center, all events are free and open to the public.

“The Department of Theater and Dance is thrilled to open our doors and give the campus and the greater Santa Barbara community a glimpse into how we work in rehearsals and performances,” said Risa Brainin, professor and chair of the theater and dance department. “We look forward to sharing the creative process on this special day.”

Theater and Dance

Among the offerings from theater and dance are an open rehearsal for the department’s upcoming production of “Cabaret” (slated to open May 25), as well as performances by dance students in UCSB’s bachelor of fine arts program. The UCSB Dance Company and Freshman Dance Company will present a special concert in the Old Ballet Studio, while exhibitions showcasing puppets and work by UCSB design students also will be on display. Interactive playwright showcase stations will give visitors the unique opportunity to work with student playwrights to compose novelty pieces on the spot.

Music

Highlights from the Department of Music include an open rehearsal of a faculty duet featuring cellist Jennifer Kloetzel and pianist Robert Koenig, plus performances by members of the Chamber Choir, Music of India Ensemble, Flute Choir, Jazz Combos, Middle East Ensemble, Chamber Players, Clarinet Choir and Gamelan Ensembles, among others. Guests will be able to interact directly with performers during question-and-answer sessions following several of the events, such as performances of scenes from UCSB Opera Theatre’s production of Mozart’s “The Marriage of Figaro” and composition graduate student Brandon J. Rolle’s electro-acoustic music exhibition.

Art

Multiple exhibitions of student work will be on display in the Arts Building and at the Red Barn Project Space in the Old Gym. Highlights include an exhibit of senior artwork by honors students in the GlassBox Gallery and, beginning at 7 p.m., “Windows” — a sampler of videos from UCSB lecturer Maya Gurantz’s intermediate digital video class projected through the second-story windows of the Arts Building.

College of Creative Studies

UCSB’s College of Creative Studies, which celebrates its 50th anniversary this year, presents an exhibition of student artwork in the CCS Gallery, while performances of original pieces by music composition students and readings of works by writing and literature students and faculty members will take place in the Old Little Theater.

Art, Design & Architecture Museum

Several exhibitions are on display at the campus’s Art, Design & Architecture Museum, including “Chiura Obata: An American Modern,” “Jane Gottlieb Photographs France,” “Keith Puccinelli” and “UCSB Campus Architecture: Design and Social Change.” At 6 p.m., Dennis Whelan, associate campus architect, will give a Kitchell Architecture and Design Lecture recounting the history of UCSB campus planning and design.

More information about UCSB Art Walk, including a complete schedule of events and locations, can be found at https://www.library.ucsb.edu/artswalk. Parking information is available at https://www.library.ucsb.edu/directions-parking.

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