Dig deeply into this season’s Shakespeare productions with a special weekend of lectures, discussions and hands-on activities. In partnership with UCSC’s Shakespeare Workshop and The Humanities Institute, this is a wonderful opportunity to learn more about each play during the day and then enjoy the production that same evening. This year, Weekend with Shakespeare will be held at the Audrey Stanley Grove in DeLaveaga Park on August 8th (Much Ado About Nothing) and August 9th (Macbeth). Admission is free to all, but seating is limited. Please register below to reserve your seats. Schedule for Weekend with Shakespeare Saturday, 8/8 – Much Ado About Nothing by William Shakespeare 11:00 a.m. – Welcome (Sean Keilen, UCSC) 11:15 a.m. – Actor Panel (Charles Pasternak and members of the company, SCS) 12:15 p.m. – Boxed lunch (courtesy of Shakespeare Workshop) 1:00 p.m. – Visiting Scholar (Eli Simon, UC Irvine) 2:00 – End of program Sunday, 8/9 – Macbeth by William Shakespeare 1:00 a.m. – Welcome (Sean Keilen, UCSC) 11:15 a.m. – Actor Panel (Charles Pasternak and members of the company, SCS) 12:15 p.m. – Boxed lunch (courtesy of Shakespeare Workshop) 1:00 p.m. – Visiting Scholar (Eli Simon, UC Irvine) 2:00 – End of program Sean Keilen is Professor of Literature and UC Santa Cruz, the founder of Shakespeare Workshop, and Head of Dramaturgy at Santa Cruz Shakespeare. Charles Pasternak is Artistic Director at Santa Cruz Shakespeare, before which served as Artistic Director of The Porters of Hellsgate Theatre Co in Los Angeles for over fifteen years. He has had a wide-ranging career as an actor and director at theatres across this country including American Players Theatre, Alabama Shakespeare Festival, The Shakespeare Theatre of New Jersey, The Shakespeare Center of Los Angeles, three seasons with The Shakespeare Festival of St. Louis and four with Shakespeare Santa Cruz. Eli Simon is a Chancellor’s Professor of Drama at UC Irvine, where he has served as chair and head of actin
From the waves to the redwoods, it's all happening here.
Live music, festivals, art walks, surf contests, trail days and everything in between.
In-person only, on purpose. Everything here is something you can actually show up to. No screens, no streams.
★ Featured this season
Coming up
Second Sunday AVALON VISIONS PSYCHIC FAIR
Come to the Second Sunday AVALON VISIONS PSYCHIC and HEALING ARTS FAIR where an array of intuitive professionals is available for your consultation, as well as market stalls filled with inspiring good for purchase. Join us for good vibes the Second Sunday of every month at 2815 Porter Street in Soquel. See you there!
Coming up
Take Out: Rhythms Within
Take Out: Rhythms Within performance at Santa Cruz Mountains Art Center.
Coming up
Whiskers & Brews
12:00-3:00pm Animal Shelter Relief is coming back to our Beer Garden! Grab a beer, meet adorable adoptable animals, and learn about what ASR does to help our local furry friends. Stay for live music afterwards from 3-5pm! ASR is an all-volunteer, non-profit, 501(c)(3) animal rescue based in Santa Cruz, CA. Their mission is to relieve overcrowded animal shelters through rescue, thereby reducing euthanasia. Formed in 2008, Amy Strickland along with 2 former co-workers from the Santa Cruz County Animal Shelter started Animal Shelter Relief rescue, the ONLY local animal rescue focusing on cats and special needs animals, that existed at the time. The founders knew what help was needed at the County Animal Shelter and formed a rescue to meet those needs and relieve the overcrowding.
Chamber Choir Auditions
Beati Quorum, a new and growing Ensemble, is seeking new local members. Beati Quorum is a small, hybrid professional / volunteer ensemble based in Santa Cruz. We focus on a cappella singing, Renaissance through contemporary works, and collaborations with artists from our local network to international groups. Visit www.beatiquorum.org to set up an audition today.
☀️ Happening today
Sunday, August 953 events on today. No plans required, just go.
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11 upcoming events · Art & Culture · from 2026-08-09 · to 2026-08-09
0 booked, 4 available Glazing
Join artists Gina Athena Ulysse and Nicolás Dumit Estévez Raful Espejo Ovalles Morel for a day-long contemplative retreat. Schedule of events: 10am-1pm Where Are We Going? A 6-mile walk spanning all locations of Redwoods Rasanblaj from the UCSC Quarry to Variance Objects and the MAH in downtown Santa Cruz, and ending at the Institute of the Arts and Sciences. Please bring water and appropriate footwear. Meet at the UCSC Quarry at 10am. Attendees are also welcome to join at the MAH at approximately 11:30am. 1pm-2pm Lunch A light lunch will be provided for those who plan to join for both the conversation and walk. 2pm-3:30pm It Was Never Meant To Be Secular A dialogue at the IAS galleries between Gina Athena Ulysse and Nicolás Dumit Estévez Raful Espejo Ovalles Morel.
“Confluence”: where separate currents meet. This beautiful exhibition pairs the work of Santa Cruz artists Susana Arias and Glenn Carter, on view August 7 through September 13 at M.K. Contemporary Art Gallery. “Confluence” is exhibited alongside of 25+ local and regional artists whose work we adore. Live improvisational jazz music from “The Leftovers” at the opening on the First Friday of August from 6-8PM
Spring Exhibitions at the Institute of the Arts and Sciences
Visit the IAS, UCSC’s premier art galleries, for our spring exhibitions. On view April 10–August 16, 2026 are three diverse and interdisciplinary shows: Libia Posada: Everything is Going Right , the first US solo exhibition by the Colombia-based artist and medical doctor; Gina Athena Ulysse: A Redwoods Rasanblaj , a site-specific and immersive exploration of the Haitian kreyol conception of rasanblaj; and Ronaldo V. Wilson: There Are No Words, But Melodies , a mixed-media exhibition emerging at the intersections of Black poetics, performance, and visual art. The IAS Galleries are open Wednesday-Sunday, 12 pm – 5 pm. Admission is free to the public. Libia Posada: Everything is Going Right Libia Posada’s first solo exhibition in the United States features installations, sculptures, and drawings meticulously constructed from surgical instruments, gauze bandages, crutches, used books, and domestic picture frames. The new and existing works in the exhibition powerfully stitch together the personal, social, and political disorders and afflictions that currently trouble the world, from the wars that resonate across the globe to the violences of aging in US prisons. Gina Athena Ulysse: A Redwoods Rasanblaj: Origins & Disentanglements The internationally-lauded work of humanities professor Gina Athena Ulysse is on view as a premier Faculty Spotlight Exhibition. The site-specific installation, produced in community from things collected, found, purchased and donated, centers on the Haitian concept of rasanblaj, a form of assembly and collage that transcends the formal use of materials to draw together people, spirits, and ideas. Ronaldo V. Wilson: There Are No Words, But Melodies Collage is both a material practice and a structural interrogation in the Faculty Spotlight Exhibition artworks by literature professor Ronaldo V. Wilson. In video, painting, and installation, layers and folds conceal and reveal, delving into the experience, both bodily and emotive, of living in time
Take Out: Rhythms Within performance at Santa Cruz Mountains Art Center.
Enjoy summer weekend afternoons at the beautiful Nicholson Vineyards! Saturdays from noon to 5pm – Enjoy perusing art from local artists Sundays from 1pm to 4pm – Enjoy listening to local musicians Pack a picnic spread, gather your friends and family, and sip on their refreshing summer wine flight, featuring the best of our warm-weather selections. Book your reservation today! July 11 & 12: The Clay Chalet and music by Dos Bros July 18 & 19: Indigo and Vine and music by Jo Coleman July 25 & 26: Sour Sammy Sourdough and music by Six String Mixtape August 1 & 2: Scout and Sea and music by Half Pass August 8 & 9: Lili Arnold Studios and music by Eden Edell August 15 & 16: Desert Moon Design and music by Kip Allert August 22 & 23: Papelline Jewelry and music by Zach Bailey August 29 & 30: Anna Gail Designs and music by Jeff Smith September 5 & 6: All You Knead and music by Cake Party!
Audrey Stanley Grove: Much Ado About Nothing
Santa Cruz Shakespeare invites you to experience Shakespeare’s Much Ado About Nothing, un-der the trees and stars of the Audrey Stanley Grove in Santa Cruz’s DeLaveaga Park this summer. Much Ado About Nothing By William Shakespeare Directed by Charles Pasternak One of Shakespeare’s wittiest and most beloved comedies, the 2026 season will open with Shakespeare’s Much Ado About Nothing. Of all the couples in Shakespeare, perhaps none is more widely loved than Beatrice and Benedick. Their battle of wits; their antagonism turned to eroticism; their history. Before the play begins, they already seem to define each other. The audience, like the other characters in the play, wait with excitement as their wits clash, and eventually, as their love blossoms. Much Ado About Nothing runs July 11 – August 30. More information or to purchase tickets, follow the link in the orange above, or contact the box office Tuesday through Friday from noon to 4pm at the number listed above.
Rita Dove, Cabrillo Festival of Contemporary Music
TICKETED EVENT AT THE CIVIC: The 2026 Cabrillo Festival of Contemporary Music concludes with a special appearance by poet Rita Dove, presented with the support of Bookshop Santa Cruz in honor of ou...
Macbeth, presented by Santa Cruz Shakespeare
Something wicked this way comes, indeed. Starting this weekend and running through August 30th, Santa Cruz Shakespeare presents one of The Bard’s most infamous plays, Macbeth. Coincidentally the play’s first ever performance is believed to have been in 1606 marking this as the 420th anniversary, which is very Santa Cruz. And for anyone familiar with Macbeth, it’s easy to see why it’s lasted throughout the ages. Witches, murder, moral failings and tons of tragedy are beautifully sewn throughout the acts, stitched together with lines such as “Blood will have blood,” and “the wine of life is drawn.” -Mat Weir; Good Times Santa Cruz
A young, wholesome, and seemingly normal couple, Brad and Jan, set out to visit their old professor, but their plans change when a large storm causes their car to go flat. Desperate to get out of the rain, they find an old castle that is home to Dr. Frank-N-Furter. From there, the night only becomes weirder. That night will be one they and the audience will not forget. This cult classic continues to entertain crowds, and this run is no different. Audience members can purchase interactive goodie bags with their tickets and participate in a costume contest. Goes until August 22.
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