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The Woolsey Fire in 2018 remains the largest wildfire in the history of the Santa Monica Mountains by acreage. The National Park Service, the Santa Monica Mountains Fund, partner agencies, and NPS volunteers have collaborated to study and investigate the fire's impacts and long-lasting effects on the ecosystem and its inhabitants. With the use of wildlife camera traps, biologists have gained a better sense of what lives, breathes, and zooms through the Santa Monica Mountains and nearby mountain ranges. The first part of the lecture will highlight the scope of this research, how researchers capture these wildlife images, and get insight on the massive collaborative effort driven by park staff, partner agencies, and volunteers to maintain this project. The second part of the lecture will highlight select images from the research data including images of wildlife behavior rarely seen in-person, photos of collared animals, and site comparisons over the years.

Miroslava Munguia Ramos is the Woolsey Fire Recovery Project lead with the Santa Monica Mountains Fund, the official non-profit partner of the Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area. She has worked under the Interpretation, Education, and Volunteer division of the National Park Service to provide public programming, school field trips, and engaging volunteer experiences for park visitors. She began her Santa Monica Mountains Fund career as a program supervisor for college-aged interns about exploring careers in public land management. Now collaborating with the Wildlife division, she works regularly with volunteers and citizen/community scientists to showcase some of the park's research and help make it more accessible to the public.

Munguia Ramos received her undergraduate degree from the University of California, Davis with a major in Environmental Science and Management and a minor in Wildlife, Fish, and Conservation Biology. She has recruited and led citizen/community scientists for years across California to study the state's biodiversity using molecular-based research including environmental DNA and crowd-sourced platforms like iNaturalist.

The Fifty and Better (FAB) program was designed for people 50 years of age and older, seeking intellectual stimulation through university-level courses — without the pressure of grades — for the sake of learning and social engagement.

This lecture can be attended on Zoom and will be recorded.

“Brilliant performances!” The Tolucan Times. “Brilliant portrayals…you will be just as captivated as I was!” broadwayworld.com. “Just plain brilliant!” playwright/performer Wendy Michaels.

This joyous and poignant musical, back for a limited engagement after a three-year sell-out run, follows the life of the beloved Yiddish story-teller as he spins tales of his loves and losses, his fame and failures, his travels, travails and the tremendous optimism that kept him going against all odds. Based on his letters and tales, the controversy surrounding his stories and plays, and his passionate quest to honor the universality of the human spirit and celebrate our common humanity, he reminds us always that we have more in common than in conflict.

“I will never forget my evening with Sholom Aleichem and I thank you for bringing my cousin so beautifully back 'To Life'.” Lillian Aderman Moller

Playing to sold-out houses until the day before the lockdown, the delightful musical, back by audience request for a limited run, is written by the internationally acclaimed team of Chris DeCarlo and Evelyn Rudie, with lilting songs by Emery Bernauer, E. Rudie and Sholom Aleichem himself. Audiences are treated to an in-depth look at the joyous and poignant events that inspired the foolish philosophers, philosophical fools, comical shtetl folk and not-so-comical scoundrels that populated Sholom Aleichem's world.

“Chris DeCarlo has become the reincarnation of Sholom Aleichem” LASplash

The musical stars veteran performer Chris DeCarlo, who again assays the role of the beloved author, a characterization which has been enjoyed by more than a quarter of a million audience members, and Evelyn Rudie, who has created and portrayed more than three dozen Sholom Aleichem characters in over 2,000 performances to date.

“Evelyn Rudie is an all-around theatrical wizard!” Casting Call

Aleichem Sholom is presented by the Santa Monica Playhouse Jewish Heritage Project, supporting productions that keep the unique richness of Jewish theatre alive, honor the historical and cultural importance of Jewish heritage, and insure that new generations of theatre-goers appreciate and celebrate the life experience of Jewish ancestry, literature and tradition.

“ ‘Sholom Aleichem’ means ‘Hello, peace be with you.’ For Santa Monica Playhouse it means ‘richness in Jewish theatre for the community to enjoy.’ ” The Messenger

Santa Monica Playhouse is supported in part by grants from the City of Santa Monica and the Santa Monica Arts Commission, the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors through the Los Angeles County Department of Arts and Culture, We Are Santa Monica, the Ahmanson Foundation, the Rotary Club Foundation and Playhouse PALS.

Camerata Pacifica, the international chamber music collective renowned for its musical versatility and bold programming, traverses a range of groundbreaking music from the 20th century and the dawn of the era, including three works for solo instrument, October 25-30, 2024, at four Southern California venues.

The performances are Friday, October 25, 7:00 pm, at Santa Barbara’s Music Academy of the West; Sunday, October 27, 3:00 pm, at Thousand Oaks’ Janet and Ray Scherr Forum; Tuesday, October 29, 7:30 pm, at The Huntington’s Rothenberg Hall in San Marino; and Thursday, October 30, 8:00 pm, at Zipper Hall in Downtown Los Angeles.

The program opens with Sooyun Kim, “a rare virtuoso of the flute” (Libération) performing Kazuo Fukushima’s mysterious Mei for Solo Flute written in 1962 by the self-taught Japanese composer.

Shifting back in time to 1896, Rachmaninoff’s Moments musicaux, Op. 16, a set of deeply expressive solo piano pieces, showcases celebrated Principal Piano Irina Zahharenkova, heralded for her “impressive…musical colour” (Bachtrack).

The final solo work, Stravinsky’s 1918 jazz- and ragtime-inspired tour-de-force Three Pieces for Solo Clarinet, is interpreted by Camerata Pacifica Principal Clarinet Jose Franch-Ballester, a captivating performer of “poetic eloquence” (The New York Sun).

Schoenberg’s 1906 landmark Chamber Symphony No. 1, Op. 9, arranged by his student Anton Webern between 1922 and 1923, caps the program with the three solo artists joined by Alena Hove, a rising violinist applauded for her “rich, smooth tone” (CityArts), and Principal Cellist Ani Aznavoorian, whose “scorchingly committed performances…wring every last drop of emotion out of the music” (The Strad).

For tickets ($75 at The Huntington, Music Academy of the West, and Zipper Hall; $91 at Janet and Ray Scherr Forum) and information, visit www.cameratapacifica.org.

UC Santa Barbara Library invites you to the opening reception of Readymade Emanations: Trianon Press and the Art of Tearing Apart, an exhibition examining the legacy of Trianon Press, a 20th century fine art publisher based in Paris founded by visionary Arnold Fawcus.

Working with talented artisans, Trianon Press perfected a painstaking technique of reproducing original artwork by building many hand-stenciled layers upon a photographic collotype. Among the most notable achievements of Trianon Press were the publication, in partnership with the William Blake Trust, of a series of facsimiles of the works of William Blake, as well as renewal of interest in the work of Marcel Duchamp via the grand-deluxe edition of his catalogue raisonné, "Eau et gaz à tous les étages." This exhibition invites viewers to consider the relationship between reproduction and illumination.

The Trianon Press Collection, generously donated by Dean & Kim Pananides, is one of the newest additions to the UC Santa Barbara Library’s Special Research Collections.

Delve into the raw and humorous exploration of mental health with “The Funny Thing About A Panic Attack,” a solo show by the award-winning writer Ben Kassoy.

“The Funny Thing About A Panic Attack” brings to life poems from Ben Kassoy’s critically acclaimed book, using physical theater, dance, and traditional poetry readings to explore the intricate connections between mental health, art, and personal experiences. The show is a genre-defying blend of humor, heart, and defiant wonder in the face of anxiety, making it a compelling and relatable experience for audiences.

Reserve your limited free Regular Admission now or $25 at the door.

Benefit concert in support of Immigrant Legal Defense Center (ILDC). Folk music with a message featuring Kate Wallace, Doug Clegg and James McVay. Ticket includes refreshments and hors d’oeuvres. Artists meet and greet during intermission.

Can’t attend but would like to donate?

Help sponsor an asylum-seeking family $1,000
Help sponsor an undocumented youth $500
Sing along for justice! $50

About ILDC:

We are a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization promoting equal access to justice and due process by providing pro bono legal services to indigent immigrants in the tri-county area since 2018. To date, we have defended over 220 people from removal and provide case management and counseling services to nearly 30 clients.

Get crafty for the holidays! Create simple designs on linoleum blocks to print on cards or gift tags, or to make your own wrapping paper. You will learn about designing a simple shape, using carving tools, and making variations in your prints. All tools and materials are provided. For ages 13+.

with Bent Olsen, Owner of Olsen’s Danish Village Bakery

ADMISSION: DONATION

When: 2PM on Sunday, November 16th
Where: The Neal Taylor Nature Center at Cachuma Lake
Meet & greet reception with light refreshments to follow.

Guest speaker Bent Olsen will speak on Danish Bakeries in Solvang, California. Learn how six Danish bakeries have been able to thrive in Solvang, a small village of just 6,000 residents with a unique history. Peer into the rich culture and passed down techniques of Danish baking. Get a taste for yourself and sample the Olsen’s Danish Village Bakery signature pastry. Fresh brewed coffee will be provided, courtesy of El Rancho Marketplace. The presentation will finish with a Q&A.

Website: olsensdanishvillagebakery.com
Phone: (805) 688-6314

The Neal Taylor Nature Center (NTNC) is located within Cachuma Recreational Area in a picturesque old ranch house. Developed and operated by a corps of committed volunteers, it offers exhibits on the local valley and mountain environment for all ages, emphasizing hands-on exhibits for children of all ages.

Nature Center & Gift Store Hours
Thursday through Saturday: 10 a.m. – 4 p.m.
Sunday 10 a.m. – 2 p.m.
Nature Center Admission: Donations Appreciated
(There is a $10.00 County Park Entrance Fee per vehicle)