Lent is a time to renew commitments grown dull. Come join with three faith communities as they begin the Lenten Season

Singing Our Way to Freedom is a multilayered look at the life of San Diego Chicano musician, composer and community activist, Ramon “Chunky” Sanchez. Borrowing from musical traditions on both sides of the U.S.-Mexico border, Chunky uses music and humor as powerful weapons in the fight for social justice. This character-driven film reminds us that the battle for freedom has to be fought anew by every generation. Post film discussion to follow with the filmmaker, Paul Espinosa. 1h 29min

In anticipation of our next opera, Il Postino (The Postman), based on the Oscar-winning film about the poet Pablo Neruda, OSB is hosting an Opera Pub Night!

Directed by Robert Koenig, the UCSB Chamber Players will present an evening of chamber music favorites on Wednesday, February 26, 2020 at 7:30 pm in Karl Geiringer Hall. The UCSB Chamber Players consist of a variety of ensembles, from duos to quintets and occasionally larger groups, which study and perform masterpieces of the chamber music literature.

Bird migration is something dear to our hearts here every spring and fall. This months program will provide some current insights into this phenomenon.

Grammy-nominated JD Souther has penned countless hits for the Eagles, Linda Ronstadt, Roy Orbison, James Taylor, Don Henley, George Strait, Trisha Yearwood, Brooks and Dunn and found success as a solo artist. This led him to being inducted into the Songwriter’s Hall of Fame in 2013 and becoming one of the most celebrated songwriters of his generation. On his latest studio album, Tenderness (Sony Music Masterworks), Souther creates a perfect balance of understated Jazz with the ineffable pop narratives that have been the backbone of much of his greatest work. His classic albums John David Souther, Black Rose and Home by Dawn have been released as expanded reissues (Omnivore Recordings).

As part of the World Music Series, the UCSB Gamelan Ensemble will perform on Wednesday, February 26, 2020 at 12 pm in the Music Bowl. Directed by Richard North, the ensemble will showcase an ancient style of gamelan from Cirebon, West Java, featuring dynamic drumming, delicate melodies, and lively interlocking rhythms.

Admission is FREE and open to the public!

Parallel Stories takes a close look at the life-long passions, prodigious productivity, and well-honed writing practice of Pulitzer Prize-winning author Jane Smiley in a far-ranging conversation with longtime friend, fellow author, and colleague in the Creative Writing program at UC Riverside, Andrew Winer. Often epic in scale and yet intimate in telling detail, Smiley’s multigenerational tales tell the story of middle America written, says Winer, “with a classic sense of humanity and compassion that have made her name part of any serious conversation about fiction in our time.” Hailed as one of America’s greatest living writers, Smiley was inducted into the American Academy of Arts and Letters in 2001, and in 2006 she received the PEN Center USA Lifetime Achievement Award for Literature. Her intimate evocations of American life have been compared to John Updike’s "Rabbit Angstrom" tetralogy; Updike himself praised Smiley for working on what he called “the edge of acceptable novel writing,” where she had replaced “plot and suspense with something freer and more lifelike."

Parallel Stories takes a close look at the life-long passions, prodigious productivity, and well-honed writing practice of Pulitzer Prize-winning author Jane Smiley in a far-ranging conversation with longtime friend, fellow author, and colleague in the Creative Writing program at UC Riverside, Andrew Winer. Often epic in scale and yet intimate in telling detail, Smiley’s multigenerational tales tell the story of middle America written, says Winer, “with a classic sense of humanity and compassion that have made her name part of any serious conversation about fiction in our time.” Hailed as one of America’s greatest living writers, Smiley was inducted into the American Academy of Arts and Letters in 2001, and in 2006 she received the PEN Center USA Lifetime Achievement Award for Literature. Her intimate evocations of American life have been compared to John Updike’s "Rabbit Angstrom" tetralogy; Updike himself praised Smiley for working on what he called “the edge of acceptable novel writing,” where she had replaced “plot and suspense with something freer and more lifelike."

All skill levels are invited to experience the tradition of sketching from original works of art in current exhibitions. Museum Teaching Artists provide general guidance and all materials. Each program is open to 10 participants.

The United States Census Bureau will be hosting a work shop to answer all questions in regards to this years census. They will also be helping out those who wish to apply for work with the census. There are numerous jobs available and the event is open to all.

The National Center for Ecological Analysis and Synthesis (NCEAS) presents  Local to Global Solutions: Fisheries & Aquaculture