Thanks to Congress-woman Lois Capps’s efforts, the federal capital needed to clean and safeguard Santa Barbara harbor was all but secured last week. The money will be used to dredge the harbor next year, and to carry out a sand-sucking process that ensures boats’ safe passage in and out of the harbornot to mention grooming the sandbars of a nearby world-class wave.
Andy Garcia, Ines Sastre, Bill Murray, and Thomas Milian star in a film written by G. Cabrera Infante and directed by Garcia.
At its best, The Lost City captures the cultural vibrancy and hedonistic fizz of Havana just before the revolution, and the edgy vulnerability of a society on the brink of a major metamorphosis. At its worst, the film, starring and directed by Andy Garcia, keeps getting lost along the way, in a script that seems stilted, a narrative structure with fuzzy GPS, and, most notably, in the earthy beauty of its heroine, Ines Sastre. Yes, she’s lovely to look at, but the camera’s love affair, continued into the editing room, gets almost comical.
Ceramic mannequin heads help display the antique wares at Cominichi’s.
The bullfighter provokes the beast in this evocative painting
At the Santa Barbara Bowl, Friday, May 19.
A shadow of a tall, lean man in a cowboy hat; the spinning globe illuminated on the giant screen; a booming voice announcing the countdown to the star performer. Complete with pyrotechnics, animation, videos, laser lights, and three giant screens, this was not your typical country concert. Under the stars at the Santa Barbara Bowl last Friday night, Brad Paisley proved that he is anything but typical. It’s a good thing that the Bowl doesn’t have a roof, because it would have been blown off.
At the Arlington Theatre, Tuesday, May 16.
The life of a musical legend goes through many acts, but the last act is the one by which people will remember him. So, when B.B. King rolled in on his 80th birthday celebration tour last week, there was some trepidation in the crowd at the Arlington. Devout fans wondered, had King passed his prime, or was he still the lyric-belting, guitar-picking bluesman they’d come to love over the decades?
Band: The Mark Roberts Band
Members: Mark Roberts (vocals/guitar), Mark Murray (drums), Chris Rokusek (keyboards), Theo Jennings (bass)
Albums: What’s Up? and The Last Person in Paradise
Prior Gigs: SOhO, Dargan’s, Cold Springs Tavern, S.B. Whale Festival, Goleta’s Lemon Festival
BEWARE OF FALLING SKY: I’ve been so busy lately that I haven’t found the time to watch the remake of The Poseidon Adventure-that great water-logged disaster epic from the ’70s. Neither, it turns out, have my friends working at the News-Press. They’ve been too busy living their own version of the disaster movie, the big difference being that their turmoil is real. If and when the News-Press runs aground, it’s bad news for the whole town.
Every spring, the Santa Barbara Dance Alliance sponsors On the Verge, a chance for up-and-coming pre-professional dancers and choreographers to participate in the process of creating dance. With the help of a mentor, students are involved in every aspect, from working with performers, running behind-the-scenes technical needs, and even selling tickets and buying advertisements. Although the performance is only one night-Saturday, May 27, 8 p.m., at the Marjorie Luke Theatre-choreographers have been laboring since February. Tickets range from $50 for patron seats to $10 for students. Call 966-6950 or visit sbdancealliance.org.
-A local diver, on his experience in the underwater cleanup of Marina 3 at the Santa Barbara Harbor.
