Arts & Culture

WATSONVILLE—As lunchtime drew to a close Wednesday, fourth- and fifth-grade students at Starlight Elementary School began to gradually filter into the classroom of art teacher Meredith Branan Freeman. They were there to learn about stop-motion animation and create their own movies. Some students worked individually,...

APTOS—Cabrillo College classes started Aug. 29, and with it came the first exhibition of the year at the school’s on-campus art gallery. Connections: Cabrillo Art, Photography & Art History Faculty & Staff Exhibition is now open and will run through Sept. 23. The annual show...

APTOS—The Aptos High School and Aptos Junior High School choir departments have been hard at work for the past few months, preparing for their upcoming “Sounds of the Season” holiday concert. Along the way, they dealt with some bumps in the road—most notably the power...

Eighteen artworks by Watsonville artist Sefla Joseph are now on exhibit at the Aptos Public Library, along with a show by Aptos artist Diane Levin. Spread around the facility, Joseph’s works include abstract portraits done with charcoal, chalk, and ink and paintings in  acrylic/mixed media...

APTOS—Jon Scoville has always been eager to open his mind to new music. Growing up as a minister’s son in Connecticut, Scoville learned the craft by singing in church choirs and around his family’s home piano. But in secret he was also listening to genres...

APTOS—A collection of 207 art pieces will be on display at the Cabrillo Gallery in Aptos on Monday as part of the college’s annual “12x12: An Open Invitational” fundraising exhibit. The art ranges from traditional oil and acrylic paintings to pieces created with found objects,...

CAPITOLA—Forty artists from across the county fanned out around Capitola last week with canvas, easels, chalk and tubes of color in tow, in hopes of distilling a handful of the coastal city’s choice land and seascapes on canvas and paper.  The efforts were part of...

By Christina Waters Not since my last trip to Italy three years ago have I tasted such inspired pizza. It was from Mentone, the new Aptos restaurant created by David Kinch of the three-star Michelin Manresa. Mentone’s menu is Italian-French spun through Kinch’s own California...

WATSONVILLE—Meri Henriques Vahl vividly remembers her first major exposure to the world of art quilts.  Vahl was born in New York in 1945, and years later, during a visit to the Frick Museum in the Upper East Side of Manhattan with a friend, she viewed...

Five-week event returns tonight to downtown Santa Cruz SANTA CRUZ—Santa Cruz County Actors’ Theatre is celebrating the 25th Anniversary of its acclaimed 8 Tens @ 8 Short Play Festival, which will be held Jan. 10-Feb. 9 at the Center Stage Theater in downtown Santa Cruz. The...