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Monterey County Art & Culture Articles



Monterey County Weekly logo LOCAL NEWS
In a delayed hearing, Monterey Planning Commission greenlights Compact Disco permit.

Compact Disco opened in July, with a steady stream of dancers coming to downtown Monterey’s only house music venue, located on Tyler Street. But it was only three months later, on Oct. 24, that the venue was granted a corrected…

Monterey County Weekly logo LOCAL NEWS
The search for the 2024 Monterey County Poet Laureate has begun.

The Arts Council for Monterey County announced a call for nominations for the next Monterey County Poet Laureate. This is a two-year position that aims to celebrate Monterey County's cultural heritage and promote literacy and literature.

King City Rustler logo LOCAL NEWS
Monterey County Cattlewomen to host inaugural Western Art Show

MONTEREY COUNTY — Monterey County Cattlewomen are hosting their first-ever Western Art Show this Saturday. The scholarship fundraiser will be held in the Seaside Room at the Monterey County Fairgrounds on Oct. 21 from noon to 8 p.m. Twenty local …

Salinas Valley Tribune logo LOCAL NEWS
Clean California Murals highlight Salinas community culture

SALINAS — Caltrans, the City of Salinas and the Arts Council for Monterey County have announced the completion of the Clean California Murals Project that features bright, life-size murals, drought-resistant landscaping and improved lighting at East Market Street, Alisal Street …

Monterey County Weekly logo LOCAL NEWS
Steve Friedlander to step down as executive director at the Carmel Bach Festival.

The Carmel Bach Festival announced to patrons on Thursday, Oct. 5 that Executive Director Steve Friedlander plans to step down from the role.

Good Times logo LOCAL NEWS
Going Out On Top

After 33 years as Artistic Director of The Monterey Jazz Festival, Santa Cruz’s Timothy Jackson is stepping back, but not before one more world class explosion of sounds on September 22-24. The Monterey Jazz Festival is known as one of …

Image caption: New legislation will impose penalties on local school boards that ban books for covering issues of diversity.
New California Bill Slaps Back at School Book Bans

California will penalize school boards that ban books based on inclusion of certain groups under a bill the governor is expected to sign into law. But some fear unintended consequences.

Image caption: Gov. Gavin Newsom wants to wait for more information before signing a bill that would remove TikTok from most state smartphones.
Newsom Halts TikTok Ban, App to Stay on State Phones

A bipartisan bill to prohibit TikTok on state phones is shelved until 2024. It had breezed through the state Legislature, but the authors want to tweak the measure. It's the latest social media regulation to get stalled in California.

Image caption: A 1911 production of “Twelfth Night” at the Forest Theater.
Arts History

Performing arts centers, galleries, theater troupes, music festivals—here are 20 reasons why the Monterey Bay is a haven for arts lovers.

Monterey County Weekly logo LOCAL NEWS
Pop and Hiss makes some noise at a Pacific Grove zoning hearing, and there’s more to come.

Kevin Bacon didn’t show up to Pacific Grove City Hall yesterday, but in his stead over 60 people did, both in-person and online, almost all to heartily support a proposed downtown all-ages live music venue with a bar and record…

Monterey County Weekly logo LOCAL NEWS
Salinas’ 30-year ban on cruising ends tonight with a celebratory cruise.

Celia Jiménez here, getting ready for tonight’s big event—the first legal cruising event in Salinas in over 30 years. I’ll be a copilot in Debbie Tigerina Martin’s car: “Tigerina 65” is a 1965 Buick Wildcat. I’m very excited because it…

Salinas Valley Tribune logo LOCAL NEWS
Thousands turn out for 2023 Salinas Valley Fair

SALINAS VALLEY — Once again the Salinas Valley Fair drew thousands of people to South Monterey County for a long weekend of family-friendly activities and entertainment, including its first-ever huge concert headlined by multiplatinum country singer Dylan Scott on Saturday …

Monterey County Weekly logo LOCAL NEWS
Local jazz musicians convene this weekend to pay musical homage to one of their own.

Agata Popęda here—with another weekend activity idea. A very special jazz gathering will take place at 5pm this Sunday, May 21, at the Monterey Community Church. More than a jazz concert, it will be a commemoration of the life and…

Monterey County Weekly logo LOCAL NEWS
The California Roots Music and Art Festival will not be live streamed this year.

The 2023 California Roots Music and Art Festival (which takes place Thursday, May 25 through Sunday, May 28) will not be available for streaming, the organizers announced on social media on Monday, May 15, describing the decision as a difficult…

Monterey County Weekly logo LOCAL NEWS
Lighthouse Cinema in Pacific Grove is back, and the owners are optimistic about movie theaters.

Agata Popęda here, suggesting: Let’s go to the movies tonight! Because the movies are B.A.C.K. in the city of Pacific Grove, after a few months of turmoil and cinematic anxiety. (The iconic Lighthouse Cinema stopped screening in March of this…

Monterey County Weekly logo LOCAL NEWS
California as poetry – listening to California’s Poet Laureate Lee Herrick.

Lee Herrick has visited countless California libraries in recent months. The title of California’s Poet Laureate (Herrick was appointed in November 2022) comes with the job of poetry readings and other meetings with poetry lovers. But even this library connoisseur…

Image caption: Rip Off Press, once located in San Francisco's Sunset District and now headquartered in Auburn, was part of a movement that blossomed in California.
Graphic Content

Comics may have been born in New York, but they came of age in California. And there’s more to the story than San Francisco comix.

Salinas Valley Tribune logo LOCAL NEWS
Arts Council announces Monterey County’s inaugural Youth Poet Laureate

MONTEREY COUNTY — Mahi Shah of Salinas, a junior at Notre Dame High School, was selected as the inaugural Monterey County Youth Poet Laureate. Shah will serve a one-year term, participate in several engagements throughout the year and receive a …

Image caption: Dramatic coastal views, barren deserts, a lush Central Valley, and multiple mountain ranges allow California to emulate many spots around the globe.
California Plays Itself

The Golden State has masqueraded as everything from the Sahara Desert to the Swiss Alps. But which films best capture the real California?