A weekly guide to what’s happening.
Green Fix
Replacing The Lawn
Learn about the advantages of replacing your water-guzzling lawn with drought-tolerant California native plants. Instead of gazing at gopher mounds, plant something to save the bees and butterflies. Neal Christen, water conservation representative from the Santa Cruz water department will provide information about the city’s Lawn Replacement Rebate Program. Arrive 15 minutes early to sign in or register, but the class is limited to 16 people, so early sign-up is recommended.
INFO: 10 a.m.-noon. Saturday, Feb. 23. Costanoa Commons, 335 Golf Club Drive, Santa Cruz. 763-8007, mbmg.org. Free/donations welcome.
Art Seen
Quilt Show
These are not your grandma’s quilts. Well, maybe they are, depending on who your grandma is—maybe she is an epic quilter. Featuring over 300 handmade quilts and wearable arts, the Pajaro Valley Quilting Association’s Quilt Show includes a flea market and vendor mall, plus a fashion show. There’s a featured artist and a featured quilt, plus live demos so you can start a new quilt at home.
INFO: 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 23; 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 24. Santa Cruz County Fairgrounds, 2601 E Lake Ave., Watsonville. pvqa.org. $10.
Friday 2/22 and Saturday 2/23
‘R.U.R. Humans Versus Robots’
Meet the play that coined the term “robot.” Best known as Rossum’s Universal Robots, this 1920s scientific stage play is an adventure tale of humans versus technology, which quickly became an influential piece that bridged art and science. The play’s robots aren’t what we commonly think of today; they are artificial flesh-and-blood humans built in a factory. They are often mistaken for humans and able to coexist at first, but their rebellion leads to a grim future for the human race.
INFO: 7:30 p.m. Friday, Feb. 22. Merrill Cultural Center, UC Santa Cruz. Free. 7:30 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 23. Broadway Playhouse, 526 Broadway, Santa Cruz. $12 general/$5 students. 212-3491, rurcrown.weebly.com/tickets.html.
Saturday 2/23- Sunday 2/24
38th Annual Clam Chowder Cook Off
Who knew that the country’s biggest and longest-running clam chowder fest was right here in Santa Cruz? The Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk Clam Chowder Cook-Off and Festival is back for its 38th time around. There are both amateur and professional categories, plus prizes for the best chowder. Be a part of Santa Cruz’s storied clam chowder history, and find out where you fit into the bigger clam chowder picture. (OK, just kidding on that last part. There is no bigger clam chowder picture, but wouldn’t that be kind of cool?)
INFO: 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk. 400 Beach St., Santa Cruz. 420-5273, beachboardwalk.com. Free admission/tasting kits $10.
Saturday 2/23 and Sunday 2/24
Santa Cruz Symphony ‘Symphonic Fire’
This two-part concert opens with Dvorák’s monumental cello concerto, featuring the Santa Cruz Symphony’s internationally renowned principal cellist and Grammy-winning artist Jonah Kim. Dvorák wrote the cello concerto while living in New York, where both the B minor Cello Concerto and the New World Symphony were written within a few years. Rachmaninoff’s final symphonic masterpiece, his fiery Symphonic Dances, follows. In it, Rachmaninoff reflects his nostalgia for the Russia he had known.
INFO: 7:30 p.m. Saturday Feb. 23. Santa Cruz Civic Auditorium, 307 Church St., Santa Cruz; 2 p.m. Sunday Feb. 24. Mello Center for the Performing Arts, 250 E Beach St., Watsonville. 462-0553, santacruzsymphony.org. $31.50-$102.
