All Events
Art Exhibit
Of Water and the Spirit Zéna Allen
MCC THEATER
“Of Water and the Spirit” is an exhibit of Zéna Carlota Pearl Allen’s most recent work as it relates to ritual, mythology, and dreams in diasporic African and Indigenous cultures. Navigating the realms of the subconscious in her art, Zéna explores the meaning of identity and liberation for people of color independent of cognitive parameters, and seeks to recontextualize them in environments which honor their histories and project new potentialities for their future. As a student of Jaliyaa, the West African oral and music tradition, and a professional kora player (West African harp), Zéna finds it a natural progression to apply in her own art the same themes of ritual and tradition found in West African string music.
Cup of Culture
To Be Takei
MCC THEATER
A look at the many roles played by eclectic 77-year-old actor/activist George Takei, whose wit, humor and grace have helped him to become an internationally beloved figure. George boldly journeyed from a WWII internment camp, to the helm of the starship Enterprise, to the daily news feeds of five million Facebook fans. Join George and his husband Brad on this star's playful and profound trek for life, liberty, and love. 90 min., English, 2014, US
MCC in Santa Barbara
An Evening of Spoken Word with Beau Sia
508 E. HALEY ST., SANTA BARBARA, CA
Beau Sia is the son of Chinese immigrants from the Philippines and a world-renowned poet and performer. Raised in Oklahoma City, he discovered poetry as a way to express himself in an environment where he felt invisible. Beau’s style is humorous and satirical. He is a Tony Award winning spoken word artist, featured on all 6 seasons of Russell Simmons Presents Def Poetry and the winner of two National Poetry Slam championships.
Really Feeling It: Ambiguity and Sincerity in Egyptian Pop Music & Politics
MCC THEATER
The political music created during and after the 2011 uprising in Egypt is a dichotomy between the music industry’s importance of attracting the widest audience possible by generating vague and superficial lyrics; and Egyptian youth’s place an importance of sincere emotion as an aesthetic criteria for pop music. This talk will explore the nature of aesthetic conundrums and explain one of the major problems that activists face in trying to gain public support for systemic change. Daniel Gilman’s research is based from his time in Cairo in which he was witness to the 2011 uprising.
