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Arts & Culture

San Diego weekend arts events: Bioluminescent soundscapes, 'Kitschmas' and chili

Performers from the La Jolla Symphony & Chorus are shown on stage in an undated photo. A violist with long brown hair is at the center of the photo, concentrating on the music and with the bow ready to strike the strings.
Milan Kovacevic
Performers from the La Jolla Symphony & Chorus are shown on stage in an undated photo.

La Jolla Symphony & Chorus: 'Luminosity: Colorists Past and Present'

Music, Classical | The La Jolla Symphony & Chorus will perform a concert inspired by the interplay between music, art and nature. They're combining a selection of music by French impressionists (like Debussy, Fauré and Ravel) with works by living composers, including a piece inspired by a natural phenomenon — Gabriella Smith’s "Bioluminescence Chaconne." Smith's work is accompanied by a new immersive video installation by artist Iyvone Khoo and marine biologist Dr. Michael Latz.

Sameer Patel, conductor of the La Jolla Symphony & Chorus, said composers like Smith are particularly interesting to perform.

"One of the things that I love about living composers — especially as I look at their music or listen to their music — I'm just in awe of how they're able to create the sounds that they have, and that is the case in this work that we're going to perform, 'Bioluminescence Chaconne,’ which has these soundscapes that sound not traditionally orchestral, but they sound like they could be happening in nature somewhere," Patel said.

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Check out my full interview with Patel here.

Details: 7:30 p.m. Saturday and 2 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 7-8. Mandeville Auditorium, 9500 Gilman Drive, UC San Diego. $45.

SoNo Fest and Chili Cook-Off 2024

Food, Music | The 15th annual SoNo Fest and Chili Cook-Off takes over North Park on Sunday, where local restaurants compete in a chili competition. Visitors can purchase a one-of-a-kind handmade ceramic bowl from San Diego Ceramic Connection or a commemorative SoNo Fest mug and sample up to five chili offerings. The festival itself is free, with other food vendors available.

Two chefs serve chili into small bowls from large metal pots outdoors at the SoNo Fest and Chili Cook-off.
Juan Martinez
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Beer & Cameras
Chefs serve chili at the SoNo Fest and Chili Cook-Off in an undated photo.

Local acts Le Chateau, The Creepy Creeps, Tamar Berk, Whiskey & Burlap, Julia Sage and the Bad Hombres and more will perform throughout the afternoon across two stages.

Details: 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 8. Thorn St. and 32nd St., North Park. $0-$30.

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Brian and Ryan: 'A Kitschmas Pageant'

Visual art, Performance art | Local performance artists Brian Black and Ryan Bulis, known as Brian and Ryan, will bring back their beloved and strange "Kitschmas Pageant," featuring a welcome dose of weirdness, camp and whimsy to the holiday season with art installations, performance art and gifts. Participating artists and performers include Michelle Montjoy, Joe Cantrell, San Diego New Verbal Workshop and more.

A "Kitschmas" display by artist duo Brian & Ryan is shown in an undated photo.
Courtesy of Brian & Ryan
A "Kitschmas" display by artist duo Brian & Ryan is shown in an undated photo.

Details: 6-9 p.m. Friday, Dec. 6, 2024. On view through Jan. 5, 2025. Athenaeum Art Center, 1955 Julian Ave., Logan Heights. Free.

'Your Local Theater Presents: A Christmas Carol, by Charles Dickens, Again'

Theater | Playwright Anna Ouyang Moench's new comedy follows a young actor who returns to the same local theater production of "A Christmas Carol" year after year — though his roles change as he ages. Moench, part of the writing room for Apple TV+'s "Severance," has a knack for writing powerful and relatable character-driven plays like the recent Moxie Theatre production of "Birds of North America." Whether or not you're a theater insider, this play is funny, tender, relatable and an excellent way to get just enough Dickens in your holiday season.

Maria Elena Ramirez, Miles G. Jackson and Marco Barricelli are shown on stage in La Jolla Playhouse's production of "Your Local Theater Presents A Christmas Carol, by Charles Dickens, Again" in an undated photo.
Rich Soublet II
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La Jolla Playhouse
Maria Elena Ramirez, Miles G. Jackson and Marco Barricelli are shown on stage in La Jolla Playhouse's production of "Your Local Theater Presents A Christmas Carol, by Charles Dickens, Again" in an undated photo.

Details: Nov. 19 - Dec. 15. La Jolla Playhouse, 2910 La Jolla Village Drive, La Jolla. $30+. 

'Mesa Moves: Dance Visions'

Dance | San Diego Mesa College dance faculty, students and guest choreographers and dancers will showcase new works in a variety of genres, including ballet, contemporary, hip-hop and more. Choreographers include Donna Flournoy, Blythe Barton, Jessica Rabanzo-Flores, Audrey Bondoc, Faith Jensen-Ismay, Christian Lumba and Nicole Diaz-Pellot, with students Chloe Lemas and Jiovani Chavez. Plus, what a treat to find a dance concert in December that is not a "Nutcracker."

Details: 7:30 p.m. Thursday and Friday; 4:30 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 5-7. Apolliad Theatre, 7250 Mesa College Drive, Linda Vista. $10-$20/pay what you can.

Monique van Genderen: 'The Sea Ranch'

Visual art | San Diego-based artist Monique van Genderen recently spent time at The Sea Ranch, an architectural haven on California's northern coast. Since her stay, she created a series of paintings opening at Quint Gallery. Within the exhibit is a short film by Lile Kvantaliani which documents Van Genderen's painting, plus a poem by Jennifer Moxley that is informed by the film. Van Genderen's art is abstract and expressive — and this new series of works seems somehow softer, though just as vivid.

Artist Monique van Genderen is shown with her painting in an undated photo.
Lile Kvantaliani
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Quint Gallery
Artist Monique van Genderen is shown with her painting in an undated photo.

Details: On view Dec. 7, 2024 through Jan 4, 2025. Gallery hours are 11 a.m. - 5 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday. Quint Gallery, 7655 Girard Ave., La Jolla. Free.

Two Concertos: Barnatan Plays Shostakovich

Music, Classical | Pianist Inon Barnatan will join the San Diego Symphony to perform two concertos by Dimitri Shostakovich. Barnatan makes a creative home in San Diego each year for La Jolla Music Society's SummerFest, and periodically performs alongside conductor Rafael Payare with the San Diego Symphony. The orchestra will also play two works by Strauss.

Pianist Inon Barnatan is shown in an undated photo. Barnatan is the music director for La Jolla Music Society's SummerFest, but this weekend he will perform with the San Diego Symphony May 20-21, 2023.
Marco Boreggreve
Pianist Inon Barnatan is shown in an undated photo. Barnatan is the music director for La Jolla Music Society's SummerFest, and will perform with the San Diego Symphony Dec. 6-7.

Details: 7:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday, Dec. 6-7. Jacobs Music Center, 1245 Seventh Ave., downtown. $39-$82.

The cover of Ana Andrade's book, "Río de Agua Viva" is shown. The title and author names are set in white against a green and black backdrop which looks like an extreme close up of botanical elements.
Taller California
The cover of Ana Andrade's book, "Río de Agua Viva" is shown.

Bookshop: Lang Books and Two Rooms

Visual art, Books | Artist Ana Andrade will celebrate her new book, "Río de Agua Viva," published by local press Taller California. The book is a collection of photography and bilingual texts that explore the Tijuana River as a shelter for migrants and unhoused individuals as well as wildlife and nature, based on four years spent observing and documenting the river. Andrade will sign books at 2 p.m. on Sunday, though Lang Books will host a pop-up bookstore both days at the gallery.

Details: 11 a.m. - 5 p.m. Saturday and Sunday, Dec. 7-8. Two Rooms, 5560 La Jolla Blvd., La Jolla. Free.

December Nights

Music, Holidays, Museums, Food | The 47th annual December Nights runs in Balboa Park on Friday and Saturday, and is expected to be bigger than ever — and possibly more crowded than ever, too. New this year are a giant (and free) Ferris wheel and the official reopening of the Botanical Building after extensive renovations. Performances run all day and evening, but the official "welcome ceremony" and tree lighting takes place at the Spreckels Organ Pavilion at 6 p.m. on Friday. If you're there, don't miss the food offerings from the International Cottages. Be sure to plan ahead — check out the city's December Nights portal, with transit instructions, maps, shuttle details, performance schedules and more.

A choir sings during the December Nights holiday festival at Balboa Park.
Balboa Park
A choir sings during the December Nights holiday festival at Balboa Park in an undated photo.

Details: 3-11 p.m. on Friday, Dec. 6 and 11 a.m. - 11 p.m. on Saturday, Dec. 7. 2125 Pan American E Road, Balboa Park. Free.

Live music picks

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More arts and culture weekend events

Event Date Time Location
Exhibition Opening: 'FOUND ADRIFT | Timeless new works inspired by an 1876 seaweed scrapbook' This event is in the past. Studio Culture (Former Woodbury University School of Architecture Building)
10th Annual San Diego Memoir Showcase 'But I Did It Anyway!' This event is in the past. David and Dorothea Garfield Theatre, Lawrence Family JCC
'Manny and The Wise Queens' This event is in the past. Sunshine Brooks Theatre
Campana Sobre Campana: Christmas in Mexico This event is in the past. Epstein Family Amphitheater

Residents of San Diego and Imperial County and Baja California are invited to nominate books online. Please submit nominations prior to March 15 for titles to be considered for the 2025 season. Share your favorite title or two today!