S1: It's time for Midday Edition on Kpbs. San Diego is busy with holiday events. We'll tell you about all of them in our arts and culture show. I'm Jade Hindman. Here's the conversations that keep you informed , inspired , and make you think. The new Village Arts Center brings 1222 oceanfront a black family Christmas to the stage.
S2: I love centering black and brown folks in the work. I do , so to have an opportunity to tell a Christmas story from our lens was really , really exciting.
S1: Then Queen bees Art and Culture Center celebrates 15 years , plus all of the events you can catch in your weekend preview. That's ahead on Midday Edition. The holiday season is upon us and so are its traditions and family gatherings. The musical 1222 Ocean Front A Black Family Christmas , looks at one black family's annual holiday rituals , and what happens when they're suddenly turned upside down. For the past 30 years , Dorothy Black , a widow , has hosted a two day Christmas celebration at her Carlsbad home. But when there are signs that she's ready to sell 1222 oceanfront and move on with her new beau , the family is shocked. What will it mean for them , the house and their yearly holiday traditions ? This hilarious and heartwarming Christmas tale is written by playwright Dia Hurston and directed by Candace Crystal. Joining me now to talk more about the musical is Dia Dia. Welcome. Thank you. And , Candace , welcome to you. Hi.
S2: Hi. Thanks for having me.
S1: Great to have you both here. You know , many holiday stories are told through a white lens , but one of the musical's goals was to tell a contemporary Christmas tale from a black perspective.
S3: Of course , we have White Christmas musicals with all black casts and different things like that. But she was unable to find a Black Christmas musical , so she decided that she would get a couple of artists together and have them devise a jukebox musical using traditional songs that are in the public domain. And so that's how we first started. But we had more time because the pandemic hit. And then we had , I think , I think we became more serious about this family that we we wanted to tell and to present to the world because of other struggles.
S1: All right. And , you know , it also deals with changing traditions , right.
S3: And when we were looking at different traditions , we saw that some of them may not be very positive , right ? Some of them you just hold on to because they are a tradition , whether they serve your family or not. And so we were exploring that to whether traditions are always a good thing , whether they're always something to look forward to. So that that was an interesting topic for for us to talk about traditions in a way that may not be serving the family.
S1: Candace , you're an up and coming director in the San Diego theater scene where you've led other plays like The Mountaintop and , more recently , Grace for president.
S2: But to be really honest , it was my idea. I wanted to work with her , and it was such an opportunity that I couldn't say no to , you know , dear Hurston calls you come and quickly at that. To be really honest , I love centering black and brown folks in the work I do. So to have an opportunity to tell a Christmas story from our lens was really , really exciting , and to be able to bring Miss Diller's words to life was truly an honor that I will not soon forget. Yeah.
S1: Yeah. You know , like we mentioned this , the musical is all about family.
S2: I , I love this cast so much. I love having this opportunity to just create a story with some folks in this cast are people I consider mentors and role models. Some are dear friends , so to be able to bring a cast together the way we did , but to also tell a story and let them show them their best selves on stage has probably been the best part of this entire process , and they're really taking these characters and making them their own. And it really just speaks to me as to what family is. It's it's this cast of characters , right ? And it's we're all brought together by this one common theme , and it is family. So it's it's lovely to watch these actors on stage create their own version of this family. Yeah.
S1: Yeah. And throughout all of the holiday planning angst in this story , you also get a sense of sibling rivalry and family secrets. Tell us more about that.
S2: Oh , as a woman in this world with three brothers , yes , sibling rivalry is the best part of it. You know specifically what ? Kaitlyn and Matthew bring to James Jr and Javier. I just I loved watching the relationship between the two actors grow , but it also provided some nuance to the sibling relationship. We talk a little bit about how one of the brothers is adopted , and that's also another dynamic that I don't think is shown a lot on stage. But to talk about it , particularly in a black family , I think is an even bigger conversation. And to have a young man who's coming into a family who is of Latino descent , it's another layer of it. And how his culture gets incorporated into the family. And I think that's something that , with the sibling rivalry , can actually be a great thing and a negative that they work in tandem with. Right.
S1: Right. And so true in so many families. You know , the music , of course , is really important to telling this story. We get some reimagined classics like Silent Night and Jingle Bells , but also a really funny yodel filled song in Cowboy Christmas.
S2: The music is so joyous and great , and you've got this talented cast of folks who are are just taking it and running with it. I think the best part for me with the music is we go through so many different genres and we don't see a lot of that nowadays , particularly in holiday musicals , and I want that to be the thing that lands on folks. I feel like they will be walking out of that theater singing Cowboy Christmas until next year.
S4: This cowboy has a heart that is true. Like an old , faithful dog , I love you. I love you more than I love my horse. And that's saying a lot for me. I never thought I'd need another that would bring me to my knee. I don't need any presents under my tree. I just want you to saddle up next to me.
S1: And you know , Dia , we've talked about traditions a lot.
S3: We spent quite a bit of time talking about our families and our rituals , and from that then it was my job to take all of these different stories and make a real play out of it. I think the exciting part was when we really decided upon the story , and that the story would be a love story for a 60 year old woman. I love this because we don't see romance for older people and especially black older people. So I think the sweet spot in this whole play for me is the romance between Victor and Dorothy.
S1: Yeah , I love that. You know , the musical also explores some pretty deep issues. Dorothy and her late husband dealt with some discriminatory real estate practices when buying 1222 oceanfront.
S3: And there have been families of color who have experienced that. So we did want to include that. We we consider the house as the the eighth character of the play. The house is very , very important. It's been a family member for 30 years , and it was the dream of Dorothy's husband that they make it their life. And it turned out that is what happened , unfortunately , without him. But the house is a very important character and we wanted to tell the story of the house and how they how the house got to be a blackouts. Hmm.
S1: Hmm.
S2: So to talk about that , right. And 30 years ago , I would have never been able to own a house. So looking at it now , I'm like , oh , well , maybe not here in Southern California , but hey , there's possibilities elsewhere. But when we look at owning a home and when we talk about legacy , these parents just wanted to provide their child with a legacy and to have to fight that hard just to create something. It really is a reflection of our elders setting us up for success to the best of their ability. In a time where maybe that wasn't actually doable , or where folks made it harder for them solely based on the color of their skin. And so to be able to put that on stage , to be able to work with people who maybe lived through that themselves or younger generations who are like , whoa , that's crazy to even consider. That was a problem back then. It's really telling. It's really telling. And I'm a firm believer in looking at history and finding ways to make things right in the present.
S1: Great and well , Dia New Village Arts is your creative and artistic home. The musical is actually playing in a center they've named after you.
S3: This is just they are they are community right now. They opened their new building , the Dear Hurston New Village Arts Center , in March. And inside that building then , is the Conrad Prevost Theater. So there's we're so happy that the Ray Charles Foundation is investing in New Village Arts and and in Carlsbad. And they are doing that because of the transformative art that New Village Arts is , is producing. So I'm very happy to , uh , be a part of this , this movement. And they really are going to make a big difference in the community.
S1: And with that , you know , I'm curious , many theaters promised in 2020 , you know , the we see you white American theater to to do the work and be more diverse , tell more diverse stories.
S2: We see white American theater was absolutely a historic document. Looking back three years since this document came out , are we seeing the change ? Are we seeing people put their money where their mouths are ? I think New Village Arts is absolutely ahead of most organizations in town. But I feel like with all organizations , as an industry as a whole , we have to do better. And I think that that starts with these kinds of situations , right , where we're connecting with the the folks of color and specifically in this case , the black people , to know that the Dia Hurston. New Village Arts Center is the only theater outside of New York named after a black woman. It's mind boggling. There have been so many black women who have contributed to the theatrical landscape , who have not been honored in all of their time. And it's beautiful to see someone of Hurston's caliber being honored. But then I think more on , well , where is everyone else ? Where are their honors ? Where are their accolades ? I don't want to keep waiting to give people their flowers. Misty , I'm so happy you are here for these flowers because you absolutely deserve them. And I think about the women who've come before us who never got those chances. So how do we continue the legacy ? How do we continue to stand on the shoulders of giants while they are still here , while we can pay our respects in person ? And I want to always make sure we can do that , because it's such a shame that there's not more theaters named after black women , that more black women aren't being honored for the dang hard work they do. Because we all know we work real hard for hours , and having to work twice as hard to get half as much. It's just not acceptable. Mr..
S1: Mr..
S3: Right ? Just just because I have a play , one play and Candace is directing everything , it's it's still not enough. Two people still aren't enough. Ten people still aren't enough. As long as we can count them on our hands or on our fingers , it's enough is not being done. Just so there is some progress doesn't mean that it's enough progress. And it also doesn't mean that there's not pushback from this progress. I do think that it is part of. The slow delay of audiences returning to the theater. I think that there are some audiences that really don't want to go along with the new day , with the new , new thoughts. I think that that's a very realistic thing. So we're not where we're not where we want to be , but we we have moved the needle in the last two years. But for me , it just tells us how much more we have to do. Mhm.
S2: Mhm. Yeah.
S1: Yeah. And this question is for you both. What are your hopes for the play beyond New Village Arts in San Diego. And really for stories that center the black and brown community.
S3: Well for 1222 what any playwright would want Broadway. But this is the last year that it will be at NVA. We are really shopping the play. We think that it's a play that can go anywhere. And so we're we're hoping that somebody will pick it up. It's out there. And , and we're also trying to , um , produce a film of it. So we have a couple of things going with 1222. It's not going away.
S1: All right. I'm claiming all of that for you. Okay. All right. I've been speaking with playwright D.A. Hurston and director Candice Crystal about the musical 1222 oceanfront A Black Family Christmas. You can see the musical at the Conrad Priebus Theater in the Dia Hurston New Village Arts Center. Tickets can be reserved at New Village arts.org. Dia , it was great to have you on.
S3: Thank you. It was so much fun in Candace.
S1: It was great to have you on as well.
S2: Thank you so much. It was such a pleasure.
S1: Coming up , Queen Bees Arts and Culture Center is celebrating its 15th anniversary.
S5: And it's just going to be a party for the community , you know , to everybody to know that Queen bees is here to serve the purposes of art and culture.
S1: You're listening to Kpbs Midday Edition. Welcome back to Kpbs midday edition , I'm Jade Hindman. Queen Bees Arts and Culture Center is a lively community space and a beacon for artists in North Park. This month , it celebrates its 15th anniversary with a party on December 12th , showcasing the history and legacy of the venue. Kpbs arts reporter Beth Accomando speaks with Queen bees founder Alma Rodriguez.
S6: Alma , you are on the eve of the 15th anniversary for Queen bee. So for anyone who's not familiar with this location , explain what Queen bee is.
S5: Well , Queen bees is an art and culture center here in the heart of North Park , and we've been here for 15 years , so I'm excited about tell everybody about what's going to take place.
S6: And what was it like when you first opened up Queen bee 15 years ago ? What was this area like and what was the response to it ? Nothing.
S5: What it's like today , basically , I came in a perfect time. Economy was pretty much crushed , and there was a lot of abandoned places and buildings , and it was a kind of a challenging times. But when I moved here is definitely a bring a new era to North Park. So a lot of new businesses start opening up. It was the art district at the time , and it still is maintaining the the cultural part of the art district. So but a lot of new amazing restaurants and locations and novelty store. So I seen North Park being transformed and so happy to be part of it.
S6:
S5:
S6: And you are going to be celebrating your anniversary on the 12th , which is a special day for you.
S5: It is a very special day. For some reason the 1212 has been following me around throughout my life. I registered the name Queen Bees on December 12th , 2008 and I didn't know how things were going to take place , but I think the community accept a new type of situation here with this building. 1929. That's when it was the showroom for Dixie Lumber Company , and they built all the craftsman homes. So when I saw this building , how unique and beautiful was , I just know that I needed it , turn it into a cultural space.
S6: And when you took it over , it had been a $0.99 store.
S5: It was a lot of fixing to do. The transformation was incredible because it took it took years. It didn't happen overnight. I'm an independent venue. So it just we took one challenge at a time , and we worked very closely with , with the city to be able to transform it to what it is now.
S6:
S5: We have a presentation of a PowerPoint before and after , and we also have a great performance throughout the day. We are going to have our mayor , Tai Gloria , give us a proclamation. We also going to have our city leaders , our community leaders come in , and it's just going to be a party for the community. You know , to everybody to know that Queen bees is here to serve the purposes of our in culture , in good birthday parties and great concerts. We also going to have our house poet Rudy Francisco opening the event and Gregory Page as well. And Jill Castellano is going to be our feature. And then we are going to end the party with a swing dance , because , uh , happened to be our Tuesday night , which is our regular swing dance night. So the stars align perfectly.
S6: And you came to San Diego from Puerto Rico. What was.
S5: Growing up , having my community neighbourhood do music and we always have a reason to celebrate something the sunset , the moon , anything. I think my upbringing had a lot to do with being involved in the art scene and the music scene. We always had moments in my life that all I wanted to do was play drums , and I don't want to even go to school or do nothing except for playing music. That's part of , I guess what I grew up is , is a lot of community and all together kind of enjoy happy moments. So for me , it was I want to be where the movement is , where the music is , where the art. And we're not dancing , we're drumming and we're not drumming , we're singing. And throughout my life I just worked towards creating something bigger than me.
S6: And this isn't the first venue you've opened here in San Diego. You had one before this , correct ? Correct.
S5: I opened a small coffee house in the college area that was my training grounds to to know how I was going to develop my ideas there. I think I started with jazz and then acoustic music , open mics , a lot of beginning performers , rock bands. I was very close to San Diego State , so a lot of my mainly demographics was students , and I started a salsa night just playing my records , my records on a Sunday afternoon , and somebody loved what I was playing. And students say , I can teach salsa , so happened to be okay , come in and teach salsa. So there you go. And that's how we've been hosting salsa for 22 years now on Sunday nights. And that's how things start organically with the community , with people that wanted to do things. And , and I happened to have a home to host it.
S6: And what are the challenges for opening and then running an independent venue like this are , uh.
S5: For me , a challenge is , uh , that's exactly what the word is , is challenge. And I love to overcome a lot of challenges. That's , uh , that's my M.O.. And I always said it's never a problem. It's always a solution.
S6: And in addition to you opening and running this venue , you also , like so many arts organizations , had to go through the pandemic.
S5: I was pretty much how to think out of the box and create a different ways to generate and pay the bills. So without the help of my , my landlord would never happen because he was a great supporter. And that's one of the parts why I'm celebrating this anniversary is will be on his honor as well , because he was a very amazing person to support the arts and and help me throughout the pandemic and to just say , hey , do you do what you can ? And then when we go through this , we're all in this together. So I think with that mentality , everybody who support me and make a big difference , uh , I did a fundraiser at the end of the pandemic with the support of the community and the artists and everybody who was doing , um , we were allowed to do only broadcasting. So we this room became I'm a television set for everybody. And and that's how we survived the pandemic throughout almost a year and and a half. And I was just amazed of the support of the community and the network , because you only can do so much. Right. And when people support you and they love your idea and they they make you succeed , that's what gets me the drive to keep on going.
S6: And for people who are not familiar with Queen bee , explain kind of the diversity of things that you do here. And it's not just programming and events that you host , but you open it up to other artists. So explain kind of the kind of things people can expect to find.
S5: Here , though the way I explain to everybody is this is a facility that is an open canvas that you think of , of create something , become a producer first time and on mic or. Or for the first time , read you poetry. This is the place where it's a safe place to do it. The community is going to support you. Nobody judges anybody inside this this facility. We all embrace ourselves as we are artists. And I think when people come in , they can they can think a different direction. But it's the way I see it is like. Come in experience and then be yourself. And if you want to create , this is the place to create.
S6: And in addition to having events here , your walls are also covered with art.
S5: Yes , I happen to be very fortunate to have many artists in the community , but someone very special to me , which is Andrea Ruskin. He's a well renowned artist here in the community , and he was here for like five years. And in our facility he just paints an amazing art , and he donates all this art for my walls to look beautiful. On my ten year anniversary , he did something very special for us to explain people what queen bees , how it was created. And I said it created. It got created by an idea of me being a teenager and then eventually moving to different things and different moments in my life and everything take place at a certain time. So he recreated with his own interpretation of the story , the the paintings that are on the wall.
S6:
S5: I when I was moving from the other venue to North Park , a local newspaper wrote a small , blurred article and say I didn't have a name at the time. I was just fixing walls and painting. And he , when he came and took my picture to be on the on the publication. The title of the article was the Queen bee of Art entertainment is moving to North Park. I thought , wow , that's a great idea , but I'm not the only queen bee this place is going to be for all the queen bees in the world that we fight for our ideals and our dreams. And there you go. Every household has a queen bee. So I created the logo. I draw the logo in , um. It became the Queen Bees of Norfolk. That's how I started.
S6: And just before we did this interview , you had your grandchildren come through and you talked about how this is really kind of a family run venue. Yes.
S5: Yes. I think , um , I raised my my daughters. I've been in business for over 30 years and different types of businesses , but mainly always through art and music. At one point I was at the rodeo organizing the the clowns or the performers. So my kids always been part of what I do. And now I have two grandchildren. They see what what is like to to be in the art scene. And it's I think it's important for me to to expose them to a place where. Where they can see the action , how things take place in the community first.
S6:
S5: So if we if we can create community spaces that people come together and , and be , you know , start in the performing arts or that's what I will see in the next 15 years , or maybe 20 , maybe I won't be here by then , but I , I would definitely that would be my vision.
S6: Well , thank you very much for talking about Queen bee.
S5: Thank you so much for giving me the opportunity.
S1: That was Beth Accomando speaking with Alma Rodriguez , founder of Queen Bees Arts and Culture Center. The venue will celebrate its 15th anniversary on December 12th , starting at noon. Still ahead. Find out when and where you can see Christmas lights , parades , and more in your weekend preview.
S7: These are fun and I feel like it's very San Diego. You can set up your lawn chair along the route and watch all the decked out boats go by.
S1: Kpbs Midday Edition is back after the break. Welcome back to Midday Edition. I'm Jade Hindman. For our weekend preview , we have a slow fashion show , some live music , holiday arts and culture , and plenty more. Joining me with all the details is Kpbs arts producer and editor Julia Dixon Evans. Julia , welcome.
S7: Hey , Jade. Thanks for having me.
S1: Always good to have you here with us. So tell us about this slow fashion show called You Reap What You Sow. Yeah.
S7: So this is from Solera. It's a small sewing shop in Barrio Logan , and they're having a big event. This is going to be at Bread and Salt and it's on Saturday Kpbs interviews. So Lucas owner Claudia Rodriguez Brzezinski earlier this year when they were celebrating their 10th anniversary. And I loved what she told us about how sustainable fashion was , something that she and her family were doing long before it was anything trendy.
S8: Coming from a family where it's like there was a lot of us , you know , I'm one of six kids , you know , um , it was really difficult for my mom to be able to , like , afford things. You know , she would take us to , like , the forever 21. And she would be like , what do you like here ? This. And then she's like , let's go home and make it. And you're like , I want it here. Though we would go thrifting. I would buy jeans and cut them up and turn them into something else. And so really like the cultural part of like recycling has always been one of my things.
S7: And she's been working on 15 complete outfits that she has designed and and made from scratch. And the event runs all afternoon on Saturday with music. There's the slow fashion art show as well. So like wall art. And then the actual fashion show is at 7 p.m. some of the bands playing during the day are Beach City Music , The Invisible Ponchos , and It's live , narrated by Kpbs own Parker Edison. And this Is a Bread and Salt , where all of the galleries there will be open late for barrio Art crawl that night. So not only can you check out this fashion show , you can see other visual art there as well. So this is all free , but an RSVP is recommended.
S1: Sounds great. And also opening this weekend at Bread and Salt is an exhibit called The Secret City that's on your radar. This is artist and filmmaker Evan Apodaca , who recently had work removed from the San Diego International Airport art program. Tell us about that. Yeah.
S7: Yeah. So this exhibit is at the Athenaeum Art center , which it's part of the bread and salt complex. And Evan Apodaca , whose work focuses on what he refers to as hyper militarization of the San Diego region. And all his films are kind of like a documentary style video works. They look at this military history of the region as well as as like the anti-war perspective as well. And one of the works is called Monumental Interventions. It's a video work , and it's a series of stories that are narrated by these toppled over statues along the San Diego harbor. And he used facial motion capture technology to to like , animate and voice these statues using real San Diegans who provided the actual faces and voices. And yeah , this work was removed earlier this year from the San Diego International Airport. It had been installed and it was up on view briefly as part of the current temporary exhibition there , and the removal spurred some concerns about censorship. And this exhibition will be the first time that this work has been shown publicly since its removal. And when I talked to him , this was back in 2021 about the film. When it was first exhibited , he told me that he had been inspired by the book. It's called Under the Perfect Sun The San Diego Tourists Never See this is a book by Mike Davis , Kelly Mayhew and Jim Miller , and he was also informed by other studies of propaganda and art. And along with his video works , there'll be a series of drawings on display to. That's all related. The reception is 5 to 8 p.m. on Saturday and it's free.
S1: All right. And there's a special dance performance at space for Art this weekend. What do you know about that ? Yeah.
S7: So this is in collaboration with Malay Dance , and it's a performance from one of Malik's dancers and choreographers , Jessica Flores. The piece is called She Is What She Is and she is whole and it has guitar accompaniment and space for art. They have their quarterly ish Open Studios , where all the resident artists there show their work that they've been doing , and they also have a lot of musicians and performer resident artists too , and they play live sets. So this Saturday you can catch Nick Leslie doing experimental percussion. There's Jonathan Piper , who does experimental tuba sounds , and they'll also be a mini gift market this month. And a taco truck. This is at 6 to 8 p.m. on Saturday at Space for Art in East Village. And it's free.
S1: All right. And you also have a few holiday options on your radar. Let's start with San Diego's annual boat parades of lights.
S7: You can set up your lawn chair along the route and watch all the decked out boats go by. And there are actually three boat parades happening this weekend. There's the mission Bay one , the San Diego Bay Parade of Lights , as well as one , the Oceanside Harbor Parade of Lights. Mission Bay is on Saturday from 530 to 9. Oceanside Harbor is also on Saturday from 7 to 9. And then the San Diego Bay Parade of Lights is actually two Sundays. The first is this Sunday and then the next is Sunday , December 17th. That one starts at 530 , but you can look up on their website where they have a list of times where you can catch the boats going by at certain points along the route , like downtown or Coronado. So that's a fun one.
S1: All right. Cygnet Theatre's popular adaptation of A Christmas Carol is back.
S7: It's an adaptation by Signet's co-founder Sean Murray , and he actually plays Ebenezer Scrooge. This is their ninth year performing the adaptation , and there's music and clever little sound effects , and it's just really funny. It has , to me , all of that added like this really fresh angle to the story , but it still didn't take away from what you expect from A Christmas Carol , where it's about empathy and it's about understanding. But the acting in the show is so great , and performances will run through December 30th at Cygnet , and they have shows most Tuesdays through Sundays. Excellent.
S1: Excellent. In Oceanside , Museum of Art is hosting a special event that's open to the public on Saturday.
S7: And these are pretty great opportunities to check out the art that's currently on view. But they also , like spilled out into the sidewalk and they have music performances and food. And this month they're also doing a holiday market. And if you're feeling crafty , there , having a make your own wrapping paper workshop. So everybody can use some wrapping paper and you can take home a little something handmade to put under your tree. The event is free with regular admission to the museum , which is actually free for youth , and just $10 for everyone else. And it'll run noon to five on Saturday , and the current exhibitions are worth checking out. There's Dina Altman's Female Rising and the 2023 Oceanside Plein Air juried exhibition.
S1: Hmhm , and we have a special performance of the Messiah that's unique to our border region. And there's going to be a series of concerts with that.
S7: Yeah , this is called Messiah vis a vis El Macias , and it's from Bach Collegium. That's going to be a performance of Handel's traditional Messiah. As you may know , the Hallelujah Chorus that's become kind of synonymous with choral Christmas music. But a couple years ago they commissioned Bach Collegium , commissioned a Spanish language version , working with Mariemont Negro on the lyrics. And this here is a performance that they did in Tijuana in 2022 from the Spanish translation.
UU: Was born as one saw fit for. Nailed it. Other ones would be.
S7: And the group will perform both works across three shows. There's going to be two in San Diego County Saturday at Saints Constantine and Helen Greek Orthodox Church in Cardiff , and then one Sunday afternoon at All Souls Episcopal Church in Point Loma. Those two are ticketed , but they're also doing a free show on December 12th at six in Tijuana.
S1: All right. So much to see. What about shopping ? Are there any holiday markets happening this weekend ? Yeah.
S7: So one is Bird stock , which is a music festival and gift market in bird rock. It used to happen regularly in the past but but stopped about 13 years ago and they brought it back last year. They have a musical stage with local bands , local artists and activities and games for kids. There's also a beer garden and then a sidewalk sale for gifts and plenty of bird rock businesses and organizations on hand. This is from 10 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. on Saturday in downtown bird Rock and then there's something a little weirder. It's called the Dark Christmas market of Vista , and this takes place also on Saturday at Back Fence Society. It's a free event and it's put on by Twisted Heart Puppet Works and Back Fence , along with the Vista Art Foundation. And they'll have a gift market of strange and peculiar gifts , but also puppetry shows. And they're doing a Krampus march and a Krampus run. That's Saturday from 4 to 9 p.m..
S1: Sounds like a lot of fun. There will be a couple of indie bands at Soda Bar on Saturday night. I know live music is something you enjoy.
S7: Um , so I'm going to end this on a pretty chill note. These are slow core bands. There's codeine and winter. This is Saturday night. Codeine was this incredible 90s band , and they're back with a new album that came out in 2022. They're kind of an early , slow core band , and their sounds obviously evolved in 30 years , but they've kept those roots. This is the track C that came out on that 2022 album.
UU: A white chair. Sounds. On the Black Sea.
S7: An opening is an act out of LA called Winter. Her music is also kind of dreamy and shoegaze , and she had a new album just out in 2022 called What Kind of Blue Are You ? The song is wish I knew. And the show is Saturday night at Soda Bar.
S1: You can find details on these and more arts events , or sign up for Julia's weekly Kpbs Arts newsletter at PBS.org. Slash Arts. I've been speaking with Kpbs Arts producer and editor Julia Dixon Evans. Julia , thanks.
S7: Thank you. Jade.
S1: That's our show for today. Don't forget to watch Evening Edition tonight at 5 p.m.. The roundtable is here tomorrow at noon. But before we go , I'd like to thank our Midday Edition team producers Giuliana Domingo , Andrew Bracken , Brooke Ruth , Ariana Clay , and Laura McCaffrey. Arts segment contributors Julia Dixon Evans and Beth Accomando , technical producers Rebecca Chacon and Ben Lusk. The Midday Edition theme music you hear is from San Diego's own Surefire Soul ensemble. If you ever miss a show , you can catch our podcast wherever you listen. I'm Jade Hindman. Thanks for listening.
