Send ideas to montereycountynow.com/events 28 MONTEREY COUNTY WEEKLY APRIL 16-22, 2026 www.montereycountynow.com cuterie. Spring is springing at our local NPR station and the Sunset Center is here to celebrate it. The symphony orchestra concert follows. [SC] 6-7:30pm Saturday, April 18. Studio 105, Sunset Center, San Carlos and 9th, Carmel. $35. (831) 646-8511, montereysymphony.org. DREAM WEAVER Phoebe Vlassis is a music pioneer, a multidisciplinary performer. That doesn’t mean she plays harmonica while crashing cymbals together. Nor does she belt out a song while driving, which is pretty easy. No, no. As she sings, Vlassis also weaves, using the loom as both an instrument of music and of textile art. We don’t need to say more, really. Her music is also visual, which is cool enough. She is also joined by local musician Kit Center (who also owns Sundog Studios). If a raunchy bar is your equivalent of a religious experience, then his brand of soulful country is for you. This performance is indoors; seating is limited. [DF] 7pm Saturday, April 18. Henry Miller Memorial Library, 48603 Highway 1, Big Sur. $23. (831) 238-2890, henrymiller.org. OCEAN DISCO Are the jellyfish at the Monterey Bay Aquarium floating, or are they in fact engaged in elegant dance moves? Maybe once the music starts humming, as it will at the Aquarium’s Climate Dance Party, the jellyfish and other sea life will start busting moves alongside the humans who will dance the night away, all for a good cause. Besides music and a dance floor, this 18-andup-only event features a trivia contest and renowned marine biologist Ayana Elizabeth Johnson, author of What if We Get it Right? Visions of Climate Futures. A copy of her book comes with each ticket (see story, p. 36). [PM] 7-10pm Saturday, April 18. Monterey Bay Aquarium, 886 Cannery Row, Monterey. $150; $135/members. (831) 648-4800, montereybayaquarium.org. COMEDY RISING Like a phoenix from the ashes, comedy returns to the Rising Phoenix beer garden and tap room in King City with a lineup of up-and-coming comedians from around the state. Comedian and satire writer for Clickhole Jon Alcabes, based in the Bay Area, headlines the event. The evening also features Nick Malizia from San Luis Obispo, who has performed at Don’t Tell Comedy, and Mari Delgadillo, who returns after a years-long hiatus to explore topics like sobriety, selling feet pics and single motherhood. [AS] 8-9:30pm Saturday, April 18. Rising Phoenix, 320 Broadway St., Suite A, King City. $18. (831) 386-1138, risingphoenixtaproom.com. Saturday, April 18-Sunday, April 19 GREEN TEAM Since the first Earth Day was observed on April 22, 1970, the climate has continued to get hotter, aquatic dead zones have gotten larger, plastic pollution has piled up, major oil spills have harmed wildlife and even when humans try to outsmart fossil fuels—look no further than Moss Landing for a battery energy storage facility gone wrong—we’ve run into toxic problems. All of that is to say, we forgive you if you feel depressed this Earth Day. But local organizations are also doing what they can right here in Monterey County to improve and honor the environment right around us. Celebrate the 20th annual Earth Day the City of Marina hosts with live music, kids activities and volunteer projects. In Seaside, there are Earth Day festivities and also a party for the 50th anniversary of the agency behind Laguna Grande Regional Park, where all the fun—a guided nature walk, live HOT PICKS stage on land, Santa Catalina School presents The SpongeBob Musical. Expect high-energy cheer from your favorite characters (but maybe not from Squidward, unless a clarinet is involved). You likely won’t be able to help yourself from singing and dancing along. [EC] 7:30pm Friday-Saturday, April 17-18; 2pm Sunday, April 19; 12:45pm Friday, April 24; 7:30pm Saturday, April 25 (father-daughter performance). Santa Catalina School, 1500 Mark Thomas Drive, Monterey. $15; $12/ seniors, students, military; $10/ages 12 and under. (831) 655-9315, santacatalina.org. Friday, April 17 KASPAR’S RIDDLE Big Sur Grange is back with its annual art exhibit, On View. This year the installation’s title is “Liars’ Village” and refers to the real story of Kaspar Hauser, a 19th-century German youth who claimed to have grown up in total isolation and was declared “the orphan of Europe.” The matter of his identity sparked a huge controversy during his life and inspired such giants as Paul Verlaine, Georg Trakl, Martin Heidegger, Herman Melville and Werner Herzog. It also inspired 12 Big Sur artists to “explore the signs, symbols, and myths that shape our shared reality and, in turn, our culture.” Learn more and meet the artists at the opening; the exhibit runs through April 22. [AP] 5:30-9:30pm Thursday, April 17. Big Sur Grange, 47090 Highway 1, Big Sur. Free. (831) 667-2956, bigsurgrange.org. Saturday, April 18 ASIAN GLORY One of the gifts of sharing a community with people from different cultures is that one can get introduced to them without leaving town. It’s even better when it goes along with dance, music and tasty food. Palenke Arts is hosting the third annual Moonflower Festival and celebrates the local Asian American and Pacific Islander community. Over 100 performers from Monterey County and the Bay Area will participate and share a piece of AAPI culture. Performers include Shinsho Mugen Daiko with Japanese taiko drums, VietSteps with traditional Vietnamese dances, and Nā Haumāna with Polynesian drums and dances. It also includes an act with Clarissa Bitar, a Palestinian oud musician and composer based in Los Angeles. [CJ] 11am-2pm Saturday, April 18. Seaside High School, 2200 Noche Buena St., Seaside. Free. (831) 899-9909, palenkearts.com. MEMBERS ONLY Psst…there’s a party happening in the basement of the Sunset Center. OK, Studio 105 isn’t that much of a secret, and neither is the KAZU pre-party ahead of the Monterey Symphony’s Wine Glass Clarinet Concerto (see story, p. 30). But Ekene Music is performing at this event, which means there’s going to be storytelling through song and a guaranteed good time. If that wasn’t enough to get on the elevator from the concert hall lobby, there’s also a photo booth, libations and charMarina-based Nā Haumāna was one of the many groups at the 2025 Moonflower Festival, celebrating a range of performing art styles from across Asia and beyond. JAMES CHANG Bikini Bottom arrives on the Santa Catalina School stage. Sophomores Judith Riley (from left) as SpongeBob, Vivienne Taylor as Patrick and Story Smith as Sandy Cheeks bring the energy to The SpongeBob Musical (see p. 26). SANTA CATALINA SCHOOL
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