www.montereycountynow.com JUNE 4-10, 2026 MONTEREY COUNTY WEEKLY 27 CULTURE In just over a decade, Palenke Arts, a multicultural arts nonprofit based in Seaside, has grown exponentially. It’s gone from offering arts workshops for kids, teens and adults–which the organization still does today—to hosting concerts featuring national and international traveling acts and spearheading multiple annual festivals. These include the Moonflower Festival, Día de los Muertos/Day of the Dead Celebration and the Palenke Arts Festival. “What began as a dream has become a place where culture lives, where artists gather, and where community finds its voice,” said founder Juan Sánchez in a statement announcing the anniversary. “This festival is a celebration of everyone who has helped build Palenke Arts over the last 10 years.” The nonprofit operates from two locations, Martin Luther King Jr. School of the Arts and the Palenke Teen Arts Center, where they offer an array of classes including dance, jazz music, Afro Caribbean drum class and more. “Our youngest student is 5 years old, [the] oldest is 80,” Sánchez says. The festival is a quick look at the work the organization has accomplished in the region, from educating the next generation of artists to exposing the community to different types of art and fostering community. At the institution’s heart, Sánchez says, is to “educate, inspire and transform the community through the arts.” The event features three headlining performers, including Plenazo Tribe, a Los Angeles-based Puerto Rican collective that played alongside Bad Bunny during this year’s Super Bowl halftime show; Ruby Ibarra, a Filipino American rapper who won the 2025 NPR Tiny Desk Contest; and Banda Tierra Menguarense, a Salinas-based group. “We started as a single event— everybody did it for free,” Sánchez notes. “Now we have award-winning performers.” Palenke Arts is working toward its forever home, an $11 million arts facility at Seaside High School. Currently, Ausonio Incorporated, a Monterey County-based construction company, is conducting pre-development work. “We’re hoping to have a conceptual design by late October, beginning of November,” Sánchez adds. And for the future, Sánchez wants to see Palenke expand even further, connecting internationally. Palenke Arts Festival 11am-5pm Sunday, June 7. Laguna Grande Park, 1249 Canyon Del Rey Blvd., Seaside. Free. (831) 899-9909, palenkearts.com. COURTESY OF PLENAZO TRIBE Top 10 From a concept to an institution, Palenke Arts goes all out with its annual festival. By Celia Jiménez Plenazo Tribe appears in the Super Bowl halftime show and the same weekend, gave for a spontaneous concert at Palenke Arts. They return as a headliner on June 7. SAT. JUN 13, 2026 7:30PM TICKETS ON SALE NOW! SAN CARLOS ST AT 9 AVE, CARMEL-BY-THE-SEA, CA 93921 TH BOX OFFICE HOURS: MONDAY – FRIDAY, NOON – 4 PM 831.620.2048 | BOXOFFICE@SUNSETCENTER.ORG | SUNSETCENTER.ORG SUNSET CULTURAL CENTER, INC. IS A 501(C)3 NONPROFIT | TAX ID #52-2404864
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