Pajaro Valley Unified School District’s governing board on Feb. 25 rejected two proposals to reduce teachers and staff, and approved other layoffs, including 45 teachers, during a raucous, contentious meeting that included bickering between trustees and heckling from attendees in the packed boardroom.
That heckling came to a head when board President Olivia Flores refused to relent in her decision to limit public speaking to 30 minutes. She explained that many of the members of the audience had already spoken on the same issue during the Feb. 12 meeting.
Several audience members shouted their disapproval. The meeting was halted—and the board was forced to briefly recess—when PVFT negotiations chair Brandon Diniz called for a caucus among the audience members to choose those who would speak.
“If you’re going to play that game, then the community deserves the opportunity to identify our speakers,” he said. The trustees returned after about 20 minutes.
The special meeting was convened when Trustee Joy Flynn asked for it to return after a Feb. 12 meeting during which the board rejected all the cuts.
Flynn explained that she had more questions that weren’t answered during the previous meeting, and said she was concerned that the reductions at the previous meetings were all lumped together.
“It was an attempt to bring forward some more clarity and transparency around what I’ve been calling a peanut in a cake,” she said. “And if you’re allergic to peanuts that means the whole cake has to go.”
On the table for the first round of reductions were teacher positions recommended by the district’s Sustainable Budget Team (SBT) and approved by the board on Feb. 12. The SBT was convened last year to help balance the budget after the district spent one-time Covid relief funds on ongoing staff positions.
But the board rejected that after the trustees voted down two motions by Medina to table the item and then to put all the cuts at zero.
This included 4.5 assistant principal positions, five counselor positions, 12 elementary release teachers and eight elementary release teachers.
Navarro then made a motion to approve the reduction, which failed after trustees Jessica Carrasco, Carol Turley, Medina and Flynn voted no. Trustee Daniel Dodge Jr. was absent.
The trustees then rejected a proposal to cut classified positions—also recommended by the SBT—including three mental health clinicians, three technology support technicians, one communication technician, a child welfare and attendance analyst, a warehouse and delivery driver and a payroll technician.
Trustees Flynn, Carrasco and Medina voted no and it failed. PVUSD Superintendent Heather Contreras told the board as the meeting drew to a close that she is “really concerned” that those cuts were not approved.
“We are choosing to keep those positions that were added with one-time dollars for another year,” she said. “Those positions will carry forward, and that’s $5 million worth of positions that will continue next year.”
Contreras warned that a larger number of reductions will return to the board next year.
“Those were one-time funded positions,” she said. “We no longer have those dollars.”
The trustees then approved a proposal to eliminate just over 46 teacher positions, which staff recommended as the district faces at least a decade of projected declining enrollment. According to PVUSD Chief Business Officer Jenny Im, who announced her retirement several days after the meeting, the district will lose an estimated 600 students next year, amounting to losing millions of dollars.
Navarro called the cuts a “worst-case scenario” that may be reduced or eliminated by the number of retiring teachers and those who are leaving the district.
“There’s a possibility these positions don’t actually get laid off,” she said.
Navarro also warned that many districts have recently been forced to issue layoff notices to their employees and are making “deep cuts.”
“Anyone who does not realize over the next four years that things are going to get worse has their head in the sand,” Navarro said. “We need to be grown-ups now and make tough decisions now, otherwise next year we’re going to make double cuts and it will hurt even worse.”
A motion to cut just over 10 instructional assistants then passed, with Turley, Navarro, Flynn and Flores in favor.
Amber Monaghan’s journey into sound healing wasn’t just a career shift—it was a calling. Decades ago, she experienced what she describes as a spiritual awakening, one that sent electrical sensations through her body and left her searching for answers. That search led her to Dr. Jeffrey Thompson, founder of the Neuroacoustic Research Foundation in San Diego, and his work in therapeutic audio research.
Thompson had developed a method of recording personalized sounds said to shift the nervous system from a state of stress and imbalance into a space of deep healing, emotional release and spiritual clarity. From the moment Monaghan lay down on his table and heard the resonant hum of her own biotone—a tone unique to her nervous system—something clicked. Her upbringing as the daughter of a chiropractor and a recording studio owner suddenly made sense. Sound wasn’t just something you hear; it was something you feel, something that could heal.
Today, Monaghan runs Light and Sound Spas, a Santa Cruz-based practice where she guides clients through the seven stages of Bio-tuning. The process uses custom soundtracks embedded with a client’s biotone in multiple octaves, along with binaural beats designed to synchronize the brain hemispheres.
As someone who struggles with sleep fluctuations, I thought this was something to look into. She walked me into a cozy office hardly large enough to hold more than the massage table, but when relaxation is your goal, what else do you need? Clients lie down on the table and Monaghan supplies ear plugs that pipe in soothing music while a small biosensor at the wrist monitors vital signs.
As the music induces a state of deep relaxation, the sensors monitor the client’s biorhythms to find the tone that matches the balance of the nervous system. Once that tone is captured, Monaghan sends it to a lab that provides the client with a 20-minute soundtrack to help induce sleep at home.
The first soundtrack focuses on Delta brainwaves, encouraging a state of deep, restorative rest. Layered with nature sounds in 3D, these tracks help the nervous system relax and recalibrate. I was cautiously optimistic. Lying awake at 3am is no joke, and the multiple deep relaxation techniques I’d tried haven’t been foolproof.
That night, I listened to the audio before I went to sleep and slept soundly through the night. Probably the placebo effect, I reasoned, but I was happy it worked. The next night, the same thing happened. The third night, there I was at 3am, wide awake and wondering what went wrong. So, I listened to the audio, and fell asleep soon after.
As the weeks went by, the 3am wakeups became fewer, and I used the audio to get back to sleep much faster than I’d been able to before. Placebo? Maybe. But waking up was much less stressful when I had a tool to manage it.
Months later, I’m no longer using the audio because I haven’t needed to. That said, my experience only touched the surface of what this program offers.
Unlike generic meditation apps, each client’s biotone is unique, and the soundtracks are customized to their nervous system’s needs. “It’s like having a toolkit for your well-being,” Monaghan says. “If you need deep sleep, you use the Delta tracks. If you’re processing emotions, you turn to Theta. It becomes a lifelong resource.”
Monaghan says her clients range from those struggling with chronic insomnia to high-stress professionals looking to optimize their performance. “Sleep issues are often the entry point,” she says, “but what they uncover goes much deeper.” She also works with individuals overcoming illness, grief or burnout—anyone seeking to reset their nervous system and reconnect with their inner balance.
The work is conducted in stages staggered over the course of two to three months, starting with Stage 1, Deep Delta Sleep. “Everything starts with sleep,” Monaghan explains. “So many of us are stuck in stress cycles, and deep sleep is where our bodies can begin to repair.”
Once sleep patterns begin to improve, deeper healing can take place. The second stage works with lower octaves of sound that penetrate into the bones and tissues, supporting physical recovery.
Clients progress through five transformative stages. First, they release stored emotional tension, uncovering connections between thoughts, emotions, and pain. Next, Theta waves enable deep subconscious processing of stress or trauma. As emotions clear, Alpha waves enhance intuition and creativity. Integration follows, fostering balance and alignment. Finally, Gamma waves bring heightened awareness and clarity.
“The body knows how to heal,” Monaghan says. “We’re just giving it the right frequency to do so.”
Elizabeth Borelli is the author of the new book Tastes Like La Dolce Vita. To learn more about her, visit ElizabethBorelli.com. To learn about biotones, visit LightandSoundSpas.com.
I would want unlimited motivation, so I could do anything. With unlimited motivation you’re able to chase everything you want.
Judi Banderas, 21, San José State University Social Work Major
OCTAVIO
I’m thinking of superpowers, like immortality. The best thing about immortality would be not fearing death, but then you also don’t appreciate life as much. Knowing that life ends makes it more valuable.
Octavio Valdivia, 20, San José State University Computer Science Major
ESMERELDA
I would want the power to just snap my fingers and be invisible—just to sneak into places and overhear conversations.
Esmerelda Cruz, 21, Retail Sales
CATALINA
I would want the ability to play any musical instrument, like the violin or cello, but most of all the saxophone, jazz saxophone, like bossa nova. My Dad would always play the saxophone, so that would be really cool.
Catalina Popke, 26, MRI Tech
SUSY
I would cure everyone’s food allergies, so they could eat whatever they want, whenever they want it. I have food allergies and I know how miserable they are. I would snap my fingers and suddenly no one’s allergic to peanuts or gluten or dairy, so if you crave something you can just eat it!
Four decades ago, Watsonville’s cannery industry was bustling, packing up the vast amount of agricultural products grown in the Pajaro Valley and preserving them for shipment around the world.
The lifeblood of this industry was provided by its thousands of workers—most of them women, and the vast majority Mexican immigrants.
In 1985, two Watsonville plants—Richard A. Shaw Inc. and Watsonville Canning and Frozen Food—proposed pay cuts and slashed family health benefits. In response, nearly 2,000 workers from both plants walked off the job and staged a months-long strike.
The action drew international attention and to this day is seen as a pivotal moment in the history of United States labor issues.
Often overlooked in this story are the children who watched their parents’ struggles. Inspired by what they saw, many of them have gone on to lead successful lives and become community leaders.
SHOW OF STRENGTH Employees of Watsonville Canning link hands along Walker Street during a strike in 1985. PHOTO: Kurt Ellison/Watsonville Register-Pajaronian via Pajaro Valley Historical Association
That’s the focus of Daughters of the Strike, a documentary by Jon Silver that focuses on the now-grown children of the strikers.
The film will be shown on March 8 along with the 1989 documentary Watsonville on Strike, also by Silver. The screenings are part of the Watsonville Film Festival, which runs March 6–25.
Ezperanza Torres, one of the strikers, said her daughters saw their house turned into a meeting place and refuge for strikers for its proximity to the plant. They also saw many getting arrested.
“I would explain what was happening to my children,” she said through a Spanish interpreter. “I told them that now you should be studying and preparing themselves so that you in your lives will not have to be in the situation that we found ourselves today. I think this really helped them in getting into college. It was an inspiration.”
YESTERDAY AND TODAY Sylvia Baltazar (center), a former Watsonville Cannery Striker, poses with daughters Sylvia Baltazar (left) and Wendy Baltazar. They are featured in the documentary ‘Daughters of the Strike.’ PHOTO: Jon Silver
Immigrants’ Tales
Many of the films focus on the experiences of immigrants, Watsonville Film Festival Director Consuelo Alba said, an issue that has become topical in the current political climate—especially in a community where many increasingly feel themselves in the crosshairs.
“This year it’s even more important and urgent that we create a space to tell our stories from our perspective and to create common ground for all of us through empathy and understanding,” she said. “And storytelling. Film is a very powerful tool to bring people together and to talk about these challenges, joys and contributions of our community to the U.S.”
Attendees can see “They Call Me the Cross Man,” a short film about artist Alvaro Enciso, who places crosses in the Sonoran Desert where people have died crossing the border.
Reina Grande, who produced that film, will be in attendance for the premiere. She will also be at the Watsonville Public Library for a book signing and reception in celebration of her book Somewhere We Are Human, an anthology on the immigrant experience.
The film festival offerings span many genres, from documentaries to experimental to narrative, Alba says.
“It’s really inspiring to see the talent we have in our region,” she adds.
Making its California premiere is “The Long Valley” a short film about the people and sights of Salinas Valley’s agriculture region. That film is fresh off successful showings at the Sundance and SXSW festivals.
SIGNS OF THE TIMES ‘The Vanishing Japantown’ focuses on the closure of Watsonville’s last Japanese-owned business. Photo: Credit
Featuring local residents Mas and Marcia Hashimoto, “The Vanishing Japantown” focuses on Watsonville’s historic Japantown and the closure of its last Japanese-owned business.
For example, filmmaker and former punk artist Mabel Valdiviezo captures the story of her reunion with her family in Peru after 16 years of estrangement.
Through her photo-paintings of the family, Valdiviezo’s full-length documentary Prodigal Daughter—screening in Santa Cruz on March 9—gives audiences a different angle on the experience of living in another country that challenges the prevailing narrative of “good immigrant” versus “bad immigrant.” As the director describes it, Prodigal Daughter “explores and humanizes the nexus of family reconnection, gendered migration, mental health, and art as a source of empowerment.”
Closer to home and much lighter in subject matter is the work of director Eugenia Renteria, a Watsonville-based director, cinematographer and editor. Born in Zacatecas, Mexico, she moved to California at age 12. Her film, “Fake It ’Til You Make It,” is a 13-minute love story.
EMBRACING THE PAST In ‘Prodigal Daughter,’ filmmaker Mabel Valdiviezo reconnects with her family in Peru. Photo: Credit
Everyday Stories
Hector Aguila, whose short drama/comedy “916” will premiere on March 7, began as a volunteer with the festival and now serves as program manager.
Since its inception 12 years ago, the festival has expanded, with more than 50 films in the lineup as well as other happenings later in March.
The festival has also expanded in its geographical scope, with events in Santa Cruz and Salinas.
Aguila says he hopes to expand the number and types of people who attend the event.
“I would love for the people—your everyday families—to know about the festival,” he says. “I want people to know that truly we exist to bring value to the artists of our community, and to introduce our community to filmmakers in the Central Valley, California and beyond.”
Aguila also hopes to encourage more people to tell their stories through film.
“You don’t have to go to Hollywood, you don’t have to go to New York,” he says. “There are stories everywhere, and everybody has a story to tell. And most importantly we want people to value themselves and their stories, because if they value themselves and their stories, then they value their communities and they value their life. That’s part of the mission of who we are and what we do.”
FIREBRAND Strike leader Gloria Betancourt (second from left) joins a boisterous rally in 1985. Photo: Kurt Ellison/Watsonville Register-Pajaronian via Pajaro Valley Historical Association.
Watsonville Film Festival
March 6
Opening Night—6-8pm, CineLux Green Valley Cinema, 1125 S. Green Valley Road, Watsonville. Screening of seven films, including “The Long Valley.”
March 7
Location: CineLux Green Valley Cinema, 1125 S. Green Valley Road, Watsonville, unless noted.
Emerging Cinema/Cine Emergente—5-7pm. Screening of seven films.
Creative Joy/Alegría Creativa—7:30–9:30pm. Screening of six films, including “Fake It Till You Make It’ And “Dear Watsonville.”
After Party—9:30–11:30pm, Buena Vista Brewing Company in Watsonville. Live music with Valley Roots.
March 8
Location: CineLux Green Valley Cinema, 1125 S. Green Valley Road, Watsonville, unless noted.
Youth Voices/Cine Joven—11am–12:30pm.
Si Pudiera Quedarme/If I Could Stay—1:30–3:15pm. Screening of 75-minute documentary on families staying together in the face of deportation.
Our World/Nuestro Mundo—4–6pm, Documentary shorts telling stories from Costa Rica, Cuba, China, Los Angeles and Watsonville.
Watsonville on Strike and Daughters of the Strike—6:30–8:30pm. Marking the 40th anniversary of the Watsonville cannery strike.
After Party—9-11pm, Buena Vista Brewing Company in Watsonville. Live music with Rasquache Liberation Front.
March 9
Location: 418 Project Movie Theater, 155 S. River St., Santa Cruz
Screening of Prodigal Daughter with the short film “Heaven in a Wild Flower”—1pm.
WWF in Santa Cruz/Un Cachet de WFF en Santa Cruz—4–6pm.Screening of several films from opening-night program.
March 14
WFF in Salinas/Un Cachito de WFF en Salinas—6–8pm at Maya Cinemas, 1153 Main St., Salinas. Screening of eight films.
After Party—9–1pm at XL Public House.
March 25
Leading Change/Lideres del Cambio—5–7pm at Cabrillo College Horticultural Center, 141 Calabria St., Aptos. Program featuring films by professional and emerging filmmakers will raise awareness about the use of pesticides in the community.
Watsonville Cannery Strike Photo Exhibition
Featuring photos from Pajaronian photographers Keith Ellison, Chip Scheuer, Diane Varni and Sam Vestal, the exhibit will be on view March 1–May 30 in the 2nd Floor Community Room at the Watsonville Public Library, 275 Main St. On March 15, Watsonville Cannery Strikers, their children and supporters will share stories with a reception to follow, starting at 1pm.
Too bad Good Times has missed the fact that women are tired of being used as sex objects—why would the hamburger on your cover have bare legs and high heels? It’s 2025 and that is not how many (dare I say, most) women want to be represented—we are not meat for your consumption. Please think twice next time.
Kate Clark | Santa Cruz
BURGER WEEKS
First of all I am very pleased that burger week is now more than a week. Went to Santa Cruz Diner for the Monte Cristo burger. They didn’t have the tater tots, but the substitute onion rings was fine. And I have a lot of perimeters. I want a side, and hand formed, 1/2 pound, angus beef are important. My brother and I will partake of more burger week with the added days, yum.
Thank you
Summer Goodwin | Santa Cruz
BURGER LOVE
My favorite is the double cheeseburger at East End gastropub.
The beef has a great flavor. All the condiments are well balanced.
I substitute cheddar because I personally like that better than American cheese.
For me, it is the closest thing to a Zip burger from Zip’s cafe, which is a famous burger from my hometown in Cincinnati.
Thomas Wenstrup
BURGER HATE
It was jaw-dropping to see the 2-21-24 issue of the Good Times weekly featuring “Santa Cruz Burger Week”! Are we living in the past or has no one heard the world’s leading scientists warning we are moving toward extinction of life on Earth?
This extinction disaster is due to global warming, climate change, pollution, deforestation, lessening water resources and accelerating species extinction, all largely attributable to raising beef and other flesh products to consume.
One burger requires nearly 2,000 gallons of water to produce. In the U.S., 55% of all water consumption is used by animal agriculture. It accounts for 91% of Brazilian Amazon Rainforest Destruction (136 million acres destroyed yearly). Animal agriculture produces more greenhouse gases than all transportation put together.
Livestock consumes 50% of all grains grown, increasing world hunger and using 45% of the entire Earth’s ice-free land. It’s a leading cause of species extinction; USDA is killing 2.7 million wild animals yearly to protect land for livestock grazing.
Additionally, livestock production is a leading cause of freshwater pollution; resulting in ocean dead zones and the Great Barrier Reef die-off.
What can we do about it? We can rapidly move toward a plant-based diet and thereby each and every person will daily save 1,300 gallons of water; 30 sq. ft. of forested land; 45 pounds of grain and 20 lbs. of polluting CO2 equivalent gases per day.
Human behavior is consuming and destroying our Earth. Shifting our harmful behaviors to ecologically sustainable ways is a solution. Promoting Burger Week is not.
Bill Meade | Associate Producer “What The Health” on Netflix | Watsonville
At a time when the strength of labor unions and protests have been devalued by a federal administration that extols dictators, it’s never been more important to ponder the moments when, in Patti Smith’s words, “people have the power.”
Four decades ago in Watsonville 2,000 workers—mostly women and mostly immigrants from Mexico—walked off their jobs for 18 months to protest low wages, a daring move for people who were already struggling and trying to make a better life for their families.
Todd Guild’s cover story previews two documentaries about these events, Daughters of the Strike (2024) and Watsonville on Strike (1990), both by director Jon Silver, who brings the struggle and its aftereffects to life. The first film looks at the children of the strikers, the ones who suffered during their parents’ struggles.
They will be shown March 8 as part of the Watsonville Film Festival, the area’s largest film festival, which runs March 6–25. This important festival has grown significantly under the leadership of Consuelo Alba and her team and it proudly puts Watsonville on the international map.
It features 50 films in 11 venues, a diverse aggregation with local and worldwide interest.
Making its California premiere is “The Long Valley,” a short film about the people and sights of Salinas Valley’s agricultural region. That film is fresh off successful showings at the Sundance and SXSW festivals.
Featuring local residents Mas and Marcia Hashimoto, “The Vanishing Japantown” focuses on Watsonville’s historic Japantown and the closure of its last Japanese-owned business.
On the food front, we’re happy to see Andrew Steingrube’s Foodie File about Panda Inn in Aptos. We stumbled onto that place with its new owners and were delighted to taste authentic Szechuan spices and recipes, comparable to the area’s other great newer restaurant, Special Noodle. So nice to have Asian cuisine with zing.
One of the best meals I’ve ever eaten was my first one in the city of Shenzhen at a cheap noodle house where my mouth exploded with new flavors. I’ve been looking to repeat that experience ever since and am so glad to have found it here.
We’ve got plenty more treats inside this issue.
Thanks for reading.
Brad Kava | Editor
PHOTO CONTEST
BUGS R US “It looks like St. Joseph Church has new colors. God must have loved bugs. He made so many of them.” Photograph by Russ Levoy
GOOD IDEA
Cabrillo Gallery presents Our Earth, Our Future, an exhibition of artists sharing a common interest in promoting environmental sustainability and stewardship.
In this exhibition you can immerse yourself in a room-sized deep blue cyanotype printed on fabric by Tanja Geis that depicts future ocean life adapting to life amongst a sea of garbage; encounter a human-scale nest of kelp; and witness a conversation between a pelican and an Ohlone woman about dying kelp forests in a short film, among other exhibits.
The exhibit runs March 17 to April 18. It will be closed for Spring Break March 31 to April 4.
GOOD WORK
California State Parks and Friends of Santa Cruz State Parks, in partnership with the Monterey Bay Living Shoreline Program and Groundswell Coastal Ecology, will be hosting a community planting day at Rio del Mar State Beach to support the Rio del Mar Living Shoreline Pilot Project.
Planting will be March 15, 9am to noon. Space is limited and volunteers are encouraged to preregister on Eventbrite.
They will be planting native dune plants in an area of the beach adjacent to the Rio del Mar Esplanade. The plants selected are well-suited to the local coast, helping to stabilize loose sand and trap more sand over time to keep the dunes intact.
QUOTE OF THE WEEK
“Whenever the people are well informed, they can be trusted with their own government.” —Thomas Jefferson
Here comes history, not so much repeating itself, but improving itself, in a decidedly sweet way.
Three years back Stephen Beaumier and Katy Oursler shuttered Mutari Chocolate House on Front Street. Now Beaumier has hatched The Chocolate Studio (912 Cedar St., Santa Cruz), a three-month pop-up in the former Flower Bar space—ICYMI: Flower Bar closed in November—with hopes of making things permanent.
Four highlights to prioritize on premises: 1) Oursler’s Mutari craft chocolate (like dark sipping chocolate, truffles and bottled hot chocolate mix); 2) coffee and espresso from Ikon Roastery; 3) Beaumier’s White Label Chocolate Co. bars (including the 58% salted brown butter milk); and 4) sumptuous baked goods from adored Dani O Bakeshop (home base: Capitola Mall, 1855 41st Ave.), like day-fresh breads, pastries and croissants with White Label chocolate tucked within.
Chef/owner Beaumier aims to expand offerings soon, with more savory selections, cheese, charcuterie, beer, wine and a variety of nonalcoholic drinks on the horizon.
“The vision is to create a space similar to a Parisian café,” he says.
Hours unfold 9am–6pm, Wednesday through Sunday. Updates appear via Instagram @thechocolatestudiosantacruz.
And (!) Mutari will be launching weekly Friday pickups at the café ASAP for its popular brownies and cookies, with pre-orders advised at mutarichocolate.com.
GRAB AND GRUB
Community-supported-fishmonger Ocean2Table (427 Swift St., Unit C, Santa Cruz) has intro’d new pickup options for customers in Felton, Santa Cruz, Live Oak, Soquel and Silicon Valley. Subscribers can order fresh catch at their website, collect away at seven sites without delivery costs, and with the option for foraged mushrooms, produce and pantry stuffs too. The inventory available arrives rich with partner producers, so on top of local catch (as this goes to press there is black cod and Dungeness crab whole, cleaned or all meat) or fresh frozen (including albacore, halibut and black cod), there are also items like Pajaro Pastures eggs, Lavandine lavender mists and Belle Farms extra virgin olive oil, getocean2table.com.
TRIPLE PLAY
A three-pack of good news from Watsonville: 1) As of 6am yesterday (March 4), Silver Spur #2 is now officially open and slinging hot coffee, nine-grain pancakes and three-egg omelets (1040 E. Lake Ave.); 2) Slice Project continues to dish a sublime slice of cupping pepperoni downtown (300 Main St.) and staffers tell me SP #2 opens mid-month in the former ScoopDog (45 Aviation Way #6); and 3) A recent visit reveals Watsonville Public House (625 Main St.) continues to be a welcoming space with great house beers, Santa Cruz Cider Company sippers, shiny solid wood bar and My Mom’s Mole doing items like emoladas and roasted vegetable nachos.
KEEP IT COMING
Burger Week rumbles on through March 9, and if you can look over the lineup of creations featured and not be consumed with craving, you’re stronger than me, santacruzburgerweek.com….Aspiring foodie fermentation fans: Noma Projects, from the same team behind the late great Copenhagen restaurant often ranked #1 in the world, now does innovative products, such as sauces and pantry staples, that bring its legendary Nordic creativity into home cooking, nomaprojects.com…The 19th annual California Artisan Cheese Festival layers flavor all over Sonoma later this month, March 21-23, tickets and volunteer slots remain for everything from cheesemaking demos to immersive sensory experiences to the 100-vendor Artisan Cheese Tasting & Marketplace, artisancheesefestival.com…American author Beth Harbison, see us on our way: “Age is of no importance unless you’re a cheese.”
Someone must be something special to have a nickname as cool as La Voz De Oro (The Golden Voice)—someone like Miami’s Jason Joshua. With Puerto Rico-born, Chicago-raised parents, the golden-voiced one grew up with diverse influences from which to spin his sweet takes on Latin soul, adding flavors of pop, funk and salsa. On his latest bilingual album, also called La Voz De Oro (because why wouldn’t it be?), Joshua plays multiple instruments and produces, lest anyone think he’s just another pretty voice. KEITH LOWELL JENSEN
The Watsonville Film Festival, back for its 13th year, continues to promote underrepresented voices in media, focusing on the Latine and Indigenous experience. See page 14 for more. Runs March 6–8. ISABELLA MARIE SANGALINE
INFO: CineLux Green Valley Cinema, 1125 S. Green Valley Rd., Watsonville. $75/all access.
THEATER
EDGAR ALLAN POE SPEAKEASY
Drink in the chilling genius of Poe’s twisted tales along with icy dark potions in the historic Palomar Ballroom, made into a moody speakeasy to celebrate four classic stories—“The Telltale Heart,” “The Black Cat,” “The Raven” and “The Masque of the Red Death.” Admission includes four crafted cocktails: Pale Blue Eye, Edgar’s Twisted Brandy Milk Punch, The Nevermore and The Red Death. Additional shows on Friday and Saturday. JOHN KOENIG
INFO: 10pm, Palomar Ballroom, 1344 Pacific Ave., Santa Cruz. $48-$55 at feverup.com. 426-1221.
FRIDAY 3/7
PUNK
THE EXPLOITED
Few punk musicians have lived the life and are still around to talk about it at 67 years old. But Wattie Buchan—the mohawked lead singer for Scottish punk legends the Exploited—isn’t an average human. Despite his brother Terry as the band’s original founding singer, Wattie soon took over and made a name for the band during the second wave of British punk with tracks like “Fuck the Mods,” “Exploited Barmy Army” and “I Believe in Anarchy.” Their debut album, Punks Not Dead, continues to be a trusted building block in any punk’s musical evolution. And thankfully, Wattie is still pressing on with the boys for future generations of growing punk youth. MAT WEIR
INFO: 8pm, Vets Hall, 846 Front St., Santa Cruz. $29/adv, $36/door. 454-0478.
DRUM ’N’ BASS
THE GARDEN
Combining jungle and drum ’n’ bass, Southern California twins Wyatt and Fletcher Shears are the Garden. While their painted-face aesthetic might suggest KISS (or Insane Clown Posse), the duo makes music that owes a stylistic debt to more adventurous styles. The Garden’s debut album, 2013’s The Life and Times of A Paperclip, is as much a punk album as anything else. The duo’s speedy tunes showcase a sound that’s all their own. Their devil-may-care attitude shines through even in album titles like Kiss My Super Bowl Ring (2020) and 2022’s Horseshit on Route 66. Iceage opens. BILL KOPP
INFO: 9pm, Catalyst, 1101 Pacific Ave., Santa Cruz. $48. 713-5492.
SATURDAY 3/8
BLUES
DISCRETION BREWERY 12TH ANNIVERSARY
Important things come in packs of 12. Eggs are purchased by the dozen. A trial needs 12 jurors. And let’s not forget the most important thing to come in packs of 12: beer! If anyone needs more reason to drink beer, Discretion Brewery’s 12th Anniversary Party is just the occasion. Come rain or shine; they’ll have the Back Porch Boys playing, followed by the Marin County Breakdown, a family band that plays traditional bluegrass, jazz and rock. Kick back with their 2025 Anniversary West Coast Pils or a Submarine Canyon (Meyer lemon and sea salt IPA) in a celebratory pint glass that can also be purchased. Top it off with some catered food from Sugo and a game of cornhole for a right proper party. MW
The father-daughter team of Dan and Peggy Reeder are wonderfully quirky. Born in Louisiana and raised in California, Reed Senior resides in Nuremberg, Germany. After an absence of 15 years, he’s back stateside touring with his visual art and music played on homemade instruments like steel-string guitars, banjos and PVC trombones. He was signed by Oh Boy Records when label founder John Prine himself first discovered his demo in the early aughts. Reeder is one of a kind, following his own whims, and he currently feels like harmonizing with his daughter and sharing joy with others. KLJ
The Barnstorm Theatre is bringing The Panza Monologues to life. Originally written and compiled in 2004 by Virginia Grise and Irma Mayorga, Maddie Farias directs this collection of stories of women and their panzas, “[the] roll of belly we all try to hide!” In line with Barnstorm’s mission to integrate different political, social, cultural and academic perspectives through the theatrical process, the show highlights Chicana thought and reflects on how the panza offers insight into a range of topics. SHELLY NOVO
INFO: 7:30pm, B100 Studio Theater, 453 Kerr Rd., Santa Cruz. $0-$20. 459-2974.
MONDAY 3/10
JAZZ
BRANFORD MARSALIS
Three-time Grammy winner Branford Marsalis is a saxophonist, band leader, Broadway composer, classical soloist and a giant in 21st-century jazz. One of his recent and high-profile projects was scoring for Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom. Amid his myriad projects, the group he launched in 1986, the Branford Marsalis Quartet, remains his chief means of artistic expression. The Quartet’s latest release, 2019’s The Secret Between the Shadow and the Soul, has predictably earned plaudits, but it’s onstage with the Quartet (featuring pianist Joey Calderazzo, Eric Revis on bass and drummer Justin Faulkner) where Marsalis does his best work. BK
INFO: 8:30pm, Kuumbwa Jazz Center, 320 Cedar St., Santa Cruz. $84. 427-2227.
WEDNESDAY 3/12
AUTHOR EVENT
DR. NIA IMARA
Dr. Nia Imara discusses her new book, Painting the Cosmos: How Art and Science Intersect to Reveal the Secrets of the Universe, an immersive and educational work. Dr. Imara, an artist and astrophysicist, received her PhD in astrophysics at UC Berkeley and now holds a professorship in astronomy at UC Santa Cruz. With the Distinguished Professor of Astronomy and Astrophysics Raja GuhaThakurta, Dr. Imara will explore evolving views of the natural world and ask questions about how principles of art and science can combine to shape our views of reality. SN
INFO: 7pm, Bookshop Santa Cruz, 1520 Pacific Ave., Santa Cruz. Free. 423-0900.
Rock-shock percussion, ferocious sonic complexity, luminous vocals. The third concert in the New Music Works season, with Caroline Shaw’s Narrow Sea as the finale, stunned the large audience at UCSC’s Music Center Recital Hall on Feb. 22.
The piece explores folk song themes with a widely dispersed soundscape that included ceramic bowls, hammered piano strings, tin toy buckets, bass drums and vibraphone. All that startling sound encircled a central singer, a poor wayfaring stranger, singing of the promised land.
Each movement of Narrow Sea began a new melody with text from the Sacred Harp, a collection of shape note hymns first published in the 19th century, referring to water, the river Jordan, floods, narrow seas and the ecstasy of looking to heaven.
The yearning lyrics seemed to float thanks to soprano Sheila Willey’s performance. Gorgeous, mesmerizing, even shocking—as when five musicians hammered away at the concert grand piano strings, treating it as a giant dulcimer. This piece drew in every single person in the audience and held them tight. The direct simplicity of Willey’s tone wove strands of silver through the piano’s stride and the percussion’s epic journey.
This concert was breathtaking from start to finish. First came Kenji Bunch’s lilting reinventions of American vernacular tropes showcased by four inspired musicians: Shannon D’Antonio and Samantha Bounkeua on violins, Rebecca Dualtre-Corbin on viola, and Irene Herrmann on cello. Next came a poignant Kaddish Canon by the late Larry Polansky. With his partner, pianist Amy Beal, leading the series of piano variations begun by a trumpet elegy, the piece ached with the playful authenticity Polansky mastered in his too-short composing life.
NARROW New Music Works rehearses for an evening that ‘was breathtaking from start to finish.’ PHOTO: Amy Beal
In the second half of the concert, more Polansky shook the stage. His Ensembles of Note was written for “any instrumentation,” guaranteeing that the texture and color of the piece would always be unique. A rhythmically insistent ostinoto pattern was repeated and varied by each of the ten players. On electric guitar Giacomo Fiore burned and sizzled, as did Samantha Bounkeua on electrified violin. Lars Johannesson and Alissa Roedig on flutes intensified the topnotes. Polansky championed canons, rounds and dancing soundscapes that could be reinvented with each performance—neither entirely freeform nor rigidly notated.
The power of the vocal performances lingers. The numinous spell cast by soprano Sheila Willey’s rendering of Errollyn Wallen’s Daedalus, with string quartet, had many of us in tears. Leaning into the lyrics, Willey unfurled her voice from a hypnotic state.
But the thunder of the final piece, directed by Michael McGushin’s authoritative keyboard, seemed to transform the Recital Hall Mainstage into the bow of a mythic ship on the high seas, bound for a better world, a possible home. Perfect message for these times.
Shoto Otaguro provided percussion in the New Music Works presentation of ‘Narrow Sea.’
More music lies ahead this month. Always a feast for purists, the Distinguished Artists Series wraps up its 2025 season at 4pm on March 9 at Peace United Church, with a “Rite of Spring” concert for duo pianists, Audrey Vardanega and Eric Zivian. Keyboard fans will be in heaven. The afternoon includes a Schubert Rondo for Four Hands, some Schumann, a touch of Debussy, and absolutely some Stravinsky. distinguishedartists.org
A world premiere from composer Chris Pratorius Gómez comes mid-March when he directs the new Santa Cruz Chamber Players concert “Among the Fuchsias: Nostalgic Musings for Tenor, Viola, and Piano.” The program ranges from Debussy to Beethoven (Piano Sonata in E major Op. 109), plus songs by African-American composer H.T. Burleigh. Also a Ralph Vaughan Williams setting of poems by William Blake. Lending expert interpretation to a program exploring nostalgia will be tenor Andrew Scott Carter, who was a charming and adroit performer in last month’s Santa Cruz Baroque Festival performance of Bach’s Coffee Cantata. Locally renowned violist Polly Malan and pianist Kiko Torres Velasco will lend their expertise to the eclectic program. Composer/concert director Gómez will also showcase his keyboard chops in the premiere of his music to accompany texts by poet Laurence Hope. Those who recall recent performances of Gómez’s sensuous operas won’t want to miss this concert. It takes place March 15 at 7:30pm and March 16 at 3pm at Christ Lutheran Church in Aptos. scchamberplayers.org
Ensemble Monterey hosts soprano Lori Schulman as soloist in The Pieces That Fall to Earth, by Pulitzer Prize-winner Christopher Cerrone. The program includes the elite vocal ensemble Cantiamo! performing Jocelyn Hagen’s multimedia work The Notebooks of Leonardo de Vinci, conducted by Maestra Cheryl Anderson. March 22, 7pm at First Presbyterian Church in Monterey. March 23, 7pm, at Peace United Church in Santa Cruz. ensemblemonterey.org
Catch Santa Cruz Symphony’s dreamy Symphonic Shakespeare concert at the end of the month. Santa Cruz Shakespeare Artistic Director Charles Pasternak brings his dramatic vocal gifts to a concert of Tchaikovsky’s Romeo & Juliet Overture, Felix Mendelssohn’s Overture for A Midsummer Night’s Dream and a contemporary exploration, Sound and Fury (another Shakespeare allusion), by composer Anna Clyne. Should be a bewitching combination of powerful vocal text and music inspired by the tales of William Shakespeare on March 29, 7:30pm, at the Santa Cruz Civic Auditorium and March 30, 2pm, at Henry J. Mello Center. santacruzsymphony.org
This article marks the first installment of Performance, my new monthly column on Santa Cruz’s performing arts scene. Talk to me! Let me know what you’ve got in the works: xt***@****io.com.
An Aptos locals’ favorite since it originally opened in 1981, Panda Inn changed ownership five months ago and is now in the hands of Yanna Tan-Smith. Born and raised in Southern China, she is friends with the previous owners, who asked her to move from Oregon to Santa Cruz and take over the restaurant. She agreed, exuding apparently genuine warmth and passion for both her new business and hospitality.. Another motivation: Her son Ming wanted to become a cook, so she thought owning a restaurant would be a perfect platform for him to hone his craft.
The menu features traditional recipes created and improved by Yanna’s uncle Yung. Egg rolls, potstickers and hot and sour soup make for great beginnings. The Chinese chicken salad, served in an edible won ton bowl, is both a brilliant idea and a culinary standout, pairing tender white meat chicken against lettuce with a sweet and tangy housemade dressing. Main dish highlights include spicy Szechuan beef and chicken, deep-fried walnut shrimp with vegetables and chow mein. Some new and revamped menu options, spiced authentically, are also in the works to recapture local loyalty.
How is taking over ownership going?
YANNA TAN-SMITH: It’s been really challenging; we underwent construction and renovation for a couple months. Running a restaurant during construction is very difficult, but now it’s over and the place looks and feels very nice. For the first couple months, business was slow, but word-of-mouth has picked up and when people heard we were under new ownership, they came back, really embraced us and have been giving positive feedback.
What’s been the response to the food?
The neighborhood has really been liking and enjoying our cuisine; they always finish their plates and have recommended us to their friends. The big difference with the food has been receiving fresh shipments every day, the vegetables and meats are of much higher quality and are more flavorful. And that’s not me saying that, it’s what our customers have been saying. My uncle and son have both done a great job of improving the menu.
783 Rio Del Mar Blvd., Suite 5, Aptos, 831-688-8620; pandainntogo.com
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Rock-shock percussion, ferocious sonic complexity, luminous vocals. The third concert in the New Music Works season, with Caroline Shaw’s Narrow Sea as the finale, stunned the large audience at UCSC’s Music Center Recital Hall on Feb. 22.
The piece explores folk song themes with a widely dispersed soundscape that included ceramic bowls, hammered piano strings, tin toy buckets, bass drums...
