San Diego, CA
Today’s contemporary Black artists continue a legacy of transformation with their work
There are countless examples of the ways that Black creativity in America has literally changed the world — from jazz, rock, and hip-hop, to soul food, to literature, to the power of a picture. The power of this creativity, of this uniquely Black point of view can, of course, be seen today and Denise Rogers has plenty of contemporary art examples to share in her upcoming lecture on “Breaking the Boundaries: The Transformative Power of African Art.”
“This…was something that I sat back and thought about for a few months. I was looking for artists who were, especially after 2020 and George Floyd, there was a lot of attention and energy on African American art and artists,” she says. “So, I was introduced to a lot of artists who were trying to get some attention. Now, it’s like, ‘OK, what has happened since then?’ The art world has transformed, so I wanted to look at how artists have transformed and redefined art, specifically African American art. How they were influenced by prior Black artists, specifically with the issues that we deal with in the U.S.”
The list was tough for her to narrow down, but she’ll discuss the ways that selected Black artists explore with ideas of identity, culture, social transformation. They’re creating installations that transform traditional ideas of a neighborhood barbershop and its unsafe masculinity, into one that would be welcoming to a young, queer boy. Or, artists who acknowledge the history of the Middle Passage and slavery, and also create Afrofuturist art with visions of a world beyond the tragedy and strife we’ve always known.
Rogers, who will speak at 10 a.m. Friday at the Museum of Photographic Art at the San Diego Museum of Art in Balboa Park, is a professor of art history at San Diego Mesa College and currently serves as acting dean of the school’s School of Arts and Languages. She took some time to talk about some of the contemporary Black artists are breaking boundaries and continuing the tradition of transformation their ancestors left them. (This interview has been edited for length and clarity. )
Q: Who are the artists you’re planning to talk about and how did you go about selecting them for this discussion?
A: There’s one, her name is Alisa Sikelianos-Carter and she’s based out of New York. There’s a theme of Afrofuturism that I’m really interested in. There’s the pressure to address issues facing the Black community and issues of identity, within the community — police brutality and injustice. Some of them want to address it, but they also want to see a pathway beyond, a future where there’s a world where that doesn’t exist any longer. How do we survive it, but how do we surpass it? That’s the challenge for a lot of the artists, so she is an artist who creates these worlds where there’s this emphasis on Black resistance, but there’s also this world where those issues don’t exist any longer. She creates them where it’s her materials mixed with realism and mythologies and abstraction. She goes back to the Middle Passage and slavery, but then she brings it up to the present day. Then, she looks to the future and you go into these abstract spaces where nothing makes sense because we’re so inundated with tragedy that sometimes we can’t see beyond it. She’s able to create these spaces where we can see beyond it. It’s just, there are so many layers to it, but you can relate to it because, with the Black community and the experiences of many people, it gives you the pathway to escape. Those are her words. She says she gives you the pathway to escape beyond the tragedy. There’s also Black hair, Black beauty, Black glamour, she mixes all of this in. That’s one of the reasons I chose her, because of the complexity of her work.
There’s another artist, Devan Shimoyama. He’s a queer artist, multimedia artist, and I chose him because one of my favorite works of his is his barbershop installation, which was just exhibited last year in Europe. He talks about how, growing up, he knew he was gay, but the barbershop was this place of masculinity. Within the Black community, you know, we’ve seen all of the movies, “Barbershop”; he felt that pressure to fit in, but then not feeling like he fit in. Then, for him, that became the center of his work and the way it was transformative is that centers his work, but he wasn’t afraid to express it because it was who he was. He celebrates the barbershop. His installation is the barbershop and it includes elements, materials that he connects with — there are sequins, there’s glitter, there are garments, drag queens. So, in some communities, that would be a contradiction, but for him, it makes sense. He transformed that space, which, for him, reflected his own identity and that’s how he felt he could then engage with that space. When I saw it, I’m like, ‘This is beautiful.’ Then, he brings in his grandmother and wood paneling and silk flowers. Some of us grew up with the silk flowers in the entryway that collected dust (laughs). It’s just all of that history that informed his identity, and then he said, ‘I’m going to express who I am in a way that feels comfortable and empowering’ and then in a space that’s an installation. He used real barbershop chairs and they’re like this vibrant, pink color, they’re not the standard brown, they are bright, bright pink. People who come to it visit a barbershop that has been transformed.
Q: What is it about their work, their voice, that stands out to you in a way that compelled you to look at their art in depth in this way?
A: You have artists who follow, I hate to use the words “traditional path” because there’s nothing traditional about Black artists, but our artists are breaking with where you think art is going and they challenge norms, they break through boundaries, or just saying something that takes you in another direction where you think art is not going to go. There are elements, like Devan’s work, that reminds me of Mickalene Thomas with her dazzle and glitter and so on, but it’s different. Then, the artist Alisa Sikelianos-Carter, her work and going back to the Middle Passage and all of the materials, her work is similar to a local artist, Andrea Chung, who lives here in San Diego. There are similarities among artists, but they all have this unique ability to create a different narrative with their work. I share this with my students, that if you also look at yourself differently, that’s another source for someone like LaRissa Rogers (no relation), her work was introduced to me by a student. I had never heard of her, but she describes herself as an Afro-Asian artist and the student was an Asian student and she found this artist. The class was an African American art class and she wanted to connect with her own heritage, but you had to study African American artists because it’s underrepresented in this field. When she showed me her work and the way the student was able to connect across cultures, across ethnicities, across identities, and the way that she saw the intersection of culture, identity, colonization, and the way that the African American experience resonated with her more because of this artist, the class meant more to her. Then, the artist’s work, the material that she did, she talked about the commodification of female bodies, how female bodies are subjected to this, especially when you’re thinking of human trafficking and so on. She found authentic ways of representing not only African women, Asian women, but Afro-Asian women and the way we’re represented in media, the misrepresentation of bodies comes up. She does this with materials that represent Earth and memory; LaRissa Rogers takes this back in time and she traces it back through the U.S. and how female bodies are objectified, whether it’s a pathway back through Asian American history or African American history, she traces it back and then she connects. So, this student who found this artist, she was so excited and I’m like, “Oh my God, this is amazing” and I wanted to incorporate this artist into my classes moving forward.
Q: When you think about art that carries this transformative power, in general, what do you tend to look for or notice? And what is it, specifically, about African American art that you experience as transformative?
A: I think it’s because there’s a sense of defiance because, I was talking about this with a class last week, going all the way back to the period of slavery and how cultural practices were denied and how people, families were split, and even names and language, all of that was denied. When you bring people together, there’s a sense of empowerment, and when people are given a voice, there’s a sense of empowerment. People in positions of power know that and when they deny people access to culture, they know that that will disempower them. So, the reason why African American art, Black art, is so powerful and so transformative is because when artists have access to all of these materials across genres-whether it’s music, like we were just talking about Kendrick (Lamar) and the Super Bowl halftime show-all of that coming together, that creativity, whether it’s music or food, a mixture of materials, it’s so transformative because people have to find the right words because there are no words to express how society, communities, are transformed. They can then see how powerful the Black voice is and Black creativity is. That’s why, going back in time, those cultures were denied, they were suppressed, because they understood how powerful they were. If you allow Black people to come together, the Black community can shift the whole world. We see, even now, why are they going after DEI? Why are they going after the word “black”? Why is the Black community being criticized for not going out and protesting? They know that if the Black community comes together in protest, the world is going to be transformed. If you look back to all of the protests that have happened-Black Lives Matter, Martin Luther King, Marcus Garvey-they know, that’s why it’s so transformative because it’s the power of Black creativity and the Black voice.
Q: While we’re still very early in this current political administration, there has already been so much upheaval, particularly with programs and policies tied to social issues like race, gender, immigration, and health care. Can you talk a bit about what we’ve seen, historically, within African American art and how creators have addressed similar tensions?
A: We can go back to the late 19th century with an artist by the name of Henry Ossawa Tanner and the stereotypical images within art that were meant to oppress and suppress Black people-degrading, demeaning images. He used his art to create positive images of the Black family. Then, Frederick Douglass, again, in the late 19th century, the most photographed Black man during that time period and he did that intentionally because he wanted to combat those types of images. Artists from that point forward, in the different genres of art, they understood their charge to use their craft for social justice. There are periods where artists felt that, ‘This is not my role, I just want to be an artist. I don’t want to be a Black artist’ or for women, ‘I don’t want to be a Black woman artist.’ But, for many artists, they felt that using their craft, their skill, their talent as an artist could transform the world because they knew how powerful it was, especially the visual image people were seeing that countered the propaganda that was coming out from the government or advertisements. Using their craft to create a counternarrative to those images was very powerful and it started centuries ago and it continues today. What artists are doing today is they are creating images that use a variety of materials and textures. Then, they’re creating these Afrofuturist images that are supposed to take us beyond: what does the future look like? When do we get beyond? We thought, with (President Barack) Obama, there was a chance to get beyond, and then we got pulled right back to where now it feels like we have to start over. So, I’m seeing with a lot of artists, they feel like the fight is starting over. I’m seeing them have to challenge the policies that are coming out. Some of this happened in 2020 with George Floyd, they have to challenge police brutality, they have to challenge policies that are coming out in education and government, just make a list. With their images, they are effective. We don’t think art is effective, but the images are effective.
Q: Are there pieces by any of the artists in your upcoming lecture that resonate with you in the way that depict identity, culture, or transformation?
A: Stan Squirewell is an artist who creates these multimedia images. He uses old photographs, like old daguerreotypes. I’m not sure if this came about because of the new administration, but he incorporates the flag. These old photographs are people whose names he doesn’t know, but they are of African American people from the 19th century. He creates them in this collage form and the flag is incorporated onto their image. It reminds me of the Super Bowl performance and this whole history of the lack of acknowledgement of the contributions of Black people in the country, and how he has the flag incorporated there, but also the injustices on Black bodies, as well. He’s recognizing those injustices, but at the same time, by representing them, he’s acknowledging their contributions to the country and how Black people have built the country. Then, he takes another direction where he takes the old photographs and he transforms them into these colorful images where he dresses them and he uses fabric and he paints them. He places fabric onto them, he names them. There’s a video where he says they chose him, rather than him choosing the photographs. He says they have given him permission to give them this new life in the 20th century because they were forgotten in the past. Rather than being these forgotten images of the past, they are these lively, colorful images in the present; they’re beautiful. He’s an artist where his images are so striking because of the images with the flag and the contrast, the juxtaposition of justice and injustice, but then the way he brings to life these forgotten images.
Q: How would you describe the kinds of boundaries African American art has broken and continues to break?
A: Well, being an art historian and focusing on African American art, is a boundary in and of itself (laughs). I think being a Black artist, for Black artists, in an industry where most people don’t see Black art as being art. Even today, having to fight to be represented in magazines and museums, galleries, the price gap for Black art. (Jean-Michel) Basquiat has broken through; unfortunately, he’s not here to see that, but some artists are still struggling. They’re extremely talented artists who are still struggling to get recognition. With 2020 and George Floyd, like I said earlier, out of a tragedy you had this recognition of Black artists and they were receiving so much attention. Galleries, museums, magazines that I subscribe to, you started to see Black artists being featured on the cover and in articles and exhibitions. Then, I thought, ‘OK, how long is this going to last? Please let this last.’ Unfortunately, it didn’t, but it didn’t go back to the way it was before. You’re still seeing the representation that Black art has, I hate to use the word “survived,” but you see younger people starting to recognize this as an avenue of creativity, visual art (in addition to music, literature, poetry). It came out of tragedy, but they have broken down those barriers. It was almost like the early (19)20s again, this energy for the arts, but it was unfortunate how it had to happen.
Originally Published:
Utility man Samad Taylor was selected to the Major League roster from Triple-A El Paso in a corresponding move.
Tuesday night was a tale of two parties. Two election night parties.
At Liberty Station’s Stone Brewing, a small coterie of Democratic elected officials and functionaries and a larger coterie of news media shuffled around trying to make sense of the lackluster returns trickling in.
Meanwhile, at downtown’s US Grant Hotel, a much more spirited collection of Republican operatives and supporters laughed and drank in a blindingly-lit convention room, backed by a pianist’s rendition of “Billie Jean.”
The takeaway seemed clear: this was a not-so-great night for San Diego’s Democratic in-group. Chula Vista’s Republican mayor had a huge lead over his Democratic opponent. A tax on second homes lagged behind in the vote count. And several Republicans seemed to make it out of crowded primary fields in local races.
Hell, even if it was only a just-OK night for Republicans – that still seemed worth celebrating to them.
Normally we now get long stretches of days, even weeks of fingernail-biting anticipation as the county so slowly tallies the rest of the votes. But there doesn’t appear to be many close races to watch this time around. There are a couple. We start at the top:
It’s Becerra vs. Hilton
As of 11 p.m., with more than 50 percent of votes counted, it appeared that a Republican and Democrat — rather than two Democrats — would make it through to the general election. Steve Hilton and Xavier Becerra led the race, with billionaire Tom Steyer on the outside looking in. The New York Times has a nice tracker here.
Empty Homes Tax Goes Down
Measure A presented a simple choice. What do voters in the city of San Diego have more disdain for – people with enough money to own a second home they leave empty, or new taxes? Turns out, it’s additional taxes. For now, at least.
Championed by Councilmember Sean Elo-Rivera, Measure A would have placed a tax on homes left vacant for more than half of the year. It was pitched as a way to both raise badly needed revenue for the city and, potentially, make available badly-needed housing.
As of Tuesday evening, the measure’s prospects looked grim, with about 58 percent of voters casting a ‘No’ vote. It will become the second citywide tax increase rejected by voters in as many years. Despite the poor showing, intern Naomi Granata found the pitch resonated with some voters in North Park.
San Diego County Assessor-Recorder-Clerk Jordan Marks was one of a number of local electeds who came out in opposition of the tax. He said the city’s housing problems couldn’t be solved by what he called “bad taxes.”
“This result reflects that Sean Elo-Rivera and the City Council have lost the trust of the public and that voters are reading the fine print,” Marks said.
Elo-Rivera said it wasn’t looking good, but he was hopeful the picture would improve. Ultimately, he thought the money spent opposing the tax — and the distorted message he felt it sent — was too big to overcome.
“There was an enormous amount of money spent, and not just money spent, but money spent to trick voters into thinking that something was going to impact them that wasn’t,” Elo-Rivera said.
No Ammar
Republican County Supervisor Jim Desmond led the way in the 48th Congressional District on Tuesday night.
What we were waiting for is the candidate who would go with him to the runoff. It will attract a ton of national attention and money. It was one of the seats made more competitive by Democrats in the special redistricting vote last year.
San Diego City Councilmember Marni von Wilpert and Ammar Campa-Najjar, squared off for a chance to wrest the seat out of longtime Republican control. With 53 percent reporting, von Wilpert held a commanding lead over Campa-Najjar. The councilmember will advance to face Desmond in November.
On the ground in the district, reporter Tigist Layne found that the national politics that led to the redistricting fight were also front and center on voters’ minds as they headed into vote.
Bailey vs. Crosby in Coastal Council District
Former Coronado Mayor Richard Bailey and Deputy City Attorney Nicole Crosby will advance to the November election in District 2 of the San Diego City Council.
Bailey, a Republican-turned-Independent, seemed destined to finish in the top two after he attracted significant attention on social media. The race for the second spot was more uncertain. Josh Coyne, like Crosby, attracted significant Democratic support. And Mandy Havlik — a more development-resistant candidate — also had strong grassroots support in Point Loma.
Our new intern Fiona Bork talked to voters in District 2, which covers the city’s southern coastline, who said that affordability was the most important issue. Exactly how that explained their electoral choices differed by a lot. One voter said Coyne’s market-driven approach to building more housing appealed to him. Another liked Havlik’s approach to limiting vacation rentals. A third voted for Bailey because she wanted less development and more public transit. It seems unlikely that Bailey, who is fiscally conservative, would support massively expanding public transit options. Read the full story here.
City Council District 4: The race for southeastern San Diego’s council district featured three candidates: incumbent Henry Foster, Martha Abraham and Johnny Lee Dang.
Abraham was highly critical of Foster in her campaign and that seemed to resonate well with voters. At the latest count, she led Foster by several hundred votes.
Foster has many supporters in the district, but the city’s handling of catastrophic flooding in January 2024 — among other issues — has led to massive distrust of City Hall.
Council District 6: Incumbent Kent Lee had one prominent opponent, Mark Powell, who is a former member of the County Board of Education. They will both make the runoff but Lee got 55 percent of the vote in early counting.
City Council District 8: San Ysidro School Board Member Antonio Martinez and current District 8 chief of staff, Gerardo Ramirez, lead in this race — which was crowded with Democrats. Venus Molina, who serves as the chief of staff to Councilmember Jennifer Campbell, trailed closely behind in third place. This is one of the races close enough to change as the registrar continues counting votes. Molina’s count improved slightly as the night went on.
Our South County reporter, Jim Hinch, spoke with voters outside the Otay Mesa/Nestor Branch Library. One voter told Hinch she voted for Molina because she liked that she is local and a single mother. Read the full story here.
Election Watch Party Bonus: Ramirez’ supporters and family gathered at the Landing Strip, a bar and restaurant at Brown Field Municipal Airport, to watch results roll in. They broke out into applause when results showed him coming in second.
“For some of the folks it might seem like ‘hey man’ you’re second place, but we’re in there. This is a huge, wonderful sign,” said Ramirez.
DeMaio’s Gonna Gloat
Two local elections were something of a proxy battle between two warring factions of the Republican Party. Assemblymember Carl DeMaio’s team won, again. Every time local Republican leaders unite to oppose him or the people he supports, DeMaio wins. This time it was about two races: the one to replace County Supervisor Jim Desmond and the one to replace State Sen. Brian Jones.
In the county supervisor race: San Marcos Mayor Rebecca Jones left no doubt she would make it to the runoff. The only remaining question is who will face her — Vista Mayor John Franklin or Kyle Krahel, the former chair of the Democratic Party. After the first votes were counted, Krahel held a slight advantage with 20 percent of the vote compared to Franklin’s 19 percent. DeMaio went all in for Jones and she led the field with more than 41 percent of the vote.
In the state Senate race: As expected, former San Diego City Attorney Mara Elliott made the runoff for the state Senate District 40 seat. She got nearly 45 percent of the votes counted so far. The real question was who would go with her. That Republican battle between Kristie Bruce-Lane and San Marcos City Councilmember Ed Musgrove seems to have also gone DeMaio’s way with Bruce-Lane holding a 4.7-percentage-point advantage over Musgrove.
That’s not enough of a gap to call the race but it’s significant.
Teachers Union Pushed Barrera to Runoff in Statewide Race
The race for State Superintendent of Public Instruction became something of a flex test for the state’s largest teachers union. Could the California Teachers Association almost singlehandedly lift a relatively unknown San Diego board member over a bevvy of better financed, higher profile candidates? Yup. Easily.
Fueled by nearly $5 million in spending from the state’s largest teachers union, longtime San Diego Unified Trustee and labor-darling Richard Barrera sailed to a convincing second place finish in the race for state supe. In his nearly two decades as the power behind the throne of the second largest district in the state, Barrera has engineered a progressive labor friendly transformation that the union hopes can be taken statewide.
He will now face off against Republican Chino Valley Trustee Sonja Shaw in November.
Brews and News + Your Chance to Win Padres Tickets
Meet our team and get an election debrief at our Brews & News Live Podcast at Soda Bar on Thursday, June 11. We will be joined by San Diego City Councilmember Sean Elo-Rivera. Get your tickets here and you’ll be automatically entered to win two tickets to a Padres game. Winners will be announced at the event.
Obligatory note: No purchase or payment of any kind is necessary to enter or win the Brews and News Live Podcast Giveaway. A ticket purchase or donation will not increase chances of winning. All applicable federal, state, local and municipal laws, rules, and regulations apply. Void where prohibited by law.
In Other News
- Opinion: A retired lifeguard finds irony in SDG&E’s stance on residents putting solar panels on their balconies. The company once argued against rooftop solar because it was unfair to renters, but now, he writes, “a low-cost system allows most of those same people access to solar, but SDG&E seeks to deny them as well.” (ICYMI: Our MacKenzie Elmer wrote that plugging in such a device could put her at risk of getting her power cut.)
- San Diego County officials warned South Bay residents to limit their exposure to the outdoors after a broken pipe spilled millions of gallons of sewage into the Tijuana River. (Union-Tribune)
- NBC 7 reports that a judge ruled that the city of San Diego illegally collected parking ticket late fees for three years.
- About that cross-border tunnel: The U.S. Attorney’s office says a recently discovered, massive tunnel stretching from Tijuana to Otay Mesa leads to a fake store in the southern San Diego neighborhood. Four people have been charged in connection with drug trafficking linked to the tunnel.
The Morning Report was written by Jakob McWhinney, Mariana Martínez Barba and Will Huntsberry. It was edited by Will Huntsberry, Andrea Sanchez-Villafaña and Scott Lewis.
Related Posts
There’s a creative inertia that resides in San Diego, producing a near-constant stream of cool events. Fortunately, this weekend is no different. Those with an artistic inkling can search for inspiration at MCASD’s EXPO Design Market or admire the mixture of live performance and neighborhood charm during the North Park Music Fest. Foodies can dine (with wine) at Stake Chophouse & Bar during its ZD Wines Dinner or explore Barrio Logan’s standout eats at the Sabor Del Barrio. Plus, Pride Month is already in full swing in SD with the return of DISCO RIOT’s Queer Mvmnt Fest and the two-day Out & Abt Music Festival.
Food & Drink | Concerts & Festivals | Theater & Art Exhibits | More Fun Things to Do
Food & Drink Events in San Diego This Weekend
ZD Wines Dinner at Stake Chophouse & Bar
June 4
Stake Chophouse & Bar is collaborating with Napa Valley’s ZD Wines—a family-run winemaking institution that’s been around since 1969—on an intimate four-course dinner this Thursday at 6:30 p.m. Throughout the meal, each dish will be paired with a curated pour from ZD Wines, with patrons set to receive a chardonnay, pinot noir, and pair of cabernet sauvignons. Dinner guests will also be treated to insight on the night’s wine pairings from ZD Wines’ senior winemaker Chris Pisani. Reservations are $210 pre-paid through OpenTable.
1309 Orange Avenue, Coronado
Sabor Del Barrio
June 7
Take advantage of all the dynamic attractions that the Barrio Logan Cultural District has to offer—and eat very well while you’re at it—during the third annual Sabor Del Barrio. This Sunday from noon to 4 p.m. attendees can devour their way through 35 neighborhood staples and traverse the tasting stops on foot, by bike, via a free trolley shuttle, or a combination of the three. Tickets are $40 online ($55 day of) and come with complimentary admission to Quint Gallery, the Athenaeum Art Center, and the Chicano Park Museum & Cultural Center, plus a free tour of Tao of Clay.
Barrio Logan
Concerts & Festivals in San Diego This Weekend
Sam Hinton Folk Heritage Festival at Old Poway Park
June 6
Survey the depth of oral storytelling during the free annual Sam Hinton Folk Heritage Festival this Saturday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at Old Poway Park. Named for harmonica virtuoso, marine biologist, and longtime San Diegan Sam Hinton, this event highlights folk artists who specialize in time-honored traditions. Throughout the day, attendees can see performances by musicians with roots in Americana, Cajun, and Appalachian rhythms on the main stage, dance in the Templars Hall, and hear historical tales from the Storytellers of San Diego in the Porter House.
14134 Midland Road, Poway
North Park Music Fest
June 6
Psychedelic rockers Frankie and the Witch Fingers will headline an eclectic lineup at the North Park Music Fest. This Saturday, enjoy sets from noon to 1:45 a.m. from over thirty performers—including DJs, bands, and local acts—across a dozen North Park venues. Ticket options include general admission ($25 online, $35 day of) and VIP passes ($65) which come with lounge access at Granada House, line-skipping privileges and more; festival proceeds will go towards the North Park Business & Neighborhood Foundation. Plus, performances at Pure Pawsh, Visual Art + Supply, Overland, and Playground Art + Coffee will be open to the public.
North Park
Out & Abt Music Festival
June 6 & 7
The calendar has just flipped to Pride Month, and Out & Abt is celebrating in style. The two-day Out & Abt Music Festival begins Saturday from 3-10 p.m. at The Soap Factory with drag shows, circus acts, a manic pixie dream market, two stages of live music, and last but not least, a mechanical bull. The festivities will continue with an after party from 10 p.m. to 2 a.m. at Gossip Grill and conclude with an afternoon pool party at Hard Rock Hotel San Diego on Sunday from 1-7 p.m. Ticket options include weekend general admission passes ($70), and entry to the music festival ($30), after party ($17) and pool party ($27).
Citywide
Theater & Art Exhibits in San Diego This Weekend
The Monsters at La Jolla Playhouse
June 2-28
Fresh off its Drama Desk Award-winning run in the Big Apple this past winter, The Monsters will have its first West Coast production beginning Tuesday in the Mandall Weiss Forum at La Jolla Playhouse. Written by and co-starring Ngozi Anyanwu, The Monsters finds its reconciliatory narrative in a young woman yearning to repair her relationship with her estranged older brother in the brutal and unforgiving world of mixed martial arts. The Monsters will have preview performances this Tuesday through Thursday at 7:30 p.m., Saturday at 2 & 8 p.m. and Sunday at 1 & 7 p.m., with tickets ranging from $30-$74.
2910 La Jolla Village Drive, La Jolla
Queer Mvmnt Fest
June 3-7
DISCO RIOT has orchestrated five days of queer-focused events centered on the essence and vitality of movement for its annual Queer Mvmnt Fest. The festival begins Wednesday from 5-8 p.m. with short film screenings at the Museum of Contemporary Art San Diego, and will include six free movement workshops, with instruction ranging from breathwork to ballet and beyond. Plus, on back-to-back nights at the Malashok Black Box Theater, the participating 2SLGBTQIA+ artists will perform in a variety show (Friday at 7 p.m.) and a featured artist showcase (Saturday at 7:30 p.m.). Admission ranges from free to $40 for individual events at Queer Mvmnt Fest.
Citywide
Golden State Ballet: A Midsummer Night’s Dream at Balboa Theatre
June 5-7
The final production in Golden State Ballet’s 2025/26 season will be a world premiere version of A Midsummer Night’s Dream, crafted by the company’s artistic director Raúl Salamanca. Inspired by William Shakespeare’s celebratory fantasy play and George Balanchine’s subsequent ballet, A Midsummer Night’s Dream will guide viewers into a fanciful world. This production will also feature the return of Houston Thomas’ neoclassical ballet The Four Seasons to the Golden State Ballet program. Tickets range from $45-$126, with performances this Friday at 7:30 p.m., Saturday at 2 & 7:30 p.m. and Sunday at 1 p.m. at Balboa Theatre.
868 Fourth Avenue, Gaslamp
Let’s Chat at Lamplighters Community Theatre
June 5-14
The ever-expanding presence of artificial intelligence looms large over America’s educational institutions, most notably at the college level. In Let’s Chat, a world-premiere play written and directed by Lisa Balderston, a complex student-teacher quarrel is sprung from the natural tug-of-war between AI usage and ethical standards. Theatergoers can catch Let’s Chat at Lamplighters Community Theatre on Friday and Saturday at 7:30 and Sunday at 2 p.m. this week and next. Tickets are $30 for adults and $28 for students, seniors, and active military.
5915 Severin Drive, La Mesa
Hairspray at New Village Arts
June 5 – July 19
It’s 1962 in Baltimore, and the dancefloor of The Corny Collins Show, the city’s preeminent teen variety show, is the unlikely setting for a battle over racial integration. Based on John Waters’ most accessible film, Hairspray has since become a beloved stage musical featuring teen idols, endearing characters, and a beat that can’t be stopped. New Village Arts’ production of Hairspray will begin with previews ($40) this Friday and Saturday at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday at 2 p.m., and two additional previews next week, before the production opens on June 13 ($80).
2787 State Street, Carlsbad
New Exhibitions at California Center for the Arts Museum
June 6 – August 16
Ancestry, history, and the immersively original connection to them both is at the forefront of two new exhibitions opening Saturday at the California Center for the Arts Museum. In Field Notes on Memory, a product of the museum’s In Studio Artist Residency program, artists Farshid Bazmandegan, Tony M. Bingham, and Helena Westra blend sentimental and tangible materials with culturally-grounded stories. In José Hugo Sánchez’s Amoxtlis, which will have a free opening reception this Saturday from 4-6 p.m., Sánchez tackles border relations through printmaking informed by Mesoamerican innovation and medium-spanning influences.
340 North Escondido Boulevard, Escondido
More Fun Things to Do in San Diego This Weekend
Bleak Week: Cinema of Despair at Digital Gym Cinema
June 5-11
Digital Gym Cinema and American Cinematheque invite filmgoers to resonate with all matters of havoc and helplessness during Bleak Week: Cinema of Despair. While this week-long gauntlet of afflicting cinema will examine the atrocities of the world in which we live, it is also intended to demonstrate the resounding hope that remains. The Bleak Week programming at Digital Gym Cinema will navigate stories of grief, pain, gore, and beyond, with selections by international directors like Lars von Trier, Béla Tarr and Andrzej Wajda. Tickets are $14 for all series screenings, with multiple showings of each film happening throughout the week.
1100 Market Street, East Village
Giro di San Diego GranFondo
June 6
Cyclists will test their strength as well as their appetites (for both a challenge and the large meal that follows it) during this Saturday’s Giro di San Diego GranFondo. All riders depart from Frances Ryan Park in Escondido at 7:15 a.m. and end in the same location, with mountainous course distances of 20, 32, 56 and 95 miles, as well as the brand-new King & Queen of the Mountain climbing challenge. But no GranFondo is complete without a proper reward, and all cyclists who cross the finish line can enjoy a post-ride massage, receive a finisher’s medal, and dive fork-first into an Italian feast. Registration ranges from $97-$278 for the GranFondo races.
390 Hidden Trails Road, Escondido
EXPO Design Market
June 6 & 7
Tap into cutting-edge worlds of local creativity during the third annual EXPO Design Market at the Museum of Contemporary Art San Diego. This Saturday from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. and Sunday from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., network with fellow arts lovers and check out vinyl DJ sets, maker-led talks, local vendors, a zine workshop, and more. Additionally, festivities will continue each day from 8 p.m. to close during the free 21+ Expo After Dark activation at Kiku Room. Market entry is free for all ages and RSVPs are encouraged, but not mandatory, for both Saturday and Sunday; gallery admission is 50% throughout the weekend when purchased at the front desk.
700 Prospect Street, La Jolla
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Countdown to ’26: International Soccer Weekend at Snapdragon Stadium
June 6 & 7
In less than two weeks, 48 nations will vie for soccer’s most desired prize during the 2026 FIFA World Cup. But before the tournament kicks off across North America, Snapdragon Stadium will host a pair of friendly matches showcasing four of the tournament’s featured teams. During International Soccer Weekend, local fans can catch matchups between Switzerland and Australia (Saturday at noon) and Colombia vs. Jordan (Sunday at 4 p.m.) as they prepare to play on the sport’s biggest stage. Tickets start at $55 for Saturday’s match and $74 for Sunday’s match.
2101 Stadium Way, Mission Valley
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