By Brett Hodges On a cool March evening in 1976, an orange-robed, bearded man sat cross-legged on a wooden dais on the Lobero Theatre stage. Sri Swami Satchidananda was one...
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In December 1869, José Lobero (born “Giuseppe” in Genoa, Italy) announced his plans to construct a grand opera house in Santa Barbara, even though the town had fewer than 3,000...
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By Brett Hodges Death on the stage is as old as the history of theater. The ancient Greek playwright Sophocles famously depicted the on-stage suicide of the warrior Ajax, and...
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By Brett Hodges On February 23, 1931 a standing-room-only audience filled the Lobero to hear singer Paul Robeson unleash his rich timbered bass-baritone in a program that ranged from classical...
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By Brett Hodges It must have seemed like a good idea at the time. Invite Ray Bradbury - celebrated science fiction author and provocateur of the imagination - to speak...
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By Brett Hodges The Lobero Theatre has seen many colorful and memorable performances in its 148-year history. But arguably the most bizarre took place over three days beginning on January...
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By Brett Hodges On New Year’s Eve 1947 the comic whirlwind that was Lucille Ball took to the Lobero stage in the ambitious comedy-fantasy Dream Girl. Lucille Ball had begun...
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By Brett Hodges It was the holiday season in Santa Barbara in 1883, and the town was in the throes of roller-skating mania. The Lobero Opera House was skating-central, with...
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1952 was the year America fell in love with José Greco and classical flamenco dance. That was the year Greco - almost single-handedly - revived the art of flamenco and...
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Browsing the calendar of events at American theaters and opera houses in the late 1800’s can be an uncomfortable experience for the modern sensibility. It was a time when stage...
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Seating Chart