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Meet Kerrilee Gore
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Who You Should Know:
Santa Barbara Teen Dance Star talent director & creator of When the Lights Go Out

In a previous issue of BACKSTAGE, Gore chatted about Teen Dance Star and the Arts Mentorship Program, and working with young dancers. She’s now gearing up for a four-show run of When the Lights Go Out later this month. Get your tickets today.

What is your title/role with “Teen Dance Star”?

I am the Talent Director/coordinator. I work closely with all the families and dancers on scheduling and provide them with all the necessary information needed to perform in Teen Dance Star. I am also their main point person if they have any concerns. I am like their backstage mama!26222_355288057742_688337742_4745978_940106_n

Can you tell me a bit more about your background in dance and/or in presenting dance in Santa Barbara? I understand you’ve worn quite a few hats!

My training originally started out as a gymnast and I crossed over into dance later. I danced for several small boutique dance companies in Los Angeles and Miami. I was the former Dance Director of a cirque troupe based in Los Angeles called Zen Arts, and performed regularly with The Diamond Betties. I relocated to Santa Barbara upon taking the position as Entertainment Director of The Savoy where I created an in-house cirque show called “Gypzy Suite” that featured elements of eclectic cabaret. Over the past two years, I have been creating and working on an immersive theatrical show with elements of cabaret and acrobatics called “When The Lights Go Out” which originally debuted at The Carr Winery in 2014 and had a run at the beautiful Lobero Theatre last November. In recent years, I performed solo burlesque for local charities like Teddy Bear Foundation and even did a little gig for first Thursday at The Lobero in 2014.

I am also a board member for Arts Mentorship Program, an organization that provides creative guidance, mentorship, and financial support to young and emerging performing artists in the greater Santa Barbara Area. I am most inspired by the edgy underground burlesque scene out of Los Angeles and the new wave of immersive theatre that is taking the performance world by storm.

Can you elaborate a bit about the collaboration between the Arts Mentorship Progra6fee0a4497e844f9adc82e648ef829e4m / Teen Dance Star / and the Lobero Theatre foundation?

Teen Dance Star has teamed up with the Arts Mentorship Program (AMP) to expand access to the performing arts in our community. The proceeds from the Showcase Final will create scholarship funds for low-income and at risk youth to train at local dance studios administered by AMP. Arts Mentorship Program has the existing infrastructure to administrate the scholarship request, while Teen Star has a successful model of producing quality events that showcase youth performing arts.

This partnership is important since the mission of Teen Star is to support youth in performing arts with the goal to nurture talent by inspiring passion, instilling drive for success and encouraging excellence and professionalism. Teen Dance Star is a year-long program where the finalists act as ambassadors in the community while leaving legacy to help educate a generation of dancers who would not otherwise have access.

What would you like to see for the future of Teen Dance Star?

Growth. I would love for all of the dancers in Santa Barbara County to realize that they can do this. I would love to see more of a variety of styles of dance come out and audition. This year we did not have many dancers representing hip-hop, ballroom, or flamenco come to audition; and I want to encourage them to participate.

Do you have any favorite moments performing at the Lobero Theatre?

Performing my show at The Lobero was a magical experience. Not only is the stage an absolute dancer’s dream–but the staff and crew are magnificent as well! They are incredibly supportive, and make you feel as though your show is equally as important to them as it is to you. When The Lights Go Out had a unique format in the fact that the audience was seated on the stage with the performers, which could have been a technical nightmare for the crew, but they handled it flawlessly. I also love the fact that it is one of California’s oldest working theaters; to me it has a David Lynch-esque vintage vibe.

When the Lights Go Out from Jeremy Danger on Vimeo.

 

Re-opening Week Wrap-up
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Hot Guitars… a Chilly First Thursday… and a Cool Historic Theatre District.

It’s been one week since the Lobero re-opened its doors after completion of the Encore: Lobero preservation work — and it’s been a killer first week back. On Wednesday night, Dec. 4, Warren Miller Films kicked things off with Ticket to Ride, the newest installment of adreneline-fueled ski ventures across the globe to a packed house.

Then on Thursday night, the Lobero Theatre Foundation opened up the new Esplanade from 7:30-9:30 pm for 1st Thursday: After Hours. This the first of six events hosted by the newly formed Historic Theatre District. Below is a gallery of brave folks who ventured out on a chilly evening for this fun event which included magic by Mark Collier, noshes from Sojourner Cafe, and beer from Figueroa Mountain Brewing Co. Congratulations go out to 1st Thursday: After Hours raffle winners, Glenn & Lynda Van Patter, who can look forward to attending three stellar performances at all three theaters in the historic theatre district. (Look for more info from this partnership in the next few months.)

Then on Friday, Dec. 6, the Notes for Notes benefit concert with Jimmy Vivino & the Basic Cable Band with headliners including Slash and Alan Parsons brought down the house. It was a truly incredible evening of shredding for a most worthy cause. We’re already counting down to next year!

“We’re a working theater — We don’t take a lot of time to celebrate how cool we are, man. We just reopen and go back to work!” – Lobero Technical Director Todd Jared 

If you haven’t been by yet, grab a ticket to an upcoming show!

Tonight’s going to be an excellent performance by Los Angeles rockers Dawes, who were interviewed by the Independent last week. We’ve got great holiday entertainment from the Santa Barbara Choral Society this weekend and Santa Barbara Revels next weekend. Otherwise, you’re invited to come check out the new space during the Lobero’s Holiday Open House from 5-7 p.m. on December 17.

Read more from the news & interwebs, and check out a few photos below. Cheers!

 

 

 

 

Lobero Theatre Welcomes New Olive Trees
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Lobero Theatre Foundation plants mature, fungus-resistant Olive Trees to replace those lost during construction.

We heard you! The Lobero Theatre Foundation celebrates the arrival of two new olive trees, planted on Thursday, November 7 as replacements for those removed during Encore: Lobero construction due to their poor condition caused by a fungus in the soil. This posed a particular challenge to the Lobero–not only to find suitably sized replacements, but also to make sure that the new trees will be resistant to the Verticillium that infected their predecessors. Lobero Theatre Board member Tim Casey and his wife Louise stepped up to the task, traveling all the way to Visalia in order to find the perfect trees.

“We as the Board took this responsibility
very seriously; we knew the trees were very important.
To be able to honor the community’s wishes and
preserve this aspect of the Lobero’s history
was the best possible outcome.”
– Tim Casey, Lobero Theatre Foundation
board member

Bob Cunningham, of Arcadia Studio Landscape Architecture, reports that the newly planted olive trees are of the Ascolano variety, which is the oldest verticillium-resistant variety in terms of its presence in the United States. The larger tree trunk has the same knobbed characteristics of the previous tree, and enjoys a healthy height and span on the Lobero lawn. The ages of both trees are believed to be near 75 years old with the larger of the two closer to 100 years old.

All photos by David Bazemore.

New Look for Lobero.com
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Lobero.com receives a fresh, new, and mobile-friendly makeover

We’ve got a live sneak peek of the newly-redesigned Lobero.com up now, featuring: New Logos! New Features! New ways to get involved with the Lobero! Now Mobile-Friendly!

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We’ve taken a new approach to the logo & color scheme, which includes a nod to bright spanish tiles and the eight-pointed Andalusian star design used throughout the theatre. This new look ties in the Lobero Theatre’s classic Spanish Revival architecture and fun, vibrant spirit in a contemporary way.

And, did I mention new features?! Look for:

  • New ways to sort and find events! Search by date range, genre or artist.
  • Heard a name of an artist, but, not sure if they’re for you? Check out related events, which should put any unfamiliar names in perspective.
  • New, bigger icons make the site fun and easy to navigate on mobile devices.
  • Simplified navigation and static footer includes important links without digging.
  • Run-of-site calendar expands to a nice, wide view when opened. Another great feature to view on your iPad.
  • The new site takes advantage of interactive content, such as blog and social media feeds throughout, which will keep things fresh.
  • Take a few minutes and meet our sponsors. We receive needed support from area businesses and culinary geniuses, which means so much to us that we wanted to enhance their presence with larger logos and click-thru capabilities to learn more about them and visit their websites.
  • Connect with us. All of our content and feeds in one place, so you’ll never miss a beat.
  • New advertising opportunities are coming up for theatre clients or potential sponsors looking to advertise online. Email Angie in marketing to find out more.

Over the next few weeks we’ll be updating our calendar and adding new events. Stay tuned for the announcement of the full Lobero LIVE lineup, and more info about the Lobero’s upcoming Encore Season.

Single tickets will go on sale for all Lobero LIVE  events on November 14.