A Cultural Gift to the Community

If you had told Celesta M. Billeci, UCSB Arts & Lectures’ Miller McCune Executive Director, in March of 2020 that within a couple of months the organization’s 63-year-old program would be redefined by racial justice, she may not have believed you. Then came the murder of George Floyd, casting the issue of systemic racism and its underlying causes squarely into the global discourse.

In a matter of weeks, UCSB Arts & Lectures did what it does best: it recognized the gravity of the moment and mobilized leading thinkers, activists, and creatives for a season-long series called Race to Justice, which explored race, racism, its impacts on American society, and solutions for advancing racial equality. Race to Justice featured the likes of historian Dr. Ibram X. Kendi, bestselling author Ta-Nehisi Coates, and Pulitzer Prize-winner Isabel Wilkerson, and was transformative for A&L, reaching viewers worldwide when most of the organization’s programming moved off-stage and online due to the pandemic.

The success of Race to Justice embraced every word of the Arts & Lectures mission: “To educate, entertain, and inspire.” As Billeci says, “That’s what we do. We believe in educating and entertaining everybody, but we also believe in inspiring the community and Creating Hope, which is the theme for our 2021-22 season. I cannot define how people will be changed or touched because everybody has a very personal experience. But I do guarantee you will be changed or touched when you come to an Arts & Lectures event.”

Race to Justice reinforces the versatility of UCSB Arts & Lectures to create a well-rounded program of 200 annual events that is simultaneously timeless and timely while offering something for everyone. This season, A&L launches a new Soul of America series celebrating the best of America’s jazz, bluegrass, and other homegrown musical marvels. The program also expands its scope to look at injustices in a broader context with its Justice for All series, bringing an even wider range of public policy makers, courageous changemakers, thoughtful writers, and groundbreaking artists to Santa Barbara theaters. 

2021-2022 is already packed with a mix of provocative programming, including a lecture by renowned journalists and human rights activists Nicholas Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn, the return of Jazz at Lincoln Center with Wynton Marsalis, and the groundbreaking Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater.

During the performance season, you can count on nearly four events each week of world-class arts, music, dance, and educational programming, but as Billeci says, “It is worth your time, and it is worth investing in this program because it is a phenomenal gift to the community. We have something for everyone.”