College of the Arts Events

An overview of the events produced and presented each semester by the CSULB College of the Arts
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Each year the CSULB College of the Arts presents and produces more than 500 arts events open to the public.

From weekly rotating art exhibitions showcased in more than seven gallery spaces dedicated to student work to world class performers appearing on the Carpenter Performing Arts Center stage, from innovative and informative lectures, screenings, and artist talks to classic and contemporary music, dance, and theatre performances - arts lovers and supporters can find something for every taste and sensibility within the wide variety of offerings in any given week during the academic year.

Explore our events by genre or venue below or scroll down past the links to find the events coming up this month.

Visual Art and Design Events

Dance, Film, and Theatre Events

Music Events

Carolyn Campagna Kleefeld Contemporary Art Museum Events

Carpenter Performing Arts Center Events

October/November 2023

CSULB School of Art
Advancement MFA Group Exhibition | Graphic Design Spring 2025 BFA Group Show
October 15-19
School of Art Student Galleries
The Advancement MFA Group Exhibition features work by graduate students in partial fulfillment of their advancement to candidacy. The Graphic Design Spring 2025 cohort presents a junior show as a milestone of where they stand at this point in their careers as designers.

Bob Cole Conservatory of Music
Composers’ Guild

Tuesday, October 17 at 7:30pm     
Gerald Daniel Recital Hall     Free Will Offering Accepted

Bob Cole Conservatory of Music
Concert Band: Spooktacular!
Thursday, October 19 at 7:30pm   
Gerald Daniel Recital Hall     Tickets: $20/$10/$5 *children under 13 in costume attend FREE

Spooktacular is an annual family-friendly event featuring a Costume Contest beginning at 6:45pm and a Halloween-themed concert that starts at 7:30pm.

Duncan Anderson Design Lecture Series
Jaewoo Joo–Deep Dive Into Customer Experience

Thursday, October 19 at 7pm
ZOOM                                 Free and Open to the Public

While pursuing his Ph.D. in Canada, Jaewoo became immersed in two human-centered approaches to overcome the limitation of the conventional marketing approach: design thinking and behavioral economics. Since he brings a human-centered lens at the intersection between design and business, his publication outlets, his courses, and his corporate counterparts are diverse.

CSULB Theatre Arts
For the Love of (or the Roller Derby Play) by Gina Femia
Thursday-Saturday, October 19-28 at 7:30 pm
Saturday, October 21 & 28 at 2pm
 
Studio Theatre                      Tickets: $25/$23

The Brooklyn Scallywags have found a teammate and Joy has found a new hobby. Roller Derby is about to complicate her life and so is derby superstar/tattoo aficionado Lizzie Lightning. Playwright Gina Femia uses the Scallywags locker room as a backdrop to ask, what are you willing to sacrifice to find your own happiness?  Directed by Amanda McRaven.

Bob Cole Conservatory of Music
Faculty Baroque Trio
Friday, October 20 at 7:30pm        
Gerald Daniel Recital Hall     Tickets: $20/$10/$5

Works by Rameau, Handel, Bach, and others performed by John Barcellona—flute, David Garrett—viola da gamba, and Elizabeth Lindau—harpsichord.

CSULB School of Art
Grad Week - MFA Program
October 22-26
School of Art Student Galleries
Graduate artwork from the MFA program will be exhibited in the galleries with guest critiques by visiting artists, curators, and other visual arts professionals.

Bob Cole Conservatory of Music
University Wind Quintet and Brass Quintet
Tuesday, October 24 at 7:30pm     
Daniel Recital Hall      Tickets: $20/$10/$5

Bob Cole Conservatory of Music
Faculty Recital: David Garrett
Thursday, October 26 at 7:30pm   
Daniel Recital Hall      Tickets: $20/$10/$5

Bob Cole Conservatory of Music
Fall Choral Concert: Galaxias
Friday-Saturday, October 27-28 at 7:30pm          
Los Altos United Methodist Church  Tickets: $20/$10/$5
Join the Bob Cole Chamber Choir and CSULB University Choir in "Galaxias," a celebration of our place in the Universe. With music by beloved composers Claudio Monteverdi, Randall Thompson, and William Dawson as well as contemporary writers such as Olivia McAloon, Katerina Gimon, Santiago Veros, and Eric Whitacre, this concert features two of the country’s finest collegiate choirs in an extraordinary variety of colors, languages, and poetry.

CSULB School of Art
Andrew Grainer, Ceramics| Sarah Putros, Illustration| Roger Ramirez, Sculpture|
Drawing & Painting Group Show| sea Krob, Photography

October 29-November 2
School of Art Student Galleries
Andrew Grainer’s BFA Exhibition features hundreds of wheel-thrown forms collaged together to make one piece that spills into and interacts with the space. Sarah Putros’ MFA Exhibition “To Know” features mixed media portraits on unconventional surfaces, examining complex relationships and the possibilities of forgiveness and healing. Roger Ramirez presents a multimedia BFA exhibition that investigates themes of boredom, work, survival, and family. Khrista Estrada, Johanna Morales, and Emma Hughes explore concepts of femininity and sweetness within painting, ceramics, fiber, and installation. sea Krob presents a solo darkroom photographic art show that plays with bodies moving/being in space.

Bob Cole Conservatory of Music
Collegium Musicum

Tuesday, October 31 at 7:30pm     
Gerald Daniel Recital Hall     Tickets: $20/$10/$5
The Collegium Musicum performs varied ensemble and solo works from the baroque and renaissance eras.

Bob Cole Conservatory of Music
ConChord/Bel Canto/ Cantus
Wednesday, November 1 at 7:30pm         
Gerald Daniel Recital Hall     Tickets: $20/$10/$5

Bob Cole Conservatory of Music
Czech One Act Opera
Thursday, November 2 at 7:30pm 
Gerald Daniel Recital Hall     Tickets: $20/$10/$5

Duncan Anderson Design Lecture Series
Ernest Quinteros

Thursday, November 2 at 7pm
Duncan Anderson Design Gallery            Free and Open to the Public

Bob Cole Conservatory of Music
Brass Ensemble
Friday, November 3 at 7:30pm      
Gerald Daniel Recital Hall     Tickets: $20/$10/FREE

Bob Cole Conservatory of Music
Concert Jazz Orchestra/Studio Jazz Band
Sunday, November 5 at 3pm         
Gerald Daniel Recital Hall     Tickets: $20/$10/$5
"Jazz at the Beach" presents the award-winning Concert Jazz Band and Studio Jazz Band.

CSULB School of Art
Elizabeth Scott, Ceramics| Yvette Trujillo, Ceramics| David Martinez, Printmaking| Printmaking Group Shows
November 5-9
School of Art Student Galleries
Elizabeth Scott’s BFA exhibition explores figuration in clay while considering the body’s role as a container of trauma and identity. Yvette Trujillo’s BFA exhibition relates labor and the artist’s relationship with their mother through the use of ceramic vessels. David Martinez’s BFA Exhibition “Nothing Lasts Forever” unlocks a time capsule into a past of forgotten treasures and through various media brings to light memories once lost now cherished. INK 25, a group exhibition organized by the Printmaking program, features student work from all Printmaking classes sharing a common theme. MFA Printmaking students Bobi Bosson, Emily Cladinos, and Casey Rubenfeld investigate themes of inner dialogue including fear, frustration, impulsivity, aggression, and resilience.

Bob Cole Conservatory of Music
Saxophone Ensemble
Monday, November 6 at 7:30 pm   
Gerald Daniel Recital Hall     Tickets: $20/$10/$5

Bob Cole Conservatory of Music
BCCM Percussion Ensembles
Tuesday, November 7 at 7:30 pm  
Gerald Daniel Recital Hall     Tickets: $20/$10/$5

Bob Cole Conservatory of Music
University Saxophone Quartet

Wednesday, November 8 at 7:30 pm        
Gerald Daniel Recital Hall      Tickets: $20/$10/$5

Carpenter Center Cabaret Series
Broadway Baby: Melissa Errico Sings Sondheim
Wednesday-Thursday, November 8-9 at 7 pm    
Carpenter Center Cabaret Stage      Tickets: $50-$60 (add dinner for $40+)
Broadway star Melissa Errico pays tribute to her musical mentor Stephen Sondheim in a sparkling evening of sublime songs and often-humorous insights into Sondheim’s craft and life. The New Yorker calls Tony-nominee Melissa Errico “the finest interpreter of Sondheim’s music in America today.”

Bob Cole Conservatory of Music
Jazz Combos

Thursday, November 9 at 7:30 pm
The Nugget     Free Admission

Bob Cole Conservatory of Music
University String Chamber

Thursday, November 9 at 7:30 pm
Gerald Daniel Recital Hall      Tickets: $20/$10/FREE

Bob Cole Conservatory of Music
Pacific Standard Time and Jazz & Tonic
Saturday, November 11 at 3pm & 7:30pm
Gerald Daniel Recital Hall     Tickets: $20/$10/$5

Carpenter Performing Arts Center
An Evening with Amy Sedaris
Moderated by KCRW host Anthony Byrnes
Saturday, November 11 at 8pm     
Carpenter Center       Tickets: $55
A hilarious evening of moderated conversation with Amy Sedaris, followed by an audience Q&A. Amy is an actress, comedian and writer best known for her Emmy-nominated series, the hilarious and slightly deranged world of At Home with Amy Sedaris. She played the endearingly eccentric Jerri Blank in her hit comedy series Strangers with Candy, and can currently be seen on Disney+ in The Mandalorian.

Bob Cole Conservatory of Music
Piano Showcase
Sunday, November 12 at 4pm       
Gerald Daniel Recital Hall     Tickets: $20/$10/$5
Featuring outstanding CSULB pianists in solo performances of mostly classic repertoire by the great composers from the eighteenth through twentieth centuries.

 

Arts For Life Series
Symphonic Jazz Orchestra
Sunday, November 12 at 6pm       
Carpenter Center       Tickets available online 60 days prior
Comprised of some of the top musicians in the country, this 68-member orchestra conducted by music director Mitch Glickman is dedicated exclusively to blending the worlds of jazz and classical music, and has played with such renowned jazz artists as George Duke, Christian McBride, and the Yellowjackets.

CSULB School of Art
Illustration Group Exhibition| Gary Musgrave, Illustration| Drawing & Painting Group Show| Richard Bradley Fewell, Sculpture
November 12-16
School of Art Student Galleries
The Illustration BFA Group Exhibition presents work from graduating students from the Illustration BFA program. Gary Musgrave’s MFA exhibition features a series of multimedia works using combinations of wax, paper, electronics, and video examining the relationship between intrinsic and relative value. Melanie Nuccio, Kayleigh Ziehler-Martin, and Lex Harvey show artwork and ephemera created over the course of several months in response to shared written texts. Richard Bradley Fewell shares a performance piece where they will be in an acrylic cube, writing on the acrylic and encouraging others to write as well.

Bob Cole Conservatory of Music
Corner Pocket & Vocal Wave
Monday, November 13 at 7:30pm  
Gerald Daniel Recital Hall     Tickets: $20/$10/$5

Bob Cole Conservatory of Music
Bob Cole Conservatory Symphony Orchestra
Wednesday, November 15 at 7:30pm
Carpenter Performing Arts Center     $20/$10/$5
Our third and final concert this fall semester is bookended by the Austrian-American composer Erich Korngold, famous for establishing the "Hollywood sound." One of his first works is "The Snowman." BCCM piano faculty and alumnus, Samuel Grodin, will play Mozart’s A Major piano concerto. The recently rediscovered Symphony No. 4 by Franz Schmidt was due to be performed in 2019 right as the campus had to close due to Covid. We’re happy to finally present this work to the Long Beach community.

CSULB Dance
CSULB Dance in Concert

Wednesday-Friday, November 15-17 at 8pm
Saturday, November 18 at 2&8pm

Martha B. Knoebel Dance Theater          Tickets: $25/$16
CSULB Dance in Concert features choreography by Dance Faculty Tsiambwom Akuchu, Rebecca Bryant, Rebecca Lemme, Keith Johnson, Andrew Vaca, and by Guest Artist, Dr. C Kemal Nance, choreographer and scholar of African Diasporic Dance. 

Bob Cole Conservatory of Music
Piano con Brio!

Thursday, November 16 at 7:30pm
Gerald Daniel Recital Hall     $20/$10/$5
A collaborative concert presented by select students from the Piano Accompanying, Piano Ensemble, and the Piano Chamber Music classes. This varied concert features classic repertoire from classical to modern eras.

Bob Cole Conservatory of Music
Brass Chamber Music

Friday, November 17 at 7:30pm     
Gerald Daniel Recital Hall     Free Will Offering Accepted

Bob Cole Conservatory of Music
Opera Scenes

Saturday, November 18 at 7:30pm
Sunday, November 19 at 2pm       
Gerald Daniel Recital Hall     $20/$10/$5

This showcase highlights some of the most delightful, dramatic, and comedic musical moments from popular opera classics.

CSULB School of Art
Drawing & Painting Group Show| Bobi Bosson, Printmaking| Ishmael Rivera, Ceramics| Donna Tran, Illustration
November 26-30
School of Art Student Galleries
The Drawing & Painting BFA Group Exhibition presents work from graduating students from the Drawing & Painting BFA program. Bobi Bosson’s MFA exhibition explores the maternal role from a deeply intimate place -- they are interested in the transformative change that is “Mother” and the societal stigmas surrounding this. Ishmael Rivera’s BFA exhibition features wheel thrown and sculptural ceramic works that explore experimentation through glaze, form, shape, gravity, and most importantly play. Donna Tran’s MFA exhibition showcases watercolor illustrations inspired by Garden Grove.

Bob Cole Conservatory of Music
Piano Plus!

Monday, November 27 at 7:30pm  
Gerald Daniel Recital Hall     $20/$10/$5

Bob Cole Conservatory of Music
Woodwind Chamber Music
Tuesday, November 28 at 7:30pm 
Gerald Daniel Recital Hall     $20/$10/$5

Bob Cole Conservatory of Music
University String Quartet
Wednesday, November 29 at 7:30pm       
Gerald Daniel Recital Hall      $20/$10/$5

Bob Cole Conservatory of Music
Beach Orchestra

Thursday, November 30 at 7:30pm
Gerald Daniel Recital Hall      $20/$10/$5

 

CSULB Theatre Arts
Mr. Burns, a post-electric play by Anne Washburn
Thursday-Saturday, November 30-December 9 at 7:30pm
Saturday, December 3&10 at 2pm

Studio Theatre                      Tickets: $25/$23
Loosely tied to Matt Groening’s “The Simpsons” (and we mean VERY loosely) MR. BURNS is a post-apocalyptic fever dream. Sitting around the campfire, Matt, Jenny, and Maria are having trouble remembering Episode 2 from The Simpsons, but they get the main points.  Then they tell it again. And again. And again. Which touchstones evolve into folklore?  “MR BURNS, a post-electric play” is directed by Josh Nathan.

Ongoing

Drag Show 
Through December 15 
Carolyn Campagna Kleefeld Contemporary Art Museum, Main Gallery 

Drag Show narrates a history of 1980s and 1990s LGBT counter cultural experience.  A form that puts critique and resistance at the center of its practice, drag is a type of performance art with deep connections to other art forms and related cultural practices. In this context, difference is celebratedas a foundation for building and living within community.  This exhibition reflects upon a rich moment in our cultural history and explores how drag was and continues to be a powerful and pointedly political act that fosters resilience.

Nery Gabriel Lemus 
Through December 15 
Carolyn Campagna Kleefeld Contemporary Art Museum, Mini Gallery
Nery Gabriel Lemus is a multidisciplinary artist born and raised in Los Angeles, CA. The Museum presents the artist’s 2016 installation sculpture, A Memorial to Three Unknown Females, which memorializes three women who died along the U.S-Mexico border. The work is inspired by sawdust carpets used most traditionally in religious processions throughout Central America. Using this historical form and the influence of the installation work of Carl Andre, Lemus created a contemporary carpet made from Ikea coir mats; in doing so he activates the act of remembering through historic cultural legacies. 


Pau Pescador 
Through December 15 
Carolyn Campagna Kleefeld Contemporary Art Museum, Main Gallery Corridor

The Museum presents photographic collages of Pau Pescador centered on the artist themself as the subject in what may be their most personal body of images yet. The artist deconstructs the process of shifting their own physical appearance as a trans non-binary individual in images that are simultaneously documentation and abstraction, dancing with cultural signifiers of identity constructs. Pescador is a contemporary trans-nonbinary artist who works in film, photography, and performance. They graduated with an MFA from University of California, Irvine and a BA from University of Southern California.  

Carolyn Campagna Kleefeld: On Top of a Mountain 
Through December 2023 

Carolyn Campagna Kleefeld Contemporary Art Museum
Carolyn Campagna Kleefeld works from her Northern California home and has welcomed friends, creatives, and thought leaders there for decades. In her journals, she describes her studio as sited “on top of a mountain”, which has inspired this selection of works. Her way of living is organized around sustained engagement with nature, love, solitude, writing and visual art making, and a rejection of market values and consumerism. Always inspired by her life, the drawings on view are part of a large gift of art given by the artist to the Museum. 

Tuesday Talks 
Ongoing

Every Tuesday from noon1pm
Carolyn Campagna Kleefeld Contemporary Art Museum
Gallery talks led by artists, curators, and educators focusing on individual works on view or single topics.

Live Drawing Model Sessions 
Ongoing
Every Thursday from 47pm 
Carolyn Campagna Kleefeld Contemporary Art Museum

School of Art student-run drawing model sessions.  
CSULB student entry fee: $5 | Alumni & Community entry fee: $10