THE CHILDREN
Feb. 3-March 12 | Santa Paula
The Children by Lucy Kirkwood is a thrilling, humorous new play that questions the responsibility each generation has for the way it leaves the world. In the wake of a devastating environmental accident, two early retired physicists are quietly living out their days in a cottage on the coast. When an old colleague turns up with a shocking request, the three friends must come to terms with their shared culpability. The Children is a searing pressure cooker about responsibility, guilt, reparation and redemption, but it’s also a declaration of love. The extent of sacrifice one is willing to make, not just for one’s own “children,” but for everyone’s children. Lucy Kirkwood’s astonishing storytelling turns the very large idea of climate change into a thrilling narrative that centers around the humans living in it. Brilliantly written, The Children is not an ethics text but a quirky three-character tragicomedy about aging, sexual competition, parenting and the catastrophic result of certain scientific advances that end up ravaging the planet we call home… and it is actually very funny! $22-$24. Santa Paula Theater Center, 125 South Seventh Street, Santa Paula, 805.525.4645, www.santapaulatheatercenter.org.
COYOTE RESCUES HAWK BOOK LAUNCH
Feb. 4 | Oxnard
The Channel Islands Maritime Museum will be hosting a celebration and book launch from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 4, for the new book Coyote Rescues Hawk by local author and tribal elder Alan Salazar “Puchuk Yaʼiaʼc.” Coyote Rescues Hawk is based on a Chumash story dating back at least 300 years. Salazar brings humor and insights from 25 years of experience in bringing back the traditional Chumash canoe culture to a tale sure to delight readers of all ages. Mr. Salazar will be on hand for storytelling and book signing, followed by time for questions and answers from the audience. Illustrator Mona Lewis will also offer a free earth pigment class, demonstrating how she made paint from local soil for the illustrations in the book. Participants of all ages will learn to make natural earth paint and use it to paint their own pictures. Guests will have the opportunity to meet Salazar for storytelling from 2:30 p.m. until 4 p.m. and to also meet Lewis for a natural paint class from 1 p.m. until 2:30 p.m. This event is family friendly, appropriate for all ages, and free for the entire community. Channel Islands Maritime Museum, 3900 Bluefin Circle, Oxnard, 805.984.6260, cimmvc.org.
CHINESE NEW YEAR CELEBRATION
Feb. 4 | Thousand Oaks
This is an annual event sponsored by the Conejo Chinese Cultural Association for more than 30 years. It is normally held around the Chinese New Year time in the city of Thousand Oaks. Over 300 youngsters and 100 adults participate in stage performances with 200 or more volunteers to organize, direct and produce the event. About 1,200 audience members, mostly from the local Conejo Valley communities, attend this yearly celebration that fosters and values diverse cultures. The dramas, music, special arts and dance performances in this event are based upon, and derived from, the rich heritage of Chinese culture, which carries a continuous tradition over five thousand years. Each year, this highly regarded event has attracted not only Chinese from all communities, but friends from various racial backgrounds. This event brings diversity, harmony, mutual respect and vitality for all citizens in the area. Come celebrate the Year of the Rabbit! $12-$45. Saturday, Feb. 4, at 7 p.m. at the Fred Kavli Theatre at the Bank of America Performing Arts Center, 2100 East Thousand Oaks Boulevard, Thousand Oaks, 805.449.2787, bapacthousandoaks.com.
THE REALISTIC JONESES
Through Feb. 12 | Ventura
Meet Bob and Jennifer and their new neighbors John and Pony, two suburban couples who discover they have more in common than their identical homes and their surnames. Spare, suggestive, slyly hilarious and strangely maddening, this profound play explores what is said, what is unsaid and the role that denial plays in helping us navigate life’s chaos. Nominated for the Outer Critics and Drama League Award and listed by The New York Times as one of the “Best Plays of the Year,” The Realistic Joneses will haunt you long after the play ends, leaving you wondering whether we can ever truly know anyone, including ourselves. Tickets start at $30. Rubicon Theatre Company, 1006 East Main Street, Ventura, 805.667.2900, www.rubicontheatre.org.
LAUNDRY AND BOURBON AND LONE STAR
Through Feb. 12 | Oxnard
In Maynard, Texas, Elizabeth Caulder and Hattie Dealing gossip about the people living in the small town until Amy Lee Fullernoy stops by to tell Elizabeth that she has seen Elizabeth’s husband, Roy, going around town with another woman. The conversation brings out Elizabeth’s sympathy of the plight her husband went through in Vietnam and chooses to remain at home for him. Meanwhile, Roy and his brother, Ray, sit and talk about their own gossip until Cletis Fullernoy arrives to tell Ray that he crashed Roy’s 1959 pink Thunderbird convertible, Roy’s pride and joy. Cletis asks Ray to take the blame, and while he does, Roy finds out that it was Cletis. Roy comes to accept the changing ways since he has been to Vietnam and looks for the silver lining with his brother. $10-$20. The Elite Theatre Company, 2731 Victoria Avenue, Oxnard, 805.483.5118, www.theelite.org.
BECKY’S NEW CAR
Through Feb. 19 | Ojai
Meet Becky, a middle-aged woman in a middle-aged marriage with a humdrum job and a humdrum adult son living at home. She meets a mixed-up millionaire who makes her an offer she can’t refuse. Or can she? The audience becomes her new best friends on this quirky comic adventure. It’s definitely worth the ride. $24. Ojai Art Center Theater, 113 South Montgomery Street, Ojai, 805.640.8797, ojaiact.org.
ROSANNE CASH
Feb. 19 | Thousand Oaks
One of the country’s pre-eminent singer/songwriters, Rosanne Cash has released 15 albums of extraordinary songs that have earned four Grammy Awards and nominations for 11 more, plus a spot in the Nashville Songwriters’ Hall of Fame. She is also an author whose four books include the best-selling memoir Composed. In addition to continual worldwide touring, Cash has partnered in programming or served as artist in residence at Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center, San Francisco Jazz, the Minnesota Orchestra and The Library of Congress. $72. Sunday, Feb. 19, at 8 p.m. at the Fred Kavli Theatre at the Bank of America Performing Arts Center, 2100 East Thousand Oaks Boulevard, Thousand Oaks, 805.449.2787, bapacthousandoaks.com.
