The LBC, as it is known here, was named after Luther Burbank, a man who earned celebrity by developing the Shasta daisy, the Santa Rosa plum and the Burbank potato. I bet you didn’t know that, and guess what? Neither did I. So what does agriculture have to do with performing arts? It seems that Mr. Burbank hung out with the celebrities of his time, such as Thomas Edison and Helen Keller and prominent artists and screen stars. Some 50 years after his death, a group of civic leaders formed a foundation in his name with the hope of establishing an art center. Twenty years ago, community leaders purchased the site of the Christian Life Center and its 53 acres, and thus the genesis of the LBC in 1981. This Center for the Arts truly earns its name; it is also home to several other cultural groups such as the Sonoma Country Music Assoc., the Santa Rosa Symphony, Ballet California, Actors’ Theater and a few others. It also rents its many conference and dining facilities to the public. I was very impressed to learn that they sponsor over 100 cultural programs a year. When I picked up the North Bay Bohemian Paper , there was a half-size page ad listing future performances, and it was wonderful to see the diversity of the programming. It appeared to me to be a compendium of the offerings of Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center , the Joyce Theater and the Manhattan Theater rolled into one. Just read a portion of the roster: Julio Iglesias, Dennis Miller, Maya Angelou, World Music & Dance (my favorite), The Temptations, the Alvin Ailey Dance Company, and Navidad en Mexico. And there were many others.
Something which sets the LBC apart from other performing art centers is its Art Reach Program which donates tickets to families with limited incomes, to include ethnic minorities and disadvantaged children.
For instance, the LBC Family Shows is bringing "Frogz" to Santa Rosa on January 24, 2002. Tickets are quite reasonable at $16.00 for children. Frogz which was already on Broadway, makes for great family fun with its life size lizardz, penguinz and frogz with toe tapping music and gleeful atmosphere. Moreover, an hour prior to show time, you can come and enjoy free art tables and live music…something on the order of the Berkshires’ Jacob’s Pillow . To view that journal, go to Jacob’s Pillow
Among the many rental facilities, the Outdoor Tent seats 800 people theater style. It can hold up to 900 people, reception style, and if they all sat down, 625 people. That’s a heck of a lot bigger than the tent where we had lunch! It’s a beautiful venue, whether you are here for a specific program or just to look around.