Events

UCSC Dining Competes at the Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk Clam Chowder Cook-Off
2026-02-22 13:00 - 15:00 (America/Los_Angeles) | Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk
Come support UCSC Dining as they compete in the legendary Clam Chowder Cook-Off at the Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk! This two-day event is one of the country’s largest and longest-running clam chowder competitions, where talented chefs prepare and serve their best chowder recipes along the Boardwalk.
On Sunday, February 22, UCSC Dining will join professional teams in both Boston (white) and Manhattan (red) clam chowder categories. Cheer on our teams — University Chowder led by Chance Taylor (cooking up the white Boston chowder) and Redwood Chowder Heads led by Chad Glassley (cooking up red Manhattan chowder) — as they compete for top honors and People’s Choice votes.
When: Sunday, February 22, 1–3 p.m.
Where: Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk
Details: Boardwalk admission is free; tasting kits go on sale starting at 10 a.m. or you can pre-purchase your tasting kits online. (public tasting begins at 1 p.m.) and benefit Santa Cruz Parks & Recreation.

The Trial of Spock—An Opera Workshop
2026-03-08 16:00 - 18:00 | Music Center Recital Hall, 400 McHenry Road, Santa Cruz, CA, 95064
The creators of The Trial of Spock—An Opera In Three Acts present concert performances of five scenes from an opera-in-progress at the UC Santa Cruz Music Center Recital Hall.
Captain Christopher Pike is gravely injured. Lieutenant Spock is behaving strangely. Charged with protecting Pike in his state of extreme need,Vulcan Commodore T’or suspects that Lieutenant Spock—once Captain Pike’s science officer—is up to no good. Spock’s Captain, James T. Kirk, doesn’t see the trouble until far too late, and soon Spock holds all of them prisoner aboard a ship destined for the “forbidden planet” Talos IV. He refuses to say a word about their fate—not until his superiors agree to give him his trial. Under oath, and with strange evidence, Spock tells the story of Captain Pike’s first visit to Talos IV, where illusion and artificial experiences plunge Pike and fellow captive Vina into uncharted dimensions of their memories, and their concepts of self.
Join sopranos Nicole Koh, Sheila Willey, and Emily Sinclair; tenors Alex Boyer and Nicolas Vasquez-Gerst, baritones Joseph Calzada and Michael Kuo, and the Del Sol Quartet, as they distort the myth of Orpheus, in order to re-think our presumed relationships to freedom and reality, and its augmentations.
Music by Ben Leeds Carson; libretto by Perre DiCarlo & Ben Leeds Carson and Lincoln & Lee Taiz; with contributions from John de Lancie, based on teleplays by Gene Roddenberry.
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ADMISSION
– FREE and open to the public
– Tickets required and available online through Eventbrite
– Follow the Music Dept on Eventbrite for notices and updates.
– Doors are scheduled to open 30 minutes prior to event start time.
– Ticket holders not seated at least 5 minutes before the advertised start time may forfeit their ticket/seat and no refund will be issued.
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PARKING
– Parking by permit, ParkMobile, or $11 cash/credit via the on-site parking attendant
– Arts Lot #126 is the closest parking lot to the event
– Visitors with DMV placards or plates may park for free in DMV spaces, Medical spaces, or ParkMobile spaces without additional payment, or in timed zones for longer than the posted time.
– UCSC affiliates must purchase their permits before arriving at the event in order to receive their discounted UCSC rate. Attendants will only sell the non-affiliate-priced permits.
– More information provided by UCSC Transportation & Parking Services (TAPS)
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FULL SCHEDULE OF EVENTS
Fri, March 8, 4:00 p.m., UC Santa Cruz Music Center Recital Hall
The Trial of Spock—An Opera Workshop
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Fri, March 13, 7:00 p.m., Kuumbwa Jazz Center
How to Live Long and Prosper—Lessons from a Star Trek Opera
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This program is open to all members of the public consistent with state and federal law.

Ritual Drinking in the Ancient World
2026-04-15 17:00 - 19:30 | Stockwell Cellars, 1100 Fair Ave., Santa Cruz, CA, 95060
Wednesday, April 15, 5:00-7 p.m.
Stockwell Cellars
1100 Fair Avenue, Santa Cruz
Space is limited. Please let us know if you are able to attend via this registration link.
“Drink and make a happy day!” (New Kingdom Theben tomb)
“Wine gladdens the heart of man…” (Psalm 104:15)
At this ‘symposium’ event, three UCSC professors in Classical, Biblical, and Egyptian antiquity will tell stories about how various ancient cultures drank wine to commune with their gods, suspend the normal social rules, and prepare for the end of days.
Elaine Sullivan, “How to Get Drunk with a Goddess”
Martin Devecka, “Wine before Liquor”
Anne Kreps, “Drinking like the World is Going to End”
The Stockwell Cellars tasting room bar will be open for attendees to purchase individual wines-by-the-glass during the event. Come enjoy tasting local Santa Cruz wines while learning about the long history of drinking as a ritual event in the ancient Mediterranean world.
A Q&A will follow the short presentations.

Speakers & Bios:
Martin Devecka, Associate Professor, Ancient Studies & Literature
As a cultural historian, Devecka writes on topics in ancient literature and society that range from robots to ruins. He is currently finishing a book manuscript on animal citizenship in the Roman Empire.
Anne Kreps, Associate Professor, Ancient Studies & History
As a historian of the ancient Near East, Kreps studies heresies, Gnosticism, and the politics of sacred texts. Her current work examines the Dead Sea Scrolls within New Religious Movements in the United States.
Elaine Sullivan, Associate Professor, Ancient Studies & History
An Egyptogist, Sullivan’s field research has included excavation and survey at Karnak’s Mut Temple, the cemetery of Saqqara, and the Greco-Roman city of Karanis, all in Egypt. She is currently authoring a book on the sales of antiquities out of Egypt in the late 19th and early 20th century.
Image: Nebamun receiving wine

Farm to Fork 2026
2026-08-29 16:00 - 21:00 | UCSC Farm, 152 Farm Rd, Santa Cruz, CA, 95064
Join the Center for Agroecology for an evening at the Farm
Enjoy a reception and benefit dinner on the UCSC Farm followed by dancing in the Hay Barn! This event will feature music, appetizers, tours, and local wine followed by a seasonally-focused, locally-sourced meal featuring produce from the UCSC Farm and local partners. As the sun sets, head down to the Hay Barn for music, dancing, and dessert.
The evening’s program:
4:00pm: Reception and farm tours followed by dinner
7:00pm: Dancing in the Hay Barn
Individual Registration: $225.00
Table of Six: $1,300.00
Individual Registration Dance Portion Only: $30.00
