Volunteer Project Catalog

The Center for the Arts

This is a great volunteer job for a friendly, responsible person who's interested in volunteering during the day. You'll welcome visitors to the Center, answer questions about our Gallery art, inform guests about upcoming concerts, help direct students who are coming in for classes, and prepare postering packets. Ideally, we'd love to have a committment for one shift a week, however, signing up for a single shift is much appreciated.

The Center for the Arts

Genre: Comedy, Satire Bestselling Author & Humorist David Sedaris is one of America's preeminent humor writers — a master of satire, a five-time Grammy nominee, and the author of nine New York Times bestsellers including Me Talk Pretty One Day, Naked, Calypso, and Happy-Go-Lucky. With over 16 million books in print in 32 languages, his sharp, confessional essays have made him one of the most recognized voices in American letters. A longtime contributor to The New Yorker and CBS Sunday Morning, Sedaris first captured the public imagination with his NPR debut and has never looked back — earning the Thurber Prize for American Humor, the Jonathan Swift International Literature Prize, and membership in the American Academy of Arts and Letters, among many other honors. His live shows are events unto themselves: new and unpublished work, candid audience Q&A, and book signings that fans talk about for years. "Sedaris ain't the preeminent humorist of his generation by accident." — Entertainment Weekly

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Genre: Genre: early jazz, ragtime, blues For over a decade Tuba Skinny has grown steadily in popularity, releasing twelve albums and touring all over the world. They’ve attracted a wide variety of fans, young and old, neophytes and niche-enthusiasts, with the strength of their musicianship and the scope of their jazz and American roots music catalog. The band is composed of Shaye Cohn (cornet), Barnabus Jones (trombone), Todd Burdick (tuba), Craig Flory(clarinet), Gregory Sherman (guitar and vocals), Max Bien-Kahn (banjo), Robin Rapuzzi (washboard), and Erika Lewis (vocals andbassdrum). While they’ve become known as world-class interpreters of traditional jazz, over the years they’ve branched out into jug band music, spirituals, country blues, string band music, ragtime, and New OrleansR&B. Their approach is a true reflection of Americana, encompassing the full genealogy of popular American music from an early 20th century perspective. No matter how well known they’ve become or how high profile their gigs have gotten, Tuba Skinny has always returned to the streets. “We continue to play in the street because it’s a public space,” says Shaye "We get to play for everyone: old, young, rich, poor, people from all walks of life. It keeps things interesting because it’s organic and unpredictable.”

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Genre: Free Family Event Offered two times a year, these are free all-day events geared toward families and introduces many young children in our community to their first-ever arts experience. We offer families the opportunity to participate in healthy art-based activities together, such as face painting, crafts, and a balloon artist and other fun entertainment. Events & Performers Performances by CFTA Aerial, Sama Elim & MORE! Face Painting by Lucy Galbraith & Sessapaints Balloons by Bernard Bradshaw & Timothy Roberts Arts & Crafts with Nancy Schaefer

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Genre: Blues, Rock Joanne Shaw Taylor - Blues-Rock Guitar Phenomenon Discovered at 16 by Eurythmics co-founder Dave Stewart — who saw her play and immediately invited her to join his supergroup — Joanne Shaw Taylor has spent the decades since becoming one of the most electrifying guitarists in blues-rock. Praised by everyone from Joe Bonamassa to Stevie Wonder, she is the rare artist who earns that kind of reverence and fully delivers on it live. With back-to-back No. 1 debuts on the Billboard Blues Chart and a UK Top 20 album to her name, Taylor's reputation is built as much on the stage as the studio. Her performances are raw, soulful, and technically stunning — the kind that make audiences wonder where she's been all their lives. Don't miss one of Britain's most important blues exports, live at the Center for the Arts. About Robert John & the Wreck: Southern California's Robert Jon & The Wreck have taken the Southern rock tradition and made it undeniably their own. Since 2011, the five-piece has built a global following through relentless touring and a string of acclaimed albums — most recently Heartbreaks & Last Goodbyes, produced by Grammy-winner Dave Cobb (Chris Stapleton, Brandi Carlile). Along the way they've shared stages with Joe Bonamassa, The Black Crowes, and Peter Frampton, and earned a reputation for live shows that are, simply put, impossible to ignore.

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Genre: Folk, Experimental The three musicians who wrote and recorded Hug—Devendra Banhart, Gyan Riley and Noah Georgeson— are not related by blood, but they sure act like it. Friends for decades, it only takes a few minutes for their family/non-family dynamics to reveal themselves: “I don’t even like these people,” Devendra jokes during a recent video call. “I didn’t choose them; I love them. They’re my brothers, my family. It’s irrevocable.” Over the course of the conversation, the three tease each other as much as they sing each other’s praises. Noah and Devendra gently rib Gyan for being the prodigy of the group; all three are retiringly self-deprecating about their own role in the making of this largely instrumental new album. Whatever it is that connects these three, you can hear it in the banter as much as you can in the music. The record is almost like a bait and switch: You read the spine and—especially if you're familiar with the work of Devendra or Gyan or Noah—you think, this is a guitar trio. But Hug doesn’t particularly sound like any of these artists, and if it’s a guitar trio, then it’s one without too many guitars. Hug is more than the sum of its parts—because these artists know how to play with each other. For Gyan and Noah, the tether goes back to childhood itself. They both grew up in the same remote, hippie town in Northern California, Nevada City, which was once one of the epicenters of crystals and all things New Age culture. Gyan spent his youth surrounded by experimental and minimalist music (clock the last name), and as a boy gravitated toward the guitar. “Being thirteen and completely obsessed with classical guitar,” he remembers, “there were few people I could bond with over that... Basically just my teacher and Noah.” Noah remembers being amazed by Gyan’s skill, even as a kid. He was just as relieved as Gyan to have a friend with whom he could share his passion for classical guitar, a fringe obsession in their fringe hometown. Noah grew up in a cabin built by his family; there were regular bear and mountain lion sightings in the woods behind the house, but he never got so much as a bee sting. “My parents had a guru instead of going to church,” Noah remembers, “otherwise, it was all very normal.” After they left home, their lives moved on parallel tracks: Gyan continued on as an artist and touring musician, releasing several albums of his own, and collaborating with musicians as various as Arooj Aftab, John Zorn, Paul Simon, and his father, Terry. Noah, meanwhile, moved to San Francisco where he established his own experimental music bona fides, studying with Fred Frith, Pauline Oliveros, and Alvin Curran. From there, he helped create much of the music that defined the aughts, including several albums with Devendra, who first crossed his path when he was a teenage art school dropout. Devendra may have come into the picture later (not much later), but he fit in with ease. Much of Devendra’s own childhood rhymed with Noah's and Gyan's: he grew up in Venezuela and Southern California in a family that also had a guru; he took to guitar early, busking on the streets instead of going to class. It would be many years before Noah’s two friends—two influential poles of his musical life—would meet. But by the time they did, years later in Brooklyn, they were primed for it. “Everything was sparkling and I felt like a little kid,” Devendra remembers, “and so I knew—we must play.” Hug was written and recorded organically, without a grand plan, and is full of the childlike wonder that these three bring out in each other. At times ambient, at times enigmatic, each song flows into the other, moving across folk tradition and genre, as Devendra, Gyan, and Noah take turns leading. From the opening frogs on “Cow With Half Moon Parasol,” the natural world takes center stage. Discrete places on this planet—places, we can infer, hold some significance to these composers—color the soundscape: Sounds from one sacred hill in India, sounds from a river running through Venezuela and Colombia. Animated by the playfulness between these three brothers, the eternal place of childhood never feels far off. On first listen, the song “Sarva Mangalam” sounds like an ancient Hindu chant repurposed into an updated hymn with guitar, sonica, kalimba, and percussion. Yet if you listen closer, the lyrics comprise only two lines: “Sarva Mangalam,” a sacred Sanskrit greeting, and “leche condensada,” Spanish for condensed milk. “We wanted it to sound like a dusty cassette found in an ashram’s giftshop,” Noah said, a nod to the New Age influence of their collective youth. Though the album itself came together in three weeks, there are hints scattered across the tracks that they’ve been working towards this collective for much longer. The final song contains a loop that Noah and Devendra first created twenty years ago, back when they were living together in Venice Beach, a fragment of a song they never knew how to finish until now. And in the album’s final moments, voices can be heard, just barely, crying out, “Well I went down…!” They leave us with another unfinished fragment—perhaps a signal of future projects to come.

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Genre: Americana Amid the excitement and ambiguity of a new start, Paige Anderson of Two Runner poses poignant questions in her music, balancing tenderness with steady conviction. With a sound shaped by intimate storytelling and rich instrumentation, she pulls spare parts from bluegrass, old time, and folk to blend her own hard-driving, heartfelt songs. For Anderson, this show is a true homecoming. Raised in the Sierra foothills, she began touring at age nine with her family band, Anderson Family Bluegrass- a fixture of the Northern California roots scene — and co-wrote her first song at fifteen with Chuck Ragan, igniting a lifelong devotion to raw, honest songwriting. On the road for nearly a decade since, she has built Two Runner into one of the most compelling young acts in American roots music, warming up stages for Sierra Ferrell, Watchhouse, and Molly Tuttle along the way. Two Runner caught national attention with celebrated features on GemsOnVHS and Western AF - the YouTube channels credited with launching artists like Colter Wall and Sierra Ferrell, and their acclaimed debut, Modern Cowboy. Their new full-length arrives this summer on Gar Hole Records, the influential independent label co-founded by Nick Shoulders. Live, the band weaves clawhammer banjo, flatpicking guitar, old-time fiddle, and close harmonies into something at once rooted and entirely new.

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Genre: Indie, Rock Golden Shoulders is a long-running music/friendship project from Nevada City, California, built around the songwriting of Adam Kline and this idea: it's less a fixed band than an ever-changing musical community. Since forming in 2001, Golden Shoulders has operated with a rotating cast of musicians, with different combinations of friends and collaborators joining for recordings and live performances. The result is a band whose lineup is intentionally fluid, while the songwriting and band identity remain consistent, if baffling. Over more than two decades, Golden Shoulders has released four full-length albums: Let My Burden Be (2002), Friendship Is Deep (2004), Get Reasonable (2009), and Could This Be the End (2019), along with five EPs, assorted singles and other one-offs. The music draws from indie rock, folk, and British Invasion influences, with arrangements that can change considerably depending on who is involved. In spring of 2024, they were a five piece bar band, with three of those pieces being electric guitars turned all the way up, and the other two pieces being bass guitar and drums, played at similarly ear-splitting volumes. In the fall of 2025, they were an acoustic quartet with piano, violin, flute, and acoustic guitar. The variety is the point. The band has also maintained an active touring life. Since the early days, Golden Shoulders has toured the United States ten times, often performing "campfire style" in deliberately stripped-down, acoustic settings without microphones or amplifiers. Other incarnations have been full electric bands, particularly when playing in or around their celebrated hometown. The lineup for their November 28th performance at the Center for the Arts will see bandleader and mascot Adam Kline (vocals, guitar) joined by Brett Shady (vocals, percussion), Ehren Haas (lead guitar), Jonathan Hansard (trumpet, banjo, percussion, vocals), Ariella Daly (piano, vocals), Micayla Sortland (bass guitar, vocals), and Jon Sortland (drums, vocals). They respectfully require your attendance.

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Genre: DANCE, RENTAL, THEATER A story about the last night of childhood. On one magical Christmas Eve, Clara discovers that growing up doesn't mean leaving wonder behind. Experience Holt Ballet Conservatory's beautifully reimagined Clara & the Nutcracker, where timeless tradition meets enchanting new storytelling. Tomorrow, Clara leaves childhood behind—but tonight, magic still believes in her. On the last night of childhood, a handcrafted Nutcracker, an enchanted toymaker, and a mysterious magic mirror lead Clara on a journey of courage, imagination, and wonder. Holt Ballet Conservatory's Clara & the Nutcracker reimagines the beloved holiday classic with fresh storytelling while honoring the timeless score of Tchaikovsky. Featuring outstanding guest artists, gifted young dancers, exquisite costumes, and breathtaking stagecraft, this is a heartwarming holiday experience for audiences of all ages. Discover why this cherished Sierra Foothills tradition continues to delight families year after year.

The Center for the Arts

Genre: DANCE, RENTAL, THEATER A story about the last night of childhood. On one magical Christmas Eve, Clara discovers that growing up doesn't mean leaving wonder behind. Experience Holt Ballet Conservatory's beautifully reimagined Clara & the Nutcracker, where timeless tradition meets enchanting new storytelling. Tomorrow, Clara leaves childhood behind—but tonight, magic still believes in her. On the last night of childhood, a handcrafted Nutcracker, an enchanted toymaker, and a mysterious magic mirror lead Clara on a journey of courage, imagination, and wonder. Holt Ballet Conservatory's Clara & the Nutcracker reimagines the beloved holiday classic with fresh storytelling while honoring the timeless score of Tchaikovsky. Featuring outstanding guest artists, gifted young dancers, exquisite costumes, and breathtaking stagecraft, this is a heartwarming holiday experience for audiences of all ages. Discover why this cherished Sierra Foothills tradition continues to delight families year after year.

The Center for the Arts

Genre: DANCE, RENTAL, THEATER A story about the last night of childhood. On one magical Christmas Eve, Clara discovers that growing up doesn't mean leaving wonder behind. Experience Holt Ballet Conservatory's beautifully reimagined Clara & the Nutcracker, where timeless tradition meets enchanting new storytelling. Tomorrow, Clara leaves childhood behind—but tonight, magic still believes in her. On the last night of childhood, a handcrafted Nutcracker, an enchanted toymaker, and a mysterious magic mirror lead Clara on a journey of courage, imagination, and wonder. Holt Ballet Conservatory's Clara & the Nutcracker reimagines the beloved holiday classic with fresh storytelling while honoring the timeless score of Tchaikovsky. Featuring outstanding guest artists, gifted young dancers, exquisite costumes, and breathtaking stagecraft, this is a heartwarming holiday experience for audiences of all ages. Discover why this cherished Sierra Foothills tradition continues to delight families year after year.

The Center for the Arts

Genre: DANCE, RENTAL, THEATER A story about the last night of childhood. On one magical Christmas Eve, Clara discovers that growing up doesn't mean leaving wonder behind. Experience Holt Ballet Conservatory's beautifully reimagined Clara & the Nutcracker, where timeless tradition meets enchanting new storytelling. Tomorrow, Clara leaves childhood behind—but tonight, magic still believes in her. On the last night of childhood, a handcrafted Nutcracker, an enchanted toymaker, and a mysterious magic mirror lead Clara on a journey of courage, imagination, and wonder. Holt Ballet Conservatory's Clara & the Nutcracker reimagines the beloved holiday classic with fresh storytelling while honoring the timeless score of Tchaikovsky. Featuring outstanding guest artists, gifted young dancers, exquisite costumes, and breathtaking stagecraft, this is a heartwarming holiday experience for audiences of all ages. Discover why this cherished Sierra Foothills tradition continues to delight families year after year.

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Bright Futures for Youth: Holiday Reception - Bar Cashiers only

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Genre: Alternative Rock, Roots Rock Before "Americana" was a radio format or a Grammy category, The Jayhawks were already living in it. Emerging from the same Minneapolis scene that gave us The Replacements, Hüsker Dü, and Soul Asylum, the band built something quieter and more lasting: a blend of country, folk, soul, Britpop, and rock 'n' roll that helped chart the course for a whole generation of roots musicians who followed. Over twelve studio albums and four decades, that sound has carried them from Farm Aid to Primavera Sound, and onto stages alongside many of the artists who shaped them. In the tradition of The Band and Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers, The Jayhawks have toured with and backed visionaries including Ray Davies, Roger McGuinn, and Johnny Cash. Gary Louris, Marc Perlman, Karen Grotberg, and Tim O'Reagan are still writing the next chapter. The band recently reunited with legendary producer Bob Ezrin (Pink Floyd, Peter Gabriel, Lou Reed) for a new album, Sanctuary Park, [due late summer 2026], proof that the catalog they're known for is still growing.

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Genre: Indie, Folk Rooted in mirrored kinship and a captivating vocal blend, Lucius — the Grammy-nominated indie-pop duo of Jess Wolfe and Holly Laessig — are songwriters of rare emotional precision, building one of contemporary music’s most enchanting, harmonic sounds. Their voices, described by the Los Angeles Times as “otherworldly,” move in perfect tandem: two instruments so attuned they read as one. Rolling Stone called their most recent album, 2025’s self-titled “the best album of their career” — a distinction earned through hard-won vulnerability, as Wolfe and Laessig turn inward to explore motherhood, relationships, and the quiet complexities of a life shared. The New Yorker wrote that the record “reaches the pinnacle of a vibrant, harmonic enterprise.” Throughout their career, Lucius has brought their mesmerizing live show to some of the world’s most celebrated stages and screens, including Conan, Jimmy Kimmel Live!, The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, Later! with Jools Holland, and Austin City Limits. Wolfe and Laessig have also become two of the most sought-after collaborators in popular music, a testament to the rare, transportive quality of their sound. The duo have lent their singular harmonies to an extraordinary range of artists — among them Joni Mitchell, The War on Drugs, Brandi Carlile, Sheryl Crow, Jeff Tweedy, Roger Waters, The National, Harry Styles, and Ringo Starr.

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Genre: Classical Join us for a joyous musical celebration for the whole family as orchestra, choir, and children’s voices come together to perform cherished holiday classics. From timeless melodies to heartwarming moments, this concert captures the magic, joy, and togetherness that define the holiday season.

The Center for the Arts

Genre: Classical Join us for a joyous musical celebration for the whole family as orchestra, choir, and children’s voices come together to perform cherished holiday classics. From timeless melodies to heartwarming moments, this concert captures the magic, joy, and togetherness that define the holiday season.

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Genre: Indie, Indie Rock, Folk Rock Father John Misty is an acclaimed American singer, songwriter, and record producer known for his distinct blend of lush folk-rock arrangements and deeply sardonic, existential lyricism. After playing drums for indie folk band Fleet Foxes and releasing stripped-down acoustic music under the name J. Tillman, he underwent a major artistic reinvention, adopting his current moniker with the release of his breakthrough solo debut album, Fear Fun, in 2012.

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Genre: Big Band/ Holiday The Count Basie Orchestra has defined big band jazz for nearly 90 years, carrying forward the legacy of jazz icon Count Basie while continuing to perform around the world. Joining the orchestra is Grammy Award-winning vocalist Carmen Bradford, whose powerhouse voice and deep roots in jazz make every performance unforgettable. Together, they'll deliver an evening of swing, holiday favorites, and timeless American music.

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Genre: Americana Ahoy there! For the third year running, San Francisco's kings of controlled chaos, The Brothers Comatose, are taking over our main stage to ring in the New Year. This time, they're running the whole ship aground. If you were there last year, you already know. The circus came to town, the Brothers played ringmaster, and things got gloriously out of hand. This year they're hoisting the sails for a Shipwrecked theme, and if history is any guide, they have some tricks hidden in the cargo hold that we're not allowed to tell you about. (We asked. They just winked.) Under all the costumes and confetti is one of the hottest string bands in the West. Brothers Ben and Alex Morrison trade songs in close, blood harmony. Addie Levy adds Appalachian high harmonies and a driving mandolin chop. Philip Brezina's fiddle solos hit like a rock guitarist's. Steve Height keeps the whole ship steady on upright bass. They call it "Goldengrass": rooted in bluegrass tradition, fueled by California freedom and rock 'n' roll swagger. They host their own festival, Comatopia, and they've spent years proving on festival stages across the country that lightning-fast picking and a full-on party can share one stage. Their motto has always been "You're here, we're here, let's party!" On New Year's Eve, we're taking that literally. Dress the part. Pirates, castaways, mermaids, sea captains, a guy who's been stranded on an island with only a volleyball for company. Your costume, your call. Just come ready to go down with the ship. THE NIGHT INCLUDES: A full, high-octane set from The Brothers Comatose Champagne toast at midnight Balloon drop as we sail into 2027 Whatever surprises the Brothers have stowed away

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Genre: Visual Arts Opening reception for the Granucci Gallery Exhibit Legacy of Love: Granucci Friends & Family.

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Genre: Country Rock “Amie,” “Two Lane Highway” and six decades of country-rock. There are songs that define a genre, and “Amie” is one of them. Pure Prairie League helped bring country-rock into the mainstream in the 1970s, building a catalog around rich harmonies, pedal steel, country songwriting and rock-and-roll muscle. Their multi-platinum album Bustin’ Out gave us “Amie,” while the band’s long history includes a notable chapter with Country Music Hall of Famer Vince Gill. Now in their sixth decade, Pure Prairie League are still touring and still making music, including their recent album Back on Track.

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Genre: Southern Rock They've been a part of the Southern Rock scene for over 50 years. Their biggest hits include So Into You, Champagne Jam, Imaginary Lover, Homesick, and Spooky. But there's so much more ... With 15 albums of outstanding songwriting and performances, The Atlanta Rhythm Section represents the good things the phrase "classic rock" implies. So read, watch, listen, enjoy - have yourself a "Large Time!"

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Genre: Folk Folksinger John McCutcheon returns to The Center for the Arts for his annual concert fundraiser for community radio KVMR on Saturday, January 10, 2026. “John McCutcheon is not only one of the best musicians in the USA, but also a great singer, songwriter, and song leader. And not just incidentally, he is committed to helping hard-working people everywhere to organize and push this world in a better direction.” — Pete Seeger John McCutcheon has emerged as one of our most respected and loved folksingers. As an instrumentalist, he is a master of a dozen different traditional instruments, most notably the rare and beautiful hammer dulcimer. His songwriting has been hailed by critics and singers around the globe. His thirty recordings have garnered every imaginable honor including seven Grammy nominations.

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Genre: Tribute, Rock, Rental Some music doesn’t just define an era—it becomes part of people’s lives. The songs of the Eagles are woven into decades of memories for millions of listeners: long drives with the windows down, summer nights, road trips that seemed endless, quiet moments of reflection, and shared singalongs that stay with you long after the music ends. A world-class live concert experience celebrating the music of the Eagles. Now, that music is brought vividly to life on stage in an unforgettable live concert experience. “Take It To The Limit – The Music & Legacy of the Eagles” is a powerful celebration of one of the most iconic bands in rock history, delivering the unmistakable sound, soaring harmonies, and masterful musicianship that defined a generation. From Hotel California and Take It Easy to Desperado, Lyin’ Eyes, Heartache Tonight, Peaceful Easy Feeling, Take It To The Limit, and more, audiences are taken on a journey through one of the greatest songbooks in rock music—performed with precision, heart, and deep respect for the original recordings.