After eight years in business, Nanette Bonilla was ready to grow. Her work was taking over her home and she needed more space. Luckily, she was able to find a location where many of Bakersfield’s creatives go: downtown.

In a time of uncertainty, Laura Mizrahi has found joy in a creative place: painting dogs.

Along with an audio play opening this week, The Empty Space also aims to brighten people's days virtually with an ongoing art exhibit. Victoria Olmos' "You Are Not Alone" is on display in the theater's virtual gallery.

“When We Were Young and Unafraid” could have been another victim of the pandemic. Set to open the week the state issued the shelter-in-place order, the show has been postponed since March. Now the production will go on as an audio play starting Friday.

With movie theaters closed and the list of new shows running short on streaming platforms, many are looking for fresh entertainment. Over the last few weeks, a couple of local community theaters have aimed to fill the void with shows presented in a digital format. Bakersfield Community Theat…

While live entertainment venues remain closed, local community theaters continue to find ways to reach their audience. On the heels of recent streaming presentations from Bakersfield Community Theatre and The Empty Space, Stars is getting in on the fun with the launch of "Dear Elizabeth" on Friday.

Even as other forms of entertainment open up, we've still got some time until community theaters open their doors for shows. By no means does that mean these creative folks are wallowing; the team at Bakersfield Community Theatre is the first local venue to bring a performance to social medi…

Even as many Kern businesses reopen, theatrical venues remain closed, leaving children without a place to pursue their thespian dreams. Or does it? Proving the show must go on somehow, two youth programs are planning for virtual performances this summer.

ARTMIX, the Bakersfield Museum of Art’s spring fundraiser, was just weeks away when the shutdown hit California. Even as restrictions eased in Kern County, it seemed unlikely that a large gathering would be possible, so museum staff did what they do best: Get creative.

Although the Bakersfield Art Association keeps its downtown art center closed for now, it continues to support its members with a virtual celebration of First Friday. Artist Elleta Abuliel's work is being featured on the BAA's social media along with more art from painter Sissy Ullmann, who …

The curtain has yet to rise on the main stage, but Stars Theatre Restaurant is back with dinner service starting Friday.

Along with the bread baking and TikTok challenges, this pandemic has fueled some real creativity. With an eye on supporting local creatives at a difficult time, The Hub of Bakersfield chose 13 projects to help fund through its Cash for the Arts grant program.

To truly experience Peter Buchan's art, one needs to use more than just sight.

Urban sketching is more than just drawing a building or city skyline.

Downtown streets will be quiet this Friday but it doesn’t mean all of First Friday is on hold. The Bakersfield Art Association is hosting its two shows for May virtually on social media.

This week, the Bakersfield's Fox Theater became the theater heard round the country.

Gary Guinn's life has been surrounded by art.

As with so many other events, First Friday this month will be a much more solitary endeavor, but it doesn't need to be solemn. In lieu of a gallery opening, Bubble Pop Gallery will host an Online Pop Up Party via Instagram Live Friday afternoon.

Many artists are taking to social media in this time of social distancing to share their work and connect. So it makes sense that when it came time for Bakersfield College's annual Art Student Exhibition, that a little creative ingenuity was added to the mix.

Right now, people are balancing a lot of thoughts and emotions, which can be overwhelming. Luckily, some of us can channel those creatively. The Bakersfield Museum of Art put out the call to encourage residents of all ages and skills to pick up some chalk and create.

What do you do when you can’t bring an audience to your theater? You bring the show to them — or at least the cast for it. Starting this weekend, The Empty Space will host "Hindsight 2020," a series of virtual cast reunions for some of its most successful shows, streaming them for all to see…

Although this was set to be a busy weekend for local theater, an unexpected intermission has been called. 

It may seem like tough going these days. Anxiety is high and people are deep in their thoughts. What better time than now to take in a show that gets you considering your life? 

"Trolls Live!" will bring a hair-raising show to Mechanics Bank Theater on July 21 and 22.

A legendary performance is headed to Bakersfield later this month.

Beloved musical "Annie Get Your Gun" tells the story of real-life sharpshooter Annie Oakley and her experience with Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show. But what do you do when your star is a little bit gun-shy? Proving there's "no business like show business," the lead actress of Stars' new produ…

The goal of any theatrical production at a university is to educate and provide experience for students. When that show happens to be the greatest rock opera of the 1960s, well that's better than the highest pinball score.

Spring doesn't officially start until later this month but you wouldn't know it by the warm weather we've been enjoying. With temperatures expected in the low 80s on Friday, it's a great time to take a walk and enjoy the art. 

Extra! Extra! Read all about it! Disney's "Newsies" opens Friday at the Ovation Theatre.

Capturing a California night on a canvas seems near impossible.

Some shows thrive with a lean, bare-bones design. In the case of "Love Letters," playing this weekend only at Bakersfield Community Theatre, it's essential.

The Roaring ’20s are back and taking over the auditorium at East Bakersfield High School starting Friday when Theatre East presents “Chicago.” The high school edition of this legendary musical, featuring the classic music of John Kander, lyrics by Fred Ebb and book by Ebb and Bob Fosse, is b…

Some say it takes a village but in the case of "Chavez Ravine," it might be more apt to say a baseball team. The show about the L.A. canyon that eventually became the home of Dodger Stadium opens this weekend at The Empty Space through a team effort.

Some say three's a crowd, but when it comes to venues for this year's V-Day Bakersfield it's a party.

"Little Shop of Horrors," one of the funniest, craziest and much loved Broadway musicals, opens next week at Stockdale High School. The show is based on a 1960 B-movie produced for $28,000 and created a sensation that was a surprise. The production is weird, campy and hilarious.

Liberty High's theater department is bringing the laughs this week with Rick Abbott’s "Play On."

While some may wonder why the story of Edith Beale and daughter Edie has endured for decades, that's never been in question for Jerry Torre.

Cynthia Corrales wants to be heard.

With the weather warming up a bit on Friday, it's a good time to check out the art downtown for First Friday.

Just as Buck Owens asks if you've walked the streets of Bakersfield, photographer Berklee Comstock wonders if you've noticed what you encounter along the way. 

While you might be familiar with the story of "The Cake" — baker won't make a wedding cake for a gay couple — you don't know all the ingredients that go into this nuanced production at Bakersfield Community Theatre.

From hidden local treasures to California at night, the latest exhibitions opening at the Bakersfield Museum of Art Thursday have much to explore.

The Gaslight Melodrama knows the winning formula — a rollicking show in which you cheer the hero(es) and boo the villain — but it's doing something a little different for its 100th show opening Friday.

With a story like "The Outsiders" audiences have certain expectations.

Sometimes truth is stranger than fiction. And that truth can make even stranger fiction. That’s certainly the case with “Grey Gardens,” opening Friday at Ovation Theatre. Based on the life of Big Edie and Little Edie Bouvier Beale, the eccentric aunt and cousin of Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis,…

Comedian W.C. Fields advised never to work with animals or children but those concerns of chaos or excessive cuteness are no problem for the directors of "Annie," opening this weekend at Stars Theatre Restaurant.

Having already staged a number of intimate dramas and comedies, Stars Playhouse makes the case for another great season into 2020 with "Nuts," which opens Friday.

Kelly Wonderly has never known a time when she wasn't passionate about art. The local artist will share some of her work Thursday as part of a show at the Arts Council of Kern's Access Center Gallery.

Most creative people can recall what ignited their passion for the arts. For Deva Wiloth, one of those shows was "I Never Saw Another Butterfly," which she is directing at Bakersfield Community Theatre.