Page 20 | Bohemian | Sonoma & Napa Counties

Matt The Electrician, Untold Marin Stories and a Disappearing Glacier

Crush

Jun 16, 2026

Matt The Electrician, Untold Marin Stories and a Disappearing Glacier

Santa Rosa
Matt The Electrician

Sure, he may sound like a bud coming over to rewire the breaker box, but Matt The Electrician is one of the hardest working voices in contemporary folk-pop. The Austin-based songwriter returns to his former home of Sonoma County to deliver his signature mix of wit, sincerity and finely crafted storytelling to Art Alley for a benefit concert supporting the Santa Rosa Urban Arts Partnership. Since the late 1990s, Matt Sever has quietly built a devoted following through a steady stream of albums filled with thoughtful observations and melodic warmth. Proceeds from the evening help support murals, workshops and other efforts aimed at keeping public art vibrant, accessible and woven into the fabric of Santa Rosa life. 6–8pm, Friday, June 19, at Art Alley, 312 South A St., Santa Rosa. $35. More information at bit.ly/mte-srua.

Novato

Moments in Marin

History has a way of hiding in plain sight, which is precisely what Marin historian Scott Fletcher explores in his talk, “More Moments in Marin History: Familiar Tales & Untold Stories.” Presented as part of the Novato Historical Guild quarterly meeting, the program draws on Fletcher’s years researching local history, including more than 130 “History Watch” columns for the Marin History Museum. Expect a mix of well-known episodes and lesser-known stories from the county’s past, delivered by someone who has spent decades teaching, cataloging archives and connecting historical dots that most people drive past without noticing. Local history, when done well, reveals that the strange and fascinating rarely happened somewhere else. 10am–noon, Saturday, June 20, at Novato City Hall, 901 Sherman Ave. Free admission. More information at novatohistory.org.

San Rafael
Time and Water

What happens when a disappearing glacier becomes a family story? Academy Award–nominated filmmaker Sara Dosa explores that question in Time and Water, a visually stunning new documentary screening at the Smith Rafael Film Center. The film follows Icelandic writer Andri Snær Magnason as he assembles a cinematic time capsule from family archives, photographs, folklore and memory while confronting the loss of Iceland’s glaciers and the passage of generations. Rather than a conventional climate documentary, the film approaches environmental change through the intimate lens of home, ancestry and what we choose to preserve when the world is transforming around us. Dosa will appear in person for a post-screening conversation, offering audiences a chance to engage directly with one of documentary cinema’s most thoughtful voices. 7pm, Thursday, June 18, at Smith Rafael Film Center, 1118 Fourth St., San Rafael. Tickets required. More information at cafilm.org.

Sebastopol

Songs for the Living

Music and mourning share the stage at Songs for the Living, an intimate songwriter-in-the-round gathering presented by Supernova Support founders Katie Phillips and Karen Joy Brown. The afternoon blends acoustic performances and storytelling with a community ritual honoring loved ones who have passed. Joining the event is Chelsea Coleman of You’re Going to Die, whose work uses music and writing to foster conversations about loss, remembrance and connection. Attendees are encouraged to bring a photograph or memento for a public altar, with a communal grief-release ceremony closing the program. 3–5pm, Sunday, July 26, at Sebastopol Center for the Arts, 282 S. High St. More information at supernovasupport.com.

North Bay’s Next Gen Fathers are Rewriting the Job Description

Weeklys Staff

Jun 16, 2026

North Bay’s Next Gen Fathers are Rewriting the Job Description

Once upon a time, fatherhood came with a fairly straightforward job description: Bring home the paycheck, mow the lawn, occasionally dispense wisdom from behind a newspaper and, under no circumstances, discuss feelings.

Television fathers of the postwar era—from Jim Anderson in Father Knows Best to Ward Cleaver in Leave It to Beaver—were authority figures first and parents second. The generations of dads that have followed, however, have been revising the script.

Baby Boom fathers inherited the breadwinner model but began loosening its strictures as more women entered the workforce and dual-income households became commonplace. Then came divorce. Lots of it. By the time Generation X reached adulthood, many had grown up navigating split households, shared custody arrangements and the realization that fathers could be physically absent yet still emotionally consequential. Perhaps not coincidentally, many Gen X dads vowed to be more present than their own fathers had been.

Which brings us to today. The defining trend in contemporary fatherhood isn’t authority so much as presence. Like actually being there. And preferably not on our phones.

Modern fathers are expected to do all the things previous generations did—earn money, maintain stability and protect their families—but now they’re also expected (and morally obligated) to participate in childcare, help manage households, engage emotionally, understand mental health, attend school functions, schedule pediatric appointments and know which stuffie absolutely must accompany a child to bed, or civilization will collapse.

Fatherhood has rightfully evolved into a panoply of roles, and the North Bay offers a glimpse of where this evolution may be heading.

Between astronomical housing costs, dual-career households, hybrid work schedules and some of the nation’s most progressive family leave policies, our area has become an accidental laboratory for next-generation parenting.

A Marin father may spend the morning on Zoom calls before heading to a school drop off. A Sonoma County dad might be juggling a commute or hosting a playdate while working from home, whilst contributing bon mots to a group text involving six parents attempting to coordinate a birthday party with a logistical sophistication not even the federal government can currently muster.

The details vary, but the expectation remains the same: Show up. Emotionally available fathers—this is their moment. Previous generations often measured paternal success by sacrifice and stoicism. Today’s fathers are increasingly expected to communicate, empathize and model emotional intelligence. They are less likely to view vulnerability as a “sign of weakness”—literally, the most odious phrase a dad can utter—and more likely to regard it as part of the job.

Second is the normalization of co-parenting. Whether married, divorced or somewhere in between, fathers are increasingly expected to remain active participants in their children’s lives. The notion that parenting belongs primarily to mothers continues to lose ground, even if household labor remains unevenly distributed.

Third is the growing recognition that fathers themselves require support. Sonoma County’s Department of Health and Human Services has a webpage dedicated to “Fathers and Partners in Parenting,” with links to paternal resources.

Then there’s the expansion of what fatherhood itself can look like. LGBTQ families, adoptive parents, blended households and co-parenting arrangements have broadened traditional definitions. And now Generation Z is beginning to enter the picture. The oldest members of Gen Z are reaching their mid to late 20s, bringing with them different assumptions about work, gender and family life.

Early evidence suggests Gen Z is delaying marriage and parenthood even longer than Millennials. They are more digitally connected, less attached to rigid gender roles, more likely to see caregiving as a shared responsibility.

For all the cultural progress surrounding modern fatherhood, housing costs, childcare expenses and economic uncertainty may shape the next generation of parenting as much as any social movement ever could. The unanswered question is whether they’ll be able to afford any of it.

Making a Splash: Sally Blum Crafts 50 Wines This Year

Food & Drink

Amber Turpin

Jun 16, 2026

Making a Splash: Sally Blum Crafts 50 Wines This Year

Sally Blum is a winemaker who crafts ultra premium wines for small, family-owned wineries, including McEvoy Ranch and several others, with vineyards in a total of 23 AVAs, from Anderson Valley to the Yakima Valley.

She is also a partner in two brands: Stereograph, produced with her husband, Max Blum, and Abloom, which she produces with winemakers Molly Hill and Ashley Hepworth.

Amber Turpin: How did you get into this work?

Sally Blum: I come from a family of scientists and was headed down that path as a college student majoring in biology, but it didn’t feel right. During a study abroad program in France … I fell in love with wine culture. I found the connection to the seasons, nature and food very inspiring. I changed course and went to graduate school to study winemaking at UC Davis, and I’ve been doing it ever since.

Did you ever have an ‘aha’ moment with a certain beverage? If so, tell us about it.

My “unicorn wine” was a bottle of 1989 Chateau Clinet that was gifted to me by my Uncle Jim, a wine lover and wine mentor to me. When I started grad school at UC Davis, he gave me a case of 1980’s Bordeaux wines. At the time, I had no idea how special these wines were.

I took the bottle of Chateau Clinet to a party at my friend Maya Olds’ winery, Sky Vineyards, and it blew us all away. There were people at the party who knew much more about wine than I did at the time, and they gently explained to me that this wine had received a perfect 100-point score from Robert Parker and was the breakout vintage from Chateau Clinet, the wine that put them on the map as a great producer.

What is your favorite thing to drink at home?

I think wine is like music. If you love it, you want to try a little bit of everything and experience a wide variety of styles… I’ve spent the majority of my career in the Napa Valley, and I think that Napa cabernet is one of the world’s great expressions of terroir. But after a long day blending big red wines, I love a glass of an aromatic white variety.

Where do you like to go out for a drink?

In addition to making wine, I’m a busy mom of teens, and for that reason I don’t get a whole lot of time to go out. But some of my favorite spots include the Rutherford Grill and Compline in Napa, Emporio Rulli in Larkspur, Bird & The Bottle in Santa Rosa and Passatempo Taverna in Walla Walla. My local hangout is Ausiello’s Homeslice in Santa Rosa.

If you were stuck on a desert island, what would you want to be drinking (besides fresh water)?

I think aromatic whites would be the best match for island life, so I’d definitely take plenty of McEvoy Ranch whites and their chillable red.

McEvoy Ranch,5935 Red Hill Rd., Petaluma, 707.778.2307, mcevoyranch.com.

Tempting Theater, Transcendence Brings ‘ain’t too proud’ to North Bay

Harry Duke

Jun 16, 2026

Tempting Theater, Transcendence Brings ‘ain’t too proud’ to North Bay

Transcendence Theatre Company opens their 2026 Broadway Under the Stars series with a high-energy production of ain’t too proud: The Life and Times of The Temptations.

The jukebox musical about the legendary Motown group premiered at Berkeley Rep in 2017 before a successful, Tony-winning Broadway run in 2019. The Transcendence production, directed by Vasthy Mompoint, runs outdoors on the Field of Dreams in Sonoma through June 28.

Playwright Dominique Morriseau (Skeleton Crew) handles the book of the musical and tells the story, warts and all, of how the members of two rival Detroit-based singing groups eventually came together to form one powerhouse act.

Their story is told through the recollections of Otis Williams (Conroe Brooks), the group’s founding (and only surviving) member, who finds music as a means of escape from the mean streets of Detroit. He gathers Eddie Kendricks (Kwame Michael Remy), Paul Williams (Tyrick Wiltez Jones), Melvin Franklin (Topher Yengbeh) and Al Bryant (Tony Meslon), and they declare themselves The Temptations. Soon Bryant is out and David Ruffin (Kyle Parks) is in, and the “Classic Five” era begins with hits from “The Way You Do the Things You Do” to “I Wish It Would Rain.”

Then Ruffin’s ego gets the best of him, and he soon finds himself on the outside looking in at Dennis Edwards (Stanley Martin) replacing him. The hits continued with “I Can’t Get Next to You” and “Papa Was a Rollin’ Stone.” Edwards’ drug use leads to his departure from the group, and on it goes.

Morriseau’s script tries to cover it all. But when you have to tell the life stories of seven-plus men, something’s got to give, and in this case (and somewhat amazingly), it’s the music. You get mostly snippets of The Temptations’ hits with only an occasional fully-produced number. I wanted more.

Thankfully, you’ve got terrific voices at work here and dynamite choreography (by Donald Jones Jr.) well-executed by the entire cast throughout the show. The stage really sparkles (literally) when the sun comes down and the lighting elements are added to the mix.

An added bonus is the acrobatic music direction by Richard Baskin Jr., who leads a terrific 12-piece band. The man is putting on a show of his own, and his joy for the music is infectious.

Succumb to the temptation of an evening of entertaining theater, and check out ain’t too proud.

Transcendence Theatre Company’s ‘ain’t too proud: The Life and Times of The Temptations’ runs Thurs-Sun through June 28 at the Field of Dreams, 151 First St. W., Sonoma. Venue opens at 5pm; show starts at 7pm. $44–$165. 877.424.1414. bestnightever.org.

Life, Story, Song—Mary Gauthier comes to Sebastopol

Dave Gil de Rubio

Jun 9, 2026

Life, Story, Song—Mary Gauthier comes to Sebastopol

For Mary Gauthier, songwriting goes way beyond conveying her thoughts and emotion. It was also a lifeline when she embraced sobriety back in 1990.

In fact, songwriting’s appeal was important enough for Gauthier to swap being an acclaimed chef at a wildly successful Cajun restaurant in Boston’s Back Bay neighborhood for heading to Nashville in her mid-30s to pursue her dream of becoming a professional musician.

Fast forward to the present day, and the 64-year-old singer-songwriter is touring—often with partner Jaimee Harris—including a stop at HopMonk Sebastopol on Saturday, June 17.

This year, she’s not only celebrating the 25-year-plus anniversary of her 1999 sophomore bow, Drag Queens in Limousines, but also giving love to her most recent studio effort, 2022’s Dark Enough to See the Stars. Her love of compositional craft will be on full display when she hits the stage.

“We’re going to be playing songs from all the records I made and telling stories,” Gauthier said in a recent interview. “There’ll be stories between the songs; that’s all part of this troubadour show. There’s no smoke, mirrors or flashy stuff. It’s more heartfelt human stories.”

That musical approach has garnered the southern Louisiana native numerous accolades since she released her 1997 debut, Dixie Kitchen. She was nominated for three Gay and Lesbian American Music Awards (GLAMAs), winning Best New Country Artist and also being named New/Emerging Artist of the Year by the Americana Music Association in 2005. More recently, 2018’s Rifles and Rosary Beads, a project where Gauthier co-wrote songs with U.S. veterans and their families, earned her a 2019 Best Folk Album Grammy nomination.

Heartfelt dedication and expertise are what make Dark Enough to See the Stars such a compelling listen. Recorded in a three-day burst as the world was coming out of the pandemic, these songs are steeped in the inspiration of Gauthier’s evolving relationship with Harris and personal losses. During that time, she was mourning the deaths of numerous personal friends, including John Prine, David Olney, Nanci Griffith and beloved friend and hiking buddy Betsy, all who passed in a short window of time during the Covid lockdown.

“A lot of those songs were written as an odd combo of love songs and songs about grief—they somehow go together,” Gauthier explained. “Maybe love and grief are attached in an inseparable way? I’m not sure, but it seems to work. I lost so many people I cared about in such a short time. It’s still shocking to me that I have a list of 18 people I have on speed dial, and they’re dead in two years’ time.”

She added, “The thing about death is you’re not prepared for it. You don’t think of yourself as old or older. You’re feeling good, life is going along as it always has, and there’s no way you can be emotionally prepared for it.”

Hard times have proven to be fodder for many songs Gauthier has composed. Adopted from a New Orleans orphanage, she spent her teen years surviving an alcoholic father, abusing drugs and alcohol, and navigating the deep South in the late ’60s and ’70s as a gay kid. Music always provided solace, particularly ’70s singer-songwriters like Prine and other artists from the emerging Americana movement, including Griffith, Guy Clark, Townes Van Zandt and Lucinda Williams.

“I’ve always been interested in the singer-songwriter from the South, which is different than country music,” Gauthier explained. “I like Southerners that master language. It’s American roots music in that it’s from that place in the deep South steeped in a lot of pain that I like to call the Americana Triangle—New Orleans to Memphis to Clarksdale, MS. It’s rooted in American-type pain, which almost always has some component of race in it along with a gothic southern sensibility that’s quite Faulkneresque with some Flannery O’Connor thrown in straight away.”

That fealty to the art of musical composition led Gauthier to teach songwriting workshops and eventually publish 2021’s Saved By a Song: The Art and Healing Power of Songwriting, a combination autobiography and songwriting lessons.

“I teach songwriting quite a bit and work with adults in learning the art form,” Gauthier said. “The book is a memoir, but also goes into my understanding and take on songwriting. I’m just unpacking the side of songwriting that is more of an art than a commercial enterprise. The art is intrinsically connected to some kind of healing, some kind of transcendence, some kind of alchemy. Using music and song for healing is a part of my story along with finding out it’s working really well.”

Mary Gauthier performs with Jaimee Harris at 8pm, Wednesday, June 17, at HopMonk Sebastopol, in the Abbey, 230 Petaluma Ave. More info via hopmonk.com.

Sonoma Black Artistry, a Juneteenth Event Fights the Power of Creative Theft

Don R. Lewis

Jun 9, 2026

Sonoma Black Artistry, a Juneteenth Event Fights the Power of Creative Theft

No one in our day-to-day existence seems to particularly want AI in their lives, yet it’s infiltrating at every turn. Politics, the economy, the environment and the job market all seem to be suffering in various degrees at the latest corporate coup design to further deny human beings basic rights.

The same holds true for the entertainment sphere, which is increasingly controlled by corporate interests. They not only seem completely disinterested in the opinions of the majority, but they also seem to be tripling down each and every day on their wanton theft of artists’ voices.

Our artistic community both locally and globally has been sounding the warning bell about this pervasive issue for months. And rather than sit idly by and complain, local artist and luminary Angel “Audio Angel” Clendening has an ambition to do something about it.

On Friday, June 19, Juneteenth, Clendening is presenting “Inside/Out—Sonoma Black Artistry in Progress,” which, put simply, is ”a celebration of organic African-American artistry during a time when the value of human musicians is in high question.”

The all-ages event features rappers PaqGod and D-Square, international electronic artist Eki Shola, singer/ songwriter Erica Ambrin, lyrical explorer King Lung, poetic performer LaiddBackZach and experimental DJ/producer Sick Sentz. The evening starts at 6:30 at Sebastopol’s Laguna Lab, 117 Morris St., and serves as a launching pad for events that will continue via social media projects with audience members, centering on African-American youth, and culminating with a virtual summit during Black History Month in February of 2027.

Speaking by phone, Clendening sounds both inspired and honestly pretty exhausted from the constant attack on her chosen profession of musical artist. Rather than throw her hands up and try to just keep on keeping on, she used her ever-vibrant, “never take no for an answer” attitude to move forward with an event based around the notion of being an African-American artist in Sonoma County.

Hence, the seed for the Inside/Out event was planted through “a discussion between LaiddBackZach and I,” Clendening says. “We originally wanted to do something for Black History Month (in February), and then we were running out of time, and we thought, OK, why don’t we pivot to Juneteenth.”

This seed began to germinate. She explains, “We both have some similar experiences, not exactly the same, of course, being African-American artists in Sonoma County and how we wanted to be part of an event that is really showing how different we are.”

Indeed, for those who have listened to Clendening’s musical project Audio Angel, it’s impossible to not notice the myriad genres she explores throughout the recent EP Snapshot, which was released last fall. House, dance, gospel and rock music all blend seamlessly and, more importantly, naturally, as these are all genres and music she loves.

The conversation veers a bit into authenticity in artists, which in turn was the inspiration for the seven other diverse acts on the Inside/Out bill.

Sonoma County based rapper D. Square hails from Smiths Station, Alabama, and is founder of the local media and production company Decolonized Mindz.

He is known for his socially conscious and activist-driven “propaganda hip-hop.” Locals may have seen him onstage at Santa Rosa’s The Lost Church and Railroad Square Music Festival, and he also organized a hip-hop talent showcase, “Manifest Your Destiny,” alongside local promoter Josh Windmiller in Sebastopol that featured a lineup of hip-hop and R&B artists.

Eki Shola is an award-winning vocalist, composer and multi-instrumentalist (as well as a physician) based in Sonoma County who has just returned home from a May tour throughout Japan.

After being introduced to jazz music at an early age, Shola continued to perform in jazz ensembles even as she entered college as a premed student at Cornell. However, following the devastating passing of her mother, Shola leaned heavily into music as a source of healing. Later, when she and her family lost everything in the 2017 Sonoma County fires, she again found comfort and purpose in music. She now uses her own music as a way to hopefully help connect with and heal listeners.

Erica Ambrin is no stranger to Sonoma County stages and, fitting the theme of Inside/Out, genre comparisons of her music consist of Erykah Badu, The Fugees and Alabama Shakes. Ambrin is currently at work on a new album which comes on the heels of the previously released Suga (2015) and Lucid Dreamer (2018), which was inspired by her time living on Maui. One can also catch her with her jam band, The Eclectic Soul Project.

King Lung is another Santa Rosa based performer whose styles and influences blend underground hip-hop with lyrical poetry. One can get a taste of Lung’s performance at an intriguing hip-hop game show slash improv night called “Whose Rhyme?” on Wednesday, June 11 at the aforementioned Lost Church. Lung will take the stage for a friendly MC competition alongside The Maine Man, Mr. BMMNM!!! and Kayatta in this night hosted by “Dark Matter Lives!” a Sonoma County improvisational hip-hop duo.

Inside/Out event co-founder LaiddBackZach brings his diverse blend of R&B, jazz and hip-hop to the stage with roots in poetry and a love for icons like Tupac, Usher and Michael Jackson. LaiddBackZach leans into introspective hip-hop that tackles deep themes that also feature lively, catchy dance tracks that celebrate love and groove.

PaqGod (akaBlack Beethoven or formerly Khari G) has developed a large following due to his heavy presence on streaming platforms like Spotify and Apple Music. His dedicated following relates to his reflective, introspective writing that is heavily influenced by growing up in the Washington, D.C. area as well as to his current life in Sonoma County, where he promotes and participates often in local live events like the “Sunday Night Spotlight” series in Santa Rosa. His flair for high-quality visual accompaniment onstage is also not to be missed.

Rounding out the event is DJ/producer Sick Sentz, who is based out of Sebastopol. Leaning into his 20-plus years as a producer and performer, Sentz’s styles mix together boom-bap, deep instrumentals and intricate scratching for a unique sound all his own. When he’s not performing, Sentz teaches lyrical workshops for students, focusing on songwriting, verse structure and creative confidence.

Clendening is hoping Inside/Out serves as a kickoff to a yearslong check-in as well as online workshops that will culminate in another showcase during February’s Black History Month in 2027.

Inside/Out—Sonoma Black Artistry in Progress begins at 6:30pm, Friday, June 19, at Sebastopol’s Laguna Lab, 117 Morris St. All ages. Tickets are $13–$25 (attendees can also purchase ‘pay it forward’ tickets to enable those in need of a ticket to attend). For more information, check out audioangelworld.com/insideout.

Opera Returns to Petaluma with ‘La Rondine’

Caitlin Strom-Martin

Jun 9, 2026

Opera Returns to Petaluma with ‘La Rondine’

Mercury Theater’s final show of the 2025-26 season leans heavily into romance, freedom and high drama with a production of Puccini’s operetta, La rondine, stage directed by Elly Lichtenstein with musical direction by Mary Chun.

The show, a co-production with San Francisco’s Pocket Opera, opens in Petaluma on June 12 with Friday evening and Sunday afternoon performances through June 28.

La rondine is the story of beautiful mistress Magda, who risks her sequestered life of lavish Parisian luxury with the wealthy Rambaldo for a chance to be with young and dashing Ruggero. Can true love conquer all? Can Magda overcome the trappings of her gilded cage to realize her true worth?

Another compelling storyline features Lisette, Magda’s spirited maid, who has big dreams of her own. The story follows the two women as they take leaps of faith to seek their highest selves.

Sung in English, this sumptuous tale features plenty of arias, and numerous, high energy dance numbers, including a waltz, a tango and a foxtrot. There’s even a polka.

One doesn’t have to be an opera fanatic to appreciate this production, however. According to Chun, the music isn’t composed of the stereotypical tragedy-driven laments, but full of “a lighter, ironic wit.” The English translation also makes the story much more accessible to average audience members.

Lichtenstein emphasizes that “to watch opera in such an intimate setting, where the performers and story-telling are so accessible and the music is just about sitting in your laps, there’s nothing quite like it.”

This production of La rondine also highlights the art and beauty of the Bellé Epoqué era, which many know as the era of Art Nouveau, with sets designed by Joe Elwick. Lichtenstein explains: “Each act has been inspired by a famous artist of the time: Act One features Gustav Klimt, Tiffany rules the second act, and the third act evokes the (French) Riviera with the great seaside paintings of the time.”

By producing La rondine, Mercury Theater carries forth the 50-year vision of Marvin Klebe, who founded the theater space that currently houses Mercury and who wanted to bring accessible opera shows to Sonoma County.

“Opera remains the linchpin of the intimate building’s theatrical function,” says Lichtenstein. “If you’ve never taken in an opera, or if the Grand Opera stage didn’t do it for you, we do opera for everyone. Even die-hard aficionados love our work, as it brings everything home to you.

”Mercury Theater presents ‘La rondine’ from June 12–28 at 3333 Petaluma Blvd. N., Petaluma. Fri, 7:30pm; Sun, 2pm. $25–$55. 707.658.9019. mercurytheater.org.

Sonoma Sunday Supper Series Explores Stewardship

Weeklys Staff

Jun 9, 2026

Sonoma Sunday Supper Series Explores Stewardship

What does it really mean to steward a place? A new local supper series explores the question through conversation, cuisine and an immersive evening rooted in the land and—in its upcoming iteration—the sea.

The Sonoma Sunday Supper Series is a quarterly program curated by Place Matters in partnership with Asombrosa, a 63-acre estate on the outskirts of Petaluma. Each gathering combines place-based conversation with a Sunday supper prepared by chef Stephane Saint Louis of Bijou Restaurant, beverages from Barber Cellars and, weather permitting, a self-guided tour of the property’s forests, gardens and labyrinth.

The June 28 event, titled “Stewarding Place,” focuses on environmental stewardship and features Bill Sydeman, president and chief scientist of the Farallon Institute, alongside Lily Verdone, executive director of the Marin Agricultural Land Trust.

For Place Matters founder Carin Jacobs, the concept of stewardship offered an opportunity to examine Sonoma County through multiple ecological and cultural lenses at once. While one speaker works in marine science and the other in agricultural land conservation, Jacobs said the overlap between those disciplines felt natural given the interconnectedness of the region’s ecosystems.

“The lens for this event is stewardship, which felt tied to pride of place, to legacy and to future generations,” says Jacobs. “MALT was founded in 1980 and the Farallon Institute in 2007. While each organization has a unique history and addresses a particular ecosystem, they are both part of the larger ecosystem of the North Coast, and it felt inclusive to treat the topic holistically, given the interdependent nature of local environments.”

The series also reflects Jacobs’ belief that people often connect more deeply to environmental concerns through direct experience rather than abstract policy discussions.

“I like to say that any place is an amalgam of its built environment, its natural environment and its people,” notes Jacobs. “It is my hope that this series features all these pillars by bringing humans together in real time to both reflect on history and to become part of it. Audiences should be generative as well as passive, creating new ideas and connections where they didn’t exist before. It is this alchemy of unexpected mashups of people and places that excites me in my work.”

That philosophy extends to the setting itself. Rather than staging a traditional lecture or panel indoors, the event immerses guests in the landscape under discussion.

“It’s hard to feel invested in a place if you’ve never experienced it directly through multiple senses,” Jacobs observes. “We’ve tried to curate an evening that brings together social, environmental and cultural constructs for engagement and fosters both understanding and ownership.”

The speakers themselves also emphasize both urgency and practicality.

As Sydeman observes, “Fortunately, the natural environment of Sonoma County and its associated marine realm is relatively healthy and productive, providing a natural aesthetic as well as goods and services to society. We cannot be complacent, though, as major unanticipated changes can occur rapidly, and cause substantial impacts and damages to our precious sea- and landscapes. Regular monitoring of key land and sea ecosystem components is therefore key to sustainability of our remarkable Sonoma County.”

Verdone likewise frames conservation as a series of individual decisions that collectively shape the future of the region.

“Working landscapes don’t preserve themselves—they stay open because farmers and ranchers choose to keep working them, and because communities decide that land is worth protecting,” says Verdone. “Farmland protection happens one family, one ranch, one decision at a time. The landscapes people love are inseparable from the agriculture that sustains them.”

The Sonoma Sunday Supper Series takes place from 4-8pm, Sunday, June 28. Tickets are $150 per person. For reservations and location information, visit placematters-sonoma.com.

Royal Oakie Revue, Maternal Horrors and Human Rights

Crush

Weeklys Staff

Jun 9, 2026

Point Reyes Station

Royal Oakie Revue

The Old Western Saloon hosts a well-curated strain of indie-roadshow mysticism when the Royal Oakie Summer Tour rolls through Point Reyes Station. Headlined by Northern California songwriter Donald Beaman alongside Bill Baird, and
Dead Nettle, the evening promises a blend of stellar if beautifully off-center American songwriting. The tour, assembled by Royal Oakie Records, leans toward artists who operate just outside the mainstream’s field of vision—exactly the sort of music that tends to sound best in a weathered West Marin roadhouse with a drink in hand. Friday, June 12, at Old Western Saloon, 11201 Hwy. 1, Point Reyes Station. Tickets and showtime information available at royaloakierecords.com.

Corte Madera
Maternal Horrors

Motherhood gets the speculative-horror treatment when novelist Tiffany Tsao visits Book Passage to discuss her unsettling new novel, But Won’t I Miss Me. Blending domestic anxiety, body horror and psychological unease, the book has drawn comparisons to Nightbitch and The Substance for its exploration of identity, sacrifice and the quietly grotesque pressures surrounding modern motherhood. Tsao’s work turns the familiar rituals of parenting into something stranger and more existential, asking what parts of the self are surrendered in the process of caring for others. She’ll appear in conversation with Marthine Satris, associate publisher at Heyday. Literary discomfort, thoughtfully administered. 6pm, Monday, June 15, at Book Passage, 51 Tamal Vista Blvd., Corte Madera. Free admission. More information at bookpassage.com.

Santa Rosa
Human Rights in Action

The Sonoma County Commission on Human Rights launches its inaugural Human Rights Summit & Immigration/Consumer Resource Fair with a full day devoted to civic dialogue, community resources and the complicated work of building a more inclusive county. Held at the Sonoma County Administration Building, the gathering brings together advocates, educators, elected officials and nonprofit leaders for conversations centered on equity, belonging and public accountability. Highlights include a keynote address from internationally recognized human rights advocate Nas Mohamed, a fireside discussion featuring leaders from organizations across Sonoma County and a spoken-word performance by attorney and poet Bernice Espinoza. The event also includes an immigration and consumer resource fair connecting residents directly with local support organizations. Civic engagement with a distinctly Sonoma County flavor: practical, aspirational and deeply local. 10am–4pm, Friday, June 26, at Sonoma County Administration Building, Room 100A, 575 Administration Dr., Santa Rosa. Free admission; advance registration requested. More info at bit.ly/soco-human-rights.

Winning Streak: Roy Ellamar Cooks Up the Graton Casino

Food & Drink

Amber Turpin

Jun 9, 2026

Winning Streak: Roy Ellamar Cooks Up the Graton Casino

On May 4th, Graton Resort & Casino debuted the next phase of its transformative expansion, notably introducing a 28,000-square-foot indoor-outdoor dining space called AYA Rooftop Restaurant. Led by award-winning chef Roy Ellamar and VP of culinary operations Jennifer Murphy-Ellamar, the new venue showcases chef Ellamar’s “local to the max” philosophy and live-fire cooking preferences.

A Hawaii native, chef Ellamar grew up surrounded by farmers and fishers who instilled in him a deep respect for responsibly sourced food. After refining his craft in acclaimed kitchens across Chicago, Los Angeles and Las Vegas, including L’Atelier de Joël Robuchon and Bellagio’s Harvest, he launched the critically praised Fine Company in 2021.

At AYA, he has crafted a modern coastal California menu through the lens of his Hawaiian-Filipino heritage, with daily sourcing from the restaurant’s dedicated 40-acre farm. One may visit for dishes such as shiso Salt-Baked Snapper with ginger-ogo salsa and hot oil or a Calamansi Tart featuring an ancient “dinosaur egg” Filipino sea salt shaved tableside.

Amber Turpin: How did you get into this work?

Roy Ellamar: I was inspired by all the family dinners growing up. There were so many great cooks in my family: my mom, my grandfather, my dad. My uncle was a chef in San Francisco, and I remember him coming back to Hilo in his chef uniform, cooking for us and doing these incredible vegetable carvings. As a child, that really stuck with me. I was very impressionable at that age, and it made me aspire to follow a similar path.

What is your favorite thing to cook (or eat) and why?

I love grilling and smoking; those are my favorite things. I love cooking on fire, and that’s why I designed AYA’s kitchen this way. The first week we opened, on the first night, one of my chefs shared that he wondered what this place was going to smell like … what is the smell of AYA going to be? The smell of AYA is what I love to cook: fire, soy sauce and grilled meats.

What ingredients do you use or eat the most?

My pantry is huge. It covers so many different types of cuisine. I would say Asian ingredients are the ones that I use the most—various types of soy sauce and fermented fish sauces.

What are some of your go-to places to go out for a sit-down meal? What about takeout?

For a sit-down meal, The Matheson in Healdsburg, Central Market in Petaluma and Della Fattoria Downtown Café in Petaluma. For takeout, Kellys Sandwiches and Drinks in Santa Rosa or this Vietnamese place in Rohnert Park called Simmer.

Last meal on Earth?

Anything from my mom. She is an incredible cook and very inspirational in my life and career. AYA Rooftop Restaurant at Graton Resort and Casino,288 Golf Course Dr. W., Rohnert Park, 707.588.7100, graton.com/dining/aya.