The La Jolla Light presents this continuing listing of local in-person events and online activities.
Lectures & learning
• The La Jolla Community Center hosts a series of presentations by movie expert Lori Homes about “Musicals Through the Decades” on Thursdays at 6811 La Jolla Blvd. as part of the Peer Learning Collaborative. The movies are viewed outside of class and discussed in class from 3 to 4 p.m. The remaining schedule is: Jan. 22, “West Side Story,” and Jan. 29, “The Greatest Showman.” ljcommunitycenter.org/plc
• La Jolla Historical Society historian Carol Olten highlights two early local poets, Rose Hartwick Thorpe and Ellen Mills, by reading selections of their odes to the natural world at 2 p.m. Sunday, Jan. 25, at Wisteria Cottage, 780 Prospect St. Free. lajollahistory.org
• The La Jolla Community Center hosts a Lunch & Learn event with Michael Ortman from Care Placement discussing independent living, assisted living and memory care from noon to 1:30 p.m. Wednesday, Jan. 28, at 6811 La Jolla Blvd. Lunch is included. Free, though registration is required. ljcommunitycenter.org/specialevents
• Dr. Eric Topol, a cardiologist, founder and director of the Scripps Research Translational Institute in La Jolla and author of “Super Agers,” will speak about brain health during a dinner event presented by the U.S. BrainTrust of the UsAgainstAlzheimer’s Women’s Leadership Council beginning at 5:30 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 29, at Alexandria at Torrey Pines, 10996 Torreyana Road. A second presentation guided by journalist Meryl Comer will feature Emma Heming Willis, wife of actor Bruce Willis, and Mary Lou Falcone as they discuss dementia from a caregiver’s perspective. $500. action.usagainstalzheimers.org/a/be_brain_powerful_dinner2026
• Ron Davidson presents a series of lectures on Buddhism from 3 to 4 p.m. Thursdays, Feb. 5, 12 and 19, at the La Jolla Community Center, 6811 La Jolla Blvd., as part of the Peer Learning Collaborative. The schedule is: Feb. 5, “Who was Buddha?”; Feb. 12, “Dharma: What is the Message of Buddha?”; and Feb. 19, “What is the Buddhist Community?” The series is free for Community Center members, $35 for non-members. Registration is required. ljcommunitycenter.org/plc
• The Sierra Club Seal Society San Diego presents a talk about La Jolla’s seals and a walk to view them beginning at 1 p.m. Saturdays, Feb. 7, 21 and 28, and Sunday, Feb. 15, at Mangelsen Images of Nature Gallery, 7916 Girard Ave. Free. (858) 551-9553
Art & film
• The Athenaeum Music & Arts Library presents its 2026 art exhibition schedule beginning Friday, Jan. 23, at 1008 Wall St., La Jolla. The schedule is: “Dar(r)en Bader,” opening reception from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. Jan. 23 and continuing through Saturday, April 25, pairing artists Daren and Darren Bader; Coralys Carter and May-ling Martinez, opening reception from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. Friday, May 1, and continuing through Saturday, July 25; 34th annual Juried Exhibition, opening reception from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. Friday, July 31, and continuing through Saturday, Oct. 10; and Sylvia Fernandez, opening reception from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. Friday, Oct. 16, and continuing through Saturday, Jan. 2, 2027. ljathenaeum.org/upcoming-exhibitions
• The 36th annual San Diego International Jewish Film Festival is scheduled for Saturday, Jan. 24, through Wednesday, Feb. 4, in the Garfield Theatre at the Lawrence Family Jewish Community Center, 4126 Executive Drive, La Jolla. The festival will include more than 30 feature films and a juried selection of short films through Joyce’s Short Film Series. Film critic Leonard Maltin will speak at 7 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 1 ($36-$62). 36thsdijffmid.eventive.org
• “Double Bill: The Art of Manny Farber and Patricia Patterson” runs through Sunday, Feb. 1, at the La Jolla Historical Society’s Wisteria Cottage gallery, 780 Prospect St. It features paintings, sketches, photographs and excerpts from never-before-seen interviews. Free. lajollahistory.org/current-and-upcoming
Manny Farber’s 1985 work “From the Mid-Eighties” is part of the exhibit “Manny Farber: An Up Beat Title” at Quint Gallery in La Jolla. (Quint Gallery)
In addition, “Manny Farber: An Up Beat Title” continues through Saturday, Feb. 7, at Quint Gallery, 7655 Girard Ave., La Jolla. The exhibition includes a selection of Farber’s largest tabletop paintings created between 1985 and his final year of work in 2007. Free. quintgallery.com/exhibitions/261-manny-farber-an-up-beat-title
To accompany the exhibits, artist Kurosh Yahyai will lead a painting workshop from 10 a.m. to noon Sunday, Jan. 25, at Wisteria Cottage to explore how Farber and Patterson approached painting. Participants will work with a variety of tools and examine material choices and processes. $40 for Historical Society members, $50 for non-members. Register at lajollahistory.org.
• The Museum of Contemporary Art San Diego presents works that will be featured in the museum’s Art Auction in an exhibition from Thursday, Feb. 5, to Sunday, March 8, at 700 Prospect St., La Jolla. About 60 pieces will be on display, including paintings, sculptures and works on paper. The Art Auction will be Friday, March 6. mcasd.org/exhibitions/2026-art-auction
• The art exhibit “Color It Contemporary” runs through Friday, Feb. 27, at the La Jolla/Riford Library, 7555 Draper Ave. The show features the work of Grant Pecoff, Mona Ray, Sally Samins and Kelly Villasenor. Free. 858-552-1657
• “A Decade of Pop Prints and Multiples, 1962 to 1972: The Frank Mitzel Collection” runs through Sunday, March 15, at the Museum of Contemporary Art San Diego, 700 Prospect St., La Jolla. The exhibit marks the public debut of Mitzel’s gift to the museum of more than 60 pop art prints he collected over three decades. It includes works by Peter Blake, Richard Hamilton, Gerald Laing, Joe Tilson and more. mcasd.org
Music & dance
• Pianists Lucas and Arthur Jussen play music by Mozart, Schumann, Widmann, Debussy and Rachmaninoff at 7:30 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 22, at the Baker-Baum Concert Hall, 7600 Fay Ave., La Jolla. Sold out, but a waiting list is available. theconrad.org/events/lucas-and-arthur-jussen
• Musical ensemble Camarada presents “Creativity & Madness” at 7:30 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 24, at the Baker-Baum Concert Hall, 7600 Fay Ave., La Jolla. The narrated concert will include music by Marais, Haydn, Bach, Paganini, Telemann, Nathan Daughtrey, Juan Serano and Jordan Kuspa. $28-$98. theconrad.org/events/25-26-camarada_creativity
• The La Jolla Music Society presents a free “Music 101” lecture series from 2 to 3 p.m. the last Tuesday of each month through May (except for the third Tuesday of March) starting Jan. 27 in The JAI at the Conrad Prebys Performing Arts Center, 7600 Fay Ave. Michael Gerdes, director of orchestras at San Diego State University, will lead the lectures. The schedule is: Jan. 27, “We’re All in the Mood for a Melody: Polyphony Through the Ages”; Feb. 24, “We’re All in This Together: The Reign of Homophony”; March 17, “The Long and Winding Road: Music Takes Form”; April 28, “Purple Rain: Color as the Joy of Listening”; and May 26, “Go Your Own Way: After Sonata Form.” Register at theconrad.org/events.
Paul Cornish will bring his jazz trio to the Athenaeum Music & Arts Library in La Jolla on Wednesday, Jan. 28. (Athenaeum Music & Arts Library)
• The Athenaeum Music & Arts Library presents its Athenaeum Jazz Winter Series with concerts in the Joan & Irwin Jacobs Music Room, 1008 Wall St., La Jolla. The remaining schedule is: 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, Jan. 28, Paul Cornish Trio; 6 and 8:30 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 14, Anat Cohen, with Quartetinho; 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, March 18, Tord Gustavsen Trio; 7:30 p.m. Monday, March 23, Immanuel Wilkins Quartet. $247 for the series for Athenaeum members, $273 for non-members; $53 per individual concert for members, $58 for non-members. 858-454-5872. ljathenaeum.org/jazz
• La Jolla-based Bodhi Tree Concerts presents “Pancho Rabbit and the Coyote,” a bilingual Spanish/English chamber opera composed by Pulitzer Prize-winning UC San Diego music professor Anthony Davis, at 7 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 31, at Casa de la Cultura in Tijuana. The production is based on the book of the same name by Mexican American author and illustrator Duncan Tonatiuh. panchorabbit.org/tickets
• The La Jolla Symphony & Chorus presents “Breaking Boundaries” at 7:30 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 31, and 2 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 1, at the Mandeville Auditorium at UC San Diego, 9390 Mandeville Lane. The concert will feature music by Frank Zappa, Adam Schoenberg, Hannah Wolkowitz, Ferruccio Busoni and Jean Sibelius. $22-$48.50. ljsc.org/breaking-boundaries
Pianist Alfredo Rodriguez and percussionist Pedrito Martinez will perform Sunday, Feb. 1, at The JAI in La Jolla. (La Jolla Music Society)
• The La Jolla Music Society presents pianist Alfredo Rodriguez and percussionist Pedrito Martinez at 5 and 7:30 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 1, at The JAI at the Conrad Prebys Performing Arts Center, 7600 Fay Ave. $86-$90. theconrad.org/events/martinez-rodriguez
• San Diego Baroque presents its 2025-26 Bach’s Lunch Concert Series at 12:30 p.m. the first Wednesday of each month, except January, through May 6 at St. James by-the-Sea Episcopal Church, 743 Prospect St., La Jolla. Upcoming performances are: Feb. 4, Handel and Scarlatti vocal works; March 4, French baroque; April 1, Vivaldi Stabat Mater; May 6, works based on Shakespeare and Cervantes. Free. sdbaroque.com
• Vibraphonist Joel Ross joins other musicians in presenting “Good Vibes” at 5:30 and 8 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 5, at The JAI at the Conrad Prebys Performing Arts Center, 7600 Fay Ave., La Jolla. $55-$62. theconrad.org/events/joel-ross
• Le Salon de Musiques presents “Embark on the Volga with Trio Azura,” a concert of chamber music featuring works by Rachmaninoff, Arensky and Bortkiewitcz at 4 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 8, at the La Jolla Woman’s Club, 7791 Draper Ave. The performance will be introduced by musicologist Adam Gilbert and followed by an audience Q&A with the musicians and a high tea buffet with French champagne. $69-$120. lesalondemusiques.com
• UC San Diego music professor Steven Schick has organized a series of public concerts on campus highlighting what he considers the most important threads of his tenure at the La Jolla university. The remaining schedule is: “The Chou Commission,” featuring graduate students Jiyoung Ko and Myles Ortiz-Green and works by associate professor Wilfrido Terrazas and Mexican composer Gabriela Ortiz, 7 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 18, Conrad Prebys Music Center Experimental Theater, 9410 Russell Lane; “The Solo Percussion Music of Roger Reynolds,” 7 p.m. Wednesday, May 6, Conrad Prebys Music Center Experimental Theater; The Arcades Festival, Sunday, May 17, time to be announced, Conrad Prebys Music Center; “Sonic Explorations,” 7 p.m. Wednesday, May 27, Conrad Prebys Music Center Experimental Theater. music-web.ucsd.edu/concerts
Books
• Author Sasha Abramsky discusses his book “American Carnage” at 7:30 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 29, at Warwick’sbookstore, 7812 Girard Ave., La Jolla. Free, or $17.95 for a reserved seat and book copy. warwicks.com/event/abramsky-2026
Lily King will discuss her book “Heart the Lover” on Monday, Feb. 2, at Warwick’s bookstore in La Jolla. (Warwick’s)
• Warwick’s bookstore presents author Lily King discussing her book “Heart the Lover” in conversation with Laura McNeal at 7:30 p.m. Monday, Feb. 2, at 7812 Girard Ave., La Jolla. Reserved seating is full, though open seating and standing room will be available first-come, first-served. warwicks.com/event/king-2026
• The La Jolla/Riford Library hosts author Caitlin Rother as she discusses her book “Hooked: A Thriller” at 6 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 3, in the Community Room at 7555 Draper Ave. Free. Register at sandiego.librarymarket.com/event/hooked.
• Author Lovell Holder discusses his book “The Book of Luke” in conversation with Sash Bischoff at 7:30 p.m.Wednesday, Feb. 4, at Warwick’s bookstore, 7812 Girard Ave., La Jolla. Free, or $30 for a reserved seat and book copy. warwicks.com/event/holder-2026
• Author Kate Robson discusses her book “Something to Hold Onto” in conversation with Rachel McMillan at 4 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 5, online in an event presented by Warwick’s bookstore in La Jolla. Free. warwicks.com/event/robson-2026
Galas & events
• The La Jolla/Riford Library hosts “Remember Us the Holocaust,” or “RUTH,” an exhibit that features stories of Holocaust survivors living in San Diego County and artifacts from the Holocaust and World War II, through June 28 at 7555 Draper Ave. Free. bit.ly/49TLiDr
Do you have an event — online or in person — that you’d like to see here? Email your leads to Rob Vardon at robert.vardon@lajollalight.com by noon Friday for publication in the following week’s edition. ♦