What's happening this week in Sebastopol?
Sebastopol Tree Lighting, Graton Tractor Parade, Members Exhibition at SebArts, the Goddess Faire, the museum's Holiday Store, a Doors documentary, and lots of holiday crafts sales
New Class: Irish Music for All Instruments
Six-week class starting Monday, Dec. 1, 5 pm to 6:15 pm. Classes are held at a private home in Sebastopol. Address provided upon signup. $150 – $220.
Discover the hypnotic melodies, pulsing rhythms, and customs of traditional Irish music. Learn tunes by ear and drink tea together. Multi-level class suitable for most instrumentalists. Six-week session: Mondays, Dec. 1, 22, 29 and Jan. 5, 19, 26. Learn more about instructor Suzuki Cady in our recent article, then reserve your spot.
Sebastopol City Council meeting
Tuesday, Dec. 2, 6 pm, at the Sebastopol Youth Annex, 425 Morris St., Sebastopol. Free.
There will be a public hearing for the proposed adoption of the 2025 California Building Code with local amendments and administrative changes. The council will then consider whether to move forward with an EIFD (Enhanced Infrastructure Financing District). There’s also quite a long consent calendar (8 items), which is always good to keep an eye on. See the agenda and documentation here.
Film: The Eternal Song at the Occidental Arts and Ecology Center
Tuesday, Dec. 2, 7 pm to 9:30 pm, at Occidental Arts and Ecology Center, 15290 Coleman Valley Road, Occidental. $23 – $44.
Attend a thought-provoking film screening of The Eternal Song, followed by a Q&A with the filmmakers. The Eternal Song is a cinematic journey through timeless lands and their Indigenous cultures. Voices from around the world and across generations bear witness the deep, ongoing scars of colonization on lands and peoples, and the healing that comes through ancestral wisdom. Doors open at 6:30 pm, and the film begins at 7 pm. There will be a Q&A afterwards with filmmakers Zaya Ralitza Benazzo and Maurizio Benazzo. All tickets for this event are will-call. Seats are first-come, first-served. Get tickets.
Lawyers at the Library
Wednesday, Dec. 3, 5 pm to 7 pm, at the Sebastopol Regional Library, 7140 Bodega Ave., Sebastopol. Free.
Local volunteer attorneys offer free legal information and referrals for general law matters. Consultations will last up to 20 minutes. Sign-ups are first-come, first-served, in person and begin at 4:30 pm (30 minutes before the program begins).
Dining Out for Life
Thursday, Dec. 4, at participating restaurants throughout Sonoma County.
Dining Out for Life is a benefit for Food for Thought, which provides healthy groceries, meals, and loving support to people with serious medical conditions throughout Sonoma County. Help Food for Thought raise $225,000 to provide our neighbors in need with food and love. See participating restaurants.
Sebastopol Tree Lighting Celebration
Thursday, Dec. 4, 5 pm to 8 pm, at the Sebastopol Downtown Plaza, 6908 Weeks Way, Sebastopol. Free.
Come to Sebastopol’s Annual Tree Lighting Celebration, hosted by the Sebastopol Chamber of Commerce. Enjoy performances by the Analy Jazz Band, Sebastopol Ballet, Mr. Music and more. Special appearance by Santa Claus, who will be arriving on a firetruck. Warm up with free hot chocolate, hot cider, popcorn, cookies, and enjoy kids crafts and fun for all ages.
The Doors: When You’re Strange
Thursday, Dec. 4, 7 pm, and Saturday, Dec. 6, 1 pm, at Rialto Cinemas, 6868 McKinley St., Sebastopol. $16.50
The chemistry of four artists made The Doors one of America’s most influential rock bands. With rare footage from their formation in 1965 to Jim Morrison’s death in 1971, “When You’re Strange” follows the band through their career, providing insight into the revolutionary impact of their music. Directed by Tom DiCillo, this Grammy-Award-winning film is narrated by Johnny Depp. On the occasion of the band’s 60th anniversary, the film will be presented in cinemas in 4K for the first time ever and feature a newly recorded performance of “Riders on the Storm,” featuring John Densmore, Robby Krieger, and special guests performing the song in exotic locations around the world. Get tickets.
Holiday Store at the Depot
Friday, Dec. 5, to Monday, Dec. 8, 10 am to 3 pm, at the West County Museum, 261 Main St., Sebastopol. Free.
Mark your December calendar for the opening of the West County Museum’s Holiday Store. With a generous donation of holiday inventory from The Legacy, the Holiday Store opens at the West County Museum this year for the first time. Shop for beautiful, gently used holiday decorations and enjoy refreshments, music and surprises all around the historic museum and boxcar. See our article on this event.
First Fridays at Chimera Arts
Friday, Dec. 5, 5 pm to 8 pm, at Chimera Arts Space, 6791 Sebastopol Ave., Sebastopol. Free.
Celebrate the season at Chimera Arts’ First Friday Holiday Market. Browse handmade work from local artisans, enjoy music by guitarist Joe Szuecs, and partake in good food, beer and wine. Enjoy the artwork by local painter, John Paul Marcelo. Enter our raffle for a chance to win artful prizes. Come support your creative community, connect with friends, and find unique gifts.
David Luning at Hopmonk
Friday and Saturday, Dec. 5 and Dec. 6, 8 pm, at Hopmonk Tavern, 230 Petaluma Ave., Sebastopol. $36-$60.
Beloved local troubadour and Americana artist David Luning is back at Hopmonk this Friday and Saturday with his deep musical explorations of the human condition. Acoustic on Friday, full band on Saturday. Get tickets.
Bijoux 16th Annual Holiday Sale and Open House
Saturday, Dec. 6, 10 am to 5 pm, 583 Harrison St., Sebastopol. Free.
Don’t miss local artists and designers as they set up shop in Sebastopol for this annual event. Arts and fine crafts include jewelry, dolls, ceramics, sculpture, candles, literary arts, mixed media, handcrafted art cards, felted creatures, ornaments, and oddities. Thoughtfully curated and memorable treasures for gift giving.
29th Annual Goddess Crafts Faire
Saturday and Sunday, Dec. 6-7, 11 am to 7 pm, at the Sebastopol Community Cultural Center, 390 Morris St., Sebastopol. Sliding scale $7-20.
To honor the arrival of winter, come to the 29th annual Goddess Crafts Faire.
This cherished community event features local artists, handcrafted goods, live music, dance, and delicious food—all in celebration of the female spirit. All ages are welcome and kids are free. Learn more.
Holiday Show at the Weaving Studio
Saturday, Dec. 6, 11 am to 4 pm, at The Weaving Studio, 343 Florence Ave., Sebastopol. Free.
A holiday sale of handwoven clothing and home decor, pottery, jewelry in a cozy setting on Sebastopol’s “sculpture street.”
Oyster Mushroom Cultivation 101
Saturday, Dec. 6, 10 am and 1:30 pm, Emmanuel Farmstead, 1406 Barlow Lane, Sebastopol. $85 for adults, $35 for ages 8-14.
Learn to grow restaurant-quality oyster mushrooms in your own kitchen—no yard or green thumb required. In this 2.5-hour workshop, you’ll build a complete growing system that produces fresh mushrooms in about 3 weeks. Learn about live mushroom cultures at different growth stages so you understand the full process. Then you build your own one-gallon system using pasteurized straw and mushroom spawn—learning the technique that works, what healthy growth looks like, and how to spot problems before they happen. Reserve your spot.
Met Opera Live in HD 25-26 Season: The Magic Flute
Saturday, Dec. 6, 11 am, at Rialto Cinemas, 6868 McKinley St., Sebastopol. $20.
The Met’s first-ever Live in HD transmission—the abridged, English-language version of Mozart’s The Magic Flute—returns to cinemas this holiday season. Tony Award–winner Julie Taymor conjures a spellbinding staging, replete with a kaleidoscope of color and parades of puppetry in this delightful production from 2006, featuring a stellar cast of Met stars including tenor Matthew Polenzani, baritone Nathan Gunn, and bass René Pape. Get tickets.
Scenes from The Nutcracker (For young children)
Saturday, Dec. 6, 11 am to 12 pm, at the Sebastopol Regional Library, 7140 Bodega Ave., Sebastopol. Free.
The Sebastopol Ballet Company presents scenes from their upcoming performance of The Nutcracker along with a reading of the book by our local librarian. Children will be able to participate in a dance-along with the ballerinas after the performance! Perfect for children ages 2-5.
Holiday Lights & Tractor Parade
Saturday, Dec. 6, 4 pm to 7 pm, at Graton Town Square, 9155 Graton Road, Graton. Free.
Celebrate the season as Graton transforms into a glowing village of light, music and joy for the second year in a row. It’s an evening of festive fun — complete with a tractor parade, cookie exchange, live music by the Hubbub Club, wreath-making, local food vendors and a tree lighting under the twinkling holiday lights.
Green Valley Farm + Mill Benefit Concert
Saturday, Dec. 6, 6 pm to 10 pm, at Green Valley Farm & Mill, 13024 Green Valley Road, Sebastopol. Free.
Attend a fantastic evening at the Green Valley Farm + Mill Benefit Show, featuring live performances from Sonoma County’s own Daniel Steinbock and Gillian Grogan and the East Bay’s Deep Thicket Dwellers. Come be entranced, have a dance, and treat yourself to something special in our silent auction. All proceeds will go towards supporting Green Valley Farm & Mill’s collective land project, a local hub for regenerative agriculture, education and community gathering. Don’t miss out on this opportunity to have fun while making a positive impact. Get tickets.
SebArts Holiday Art & Makers Market
Sunday, Dec. 7, 11 am to 4 pm, at the Sebastopol Center for the Arts, 282 South High St., Sebastopol. Free.
Come to Sebastopol Center for the Arts’ Holiday Art & Makers Market, where 35 vendors will be offering jewelry, ceramics, fine art, cards, glass, stickers, fiber arts and more. Shop local, give handcrafted, and support local artists and makers.
Zero Waste Holiday Giftaway
Sunday, Dec. 7, 12 pm to 3 pm, at the Sebastopol Grange, 6000 Sebastopol Ave., Sebastopol.
A fun, ecological way to get new-to-you household items and clothing and give away quality reusable household goods. This is a volunteer-driven event—adults and teens 16+ must help for 30+ minutes or donate $10 to $30 each to attend. Volunteers, please sign up below for one or more shifts. Young people under 16 are free and are encouraged to help. It is fun; volunteers often find great items while helping out. No one will be turned away due to lack of funds, but you will be asked to help out. Large, heavy, toxic or dirty items will be turned away. Click to sign up or find more information.
Django Reinhardt Jam
Sunday, Dec. 7, 2 pm to 4 pm, at the Sebastopol Regional Library, 7140 Bodega Ave., Sebastopol. Free.
This loose-knit group of musicians gathers monthly to play and share the style of swing music made famous by Django Reinhardt. This delightful music is not often played on commercial media but has stayed alive by being played in small groups, both in performance and informal jams. This jam is open to acoustic instrumentalists and best suited for those with moderate to high proficiency on their instrument. Most tunes are selected from the 2008 Django Fakebook, available for free on the internet in .pdf format. Listeners and newcomers are welcome.
Sebastopol Center for the Arts Annual Member Exhibition
Opening reception: Sunday, Dec. 7, 2 pm to 4 pm, at Sebastopol Center for the Arts, 282 High St., Sebastopol.
The annual SebArts Members Show runs from December 6 to Jan. 4, with an opening reception this Sunday. The exhibit and reception are open to the whole community, but only SebArts members can submit artwork for the show. The deadline to submit artwork is today, Monday, Dec. 1. There is a $25 registration fee to submit artwork to the show. Learn more.
Sebastopol Community SingAlong: The Traditional Carols of Christmas
Sunday, Dec. 7, 3 pm to 4 pm, at Sebastopol Methodist Church, 500 North Main St.,
Sebastopol. $10 donation.
Get an early start on the holidays at this community sing-along of the traditional Christmas carols, led by Nancy Berger and accompanied by Andy Darrow on piano and 100-year-old pipe organ. Lyrics and sheet music provided. Free, open to all, family-friendly.
Food Pantry Benefit Concert with BenjaSoul Mertz, Melanie DeMore and the Joyful Noise Gospel Singers
Sunday, Dec. 7, 4 pm to 5:30 pm, Community Church of Sebastopol, 1000 Gravenstein Hwy. N., Sebastopol. $20 donation.
You are invited to the annual benefit concert for the Inter-Church Food Pantry, with Melanie DeMore and Benja Mertz in conjunction with Joyful Noise Gospel Choir. These two powerhouse singers-musicians-composers will inspire and uplift with their rich voices and dynamic presence. Joyful Noise Gospel Singers will join in a few songs, and you, the audience, will as well. Joyful Noise and the Community Church of Sebastopol will cover all costs for performers and venue, so that 100% of your donation will go to the Food Pantry. Last year, this event raised $5,000. Food for the soul and food for the community. Suggested donation $20 (cash, check, Venmo) at the door. This will fill up so be sure to get there early.
Farther Afield
Christmas Ball
Saturday, Dec. 6 from 7 to 9 p.m. at Monroe Hall, 1400 West College Ave., Santa Rosa. $10 at the door.
For 40 years, Sebastopol’s Old World Carolers have presented the diverse choral music of Christmas drawn from various European cultures and eras. In tailcoats and ball gowns, they return again this year with a dress-up ball, featuring waltzes commemorating the 200th birthday of composer Johann Strauss.
Plus the two big choral events of the holiday season…
Get ready for the sing-along Handel’s Messiah in Sebastopol
Conductor John Maas returns for his 31st year with his open singalong of Handel’s “Messiah.”
Practice sessions: TODAY, Monday, Dec. 1, and Monday, Dec. 8, 7:50 pm to 8:30 pm, in the Little Red Hen dining room at the Sebastopol Center for the Arts, 282 South High St., Sebastopol. Enter from the patio on the north side of the building (the side closest to Bodega Avenue). You don’t have to come to the practice sessions to participate in the public performance. They’re optional.
Public performance: Saturday, Dec. 13, 1 pm, at the United Methodist Church, 500 North Main St., at High School Road, opposite Safeway. Sheet music provided. This choral event will be accompanied by a string quartet with Rob Powell, Margaret Thornton, Ellen Watson, and Tom Fatttaruso, and Todd Higgins on trumpet. Vocal leaders are Melina Moreaux, soprano; Sadie Sonntag, alto; Greg Hoff, tenor; and Benjamin Mertz, bass. $10-$20 donation at the door.
Occidental Community Choir Concerts: Light in the Darkness
This December marks the 47th year of the Occidental Community Choir. Every spring and winter season, this local treasure performs an eclectic mix of locally composed music, classical and contemporary choral pieces, poetry, and spoken word. Members live in Sebastopol, Santa Rosa, Graton, Forestville…not just Occidental.
They are performing their winter concert, Light in the Darkness, this week and next week at the following locations:
IN OCCIDENTAL: Friday, Dec. 5, 7 pm, Saturday, Dec. 6 at 3 pm, and Sunday, Dec. 7 at 3 pm at Occidental Center for the Arts, 3850 Doris Murphy Ct, Occidental
IN TOMALES: Friday, Dec. 12, 7 pm, The Tomales Town Hall, 27150 Main St, Tomales.
IN SANTA ROSA: Saturday, Dec. 13, 7 pm, and Sunday, Dec. 14, 3 pm at The Glaser Center, 547 Mendocino Ave, Santa Rosa.
Want us to feature your event in “What’s happening this week in Sebastopol?” Submit your events to the Sebastopol Community Calendar. This is one of the many resources I use to put this column together. Submitting your event to the community calendar doesn’t guarantee that your event will make it into “What’s Happening this Week,” but it means that I will see it and consider it.