Santa Maria Sun / Art

Discover lunacy

BY SHELLY CONE

Discover it. Howl at it. Dance under it. Halloween weekend revelers can bask in the moon’s glory in a variety of creative ways at the Lunacy Music and Arts Festival at Live Oak Campground.

Costumes count: Costumes and theme camps are highly encouraged throughout the event, but a costume contest with a $400 prize makes dressing up not just fun, but potentially profitable. PHOTOS COURTESY OF SYNAPTIC PRODUCTIONS

Whether it’s dancing to some funky beats or seeking inner tranquility, Lunacy revelers can find the perfect place to fit in while coming together as a community.

The philosophy behind the festival is to celebrate as a community the fullness of the moon that has acted as a timekeeper and nocturnal adventure guide to people through the ages. The event attracts artists, thinkers, creators, dissenters, debaters, and movers and shakers to create what organizers call a techno-savvy tapestry of modern humanity.

Satory Palmer of Santa Barbara-based event production company Synaptic Productions said it’s an 18-years-old and older event, but beyond that it’s multi-generational with efforts made to include art and culture that appeals to all ages. Palmer said everything from classical music and ballet groups to electronica and fire spinners will make up the entertainment.

Part music festival and part spiritual education, it’s an event at which attendees can dance, commune, and participate in a variety of workshops about meditation, yoga, writing, drum and dance, aromatherapy and essential oils, connecting with the earth, and somatic awareness.

Creating the universe: Organizers say that even though the location is just 40 acres, it seems like the universe pours out of the community when they get together at the event site.

“It’s a somewhat open-source event where people are encouraged to bring elements they would like to see in an event like this,” Palmer said.

He explained that his company Synaptic Productions co-produced the Lucidity Festival at Live Oak Campground last year, and that event attracted more than 3,000 visitors. They’re taking what they learned from that experience to create something even better with Lunacy.

Large art installations and roaming performing acts will be a part of the event, as will workshops and musical performances.

Performance art includes the likes of Los Angeles-based dance, circus, and performance art troupe the Wandering Marionettes, which melds circus-freak and ghetto couture with hip-hop moves and attitude creating a fusion of dance theater, interactive character play, cabaret, and more. Other acts entertain with a more colorful contrast. Ahni Radvanyi employs circus style and hula-hoops to present an act that includes acrobatics, walkovers, and handstands. She also uses fire hoops, minis, body hoops, and partner hoops in her act.

Palmer said the event strives to build a sense of community while also lifting up the Santa Barbara arts scene.

Play in the moonlight The Lunacy Arts & Music Festival will take place Oct. 26 to 28 at Live Oak Campground. Tickets range from $75 for a day pass to $155 for a three-day camping pass. For more information, visit lunacyfestival.com.

Local band The Rainbow Girls will headline Friday night, and Eoto, which is an electronica side project of members of The String Cheese Incident, will present a fusion of live instruments and electronica. More than 70 music acts will take to the venue’s six stages, representing rock, house, classical, electronic, hip-hop, and progressive jazz. Other headliners include Delhi 2 Dublin, Love in the Circus, Whiskey Piss, Tropo, and Howlin’ Woods. Electronic music headliners include Random Rab, Heyoka, Vibesquad, An-ten-nae, Nastynasty, and Stephan Jacobs. There will also be a costume contest with a $400 prize.

“Even though it’s a 40-acre property, there’s a sense that the whole universe is pouring out of the community that’s there,” Palmer said.

Arts Editor Shelly Cone has discovered if you tilt the community a bit, the universe doesn’t pour out as much. Contact her at scone@santamariasun.com.