With awe-inspiring sets, dozens of performers, and a wall paneled with 12 24-inch HDTVs, Teens Sing for Santa Barbara will be a show to remember. Determined to help the community recover after the Thomas Fire and mudslide, area teenagers created, produced, and will star in the all-around extravaganza. Kiara Lin, a 15-year-old Santa Barbara High School student, had the idea for the benefit concert after she was turned away from volunteering for search-and-rescue efforts following the devastating mudslides. Steadfast in her desire to help, she contacted her friends Tali Ratcliffe, 16, and Jackson Gillies, 18, to put together what has become Teens Sing for Santa Barbara.
The event is a celebration of life, bringing the spirit of healing to Santa Barbara County, said Teens Sing producer Gillies. After joining the effort, Gillies, who won the title of Teen Star in 2016, promptly applied for and received the Dreier Family Rent Subsidy Fund. Using the donated monies and his industry connections formed through Teen Star, Gillies booked The Marjorie Luke Theatre for the event. The concert will feature Girls Rock S.B. vocalists, Santa Barbara Performance Tribe and Elevated Dreams aerialists, Momentum Dance Company, Lila Woodard from Le Petit Cirque, singer Dakota Lotus, Daniel Geiger (Teen Star 2018 winner), Hunter Hawkins (Teen Star 2016 and 2017 finalist), Sophia Cordero (Teen Dance Star 2017 winner), and Sofia Schuster (Teen Star 2018 alternate finalist). Also on the bill is Lauren Cantin, the 14-year-old mudslide survivor who was rescued from beneath the mud that destroyed her home and took the lives of family members. Music legend Kenny Loggins and Bill Champlin will also perform.
Gillies recently spoke with the Santa Barbara Independent about the origin of the event and the community support it has already garnered.