General description:

Santa Barbara’s premier cabaret jazz performance dance group, La Boheme Dance, brings verve, passion, color and great dance entertainment wherever we appear.

As Santa Barbara celebrates the 51st year of the Summer Solstice celebration, and La Boheme’s 11th parade performance, expect an ultra-spectacular display of movement, rejoicing and sparkle! 

Join La Boheme to perform in the 2025 Santa Barbara Solstice Parade and Festival. ALL are welcome! NO EXPERIENCE necessary!

La Boheme is always one of the premier entries in the parade, and this year, our 11th-Year, will be no exception. We are creating a fabulous SURPRISE interpretation of the Solstice theme: "Wild World.” Once again, we are excited to have high-energy music from DJ Darla Bea, a spectacular float, and of course, our core group of La Boheme Dancers!

Read this ENTIRE PAGE And find our REGISTRATION and PAYMENT link under “HOW to REGISTER and JOIN LA BOHEME for Solstice 2025”!

See this link to the Santa Barbara Solstice Festival website, for more info about the Solstice Event.

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Meet the La Boheme Solstice 2025 DREAM TEAM -

Director - Teresa Kuskey 

Board of Directors - Karen Lehman, Susie Subject, Judith Smith Meyer, Katie Dee Jensen, and Tricia Schmidt

Solstice Accountant - Mary Stark

Solstice Merch and Apparel - Gretchen Graham

Float Music - Dj Darla Bea

Sound Design - Jeremy Cable, owner of Islay Events

IMPORTANT DATES AND INFO

The Solstice Parade is Saturday, June 21, at noon (but as a performer you will "start" much earlier).

Our first rehearsal is Wednesday, April 30 at 7:30pm at State Street Ballet Academy, 2285 Las Positas Road.

Rehearsals:

May and June 2024 - 2 weekly rehearsals!

Mondays 7 - 8:30pm and Wednesdays 7:30 - 9pm through Parade every week, at State Street Ballet Academy. 

TBA - possible other locations in June at Carrillo Rec Center, and a large outdoor space for parading practice, watch for details

Also, 1 Mandatory Parading rehearsal on Saturday, June 14 - a multi hour rehearsal - time and location TBA - usually starting in the morning and lasting 3-4 hours

ALL rehearsals are MANDATORY. As a performer and dancer, you will be most prepared and confident with consistent attendance at all rehearsals.  We recommend that you not miss more than 2 rehearsals (and plan to attend all rehearsals during the last 2 weeks). However, if you know that you must miss a rehearsal, please speak with one of the board members ASAP.

Registration Costs:

Registration fee includes the Costume Packets, which make up the bulk of your registration fee. We source elaborate and high quality items for your captivating costumes(but not the simple base layer pieces, which you will purchase yourself, more details below). Besides your fabulous costume packets, the Registration package will include all hours of mandatory rehearsals and numerous optional/extra rehearsals (times TBA), and also covers your hydration during the parade, the post-parade La Boheme park picnic, as well as our expenses of studio rentals, float construction, sound equipment, etc.  

Registration does NOT include a few base layer costume pieces, like shoes and bras, or the separate $20 per person Solstice Festival fee. (This goes directly to the Santa Barbara Solstice Festival, and is required for every single parade participant.)

We are offering 2 Payment Options

One Regular Full Price Payment: $575

Payment Plan Option - 2 Payments of $288

(see below for more details on payments, and the payment plan)

This year, we are excited to again offer a “Bring-Your-Friends Discount”: Take $50 off your cost for EVERY NEW DANCER you refer to La Boheme Solstice. They need to have never performed with the group before, and your discount only applies after they have paid their registration fees. Therefore, you must first pay your registration fee, and we will refund you, after your friends have paid in full. If you bring in 7 new dancers, you can get $350 off! Please confirm this with a Board Member to receive your discount. Again, go to a Board Member, not Teresa.

Think of people you’d love to see have the transformative, joy-filled, challenging experience La Boheme Solstice offers and recruit them to join. We love newbies and all of your friends are welcome to join us!!!

We are also excited to offer a NEW Early Bird Registration Discount -Pay in Full by April 1, and receive $25 off your registration fee!!!

Costume considerations:

Costume packets are included in the total cost this year! Teresa and the La Boheme Board work hard to keep these costs as low as possible, while not reducing the quality. Packets are provided at cost and the board puts in hours and miles to shop for costume pieces and prepare packets for all dancers. All dancers are also responsible for creating their costumes, by following our simple sewing/gluing/safety-pinning directions. But don’t let this stop you - La Boheme even makes costume construction FUN. Can we say “costume-making-party???”

BUT - Specified foundation items, such as — bra (cost up to you), shorts ($7-25?), corset ($8-25), shoes (up to you), fishnets (approx $20-25) — need to be purchased separately and will not be included in your costume packet. Way more details will be provided later.

To ensure that costume creation is maximally enjoyable, we’ll be sending out instructions, videos, and having sewing parties as early as possible. 

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Commitment:

To participate as a Dancer with La Boheme, you must register and pay by Wednesday, April 30 (the first class/rehearsal) - no late joiners. ALSO - everyone must be registered and paid before entering for the 1st rehearsal - NO exceptions! To keep the space sacred for our dance group, we do NOT allow anyone to “just try it out” before deciding whether or not to commit.

Dancers are recommended to miss no more than 2 rehearsals, and you must communicate your absences with us at least 24 hours ahead of time to a La Boheme Board Member - Karen, Susie, Judith, Tricia or Katie Dee. Do not communicate this to Teresa.

Dancers must pay and complete paperwork for La Boheme, which includes 1) La Boheme Solstice Registration Form and Contract, and 2) Solstice Parade Registration all DUE BEFORE THE FIRST REHEARSAL - BEFORE YOU WALK IN THE DOOR. No registrations accepted after the first rehearsal on April 30 (see LINKS BELOW for these items)

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HOW to REGISTER/PAY and JOIN LA BOHEME for Solstice 2025

STEP 1 - PAYMENT

PAYMENT OPTION 1 - PAY in Full- All at Once- Regular Full Price package: $575 (includes costume packets this year) - DUE BEFORE THE FIRST REHEARSAL - BEFORE YOU WALK ONTO THE DANCE FLOOR. No registrations accepted after the first rehearsal on April 30 - 

Pay ONLINE at our website Here $575 - all credit card transactions must go through the website

Bring check (payable to “Teresa Kuskey”) or cash to 1st rehearsal, Wednesday April 30

Early Bird Discount of $25 off, if paid in full by April 1, 2025.

PAYMENT OPTION 2 - Payment Plan WITH 2 Payments ($288 each) - LINK FOR PAYMENT PLAN CONTRACT HERE 

1st $288 Payment is due before April 30, 2025

2nd $288 Payment is due by May 28, 2025

anyone utilizing the Payment Plan option will need to complete a contract - LINK above   - 

Bring check (payable to “Teresa Kuskey”) or cash to 1st rehearsal, April 30, and the May 28 rehearsal

Pay ONLINE at our Website Here 

STEP 2 - Registration 

All dancers must complete FULLY READ AND COMPLETE the Registration form each year - LINK HERE

Register to be a part of the once-in-a-lifetime experience! Last day to register and join as a CORE DANCER is April 30.

STEP 3 - ONLINE Solstice Organization Parade Registration Form and $20 Participation Entry Fee - 

This is completely separate from La Boheme’s Registration, and must be completed and paid by every single Solstice parade participant!! On parade day, you will check-in with Solstice Organization and receive a wristband to participate ONLY if you have completed this online registration and $20 payment. It is fast and easy and we actually REQUIRE it to be complete as soon as possible when Solstice makes the registration link available.

There are 2 steps - 1) register 2) pay - the $20 Early Parade registrant form (we are still waiting for them to update the form for 2025)

FYI - the Solstice Organization’s registration asks a number of questions, unfortunately, as they have designed it more for smaller ensembles or for the group leader. Go ahead and leave anything blank that is not mandatory. Just be sure to list the ensemble as “La Boheme Dance”, and Lead Contact as “Teresa Kuskey” - all else can be left blank. We actually prefer you don’t provide details about the float and sound system!

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Sponsorship text:

La Boheme Dance is now a 501(c) 3 nonprofit organization! You can be part of La Boheme’s Summer Solstice Celebration as a sponsor by making a tax-deductible donation. Support dancer work-exchange scholarships, underwrite costumes or our float, or provide essential operating support. 

Donation Link HERE

Your name or logo will grace the LaBoheme website, apparel, and appear on banners at our post-parade celebrations, and more. For more information about sponsoring, reach out to name (? name) at email.

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Don't want to dance or perform in the parade? LA BOHEME IS LOOKING FOR VOLUNTEERS TO HELP ON PARADE DAY!!! Be a part of this fun and fabulous community and event, by joining La Boheme as a Parade-Day Volunteer! There are so many ways to help out! We need people to help distribute water during the parade, and to help push the float, among other jobs! You are guaranteed to have fun!!!! Email us, to find out more!

Any questions left? Email us!!!