San Francisco Archives — Page 55 of 517 — San Francisco Bay Guardian Archive 1966

Parents under pressure

Michael Redmond

November 19, 2013

In recent weeks, the San Francisco Unified School District held a series of community forums to ask parents what they think kids need in order to thrive in school. The meetings were held as part of a policymaking process leading up to next year’s renewal of two important funds — the Children’s Fund and the Public Education Enrichment Fund, which account for some $100 million in funding combined.

There were huge turnouts — a Chinatown forum, where Mayor Ed Lee was reportedly in attendance, attracted more than 180 participants, while a Nov. 14 meeting at Cesar Chavez Elementary in the Mission District drew a crowd of between 80 and 90.

The parents weren’t exactly asking for more museum field trips for their kids. During breakout sessions where facilitators wrote group members’ concerns on flip pads, a few recurring themes emerged. “Job security for parents,” one read. “Affordable housing,” another stated. “It’s a shame to have to talk about lack of funds given wealth and corporations in SF,” more parent feedback stated.

Maria Su, director of the San Francisco Department of Children, Youth and their Families, thanked parents for coming and told them, “We know how hard it is and how challenging it is to survive in the city. But that doesn’t mean we should give up.”

The whole exercise provided a glimpse into just how tough it is for families to get by in a city where a hefty cost of living amounts to serious pressure. “The sacrifices they make is, their children will have access to resources you can’t get anywhere else,” said Mario Paz with the Good Samaritan Family Resource Center, who works with a lot of Latino immigrant families.

A report digesting the findings of stakeholder focus groups boiled it down. “Many participants commented on … the extraordinarily high cost of living in San Francisco,” it noted, which “contributes to both financial and emotional strain on the part of our many working class and lower income residents.”

New hope for arts nonprofits

Michael Redmond

November 19, 2013

A few months ago, arts nonprofits CounterPULSE and The Luggage Store faced an uncertain future. New tech neighbors drove their rents sky high, and the groups that for years were venues for struggling artists found themselves struggling.

“Twitter moved in literally behind our building,” said Jessica Robinson Love, executive director of CounterPULSE. Faced with higher rents, they started preparing for a move to Oakland.

But now a nonprofit with resources to match tech is on a mission to help displaced arts organizations find permanent homes.

In a packed press conference just outside The Luggage Store on Market Street, the foundation-funded Community Arts Stabilization Trust announced Wednesday that it would purchase two properties for the longstanding Mid-Market nonprofits. Risky renters no longer, both nonprofits will soon own their own buildings, shielded from the ebbs and flows of rent surges.

Flanked by Mayor Ed Lee and Sup. Jane Kim, CAST said The Luggage Store will stay on Market and Sixth streets, while CounterPULSE will move five blocks away into an old porn theater on Turk Street. The two arts nonprofits have been in San Francisco since the early 1990s.

“Yes, rents are rising because of our success,” Lee said to the crowd. “But this will be a city for the 100 percent.”

The city contributed just over $300,000 toward helping the nonprofits find a new home, a small fraction compared to the $5 million committed by the Kenneth Rainin Foundation. The new nonprofit then bought the properties, a new strategy of pooling funds to save arts organizations.

“The bottom line is, nonprofits can’t compete on a commercial real estate market,” Love said. While the move bought them some breathing room, the reprieve is temporary.

CounterPULSE must raise millions of dollars to pay CAST for the property, which it hopes to do before moving into the space in 2015, Love told us. The amount isn’t exact yet because it’s still applying for a number of grants that could mitigate the costs.

The long wait before moving is due to the need for renovation at the Turk Street site. Formerly the Gayety theater and Dollhouse, the site was littered with broken glass and piles of trash and remains in disrepair.

The Guardian took a tour of the site with Love, and she saw through the crumbling plaster to what could be. Leading us downstairs, she showed us where performers would practice. On the top floor, she envisioned a space where visiting artists could stay for the duration of their exhibits. “It’s magic,” she said.

CounterPULSE already has agreements with SROs to perform for tenants, and street art is a part of the package, too. They’re a progressive arts group, she said, “from food justice to prison reform, from housing advocacy to rental rights.” She views the arts as a way to bring together community, by giving them a safe place to be at night, and a reason to celebrate.

Eviction epidemic spurs legislative solutions

Michael Redmond

November 19, 2013

Tenants, organizers and residents impacted by Ellis Act evictions packed the Board of Supervisors Chambers at San Francisco City Hall Nov. 14 for a hearing on eviction and displacement in San Francisco. As more and more residents face ousters only to be priced out, lawmakers and advocates are floating legislative fixes to try and reverse the trend before it reaches the soaring levels of the displacement epidemic that impacted the city during the first dot-com boom.

“It seems to me that we have a tale of two cities,” Sup. David Campos, who requested the hearing, said at the start of the discussion, held at the Board of Supervisors’ Neighborhood Services and Safety Committee. “We must act urgently to address this crisis, which I believe is a crisis,” he added. “We are fighting, I think, for the soul of San Francisco.”

Fred Brousseau of the San Francisco Budget and Legislative Analyst’s office shared his recent analysis on eviction and displacement trends across the city.

Overall evictions in San Francisco rose from 1,242 to 1,716 over the past three years, he said, reflecting an increase of 38.2 percent. Ellis Act evictions rose by 169.8 percent in that same time frame.

Almost 42 percent of individuals impacted by eviction had some form of disability, Brousseau noted, while 49 percent had incomes at or below the federal poverty level. On the whole, a total of nearly 43 percent of San Francisco households are “rent-burdened,” a term that officially means devoting more than 30 percent of household income toward rent, the study found.

Ted Gullicksen of the San Francisco Tenants Union emphasized that tenant buyouts, frequently offered in lieu of an eviction, are also driving displacement, although those transactions aren’t reflected in city records. “There are about three of them for every Ellis Act eviction,” he said. “When you consider them in combination with Ellis, the numbers are very dramatic.”

Throughout the afternoon, tenants shared their stories and fears about getting frozen out of San Francisco by eviction. “I’m looking at shopping carts, and I’m terrified,” one woman told supervisors during public comment. “You have to do something. It might not be enough for me right now, but you can’t do this to any more people.”

Campos is working with Assembly Member Tom Ammiano on a proposal to grant San Francisco the authority to place a moratorium on Ellis Act evictions. He’s also pursuing legislation that would create a mechanism at the San Francisco Rent Board to allow tenants to register formal complaints about landlord harassment and other kinds of pressure.

“I am eager to introduce a bill in January,” Ammiano noted. “One option might be a law that will allow the local jurisdictions, like San Francisco, to suspend the Ellis Act or establish a moratorium, because of the emergency housing situation. Another possibility is working to make sure that landlords are not skirting Ellis eviction requirements by improperly pressuring tenants to leave. We must do something, but we have to work together to make it successful.”

Meanwhile, Mayor Ed Lee recently announced that he is working with Sen. Mark Leno on legislation to curb Ellis Act evictions by requiring additional permits or hearings before they proceed. They’re also contemplating floating more stringent regulations on the sale and resale of properties where tenants have been evicted under Ellis.

At the end of the day, it’s clear that housing advocates are gaining momentum as the spike in tenant ousters continues in pricey San Francisco, where rents are the highest in the nation.

The Presidio Strikes Back

Michael Redmond

November 19, 2013

joe@sfbg.com

On the coast of San Francisco’s national park, the Presidio, a battle is underway that may define what this unique place is really about.

Is the Presidio a historically significant natural area with a heritage worth celebrating and protecting? Or is the Presidio just the last great piece of undeveloped land in San Francisco, with the added benefit of being outside the jurisdiction of city regulators and taxes? Maybe it’s both.

The embattled parcel that could illuminate those questions is a 15-minute walk east from the Golden Gate Bridge, just off the beach of Crissy Field, which now houses Sports Basement. Once a slab of concrete and now a bustling waterfront teeming with bicyclists and joggers, it seems almost too beautiful and prosperous a place for a sporting goods store to be housed.

That may be why, a year ago, the powerful people who preside over the Presidio asked for a bevy of museum proposals to replace Sports Basement and its building.

For months, three teams with multi-million-dollar museum proposals hotly competed to rent the soon-to-be vacant property: an institute devoted to sustainability, an interactive science museum based around Presidio history, and a museum housing the extensive art collection of filmmaker George Lucas, the wealthy creator of the Star Wars empire.

Decisions made behind closed doors will seal the deal in the next few weeks and the winning pitch may shape the future of the Presidio. And like the Highlander, there can be only one. At least, that was the original thought.

Ultimately the decision won’t rest in the hands of the mayor, the Board of Supervisors, or any other elected official. For better or for worse, decision-making in the Presidio is entrusted to a seven-person “trust,” mostly appointed by the president of the United States: the Presidio Trust.

“I think, at times, you think that we all know what we’re doing,” Presidio Trust President Nancy Bechtle, appointed by President George W. Bush in 2008, told a crowd of hundreds at an Oct. 24 public meeting about the museum decision. “I don’t think that any of us have made up our minds on anything yet.”

But if recent reports from the San Francisco Chronicle are to be believed, the Trust is pushing to please everyone and disappoint no one. Citing anonymous sources, longtime media bromance Matier and Ross reported last week that the Presidio Trust was leaning towards Lucas’ museum proposal while feeling out alternative sites for the remaining projects.

Presidio Trust spokesperson Dana Polk admitted they were putting out feelers. “We don’t have specific sites identified, we’re just speaking to the teams to see if they are willing to consider other options,” she told the Guardian.

For a stretch of land that has moved slowly to bring in new development, each one a laborious and controversial process, the idea of allowing a trilogy of museums could have blockbuster implications for the Presidio and its tony surrounding neighborhoods.

As many advocates from different sides of the debate have said, any major development there could make the Presidio that much denser: bringing more cars, more tourists, and more San Franciscans to the remote northwestern corner of the city that many residents seem to ignore.

More than 400,000 annual visitors would flock to Crissy Field under any of the existing plans, while multiple proposals could more than double that. The two lead proposals, Lucas’ art museum and the Presidio Exchange, tell a tale of two Presidios. One is an interactive museum that celebrates the history of the natural setting of the park around it, and the other celebrates the digital history of the surrounding Bay Area.

It’s techies versus naturalists.

There are six criteria the Presidio Trust laid out for the projects, but only two of those divide the projects sharply: firstly, is it economically viable, and secondly does the project complement the Presidio as it is today?

Which proposal defines the Presidio’s present depends on how you see its past.

EMPIRE OF ART

Palo Alto of 1878 was as driven by technology as it is today. There and then, a young Eadweard Muybridge lined up a series of photo cameras with strings tied to their shutters along a racetrack, all to settle a bet. Do all of a racing horse’s hooves leave the ground as it runs?

The horse’s galloping legs pulled each string one by one, inadvertently making the world’s first series of sequential photographs (and yes, the hooves all left the ground). Out of technological advancement, cinema was born.

There’s a reason Lucas’ Presidio-based Lucasfilm studio houses a statue of Muybridge reaching to the sky. The man who pioneered Star Wars is really the man who pioneered the golden age of cinematic special effects, and he modeled his career after techno-artists like Muybridge. The heart of his proposed museum embodies that work.

Technology shapes art, Lucas believes, and film technology was birthed in the Bay Area.

“When I moved here in 1969 right out of college, I stayed here, I built my business here, I never made a film in Hollywood,” Lucas said at a public meeting on the mid-Crissy Field site, pitching his museum idea to the Presidio Trust and to the crowd. “I’m proud of being a San Franciscan.”

At 95,000 square feet, the Lucas Cultural Arts Museum is a love poem to the history of technological art. Statues of Star Wars and other cinematic characters line the walls in mock-ups. Promotional videos for the museum show kids staring excitedly at laptops and levitating X-Wings, the spacecraft of Jedi hero Luke Skywalker, with the push of a button.

In his videos and speeches about the museum, Lucas touts the Bay Area as a hub of cinema, promising his museum would draw Pixar and LucasFilm luminaries to teach and inspire the next generation of filmmakers. The museum has hands-on digital workshops cooked into the design of the building.

“This is our chance to show young people what cinematic design is,” Lucas said. He’s shown that dedication through his nonprofit, Edutopia, bringing digital lesson plans into public school classrooms.

But as much as Lucas values the technology of cinema he also values pop art, and Star Wars is the ultimate pop adventure fantasy.

Lucas said that storytelling art, “derisively called illustration,” never gets a fair shake in museums. Now is the time, and the main event in his museum would celebrate an artist made famous by Christmas cards and Boys’ Life Magazine.

The Star Wars director’s collection of Norman Rockwell paintings is widely known in the art world, touring the US and the Smithsonian American Art Museum. As with all art that appeals to the masses, ex-San Francisco Mayor Willie Brown loves it.

“Lucas has what amounts to a museum of Hollywood, mixed with the kind of art you don’t need a curator to explain,” Brown wrote in a July edition in his Chronicle column, Willie’s World. “Think the Empire meets Middle America.”

Willie Brown isn’t the only luminary to back the Lucas proposal. At each public meeting and in every public letter written to the Trust, an empire of rich folks and techies sang songs of praise for the Lucas Cultural Arts Museum.

Mayor Ed Lee, tech venture capitalist Ron Conway, Pixar film director John Lasseter, Saleforce.com CEO Marc Benioff, Twitter co-founder Biz Stone, MC Hammer, and Tim Ritchie, president of San Jose’s The Tech Museum of Innovation, all actively support the Lucas proposal.

The morals and mores of tech are all over the letter that Conway, the godfather of Silicon Valley, wrote to the Presidio Trust: “As you know, I have a passion for making and keeping San Francisco at the forefront of innovation. Certainly, there is no greater innovator around than George Lucas. His businesses have transformed the tech sector, specifically digital technology. San Francisco deserves this museum. It demands it.”

Though monied interests backed Lucas, it isn’t like he needs their cash. He pledged to personally finance the creation and operations of his museum.

The Star Wars franchise grossed more than $33 billion for Lucas, according to a study by Wired magazine. Lucas also owned Industrial Light and Magic, a pioneer in the special effects industry with a hand in everything from Back to the Future to the newest Harry Potter and Iron Man flicks. Now Star Wars and his special effects studios are owned by Disney, a deal penned just last year.

Some of that work came out of their studio in the Presidio, where the studio Lucas created pays $5.8 million annually in rent. The Letterman Digital Arts Center is one of two locations of ILM, and it’s an embodiment of Lucas’ plan for the area.

It’s a manicured campus, to be sure. A man-made creek runs down its center towards a serene pond, much lovelier than the swamps of Dagobah that Yoda called home. The white buildings with red shingled roofs confuse visitors into thinking they were erected by peoples long ago. And that’s the point, Lucas spokesperson David Perry told the Guardian.

“It looks like something that could’ve been built at the turn of the century,” he said.

Inside the Lucas museum is an homage to the tech history of the Bay Area, but the architecture’s Mission Revival style is an homage to the birth of San Francisco itself.

A LONG TIME AGO

Long before the rise of the hipsters, the first peoples to chill out in our foggy peninsula were the Ohlone tribes, dating back to the year 700. But the first who built what we know as San Francisco were Spanish soldiers driven by the fires of religion and conquest.

Lt. Col. Juan Bautista de Anza settled two areas when he first came to San Francisco in 1776: Mission Dolores and today’s Presidio. He argued with his superiors long and hard for settling the Presidio. They thought the fog and cold too harsh and inhospitable for colonization. How little things have changed.

Since the Ohlone were displaced or enslaved, the Presidio has long housed the military, segueing from the Spanish to the United States military, where it became an important installation during World War II.

Massive gun batteries sprouted on the hills of the Marin Headlands across the bay and in the Presidio, keeping a watchful eye to sea and airborne invaders from the west. Some of the barracks that housed the soldiers still stand today.

As recently as the ’90s, a lone cannon fired there every day as the flag was lowered, signaling the Marina and Richmond districts that evening was on its way. In 1994, the cannons were silent.

After the military ended its occupation of the Presidio, its fate remained uncertain. In what news reports at the time characterized as a Republican swipe against Rep. Nancy Pelosi, in 1996 Congress deemed that now San Francisco’s national park should be self-sustaining. Thus a novel quasi private-public institution was born: the Presidio Trust.

The Trust was mandated with making the Presidio a self-supporting entity, earning money with rents and development, and it has now finally achieved the goal of covering its own operating costs with no help from the federal government. It’s the only national park with a profit motive, and that changes the calculus of what’s built.

The Presidio is an entity in San Francisco, but not of San Francisco, in financial and political terms. Guardian investigations from Lucas’ first move to the Presidio catalogued an estimated $60 million in savings he achieved by not paying local San Francisco taxes. The new museum site may benefit from the same deal.

The Presidio of today is taking halting baby steps towards commerce. The main post houses a high school, a YMCA, and the Disney Museum. The cannon rests unused adjacent to a bowling alley.

The Presidio houses 3,000 residents, according to federal data, and 3,000 workers come in from the surrounding Bay Area to work. Since 1996, the area has transformed. But beyond just making money, the Presidio Trust is also tasked with maintaining its parkland and curating its past, and it’s that past that the other museum proposals celebrate.

The Presidio Exchange museum proposal focuses on the Presidio itself, its history and future.

OF AND FOR THE PRESIDIO

First off, this is not a rebels versus the empire tale. The Golden Gate National Parks Conservancy — a nonprofit affiliated with the Golden Gate National Parks Recreation Area — is at the helm of the Presidio Exchange site. Even though it isn’t George Lucas, its not a ragtag band of outliers either.

The Parks Conservancy built and currently maintains visitor attractions all over San Francisco’s national parkland, from the Warming Hut at Fort Point to Alcatraz. It has raised more than $300 million to support these projects since 1981, all in the name of curating its slice of important Bay Area history.

Its Presidio Exchange (PX) proposal is about about celebrating the area’s natural history. In physical terms, the PX architecturally embodies its name: A great big X. Each wing houses a different focus on Presidio’s natural world and history through interactive workshops, taking exhibit cues from local favorites like the Exploratorium.

One end houses “park place,” where arts will intersect with the environment. A great example that exists now is Spire, a construct of trees that forms a sculpted point near the Presidio’s Arguello gate. Another wing houses a demonstration kitchen, where food grown on-site will be fricasseed and fried in the name of education.

If the home and workplace are first and second spaces for people to live, the Parks Conservancy touts the PX as a “third space,” with a living room area built-in to look out on the water of the bay.

Stepping upstairs is a two-story spiral of differently angled screens, allowing visitors to choose their history lesson based on sightline — Ohlone or Spanish colonialists, or to ditch humanity altogether and learn about the ecosystem.

A third museum proposal, called the Sustainability Institute, has gained little political traction, but also follows the PX ideal of celebrating natural settings of the Presidio. That proposal describes it as “a place to explore the critical social, economic, and environmental issues of our time.”

More than celebrate history though, the PX also has spaces for visiting artists to perform in its “world stage.” Renderings of dancers litter its website. “It’s progressive and, most of all, inclusive,” said Janice Berger, a Parks Conservancy board member, in a promotion for the PX.

Nature aside, what the Parks Conservancy also does well is drum up support. At a public forum on the museum proposals on Oct. 24, a portion of the over 35,000 annual parks volunteers and networks that shaped the Golden Gate National Parks were united against the force that is George Lucas.

WHO IS IT FOR?

Those used to the public meetings of the Board of Supervisors would be in for a rude awakening at the Presidio Trust as the atmosphere was jovial and friendly, at least within the museum proposal fiefdoms. The meeting to discuss the mid-Crissy field site was divided into discernible camps: Tanned and weathered naturalists, upper crust folks with pocket squares in their coats, Presidio neighbors, and a handful of Lucas employees.

The windows of the former military cafeteria looked out onto the Golden Gate Bridge, and with the foghorn as musical accompaniment the commenters pleaded for their preferred Presidio project.

“Relatively speaking, the Lucas building is unrelated to the site,” former Presidio Trustee Amy Meyer said at the microphone, addressing the current board and the audience. The crowd thumped and cheered as she spoke.

Danya Sherman, who works in community engagement at Friends of the Highline in New York City, said the PX was like a sister-project with that train-track-turned-museum, with many of the same local benefits.

“Our plans were opposed by the mayor at the time, including much of the business community and others,” she said. “But after a tidal wave of community support, the High Line now is one of the top three most visited sites in New York. And its economic impact is estimated to be over $2 billion.”

“How do we get complete engagement?” asked Charles Jennings, questioning the Lucas proposal’s ability to do so. “Not just next door to the Presidio, but in the entire city?”

Ray Holland of the Planning Association of the Richmond said a coalition of neighborhood groups also thought the PX was the right way to go.

“They’re going to be some very tough [decisions] because all three of them are very solid proposals,” he said. “It’s our feeling that only one of them actually meets all of the criteria in your solicitations for those proposals, and that’s the Presidio Exchange.”

Becky Evans, local chair of the Sierra Club, lampooned the Lucas plan for not tying into the local natural area. Choosing the PX, she said would let the Trust “leave a legacy of something with monumental status.”

Over 30 speakers touted the benefits of the PX, but there were just a handful of Lucas supporters in tow that night, most of them his employees. Only two supporters for the sustainability institute spoke. Letters flew into the Trust as well, posted for the public to see.

As a general rule, parks and surrounding neighborhood groups sent letters of support for the PX, and tech groups and monied interests (like the San Francisco Chamber of Commerce) wrote in favor of the Lucas Cultural Arts Center.

At the end of the night, Presidio Trust President Bechtle told the Guardian that there were so many good reasons for each of the proposals she was flummoxed. She mimed her head bursting, hands flying outward.

As this issue goes to print, she and the board planned to meet privately to discuss interviews they conducted with project heads over the past two weeks. Perry, the Lucas project spokesperson, said Lucas made his case for over an hour to the board.

“This was about answering some of the individual board members’questions,” he said. Of the critique of not fitting with the natural setting like the PX, “I think it’s safe to say there’s not much in the Presidio now that was there in the beginning — including the eucalyptus trees.”

But other questions might provide a clue as to who’ll win the contract.

The Trust asked about compromise in the construction by scaling back the building to make it fit more harmoniously into the surrounding area. “Was there room for give and take in compromise?” Perry said Lucas was asked. “The answer was yes.”

Does that mean it’s in the bag?

With the serenity of a Jedi, Perry answered simply: “I can’t say.”

Throughout, all admitted the decision is difficult. Should the site be used as a beautiful backdrop for one man’s art collection to be enjoyed by all, or an inclusive science museum dedicated to the history and natural setting of the Presidio?

In just a few weeks we may see what the Presidio Trust’s vision is for the northwest corner of San Francisco.

Albany Bulb squatters lose in court and turn to direct action to resist evictions

Sasha Cuttler

November 19, 2013

Albany Bulb squatters lose in court and turn to direct action to resist evictions

Yesterday marked a big day for Albany Bulb residents. The Bulb, a closed landfill turned homeless encampment, has been under the threat of eviction by the Albany City Council for the last month.

After an afternoon in a San Francisco courtroom, Judge Charles Breyer of the US District Court for the Northern District of California denied a stay away order filed by the residents’ attorneys seeking to prevent an imminent eviction by the City of Albany. Later that day, after an Alban City Council meeting, residents and activists marched to the Bulb and set up a permanent occupation in protest of the impending eviction.

The stay away order was filed last week in order to prevent eviction during the winter. Osha Neumann, one of the residents’ attorneys and a longtime artist whose work is represented at the Bulb, said that it was unusually cruel to make the residents, some with severe disabilities and mental health issues, move off the Bulb without any homeless shelters or temporary housing available in Albany.

“They haven’t said what is the urgency or need to do it in the middle of winter,” Neumann said of the city, “It’s nonsense.”

Albany Housing Advocates was also a plaintiff, along with 10 of the Bulb residents in the lawsuit. Julie Winklestein, the president of the AHA was in the court audience, said she hoped that the stay away order would be given: “We decided for a temporary restraining order to keep the conversation going.”

And while that conversation was put to a halt, another has started.

According to a press release issued by area activists and Bulb residents sent early this morning, “activists say they will be participating in trainings, hosting workshops, and planning more actions targeting the City of Albany, as well as the Sierra Club and Citizens for East Shore Parks, recreationalist organizations that are sponsoring the eviction.”

Based on information obtained in court documents, $570,000 was allocated to remove the Bulb residents, based on an Albany City Council decision made on October 21, with $171,000 spent on the cleanup of the campsites and the remainder spent on two portable trailers with bunk beds to serve as transitional housing for six months.

Many of the campers, such as six-year resident Amber Lynn Whitson, believe that the transitional housing isn’t responsive enough for disabled people, as they believe it would not be open during the day.

“It’s ridiculous that they say they don’t know of any specific disabilities,” said Whitson about the city’s attempt provide transitional housing.

“If I’m not back there, I’m on the streets,” Kris Sullivan, an 18-month Bulb resident said about the encampment. “We’re safe back there.”

After Prop 30, What’s Next? Reform Prop 13.

Michael Redmond

November 19, 2013

By Matt Haney

Proposition 30 was a big deal: It raised over $6 billion a year by increasing taxes on the wealthy, balanced the state budget, and allowed our K-12 and higher education systems to put an end to mass layoffs, exploding class sizes, and ballooning tuition.

But one year later, it’s about time we ask ourselves: What’s next?

Even after Prop 30, the under funding of education and essential services remains, with California still near the bottom nationally in K-12 per pupil funding. Prop 30 was a step forward, but we all knew that we ultimately would have to take on the “Godzilla” of California tax policy: Proposition 13.

Since its passage in 1978, Prop 13 has decimated public education and essential services in our state. Per pupil support in California plummeted from top 10 in the nation to bottom 10, and the tax burden shifted away from businesses and onto individuals. As state investments in services and education went down, poverty went up.

California voters originally passed Prop 13 mainly to protect homeowners. But due to loopholes in the law that prevent regular reassessment of commercial property, large commercial property owners are getting a multi-billion dollar public subsidy. Many commercial property owners are paying taxes at rates that are nearly unchanged from decades ago. Chevron alone is under-taxed by a billion dollars!

Reforming the commercial property tax loophole in Prop 13 could bring in over $7 billion dollars annually, most of which would go directly to education. Despite new funding from Prop 30, our schools desperately need greater investments if we are going to provide a 21st century education for all of our children.

Prop 13 has long been viewed as the “third rail” of California politics. Talk about reforming it, and risk your political career. Yet recent polls show an openness from Californians to reform Prop 13 to ensure more regular value reassessment of commercial property. Demographic change, voter education and registration, and the victory of Prop 30, have shifted the political landscape.

The San Francisco School Board recently joined dozens of School Boards, City Councils, and Board of Supervisors across the state in calling for the reform of Prop 13 through a statewide ballot initiative in 2016 or sooner. The strategy, led by organizations like Evolve California and California Calls, is to ramp up the pressure from the ground up. Cities, schools, and communities are the canaries in the mine. We have experienced Prop 13’s carnage firsthand, and we cannot be silent.

Just as we did with Prop 30, Californians deserve a choice: fully fund education and essential services, or maintain a broken and inequitable tax system. We can’t have both. Next time the stakes will be even higher, so it’s critical that we start preparing for this fight now. Let’s get to work.

Developing divisions

Michael Redmond

November 19, 2013

steve@sfbg.com

With the clink of champagne glasses, kudos to the development team and its community partners, and the cutting of a red ribbon, the new housing development at 38 Dolores St. had its grand opening celebration on Nov. 14, a couple weeks after the Whole Foods on its ground floor opened its doors to Market Street.

In many ways, 38 Dolores is pretty typical of the new housing opening in this part of town these days. It took seven years to complete the project, “on time and under budget in a way this community can be proud of,” developer Dan Safier of The Prado Group told the assembled crowd.

That process included countless meetings with various community groups, who successfully pushed for progressive features that include some key pedestrian safety improvements and limiting the number of parking spaces to just one spot for every two units.

“It was an amazing example of a developer working closely with the various neighborhood associations,” area Sup. Scott Wiener told the well-dressed crowd at the event, a sentiment also voiced by his predecessor, Bevan Dufty, who said, “They’ve been the gold star as far as listening to people.”

But not everyone agrees with that praise. Peter Cohen, a housing activist who also works for the San Francisco Council of Community Housing Organizations, said Safier broke longtime assurances that he would satisfy his affordable housing obligations by building below-market-rate (BMR) units on site, rather than just paying an “in-lieu” fee to the city, two options under Inclusionary Housing Ordinance.

“They basically did a bait and switch. It was a real bullshit move,” Cohen told the Guardian, noting how desperate the city is for more affordable housing now. “The bottom line is they promised to do affordable housing on site and they didn’t do it.”

“There are so many nuances to how affordable housing works,” Safier told us, vaguely explaining why he couldn’t do on-site BMR units, including the demands of project funders. He worked with the city on doing a land dedication for off-site affordable housing, but the Mayor’s Office of Housing was resistant, and it would have required a change in city codes to do in this part of town.

“They wanted to develop faster than we had to capacity to develop,” MOH Director Olson Lee told the Guardian, explaining that his office was dealing with transitioning affordable housing projects under the old Redevelopment Agency and it didn’t have the capacity to help Safier build the BMR units now. Instead, it accepted a check for about $5 million.

“We felt there should be more options for developers,” Safier said. “But the reality is the city needs the fees.”

Yes, over the long haul, the city does need those fees to build more BMR units, which require big public subsidies to build in San Francisco. But those will take many years and much effort to build. Lee said the $37 million now in the city’s Affordable Housing Trust Fund will eventually translate into 185 BMR units.

“That’s why we want the units on site,” Cohen said, “because the clearest path is to build the damn units in your building.”

By time the party started at 38 Dolores, 40 of its 81 units had already been rented, and the developers expected even more to be rented out by the end of the party, after attendees had toured the open units sipping free champagne or cocktails.

“If you’ve brought your checkbook, you can even rent a unit,” Safier told the crowd.

Prices ranged from $2,950 per month for one of a half-dozen 505-square-foot studio apartments to $4,395 for the two-bedroom, two-bath, 1,099-square-foot units that the event was really pushing up to $8,100 for a few three-bedroom apartments with the balcony and killer views on the seventh floor.

Compare those rents to San Francisco’s median rent of nearly $1,500, the highest in the nation, according to a recent US Census report, which also noted that occupants in 38 percent of rental units in the city pay more than 35 percent of their income on rent. And then you get a pretty good idea how San Francisco is changing.

FLOOD OF HOUSING

Thousands of newly constructed housing units are now coming online in San Francisco, spurred by the city’s hot housing market, pent-up demand and capital following the 2008 financial crisis, and approval of city plans that regulate development by neighborhood, such as the Market and Octavia Neighborhood Plan, which has unleashed a flood of development along mid- and upper-Market Street.

The good news is apartments are finally being built in a city where nearly two-thirds of residents rent — even in projects like 38 Dolores that are permitted as condos — but the bad news is that they’re really expensive and the city isn’t building anywhere near enough affordable units to address demand by current residents. And most developers are opting to “fee out” rather than build BMR units, meaning it will take several years to address this growing economic imbalance.

The trend in what’s being built in San Francisco and what those units are going for only increases the pressure on tenants in rent-controlled apartments, who are now being displaced at rates not seen since the last dot-com bubble, both through evictions and buy-outs. Contrary to the supply-and-demand arguments made by pro-development cheerleaders, there’s no evidence that the housing supply now being built is doing anything to help most San Franciscans.

“Trickle down theory is going to fuck San Francisco, it’s not going to help it,” Cohen said.

San Francisco’s Housing Element, a study of housing needs mandated by state law to ensure that cities are addressing their affordable housing obligations, called for the city to build 31,193 housing units from 2007-2014. Partially as a result of the 2008 financial meltdown, San Francisco fell far short of that goal, with just 11,130 units getting permitted, most of those market-rate units.

But that was enough to meet 60.6 percent of the projected need for serving those earning 120 percent of area median income and above, whereas the city entitled just 360 units for moderate income San Franciscans — 5.3 percent of the projected need — and 3,313 units for low-income (80 percent of AMI and below), or 27.3 percent of the need.

So it isn’t that San Francisco is facing a “housing crisis,” as Housing Action Coalition and others often proclaim, it’s that the city is facing an affordable housing crisis driven by not building enough below-market-rate housing and allowing real estate speculators to cannibalize the city’s rent-controlled housing.

Even though voters last year approved Prop. C, creating the Affordable Housing Trust Fund to address the real crisis, it won’t generate nearly enough money to meet the long-term need. And in the short-term, it actually reduced the number of on-site BMR units that developers must build, from 15 percent to 12 percent.

“The reason for changing the inclusionary to 12 percent was to incentivize the on-site,” MOH’s Lee told us, although he admitted that it had limited success so far.

BATTLING FOR BMR

That’s not to say there aren’t any BMR units going up.

The Mayor’s Office says there are 6,168 housing units now under construction in the city, and 1,182 of those are affordable housing. Most of those are in projects that were required to do so because they got a gift of public land, including Lennar Urban’s housing development at Hunters Point Shipyard and the housing development that’s part of the Transbay Terminal rebuild in SoMa, where the Block 6 project starting next year that will have 70 BMR units out of 479 total.

“The city got that state land and as a requirement of law, it has a high affordable housing requirement,” MOH’s Lee told us. “Transbay is a great example of how we’re encouraging the affordable and market rate to go hand-in-hand, because they really do go hand-in-hand.”

Other developers were encouraged by the change in Prop. C, including the massive, 754-unit NEMA apartment complex on Market Street next to the Twitter headquarters, which opted to do the 12 percent BMR on-site rather than 17 percent off-site or the pay of an in-lieu fees that roughly equivalent to 20 percent. Trinity Housing’s huge project at 1167 Market will also have 232 BMR units out of 1,900 units total.

“Getting on-site inclusionary has lots of benefits,” Lee said. “One, we aren’t doing it. Two, it gets done faster. And three, we get a better mix around the city.”

While Wiener told us “we need all sorts of different housing,” he also said that “we need to do more to have on-site affordable units.”

But Cohen said the city isn’t doing nearly enough to encourage affordable housing construction, particularly giving how much market-rate housing is being built, which is gentrifying the city and hurting its diversity. He says MOH should increase the in-lieu fees, which are based on construction costs and not what the red-hot market is actually paying for units right now.

“The opportunity cost is far higher to do the unit on site,” Cohen said. “The fee is too cheap.”

So for now, Cohen works with neighborhood associations and groups such as the AIDS Housing Alliance and the Milk Club to put pressure on developers to do on-site affordable housing, as they’ve recently been doing to the Texas-based Greystar, which is proposing a 90-unit housing project at on Market at Sanchez.

Activists have pushed and pushed, and they finally felt like they got a commitment from Greystar at the Nov. 11 meeting of the Duboce Triangle Neighbors Association, which is spearheading the effort. But when the Guardian asked the company detailed questions about the issue and its commitment, we got back this vague statement from Randy Ackerman, Senior Director of Development: “We recently met with Duboce Triangle Neighbors Association and had a good discussion, where we received a lot of helpful feedback on the BMR units and the overall project. We plan to incorporate their feedback as we finalize our plans with city staff.”

Cohen said that’s typical of developers these days. “This is the economic reality, is it’s a place to make a lot of money off of real estate,” Cohen said. “They can very easily play the community like a fiddle, so I’m hoping I can help the Upper Market community beat Greystar.”

Safier said he doesn’t think it’s fair or helpful to demonize developers. “I’m not one of those evil developers,” Safier said, who criticizes the rich-vs.-poor political dynamics in the city. “I don’t think that tug and pull of this city is very productive.”

But Cohen said activists need to be vigilant to protect the character of the city in the face of growing profit motives. “It’s 24/7 and it just wears people down, and we have to have wins along the way,” Cohen said, noting the importance of defeating the 8 Washington project in the last election. “We have to be very loud about how difficult it is to maintain this city’s diversity.”

Alerts: November 20 – 26, 2013

Michael Redmond

November 19, 2013

WEDNESDAY 20

Photographic journey through modern-day slavery The Commonwealth Club, 595 Market, SF. 5:30-7pm, $20. Photographer Lisa Kristine will share photographs from her travels to over a hundred countries on six different continents. The photographs document the daily lives of some of the millions of people who live in slavery around the world today. Kristine’s presentation will be preceded by a reception where attendees can connect with one another. The reception will be followed by a book signing.

Thu/21.

Forum on America’s workers First Unitarian Universalist Society of San Francisco, 1187 Franklin, SF. tinyurl.com/WorkersFighting4Dignity. 7-9pm, free. Californian domestic workers recently won a landmark Domestic Bill of Rights after a long and trying struggle. This result, coupled with the nationwide fast-food strike in August, has launched the fight for livable wages into the realm of public debate. Join activists Katie Joaquin and Andrew Dadko as they discuss what’s next for some of our nation’s most exploited, lowest-paid workers. For more information, please email Dolores Priem at doloresmp@gmail.com.

SATURDAY 23

History of Market Street walking tour Plaza across from Ferry Building near southern Millennium Tower, SF. shaping@foundsf.org. 1-3pm, $5-10. RSVP required. Market Street has long been San Francisco’s most prominent boulevard. It’s where residents congregate in public, and has been the site of countless protests, celebrations, riots, festivals, and more. Uncover the hidden histories during this two-hour walk through the heart of the city. Tour ends at UN Plaza, Seventh and Market streets.

SUNDAY 24

Film Screening: The House I Live In Russian Center of San Francisco, 2450 Sutter, SF. 7-9:30pm, free. City Hope is screening the Sundance award-winning documentary on the War on Drugs. The film examines the forty-year war that our country has waged against narcotics and the results it has produced: 45 million arrests, making the U.S. the world’s largest jailer, and damaging poor, minority communities at home and abroad. Meanwhile, drugs have only become cheaper, stronger, and easier to obtain. By demonstrating how this war has been fueled by political and economic corruption and showcasing the individual lives that it affects, from the street dealer to the narcotics officer to the prison inmate, the film makes the case for the total failure of the War on Drugs. Refreshments will accompany the screening.

Subversive film screening on drones outside the San Francisco Jazz Center, 201 Franklin, SF. 6pm, free. CODEPINK, World Can’t Wait and others plan to host a film screening on drone strikes, projecting one or two films about drones outside the SF Jazz Center. It’s part of a protest against President Barack Obama, who is scheduled to visit the city and attend a luncheon at the Jazz Center on Nov. 25. Protesters plan to march to the Jazz Center at 11:30am on Mon/25 to protest drone strikes.

Photo gallery: #Batkidfrenzy

Erica Hanna

November 19, 2013

Days later Batkid is still warming our hearts, and taking a look at the interwebs shows that Miles Scott, aka Batkid, warmed the hearts of many worldwide. Make-a-Wish turned parts of San Francisco into Gotham City for the day Friday, Nov. 15 and the Guardian was on hand for photos. Below we’ve also compiled some of our favorite Batkid photos and memes from the weekend. Guardian photos by Amanda Rhoades.

@levarburton @Marina_Sirtis @jonathansfrakes @BrentSpiner @GarrettRWang @JeriLRyan Best Superhero Ever!! pic.twitter.com/jcHWEZzr7P

— Paul Sizemore (@MasterovmyFate) November 16, 2013

#batkid Hoping Miles’ day is extra special! pic.twitter.com/8kvPM8YBHf

— Graham Nolan (@gnolan12) November 15, 2013

@SFGiants The only thing that pic is missing is the bat signal. #batkid pic.twitter.com/0IFEPZk8Rv

— Dan Twomey (@dantwomey) November 15, 2013

Support the #BatKid. He makes our streets safer. #MakeAWish pic.twitter.com/7TZneraRAe

— Bishop Council Nedd (@BishopNedd) November 14, 2013

Gotham Examiner #batkid pic.twitter.com/lE0uIHY3Bm

— Jonathan Mergy (@jmergy) November 17, 2013

Gotham City Hall (SF City Hall) is lit up in #BatKid ‘s colors. pic.twitter.com/QfzrgbCGws

— Sergio Quintana (@svqjournalist) November 16, 2013

KPIX-TV went full-on Gotham City for their 6PM news tonight after #BatKid‘s Day in SF – http://t.co/mey141Y03t pic.twitter.com/YHgjOrObrF

— Matthew Keys (@MatthewKeysLive) November 16, 2013

Batkid. Best Batman ever. #SFBatKid #MakeAWish @SFWish

— Ben Affleck (@BenAffleck) November 16, 2013

President Obama’s message to #SFBatKid —> http://t.co/O7J4XWwYBs

— The White House (@WhiteHouse) November 15, 2013

Richmond resident saved from deportation at the last moment

Sasha Cuttler And Mary Magee

November 19, 2013

Felipe Valdes has lived and worked in the United States for 23 years. Two weeks ago, he received a letter ordering his deportation. Valdes reported to the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) office in downtown San Francisco yesterday (Mon/18) morning as he instructed and prepared to say his final goodbyes to his family before boarding one of ICE’s deportation buses at noon. Instead, he was released after five hours and allowed to return to his home in Richmond.

“It’s one in a million,” stated Marie Vincent, Valdes’ attorney. She had filed a stay of removal on her client’s behalf to delay his deportation, but such claims rarely get reviewed quickly. Vincent believes Valdes was awarded additional time in the US at the last moment because of media attention he received in recent weeks.

“His case was very compelling,” she explained. “He’s been here so long, and he has contributed greatly to the United States. He’s worked the whole time, he’s active at his church, his children are here. This is his country.”

While Valdes met with ICE officers inside, more than 50 local faith leaders, community members and reporters assembled on the street outside the office, with supporters there to protest the deportation. According to Vincent, this pressure was critical in influencing ICE’s decision to approve Valdes for a one-year work permit, temporarily halting his deportation.

That year may prove to be enough time for the currently pending residency visa application that Valdes recently submitted to be reviewed. His application is the latest in a long history of attempts to become a legal resident of the U.S. stretching back to 1997, seven years after he immigrated here from Mexico with his wife, their baby son, and their unborn daughter. Now, Vincent thinks he finally has a strong case that will earn him legal status in the US.

If Valdes is forced to return to Mexico, it could result in major consequences for his family. His wife, their three children, and their granddaughter all depend upon his wages as a plumber to survive.

“We would have really struggled just to buy food or make rent,” his daughter, Mayra Valdes, reflected after the family received the news that Valdes would not be deported that day.

Mayra’s younger brother suffers from severe scoliosis. The family does not have medical insurance and without Valdes’ earnings, they would be unable to afford the specialized chiropractic and medical care that he needs. With his father gone and no one to pay for his costly weekly treatments, there would be weeks when the boy would not even have been able to walk.

The family depends on Valdes for more than his income too.

“He really pushes me and my siblings to keep going to school,” says Mayra, a Contra Costa Community College student. Her older brother is at the University of California at Davis, and her younger brother is a senior at Richmond High School. With a four-year-old daughter and a second child on the way, Mayra relies on her father to babysit after he gets off work so that she can attend classes.

Valdes’ victory on Monday was a bright note in the sad story of deportation in this country. His single case may not mean much in the broader fight for immigration reform, but for his family, it has meant the world.

“I wanted today to disappear from the calendar,” Mayra recalls, “but now I feel like it was the happiest day of my life. My father was able to come home today—it’s the best present I’ve ever received.”

SF General will lose much of its federal subsidy under Obamacare

Sasha Cuttler

November 19, 2013

137

As President Obama’s Affordable Care Act is phased in over the next couple years, San Francisco General Hospital will lose at least 25 percent of the $123 million it receives from the federal government to offset costs of caring for the uninsured, but hopefully that will be offset by its expansion of those who will have health insurance.

General Hospital receives those funds for being a so-called “safety-net hospital,” a place where those without insurance can still get quality healthcare. Even though the need for such safety nets is supposed to diminish under Obamacare, SF General will remain a critically important safety-net hospital.

Many San Franciscans – including non-U.S. citizens who won’t qualify for coverage under the Affordable Care Act, as well as homeless individuals – will continue to rely on the hospital when in need of medical care.

Yet here and nationwide, concern is brewing about whether funding for safety-net hospitals could be impacted if enrollment in the new state health exchanges doesn’t reach anticipated levels.

“The financial question every state is asking is: What are the newly eligible patients going to do? What plan will they enroll in? Will they enroll?” Greg Wagner, CFO of the San Francisco Department of Public Health, told the Guardian, referring to the health insurance marketplaces created under the Affordable Care Act.

Most safety-net hospitals in the country are bolstered with federal subsidies, and are especially reliant on funds known as disproportionate share hospital payments, or DSH. However, those subsidies are about to be slashed with machete-like strokes.

All told, as much as $18 billion nationwide could be siphoned away from safety-net hospitals by 2020. Compounding that is another $22 billion that could be cut from Medicare subsidies, depending on the number of insured.

There’s an expectation that the looming safety-net budget cut will be offset by the burgeoning population of insured residents who would flock to state health exchanges. It makes sense: Instead of absorbing the entire cost of an uninsured patient, hospitals would be getting money from newly active insurance policies, and no money would be lost.

The New York Times recently ran a story detailing how low-income patients in Georgia may be put in a precarious position under federal healthcare reform because safety-net hospitals in Georgia might not be able to make up for lost funding once DSH payments evaporate.

California isn’t likely to experience this problem to the same degree, Wagner said, because the state chose to expand Medi-Cal, the state version of Medicaid, to include all low-income residents and not just those who previously qualified under a narrow set of criteria. Georgia had the same option to expand, but chose to keep its Medicaid qualifications in place, like many states led by Republicans looking to tweak President Obama.

As things stand, enrollment in Covered California – the state’s health insurance marketplace under the Affordable Care Act – remains low. Until enrollment closes at the end of March, it’s an open question whether it will reach the necessary levels to make up for pending cutbacks.

So far, 59,000 Californians had completed applications and enrolled in health insurance plans within the new marketplace as of Nov. 13. That’s a drop in the bucket, considering that 2.3 million are eventually expected to enroll. According to state data, 203,904 applications had been started online (reflecting an estimated 370,000 individuals). In addition to those applying for Covered California plans, another 72,000 people were determined eligible for Medi-Cal.

“SF General operates on a huge amount of federal money,” Wagner explained. “Some comes directly from the federal government, and some comes from DSH.” He said the hospital received $123 million in DSH funds last year, “and not all of that will go away” once cuts go into effect.

“Healthy SF will still be around after March 31,” said Wagner. “We’re still retaining the program for anybody not eligible for Medi-Cal, and through Healthy SF those people can still access primary healthcare.”
He even said that under extreme circumstances, like the delivery of a child, for instance, some undocumented immigrants will have the opportunity to enroll in Medi-Cal.
And it’s not all gloom-and-doom on the subsidy front, either. There is a safety-valve for the safety-net hospitals: If everyone who is expected to enroll in Covered California actually does so, the funding will be available without the need to rely on federal aid.
But in order to achieve that idyllic plateau, a serious push is needed on the enrollment level. Granted, those enrollment figures should rise. But what if they don’t?
“If people don’t enroll in the new programs, it will be a big problem,” said Wagner. “If we have a significantly lower enrollment number than we initially predicted, we will have some major financial issues. There’s still some uncertainty.”

He added, “We’ll still provide care for the uninsured at SF General. The money will decrease, but it won’t disappear. By no means will all of the money go away. The hope is that the newly enrolled will offset the decreasing number of uninsured, then the federal government could take the DSH payment and redirect it to the providers.”

That being said, “we still have lots of optimism moving forward,” Wagner said. “We think people will enroll.”

[Correction: We corrected the amount of the reduction from 50 percent down to 25 percent].

Parents under pressure

Sasha Cuttler And Mary Magee

November 15, 2013

134

In recent weeks, the San Francisco Unified School District has held a series of community forums to ask parents what they think kids need in order to thrive in school. The meetings were held as part of a policymaking process leading up to next year’s renewal of two important funds – the Children’s Fund and the Public Education Enrichment Fund, which account for some $100 million in funding combined.

There were huge turnouts – a Chinatown forum, where Mayor Ed Lee was reportedly in attendance, attracted more than 180 participants, while a Nov. 14 meeting at Cesar Chavez Elementary in the Mission District drew a crowd of between 80 and 90.

The event provided a glimpse into just how tough it is for families to get by in a city where a hefty cost of living amounts to serious pressure. “The sacrifices they make is, their children will have access to resources you can’t get anywhere else,” said Mario Paz with the Good Samaritan Family Resource Center, who works with a lot of Latino immigrant families.

A report digesting the findings of stakeholder focus groups distilled the pressures facing families. “Many participants commented on … the extraordinarily high cost of living in San Francisco,” it noted, which “contributes to both financial and emotional strain on the part of our many working class and lower income residents.”

BART “mistake” threatens its contract agreement with workers UPDATED

Sasha Cuttler

November 15, 2013

BART “mistake” threatens its contract agreement with workers UPDATED

Just when it appeared the ugly contract impasse between BART management and workers was over — a divisive struggle that resulted in two debilitating four-day strikes and the Oct. 19 death of two workers struck by a train being used to train possible replacement drivers — BART management is threatening to scuttle the deal over a provision it says was mistakenly added to the contract.

At issue is a contract provision where BART workers from SEIU Local 1021 and ATU Local 1555 who go on leave under the federal Family and Medical Leave Act will be paid for six of the 12 weeks the law allows them to take unpaid, BART spokesperson Luna Salaver told the Guardian.

While BART management and its negotiators — including Assistant General Manager of Operations Paul Oversier and Thomas Hock, a contractor who the district paid $400,000 to lead its negotiations — signed off on the provision back in July and again when the final deal was reached last month, Salaver said BART didn’t mean to include it.

“It was a mistake that a provision rejected twice by BART management ended up in the stack of approved documents,” Salaver said, noting that it was caught this week as the district prepared to give the contract final approval on Nov. 21. It has already been approved by the two unions.

“We were never confused as to the status of the Family and Medical Leave Act agreement,” Local 1021 Political Director Chris Daly told the Guardian, calling the provision a reasonable benefit similar to one that he sponsored for city employees when he was on the San Francisco Board of Supervisors.

But Salaver said it could add tens of millions of dollars in costs (the district still isn’t sure how much) to a contact that will already cost the district an additional $67 million, so management is convening a special session of BART’s Board of Directors this afternoon (Fri/15) to discuss the issue, saying that management isn’t yet recommending the contract be rejected, as some had reported. [UPDATE: The BART board told administrators to re-open negotiations with the unions, but the unions are resisting a return to the bargaining table and urge the board to approve the contract on Thursday].

“There is an erroneous report that BART management is going to tell the BART board to reject the contract,” Salaver told us, inside calling the closed-session discussion a “fact-finding session.”

But Daly said BART management had told the unions that it would recommend rejection of the contract, and that it is now backpedaling because some directors are unhappy with the snafu. It also has a serious public relations problem on its hands, finding itself in a position to reignite the battle with workers while also contending with angry state legislators and an ongoing NTSB investigation into its culpability in the worker deaths.

The complete prepared statement issued last night from SEIU 1021 Executive Director Pete Castelli follows:

“BART Management has been in contact regarding the tentative agreement they reached with SEIU 1021 and ATU 1555 on October 21st and which our members unanimously ratified. We’ve been informed that they’ve scheduled a special meeting with the BART Board of Directors to discuss the terms of the contract and to clarify details regarding certain provisions for tomorrowafternoon.

“In July, BART Management and its unions reached a tentative agreement on family medical leave, which was signed by BART Management and their chief negotiator. During a thorough review of the final settlement last month, BART Management and their attorneys did not raise any concerns about how this tentative agreement or other provisions in the final settlement would prevent them from recommending the contract to the Board for approval.

“It’s disappointing to hear BART Management would recommend that the BART Board reject this agreement—a contract they negotiated with their workers for more than five months, signed, and praised in the public as a fair compromise.

“We expect the BART Board of Directors to vote on and approve this fair and reasonable contract.”

Young and talented: SFSU’s 26th Stillwell Student Exhibition

Sue Vaughan

November 15, 2013

Young and talented: SFSU’s 26th Stillwell Student Exhibition

The Stillwell Student Exhibition is San Francisco State University’s annual showcase of undergraduate and second-year MFA artwork celebrated in the name of Leo D. Stillwell, an amateur artist who died at the young age of 22 in 1947.

But a Google search doesn’t even yield that small bit of information about Stillwell. So who was he, and why has SF State honored him for 26 years?

Mark Johnson, director of the Fine Arts Gallery at SF State, explained that the generosity of Stillwell’s mother, Josephine, created opportunities for student artists all in loving memory of her son.

“When Josephine herself was elderly and aware that her days were short, she contacted San Francisco State University to offer us the collection of about 500 works of her son that she had saved 40 years after his death,” said Johnson. “In 1988, the whole collection came to the university, and she bequeathed her house. It was sold in 1988 for $250,000, and that money endowed a scholarship.”

In return, Josephine asked that her son’s work be showcased every year. Stillwell had struggled with health issues and ultimately died of hypertension, but Josephine believed that had he had the chance to attend college, he likely would have chosen SF State. Thus, the student exhibition was named for him, and a small selection of his work is featured every year.

It’s fitting; Johnson said that because Stillwell died so young, his collection is essentially the work of a student. The four pieces displayed this year are watercolors depicting Roman gods, which Johnson feels are some of Stillwell’s strongest works. His entire collection ranges from family portraits to exploration of modernist iconography of surrealism. He was also the co-founder of the short-lived Antinous Gallery.

“Antinous is the name of the boy who the emperor Hadrian loved, so there is a sense that this was a code space for a gay art gallery,” Johnson explained. “For something like that to happen in the mid-1940s is certainly unusual and interesting.”

It is known that Stillwell’s lover was Russell Hartley, the founding collector of the Museum of Performance + Design, then the San Francisco Performing Arts Library and Museum. Recently, a website was discovered that contained letters between Stillwell and Hartley.

“We contacted that person and the site was taken down immediately, but we’re in the process of trying to get access to the letters, because it’s such an important social document of two young gay men interested in the arts from this very early historical period,” said Johnson.

Johnson’s exhibition design students all have this history in mind while organizing the annual show. And while it may be Stillwell’s name in the title, the exhibition very much belongs to the students, who provide the bulk of the work on display and put the gallery together. It’s a difficult, but rewarding experience, and among the bustle of preparing the show, there is a sense of excitement for what the students have to show.

“Different years, different things come to the surface,” said Johnson. “This year, we have, I would say, a number of very strong, large textile works.”

These colorful textiles, as well as stunning prints, paintings, and photography, sculptures, and so much more – all of them are the works of students, many of whom are young, rising artists like Stillwell had been, and they appreciate what it is to be in that position and have a place to display their art.

“[Stillwell’s] work is very cool. It’s visually appealing, it has a message. He was so young, and he could have had a lot more years,” said Karna Southall, a junior who researched Stillwell and put a video about him together for the class. “I think that it’s great that his mother took this unhappy thing that happened to her, and made it a positive experience for students. That’s admirable.”

Junior Lorraine Campos, whose art is displayed in the exhibit for the first time this year, feels that Stillwell remains a great inspiration to SF State’s great variety of talented art students.

“I think it’s an example of how you can be a young artist but still have a legacy,” said Campos. “By taking [exhibition design] class, I learned a lot more about Stillwell and how he was very diverse in his interests, and I think that’s like almost every student at State.”

26th Annual Stillwell Student Exhibition

Through Dec 5

Wed-Sat, 11am-4pm, free (gallery closed Nov 27-30)

Fine Arts Building, Rm 238

SF State University

1600 Holloway, SF

http://gallery.sfsu.edu

Hundreds attend hearing to call for action on evictions

Sasha Cuttler And Mary Magee

November 14, 2013

247

Tenants, organizers and residents impacted by Ellis Act evictions packed the Board of Supervisors Chambers at San Francisco City Hall today, Thu/14, for a hearing called by Sup. David Campos on eviction and displacement in San Francisco.

“It seems to me that we have a tale of two cities,” Campos said at the outset of the hearing, which was held by the Board of Supervisors Neighborhood Services and Safety Committee. “The vast majority of individuals are struggling to stay in San Francisco. We must act urgently to address this crisis, which I believe is a crisis.” He added, “We are fighting, I think, for the soul of San Francisco.”

Tony Robles of Senior and Disability Action, who showed up at the hearing wearing a black hooded sweatshirt with pobre (the Spanish word for “poor”) printed across the front, expressed his frustration with the surge of evictions taking place in the booming economic climate. “We have been overlooked – the workers, communities of color … it’s almost as if we are an afterthought,” he said.

Fred Brousseau of the San Francisco Budget and Legislative Analyst’s office delivered a report on his recent analysis of eviction and displacement trends across the city.

Overall evictions in San Francisco rose from 1,242 in 2010 to 1,716 in 2013, reflecting an increase of 38.2 percent, according to San Francisco Rent Board Data highlighted in Brousseau’s report.

Ellis Act evictions in particular increased by 169.8 percent in that same time frame, he said, with the most recent data showing a total of 162 Ellis Act evictions over the twelve months ending in September 2013. That number reflects units evicted, not how many tenants were impacted.

Ted Gullicksen of the San Francisco Tenants Union emphasized that tenant buyouts, frequently offered in lieu of an eviction, are also driving displacement even though these transactions aren’t reflected in city records.

“We need to get in control of these buyouts,” he said. “There are about three of them for every Ellis Act eviction. When you consider them in combination with Ellis, the numbers are very dramatic.”

Brousseau also showed a slide profiling the people who’ve been impacted by evictions citywide. Almost 42 percent had some form of disability, the data revealed, while 49 percent had incomes at or below the federal poverty level.

On the whole, Brousseau said, a total of nearly 43 percent of San Francisco households are “rent-burdened,” a term that officially means devoting more than 30 percent of household income to monthly rental payments.

Hene Kelly noted that elderly tenants are being disproportionately impacted by Ellis Act evictions. “They don’t have the reserves, they don’t have the jobs, and they don’t have the money to be able to move if they are evicted,” she said. Referencing landlords and speculators who are driving displacement, she added, “It makes me think of cabaret. Money, money, money, money, money makes the world go round.”

Campos noted that he is working with Assembly Member Tom Ammiano on a proposal to grant San Francisco the authority to place a moratorium on Ellis Act evictions.

He’s also working toward legislation that would create a mechanism at the San Francisco Rent Board allowing tenants to register complaints of harassment or other forms of pressure from landlords seeking to drive them out.

His proposal also envisions doubling the amount of relocation assistance that landlords would have to provide to tenants, in the case of no-fault evictions. He also mentioned the possibility of regulating buyouts, by requiring landlords to record these transactions with the rent board, and possibly prohibiting property owners from charging market-rate rent directly after completing a tenant buyout.

Meanwhile, Mayor Ed Lee recently announced that he is working with Sen. Mark Leno on legislation that is meant to reduce Ellis Act evictions. That proposal would require additional permits or hearings before an Ellis Act eviction could go forward, and place more stringent regulations on the sale and resale of properties where tenants have been evicted under the state law.

Just a couple weeks ago, a coalition of housing advocates proposed a sweeping package to turn the tide on evictions.

At the end of the day, it’s clear that housing advocates are gaining momentum as the spike in tenant ousters continues in pricey San Francisco, where rents are the highest in the nation.

“We’ve never been late on our rent,” noted Beverly Upton, executive director of the San Francisco Domestic Violence Consortium, who is battling an Ellis Act eviction. “We’ve paid for every improvement ever done in 25 years. And now we have to leave.” She appealed for legislators to take action for the sake of the city’s future, asking, “Once the advocates and the organizers and the people who care are gone, who will be left in our city?”

O+ Festival trades health care for music and art performances

Sasha Cuttler

November 14, 2013

Artists struggle for their art, but they shouldn’t also have to also sacrifice their health. That’s the basic premise behind this weekend’s three-day O+ Festival in San Francisco, where musicians and other artists will perform in exchange for medical, dental, and wellness services at a pop-up clinic at The Center SF art space on Fillmore Street and other offices around town.

“Bartering the art of medicine for the medicine of art,” is the tagline for a festival that is making its debut outside of New York, where it began. The lineup includes local folk rockers Papa Bear & Friends, soulful singer Quinn DeVeaux, mashup DJ Zack Darling, and many more, performing in venues that include Inner Mission and the Make-Out Room.

The festival began in 2010 in Kingston, NY, when painter Joe Concra had a dentist friend who had the idea of bringing a band he liked up from Brooklyn and paying them in free dental services. The idea resonated with Concra, who knew well how much New York’s artists struggled to make ends meet.

“Artists are not only being pushed out, but they’re not able to get the healing they deserve,” Concra told the Guardian, saying the first festival was such a hit that it took on a life of its own. “Once we do it, once people go, then they really get it. And it goes back to the age-old idea of trade.”

Long before modern health insurance debacles, doctors and dentists were members of their communities, and people would pay them with whatever they had to offer. But today, larger and larger companies providing care in collaboration with insurance companies, even the basic community clinic is becoming a thing of the past.

“We’re breaking down that access to care barrier, because some many people don’t know where to start,” Concra said, saying he was surprised at the flood gates opened by his simple idea. “Now, we’re at the point where we have 220 bands applies for 40 spots…We were not prepared for the amount of need in the artist community.”

Concra had started thinking about where to expand the festival when he was contacted by Deborah Gatiss, San Francisco-based artist and event coordinator, who had heard about the concept from a friend in the Burning Man Project.

“It goes back to May of last year, and I was lamenting the fact that I have no health care, because I had a really bad toothache. I was talking with a friend of mine and we were discussing things people could do for health care when they have no dental insurance and this was one of the things that came up,” she told us.

Concra was already talking about a Bay Area event with Aimee Gardner, who he knew from an art gallery in Kingston before she moved to California, and Gardner and Gatiss ended up spearheading the creation of O+ Festival-San Francisco.

“Coming from New York, I feel like San Francisco is going a similar direction,” Gardner said of artists who can’t afford to live here. “I think it’s a really revolutionary idea. It’s activism in a very thoughtful way.”

The pair managed to line up sponsors and a list of volunteer health practioners from a variety of disciplines, people that Concra called “the real rock stars of this event.” So while the performers get free health care, those who buy the $25 tickets get three days of free music and art, discounted drinks at various venues, and even free yoga classes at Yoga Tree’s new Potrero Hill studio.

The festival opens tomorrow (Fri/15) at 6:15 at The Center SF, 548 Fillmore, with a health care panel discussion featuring Concra, Artist Xavi Panneton, Dan Kitowski of the Actors Fund, and me, Guardian Editor Steven T. Jones.

Gatiss said it’s been a challenge to pull together such an ambtious festival and she hopes that Bay Area residents — who love art and music and are accustomed to gift and barter economies through things like Burning Man — will turn out to show their support.

“I thought that people were used to that mindset, so they’d be up for the idea of bartering their musical talents for health care and vice versa,” Gatiss told us. “It’s been harder than I thought. But it’s been fulfilling and magical and I’m glad that I did it, and I think Aimee would say the same thing.”

New pilot program helps arts nonprofits find new homes

Erica Hanna

November 14, 2013

New pilot program helps arts nonprofits find new homes

Just a few months ago arts nonprofits CounterPULSE and The Luggage Store were facing an uncertain future. New tech neighbors drove their rents sky high, and the groups that for years were venues for struggling artists were struggling themselves.

“Twitter moved in literally behind our building,” said Jessica Robinson Love, executive director of CounterPULSE. Lacking the deep pockets of a tech company, they readied for a move to Oakland.

But now a nonprofit with money to match the tech gentrifiers is ready to spend, and its sole mission is to help displaced arts organizations find permanent homes.

In a packed press conference just outside The Luggage Store on Market, the foundation-funded Community Arts Stabilization Trust announced Wednesday that it would purchase two properties for the longstanding Mid-Market nonprofits. Risky renters no longer, both nonprofits will soon own their own buildings, shielded from the ebbs and flows of rent surges.

Flanked by Mayor Ed Lee and Sup. Jane Kim, CAST said The Luggage Store will stay on Market and 6th, and CounterPULSE will move five blocks away into an old porn theater on Turk Street. The two arts nonprofits have been in San Francisco since the early ‘90s, bringing up dancers and visual artists alike.

“Yes, rents are rising because of our success,” Lee said to the crowd. “But this will be a city for the 100 percent.”

The city gave just over $300,000 toward helping the nonprofits find a new home, a small fraction compared to the Kenneth Rainin Foundation, which committed $5 million to CAST. The new nonprofit then bought the properties, a new strategy of pooling funds to save arts organizations. When and how the program would expand is still unclear, but there is a definite need among nonprofits for property stability.

“The bottom line is nonprofits can’t compete on a commercial real estate market,” Love said, a topic we’ve covered before (Losing our conscience, Oct/15). Now they can breathe, but the reprieve is only temporary.

CounterPULSE needs to raise millions of dollars to pay CAST for the property, which it hopes to do before moving into the space in 2015, Love told us. The amount isn’t exact yet because it’s still applying for a number of grants that could mitigate the costs.

The long wait before moving is due to the extensive repairs needed at the 80 Turk St. site. Formerly the Gayety theater and Dollhouse, the site was littered with broken glass and piles of trash. Construction crews have cleared a lot of it out, but the place is in disrepair, with cracked walls and silhouette paintings of nude performers gracing the glass above the entrance.

The Guardian took a tour of the site with Love, and she saw through the crumbling plaster to what could be.

Jessica Robinson Love looks out the window at the Tenderloin neighborhood from CounterPULSE’s new venue.

Spreading her arms wide in the old porn theater, she described the walls coming down to make space for dancers like CounterPULSE has never had before. They have only one room in their current building.

Leading us downstairs, careful to point out loose wiring and jutting floorboards, she showed us where performers would practice. On the top floor the light shone in and it was a bit easier to imagine what she saw — a space where visiting artists could stay for the duration of their exhibits.

“It’s magic,” she said.

As she grinned wide, she looked out the window of the second floor to the milieu below. The neighborhood is on the edge of the Tenderloin, and outside was the usual crowd.

Would there be a place for them in this new space for artists? Or would they be displaced, like CounterPULSE was?

They already have agreements with SROs to perform for tenants, and street art is a part of the package. They’re a progressive arts group, she said, “from food justice to prison reform, from housing advocacy to rental rights.”

In her eyes, the arts are a way to bring together a community. She wants to give them a safe place to come out at night, and a reason to celebrate.

Music Listings: Nov. 13-19

Tony Robles

November 14, 2013

WEDNESDAY 13
ROCK
Brick & Mortar Music Hall: 1710 Mission, San Francisco. Hot Toddies, Kill Moi, Odd Owl, Blaus, 9 p.m., $6-$9.
Cafe Du Nord: 2170 Market, San Francisco. “Thanks But No Thanksgiving,” Benefit for KUSF in Exile and One Mama featuring The Sam Chase, Jesús & The Rabbis, M.O.M. DJs, 9 p.m., $10-$15.
The Chapel: 777 Valencia St., San Francisco. Those Darlins, Diane Coffee, Jesus Sons, 9 p.m., $12-$15.
Elbo Room: 647 Valencia, San Francisco. Buffalo Tooth, Commissure, Growwler, Popgang DJs, 9 p.m., free.
Hemlock Tavern: 1131 Polk, San Francisco. White Mystery, Dead Meat, 8:30 p.m., $10.
Hotel Utah: 500 Fourth St., San Francisco. Grex, Cash Pony, Inner Ear Brigade, Mark Clifford Quartet, 8 p.m., $8-$10.
Monarch: 101 6th St., San Francisco. Tall Fires, Mosaics, Unruly Things, Stomping Grounds, 8 p.m., $8.
Thee Parkside: 1600 17th St., San Francisco. The Deer Tracks, Low Leaf, Survival Guide, 8 p.m., $10.
DANCE
The Cafe: 2369 Market, San Francisco. “Sticky Wednesdays,” w/ DJ Mark Andrus, 8 p.m., free.
Cat Club: 1190 Folsom, San Francisco. “Bondage A Go Go,” w/ DJs Damon, Tomas Diablo, & guests, 9:30 p.m., $5-$10.
Clift Hotel, Redwood Room: 495 Geary, San Francisco. “Enigma: Sessions 003,” w/ Reckless in Vegas, Dean Samaras, Richard Habib, Marija Dunn, 6 p.m., free.
Club X: 715 Harrison, San Francisco. “Electro Pop Rocks,” 18+ dance party with Gummy & Dosvec, 9 p.m.
Edinburgh Castle: 950 Geary, San Francisco. “1964,” w/ DJ Matt B & guests, Second and Fourth Wednesday of every month, 10 p.m., $2.
The EndUp: 401 Sixth St., San Francisco. “Tainted Techno Trance,” 10 p.m.
F8: 1192 Folsom St., San Francisco. “Housepitality,” w/ Francesca Lombardo, Michael Tello, Paul Carey, Mike Bee, Joel Conway, 9 p.m., $5-$10.
Harlot: 46 Minna, San Francisco. “Qoöl,” 5 p.m.
The Independent: 628 Divisadero, San Francisco. Thundercat, Real Magic, The Seshen, 8 p.m., $15-$17.
Infusion Lounge: 124 Ellis, San Francisco. “Indulgence,” 10 p.m.
The Knockout: 3223 Mission, San Francisco. “Disorder,” w/ Detachments, Replicanti, DJ Nickie, 10 p.m., $5.
Lookout: 3600 16th St., San Francisco. “What?,” w/ resident DJ Tisdale and guests, 7 p.m., free.
Madrone Art Bar: 500 Divisadero, San Francisco. “Rock the Spot,” 9 p.m., free.
MatrixFillmore: 3138 Fillmore, San Francisco. “Reload,” w/ DJ Big Bad Bruce, 10 p.m., free.
Q Bar: 456 Castro, San Francisco. “Booty Call,” w/ Juanita More, Joshua J, guests, 9 p.m., $3.
HIP-HOP
Double Dutch: 3192 16th St., San Francisco. “Cash IV Gold,” w/ DJs Kool Karlo, Roost Uno, and Sean G, 10 p.m., free.
Skylark Bar: 3089 16th St., San Francisco. “Mixtape Wednesday,” w/ resident DJs Strategy, Junot, Herb Digs, & guests, 9 p.m., $5.
ACOUSTIC
Cafe Divine: 1600 Stockton, San Francisco. Craig Ventresco & Meredith Axelrod, 7 p.m., free.
Club Deluxe: 1511 Haight, San Francisco. Happy Hour Bluegrass, 6:30 p.m., free.
Dolores Park Cafe: 501 Dolores, San Francisco. Joe Marson & Roem Baur, 6:30 p.m.
Johnny Foley’s Irish House: 243 O’Farrell St., San Francisco. Terry Savastano, Every other Wednesday, 9 p.m., free.
The Lost Church: 65 Capp St., San Francisco. Tall Heights, Jeff Conley, 8 p.m., $10.
Plough & Stars: 116 Clement, San Francisco. Daniel Seidel, 9 p.m.
Rickshaw Stop: 155 Fell, San Francisco. Farallons, Michael Musika, From a Fountain, 8 p.m., $10.
Swedish American Hall: 2174 Market, San Francisco. Vanessa Carlton, Birdcloud, 7:30 p.m., $25.
JAZZ
Amnesia: 853 Valencia, San Francisco. Gaucho, Eric Garland’s Jazz Session, The Amnesiacs, 7 p.m., free.
Burritt Room: 417 Stockton St., San Francisco. Terry Disley’s Rocking Jazz Trio, 6 p.m., free.
Center for New Music: 55 Taylor St., San Francisco. Peter Brötzmann & Paal Nilssen-Love, 7:30 p.m., $18-$28.
Jazz Bistro At Les Joulins: 44 Ellis, San Francisco. Charles Unger Experience, 7:30 p.m., free.
Le Colonial: 20 Cosmo, San Francisco. The Cosmo Alleycats featuring Ms. Emily Wade Adams, 7 p.m., free.
Savanna Jazz Club: 2937 Mission, San Francisco. “Cat’s Corner,” 9 p.m., $10.
Sheba Piano Lounge: 1419 Fillmore, San Francisco. Jesse Foster, 8 p.m.
Top of the Mark: One Nob Hill, 999 California, San Francisco. Ricardo Scales, Wednesdays, 6:30-11:30 p.m., $5.
Tupelo: 1337 Green St., San Francisco. Kit Ruscoe, 9:30 p.m.
Zingari: 501 Post, San Francisco. Sherri Roberts, 7:30 p.m., free.
INTERNATIONAL
Bissap Baobab: 3372 19th St., San Francisco. Timba Dance Party, w/ DJ WaltDigz, 10 p.m., $5.
Cafe Cocomo: 650 Indiana, San Francisco. “Bachatalicious,” w/ DJs Good Sho & Rodney, 7 p.m., $5-$10.
First Unitarian Universalist Society of San Francisco: 1187 Franklin, San Francisco. Kaoru Kakizakai with Shirley Kazuyo Muramoto, 7 p.m., $20.
Pachamama Restaurant: 1630 Powell, San Francisco. “Cafe LatinoAmericano,” 8 p.m., $5.
BLUES
Biscuits and Blues: 401 Mason, San Francisco. Alvon Johnson, 7:30 & 9:30 p.m., $15.
The Saloon: 1232 Grant, San Francisco. Leah Tysse, 9:30 p.m.
FUNK
Vertigo: 1160 Polk, San Francisco. “Full Tilt Boogie,” w/ KUSF-in-Exile DJs, Second Wednesday of every month, 8 p.m.-1:30 a.m., free.
SOUL
The Royal Cuckoo: 3202 Mission, San Francisco. Freddie Hughes & Chris Burns, 7:30 p.m., free.
THURSDAY 14
ROCK
Bottom of the Hill: 1233 17th St., San Francisco. 65daysofstatic, Caspian, The World Is a Beautiful Place & I Am No Longer Afraid to Die, 9 p.m., $15-$17.
Brick & Mortar Music Hall: 1710 Mission, San Francisco. The Besnard Lakes, Elephant Stone, 9 p.m., $13-$15.
S.F. Eagle: 398 12th St., San Francisco. Thursday Nite Live: Titan Ups, Bell Tower, The Hampton Wicks, 9 p.m., $8.
Hemlock Tavern: 1131 Polk, San Francisco. Slough Feg, Skeletor, Vulturegeist, 8:30 p.m., $10.
The Independent: 628 Divisadero, San Francisco. KMFDM, Chant, 8 p.m., $28-$30.
The Knockout: 3223 Mission, San Francisco. Vaz, Burmese, Donkee, 10 p.m., $8.
Thee Parkside: 1600 17th St., San Francisco. Alestorm, Trollfest, Gypsyhawk, Valensorow, 9 p.m., $20.
DANCE
1015 Folsom: 1015 Folsom St., San Francisco. “A Light in the Attic,” w/ Phutureprimitive, Unlimited Gravity, Soulular, Bedrockk, Evolutionista, Smash & Grab, 10 p.m., $5-$10 advance.
Abbey Tavern: 4100 Geary, San Francisco. DJ Schrobi-Girl, 10 p.m., free.
Audio Discotech: 316 11th St., San Francisco. “Phonic,” w/ Felix Cartal, Ron Reeser, more, 9:30 p.m., $10 advance.
Aunt Charlie’s Lounge: 133 Turk, San Francisco. “Tubesteak Connection,” w/ DJ Bus Station John, 9 p.m., $5-$7.
The Cafe: 2369 Market, San Francisco. “¡Pan Dulce!,” 9 p.m., $5.
Cat Club: 1190 Folsom, San Francisco. “Throwback Thursdays,” ‘80s night with DJs Damon, Steve Washington, Dangerous Dan, and guests, 9 p.m., $6 (free before 9:30 p.m.).
The Cellar: 685 Sutter, San Francisco. “XO,” w/ DJs Astro & Rose, 10 p.m., $5.
Club X: 715 Harrison, San Francisco. “The Crib,” 9:30 p.m., $10, 18+.
Danzhaus: 1275 Connecticut, San Francisco. “Alt.Dance,” Second Thursday of every month, 7 p.m., $7, 18+.
DNA Lounge: 375 11th St., San Francisco. “8bitSF,” w/ Crashfaster, Bit Shifter, Trash80, Unwoman, DJ Doctor Popular, 9 p.m., $10-$15.
Elbo Room: 647 Valencia, San Francisco. “Afrolicious,” w/ DJs Pleasuremaker, Señor Oz, and live guests, 9:30 p.m., $5-$8.
Harlot: 46 Minna, San Francisco. “Modular,” w/ Uner, JOill, Pedro Arbulu, MFYRS, 9 p.m., $7-$10.
Infusion Lounge: 124 Ellis, San Francisco. “I Love Thursdays,” 10 p.m., $10.
Madrone Art Bar: 500 Divisadero, San Francisco. “Night Fever,” 9 p.m., $5 after 10 p.m.
Public Works: 161 Erie, San Francisco. “Enigma,” w/ Butane, Stephanie, Marija Dunn, Amber Reyn, Richard Habib (in the OddJob Loft), 10 p.m., $10-$20 advance.
Q Bar: 456 Castro, San Francisco. “Throwback Thursday,” w/ DJ Jay-R, 9 p.m., free.
Raven: 1151 Folsom St., San Francisco. “1999,” w/ VJ Mark Andrus, 8 p.m., free.
Ruby Skye: 420 Mason, San Francisco. “Awakening,” w/ Danny Avila, Matisse Sadko, 9 p.m., $20-$25 advance.
The Tunnel Top: 601 Bush, San Francisco. “Tunneltop,” DJs Avalon and Derek ease you into the weekend with a cool and relaxed selection of tunes spun on vinyl, 10 p.m., free.
Underground SF: 424 Haight, San Francisco. “Bubble,” 10 p.m., free.
HIP-HOP
Eastside West: 3154 Fillmore, San Francisco. “Throwback Thursdays,” w/ DJ Madison, 9 p.m., free.
The EndUp: 401 Sixth St., San Francisco. “Cypher,” w/ resident DJ Big Von, 10 p.m., $5-$10.
John Colins: 138 Minna, San Francisco. “Party with Friends,” w/ resident DJs IllEfect, GeektotheBeat, Merrick, and Delrokz, Second Thursday of every month, 9 p.m., free.
Mezzanine: 444 Jessie, San Francisco. A$AP Ferg, A$AP Mob, Joey Fatts, Aston Matthews, 100s, DJ Sean G, 9 p.m., $20.
Milk Bar: 1840 Haight, San Francisco. Rime Force Most Illin’, Fatees, Al Lover, Height with Friends, DJ Brycon, 9 p.m., $5.
Park 77 Sports Bar: 77 Cambon, San Francisco. “Slap N Tite,” w/ resident Cali King Crab DJs Sabotage Beats & Jason Awesome, free.
Skylark Bar: 3089 16th St., San Francisco. “Peaches,” w/lady DJs DeeAndroid, Lady Fingaz, That Girl, Umami, Inkfat, and Andre, 10 p.m., free.
ACOUSTIC
Amnesia: 853 Valencia, San Francisco. Ghost & Gale, Lea Pruett, The Shants, 9 p.m., $7-$10.
Atlas Cafe: 3049 20th St., San Francisco. Gayle Lynn & The Hired Hands, 8 p.m., free.
Bazaar Cafe: 5927 California, San Francisco. Acoustic Open Mic, 7 p.m.
Boom Boom Room: 1601 Fillmore, San Francisco. Whitewater Ramble, Free Peoples, 9:30 p.m., $10.
Cafe Du Nord: 2170 Market, San Francisco. The Melodic, Steve Taylor Band, Sophia Knapp, 8:30 p.m., $12.
The Lost Church: 65 Capp St., San Francisco. Aireene & The Hobos, Deborah Crooks, 8 p.m., $10-$12.
Pa’ina: 1865 Post St., San Francisco. Ashley Lilinoe, 7 p.m., free.
Plough & Stars: 116 Clement, San Francisco. Emperor Norton Céilí Band, 9 p.m.
Yoshi’s San Francisco: 1330 Fillmore, San Francisco. An Evening with Graham Nash, 8 p.m., $89.
JAZZ
Blush! Wine Bar: 476 Castro, San Francisco. Doug Martin’s Avatar Ensemble, 7:30 p.m., free.
Bottle Cap: 1707 Powell, San Francisco. The North Beach Sound with Ned Boynton, Jordan Samuels, and Tom Vickers, 7 p.m., free.
Cafe Claude: 7 Claude, San Francisco. Mad & Eddie Duran Trio, 7:30 p.m., free.
Le Colonial: 20 Cosmo, San Francisco. Steve Lucky & The Rhumba Bums, 7:30 p.m.
The Royal Cuckoo: 3202 Mission, San Francisco. Charlie Siebert & Chris Burns, 7:30 p.m., free.
Savanna Jazz Club: 2937 Mission, San Francisco. Savanna Jazz Jam with Eddy Ramirez, 7:30 p.m., $5.
SFJAZZ Center: 205 Franklin St., San Francisco. “Hotplate,” w/ Tiffany Austin (playing Hoagy Carmichael), 8 & 9:30 p.m.
Top of the Mark: One Nob Hill, 999 California, San Francisco. Stompy Jones, 7:30 p.m., $10.
Zingari: 501 Post, San Francisco. Barbara Ochoa, 7:30 p.m., free.
INTERNATIONAL
Bissap Baobab: 3372 19th St., San Francisco. “Pa’Lante!,” w/ Juan G, El Kool Kyle, Mr. Lucky, 10 p.m., $5.
Cafe Cocomo: 650 Indiana, San Francisco. Danilo y Universal, DJ Good Sho, 8 p.m., $12.
Fort Mason, Southside Theater: Marina, San Francisco. Theatre Flamenco: Con Nombre y Apellido, The country’s oldest flamenco dance company celebrates its 47th home season., Nov. 14-16, 8 p.m.; Sun., Nov. 17, 2 p.m., $35-$75.
H Cafe: 3801 17th St., San Francisco. An Evening to Benefit the Duniya Center for Arts & Education, w/ Duniya Dance & Drum Company, Wontanara Revolution, Charlotte Nehm, Vanessa Sanchez, Naila, more, 6 p.m., $35-$80.
Pachamama Restaurant: 1630 Powell, San Francisco. “Jueves Flamencos,” 8 p.m., free.
Pier 23 Cafe: Pier 23, San Francisco. Armando Compean, 7 p.m., free.
Sheba Piano Lounge: 1419 Fillmore, San Francisco. Gary Flores & Descarga Caliente, 8 p.m.
Verdi Club: 2424 Mariposa, San Francisco. The Verdi Club Milonga, w/ Christy Coté, DJ Emilio Flores, guests, 9 p.m., $10-$15.
REGGAE
Make-Out Room: 3225 22nd St., San Francisco. “Festival ‘68,” w/ Revival Sound System, Second Thursday of every month, 10 p.m., free.
Pissed Off Pete’s: 4528 Mission St., San Francisco. Reggae Thursdays, w/ resident DJ Jah Yzer, 9 p.m., free.
BLUES
50 Mason Social House: 50 Mason, San Francisco. Bill Phillippe, 5:30 p.m., free.
Biscuits and Blues: 401 Mason, San Francisco. Nick Moss, 7:30 & 9:30 p.m., $20.
Jazz Bistro At Les Joulins: 44 Ellis, San Francisco. Bohemian Knuckleboogie, 7:30 p.m., free.
The Saloon: 1232 Grant, San Francisco. Tom Bowers, 4 p.m.; Steve Freund, 9:30 p.m.
COUNTRY
The Parlor: 2801 Leavenworth, San Francisco. “Twang Honky Tonk & Country Jamboree,” w/ DJ Little Red Rodeo, 7 p.m., free.
EXPERIMENTAL
The Luggage Store: 1007 Market, San Francisco. Capricious Forms Vol. 1, 8 p.m., $6-$10.
Yerba Buena Center for the Arts: 701 Mission, San Francisco. San Francisco Contemporary Music Players, 8 p.m., $12-$30.
FRIDAY 15
ROCK
Bottom of the Hill: 1233 17th St., San Francisco. Meat Puppets, The World Takes, 10 p.m., $17.
Brick & Mortar Music Hall: 1710 Mission, San Francisco. Golden Void, Hot Lunch, Harsh Toke, 9 p.m., $7-$10.
DNA Lounge: 375 11th St., San Francisco. Happy Fangs, Night Club, Everyone Is Dirty, Kat Haus, 8 p.m., $10.
El Rio: 3158 Mission, San Francisco. Friday Live: Down in Front, DJ Emotions, 10 p.m., free.
Hotel Utah: 500 Fourth St., San Francisco. The Bananas, Audacity, Hunters, Caldecott, 9 p.m., $10-$12.
Milk Bar: 1840 Haight, San Francisco. Part Time, Exray’s, Andy Human, Epicsauce DJs, 9 p.m., $10.
Rickshaw Stop: 155 Fell, San Francisco. Heroes and the Homo Superior: The Parables of Fancy Nancy, A “David Bowie superhero burlesque rock odyssey” featuring music by First Church of the Sacred Silversexual, burlesque routines by Hubba Hubba Revue, drag performances, and more., 9 p.m., $13.
Slim’s: 333 11th St., San Francisco. Alternative Tentacles 33 1/3 Anniversary Party, w/ Jello Biafra & The Guantanamo School of Medicine, Mojo Nixon, Death Hymn Number 9, Pins of Light., 8 p.m., $18.
Thee Parkside: 1600 17th St., San Francisco. That Ghost, FayRoy, Sons of Hippies, WAG, 9 p.m., $8.
DANCE
1015 Folsom: 1015 Folsom St., San Francisco. Rusko, Roni Size, Tonn Piper, Dynamite MC, Havoc, Ivry, Nebakaneza, Mr. Kitt, Johnny5, Danny Weird, Miss Haze, DJ Dials, Jays One, Audio-Troma, White Mike, Ryury., 10 p.m., $25 advance.
Audio Discotech: 316 11th St., San Francisco. Alex Sibley, Eelrack, Festiva, 9:30 p.m., $10 advance.
Cafe Flore: 2298 Market, San Francisco. “Kinky Beats,” w/ DJ Sergio, 10 p.m., free.
The Cafe: 2369 Market, San Francisco. “Boy Bar,” w/ DJ Matt Consola, 9 p.m., $5.
Cat Club: 1190 Folsom, San Francisco. “The Witching Hour,” w/ DJs Sage, Daniel Skellington, Joe Radio, and Nickie, 9:30 p.m., $7 ($3 before 10 p.m.).
The Cellar: 685 Sutter, San Francisco. “F.T.S.: For the Story,” 10 p.m.
The Chapel: 777 Valencia St., San Francisco. DJ Assault, Double Duchess, BadboE, Rapid Fire, 10 p.m., $10-$15.
DNA Lounge: 375 11th St., San Francisco. “So Stoked 13,” w/ Daniel Kandi, Ravine, Jimini Cricket, more, 7 p.m., $15-$25.
The EndUp: 401 Sixth St., San Francisco. “Fever,” 10 p.m., free before midnight.
The Grand Nightclub: 520 4th St., San Francisco. “We Rock Fridays,” 9:30 p.m.
Infusion Lounge: 124 Ellis, San Francisco. “Escape Fridays,” 10 p.m., $20.
Lookout: 3600 16th St., San Francisco. “HYSL,” 9 p.m., $3.
Madrone Art Bar: 500 Divisadero, San Francisco. “That ‘80s Show,” w/ DJs Dave Paul & Jeff Harris, Third Friday of every month, 9 p.m., $5.
Manor West: 750 Harrison, San Francisco. “Fortune Fridays,” 10 p.m., free before 11 p.m. with RSVP.
MatrixFillmore: 3138 Fillmore, San Francisco. “F-Style Fridays,” w/ DJ Jared-F, 9 p.m.
Mezzanine: 444 Jessie, San Francisco. “Fools in the Night,” w/ Ladyhawke (DJ set), American Royalty, Blackbird Blackbird, Aaron Axelsen, 9 p.m., $15.
Mighty: 119 Utah, San Francisco. “Masters at Work,” w/ Kenny Dope & Louie Vega, 9 p.m., $20-$50.
OMG: 43 6th St., San Francisco. “Release,” 9 p.m., free before 11 p.m.
Public Works: 161 Erie, San Francisco. “Odyssey,” w/ Rick Preston, Robin Simmons, Trevor Sigler (in the OddJob Loft), 9:30 p.m., $10.
Q Bar: 456 Castro, San Francisco. “Pump: Worq It Out Fridays,” w/ resident DJ Christopher B, 9 p.m., $3.
Ruby Skye: 420 Mason, San Francisco. Arnej, Bobina, Dirtyhertz, 9 p.m., $20 advance.
Slate Bar: 2925 16th St., San Francisco. “Darling Nikki,” w/ resident DJs Dr. Sleep, Justin Credible, and Durt, Third Friday of every month, 8 p.m., $5.
Sub-Mission Art Space (Balazo 18 Gallery): 2183 Mission, San Francisco. “Deathrock Night Terrors,” w/ The Frozen Autumn, V.E.X., Red Light, plus DJs Le Perv, Necromos, and Burning Skies, 8:30 p.m., $12-$15.
Temple: 540 Howard, San Francisco. “Refresh,” w/ Pedro Arbulu, Chemical Ali, David Gregory, DJ Tone, DJ Von, 10 p.m., $15.
Underground SF: 424 Haight, San Francisco. “Bionic,” 10 p.m., $5.
Vessel: 85 Campton, San Francisco. Dirty South, 10 p.m.
Wish: 1539 Folsom, San Francisco. “Bridge the Gap,” w/ resident DJ Don Kainoa, Fridays, 6-10 p.m., free; “Depth,” w/ resident DJs Sharon Buck & Greg Yuen, Third Friday of every month, 10 p.m., free.
HIP-HOP
EZ5: 682 Commercial, San Francisco. “Decompression,” Fridays, 5-9 p.m.
The Independent: 628 Divisadero, San Francisco. Big Freedia, 9 p.m., $20.
John Colins: 138 Minna, San Francisco. “Juicy,” w/ DJ Ry Toast, Third Friday of every month, 10 p.m., $5 (free before 11 p.m.).
Showdown: 10 Sixth St., San Francisco. BPos, Mo Classics, Monk McNizzle, 9 p.m., free.
Yoshi’s San Francisco: 1330 Fillmore, San Francisco. Sir Mix-A-Lot, 10:30 p.m., $18-$22.
ACOUSTIC
Amnesia: 853 Valencia, San Francisco. SnowApple, 7 p.m.
Bazaar Cafe: 5927 California, San Francisco. The Canon Band, 7 p.m.
Cafe Du Nord: 2170 Market, San Francisco. Megan Slankard, Tom Freund, Wafflebarrel, 9 p.m., $15.
Mercury Cafe: 201 Octavia, San Francisco. Toshio Hirano, Third Friday of every month, 7:30 p.m., free, all ages.
Plough & Stars: 116 Clement, San Francisco. “Bluegrass Bonanza,” w/ Travers Chandler & Avery County, Belle Monroe & Her Brewglass Boys, 9 p.m., $6-$10.
Red Poppy Art House: 2698 Folsom, San Francisco. Amy LaCour with Ross Hammond, 7:30 p.m., $10-$15.
The Sports Basement: 610 Old Mason, San Francisco. “Breakfast with Enzo,” w/ Enzo Garcia, 10 a.m., $5.
Yoshi’s San Francisco: 1330 Fillmore, San Francisco. An Evening with Mason Jennings, 8 p.m., $29.
JAZZ
Beach Chalet Brewery & Restaurant: 1000 Great Highway, San Francisco. Johnny Smith, 8 p.m., free.
Bird & Beckett: 653 Chenery, San Francisco. The Third Quartet, Third Friday of every month, 5:30 p.m., free.
Cafe Claude: 7 Claude, San Francisco. Nick Rossi Trio, 9:30 p.m., free.
City College: 50 Phelan, San Francisco. The Cartoon Jazz Band, 7:30 p.m., free.
Jazz Bistro At Les Joulins: 44 Ellis, San Francisco. Charles Unger Experience, 7:30 p.m., free.
The Palace Hotel: 2 New Montgomery, San Francisco. The Klipptones, 8 p.m., free.
Revolution Cafe: 3248 22nd St., San Francisco. Emily Anne’s Delights, Third Friday of every month, 8:45 p.m., free/donation.
Savanna Jazz Club: 2937 Mission, San Francisco. Jim Butler Group, 7:30 p.m., $8.
SFJAZZ Center: 205 Franklin St., San Francisco. Pamela Rose & Wayne De La Cruz, 7 & 8:30 p.m., $25.
Sheba Piano Lounge: 1419 Fillmore, San Francisco. Sam Caddy Quintet, 9 p.m.
Top of the Mark: One Nob Hill, 999 California, San Francisco. Black Market Jazz Orchestra, 9 p.m., $10.
Zingari: 501 Post, San Francisco. Joyce Grant, 8 p.m., free.
INTERNATIONAL
Bissap Baobab: 3372 19th St., San Francisco. Qumbia Qrew, Third Friday of every month, 8 p.m.; “Paris-Dakar African Mix Coupe Decale,” 10 p.m., $5.
Cafe Cocomo: 650 Indiana, San Francisco. Taste Fridays, featuring local cuisine tastings, salsa bands, dance lessons, and more, 7:30 p.m., $15 (free entry to patio).
Cigar Bar & Grill: 850 Montgomery, San Francisco. Orquesta La Clave, 8 p.m.
Fort Mason, Southside Theater: Marina, San Francisco. Theatre Flamenco: Con Nombre y Apellido, The country’s oldest flamenco dance company celebrates its 47th home season., Nov. 14-16, 8 p.m.; Sun., Nov. 17, 2 p.m., $35-$75.
Pachamama Restaurant: 1630 Powell, San Francisco. Cuban Night with Fito Reinoso, 7:30 & 9:15 p.m., $15-$18.
Pier 23 Cafe: Pier 23, San Francisco. Armando Compean, 8 p.m., free.
Public Works: 161 Erie, San Francisco. Afrolicious Band, J-Boogie, 10 p.m., $10.
REGGAE
Elbo Room: 647 Valencia, San Francisco. “The Social,” w/ Native Elements, Jah Yzer, 10 p.m., $10.
Gestalt Haus: 3159 16th St., San Francisco. “Music Like Dirt,” 7:30 p.m., free.
BLUES
Biscuits and Blues: 401 Mason, San Francisco. Kevin Selfe & The Tornadoes, 7:30 & 10 p.m., $20.
The Saloon: 1232 Grant, San Francisco. West Coast Blues Revue, 4 p.m.; Cathy Lemons, 9:30 p.m.
FUNK
Amnesia: 853 Valencia, San Francisco. “Hella Tight,” w/ resident DJs Vinnie Esparza, Jonny Deeper, & Asti Spumanti, Third Friday of every month, 10 p.m., $5.
Dolores Park Cafe: 501 Dolores, San Francisco. Shake It! Booty Band, 7:30 p.m.
Make-Out Room: 3225 22nd St., San Francisco. “Loose Joints,” w/ DJs Centipede, Damon Bell, & Tom Thump, 10 p.m., $5.
SOUL
Edinburgh Castle: 950 Geary, San Francisco. “Soul Crush,” w/ DJ Serious Leisure, 10 p.m., free.
The Knockout: 3223 Mission, San Francisco. “Oldies Night,” W/ DJs Primo, Daniel, Lost Cat, and friends, Third Friday of every month, 10 p.m., $5.
SATURDAY 16
ROCK
Bender’s: 806 S. Van Ness, San Francisco. Moses, Hornss, 10 p.m., $5.
Bottom of the Hill: 1233 17th St., San Francisco. Quasi, Blues Control, Street Eaters, 9:30 p.m., $15.
Brick & Mortar Music Hall: 1710 Mission, San Francisco. Someone Still Loves You Boris Yeltsin, Army Navy, 9 p.m., $12-$15.
Cafe Du Nord: 2170 Market, San Francisco. San Francisco Food Bank Benefit with Tommy Guerrero & Friends, El Diablitos, DJ Romanowski, 9:30 p.m., $10-$15.
The Chapel: 777 Valencia St., San Francisco. Cellar Doors, 9 p.m., $12.
El Rio: 3158 Mission, San Francisco. Benefit for Family Dog Rescue with The Shams, The Next, The Unfortunate Bastard, Psychokitty, 9 p.m.
Hemlock Tavern: 1131 Polk, San Francisco. Guantanamo Baywatch, Death Hymn Number 9, Buffalo Tooth, Pookie & The Poodlez, 8:30 p.m., $7.
Hotel Utah: 500 Fourth St., San Francisco. “Rocket Ship!,” w/ Starr Saunders, The Coffis Brothers, Exhausted Pipes, Katie Ekin, 9 p.m., $8-$12.
Rickshaw Stop: 155 Fell, San Francisco. Tera Melos, Zorch, Sister Crayon, Creepers, 9 p.m., $15.
Slim’s: 333 11th St., San Francisco. Born Ruffians, Grmln, 9 p.m., $17.
Thee Parkside: 1600 17th St., San Francisco. Fog of War, Nekrofilth, Burning Monk, Tomes, 9:30 p.m., $8.
DANCE
Amnesia: 853 Valencia, San Francisco. “Pance Darty,” w/ Jjaaxxnn & Duke, Third Saturday of every month, 9 p.m., $7.
Audio Discotech: 316 11th St., San Francisco. Miguel Migs, Andrew Phelan, 9:30 p.m., $10 advance.
Balancoire: 2565 Mission St., San Francisco. “Play It Cool,” w/ Boogie Nite, Avalon Emerson, Derek Opperman, Guillaume Galuz, Matthew Favorites, 9 p.m., $5.
BeatBox: 314 11th St., San Francisco. “I Just Wanna F*ckin Dance,” w/ DJs Hector Fonseca & Chi Chi LaRue, 10 p.m., $15-$25.
Cafe Flore: 2298 Market, San Francisco. “Bistrotheque,” w/ DJ Ken Vulsion, 8 p.m., free.
Cat Club: 1190 Folsom, San Francisco. “New Wave City: Duran Duran Video Night,” w/ DJs Shindog, Andy T, B.A.D. Reputation, and Girl Panic, 9 p.m., $7-$12.
DNA Lounge: 375 11th St., San Francisco. “Bootie S.F.,” w/ DJ Tripp, Entyme, Meikee Magnetic, Mixtress Shizaam, Dcnstrct, MyKill, Hubba Hubba Revue, more, 9 p.m., $10-$15.
The EndUp: 401 Sixth St., San Francisco. “The Show,” w/ Ben Seagren, Dean Samaras, and guests (starts 2 a.m. Sunday morning), Third Saturday of every month, $10-$20 (free before 11 p.m.).
F8: 1192 Folsom St., San Francisco. “Hegemoney,” w/ Mr. Carmack, Insightful, Mikos Da Gawd, Bobby Peru, Starter Kit, 9 p.m., $10-$15.
Infusion Lounge: 124 Ellis, San Francisco. “Social Addiction,” Third Saturday of every month, 10 p.m., $20.
Lookout: 3600 16th St., San Francisco. “Bounce!,” 9 p.m., $3.
Madrone Art Bar: 500 Divisadero, San Francisco. “Fringe,” w/ DJs Blondie K & subOctave, Third Saturday of every month, 9 p.m., $5 (free before 10 p.m.).
Mighty: 119 Utah, San Francisco. “Mighty Real,” w/ Tiga, Bells & Whistles, David Harness, 10 p.m., $15 advance.
Milk Bar: 1840 Haight, San Francisco. “The Queen Is Dead: A Tribute to the Music of Morrissey & The Smiths,” w/ DJ Mario Muse & guests, Third Saturday of every month, 9 p.m.
Monarch: 101 6th St., San Francisco. “Lights Down Low,” w/ MK, Richie Panic, Sleazemore, MPHD, 10 p.m., $15-$20.
Powerhouse: 1347 Folsom, San Francisco. “Beatpig,” Third Saturday of every month, 9 p.m.
Project One: 251 Rhode Island, San Francisco. “Familia vs. Friends and Family,” w/ Lee Coombs, Ethan Miller, Ding Dong, Tamo, Nugz, 9 p.m., $10-$15 advance.
Public Works: 161 Erie, San Francisco. “Isis,” w/ PBR Streetgang, Mountaincount (in the OddJob Loft), 9:30 p.m., $10-$15.
Ruby Skye: 420 Mason, San Francisco. “World Town,” w/ Deorro, Trevor Simpson, 9 p.m., $20 advance.
Slate Bar: 2925 16th St., San Francisco. “Smiths Night S.F.,” w/ The Certain People Crew, Third Saturday of every month, 10 p.m., $5.
Slide: 430 Mason, San Francisco. “Luminous,” w/ DJ Zhaldee, Third Saturday of every month, 9 p.m.
Supperclub San Francisco: 657 Harrison, San Francisco. “Scorpio’s Ball,” w/ El Papa Chango, Smasheltooth, Jocelyn, Portal, 9 p.m., $10-$20.
Vessel: 85 Campton, San Francisco. Tall Sasha, 10 p.m., $10-$30.
HIP-HOP
111 Minna Gallery: 111 Minna St., San Francisco. “Shine,” Third Saturday of every month, 10 p.m.
John Colins: 138 Minna, San Francisco. “The Bump,” w/ The Whooligan, Third Saturday of every month, 10 p.m., free.
The Knockout: 3223 Mission, San Francisco. “The Booty Bassment,” w/ DJs Dimitri Dickinson & Ryan Poulsen, Third Saturday of every month, 10 p.m., $5.
Mezzanine: 444 Jessie, San Francisco. Spawnbreezie, BigBody Cisco, Drew Deezy, 9 p.m., $20.
Showdown: 10 Sixth St., San Francisco. “Purple,” w/ resident DJs ChaunceyCC & Party Pablo, Third Saturday of every month, 10 p.m.
ACOUSTIC
Amoeba Music: 1855 Haight, San Francisco. Mason Jennings, 3 p.m., free.
Atlas Cafe: 3049 20th St., San Francisco. Craig Ventresco & Meredith Axelrod, Saturdays, 4-6 p.m., free.
Bazaar Cafe: 5927 California, San Francisco. Paul Griffiths, 7 p.m.
The Independent: 628 Divisadero, San Francisco. Vienna Teng, 6 & 9 p.m., $25.
The Lost Church: 65 Capp St., San Francisco. North Home, Jean Marie, 8 p.m., $10.
Plough & Stars: 116 Clement, San Francisco. John Haesemeyer, Jeff Hayward, RonDre., 8 p.m., $6.
The Riptide: 3639 Taraval, San Francisco. Chris James & The Showdowns, 9:30 p.m., free.
St. Cyprian’s Episcopal Church: 2097 Turk, San Francisco. A Musical Tribute & Celebration of the Life & Songs of Phil Ochs, featuring Sonny Ochs, Kim & Reggie Harris, Carolyn Hester, James Lee Stanley, and Aileen Vance, 8 p.m., $17-$20.
Tupelo: 1337 Green St., San Francisco. Shantytown, 9 p.m.
Yoshi’s San Francisco: 1330 Fillmore, San Francisco. An Evening with Mason Jennings, 8 & 10 p.m., $24-$29.
JAZZ
Cafe Claude: 7 Claude, San Francisco. The Monroe Trio, 7:30 p.m., free.
Jazz Bistro At Les Joulins: 44 Ellis, San Francisco. Bill “Doc” Webster & Jazz Nostalgia, 7:30 p.m., free.
The Royal Cuckoo: 3202 Mission, San Francisco. Jules Broussard, Danny Armstrong, and Chris Siebert, 7:30 p.m., free.
Savanna Jazz Club: 2937 Mission, San Francisco. Lily Alunan, 7:30 p.m., $10.
SFJAZZ Center: 205 Franklin St., San Francisco. Wesla Whitfield, 7 & 8:30 p.m., $30.
Sheba Piano Lounge: 1419 Fillmore, San Francisco. The Robert Stewart Experience, 9 p.m.
Zingari: 501 Post, San Francisco. Brenda Reed, 8 p.m., free.
INTERNATIONAL
1015 Folsom: 1015 Folsom St., San Francisco. “Pura,” 9 p.m., $20.
Bissap Baobab: 3372 19th St., San Francisco. “Paris-Dakar African Mix Coupe Decale,” 10 p.m., $5.
Cafe Cocomo: 650 Indiana, San Francisco. Peruvian Salsa Showdown, w/ Pepe y Su Orquesta vs. Julio Bravo y Su Orquesta Salsabor, 8 p.m., $15.
Cigar Bar & Grill: 850 Montgomery, San Francisco. Conjunto Picante, 8 p.m.
Fort Mason, Southside Theater: Marina, San Francisco. Theatre Flamenco: Con Nombre y Apellido, The country’s oldest flamenco dance company celebrates its 47th home season., Nov. 14-16, 8 p.m.; Sun., Nov. 17, 2 p.m., $35-$75.
Make-Out Room: 3225 22nd St., San Francisco. “El SuperRitmo,” w/ DJs Roger Mas & El Kool Kyle, 10 p.m., $5.
OMG: 43 6th St., San Francisco. “Bollywood Blast,” Third Saturday of every month, 9 p.m., $5 (free before 10:30 p.m.).
Pachamama Restaurant: 1630 Powell, San Francisco. Peña Eddy Navia & Pachamama Band, 8 p.m., free.
Public Works: 161 Erie, San Francisco. “Non Stop Bhangra,” w/ Jimmy Love, Rav-E, Pavit, Mehul, Dholrhythms dance troupe, more (in the main room), 9 p.m., $10-$15.
Red Poppy Art House: 2698 Folsom, San Francisco. Makrú, 7:30 p.m., $10-$15.
Revolution Cafe: 3248 22nd St., San Francisco. Go Van Gogh, Third Saturday of every month, 9 p.m., free/donation.
Roccapulco Supper Club: 3140 Mission, San Francisco. Farruko, 8 p.m., $40 advance.
BLUES
Biscuits and Blues: 401 Mason, San Francisco. Paula Harris, 7:30 & 10 p.m., $20.
Pier 23 Cafe: Pier 23, San Francisco. Bobbie Webb, 8 p.m., free.
The Saloon: 1232 Grant, San Francisco. Tony Perez & Second Hand Smoke, Third Saturday of every month, 4 p.m.; Nick Gravenites, 9:30 p.m.
EXPERIMENTAL
Columbarium: One Loraine Court, San Francisco. Luciano Chessa: Lightest, 6 p.m., free.
FUNK
Boom Boom Room: 1601 Fillmore, San Francisco. Polyrhythmics, Ideateam, 9:30 p.m., $10-$15.
SOUL
Elbo Room: 647 Valencia, San Francisco. “Saturday Night Soul Party,” w/ DJs Lucky, Phengren Oswald, and Paul Paul, Third Saturday of every month, 10 p.m., $10 ($5 in formal attire).
SUNDAY 17
ROCK
Bottom of the Hill: 1233 17th St., San Francisco. The Grannies, Winter Teeth, Bar Fight, 7 p.m., $10.
Cafe Du Nord: 2170 Market, San Francisco. Grant Farm, Emily Yates, Misisipi Mike Wolf, 8 p.m., $12.
Hemlock Tavern: 1131 Polk, San Francisco. Pop. 1280, 8:30 p.m., $7.
The Independent: 628 Divisadero, San Francisco. Anna Calvi, Sandy’s, 8 p.m., $20.
Milk Bar: 1840 Haight, San Francisco. Corners, Froth, Adult Books, Bicycle Day, 8 p.m., $5.
Neck of the Woods: 406 Clement St., San Francisco. Cadaver Dogs, MoonFox, A Happy Death, 8 p.m., $5-$8.
Rickshaw Stop: 155 Fell, San Francisco. White Lung, Antwon, Tony Molina, 7 p.m., $10-$12.
Slim’s: 333 11th St., San Francisco. Tonight Alive, The Downtown Fiction, For the Foxes, Echosmith, 7 p.m., $14.
DANCE
BeatBox: 314 11th St., San Francisco. “Tea-Rex,” w/ DJ Corey Craig, 4-8 p.m., $5-$10.
The Cellar: 685 Sutter, San Francisco. “Replay Sundays,” 9 p.m., free.
The Edge: 4149 18th St., San Francisco. “’80s at 8,” w/ DJ MC2, 8 p.m.
Elbo Room: 647 Valencia, San Francisco. “Dub Mission,” w/ Roger Mas, DJ Sep, Vinnie Esparza, 9 p.m., $6 (free before 9:30 p.m.).
The EndUp: 401 Sixth St., San Francisco. “T.Dance,” 6 a.m.-6 p.m.; “Soul Affair,” Third Sunday of every month, 8 p.m.; “Sunday Sessions,” 8 p.m.
F8: 1192 Folsom St., San Francisco. “Stamina Sundays,” w/ DLR & Adept, 10 p.m., free.
The Knockout: 3223 Mission, San Francisco. “Sweater Funk,” 10 p.m., free.
Lookout: 3600 16th St., San Francisco. “Jock,” Sundays, 3-8 p.m., $2.
MatrixFillmore: 3138 Fillmore, San Francisco. “Bounce,” w/ DJ Just, 10 p.m.
Monarch: 101 6th St., San Francisco. “Reload,” 9:30 p.m., $5; “Reload,” 9:30 p.m., $5.
Otis: 25 Maiden, San Francisco. “What’s the Werd?,” w/ resident DJs Nick Williams, Kevin Knapp, Maxwell Dub, and guests, 9 p.m., $5 (free before 11 p.m.).
The Parlor: 2801 Leavenworth, San Francisco. DJ Marc deVasconcelos, 10 p.m., free.
Q Bar: 456 Castro, San Francisco. “Gigante,” 8 p.m., free.
Showdown: 10 Sixth St., San Francisco. “The Dark Wave Rises,” w/ DJ Xtine Noir & DJ From Full House, Third Sunday of every month, 10 p.m.
Slate Bar: 2925 16th St., San Francisco. “She Said…: A Queer Affair,” Third Sunday of every month, 4 p.m., $3-$5.
HIP-HOP
Boom Boom Room: 1601 Fillmore, San Francisco. “Return of the Cypher,” 9:30 p.m., free.
Brick & Mortar Music Hall: 1710 Mission, San Francisco. Chuck Inglish, Kings Dead, Sayknowledge, Young Gully, Nick Jame$, Symba, 9 p.m., $12-$15.
ACOUSTIC
Hotel Utah: 500 Fourth St., San Francisco. Donovan Plant Band, Ian Franklin & Infinite Frequency, Jeff Desira, Ray Vaughn, Benjamin Brown, 8 p.m., $8-$10.
The Lucky Horseshoe: 453 Cortland, San Francisco. Sunday Bluegrass Jam, 4 p.m., free.
Madrone Art Bar: 500 Divisadero, San Francisco. “Spike’s Mic Night,” Sundays, 4-8 p.m., free.
Neck of the Woods: 406 Clement St., San Francisco. “iPlay,” open mic with featured weekly artists, 6:30 p.m., free.
Plough & Stars: 116 Clement, San Francisco. Seisiún with Darcy Noonan, Richard Mandel, and Jack Gilder, 9 p.m.
St. Luke’s Episcopal Church: 1755 Clay, San Francisco. “Sunday Night Mic,” w/ Roem Baur, 5 p.m., free.
Tupelo: 1337 Green St., San Francisco. The West Nile Ramblers, 9 p.m.
JAZZ
Biscuits and Blues: 401 Mason, San Francisco. Macy Blackman, 7:30 & 9:30 p.m., $15.
Chez Hanny: 1300 Silver, San Francisco. Scott Amendola Quartet, 4 p.m., $20 suggested donation.
Jazz Bistro At Les Joulins: 44 Ellis, San Francisco. Bill “Doc” Webster & Jazz Nostalgia, 7:30 p.m., free.
Madrone Art Bar: 500 Divisadero, San Francisco. “Sunday Sessions,” 10 p.m., free.
Revolution Cafe: 3248 22nd St., San Francisco. Jazz Revolution, 4 p.m., free/donation.
The Riptide: 3639 Taraval, San Francisco. The Cottontails, Third Sunday of every month, 7:30 p.m., free.
The Royal Cuckoo: 3202 Mission, San Francisco. Lavay Smith & Chris Siebert, 7:30 p.m., free.
SFJAZZ Center: 205 Franklin St., San Francisco. Jackie Ryan, 5:30 & 7 p.m., $20.
Zingari: 501 Post, San Francisco. Amanda Addleman, 7:30 p.m., free.
INTERNATIONAL
Atmosphere: 447 Broadway, San Francisco. “Hot Bachata Nights,” w/ DJ El Guapo, 5:30 p.m., $10 ($18-$25 with dance lessons).
Bissap Baobab: 3372 19th St., San Francisco. “Brazil & Beyond,” 6:30 p.m., free.
Fort Mason, Southside Theater: Marina, San Francisco. Theatre Flamenco: Con Nombre y Apellido, The country’s oldest flamenco dance company celebrates its 47th home season., Nov. 14-16, 8 p.m.; Sun., Nov. 17, 2 p.m., $35-$75.
Old First Presbyterian Church: 1751 Sacramento, San Francisco. Shoko Hikage with Thomas Schultz & Narae Kwon, 4 p.m., $14-$17.
Thirsty Bear Brewing Company: 661 Howard, San Francisco. “The Flamenco Room,” 7:30 & 8:30 p.m.
REGGAE
Mezzanine: 444 Jessie, San Francisco. Shaggy, Rayvon, Thrive, DJ Green B, 9 p.m., $25.
Pa’ina: 1865 Post St., San Francisco. Siaosi, Kiwini Vaitai, Jasmine Lee, 7 p.m., $10.
BLUES
Amnesia: 853 Valencia, San Francisco. HowellDevine, Third Sunday of every month, 8:30 p.m., $7-$10.
Lou’s Fish Shack: 300 Jefferson St., San Francisco. Nat Bolden, 4 p.m.
Revolution Cafe: 3248 22nd St., San Francisco. HowellDevine, 8:30 p.m., free/donation.
The Saloon: 1232 Grant, San Francisco. Blues Power, 4 p.m.; Silvia C, 9:30 p.m.
Sheba Piano Lounge: 1419 Fillmore, San Francisco. Bohemian Knuckleboogie, 8 p.m., free.
Swig: 571 Geary, San Francisco. Sunday Blues Jam with Ed Ivey, 9 p.m.
EXPERIMENTAL
El Rio: 3158 Mission, San Francisco. Marielle Jakobsons, Tecumseh, Names, 8 p.m., $7.
The Lab: 2948 16th St., San Francisco. “Godwaffle Noise Pancakes,” w/ Medicine Cabinet, Dictionary of Ghosts, Beast Nest, Rent Romus, Moo Kau, noon, $5-$10.
Musicians Union Local 6: 116 Ninth St., San Francisco. The Reckoning Quartet, Skullkrusher, 7:30 p.m., $8-$10.
SOUL
Delirium Cocktails: 3139 16th St., San Francisco. “Heart & Soul,” w/ DJ Lovely Lesage, 10 p.m., free.
MONDAY 18
ROCK
Brick & Mortar Music Hall: 1710 Mission, San Francisco. Social Studies, Foli, The Tropics, 9 p.m., $6.
The Chapel: 777 Valencia St., San Francisco. Nightlands, 8 p.m., $12.
Slim’s: 333 11th St., San Francisco. Wire, Chastity Belt, 8 p.m., $25.
DANCE
DNA Lounge: 375 11th St., San Francisco. “Death Guild,” 18+ dance party with DJs Decay, Joe Radio, Melting Girl, & guests, 9:30 p.m., $3-$5.
Q Bar: 456 Castro, San Francisco. “Wanted,” w/ DJs Key&Kite and Richie Panic, 9 p.m., free.
Underground SF: 424 Haight, San Francisco. “Vienetta Discotheque,” w/ DJs Stanley Frank and Robert Jeffrey, 10 p.m., free.
HIP-HOP
Elbo Room: 647 Valencia, San Francisco. Travaille, Ickymack, Cozmost, 9 p.m.
ACOUSTIC
Amnesia: 853 Valencia, San Francisco. Windy Hill, Third Monday of every month, 9 p.m., free.
Bazaar Cafe: 5927 California, San Francisco. West Coast Songwriters Competition, 7 p.m.
Cafe Du Nord: 2170 Market, San Francisco. Lindi Ortega, Brett Detar, 8:30 p.m., $12.
The Chieftain: 198 Fifth St., San Francisco. The Wrenboys, 7 p.m., free.
Fiddler’s Green: 1333 Columbus, San Francisco. Terry Savastano, 9:30 p.m., free/donation.
Hotel Utah: 500 Fourth St., San Francisco. Open mic with Brendan Getzell, 8 p.m., free.
Make-Out Room: 3225 22nd St., San Francisco. “Sad Bastard Club,” Third Monday of every month, 7:30 p.m., free.
Osteria: 3277 Sacramento, San Francisco. “Acoustic Bistro,” 7 p.m., free.
The Saloon: 1232 Grant, San Francisco. Peter Lindman, 4 p.m.
JAZZ
Cafe Divine: 1600 Stockton, San Francisco. Rob Reich, First and Third Monday of every month, 7 p.m.
Le Colonial: 20 Cosmo, San Francisco. Le Jazz Hot, 7 p.m., free.
Sheba Piano Lounge: 1419 Fillmore, San Francisco. City Jazz Instrumental Jam Session, 8 p.m.
The Union Room at Biscuits and Blues: 401 Mason, San Francisco. The Session: A Monday Night Jazz Series, pro jazz jam with Mike Olmos, 7:30 p.m., $12.
Zingari: 501 Post, San Francisco. Nora Maki, 7:30 p.m., free.
REGGAE
Skylark Bar: 3089 16th St., San Francisco. “Skylarking,” w/ I&I Vibration, 10 p.m., free.
BLUES
Biscuits and Blues: 401 Mason, San Francisco. Craig Horton, 7:30 & 9:30 p.m., $15.
Jazz Bistro At Les Joulins: 44 Ellis, San Francisco. Bohemian Knuckleboogie, 7:30 p.m., free.
The Saloon: 1232 Grant, San Francisco. The Bachelors, 9:30 p.m.
SOUL
Madrone Art Bar: 500 Divisadero, San Francisco. “M.O.M. (Motown on Mondays),” w/ DJ Gordo Cabeza & Timoteo Gigante, 8 p.m., free.
TUESDAY 19
ROCK
Amnesia: 853 Valencia, San Francisco. French Cassettes, Black Cobra Vipers, Eagle, 9:15 p.m., $7.
Boom Boom Room: 1601 Fillmore, San Francisco. The Bennys, Big Sticky Mess, Glimpse Trio, 9:30 p.m., $5.
Bottom of the Hill: 1233 17th St., San Francisco. Obits, Rob Crow’s Gloomy Place, Pins of Light, 9 p.m., $12.
Cafe Du Nord: 2170 Market, San Francisco. Ezra Furman, Tristen, Fronds, 8:30 p.m., $10.
The Chapel: 777 Valencia St., San Francisco. The Reverend Horton Heat, Larry & His Flask, Deke Dickerson, 9 p.m., $25.
Hotel Utah: 500 Fourth St., San Francisco. The Melismatics, Goldenboy featuring The New Familiar, Laura Leighe, South Hero, 8 p.m., $8-$10.
The Knockout: 3223 Mission, San Francisco. Payoff, Great Apes, Jabber, DJ Jesse Luscious, 9:30 p.m., $7.
DANCE
Aunt Charlie’s Lounge: 133 Turk, San Francisco. “High Fantasy,” w/ DJ Viv, Myles Cooper, & guests, 10 p.m., $2.
Monarch: 101 6th St., San Francisco. “Soundpieces,” 10 p.m., free-$10.
Otis: 25 Maiden, San Francisco. “Vibe,” w/ Binkadink, Third Tuesday of every month, 6 p.m., free.
Q Bar: 456 Castro, San Francisco. “Switch,” w/ DJs Jenna Riot & Andre, 9 p.m., $3.
Underground SF: 424 Haight, San Francisco. “Shelter,” 10 p.m., free.
Wish: 1539 Folsom, San Francisco. “Tight,” w/ resident DJs Michael May & Lito, 8 p.m., free.
HIP-HOP
Skylark Bar: 3089 16th St., San Francisco. “True Skool Tuesdays,” w/ DJ Ren the Vinyl Archaeologist, 10 p.m., free.
ACOUSTIC
Bazaar Cafe: 5927 California, San Francisco. Andy Padlo, 7 p.m. continues through Nov. 26.
Plough & Stars: 116 Clement, San Francisco. Seisiún with Autumn Rhodes, 9 p.m.
Swedish American Hall: 2174 Market, San Francisco. Moonface, 8 p.m., $14-$16.
JAZZ
Beach Chalet Brewery & Restaurant: 1000 Great Highway, San Francisco. Gerry Grosz Jazz Jam, 7 p.m.
Blush! Wine Bar: 476 Castro, San Francisco. Kally Price & Rob Reich, 7 p.m., free.
Burritt Room: 417 Stockton St., San Francisco. Terry Disley’s Rocking Jazz Trio, 6 p.m., free.
Cafe Divine: 1600 Stockton, San Francisco. Chris Amberger, 7 p.m.
Jazz Bistro At Les Joulins: 44 Ellis, San Francisco. M.B. Hanif & The Sound Voyagers, 7:30 p.m., free.
Le Colonial: 20 Cosmo, San Francisco. Lavay Smith & Her Red Hot Skillet Lickers, 7 p.m.
Revolution Cafe: 3248 22nd St., San Francisco. West Side Jazz Club, 5 p.m., free; Panique, Third Tuesday of every month, 8:30 p.m., free/donation.
Sheba Piano Lounge: 1419 Fillmore, San Francisco. Michael Parsons, 8 p.m.
Tupelo: 1337 Green St., San Francisco. Mal Sharpe’s Big Money in Jazz Band, 6 p.m.
Verdi Club: 2424 Mariposa, San Francisco. “Tuesday Night Jump,” w/ Stompy Jones, Carl Sonny Leyland, 9 p.m., $15; “Tuesday Night Jump,” w/ Stompy Jones, 9 p.m., $10-$12.
Yoshi’s San Francisco: 1330 Fillmore, San Francisco. Tommy Igoe Big Band, 8 p.m., $22.
Zingari: 501 Post, San Francisco. Linda Kosut, 7:30 p.m., free.
INTERNATIONAL
Cafe Cocomo: 650 Indiana, San Francisco. “Descarga S.F.,” w/ DJs Hong & Good Sho, 8 p.m., $12.
The Cosmo Bar & Lounge: 440 Broadway, San Francisco. “Conga Tuesdays,” 8 p.m., $7-$10.
Elbo Room: 647 Valencia, San Francisco. “Porreta!,” all night forro party with DJs Carioca & Lucio K, Third Tuesday of every month, 9 p.m., $7.
F8: 1192 Folsom St., San Francisco. “Underground Nomads,” w/ rotating resident DJs Amar, Sep, and Dulce Vita, plus guests, 9 p.m., $5 (free before 9:30 p.m.).
Yoshi’s San Francisco: 1330 Fillmore, San Francisco. Jorge Ben Jor, 8 & 10 p.m., $35-$55.
REGGAE
Milk Bar: 1840 Haight, San Francisco. “Bless Up,” w/ Jah Warrior Shelter Hi-Fi, 10 p.m.
BLUES
Biscuits and Blues: 401 Mason, San Francisco. The Pulsators, 7:30 & 9:30 p.m., $18.
The Saloon: 1232 Grant, San Francisco. Lisa Kindred, Third Tuesday of every month, 9:30 p.m.
EXPERIMENTAL
Center for New Music: 55 Taylor St., San Francisco. sfSoundSalonSeries, 7:49 p.m., $7-$10.
FUNK
Madrone Art Bar: 500 Divisadero, San Francisco. “Boogaloo Tuesday,” w/ Oscar Myers & Steppin’, 9:30 p.m., free.
SOUL
Make-Out Room: 3225 22nd St., San Francisco. “Lost & Found,” w/ DJs Primo, Lucky, and guests, 9:30 p.m., free. 

Promo: O+ Festival is this weekend

Maria Poblet

November 13, 2013

The O+ Festival – an art, music, and wellness festival that began in Kingston, NY – is making its way to the left coast and will be hosted for the first time in San Francisco from November 15-17. Participating bands and artists perform in exchange for free and discounted healthcare and medical services, while wristband holders receive free yoga all weekend and access to some of the best music, art, and public health and wellness activities around. This is promised to be the year’s best and biggest push for community-based urban renewal with creativity and fun at it’s core, and there is bound to be something for everyone. Check out sf.opositivefestival.org for a complete schedule.

Mid-Market landlord appeals as tenants face holiday evictions

Erica Hanna

November 12, 2013

Tenants fighting evictions from their 1049 Market home suffered a major setback this week as their landlords filed an appeal that may clear the way for conversion of their apartments into an office space.

The landlords want to knock down the walls of the now-apartment building to reap the benefits of the tech loving Mid-Market area, and will make their case to do so at the Board of Appeals on Wednesday, Dec/18, according to appeal documents.

At a press conference for the tenants today held on Market, tenant Marcele Wilson said that there are many people still living in the building despite the eviction notices. There are around 60 units in the building, but it is unclear how many are still occupied. But those remaining may lose their homes this winter, Wilson said.

“What kind of human being evicts people during the holidays?” he asked the crowd. The tenants have yet to see any eviction notices rescinded.

The landlords, John Gall and Amy Bogart, didn’t return calls or emails from the Guardian.

The tenants first received their eviction notices in September, which became highly politicized because San Francisco suffered an exodus of the working class, families, and artists as rental prices continue to surge. But the building was never up to code for rental units and was zoned as an office space.

When that was revealed the Department of Building Inspection moved swiftly to work with Gall to bring the building up to code to stave off the evictions, but a DBI official told the Guardian that Gall quickly begged off. They haven’t heard from him since early October.

“The way this works is the owner would come in with an architect or a designer so they could talk about what part of the building code needed to be addressed,” William Strawn, a spokesperson from DBI told us. Officials offered to meet with Gall on Oct. 11 in order to clarify what needed to change in the building to make it safer for residents — like having access to light and air.

“We haven’t heard from him since making that offer,” Strawn said.

Though in other coverage Gall told reporters the cost for making modifications were extensive, a Planning Department official told the Guardian that there were less expensive alternatives.

“The owners had a variety of options available to them,” said Dan Sider, senior adviser for special projects at the Planning Department.

April Veneracion Ang, an aide to Sup. Jane Kim, said that Kim’s office had been working with Gall, but hadn’t heard word on if he’d rescind the evictions yet.

Painting of @SupeJaneKim, a gift from mid-market tenants fighting eviction #sanfrancisco pic.twitter.com/mP4ggb89QF

— Joe A. W. Fitzgerald (@FitzTheReporter) November 12, 2013

Despite his silence, Gall has been hard at work to remove the tenants from the building. The eviction notices came in waves, and he continued to issue them through all of these negotiations, Sara Shortt of the Housing Rights Committee told us.

But on Oct. 28, the Planning Department suspended Gall’s application to turn the building into office space, writing that the building had been used as a residence in violation of planning codes for quite some time. The suspension was a win for the tenants and housing activists.

It was that suspension that Gall appealed to overturn on Nov. 8.

In his appeal, Gall wrote that the suspension of the permit for office space was “arbitrary and capricious” and not consistent with the “plain language” of the planning code. He also said he spent over $120,000 in relocation fees for tenants.

Tenants at the rally told us they were given checks by their landlord to move on and find new places to live, but in a story that is exceedingly familiar, it didn’t help a bit.

Many couldn’t afford to live in San Francisco if evicted, they said.

“I can take that $5,000 and not get anywhere in the city,” said Jonathan Stoker, 47, a three-year resident. A former server who injured his arm waiting tables on Hornblower cruises, he’s now a freelance graphic designer looking for a new job, a tall order, he said. If evicted, he was certain he’d have to leave the city.

“[Living in San Francisco] was my dream. People are engaged here, they’re creative, they’re thinkers,” he said. “I’d probably end up in Oakland in a basement somewhere, but even that’s going fast.”

The rents at 1049 Market range between $900 and $1,200 a month, the tenants told the Guardian.

Inside the building after the press conference, some tenants gathered around inside an ornate red-hued apartment belonging to Peter Taylor, 70.

Glasses of wine in hand, Taylor, Stoker, and another neighbor from down the hall traded tales of the sordid ways they’ve been pressured to leave the building in the past month.

Their security guards were let go, Tony Antori, 40, said. The property is across from Civic Center, a hub of suffering souls who’ve now been making their way into the building and some of them “have been living in our bathrooms now,” Antori told the Guardian, to nods from his neighbors. “A guy was found with his pants down and a hypodermic needle in his arm.”

Tony Antori in his apartment in October. Photo by Bay Guardian News Editor Rebecca Bowe.

Stoker said that they’ve also been losing hot water periodically, forcing them all to shower in the cold or go without. Antori said the YMCA has been a savior for hot showers.

Taylor sees this all as a sign that Gall is ready to play hardball, no pun intended, as the now-landlord was a former Major League Baseball player for the St. Louis Cardinals.

“This is the king of guy this is,” Taylor said. He felt in his bones that his landlord wouldn’t back down easy.

The tenants will find out for sure on Dec. 18, when Gall makes his case to turn the apartments into offices at the Board of Appeals. Until then, they fight, hoping they’ll keep their homes for the holidays, and longer.

1049 Market St tenants fighting together to #stoptheeviction pic.twitter.com/0lSBDIwbCp

— Stop SF Evictions (@stopsfevictions) November 12, 2013

Waffling

Michael Redmond

November 12, 2013

culture@sfbg.com

CHOW NOW

One of San Francisco’s classic icons, the Big 4 (1075 California, SF. www.big4restaurant.com) at The Huntington Hotel, is sadly going to be closing on Jan. 4 for a renovation by new owner Grace International of Singapore. What’s frustrating is Grace isn’t offering much in the way of info about the renovation: Are they massively changing the place? Will the piano remain? What about the beautiful bar and lounge? Hopefully they don’t do something stupid, because a lot of people have sentimental feelings about the Big 4’s classic, clubby room. (It’s had 66 years to accumulate a lot of fans.) What this does mean is if you want to salute the Big 4 as you know it — and there’s no better time to visit than during the holidays — then you may want to scoot over for a final cocktail or dinner now. Spring 2014 is when we’re supposed to see what the $15 million remodel looks like — hopefully the money goes more toward sprucing up the hotel rooms.

Another place that’s leaving us is Kronnerburger (2379 Mission, SF. www.kronnerburger.com), the damn delicious burger pop-up in the side room at Bruno’s. Chef-burger honcho Chris Kronner is closing in on an Oakland location (off Piedmont Avenue) for his brick and mortar, so he’ll be slinging his last burgers in the Mission on Nov. 22. If you haven’t had a chance to sink your choppers into one of his burgers made with aged beef, you better get on it. Open Sun–Fri for dinner, 6pm–late.

One more pop-up that’s closing shop (although you have a bit more time with this one) is the Kiwi-owned restaurant, Waiheke Island Yacht Club (Pier 29, 1256 The Embarcadero, www.waihekeislandyachtclub.com) on the Embarcadero. This chic temporary restaurant will be with us through the end of the year, so scoot on over while you can for some exciting and contemporary Kiwi cuisine: The team has added new seasonal menus from chef Hayden McMillan and a new wine list that includes selections from New Zealand. (The list is no longer limited to solely featuring wines from Napa Valley.)

BALLIN’ ON A BUDGET

Downtown workers looking for an inexpensive dinner before punching out and heading home should check out the new brasserie plates at the casual Tender Greens (30 Fremont, SF. www.tendergreens.com). Chef Sean Canavan has launched a series of hearty plates that over-deliver for only $12 each; you’ll find dishes like choucroute garni (smoked pork chop, juniper-scented sauerkraut, ribs, housemade bratwurst, and mashed potatoes) and cassoulet Toulousain (baked white beans, housemade Toulouse sausage, braised pork, and duck confit). Yup, perfect for chilly fall nights.

YOU GOTTA EAT THIS

Anyone who loves blini and caviar is gonna want to have a date with the buckwheat waffle with salmon roe, crème fraîche, dill, and slices of cucumber (with a shaking of nori powder) at the recently opened Lt. Waffle inside of the petite Linea Caffe (3417 18th St., SF. www.lineacaffe.com) in the Mission. First, order a superlative espresso at the counter, courtesy of roasting maestro Andrew Barnett. And then try to snag a table outside on the sunny alley while they prepare your Brussels-style waffle. There are some brilliant flavor combos, from savory picks like a potato waffle with pastrami and sauerkraut to sweet like “churro style” with chocolate and coconut crema. You can come back for the damn tasty salads from GreenSalads.org later. Score: Everything is $10 and under. Open 8am–3pm daily.

Marcia Gagliardi is the founder of the weekly tablehopper e-column, www.tablehopper.com. Get her app: Tablehopper’s Top Late-Night Eats. On Twitter: @tablehopper.

This Week’s Picks: November 13 – 19, 2013

Michael Redmond

November 12, 2013

WEDNESDAY 11/13

Chinese American Film Festival

San Francisco has a number of film series that pluck programming from recent international runs and festivals (see “New Italian Cinema” write-up elsewhere in Selector), but the Chinese American Film Festival is unique in its embrace of genre and popcorn movies. Where else are you gonna see Dante Lam’s MMA drama Unbeatable, starring the sweaty torsos of Nick Cheung and Eddie Peng, or NBA-sanctioned sci-fi Tron-meets-hoops mash-up Amazing? Also featured: rom-coms, historical dramas, crime thrillers, a disease-epidemic disaster movie, and a haunted-elevator horror flick. All films in Chinese with English subtitles. (Cheryl Eddy)

Wed/13-Tue/19, $6–$8

Four Star Theater

2200 Clement, SF

www.lntsf.com

WEDNESDAY 11/13

Cults

In 2010, two New York art students posted three songs on their Bandcamp page under the name Cults. Their insanely catchy glam earworm “Go Outside” immediately began catching the attention of the blogosphere, landing them on “Bands to Watch Out For” lists everywhere. Now, three years and one successful album later, they’re facing the second-album hurdle and a breakup. After four years of being romantically involved, Madeline Follin and Brian Oblivion have ended their relationship for the sake of the band. After post-breakup depression (Follin) and a soul-searching drug binge in Japan (Oblivion) the pair has reunited to focus on music, and the result is not the breakup album you might expect, but a fuzzed-out dreampop gem. (Haley Zaremba)

With Sacco, Mood Rings

8pm, $25

Fillmore

1805 Geary, SF

(415) 346-6000

www.thefillmore.com

WEDNESDAY 11/13

New Italian Cinema

The San Francisco Film Society continues its autumn of international showcases with “New Italian Cinema,” unspooling new works by Paolo Sorrentino (whose The Great Beauty opens theatrically later this month), Silvio Soldini (Garibaldi’s Lovers), and others, plus a Neapolitan cinema spotlight that includes Napoli 24, an omnibus film composed of 24 three-minute shorts about the iconic city. Bobbling alongside the mini-fest’s many selections set in contemporary Italy is Mario Martone’s star-studded costume drama We Believed, which celebrates the country’s 150th anniversary. (Eddy)

Wed/13-Sun/17, $10-25

Clay Theater

2261 Fillmore, SF

www.sffs.org

THURSDAY 11/14

Feminism in Action Open Mic

Here’s your chance to speak out against domestic violence during Feminism in Action’s first ever open mic night. FIA, an SF State organization, is working to break silences and to heal and support through artistic expression. Bring your music, poetry, or prose and share in a safe, positive space. The pieces you share do not have to be explicitly about domestic violence, as FIA recognizes art in general as a way to transform and heal. The event includes musical performances by local artists Bedroom Witch and Zamora. FIA will also use the evening to debut their first zine on domestic violence. Get vocal and get involved. (Kirstie Haruta)

7pm, $3–$5

Dolores Park Cafe

501 Dolores, SF

(415) 621-2936

www.doloresparkcafe.com

THURSDAY 11/14

Theatre Flamenco’s “Con Nombre y Apellido”

While flamenco will always be associated with Spain despite its roots in Gypsy, North African, Jewish, and Indian traditions, it has truly become part of world culture. Go to any flamenco school in Sevilla — more than half of the students will be from abroad. There is something about that tension, the give and take between the music — both melodic and percussive — and the dancer that is irresistible no matter where you are born. This is what Theatre Flamenco, now in its 47th year and the oldest company of its kind in the country, is exploring in its newest show, “Con Nombre y Apellido” (“With Name and Surname”). Carola Zertuche and Marién Luévano learned their first rhythms in Mexico; Cristina Hall at SF’s High School for the Performing Arts. (Rita Felciano)

Thu/14-Sat/16, 8pm; Sun/17, 2pm, $34–$40

Southside Theater

Fort Mason Center, SF

brownpapertickets.com/event/454980

THURSDAY 11/14

“Remembrance of Things Proust: 100th Anniversary of Swann’s Way“

Though our material landscape drastically technologized since Marcel Proust’s Belle Époque, the manner in which we humans digest and respond to our world remains the same. Music, be it Pandora or a live string quartet, continues to mold our emotions; art, found on Pinterest or in Beaux Arts museums, still disguises the ordinary through resemblance; parties, in the elusive Sub or Villeparisis’s salon, let us get wild and loose; and words, on Twitter or in novels, allow us to capture a present and cling to the past. In honor of Swann’s Way‘s 100 year anniversary, Mrs. Dalloway’s hosts an evening featuring readings from William C. Carter’s new translation, live period music, signed copies of painter David Richardson’s Resemblance: Portraits of Characters from Marcel Proust’s In Search of Lost Time, and tea with madeleines, to take you back. (Kaylen Baker)

7pm, $10

St John’s Presbyterian Church

2727 College, Berkeley

(510) 704-8222

www.mrsdalloways.com

THURSDAY 11/14

“The Intergalactic Nemesis: Book One: Target Earth“

The planet is in the crosshairs of a slimy race of extraterrestrials and only valiant reporter Molly Sloan and trusty sidekick Timmy Mendez, with help from an enigmatic librarian, can save it in this family-friendly multimedia spectacular from Austin, Texas. First performed in an Austin coffee shop in 1996, Jason Neulander’s live-action radio serial cum graphic novel has grown in size and following, but still has a spare quality leaving room for the imaginations of its audience to do the really heavy, CGI-type lifting. To get you going: three versatile actors, a hard-working Foley artist, a keyboard accompanist (delivering an original score by composer Graham Reynolds), a period-style narrative in the vein of Raiders of the Lost Ark, and over a thousand illustrations by Tim Doyle projected onto a 20-foot screen. The program includes a children’s one-hour school-time performance on Wed/13, as well as Cal Performance’s second annual arts learning forum for educators, administrators, and policy makers. (Robert Avila)

8pm, $18–$42

Zellerbach Hall, UC Berkeley

Bancroft Way at Dana Street, Berk.

(510) 642-9988

www.calperformances.org

FRIDAY 11/15

“Miles’ Wish To Be a Superhero”

The Make-A-Wish foundation transforms San Francisco into Gotham City for a day, and suddenly the entire city is caught in its own worst nightmare — fatal accidents occur on the cable cars, while an evil villain by the name of the Puzzler robs a bank and takes the fate of the San Francisco mascot Lou Seal into his own treacherous hands. But fear not, denizens! Batkid, also known as five-year-old Miles, infamous for his heroic battle against leukemia, comes to save the day. Join your fellow terror-stricken neighbors at specific lookout spots throughout the day (see the website below for details) to watch the action and cheer Batkid on. (Baker)

12:45am and 2pm, free

Various locations in SF

(415) 402-2775

sf.wish.org

FRIDAY 11/15

Cass McCombs

For most people, the idea of wandering around, homeless and aimless, surrounded by drugs, drug addicts, and general debauchery for the duration of your adult life sounds like some sort of nightmare. For Cass McCombs, this is reality. The nomadic singer-songwriter thrives on the alternative nature of his existence and anchors himself not to a home, family, or possessions, but to music. Lots of music. This year sees the release of his seventh studio album, and it’s a doozy. At 22 songs long, Big Wheel and Others is an enormous undertaking. Filled with his trademark flair for imaginative storytelling, compelling characters, and black humor, Big Wheel is a delicious slice of Americana and skilled songwriting. (Zaremba)

With Meg Baird

9pm, $16

Great American Music Hall

859 O’Farrell, SF

(415) 885-0750

www.slimspresents.com

SATURDAY 11/16

Bay Area Rainbow Symphony Concert

Continuing the tradition of “community and visibility through artistic excellence,” the Bay Area Rainbow Symphony, formed in 2008, brings its newest performance to the St. Mark’s Lutheran Church this weekend. Led by guest conductor Cyrus Ginwala, this group of talented musicians tackles Kenton Coe’s Ischiana Overture, Mendelssohn’s Violin Concerto, and Britten’s Variations and Fugue on a Theme of Purcell with readings from “Letters from a Life.” Acclaimed violinist Jassen Todorov joins symphony for the Mendelssohn and Coe pieces. Join BARS for a weekend of music in a space that is safe and welcoming for musicians of all sexual orientations, gender identities, and gender expressions. (Haruta)

11/16, 7pm, 11/17, 4pm, $15-35

St. Mark’s Lutheran Church

1111 O’Farrell, SF

(415) 578-4652

www.bars-sf.org

SATURDAY 11/16

“Fashioning Women”

San Francisco fashion designer Kate Mitchell’s lifelong dedication to dance, combined with her wry take on culture and academic interest in American history manifests in her most recent work, “Fashioning Women.” Both a mock-magazine book and a faux couture collection, this project parodies the contemporary fashion industry while exploring the boundaries between women’s bodies, movement, and the absurd constrictions of the feminine ideal. Featuring several guest artists, 25 women in a dance and theater performance, a catwalk of the couture collection, and copies of the book, this show is sure to fabricate an interesting trend story. (Baker)

8pm, $25

SOMArts Cultural Center

934 Brannan, SF

(415) 863-1414

www.fashioningwomen.com

TUESDAY 11/19

“Light Up the Night 2013: March for Inclusion and Tolerance”

In observation of Transgender Day of Remembrance, head over to City Hall and join the march to the Castro in loving memory of the transgender people we have lost to senseless violence and transphobia. The organizers emphasize that this event is about visibility rather than protesting, so lend your support and let the silenced be heard. Come together as a community and celebrate by stomping out transphobia all the way to Midnight Sun, where the festivities will continue. And to show its support, Midnight Sun will donate 10 percent of its bar sales that evening to the Transgender Law Center. (Haruta)

5pm, free

SF City Hall

1 Dr. Carlton B. Goodlett, SF

(415) 621-2936

www.doloresparkcafe.com

Theater Listings: November 13 – 19, 2013

Michael Redmond

November 12, 2013

Stage listings are compiled by Guardian staff. Performance times may change; call venues to confirm. Reviewers are Robert Avila, Rita Felciano, and Nicole Gluckstern. Submit items for the listings at listings@sfbg.com.

THEATER

OPENING

Amaluna Big Top at AT&T Park, Third Street at Terry A. Francois Blvd, SF; www.cirquedusoliel.com. $50-175. Opens Wed/13, 8pm. Check website for schedule, including special holiday showtimes. Through Jan 12. Cirque du Soliel returns with a show set on “a mysterious island governed by Goddesses and guided by the cycles of the moon.”

Arlington Magic Theatre, Fort Mason Center, 2 Marina, Bldg D, Third Flr, SF; www.magictheatre.org. $20-60. Previews Wed/13-Sat/16, 8pm; Sun/17, 2:30pm; Tue/19, 7pm. Opens Nov 20, 8pm. Runs Wed-Sat, 8pm (no show Nov 28; also Dec 4, 2:30pm); Sun and Tue, 7pm (also Sun, 2:30pm; no 7pm show Dec 8); Through Dec 8. Magic Theatre performs Victor Lodato and Polly Pen’s world-premiere musical.

Urge For Going Z Below, 470 Florida, SF; www.goldenthread.org. $10-45. Previews Thu/14-Fri/15, 8pm. Opens Sat/16, 8pm. Runs Thu-Sat, 8pm (no show Nov 28); Sun, 3pm. Through Dec 8. Golden Thread Productions presents Mona Mansour’s play about a Palestinian teen who hopes academics will be her ticket out of the Lebanese refugee camp she calls home.

BAY AREA

Harvey Barn Theatre, 30 Sir Francis Drake, Ross; www.rossvalleyplayers.com. $10-22. Previews Thu/14, 7:30pm. Opens Fri/15, 8pm. Runs Thu, 7:30pm; Fri-Sat, 8pm; Sun, 2pm (no show Sun/17). Through Dec 15. Ross Valley Players perform the Pulitzer-winning play by Mary Chase.

110 in the Shade Douglas Morrison Theatre, 22311 N. Third St, Hayward; www.dmtonline.org. $10-29. Previews Thu/14, 8pm. Runs Fri-Sat and Dec 5, 8pm (also Sat, 2pm); Sun, 2pm. Through Dec 8. Douglas Morrison Theatre performs N. Richard Nash’s romantic musical, adapted from his classic play The Rainmaker.

ONGOING

The Barbary Coast Revue Stud Bar, 399 Ninth St, SF; eventbrite.com/org/4730361353. $10-40. Wed, 9pm (no show Nov 27). Through Dec 18. Blake Wiers’ new “live history musical experience” features Mark Twain as a tour guide through San Francisco’s wild past.

Bengal Tiger at the Bagdad Zoo SF Playhouse, 450 Post, SF; www.sfplayhouse.org. $30-100. Wed/13-Thu/14, 7pm; Fri/15-Sat/16, 8pm (also Sat/16, 3pm). In Rajiv Joseph’s Pulitzer-nominated Bengal Tiger at the Bagdad Zoo, the dead quickly outnumber the living, and soon the stage is littered with monologist ghosts lost in transition. In Joseph’s world, at least, death is but another phase of consciousness, a plane of existence where a man-eating tiger might experience a crisis of conscience, and a brash young soldier with a learning disability might suddenly find himself contemplating algebraic equations and speaking Arabic — knowledge that had eluded his comprehension in life. Will Marchetti’s portrayal of the titular tiger is on the static side, though his wry intelligence and philosophical awakening comes as a welcome contrast to the willfully obtuse world view of the American soldiers (Gabriel Marin and Craig Marker) guarding him. But it’s Musa (Kuros Charney), a translator for the Americans and a former gardener and topiary “artist,” who eventually emerges as the play’s most fully realized character and also the most tragic, becoming that which he dreads the most, a beast in a lawless land, egged on by the ghost of his former employer, the notoriously sadistic Uday Hussein (Pomme Koch). At times, director Bill English’s staging feels too understated and contained for a play that’s so muscular and expansive (an understatement not carried over into Steven Klems’ appropriately jarring sound design) focused less on its metaphysical implications than on its mundane surface, but however imperfect the production and daunting the script, it remains a fascinating response to an unwinnable war — the war against our own animal natures. (Gluckstern)

BoomerAging: From LSD to OMG Marsh San Francisco, 1062 Valencia, SF; www.themarsh.org. $15-50. Tue, 8pm. Extended through Dec 17. Will Durst’s hit solo show looks at baby boomers grappling with life in the 21st century.

Driving Miss Daisy Buriel Clay Theater at the African American Art and Culture Complex, 762 Fulton, SF; www.african-americanshakes.org. $12.50-37.50. Fri/15-Sat/16, 8pm; Sun/17, 3pm. It’s 1948 in Atlanta, Ga., the same year that Martin Luther King Jr. joined the ministry at Ebenezer Baptist Church, and Daisy Werthan (Ann Kendrick) has just crashed her new Packard. Grudgingly forced into accepting a driver hired by her son Boolie (Timothy Beagley), she enters what will become a 25-year association with Hoke Coleburn (L. Peter Callender). Although she is a wealthy Jewish widow and he is a working-class African American man, they share a similar stubborn attitude, and although initially constrained by the manners of the time, the two gradually warm up to each other, their relationship evolving simultaneously with the mores of the South. In African-American Shakespeare Company’s production, Kendrick in the title role cuts a formidable figure yet ably reveals her character’s weaknesses and insecurities, while Callender as Hoke maintains an aura of quiet dignity and self-sufficiency; a hired man, but never a servant. Rounding out the excellent cast, Beagley as Boolie is the perfect foil for both his mother’s tendency towards imperiousness and her chauffeur’s sanguine sense of self. Charming, humorous, and subtly profound, Daisy ushers in the holiday season with a non-saccharine sweetness. (Gluckstern)

Emmett Till: A River NOH Space in Project Artaud, 2840 Mariposa, SF; www. theatreofyugen.org. $20-30. Thu/14-Sat/16, 8pm; Sun/17, 2pm. Taken from his bed in the dead of night and brutally killed for allegedly making a pass at a white woman, 14-year-old Emmett Till’s tragic demise helped to fuel the growing fires of the Civil Rights movement. But although his story has become deeply embedded within the fabric of American consciousness, it is usually recalled as a symbol for an oppressive system rather than representative of an actual human being. In an intriguing exploration of Till’s internal landscape, Kevin Simmonds and Judy Halebsky’s Emmett Till: A River at Theatre of Yugen takes Till’s story and fits it into a mugen (or phantasm) noh framework in which the restless spirit of Till encounters the woman in whose defense he was killed over 50 years earlier. As the performers remain seated, moving only to turn the pages of their score in unison, or to play their instruments, the experience is ritualistic in nature, a commingling of chant, poetry, and ghost story, expressed primarily via the sonorous vocals and heavy silences of Lluis Valls (as both Mamie and Emmett Till) and Sheila Berotti (as Carolyn Bryant). A gospel-style chorus of three African American voices (Derek Lassiter, Khalil Sullivan, and Dario Slavazza), the mournful flutes of Polly Moller, and the traditional percussion instruments and kakegoe vocals employed by David Crandall add tonal and atmospheric texture. (Gluckstern)

Foodies! The Musical Shelton Theater, 533 Sutter, SF; www.foodiesthemusical.com. $32-34. Fri-Sat, 8pm. Open-ended. AWAT Productions presents Morris Bobrow’s musical comedy revue all about food.

The Gershwins’ Porgy and Bess Golden Gate Theatre, One Taylor, SF; www.shnsf.com. $60-210. Tue-Sat, 8pm (no show Nov 28; check website for matinee schedule); Sun, 2pm. Through Dec 8. The Tony-winning Broadway revival launches its national tour in San Francisco.

Hedwig and the Angry Inch Boxcar Theatre, 505 Natoma, SF; www.boxcartheatre.org. $27-43. Thu-Sat, 8pm. Open-ended. John Cameron Mitchell’s cult musical comes to life with director Nick A. Olivero’s ever-rotating cast.

I Married an Angel Eureka Theatre, 215 Jackson, SF; www.42ndstmoon.org. $25-75. Wed/13-Thu/14, 7pm; Fri/15, 8pm; Sat/16, 6pm; Sun/17, 3pm. 42nd Street Moon performs the Rodgers and Hart classic.

The Jewelry Box: A Genuine Christmas Story The Marsh San Francisco, 1062 Valencia, SF; www.themarsh.org. $15-40. Fri, 8pm; Sat, 5pm. Through Dec 28. Brian Copeland performs the world premiere of his new, holiday-themed work, an Oakland-set autobiographical tale that’s a prequel to his popular Not a Genuine Black Man.

My Beautiful Launderette New Conservatory Theatre Center, 25 Van Ness, SF; www.nctcsf.org. $25-45. Wed-Sat, 8pm; Sun, 2pm. Through Dec 22. New Conservatory Theatre Center performs Andy Gram and Roger Parsley’s adaptation of Hanif Kureishi’s award-winning screenplay.

Peter and the Starcatcher Curran Theatre, 445 Geary, SF; www.shnsf.com. $40-160. Tue-Sat, 8pm (also Wed and Sat, 2pm; no show Nov 28); Sun, 2pm. Through Dec 1. Fanciful, Tony-winning prequel to Peter Pan.

The Rita Hayworth of This Generation Garage, 715 Bryant, SF; www.715bryant.org. $10-15. Wed-Thu, 8pm. Through Nov 21. Writer-performer Tina D’Elia’s 2010 solo comedy spins a queer and ethnically rich world that straddles the living and the dead in a Las Vegas that, let’s face it, lies somewhere between those two poles already. Drawing on her own professional obsession with Rita Hayworth (née Margarita Carmen Cansino), the ethnically neutered Hispanic star of 1940s Hollywood, D’Elia plays Carmelita, an ambitious Rita Hayworth impersonator who gets entangled with a Latino/a transgender blackjack champion with a drinking problem and too many deals with the devil — in the person of deceased Columbia Pictures mogul Harry Cohn’s daughter, a powerful Vegas TV host and Star-maker. Meanwhile, Carmelita’s smitten production manager Angel tries her best to look out for her, while would-be angel Rita Hayworth herself takes on the role of Carmelita’s consultant on all things Hayworth in a bid to earn her wings from a God moving in typically mysterious ways. While the piece requires patience with the usual formal pitfalls of the solo form (including some awkward back-and-forth between multiple characters) and the hefty plot could also use some editing, D’Elia (under director Mary Guzmán), in a production with few frills, proves a sharp and engaging performer, her characters tending to be both endearing and amusingly full-bodied. (Avila)

Scamoramaland Bindlestiff Studio, 185 Sixth St, SF; www.performersunderstress.com. $15-30. Thu/14-Sat/16, 8pm; Sun/17, 2pm. We’ve probably all received at least one “419” letter from a Nigerian prince-businessman-widow with a fortune abroad that must be reclaimed, for reasons not completely clear, by you and you alone. Eve Edelson’s play Scamoramaland (inspired loosely by her book of the same name) takes a closer look at these scams and attempts to flesh out what we never see online, namely, the faces behind the fraud. As such, however, it’s an incomplete look at best. We’re first introduced to Freddy (James Udom) a charming youth with a fast, flirty patter and a hunger for words, which has driven him to his strange profession, a writer of advance fee fraud scenarios for his boss or “oga” (Duane Lawrence), who holds his school fees hostage for more lucrative letters. As scam artists go, Udom’s Freddy is relatively likable, and it’s hard not to feel for him when a belligerent, wheelchair-bound “scambaiter” Tom (Scott Baker) begins to string him along. But as Freddy becomes more entangled in his unsavory trade, we never get a strong sense of what he is giving up by descending irrevocably deeper into the criminal underworld, his character remaining almost as two-dimensional as his loquacious online alter ego. As for the global socio-economic inequalities that drive such endeavors, they too are barely touched upon, and we’re left with a play that is more troubling than the comedy it’s billed as, but not unflinching enough to be truly transformative. (Gluckstern)

Shakespeare Night at the Blackfriars (London Idol 1610) Phoenix Arts Association Annex Theatre, 414 Mason, SF; www.subshakes.com. $20-25. Fri/15-Sat/16, 8pm; Sun/17, 7pm. Subterranean Shakespeare performs George Crowe’s comedy about a playwriting contest between Ben Jonson, Thomas Middleton, Francis Beaumont, and the ghost of Christopher Marlowe.

“Shocktoberfest 14: Jack the Ripper” Hypnodrome, 575 10th St, SF; www.thrillpeddlers.com. $25-35. Thu-Sat, 8pm. Through Nov 23. It’s lucky 14 for the Thrillpeddlers’ annual Halloween-tide Shocktoberfest, and while there are few surprises in this year’s lineup, there’s plenty of reliable material to chew on. Opening with A Visit to Mrs. Birch and the Young Ladies of the Academy, a ribald Victorian-era “spanking drama,” the fare soon turns towards darker appetites with a joint Andre De Lorde-Pierre Chaine work, Jack the Ripper. Works by De Lorde — sometimes referred to as the “Prince of Fear” — have graced the Hypnodrome stage over the years, and this tense Victorian drama, though penned in the 30s, is suitably atmospheric. Although it becomes pretty evident early on who dunnit, it’s the why that lies at the heart of this grim drama, and in the course of that discovery, the play’s beleaguered lawmen reveal themselves to be no less ruthless than the titular Ripper (John Flaw) in pursuit of their quarry. Norman Macleod as Inspector Smithson particularly embodies this unwholesome dichotomy, and Bruna Palmeiro excels as his spirited yet doomed bait. Inspired by Oscar Wilde’s Salome, the Thrillpeddlers’ piece by the same name is perhaps the weak link in the program, despite being penned by the ever-clever Scrumbly Koldewyn, and danced with wanton abandon by Noah Haydon. Longtime Thrillpeddlers’ collaborator Rob Keefe ties together the evening’s disparate threads under one sprawling big top media circus of murder, sex, ghosts, and sensationalism with his somewhat tongue-in-cheek, San Francisco-centric The Wrong Ripper. (Gluckstern)

Sidewinders Exit on Taylor, 277 Taylor, SF; www.cuttingball.com. $10-50. Thu/14, 7:30pm; Fri/15-Sat/16, 8pm (also Sat/16, 2pm); Sun/17, 5pm. Cutting Ball opens its 15th season with the world premiere of Basil Kreimendahl’s absurdist romp through gender queerness. In a cartoonish, desolate wasteland (designed by Michael Locher), Dakota (Sara Moore), a bleached-blonde gunslinger in buckskin fringes, and Bailey (DavEnd), a possibly AWOL soldier rocking high-heeled boots and a single drop earring, wrestle with the conundrum of what to call their respective genitals. And more to the point, what to do with them after they figure it out. Or as Bailey bluntly puts it, “Who am I supposed to fuck?” But there’s more to being stranded in the uncharted wilderness at stake than “organ confusion,” and soon they must channel their uncommon alliance into finding a way back out. What they find instead include a regal figure of indeterminate gender possessed of extra limbs (Donald Currie), a suicidal servant with surgical skills (Norman Muñoz), and a growing realization that wilderness, like identity, is relative. Moore and DavEnd make a good comedic team, their endless banter, circular logic and exaggerated facial gymnastics giving them the philosophical gravitas of a Looney Tunes episode, while Currie’s turn as mutated muse is unexpectedly moving. Recent winner of the prestigious Rella Lossy award, this intriguing world premiere marks playwright Basil Kreimendahl’s first professional production, though it seems safe to say that it won’t be the last. (Gluckstern)

Underneath the Lintel Geary Theater, 415 Geary, SF; www.act-sf.org. $20-150. Tue-Sat, 8pm (check website for matinees). Extended through Nov 23. A lone librarian (David Strathairn) takes the stage with a suitcase of “scraps” he will use to “prove one life and justify another.” To illustrate the first, he pulls a battered travel guide — 113 years overdue — from the case, and then, as the play continues, displays further “lovely evidence” to bolster his admittedly vague hypothesis. The life he is attempting to prove is that of the so-called “Wandering Jew,” but it’s the life he attempts to justify, namely his own, that becomes the more compelling, and his broadening horizons drive his narrative far more efficiently than his curious obsession with a man in a funny hat (who owes the library quite a fine for his century-delayed return of the guidebook). As a man who has rarely left the comfortable confines of his home town, Hoofddorp, traveling to London, China, New York City, and even Australia is nothing short of epic in the best sense of the word — a hero’s journey during which the benignly dotty librarian emerges transformed. Given the expanse of ACT’s Geary Theater mainstage, the production does suffer somewhat from a lack of intimacy, but moments of inventive staging take advantage of Nina Ball’s fantastically-cluttered set and the librarian’s innate sense of curiosity, as he unearths a wealth of evidence and fraught memories from the depths of the cavernous space. (Gluckstern)

BAY AREA

A Bright New Boise Aurora Theatre, 2081 Addison, Berk; www.auroratheatre.org. $32-50. Previews Wed/13, 8pm. Opens Thu/14, 8pm. Runs Tue, 7pm; Wed-Sat, 8pm; Sun, 2 and 7pm. Through Dec 8. Aurora Theatre presents Samuel D. Hunter’s tale of an ex-evangelical cult member attempting to bond with his estranged son before the end of the world.

Can You Dig It? Back Down East 14th — the 60s and Beyond Marsh Berkeley, 2120 Allston, Berk; www.themarsh.org. $15-50. Sat, 8:30pm; Sun, 7pm. Extended through Dec 15. Don Reed’s new show offers more stories from his colorful upbringing in East Oakland in the 1960s and ’70s. More hilarious and heartfelt depictions of his exceptional parents, independent siblings, and his mostly African American but ethnically mixed working-class community — punctuated with period pop, Motown, and funk classics, to which Reed shimmies and spins with effortless grace. And of course there’s more too of the expert physical comedy and charm that made long-running hits of Reed’s last two solo shows, East 14th and The Kipling Hotel (both launched, like this newest, at the Marsh). Can You Dig It? reaches, for the most part, into the “early” early years, Reed’s grammar-school days, before the events depicted in East 14th or Kipling Hotel came to pass. But in nearly two hours of material, not all of it of equal value or impact, there’s inevitably some overlap and indeed some recycling. Reed, who also directs the show, may start whittling it down as the run continues. But, as is, there are at least 20 unnecessary minutes diluting the overall impact of the piece, which is thin on plot already — much more a series of often very enjoyable vignettes and some painful but largely unexplored observations, wrapped up at the end in a sentimental moral that, while sincere, feels rushed and inadequate. (Avila)

Don’t Dress For Dinner Center REPertory Company, 1601 Civic, Walnut Creek; www.centerrep.org. $33-52. Wed, 7:30pm; Thu-Sat, 8pm (also Nov 23, 2:30pm); Sun, 2:30pm. Through Nov 23. Center REP performs Marc Camoletti’s sequel to his classic farce Boeing-Boeing.

A King’s Legacy Pear Avenue Theatre, 1220 Pear, Mtn View; www.thepear.org. $10-35. Thu-Sat, 8pm; Sun, 2pm. Through Nov 24. Pear Avenue Theatre performs Elyce Melmon’s world premiere, a drama about King James VI of Scotland.

A Little Princess Julia Morgan Theater, 2640 College, Berk; www.berkeleyplayhouse.org. $17-60. Thu-Fri, 7pm (Nov 28, shows at 1 and 6pm); Sat, 1 and 6pm; Sun, noon and 5pm (no 5pm show Dec 1). Through Dec 8. Berkeley Playhouse opens its sixth season with Brian Crawley and Andrew Lippa’s musical adaptation of the Frances Hodgson Burnett story.

Metamorphoses South Berkeley Community Church, 1802 Fairview, Berk; www.infernotheatre.org. $10-25. Thu and Sat-Sun, 8pm; Fri, 9pm. Through Nov 23. Inferno Theatre performs a multimedia, contemporary adaptation of Ovid’s classic.

The Pianist of Willesden Lane Berkeley Repertory Theatre, Thrust Theatre, 2015 Addison, Berk; www.berkeleyrep.org. $29-89. Tue and Thu-Sat, 8pm (also Dec 5 and Sat, 2pm; no show Nov 28); Wed and Sun, 7pm (also Sun, 2pm). Through Dec 8. Mona Golabek stars in this solo performance inspired by her mother, a Jewish pianist whose dreams and life were threatened by the Nazi regime.

Red Virgin, Louise Michel and the Paris Commune of 1871 Berkeley City Club, 2315 Durant, Berk; www.centralworks.org. $15-28. Thu-Sat, 8pm; Sun, 5pm. Through Nov 24. Central Works presents a new play (with live music) by Gary Graves about the Paris Commune uprising.

Social Security Muriel Watkin Gallery, 1050 Crespi Drive, Pacifica; (650) 359-8002. $10-25. Fri-Sat, 8pm; Sun, 2pm. Through Nov 24. Pacifica Spindrift Players performs Andrew Bergman’s classic comedy.

strangers, babies Ashby Stage, 1901 Ashby, Berk; www.shotgunplayers.org. $20-35. Wed/13-Thu/14, 7pm; Fri/15-Sat/16, 8pm; Sun/17, 5pm. Shotgun Players present Linda McLean’s drama about a woman confronting her past.

PERFORMANCE/DANCE

BATS Improv Bayfront Theater, B350 Fort Mason Center, SF; www.improv.org. $20. This week: “DuoProv Championship,” Fri, 8pm, through Nov 29; “Family Drama,” Sat, 8pm, through Nov 30.

“Be Bop Baby: A Musical Memoir: Z Space, 450 Florida, SF; www.zspace.org. Nov 19-21, 7pm; Nov 22-23, 8pm. $25-75. World premiere by Margo Hall and the Marcus Shelby Jazz Orchestra.

“Best of the 2013 San Francisco Fringe Festival” Exit Studio, 156 Eddy, SF; www.theexit.org. Fri/15-Sat/16, 8pm. $15-25. This week: Sarah Mackey’s Memphis On My Mind (“Best of” series continues through Nov. 23).

“Bitch and Tell: A Real Funny Variety Show” Garage, 715 Bryant, SF; www.ftloose.org. Fri/15-Sat/16, 8pm. $8-10. With Paco Romane, Rosemary Hannon, David Miller, Lindsay Wood, Bruce Yelaska, and others.

“Broadway Bingo” Feinstein’s at the Nikko, Hotel Nikko, 222 Mason, SF; www.feinsteinssf.com. Wed, 7-9pm. Ongoing. Free. Countess Katya Smirnoff-Skyy and Joe Wicht host this Broadway-flavored night of games and performance.

“The Buddy Club Children’s Shows” Randal Museum Theater, 199 Museum Wy, SF; www.thebuddyclub.com. Sun/17, 11am-noon. $8 (under 2, free). Dan Chan Magic Man performs dog tricks, illusions, and juggling.

“Con Nombre y Apellido” Fort Mason Center, Southside Theater, Marina at Laguna, SF; www.brownpapertickets.com. Thu/15-Sat/16, 8pm; Sun/17, 2pm. $35-40. Also Nov 23, 8pm, $45, Mtn View Center for the Performing Arts, 500 Castro, Mtn View. Theatre Flamenco of San Francisco presents renowned flamenco dancer Carola Zertuche.

CounterPULSE 1310 Mission, SF; www.counterpulse.org. This week: Year of the Snake with Jason Hoopes, Peiling Kao, and Karl Jensen, Fri/15-Sat/16, 8pm; Sun/17, 7pm, $10-15. “Beware the Band of Lions (They’re Dandy Lions),” with Bandelion, Sun/17, 3pm, free (reservations required as space is extremely limited; to request an invitation, email info@dandeliondancetheater.org).

“Fashioning Women” SOMArts Cultural Center, 934 Brannan, SF; www.brownpapertickets.com. Sat/16, 8pm. $25. Bay Area artist Kate Mitchell presents a dance/theater performance, book launch, and gallery show incorporating her faux costume designs.

Flyaway Productions Joe Goode Annex, 401 Alabama, SF; www.flyawayproductions.com. Wed/13-Sat/16, 7:30 and 9pm. $25. Director-choreographer Jo Kreiter and Flyaway Productions’ latest aerial composition banks off various aspects of female transcendence over the obstacles and confines of the modern world. That informs the deep structure of Give a Woman a Lift anyway — subtitled “a self-propelled, upward dash” — which is currently inhabiting the floor, walls, widows, and the very air within the high-ceilinged Joe Goode Annex. The piece has no narrative per se, but nevertheless evokes a sense of countless stories in both the sweeping grace and the spasmodic or reflexive contortions of its six performers (a lithe and forceful ensemble comprised of Christine Cali, Jennifer Chien, Becca Dean, Lisa Fagan, MaryStarr Hope, and Patricia Jiron). Further augmenting these proto-narrative tropes is an enveloping score by Jewlia Eisenberg and Laura Inserra, whose richly woven melodies are laced with images of women in flight and a repeated call to “rise up, fly girl.” Well-wrought and sympathetic as this fabric is, it can get in the way of some of the more immediately compelling parts of the dance, which makes fine use of the contact between the performers’ bodies and various (industrial) surfaces. These include discrete sections of rust-covered steel I-beams manipulated throughout as objects, supports, or as the central swinging platform suspended from the ceiling, which rises and falls throughout with dancers on and around it. There is something in that contact and negotiation which speaks to, but also reaches intriguingly beyond, the familiar tropes flagged by the “uplifting” aspects of the score and choreography. The latter is full of sweeping arcs and upended bodies, but also gestures that are unnecessarily histrionic. One ends up wondering what more silence and less affectation might have allowed to arise with this wonderfully kinetic and almost trans-human situation. (Avila)

“The Grawlix” Hemlock Tavern, 1131 Polk, SF; www.hemlocktavern.com. Fri/15, 9pm. $15. Club Chuckles hosts the Denver stand-up comedy troupe.

“Hysterical Historical San Francisco, Holiday Edition” Shelton Theater, 533 Sutter, SF; www.sheltontheater.org. Sun, 7pm. Through Dec 29. $30-40. Comic Kurt Weitzman performs.

“Mission Position Live” Cinecave, 1034 Valencia, SF; www.missionpositionlive.com. Thu, 8pm. Ongoing. $10. Stand-up comedy with rotating performers.

Megan Mullally and Stephanie Hunt Feinstein’s at the Nikko, Hotel Nikko, 222 Mason, SF; www.feinsteinssf.com. Thu/14-Fri/15, 8pm; Sat/16, 7pm. $45-65 ($20 food and beverage minimum). The performers present their band Nancy and Beth.

“Okeanos Intimate” Aquarium of the Bay, Pier 39, SF; www.capacitor.org. Sat, 4:30 and 7pm. $20-30 (free aquarium ticket with show ticket). Extended through Dec 28. Choreographer Jodi Lomask and her company, Capacitor, revive 2012’s Okeanos — a cirque-dance piece exploring the wonder and fragility of our innate connection to the world’s oceans — in a special “intimate” version designed for the mid-size theater at Pier 39’s Aquarium of the Bay. The show, developed in collaboration with scientists and engineers, comes preceded by a short talk by a guest expert — for a recent Saturday performance it was a down-to-earth and truly fascinating local ecological history lesson by the Bay Institute’s Marc Holmes. In addition to its Cirque du Soleil-like blend of quasi-representational modern dance and circus acrobatics — powered by a synth-heavy blend of atmospheric pop music — Okeanos makes use of some stunning underwater photography and an intermittent narrative that includes testimonials from the likes of marine biologist and filmmaker Dr. Tierney Thys. The performers, including contortionists, also interact with some original physical properties hanging from the flies — a swirling vortex and a spherical shell — as they wrap and warp their bodies in a kind of metamorphic homage to the capacity and resiliency of evolution, the varied ingenuity of all life forms. If the movement vocabulary can seem limited at times, and too derivative, the show also feels a little cramped on the Aquarium Theater stage, whose proscenium arrangement does the piece few favors aesthetically. Nevertheless, the family-oriented Okeanos Intimate spurs a conversation with the ocean that is nothing if not urgent. (Avila)

“Point Break Live!” DNA Lounge, 373 11th St, SF; www.dnalounge.com. Dec 6 and Jan 3, 7:30 and 11pm. $25-50. Interactive interpretation of Kathryn Bigelow’s 1991 classic. (Some tickets include meatball sandwiches!)

San Francisco International Hip Hop DanceFest Palace of Fine Arts Theatre, 3301 Lyon, SF; www.sfhiphopdancefest.com. Fri/15-Sat/16, 8pm; Sun/17, 2 and 7pm. $39.99-$75. The fest celebrates its 15th anniversary with performances by 13 hip-hop dance companies.

“San Francisco Magic Parlor” Chancellor Hotel Union Square, 433 Powell, SF; www.sfmagicparlor.com. Thu-Sat, 8pm. Ongoing. $40. Magic vignettes with conjurer and storyteller Walt Anthony.

“Seijin no Hi/Coming of Age” Japanese Cultural and Community Center of Northern California, 1840 Sutter, SF; www.brownpapertickets.com. Sun/17, 1pm. $17-25. Taiko drumming and dance company GenRyu Arts performs its 18th anniversary concert.

BAY AREA

Adventures of a Black Girl: Traveling While Black EastSide Cultural Center, 2277 International, Oakl; www.brownpapertickets.com. Fri-Sat, 8pm. Through Nov 23. $5-15. Edris Cooper-Anifowoshe performs her solo show.

Diablo Ballet Lesher Center for the Arts, 1601 Civic, Walnut Creek; www.lesherartscenter.org. Fri/15-Sat/16, 8pm (also Sat/16, 2pm). $20-52. The company’s 20th season kicks off with Our Waltzes Trilogy and A Swingin’ Holiday.

“The Intergalactic Nemesis: Book One: Target Earth” Zellerbach Hall, UC Berkeley, Bancroft at Dana, Berk; www.calperformances.org. Thu/14, 8pm. $18-42. A “live-action graphic novel” for ages seven and up.

“Rednecks, God, and Angelenos: The Worst of Randy Newman” Subterranean Art House, 2179 Bancroft, Berk; www.shotgunplayers.org. Sun/17, 8pm. $10-15. First Person Singular performs.

Savage Jazz Dance Company Laney College Theater, 900 Fallon, Oakl; www.savagejazz.org. Thu/14-Sat/16, 8pm. $10-20. The company performs its 2013 fall season, with repertory classics set to Wynton Marsalis and Philip Glass, plus a world premiere.

Unión Tanguera Zellerbach Hall, UC Berkeley, Bancroft at Dana, Berk; www.calperformances.org. Sun/17, 7pm. $18-48. The contemporary tango ensemble performs Nuit Blanche (2010). *

Film Listings: November 13 – 19, 2013

Michael Redmond

November 12, 2013

Film listings are edited by Cheryl Eddy. Reviewers are Kimberly Chun, Dennis Harvey, Lynn Rapoport, Sam Stander, and Sara Maria Vizcarrondo. For rep house showtimes, see Rep Clock.

OPENING

American Promise This remarkable look at race, education, parenting, and coming-of-age in contemporary America is the result of 13 years spent following African American youths Seun and Idris (the latter the son of filmmakers Joe Brewster and Michèle Stephenson). At the beginning, the Brooklyn pals are both starting at the exclusive Dalton School, where most of their classmates are rich white kids. This translates into culture-clash experiences both comical (a 13-year-old Idris estimates he’s been to 20 bar mitzvahs) and distressing, as both boys struggle socially and academically for reasons that seem to have a lot to do with their minority status at the school. Culled from hundreds of hours of footage — a mix of interviews and cinéma vérité — Brewster and Stephenson’s film captures honest moments both mundane and monumental, sometimes simultaneously, as when Seun’s mother, driving the kids to school, discusses her battle with cancer as his younger siblings trill a Journey song in the back seat. (And even this seemingly light-hearted aside takes on heft later in the film.) Extra props to Brewster and Stephenson, who clearly made a conscious choice not to edit out any of their own foibles — for the most part, they’re caring, involved parents, but be warned: strident homework nagging is a recurrent theme. (2:20) Roxie. (Eddy)

The Armstrong Lie See “The Great Pretender.” (2:03) Embarcadero, Shattuck, Smith Rafael.

The Best Man Holiday Taye Diggs and Sanaa Lathan lead an ensemble cast in this seasonal sequel to 1999 hit The Best Man. (2:00)

The Book Thief One of those novels that seems to have been categorized as “young adult” more for reasons of marketing than anything else, Markus Zusak’s international best seller gets an effective screen adaptation from director Brian Percival and scenarist Michael Petroni. Liesl (Sophie Nelisse) is an illiterate orphan — for all practical purposes, that is, given the likely fate of her left-leaning parents in a just-pre-World War II Nazi Germany — deposited by authorities on the doorstep of the middle-aged, childless Hubermanns in 1938. Rosa (Emily Watson) is a ceaseless nag and worrywart, even if her bark is worse than her bite; kindly housepainter Hans (Geoffrey Rush), who’s lost work by refusing to join “the Party,” makes a game of teacher Liesl how to read. Her subsequent fascination with books attracts the notice of the local Burgermeister’s wife (Barbara Auer), who under the nose of her stern husband lets the girl peruse tomes from her manse’s extensive library. But that secret is trivial compared to the Hubermanns’ hiding of Max Vandenburg (Ben Schnetzer), son of Jewish comrade who’d saved Hans’ life in the prior world war. When war breaks out anew, this harboring of a fugitive becomes even more dangerous, something Liesl can’t share even with her best friend Rudy (Nico Liersch). While some of the book’s subplots and secondary characters are sacrificed for the sake of expediency, the filmmakers have crafted a potent, intelligent drama whose judicious understatement extends to the subtlest (and first non-Spielberg) score John Williams has written in years. Rush, Watson, and newcomer Schnetzer are particularly good in the well-chosen cast. (2:11) (Harvey)

How I Live Now As 16-year-old Daisy (Saoirse Ronan) arrives to spend the summer with cousins she’s never met, England is on the brink of war with an unnamed adversary. Daisy wants nothing to do with her new family and their idyllic countryside home — she’s too caught up in self-loathing image and diet obsessions, which manifest in the movie as overwhelming voiceover chatter. Her eldest cousin, Eddie (George MacKay), begins to draw her out of her shell, but everything changes when a nuclear explosion hits the country. At first, the cousins’ post-apocalyptic life is a charming bucolic, soundtracked by British folk-rock. But the horrors of war soon find them, and the movie’s latter half takes on a quite different tone. Adapted from Meg Rosoff’s YA novel, How I Live Now is almost eager to tackle the ugliest aspects of wartime existence — mass graves, prisoner abuse, work camps — and this unflinching approach is compelling, despite some flaws in the acting and character development. (1:41) Opera Plaza, Shattuck. (Stander)

Le Joli Mai See “Eternal Spring.” (2:25) Opera Plaza, Shattuck.

Your Day Is My Night Multidisciplinary artist Lynne Sachs returns to SF with this feature set in the world of NYC’s Chinatown “shift bed” apartments — ones whose crowded tenants take turns using sleeping space, a phenomenon that exists in many US cities and immigrant communities. An experimental mix of documentary and staged narrative, Day’s cohabiting protagonists are primarily older émigrés from China with diverse current jobs and divergent memories of life back home — from fond family reminiscences to the horrors of the Cultural Revolution. The individual stories told here are related not just in verbiage (both scripted and improvised), but song, dance, theater, poetical imagery, and composer-sound designer Stephen Vitiello’s collage soundtrack. At Other Cinema, Sachs will also present several of her short film works, including 2006’s Three Cheers for the Whale, a collaboration with the late Chris Marker that revised his 1972 Viva la Baleine, which was co-directed with Mario Ruspoli. In addition to its ATA screening Fri/16, Your Day Is My Night also plays the Pacific Film Archive Nov 20. (1:03) Artists’ Television Access. (Harvey)

ONGOING

About Time Richard Curtis, the man behind 2003’s Love Actually, must be enjoying his days in England, rolling in large piles of money. Coinciding with the 10-year anniversary of that twee cinematic love fest comes Curtis’ latest ode to joy, About Time. The film begins in Cornwall at an idyllic stone beach house, as Tim (Domhnall Gleeson) describes his family members (Bill Nighy is dad; Richard Cordery is the crazy uncle) and their pleasures (rituals (tea on the beach, ping pong). Despite beachside bliss, Tim is lovelorn and ready to begin a career as a barrister (which feels as out of the blue as the coming first act break). Oh! And as it happens, the men in Tim’s family can travel back in time. There are no clear rules, though births and deaths are like no-trespass signs on the imaginary timeline. When he meets Mary (Rachel McAdams), he falls in love, but if he paves over his own evening by bouncing back and spending that night elsewhere, he loses the path he’s worn into the map and has to fix it. Again and again. Despite potential repetition, About Time moves smoothly, sweetly, slowly along, giving its audience time enough to feel for the characters, and then feel for the characters again, and then keep crying just because the ball’s already in motion. It’s the most nest-like catharsis any British film ever built. (2:03) 1000 Van Ness, SF Center, Sundance Kabuki. (Vizcarrondo)

All Is Lost As other reviewers have pointed out, All Is Lost‘s nearly dialogue-free script (OK, there is one really, really well-placed “Fuuuuuck!”) is about as far from J.C. Chandor’s Oscar-nominated script for 2011’s Margin Call as possible. Props to the filmmaker, then, for crafting as much pulse-pounding magic out of austerity as he did with that multi-character gabfest. Here, Robert Redford plays “Our Man,” a solo sailor whose race to survive begins along with the film, as his boat collides with a hunk of Indian Ocean detritus. Before long, he’s completely adrift, yet determined to outwit the forces of nature that seem intent on bringing him down. The 77-year-old Redford turns in a surprisingly physical performance that’s sure to be remembered as a late-career highlight. (1:46) SF Center. (Eddy)

Blue is the Warmest Color The stars (Adèle Exarchopoulos and Léa Seydoux) say the director was brutal. The director says he wishes the film had never been released (but he might make a sequel). The graphic novelist is uncomfortable with the explicit 10-minute sex scene. And most of the state of Idaho will have to wait to see the film on Netflix. The noise of recrimination, the lesser murmur of backpedaling, and a difficult-to-argue NC-17 rating could make it harder, as French director Abdellatif Kechiche has predicted, to find a calm, neutral zone in which to watch Blue is the Warmest Color, his Palme d’Or–winning adaptation (with co-writer Ghalya Lacroix) of Julie Maroh’s 2010 graphic novel Le Blue Est une Couleur Chaude. But once you’ve committed to the three-hour runtime, it’s not too difficult to tune out all the extra noise and focus on a film that trains its mesmerized gaze on a young woman’s transforming experience of first love. (2:59) Smith Rafael, Sundance Kabuki. (Rapoport)

Blue Jasmine The good news about Blue Jasmine isn’t that it’s set in San Francisco, but that it’s Woody Allen’s best movie in years. Although some familiar characteristics are duly present, it’s not quite like anything he’s done before, and carries its essentially dramatic weight more effectively than he’s managed in at least a couple decades. Not long ago Jasmine (a fearless Cate Blanchett) was the quintessential Manhattan hostess, but that glittering bubble has burst — exactly how revealed in flashbacks that spring surprises up to the script’s end. She crawls to the West Coast to “start over” in the sole place available where she won’t be mortified by the pity of erstwhile society friends. That would be the SF apartment of Ginger (Sally Hawkins), a fellow adoptive sister who was always looked down on by comparison to pretty, clever Jasmine. Theirs is an uneasy alliance — but Ginger’s too big-hearted to say no. It’s somewhat disappointing that Blue Jasmine doesn’t really do much with San Francisco. Really, the film could take place anywhere — although setting it in a non-picture-postcard SF does bolster the film’s unsettled, unpredictable air. Without being an outright villain, Jasmine is one of the least likable characters to carry a major US film since Noah Baumbach’s underrated Margot at the Wedding (2007); the general plot shell, moreover, is strongly redolent of A Streetcar Named Desire. But whatever inspiration Allen took from prior works, Blue Jasmine is still distinctively his own invention. It’s frequently funny in throwaway performance bits, yet disturbing, even devastating in cumulative impact. (1:38) Metreon, Vogue. (Harvey)

Captain Phillips In 2009, Captain Richard Phillips was taken hostage by Somali pirates who’d hijacked the Kenya-bound Maersk Alabama. His subsequent rescue by Navy SEALs came after a standoff that ended in the death of three pirates; a fourth, Abduwali Abdukhadir Muse, surrendered and is serving a hefty term in federal prison. A year later, Phillips penned a book about his ordeal, and Hollywood pounced. Tom Hanks is perfectly cast as Phillips, an everyman who runs a tight ship but displays an admirable ability to improvise under pressure — and, once rescued, finally allows that pressure to diffuse in a scene of memorably raw catharsis. Newcomer Barkhad Abdi, cast from an open call among Minneapolis’ large Somali community, plays Muse; his character development goes deep enough to emphasize that piracy is one of few grim career options for Somali youths. But the real star here is probably director Paul Greengrass, who adds this suspenseful high-seas tale to his slate of intelligent, doc-inspired thrillers (2006’s United 93, 2007’s The Bourne Ultimatum). Suffice to say fans of the reigning king of fast-paced, handheld-camera action will not be disappointed. (2:14) 1000 Van Ness, SF Center, Sundance Kabuki. (Eddy)

Carrie Is the world ready for a candy-covered Carrie? It’s a sad state of affairs when the best thing about a movie, particularly a wholly superfluous remake like this, is its creepy poster. That’s the closest thing this Carrie has to offer next to that retina-scorching, iconic 1976 image of blood-saturated Sissy Spacek that continues to lend inspiration to baby Billiths everywhere. Nonetheless, like a shy violet cowering in the gym showers, this Carrie comes loaded with potential, with Boys Don’t Cry (1999) director Kimberly Peirce at the helm, the casting of Julianne Moore and Chloe Grace Moretz in the critical mother-daughter roles, and the unfortunately topical bullying theme. Peirce makes a half-hearted attempt to update the, um, franchise when the tormented Carrie (a miscast Moretz) is virally videoed by spoiled rival Chris (Portia Doubleday), but the filmmaker’s heart — and guts — aren’t in this pointless exercise. We speed through the buildup — which unconvincingly sets up Carrie’s torments at home, instigated by obviously mentally ill, Christian fundamentalist mom Margaret (Moore), and at school, where the PE teacher (Judy Greer) pep-talks Carrie and Sue Snell (Gabriella White) is mysteriously hellbent on paying penance for her bullying misdeeds — to the far-from-scary denouement. Let’s say mean-spirited reflexive revenge-taking is no real substitute for true horror and shock. Supposedly drawn to Carrie for its female-empowerment message, Peirce nevertheless isn’t cut out to wade into horror’s crimson waters — especially when one compares this weak rendition with Brian De Palma’s double-screen brio and high-camp Freudian passion play. (1:32) Metreon. (Chun)

Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs 2 (1:35) Metreon.

The Counselor The reviews are in, and it’s clear Ridley Scott has made the most polarizing film of the season. Most of The Counselor‘s detractors blame Cormac McCarthy’s screenplay, the acclaimed author’s first that isn’t drawn from a prexisting novel. To date, the best film made from a McCarthy tale is 2007’s No Country for Old Men, and The Counselor trawls in similar border-noir genre trappings in its tale of a sleek, greedy lawyer (Michael Fassbender) who gets in way over his head after a drug deal (entered into with slippery compadres played by Brad Pitt and Javier Bardem) goes wrong. Yes, there are some problems here, with very few unexpected twists in a downbeat story that’s laden with overlong monologues, most of them delivered by random characters that appear, talk, and are never seen again. But some of those speeches are doozies — and haters are overlooking The Counselor‘s sleazy pleasures (many of which are supplied by Cameron Diaz’s fierce, feline femme fatale) and attention to grimy detail. One suspects cult appreciation awaits. (1:57) Metreon, 1000 Van Ness. (Eddy)

Dallas Buyers Club Dallas Buyers Club is the first all-US feature from Jean-Marc Vallée. He first made a splash in 2005 with C.R.A.Z.Y., which seemed an archetype of the flashy, coming-of-age themed debut feature. Vallée has evolved beyond flashiness, or maybe since C.R.A.Z.Y. he just hasn’t had a subject that seemed to call for it. Which is not to say Dallas is entirely sober — its characters partake from the gamut of altering substances, over-the-counter and otherwise. But this is a movie about AIDS, so the purely recreational good times must eventually crash to an end. Which they do pretty quickly. We first meet Ron Woodroof (Matthew McConaughey) in 1986, a Texas good ol’ boy endlessly chasing skirts and partying nonstop. Not feeling quite right, he visits a doctor, who informs him that he is HIV-positive. His response is “I ain’t no faggot, motherfucker” — and increased partying that he barely survives. Afterward, he pulls himself together enough to research his options, and bribes a hospital attendant into raiding its trial supply of AZT for him. But Ron also discovers the hard way what many first-generation AIDS patients did — that AZT is itself toxic. He ends up in a Mexican clinic run by a disgraced American physician (Griffin Dunne) who recommends a regime consisting mostly of vitamins and herbal treatments. Ron realizes a commercial opportunity, and finds a business partner in willowy cross-dresser Rayon (Jared Leto). When the authorities keep cracking down on their trade, savvy Ron takes a cue from gay activists in Manhattan and creates a law evading “buyers club” in which members pay monthly dues rather than paying directly for pharmaceutical goods. It’s a tale that the scenarists (Craig Borten and Melisa Wallack) and director steep in deep Texan atmospherics, and while it takes itself seriously when and where it ought, Dallas Buyers Club is a movie whose frequent, entertaining jauntiness is based in that most American value: get-rich-quick entrepreneurship. (1:58) Sundance Kabuki. (Harvey)

Diana The final years of Diana, Princess of Wales are explored in what’s essentially a classed-up Lifetime drama, delving into the on-off romance between “the most famous woman in the world” (Naomi Watts) and heart surgeon Hasnat Khan (Naveen Andrews). Relationship roadblocks (his Muslim family, back home in Pakistan, is hesistant to accept a divorced, Christian Brit as their son’s partner) are further complicated by extraordinary circumstances (Diana’s fame, which leads to paparazzi intrusions on the very private doctor’s life), but there’s real love between the two, which keeps them returning to each other again and again. By the third or fourth tearful breakup — followed by a passionate reunion — Diana‘s story becomes repetitive as it marches toward its inevitable tragic end. Still, director Oliver Hirschbiegel (2004’s Downfall, another last-days-in-the-life biopic, albeit of a slightly different nature) includes some light-hearted moments, as when a giggling Diana smuggles Hasnat through the palace gates (past guards who know exactly what she’s up to). As you’d expect, Watts is the best thing here, bringing warmth and complexity to a performance that strives to reach beyond imitation. (1:52) SF Center. (Eddy)

Don Jon Shouldering the duties of writer, director, and star for the comedy Don Jon, Joseph Gordon-Levitt has also picked up a broad Jersey accent, the physique of a gym rat, and a grammar of meathead posturing — verbal, physical, and at times metaphysical. His character, Jon, is the reigning kingpin in a triad of nightclubbing douchebags who pass their evenings assessing their cocktail-sipping opposite numbers via a well-worn one-to-10 rating system. Sadly for pretty much everyone involved, Jon’s rote attempts to bed the high-scorers are spectacularly successful — the title refers to his prowess in the art of the random hookup — that is, until he meets an alluring “dime” named Barbara (Scarlett Johansson), who institutes a waiting period so foreign to Jon that it comes to feel a bit like that thing called love. Amid the well-earned laughs, there are several repulsive-looking flies in the ointment, but the most conspicuous is Jon’s stealthy addiction to Internet porn, which he watches at all hours of the day, but with a particularly ritualistic regularity after each night’s IRL conquest has fallen asleep. These circumstances entail a fair amount of screen time with Jon’s O face and, eventually, after a season of growth — during which he befriends an older woman named Esther (Julianne Moore) and learns about the existence of arty retro Swedish porn — his “Ohhh&ldots;” face. Driven by deft, tight editing, Don Jon comically and capably sketches a web of bad habits, and Gordon-Levitt steers us through a transformation without straining our capacity to recognize the character we met at the outset — which makes the clumsy over-enunciations that mar the ending all the more jarring. (1:30) Metreon, 1000 Van Ness. (Rapoport)

Ender’s Game Those entering Ender’s Game in search of homophobic threads or politically unsavory themes will likely be frustrated. After all, Orson Scott Card — once a board member of the National Organization for Marriage, and here serving as a producer intent on preserving the 1985 novel that netted him acclaim — has revisited what was initially a short story multiple times over the years, tweaking it to reflect a new political climate, to ready it for new expedient uses. Who knows — the times are a-changin’ fast enough, with the outcry of LGBT activists and the growing acceptance of gay military members, to hope that a gay character might enter the mix someday. Of course, sexuality of all sorts is kept firmly in check in the Ender‘s world. Earth has been invaded by an insect-like species called the Formics, and the planet unifies to serve up its best and brightest (and, it’s implied, most ruthless) young minds, sharpened on first-person-shooters and tactical games, to the cause of defeating the alien “other.” Andrew “Ender” Wiggin (Asa Butterfield) is the knowing hybrid of his sociopath brother Peter (Jimmy Pinchak) and compassionate sister Valentine (Abigail Breslin) — of the trinity, he’s “the One,” as Han Solo, I mean, Harrison Ford, cadet talent-spotter and trainer Colonel Graff, puts it. Ender impresses the leather off the hardened old war horse, though the Colonel’s psychologically more equipped cohort Major Anderson (Viola Davis) suspects there’s more going on within their chosen leader. Director-screenwriter Gavin Hood demonstrates his allegiance to Card’s vision, valorizing the discipline and teamwork instilled by military school with the grim purpose and dead serious pleasure one might take in studying a well-oiled machine, while Ender is sharpened and employed as a stunningly effective tool in a war he never truly conceived of. This game has a bit more in common with the recent Wii-meets-Rock ‘Em Sock ‘Em Godzillas of Pacific Rim than the winking, acidic satire of Starship Troopers (1997), echoing a drone-driven War on Terror that has a way of detaching even the most evolved fighter from the consequences of his or her actions. The question is how to undo, or rewrite, the damage done. (1:54) 1000 Van Ness, SF Center, Sundance Kabuki. (Chun)

Free Birds (1:31) Metreon, 1000 Van Ness.

God Loves Uganda Most contemporary Americans don’t know much about Uganda — that is, beyond Forest Whitaker’s Oscar-winning performance as Idi Amin in 2006’s The Last King of Scotland. Though that film took some liberties with the truth, it did effectively convey the grotesque terrors of the dictator’s 1970s reign. But even decades post-Amin, the East African nation has somehow retained its horrific human-rights record. For example: what extremist force was behind the country’s Anti-Homosexuality Bill, which proposed the death penalty as punishment for gayness? The answer might surprise you, or not. As the gripping, fury-fomenting doc God Loves Uganda reveals, America’s own Christian Right has been exporting hate under the guise of missionary work for some time. Taking advantage of Uganda’s social fragility — by building schools and medical clinics, passing out food, etc. — evangelical mega churches, particularly the Kansas City, Mo.-based, breakfast-invoking International House of Prayer, have converted large swaths of the population to their ultra-conservative beliefs. Filmmaker Roger Ross Williams, an Oscar winner for 2010 short Music by Prudence, follows naive “prayer warriors” as they journey to Uganda for the first time; his apparent all-access relationship with the group shows that they aren’t outwardly evil people — but neither do they comprehend the very real consequences of their actions. His other sources, including two Ugandan clergymen who’ve seen their country change for the worse and an LGBT activist who lives every day in peril, offer a more harrowing perspective. Evocative and disturbing, God Loves Uganda seems likely to earn Williams more Oscar attention. (1:23) Roxie. (Eddy)

Gravity “Life in space is impossible,” begins Gravity, the latest from Alfonso Cuarón (2006’s Children of Men). Egghead Dr. Ryan Stone (Sandra Bullock) is well aware of her precarious situation after a mangled satellite slams into her ship, then proceeds to demolition-derby everything (including the International Space Station) in its path. It’s not long before she’s utterly, terrifyingly alone, and forced to unearth near-superhuman reserves of physical and mental strength to survive. Bullock’s performance would be enough to recommend Gravity, but there’s more to praise, like the film’s tense pacing, spare-yet-layered script (Cuarón co-wrote with his son, Jonás), and spectacular 3D photography — not to mention George Clooney’s warm supporting turn as a career astronaut who loves country music almost as much as he loves telling stories about his misadventures. (1:31) Metreon, 1000 Van Ness, Sundance Kabuki. (Eddy)

Inequality for All Jacob Kornbluth’s Inequality for All is the latest and certainly not the last documentary to explore why the American Dream is increasingly out of touch with everyday reality, and how the definition of “middle class” somehow morphed from “comfortable” to “struggling, endangered, and hanging by a thread.” This lively overview has an ace up its sleeve in the form of the director’s friend, collaborator, and principal interviewee Robert Reich — the former Clinton-era Secretary of Labor, prolific author, political pundit, and UC Berkeley Professor of Public Policy. Whether he’s holding forth on TV, going one-on-one with Kornbluth’s camera, talking to disgruntled working class laborers, or engaging students in his Wealth and Poverty class, Inequality is basically a resourcefully illustrated Reich lecture — as the press notes put it, “an Inconvenient Truth for the economy.” Fortunately, the diminutive Reich is a natural comedian as well as a superbly cogent communicator, turning yet another summary of how the system has fucked almost everybody (excluding the one percent) into the one you might most want to recommend to the bewildered folks back home. He’s sugar on the pill, making it easier to swallow so much horrible news. (1:25) Balboa. (Harvey)

Jackass Presents: Bad Grandpa (1:32) Metreon, 1000 Van Ness.

Kill Your Darlings Relieved to escape his Jersey home, dominated by the miseries of an oft-institutionalized mother (Jennifer Jason Leigh) and long-suffering father (David Cross), Allen Ginsberg (Daniel Radcliffe) enters Columbia University in 1944 as a freshman already interested in the new and avant-garde. He’s thus immediately enchanted by bad-boy fellow student Lucien Carr (Dane DeHaan), a veteran of numerous prestigious schools and well on the road to getting kicked out of this one. Charismatic and reckless, Carr has a circle of fellow eccentrics buzzing around him, including dyspeptic William S. Burroughs (Ben Foster) and merchant marine wild child Jack Kerouac (Jack Huston). Variably included in or ostracized from this training ground for future Beat luminaries is the older David Kammerer (Michael C. Hall), a disgraced former academic who’d known Carr since the latter was 14, and followed him around with pathetic, enamored devotion. It’s this last figure’s apparent murder by Carr that provides the bookending crux of John Krokidas’ impressive first feature, a tragedy whose motivations and means remain disputed. Partly blessed by being about a (comparatively) lesser-known chapter in an overexposed, much-mythologized history, Kill Your Darlings is easily one of the best dramatizations yet of Beat lore, with excellent performances all around. (Yes, Harry Potter actually does pass quite well as a somewhat cuter junior Ginsberg.) It’s sad if somewhat inevitable that the most intriguing figure here — Hall’s hapless, lovelorn stalker-slash-victim — is the one that remains least knowable to both the film and to the ages. (1:40) SF Center. (Harvey)

Last Vegas This buddy film may look like a Bucket List-Hangover hybrid, but it’s got a lot more Spring Breakers in it than you expect — who beats Vegas for most bikinis per capita? Four old friends reunite for a wedding in Vegas, where they drink, gamble, and are confused for legendary men. Morgan Freeman sneaks out of his son’s house to go. Kevin Kline’s wife gave him a hall pass to regain his lost sense of fun. Kline and Freeman trick Robert De Niro into going — he’s got a grudge against Michael Douglas, so why celebrate that jerk’s nuptials to a 30-year-old? The conflicts are mostly safe and insubstantial, but the in-joke here is that all of these acting legends are confused for legends by their accidentally obtained VIP host (Romany Malco). These guys have earned their stature, so what gives? When De Niro flings fists you shudder inside remembering Jake LaMotta. Kline’s velvety comic delivery is just as swaggery as it was during his 80s era collaborations with Lawrence Kasdan. Douglas is “not as charming as he thinks he is,” yet again, and voice-of-God Freeman faces a conflict specific to paternal protective urges. Yes, Last Vegas jokes about the ravages of age and prescribes tenacity for all that ails us, but I want a cast this great celebrated at least as obviously as The Expendables films. Confuse these guys for better? Show me who. (1:44) Metreon, 1000 Van Ness. (Vizcarrondo)

The Motel Life (1:25) Roxie.

Running From Crazy Can one ever escape one’s toxic genetic legacy, especially when one’s makeup, and even one’s genius, is so entangled with mental illness, the shadow of substance abuse, and a kind of burden of history? Actor, author, healthy-living proponent, and now suicide prevention activist Mariel Hemingway seems cut out to try, as, eh, earnestly as she can, to offer up hope. Part of that involves opening the door to documentarian Barbara Kopple, in this look at the 20th century’s most infamous literary suicide, Mariel’s grandfather Ernest Hemingway, and just one of his familial threads, one full of lives cut deliberately short. For Running From Crazy, Kopple generally keeps the focus on Mariel, who displays all the disarming groundedness and humility of the youngest care-taking, “good” child. Her father, Ernest’s eldest son, Jack, regularly indulged in “wine time” with his ailing wife and, according to Mariel, had a pitch-black side of his own. But we don’t look to closely at him as the filmmaker favors the present, preferring to watch Mariel mountain climb and bicker with her stuntman boyfriend, meet up with her eldest sister Muffet, and ‘fess up about the depression that runs through the Hemingway line to her own daughters. Little is made of Mariel’s own artistic contributions in acting, though Kopple’s work is aided immeasurably by the footage Mariel’s rival middle sister Margaux shot for a documentary she planned to do on Ernest. Once the highest paid model in the world, Margaux leaves the viewer with a vivid impression of her brash, raw, eccentric, and endearingly goofy spirit — she’s courageous in her own way as she sips vino with her parents and older sister and tears up during a Spanish bull fight. Are these just first world problems for scions who never hesitated to trade on their name? Kopple is more interested in the humans behind the gloss of fame, spectacle and sensation — the women left in the wake of a literary patriarch’s monumental brand of masculinity and misogyny. And you feel like you get that here, plainly and honestly, in a way that even Papa might appreciate. (1:40) Smith Rafael. (Chun)

Thor: The Dark World Since any tentacle of Marvel’s Avengers universe now comes equipped with its own money-printing factory, it’s likely we’ll keep seeing sequels and spin-offs for approximately the next 100 years. With its by-the-numbers plot and “Yeah, seen that before” 3D effects, Thor: The Dark World is forced to rely heavily on the charisma of its leads — Chris Hemsworth as the titular hammer-swinger; Tom Hiddleston as his brooding brother Loki — to hold audience interest. Fortunately, these two (along with Anthony Hopkins, Natalie Portman, Idris Elba, and the rest of the supporting cast, most of whom return from the first film) appear to be having a blast under the direction of Alan Taylor, a TV veteran whose credits include multiple Game of Thrones eps. Not that any Avengers flick carries much heft, but especially here, jokey asides far outweigh any moments of actual drama (the plot, about an alien race led by Christopher Eccleston in “dark elf” drag intent on capturing an ancient weapon with the power to destroy all the realms, etc. etc., matters very little). Fanboys and -girls, this one’s for you … and only you. (2:00) Balboa, Metreon, 1000 Van Ness, Sundance Kabuki. (Eddy)

12 Years a Slave Pop culture’s engagement with slavery has always been uneasy. Landmark 1977 miniseries Roots set ratings records, but the prestigious production capped off a decade that had seen some more questionable endeavors, including 1975 exploitation flick Mandingo — often cited by Quentin Tarantino as one of his favorite films; it was a clear influence on his 2012 revenge fantasy Django Unchained, which approached its subject matter in a manner that paid homage to the Westerns it riffed on: with guns blazing. By contrast, Steve McQueen’s 12 Years a Slave is nuanced and steeped in realism. Though it does contain scenes of violence (deliberately captured in long takes by regular McQueen collaborator Sean Bobbitt, whose cinematography is one of the film’s many stylistic achievements), the film emphasizes the horrors of “the peculiar institution” by repeatedly showing how accepted and ingrained it was. Slave is based on the true story of Solomon Northup, an African American man who was sold into slavery in 1841 and survived to pen a wrenching account of his experiences. He’s portrayed here by the powerful Chiwetel Ejiofor. Other standout performances come courtesy of McQueen favorite Michael Fassbender (as Epps, a plantation owner who exacerbates what’s clearly an unwell mind with copious amounts of booze) and newcomer Lupita Nyong’o, as a slave who attracts Epps’ cruel attentions. (2:14) 1000 Van Ness, Sundance Kabuki. (Eddy) *

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