Music listings are compiled by Emily Savage. Since club life is unpredictable, it’s a good idea to call ahead or check the venue’s website to confirm bookings and hours. Prices are listed when provided to us. Visit www.sfbg.com/venue-guide for venue information. Submit items for the listings at listings@sfbg.com. For further information on how to submit items for the listings, see Picks.
WEDNESDAY 2
ROCK/BLUES/HIP-HOP
Keith Crossan Blues Showcase Biscuits and Blues. 8pm, $15.
Jason Marion vs JC Rockit Johnny Foley’s Dueling Pianos. 9pm, free.
Nathan and Rachel Johnny Foley’s. 9pm, free.
Lia Rose, Danny Paul Grody, Deep Ellum Brick and Mortar Music Hall. 8pm, $7-$10.
Royal Teeth, Gentlemen Hall, Mister Loveless Rickshaw Stop. 8pm, $10-$12.
Weather Side Whiskey Band, Creak, Jessi Philips Cafe Du Nord. 9:30pm, $8.
JAZZ/NEW MUSIC
Dink Dink Dink, Gaucho, Eric Garland’s Jazz Session Amnesia. 7pm, free.
Roy Hargrove residency Yoshi’s SF. 8pm, $26; 10pm, $16.
Ricardo Scales Top of the Mark, 999 California, SF; www.topofthemark.com. 6:30pm, $5.
Daniel Krass vs Rags Tuttle Johnny Foley’s Dueling Pianos. 9pm, free.
Pops, Beggars Who Give, Posole Brick and Mortar Music Hall. 9pm, $5-$8.
JAZZ/NEW MUSIC
Roy Hargrove residency Yoshi’s SF. 8pm, $26; 10pm, $16.
Stompy Jones Top of the Mark, 999 California, SF; www.topofthemark.com. 7:30pm, $10.
FOLK/WORLD/COUNTRY
Country Casanovas Atlas Cafe, 3049 20 St, SF; www.atlascafe.net. 8-10pm.
Misisipi Mike and the Midnight Gamblers Amnesia. 7pm.
Twang! Honky Tonk Fiddler’s Green, 1330 Columbus, SF; www.twanghonkytonk.com. 5pm. Live country music.
DANCE CLUBS
Afrolicious Elbo Room. 9:30pm, $5-$7. With DJ-host Pleasuremaker.
All 80s Thursday Cat Club. 9pm, $6 (free before 9:30pm). The best of ’80s mainstream and underground.
Ritual Dubstep Temple. 10pm-3am, $5. Trap and bass.
Supersonic Lookout, 3600 16th St., SF; www.lookoutsf.com. 9pm. Global beats paired with food from around the world by Tasty. Resident DJs Jaybee, B-Haul, amd Diagnosis.
Tropicana Madrone Art Bar. 9pm, free. Salsa, cumbia, reggaeton, and more with DJs Don Bustamante, Apocolypto, Sr. Saen, Santero, and Mr. E.
FRIDAY 4
ROCK/BLUES/HIP-HOP
Back Pages Johnny Foley’s. 9pm, free.
Dandelion War, In Letter Form, Catharsis For Cathedral, Tracing Figures Cafe Du Nord. 8:30pm, $10-$12.
Easy Leaves, Tiny Television, Misisipi Mike Great American Music Hall. 9pm, $15.
Funkin’ Fridays with Swoop Unit Amnesia. 6pm.
Good Luck Thrift Store Outfit, Human Condition, Fox and Woman Independent. 9pm, $15.
Happy Body Slow Brain, Gavin Castleton, Case in Theory, Belmont Lights Bottom of the Hill. 9pm, $12.
Love Dimension, Free Moral Agents, Saything, Buzzmutt Brick and Mortar Music Hall. 9pm, $5-$8.
Steve Lucky and the Rhumba Buns Biscuits and Blues. 8 and 10pm, $20.
"Tip Your Hat to the Blues: West Coast Songwriter Session" Slim’s. 8pm, $15. With Ron Hacker, Steve Freund and Jan Fanucci, and more.
Old School JAMZ El Rio. 9pm. Fruit Stand DJs spinning old school funk, hip-hop, and R&B.
Paris to Dakar Little Baobab, 3388 19th St, SF; (415) 643-3558. 10pm, $5. Afro and world music with rotating DJs including Stepwise, Steve, Claude, Santero, and Elembe.
Ron Reeser, Adam Cova Vessel, 85 Campton Place, SF; www.vesselsf.com. 10pm, $20-$30.
Twitch DNA Lounge. 10pm, $5-$8. With Red Red Red, Excuses, DJs Justin, Omar, and more. .
Zing DNA Lounge. 9pm, $10. With Tranz Am, Frank Nitty, Krishna, Taj, and more.
SATURDAY 5
ROCK/BLUES/HIP-HOP
"Bowie and Elvis Birthday Bash" Edinburgh Castle, 950 Geary, SF; www.castlenews.com. 9pm, $5.
Fever Charm, False Priest, Rin Tin Tiger, Everyone is Dirty Bottom of the Hill. 8:30pm, $10.
French Cassettes, Coast Jumper, A Yawn Worth Yelling, Mr. Kind Brick and Mortar Music Hall. 9pm, $5-$8.
Future Twin, Pamela, Deep Teens, Standard Poodle, Skunks, Dancer Thee Parkside. 9pm, $5.
Gypsy Moonlight Band Riptide Tavern. 9:30pm, free.
LIT/FILM The folding travel toothbrush is a central element in every Jack Reacher novel. It’s his only possession, the only thing the wandering ex-military cop takes with him when he throws away his old clothes and buys new ones, the only thing that ties him directly to his old life in the U.S. Army. It’s part of the Reacher formula, one that consistently works through 17 books by Lee Child.
It’s not in the Jack Reacher movie.
That was the first sign that one of the best trash-lit characters to come on the scene since John D. MacDonald invented Travis McGee hasn’t translated so well to the big screen. (McGee never did, either; the only McGee movies ever made were disasters, and MacDonald hated all of them.)
But the esoteric musings of McGee, on everything from Florida real-estate development to the demise of San Francisco, were the charm that held those modest plots together. Child, who has a background in television production, offers more action-packed stories with all the elements that ought to make a great movie.
Like MacDonald, though, Child goes a bit deeper than the traditional trashy thriller writer. His books have themes of violence and redemption, of freedom and responsibility, of wanderlust and homesickness that can’t just be shoehorned into a fast-paced screenplay with Tom Cruise. This may not be Shakespearean literature, but it isn’t Mission Impossible, either.
To make it more challenging, there are long periods of silence in the Reacher book, and those don’t work will in today’s mainstream cinema — but without them, the pacing is all wrong.
I showed up at the movie ready to be let down. The diminutive and emotional Cruise seemed all wrong as the tall, taciturn Reacher; I was hoping for a more Daniel Craig approach. Child, on the other hand, was totally down with the casting, so I was ready to give it a shot. (Or, as the book title from whence this flick emerged put it, One Shot.)
The book is a classic of the Reacher oevre, with a tiny bit of 2007’s Shooter mixed in. There’s a former Army sniper named James Barr (Joseph Sikora) who gets charged with an apparently random killing spree; the evidence is overwhelming, the cops have him nailed, and the execution-mad district attorney tells him if he doesn’t confess, he’s going to get the death penalty.
Barr refuses to talk; he just takes a legal pad and writes “Get Jack Reacher.” Which turns out to be tricky; Reacher has no address, no credit cards, no car, no driver’s license … nothing to pin him down. He’s almost impossible to find.
But he shows up on his own — not to help save Barr but to tell the cops that the guy once murdered a bunch of civilian contractors in Iraq. Reacher had him nailed, but the Army, for political reasons, let the case go. He’s ready to send the guy to the chair, if he doesn’t kill him with his own hands first.
But then the DA’s daughter, Helen Rodin (Rosamund Pike), who is representing Barr, convinces Reacher to take another look, and together they discover a fiendish plot involving an 80-year-old mob capo from the old Soviet Gulag.
Nice movie plot. And the film version doesn’t take too many liberties with the general idea of the book.
But there’s no headbutting, which is Reacher’s trademark fighting technique. And he never has sex with the female protagonist, which is disappointing.
That and the fact that the movie’s about 20 minutes too long — and the car chase scene alone is about five minutes too long (and car chases are not part of the Reacher mix) and there’s an embarassing scene where Cruise takes his shirt off just so we can see him with his shirt off left me wondering: did Lee Child really sign off on this screenplay?
So that’s the bad news. The good news is that the film is entertaining, Cruise does the best he can under the circumstances, and he delivers the key lines nicely. Pike does a fine job of being sexy without being movie-star beautiful. The fight scenes are lively and fun and not too overdone.
And Werner Herzog is just spectacular as the evil Zec, a man so tough that he chewed his fingers off in prison to avoid getting gangrene. Watching Herzog sneer and be scary, horrible, and fascinating at the same time is worth the price of admission.
No nudity. Five people beaten near death. Three cops cars destroyed. Sniper porn. Fight to the death in the pouring rain. Not a great tribute to a great character, but I’ll take it. *
YEAR IN FILM Cluck as you may, it was only a matter of time before the chicks started rewriting those chick flicks. Tina Fey, Kristen Wiig, and their peers represent the girls — how politically incorrect — in all their messy, sexy, oozy, frizzy-haired, fallible, flabby, and unflappable glory. And this year saw a major meeting in the ladies room, films out real soon, that poked fun at women’s work, relationships, identities, and insecurities.
The pedestal that history’s most notorious auteur-patriarch was so quick to place his icy blondes upon, rhapsodized in the nostalgia-laced Hitchcock, was toppled in feminist Pygmalion revamp Ruby Sparks, penned by lead actress Zoe Kazan. Meanwhile, Rashida Jones took a revisionist tact and rethought the second-wave myth of the woman who can have it all by writing and playing the lovable power bitch who nevertheless kicks her slacker soul mate to the curb in Celeste and Jesse Forever.
In a more clearly chick-flicky vein, writer-star Lauren Miller amped up the sexual side of the rom-com with For a Good Time, Call…, whereas Julie Delpy reveled in an old-world/new-urban interracial culture clash while writing, directing, and starring in 2 Days in New York. Zoe Lister Jones got the second-banana gal-pal’s revenge by writing herself all the best lines in the unsettlingly girlie Lola Versus, a movie that seemed designed to test the patience of men, critics (especially male ones) by wallowing in one girl’s mournful sexual shenanigans.
Why take on the notoriously powerless role of screenwriter? “A pretty dreary lot of hacks,” Raymond Chandler once put it. “On billboards, in newspaper advertisements, [the writer’s] name will be smaller than that of the most insignificant bit-player who achieves what is known as billing.” It’s a critical step in deconstructing the tropes, disassembling the lines, and unpacking the baggage so many so-called women’s films have been supplying for years. No wonder female actor-writers so often seem to be in a race for the bottom with the guys, writing themselves roles that make themselves look more morally ambiguous, sexually conflicted, taste-testingly lurid, and simply screwed-up. Born in Flames (1983), these movies aren’t.
Instead, dub them the natural byproduct of a DIY video-making movement or simply a pendulum swing away from 2011, when it seemed like all the blockbuster roles for women lay in servant’s quarters of The Help and females were protagonists of only 11 percent of all films, in contrast to 2002’s 16 percent (according to a report by the Center for the Study of Women in Television and Film at San Diego State University).
Chalk it up to the afterglow of Wiig’s Bridesmaids (2011), spinning off the comedy that won over audiences with its flurry of frenemy backstabbing, scatological humor, and extremely close attention to women’s bizarro rites of passage. Or attribute it to the seismic activity set off by Lena Dunham, who satirized the YouTube generation in 2010’s Tiny Furniture, a comedy she herself shot on a Canon 5D digital camera. Dunham’s HBO hit, Girls, only added fuel to a blogosphere backlash that seemed less about Dunham (her looks, her privileged background) and more about hipster-culture smugness, an entire generation’s perceived sense of entitlement, and good ol’ jealousy.
That kind of outcry is a risk that women are increasingly willing to take, as they wrote themselves onto the big screen and told their own stories. They spun tales about their perhaps petty, perhaps big-deal concerns, and went there — to the not so deep, but sort of dirty little secrets in the Hidden World of Girls, to crib the title of that Fey-hosted NPR series.
And however you felt about her genre-defining rom-coms, there was a certain sad poetry to the fact that writer-director Nora Ephron quietly passed away amid this year’s girlquake. She spent less time in front of the camera than many of these actress-writers do, but you know the woman who directed and co-wrote 1992’s This Is My Life — the film that inspired Dunham to make movies — would have been eager to pass the baton.
KIMBERLY CHUN’S TOP 10 SHOTS IN THE DARK OF 2012
Attenberg (Athina Rachel Tsangari, Greece, 2010)
Crazy Horse (Frederick Wiseman, USA/France, 2011)
The Deep Blue Sea (Terence Davies, UK, 2011)
Django Unchained (Quentin Tarantino, US)
Elena (Andrey Zvyagintsev, Russia)
Gerhard Richter Painting (Corinna Belz, Germany, 2011)
Gimme the Loot (Adam Leon, US)
I Wish (Hirokazu Kore-eda, Japan, 2011) Marina Abramovich: The Artist Is Present (Matthew Akers, Jeff Dupre, US) Searching for Sugar Man (Malik Bendjelloul, Sweden/UK)
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. For further information on how to submit items for the listings, see Picks. For complete stage listings, see www.sfbg.com.
THEATER
ONGOING
Brian Copeland’s The Jewelry Box … A Genuine Christmas Story Marsh San Francisco, 1062 Valencia, SF; www.themarsh.org. $20-50. Fri/28, 8pm; Sat/29, 5pm. Copeland remembers his Oakland childhood in this family-friendly holiday show.
Crones for the Holidays Stage Werx, 446 Valencia, SF; www.crackpotcrones.com. $20. Sat/29, 3 and 8pm; Sun/30, 3pm. A Coupla Crackpot Crones (a.k.a. playwrights and actors Terry Baum and Carolyn Myers, collaborators as far back as the Lilith Women’s Theater Collective in the 1970s) roll out a series of vignettes, stories, spontaneous poetry, at least one sing-a-long (the priceless “12 Days of Family Insults”), and other sundry subversions in this amusing, endearingly earthy, and politically conscious show directed by Joan Mankin. These women may be aging but they’re still raging. (Avila)
Foodies! The Musical Shelton Theater, 533 Sutter, SF; www.foodiesthemusical.com. $30-34. Fri-Sat, 8pm. Open-ended. AWAT Productions presents Morris Bobrow’s musical comedy revue all about food.
Forking II: A Merry Forking! Christmas TJT, 460 Florida, SF; www.pianofight.com. $30. Thu/27-Sun/30, 8pm. PianoFight presents the return of playwright Daniel Heath’s 2011 holiday-themed Forking play, his brand for a play that allows audiences to vote by applause on the direction of the plot at certain junctures, or forks, in the narrative. There are weaker moments and some throwaway ideas, but not many: this is a solid comedic outing, whose 10-member cast (including a memorable cameo by PianoFight cofounder Rob Ready) is capable, versatile, and fun as they serve Heath’s witty, well-proportioned script. (Avila)
The Golden Girls: The Christmas Episodes Victoria Theatre, 2961 16th St, SF; www.trannyshack.com. $30. Thu/27-Sat/29, 8pm; Sun/30, 7pm. The Victoria is once again a time capsule taking appreciative audiences back to the 1980s, to watch television through the magic of drag performance. Local luminaries Pollo Del Mar, Cookie Dough, Heklina, and Matthew Martin reprise their seasonal roles as TV’s Golden Girls, in back-to-back Christmas episodes that come complete with a soundscape of impossibly cheerful period commercials literally singing the praises of “processed cheese spread” and the like. (Avila)
Hedwig and the Angry Inch Boxcar Playhouse, 505 Natoma, SF; www.boxcartheatre.org. $25-35. Wed-Sat, 8pm (also Sat, 5pm). Through Jan 26. Boxcar’s popular production of John Cameron Mitchell’s glam-rock musical returns, starring a rotating cast of Hedwigs.
Hysterical, Historical San Francisco: Holiday Edition Alcove Theater, 414 Mason, Ste 502, SF; www.thealcovetheater.com. $25-40. Thu/26-Mon/31, 9pm. Comedian Kurt Weitzmann takes on San Francisco history, adding some holiday flair along the way.
The Marvelous Wonderettes New Conservatory Theatre Center, 25 Van Ness, SF; www.nctcsf.org. $27-46. Wed-Sat, 8pm; Sun, 2pm. Through Jan 13. New Conservatory Theatre Center performs Roger Bean’s 1950s pop-hit musical.
“A Minor Cycle: Five Little Plays in One Starry Night” NOHspace, Project Artaud, 2840 Mariposa, SF; www.theatreofyugen.org. $10-30. Wed/26-Thu/27, 7pm; Fri/28-Sat/29, 8pm; Sun/30, 1pm. Theatre of Yugen presents the world premiere of five one-act plays based on tales of childhood, interpreted though traditional Japanese artistry.
The Santaland Diaries Eureka Theatre, 215 Jackson, SF; www.combinedartform.com. $20-50. Wed/26-Sat/29, 8pm. David Sinaiko performs David Sedaris’ holiday comedy, presented by Combined Artform.
Scrooge: The Haunting of Ebenezer Boxcar Theatre Studios, 125A Hyde, SF; www.boxcartheatre.org. $16. Wed/26-Sat/29, 8pm; Sun/30, 5pm. Jeff Garrett stars in a solo take on the Dickens classic, presented by Boxcar Theatre.
BAY AREA
Acid Test: The Many Incarnations of Ram Dass Marsh Berkeley, 2120 Allston, Berk; www.themarsh.org. $15-50. Thu-Fri, 8pm; Sat, 5pm. Extended through Jan 5. Lynne Kaufman’s new play stars Warren David Keith as the noted spiritual figure.
Big Bubbly Holiday Spectacle with Louis Pearl, the Amazing Bubble Man Marsh Berkeley, 2120 Allston, Berk; www.themarsh.org. $8-50. Sun and Wed/26-Sat/29, 11am. Through Jan 6. Holiday-themed, kid-friendly show with bubble whisperer Louis Pearl.
Big River TheatreWorks, 1305 Middlefield, Palo Alto; www.theatreworks.org. $23-73. Wed/26, 7:30pm; Thu/27-Sat/29, 8pm (also Thu/27 and Sat/29, 2pm); Sun/30, 2 and 7pm. TheatreWorks performs the Tony-winning musical based on Mark Twain’s Huck Finn stories.
Woyzeck Ashby Stage, 1901 Ashby, Berk; www.shotgunplayers.org. $23-35. Wed-Thu, 7pm; Fri-Sat, 8pm; Sun, 5pm. Through Jan 27. Shotgun Players presents Tom Waits, Kathleen Brennan, and Robert Wilson’s tragic musical, based on an unfinished 1837 play by Georg Büchner.
PERFORMANCE/DANCE
“Cynic Cave” Cinecave (beneath Lost Weekend Video), 1034 Valencia, SF; facebook.com/cyniccave. Sat/29, 8pm. $10. “Mission Pisition Live” with Kate Willett and Matt Lieb.
“Lea DeLaria Live!” Victoria Theatre, 2961 16th St, SF; www.therhino.org. Mon/31, 7 and 9pm. $30-35. The jazz singer-comedian performs for New Year’s Eve.
“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.
“Tarantino X-Mas’ Bayfront Theater, B350 Fort Mason Center, SF; www.improv.org. Fri/28-Sat/29, 8pm. $20. Improvised holiday entertainment, QT-style. *
Schedules are for Wed/19-Tue/25 except where noted. Director and year are given when available. Double and triple features marked with a •. All times pm unless otherwise specified.
ARTISTS’ TELEVISION ACCESS 992 Valencia, SF; www.atasite.org. $6. "Other Cinema:" "New Experimental Works," Sat, 8:30.
CASTRO 429 Castro, SF; (415) 621-6120, www.castrotheatre.com. $8.50-11. "Noir City Xmas:" •Holiday Affair (Hartman, 1949), Wed, 7:30, and The Lady in the Lake (Montgomery, 1947), Wed, 9:30. •The Apartment (Wilder, 1960), Thu, 2:15, 7, and Three Days of the Condor (Pollack, 1975), Thu, 4:40, 9:20. •They Live (Carpenter, 1988), Fri, 7:30, and Miracle Mile (De Jarnatt, 1988), Fri, 9:20. "Twas the Night Before Sketchfest: An SF Sketchfest Christmas:" Elf (Favreau, 2003), Sat, 12:30; •Emmett Otter’s Jug-Band Christmas (Henson, 1977), and The Bells of Fraggle Rock (Williams, 1984), Sat, 3; Scrooged (Donner, 1988), Sat, 5:30; Bad Santa (Zwigoff, 2003), Sat, 8:30. Screenings ($10-20) feature special guests; more info at www.sfsketchfest.com. "SantaConCert" with the San Francisco Gay Men’s Chorus, Mon, 5, 7, 9. Tickets ($25-30) at www.sfgmc.org.
CHRISTOPHER B. SMITH RAFAEL FILM CENTER 1118 Fourth St, San Rafael; (415) 454-1222, www.cafilm.org. $6.75-$10.25. Any Day Now (Fine, 2012), call for dates and times. A Late Quartet (Zilberman, 2012), call for dates and times. A Royal Affair (Arcel, 2012), call for dates and times. "World Ballet on the Big Screen:" The Nutcracker, performed by the Royal Ballet, London, Sun, 1. This event, $15.
PACIFIC FILM ARCHIVE 2575 Bancroft, Berk; (510) 642-5249, bampfa.berkeley.edu. $5.50-9.50. PFA closed through Jan 9.
ROXIE 3117 and 3125 16th St, SF; (415) 863-1087, www.roxie.com. $6.50-11. Black Christmas (Clark, 1974), Wed, 7:30. With star Margot Kidder in person. Holy Motors (Carax, 2012), Wed-Thu, 7, 9:15. In the Family (Wang, 2012), Thu, 7:30. •35 Cents and a Dream: The Tale of Cliff’s Variety (Gutierrez, 2011), and Making Christmas: The View from the Tom and Jerry Christmas Tree (Gutierrez, 2011), Fri, 6; first two films plus Sweet Onion Salad (Gutierrez, 2009), Fri, 7:15. 9:30. This event, $10-15. Citadel (Foy, 2012), Dec 21-27, 9:15 (also Sat-Sun, 3; no show Mon). New Jerusalem (Alverson, 2011), Dec 21-27, 7:15 (also Fri-Sat, 5; no show Mon).
VORTEX ROOM 1082 Howard, SF; Facebook: The Vortex Room. $10. "The Vortex Apocalypse, or How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Thursday Film Cult:" •Five (Oboler, 1951), Thu, 9, and Six Hundred and Sixty-Six (O’Connell, 1972), Thu, 11.
YERBA BUENA CENTER FOR THE ARTS 701 Mission, SF; www.ybca.org. $8-10. "Honk If You’re Horny: Retro Sex Musicals:" Let My Puppets Come (Damiano, 1976), Thu, 7:30.
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. For further information on how to submit items for the listings, see Picks.
THEATER
OPENING
The Santaland Diaries Eureka Theatre, 215 Jackson, SF; www.combinedartform.com. $20-50. Opens Wed/19, 8pm. Runs Thu/20-Sun/23 and Dec 26-29, 8pm (also Sat/22-Sun/23, 3pm); Mon/24, 3pm. Through Dec 29. David Sinaiko performs David Sedaris’ holiday comedy, presented by Combined Artform.
ONGOING
Brian Copeland’s The Jewelry Box … A Genuine Christmas Story Marsh San Francisco, 1062 Valencia, SF; www.themarsh.org. $20-50. Fri, 8pm; Sat, 5pm. Through Dec 29. Copeland remembers his Oakland childhood in this family-friendly holiday show.
A Christmas Carol Geary Theater, 415 Geary, SF; www.act-sf.org. $20-95. Wed/19-Sat/22, 7pm (also Fri/21-Sat/22, 2pm); Sun/23, 1 and 5:30pm; Mon/24, 1pm. American Conservatory Theater’s annual holiday performance features James Carpenter as Scrooge.
Crones for the Holidays Stage Werx, 446 Valencia, SF; www.crackpotcrones.com. $20. Sat, 3 and 8pm; Sun, 3pm. Through Dec 30. A Coupla Crackpot Crones (a.k.a. playwrights and actors Terry Baum and Carolyn Myers, collaborators as far back as the Lilith Women’s Theater Collective in the 1970s) roll out a series of vignettes, stories, spontaneous poetry, at least one sing-a-long (the priceless "12 Days of Family Insults"), and other sundry subversions in this amusing, endearingly earthy, and politically conscious show directed by Joan Mankin. Proceedings unfold on a hodgepodge set (smartly designed by Vola Ruben) full of seasonal staples and Dutch angles: a giant Menorah on one end of the stage balanced by a large Mayan calendar on the other, and so on. In one of the program’s more elaborate tales, invention and the political moment come together with earnestness and humor as a shuttered portrait of the Virgin Mary (Baum) counsels a desperate Muscovite teenager (Myers) in 1962 about unanticipated pregnancies, only to meet her again in 2012 as Pussy Riot are about to storm the rebuilt Cathedral of Christ the Savior. These women may be aging but they’re still raging. (Avila)
Foodies! The Musical Shelton Theater, 533 Sutter, SF; www.foodiesthemusical.com. $30-34. Fri-Sat, 8pm. Open-ended. AWAT Productions presents Morris Bobrow’s musical comedy revue all about food.
Forking II: A Merry Forking! Christmas TJT, 460 Florida, SF; www.pianofight.com. $30. Thu-Sun, 8pm. Through Dec 30. PianoFight presents the return of playwright Daniel Heath’s 2011 holiday-themed Forking play, his brand for a play that allows audiences to vote by applause on the direction of the plot at certain junctures, or forks, in the narrative. In this forked-up Christmas tale, set in a busy mall on Christmas Eve, a dispirited underemployed Santa and his pot-dealing bakery-store roommate help to galvanize a group of characters who become entangled in a web of shopping, romance, and space cookies. There are weaker moments and some throwaway ideas, but not many: this is a solid comedic outing, whose 10-member cast (including a memorable cameo by PianoFight cofounder Rob Ready) is capable, versatile, and fun as they serve Heath’s witty, well-proportioned script. (Avila)
The Golden Girls: The Christmas Episodes Victoria Theatre, 2961 16th St, SF; www.trannyshack.com. $30. Thu-Sat, 8pm; Sun, 7pm. Through Dec 30. The Victoria is once again a time capsule taking appreciate audiences back to the 1980s, to watch television through the magic of drag performance. Local luminaries Pollo Del Mar, Cookie Dough, Heklina, and Matthew Martin reprise their seasonal roles as TV’s Golden Girls, in back-to-back Christmas episodes that come complete with a soundscape of impossibly cheerful period commercials literally singing the praises of "processed cheese spread" and the like. In the first episode, "Scared Straight," Blanche (played by Martin, a swaggering hip-notizer of the first order) discovers her little brother (a lively Manuel Caneri) is gay, with much drama ensuing, at least until the last commercial break. Meanwhile, Dorothy’s (Heklina) mother, Sophia (Cookie Dough), prepares for imminent death as foretold by a dream featuring her late husband. In episode two, "Twas the Nightmare Before Christmas," the girls’ plans to spend the holiday with their families gets derailed when a lonely gunman (Laurie Bushman) enters the crisis center where Rose (Del Mar) works, holding everyone hostage. But Christmas together kind of works too, even if it’s not exactly Family
Ties. (Avila)
Hedwig and the Angry Inch Boxcar Playhouse, 505 Natoma, SF; www.boxcartheatre.org. $25-35. Wed-Sat, 8pm (also Sat, 5pm). Through Jan 26. Boxcar’s popular production of John Cameron Mitchell’s glam-rock musical returns, starring a rotating cast of Hedwigs.
History: The Musical Un-Scripted Theater, 533 Sutter, SF; www.un-scripted.com. $10-20. Thu/20-Sat/22, 8pm. The Un-Scripted Theater Company performs "an unscripted romp through Western history."
Hysterical, Historical San Francisco: Holiday Edition Alcove Theater, 414 Mason, Ste 502, SF; www.thealcovetheater.com. $25-40. Fri-Sat and Dec 26-31, 9pm. Through Dec 31. Comedian Kurt Weitzmann takes on San Francisco history, adding some holiday flair along the way.
The Marvelous Wonderettes New Conservatory Theatre Center, 25 Van Ness, SF; www.nctcsf.org. $27-46. Wed-Sat, 8pm; Sun, 2pm (no show Sun/23). Through Jan 13. New Conservatory Theatre Center performs Roger Bean’s 1950s pop-hit musical.
"A Minor Cycle: Five Little Plays in One Starry Night" NOHspace, Project Artaud, 2840 Mariposa, SF; www.theatreofyugen.org. $10-30. Wed-Thu, 7pm; Fri-Sat, 8pm; Sun, 1pm. Through Dec 30. Theatre of Yugen presents the world premiere of five one-act plays based on tales of childhood, interpreted though traditional Japanese artistry.
The New California Traveling Jewish Theater, 470 Florida, SF; www.pianofight.com. $20-25. Wed/19, 8pm. PianoFight’s all-female ForePlays troupe offers this bleak take on the future of the state, after the Big One shears California off from the mainland and everyone begins "drifting away from the rest of the United States." You wouldn’t know it by the dispiritingly pedestrian humor on display in this series of mostly feeble sketches (written by Kate Jones, Jessica Mele, Rachel Rockwood, Emma Shelton, Meredith Terry, and Sarah Wright), which tend to cling to the worst tendencies in the culture with a complacency masquerading as satire. Also on the bill is stand-up comedian Clare O’Kane, who’s something of a relief; and comic musician Lady Blanche, with interludes of a forgettable nature.
The Rainmaker Shelton Theater, 533 Sutter, SF; www.sheltontheater.org. $38. Fri/21-Sat/22, 8pm. Shelton Theatre performs N. Richard Nash’s classic drama.
"The San Francisco Olympians Festival" Exit Theater, 156 Eddy, SF; www.sfolympians.com. $10. Wed/19-Thu/20, 8pm. This 12-night festival features brand-new plays by Bay Area writers, each based on one of the 12 Olympian gods of ancient Greece.
Scrooge: The Haunting of Ebenezer Boxcar Theatre Studios, 125A Hyde, SF; www.boxcartheatre.org. $16. Wed-Sat, 8pm; Mon/24 and Dec 30, 5pm. Through Dec 30. Jeff Garrett stars in a solo take on the Dickens classic, presented by Boxcar Theatre.
Speed-the-Plow Actors Theatre of San Francisco, 855 Bush, SF; www.actorstheatresf.org. $26-38. Wed/19-Fri/21, 8pm. Actors Theatre of San Francisco performs the David Mamet drama.
BAY AREA
Acid Test: The Many Incarnations of Ram Dass Marsh Berkeley, 2120 Allston, Berk; www.themarsh.org. $15-50. Thu-Fri, 8pm; Sat, 5pm. Extended through Jan 5. Lynne Kaufman’s new play stars Warren David Keith as the noted spiritual figure.
Big Bubbly Holiday Spectacle with Louis Pearl, the Amazing Bubble Man Marsh Berkeley, 2120 Allston, Berk; www.themarsh.org. $8-50. Sun and Dec 26-29, 11am. Through Jan 6. Holiday-themed, kid-friendly show with bubble whisperer Louis Pearl.
Big River TheatreWorks, 1305 Middlefield, Palo Alto; www.theatreworks.org. $23-73. Tue-Wed, 7:30pm; Thu-Sat, 8pm (also Sat, 2pm); Sun, 2 and 7pm. Through Dec 30. TheatreWorks performs the Tony-winning musical based on Mark Twain’s Huck Finn stories.
The White Snake Berkeley Repertory Theatre, Roda Theatre, 2025 Addison, Berk; www.berkeleyrep.org. $29-99. Thu/20-Sat/22, 8pm (also Sat/22, 2pm); Sun/23, 2 and 7pm. In Mary Zimmerman’s The White Snake, nothing is quite as it seems. A mysterious stranger and her faithful servant are, in reality, a pair of shape-shifting serpents, the humble village pharmacy they build (with stolen money) is a front for their magical healing powers, a venerated Buddhist Abbott is actually a small-minded tyrant with a remarkably unholy obsession. Based on a Chinese myth dating to the 10th century, elements of "The White Snake" can be found in other mythologies around the world — from the biblical tempter in the Garden of Eden, to the healer snakes of Asclepius. However, in accordance with the tale’s historical evolution, from horror story to romance, Zimmerman’s treatment focuses mainly on the unusual love affair between Madame White (Amy Kim Waschke) and her karma-selected husband Xu Xian (Christopher Livingston). Weaving together fanciful design (a rainfall of ribbons, parasol puppetry, elegant period costuming and evocative video), elements of Chinese drama (amusingly described by narrators as they take place on stage), and a stirring reflection on the transformative power of love, complete with themes of self-sacrifice and endless fidelity, The White Snake, is a delicately-rendered fairytale which may not offer a way to enlightenment, but certainly clears a path to the heart. (Gluckstern)
Wavy Gravy and His Guided Mistletoes Marsh Berkeley, 2120 Allston, Berk; www.themarsh.org. $15-50. Thu/20-Sat/22, 8pm; Sun/23, 3pm. The activist legend shares stories and holiday cheer.
Woyzeck Ashby Stage, 1901 Ashby, Berk; www.shotgunplayers.org. $23-35. Wed-Thu, 7pm; Fri-Sat, 8pm; Sun, 5pm. Through Jan 27. Shotgun Players presents Tom Waits, Kathleen Brennan, and Robert Wilson’s tragic musical, based on an unfinished 1837 play by Georg Büchner.
PERFORMANCE/DANCE
"Any Last Words?" Sub-Mission Gallery, 2183 Mission, SF; anylastwords2012.tumblr.com. Thu/20, 9pm. $10. Apocalyptic comedy with host Trevor Hill and 40 comics telling their last jokes before the world ends, including Casey Ley, Caitlin Gill, Kevin Camia, and Mike Drucker.
BATS Improv Bayfront Theater, B350 Fort Mason Center, SF; www.improv.org. $20. "Theatresports," Fri/21, 8pm.
"Comedy Bottle" Purple Onion at Kells, 530 Jackson, SF; www.thepurpleonionatkells.com. Fri/21-Sat/22, 8:30pm. $15. Stand-up with Jason Downs and Red Scott.
"Cynic Cave" Cinecave (beneath Lost Weekend Video), 1034 Valencia, SF; facebook.com/cyniccave. Sat/22, 8pm. $10. Stand-up with Matt Gubser, Josef Anolin, Lydia Popovich, and more.
"Fishnet Follies: A Midwinter Night’s Dream" Rrazz Room, Hotel Nikko, 222 Mason, SF; www.therrazzroom.com. Fri/21, 10:30pm. $25-45. Burlesque and variety performances.
"Holidays Throughout the Year: An Evening of Classic Burlesque" Exit Theatre Mainstage, 156 Eddy, SF; www.theexit.org. Fri/21, 9pm. $15. Tasty Temptress, IfNWhendy, Elyse Elaine, and other performers shimmy through a holiday-themed extravaganza.
"The Jewish Nutcracker, A Maccabee Celebration" ODC Theater, 3153 17th St, SF; www.odcdance.org. Thu/20-Fri/21, 3 and 7:30pm; Sat/22, 2 and 6pm; Sun/23, 3pm. $20-25. World Dance Fusion presents multi-genre choreography by Katy Alaniz Rous in this Jewish spin on the holiday ballet.
"Miracle at the Gas ‘N’ Gulp: A Fuelside Yuletide with Cora Values" StageWerx, 446 Valencia, SF; foulplaysf.com/cora. Wed/19, 8pm. $20. Songs and comedy with Cora Values.
"Mittens and Mistletoe" Dance Mission Theater, 3316 24th St, SF; www.brownpapertickets.com. Fri/21, 8pm; Sat/22-Mon/24, 4pm (also Sun/23-Mon/24, 2pm). $15-20. Sweet Can Productions presents a light-hearted variety show, featuring clowning, acrobatics, and juggling.
"Night Wakes Dawn/La Noche Despierta El Amanecer" Brava Theater Center, 2781 24th St, SF; www.locobloco.org. Sat/22, 7pm; Sun/23, 2pm. $10-20. Loco Bloco performs a musical, theatrical exploration of the Mayan prophecies surrounding 2012, and a questioning of the New Age beliefs about their meaning.
"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.
"Tough Jobby, Boot: Tis Yule" Eureka Theatre, 215 Jackson, SF; www.willfranken.com. Sat/22, 9:30pm. $20. Will Franken performs his new holiday show, his last gig before his long-term return to England.
"The 20th Anniversary of Kung Pao Kosher Comedy" New Asia Restaurant, 772 Pacific, SF; www.koshercomedy.com. Sat/22 and Mon/24, 6pm (dinner show) and 9:30pm (cocktail show); Sun/23 and Tue/25, 5pm (early bird dinner show) and 8:30pm (cocktail show). $44-64. The annual "Jewish comedy on Christmas in a Chinese restaurant" event marks 20 years with Judy Gold, Scott Blakeman, Mike Capozzola, and Lisa Geduldig. Partial proceeds benefit the Brown Twins/Jewish Family and Children’s Services Emergency Assistance Fund, and the Bay Area Women’s and Children’s Center drop-in services and food pantry.
"Voluspa: A Ghost Dance for 2012" Dance Mission Theater, 3316 24th St, SF; www.dancemission.com. Wed/19-Thu/20, 7:30pm. $12-20. Ritual dance performance with Dance Brigade, Grrrl Brigade, NAKA Dance Theater, and others.
BAY AREA
"A Down Home Christmas With Nell and Jim" Aurora Theatre Company, 2081 Addison, Berk; www.auroratheatre.org. Wed/19-Fri/21, 7:30pm. $28. Cabaret-style bluegrass concert featuring holiday tunes.
"The Nutcracker" Paramount Theatre, 2025 Broadway, Oakl; www.paramounttheatre.com. Sat/22-Sun/23, 2pm; Mon/24, 11am. $20-59. Oakland Ballet performs Graham Lustig’s version of the classic.
A word of advice to the person who shouted, “who’s your favorite clothing designer?,” at W. Kamau Bell during his December 9th show at the Fillmore: a guy who wears a “Legalize Arizona” t-shirt during a night he considers one of the biggest moments of his career probably doesn’t give a shit about fashion. (Initially befuddled by the question, Bell eventually responded “Dickies.”) In addition, to the person who asked Bell whether or not he thought was a whore for being on TV, if he is a one … well you paid for your ticket to the show, right?
Glad we could get that out of the way first.
Bell’s Fillmore gig in the city where he resided for 15 years was one of seven on his Kamau Mau Uprising tour – the name an obvious nod to his radical political leanings. But perhaps none of the other venues held as much significance for him as this one. As he told me in our recent Guardian interview, “in some sense that’s bigger than getting a TV show, when they said that I was going to play the Fillmore.”
The comic’s giddiness in reuniting with the people of his adopted homeland (he grew up in Chicago) was evident as his 6’4” frame came lumbering onto the stage, just moments after opener Dave Thomason’s set. Thomason supposedly was going to go off stage and then come back on to introduce Bell, but Bell apparently didn’t get the memo and strolled right into the spotlight sans introduction from Thomason.
You don’t have to be Nate Silver (a.k.a., White Jesus, according to Bell) to predict how a show like this was going to begin. When a local comedian leaves town to get his own TV show in New York – Totally Biased With W. Kamau Bell was recently renewed for a second season – it’s pretty much de rigueur that he opens by regaling the crowd with an anecdotal New York show biz story followed by some softball home crowd-pleasers.
And that’s how it happened. Bell told a story about the time he appeared on The View with Taylor Swift and his towncar was swarmed by six or seven deranged teenyboppers. As for the home crowd pleaser, Bell teased the East Bay denizens about their reluctance to cross the bridge for pretty much any reason. Low hanging fruit? Sure. Could he have easily flipped which side of the Bay he was joshing? Sure. Was it necessary? Absolutely! Broad home crowd pleasers are hypeman-stand-ins in the world of live comedy.
Once we got past the “homecoming” novelty (it never fully went away) Bell hit full stride, thwacking the audience with his favorite subject: race! A palpable liberal queasiness was rife in the historic theater when Bell struck his harshest notes, especially those recounting his own experiences with racism — he once got called the n-word twice in one night in the Mission.
And then as kicker, he chucked sexuality in the mix:
“Hey I’ve lived in San Francisco for 15 years, I never had any beef with gay people, I had way more beef with Chinese people than gay people. Way more, not even close and that’s why I don’t think we should let Chinese people get married. If there’s one point I’m making tonight it’s that Chinese people should not be allowed to get married…That’s the funny thing about San Francisco, it has this reputation of being gay but it’s way more Asian than gay and on some level, gay trumps Asian.”
For the record W. Kamau Bell isn’t actually against Chinese marriage.
Bell’s best quality is his ability to derive humor from seemingly humorless racial topics, distributing laughter equally among the crowd. At no point during the show did it seem like a certain joke got more laughs from people of a certain race. No one else can make the Fillmore ignite in uproarious laughter with a joke skewering the supposed notion that black people were responsible for Prop. 8 passing.
Bell’s “I’m glad to be back!” moment played out exactly like it was scripted. It took place in the perfect setting. Nostalgia and a familiar audience drove Bell’s success at the Fillmore. His biggest challenge, of course, lies ahead: replicating those fuzzy feelings in TV land.
Schedules are for Wed/12-Tue/18 except where noted. Director and year are given when available. Double features marked with a •. All times pm unless otherwise specified.
CASTRO 429 Castro, SF; (415) 621-6120, www.castrotheatre.com. $8.50-11. Frankenweenie (Burton, 2012), Wed, 2:30, 4:45, 7, 9:15. Wake in Fright (Kotcheff, 1971), Thu, 2, 4:30, 7, 9:20. •Eyes Wide Shut (Kubrick, 1999), Fri, 5:30, and The Shining (Kubrick, 1980), Fri, 8:30. "Peaches Christ Productions Presents: The Nightmare We Call Christmas:" Edward Scissorhands (Burton, 1990), Sat, 8. With pre-show spectacular; advance tickets ($25-45) at www.peacheschrist.com. Hannah Free (Carlton, 2009), Sun, 1. Scrooge and Marley (Knight and Neville, 2012), Sun, 3:15. Once Upon a Time in the West (Leone, 1968), Sun, 7.
CHRISTOPHER B. SMITH RAFAEL FILM CENTER 1118 Fourth St, San Rafael; (415) 454-1222, www.cafilm.org. $6.75-$10.25. A Late Quartet (Zilberman, 2012), call for dates and times. A Royal Affair (Arcel, 2012), call for dates and times. "Pierre Étaix: Lost and Found:" Land of Milk and Honey (1971), Wed, 6:45; Yo Yo (1965), Wed, 8:30; Le Grand Amour (1969) with "Happy Anniversary" (1962), Thu, 6:45; As Long As You’re Healthy (1966) with "Feeling Good" (1969), Thu, 9. Any Day Now (Fine, 2012), Dec 14-20, call for times.
KADIST ART FOUNDATON 3295 20th St, SF; www.sffs.org. Free. "KinoTek: Take Off Kora Ezawa Kenneth Goldsmith," Wed, 7.
PACIFIC FILM ARCHIVE 2575 Bancroft, Berk; (510) 642-5249, bampfa.berkeley.edu. $5.50-9.50. PFA closed through Jan 9.
ROXIE 3117 and 3125 16th St, SF; (415) 863-1087, www.roxie.com. $6.50-11. Jason Becker: Not Dead Yet (Vile, 2012), Wed, 7, 9. Just 45 Minutes from Broadway (Jaglom, 2012), Wed-Thu, 7, 9:15. "Kung Fu Theater:" •Snake in the Eagle’s Shadow (Yuen, 1978), Thu, 7:30, and Seven Grandmasters (Kuo, 1978), Thu, 9:15. This event, $12. "Found Footage Festival," Fri-Sat, 8. This event, $13; more info at www.foundfootagefest.com. It’s Such a Beautiful Day (Hertzfeldt, 2007/2012), Sat-Sun, 4:30, 6:15; Mon, 7, 8:30.
SF CINEMATHEQUE Incline Gallery, 766 Valencia, SF; www.sfcinematheque.org. $10-40. Benefit art auction to celebrate Cinematheque’s 51st year, Fri, 6-8:30. Roxie, 3117 16th St, SF. "Songs for the Animals: A Performance Video Celebration," Fri, 9:30.
VORTEX ROOM 1082 Howard, SF; Facebook: The Vortex Room. $10. "The Vortex Apocalypse, or How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Thursday Film Cult:" •The Omega Man (Sagal, 1971), Thu, 9, and The Raiders of Atlantis (Deodato, 1983), Thu, 11.
YERBA BUENA CENTER FOR THE ARTS 701 Mission, SF; www.ybca.org. $8-10. "Honk If You’re Horny: Retro Sex Musicals:" The First Nudie Musical (Haggard and Kimmel, 1976), Thu, 7:30. Marx Reloaded (Barker, 2011), Sat-Sun, 4 (also Sat, 7:30; Sun, 2).
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. For further information on how to submit items for the listings, see Picks.
THEATER
OPENING
Brian Copeland’s The Jewelry Box … A Genuine Christmas Story Marsh San Francisco, 1062 Valencia, SF; www.themarsh.org. $20-50. Opens Fri/14, 8pm. Runs Fri, 8pm; Sat, 5pm. Through Dec 29. Copeland remembers his Oakland childhood in this family-friendly holiday show.
Crones for the Holidays Stage Werx, 446 Valencia, SF; www.crackpotcrones.com. $20. Opens Sat/15, 3pm. Runs Sat, 3 and 8pm; Sun, 3pm. Through Dec 30. Terry Baum and Carolyn Myers (a.k.a. the Crackpot Crones) perform their new sketch comedy and improv show.
Scrooge: The Haunting of Ebenezer Boxcar Theatre Studios, 125A Hyde, SF; www.boxcartheatre.org. $16. Opens Wed/12, 8pm. Runs Wed-Sat, 8pm; Dec 24 and 30, 5pm. Through Dec 30. Jeff Garrett stars in a solo take on the Dickens classic, presented by Boxcar Theatre.
BAY AREA
Big Bubbly Holiday Spectacle with Louis Pearl, the Amazing Bubble Man Marsh Berkeley, 2120 Allston, Berk; www.themarsh.org. $8-50. Sun and Dec 26-29, 11am. Through Jan 6. Holiday-themed, kid-friendly show with bubble whisperer Louis Pearl.
Wavy Gravy and His Guided Mistletoes Marsh Berkeley, 2120 Allston, Berk; www.themarsh.org. $15-50. Opens Thu/13, 8pm. Runs Thu-Sat, 8pm; Sun, 3pm. Through Dec 23. The activist legend shares stories and holiday cheer.
ONGOING
A Christmas Carol Geary Theater, 415 Geary, SF; www.act-sf.org. $20-95. Tue-Sat, 7pm (no evening performance Tue/18; also 2pm matinees Wed/12, Sat/15, and Dec 21 and 22; Sun, 5:30pm (also 1pm matinees Sun/16 and Dec 23); Dec 24, 1pm. Through Dec 24. American Conservatory Theater’s annual holiday performance features James Carpenter as Scrooge.
Foodies! The Musical Shelton Theater, 533 Sutter, SF; www.foodiesthemusical.com. $30-34. Fri-Sat, 8pm. Open-ended. AWAT Productions presents Morris Bobrow’s musical comedy revue all about food.
Forking II: A Merry Forking! Christmas TJT, 460 Florida, SF; www.pianofight.com. $30. Thu-Sun, 8pm. Through Dec 30. PianoFight presents the return of playwright Daniel Heath’s 2011 holiday-themed Forking play, his brand for a play that allows audiences to vote by applause on the direction of the plot at certain junctures, or forks, in the narrative. In this forked-up Christmas tale, set in a busy mall on Christmas Eve, a dispirited underemployed Santa and his pot-dealing bakery-store roommate help to galvanize a group of characters who become entangled in a web of shopping, romance, and space cookies. There are weaker moments and some throwaway ideas, but not many: this is a solid comedic outing, whose 10-member cast (including a memorable cameo by PianoFight cofounder Rob Ready) is capable, versatile, and fun as they serve Heath’s witty, well-proportioned script. (Avila)
The Golden Girls: The Christmas Episodes Victoria Theatre, 2961 16th St, SF; www.trannyshack.com. $30. Thu-Sat, 8pm; Sun, 7pm. Through Dec 30. The Victoria is once again a time capsule taking appreciate audiences back to the 1980s, to watch television through the magic of drag performance. Local luminaries Pollo Del Mar, Cookie Dough, Heklina, and Matthew Martin reprise their seasonal roles as TV’s Golden Girls, in back-to-back Christmas episodes that come complete with a soundscape of impossibly cheerful period commercials literally singing the praises of "processed cheese spread" and the like. In the first episode, "Scared Straight," Blanche (played by Martin, a swaggering hip-notizer of the first order) discovers her little brother (a lively Manuel Caneri) is gay, with much drama ensuing, at least until the last commercial break. Meanwhile, Dorothy’s (Heklina) mother, Sophia (Cookie Dough), prepares for imminent death as foretold by a dream featuring her late husband. In episode two, "Twas the Nightmare Before Christmas," the girls’ plans to spend the holiday with their families gets derailed when a lonely gunman (Laurie Bushman) enters the crisis center where Rose (Del Mar) works, holding everyone hostage. But Christmas together kind of works too, even if it’s not exactly Family Ties. (Avila)
Hedwig and the Angry Inch Boxcar Playhouse, 505 Natoma, SF; www.boxcartheatre.org. $25-35. Wed-Sat, 8pm (also Sat, 5pm). Through Jan 26. Boxcar’s popular production of John Cameron Mitchell’s glam-rock musical returns, starring a rotating cast of Hedwigs.
History: The Musical Un-Scripted Theater, 533 Sutter, SF; www.un-scripted.com. $10-20. Thu-Sat, 8pm. Through Dec 22. The Un-Scripted Theater Company performs "an unscripted romp through Western history."
Hysterical, Historical San Francisco: Holiday Edition Alcove Theater, 414 Mason, Ste 502, SF; www.thealcovetheater.com. $25-40. Fri-Sat and Dec 26-31, 9pm. Through Dec 31. Comedian Kurt Weitzmann takes on San Francisco history, adding some holiday flair along the way.
The Marvelous Wonderettes New Conservatory Theatre Center, 25 Van Ness, SF; www.nctcsf.org. $27-46. Wed-Sat, 8pm; Sun, 2pm (no show Dec 23). Through Jan 13. New Conservatory Theatre Center performs Roger Bean’s 1950s pop-hit musical.
"A Minor Cycle: Five Little Plays in One Starry Night" NOHspace, Project Artaud, 2840 Mariposa, SF; www.theatreofyugen.org. $10-30. Wed-Thu, 7pm; Fri-Sat, 8pm; Sun, 1pm. Through Dec 30. Theatre of Yugen presents the world premiere of five one-act plays based on tales of childhood, interpreted though traditional Japanese artistry.
The New California Traveling Jewish Theater, 470 Florida, SF; www.pianofight.com. $20-25. Wed, 8pm. Through Dec 19. PianoFight’s all-female ForePlays troupe offers this bleak take on the future of the state, after the Big One shears California off from the mainland and everyone begins "drifting away from the rest of the United States." You wouldn’t know it by the dispiritingly pedestrian humor on display in this series of mostly feeble sketches (written by Kate Jones, Jessica Mele, Rachel Rockwood, Emma Shelton, Meredith Terry, and Sarah Wright), which tend to cling to the worst tendencies in the culture with a complacency masquerading as satire. Also on the bill is stand-up comedian Clare O’Kane, who’s something of a relief; and comic musician Lady Blanche, with interludes of a forgettable nature. (Avila)
Open Shotwell Studios, 3252 19th St, SF; www.brownpapertickets.com. $20. Fri/14-Sat/15 and Mon/17, 8pm. A title like this can mean so many things — at least everywhere else. In San Francisco, it pretty much says polyamorous relationship. Whether that translates into the height of maturity, an escape from bourgeois convention, or the folly of bored hedonists is no doubt case specific. But anything this popular is already suspect to some, including apparently the creators of this sharp, sexy, consistently amusing new comedy, written and directed by San Francisco–based Jeff Bedillion (Country Club Catastrophe) and co-presented by Back Alley Theater and Footloose. The Hunstvilles, Veronica (Katherine Otis) and Duncan (Brian Cybok), are local thirtysomething professionals with a comfortable nest — shared with Veronica’s live-in executive assistant (Julia Lienke) — who agree to spice up their sex life after five years of marriage by allowing each other one-night stands with anonymous strangers. Duncan’s tastes lend themselves to adopting Marin skater kids (Salvadore Mattos) as house slaves, while Veronica, with a little help from gay associate Francisco (Renato Robles), finds herself small-ponding it, meeting straight guys (Luke Wold) in gay bars. A promiscuous love letter to San Francisco, Open comes filled with self-referential humor and winking asides, but the charm is in the raunchy "I Love Lucy, Among Others" sit-com spirit of the piece and the charming cast, headed up by Otis’s powerhouse comedic performance — ribald, sultry, and vulnerable practically at once (even in the midst of one of the more credible and hilarious drunk scenes you’ll see on any stage this year). (Avila)
Pal Joey Eureka Theatre, 215 Jackson, SF; www.42ndstreetmoon.org. $25-75. Wed/12, 7pm; Thu/13-Fri/14, 8pm; Sat/15, 6pm; Sun/16, 3pm. 42nd Street Moon performs the Rodgers and Hart classic.
The Rainmaker Shelton Theater, 533 Sutter, SF; www.sheltontheater.org. $38. Fri-Sat, 8pm. Through Dec 22. Shelton Theatre performs N. Richard Nash’s classic drama.
"The San Francisco Olympians Festival" Exit Theater, 156 Eddy, SF; www.sfolympians.com. $10. Wed-Sat, 8pm (also Sat, 2pm). Through Dec 20. This 12-night festival features brand-new plays by Bay Area writers, each based on one of the 12 Olympian gods of ancient Greece.
Speed-the-Plow Actors Theatre of San Francisco, 855 Bush, SF; www.actorstheatresf.org. $26-38. Wed-Sat, 8pm. Extended through Dec 21. Actors Theatre of San Francisco performs the David Mamet drama.
The Submission New Conservatory Theatre Center, 25 Van Ness, SF; www.nctcsf.org. $25-45. Wed/12-Sat/15, 8pm; Sun/16, 2pm. New Conservatory Theatre Center performs Jeff Talbott’s drama about a playwright who falsifies his identity when he enters his latest work into a prestigious theater festival.
BAY AREA
Acid Test: The Many Incarnations of Ram Dass Marsh Berkeley, 2120 Allston, Berk; www.themarsh.org. $15-50. Thu-Fri, 8pm; Sat, 5pm. Extended through Jan 5. Lynne Kaufman’s new play stars Warren David Keith as the noted spiritual figure.
Big River TheatreWorks, 1305 Middlefield, Palo Alto; www.theatreworks.org. $23-73. Tue-Wed, 7:30pm; Thu-Sat, 8pm (also Sat, 2pm); Sun, 2 and 7pm. Through Dec 30. TheatreWorks performs the Tony-winning musical based on Mark Twain’s Huck Finn stories.
Dracula Berkeley Community Church, 1802 Fairview, Berk; www.infernotheatre.org. $12-25. Thu/13 and Sat/15-Sun/16, 8pm; Fri/14, 9pm. Inferno Theatre Company performs Giulio Cesare Perrone’s adaptation of the Bram Stoker classic.
It’s a Wonderful Life: A Live Radio Play Marin Theatre Company, 397 Miller, Mill Valley; www.marintheatre.org. $36-57. Wed/12, 7:30pm; Thu/13-Sat/15, 8pm (also Sat/15, 2pm); Sun/16, 2 and 7pm. Marin Theatre Company performs Joe Landry’s live radio play adaptation of the classic Capra film.
The Kipling Hotel: True Misadventures of the Electric Pink ’80s Marsh Berkeley, 2120 Allston, Berk; www.themarsh.org. $20-50. Sat/15, 8:30pm; Sun/16, 7pm. This new autobiographical solo show by Don Reed, writer-performer of the fine and long-running East 14th, is another slice of the artist’s journey from 1970s Oakland ghetto to comedy-circuit respectability. Even with some awkward bumps along the way, it’s never a dull thing watching Reed work. (Avila)
The White Snake Berkeley Repertory Theatre, Roda Theatre, 2025 Addison, Berk; www.berkeleyrep.org. $29-99. Tue and Thu-Sat, 8pm (also Sat and Thu/13, 2pm); Sun, 2 and 7pm. Through Dec 23. In Mary Zimmerman’s The White Snake, nothing is quite as it seems. A mysterious stranger and her faithful servant are, in reality, a pair of shape-shifting serpents, the humble village pharmacy they build (with stolen money) is a front for their magical healing powers, a venerated Buddhist Abbott is actually a small-minded tyrant with a remarkably unholy obsession. Based on a Chinese myth dating to the 10th century, elements of "The White Snake" can be found in other mythologies around the world — from the biblical tempter in the Garden of Eden, to the healer snakes of Asclepius. However, in accordance with the tale’s historical evolution, from horror story to romance, Zimmerman’s treatment focuses mainly on the unusual love affair between Madame White (Amy Kim Waschke) and her karma-selected husband Xu Xian (Christopher Livingston). Weaving together fanciful design (a rainfall of ribbons, parasol puppetry, elegant period costuming and evocative video), elements of Chinese drama (amusingly described by narrators as they take place on stage), and a stirring reflection on the transformative power of love, complete with themes of self-sacrifice and endless fidelity, The White Snake, is a delicately-rendered fairytale which may not offer a way to enlightenment, but certainly clears a path to the heart. (Gluckstern)
Woyzeck Ashby Stage, 1901 Ashby, Berk; www.shotgunplayers.org. $23-35. Wed-Thu, 7pm; Fri-Sat, 8pm; Sun, 5pm. Through Jan 27. Shotgun Players presents Tom Waits, Kathleen Brennan, and Robert Wilson’s tragic musical, based on an unfinished 1837 play by Georg Büchner.
PERFORMANCE/DANCE
"Abigail the Rock Opera" DanzHaus – Gingerbread House, 1275 Connecticut, SF; www.abigailtherockopera.com. Sat/15, 8pm. $15. Skycastle/Buzz Productions’ original rock opera about the Salem witch trials.
"The Bald Soprano" Dark Room, 2263 Mission, SF; atypicalactor@gmail.com. Thu/13 and Dec 20-22, 8pm; Fri/14-Sat/15, 10pm. $5-12. Theatre of the absurd by way of Ionesco.
BATS Improv Bayfront Theater, B350 Fort Mason Center, SF; www.improv.org. $20. "Theatresports," Fri, 8pm, through Dec 21.
"Charles Phoenix Retro Holiday Show" Empress of China Ballroom, 838 Grant, SF; www.charlesphoenix.com. Wed/12, 8pm. $25. The retro pop-culture humorist shows slides and chats about the holidays.
"Cynic Cave" Cinecave (beneath Lost Weekend Video), 1034 Valencia, SF; facebook.com/cyniccave. $10. "Fresh Like Cadaver," stand-up comedy followed by a cult movie screening, Fri/14, 8pm. "Cynic Cave," stand-up with Red Scott, Leslie Small, Clare O’Kane, and more, Sat/15, 8pm.
"Diez Por Arriba" ODC Theater, 3153 17th St, SF; www.odctheater.org. Wed/12-Sat/15, 8pm; Sun/16, 3pm. $20-40. Yaelisa y Caminos Flamencos perform.
Lily Cai Dance Company Lily Cai Dance Studio, 301 Eighth St, SF; www.lilycaidance.org. Thu/13-Sat/15, 8pm; Sun/16, 3:30pm. $15. The Chinese modern dance company performs Dynasties Revisited and other works.
"Miracle at the Gas ‘N’ Gulp: A Fuelside Yuletide with Cora Values" StageWerx, 446 Valencia, SF; foulplaysf.com/cora. Dec 18-19, 8pm. $20. Songs and comedy with Cora Values.
"Nightcap: ODC Pilot Program #61" ODC Dance Commons, Studio B, 351 Shotwell, SF; www.odctheater.org. Sat/15-Sun/16, 8pm. $12. New dances by Jenni Bregman, David Schleiffers, Katharine Hawthorne, and more.
Paula Poundstone Palace of Fine Arts Theatre, 3301 Lyon, SF; www.palaceoffinearts.org. Sat/15, 8pm. $37.90. The comedian performs.
San Francisco Comedy College Purple Onion at Kells, 530 Jackson, SF; www.sfcomedycollege.com. $5-15; all shows ongoing. "Laughter Hour," Thu-Fri, 7pm. "Destini and Yonatan’s Stand-Up Rebellion," Thu, 8:30. "Comedy Bottle," Fri-Sat, 8:30pm. "Kells Comedy Saturday," Sat, 7pm. "New Talent Shows," Tue-Wed, 7. Also Larkspur Hotel, 524 Sutter, SF. "Rocket Salad," Sun, 7.
"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.
"San Francisco One-Minute Play Festival" Thick House, 1695 18th St, SF; www.playwrightsfoundation.org. Sat/15-Sun/16, 8pm (also Sun/16, 3pm). $25. Micro plays by 40 Bay Area playwrights.
BAY AREA
"American Fad" Temescal Arts Center, 511 48th St, Oakl; www.magicjestertheater.com. Fri/14-Sat/15, 8pm. $10-15. "An absurdist romp through the American dream," in sketch comedy form, with Magic Jester Theater.
"A Down Home Christmas With Nell and Jim" Aurora Theatre Company, 2081 Addison, Berk; www.auroratheatre.org. Thu/13-Sat/15, Mon/17, and Dec 19-21, 7:30pm; Sun/16, 5pm. $28. Cabaret-style bluegrass concert featuring holiday tunes.
"The Marsh’s Second Annual Performance Holiday Bash" Marsh Berkeley, 2120 Allston, Berk; www.themarsh.org. Sat/15, 8pm. $20-50. Storytelling and holiday fun (and cookies!) with Marsh performers. Bring a gift to donate to families at domestic violence shelter La Casa.
The Media Alliance, a local media watchdog group leading the media consolidation battles, says in an SOS message that the Federal Communications Commission is once again trying to jam through new rules during the Christmas rush to facilitate more media consolidation. The FCC, the Alliance points out, “touts localism, competition and diversity as the hallmarks of a healthy media ecosystem. This rule change guts all three.” Here is the Alliance’s action alert (b3):
New proposed rules relax media cross-ownership rules (again) paving the way for more media concentration and polishing the path for the Rupert Murdochs of the world to buy up everything that’s left.
In the now-familiar holiday season hurry-up employed by federal agencies when they want to sneak something through before the public has a chance to get outraged about it, FCC commissioner Julius Genachowski has proposed a relaxation of the media cross-ownership rules remarkably similar to Kevin Martin’s try at increasing media consolidation several years ago.
What can you do?
Tell the Democratic commissioners they need to fight this and that as a member of the public, you have their back if they publicly oppose the Christmas rush to media consolidation today – December 4th National Day of Action:
And then send a tweet @fcc no xmas sneak #mediajustice
Background:
The relaxation permits the same corporation to own print, radio and television outlets in the top 20 communication markets in the US, condemning urban populations to canned and repetitive news and information, especially those who depend heavily on free over-the-air broadcasts.
The FCC is trying to jam these rules through during the holiday siesta to avoid the outpouring of public protest engendered during the last attempt at relaxing the rules, when the FCC received the largest quantity of public comments in their history and eventually lost in court and rescinded the attempted rule change.
The FCC was ordered to do research into impact on the diversity of media ownership, particularly by women and minorities. Despite completing a comprehensive whose initial results indicate little to no improvement in increasing ownership diversity and not completing a full impact report on the mounds of ownership data received in the quadrennial report, the FCC seems to be determined to move ahead with the rule change in an evidence-free zone. The FCC touts localism, competition and diversity as the hallmarks of a healthy media ecosystem. This rule change guts all three.
Links:
Politifact ranks Obama’s promise to foster media diversity as a broken promise:
FILM In the 1950s and ’60s silent comedy — which had hitherto seemed as extinct and useless as the dodo — experienced a popular revival, sparked by a Walter Kerr article in Life magazine and sustained by television broadcasts, compilation documentaries, the general rise of a cineaste culture, and the still-breathing status of a few old favorites. (Buster Keaton, for one, spent a very busy last 15 years making guest appearances on both the big and small screen.) That nostalgic interest didn’t greatly effect new Hollywood movies of the era, however, apart from a brief vogue for bloated homages like It’s a Mad Mad Mad Mad World (1963), The Great Race (1965), and Those Magnificent Men in Their Flying Machines (1965), exercises in slapstick elephantiasis that placed mistaken belief in the notion that bigger is always better.
In France, by contrast, at least a couple notable careers emerged devoted to honoring and elaborating on the tropes of silent comedy. The obvious one belonged to Jacques Tati, whose elegant orchestration of the clash between progress and fallible humanity made the modern world its subject while pretty much dispensing with sound (or at least dialogue) cinema altogether.
But Tati also had a protégé of sorts, Pierre Étaix, who had his own similar yet distinct run of films that made comparatively little impact outside France. If they’re almost entirely unknown to us today, that’s in large part because legal complications kept them unavailable for many long years. It’s only recently that they’ve been restored and re-released, reaching the US in a traveling retrospective that lands at the Christopher B. Smith Rafael Film Center this weekend and next. “Pierre Étaix: Lost and Found” is well worth crossing the bridge for — the five features and three shorts it encompasses represent a decade of work for the most part so delightful it seems downright perverse we’re just now making their acquaintance.
Smitten by circus clowning at an early age but also developing considerable skills as a musician and designer, Étaix began a stage career in his late teens. But it was his talent as an illustrator that caught the eye of Tati, for whom he became an assistant during the four years of preproduction on the writer-director-actor’s third feature Mon Oncle (1958). After that Étaix returned to live performance with considerable success, his comedy act at one point opening for quintessential Gallic pop idol Johnny Halladay. It was suggested he try making short films, and the elaborate second such effort, Happy Anniversary, wound up winning the 1963 Oscar for Best Live Action Short.
Still, his producer was reluctant to commit to a feature, so Étaix and his writing partner Jean-Claude Carriere wrote a script episodic enough that it could be released as several separate shorts if necessary. The Suitor (1962) put the star’s flexible prior character — an approximate cross between Keaton, Harold Lloyd, and Steve Carrell — into a series of awkward courtships in response to his exasperated parents’ concern that he will never marry. (The funniest involves his wrangling an extremely drunk woman home from a nightclub.)
It was a success, prompting the much more ambitious Yo Yo (1965), an absurdist microcosm of 20th century history with his titular protagonist reeling from Roaring Twenties to World War II to the gray flannel suit corporate era. The next year’s As Long as You’re Healthy retrenched a bit — it really was three separate shorts strung together (a fifth was rather inexplicably cut and released separately as Feeling Good). Three were amusing; the fourth, involving a farmer, a hunter, and two picnickers creating havoc for each other on a rural day out, is a masterpiece of slapstick intricacy.
After a circus tour, he made his first color feature, 1969’s Le Grand Amour. It had just a wisp of plot (involving the specter of infidelity threatening hero Pierre’s marriage to Florence, played by Étaix’s actual spouse Annie Fratellini), but a surfeit of exquisitely realized gags including a marvelous, surreal dream sequence with locomotive beds.
But then he made an apparently fatal mistake: taking an interesting gamble on 1971’s Land of Milk and Honey, a caustic documentary (and, to an extent, parody of documentaries) that starts out as deliberately clichéd ode to La France then rapidly turns into a prolonged sneer at its citizens. Dwelling on talentless would-be singers in some Gong Show-like forum and ordinary, unattractive bodies on full display at the beach, no more impressed by the hippies than the bourgeoise, its portrait of a vapidly complacent populace struck a nerve when the 1969-shot film was finally released in 1971. It was the wrong nerve — the movie was loathed, and feels mean-spirited even today. Still, it hardly should have ended Étaix’s entire screen career as star and director.
Somehow it did, though, more or less. Étaix found financing for just one more feature of his own (1987’s autumnal Monsieur is Getting Older, not in the Rafael series), otherwise occupying himself with more stage work and TV. He also acted for an interesting mix of directors including Nagisa Oshima, Philip Kaufman, Otar Iosseliani, Jean-Pierre Jeunet, and Aki Kaurismäki — in addition to having earlier worked with Robert Bresson, Louis Malle, and (in the notorious, unreleased The Day the Clown Cried) Jerry Lewis. Now in his mid-80s, he’s stuck around long enough to enjoy his prime work being rediscovered and celebrated for its sometimes hilarious, often near-balletic ingenuity.
Schedules are for Wed/5-Tue/11 except where noted. Director and year are given when available. Double and triple features marked with a •. All times pm unless otherwise specified.
ABCO ARTSPACE 3135 Filbert, Oakl; www.everythingisterrible.com. $10. "Everything is Terrible! Holiday Special!," found-footage video collage, Sat, 10.
"ANOTHER HOLE IN THE HEAD FILM FESTIVAL" Terra Gallery, 511 Harrison, SF; Roxie, 3117 16th St, SF; Victoria, 2961 16th St; and Vortex Room, 1082 Howard, SF; www.sfindie.com. Ninth annual festival of genre films, with 28 features and 26 shorts, Wed-Sun.
ANSWER COALITION 2969 Mission, SF; www.answersf.org. $5-10. Occupy the Bay (Riley, 2012), Thu, 7.
ARTISTS’ TELEVISION ACCESS 992 Valencia, SF; www.atasite.org. $6. "Other Cinema:" works by Jeremy Rourke, Ben Wood, and others celebrating forgotten formats and media archaeology, Sat, 8:30.
BALBOA 3630 Balboa, SF; www.cinemasf.com. $10. •Remembering Playland at the Beach (Wyrsch, 2010), Sat, noon, and Sutro’s: The Palace at Lands End (Wyrsch, 2011), Sat, 1:30. With director Tom Wyrsch in person.
CASTRO 429 Castro, SF; (415) 621-6120, www.castrotheatre.com. $8.50-11. •Get Carter (Hodges, 1971), Wed, 2:40, 7, and The Trip (Winterbottom, 2010), Wed, 4:50, 9:10. Mystical Traveler: The Life and Times of Dr. John-Roger (2013), Thu, 7:30. This event, $10; preceded by free video seminars from Dr. John-Roger, Thu, 9am-6pm. More info at www.mysticaltraveler.com. "Midnites for Maniacs: No Pain No Gain Triple Bill:" •Bring It On (Reed, 2000), Fri, 7:30; Hairspray (Waters, 1988), Fri, 9:30; and Kickboxer (DiSalle, 1989), Fri, 11:30. Samsara (Fricke, 2011), Sat-Sun, 2, 4:30, 7, 9:15. "Rick Prelinger Presents Lost Landscapes of San Francisco 7," Tue, 7:30. More info at www.longnow.org.
CHRISTOPHER B. SMITH RAFAEL FILM CENTER 1118 Fourth St, San Rafael; (415) 454-1222, www.cafilm.org. $6.75-$10.25. A Late Quartet (Zilberman, 2012), call for dates and times. A Royal Affair (Arcel, 2012), call for dates and times. "Pierre Étaix: Lost and Found:" Le Grand Amour (1969) with "Happy Anniversary" (1962), Fri and Dec 13, 6:45 (also Fri, 4:30); The Suitor (1963) with "Rupture" (1961), Fri, 9; Sat, 2; Tue, 8:30; Yo Yo (1965), Sun, 5, 7:15; Dec 12, 8:30; As Long As You’re Healthy (1966) with "Feeling Good" (1969), Tue, 6:45; Dec 13, 9; Land of Milk and Honey (1971), Dec 12, 6:45. "Mysteries of the Krell: Making the Sci-Fi Epic Forbidden Planet," Sat, 7. This event, $12. White Christmas (Curtiz, 1954), Sun, 1. "A Century Ago: The Films of 1912," presented on a vintage projector with live accompaniment, Mon, 7. This event, $12.
PACIFIC FILM ARCHIVE 2575 Bancroft, Berk; (510) 642-5249, bampfa.berkeley.edu. $5.50-9.50. "Day With(out) Art:" United in Anger: A History of ACT UP (Hubbard, 2012), Wed, 7. "Grand Illusions: French Cinema Classics, 1928-1960:" Crime and Punishment (Chenal, 1935), Thu, 7; Port of Shadows (Carné, 1938), Fri, 7; Eyes Without a Face (Franju, 1960), Fri, 8:50; Les orgueilleux (Allégret, 1953), Sun, 3; Carnival in Flanders (Feyder, 1935), Sun, 5. "Wild at Heart: Barry Gifford:" Lost Highway (Lynch, 1997), Sat, 6; Perdita Durango (de la Iglesia, 1997), Sat, 9:10.
ROXIE 3117 and 3125 16th St, SF; (415) 863-1087, www.roxie.com. $6.50-11. Another Hole in the Head Film Festival, Wed-Fri. Visit www.sfindie.com for complete schedule. Just 45 Minutes from Broadway (Jaglom, 2012), Wed-Thu, 7, 9:15.
SF CINEMATHEQUE San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, 151 Third St, SF; www.sfcinematheque.org. $10. "Shifting Geographies/Special Relativity:" Deep State (Butler and Mirza, 2012), with other works, presented in association with SFMOMA, Thu, 7.
VORTEX ROOM 1082 Howard, SF; Facebook: The Vortex Room. $10. "The Vortex Apocalypse, or How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Thursday Film Cult:" •Chosen Survivors (Roley, 1974), Thu, 9, and The Last Days of Planet Earth (Masuda, 1974), Thu, 11.
YERBA BUENA CENTER FOR THE ARTS 701 Mission, SF; www.ybca.org. $8-10. "Honk If You’re Horny: Retro Sex Musicals:" Alice in Wonderland (Townsend, 1976), Thu, 7:30. Islam Unknown: Part Two (Elders, 2012), Sun, 2.
Schedules are for Wed/21-Tue/27 except where noted. Director and year are given when available. Double and triple features marked with a •. All times pm unless otherwise specified.
ARTISTS’ TELEVISION ACCESS 992 Valencia, SF; www.atasite.org. $6-10. “Other Cinema: McCormick’s Great Northwest,” an experimental travelogue, plus works by Robert Machoian and Rodrigo Ojeda-Beck, Sat, 8:30.
CASTRO 429 Castro, SF; (415) 621-6120, www.castrotheatre.com. $8.50-11. •The Big Lebowski (Coen, 1998), Wed, 2:30, 7, and Thunderbolt and Lightfoot (Cimino, 1974), Wed, 4:45, 9:15. The Sound of Music (Wise, 1965), presented sing-along style, Nov 23-Dec 2, 7 (also Fri/23-Sun/25 and Dec 2, 1; no shows Dec 1).
CHRISTOPHER B. SMITH RAFAEL FILM CENTER 1118 Fourth St, San Rafael; (415) 454-1222, www.cafilm.org. $6.75-$10.25. A Late Quartet (Zilberman, 2012), call for dates and times. The Other Son (Lévy, 2012), call for dates and times. A Royal Affair (Arcel, 2012), call for dates and times. Sister (Meier, 2012), call for dates and times. “World Ballet on the Big Screen:” works by the Netherlands Dance Theater, Sun, 10am and Tue, 6:30. This event, $15. With “David Thomson Presents: The Big Screen:” The Third Man (Reed, 1949), Sun, 7.
PACIFIC FILM ARCHIVE 2575 Bancroft, Berk; (510) 642-5249, bampfa.berkeley.edu. $5.50-9.50. “Grand Illusions: French Cinema Classics, 1928-1960:” Marius (Korda, 1931), Fri, 4; Fanny (Allégret, 1932), Fri, 7; César (Pagnol, 1936), Sat, 5; Beauty and the Beast (Cocteau, 1946), Sat, 7:20; Douce (Autant-Lara, 1943), Sun, 3; Such a Pretty Little Beach (Allégret, 1949), Sun, 4:50; Orpheus (Cocteau, 1949), Tue, 7.
ROXIE 3117 and 3125 16th St, SF; (415) 863-1087, www.roxie.com. $6.50-11. San Francisco Documentary Film Festival, through Wed/21. Visit www.sfindie.com for complete schedule. “The JFK Assassination 49 Years Later:” JFK (Stone, 1991), Thu, 4:45. With panel discussion to follow. The Comedy (Alverson, 2012), Nov 23-29, 8 and 9:45. Daisies (Chytilová, 1966), Nov 23-29, 6:30 (also Sat-Sun, 1).
VICTORIA 2961 16th St, SF; www.sfcult.org. $10. •Cannibal! The Musical (Parker, 1993), Tue, 7, and Parents (Balaban, 1989), Tue, 9.
Union Square ice-skating rink Union Square, SF. www.unionsquareicerink.com. Through Jan. 16, 10 a.m.-11:30 p.m. except for when closed for private parties, $10 for 90-minute session. Sweetheart, the rink is open, grab my hand and try not to twist an ankle as we glide in circles around downtown’s living room.
Westin St. Francis sugar castle Westin St. Francis, Landmark Lobby, 335 Powell, SF. www.westinstfrancis.com. Through Jan. 24, on view 24 hours/day. Don’t lick it. For although this ever-growing sweet behemoth which each holiday season occupies the lobby of downtown’s classic luxury digs with its 1,300 pounds, 20 towers, 30 rooms, and sugar replicas of 2012’s movers and shakers has a hold on our heart, its original dimensions were sugar-spun back in 2005. Incredibly made, undeniably festive, but altogether inappropriate for dietary purposes.
Jack London Square holiday tree lighting Jack London Square, Oakl. www.jacklondonsquare.com. Nov. 30, 4:30-7pm, free. Performances by Disney-approved pop stars! Reindeer petting zoo! Miss California 2012 and a kids dress-up station with costumes from the Oakland Ballet! You’ll be hard-pressed not to find some holiday cheer at this annual lighting of Jack London’s fir tree for the masses.
Oakland-Alameda Estuary Lighted Yacht Parade Visible from Jack London Square, Oakl. www.lightedyachtparade.com. Dec. 1, 5:30pm, free. Let those cheeks get rosy, it’s boat-watching time. This yearly tradition sees the yacht owners of the East Bay putting their aquatic rides on display, stringing bulbs galore across decks and sails.
Festival of lights Union between Van Ness and Steiner, Fillmore between Union and Lombard, SF. www.sresproductions.com. Dec. 1, 3-7pm, free. Wiggle your nose at Santa at this explosion of twinkly tinsel and Cow Hollow reindeer — today Union Street puts on the holiday glitz and lays out the welcome mat. Cudworth Mansion (2040 Union) will be hosting a cupcake-decorating session from 3:30-5:30pm, at which Old St. Nick himself will make an appearance out front.
Golden Gate Park holiday tree lighting McLaren Lodge, 501 Stanyan, SF. www.sfrecpark.org. Dec. 6, 5pm, free. A tradition started by Golden Gate Park grandfather and San Francisco’s first park superintendent John McLaren in 1929, the lighting of the tree returns to Fell Street for the 83rd year in a row. Accompanying fanfare includes live performances, carnival rides, and a visit from Saint Nick.
Great Dickens Christmas Fair Cow Palace, 2600 Geneva, SF. www.dickensfair.com. Fri/23 and Sat.-Sun. Sat/24-Dec. 23, 10am-7pm, $21-25. For an ace weekend drunk this holiday season, toodle over to the Cow Palace. Once ensconced in the warm period embrace of the Dickens Fair, you will have the run of five bars (absinthe!), a multitude of meat pie shoppes, hilarious accents, near-constant stage shows, and the company of “famous Victorians,” including Charles Dickens and Her Majesty, the queen herself.
Family holiday crafts day Randall Museum, 199 Museum Way, SF. (415) 554-9600, www.randallmuseum.org. Dec. 1, 10am-3pm, free admission, activities fees vary. Bring the kiddos to the always-free-admission Randall Museum so they can spend the morning making holiday decorations and gifts. Cap off the morning with a performance by Asian American performance troupe Eth-Noh-Tec and its fusion of ancient and contemporary movement.
Community Hanukkah candle lighting Jewish Community Center, 3200 California, SF. (415) 292-1200, www.jccsf.org. Dec. 8-14, 4:30pm, free. Join up with your neighbors for the Jewish Community Center’s daily lighting of the menorah in the building’s atrium. Attend the Shabbat celebration on Dec. 14 for a family storytelling session, grape juice, hallah, and Hanukkah gelt.
Bill Graham Menorah Day Union Square, SF. www.chabadsf.org. Dec. 9, festivities start at 3pm, menorah lighting at 5pm, free. Each day from December 8-15, a candle will be ceremoniously lit on the Bill Graham mahogany menorah, a gift from the famous San Francisco promoter to his city. But on the 9th, Bill Graham Menorah Day festivities will occupy Union Square, a beautiful beginning to the Festival of Lights in the city.
Public library winter celebration Bernal Heights Library, 500 Cortland, SF. www.sfpl.org. Dec. 12, 6:30-8:30pm, free. The library’s got all kinds of free holiday programming this year, from cupcake-decorating and card-making to a magic show with a winter wonderland theme. Today’s no exception: join the Bernal Heights community for a kid-friendly celebration featuring the Bernal Jazz Quintet, refreshments, and children’s movies.
Frosting the Conservatory Conservatory of Flowers, 100 John F. Kennedy, SF. (415) 831-2090, www.conservatoryofflowers.org. Dec. 15, 11am-3pm, $10. Make your own ginger-greenhouse at this event amid the hothouse blooms of the Conservatory of Flowers. This events gets our thumbs-up for guaranteed toastiness, because being warm and cozy is a pre-req for Christmas cheer.
Jewish Christmas with Broke Ass Stuart The Make-Out Room, 3225 22nd St., SF. www.makeoutroom.com. Dec. 25, 5-11pm, $10. Strip dreidel set to the tune of streaming Woody Allen, Larry David, and Sascha Baron Cohen footage sounds like our kind of Christmas. Such was the vision of DJ Matt Haze and host Broke Ass Stuart, who designed this kitschy extravaganza for all of you (Chosen and Left Behind alike) who can’t stomach staying in on a perfectly good day off. Did we mention there will be a Chinese food buffet?
Kwanzaa celebration Bay Area Discovery Museum, 557 McReynolds, Sausalito. www.baykidsmuseum.org. Dec. 26, 9am-5pm, free. A traditional Kwanzaa altar will greet you upon arriving at the kids museum’s celebration of African-American culture, featuring two performance (at 11am and 1pm) by African Roots of Jazz.
PERFORMANCE
The Christmas Ballet Various times and Bay Area locations. www.smuinballet.org. Nov. 23 — Dec. 23, $25-65. Back by popular demand, the Smuin Ballet Company returns with this annual production, split this year into two acts: “Classical Christmas” and “Cool Christmas.” Both promise eye-opening, energetic entertainment set to eclectic tunes from Elvis to klezmer.
A Christmas Carol American Conservatory Theatre, 415 Geary, SF. (415) 749-2228, www.act-sf.org. Nov. 30-Dec. 24, various times, $20–$160. Stressful election year and rumors of apocalypse tightened those purse strings? Exorcise your inner Scrooge at this classic stage production of Charles Dickens’ terrifying ode to generosity and kindness towards diminutive children.
The Golden Girls: The Christmas Episodes Victoria Theatre, 2961 16th St., SF. www.victoriatheatre.org. Dec. 6-30, Thu.-Sat. 8pm, Sun. 7pm, $30. Our cover girl Cookie Dough co-stars as Sophia Petrillo in this now-traditional SF holiday stage production of the classic sitcom that employs more shoulder pads, even, than the original TV show. You’ll never know a catty elderly network television star until you’ve seen her re-enacted by a drag queen. Buy tickets pronto, the shows usually sell out.
California Revels Oakland Scottish Rite Center, 1547 Lakeside, Oakl. (510) 452-8800, www.californiarevels.org. Dec. 7-9, 13-15. Fridays 8pm, Saturdays and Sundays 1 and 5pm, $20-55. Feast and family are cornerstones of this annual interactive period piece performance celebrating the winter solstice. Hoist your mead and turkey leg and sway to the music, friends, good times will be upon ye here.
The Nutcracker Palace of Fine Arts, 3301 Lyon, SF. www.cityballetschool.org. Dec. 8, 2pm & 7pm; Dec. 9, 2pm, $20. Yes, everyone does The Nutcracker. At this point, it’s like the Rocky Horror Picture Show of ballet. (Would that ballet patrons donned Rat King costumes to attend!) Embrace the tradition, and check out the City Ballet School’s production of a classic.
Charles Phoenix Retro Holiday Show Empress of China Ballroom, 838 Grant, SF. www.charlesphoenix.com. Dec. 12, 8pm, $25. The creator of the Cherpumple, a pie-stuffed cake concoction that rises to the dizzying heights of kitsch, humorist Charles Phoenix celebrates the retro in every occasion. Tonight, he regales the crowd with tales of his favorite SF landmarks, road trips, and yes, feats of food fantasy.
Holiday youth mariachi concert Mission Cultural Center for Latino Arts, 2868 Mission, SF. www.missionculturalcenter.org. Dec. 14, 7:30-9pm, $15. Three mariachi troupes made of young people join forces for this exciting holiday program. The hat-dropping, guitar plucking action will be highlighted by Zenon Barron’s Mexican youth folk dance class.
The Snowman Davies Symphony Hall, 201 Van Ness, SF. (415) 864-6000, www.sfsymphony.org. Dec. 22, 11am, $13.50-57. Even the smallest budding season ticket holder will find this film-symphony presentation of Joe Nesbø’s classic children’s book a welcome boost to their holiday cheer. The animated version of this story of a youg’n’ whose bud is a Frosty-like chap will soar when paired with the world-class musicians of the SF Symphony.
Kung Pao Kosher Comedy New Asia Restaurant, 772 Pacific, SF. www.koshercomedy.com. Dec. 22-25, various times, $44-64. There’s nothing like having dinner on Christmas to up your alterna (or simply, not pan-Christian) cred. Add stand up comedy and you have a winning formula, which is obvious from the longevity of Lisa Gedulig’s annual show. This year features yucks from Judy Gold, Mike Capozzola, and Adrianne Tolsch.
Clairdee’s Christmas Yoshi’s San Francisco, 1330 Fillmore, SF. (415) 655-5600, www.yoshis.com. Dec. 24, 8pm, $20. Everything could use a little soul in lives and the holidays are no exception. Come hear the sounds of soul-jazz vocalist Clairdee, and soak in her ensemble’s rhythmic takes on Christmas standards.
“Holiday Memories” double feature A rare 16mm showing of Dylan Thomas’ A Child’s Christmas in Wales will be accompanied by a screening of The Sweater, a tale of a young hockey player’s passion for the sport, and the dangers that come of wearing the wrong jumper. Dec. 22, 2pm, Exploratorium, 3601 Lyon, SF. (415) 563-7337, www.exploratorium.edu
PEACE ON EARTH
Darkness and Light: A Hanukkah Meditation Retreat Jewish Community Center, 3200 California, SF. (415) 292-1200, www.jccsf.org. Dec. 9, 10am-5pm, $50-60. No prior experience is needed for this day-long workshop on finding the light within during the Hanukkah season. Sitting and walking meditation will be covered — the perfect primer for a month that can try the patience of even the most festive reveler.
Winter solstice ceremony San Francisco Zen Center, 300 Page, SF. (415) 863-3136, www.sfzc.org. Dec. 21, 6:15pm, free. Recharge on the longest night of the year in the peaceful confines of the SF Zen Center. The crowd here promises to be made of meditation newbies, Zen Center students, and all those in-between. It will also be your best bet to avoid jingles and tinsel, if that’s what your body is craving at this point.
Reclaiming’s Sing Up The Sun ritual Inspiration Point parking lot, Tilden Park, Berk. www.reclaiming.org. Dec. 21, 6:30am, free. Wake up before the sun does to greet it on this, the day of the year when it spends the least time out of its bed. A pagan celebration, you’re welcome to bring musical instruments and a warm Thermos of liquid to the community gathering.
GIFTS
Celebration of Craftswomen Herbst Pavilion, Fort Mason Center, SF. (650) 615-6838, www.celebrationofcraftswomen.org. Nov. 24-25, Dec. 1-2, 10am-5pm, $9 or $12 two-day pass. The first edition of this alternative holiday fair took place 34 years ago at the now-defunct Old Wives’ Tales Bookstore on Valencia Street with 22 female makers-of-things. Today, the event fills the Herbst Pavilion, features 150 juried artists and a mini-film festival. It’s still the best place for feminist shopping, some things don’t change.
Holiday Design Bazaar Intersection for the Arts, 925 Mission, No. 109, SF. www.artsedmatters.org. Nov. 30, 5-8pm; Dec. 1, noon-6pm, free. An arts fair with 25 local creators, plus live music and refreshments that may well make a difference in our kids’ art education. The event is a benefit for Arts Ed Matters, a group that is looking to build community support for art in schools.
Creativity Explored holiday art sale Creativity Explored, 3245 16th St., SF. www.creativityexplored.org. Dec. 1-2, noon-5pm, free. Shop at this studio for developmentally-disabled artists and half of your bill will go straight into their pocket — standard practice for Creativity Explored, which has been the real-deal spot for outsider art in San Francisco since 1983.
Paxton Gate holiday party Dec. 1, 3-6pm at Paxton Gate’s Curiosities for Kids, 766 Valencia; 8-10pm at Paxton Gate, 824 Valencia, SF. (415) 824-1872, www.paxtongate.com. One of the city’s most beloved families of taxidermy/kid’s toys/nursery shops, Paxton Gate is turning two decades of age this weekend. What better time to shop there? And what better to get your face painted “Victorian-style” (?!), check out stilt walkers and an accordionist-ballerina duo, and eat snacks during the day at its kids location — then walk two doors down later that night for more circus freakery, door prizes and a Hendrick’s gin open bar at 826 Valencia’s pirate shop?
Palestinian Craft Fair Middle East Children’s Alliance office, 1101 Eighth St., Berk. www.mecaforpeace.org. Dec. 1-2, 10am-5pm, free. Sip Arabic coffee while you paw through painted ceramics from Gaza, children’s book, scarves, West Bank olive oil, and more at this chance to support a nonprofit benefiting craftspeople living in Palestine — a particularly salient cause in this year of war and turmoil.
Bazaar Bizarre Concourse Exhibition Center, East Hall, 620 Seventh St., SF. www.bazaarbizarre.org. Dec. 1-2, 11am-6pm, free. This traveling indie craft fair stocks all the twee and yippee you need to get your gift recipients in your pocket. New in 2012: a mini-version of Forage SF’s Underground market, for all your small biz-sourced holiday edible needs.
Muir Beach Quilters Holiday Arts Fair Muir Beach Community Center, 19 Seascape, Muir Beach. www.muirbeach.com/quiltersfair. Dec. 1, 10am-5pm, Dec. 2 10am-4pm, free. Make a blustery beach journey that has time to spare for handicraft browsing. This annual gift fair stocks locally-made knickknacks by local groups (Muir Beach Garden Club included), and has more than retail opportunities. Hands-on crafts bars will stoke the creative fire of kids and big person shoppers alike.
La Cocina Gift Bazaar Crocker Galleria, 50 Post, SF. www.giftbazaarsf.com. Dec. 7, 1-7pm, free. You’re not going to have problems finding foodie-friendly presents at this fair — but getting them safely to their intended destination sans bite marks might be a problem. La Cocina business incubator program graduates Clairesquares, Onigilly, Love & Hummus Co., Chiefo’s Kitchen, and more will all have their wares for sale.
East Bay Alternative Book and Zine Fest Berkeley City College, 2050 Center, Berk. Dec. 8, 10am-5pm, donations suggested. www.eastbayalternativebookandzinefest.com. For the indie comic nerds on your list, you’ll want to check out this expo of all things zine. Talks by New Yorker illustrator Erik Drooker and Go the Fuck to Sleep author Adam Mansbach spice up the fair’s schedule and there’s rumor of a dance party to take place at day’s end.
KPFA Crafts Fair Concourse Exhibition Center, 635 Eighth St., SF. www.kpfa.org/craftsfair. Dec. 8-9, 10am-6pm, $10. Our public radio station hosts 220 artists and their wares for this no-brainer shopping weekend. Pick up unique wrapables from leather fashion to gourmet snacks to lotions and creams to pamper your loved ones.
Mercado de Cambio/The Po’ Sto’ market and knowledge exchange 2940 16th St., SF. www.poormagazine.org. Dec. 15, 3-7pm, donations suggested. We can pretty much guarantee you that there is no other gift fair that will have better hip-hop music. The Mercado de Cambio organized by POOR Magazine aims to counterbalance the corporatization of our holiday season. Go here for aforementioned live beats, indigenous crafts, Occupy gear, and POOR-published literature.
Renegade Craft Fair holiday market Concourse Exhibition Center, 635 Eighth St., SF. www.renegadecraft.com. Dec. 15-16, 11am-6pm, free. A DIY gift wrap station is one of the attractions at this one stop for cute gift shopping, which makes one of its two yearly appearances in the Bay Area for the holiday season. The Oakland Museum of California will truck out its mobile “we/customize” exhibit, and of course, there will be crafters: over 250 will have booths hawking clothes, accessories, home stuff, kid stuff — most handmade, and most awesome.
And so the former Jean Dibble and I, graduates of the University of Nebraska at Lincoln, will soon be heading for the Final Final sports bar in San Francisco to watch today’s Nebraska football game against Minnesota at Lincoln, starting at 12:30 p.m.
As attentive readers of the almost famous Bruce blog know, Jean and I were perplexed a few games back to find that we couldn’t watch the Idaho State game on national television and we were desperately trying to figure out how to watch the game. The answer, courtesy of Richard Boyce, an addicted Nebraska (and Iowa) football fan, was to go to the Final Final bar, at 2990 Baker St., near the Presidio.
The bar has been owned for 35 years by Arnie Prien, a Nebraska native from Lyons and a 1984 NU graduate who loyally runs all Nebraska games on his big screen. He has 11 other screens for other games and will put up customers’ choices. Just ask. Final Final got its nifty name from the days when it was the final stop for the soldiers at the Presidio coming back to the barracks from a night on the town. The local Nebraska ex-pats and fans gather every Saturday at the bar to watch the games and enjoy the free pop corn, inexpensive beer, and unique NU camaraderie.
Our daughter Katrina Perez of Santa Barbara turned us on to a website called Huskerbud.com that provides, as the site proclaims, “just the important stuff about the Nebraska Cornhuskers.” The idea for Huskerbud, according to the site, “came about when I was visiting friends in Los Angeles and couldn’t easily find information on how to watch or listen to a game. Huskerbud is the simple solution to this small but nerve-racking problem. Enjoy!” In the tradition of Nebraska modesty, the writer and creator of the site did not provide a byline, or hometown, or NU connection, or otherwise identify him or herself.
Full disclosure: Katrina’s son, Nicholas, is a freshman in mechanical engineering at Nebraska. And so our entire family is now fully addicted to watching all the games.
I checked on Huskerbud this morning and it showed that Nebraska is 8-2 for the year and is ranked 16 in the nation on the Associated Press poll and 14 on the BCS poll. It also gave provded a list of radio stations carrying the game (mostly in Nebraska) and how to listen and watch the game on Sirius and on a computer. It also provided information on the last four Husker seasons. A handy resource known mainly by the Nebraska faithful.
Parking tip for Final Final. Parking on the street is difficult so try parking in the Presidio and walking a few blocks to the bar. Popcorn tip: As a popcorn addict, I can attest that the popcorn is excellent and freshly popped throughout the afternoon in an old-fashioned pop corn popper in a corner of the bar. Nice Nebraska touch.
There is no place like Nebraska. Especially in San Francisco. Go Big Red. B3
Final Final
2990 Baker St.
San Francisco 94123
415-931-7800
P,.S. The Nebraska alumni site lists three other “watch sites” in the Bay Area. Jack’s Brewing Company in Fremont. Legends and Heroes in Concord. And Knuckles Sports Bar in Monterey,
Schedules are for Wed/14-Tue/20 except where noted. Director and year are given when available. Double and triple features marked with a •. All times pm unless otherwise specified.
ARTISTS’ TELEVISION ACCESS 992 Valencia, SF; www.atasite.org. $6-10. "Fragmentation and Flux in Recent Haitian Film," works by five Haitian filmmakers, Fri, 8. "Other Cinema: Psycho-Geography," works by Bill Daniel, Sam Green, Scott Stark, and others, Sat, 8:30.
BALBOA 3630 Balboa, SF; www.cinemasf.com. $10. •Like A Bridge (Jordan, 2012), and with "Building Bridges" (Jordan, 2012), Thu, 7:30. Live studio concert film and behind-the-scenes doc about Lua Hadar and her band Twist.
CASTRO 429 Castro, SF; (415) 621-6120, www.castrotheatre.com. $8.50-11. •Keep the Lights On (Sachs, 2012), Wed, 3, 7, and Forty Shades of Blue (Sachs, 2005), Wed, 4:55, 9. •The Intouchables (Nakache and Toledano, 2011), Thu, 2:30, 7, and The Diving Bell and Butterfly (Schnabel, 2007), Thu, 4:45, 9:10. Warren Miller’s Flow State (2012), Fri, 8. This event, $20; advance tickets at www.warrenmiller.com. •Port of Shadows (Carné, 1938), Sat-Sun, 2:45, 7, and Grand Illusion (Renoir, 1937), Sat-Sun, 4:35, 8:45. •Sleepwalk With Me (Birbiglia, 2012), Mon, 7, and The Science of Sleep (Gondry, 2006), Mon, 8:45.
CHRISTOPHER B. SMITH RAFAEL FILM CENTER 1118 Fourth St, San Rafael; (415) 454-1222, www.cafilm.org. $6.75-$10.25. A Late Quartet (Zilberman, 2012), call for dates and times. A Liar’s Autobiography: The Untrue Story of Monty Python’s Graham Chapman (Jones, Simpson, and Timlett, 2012), call for dates and times. The Other Son (Lévy, 2012), call for dates and times. Sister (Meier, 2012), call for dates and times. Genevieve Goes Boating (Gray, 2012), Thu, 7. With filmmaker Lucy Gray in conversation with Vendela Vida. A Royal Affair (Arcel, 2012), Nov 16-22, call for times. "David Thomson Presents: The Big Screen:" Laura (Preminger, 1944), Sun, 7.
CONTEMPORARY JEWISH MUSEUM 736 Mission, SF; www.thecjm.org. $10. "Everyday as History: Selections from Lost Landscapes of San Francisco by Rick Prelinger," Thu, 6:30.
EMBARCADERO One Embarcadero Center, SF; www.sffs.org. $12-25. "New Italian Cinema:" Shun Li and the Poet (Segre, 2011), Wed, 6:15 and Sun, 3:30; The First on the List (Johnson, 2011), Wed, 9, and Sat, 6:45; Apartment in Athens (Dipaola, 2011), Thu, 6:15 and Sat, 9:15; Easy! (Bruni, 2011), Thu, 9 and Sat, 4; Hit the Road, Nonna (Chiarini, 2011), Fri, 4:30 and Sun, 1:30; 100 Meters to Heaven (Verzillo, 2012), Fri, 6:30 and Sat, 1:15; The Greatest of Them All (Virzi, 2011), Fri, 9:15; The Cherry on the Cake (Morante, 2012), Sun, 6:30 and 9:15.
PACIFIC FILM ARCHIVE 2575 Bancroft, Berk; (510) 642-5249, bampfa.berkeley.edu. $5.50-9.50. "Alternative Visions:" Fig Trees (Greyson, 2009), Wed, 7. "Afterimage: The Films of Kidlat Tahimik, Indigenous:" Why Is Yellow the Middle of the Rainbow? (1980-94), Thu, 7; Turumba (1983), Sat, 8:40; "Home and Abroad with Kidlat Tahimik," Sun, 2:30; •Memories of Overdevelopment (1980-2011), and Japanese Summers of a Filipino Fundoshi (1996), Sun, 5. "At Jetty’s End: A Tribute to Chris Marker (1921-2012):" A Grin Without a Cat (1977/2001), Fri, 7. "Grand Illusions: French Cinema Classics, 1928-1960:" The Rules of the Game (Renoir, 1939), Sat, 6:30.
ROXIE 3117 and 3125 16th St, SF; (415) 863-1087, www.roxie.com. $6.50-11. San Francisco Documentary Film Festival, through Nov 21. Visit www.sfindie.com for complete schedule.
SOCIETY OF CALIFORNIA PIONEERS 300 Fourth St, SF; www.californiapioneers.org. Free. "Vintage Movie Night:" Hello, Frisco, Hello (Humberstone, 1943), Thu, 5:30.
2969 MISSION SF; www.answersf.org. $5-10 donation. Haiti: Sounding the Conch Shell for Battle, Sat, 7.
VICTORIA 2961 16th St, SF. "Save the Waves Film Festival Tour," Fri, 6. This event, $25; more info at www.savethewaves.org. •Viva (Biller, 2007), Sat, 7, and The Frightened Woman (Schivazappa, 1969), Sat, 9:30. This event, $10; more info at www.sfcult.org.
VORTEX ROOM 1082 Howard, SF; Facebook: The Vortex Room. $10. "Twin Peaks: The Beginning," with live re-sound-tracking by Silent Drape Runners, Fri, 10.
YERBA BUENA CENTER FOR THE ARTS 701 Mission, SF; www.ybca.org. $10. "Animating Dark Dreams: The Films of Jan Svankmajer:" "Svankmajer Shorts," Thu, 7:30; Faust (1994), Sat, 7:30.
It’s Saturday afternoon at the LGBT Community Center, and outLOUD Radio’s youth producers are interviewing queer elders about their fashion sense. The recording session was but one of many that the nonprofit has conducted, an amazing opportunity for baby gays and their elders to connect and preserve their stories for the future. Tonight, outLOUD is celebrating a decade of work with radio greats — NPR’s Ari Shapiro will take the stage for a Q&A with outLOUD youth leaders and KQED’s Scott Schafer. Come out to support the group’s efforts — because even with the nationwide advances made in last week’s elections, more LGBT stories must be told. (Caitlin Donohue)
“Everyday as History: Selections from Lost Landscapes of San Francisco by Rick Prelinger”
Prelinger Archives founder Rick Prelinger has a collection of over 60,000 so-called “ephemeral films” — including home movies and industrial clips (see: 1935’s “About Bananas,” an 11-minute, black-and-white bit of United Fruit Company propaganda hailing “one of America’s most important foods.”) Prelinger visits the Contemporary Jewish Museum in conjunction with the current exhibit “The Radical Camera: New York’s Photo League 1936-51,” where he’ll be presenting highlights from his popular “Lost Landscapes” series of San Francisco history caught on film. No bananas, probably — but Playland, a youthful Golden Gate Bridge, and post-1906 earthquake scenes will likely make appearances. (Cheryl Eddy)
Brooklyn-based band Crushed Out (formerly Boom Chick) mixes swirling, bluesy slide guitar riffs with reverb-laden surf fills, stomping honky tonk rhythms and a host of other early rock’n’roll influences into a truly tasty batch of infectious tunes. When listening to Crushed Out’s new album, Want To Give, it may be hard to believe that it’s just a duo making all that noise — but singer-guitarist Frank Hoier and drummer Moselle Spiller have no problem recreating the full sound when playing live. They’ve opened for fans such as Jon Spencer, and are playing with Social Distortion in the new year—catch them up close tonight while you still can. (Sean McCourt)
Recording an LP alone, in Perth, Australia, the world’s most remote city, practically guarantees a finished product permeated by angsty solitude. Psych-rock, though? Not exactly the most common vehicle for the expression of existential dread. Still, Kevin Parker pulls it off brilliantly on Lonerism, the sophomore full-length from Tame Impala, and his first as a lone, multi-tracking solo artist under the moniker. The result is a golden pop album, stuck in limbo between Britney-esque bubblegum vapidity, and Lennon/McCartney’s wholesome pop transcendence. It should be fascinating to watch a full band reinterpret the bittersweet hooks floating around in Parker’s head. (Taylor Kaplan)
The SF International Hip Hop DanceFest is an extraordinary event. Always the same, it’s always new. The formula works. Over the years, curator Micaya has honed her sense of what is hot and what is even hotter without neglecting the vibrant local scene that give this love fest of urban dance its backbone. New this year is Blue Boy from London with two different shows; the Academy of Villains will be back with its competition style fierceness; so is Ill-Abilities whose members travel the world conquering physical challenges. Female crews Decadancetheatre (NY) and Mix’d Ingrdnts (Oakland) will be there. That’s just five of the 16 companies that will make a cheerful noise and shake up the Palace of Fine Arts. (Rita Felciano)
Vladimir Nabokov’s love of butterflies is another example of the often deeply entwined relationship between art and science. His most famous work, Lolita, was composed on several butterfly-collecting trips and he even theorized a migration pattern for the Polyommatus blue butterfly that was later confirmed by scientists. Vladimir in Butterfly Country, hosted by the Old First Church, will begin with readings from the author’s writings about butterflies. These will be followed by an original, one act opera, written by Ann Callaway and Jaime Robles, which brings to life Nobokov’s love affair with the beautiful insect. And if that’s not enough, the group boasts some of the finest chamber musicians in the Bay; Soprano Erino Newkirk will lead, accompanied by flute, bass, piano, bassoon, and percussion. (Molly Champlin)
When it hit the airwaves in 1990, Twin Peaks caused a sensation — and despite the copycats that sprang up in its wake, remains a singular example of what can happen when a pair of crazily creative minds (David Lynch and Mark Frost) come together and test the boundaries of television. Watching it today, it’s no surprise it became a cult hit after its mainstream popularity waned. The characters! The settings! The bizarro plot twists and quotable lines! Brooklyn’s Silent Drape Runners (+100 for the name) visit the Vortex Room for a special “live re-sound-tracking” of episode one, adding a new score of both original and familiar songs to the adventures of Agent Cooper and company. Let’s rock! (Eddy)
10pm, $10
Vortex Room
1082 Howard, SF
Facebook: The Vortex Room
Anna and the Annadroids present “Clone Zone”
Acrobatics, dance, aerial silks, video game metaphors, and animation compromise Anna and the Annadroid’s latest wacky, philosophical performance, “Clone Zone.” Anna Sullivan started the San Francisco based performance group in 2004, inspired by dark horror films, pop culture, technology, and a love of dolls (though a slightly atypical one that had her building Barbie colonies on her front porch as a child.) This performance will see the Annadroids battling their way through Carl Jung’s model of the human psyche in a video game format. Come for a night that promises a give-and-take exploration of the human condition through rule-breaking and genre-fusing dance. (Champlin)
“Tonight I can write the saddest lines,” begins Pablo Neruda’s famous, post-love “Poema XX.” That mainstay of brokenhearted lotharios has been set to music by local composer Chris Pratorius — and debuts alongside a number of other short, contemporary and traditional classical works in the Latin American tradition as part of the wonderful, forward-looking BluePrint series at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music. In the Conservatory’s gorgeous concert hall, you’ll also hear Gabriela Lena Fran’s “Manchay Tiempo,” Armando Luna’s “Graffiti,” Darius Milhaud’s “Saudades do Brasil, Op. 67,” and more. Conservatory artistic director Nicole Paiement conducts the New Music Ensemble, soprano Julia Metzler provides the vocals, and David Tanenbaum will shine on the essential guitar parts. (Marke B.)
Has it really been a decade since the release of seminal dark wave album Danse Macabre? Released on Saddle Creek Records, the Faint’s crisp and flashy third studio full-length was a standout during the early electro-pop buzz of the Aughts, sounding like it was crafted by a dance-punk band with a heavy metal guitarist, which it pretty much was. Or, Duran Duran tweaked out and covered in blood. Do you remember “Agenda Suicide” pumping out of boomboxes at every party in 2001, and swallowing up goth club and new wave dancefloors? I do. The record got the so-so remix treatment in 2003 by Paul Oakenfold, Junior Sanchez, and more. This October, Saddle Creek released a deluxe edition of Danse Macabre, replete with unreleased tracks and a DVD of live footage from early shows. In conjunction with that news, the recently quiet Faint announced its return with a tour in which the five-piece will play the album in its entirety. (Emily Savage)
Energetic local growler-howler Colin Daly, formerly of Ex-Boyfriends (which won best local band in our 2008 Best of the Bay) and the super-diverse Lucky Jesus, is fronting a new band, the Philistines — and he’s got our indie-loving panties in a twist once again. Self-released debut album Therewolves! rips a page from the Replacements playbook, folds it into a power-pop origami swan, and sails it down a stream of catchy hooks and bouncy riffs. Let’s face it though, I’ve admired hottie Daly’s rad songwriting skills and charismatic onstage energy for years. The real news here that he has a twin brother from Chicago who is in the band with him. Twin brother! Swoon.They’ll be performing with expansive rock soundscapists MINOT, which includes Matthew Solberg from storied Bay Area band From Monument to Masses, who killed me with their live shows in the 2000s. (Marke B.)
With the holidays approaching, it’s about time to start thinking about gifts for loved ones. If you want something crafty, cute, or just made in California, check out the Patchwork Indie Art and Craft Fair. The fair was started by Los Angeles based painter, Nicole Stevenson, and Delilah Snell, owner of the environmentally friendly store, The Road Less Traveled. The basic concept was to help local artists, designers, and crafters sell their work in an inclusive environment. The biannual event brings vendors, musicians, food, and hands-on craft activities to four different cities in the state. In addition to beautiful ceramics, jewelry and on-the-spot, screen-printed clothing, you’ll likely find some quirkier items like knitted headphone covers (which can double as earmuffs) or whiskey flavored candles. (Champlin)
Well, pschitt! Although Alfred Jarry — schoolboy playwright, raconteur, and progenitor of ‘pataphysics, “the science of imaginary solutions” — died 105 years ago of decidedly prosaic malady tuberculosis, his outré influence lives on. Adopted and championed by generations of outsider artists, avant-garde writers, and revolutionary thinkers, the self-styled “Pere Ubu” gave artistic anarchy a nexus during his lifetime, an iconic figurehead after.
Last weekend, the four-day Carnivàle Pataphysique, part commemoration and part investigation, gave amateur pataphysicians, situationists, and conceptual artists a free zone to mingle, to expound, and to congeal, over lectures, concerts, puppet shows, and other unique performative opportunities in and around the practically imaginary stronghold of “North Beach,” a land where strip clubs and surrealists collide.
On Saturday, beneath an almost oppressive sun, a small group of eager urban explorers embarked from City Lights Bookstore on a situationist-inspired dérive — a psychogeographical walking tour of North Beach using maps of Paris (ala Jarry’s creation Dr Faustroll) to orient ourselves. Our intrepid guide, City Lights events coordinator Peter Maravelis hurried us along the less familiar side streets of Chinatown, stopping to exclaim over abstract, easily overlooked details. In a psychogeographical foray, murals become prophecies, placid streets become daunting Rubicons, oddball ephemera becomes omen.
At St Mary’s Square aka “The Amorphous Isle,” beneath the stainless steel monolith of Beniamino Bufano’s sculpture of Sun Yat-sen, Frederick Young and Linus Lancaster demonstrated their latest attempt to make contact with the USS Macon, a military zeppelin which crashed in the ocean at Point Sur in 1935. Involving a slowly inflating weather balloon, soil from France, a stack of Heidegger texts, and a curious mechanical component best filed under “moves in mysterious ways,” (or, rather, doesn’t) Young and Lancaster’s absurdist experiment was conducted with all appropriate gravity until we were hurried off again to another park (“The Great Church of Snout Figs”) to watch actors Leonard Pitt and Kurt Bodden orate from a hodge-podge of cut-up texts beneath a gracious gazebo.
Marching onward, we found ourselves faced with a seemingly insurmountable mountain — the Vallejo Steps — leading straight into the sun. After our climb, more readings followed, courtesy of Mark Gorney and Josh Mohr, and a chance sighting of the Uniqlo blimp, shades of the USS Macon, and a jeering band of North Beach’s famous feral parrots, added local color to our border-blending dérive.
On such a journey, the most mundane minutiae becomes unaccountably fascinating. An abandoned pair of pants on the sidewalk raises the real question, who abandons their pants in the middle of a sidewalk? A cluster of television sets and sandwiches begs for an archeological explanation. Sloppy graffiti reads like a coded message. Empty streets twist unexpectedly, like lines of a labyrinth.
“I think we’re lost,” Maravelis announced at one point.
“At last!” exclaimed a committed voyager.
Our final destination, Jack Early Park, renamed for our purposes as “The Land of Lace” involved one more sunward climb, and a rare treat worth the exercise—a command performance by dark folk duo Hazy Loper, whose sorrowful San Francisco ballad “The Graywood Hotel” should be required listening for all poet philosophers and vagabond flâneurs no matter which streets they wind up wandering, and for whatever purpose.
(Interested in more things ‘pataphysical? Festival co-curator Andrew Hugill’s ‘Pataphysics, a Useless Guide (MIT Press, 2012) is available at City Lights, as is Jarry’s seminal work, Ubu Roi.)
And so my grandson, Nicholas Perez, a mechanical engineering freshman at the Umiversity of Nebraska at Lincoln, sent me an email pumping the importance of the Nebraska vs. Penn State game today (Saturday) at Lincoln. Nebraska, he reported, was now being touted as a potential Rose Bowl candidate and needed to beat Penn State.
This was indeed big news, back where the Cornhusker football team rules the state. I emailed him back and pointed out that the last time Nebraska went to the Rose Bowl was in 1941.
In fact, I noted that that the 1941 game was still big news when the former Jean Dibble and I were students at the university in the 1950s. It wasn’t until later that we learned that Nebraska actually lost the game to Stanford and its famous quarterback, Frankie Albert.
The game will be broadcast nationally at l2:30 p.m. Saturday on ABC television (7). And it will be shown on the big screen at Final Final, the nifty neighborhood sports bar near the Presidio in San Francisco.
The bar has been owned for 35 years by Arnie Prien, a native Nebraskan from Lyons, Nebraska, and a graduate from the university. He loyally shows the Nebraska games every Saturday. The game attracts a host of NU faithful who come for the Husker camaraderie and the free popcorn, inexpensive beer and friendly ambience. Final Final got its name from the days when it was known as the final destination where the soldiers at the Presidio could get their final drink after a night on the town. Parking Tip: on street parking is difficult in this area, so park in the Presidio and walk to the bar.
There is no place like Nebraska, as the song says. Even in San Francisco. Go Big Red! B3
P,.S. The Nebraska alumni site lists three other “watch sites” in the Bay Area. Jack’s Brewing Company in Fremont. Legends and Heroes in Concord. And Knuckles Sports Bar in Monterey,
W. Kamau Bell’s recent success notwithstanding, when it comes to Bay comics, we love Frankie Quinones as our stand-up ambassador. His shows — including a packed-to-the-brim gig a few we attended months ago in the cozy basement space of Bossa Nova — are where you want to go to watch the grown-and-sexy of the Bay Area crack. Up.
Anyway, he sent us a video of his old crush from Martin, Tisha Campbell introducing his set for an episode of NickMom Night Out that premiered last month. Moms making butterfly nets out of pantyhose are involved. Onward and upward, Frankie!
There’s so much to say about the District 5 supervisorial race, whose top five finishers’ parties I attended tonight, gathering interesting perspectives from each candidate. But given the late hour, I’m just going to run a few thoughts and quotes and save most of it for a more in-depth report tomorrow, because there’s a fascinating story to be told here.
Christina Olague, John Rizzo, and Julian Davis – respectively the second through fourth place candidates – each presented as more progressive than the likely winner, London Breed, who has an 8-point lead going into the final ballot tally and ranked choice tabulation. They and their allies raised concerns that renters were undermined by Breed’s victory in one of the city’s most progressive districts.
“It was a lie. I’m a renter, I live in a rent-controlled apartment,” she told us just before midnight outside in party at Nickie’s on Haight. “I will do everything to protect rent control. I will work with the Tenants’ Union. I’m here to be everybody’s supervisor.”
She pledged to work productively with all the progressive groups who opposed her, such at SEIU Local 1021, whose members “ take care of my mom at Laguna Honda,” while others are her friends.
“The pettiness of politics is over and it’s time to move forward,” Breed said.
It was a widely sounded theme among jubilant progressives tonight, but D5’s (likely) runner-up Olague sounded a bit of bitterness when we caught up with her a little after 11pm as she was leaving her party at Rassela’s on Fillmore. “The Left and the Right both came at me,” she told us.
She felt unfairly attacked by progressives after being appointed to the D5 seat by Mayor Ed Lee, saying her only bad vote was in favor of the 8 Washington luxury condo project, which Sup. Eric Mar also backed without losing progressive support. “From the beginning, people were hypercritical of me in ways that might not be completely fair.”
Then, this fall, Mayor Lee’s people – chief of staff Steve Kawa, tech point person Tony Winnicker, and billionaire backer Ron Conway – turned on her after a series of votes culminating in the one to reinstate Sheriff Ross Mirkarimi, resisting what she labeled “a power play” aimed at progressives.
Yet she believes her key vote in favor of CleanPowerSF, coming after her support for Sup. John Avalos getting new revenue out of the business tax reform Prop. E, was really what turned Conway and the downtown crowd against her and attracted outrageous attacks that she condoned domestic violence and supported Big Oil.
“They don’t want to say it, but it was the whole thing around CleanPowerSF. Do you think PG&E wanted to lose its monopoly?” she said. “It’s not about disloyalty, it’s about power.”
Julian Davis was similarly deflective about his campaign’s fourth place finish, despite having a strong presence on the streets today and lots of energy at his crowded campaign party at Club Waziema, after he weathered a loss of prominent progressive endorsements over his handling of sexual misconduct allegations.
“It’s been a challenging few weeks, but I’ve kept my head held high in this campaign,” Davis said, decrying the “self-fulfilling prophecy of the local media” that didn’t focus on the progressive endorsers who stayed with him, such as former D5 Sup. Matt Gonzalez and the SF Tenants Union.
Third place finisher John Rizzo, whose party at Murio’s Trophy Room party reflected his less-than-exuberant campaign, was generally positive about the night, although he expressed some concerns about the agenda of the “people putting up hundreds of thousands of dollars” into this race and the D1 contest, where progressive favorite Eric Mar won a strong victory.
I stopped by Breed’s party twice tonight: at the end, and a little before 10pm, when the results were coming over the television proclaiming that voters in Maryland approved same-sex marriage and Colorado voter legalized marijuana – and the room erupted in cheers – and Oregon voters rejected legalizing weed, drawing big boos.
Breed’s was a liberal crowd, a D5 crowd, and a largely African American crowd. Rev. Arnold Townsend, who is on the Elections Commission and local NAACP board, told me as I left Breed’s party the second time, “It’s a good election for my community. The black community was energized by this.”
New school board member Matt Haney, whose party at Brick & Mortar was my final stop of the night, also likes Breed and said her likely victory was another part of “a good night for progressive San Francisco,” which stands for important egalitarian values. “We are the ones about equity and compassion. That’s what this city is about.”
Schedules are for Wed/7-Tue/13 except where noted. Director and year are given when available. Double and triple features marked with a •. All times pm unless otherwise specified.
ARTISTS’ TELEVISION ACCESS 992 Valencia, SF; www.atasite.org. $6-10. “Bruised Jewels: Films and Slide Works by Luther Price,” Thu, 7:30. With Price in person; presented by SF Cinematheque. “Bright Mirror: An Evening of Sound and Image,” with Jeff Surak, Sylvia Schedelbauer, Jefre Cantu-Ledesma, and Paul Clipson, Fri, 8. “Other Cinema:” “Live A/V” with works by Lori Varga, Kerry Laitala, Anne McGuire, and more, Sat, 8:30. “Small Press Traffic: A Reading and Conversation with kathryn l. pringle, Erin Moure, and Andrea Rexilius,” Sun, 5. “Alain LeTourneau and Pam Minty: Empty Quarter,” Sun, 7:30. With LeTourneau and Minty in person; presented by SF Cinematheque.
BALBOA 3630 Balboa, SF; www.cinemasf.com. $10. The Doors: Live at the Bowl ’68, Thu, 8.
CASTRO 429 Castro, SF; (415) 621-6120, www.castrotheatre.com. $8.50-11. •The Game (Fincher, 1997), Wed, 1:30, 7, and Zodiac (Fincher, 2007), Wed, 4, 9:25. “An Evening with Ken Burns:” The Dust Bowl (2012), Thu, 7:30. Advance tickets ($12-18) at www.cityboxoffice.com. “Forever Natalie Wood:” •Rebel Without a Cause (Ray, 1955), Fri, 2:30, 7, and This Property is Condemned (Pollack, 1966), Fri, 4:45, 9:15; •Gypsy (LeRoy, 1962), Sat, noon, and Love With the Proper Stranger (Mulligan, 1963), Sat, 3; Splendor in the Grass (Kazan, 1961), centerpiece event with Natalie Wood’s sister, Lana Wood, in person, Sat, 7:30; West Side Story (Robbins and Wise, 1961), presented sing-along style (this event, $10-15), Sun, 2; •Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice (Mazursky, 1969), Sun, 7, and Inside Daisy Clover (Mulligan, 1965), Sun, 9:05. •Lawless (Hillcoat, 2012), Tue, 7, and Killer Joe (Friedkin, 2011), Tue, 9:10.
CHRISTOPHER B. SMITH RAFAEL FILM CENTER 1118 Fourth St, San Rafael; (415) 454-1222, www.cafilm.org. $6.75-$10.25. All Together (Robelin, 2011), Wed-Thu, call for times. A Liar’s Autobiography: The Untrue Story of Monty Python’s Graham Chapman (Jones, Simpson, and Timlett, 2012), call for dates and times. The Other Son (Lévy, 2012), call for dates and times. “Johnny Legend’s TV in Acidland, Thu, 7 and Sun, 2. A Late Quartet (Zilberman, 2012), Nov 9-15, call for times. Sister (Meier, 2012), Nov 9-15, call for times. The Welcome (McMillan, 2011), Sun, 7. With Bill McMillan in person.
COUNTERPULSE 1310 Mission, SF; www.sftff.org. $12-15. San Francisco Transgender Film Festival: “Performance Extravaganza,” Thu, 8; films, Fri-Sat, 8; Sun, 7.
EMBARCADERO One Embarcadero Center, SF; www.sffs.org. $12-25. “New Italian Cinema:” “An Evening with Valeria Golino,” Sun, 5:30; Texas (Paravidino, 2005), Sun, 9; A Tale of Love (Maselli, 1986), Mon, 6:15; Respiro (Crialese, 2002); The Greatest of Them All (Virzi, 2011), Tue, 6:15; Kryptonite! (Cotroneo, 2011), Tue, 9. Series continues through Nov. 18.
FIRST UNITARIAN CHURCH OF SAN FRANCISCO 1187 Franklin, SF; www.billviola.com. $50-125. “Transformation from Within,” with video art pioneer Bill Viola and curator John Walsh, Fri, 7:30.
“NAPA VALLEY FILM FESTIVAL” Various North Bay venues; www.napavalleyfilmfest.org. First-run films and documentaries, plus tributes to Alan Cumming, James Marsden, and more, Wed-Sun.
NEW PEOPLE CINEMA 1746 Post, SF; www.sffs.org. $12-25. “Cinema By the Bay:” Trattoria (Wolos, 2012), Fri, 7 and 9:30; Casablanca mon amour (Slattery, 2012), Sat, 2:30; “Essential SF,” Sat, 5 (free admission); Jason Becker: Not Dead Yet (Vile, 2012), Sat, 7; Amity (Adams, 2012), Sat, 9:30; “Moving Image at the End of the World: Shorts from Headlands Center for the Arts,” Sun, 2; “A Conversation with Lucy Gray,” Sun, 4:15; The Revolutionary Optimists (Grainger-Monsen and Newnham, work in progress), Sun, 6; CXL (Gillane, 2011), Sun, 8:30.
PACIFIC FILM ARCHIVE 2575 Bancroft, Berk; (510) 642-5249, bampfa.berkeley.edu. $5.50-9.50. “Alternative Visions:” “The Films of John Smith,” Wed, 7. “Afterimage: The Films of Kidlat Tahimik, Indigenous:” Who Invented the Yoyo? Who Invented the Moon Buggy? (1979), Thu, 7; Perfumed Nightmare (1977), Tue, 7. “Grand Illusions: French Cinema Classics, 1928-1960:” Children of Paradise (Carné, 1945), Fri, 7; Grand Illusion (Renoir, 1937), Sat, 6:30; The Story of a Cheat (Guitry, 1936), Sat, 8:45; Toni (Renoir, 1934), Sun, 2. “Art for Human Rights: Ai Weiwei:” Ai Weiwei: Never Sorry (Klayman, 2012), Sun, 4:30.
ROXIE 3117 and 3125 16th St, SF; (415) 863-1087, www.roxie.com. $6.50-11. Bigfoot: The Lost Coast Tapes (Grant, 2012), Wed, 9:30; Thu, 9. Kiss Kiss Bang Bang (Black, 2005), Wed, 7:15. The Magnificent Pigtail Shadow (Cerio, 2012), Wed, 7:15. Miami Connection (Kim, 1986), Wed, 6:45. The Waiting Room (Nicks, 2012), Thu, 7. “City College’s Second Annual Festival of the Moving Image,” Thu, 7 and 9. San Francisco Documentary Film Festival, Nov 9-21. Visit www.sfindie.com for complete schedule.
VICTORIA 2961 16th St, SF; www.sfcult.org. $10. •Slaughter in San Francisco (Wei, 1974), Fri, 7, and The Warriors (Hill, 1979), Fri, 9.
YERBA BUENA CENTER FOR THE ARTS 701 Mission, SF; www.ybca.org. $10. “Animating Dark Dreams: The Films of Jan Svankmajer:” Alice (1989), Thu, 7:30; Lunacy (2006), Sun, 2; Little Otik (2000), Sun, 4:30. “Constancy of Change: Films of John Smith,” Fri, 7:30.
OPINION On October 24th, the San Mateo Community College District Board of Trustees voted unanimously to reject the final two bidders (of an original six) for the broadcast license for KCSM television, bringing to an end an 18-month process by the district to try to sell the television broadcast license housed at the College of San Mateo since 1964. KCSM television reaches 10 Bay Area counties and is broadcast on 60 municipal cable systems in Northern California.
The 48-year old TV station was originally established as a broadcast training facility. From 1964 to 1980, the College of San Mateo ran one of the most comprehensive broadcast journalism programs in the country. In 2004, the station converted to a digital-only signal and in 2009, dropped PBS affiliation and became one of the largest independent public televisions stations in the country.
The district, which operates the College of San Mateo, Skyline College and Canada College, has experienced the severe financial pressures affecting California higher education generally and community colleges in particular. Throughout the US, colleges and universities have been shedding non-commercial broadcast licenses at a rapid rate, causing a crisis in independent media that has long had a home at educational facilities. KCSM-TV is the largest Bay Area media asset to go on the chopping block so far.
KCSM currently broadcasts a block of distance learning opportunities and on-line courses that provide a lifeline to many Bay Area residents who for reasons of disability or family obligations can’t participate in campus-based education. It also features a variety of cultural-exchange, craft/hobby, theatrical and informational programs including Ideas in Action, the Miller Center forums and Moyers and Company. The station is also one of the few sources for children’s programs free of commercials and provides 16 hours of week of kids TV.
Educational broadcasters are a bulwark against the commercially-driven broadcast media, whose need to deliver eyes and ears to advertisers compels them to avoid potentially controversial content and pander to the audiences that are most likely to buy large amounts of consumer goods. The freedom to present content that appeals to smaller niche audiences or presents ideas that may be challenging to some aspects of the status quo largely belongs to the independent media. So when a big chunk of it goes up for sale, it affects everyone who values the free exchange of ideas without a corporate blockade.
My organization, democratic communication advocates Media Alliance, filed a public records request with the District to obtain the details of the bids for the broadcast license and the documents are available for review at media-alliance.org.
Unsuccessful bidders for the station included Christian broadcaster Daystar Television Networks, low-power San Jose station KAXT, the Minority Television Project, which operates KMPT, Channel 32, and Belmont’s Locus Point Networks, a startup run by two former telecom executives The final two runners-up were Public Media Company, a division of the Colorado LLC Public Radio Capital, the radio brokers who have been active in scooping up college radio stations, and San Mateo Community Television, a newly established nonprofit connected with Independent Public Media of Colorado.
At the October 24th board meeting, district trustees stated repeatedly that despite the collapse of the process, they were unwavering their determination to sell the television license. This follows previous board meetings at which some trustees referred to the $5 million public asset as the equivalent of a junked car.
A new bid cycle is likely to ensue, which will provide an opportunity for an open and transparent process to find a responsible local operator to serve Bay Area residents and their informational and educational needs. It’s more than time for colleges and universities to stop speculating on broadcast infrastructure like Maui condos and strive to fulfill the public interest obligations inherent in the free gift of a non-commercial license to broadcast.
Tracy Rosenberg is the executive director of Media Alliance, an Oakland-based advocate for community media. They can be found at www.media-alliance.org.
And so, thanks to Republican Governor Rick Scott and his Republican allies, the lines of voters were once again impossibly long at Florida voting places and many voters started chanting dramatically on national television, “Let us vote, let us vote, let us vote.” It was a chant that rang throughout many battleground states where Republicans had the power to reduce early voting and implement other policies designed to keep the lines long and to make it as difficult as possible for prospective Democrats to exercise their constitutional right to vote.
Guardian cartoonist Louis Dunn sizes up the situation. And I ask the Impertinent Question: Are Florida and other such places becoming third world countrIes? This kind of voter suppression and repression is an update of the old poll tax policy used in the South for generations to keep blacks from voting–and used eight years ago to put Bush into office over Gore, who won by more than 500,000 votes. It has no place anywhere in the U.S. in 2012. The first thing Obama and the Democrats need to do is to move to investigate, prosecute, and criminalize this behavior.
Obama, let me predict, is going to win and he needs to aggressively assert himself and his presidency at the outset. This is a good place to start. b3
P.S. Thomas R.Julin, a noted Miami First Amendment attorney, told me this afternoon that the election suppression in Miami is “unbelievably awful.” http://www.sfbg.com/bruce/2012/11/06/miami-first-amendment-attorney-election-suppression-unbelievably-awful B3
