FRIDAY, APRIL 14 

Creepy Crawlies Insect-inspired activities fro ages 3-7 from noon to 2 p.m. at Lawrence Hall of Science, Centennial Drive. Cost is $7.50-$9.50. 642-5132. 

Clean Up Wildcat Creek Join Verde Elementary School students and the North Richmond community in cleaning up the creek for Earth Day. From 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. at Verde Elementary. 412-9290, ext. 26. 

City Commons Club Noon Luncheon with Ian Mckinlay, architect on “Why the Twin Towers Fell” Luncheon at 11:45 a.m. for $13.50, speech at 12:30 p.m., at the Berkeley City Club, 2315 Durant St. For information and reservations call 526-2925 or 665-9020.  

Berkeley Critical Mass Bike Ride meets at the Berkeley BART the second Friday of every month at 5:30 p.m.  

Yuri’s Night Celebrate the anniversary of Soviet Cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin’s historic first flight into space, from 8 to 11 p.m. at Chabot Space & Science Center Tickets are $0-$15. 336-7373. 

Berkeley Chess School classes for students in grades 1-8 from 5:30 to 7 p.m. A drop-in, rated scholastic tournament follows from 7 to 8 p.m. at 1581 LeRoy Ave., Room 17. 843-0150. 

Berkeley Chess Club meets Fridays at 8 p.m. at the East Bay Chess Club, 1940 Virginia St. Players at all levels are welcome. 845-1041. 

Women in Black Vigil, from noon to 1 p.m. at UC Berkeley, Bancroft at Telegraph. wibberkeley@yahoo.com 548-6310, 845-1143. 

SATURDAY, APRIL 15 

Berkeley Alliance of Neighborhood Associations meets at 9:15 a.m. at St. John’s Presbyterian Church, Sproul Conference Room, 1st Floor, 2727 College Ave. www.berkeleycna.com 

Bay Area Women in Black Silent tax day and anti-war protest from 11:45 to 1p.m. at 35th Ave. and MacArthur, Oakland. www.bayareawomeninblack.org 

Meiklejohn Civil Liberties Institute Benefit and tribute to Ann Fagan Ginger at 5 p.m. at the North Berkeley Senior Center. Donation $15-$30. 848-0599. www.mcli.org 

California NativePlant Sale Explore the garden, and buy some plants to take home. Please bring boxes to carry home your treasures and an umbrella if it rains. From 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Regional Parks Botanic Garden, Wildcat Canyon Rd. & South Park Dr., in Tilden Park. 841-8732. www.nativeplants.org 

Mt. Wanda Wildflower Walk in the hills where John Muir took his daughters. Meet at 9 a.m. in the Park and RIde lot at the corner of Alhambra Ave. and Franklin Canyon Rd., Martinez. Wear walking shoes and bring water. 925-228-8860. 

Natural Egg Coloring Learn to make dyes from beets, red onions and coffee grounds, at 2 p.m. at Tilden Nature CEnter, Tilden Park. Please bring your own hard-boiled eggs. Fee is $3, registration required. 636-1684. 

Restore Marsh and Grassland Habitats in Richmond from 9 a.m. to noon at the West Stege Marsh. To register, and for directions call 665-3689. www.thewatershedproject.org 

The Sydney B. Mitchell Iris Society Show and Sale from 1 to 5 p.m. and Sun. from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. at Lakeside Garden Center, 666 Bellevue Ave., Oakland. 277-4200. 

Oakland Restoration Project Help remove invasive ice plant and wild radish from 9 a.m. to noon at Martin Luther King, Jr. Regional Shoreline, Oakland. Please regiser on line. 452 - 9261. www.savesfbay.org 

Monitor Water Quality at Baxter Creek Learn how to monitor basic water quality using an electronic probe. Help us assess the success of a recent restoration on Baxter Creek by collecting data on the creek’s dissolved oxygen, conductivity, pH, temperature and flow. From 9:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Canyon Trail Park, El Cerrito. Please pre-register. 665-3686. apple@thewatershedproject.org 

From Frybread to Fuel Tank Send-off of a tour to bring bio-diesel to Native America at noon at the Inter-Tribal Friendship House, 523 International Blvd., Oakland. 

Vegetarian Cooking Class from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the First Unitarian Church of Oakland, 685 14th St. at Castro. Cost is $45. 531-COOK. www.compassionatecooks.com 

California Writers Club meets at 10 a.m. at Barnes and Noble, Jack London Square, Oakland, to discuss “Border Country: Erotica or Erotic Romance.” 420-8775.  

Stress Relief Class at 4 p.m. at Pharmaca, 1744 Solano Ave. 527-8929. 

Car Wash Benefit for Options Recovery Services of Berkeley, held every Sat. from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Lutheran Church, 1744 University Ave. 666-9552. 

Free Garden Tours at Regional Parks Botanic Garden Sat. and Sun. at 2 pm. Regional Parks Botanic Garden, Tilden Park. Call to confirm. 841-8732.  

Around the World Tour of Plants at 1:30 p.m., Thurs., Sat. and Sun. at UC Botanical Garden, 200 Centennial Drive. 643-2755.  

SUNDAY, APRIL 16 

Springtime in the Ponds See baby dragonflies, phantom midges and maybe even newts, from 2 to 4 p.m. at Tilden Nature Center, Tilden Park. 525-2233. 

Community Labyrinth Peace Walk at 3 p.m., Willard Middle School, Telegraph Ave. between Derby and Stuart. Everyone welcome. Wheelchair accessible. Rain cancels. 526-7377. 

The Sydney B. Mitchell Iris Society Show and Sale from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. at Lakeside Garden Center, 666 Bellevue Ave., Oakland. 277-4200. 

Lake Merritt Neighbors Organized for Peace Peace walk around the lake every Sun. Meet at 3 p.m. at the colonnade at the NE end of the lake. 763-8712. lmno4p.org 

Tibetan Buddhism with Jack Petranker on “World Without Limits” at 6 p.m. at the Tibetan Nyingma Institute, 1815 Highland Pl. 843-6812. www.nyingmainstitute.com 

MONDAY, APRIL 17 

“Perspectives on Berkeley: Past and Present” Chuck Wollenberg’s Berkeley history class. John McBride of BAHA and John Steere of Livable Berkeley will speak on “A City of Neighborhoods: Preservation and Development” at 7 p.m. at the Berkeley Public Library, 2090 Kittredge St. Free. 981-6150. 

Grandmothers Against the War will demonstrate on Income Tax Day to denounce military spending for the Iraq war and to call for an end to the war and occupation, at noon at the IRS/Post Offices, Ron Dellums Federal Building, Clay St., between 12th and 14th Sts., Oakland. 845-3815. 

Tax Day Action & People’s Life Fund Granting Ceremony and Potluck at 6:30 p.m. at 1550 5th St. at Henry St., Oakland, around the corner from West Oakland BART. Outdoor Anti-War Slide Show and leafleting West Oakland Post Office 1675 7th Street, Oakland at 8:15 to 10 p.m. Sponsored by Northern California War Tax Resistance. 843-9877. www.nowartax.org 

Gay Men’s Health Collective 30th Anniversary Gala with entertainment and a reception at 8 p.m. at the Roda Stage, 2025 Addison St. Tickets are $25-$150. For reservations visit www.gmhc30.org 

Quakes and Shakes Do some heavy shaking to learn about earthquake engineering at 11 a.m. and 1 p.m. at Lawrence Hall of Science, Centennial Drive. Cost is $7.50-$9.50. 642-5132. 

World Affairs/Politics Discussion Group for people 60+ years old meets at Mondays 10:15 a.m. at the Albany Senior Center, 846 Masonic Ave, Albany through June 19th. Cost is $2.50 per week includes refreshments. 524-9122. 

“How to Expand Your Mind- Body Connection with Self Hypnosis” at 5:30 pm. in the Rose Room at Mercy Retirement Center, 3431 Foothill Blvd., Oakland. Cost is $30 or $120 for the entire series. 534-8547, ext. 666. 

Berkeley CopWatch organizational meeting at 8 p.m. at 2022 Blake St. Join us to work on current issues around police misconduct. 548-0425. 

TUESDAY, APRIL 18 

Berkeley Garden Club Spring Tea and Flower Arranging Demonstration by Najat Nicola, Danville floral designer, at 1 p.m. at Epworth Methodist Church, 1953 Hopkins St., $8 527-5641. 

Presentation of Certificate of Honor to the City of Berkeley from the City of San Francisco for Berkeley’s Earthquake relief efforts in 1906, at 3:30 p.m. in City Council Chambers. 

“Earthquake Exodus 1906: Berkeley Responds to the San Francisco Refugees” Illustrated lecture by author Richard Schwartz at 7:30 p.m. at the Berkeley City Club, 2315 Durant Ave. Followed by a reception at the Mcgreary-Greer House, 2318 Durant Ave. Cost is $15. 841-2242. http://berkeleyheritage.com 

Anniversary of the 1906 Quake from noon to 2 p.m. at Lawrence Hall of Science, Centennial Drive. Cost is $7.50-$9.50. 642-5132. 

“Hiking the John Muir Trail” with author Jeff Alt at 7 p.m. at REI, 1338 San Pablo Ave. Free. 527-4140. 

“John Walker Lindh: Constitutional and Human Rights Implications of an Extraordinary Case” with Frank Lindh at 7 p.m. at the College Preparatory School, Buttner Auditorium, 6100 Broadway at Brookside, Oakland. 339-7726. 

Tuesday Tilden Walkers Join a few slowpoke seniors at 9:30 a.m. in the parking lot near the Little Farm for an hour or two walk. 215-7672, 524-9992. 

Family Story Time at 7 p.m. at the Kensington Branch Library, 61 Arlington Ave., Kensington. Free, all ages welcome. 524-3043. 

Brainstormer Weekly Pub Quiz every Tuesday from 7:30 to 9:30 p.m. at Pyramid Alehouse Brewery, 901 Gilman St. 528-9880. 

Berkeley Camera Club meets at 7:30 p.m., at the Northbrae Community Church, 941 The Alameda. Share your digital images, slides and prints and learn what other photographers are doing. Monthly field trips. 548-3991. www.berkeleycameraclub.org 

Free Handbuilding Ceramics Class 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. at St. John’s Senior Center, 2727 College Ave. Also, Mon. noon to 4 p.m. at the South Berkeley Senior Center. Materials and firing charges not included. 525-5497. 

St. John’s Prime Timers meets at 9:30 a.m. at St. John’s Presbyterian Church, 2727 College Ave. We offer ongoing classes in exercise and creative arts, and always welcome new members over 50. 845-6830. 

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 19  

Tilden Tots Join a nature adventure program for 3 and 4 year olds, each accompanied by an adult (grandparents welcome)! We’ll look for signs of spring, from 10 to 11:30 a.m. at Tilden Nature Center, Tilden Park. Bring a light-colored plain T-shirt for our craft. Cost is $6-$8. Registration required. 636-1684. 

Free Mercury Thermometer Exchange sponsored by East Bay Municipal Utility District from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Frank Ogawa Plaza, downtown Oakland. Bring as many mercury thermometers as you have in original cases or in two zipper bags. One free digital thermometer per household. Part of the Oakland Earth Day festivities. 287-1651. www.ebmud.com/cleanbay 

Great Decisions Foreign Policy Association Lecture with Thomas Aragon, Center for Infectious Diseases, UCB on “Pandemics and Security” at 10 a.m. at the Berkeley City Club, 2315 Durant Ave. Cost is $5. 526-2925. 

Celebrate Habitot’s 8th Birthday from 9:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. Loveee the Clown will be in the museum from 10 am to 12 pm. Bring a present—a donated toy, new or used—for our Toy Lending Library and receive a free admission guest pass. Habitot is located on 2065 Kittredge St. 647-1111. www.habitot.org  

“Social Justice and the Prophets” with author Rita Nakashima Brock at 6:30 p.m. at First Congregational Church of Berkeley, Small Assembly Room, 2345 Channing St. 848-3696. www.fccb.org 

Banff Mountain Film Festival Wed. and Thurs. at 7 p.m. at Wheeler Auditorium, UC Campus. Tickets are $13-$16. 527-4140. 

Berkeley School Volunteers Training workshop for volunteers interested in helping the public schools, from 7 to 8:30 p.m. at 1835 Allston Way. 644-8833. 

Lonely Planet Travel Series with Greg Benchwick on Bolivia and South America at 6 p.m. at Oakland Public Library, 124 14th St. 238-3136. 

Walk Berkeley for Seniors meets every Wednesday at 9:30 a.m. at the Sea Breeze Market, just west of the I-80 overpass. Everyone is welcome, wear comfortable shoes and a warm hat. Heavy rain cancels. 548-9840. 

The Berkeley Lawn Bowling Club provides free instruction every Wed. and Sat. at 10:30 a.m. at 2270 Acton St. 841-2174.  

Fresh Produce Stand at San Pablo Park from 3 to 6:30 p.m. in the Frances Albrier Community Center. Sponsored by the Ecology Center’s Farm Fresh Choice. 848-1704. www.ecologycenter.org 

Sing your Way Home A free sing-a-long at 4:30 p.m. every Wed. at the Albany Library, 1247 Marin Ave. 526-3720. 

Stitch ‘n Bitch Bring your knitting, crocheting and other handcrafts from 6 to 9 p.m. at Caffe Trieste, 2500 San Pablo Ave. 548-5198. 

Berkeley Peace Walk and Vigil at the Berkeley BART Station, corner of Shattuck and Center. Sing for Peace at 6:30 p.m. followed by Peace Walk at 7 p.m. www.geocities.com/ 

vigil4peace/vigil 

THURSDAY, APRIL 20 

Preventing Violence Among our Teens A Community and Parent Forum at 7 p.m. at Longfellow Middle School, 1500 Derby St. at Sacramento. Includes a Panel discussion by local experts from Children’s Hospital, Berkeley Police Department, and Berkeley Unified School District, followed by questions and comments. 644-6320. 

Tilden Tots Join a nature adventure program for 3 and 4 year olds, each accompanied by an adult (grandparents welcome)! We’ll look for signs of spring, from 10 to 11:30 a.m. at Tilden Nature Center, Tilden Park. Bring a light-colored plain T-shirt for our craft. Cost is $6-$8. Registration required. 636-1684. 

Creepy Crawlies Insect-inspired activities for ages 3-7 from noon to 2 p.m. at Lawrence Hall of Science, Centennial Drive. Cost is $7.50-$9.50. 642-5132. 

“The Ecology of Birds’ Songs and Identifying Them by Ear” with avian ecologist Daniel Edelstein at 12:30 p.m. at the Oakland Museum of California, 10th and Oak Sts. 238-2200. 

Teach-In and Vigil on U.S. Torture Policy, every Thurs. from 4:30 to 5:30 p.m. outside the classroom of Prof. John Yoo, Boalt Hall, UC Campus. Weekly speakers. Sponsored by the Buddhist Peace Fellowship and other organizations. www.bpf.org 

“A Large Pill to Swallow: Navigating the Medicare Part D Prescription Drug Coverage Program” with health insurance counselors at 10 a.m. at the North Berkeley Senior Center, 1901 Hearst Ave. Please bring a list of your medications and dosages with you. 559-1406. 

“The Elections in Palestine and Israel: What Do They Mean Now And For The Future” with Hatem Bazian and Mitchell Plitnick, at 7:30 p.m. at the Northbrae Community Church, 941 The Alameda. Donation $5-$20 sliding scale, no one turned away. 465-1777. www.jewishvoiceforpeace.org 

LeConte Neighborhood Association meets at 7:30 p.m. in the LeConte School cafeteria, Russell St. entrance. 843-2602, KarlReeh@aol.com  

Ask a Union Mechanic every Thursday from 4:30 to 6 p.m. Parker & Shattuck, until the strike is settled. They will offer advice on all makes of car. 

World of Plants Tours Thurs., Sat. and Sun. at 1:30 p.m. at the UC Botanical Garden, 200 Centennial Drive. Cost is $5. 643-2755. http://botanicalgarden.berkeley.edu 

Historical & Current Times Book Group meets on Thursdays from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Albany Library, 1249 Marin Ave. 548-4517. 

ONGOING 

Albany Library Free Drop-in Homework Help for students in third through fifth grades, Mon. - Thurs. from 3 to 5:30 p.m. Emphasis is placed on math and writing skills. No registration is required. 526-3720, ext. 17. 

Public Art Opportunities Request for Entries The City of Berkeley is looking for artists for the 2006 Civic Center Art Competition and Exhibition. Entries are due April 18. For details contact the Civic Arts Program, 981-7533. 

Public Art Project for the Children’s Fairyland, City of Oakland. Artist Request for Qualifications. Applications are dues May 17 and can be found online at www.oaklandculturalarts.org 238-2105. 

CITY MEETINGS 

Berkeley Rent Stabilization Board meets Mon. April 17 at 7 p.m. in City Council Chambers, Pam Wyche, 644-6128 ext. 113. www.ci.berkeley.ca.us/rent 

Creeks Task Force meets Mon. April 17, at 7 p.m. the North Berkeley Senior Center. Erin Dando, 981-7410. www.ci. 

berkeley.ca.us/planning/landuse/Creeks/default.html 

Council Agenda Committee meets Mon. April 17, at 2:30 p.m., at 2180 Milvia St. 981-6900. www.ci.berkeley.ca.us/ 

citycouncil/agenda-committee 

Berkeley Housing Authority meets Tues., April 18, at 6:30 p.m. in City Council Chambers. 981-6900. ww.ci.berkeley.ca.us/ 

commissions/housingauthority 

City Council meets Tues., April 18, at 7 p.m in City Council Chambers. 981-6900. www.ci. 

berkeley.ca.us/citycouncil 

Citizens Humane Commission meets Wed., April 19, at 7 p.m., at the North Berkeley Senior Center. Katherine O’Connor, 981-6601. www.ci.berkeley.ca. us/commissions/humane 

Commission on Aging meets Wed., April 19, at 1:30 p.m., at the South Berkeley Senior Center. William Rogers, 981-5344. www.ci.berkeley.ca.us/commissions/aging 

Downtown Area Plan Advisory Committee meets Wed. April 19, at 7 p.m. at the North Berkeley Senior Center. 981-7487. www.ci.berkeley.ca.us/ 

planning/landuse/dap/ 

Homeless Commission meets Wed., April 19, at 7 p.m., at the North Berkeley Senior Center. Jane Micallef, 981-5426. www.ci.berkeley.ca.us/commissions/homeless 

Library Board of Trustees meets Wed. April 19, at 7 p.m. at South Berkeley Senior Center., Jackie Y. Griffin, 981-6195. www.ci.berkeley.ca.us/commissions/library  

School Board meets Wed. April 19, at 7:30 p.m., in the City Council Chambers. Queen Graham 644-6147 or Mark Coplan 644-6320. 

Community Health Commission meets Thurs., April 20, at 6:45 p.m., at the North Berkeley Senior Center. Kristin Tehrani, 981-5356. www.ci.berkeley.ca.us/commissions/health 

Design Review Committee meets Thurs., April 20, at 7:30 p.m., at the North Berkeley Senior Center. Anne Burns, 981-7415. www.ci.berkeley.ca.us/ 

commissions/designreview  

™

FRIDAY, APRIL 14 

THEATER 

Actors Ensemble of Berkeley “The Devil’s Disciple” by G.B. Shaw, Fri. and Sat. at 8 p.m. at Live Oak Theater, 1301 Shattuck Ave. at Berryman, through May 6. Tickets are $12. 649-5999. www.aeofberkeley.org 

Aurora Theatre “Small Tragedy” Wed.-Sat at 8 p.m., Sun. at 2 and 7 p.m. at 2081 Addison St., through May 14. Tickets are $38. 843-4822. www.auroratheatre.org 

BareStage “The Fantasticks” Fri. and Sat. at 8 p.m., Sun. April 23 and 30 at 2 p.m., through April 30, at the basement of Cesar Chavez Student Center, UC Campus. Tickets are $8-$12. 642-3880. barestage.berkeley.edu 

Berkeley Rep “Culture Clash’s Zorro in Hell” at 8 p.m. in the Roda Theater. Tickets are $45-$59. Runs through April 16. 647-2949. www.berkeleyrep.org 

Berkeley Rep “The Glass Menagerie” at 8 p.m. at the Thrust Stage, 2025 Addison St. Tickets are $59. Runs through May 31. 647-2949. www.berkeleyrep.org 

Contra Costa Civic Theater “Animal Crackers” at 8 p.m. Fri and Sat., and Sun. at 2 p.m. at Contra Costa Civic Theater, 951 Pomona Ave., El Cerrito, through May 20. Tickets are $12-$20. 524-9132. www.ccct.org 

Masquers Playhouse “Relative Values” by Noel Coward. Fri. and Sat. at 8 p.m. at 105 Park Place, Point Richmond, through May 6. Tickets are $15. 232-4031. www.masquers.org 

“Takashi’s Dream,” the story of Takashi Teanemori, an atomic bomb survivor from Hiroshima, at 8 p.m. at La Peña Cultural Center. Cost is $10-$15. 849-2568. www.lapena.org 

Shotgun Players “Bright Ideas” opens at 8 p.m. at the Ashby Stage, 1901 Ashby Ave. and runs Thurs.-Sun. to April 23. Tickets are $15-$30. 841-6500. www.shotgunplayers.org 

EXHIBITIONS 

“Remake/Remodel:Rebound” Studies of Transformation with ACCI artists Clayton Bain, Dina Gewing, Kate Kerrigan and Dobee Snowber. Reception at 6 p.m. at ACCI Gallery, 1652 Shattuck Ave. 843-2527.  

FILM 

Brave Outsiders: The Films of Kim Longinotto “Runaway” at 7 p.m. amd “Divorce Iranian Style” at 9:15 p.m. at the Pacific Film Archive. Cost is $4-$8. 642-0808. www.bampfa.berkeley.edu 

READINGS AND LECTURES 

Antonin Kratochvil, documentary photographer, will speak at 7 p.m. at UC Berkeley Graduate School of Journalism, corner of Euclid and Hearst. Cost is $10. www.fotovision.org 

Joel Primack describes “The View from the Center of the Universe: Discovering Our Extraordinary Place in the Cosmos” at 7:30 p.m. at Cody’s Books. 845-7852.  

www.codysbooks.com  

MUSIC AND DANCE 

Chamber Music at noon at Hertz Hall, UC Campus. Free. 642-4864. http://music.berkeley.edu 

Elephant Hunter, Angel of Thorns, DSEPD, Swamp Donkey at 9:30 p.m. at Blakes on Telegraph. Cost is $8-$10. 848-0886. www.blakesontelegraph.com 

Walter Savage Quartet at 8 p.m. at Anna’s Jazz Island, 2120 Allston Way. Cost is $7. 841-JAZZ. www.AnnasJazzIsland.com 

Odile Lavault & The Baguette Quartette at 9 p.m. at Ashkenaz. Cost is $11-$13. 525-5054. www.ashkenaz.com 

Sam Bevan, jazz, at 8 p.m. at Caffe Trieste, 2500 San Pablo Ave., at Dwight. 548-5198.  

Mitch Greenhill & Mayne Smith with Peter Spelman at 8 p.m. at Freight and Salvage. Cost is $17.50-$18.50. 548-1761. www.freightandsalvage.org 

Glenn Walters Trio at 9 p.m. at Downtown. 649-3810.  

DJ and Brook, jazz, at 7:30 p.m. at Nomad Cafe, 6500 Shattuck Ave. 595-5344. www.nomadcafe.net 

Sam Misner & Megan Smith at 8 p.m. at Spuds, 3290 Adeline St. at Alcatraz. Cost is $7-$10. 

Nels Cline Singers at 9 p.m. at The Starry Plough. Cost is $8. 841-2082. www.starryploughpub.com 

Funeral Shock, Blown to Bits, Fatality at 8 p.m. at 924 Gilman St., an all-ages, member-run, no alcohol, no drugs, no violence club. Cost is $6. 525-9926. 

Atman Roots, jazz, funk, and afro-cuban soul, at 8 p.m. at Jupiter. 848-8277. 

John Scofield Quartet at 8 and 10 p.m. at Yoshi’s at Jack London Square, through Sun. Cost is $12-$24. 238-9200. www.yoshis.com 

SATURDAY, APRIL 15 

CHILDREN  

Los Amiguitos de La Peña with Estela Knott & David Berzonsky, songs from the Americas, at 10:30 a.m. at La Peña. Cost is $4 for adults, $3 for children. 849-2568. www.lapena.org 

EXHIBITIONS 

“From the Ground Up” Paintings and installation by Alena Rudolph. Reception at 6 p.m. at Union Art Gallery, 1232 19th St., Oakland. 444-0924.  

“Eclectix” New gallery opening with an ongoing group show of mixed media works by Chris Fortin, Patricia Mitchell, Susan Billings, William Dunton, Karla Bruk and Chuck Mitchell. Reception at 6 p.m. at Eclectix Gallery, 7523 Fairmount Ave. at Colusa Ave., El Cerrito. 364-7216. 

COMEDY 

Final Round of the Bay Area Black Comedy Competition at 8 p.m. at the Oakland Paramount Theatre, 2021 Broadway. www.BlackComedyCompetition.com  

FILM 

Brave Outsiders: The Films of Kim Longinotto “The Day I Will Never Forget” at 6:30 p.m., and “Sisters in Law” at 8:50 p.m. at the Pacific Film Archive. Cost is $4-$8. 642-0808. www.bampfa.berkeley.edu 

MUSIC AND DANCE 

Javanese Music and Dance at 8 p.m. at Hertz Hall, UC Campus. Tickets are $3-$10.  

Jazz at the Chimes with Melanie O’Reilly at 2 p.m. at Chapel of the Chimes, 4499 Piedmont Ave., Oakland. Donation of $15 requested for the artist. 228-3207. 

Mike Glendinning, jazz guitar, at 1 p.m. at A Cheerfull Noyse, music store, 1228 Solano Ave., Albany. Free. 524-0411. 

John Richardson Band at 9 p.m. at Circus Pub, 389 Colusa Ave., Kensington. Free and all ages. 

Robin Gregory & Her Trio at 8 p.m. at Anna’s Jazz Island, 2120 Allston Way. Cost is $10. 841-JAZZ. www.AnnasJazzIsland.com 

Reggae Angels at 9:30 p.m. at Ashkenaz. Cost is $11-$13. 525-5054. www.ashkenaz.com  

Los Boleros, traditional son montuno, son cubano, boleros, cumbia and merengue at 9:30 p.m. at La Peña. Cost is $12. 849-2568. www.lapena.org 

Ross Hammond and the Jayn Pettingill/Debbie Poryes Duo at 7:30 p.m. at Nomad Cafe, 6500 Shattuck Ave. 595-5344. www.nomadcafe.net 

Lost Weekend, classic western swing band, at 8 p.m. at Freight and Salvage. Cost is $18.50-$19.50. 548-1761. www.freightandsalvage.org 

Wits End, Sleep in Fame, Maxwell Adams at 9 p.m. at Blakes on Telegraph. Cost is $10. 848-0886. www.blakesontelegraph.com 

Mark Levine Trio at 8 p.m. at the Jazzschool. Cost is $12-$15. 845-5373. www.jazzschool.com 

Steve Heckman & Gini WIlson at 9 p.m. at Downtown. 649-3810. 

Sam Misner & Megan Smith, modern folk acoustic, at 8 p.m. at Spuds Pizza, 3290 Adeline St. Cost is $7. 558-0881. 

Howdy, The Bittersweets, Dame Satan at 9:30 p.m. at The Starry Plough. Cost is $7. 841-2082. www.starryploughpub.com 

Matt Heulitt Quartet, guitar, at 8 p.m. at Jupiter. 848-8277. 

Babyland, 8-Bit, Ninja Academy The Mormons at 8 p.m. at 924 Gilman St., an all-ages, member-run, no alcohol, no drugs, no violence club. Cost is $7. 525-9926. 

SUNDAY, APRIL 16 

FILM 

A Theater Near You “The Spirit of the Beehive” at 3 p.m. at the Pacific Film Archive. Cost is $4-$8. 642-0808. www.bampfa.berkeley.edu 

READINGS AND LECTURES 

The Writing Salon Open House Reading and Art Show, with Suzy Parker, Alison Luterman, and Chris Malcomb at 3 p.m. at 1250 Addison St., Suite 204, at the Strawberry Creek Design Center, corner of Addison and Bonar. www.writingsalons.com 

Poetry Flash with The Five Fingers Review contributors Julie Carr, Jaime Robles and Meridith Stricker at 7:30 p.m. at Cody’s Books. Donation $2. 845-7852. www.codysbooks.com 

MUSIC AND DANCE 

Ricardo Piexoto/Mark Little Duo at 8 p.m. at Anna’s Jazz Island, 2120 Allston Way. Cost is $7. 841-JAZZ. www.AnnasJazzIsland.com 

Americana Unplugged, bluegrass and oldtime music showcase, at 5 p.m. at Jupiter. 655-5715. 

Urban Achievers, The Castrati, Built for the Sea at 5:30 p.m. at Ashkenaz. Cost is $8. 525-5054. www.ashkenaz.com 

Eda Maxym and the Imagination Club with Stephen Kent on didjeridu at 8 p.m. at Freight and Salvage. Cost is $18.50-$19.50. 548-1761. www.freightandsalvage.org 

MONDAY, APRIL 17 

THEATER 

Shotgun Theater Lab: muwumpin presents “Frankie & Johnny” Mon. and Tues. to April 18 at 8 p.m. at the Ashby Stage, 1901 Ashby Ave. Tickets are $10. 841-6500. www.shotgunplayers.org 

EXHIBITIONS 

“Andrea McLaughlin: Selected Black and White Photography from the Photolab Gallery, 1998-2006” at Berkeley Public Library, 2090 Kittredge St., through June 17. 981-6100. www.berkeleypubliclibrary.org 

READINGS AND LECTURES 

Aurora Theatre “Sinker” a reading of the play by Ron Campbell at 7:30 p.m. at 2081 Addison St. Free. 843-4822. www.auroratheatre.org 

Ilya Kaminsky, D.A. Powell, Tessa Rumsey and others read from “Legitimate Dangers: American Poets of the New Century” at 7:30 p.m. at Pegasus Books Downtown, 2349 Shattuck Ave. 649-1320. 

Juliet Eilperin talks about “Fight Club Politics: How Partisanship is Poisoning the U.S. House of Representatives” at 7:30 p.m. at Cody’s Books. 845-7852.  

www.codysbooks.com  

Poetry Express with Linda Zeiser at 7 p.m., at Priya Restaurant, 2072 San Pablo Ave. 644-3977. 

MUSIC AND DANCE 

Zilberella Monday at 8 p.m. at Anna’s Jazz Island, 2120 Allston Way. Cost is $5. 841-JAZZ. www.AnnasJazzIsland.com 

Trovatore, traditional Italian music, at 7 p.m. at Caffe Trieste, 2500 San Pablo Ave., at Dwight. 548-5198.  

Robert Stewart at 8 and 10 p.m. at Yoshi’s at Jack London Square. Cost is $10. 238-9200. www.yoshis.com 

TUESDAY, APRIL 18 

THEATER 

Shotgun Theater Lab: muwumpin presents “Frankie & Johnny” Mon. and Tues. to April 18 at 8 p.m. at the Ashby Stage, 1901 Ashby Ave. Tickets are $10. 841-6500. www.shotgunplayers.org 

FILM 

Vantage Points: New Documentaries by Women “The Joy of LIfe” at 7:30 p.m. at the Pacific Film Archive. Cost is $4-$8. 642-0808. www.bampfa.berkeley.edu 

READINGS AND LECTURES 

Richard Schwartz introduces “Earthquake Exodus, 1906” at 7:30 p.m. at the Berkeley City Club, 2315 Durant Ave., followed by a reception at the McCreary-Greer House, 2318 Durant Ave. Tickets are $15. 841-2242. 

Freight and Salvage Open Mic at 8 p.m. at at Freight and Salvage. Cost is $4.50-$5.50. 548-1761. www.freightandsalvage.org 

MUSIC AND DANCE 

Bruce & Lloyd’s Tri Tip Trio at 8:30 p.m. at Ashkenaz. Cost is $9. 525-5054. www.ashkenaz.com 

Singers’ Open Mic with Ellen Hoffman at 8 p.m. at Anna’s Jazz Island, 2120 Allston Way. 841-JAZZ. www.AnnasJazzIsland.com 

Trombonga at 7 p.m. at Caffe Trieste, 2500 San Pablo Ave., at Dwight. 548-5198.  

Jazzschool Tuesdays, a weekly showcase of up-and-coming ensembles from Berkeley Jazzschool at 8 p.m. at Jupiter. 848-8277. 

Brian Kane Duo at 8 p.m. at Downtown. 649-3810. 

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 19 

THEATER 

The Marsh Berkeley “Faulty Intelligence”satirical songs by Roy Zimmerman, Wed.-Thurs. at 7 p.m. at 2118 Allston Way, through April 27. Tickets are $15-$22. www.themarsh.org 

FILM 

Latino Film Festival “Cachimba” at 7 p.m. at La Peña Cultural Center. Cost is $5-$6. 849-2568. www.lapena.org 

Banff Mountain Film Festival Wed. and Thurs. at 7 p.m. at Wheeler Auditorium, UC Campus. Tickets are $13-$16. 527-4140. 

Film 50: History of Cinema “Cries and Whispers” at 3 p.m. and Video: Recent and Strange at 7:30 p.m. at the Pacific Film Archive. Cost is $4-$8. 642-0808. www.bampfa.berkeley.edu 

READINGS AND LECTURES 

“Mount Fuji: Hidden in Plain Sight” with Christine Guth in conjunction with the exhibit “Hideo Hagiwara - Mount Fuji Woodblock Prints” at 5 p.m. at the IEAS Conference Room, 2223 Fulton Street, 6th Floor. Sponsored by the Institute of East Asian Studies and the Center for Japanese Studies http://ieas.berkeley.edu 

Ben Ehrenreich reads from his novel “The Suitors” at 7:30 p.m. at Cody’s Books. 845-7852. www.codysbooks.com 

Noah Eli Gordon and Sara Veglahn, poets, at 7:30 p.m. at Pegasus Books Downtown, 2349 Shattuck Ave. 649-1320. 

Café Poetry hosted by Paradise at 7:30 p.m. at La Peña. Donation $2. 849-2568. www.lapena.org 

Berkeley Poetry Slam with host Charles Ellik and Three Blind Mice, at 8:30 p.m. at The Starry Plough. Cost is $5-$7. 841-2082 www.starryploughpub.com 

MUSIC AND DANCE 

Wednesday Noon Concert, with music by Cindy Cox, poetry by John Campion at Hertz Hall, UC Campus. Free. 642-4864. http://music.berkeley.edu 

Whiskey Brothers Old Time and Bluegrass at 9 p.m. at Albatross, 1822 San Pablo Ave. 843-2473. www.albatrosspub.com 

Ned Boynton Trio at 8 p.m. at Downtown. 649-3810.  

Jules Broussard at 8:30 p.m. at Ashkenaz. West Coast Swing dance lesson at 8 p.m. Cost is $10. 525-5054. www.ashkenaz.com 

Calvin Keys Trio at 8 p.m. at Anna’s Jazz Island, 2120 Allston Way. 841-JAZZ. www.AnnasJazzIsland.com 

The Dale Ann Bradley Band, Kentucky-based bluegrass, at 8 p.m. at Freight and Salvage. Cost is $17.50-$18.50. 548-1761. www.freightandsalvage.org 

Dave Stein Bubhub, groove-driven funk at 8 p.m. at Jupiter. 848-8277. 

Sheol, Normal Like You, Minus Vince at 9 p.m. at Blakes on Telegraph. Cost is $8-$10. 848-0886. www.blakesontelegraph.com 

Tinariwen, South Saharan rock, at 8 and 10 p.m. at Yoshi’s at Jack London Square. Cost is $14-$20. 238-9200. www.yoshis.com 

THURSDAY, APRIL 20 

EXHIBITIONS 

“Under a Rock” recent paintings by Jean Fawver. Reception at 5:30 p.m. at the BRJCC, 1414 Walnut St. 848-0237. 

THEATER 

“The Bizarro Baloney Show” with Dan Piraro, comedy, video, songs, cartoons, audience participation and more, at 8 p.m. at La Peña Cultural Center. Cost is $15-$18. 849-2568. www.lapena.org 

READINGS AND LECTURES 

“The Bancroft Library at 100” Curator’s Talk by Jack von Euw at 5:30 p.m. at the Berkeley Art Museum. 642-0808. www.bampfa.berkeley.edu 

Conversation with Author Isabel Allende in celebration of National Library Week, at 7 p.m. at the Oakland Museum of California, 10th and Oak Sts. 238-2200. 

Nomad Spoken Word Night at 7 p.m. at Nomad Cafe, 6500 Shattuck Ave. 595-5344. www.nomadcafe.net 

Carole Terwilliger Meyers presents a slide talk on the latest edition of her book, “Weekend Adventures in San Francisco and Northern California” at 7 p.m. at the El Cerrito Library, 6510 Stockton Ave. 526-7512.  

Colin Whitehead reads form his comic novel “Apex Hides the Hurt” at 7:30 p.m. at Cody’s Books. 845-7852. www.codysbooks.com  

Word Beat Reading Series with John Rowe and Katie McAllaster Weaver at 7 p.m. at Mediterraneum Caffe, 2475 Telegraph Ave., near Dwight Way. 526-5985. 

MUSIC AND DANCE 

“I’m A Performer” Concert with Jefferson and Oxford students at 8:30 a.m. at Jefferson Elementary School, 1400 Ada St. 841-2800. 

Michael Chapdelaine, acoustic guitar, at 8 p.m. at Freight and Salvage. Cost is $17.50-$18.50. 548-1761. www.freightandsalvage.org 

Blue Roots at 8 p.m. at Anna’s Jazz Island, 2120 Allston Way. Cost is $5. 841-JAZZ. www.AnnasJazzIsland.com 

Move, Sin Voz at 9:30 p.m. at The Starry Plough. Cost is $5. 841-2082 www.starryploughpub.com 

Showtime @ 11 Hip Hop at 10 p.m. at the Ivy Room, 585 San Pablo Ave. at Solano. 524-9220. www.ivyroom.com  

Gene Bertoncini, solo jazz guitar, at 8 p.m. at Downtown. 649-3810.  

Omar Sosa Quartet, featuring Pee Wee Ellis at 8 and 10 p.m., through Sun. at Yoshi’s at Jack London Square. Cost is $10. 238-9200. www.yoshis.com™

A match struck in darkness on the “veranda” of a tenement fire escape to light a cigarette is the first illuminating ray in Tennessee Williams’ The Glass Menagerie, at Berkeley Rep, as Williams’ young “double,” would-be poet Tom Wingfield (Erik Lochtefeld) slowly drawls out, in Delta Faulknerian, the introduction to his nostalgic narration of a “memory play.” 

“Yes, I have tricks in my pocket, I have things up my sleeve. But I am the opposite of a stage magician,” he says. “He gives you illusion that has the appearance of truth. I give you truth in the pleasant guise of illusion.” 

Williams’ first great play, penned in 1944, is set during “that quaint period, the thirties” in St. Louis. “In Spain there was revolution. Here there was only shouting and confusion.” 

The Glass Menagerie is a quiet play, though, a lyrical excursion into a displaced Southern family living vicariously through dreams in otherwise straitened circumstances—and what happens when a long-expected, real-life Lochinvar appears suddenly out of the hazy sunset of those dreams. 

The straitened circumstances aren’t just those of the Depression. Sister Laura (Emily Donohoe) is crippled—though mother Amanda (Rita Moreno) insists that word never be used—with a bad leg and overwhelming self-consciousness. 

And the dreams aren’t equally distributed among the family trio: Tom dreams of escape, adventure—but goes to the movies; Laura plays her Victrola and tends to her “glass collection” of transparent animals; and Amanda fervently hopes for a future for her children, a gentleman caller for Laura, like the 17 she boasts of having received in one day in her girlhood, and struggles to keep the family together, sending Laura off mornings to a business college she’s long stopped attending, and archly cajoling and threatening Tom over his habits and his distractions. 

It’s a little ironic that Ms. Moreno’s genuine star presence finds its vehicle in wannabe-belle Amanda, who first comes on too demure, almost mousy, then gradually digs in with her motherly nagging, her almost-antebellum nostalgic recitals, rising to all-out tirades that dissolve into pleading. Amanda is the first, the test-run, of Williams’ famous monstres sacrées. 

Moreno carefully layers her character, punctuating the overly-artificial and nerve-wracking Southern poses and langeurs with sharp, quick gestures and movements, culminating in her shockingly funny apotheosis, “shaking her girlish ringlets” (as per the playwright’s stage direction) as she enters to greet Jim O’Connor (Terrance Riordan), the gentleman caller she’s dragooned Tom to invite to dinner from the shoe warehouse where both work. She is all dolled up in a “historic, almost” gown she just pulled out of the trunk. It is literally a museum piece, with one drooping flounce hanging from its otherwise perfect, rustling, mothballed finery.  

The exact dress was Moreno’s call, but perfectly fits the direction in which Les Waters’ interpretation leads the play. Williams is too often presented in full “breast-beating” fashion, but on the Rep’s Thrust Stage Waters’ adroit cast brings out the comedy that’s mixed with pathos. A touch of it’s almost Chaplinesque, as when Tom, who jokes and clowns to slough off Amanda’s high-handed routines, flies into a rage on his way out to the movies and tangles himself in his coat, accidently throwing it off onto the glass menagerie, provoking hysterics from Laura.  

It’s a clean, fresh reading of the text that dispenses with the usual half-baked emotional theatrics that luridly color too many productions of Williams’ best plays. But, in a way, it’s a little too clean and straight, like the set by Scott Bradley with its Strindbergian “second proscenium arch” dividing living and dining rooms, where Amanda often poses, all lit up, like memory, by a glow from beneath (Matt Frey’s lighting design). 

It could use a little more shabbiness in the set of this quietly desperate family, just as the action needs a touch of the theatrical that goes beyond the usual emotionalizing, beyond even the excellent comedy. 

At the crucial moment, when “the most realistic character in the play . . . an emissary from a world of reality we were somehow set apart from” enters this cabinet of grotesques (in Sherwood Anderson’s sense), Ms. Moreno takes Amanda to the far reaches of comedy. It is part of Williams’ dramaturgical dichotomy, like the Baudelairean poetry he, like Tom, tried to write: spleen and ideal, the nostalgia of memory and the humor of the present. 

Director Waters’ realism here is in lower case; it has a light, sensitive touch. It may blossom into the strange blooms of Williams’, or Amanda, the jonquil girl’s, imagination as the show runs, so good is the casting. 

Laura is all big eyes, downcast or gazing at life from a remote place, while conflicting thoughts animate her lips; Tom waiting for his life of adventure that proves to be another poem like the one written on a shoebox lid that gets him fired, taking him back, over and over, into what he’s left behind. 

Jim O’Connor, professionally genial and savvy, clumsily spitting out gum because it’s lost its taste, and apologizing, delivers the final word on Amanda’s extravagant antics, so well played by Moreno: “I guess this is what they mean by southern hospitality.” 

Photo By: Ken Friedman 

Rita Moreno as Amanda in Tennessee Williams’ The Glass Menagerie at Berkeley Repertory Theatre. 

It can be tempting to dismiss violent criminals, to simply lock them up and write them off. The details of their crimes justify it for us, allowing us to make them into monsters, to dehumanize and judge them. 

Shakespeare Behind Bars, opening today (Friday) at Landmark’s Shattuck Cinemas in downtown Berkeley, doesn’t offer that luxury. This award-winning documentary goes behind the scenes at Kentucky’s Luther Luckett Correctional Complex to remind us that the world is not so black and white, that men are not merely one thing or another but are complex and ever-evolving. 

Every year, volunteer director Curt Tofteland stages a Shakespeare play at Luckett, visiting the prison twice a week for nine months to work with his cast of convicts. The picture this film presents is disarming, for the movie is not just moving and entertaining, it is genuinely funny; prison would seem an unlikely setting for a movie of such warmth and compassion, humanity and joy. 

For this season, Tofteland has chosen The Tempest. He has selected this play for its themes of forgiveness and redemption, knowing these concepts will resonate with his cast, especially with the veterans who will be up for parole within months of the season’s conclusion. This may sound a bit heavy-handed at first, but we soon see that Tofteland’s relationship with these men is anything but patronizing; there is no condescension in his direction. Indeed, it is readily apparent that the men of Luckett not only enjoy these plays, but might have selected The Tempest themselves, given the choice, and for precisely the same reasons. 

The prisoners we meet are articulate and intelligent and often charismatic. They seem to come from all walks of life. Some are educated, some are not, but all are intellectually curious. Granted, this group is self-selecting; there are hundreds of prisoners at Luckett who have opted not to spend their time rehearsing Shakespeare, so we’re not exactly getting a representative sample. But the men presented here challenge many stereotypes. 

The troupe’s rehearsals are essentially group therapy sessions, with Tofteland in the role of facilitator. The men encourage and critique each other, each offering his own interpretation of character and motivation. And through this process each man gets closer to his own particular truth, gaining a greater understanding of his own character and motivation. It is fascinating to watch. And because it’s Shakespeare, and the dense language is not always easily understood, it gives them occasion to painstakingly deconstruct the play line by line, discovering the ways in which gesture and inflection can alter a scene’s meaning. Eventually the play will settle into something resembling a final form, but what matters to these actors is the process, the collaborative and cathartic act of creating a truthful ensemble performance.  

The insights often come indirectly and the men are often surprised by them. The roles in the play were cast deliberately by the actors themselves, so most of them start off with a certain level of awareness of the parallels between themselves and their characters. But gradually they peel away layers of meaning in Shakespeare’s lines, simultaneously delving deeper into their own thoughts and emotions. And through these revelations they develop greater sympathy and understanding for one another. There is growth here as well as catharsis. 

Big G, a bear of a man who looks more like a linebacker than a Shakespearian actor, offers key insights into the process: “I’ve often thought that a bunch of convicts would make great actors, because they’re used to lying and playing a role, but it’s the opposite of that. Because you have to tell the truth and inhabit a character. And that’s so scary for me and the guys in the group because we’re opening up our inner selves for everyone to see.” 

It is possible that these men would be averse to conventional therapy, that bravado and machismo would not allow such a frank discussion of self. But by staging these plays they are doing something more difficult and brave, opening themselves up and examining their own lives before an audience.  

We are witness to great camaraderie, moral support, friendship and compassion. They yearn for redemption. Some seek to forgive themselves; others find self-forgiveness hollow and instead seek forgiveness from friends and family, as well as from the society which has spurned them.  

Just as it is can be easy to dismiss the incarcerated, it is likewise easy to sentimentalize them, to believe that these men who strut across a prison stage have put their violent impulses behind them. But Shakespeare Behind Bars will not allow us that luxury either. In wracking one-on-one interviews the prisoners open up to the filmmakers, revealing the crimes for which they have been imprisoned as well as their hopes for some kind of closure.  

It can be difficult to rationalize the vibrant, passionate Shakespearians with the images they describe of violence and crime, but we cannot allow ourselves to believe that their sins are in the past merely because they are discussed in the past tense. The path to redemption is a long and arduous one and rehabilitation does not come easily. 

But as much as these men may look forward to the performances for which they are rehearsing, they are really in it for the process, not the final result. For each of these men, like the play itself, is a work in progress, and the act of creation is far more rewarding that any curtain call. 

Photo Courtesy Philomath Films 

Inmates at Kentucky’s Luther Luckett Correctional Complex perform The Tempest in Shakespeare Behind Bars.

Is there really a secret behind the crystal perfume bottle passed down from your grandmother? What about the French landscape you bought at a hotel liquidation sale in Hawaii for $5? Could it be valuable? Join the Appraisal Extravaganza and these mysteries will be solved. 

On April 27 the University Section Club is sponsoring a fundraiser supporting Cal student services—Berkeley’s own Antiques Roadshow with enticing extras. Held at the Clars Auction Gallery, a sponsor of television’s Antiques Roadshow, and one of the largest auction houses in the Western United States, the evening promises to expand your appreciation skills in several artistic venues. Expert appraisers, sophisticated jazz music, a stimulating art lecture, great wine and food will combine to produce—an extravaganza. 

The appraisal clinic will feature experts in four distinct fields: jewelry and timepieces, Asian art, decorative art (china, glass, furniture, collectibles) and fine art. Each admission will cover the verbal appraisal of two items. While you eagerly await the verdict on the Bengal tiger claw jewelry from British India you’ll be tapping your toes to the sparkling sounds of the piano work of Frederick Hodges. 

Trained as a concert pianist, this California native instead chose to perfect the 1920s ragtime sheet music he discovered in his grandmother’s piano bench. As a UC undergraduate he served as pianist and singer with the Royal Jazz Orchestra and later soloed at society parties and Nob Hill hotels. Cole Porter, George Gershwin, Rogers and Hart, hits from the Great American Songbook—Hodges’ lively interpretations will keep your spirits high even as you discover that the stylized Asian sculpture you bought for $1,500 is a reproduction from 1965 and only worth $400. 

Midpoint through the evening Margaret Lovell, professor of art history and director of American studies at UC Berkeley, will speak on “Why Furniture Collectors Need To Know the Trees.” Well known for her book Art in a Season of Revolution: Painters, Artisans and Patrons in Early America, Lovell researched how 18th century life was influenced by art making and purchasing. 

She used the material world as evidence of both aesthetic and ideological concerns in eighteen-century British North America. Exploring the theme of kinship, Lovell used family portraits as primary sources and then expanded the theme to artists and their patrons. Her lecture is certain to appeal to antique hunters and everyone who appreciates a Louis XV Bureau Plat with fire-gilded embellishments or a “Manxman Piano” by M.H. Baillie Scott in the Arts and Crafts style. 

Wine, hors d’oeuvres and lovely floral arrangements will add to the gala atmosphere. To protect those family heirlooms, security guards will be on hand and young men will provide car escort service at the evening’s end. The price of your ticket, aside from guaranteeing a memorable evening, is of value in a different sense as well. 

The University Section Club, sponsoring this event, has been raising funds to support Berkeley students for almost eighty years. Bringing together members of the administration and staff in special interest groups, social cement is laid, offering opportunities for friendship and service. Through aid to individuals, student-support groups, scholarships and foreign student related activities, this organization brings people and students together in common goals, forming one large university family.  

SOS, the Services Offered Students committee, keeps its members busy in a variety of well-appreciated projects. Volunteers can be seen at the Tang Center and Albany Village Nursery School. The Foreign Student Committee works with International House to help with housing, the loan of equipment and sponsors activities to make newcomers feel at home. The Center, weekly meetings for spouses and children at the YWCA, offers social outlets and addresses practical concerns. Orientations are held monthly at International House and the Lawrence Berkeley National Lab to address immigration matters and discuss campus and community services available to foreign students. 

Funds raised through donations and events go directly to students requiring emergency loans, grants and scholarships. They also provide financial support for Albany Village, the Tang Center and projects for disabled and re-entry students. It’s clear that the proceeds from this grand event will go directly to several worthy causes. 

As to your mystery appraisals, this may be your lucky night. Grandmother’s perfume bottle, from 1912, is a rare Rene Lalique original, valued at between $30,000 and $40,000. Your $5 investment has increased to $40,000. The French Riviera painted by Louis Aston Knight never looked so good.  

Appraisal Extravaganza 

5-8 p.m. Thursday, April 27 at the Clars Auction Gallery, 5644 Telegraph Ave., Oakland. Reserve tickets are $30 before April 20; limited tickets at the door are $40. For more information, contact Joan Finnie at 841-7521 or Louise Kaufmann at (925) 253-9292.9

Six major paintings and 10 small landscapes on paper, all in mixed media by Micaela Gardner, are on view through April 30 at Turn of the Century Fine Arts. 

Their collective title, “AutoReflection” hints at the artist’s modesty in regarding herself as essentially an autodidact in painting, although she has received some formal instruction in visual and plastic arts. 

It is worth noting, in addition, that the painter is also a dancer. Overall, this is an exhibition for viewers who respond to color, drama and lyricism. 

Most of Gardner’s paintings would require major commitments of space by any collector: the smallest is 2 x 4 feet and the largest, 4 x 12 feet. Of greater significance, however, are the artist’s choices of palettes for the several works exhibited, her compositions and handling of her pigments, the referential contents evinced by forms and titles and the expressiveness on, beneath and beyond each surface. 

Her consistent use of 2x4-foot Masonite panels, either vertically or horizontally juxtaposed, however, emphasize the works’ reassuring geometric configurations, so that even the most serendipitously lyrical and expansive works, such as Yellow and White Triptych (2 x 12 feet), conform to the artist’s intent. 

These are serious works of art inviting hours of contemplation, not mere decoration. Matters of scale aside, they might not be easy for collectors to live with—unless they fall in love with them, which is the ideal relationship between collectors and works of art anyway.  

Gardner’s color is voluptuous. The vertical diptych Chinese Screen, for example, pairs a plunging ochre form (possibly a fish) in a modulated green environment (possibly an ocean) on the left with a gorgeously, heavily impastoed red field on the right. A suggestion of mystery enhances the work’s seductiveness. The same may be said of UmberSea Sextet (two horizontal by three vertical rows of panels) and of The Hatchet (three horizontally stacked panels). 

The latter is a tour de force of swirling earth tones whose abstract composition is rich with ambiguous suggestions of forms as well as space. Do we discern a hatchet across the top? Is that its handle, which looks like a noose? The beauty of the painting mitigates the ominousness of its title. 

The Jellyfish That Stung Me In San Diego is also puzzling. The most reductive of the paintings in the exhibition, with respect to scale, composition and color, it is one horizontal panel (hence 2 x 4 feet) with two startlingly white forms, loosely resembling yin and yang in relationship to one another, on a bright red field. The work, despite its title, looks more sexy than scary.  

Now in its 16th year of business, Turn of the Century Fine Arts, has been, along with a building that houses not-for-profits, including the Ecology Center and the Sierra Club, to the south on the same block, one of the anchors of a neighborhood in transition. 

Commerce in bodies and drugs has receded as gift and garment boutiques have moved into what is becoming known as Berkeley’s “Left Bank,” that is, the west side of San Pablo Avenue as one moves north. (“Left” refers to political and social attitudes, as well as to style, or bohemian panache.) 

Lewis Meyers, proprietor of Turn of the Century Fine Arts, first opened an exhibition space on the block in 1991 and saw it through various moves and metamorphoses, including a coffee and sandwich shop, along with art. Good Vibrations, a women-owned cooperative purveyor of merchandise that enhances erotic pleasure, is located nearby. Berkeley’s Caffè Trieste, whose model appeared in San Francisco’s North Beach on April 1, 1956, opened on the corner of Dwight Way and San Pablo Avenue last year under the aegis of Hal Braudel, Walter Wright and others. 

Meyers, a master woodworker with an MFA in sculpture from the California College of the Arts, built its interior to harmonize with the character of its antecedent. Musical harmony characterizes Caffè Trieste for both its sound system (Caruso with breakfast!) and because most evenings there are performances by instrumentalists and vocalists. “Papa Gianni” (Giovanni Giotta), creator of the original Caffè Trieste, appears at least once monthly to sing Italian favorites. Sea Salt, an upscale seafood restaurant opened next door to Turn of the Century a few months ago and has quickly become a destination for diners from throughout the Bay Area.  

Turn of the Century Fine Arts, Meyers says, is “my own brand of what I’m doing.” Huh? “Well, it’s kind of like a salon.” 

The merchandise, in addition to works of art, ranges from kitsch and funk to high quality, handcrafted wood furniture—including chairs by Meyers himself. Meyers’s assemblages are also on view, as are lamps (some made from clarinets!) by Helen Holt. Visitors know that they’re in a good place with a statue of Ganesha greeting them at the door. 

Turn of the Century Fine Arts is open Thursday through Sunday from 1-5 p.m. and by appointment. 2510 San Pablo Ave., 849-0950. The Micaela Gardner exhibition continues through Sunday, April 30, when there will be a closing reception honoring the artist from 2-6 p.m. All are welcome. 

Photo: “The Hatchet,” one of the Micaela Gardner paintings in the exhibit at Turn of the Century gallery, is a tour de force of swirling earth tones.Ÿ