FRIDAY, MARCH 2 

Impeachment Banner Fridays at 6:45 to 8 a.m. on the Berkeley Pedestrian bridge between Seabreeze Market and the Berkeley Aquatic Park, ongoing on Fridays until impeachment is realized. www. Impeachbush-cheney.com 

City Commons Club Noon Luncheon with Leonard Syme on “Preventing Disease and Promoting Health.” Luncheon at 11:45 a.m. for $14, speech at 12:30 p.m., at the Berkeley City Club, 2315 Durant St. For reservations call 526-2925.  

“The Life and Thought of Slain Salavadoran Jesuit, Ignacio Ellacuria” with Robert Lassalle-Klein at 7 p.m. at St. Joseph the Worker School, Marian Hall, 2nd Flr., 2125 Jefferson St. Not wheelchair accessible. 499-7080. 

“Famine in North Korea: Markets, Aid, and Reform” with author Stephan Haggard at 4 p.m. in the IEAS Conference Room, 2223 Fulton St., 6th Floor. 642-2809. 

“Power Trip” a film about electricity in the Republic of Georgia at 7:30 p.m. at Humanist Hall, 390 27th St., midtown Oakland. Donation $5. www.HumanistHall.net 

Circle Dancing, simple folk dancing with instruction at 7:30 p.m. at Finnish Brotherhood Hall, 1970 Chestnut St at University. Donation of $5 requested. 528-4253. www.circledancing.com 

SATURDAY, MARCH 3 

Turtle Time Meet the turtles of Tilden Park and learn the difference between native and non-native, male and female, at 11 a.m. at the Tilden Nature Center, Tilden Park. 525-2233. 

Kids Garden Club for ages 6-9 to explore the world of gardening, from 2 to 4 p.m. at Tilden Nature Area, Tilden Park. Cost is $6-$8, registration required. 636-1684. 

Sick Plant Clinic Dr. Robert Raabe, plant pathologist, and Dr. Nick Mills, entomologist, will diagnose plant illnesses and recommend remedies. Bring a piece of the plant in a securely sealed container. A zipperlock bag is ideal. From 9 a.m. to noon at Botanical Garden, 200 Centennial Dr. 643-2755. 

Bay Area Seed Interchange Library Annual Seed Swap potluck hoedown to share music, food, and home grown garden seeds. From 5 to 8 p.m. at the Ecology Center, 2530 San Pablo Ave. Cost is $10, free if you bring seeds and a dish to share. 548-2220 ext. 233. 

The Architecture of Oakland’s Downtown Walking Tour Meet at 10 am at the below-street-level fountain just outside the 12th St. BART station. Walk ends at the 19th Street BART. This is a moderately paced, level walk. Wear comfortable shoes, dress in layers, and bring water and snack. 848 9358. www.berkeleypaths.org  

Kayak and Walking Tour of Brooks Island with Save the Bay. From 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Cost is $85-$95. To register call 452-9261, ext. 109. 

Gardening Basics: What is Really Important with Aerin Moore at 10 a.m. at Magic Gardens Nursey, 729 Heinz Ave., off 7th St. 644-2351. 

“Christian Responses to the World Water Crisis” a workshop with Marian Ronan, professor at the GTU from 1 to 5 p.m. at American Baptist Seminary of the West, 2606 Dwight Way. Sponsored by Corporate Accountability International. 644-4956. 

“Immigration: The Impact Beyond Mexico” with Arnoldo Garcia, National Network for Immigrant and Refugee Rights, Larisa Cafilla, Bay Area Immigrant Rights Coalition, Nunu Kidane, Africa Priority Network at others at 11 a.m. at the Prescott Joseph Center, 920 Peralta St., Oakland. Sponsored by the John George Democratic Club.  

Making Sense of the Medicare Enrollment Period a free workshop at 2 p.m. at the Oakland Public Library, 125-14th St. Presented by Jess Strange of Health Insurance Advocacy Program. 238-3138. 

“The Legacy of the Abraham Lincoln Brigade” A luncheon with the men and women who volunteered to defend the Spanish Republic against fascism in 1936 at 2 p.m. at First Congregational Church, 27th and Harrison Sts., Oakland. Tickets are $35. 582-7699.  

Fundraiser Crab Dinner for Golden Gate Boys Choir at 6:30 p.m. at St. Peter’s Church, 6013 Lawton, Oakland. Tickets are $35. For reservations call 887-4311. 

“Finding the Creative and Spiritual in Everyday Life” a conference from 9:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. at the Bade Museum, Pacific School of Religion, 1798 Scenic Ave. 527-2935. www.ahimsaberkeley.org 

Dr. Seuss’ Birthday Party at 11 a.m. at the Kensington Library, 61 Arlington Ave., Kensington. All ages welcome. Free but reservations required. 524-3043. 

Oakland Museum of California White Elephant Sale from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. and Sun. from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. at 333 Lancaster St. at Glascock, Oakland. free shuttle bus from the Fruitvale BART. 238-2200. 

Hopalong Animal Rescue Come meet your furry new best friend from noon to 3 p.m. at 2940 College Ave. 267-1915, ext. 500. www.hopalong.org  

Produce Stand at Spiral Gardens Food Security Project from 1 to 6 p.m. at the corner of Sacramento and Oregon St. 

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

Petite Pooches Playgroup for small dogs from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., one block north of Solano on Ensenada at Talbot. 524-2459. 

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. www.nativeplants.org 

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

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. 

SUNDAY, MARCH 4 

Shoreline Discovery Walk along San Pablo Bay with Bethany Facendini, naturalist, from 9:30 to 11 a.m. Call for meeting place. 525-2233. 

“Open Garden” Join the Little Farm gardener for composting, planting, watering and reaping the rewards of our work, from 2 to 4 p.m. at Tilden Nature Area, Tilden Park. Cancelled only by heavy rain. 525-2233.  

“Climate Change” the first of a series of Sunday talks on Climate Change by Karen Street at 1 p.m. at Berkeley Friends Meeting, 2151 Vine. 653-2803. 

Salon in the Grove Discussion of the tree-sitting protest at 2 p.m. at the Memorial Oak Grove, east side of UC campus just off of Gayley Rd. 548-3609. 

International Women’s Day “Criminal of Poverty” presented by memoir author “Tiny” aka Lisa Gray-Garci from 10 am. to noon at Berkeley Fellowship of Unitarian Universalists, 1924 Cedar St. 841-4824. 

Berkeley Playreading Group meets at 2 p.m. at 1471 Addison St. at the rear of 1473 Addison. 655-7962.  

Free Sailboat Rides from 1 to 4 p.m. at the Cal Sailing Club, Berkeley Marina. Wear warm, waterproof clothing and bring a change of clothes in case you get wet. www.cal-sailing.org 

Cyber Salon with Scott Rosenberg, founder of Salon.com on his new book “Dreaming in Code” at 5 p.m. at the Hillside Club, 2286 Cedar St. Donation $10. 

Holistic Pet Evaluation with animal crisis consultant from 1 to 3 p.m. at Rabbit Ears, 303 Arlington Ave., Kensington. To schedule an appointment call 525-6155. 

“The Spiritual Journey of a Lifelong UU” with Sue Amgidson at 9:30 p.m. at Unitarian Universalist Church of Berkeley, 1 Lawson Rd., Kensington. 525-0302, ext. 306. 

Tibetan Buddhism with Sandy Olney on “Walking on the Roof of the World” at 6 p.m. at the Tibetan Nyingma Institute, 1815 Highland Pl. 843-6812.  

MONDAY, MARCH 5  

“Tule Elk: Biggest Wild Animals in the East Bay” A slide show with Mike Moran on one of California’s largest land mammals, at 7:30 p.m. at Montclair Presbyterian Church, 5701 Thornhill Rd., Oakland. Cost is $5, children free. 655-6658.www.close-to-home.org 

“The Big Bang, COBE, and the Relic Radiation Traces of Creation” with George Smoot, 2006 Noble Prize winner at 5:30 p.m. at Berkeley Rep’s Thrust Stage, 2025 Addison St. Free. 486-5183. 

“Black Jews, Jews, and other Heroes” A talk with Howard Lenhoff at 6:30 p.m. at JCCEB, 1414 Walnut St. 848-0237. 

Red Cross Blood Drive from noon to 6 p.m. at East Pauley Ballroom, MLK Student Union, UC Campus. To schedule an appointment go to www.BeADonor.com (code UCB) 

Free Diabetes Screening from 9 to 11 a.m. at the West Berkeley Senior Center.Do not eat or drink anything for 8 hours beforehand. 981-5332. 

TUESDAY, MARCH 6 

Tuesdays for the Birds Tranquil bird walks in local parklands, led by Bethany Facendini, from 7 to 9:30 a.m. Today we will visit the Carquinez Strait Regional Shoreline. Call for meeting place and if you need to borrow binoculars. 525-2233. 

Tilden Tots Join a nature adventure program for 3 and 4 year olds, each accompanied by an adult (grandparents welcome)! We’ll learn about the water cycle, from 10 to 11:30 a.m. at Tilden Nature Center, Tilden Park. Cost is $6-$8. Registration required. 636-1684. 

Documentaries by Lebanese Women including “Here and Perhaps Elsewhere” at 7 p.m. at the California Theater, 2113 Kittredge St. Tickets are $6-$8. 415-564-1100. www.aff.org 

Civil Rights Tales with Stagebridge Theater at 1:15 p.m. at the North Berkeley Senior Center. 981-5190. 

“Universal Health Care: What are the next steps?” with Richard Quint, MD, MPH, at noon at the Albany Library, at Marin and Masonic Aves, Albany. Brown Bag Luncheon Series of the League of Women Voters. Bring your lunch, hot drinks provided. 843-8824. 

“A Short Trip to Italy” multi-media presentation by Countess Alessandra Ranghiasci on her family's 150 room ancestral palace in Gubbio, Italy's best preserved medieval village, at 6 p.m. at the Berkeley City Club, 2315 Durant Ave. Cost is $15. 848-7800.  

Berkeley School Volunteers Training workshop for volunteers interested in helping the public schools, from 2 to 3 p.m. at 1835 Allston Way. 644-8833. 

Free Legal Assistance the first Tues. of the month at 6 p.m. at the Albany Library, 1247 Marin Ave. Advance registration required. 526-3720, ext. 5. 

Discussion Salon on Schools and Gangs at 7 p.m. at JCC, 1414 Walnut.  

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

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 

St. John’s Prime Timers meets at 9:30 a.m. at St. John’s Presbyterian Church, 2727 College Ave. We always welcome new members over 50. 845-6830. 

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 7 

Walking Tour of UC Berkeley Campus with retired East Bay Regional Park District Naturalist Alan Kaplan. Meet at 10 a.m. at the campus entrance gate at Euclid and Hearst for this moderately paced, 2-hour walk. Dress in layers and wear comfortable shoes. 526-7609. www.berkeleypaths.org  

Tilden Tots Join a nature adventure program for 3 and 4 year olds, each accompanied by an adult (grandparents welcome)! We’ll learn about the water cycle, from 10 to 11:30 a.m. at Tilden Nature Center, Tilden Park. Cost is $6-$8. Registration required. 636-1684. 

Teach-In and Vigil Against American Torture every Wed. at noon at Boalt Hall, Bancroft Way at College Ave.  

“Torture, Human Rights and Terrorism” a panel discussion in conjunction with the exhbition of paintings of Abu Graib by Frenando Botero, at 4 p.m. at Booth Auditorium, Boalt Hall, UC Campus. 

Walk, Talk, Buck the Fence What’s at stake in the Ecology of Berkeley’s Strawberry Canyon A walk at 5 p.m. every Wed. with guests to discuss what is at stake in the next proposed steps for the filling of the Canyon by the UC-LBL Rad-Labs, and now British Petroleum. http://canyonwalks.blogspot.com  

“Nemesis: The Last Days of the American Republic” Chalmers Johnson in conversation with Gray Brechin at 7:30 p.m. at King Middle School auditorium, 1781 Rose St.Tickets are $12-$15. 848-6767, ext. 609. 

“Black Gold” a documentary expose of the coffee-industry at 6 p.m. at Oakland Museum of California, 10th and Oak Sts. Oakland. Free. 238-2200. 

New to DVD: “L’Enfant” at 7 p.m. at JCCEB, 1414 Walnut St. Discussion follows. 848-0237. 

Beyond the Ivory Tower: Alternative Careers for Asia Specialists, from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. in the IEAS Conference Room, 2223 Fulton St., 6th Flr. RSVP required. 642-2809.  

Red Cross Blood Services Volunteer Oreintation from 10 a.m. to noon at 6230 Claremont Ave. Registration required. 594-5165. 

Accessible Telephones, for those with vision, hearing, speaking and memory loss, on display from 12:45 to 1:45 p.m. at the North Berkeley Senior Center. 981-5190. 

Lomi Lomi Hawaiian form of bodywork, at 7 p.m. at Elephant Pharmacy, 1607 Shattuck Ave. 549-9200. 

WriterCoach Connection seeks volunteers to help students improve their writing and thinking skills. Commit to 1-2 hours per week during the school day and work one-on-one with students in their English classes. Training from 6:30 to 9:30 p.m. 524-2319. www.writercoachconnection.org 

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. 548-9840. 

Stitch ‘n Bitch at 6:30 p.m. at Caffe Trieste, 2500 San Pablo Ave., at Dwight. 548-5198.  

THURSDAY, MARCH 8 

“Unseen and Unheard: Finding Bats in the Night Sky” with Dr. Joe Szewczak, from Humboldt State Univ., at the East Bay Scence Cafe, at Spud's Pizza, 3290 Adeline St. 558-0881. 

The Natural History of the Klamath-Siskiyou Bioregion at 7 p.m. at the Ecology Center, 2530 San Pablo Ave. 548-2220, ext. 233. 

Activism in the Americas for International Women’s Day at at 7 p.m. at La Peña Cultural Center. Sliding scale donation $5-$20. 849-2568.  

Documentaries by Lebanese Women including “Lebanon/War” at 7 p.m. at the California Theater, 2113 Kittredge St. Tickets are $6-$8. 415-564-1100. www.aff.org 

Movies and Speakers on the Anti-G8 Movement at 6:30 p.m. at the Long Haul, 3124 Shattuck Ave. 540-0751. 

Free Diabetes Screening from 8 a.m. to noon at the North Berkeley Senior Center. Do not eat or drink anything for 8 hours beforehand. 981-5332. 

“The Care Crisis: The Problem That Has No Name” with Prof. Ruth Rosen at noon at Berkeley City College Auditorium, 2050 Center St. 981-2884. 

Family Story Time for children ages 3-7 at 7 p.m. at the Berkeley Public Library, North Branch, 1170 The Alameda, at Hopkins. 981-6107. 

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.  

ONGOING 

Tax Help at the Berkeley Public Library Sat. from 11:30 to 4:30 p.m. at the South Branch. Call for appointment. 981-6260. Also every Tues. and Thurs. at the West Branch from 12:15 to 3:15 p.m. Call for appointment. 981-6270. 

Berkeley Winter Campaign for Cats We are providing free trapping assistance and spay/neuter to feral and homeless cats in Berkeley, Albany, Emeryville and Piedmont, through March 2007. The cats will be spayed/neutered, vaccinated, treated for fleas and returned safely back to their neighborhoods. To report a neighborhood in need or to volunteer, please call 908-0709. 

CITY MEETINGS 

Council Agenda Committee meets Mon., March 5, at 2:30 p.m., at 2180 Milvia St. 981-6900. 

Peace and Justice Commission meets Mon., March 5, at 7 p.m., at the North Berkeley Senior Center. 981-5510.

FRIDAY, MARCH 2 

THEATER 

Aurora Theatre Company “The Birthday Party” Wed. - Sat. at 8 p.m., Sun. at 2 and 7 p.m. at 2081 Addison St., through March 11. Tickets are $38. 843-4822. www.auroratheatre.org 

Berkeley Rep “The Pillowman” at 8 p.m. at the Thrust Stage, 2025 Addison St., through March 11. Tickets are $33-$61. 647-2949. 

Berkeley Rep “To the Lighthouse” at the Roda Theater, 2015 Addison St. and runs through March 25. Tickets are $45-$61. 647-2917. 

Black Repertory Group “Phyllis” Fri. and Sat. at 3201 Adeline St. Call for time and ticket information. 652-2120.  

Central Works Theater Ensemble “Lola Montez” Thurs.-Sat. at 8 p.m., Sun. at 5 p.m. at the Berkeley City Club, 2315 Durant Ave. through March 25. Tickets are $9-$25. 558-1381. www.centralworks.org 

Contra Costa Civic Theater “Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street” Fri. and Sat. at 8 p.m. at 951 Pomona Ave., at Moeser, El Cerrito., through March 3. Tickets are $15-$24. 524-9132.  

Impact Theatre “Cartoon” Thurs.-Sat. at 8 p.m. at La Val’s Subterranean, 1834 Euclid, through March 10. Tickets are $10-$15.  

The Marsh “Shopping for God” Thurs.-Sat. at 7 p.m. at 2120 Allston Way, through March 3. Tickets are $15-$22. 1-800-838-5750. www.themarsh.org 

TheatreFirst “Nathan the Wise” Thurs.-Sat. at 8 p.m., Sun. at 3 p.m. at Old Oakland Theater, 481 Ninth St. at Broadway, Oakland, through March 4. Tickets are $21-$25. 436-5085. www.theatrefirst.com 

UC Dept. of Theater “Dolly West’s Kitchen” Fri. and Sat. at 8 p.m., Sun. at 2 p.m. at Zellerbach Playhouse, UC Campus. Tickets are $10-$14. 642-9925. http://theater.berkeley.edu 

EXHIBITIONS 

“Growing Hunger: The Struggle of Small Farmers in the 21st Centruy” Photographs on display at the Berkeley Public Library, 2090 Kittredge St. through April 18. 981-6241. 

“Genetic Memories of Graffiti” performance art at 7 p.m. at Lobot Gallery, 1800 Campbell St., Oakland. www.weekendwakeup.com 

All Colors Oakland Celebration with recent art by Raymond Saunders. Opening reception at 5:30 p.m. at Joyce Gordon Gallery, 406 14th St., Oakland. 465-8928. 

Overhung 3 Over 500 works of art in a garage-sized gallery. Opening reception at 7 p.m. at Boontling Gallery, 4224 Telegraph Ave., Oakland. 295-8881. www.boontlinggallery.com 

“The Stories We Tell Ourselves” works by Robert Tomlinson and Anna Vaughan. Reception at 6 p.m. at Mercury 20 Gallery, 25 Grand Ave. at Broadway.  

Deric Caner “Message to Carrier” poster drawings and Zenith Foundation “Devil’s Triangle Reprise” Reception for the artists at 7 p.m. at 21 Grand, 416 25th St. at Broadway. 444-7263. 

READINGS AND LECTURES 

Robert Lassalle-Klein discusses “Love That Produces Hope: The Life and Thought of Slain Salavadoran Jesuit, Ignacio Ellacuria” at 7 p.m. at St. Joseph the Worker School, Marian Hall, 2nd Flr., 2125 Jefferson St. Not wheelchair accessible. 499-7080. 

Creative Aging: Bay Area Women Artists Aged 85-105 With Amy Gorman, author of “Aging Artfully” and Greg Young’s DVD, “Still Kicking” at 4 p.m. at the Berkeley City Club, 2315 Durant. 527-4977. 

Marisa Handler reads from “Loyal to the Sky: Notes from an Activist” at 7:30 p.m. at Black Oak Books. 486-0698. www.blackoakbooks.com 

MUSIC AND DANCE 

Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater at 8 p.m. at Zellerbach Hall, UC Campus, through March 4. Tickets are $32-$56. 642-9988. www.calperfs.berkeley.edu 

Dance IS Festival at 8 p.m. at Julia Morgan Center for the Arts, 2640 College Ave. Tickets are $10-$15. 925-798-1300. 

Groove Fest with Frank Martin and Friends at 7 p.m. at the Albany High School Little Theater. Tickets are $5-$10. Benefits Albany Music Fund. 558-2500.  

Organists Ed Teixiera and Ann Callaway perform Lizst’s Via Crucis at 11:15 a.m. at Saint David of Wales Catholic Church, 5641 Esmond Ave. at Sonoma, Richmond. 237-1531. 

University Symphony Orchestra at 8 p.m. at Hertz Hall, UC Campus. Tickets are $8-$12. 642-9988. 

The Edmund Welles Bass Clarinet Quartet at 8 p.m. at 1510 Eighth Street Performance Space, Oakland. Cost is $5-$15 sliding scale. events@thejazzhouse.com 

William Beatty, piano, Richard Saunders, bass, Alan Hall, drums at 8 p.m. at Giorgi Gallery, 2911 Claremont Ave. Tickets are $12. 848-1228.  

Tony Bellaver “Interventions” Performance art from 1 to 4 p.m. at Berkeley Art Center, 1275 Walnut St. Donations accepted. 644-6893. www.berkeleyartcenter.org 

Country Joe McDonald Tribute to Woody Guthrie at 7:30 p.m. at Cafe de la Paz, 1600 Shattuck Ave. 287-8700. 

Manicato & Umoverde at 9 p.m. at La Peña Cultural Center. Cost is $8-$10. 849-2568.  

Gadget, No Strangers, Jokes for Feelings, Sentinel at 9 p.m. at Blakes on Telegraph. Cost is $10. 848-0886.  

Mo’Fone at 8 p.m. at the Jazzschool. Cost is $12-$15. 845-5373. www.jazzschool.com 

Muziki Roberson Quintet at 8 p.m. at Anna’s Jazz Island, 2120 Allston Way. Cost is $10. 841-JAZZ. www.AnnasJazzIsland.com 

Prince Diabate & His Band in a benefit for Darfur at 9 p.m. at Ashkenaz. Cost is $12-$15. 525-5054. www.ashkenaz.com 

Sherry Austin at 8 p.m. at Caffe Trieste, 2500 San Pablo Ave. 548-5198.  

The Edlos at 8 p.m. at Freight and Salvage. Cost is $18.50-$19.50. 548-1761.  

Cyndi Harvell and Mike Eckstein at 7:30 p.m. at Nomad Cafe, 6500 Shattuck Ave. 595-5344. www.nomadcafe.net 

Sean Smith and Pormpter of Conscience, GoGo Fightmaster at 9:30 p.m. at The Starry Plough. Cost is $6. 841-2082  

Verbal Abuse, A.D.T, Eskapo 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. 

The P-PL at 9:30 p.m. at Beckett’s Irish Pub, 2271 Shattuck Ave. 647-1790.  

Facing New York, Panda, Tempo no Tempo at 8:30 p.m. at Oakland Metro, 201 Broadway. Cost is $10. 763-1146. www.oaklandmetro.org 

Kurt Elling at 8 and 10 p.m., through Sun. at Yoshi’s at Jack London Square. Cost is $10-$20. 238-9200. www.yoshis.com 

SATURDAY, MARCH 3 

CHILDREN  

Los Amiguitos de La Peña with Gerry Tenney at 10:30 a.m. at La Peña. Cost is $4 for adults, $3 for children. 849-2568. www.lapena.org 

Maggie the Clown celebrates National Reading Month Sat. and Sun. at 1:30 and 2:30 p.m. at Children’s Fairyland, 699 Bellevue Ave., Oakland. 452-2259. 

EXHIBITIONS 

“Art of Living Black” Self-guided art tour from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. in Berkeley, Oakland, Richmond. Directories available from the Richmond Art Center, 2540 Barrett Ave., Richmond. 620-6772. www.richmondartcenter.org 

8 in 07 A group show of East Bay artists opens at the Giorgi Gallery, 2911 Claremont Ave., to April 1. Gallery hours are Wed.-Sun. 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. 848-1228. 

California College of the Arts 100th Anniversary Art Show opens at 3 p.m. at Montclair Gallery, 1986 Mountain Blvd., Oakland. Exhibition runs to April 30. 339-4286. 

Jessamyn Lovell talks about her work “Catastrophe, Crisis and Other Family Traditions” at 4 p.m. at the Richmond Art Center, 2540 Barrett Ave., Richmond. 620-6772. www.richmondartcenter.org 

FILM 

Women of Color Film Festival “Corpus: A Home Movie for Selena“ with fimmaker Lourdes Portillo at 7 p.m. and “The Devil Never Sleeps” at 9 p.m. at the Pacific Film Archive. Cost is $4-$8. 642-0808.  

READINGS AND LECTURES 

Andy Couturier on “Writing Open the Mind: Tapping the Subconscious to Free the Writing and the Writer” at 5:30 at at Black Oak Books. 486-0698.  

Bay Area Poets Coalition Open Reading at 3 p.m. at Strawberry Creek Lodge, 1320 Addison St. Park on the street. 527-9905. 

MUSIC AND DANCE 

Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater at 2 and 8 p.m. at Zellerbach Hall, UC Campus, through March 4. Tickets are $32-$56. 642-9988.  

Dance IS Festival at 8 p.m. at Julia Morgan Center for the Arts, 2640 College Ave. Tickets are $10-$15. 925-798-1300. 

Groove Fest with Tom Lilienthal, Tim Hyland and Friends at 7 p.m. at the Albany High School Little Theater. Tickets are $5-$10. Benefits Albany Music Fund. 558-2500.  

Nexus: Volti a capella at 8 p.m. at St. Mark’s Episcopal Church, 2300 Bancroft Way. Tickets are $8-$20. 415-771-3352. www.voltisf.org 

The Streicher Trio “Music and Dance in 18th Century Spain” at 8 p.m. at St. John’s Presbyterian Church, 2727 College Ave. Tickets are $10-$25. 528-1725. 

American Bach Soloists Elizabeth Blumenstock, violin, and Mary Wilson, soprano, at 8 p.m. at First Congregational Church, 2345 Channing Way. Tickets are $16-$42. 415-621-7900.  

Sacred & Profane “Springtime in Paris” at 8 p.m. at All Souls Episcopal Church, 2220 Cedar St. Tickets are $15-$18. 524-3611. 

University Symphony Orchestra at 8 p.m. at Hertz Hall, UC Campus. Tickets are $8-$12. 642-9988. 

Poulenc Trio, with Vladimir Lande, oboist, at 7:30 p.m. at Regents Theater, Holy Names University, 3500 Mountain Blvd., Oakland. Tickets are $35-$40. 601-7919.  

Country Joe McDonald Tribute to Woody Guthrie at 7:30 p.m. at Cafe de la Paz, 1600 Shattuck Ave. 287-8700. 

John Fizer at noon at Cafe Zeste, 1250 Addison St. at Bonar, in the Strawberry Creek Park complex. 704-9378. 

Oakland Assault at 8 p.m. at Oakland Metro, 201 Broadway. Cost is $10. 763-1146.  

Altipampa, traditional sounds from the Andes at 8 p.m. at La Peña Cultural Center. Cost is $12-$14. 849-2568.  

Eric Swinderman Quartet at 8 p.m. at Anna’s Jazz Island. Cost is $12. 841-JAZZ.  

Bulgarika at 9 p.m. at Ashkenaz. Balkan dance lesson at 8 p.m. Cost is $15. 525-5054.  

Sotaque Baino, Brazilian music, at 8 p.m. at Shattuck Down Low. Cost is $5-$10. 548-1159.  

Jon Roniger and Theo Harman at 7:30 p.m. at Nomad Cafe. 595-5344.  

Gemini Soul with Ajamu Akinyele at 8 p.m. at Jupiter. 848-8277. 

Carolyn Mark, Amy Honey, Bermuda Tirangle Service at 9:30 p.m. at The Starry Plough. Cost is $8. 841-2082. 

Rustler’s Moon with Kathy Kallick & Bill Evans at 8 p.m. at Freight and Salvage. Cost is $18.50-$19.50. 548-1761.  

Gaucho, gypsy jazz, at 9:30 p.m. at Albatross, 1822 San Pablo Ave. Cost is $5. 843-2473.  

Nicole McRory at 9:30 p.m. at Beckett’s Irish Pub, 2271 Shattuck Ave. 647-1790.  

Pete Madsen, folk, at 8 p.m. at Spuds Pizza, 3290 Adeline St. Cost is $7. 558-0881. 

Flip the Switch, A Class Act, Chris Murray at 8 p.m. at 924 Gilman St. Cost is $5. 525-9926. 

SUNDAY, MARCH 4 

EXHIBITIONS 

“Art of Living Black” Self-guided art tour from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. in Berkeley, Oakland, Richmond. Directories available from the Richmond Art Center, 2540 Barrett Ave., Richmond. 620-6772. www.richmondartcenter.org 

“Earth in Flowers” Chinese paintings by Y. C. Chiang and Hui Liu, and hand-blown glass by Michael Sosin. Reception at 3 p.m. at the Community Art Gallery, Alta Bates Summit Medical Center, 2450 Ashby Ave. 204-1667.  

“A Rose Has No Teeth: Bruce Nauman in the 1960s” Guided tour at 2 p.m. at the Berkeley Art Museum, 2626 Bancroft Way. 642-0808. 

READINGS AND LECTURES 

Conversations on Art with Ira Nowinski at 1 p.m. at the Judah L. Magnes Museum, 2911 Russell St. 549-6950.  

Serena Bartlett introduces “Grassroutes Travel Guide to Oakland” at 2 p.m. at Nomad Cafe, 6500 Shattuck Ave. 595-5344. 

Chad Lejeune talks about “The Worry Trap: How to Free Yourself from Worry and Anxiety Using Acceptance and Commitment Therapy” at 6 p.m. at Black Oak Books. 486-0698.  

Abby Seixas on “The Deep River Within: Finding Balance and Meaning in a 24/7 World” at 7 p.m. at First Congregational Church of Berkeley, 2345 Channing Way. 559-9500. 

MUSIC AND DANCE 

Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater at 3 p.m. at Zellerbach Hall, UC Campus. Tickets are $32-$56. 642-9988.  

Chamber Music Sundaes with San Francisco Symphony musicians and friends at 3 p.m. at St. John’s Presbyterian Church, 2727 College Ave. Tickets at the door are $18-$20. 415-753-2792. 

Rudolf Buchbinder, piano at 3 p.m. at Hertz Hall, UC Campus. Tickets are $42. 642-9988. 

1920’s Jazz Piano Concert with Seth Montfort, at 5:30 p.m. at Giorgi Gallery, 2911 Claremont Ave. Cost is $15. 415-362-6080. 

Betty Fu, vocals, Ben Stolorow, piano at 7:30 p.m. at Berkeley Art Center 1275 Walnut St. Csot is $10. 644-6893.  

California Bach Society “Consolation and Comfort” at 4 p.m. at St. Mark’s Episcopal Church, 2300 Bancroft Way. Tickets are $10-$25. 415-262-0272.  

Golden Key Piano School Recital at 2 p.m. in Berkeley. Call for location 665-5466. 

Liliana Herrera & Rafael Herrera, satirical socio-political songs, at 7 p.m. at La Peña. Cost is $7-$15 sliding scale. 849-2568. 

David Lindley at 8 p.m. at Freight and Salvage. Cost is $22.50-$23.50. 548-1761. www.freightandsalvage.org 

Bulgarika Quartet at 8 p.m. at Anna’s Jazz Island, 2120 Allston Way. Cost is $15. 841-JAZZ. www.AnnasJazzIsland.com 

Country Joe McDonald Tribute to Woody Guthrie at 7:30 p.m. at Cafe de la Paz, 1600 Shattuck Ave. 287-8700 

Sambajah, Brazilian, at 8:30 p.m. at Ashkenaz. Cost is $10. 525-5054. www.ashkenaz.com 

My Last Day on Earth, Almost Dead, River Runs Black and others at 6:30 p.m. at Oakland Metro, 201 Broadway. Cost is $10. 763-1146.  

MONDAY, MARCH 5 

EXHIBITIONS 

“Studio Man Ray” Photo- 

graphs by Ira Nowinski opens at the Judah L. Magnes Museum, 2911 Russell St. and runs through August 5. 549-6950. 

“A Visual Journal” Oils and works on paper by Lisa Bruce opens at Bucci’s, 6121 Hollis St., Emeryville, and runs to March 30. www.lisabruce.com 

READINGS AND LECTURES 

Actors Reading Writers: “Unusual Circumstances,” works by Lorrie Moore, Wallace Stegner, and Jessamyn West at 7:30 p.m. at the Berkeley City Club, 2315 Durant Ave. Free. 932-0214. 

Readings from Golden Handcuffs Magazine with contributors David Bromige, Laynie Browne, Richard Denner, Michael McClure, David Meltzer and Michael Rothenberg at 7:30 p.m. at Moe’s Books, 2476 Telegraph Ave. 849-2087. 

Cara Black reads from “Murder on the Ile Saint-Louis“ at 7:30 p.m. at Black Oak Books. 486-0698. www.blackoakbooks.com 

Dinaw Mengestu talks about “The Beautiful Things That Heaven Bears” at 7 p.m. at Cody’s Books on Fourth St. 559-9500. 

Nalo Hopkinson introduces her new novel, ”The New Moon’s Arms” at 7 p.m. at Revolution Books, 2425 Channing Way. 848-1196. 

Poetry Express with MK Chavez at 7 p.m. at Priya Restaurant, 2072 San Pablo Ave. berkeleypoetryexpress@yahoo.com 

MUSIC AND DANCE 

David Lindley at 8 p.m. at Freight and Salvage. Cost is $22.50-$23.50. 548-1761. www.freightandsalvage.org 

Ramon & Jessica and Michael Musika at 6 p.m. at Mama Buzz Cafe, 2318 Telegraph, at 23rd, Oakland. 

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

Natasha Miller at 8 and 10 p.m. at Yoshi’s at Jack London Square. Cost is $10-$14. 238-9200. www.yoshis.com  

TUESDAY, MARCH 6 

EXHIBITIONS 

“Dream Landscapes” works by Billana Stremska opens with a reception at 6 p.m. at at the Claremont Hotel Club Gallery, 41 Tunnel Rd. RSVP to Katy Yong at 549-8512.  

FILM 

Alternative Visions: “Nicky Hamlyn: Film Art Phenomena” with Nicky Hamlyn in person, at 7:30 p.m. at the Pacific Film Archive. Cost is $4-$8. 642-0808. www.bampfa.berkeley.edu 

Arab Film Festival Documentaries by Lebanese Women including “Here and Perhaps Elsewhere” at 7 p.m. at the California Theater, 2113 Kittredge St. Tickets are $6-$8. 415-564-1100. www.aff.org 

“Little Miss Potentiality Returns” a film by Thalia Drori, at 9:15 at the Parkway Speakeasy Theater, Oakland. thaliadrori.com 

READINGS AND LECTURES 

Michael Eric Dyson discusses “Debating Race” at 7:30 p.m. at First Congregational Church of Berkeley, 2345 Channing Way. Donation $10. 848-3696.  

“A Short Trip to Italy” multi-media presentation by Countess Alessandra Ranghiasci on her family’s 150 room ancestral palace in Gubbio, Italy's best preserved medieval village, at 6 p.m. at the Berkeley City Club, 2315 Durant Ave. Cost is $15. 848-7800.  

Daniel Mason reads from his new novel “A Far Country” at 7:30 p.m. at Black Oak Books. 486-0698. www.blackoakbooks.com 

MUSIC AND DANCE 

Art IS Education Performances and Art Show by students of the Emery Unified School District at 4 p.m. on the steps of Emeryville City Hall, 1333 Park Ave.  

Sauce Piquante at 8:30 p.m. at Ashkenaz. Cajun/Zydeco dance lesson at 8 p.m. Cost is $10. 525-5054. www.ashkenaz.com 

Ellen Hoffman and Singers’ Open Mic at 8 p.m. at Anna’s Jazz Island, 2120 Allston Way. Cost is $5. 841-JAZZ. www.AnnasJazzIsland.com 

Jenny Ferris and Laura Klein, jazz, at 7:30 p.m. at Caffe Trieste, 2500 San Pablo Ave., at Dwight. 548-5198.  

Sean Jones at 8 and 10 p.m. at Yoshi’s at Jack London Square. Cost is $6-$12. 238-9200. www.yoshis.com 

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

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 7 

FILM 

Film 50: “The Conversation” with a lecture by Marilyn Fabe, at 3 p.m. at the Pacific Film Archive. Cost is $4-$8. 642-0808. www.bampfa.berkeley.edu 

Independent Lens “Black Gold” an expose of the coffee-industry at 6 p.m. at Oakland Museum of California, 10th and Oak Sts. Oakland. Free. 238-2200. 

READINGS AND LECTURES 

Chalmers Johnson discusses his new book “Nemesis: The Last Days of the American Republic” with Gray Brechin at 7:30 p.m. at King Middle School, 1781 Rose St. Tickets are $12-$15 at Cody’s. 559-9500. 

Joe Conason discusses why “It Can Happen Here: Authoritarian Peril in the Age of Bush” at 7 p.m. at Cody’s Books on Fourth St. 559-9500. 

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 

Eifman Ballet of St. Petersburg at 8 p.m. at Zellerbach Hall, UC Campus. Tickets are $32-$56. 642-9988. www.calperfs.berkeley.edu 

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

Terrie Odabi Quartet with guest Steve Turre, at 8 p.m. at Anna’s Jazz Island, 2120 Allston Way. Cost is $15. 841-JAZZ. www.AnnasJazzIsland.com 

Wadi Gad and Junior P, reggae, at 9:30 p.m. at Ashkenaz. Cost is $10. 525-5054. www.ashkenaz.com 

Orquestra Universal at 9:30 p.m. at Shattuck Down Low, 2284 Shattuck Ave. Salsa lessons at 8 p.m. Cost is $5-$10. 548-1159.  

Birds & Batteries at 9:30 p.m. at Beckett’s Irish Pub, 2271 Shattuck Ave. 647-1790. www.beckettsirishpub.com 

Joshua Eden at 8 p.m. at Jupiter. 848-8277. 

SF Jazz High School All Stars at 8 and 10 p.m. at Yoshi’s at Jack London Square. Cost is $10. 238-9200. www.yoshis.com 

THURSDAY, MARCH 8 

EXHIBITIONS 

“A Rose Has No Teeth: Bruce Nauman in the 1960s” Guided tour at 12:15 and 5:30 p.m. at the Berkeley Art Museum, 2626 Bancroft Way. 642-0808 

FILM 

Arab Film Festival Documentaries by Lebanese Women including “Lebanon/War” at 7 p.m. at the California Theater, 2113 Kittredge St. Tickets are $6-$8. 415-564-1100. www.aff.org 

Women of Color Film Festival “Gathering Strands” with filmmakers in person at 7:30 p.m. at the Pacific Film Archive. Cost is $4-$8. 642-0808. www.bampfa.berkeley.edu 

READINGS AND LECTURES 

“Speaking Fierce” in honor of International Women’s Day, with Eli PaintedCrow and Anuradha Bhagwati, veterans, Kaylah Marin, Aimee Susara and others at 6:30 p.m. at First Congregational Church, 2501 Harison St., Oakland. Tickets are $5-$15 sliding scale. 444-2700. 

“Documenting Oakland” with Erica Mailman, author of “Oakland’s Neighborhoods,” Jeff Norman, author of “Temescal Legacies” and Vietnemense poets from the Vietnamese Artist Collective at 6 p.m. at Oakland Public Library, 125 14th St. 238-3271. 

Nora Gallagher introduces her first work of fiction, “Changing Light,” a love story set in the summer of 1945 in the shadow of Los Alamos and the making of the first atomic bomb at 7:30 p.m. in the Tucson Common Room, Church Divinity School of the Pacific, 2451 Ridge Rd. 204-0710. 

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

T Cooper, Michelle Tea and Katia Noyes tell stories at 7 p.m. at Cody’s Books on Fourth St. 559-9500. 

Stephen Davenport reads from “Saving Miss Oliver’s: A Novel of Leadership, Loyalty and Change” at 7:30 p.m. at Mrs. Dalloways, 2904 College Ave. 704-8222. 

MUSIC AND DANCE 

Berkeley Opera presents a free noontime concert at the Central Berkeley Public Library, 5th Floor, 2090 Kittredge St. 981-6100. 

Jewish Music Festival “Musical Fortunes” with Dan Cantrell, Kitka, Michael Alpert at 7:30 p.m. at First Congregational Church, 2345 Channing Way. Tickets are $20-$25. 800-838-3006. www.jewishmusicfestival.org 

JGB featuring Melvin Seals with Rainmaker at 9 p.m. at Ashkenaz. Cost is $17-$20. 525-5054. www.ashkenaz.com 

Eifman Ballet of St. Petersburg at 8 p.m. at Zellerbach Hall, UC Campus. Tickets are $32-$56. 642-9988. www.calperfs.berkeley.edu 

Muireann NicAmhlaoibh at 8 p.m. at Freight and Salvage. Cost is $17.50-$18.50. 548-1761. www.freightandsalvage.org 

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

Edo Castro and Jeff Schmidt at 7 p.m. at Caffe Trieste, 2500 San Pablo Ave., at Dwight. 548-5198.  

And a Few to Break, The Attachments, Timothy Rabbit at 9:30 p.m. at The Starry Plough. Cost is $7. 841-2082 www.starryploughpub.com 

Headnodic & Raashan Ahmad at 9:30 p.m. at Shattuck Down Low. Cost is $5. 548-1159.  

Stanley Clarke at 8 and 10 p.m., through Sun. at Yoshi’s at Jack London Square. Cost is $24-$28. 238-9200. www.yoshis.com 

PFA HOSTS ANTONIONI RETROSPECTIVE 

Pacific Film Archive is presenting a retrospective of the work of modernist director Michelangelo Antonioni. Antonioni had his roots in the neo-realist school of Italian filmmaking but soon moved beyond it into the langorous, minimalist films that would make his reputation, a body of work that often depicts the world and the human soul as vast, empty landscapes. The series begins Friday and runs through April 22. $4-$8. 2575 Bancroft Way. www.bampfa.berkeley.edu. 

SELF-GUIDED TOURS OF ‘ART OF LIVING BLACK’ 

A self-guided tour of “The Art of Living Black,” featuring the work of local black artists, will take place this Saturday and Sunday (March 3-4). The show includes the work of more than 90 emerging and established artists in a group exhibition through March 16 at the Richmond Art Center. Additional work is featured by the 2006 Jan Hart-Schuyers Artistic Achievement Award recipients: Aaron Carter, Patricia Patterson and Roosevelt Washington. 2540 Barrett Ave., Richmond. Noon-5 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday. 620-6772. 

THEATREFIRST’S ‘NATHAN THE WISE’ 

TheatreFIRST brings G.E. Lessing’s masterpiece Nathan the Wise to the stage at the Old Oakland Theater through March 4. This small, game troupe with high production standards and an ambitious, socially aware repertoire based on an internationalist perspective has come close to outdoing themselves with this outstanding show. 8 p.m. Thursdays through Saturdays and 3 p.m. Sundays. $21-$25. 481 Ninth St., Oakland. 436-5085. www.theatrefirst.org.

Le Bateau Ivre—“The Drunken Boat”—that unique coffee house, restaurant and bar will celebrate its 35th anniversary Monday with a special musical program in the recently inaugurated (and very eclectic) Monday night art performance series: Dazzling Divas, operatic arias and duets by Verdi, Puccini, Mozart, Bizet, Charpentier and others, sung by Bay Area favorites Pamela Marie Connelly, Tara Generalovich, Kathleen Moss, Eliza O’Malley and MaryAnne Stanislaw, accompanied by Jonathan Alford, piano. Admission is free. 

The divas are familiar faces from the stages of Berkeley Opera, Oakland Opera Theater, SF Lyric Opera, The Lamplighters, Pocket Opera, Opera San Jose and the American Musical Theater of San Jose, as well as bigger houses like the SF and LA Operas and New York City Opera. 

Jonathan Alford’s credits include performances at Zellerbach, with the Oakland Ballet and both onstage and in the recording studio with many top names in jazz and Latin music. 

Since its inception this New Year’s Day, the new Monday night series has featured performances ranging from Klezmer and Bluegrass to Sicilian and French cafe music. 

Thomas Cooper and Arlene Giordano opened their establishment on March 5, 1972, after Cooper had walked in an open side door one day the previous fall out of curiosity, saying to himself, “it would be a nice coffee house.” 

Cooper, from an old East Kentucky family, had come to the Bay Area after seven years in Europe, on his way to Japan, but stayed on in Berkeley. “I’d always fantasized about opening a coffee house,” he said, “but it was never a very solid thought. I’d listen to Vivaldi mandolin music and daydream about it.” 

The daydream became a reality as they began to restore the neglected building. “A couple of brothers owned it, who had got into drugs,” Cooper recalled. “It was almost torn down. One guy we had come in to take a look said it was like the Viet Cong had hit it.”  

Originally a home built by a Frenchman in 1898, the building sported architectural features like a porch supported by four semi-nude female caryatids—until the 1906 Quake. It was renovated twice more before the Second World War. The fireside room in the back, where performances are held, was built of brick in 1940. “It was used as a small theater in the ‘40s,” said Cooper. “When we were restoring it, we sealed in the curtain. Strangely, that’s just where musical groups today want to stand.” Cooper and Giordano bought the building in 1976. 

The name came when Cooper told a French friend that he, once a merchant seaman out of the Mediterranean, was thinking of calling the new coffee house The Boat. “‘Why not add ‘Drunken’ to it? ‘Bateau Ivre’,” she said. Both forms of the name stuck, the Coopers using the English version of Rimbaud’s poem title increasingly since 1995. “It’s easier for people. I’ve heard it called The Ivory Boat ... or The Drunken Goat!” 

“We continue to work on it,” Cooper said. “Arlene’s constantly searched out furniture and decor since the beginning. Everything in the building’s been redone, but we try to maintain it as it was, maintain the beauty of the building. We’re its custodians. And it’s essentially the same place it was when we opened. It’s not dated, but has taken on a certain patina after 35 years. It fits our taste. We fixed it up, but tried to keep it simple, down to earth. A simple-hearted yet refined ambiance.” 

DAZZLING DIVAS 

Le Bateau Ivre’s 35th Anniversary 

Monday, March 5 

open 6-10 p.m., performance 7-9 p.m. 

2928 Telegraph Ave., 849-1100

Mark Jackson’s new play, American $uicide, now playing at the Thick House on San Francisco’s Potrero Hill, locks horns with the old saw that it’s lonely at the top. Instead, the message seems to be that when you’re scaling the heights, everybody else is yelling, “Jump!” 

Long before Warhol came up with the notion of any and everybody’s 15 minutes of fame, playwright Nicolai Erdman penned The Suicide, a satiric look at the individual in Soviet society of the 1920s, after years of famine, civil war, blockades by the Western powers, epidemics and the wayward New Economic Policy, which tried to introduce a limited form of capitalism into the avowedly Marxist-Leninist state. His play didn’t make it to the stage for over 50 years. Condemned and banned, The Suicide disappeared from sight, and Erdman never wrote another play. 

Jackson, who both adapted and directed American $uicide, has garnered a reputation in Berkeley and around the bay for the two plays he wrote and staged for the Shotgun Players, The Death of Meyerhold (a kind of biopic onstage of Erdman’s contemporary, the great Russian man of the theater) and The Forest Wars (which just concluded an extended run at the Ashby Stage), and his guest direction of Oscar Wilde’s Salome for Aurora last year, as well as the productions of his own Art Street Theatre from 1999 to 2004. With American $uicide, he takes what’s become something considered as a kind of deferred classic of a great and difficult era of theater and society, adapting it to the post-dotcom, media-saturated America of three quarters of a century later. 

Sam Small (Jud Williford) is an unemployed house husband, frustrated with his asocial nonrole in the world. But while his wife, Mary (Beth Wilmurt) slaves as a waitress, Sam has time to act out his frustrations with vague threats of suicide—and time to dream of really acting, that is, becoming an actor. That’s the way to make a bundle, he reasons, and it’s got to be easy. 

His career takes off faster than he thinks, due to the loopy cast of characters that surround his bland figure and his wife’s demure normality. Getting a book on acting from the neighborhood Avon Lady, who lives down the street in her car (Delia MacDougall as “Gigi Bolt, of Theater Communications Group”), Sam stumbles into being cast in an independent film meant as the comeback vehicle for both its frightwigged director (Michael Patrick Gaffney) and overripe starlet (Jody Flader)—all because he’s threatened suicide, so is seen as desperate, a natural. His web-hustling, across-the-hall neighbor Albert (Marty Pistone) parlays the casting into a stalking horse for something really grandiose, when he appoints himself Sam’s agent, converts the porn site he’s been flooding with videos of himself and new bartender girlfriend (Denise Balthrop Cassidy) to an auction house to sponsor Sam’s suicide by the highest bidder. 

“Mysterious men” (all played by Liam Vincent) appear, both a wannabe terrorist and an undercover G-man, trying to convince Sam to banner their ideology as his last words, while Gigi implores him to “die for the American Theater!” And so midnight draws near, everybody wildly dancing and drinking, waiting for the broadcast of Sam’s last words and the opening of the envelope containing the name of the winner—who (or what) he’ll die for. 

The script provides the opportunity for many quick, funny bits with the cast of loons that surround Everyman Sam, a few as quick slapstick demonstrations of something like Meyerhold’s Biomechanical exercises (as when Albert scuffles with Sam, trying to keep him from killing himself too early in the game—which Sam had no intention of), others as tableaux of the characters in Raquel Barreto’s costumes (Albert as a louche cop, or his girlfriend as a sad, pink-eared Playboy bunny).  

Russian and Soviet drama had (and has) a number of sophisticated techniques--and, more importantly, styles--to realize the stylized performance of ultra-caricatures ... Biomechanics, Eccentrism, Defamiliarized and “alienated” succeeding styles ... all drawn originally from models of popular entertainment, like Commedia Dell’Arte, of which Meyerhold must be counted as one of the modern rediscoverers. These take discipline, and can push past the limits of representation, creating a new kind of satire. “The Grotesque is the triumph of Form over Content,” Meyerhold held forth. Sometimes a joke is more than a joke; it can bend the space around it. 

American $uicide allows a crew of good actors to ham it up, in the best sense, overacting a panoply of cartoonish characters to the point of a balloon about to burst. But, amusing as they are, the portrayals and routines are overblown sitcom material—Albert and girlfriend a contemporary and loopier Fred-and-Ethel neighbor couple. Erdman’s original hit a nerve, was banned ... Jackson’s adaptation sports a populist message, just what’s expected, a facile swipe at the usual straw men, reading more like Meet John Doe, Frank Capra’s silver screen vehicle for Cooper and Stanwyck, adapted as a farce. 

Stylized pictures of American society that touch a nerve prove unpalatable to the same success machine that devours ringers like Sam and Mary, include those by Poe (a hero for many Russian artists) or the Melville of The Confidence Man. Stroheim made Greed out of Frank Norris’ McTeague, book about a dentist obsessed with gold, boldly caricatured. And Sherwood Anderson peopled Winesburg, Ohio with his Grotesques. There are other examples in films by Orson Welles and Samuel Fuller. American $uicide’s sketches are diverting, but don’t find their way in the tradition of stylized satire, Russian or American. 

AMERICAN $UICIDE 

Thick House, 1695 18th St., San Francisco. 

$25-30. (415) 437-6775. www.zspace.org.

Few crime stories have captured the public imagination like the Zodiac murders that terrorized the Bay Area in the late ’60s and early ’70s. The case has become part of local folklore, transforming the mysterious killer who targeted couples in remote lovers’ lanes and threatened to bomb school buses into the de facto bogeyman for a generation of Bay Area children who came of age in the following decade. 

Zodiac, David Fincher’s new film based on the best-selling books by former San Francisco Chronicle editorial cartoonist Robert Graysmith, is the first of the story’s many cinematic adaptations to stay true to the facts. Previous films took liberties with the tale, embellishing, altering and simplifying the details for dramatic effect. Thus far only Fincher has had the clarity of mind to focus on the real drama of the story, which is not the depravity of the murders or the killer’s twisted mind, but the investigation itself and the toll it took on the men involved.  

In adapting Graysmith’s work, Fincher and screenwriter James Vanderbilt have focused on the strengths that constitute the enduring value of the books: that they have served as much-needed compendiums of the facts and theories which had hitherto been far flung among competing agencies in the various jurisdictions where the killer struck. 

The film starts with Zodiac’s second attack, after which he sent his first letter and cipher to the press, establishing for the first time in the public consciousness the disquieting reality that a serial killer was at work in the Bay Area. And, with the exceptions of three more scenes depicting later attacks, the film primarily consists of conversations between reporters, editors, detectives and suspects. As such, Zodiac slips into something of a pattern, one familiar from television’s ubiquitous talking head- and dateline-laden forensic dramas. Though the film is well crafted, it still lapses at times into the familiar cliches of the police procedural genre: tense discussions between a skeptical detective and an excited journalist, the latter eager to condense his insights into the “just two minutes” the former has allotted for the meeting; the late-night talks in restaurants featuring notes scrawled on napkins, with utensils positioned as makeshift maps to illustrate pet theories; and why is it that the men in these dramas are so often ravenous, taking huge bites of artery-clogging foods and chewing with their mouths open? Aren’t there any less hackneyed shorthand methods for portraying the driven, the dedicated and the self-destructive? 

The actors are forced to bring their characters alive within the limited confines of the procedural genre, and only Mark Ruffalo succeeds fully. Robert Downey Jr. is charismatic and by most accounts effective in channeling the wit and energy of Chronicle reporter Paul Avery, yet he has little time to do so and limited material with which to do it, resulting in a performance that comes across as too cynical, too sarcastic, too one-dimensionally clown-like to ring true. Jake Gyllenhaal too is limited by the material, yet in his case ample screen time actually works against the performance, giving us scene after scene of him nervously jumping about like an agitated schoolboy. We are not convinced we’re witnessing a case of obsession but are instead acutely aware that we are watching an actor employ the standard theatrical devices for conveying that obsession. Again, the details of the performance may be authentic, but sometimes absolute veracity just doesn’t translate well on screen. 

But Ruffalo, as San Francisco Police Inspector Dave Toschi, really hits the mark. Toschi benefited and suffered at the hands of Hollywood; Bullitt (1968) made him something of a legend, with Steve McQueen taking many details, including his unique holster, from Toschi, while Clint Eastwood’s Dirty Harry (1971) maddened Toschi as the hero’s vigilante-like approach to the “Scorpio” killer only helped to increase public frustration with Toschi and the real-life manhunt that consumed the Bay Area. Here Toschi was tracking a killer who was obsessed and inspired by movies and only now have the movies finally given Toschi his due in the form of Ruffalo’s sympathetic portrayal. Ruffalo’s Toschi is brave, bright, articulate and passionate, but at the same time flawed, tormented and ultimately all too human.  

The most significant flaw of the film is its focus on Graysmith, a character who, though integral to the tale, is hardly the most compelling figure in the story. Really the main character should have been Toschi, with a late digression toward Graysmith once the official investigation had wound down, but later returning again to Toschi to show the effect Graysmith’s discoveries had on the retired inspector as new facts, theories and circumstantial evidence pointed time and again to Arthur Leigh Allen, Toschi’s favorite suspect all along. If the premise of the film, according to its publicity, is that that the men who waged the investigation and were in the end undone by it should be tallied among the killer’s victims, why is the dramatic thrust skewed toward the only character who managed to significantly benefit from the case in the form of best-selling books and Hollywood movie deals?  

For the most part, Fincher’s direction is strong enough to overcome these obstacles, managing to create a film that is stylish without being showy. He stages the murder scenes simply and for the most part accurately, and keeps the investigation scenes moving despite the static nature of the format. One shot adds a chilling but subtle flourish to the murder of San Francisco Yellow Cab driver Paul Stine: The scene opens with an overhead shot of the cab as it winds its way through the streets of the city, the camera shifting with each turn as though locked in place with the car, suggesting care with which the killer choreographed and mapped the encounter, leading Stine on a slow death march from the theater district to the Presidio Heights neighborhood where he would be shot. 

Zodiac may be the definitive celluloid incarnation of the case, one that is unlikely to be bettered, but still it encounters the same dilemma that stymied the creators of last year’s low-budget version, The Zodiac: There’s just no way to effectively conclude the film, for there is no definite conclusion to the real-life story. Once again, Fincher turns to the Graysmith character with a scene in which Gyllenhaal finally gets to look the killer in the eye. But whatever emotional impact the scene might have achieved is undermined by the fact that we, the audience, have already looked into these eyes in an earlier scene. Again, a better conclusion might have been wrung from the fates of Toschi or Avery.  

Instead the anti-climactic encounter is followed simply by the standard coda in which we read what later became of each of the characters. It is a strong film, at times even a powerful film, and its strength lies in its adherence to facts. However, veracity doesn’t necessarily make for great art. Reality is rarely obliging in that way.  

ZODIAC 

Directed by David Fincher. Written by James Vanderbilt. Starring Jake Gyllenhaal, Mark Ruffalo, Robert Downey Jr., Anthony Edwards. Rated R.  

160 minutes. Playing at the California Theater. 

Photograph: Jake Gyllenhaal and Robert Downey Jr. as San Francisco Chronicle cartoonist Robert Graysmith and reporter Paul Avery in David Fincher’s Zodiac.