FRIDAY, APRIL 6 

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 

“Dismantling Empire: Creating a Culture of Peace” St. Joseph the Worker Good Friday Service with Rev. Michael Yoshii at 7 a.m. at Livermore Labs, intersection of Vasco and Patterson Pass Rd. 482-1062. 

City Commons Club Noon Luncheon with Claudine Torfs on “The Epidemiology of Birth Defects” Luncheon at 11:45 a.m. for $14, speech at 12:30 p.m., at the Berkeley City Club, 2315 Durant St. For information and reservations call 526-2925.  

Berkeley Public Library 5th Birthday Party for its new Renovated Central Library from 1:30 to 2:30 p.m. with music and a cake. 981-6107. www.berkeleypubliclibrary.org  

“Return of the Condor: The Race to Sve Our Largest Bird from Extinction” with John Moir at 7 p.m. at Oakland Museum of California, 10th and Oak St., Oakland. 238-2200. 

“Mardi Gras: Made in China” a documentary on the women workers making beads at 7:30 p.m. at Humanist Hall, 390 27th St., midtown Oakland. Donation $5. www.HumanistHall.net 

Movies That Matter “The Motorcycle Diaries” at 6:30 p.m. at the Neumayer Residence, 565 Bellevue St. at Perkins, Oakland. 451-3009. 

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, APRIL 7 

City Of Berkeley City-Wide Easter Egg Hunt from 9:15 to 11:30 a.m. at Willard Park, 2730 Hillegass Ave. Activities include carnival games, face painting, picture with bunnies, goodie bags, egg hunt and treasure hunts. Check in at 9:15 a.m. to register for the hunt. Cost is $5. 981-6678. 

Eggster Egghunt and Learning Festival with educational activities for children and their families from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. in front of the Valey Life Sciences Bldg., UC Campus. 204-4613. www.eggster.org 

Berkeley History Center Walking Tour “UC Memorial Stadium, Sports Hall of Fame and Live Oak Trees” led by Bruce Goodell at 10 a.m. Cost is $8-$10. For information on meeting place and to register call 848-0181. 

38th Annual UC Open Taekwondo Championship, beginning at 8:30 a.m. and running though out the day, at the Haas Pavilion 2301 Bancroft Way. Cost is $3-$8. 642-3268. www.ucmap.org 

Mt. Wanda Wildflower Walk Join a Park Ranger for a walk in the hills where John Muir took his daughters. Terrain is steep, wear walking shoes and bring water. Rain cancels. Meet at 9 a.m. at the Cal-Trans Park and Ride lot at the corner of Alhambra Ave. and Franklin Canyon Rd., Martinez. 925-228-8860. 

“Count Down Your Age” Tips on reversing the aging process with Dave Brunell of the Longlife Club, at 2 p.m. at Berkeley Public Library, 2090 Kittredge St. Sponsored by Friends of the Berkeley Public Library. 981-6107. 

Extra Dimensions and String Theory: Physics of the Future or Pure Mathematics? with Professor Lawrence M. Krauss and Professor John Terning from 1 to 4 p.m. at Lawrence Hall of Science www.multiversaljourneys.org 

“Lead-Safe Painting and Remodeling” Learn how to detect and remedy lead hazards and conduct lead-safe renovations for your older home. Sponsored by the Alameda County Lead Poisoning Prevention Program. From 10:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. at the Cesar E. Chavez Branch Library, 3301 E. 12th Street, Suite 271, Oakland. Free. 567-8280. www.aclppp.org 

Help Tutor Teens Training session for new volunteers in the Homework Assistance Program from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Oakland Public Library, Rockridge Branch, 5366 College Ave., Oakland. 238-7233. 

Common Agenda Regional Network General Meeting to discuss Iraq War responses, Pelosi Lobby project, and other progressive concerns at 2 p.m. at the Peace Action office, 2800 Adeline.  

Hopalong Animal Rescue Come meet your new best dog friend from noon to 3 p.m. at Pet Food Express Rockridge, 5144 Broadway, Oakland. 267-1915, ext. 500. www.hopalong.org  

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

Petite Pooches Playgroup for small dogs from 10:30 11:30 a.m., one block north of Solano on Ensenada at Talbot. 524-2459. 

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

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. 

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, APRIL 8 

Architecture Tour of the Oakland Museum of California, 10th and Oak St., designed by Kevin Roche. Meet at 1 p.m. at the koi pond, first level. Free. 238-2200. 

Easter Egg Hunt from 1 to 2 p.m. at Elephant Pharmacy, 1607 Shattuck Ave. 549-9200. 

Meet the Bunnies: Adopt, Don’t Breed from 2 to 4 p.m. at RabbitEars, 303 Arlington Ave., Kensington, behind Ace Hardware. 525-6155. 

Easter at the Kensington Farmer’s Market from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at 303 Arlington Ave., Kensington, behind Ace Hardware. 525-7232. 

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 

Salon in the Grove to decorate the trees and discuss the ongoing protest at 2 p.m. at the Memorial Oak Grove in front of the UC Stadium. lkaybrown@hotmail.com 

Free Garden Tours at Regional Parks Botanic Garden in Tilden Park Sat. and Sun. at 2 p.m. Call to confirm. 841-8732. www.nativeplants.org 

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 Bob Russo in “Peace through Understanding: Meditation in Action” at 6 p.m. at the Tibetan Nyingma Institute, 1815 Highland Pl. 843-6812. www.nyingmainstitute.com 

MONDAY, APRIL 9 

Cancer Prevention and Survival Cooking Class at 6:30 p.m. at Keller Williams, 4341 Piedmont Ave., 2nd Flr., Oakland. To register call Lori at 531-2665. 

“Different Approaches to Healing Stress” with Dr. Jay Sordean, LAc, OMD, ND, at 7 p.m. at the Kensington Library, 61 Arlington Ave., Kensington. 524-3043. 

Teen Wild Guide Training at the Oakland Zoo Teen volunteers are needed to assist in the new Valley Children’s Zoo. Training from 7 to 8 p.m. at the Oakland Zoo. For information call 632-9525. www.oaklandzoo.org 

Red Cross Blood Drive from 9:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. at East Pauley Ballroom, MLK Student Union. To schedule an appointment call 1-800-GIVE-LIFE or go to www.BeADonor.com Code: UCB. 

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

TUESDAY, APRIL 10 

“Impact of the 1906 Earthquake on Berkeley” with Richard Schwartz and Stepehn Tobriner on “Bracing for Disaster” at 7 p.m. at the Berkeley Public Library, 2090 Kittredge St. 981-6107. 

Berkeley High School Governance Council meets at 4:15 p.m. in the Berkeley Community Theater Lobby to discuss the proposal for denise brown mural, proposed change in Bylaws, and budget decisions. 644-4803. 

March Across Emeryville for Justice for Woodfin Workers Rally at 5 p.m. at the Emeryville City Hall, Park St. at Hollis, and march at 6 p.m. at the Woodfin Suites. www.workingeastbay.org 

Free Diabetes Screening from 8:15 to 11 a.m. at the North Berkeley Senior Center. Do not eat or drink anything for 8 hours beforehand. 981-5332. 

A Week Without Racism Film Festival “Girl Trouble” at 5:30 p.m. at the YWCA, 2600 Bancroft Way. Free. www.ywca-berkeley.org 

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. 

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 

Cancer Prevention and Survival Cooking Class at 6:30 p.m. at Keller Williams, 4341 Piedmont Ave., 2nd Flr., Oakland. To register call Lori at 531-2665. 

“Poles for Hiking, Trekking and Walking” at 7 p.m. at REI, 1338 San Pablo Ave. 527-4140. 

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 offer ongoing classes in exercise and creative arts, and always welcome new members over 50. 845-6830. 

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 11 

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 Ignacio Chapela and expert guests to discuss what is at stake in the proposed steps for the filling of the Canyon by the UC-LBL Rad-Labs, and now British Petroleum. http://canyonwalks.blogspot.com  

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

“Building Alliances: Latinos, Immigration & The Environment” with Maria Elena Durazo, head of the LA County Federation of Labor; Margot Pepper, Teacher at Rosa Parks School; Hilary Abell, Exec. Director of WAGES at 4 p.m. at Berkeley City College Auditorium. www.ecologycenter.org/chavez  

“China and India: How Japan Approaches Asia’s Two Giants” A lecture with Ambassador Sakutaro Tanino, former Japanese Ambassador to China and India at 4 p.m. in the IEAS Conference Room, 2223 Fulton St., 6th flr. 642-2809. 

“Ira Nowinski”s San Francisco” a slide presentation at 10:30 a.m. at the Oakland Museum of California, 1000 Oak St. Cost is $12.50. 238-2200. 

Free Diabetes Screening from 8:15 to 11 a.m. at the North Berkeley Senior Center. Do not eat or drink anything for 8 hours beforehand. 981-5332. 

“Kayaking 101” with paddling specialist Scott Goodman at 7 p.m. at REI, 1338 San Pablo Ave. 527-4140. 

A Week Without Racism Film Festival “When the Levees Broke: A Requiem in four Acts” the documentary by Spike Lee about the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina at 5:30 p.m. at the YWCA, 2600 Bancroft Way. Free. www.ywca-berkeley.org 

ReelVenezuela, Venezuelan films at 7:30 p.m. at La Peña Cultural Center. Cost is $7-$9. 849-2568. www.lapena.org 

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

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. 

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 

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

THURSDAY, APRIL 12 

“Seeds and the Privatization of Life” with Ignacio Chapela. Learn about the importance of saving seed diversity and about the local projects that are putting control back into the hands of local gardeners. At 7 p.m. at the Ecology Center, 2530 San Pablo Ave. 548-2220, ext. 233. 

William Sloane Coffin Awards will be presented to Robert N. Bellah and Nancy Scheper-Hughes at 5:15 p.m. at the First Congregational Church of Berkeley, 2345 Channing Way. Reception follows. 559-9500. 

A Week Without Racism Film Festival “In This World” a documentary on human trafficking at 5:30 p.m. at the YWCA, 2600 Bancroft Way. Free. www.ywca-berkeley.org 

“Jewish Superheroes” with comic book expert Rabbi Harry Manhoff at 7:30 p.m. at the JCCEB, 1414 Walnut St. 839-2900, ext. 347. 

Peace Action West: 50 Years of Waging Peace Celebration with dinner and reminiscences at 6 p.m. at Madison’s, Lake Merritt Hotel, Oakland. Tickets are $125. RSVP to 839-3100. 

ReelVenezuela, Venezuelan films at 7:30 p.m. at La Peña Cultural Center. Cost is $7-$9. 849-2568. www.lapena.org 

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. http://botanicalgarden.berkeley.edu 

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 Youth Alternatives Girls Basketball Age 15 and under league begins April 11 and 18 and under begins April 13. From 5:30 to 8:30 at Emery High School, 1100 47th St. Emeryville. Cost is $175 per team. 845-9066.  

CITY MEETINGS 

Youth Commission meets Mon., April 9, at 6:30 p.m., at City Council Chambers, Old City Hall. 981-6670.  

Homeless Commission meets Wed., April 11, at 7 p.m., at the North Berkeley Senior Center. Jane Micallef, 981-5426. 

Police Review Commission meets Wed., April 11, at the South Berkeley Senior Center. 981-4950.  

Waterfront Commission meets Wed., April 11, at 7 p.m., at 201 University Ave. Cliff Marchetti, 981-6740. 

Community Health Commission meets Thurs., April 12 , at 6:45 p.m., at the North Berkeley Senior Center. 981-5356.  

Zoning Adjustments Board meets Thurs., April 12, at 7 p.m., in City Council Chambers. Mark Rhoades, 981-7410.  

FRIDAY, APRIL 6 

THEATER 

“Clown Bible” acrobatic theater based on man’s relationship with God, Thurs.-Sat. at 8 p.m. at Willard Middle School Metal Shop Theater, 2425 Stuart St., through April 14. Tickets are $15-$20. www.brownpapertickets.com 

Masquers Playhouse “She Loves Me” Fri. and Sat. at 8 p.m. at Masquers Playhouse, 105 Park Place, Point Richmond. Tickets are $12. 232-4031. www.masquers.org  

Shotgun Players “Blood Wedding” Thurs.-Sun. at 8 p.m. at the Ashby Stage, 1901 Ashby Ave., through April 29. Tickets are $17-$25. 841-6500. www.shotgunplayers.org 

Marga Gomez “Laugh Baby Laugh” at 8 p.m. at La Lesbian @ La Peña, Tickets are $20. 849-2568. www.lapena.org 

Wilde Irish Productions “The Cripple of Inishmaan” Wed.-Sat. at 8 p.m., Sun. at 2 p.m. at the Berkeley City Club, 2315 Durant Ave., through April 15. Tickets are $20-$25. 644-9940. 

EXHIBITIONS 

“City of Walls, City of People” The urban experience in Oakland, CA, and Venice, Italy, a collaboration with California College of the Arts, and Istituto Universitario di Architettura, Design e Arti, in Venice. Reception at 6 p.m. at Pro Arts, 550 Second St., Oakland. 763-9425. 

“New Works by Judith Hoersting and Judi Miller” Opening reception at 6 p.m. at Mercury 20 Gallery, 25 Grand Ave. at Broadway. Exibition runs to April 28. mercurytwenty@gmail.com 

“Collaboration of Poetry and Painting” Works by Louis Delsarte and Ntozake Shange opens with a reception at 6 p.m. at Joyce Gordon Gallery, 406 14th St., Oakland. Exhibition runs through April 30. 465-8928. www.joycegordongallery.com 

“Jarring Realities” Paintings and sculptures by Scott Hove, Donna Mendes and Marty McCorkle opens at the Esteban Sabar Gallery, 480 23rd St., and runs through April 30. 444-7411. www.estebansabar.com 

David Gentry: Conserved Constructs featuring mixed-media sculptures. Reception at 6 p.m. at Pro Arts, 550 Second St., Oakland. 763-9425. 

“Chino Latino Meets the Angel Baby” Photographs by Robert Jew opens with a reception at 7 p.m. at the Front Gallery, 35 Grand Ave., Oakland. 444-2900. 

FILM 

“Tropical Malady: Shot-by-Shot” with Director Apichatpong Weerasethakul at 7 p.m. at the Pacific Film Archive. Cost is $4-$8. 642-0808. www.bampfa.berkeley.edu 

READINGS AND LECTURES 

Sadiya Hartman introduces “Lose Your Mother: A Journey Across the Atlantic Slave Route” at 7 p.m. at Cody’s Books on Fourth St. 559-9500.  

New Perspectives on East Asia Book Series Natsuo Kirino reads from “Grotesque” at noon in the Heyns Room, Faculty Club, UC Campus. 642-2809. 

John Moir describes “Return of the Condor: The Race to Save Our Largest Bird from Extinction” at 7 p.m. at Oakland Museum of California, 10th and Oak St., Oakland. 238-2200. 

MUSIC AND DANCE 

Free Jazz Fridays with Woman's Worth, Sword & Sandals, Vholtz at 8 p.m. at 1510 Eighth St. Performance Space, Oakland. Cost is $5-$15 sliding scale. 415-846-9432. 

Resmiranda Vocal Ensemble at 7:30 p.m. at Northbrae Community Church, 941 the Alameda. Tickets are $20-$25 at the door. 

Michael Zilber Quartet at 8 p.m. at Anna’s Jazz Island, 2120 Allston Way. Cost is $12. 841-JAZZ. www.AnnasJazzIsland.com 

Caribbean Allstars, Kalbass at 9:30 p.m. at Ashkenaz. Cost is $13. 525-5054.  

Jack Gates Ensemble, Latin jazz, at 8 p.m. at Caffe Trieste, 2500 San Pablo Ave., at Dwight. 548-5198.  

Marley’s Ghost at 8 p.m. at Freight and Salvage. Cost is $18.50-$19.50. 548-1761.  

The Ravines and Tamra Engle at 7:30 p.m. at Nomad Cafe, 6500 Shattuck Ave. 595-5344. 

Pat Johnson & The New Sheiks, Penelope Houston, Julia Dawn at 9:30 p.m. at The Starry Plough. Cost is $8. 841-2082. www.starryploughpub.com 

Cabrillo Beach Boys, Dirty Looks, Neverending Party at 8 p.m. at 924 Gilman St. Cost is $5. 525-9926. 

Dave Stein Hub-Bub at 9:30 p.m. at Beckett’s Irish Pub, 2271 Shattuck Ave. 647-1790.  

Les Nubians at 9:30 p.m. at Shattuck Down Low. Cost is $25. 548-1159.  

The Sonando Project “Musica de su Mente” The Latin Side of Stevie Wonder at 8 p.m. at Jupiter. 848-8277. 

Tommy Gun and the Bullets, Lincolns at 8:30 p.m. at the Uptown Nightclub, 1928 Telegraph, Oakland. Cost is $6. 451-8100. m 

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

SATURDAY, APRIL 7 

CHILDREN  

“The Story of Norooz” A children’s theatre production in celebration of the Persian New Year at 2 p.m. at the Albany Library, 1247 Marina Ave. 526-3720, ext. 17. 

Los Amiguitos de La Peña with The Crosspulse Rhythm Duo at 10:30 a.m. at La Peña. Cost is $4 for adults, $3 for children. 849-2568.  

FILM 

“Blissfuly Yours” with Director Apichatpong Weerasethakul at 5:30 p.m. at the Pacific Film Archive. Cost is $4-$8. 642-0808. www.bampfa.berkeley.edu 

READINGS AND LECTURES 

Bay Area Poets Coalition holds an open reading, from 3 to 5 p.m., at Strawberry Creek Lodge, 1320 Addison St. Park on the street, not in Lodge parking lot. 527-9905. poetalk@aol.com 

Dave Bunnell, founder of the Long Life Club reads from his new book “Count Down Your Age” at 2 p.m. at Berkeley Public Central Library, 2090 Kittredge St. 981-6142.  

Tucker Malarkey discusses “Resurrection” the discovery of 2,000-year-old Gnostic Gospels at Nag Hammadi, Egypt, shortly after the end of World War II, at 2 p.m. at at Borders Books,, 5800 Shellmound St. 415-250--4706. 

Rafaela Castro reads from “Provocaciones: Letters from the Prettiest Girl in Arvin” stories about growing up Latina in California, at 6 p.m. at the Oakland Public Library, César Chávez Branch, 3301 East 12th St., Oakland. 535-5620. 

Ana-Maurine Lara, AfroDominican American lesbian writer and organizer reads from her new novel “Erzulie’s Skirt” at 2 p.m. at Women’s Cancer Resource Center, 5741 Telegraph Ave., Oakland. RSVP to margo@wcrc.org 601-4040. 

MUSIC AND DANCE 

Sarah Chang, violin, Ashley Wass, piano, at 8 p.m. at Zellerbach Hall, UC Campus. Tickets are $36-$68. 642-9988. 

Mark Growden, Knees and Elbows at 8 p.m. at Oakland Metro, 201 Broadway. Cost is $10. 763-1146. www.oaklandmetro.org 

Gary Wade, blues guitar and vocals at noon at Cafe Zeste, 1250 Addison St. at Bonar, in the Strawberry Creek Park complex. 704-9378. 

Yancie Taylor Jazztet at 8 p.m. at Anna’s Jazz Island, 2120 Allston Way. Cost is $12. 841-JAZZ. www.AnnasJazzIsland.com 

Tito y su Son de Cuba at 9:30 p.m. at Ashkenaz. Cuban dance lesson at 8:30 p.m. Cost is $15. 525-5054. www.ashkenaz.com  

Sotaque Baino, Brazilian music at 9 p.m. at Shattuck Down Low, 2284 Shattuck Ave. Cost is $5-$10. 548-1159. www.shattuckdownlow.com 

Heather Frederick and Jamie Jenkins at 7:30 p.m. at Nomad Cafe, 6500 Shattuck Ave. 595-5344. www.nomadcafe.net 

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

Jarrett Cherner Quartet at 8 p.m. at the Jazzschool. Cost is $15. 845-5373.  

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

The Ravines at 8 p.m. at Spuds Pizza, 3290 Adeline St. Cost is $7. 558-0881. 

Woven Hand, Pelusa, Scott Simon at 9:30 p.m. at The Starry Plough. Cost is $10. 841-2082.  

Terrence Brewer Trio at 8 p.m. at Jupiter. 848-8277. 

Dekapitator, Menacer, Hatchet, Fog of War 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 8 

MUSIC AND DANCE 

“Just April” concert with April Wright at 6 p.m. at St. Paul AME Church, 2024 Ashby Ave. 697-8302. 

Jeremy Taylor at 8 p.m. at Freight and Salvage. Cost is $17.50-$18.50. 548-1761.  

Robert Stewart Quartet at 8 p.m. at Anna’s Jazz Island. Cost is $10. 841-JAZZ.  

Taurus Reggae Bash at 9:30 p.m. at Ashkenaz. 525-5054.  

Second Opinion, S.B.V., Punch at 5 p.m. at 924 Gilman St., an all-ages, member-run, no alcohol, no drugs, no violence club. Cost is $6. 525-9926. 

Asunder, Laudanum, Malefica at 6 p.m. at Oakland Metro, 201 Broadway. Cost is $6. 763-1146. www.oaklandmetro.org 

MONDAY, APRIL 9 

EXHIBITIONS 

“2 of a Kind” Prints by artists from the California Society of Printmakers and the NIAD Center for Art and Disabilities opens at 551 23rd St., Richmond, and runs through June 15. 620-0290. 

FILM 

“Jazz on a Monday Afternoon” Films and discussion on The Swing Era at 2 p.m. at the Berkeley Public Library, 2090 Kittredge St., 3rd flr. 981-6100. 

READINGS AND LECTURES 

Art in the “Athens of the West” with Gray Brechin at 7 p.m. at Berkeley Public Library, 2090 Kittredge St. 981-6150.  

A.C.T.’s “After the War” Panel Discussion with Philip Kan Gotanda, playwright at 5 p.m. in the Maude Fife Room, 315 Wheeler Hall, UC Campus. 643-9670. 

“Actors Reading Writers “Teachers & Students” at 7:30 p.m. at the Berkeley City Club, 2315 Durant Ave. 932-0214. 

Anastasia Goodstein describes “Totally Wired: What Teens and Tweens are Really Doing Online” at 7 p.m. at Cody’s Books on Fourth St. 559-9500. 

Page to Stage Delroy Lindo interviewed by Belva Davis at 7 p.m. at Berkeley Rep, 2025 Addison St. 647-2949. 

Ellen Spertus and other contributors discuss “She’s Such a Geek! Women Write About Science, Technology, & Other Nerdy Stuff" at 7 p.m. in the Bender Room, Mills College, 5000 Mac Arthur Blvd., Oakland. 430-2226. 

Poetry Express with Selene Steese and Michael C. Ford at 7 p.m. at Priya Restaurant, 2072 San Pablo Ave. berkeleypoetryexpress@yahoo.com 

MUSIC AND DANCE 

Tangria Jazz Group at 12:15 p.m. in the Elkus Room, 125 Morrison Hall, UC Campus. 

Fishtank Ensemble & Luminescent Orchestrii at 8 p.m. at Freight and Salvage. Cost is $5. 548-1761.  

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

I.C.P. Orchestra 40th Anniversary Tour at 8 and 10 p.m. at Yoshi’s at Jack London Square. Cost is $10-$16. 238-9200. 

TUESDAY, APRIL 10 

EXHIBITIONS 

“Dirt Show” Ceramic sculpture from the Dept. of Art Practice opens with a reception at 4 p.m. at Worth Ryder Gallery 116 Kroeber Hall, UC Campus, corner of College and Bancroft.  

FILM 

“BB Optics” Optical printing and preservation work at 7:30 p.m. at the Pacific Film Archive. Cost is $4-$8. 642-0808. www.bampfa.berkeley.edu 

A Week Without Racism Film Festival “Girl Trouble” at 5:30 p.m. at the YWCA, 2600 Bancroft Way. Free. www.ywca-berkeley.org 

READINGS AND LECTURES 

Ann-Maurine Lara reads from her novel about three generations of women in the Caribbean at 7:30 p.m. at Laurel Book Store, 4100 MacArthur Blvd., Oakland. 531-2073. 

Self-Preservation Workshop for Film and Video Makers with artist and preservationist Bill Brand at 6 p.m. in the PFA Theater. Cost is $4-$8. 642-0808.  

David Wallin describes “Attachment in Psychotherapy” at 7 p.m. at Cody’s Books on Fourth St. 559-9500. 

MUSIC AND DANCE 

Tee Fee Swamp Boogie at 8:30 p.m. at Ashkenaz. Cajun dance lesson at 8 p.m. Cost is $10. 525-5054.  

John Hammond at 8 p.m. at Freight and Salvage. Cost is $19.50-$20.50. 548-1761.  

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

Larry Vuckovich Jazz/Latin Quartet at 8 and 10 p.m. at Yoshi’s at Jack London Square. Cost is $10-$14. 238-9200.  

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 11 

EXHIBITIONS 

‘eyecatchers” A group show by East Bay women artists at Royal Ground Gallery, 2058 Mountain Blvd., Oakland.  

FILM 

“The Purple Rose of Cairo” at 3 p.m. and “Zero for Conduct” at 8 p.m. at the Pacific Film Archive. Cost is $4-$8. 642-0808.  

A Week Without Racism Film Festival “When the Levees Broke: A Requiem in four Acts” the documentary by Spike Lee about the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina at 5:30 p.m. at the YWCA, 2600 Bancroft Way. Free. www.ywca-berkeley.org 

READINGS AND LECTURES 

“Ira Nowinski’s San Francisco: Poets, Politics, and Divas” with Ira Nowinski at 10:30 a.m. at Oakland Museum of California, 10th and Oak St., Oakland. Cost is $12.50, students $5. 238-2200. 

Nomadic Rambles Storytelling with Ed Silberman at 7 p.m. at Nomad Cafe. 595-5344.  

Neil Fiore describes “The Now Habit: Overcoming Procrastination While Enjoying Guilt Free Play” 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  

MUSIC AND DANCE 

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

Left Turn, No Signal at 8 p.m. at Anna’s Jazz Island, 2120 Allston Way. Cost is $8. 841-JAZZ.  

Bernard Anderson & The Old School Band at 8:30 p.m. at Ashkenaz.Cost is $10. 525-5054.  

Stars Original at 9:30 p.m. at Shattuck Down Low. Cost is $5-$10. 548-1159.  

Buxter Hoot’n at 8 p.m. at Jupiter. 848-8277. 

Ron Carter Quartet at 8 and 10 p.m. at Yoshi’s at Jack London Square., through Sun. Cost is $14-$24. 238-9200.  

THURSDAY, APRIL 12 

THEATER 

Aurora Theatre “Private Jokes, Public Places” opens at 8 p.m. at 2081 Addison St. and runs through May 13. Tickets are $38. 843-4822. 

“Clown Bible” acrobatic theater based on man’s relationship with God, Thurs.-Sat. at 8 p.m. at Willard Middle School Metal Shop Theater, 2425 Stuart St., through April 14. Tickets are $15-$20. www.brownpapertickets.com 

“My Brother Marvin By Zeola Gaye” which chronicles the life and demise of Marvin Gaye at 8 p.m. at the Paramount Theater, 2025 Broadway, Oakland, through April 15. Tickets are $38.50. 625-8497.  

EXHIBITIONS 

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

FILM 

Film and Video Makers at Cal “Time After Time” at 7:30 p.m. at the Pacific Film Archive. Cost is $4-$8. 642-0808.  

A Week Without Racism Film Festival “In This World” a documentary on human trafficking at 5:30 p.m. at the YWCA, 2600 Bancroft Way.  

READINGS AND LECTURES 

Michael Pollan reads from “The Omnivore’s Dilemma: A Natural History of Four Meals” in celebration of National Library Week at 7 p.m. at the James Moore Theatre, Oakland Museum of California, 10th & Oak Streets. 

A Tribute to the Poetry of the Late Bert Meyers will be held at 7 p.m. at Black Oak Books, 1491 Shattuck Ave. 486-0698. 

“Bruce Nauman’s Sound and Video Work” A gallery talk with Anne Walsh at noon at Berkeley Art Museum, 2626 Bancroft Way. 642-0808. 

Daniel Mason reads from his new novel, “A Far Country” at 7:30 p.m. at Mrs. Dalloways, 2904 College Ave. 704-8222. 

Dani Shapiro reads from her new novel about mothers and daughters “Black & White” at 7 p.m. at Cody’s Books on Fourth St. 559-9500. 

MUSIC AND DANCE 

New Century Chamber Orchestra performs Arvo Part, “Tabula Rasa” for string orchestra at 8 p.m. at St. John’s Presbyterian Church, 2727 College Ave. Tickets are $28-$42. 415-357-1111. www.ncco.org 

Sun Quartet at 8 p.m. at the Hillside Club, 2286 Cedar St., $10-15 at door. www.hillsideclub.org  

Breath & Movement Dance at 6 p.m. at Berkeley Art Museum, 2625 Durant Ave. Cost is $5-$8. 981-1710. 

Mills College Graduate Dance Thesis Concert at 8 p.m. at Lisser Hall, Mills College, 5000 MacArthur Blvd, Oakland. Tickets are $8-$10 at the door. 430-2175. 

David Jacob-Strain at 8 p.m. at Freight and Salvage. Cost is $18.50-$19.50. 548-1761. 

Ian Carey Quartet at 8 p.m. at Anna’s Jazz Island, 2120 Allston Way. Cost is $5. 841-JAZZ.  

Noteworthy, a cappella, at 7 p.m. at Caffe Trieste, 2500 San Pablo Ave. 548-5198.  

Everest, The Crazies will Destroy You at 10 p.m. at The Starry Plough. Cost is $5. 841-2082. 

Headnodic & Raashan Ahmad at 9:30 p.m. at Shattuck Down Low, 2284 Shattuck Ave. Cost is $5. 548-1159.  

Mitch Marcus Quartet + 13 at 8 p.m. at Oakland Metro, 201 Broadway. Cost is $10. 763-1146.  

Headshire Griddle, True Margrit, Blue Mire at 9 p.m. at the Uptown Nightclub, 1928 Telegraph, Oakland. Cost is $5. 451-8100.  

FAIRY TALE PROJECT AT ALBANY LIBRARY 

Golden Thread, which has staged some of the most interesting shows in the past few years of Bay Area theater, all around the theme of Middle Eastern cultures and identity, is bringing its Fairy Tale Project, a charming series of family shows, to the Albany Library at 2 p.m. Saturday, April 7. The performance will feature The Story of Norooz, the Persian New Year, which is being celebrated right now, wherever you find people originally from the Caucasus through Central Asia. 1247 Marina Ave. 526-3720 ext. 17, or goldenthread.org. 

‘STRANGE BEDFELLOWS: ART AND PUBLIC POLICY’ 

A series of seven lectures with guest speakers, sponsored by Berkeley City College Professor Chuck Wollenberg, begins April 9 with Gray Brechin, author and reserach geographer at UC Berkeley, speaking on art in the “Athens of the West” at 7 p.m. at the Berkeley Public Library, 2090 Kittredge St. On April 16 artists David Goines and Eduardo Pineda will speak on the art of politics. For information on the series, call 981-6150.  

FREE JAZZ FRIDAYS  

IN OAKLAND 

The Jazz House returns with Free Jazz Fridays, featuring Woman’s Worth, Sword and Sandals and Vholtz performing tonight 8 p.m. tonight (Friday) at the Performance Space at 1510 Eighth St. $5-$15 sliding scale. (415) 846-9432.

A very important painting belonging to the university’s Berkeley Art Museum is about to be auctioned off at Christie’s April 18 sale. The large oil is by the renowned 19th-century painter Vasily Vereshchagin (1842-1904), whose paintings are honored in their display at Moscow’s Tretiakov Museum of Art. The picture, entitled Solomon’s Wall, depicts the West Wall of the Second Temple in Jerusalem. It is part of the artist’s Palestine series and was shown in the 1880s throughout Europe and also in New York. 

Beautifully rendered, it is a superb example of 19th-century history painting. 

It was given to the university by Phoebe Hearst and has been on long-term loan to the Judah L. Magnes Museum where it was appreciated by countless viewers and established a long partnership between the two museums. 

The loss of this painting to the Berkeley community is comparable to the fate of Asher B. Durand’s Kindred Spirits (depicting Thomas Cole and William Cullen Bryant standing on a precipice), which was sold by the New York Public Library, its long-time owner, to the Wal-Mart Museum in Arkansas. The New York public, deprived of this painting, is very angry at its loss. The Berkeley community would be similarly impoverished if this sale should be consummated. 

The mission of the Berkeley Art Museum from the beginning was to be as encyclopedic as feasible. At its late start it could not compete with Yale or Harvard, but fine European and American paintings were acquired. This seems to have come to a virtual standstill.  

A museum is judged primarily by the strength of its collection, so this seems a bad time for the Berkeley Art Museum to auction off one of its prime possessions. The de Young Museum’s recent fund drive for its new buildings was largely successful due to its record of acquisitions by gift and purchase of important art. Acquisitions by the Berkeley Art Museum have been meager in recent years. The museum can hardly expect to raise funds when important gifts such as Solomon’s Wall are sold at auction. 

Peter Selz is the founding director of the Berkeley Art Museum.  

Image: Vasily Vereshchagin’s Solomon’s Wall (1884-1885), oil on canvas. The painting was gifted to the Berkeley Art Museum by Phoebe Hearst.

Dorothy Vance (called Dotty by her childhood friends in Colorado and Dart by her Berkeley friends), radical, anti-nuclear protester and jailbird, rebel girl and woman for peace, vegetarian, feminist, champion of the poor and foe of the powerful, resident of Berkeley for 50 years, and of the Elmwood for 35, friend extraordinaire, mother of three and grandmother of four, the best sister in the world, sociologist and college teacher, librarian, early receptionist for KPFA back in the days when it was upstairs over Edy’s on Shattuck, former drunk and smoker to the end, assertive yet modest and self-effacing, breadmaker, playwright and short story writer, graphic artist, potter and tile maker, creator of award-winning appliqué quilts of great good humor, some on historical, political or cultural themes, others simply whimsical, fundamentally dubious about labels and categories such as those above, died in her home on Russell Street in late February. She was 76. 

Upon being told that she wanted no memorial service or obituary, her friends and family all said, “That sounds just like her.” 

—Roger Moss, Dorothy’s brother 

Image: Detail from a nine-panel quilt of original limericks titled There Was An Old Man, made by Dorothy Vance in 1995.

By KEN BULLOCK 

Special to the Planet 

“A total waste of time that is, looking at cows.” With judgments like this, passed by one “pretend auntie” of Cripple Billy on the title character’s chief pastime in The Cripple of Inishmaan, by Martin McDonagh (author of Berkeley Rep’s recent hit, The Pillowman), the audience is ushered into—and soon surrounded by—the bleak, back-biting and hysterically deadpan, insular world of one of the Aran Islands in the 1930s. There the news, according to ubiquitous, snooping Johnny Pateen, who gathers and recites it, consists of a feud (and a feud is to be relished) between two old friends, after the goose belonging to one bites the tail of the other’s cat, and no apology seems forthcoming. Wilde Irish is now staging the play at the Berkeley City Club, 

But caviling at cow-watching, speaking to rocks, pegging eggs at priests and other parochial preoccupations with each other’s eccentricities and mischief are upstaged by a truly momentous piece of news: an American film (or “fil-um”) crew has landed at nearby Inishmore, under the direction of Robert Flaherty, “one of the richest and most famous Yanks there is,” according to Johnny Pateen. What’s more, the local talent “will be taken back to Hollywood, anyone chosen to be in it, and given a life free of work.” 

That verbal banner headline raises enough of a stir to dampen the incessant complaining about Yanks a bit, bringing up a new golden phrase to be endlessly mutated and recycled: “Sure, and if they came all the way from Hollywood, Ireland can’t be such a bad place after all.” Or wondrous words to that effect. 

But when Cripple Billy learns that local terror, trash-talking tomboy Slippy Helen (“And why shouldn’t a lassie be swearin’?”) has twisted Babbybobby’s arm with a promise of kisses to row her to Inishmore to surely be cast as the romantic lead (“If I’m pretty enough to get clergymen gropin’ my arse ...” reasons Helen, but Bartley McCormack shoots back: “Sure, havin’ your arse groped don’t demand no skill!”), the suddenly enterprising Billy cons the boatman into taking him along, too, on the force of a doctor’s letter that must contain a dire prognosis—one that the lurking Johnny Pateen wants to convert to verbal copy for his raconteurish wire service ... . 

So the plot advances by devolving into a hundred seemingly insignificant subplots and asides that always come ‘round again, snowballing with absurd significance. And just like Zeno’s race between swift Achilles and the plodding tortoise, in which the quicker party must cover so much subdivided ground that the snail-like progress of his opponent easily overtakes him, so reverting to type (and endlessly talking about it) provokes the most unexpected series of reversals, and double-reverses. It’s not for nothing that a brand of Irish doubletalk is referred to as Doin’ the 180. 

Soon enough, the shag is worn off the dog, and the audience is still helplessly laughing at the saddest of predicaments as they inevitably worsen. But this cast of characters, quaint unto death, is bitterly determined. Even after the deepest, darkest truths have been plumbed, the Yank movie screened to the infighting islanders and revealed to be no more than a documentary, complete with shark hunts (“It was a shark ate Daddy,” intones Johnny Pateen’s besotted, disapproving Mammy, “But Jesus says you should forgive and forget!”) the wheel keeps turning, the worst turn out to be best, and a kind of love descends upon the loveless, although all is subject to change at the careless drop of a brutal word. 

Wilde Irish’s valiant cast—Andrew Sa, Arthur Scappaticci, Breda Courtney, Bryn Elizen Harris, Eddie Fitzgerald, Esther Mulligan, Howard Dillon, Shelley Lynn Johnson and Martin Waldron—brave the word-hoard of the darkly humorous McDonagh, making a very funny evening of a treacherous piece of work, one that must trick everyone in order to enlighten. For those who saw The Pillowman, the show at the City Club gives the opportunity to witness McDonagh’s fantastic humor (and dire speculations on what it means to walk the earth and talk about it) now grounded in the Ould Sod. The London-reared playwright had antecedents in Connemara, on Ireland’s West Coast, where the Arans are just off shore. 

The Cripple slips neatly into an ongoing literature of black comedy set in the western islands, with John Synge’s still-controversial masterpiece The Playboy of the Western World taking place in the Arans, and Myles na Gopaleen’s (better known by his other pen name, Flann O’Brien) misanthropic Gaelic novella, translated as The Poor Mouth, in the Blasketts. Each looks at the romancing of primitive Gaeltacht culture with a jaundiced eye, making it clear, too, why Orson Welles’ stage mentor, Michael MacLiammor of the Gate Theatre, on a challenge from his protege to come up with a one word description of the Irish, said “Malice!” And the false naivete of the characters, turned inside-out, recalls the loaded words of the 18th-century tinker Conor Cruise O’Brien liked to quote: “I never was a sadist, but always tried to look on the bright side of things.” 

Stephanie Courtney-Fox, daughter of company co-founder and “phony auntie” Breda Courtney, bellwether to this wayward flock, has shown real prowess in staging as she takes up the reins of Wilde Irish as the new artistic director.  

Wilde Irish has not only succeeded in putting across a dense, ingrown tale that threatens to devour itself—and maybe its listeners—at every turn, they’ve rendered its vertiginous, arch yet mocking tone well, too, through all its cruel vicissitudes. As one of the twisted souls of Inishmaan exclaims, on the verge of some mayhem, “It wouldn’t be a very Christian thing to do, but it would be awful funny!” 

THE CRIPPLE OF INISHMAAN 

Presented by Wilde Irish Productions at 8 p.m. Wednesdays through Saturdays and at 2 p.m. Sundays through April 15 at the Berkeley City Club, 2315 Durant Ave. $20-$25. 644-9940.