FRIDAY, JUNE 15 

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 Robert Birgeneau on “Green Energy at UC Berkeley” Luncheon at 11:45 a.m. for $14, speech at 12:30 p.m., at the Berkeley City Club, 2315 Durant St. 526-2925.  

Conscientious Projector Film Series “An Inconvenient Truth” at 7 p.m., followed by discussion, at Berkeley Fellowship of Unitarian Universalists Hall, 1924 Cedar St. 841-4824. 

“An Inconvenient Truth” will be screened at 2 p.m. at the YWCA Berkeley. 2600 Bancroft Way. Free. 848-6370. 

Berkeley Women in Black weekly vigil from noon to 1 p.m. at Bancroft and Telegraph. Our focus is human rights in Palestine. 548-6310. 

Red Cross Mobile Blood Drive from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at West Pauley Ballroom, MLK Student Union, Bancroft and Telegraph. to schedule an appointment see http://www.beadonor.com Code: UCB. 

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.  

SATURDAY, JUNE 16 

“Downtown: Progress and Options” A public workshop sponsored by the Downtown Area Plan Committee from 10 a.m. to noon at Berkeley High School Library, Allston and Milvia. 981-7487.  

Berkeley Alliance of Neighborhood Associations (BANA) meets at 9:30 a.m. at First Presbyterian Church of Berkeley, 2407 Dana St., Church Lounge, first floor. 

“No Child Left Behind? What is the Consevative, Corporate Agenda for Destroying Our Public Schools?” at 7 p.m. at 1300 Grand St., Alameda. Sponsored by the Alameda Public Affairs Forum. www.alamedaforum.org 

“Summer Time at the Little Farm” A puppet show about life on the farm and the mishaps of a farmer, at 10:45 and 11:30 a.m. at the Tilden Nature Center, Tilden Park. 525-2233. 

Preschool Storytime for 3 to 5-year-olds at 11 a.m. at the Albany Library, 1247 Marin Ave. 526-3720 ext. 17. 

Basic Organic Vegetable Gardening Learn to start growing foods and culinary herbs for your kitchen. We will cover the basics of starting a garden, including selecting and starting your seeds, building good soil, watering plants, and managing bugs and blights. Class is sponsored by the Alameda County Cleanwater Program. Cost is $10-$15. Preregistration required. Call for details and location. 548-2220, ext. 233. 

Vegeterian Cooking Class: Mexican and Southwestern Cuisine from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the First Unitarian Church of Oakland, 685 14th St. at Castro. Cost is $45, plus $5 materials fee. To register call 531-2665.  

Walking Tour of Old Oakland “New Era/New Politics” highlights African-American leaders who have made their mark on Oakland. Meet at 10 a.m. and the African American Museum and Library at 659 14th St. 238-3234.  

Natural History Field Sketching with Tara Reinertson at 3 p.m. at Tilden Nature Area, Tilden Park. 525-2233. 

ADD & Autism: Drug- free Treatment Options for your Child with Thauna Abrin, Naturopathic Doctor at 10 a.m. at Pharmaca, 1744 Solano Ave. at Ensenada. 

“Leaning into the Great Mystery” A workshop on Christian-Buddhist meditation from 9:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. at St. Cuthbert’s Episcopal Church, 7900 Mountain Blvd., Oakland. Cost is $30, includes lunch. To register call 635-4949.  

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 at 10:30 a.m. at 2270 Acton St. 841-2174.  

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.  

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, JUNE 17 

Working with Wool Watch how the spinning wheel turns wool into yarn, try a drop spindle or a felting project. from 1 to 2:30 p.m. at Tilden Nature Area, Tilden Park. 525-2233. 

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

Fathers’ Day Pancake Breakfast from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. aboard the Red Oak Victory Ship moored in Richmond Harbor at 1337 Canal Blvd. Take Hwy 580 and exit at Canal Blvd. Cost is $6. 327-2933. 

Father’s Day Campfire Bring hot dogs, buns, marshmallows and long sticks to the campfire at 5:30 p.m. at Tilden Nature Area, Tilden Park. Accomodation for visitors with disabilities upon advanced request. 525-2233. 

“Climate Change: Nuclear Power in Today’s World” with Karen Street at 1 p.m. at Berkeley Friends Meeting, 2151 Vine. 653-2803. 

Bike Tour of Alameda Explore Alameda on a leisurely 5-mile ride. Meet at 10 a.m. at the 10th St. entrance to the Oakland Museum of California. Reservations required. 238-3514. www.museumca.org 

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 

Red Cross Mobile Blood Drive from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at First Covenant Church, Recreation Rm., 3883 Aliso Ave., Oakland. Call to schedule an appointment. 531-5244. 

Free Hands-on Bicycle Clinic Learn how to repair flats, from 10 to 11 a.m. at REI, 1338 San Pablo Ave. 527-4140. 

Social Action Forum with a program on Delancy Street at 9:30 a.m. at Unitarian Univresalist Church of Berkeley, One Lawson Rd., Kensington. 525-0302. 

Berkeley East Bay Atheists with a multi-media presentation on Carl Sagan by Marc Levenson at 1:30 p.m. at Berkeley Public Library, Comunity Meeting Room, 2090 Kitttredge St. 222-7580. eastbayatheists.org  

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

Tibetan Buddhism with Joleen Vries on “Guarding the Mind” at 6 p.m. at the Tibetan Nyingma Institute, 1815 Highland Pl. 843-6812.  

MONDAY, JUNE 18 

“Mystery in the Big City” A summer reading game for adults runs June 18 to Aug 18 at the Albany Library, 1247 Marin Ave. For information call 526-3720 ext. 16.  

Berkeley CopWatch organizational meeting at 8 p.m. at 2022 Blake St. 548-0425. 

Drop in Knitting Class at the Albany Library Work on your own project or make pet blankets and children’s hats to be donated to charity organizations. At 3:30 p.m. at 1247 Marin Ave. 526-3720, ext. 17. 

TUESDAY, JUNE 19 

Gay Day with entertainment by Gwen Avery, Happy Hyder, Land-a-Lakes and her Queens, and The Cheerleaders, food and door prizes from 1:30 to 4 p.m. at the North Berkeley Senior Center, 1901 Hearst. 981-5190. 

Information for Senior Homeowners, including loan document review at 10 a.m. at the West Oakland Multipurpose Senior Center, 1724 Adeline St. Sponsored by AARP and Acorn Housing. RSVP required. 271-8843. 

Berkeley Library Board of Trustees Information Night for prospective trustees at 6:30 p.m. at the West Branch, 1125 University Ave. For more information call 981-6195. 

Return of the Over-the-Hills Gang Hikers 55 years and older who are interested in nature study, history, fitness, and fun are invited to join us on a series of monthly excursions exploring our Regional Parks. Meet at 10 a.m. at Point Pinole. For information and to register call 525-2233.  

“Low Carbon Diet” Ideas from the Green Team Project on how to live sustainably at 7 p.m. at the Ecology Center 2530 San Pablo Ave. 558-0821. susans@acterra.org 

“Religion and Environment” with Dr. Seyyed Hossein Nasr at 8 p.m. at 433 Madison St., Oakland. Sponsored by The Islamic Cultural Center of Northern California. Cost is $5-$10. iccnc.org. 

Free Diabetes Screening Come find out if you might have diabetes with our free screening test and make sure not to eat or drink anything for 8 hours beforehand, from 9 a.m. to noon at the Downtown Oakland Senior Center, 200 Grand Ave. 981-5332. 

American Red Cross Blood Services Volunteer Orientation at 6 p.m. at 6230 Claremont Ave., Oakland. Registraion required. 594-5165. 

Community Sing-a-Long every Tues, at 2 p.m. at the Albany Senior Center, 1247 Marin Ave. 524-9122.  

Family Storytime for preschoolers and up at 7 p.m. at the Kensington Library, 61 Arlington Ave. 524-3043. 

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.  

Berkeley Camera Club meets at 7:30 p.m., at the Northbrae Community Church, 941 The Alameda. 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. 845-6830. 

WEDNESDAY, JUNE 20 

Walking Tour of Historic Oakland Churches and Temples Meet at 10 a.m. at the front of the First Presbyterian Church at 2619 Broadway. Tour lasts 90 minutes. Reservations can be made by calling 238-3234. www. 

oaklandnet.com/walkingtours 

“Betraying Our Troops: The Destructive Results of Privatizing War” with investigative journalist Dian Rasor, at 7:30 p.m. at First Congregational Church of Berkeley, 2345 Channing Way. Donation $10. 559-9500. 

Reading in Common Berkeley Public Library’s community summer reading program will distribute copies of “The Kite Runner” at Senior Centers at 11:30 a.m. and at Library branches at 1 p.m. Related programs throughout the summer. 981-6257. 

Golden Gate Audubon Society Volunteer Orientation Night at 7 p.m. at 2530 San Pablo Ave., Suite G. 843-2222. 

“Ecological Design: Inventing the Future” A documentary on the emergence of ecological design, beginning with Buckminster Fuller, at 7:30 p.m. at Humanist Hall, 390 27th St., between Telegraph and Broadway, Oakland. Donation $5. www.HumanistHall.net 

“Ernesto Che Guevara, The Bolivian Diary” a documentary at 7 p.m. at the Gray Panther Office, 1403 Addison, in the parking lot behind the university Ave. Andronico’s. 548-9696. 

New to DVD Screening and Discussion at 7 p.m. at JCCEB, 1414 Walnut St. Discussion follows. 848-0237. 

Free Diabetes Screening Come find out if you might have diabetes with our free screening test and make sure not to eat or drink anything for 8 hours beforehand, from 9 a.m. to noon at Healthy Oakland, 2580 San Pablo Ave. 981-5332. 

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. 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, JUNE 21 

“The Art of Sierra Biodiversity” with author and illustrator Jack Miur Laws at 12:30 p.m. at the Oakland Museum of Califonia, 1000 Oak St. and 10th, Oakland. 238-2200.  

“Ripe for Change” A documentary film by Emiko Omori and Jed Riffe on the intersection of food and politics in California over the past 30 years at 7:30 p.m. at the Hillside Club, 2286 Cedar at Arch. Filmmakers will be present for discussion. Cost is $5. 843-8724. 

LeConte Neighborhood Association meets at 7:30 p.m. in the LeConte School cafeteria, entrance on Russell St. karlreeh@aol.com 

Urban Luau for Entrepreneurs at 6 p.m. at Everett and Jones, 126 Broadway, Oakland. Tickets are $35, $60 for a couple. 655-1304. 

Avatar Metaphysical Toastmasters Club meets at 6:45 p.m. at Spud’s Pizza, 3290 Adeline at Alcatraz. namaste@ 

avatar.freetoasthost.info

FRIDAY, JUNE 15 

THEATER 

Aurora Theatre “Bosoms and Neglect” Wed.-Sat. at 8 p.m., SUn. at 2 and 7 p.m. at 2081 Addison St., through July 22. Tickets are $38. 843-4822. www.auroratheatre.org 

Berkeley Rep “Oliver Twist” at 8 p.m. at the Roda Theater, 2015 Addison St. through June 24. Tickets are $45-$61. 647-2949. www.berkeleyrep.org 

Berkeley Rep “Great Men of Genius” with Mike Daisey in four different monologues at 2025 Addison St. through June 30. Tickets are $30-$75. 647-2949.  

California Shakespeare Theater “Richard III” at the Bruns Ampitheater, 100 Gateway Blvd., Orinda, through June 24. Tickets are $15-$60. 548-9666. www.calshakes.org 

“Colorstruck” Donald Lacey’s one-man show at 8 p.m. at Laney College Theater, 900 Fallon St., Oakland. Tickets are $10-$20. 663-5683. www.colorstruck.net 

Impact Theatre “Impact Briefs 8: Sinfully Delicious” Thurs.-Sat. through July 21 at La Val’s Subterranean, 1834 Euclid Ave. Tickets are $10-$15. 464-4468. 

Masquers Playhouse “Ring Round the Moon” Fri. and Sat. at 8 p.m. at 105 Park Place, Point Richmond, through July 14. Tickets are $15. 232-4031. www.masquers.org 

“Pagbabalik” (Return) A multidisciplinary theater production by Aimee Suzara Sat. and Sun. at 8 p.m. at La Peña Cultural Center, 3105 Shattuck Ave. Tickets are $10-$15. 849-2568, ext. 20. 

Shotgun Players “The Cryptogram” Thurs.-Sun. at 8 p.m. at The Ashby Stage, 1901 Ashby Ave., through June 17. Tickets are $17-$25. For reservations call 841-6500. www.shotgunplayers.org 

TheatreFirst “365 Days/365 Plays” at 8 p.m. at Temescal Arts, 48th and Telegraph. Free, reservations requested. 436-5085. www.theatrefirst.com 

Virago Theatre Comapny “The Death of Ayn Rand” and “A Bed of My Own” Fri. and Sat. at 8 p.m. at Rhythmix Cultural Works, 2513 Blanding Ave., Alameda to July 7. Tickets are $10-$17. 865-6237. www.ViragoTheatre.org 

READINGS AND LECTURES 

Andrew Keen discusses “The Cult of the Amateur: How the Democratization of the Digital World is Assaulting Our Ecnomy, Our Culture, and Our Values” at 7:30 p.m. at First Congregational Church of Berkeley, 2345 Channing Way. 559-9500. 

Roger Rapoport reads from “Citizen Moore: The Life and Times of an American Iconoclast” at 7:30 p.m. at Mrs. Dalloways, 2904 College Ave. 704-8222. 

MUSIC AND DANCE 

”Great Moments in American History” Oakland Opera and Oakland East Bay Symphony at 8 p.m. at Oakland Metro, 201 Broadway. Cost is $24. 763-1146. www.oaklandmetro.org 

“The Original Family Stone” at 8 p.m. at Historic Sweet’s Ballroom, 1933 Broadway, Oakland. Tickets are $25-$35. 925-952-4585 www.ambassadorsofamericanculture.com 

Lisa Mezzacappa at Free-Jazz Fridays at 8 p.m. at 1510 8th Street Performance Space, 1510 8th St., Oakland. Cost is $5-$15. 

Vidya “Redefining Jazz through Raga and Rhythm” at 8 p.m. at the Jazzschool. Cost is $15. 845-5373.  

Trio Paradiso at 8 p.m. at Anna’s Jazz Island, 2120 Allston Way. Cost is $15. 841-JAZZ.  

Razorblade and Sister I-Live, reggae, at 9:30 p.m. at Ashkenaz. Cost is $13. 525-5054.  

Dani Torres and Omar Makhtari Latin/flamenco at 8 p.m. at Caffe Trieste, 2500 San Pablo Ave. 548-5198.  

Freight 39th Anniversary Revue with Phil Marsh and Hank Bradley at 8 p.m. at Freight and Salvage. Cost is $15.50-$16.50. 548-1761.  

Jared Karol and Eliza Manoff at 7:30 p.m. at Nomad Cafe, 6500 Shattuck Ave. 595-5344.  

The Porch Flies, Glenn Earl Brown, Crooked Roads at 9:30 p.m. at The Starry Plough. Cost is $5. 841-2082.  

Aggression, Shattered Faith, Soul Control at 8 p.m. at 924 Gilman St., an all-ages, member-run, no alcohol, no drugs, no violence club. Cost is $8. 525-9926. 

The Ghost, CD release party, at 9:30 p.m. at Beckett’s Irish Pub, 2271 Shattuck Ave. 647-1790.  

Stanley at 8 p.m. at Jupiter. 848-8277. 

The Girlfriend Experience, The Catholic Comb, The Hundred Days at 9 p.m. at the Uptown Nightclub, 1928 Telegraph, Oakland. Cost is $6. 451-8100.  

Terence Blanchard at 8 and 10 p.m. at Yoshi’s at Jack London Square. Cost is $10-$22. 238-9200. www.yoshis.com 

SATURDAY, JUNE 16 

CHILDREN  

Celebrate African & African American Heritage with Diane Ferlatte at 1:30 and 2:30 p.m. at Children’s Fairyland, at 699 Bellvue Ave., Oakland. 452-2259. 

EXHIBITIONS 

“A Question of Belief” A group show of paintings, photography and sculpture featuring, Cherie Raciti, Nina Glaser and Marianne Hale. Artist reception at 6 p.m. at Float Gallery, 1091 Calcot Place, Unit # 116 , located in a store front loft of the historic cotton mill studios, Oakland. www.thefloatcenter.com 

“hitmewithaflower” Works by Walter Logue. Opening reception at 7 p.m. at The Gallery Of Urban Art, 1746 13th St. at Wood, Oakland. 910-1833. 

THEATER 

Actors Ensemble of Berkeley “A Dream Play” Sat. and Sun. at 3 p.m. on the lawn in front of Berkeley Art Center, 1275 Wlnut St. at Berryman, through July 1. 841-5580.  

READINGS AND LECTURES 

Bloomsday at Moe’s Books A day-long reading from 10 a.m. at 2476 Telegraph Ave. If you would like to read call 849-2087. 

Carol Pogash describes “Seduced by Madness: The True Story of the Susan Polk Murder Case” at 7 p.m. at Cody’s Books on Fourth St. 559-9500. 

Celebrate Bloomsday with Thomas Lynch reading from Joyce’s “Ulysses” at 11 a.m. at Mrs. Dalloways, 2904 College Ave. 704-8222. 

Mary Ann Mason describes “Mothers on the Fast Track:” at 4 p.m. at Mrs. Dalloways, 2904 College Ave. 704-8222. 

MUSIC AND DANCE 

Company C Contemporary Ballet at 8 p.m., Sun. at 2 p.m. at Malonga Casquelourd Center for the Arts, 1428 Alice St., Oakland. Tickets are $20-$25. www.companycballet.org 

Cecelia and The Hats, a capella, at noon at Cafe Zeste, 1250 Addison St. at Bonar. 704-9378. 

Ed Reed with Peck Allmond Quartet at 8 p.m. at Anna’s Jazz Island, 2120 Allston Way. Cost is $14. 841-JAZZ.  

Lavay Smith and Her Red Hot Skillet Lickers at 9:30 p.m. at Ashkenaz. Swing dance lesson at 8 p.m. Cost is $15. 525-5054. www.ashkenaz.com  

Crooked Roads Band and Pushtunwali at 7:30 p.m. at Nomad Cafe, 6500 Shattuck Ave. 595-5344.  

FiddleKids Faculty FiddleFest at 8 p.m. at Freight and Salvage. Cost is $18.50-$19.50. 548-1761.  

Kellye Gray Quartet at 8 p.m. at the Jazzschool. Cost is $18. 845-5373. www.jazzschool.com 

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

Mario Desio & Dave Gans at 8 p.m. at Spuds Pizza, 3290 Adeline St. Cost is $7. 558-0881. 

Wire Graffiti, Charm School Dropouts, Vincent’s Ear at 9:30 p.m. at The Starry Plough. Cost is $7. 841-2082.  

Joshi Marshall Project at 8 p.m. at Jupiter. 848-8277. 

Chris Murray, Soul Captives, Golfcart Rebillion at 8 p.m. at 924 Gilman St Cost is $7. 525-9926. 

DJ Heartbeat Night at 8 p.m. at Rudramandir, 830 Bancroft Way at 6th. Tickets are $10 at the door. 496-6047. 

Terence Blanchard at 8 and 10 p.m. at Yoshi’s at Jack London Square. Cost is $10-$22. 238-9200.  

SUNDAY, JUNE 17 

READINGS AND LECTURES 

“The Women of Lockerbie” by Deborah Brevort, a staged reading at 7 p.m. at 469 9th St. Oakland. www.theatrefirst.com 

MUSIC AND DANCE 

”Great Moments in American History” Oakland Opera and Oakland East Bay Symphony at 2 p.m. at Oakland Metro, 201 Broadway. Cost is $24. 763-1146.  

Hal Stein Quartet at 2 p.m. at Chapel of the Chimes, 4499 Piedmont Ave., Oakland. Cost is $10. 228-3218. 

5 Second Rule, 1,2,3...Not It!, The Skinny String Gals, Brescia Bloodbeard at 5 p.m. at Ashkenaz, in a benefit for CopWatch. Cost is $5. berkeleycopwatch@yahoo.com 

Fathers’ Day Concert with Faye Carol at 6 p.m. at Black Repertory, 3201 Adeline St. Cost is $15 for fathers, $20 for others. keepersoftheculture@yahoo.com 

Rosalie Sorrels at 8 p.m. at Freight and Salvage. Cost is $20.50-$21.50. 548-1761.  

Pappa Gianni and the North Beach Band at 2 p.m. at Caffe Trieste, 2500 San Pablo Ave., at Dwight. 548-5198.  

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

Americana Unplugged: The Saddlecats at 5 p.m. at Jupiter. 

Dick Conte Quartet at 4:30 at the Jazzschool. Cost is $18. 845-5373.  

Markus James and Wassonrai, African, at 8:30 p.m. at Ashkenaz. Cost is $10. Cost is $5. 525-5054. 

Jacques Ibula at 11 a.m. at Nomad Cafe, 6500 Shattuck Ave. 595-5344.  

Soulbop Band at 8 and 10 p.m. at Yoshi’s at Jack London Square. Cost is $14-$24. 238-9200.  

MONDAY, JUNE 18 

READINGS AND LECTURES 

Stephen Ratcliff reads at 7:30 p.m. at Moe’s Books, 2476 Telegraph Ave. 849-2087. 

Julia Serano reads from “Whipping Girl: A Transsexual Woman on Sexism and the Scapegoating of Femininity” at 7 p.m. at Cody’s Books. 559-9500. 

“The Clearing” by Helen Edmundson, a staged reading at 7:30 p.m. at 469 9th St. Oakland. www.theatrefirst.com 

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

MUSIC AND DANCE 

Hot Frittatas at 7 p.m. at Le Bateau Ivre, 2629 Telegraph Ave. 849-1100.  

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

Blue Monday Jam at 7:30 p.m. at the Uptown Nightclub, 1928 Telegraph, Oakland. Cost is $5. 451-8100.  

West Coast Songwriter’s Showcase at 7 p.m. at Freight and Salvage. Cost is $5. 548-1761.  

Will Bernard at 8 and 10 p.m. at Yoshi’s at Jack London Square. Cost is $6-$12. 238-9200. 

TUESDAY, JUNE 19 

READINGS AND LECTURES 

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

Barry Gifford reads from “Memories from a Sinking Ship” at 7 p.m. at Cody’s Books on Fourth St. 559-9500.. 

MUSIC AND DANCE 

CZ and the Bon Vivants at 8:30 p.m. at Ashkenaz. Cajun dance lesson at 8 p.m. Cost is $10. 525-5054.  

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

Kaspar/Sherman Jazz Quartet at 7 p.m. at Caffe Trieste, 2500 San Pablo Ave. 548-5198.  

Waco, The Altarboys, United Defiance at 9 p.m. at the Uptown Nightclub, 1928 Telegraph, Oakland. Cost is $7. 451-8100.  

New Monsoon at 8 and 10 p.m. at Yoshi’s at Jack London Square. Cost is $10-$16. 238-9200. www.yoshis.com 

Jazzschool Tuesdays at 8 p.m. at Jupiter. 848-8277. 

WEDNESDAY, JUNE 20 

EXHIBITIONS 

“First Exposures: Bay Area Youth Photography” opens at the Mills College Art Museum, 5000 MacArthur Blvd., and runs to Aug. 5. www.sfcamerawork.org 

THEATER 

Queer Cabaret featuring Big City Improv, Jessica Fisher, and Shaunna Bella & Claire Elizabeth, at 8 p.m. at The Ashby Stage, 1901 Ashby Ave. Tickets are $15-$20. All proceeds will go to Shotgun Players Solar Campaign. 841-6500. 

FILM 

International Latino Film Festival “Un Franco, 14 Pesetas” at 7 p.m. at Richmond Public Library, 325 Civic Center Plaza, Richmond. 620-6555. 

READINGS AND LECTURES 

Anne Fadiman reads from “At Large and at Small: Familiar Essays” at noon at Mrs. Dalloways, 2904 College Ave. 704-8222. 

David Rains Wallace describes “Neptune’s Ark: From Ichthyosaurs to Orcas” at 7 p.m. at Cody’s Books on Fourth St. 559-9500. 

Dina Rasor describes “Betraying Our Troops: The Destructive Results of Privatizing War” at 7:30 p.m. at First Congregational Church of Berkeley, 2345 Channing Way. Donation $10. 559-9500. 

Cafe Poetry with Paradise at 7:30 p.m. at La Peña Cultural Center. Cost is $22-$24. 849-2568. www.lapena.org 

MUSIC AND DANCE 

Denise Fraga & Kristan Lynch at 8 p.m. at Anna’s Jazz Island, 2120 Allston Way. Cost is $8. 841-JAZZ. www.AnnasJazzIsland.com 

Balkan Folkdance at 8 p.m. at Ashkenaz. Dance lesson at 7 p.m. Cost is $7. 525-5054. www.ashkenaz.com 

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

Le Jazz Hot at 8 p.m. at Jupiter. 848-8277. 

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

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

Mikie Lee and Amber at 9:30 p.m. at Beckett’s Irish Pub, 2271 Shattuck Ave. 647-1790. www.beckettsirishpub.com 

THURSDAY, JUNE 21 

THEATER 

“Tea N' Crisp” with Quentin Crisp in tribute to national gay pride week at 8 p.m. at The Ashby Stage, 1901 Ashby Ave.Tickets are $25, reservations advised. 841-6500. www.shotgunplayers.org 

EXHIBITIONS 

“Works by Robert Bilensky” Reception at 7 p.m. at Artbeat Salon and Gallery, 1887 Solano Ave. Exhibition runs to Sept. 6. 527-3100. 

“A Photographic Celebration of Culture in the Heart of Oakland” Evening viewing with photographers at 5 p.m. at the Craft & Cultural Arts Gallery, State of California Office Bldg. Atrium, 1515 Clay St., Oakland. 622-8190. 

“Constructions” Works by Jenny Honnert Abell, Marya Krogstad and Thomas Morphis at Berkeley Art Center, 1275 Walnut St. in Live Oak Park, through July 1. www.berkeleyartcenter.org 

“Bridal Fantasies: The Fashion of Dreams” at Lacis Museum of Lace and Textiles, 2982 Adeline St., through August 4. Open Mon.-Sat. noon to 6 p.m. 843-7178.  

READINGS AND LECTURES 

“The Art of Sierra Biodiversity” with author and illustrator Jack Miur Laws at 12:30 p.m. at the Oakland Museum of Califonia, 1000 Oak St. and 10th, Oakland. 238-2200.  

Rebecca Camhi Fromer reads from her new book of poems “Out of Silence into Being” at 6:30 p.m. at the Magnes Museum, 2911 Russell St. Cost is $6-$8. 549-6950. 

Poetry Flash with Lyn Hejinian and Cathy Park Hong at 7:30 p.m. at Berkeley City College Auditorium, 2050 Center St. 525-5476. www.poetryflash.org 

John Perkins describes “The Secret History of the American Empire: Economic Hit Men, Jacklas, and the Truth About Global Corruption” at 7 p.m. at Cody’s Books on Fourth St. 559-9500. 

MUSIC AND DANCE 

Kitka Women’s Vocal Ensemble with Merita Halili and Raif Hyseni at 8 p.m. at First Unitarian Church of Oakland, 685 14th St., Oakland. Tickets are $20-$25. 444-0323.  

Solstice Celebration with Caroline Casey and Amikayla Gaston at 8:30 p.m. at Ashkenaz. Cost is $25. 525-5054.  

Solstice Concert with Terry Riley, Paul Dresher, Ellen Fullman, Todd Renolds and others at 5 p.m. at Chapel of the Chimes, 4499 Piedmont Ave., Oakland. Tickets are $5-$15. www.gardenofmemory.com 

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

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

Pickpocket Ensemble, international cafe music, at 7 p.m. at Caffe Trieste, 2500 San Pablo Ave., at Dwight. 548-5198.  

Fancy Dan, Nick Marcott, Nick Z at 9:30 p.m. at The Starry Plough. Cost is $5. 841-2082  

The Brothers Lekas at 9:30 p.m. at Beckett’s Irish Pub, 2271 Shattuck Ave. 647-1790. www.beckettsirishpub.com 

Marcus Miller at 8 and 10 p.m. at Yoshi’s at Jack London Square. Cost is $24-$26. 238-9200.  

The Dying Californian, Winfred E. Eye, Odessa Chen at 9 p.m. at the Uptown Nightclub, 1928 Telegraph, Oakland. Cost is $7. 451-8100.  

TEA ’N’ CRISP 

The precocious Quentin Crisp lived a life without shame, reservation or compromise. Shotgun Player member Richard Louis James pays tribute to this international gay icon by bringing him back to life in an original solo piece. Tea ’n’ Crisp is based on Crisp’s writing and public appearances, and will be performed during national gay pride week in celebration of flamboyant autonomy. 8 p.m. Thursday, June 21; Friday, June 22; and Saturday, June 23. Ashby Stage, 1901 Ashby Ave. $25. Reservations advised. 841-6500. www.shotgunplayers.org. 

BLOOMSDAY JOURNEYS 

We may not be in Dublin but that doesn’t mean we can’t traverse its many winding paths, coursing through imaginary seas. In fact, better it be all in the mind. Saturday is Bloomsday, the 24 hours during which Leopold Bloom wandered Dublin—and the characters serially spoke their innermost thoughts—in James Joyce’s sprawling Ulysses. Moe’s Books on Telegraph is hosting an all-day marathon reading from the groundbreaking novel, beginning as the store opens at 10 a.m. and intoning on until closing time at 11 p.m. To chime in as a reader, call Owen Hill or David Brazil at 528-8191, or just show up with your own copy, or buy one from Moe’s. “To my surprise,” said Owen Hill, “one email seemed to gather a head of steam, and I’ve been getting replies for a week. Mark Singer, who writes for McSweeney’s, one of the Joyce scholars we went to for advice, warned us about crowd control, a crush of tipsy people, and we all laughed. But it seems a culture’s grown up around it, like St. Patrick’s Day or Cinco de Mayo, and it can get like a pub crawl.” Moe’s offers a little Irish music around 2, and Joyce’s Gorgonzola, “but unfortunately, due to insurance restrictions, no red wine.” Nonalcoholic refreshments instead. (None of the author’s beloved lamb kidneys, either!) Everybody gets 15 minutes at the mic, and, according to Hill, “It’s loosely structured, no serious study of the novel—lighter than that ... maybe some attempted Irish brogues? It’s adding up to be a party.” 

Feeling like listening only? Thomas Lynch reads from our favorite Irish Odyssey beginning at 11 a.m. Mrs. Dalloways, 2904 College Ave. 704-8222.

Guy Maddin’s latest film is another avant garde piece, a pseudo-silent film that employs striking imagery, dubbed sound effects, intertitles and spoken narration in the creation of a unique and fascinating experience. Brand Upon the Brain! is a strange film that seems to exist in no particular era or idiom. It is both timeless and out of time, a film and a story that seemingly could have occurred anytime and anyplace, yet in no particular time or place that ever existed. 

Maddin uses some of the effects of the silent era, but filters them through memory, through the ravages of time. While films of the silent era were generally of excellent photographic quality, easily on a par with much of today’s imagery, they have been most often seen by succeeding generations only in degraded, shabby prints, with soft images, blurry text, and unseemly jumps where frames have been misplaced or simply disintegrated. Maddin takes this approach to his film, deliberately infusing his images with a shadowy, high-contrast glow and jump cuts that suggest the movie was found in a long-forgotten vault rather than produced in modern times. The effect is that Brand Upon the Brain! harkens back not so much to the golden-era silents of the 1920s but to the German Expressionist films of the late 1910s, such as Nosferatu and The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari.  

Even the intertitles and chapter headings flash quickly in blurry letters, and repeat themselves as though the negative fell in pieces to the cutting room floor and was hastily stitched back together by an errant hand.  

The story starts simply and progresses to absurdity, embracing the melodramatic aesthetic of the German Expressionist classics, yet with a decidedly 21st century attitude. The protagonist, Guy Maddin (played in his youth by Sullivan Brown and in adulthood by Erik Steffen Maahs), returns to his childhood home, an orphanage run by his parents on a remote, fog-shrouded island. He is there to grant his mother’s last wish, that he return to the island and give the lighthouse and orphanage a couple of fresh coats of paint. The walls are dirty and scarred with the troubled memories of his youth, and no amount of paint can cover the pain of those remembrances as they come flooding back in a mad rush. And thus begins a strange tale told in flashback of Maddin and his sister (San Francisco native Maya Lawson) and their mad, mad parents.  

The film is not a true silent. There are plenty of sound effects, which grant the proceedings an eerie and evocative atmosphere. The sounds are stylized however, not realistic; they are isolated sounds that suggest the dream-like reveries of memory, in which only the most necessary sounds are supplied while ambient noise recedes and disappears. An excellent score by Jason Staczek brings a strong atmosphere to the film as well, lending it a classical air. 

But most effective of all the elements Maddin throws into this eclectic mix may very be the spoken narration provided by Isabella Rossellini, in which the actress sometimes repeats the intertitles but more often complements the onscreen words with fuller description, emphasis and affect. This technique comes from another quadrant of silent film history, from a Japanese tradition in which an actor, known as a benshi, would accompany the film with live narration and dialogue, acting out the roles of each character on the screen and relating the action to the audience. 

Taken together, these disparate ingredients form a highly original whole, one that deserves a far greater audience than it is likely to reach. 

BRAND UPON THE BRAIN! 

Directed by Guy Maddin. Photographed by Benjamin Kasulke. Edited by John Gurdebeke. Starring Erik Steffen Maahs, Sullivan Brown, Maya Lawson, Gretchen Krich, Katherine E. Scharhon, Andrew Loviska. 96 minutes.  

Not rated. Playing at Shattuck Cinemas. 

Photograph: Maya Lawson and Sullivan Brown in Guy Maddin’s Brand Upon the Brain!

Oakland Opera Theater will present two staged scenes from operas in progress by Mary Watkins—Dark River—and Clark Suprynowicz—The Panthers—this weekend, Friday at 8 p.m. and Sunday at 2 p.m. at The Oakland Metro Operahouse, 201 Broadway, near Jack London Square. 

“Oakland Opera had planned to re-mount last year’s production of Anthony Davis’ ‘X,’ about Malcolm X,” said Berkeley resident Clark Suprynowicz. “There were complications, and they weren’t able to do it, so they found out about our projects, which I think are well-matched. Mary’s opera is about the Civil Rights Movement, and ends as mine, on the Black Panthers, begins.”  

Suprynowicz’s opera, commissioned by the Oakland East Bay Symphony for their 2009 season, begins in 1967, “with the inception, here in Oakland, of the movement. The characters we’ve all heard of are characters in the opera: Huey Newton, Bobby Seale, Eldridge Cleaver ... but it’s important to remember that 98 percent of the Panthers were the rank and file, young black men excited to see people trying to make things right in America, volunteering for the school breakfast program, the sickle cell anemia outreach--which got picked up by the state, the donated shoes project, free ambulances, the good works ...” 

Suprynowicz continued: “Meanwhile, there are other factors, other forces, like a three-legged stool, all in conflict: all the revolutionary rhetoric being spouted, like ‘If America doesn’t give us what we ask for, we’re going to burn it down’—and the FBI, and the secret COINTELPRO project, active since the Red Scare, cannily reflecting that rhetoric as crazy, the Panthers as thugs. In 1968, J. Edgar Hoover announced his number one goal was to destroy the militant black movement in America. With everything else that was going on! Yet if you put aside outrage, and think of it as a power struggle, you can feel the dismay of the powerful: what if the black groups did come together? And they were always smaller than the media was portraying them, and torn by factional battles ...” 

For Suprynowicz, this is “where it becomes interesting theatrically, where you can’t psaint it black and white. It becomes a more human story. When we talked with David Hilliard of the Panthers, he was quite frank—one of the two founders had a drug problem. And there’s the sudden celebrity issue: could any of them imagine being interviewed by Playboy, being on the cover of Time? The whole weight was put on personality, like kids becoming rock stars.” 

“What people think about the Panthers is quite fluid,” Suprynowicz went on. “Their ideological bent will dictate what they say. The more I get into the story, the more Rashoman-like it gets. So we present the different perceptions, not the most sensational aspect, through the chain of the story.”  

Asked about the music, Suprynowicz said, with surprise, that he felt the project was in unexplored territory. “Frederica Newton, Huey’s widow, said that it’s kind of amazing that nobody’s ever done this before, to make this into singing theater, put it onstage this way. Talking to veterans of the Panthers, I asked what they listened to, and they said, Marvin Gaye, Sly and the Family Stone ...” 

Suprynowicz recalled his own background. “I played in bands, remember the aural sense of the late 60s, the funk and Motown sounds. And I’ve been a professional jazz bassist. My challenge has been to do more than draw on that vocabulary for orchestral music, to write songs that would have been credible in that day, then orchestrate ... and I don’t see that connection, surprisingly, having been made before. It’s not that much of a stretch to listen to Stravinsky, “The Firebird Suite,” and hear it as exciting syncopated music, not so far from James Brown, or Grand Central Station and the invention of slap bass. All you have to do is squint a little and see the connections.” 

“When I first thought about the characters,” Suprynowicz concluded, “I tried to see, say, Huey as an operatic tenor. But it’s in the situation of drug abuse, of the violence—real, that they were accused of, that was directed at them—that you find the places you can get at the pathos, and it’s heartrending. And best presented by an orchestra rather than a six-piece rock combo. This way, it has the best of both worlds.” 

GREAT MOMENTS IN  

AMERICAN HISTORY 

Works by Mary Watkins and Clark Suprynowicz, 8 p.m. Friday and 2 p.m. Sunday at Oakland Metro, 201 Broadway.  

$24. 763-1146.  

Photograph by Stephen Shames 

Panthers stand just offstage at a Free Huey Rally in DeFremery Park. Cleve Brooks (at center, with arms folded) founded the San Quentin Prison chapter of the party. Oakland, 1968.

Ed Reed, the remarkable jazz singer who launched his first CD at Anna’s Jazz Island just a few months back, returns to the downtown club Saturday night at 8 and 10, with a stellar band, to display the warmth, range and interpretive style of his voice, making his album title, Ed Reed Sings Love Songs, a natural. 

Appearing with Reed are Peck Allmond, the Berkeley-raised, New York-based reeds and trumpet virtuoso who coproduced Reed’s CD; Jamie Fox on guitar; Rob Fisher on bass, and noted Bay Area band leader (for Peck Allmond and many others) Eddie Marshall on drums. 

Since the CD release party at Anna’s, Reed has continued his standing Tuesday evening gig at The Cheeseboard on Shattuck, but has begun to play bigger venues and festivals. He’s garnered some enthusiastic reviews: one from James Isaacs on Boston’s WBUR, one in the current issue of Jazz Is and others. KQED just shot footage to feature Reed in a local program. This fall he’ll sing in Boston on a bill headlined by George Benson. Reed will perform at the Jazzschool in November, and there are negotiations going on to have him sing locally with one of his own favorite vocalists, the masterful Bill Henderson. 

“It never occurred to me it would take off like this,” said Reed. “I never saw it coming. I was just doing my thing, and all of a sudden ...” 

He credits much of the new interest and recognition to Terri Hinte, the publicist formerly associated with Fantasy Records, who introduced herself to Reed at the CD party, and has been working with him since. “She knows everybody,” Reed said. “And she’s become a friend.” 

But Reed’s moment has come after a life of singing, at first onstage around LA with many of the musical greats he grew up with in Watts, and later featured in a popular radio show in Bakersfield. A career as a singer was thwarted many times, by years of drug use and prison terms. Ironically, Reed met well-known players in prison who were old friends, and performed with them there in shows and sessions that were never recorded. 

The break finally came when Reed met Peck Allmond (an alumnus of Berkeley High’s famous jazz program) who was teaching at a music camp, and Allmond joined forces with Budd Spangler to produce the CD, released just after Reed’s 78th birthday. 

Now—and for decades—a successful, self-employed group leader and speaker for approaches to living for ex-addicts and their families, which Reed once referred to as “how to get along with yourself,” the Richmond resident expressed his gratitude for the show of interest in his artistry. But he still was a little incredulous: “People figure, ‘I want to be known’ ... but I never dreamed ... I don’t know how to plan my days, so much is going on!” 

ED REED AND PECK ALLMOND QUARTET 

8 p.m. Saturday at Anna’s Jazz Island, 2120 Allston Way. 841-JAZZ. www.annasjazzisland.com.