Arts & Events

FRIDAY, AUGUST 24 -more-

HOPE BRIGGS SINGS AT YERBA BUENA -more-

Entering the Ashby Stage for George Charbak’s TheaterInSearch production of the (very) ancient Mesopotamian epic of Gilgamesh, the spectators see a seated, veiled figure, sculptural, atop a model ziggurat, surrounded by gaping masks of bearded Assyrians on the back walls, as strains of the oud (evocatively played by Larry Klein) resound through the hall. -more-

“We’ve been exporting democracy to other countries around the world—and maybe we ran out! ... a soupcon of democracy, as they like to say at Chez Panisse ... I’m a monologist—and democracy is a dialogue. At least!” -more-

A recent driving tour through the wilds of Northern California and Southern Oregon only reaffirmed what I already knew: that Bay Area cinephiles are lucky, especially in these dull summer months of big-budget drivel, to live in a place where film artistry is not only appreciated, but relatively plentiful. -more-

Iranian director Abbas Kiarostami has always toyed with a minimalist aesthetic, an approach he derived from the great Japanese director Yasujiro Ozu. It is a technique that calls for patience, both from the filmmaker and his audience, with long, meditative shots that allow characters and themes to gradually reveal themselves before the camera. -more-

We all need a sanity break from Berkeley every now and then, but not everyone can fly off to the Seychelles or to Switzerland when the urge to flee is upon us. -more-

Glenn Keator talked to the Merritt College Aesthetic Pruning Club’s annual symposium last week about planting in containers, and here are some of the things he said and evoked: -more-

FRIDAY, AUGUST 24 -more-

TUESDAY, AUGUST 21 -more-

Remember when classical musicians were called “long hairs”? Maybe not. Ever since Jim Morrison replaced Tony Bennett in the popular music world the epithet has lost its meaning. Needless to say the Bay Area is long in classical music venues and musicians, long haired or not. Here’s the short list. -more-

For jazz fans new to the Bay Area, Berkeley is a unique jazz scene. In Manhattan, in any given week, two or three major jazz musicians will be appearing in various clubs all over the island. When I was last there in December 2005, we managed to catch avant-garde pianist Cecil Taylor uptown at the Iridium and hardbop trombonist Curtis Fuller at a downtown hotel in the same week. In the Bay Area, internationally famous jazz musicians are rarer, but the local jazz scene is vigorous. -more-

Jupiter, the popular Shattuck Avenue beerhouse, presents the ambitious third annual Downtown Berkeley Jazz Festival beginning this Wednesday and running through Sunday, Aug. 25. -more-

Access to culture shouldn’t cost an arm and a leg, or even an ear. Many Bay Area museums follow the enlightened practice of waiving admission for one day every month—sometimes more often. And a handful are always free. -more-

Yes, we still miss Cody’s on Telegraph. The whole bookstore scene remains precarious. Black Oak has retrenched, and the future of its Berkeley store appears uncertain. Even the big chains aren’t immune, as witness the fate of the Shattuck Avenue Barnes & Noble. -more-

The shoreline cities of La Contra Costa, the old East Bay, share a surprising concentration of theatrical activity, both major companies and small troupes, in a Bay Area theater scene which comprises a stunning number: over 400 companies, according to San Francisco’s Theater Bay Area (whose eponymous monthly magazine is the best overall window on that sprawling stage landscape). -more-

The Bay Area seems to be teeming with singers. That may be a reflection of the presence of the San Francisco Opera, one of the largest houses in North America, and its cultivation of both singers and opera lovers, or it may be just a quirky feature of a population that loves stories, accepts artifice and applauds the wildly dramatic. Whatever the reason, in the Bay Area, Opera Rules. -more-

Check the Arts Calendar for daily listings. -more-

TUESDAY, AUGUST 21 -more-