Arts & Events

AMERICAN CONSERVATORY THEATER -more-

BERKELEY REPERTORY THEATRE -more-

A GREAT GOOD PLACE FOR BOOKS -more-

ZELLERBACH HALL AT THE UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, BERKELEY -more-

HERTZ HALL AT THE UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, BERKELEY -more-

GOLDEN GATE PARK MUSIC CONCOURSE -more-

ARTHAUS -more-

"POINT RICHMOND MUSIC SUMMER CONCERT SEASON," -- Sept. 10 and -more-

Truth be known, in my house we watch TV reruns of “Criminal Minds” just to see Mandy Patinkin. -more-

Joana Carneiro will ascend the podium Thursday evening at 7 to inaugurate Berkeley Symphony's new season at Zellerbach Hall with two violin concertos: Beethoven's Violin Concerto in D major, opus 61, and John Adams' Violin Concerto--with violinist Jennifer Koh, 2008 Grammy nominee, as guest soloist. Following the concert will be a dinner for subscribers at Zellerbach to celebrate the new season--and the music of John Adams. $20-$60. 841-2800; berkeleysymphony.org -more-

The Berkeley Film and Video Festivals marks its 19th year this weekend with another vast and varied program of independent productions. If there’s a theme to the annual festival, the theme is that there is no theme; it simply showcases independent film in all its unruly diversity, from the brilliant to the silly, from mainstream to left field, from documentaries and drama to comedy and cutting-edge avant garde. -more-

Howl is an unusual hybrid — a feature film and a documentary interrupted by a turbo-charged acid trip. It’s a film of three parts: a POV interview with the poet, a courtroom drama, and an animated evocation of Ginsberg’s breakthrough poem. -more-

Those of you avid lovers of music, dance and drama will be in absolute Seventh Heaven on Sunday, September 26th when Cal Performances presents its "Fall Free for All" program, starting at 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. These programs, too numerous to mention, will take place at Zellerbch Hall, Hertz Hall, Wheeler Auditorium and Lower Sproul Plaza. -more-

ASIAN ART MUSEUM OF SAN FRANCISCO The Asian Art -more-

AFRICAN AMERICAN MUSEUM AND LIBRARY AT OAKLAND The -more-

CARMEN FLORES RECREATION CENTER -more-

"SUN SPHERES," -- "Sun Spheres'' is a trio of mosaic -more-

"65TH SEMI-ANNUAL FINE ARTS AND CRAFTS FALL FAIR,' Sept. 24 -more-

"GOING 4 GREEN FESTIVAL," -- Sept. 25 and Sept. 26. A -more-

ARDENWOOD HISTORIC FARM Ardenwood farm is a working farm that -more-

"DANCING AT THE DISTILLERY," -- Oct. 2. A funky dance party at -more-

"GOING 4 GREEN FESTIVAL," -- Sept. 25 and Sept. 26. A -more-

Every year since our first Berkeley pow wow in 1993, I have borrowed a chalker from the city parks department—the kind with wheels that they use for marking softball playing fields—to lay out the pow wow circle. In the late afternoon of the day before the event, our pow wow committee meets on the grassy lawn of Civic Center Park. I bring a rope about 12 paces long, the chalker, and a large bag of powdered chalk. We explain what we are doing to all the high school students relaxing there or playing Frisbee, and once they understand they gladly move to one side. A member of the committee holds one end of the rope in the exact center of the park. We tie the other end of the rope to the chalker and another person pushes it in a perfect circle with about a 60 foot diameter. On the east end of the circle we chalk a turtle’s head, on the west end a tail, and four turtle feet in between. It has now become a special place, the pow wow arena. -more-