Arts & Events

Stage-East Bay Through January 30

Wednesday January 19, 2011 - 01:37:00 PM

ASHBY STAGE -more-


Stage-San Francisco Through January 30

Wednesday January 19, 2011 - 01:37:00 PM

"CIRQUE DU SOLEIL'S OVO," -- through Jan. 24. A lively rush into a world of insects and acrobatics. Written and directed by Deborah Colker. See website for times, dates and complete details. Performances take place under the "Grand Chapiteau'' at AT&T Park. -more-


Professional Dance Through January 30

Wednesday January 19, 2011 - 01:36:00 PM

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


Readings-East Bay Through January 30

Wednesday January 19, 2011 - 01:36:00 PM

BOOKS INC., ALAMEDA -more-


Galleries-San Francisco Through January 30

Wednesday January 19, 2011 - 01:27:00 PM

ARC STUDIOS AND GALLERY -more-


Classical Music-San Francisco Through January 30

Wednesday January 19, 2011 - 01:24:00 PM

AUDIUM -more-


Classical Music-East Bay Through January 30

Wednesday January 19, 2011 - 01:23:00 PM

ST. JOHN'S PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH -more-


Popmusic-East Bay Through January 30

Wednesday January 19, 2011 - 01:34:00 PM

924 GILMAN ST. All ages welcome. -more-


Annual 'Noir City' festival shines a spotlight on cinematic darkness

By Justin DeFreitas
Wednesday January 19, 2011 - 09:59:00 AM
Olivia de Havilland portrays identical twins caught in a murder investigation in Robert Siodmak's The Dark Mirror (1946).

The American roots of film noir begin with the crime fiction that emerged during the 1930s from the pens of writers like Dashiell Hammett, Raymond Chandler, James M. Cain, and multitudes of lesser-known talents. In the wake of the Great Depression, these pulp authors reshaped the literary landscape with dark, cynical, morally ambivalent tales of crime, sex and vice — stories steeped in shadowy imagery, tough talk, and a hardscrabble hyper-realism that portrayed a brutal, hostile world. There were no heroes, only anti-heroes — self-preserving pragmatists whose cynicism was born of dashed hopes and faded ideals.

It was only a matter of time before these stories infiltrated Hollywood, merging with the stark, shadowy imagery of German Expressionism, which crossed the Atlantic along with the refugees who left Germany just ahead of Hitler's advancing stormtroopers. And thus a bold and distinctly downbeat genre was born, a German-American hybrid that introduced a stock of melodramatic characters: the dangerous and brooding urban gangster-villain; the tormented innocent caught up in nefarious circumstances beyond his control or comprehension; the icy, diabolical femme fatale; and an array of edgy protagonists ranging from the introspective, tormented, world-weary anti-hero to the twitchy, slippery, would-be hero, the third-rate, small-time hood looking to get ahead in a hostile world for which he is ill-equipped.

Noir City, the annual film festival that celebrates these dark cinematic gems and presents them on the big screen in all their tawdry glory, returns to San Francisco's Castro Theater this Friday with another 10-day program of dames, destruction and depravity. The festival is full of rarities; in fact, most of films in this year's program are not available on DVD. -more-


Around and About in the Performing Arts

By Ken Bullock
Wednesday January 19, 2011 - 09:35:00 AM

--Berkeley Symphony produces Landscapes of Sound, this Thursday's concert at 8, Zellerbach Hall on the UC campus, featuring the world premiere of Du Yu's orchestral piece Mantichora, celebrating the Manticore, fabulous beast with the body of a red lion and a very toothy human head, as well as Olivier Messaien's Oiseaux exotiques, featuring pianist Natasha Paremski (Berkeley Symphony has a long relationship with Messaien's groundbreaking music, Kent Nagano having worked with the composer decades ago) and Beethoven'sSymphony no. 6 in F major, The Pastoral Symphony, all under the baton of musical director Joana Carneiro. Pre-concert talk at 7. Tickets: $20-$60. 841-2800; berkeleysymphony.org -more-


Film Review: The Illusionist: The Re-animation of Jacques Tati

By Gar Smith
Wednesday January 19, 2011 - 09:12:00 AM

The wordless French comic, Jacques Tati (“Mr. Hulot’s Holiday,” “Mon Oncle”), lives again, thanks to the magic of a well-drawn line and the vision of Sylvain Chomet (director of the Oscar-winning animated feature, “The Triplets of Belleville”). -more-


Eye from the Aisle: Teatro Zinzanni--Save up your singles for a special occasion!

By John A. McMullen II
Wednesday January 19, 2011 - 09:10:00 AM

I never went to TEATRO ZINZANNI before because it seemed so expensive. But I now recommend starting to squirrel away a dollar a day in your special occasion piggy bank, because THIS IS THE PLACE TO GO. -more-


Museums-San Francisco Through January 30

Wednesday January 19, 2011 - 01:33:00 PM

ASIAN ART MUSEUM OF SAN FRANCISCO The Asian Art Museum-Chon-Moon Lee Center for Asian Art and Culture recently unveiled its new building in San Francisco's Civic Center. The building, the former San Francisco Public Library, has been completely retrofitted and rebuilt to house San Francisco's significant collection of Asian treasures. The museum offers complimentary audio tours of the museum's collection galleries. "In a New Light," ongoing. There are some 2,500 works displayed in the museum's new galleries. They cover all the major cultures of Asia and include Indian stone sculptures, intricately carved Chinese jades, Korean paintings, Tibetan thanksgas, Cambodian Buddhas, Islamic manuscripts and Japanese basketry and kimonos. -more-


Outdoors-North Bay Through January 30

Wednesday January 19, 2011 - 01:33:00 PM

ANGEL ISLAND STATE PARK ongoing. On the island there are guided history tours, TramTour and nature walks featuring the Quarantine Station, the ImTramTour are one-hour, audio-enhanced tours which cover the island's military history from the Civil War to the Cold War; its past use as an immigration station where 175,000 Chinese, other Asians and Europeans were detanted on the island. Call for ferry schedule. -more-


Kids-East Bay Through January 30

Wednesday January 19, 2011 - 01:32:00 PM

ARDENWOOD HISTORIC FARM Ardenwood farm is a working farm that dates back to the time of the Patterson Ranch, a 19th-century estate with a mansion and Victorian Gardens. Today, the farm still practices farming techniques from the 1870s. Unless otherwise noted, programs are free with regular admission. -more-


Museums-East Bay Through January 30

Wednesday January 19, 2011 - 01:32:00 PM

AFRICAN AMERICAN MUSEUM AND LIBRARY AT OAKLAND ongoing. The Oakland Public Library's museum is designed to discover, preserve, interpret and share the cultural and historical experiences of African Americans in California and the West. In addition, a three-panel mural is on permanent display. -more-


Highlights-East Bay Through January 30

Wednesday January 19, 2011 - 01:31:00 PM

ARMANDO'S -more-


General-East Bay Through January 30

Wednesday January 19, 2011 - 01:28:00 PM

"INTERNATIONAL FILM SHOWCASE," -- Jan. 28. A chance to view extraordinary movies not usually made available to the general public. -more-


Exhibits-San Francisco Through January 30

Wednesday January 19, 2011 - 01:25:00 PM

"SUN SPHERES," -- ongoing. "Sun Spheres'' is a trio of mosaic sculptures by artist Laurel True at the intersection of Ocean and G -more-


Exhibits-East Bay Through January 30

Wednesday January 19, 2011 - 01:24:00 PM

CARMEN FLORES RECREATION CENTER -more-