Arts & Events

Oakland storyteller Jovelyn Richards stages an expanded version of the piece she debuted at the East Bay Media Center in Berkeley, 'Stripping Down to Story,' about the pride of the Harlem Renaissance, Diane, aka Stardust, showing it all in the back alley striptease club in NYC, including the tattooed pictures that begin speaking to her during the black-outs ... Jovelyn holding forth, with musical accompaniment in her inimitable style, supplied by Mike Wilson, sax, and Dexter Rogers, keyboards. Friday-Saturday at 8, this weekend only, The Garage, 715 Howard at Fifth, San Francisco, part of the Resident Artist Workshop (RAW). $10-$20 (cash) at the door, $15 brownpapertickets.com in advance. (415) 518-1517; 975howard.com -more-

A giant real estate company contracted by the U.S. Postal Service to sell America's post offices is doing so without user input and with no consideration for their aesthetic or historic merit let alone their vital community functions.

Now it's Berkeley's turn. Built in 1914 and modeled on Brunelleschi's Foundling Hospital in Florence to harmonize with the nearby University buildings, the downtown post office is one of the nation's most beautiful and hosts two New Deal art works. It belongs to all of us.

Dr. Gray Brechin will discuss the actual reasons for the fire sale of what the National Trust for Historic Preservation has categorically named among America's most endangered treasures and what we can do to stop it. The Berkeley City Council will consider a resolution to formally appeal the sale at its July 24 meeting. -more-

Director Fred Chacon is to be congratulated for assembling a cast of highly talented young actors and singers who believably resemble the teenage characters in the Tony Winning “SPRING AWAKENING” at Altarena. When this musical is produced, usually the actors look like they are in their twenties. -more-

Gray Brechin will provide the context of the closings within the push for privatization of the public sector and will describe how the New Deal not only built post offices, but also beautified them with public art. Union postal workers will talk about the national grassroots fight to stop service cutbacks and preserve living-wage postal jobs for our communities. -more-

Excellent Festival Opera celebrates the start of its third decade with a benefit this Saturday at 8, with an all-star reprise of some of the great moments of its past performances, featuring 16 splendid singers, starting with Eugene Brancovenu and Hope Briggs, as well as special guest from The Met, Susanne Mentzer ... Music and artistic director Michael Morgan, principal conductor Bryan Nies and Joseph Marcheso will conduct, with James Toland leading the 40-voice Festival Opera Chorus. $100--with a special package including restaurant party and champagne reception at intermission, $250. (925) 943-7469; festivalopera.org -more-

Carol Smith, retired CCNY faculty, will give a slide lecture of photographs, graphics, and cartoons documenting student and faculty political activism at CCNY in the 1930s, and the ensuing repression which led to the dismissal of over fifty faculty and staff in 1941-42. -more-