From a revered Chinese language cantata to the Seaside Boys and a home filled with inventive Honey Bears, there’s a lot to see and listen to within the Bay Space this weekend.
Here’s a partial rundown.
Classical picks: ‘Yellow River Cantata,’ West Edge, Merola
This week brings the chance to expertise three particular occasions: a Seventeenth-century opera by Charpentier, a revered Chinese language work calling for peace on the planet, and the Merola Opera’s finale.
“The Yellow River Cantata”: As 2025 marks the eightieth anniversary of the tip of World Battle II, the conclusion of the Sino-Japanese Battle, and the founding of the United Nations, this new work for piano and orchestra pays tribute to the grandeur of the Yellow River and the depth of the Chinese language folks’s previous struggles. Symphony San Jose is presenting the cantata in partnership with a number of Chinese language American organizations, promising a efficiency of grandeur and a name for peace on the planet. Jun Wang conducts, with soprano Manhua Gao, baritone Weiguang Dang, and particular visitor Shenshen Zhang on pipa, an instrument important to many Asian works.
Particulars: 7:30 p.m. Aug. 16; San Jose Heart for the Performing Arts; $35-$125; symphonysanjose.org.
“David and Jonathan”: Marc-Antoine Charpentier’s masterwork is seldom produced, and the West Edge Opera firm, which opened its 2025 summer season season with “Dolores,” a world premiere primarily based on the life and occasions of labor chief Dolores Huerta, now turns its sights to this biblical love story that includes one in every of historical past’s most well-known homosexual {couples}. Mark Streshinsky, West Edge’s normal director, revives this landmark work; Adam Pearl conducts, and singing the title roles are Derek Chester (David) and Aaron Sheehan (Jonathan).
Particulars: 2 p.m. Aug. 16; Oakland Scottish Ceremony Heart, Oakland; single tickets $10-$170; westedgeopera.org.
Merola wraps: The Merola Opera’s annual summer season coaching program dedicated to younger artists at all times chooses the cream of the crop — this 12 months, from greater than 1,300 candidates, 26 rising stars had been chosen. On Aug. 16, these artists carry this 12 months’s program to a starry finish with the Merola Grand Finale. Count on thrills: this can be a nice likelihood to see and listen to these artists as they change into the celebs of tomorrow.
Particulars: 7:30 p.m.; Battle Memorial Opera Home, San Francisco; tickets $18-up; merola.org.
— Georgia Rowe, Correspondent
The fnnch Museum is chock filled with the artists beloved Honey Bear works. fnnch Museum
Of Honey Bears and Painted Women
Ever watch “Full House,” with its opening credit displaying the well-known Painted Women homes in San Francisco, and suppose: “I want to be there”?
Now you’ll be able to, because of a novel present that’s colonized one in every of these notable domiciles. Bay Space road artist fnnch lately claimed the Pink Painted Woman close to Alamo Sq. park as his personal private gallery, and is utilizing it to showcase greater than 100 work from the final decade. “The Painted Ladies are a major tourist attraction, but once you get your photo from the hill, there is nothing to do,” he writes. “The fnnch Museum will invite people for free into one of the houses.”
Particulars: Exhibit open noon-8 p.m. Wednesday by means of Sunday by means of summer season 2025 at 714 Steiner St., San Francisco; free however reservations required for entry; museum.fnnch.com.
— John Metcalfe, Employees
Seaside Boys again in Bay Space
The music world continues to be mourning the lack of the nice Brian Wilson, the Seaside Boys mastermind who died June 11 on the age of 82 in his native Southern California.
Throughout his wonderful lifetime, Wilson was the driving power behind a number of the most beloved songs in pop music historical past — together with “I Get Around,” “Little Deuce Coupe,” “Help Me, Rhonda,” “Wouldn’t It Be Nice,” “I Just Wasn’t Made for These Times,” “Surfer Girl,” “God Only Knows,” “Fun, Fun, Fun” and, after all, “Good Vibrations.”
Followers can depend on listening to many (if not all) of these songs in live performance when the Seaside Boys carry out on Aug. 17 on the Mountain Vineyard in Saratoga. Showtime is 7:30 p.m. and tickets begin at $78.78, mountainwinery.com.
The band, which nonetheless options founding member Mike Love, additionally performs Aug. 22 on the Blue Be aware Summer season Classes on the Meritage Resort and Spa in Napa. Showtime is 7 p.m. and tickets begin at $86, ticketmaster.com.
Appears like an effective way for Seaside Boys followers to have some “Fun, Fun, Fun” whereas having fun with one of many best songbooks of all time.
— Jim Harrington, Employees
Enjoyable festivals? We all know of some
There’s a jam-packed weekend of Bay Space festivals forward. Among the many highlights:
Competition of India: The thirty third annual FOG (Competition of Globe) celebration of Indian tradition options leisure, meals, a Saturday dance competitors, a two-day honest (mela) and the large Sunday parade.
Particulars: 10 a.m. to six p.m. Aug. 16-17 (parade at 11 a.m.); $6 honest entrance; 39439 Paseo Padre Parkway, Fremont; fogsv.com.
Assyrian Meals Competition: Highlights embrace culinary treats from what’s known as the cradle of civilization, together with reside music, dancing, youngsters’s actions and a Samovar Alley that includes teas, coffees and pastries.
Particulars: 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Aug. 16, 11:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. Aug. 17; Assyrian Church of the East, 680 Minnesota Ave., San Jose; free admission; www.assyrianfoodfestival.org.
Foster Metropolis Summer season Days: This pageant at Leo Ryan Park gives carnival rides, a automotive present, leisure, crafts and neighborhood cubicles, meals and beverage stands and a Rubber Ducky Scavenger Hunt. Admission is free; tickets required for rides.
Particulars: Rides open 5 to 10:30 p.m. Aug. 15, 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. Aug. 16 and 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Aug. 17, however cubicles and levels shut earlier. www.fcsummerdays.com
Scotts Valley Artwork, Wine and Beer Competition: That includes superb artwork, meals, reside music, youngsters’ actions, wine and beer. On Aug. 16 there’s a Cops ‘n’ Rodders automotive present; Aug. 17 is Canine Day.
Particulars: 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Saturday, 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Sunday; Skypark, Scotts Valley; free admission; www.svartfestival.com.
— Linda Zavoral, Employees
Marcus Shelby performs on the Yerba Buena Gardens Competition on Aug. 16. ( Courtesy of Marcus Shelby)
Freebie of the week
The annual Yerba Buena Gardens Competition in San Francisco is in full swing, providing a number of free performances per week till its conclusion in early October. The reveals vary from poetry readings to live shows to youngsters puppet reveals, a well-liked dance/exercise class, film screenings and extra. This weekend sees a return to the sequence by one of many Bay Space’s most acclaimed musicians and composers, Marcus Shelby, who additionally occurs to be the pageant’s resident composer.
Shelby is well-known within the Bay Space music scene for his prolonged jazz and blues compositions that weave in parts of African American historical past. On Saturday, he’ll be again on the pageant together with his 15-member band performing a present titled “Blues and the Pursuit of Freedom,” made up of segments from earlier Yerba Buena Gardens Competition commissions. The work will contact on every thing from abolitionist Harriet Tubman, to Black historical past in baseball, the Ohlone tribelets and even the pandemic.
Particulars: Shelby’s efficiency takes place 2 to three:30 p.m.; Yerba Buena Gardens Nice Garden, on Mission Avenue, between third and 4th streets; free; ybgfestival.org.
If know what’s Goode for you
Bay Space choreographer, author and director Joe Goode is thought for creating and presenting extremely relatable dance works – ones that seize the ache and fervour of on a regular basis life. He’s thought-about a groundbreaking choreographer for his knack for weaving spoken phrase, textual content, movie and different sonic and visible imagery into his storytelling works, which have included such lauded dance/theater productions as “Body Familiar,” “Gender Heroes,” “Wonderboy” and extra.
Goode’s works have been integrated into site-specific productions within the cavernous Lilienthal-Haas Home in Pacific Heights, the Yerba Buena Heart for the Arts, the S.F. Mint and different distinctive venues, permitting his environment to play a task within the storytelling course of. Now Goode and his firm — The Joe Goode Efficiency Group — is again with a brand new work, titled “Are You Okay?” One thing of an pressing variant on the “Why Can’t We All Get Along” theme, Goode’s new work posits that togetherness — he calls it “collaborative creativity” — is greater than a lofty notion these days, it might be the one blueprint to humankind’s survival in an unstable world. “Are You Okay” can be carried out in one other site-specific manufacturing in San Francisco’s Rincon Heart, 83 Mission St., opening 8 p.m. Thursday and working by means of Aug. 31.
Particulars: Tickets are $48-$60; joegoode.org.
Desi Comedy Fest returns
The South Asian diaspora has had a monumental affect on California and notably the Bay Space. However in all probability not lots of people understand that a part of affect has been felt at native comedy membership levels. You’ll be able to see for your self should you enterprise to San Jose Improv or Cobb’s Comedy Membership this weekend. The 2 golf equipment can be internet hosting the eleventh annual Desi Comedy Fest, which options a couple of dozen high South Asian comedians and has its roots within the Bay Space.
The occasion was co-founded by two Bay Space-based comedians: Samson Koletkar, aka Mahatma Moses, who claims to be the world’s solely Indian Jewish slapstick comedian; and Abhay Nadkarni, who may be greatest identified for his comedy particular “Brown Jesus,” which is accessible on Amazon Prime. Different comedians within the 2025 lineup embrace Ali Mehedi, Aurora Singh, Alisha Dhillon, Bassam Scarf and Bhavya Shah, a Stanford pupil finding out math and pc science (so you already know he needs to be humorous).
Particulars: Performances are 7:30 p.m. Aug. 15 at San Jose Improv and seven p.m. Aug. 17 at Cobb’s Comedy Membership, San Francisco; $17-$113.80, go to www.desicomedyfest.com.
