8 Days a Week

May 29-June 5, 2002

CAN IT REALLY be Pride Month already? Blessed as we are in gay San Francisco, it's easy to be blasé, and given the weather we've had lately, you might not believe June is really upon us, bringing with it the fifth annual National Queer Arts Festival. Now, we're lucky enough to have an active queer arts scene all year round, but nothing beats the diversity and sheer number of queer performance, comedy, film, music, and dance events happening around the city as part of this festival. The opening-night gala on Sat/1 will feature teasers by a number of the artists who will be presenting full-length works later in the month, including local favorites Sini Anderson, Pippi Lovestocking, and "homohop/spoken weird" group Deep Dickollective, as well as Minneapolis's Djola Branner and Chicago's C.C. Carter, to name just a few. Other fest highlights include Single Wet Female, the first-ever professional collaboration between Carmelita Tropicana and Marga Gomez, which promises to find the two performers in a bathtub together before the piece is over. The Women in Music Series also offers an impressive lineup, with Kaia Wilson, Ferron, Kinnie Starr, and Bitch and Animal. Dance highlights include the Joe Goode Performance Group's Mythic Montana and the transgendered, queer performance group Fresh Meat. Don't forget to check out the video and spoken word selections too! There's just too much to list here, so be sure to call or visit the Web site for complete details. Opening-night gala and performance Sat/1, 7 p.m., San Francisco LGBT Community Center, 1800 Market, S.F. $25-$100. (415) 865-5611, www.queerculturalcenter.org. (Lara Shalson)

May 29

Wednesday

All that jazz Celebrated Broadway songwriting team John Kander and Fred Ebb made their mark on the theater world by creating tunes for plays such as Chicago, Cabaret, Kiss of the Spider Woman, Steel Pier, and Funny Lady. And even if you haven't seen productions of these musicals, chances are you're familiar with their signature songs, many of which – including a little number called "New York, New York" – are now pop standards. As part of its third "In Concert" season, the New Conservatory Theatre Center presents The World Goes 'Round: The Songs of Kander and Ebb, a revue packed with high-energy favorites penned by the prolific duo. Aficionados are advised to shake out those jazz hands and start spreadin' the news. Previews Wed/29-Fri/31, 8 p.m. Opens Sat/1, 8 p.m. Runs Thurs.-Sat., 8 p.m.; Sun., 2 p.m. (no show June 30), New Conservatory Theatre Center, 25 Van Ness, S.F. $15-$35 (Thurs/30, pay what you can). (415) 861-8972. (Cheryl Eddy)

May 30

Thursday

Reel fun Fans of innovative, unusual, and experimental films have enjoyed the Brainwash Movie Festival at various outdoor venues over the past seven years. This year's fest happens later this summer (July 5-6, in the parking lot of the Alliance for West Oakland Development, 1357 Fifth St., Oakl.), but real devotees will want to attend tonight's special event, the Brainwash Movie Festival fundraiser at the Parkway Theater. This show supports not only the festival but also the organizers' plans to turn Brainwash into a television show that'll spotlight short films. You can be part of the audience during the taping of the pilot episode as hosts Lani Fantz and Ed Holmes (of the San Francisco Mime Troupe) present some choice shorts and joke with the crowd. On the schedule are films by noted underground filmmaker Chel White and the late Bay Area filmmaker Billy Green. 9:15 p.m., Parkway Theater, 1834 Park, Oakl. $8. (415) 273-1545, www.brainwashm.com. (Summers Henderson)

White knight Anything with the name Mikhail Baryshnikov attached to it still sells tickets, despite the fact that he officially hung up his ballet tights more than 10 years ago. But if there is a lot of hoopla around Baryshnikov, every bit of it is justified – not just because of his past accomplishments but also because of what this extraordinary artist is doing today. Look at him onstage: a small, modest, still exquisitely expressive dancer who performs as a member of the White Oak Dance Project (founded by Baryshnikov and Mark Morris). Not only has he turned into a very good modern dancer, but also he has used his superstar status to present modern dance works that would never have seen the stage again were it not for his box office cache. How long has it been, for instance, since we've seen choreography by Lucinda Childs or Erick Hawkins on a local stage? I hope he lives forever. Through Sat/1. 8 p.m., Zellerbach Hall, UC Berkeley, Bancroft at Telegraph, Berk. $36-$62. (510) 642-9988. (Rita Felciano)

Don't blink Everything really only happens once. No matter how many times we wait on the same corner for the bus, it's never the same experience. Moments pass away, and even our memories can't hold on to them. Art often gives the illusion that time can be preserved: just pull out that photo or roll that tape, and we can have the experience again. Maybe not the same experience, but at least the comfort of the possibility of a repeat performance. Well, not this time, you sentimental sap! 'Element of Temporary 3,' presented by a San Francisco-based group of visual and performing artists, is the third annual installment of an exhibition of ephemeral art. It showcases time-based visual and performance works that will happen tonight only. Included in the mix are Kurt Bigenho's Recombinations, by Kurt, in which the artists will "re-combine" the audience into speculative groupings; Haein Kang's An electric chorus, a piece performed at sunset; and Lynn Lu's Strawberrymilkbath, in which the artist will, well, I'll let you figure it out. 6-10 p.m., Southern Exposure Gallery, 401 Alabama, S.F. $3-$10. 1-866-841-9139, ext. 4255, www.elementoftemporary.com. (Lara Shalson)

History lesson Jim Haynes is one of the more interesting thinkers and writers about music that San Francisco's Valencia Street has ever seen – and if you think I'm being sarcastic, you are missing the point. Haynes, it turns out, is also a photographer, and if you go to Aquarius Records (where he works) to talk music, you'll now find 50 fascinating photos he's taken and altered using his own rusting technique. The exhibit is called 'A Short History of Decay,' and if you want a thorough explanation of what Haynes is up to – and there is one; the man thinks things through – you'd better ask him. He'll be behind the counter on the left as you walk in the front door. Through July 21. Opening reception tonight, 7-9 p.m., Aquarius Records, 1055 Valencia, S.F. Free. (415) 647-2272. (J.H. Tompkins)

Wabbit season It's impossible to imagine what the world of animation would have been like without the contributions of legendary Warner Brothers artist Chuck Jones, who passed away in February at the age of 89. His amazing career included hands in creating some of our culture's most enduring two-dimensional characters (Bugs Bunny, Porky Pig, Elmer Fudd, Daffy Duck, the Road Runner, Wil E. Coyote, Pepe Le Pew, and countless others). During his lifetime he was honored with multiple Academy Awards and other honors, and his contributions to pop culture are immeasurable. Head to the Balboa Theatre tonight for a tribute show that'll include screenings of Jones classics "What's Opera, Doc?," "One Froggy Evening," "Duck Amuck," and others; friends and colleagues of Jones will be on hand to offer insight and share memories. 7:30 p.m., Balboa Theatre, 3630 Balboa, S.F. $5-$7.50. (415) 221-8184, www.balboamovies.com. (Eddy)

May 31

Friday

Theater ore Paducah Mining Co. founder E. Hunter Spreen's "environmental morality play" 611 $upreme asks the following: What do you really believe in? What are you willing to risk for what you believe in? What does it take to get you off your ass and into the street? Good questions for a live performance to aim at a TV-drugged society. Paducah Mining Co. presents the play's fully mounted world premiere under the direction of company co-artistic director Susannah Martin. 611 $upreme seeks to address the political through the personal by digging deep and getting dirty with the issues of the day – and it doesn't get more timely than a tale about the kidnapping of a wealthy developer by a radical environmental group. Through July 6. Previews tonight, 8 p.m. Opens Sat/1, 8 p.m. Runs Fri.-Sat. and July 1, 8 p.m., Exit Theatre, 156 Eddy, S.F. $15-$25 (preview, pay what you can). (415) 561-1418. (Sima Belmar)

June 1

Saturday

Roll out the barrel Once you get past such names as Astor Piazzolla and Guy Klucevsek, you don't find many free-reed players on the world stage of jazz-related music. French-Italian virtuoso Richard Galliano has pumped his accordion in musical collaborations with Chet Baker, Ron Carter, Jan Garbarek, Toots Thielemans, Joe Zawinul, and others, and his two recent albums on Dreyfus Records, French Touch and Blow Up (with clarinetist Michel Portal), continue to advance the accordion's stature as a sophisticated vehicle for modern music. Galliano's rare San Francisco solo performance comes on the SFJAZZ Spring Season's first "What's New Worldwide" weekend, with the international stakes raised by the co-billing of the Enrico Rava Quintet, a fiery Italian ensemble led by the renowned trumpeter who played with Gato Barbieri and Steve Lacy in the 1960s and trombonist Roswell Rudd in the early '70s. 8 p.m., Herbst Theatre, 401 Van Ness, S.F. $18-$30. (415) 788-7353. (Derk Richardson)

June 2

Sunday

Old meets new Whatever Ewan MacColl, Bruce Springsteen, the Carter Family, Phil Ochs, and Irish jigs and reels have in common, Casey Neill will find it. The alternately rowdy and tender singer-songwriter from Portland, Ore., taps American and Celtic folk roots and myriad strains of populist and progressive politics to create the inspiring blend that powers his original songs and well-chosen covers. Having garnered a Bay Area following since his self-released debut, Riffraff (1996), the punkish, guitar-strumming Neill regularly hosts the Freight's May Day concert and now returns with his trio, featuring Hanz Araki on Irish flutes, whistles, and vocals and Zak Borden on mandolin and vocals. 8 p.m., Freight and Salvage, 1111 Addison, Berk. $16.50. (510) 548-1761. (Richardson)

June 3

Monday

Hot chik live The eight-piece band with the unutterable name !!! (just pronounce it "chik chik chik") relocated from Sacramento to the East Coast and have been garnering praise from all quarters for working up a sweat via the unadorned funk of "No New York" underground disco and taut punk. Whenever this Outhud offshoot put their hybrid product, with horns and multipercussionists, in front of any able-assed creatures, the inevitable result is everyone gets on down. Meanwhile, Trans Am (post-rock since '92, bro) have to work harder for respect. Silly as the fart noises, Kraftwerk rip-off rhythms, and dry robot vocals claiming "I want it all" may be, you have to admit that Trans Am and their outmoded synths prove that the day machines replace musicians is far off as long as the musicians are funnier than sequencers. Pines of Nowhere also play. 8:30 p.m., Great American Music Hall, 859 O'Farrell, S.F. $12. (415) 885-0750. (Deborah Giattina)

June 4

Tuesday

Lords of the ring It's been a slow, steady road to reverential cultdom for the lads and lass of Elf Power. Since Andrew Rieger and Laura Carter first hooked up in 1994 to share their unique vision of what pop music could be, they have pressed their own albums and done the starving-musician thing, watched their stock rise in direct correlation with the glaring spotlight thrown on the Elephant 6 collective in the late '90s, and even gotten to open for REM as their folks looked on from the good seats. They've also produced some disarmingly playful yet seriously tripped-out music. Their new long player, Creatures (spinART), is their most accessible (and straight-up pop) album to date, though the lyrics continue their long-standing penchant for painting warped pictures from some alternate reality. Masters of the Hemisphere and Wussom*Pow also play. 8:30 p.m., Bottom of the Hill, 1233 17th St., S.F. $7. (415) 621-4455. (John O'Neill)

Yukked up Why must we worship David Cross? Anyone who caught Mr. Show, the comedian's late, great HBO gig with partner Bob Odenkirk, knows Cross's comedic brilliance can't be denied (heads up to everyone else: a Mr. Show DVD is due soon). Humorwise, Cross hails from the Ben Stiller-Jack Black-Janeane Garofalo school (as opposed to, say, the Bob Saget school), providing dry commentary on timely and/or bizarro topics and inevitably eliciting cackling hysteria from audiences. Though there's apparently still no release date for Run Ronnie Run, the feature film based on the funny-as-fuck Mr. Show sketch, you can see the man in person when Cross (presumably without Ronnie's mullet wig) takes the stage tonight. Bands Ultrababyfat and Arlo also play. 9 p.m., Great American Music Hall, 859 O'Farrell, S.F. $15. 1-866-468-3399, www.ticketweb.com. (Eddy)

June 5

Wednesday

Charm's way The shocking, white, hive-walled corridors of the Powell Street Muni-BART station (oh so very 2001 or Argento's Tenebre) seem as if they're made to be used as a movie location. Directors Sarah Reed and Sadie Shaw obviously agree: their Super 8 feature Charm uses the setting for one scene of urban paranoia. Soundtracked by a who's who of S.F. rock – including the Aislers Set, Deerhoof, and the directors' band, the Lies – Charm is the spooky main event of 'Chillingly Charm'ed by the Ladies,' a benefit for the upcoming (in July) Ladyfest Bay Area 2002. Performance highlights include a variety of dances – fiery, aerial, and gothic belly dance, though not all at once – and live music by the Vanishing. 8:30 p.m., SomArts Cultural Center, 934 Brannan, S.F. $12-$15. (415) 672-0518, www.ladyfestbayarea.org. (Johnny Ray Huston)