Stage listings are compiled by Cheryl Eddy. Performance times may change; call venues to confirm. Reviewers are Robert Avila, Rita Felciano, Lara Shalson, and Chloe Veltman. See 8 Days a Week for information on how to submit items to the listings.

theater

Opening

After the Fall Actors Theatre of San Francisco, 533 Sutter; 296-9179, www.actorstheatresf.org. $5-20 (opening night, $40). Opens Fri/9, 8pm. Runs Thurs-Sat, 8pm; Sun, 7pm (no show Sun/11). Through May 22. Actors Theatre of San Francisco performs Arthur Miller's play about a fortysomething lawyer reflecting back on his tumultuous life.

The Inspector Randall Museum Theater, 199 Museum Way; 337-4713, www.sffct.org. Free. Opens Wed/7, 7:30pm. Runs Thurs/8-Sat/10, 7:30pm; Sun/11, 2pm. (Also April 15-17, 7:30pm; April 18, 2pm, Mission Recreation Center Auditorium, 745 Treat.) San Francisco Free Civic Theatre performs Nikolai Gogol's classic tale of mistaken identity.

Loaded ODC Theater, 3153 17th St; 863-9834, www.odctheater.org. $18 (opening night, $35, benefits Haight Ashbury Free Clinic). Opens Wed/7, 8pm. Runs Wed-Sun and April 13, 8pm. Through April 17. Comedian Scott Capurro performs his new play, a reflection on "misshapen lives and misguided love."

Slaughter City Exit Theatre, 156 Eddy; 675-5995. www.crowdedfire.org. $15-20 (opening night, $25). Previews Thurs/8-Fri/9, 8pm. Opens Sat/10, 8pm. Runs Thurs-Sat, 8pm. Through May 8. Crowded Fire Theatre Company presents Naomi Wallace's drama set among employees of a Kentucky slaughterhouse.

The Smell of the Kill Playhouse, 536 Sutter; 677-9596, www.sfplayhouse.org. $30 (previews, $15; opening night, $50). Previews Wed/7-Thurs/8, 8pm. Opens Fri/9, 8pm. Runs Wed-Sat, 8pm (also April 17, 24, and May 1, 3pm). Through May 15. See 8 Days a Week.

Woods for the Trees Noh Space, 2840 Mariposa; 621-7978. $12-20. Opens Thurs/8, 8pm. Runs Thurs-Sat, 8pm. Through April 24. Sara Kraft and Ed Purver present their multimedia work, a post-9/11 reworking of the Hansel and Gretel story.

Bay Area

Antigone Falun Gong Aurora Theatre, 2081 Addison, Berk; (510) 843-4822, www.auroratheatre.org. $34-36 (previews, $28; opening night, $40). Previews Fri/9-Sat/10 and April 14, 8pm; Sun/11, 2 and 7pm. Opens April 15, 8pm. Runs Wed-Sat, 8pm; Sun, 2 and 7pm. Through May 16. Aurora Theatre Company presents the world premiere of Cherylene Lee's adaptation of the Sophocles tragedy, set in modern-day China.

Mooi Street Moves Berkeley City Club, 2315 Durant, Berk; (510) 436-5085, www.theatrefirst.com. $18-22 (previews, $10; April 15, pay what you can). Previews Thurs/8, 8pm. Opens Fri/9, 8pm. Runs Thurs-Sat, 8pm; Sun, 3pm. Through May 2. TheatreFIRST performs Paul Slabolepszy's drama about two men who form an unlikely alliance in post-apartheid South Africa.

The Mystery of Irma Vep Berkeley Rep's Thrust Stage, 2025 Addison, Berk; (510) 647-2949, www.berkeleyrep.org. $43-55 (previews, $39). Previews Fri/9-Sat/10 and Tues/13, 8pm; Sun/11, 7pm. Opens April 14, 8pm. Runs Tues and Thurs-Sat, 8pm (also April 17, 22, 24, May 1, 6, 15, and 20, 2pm; no show April 23); Wed and Sun, 7pm (also Sun, 2pm). Through May 23. Berkeley Rep performs Charles Ludlum's vaudevillian send-up of Victorian melodrama, Gothic romance, and classic horror films, with two actors playing more than 16 roles.

Ongoing

Are We Almost There? Shelton Theatre, 533 Sutter; 345-7575. $20-22. Fri-Sat, 8pm. Open-ended. Travel is the theme of this musical comedy revue.

The Carpetbagger's Children Phoenix Theatre, 414 Mason; 989-0023. $20 (Thurs, pay what you can). Thurs-Sat, 8pm. Through April 17. The Phoenix Theatre presents distinguished playwright and screenwriter Horton Foote's 2001 drama about three grown-up daughters of a former Union soldier turned wealthy Texas plantation owner. Told as a series of monologues, the play has the feel of a pop-up short story as it contrasts the distinct perspectives of Cornelia (Gretchen Grant), Grace Ann (Linda Ayres-Frederick), and Sissie (Kate Austin-Groen) concerning certain family trials and triumphs on and around their late father's estate. Foote introduces several themes along the way – including race relations, the distorting influence of wealth and privilege on intimate ties, and the stigma associated with being the family of a carpetbagger – but inconsistently, giving the drama an unfocused quality, beyond perhaps the idea of unsettled loyalties. Nevertheless, the play serves as a vehicle for three wonderfully sharp and graceful performances. (Avila)

'Comedy on the Square' Shelton Theatre, 533 Sutter; 522-8900. Most shows $15. Upcoming performances include "A Celebration of Silliness," with Fred Anderson (Sun, 3 and 7pm, ongoing); "Bush Bash 2004: A Political Comedy Show," with Bill Santiago, Aundre the Wonder Woman, Ross Turner, Tony Sparks, and Guy Brannum (Sun/11, 8:30pm); "New Vaudeville Comedy Showcase" (April 16, 8 and 10pm); "Comedy Showcase," with host Tom Smith (April 18, 8:30pm); "Tony Sparks' Comedy Elite" (April 25, 8:30pm).

Disney's The Lion King Orpheum Theatre, 1192 Market; 512-7770, 356-LION, www.bestofbroadway-sf.com. $26-82. Tues-Sat, 8pm (also Sat and June 23, 25, 28, and 30, 2pm); Sun, 1 and 6:30pm (no shows June 27 and July 4). Through Sept 5. Apparently director and designer Julie Taymor didn't win those Tonys for nothing. The Bay Area premiere of her staged interpretation of Disney's The Lion King, courtesy of Best of Broadway, works so well you're liable to forgive the residual Disney that clings to this singular spectacle. The plot – a lion cub grows up in exile until he can assume his rightful place on the usurped throne of his late father – must be familiar to nearly everyone by now; the characters are the stock ones recycled by Disney. They're animated, however, by a superb cast. (Avila)

Flaming Iguanas Theatre Rhinoceros, 2926 16th St; 861-5079, www.therhino.org. $15-25. Wed-Sat, 8pm; Sun, 7pm (also Sat/10, April 18, 3pm). Through April 24. Theatre Rhino presents John Fisher and Duca Knezevic's multispace, multimedia adaptation of Erika Lopez's novel about a "bicoastal, biracial, bisexual biker chick."

*Gentlemen Prefer Blondes Eureka Theatre, 215 Jackson; 978-2787, www.42ndStMoon.org. $17-30. Thurs-Fri, 8pm; Sat, 6pm; Sun, 3pm; April 14, 7pm. Through April 18. 42nd Street Moon's new season of "lost musicals" gets off to a strong start with the 1949 musical comedy by Anita Loos and Joseph Fields. Set aboard a cruise ship bound for Paris, it follows Little Rock, Ark., ingenue Lorelei Lee (Amy Louise Cole) and her best friend and chaperone, Dorothy (Cynthia Myers), on a voyage of discovery in which romance and jewelry play not necessarily equal parts. Although today known to generations of movie watchers via the 1953 Hollywood version starring Marilyn Monroe and Jane Russell, this zany flapper-powered escapade, which launched Carol Channing's storied career, rarely receives a staged revival. This well-cast and sprightly production – presented in the semiformal staged-concert format, with costumed actors holding songbooks – moves smoothly and enjoyably, with capable singing and nice comic turns across the board. (Avila)

How to Write a Song Off-Market Theater, 965 Mission; 896-6477, www.offmarkettheater.com. $12-20 sliding scale. Thurs/8-Sat/10, 8pm. Directed by Amos Glick, writer-performer Ira Marlowe's solo show recounts his tortuous career as a singer-songwriter on the periphery of success. The narrative, interspersed with his own workmanlike songs and some lively proto-MTV animation, bounces between his hometown, Richmond, Va., and a variety of humiliating gigs and day jobs before landing in San Francisco, where Marlowe strikes an uneasy truce with fame and the meaning of life. Standing beside a video screen and surrounded by several ready guitars, Marlowe's smooth musicianship and crooning (reminiscent of James Taylor or Jeff Lynne) contrast with his slightly ungainly stage presence. Still, he proves adept at characterizations, including three intrusive videotaped alter egos – a severe inner critic named Ubermensch, a sort of Wavy Gravy-Tiny Tim inner dude, and an off-color Deepak Chopra spoof – whose unbridled silliness helps buoy a familiar story and moral that have a hard time rising above the superficial. (Avila)

Mamma Mia! Golden Gate Theatre, One Taylor; 512-7770, www.ticketmaster.com. $40-81. Tues-Sat, Mon/12, 8pm (also Sat and April 14, 2pm); Sun, 2 and 7pm. Through April 17. This surprisingly enduring Broadway musical, a tribute to love (free and otherwise) told through the songs of '70s-pop gods ABBA, returns to San Francisco. I know people must be buying tickets to this, but there's just something decidedly tepid and amateurish about the whole conceit. The singing – belted out by the characters in sometimes jarringly idiosyncratic fashion against Keith Thompson's nine-piece electric rock orchestra – generally comes across like exceptional karaoke. (Avila)

A Man of No Importance New Conservatory Theatre Center, 25 Van Ness; 861-8972, www.nctcsf.org. $18-38. Thurs/8-Sat/10, 8pm; Sun/11, 2pm. New Conservatory Theatre Center presents the West Coast premiere of the musical by Terrence McNally (its season's esteemed playwright in residence), an adaptation of the small 1994 Albert Finney film about a meek and closeted Dublin bus conductor with a Wilde side. Set in the still-conservative but transforming early '60s, with music and lyrics by the team of Stephen Flaherty and Lynn Ahrens, the sorry "double life" of our middle-aged virgin protagonist, Alfie Byrne (Arthur Scappaticci), oscillates between sedate meals with sister and roommate Lily (Shelly Lynn Johnson) and more extraverted flights of aesthetic fancy as beloved director of his church's amateur drama group. But a flap with church authorities over his intention to stage Salome, aggravated by a crush on bus-driver friend Robbie (Levi Damione), pressures Alfie to heed the words of his patron saint, Oscar, and erase the line between art and life. As a modest-size, character-driven musical, there may be a bit more merit in the idea than this flat and perfunctory production suggests. But, despite a stronger second act, George Quick's muted direction and uneven cast do little to sell us on it. (Avila)

Mystery Box House OmniCircus Theatre, 550 Natoma; 701-0686. $10-15. Fri-Sat, 9:30pm. Through May 1. Subterranean Shakespeare joins OmniCircus in presenting its latest experimental, psychedelic musical cabaret, led by Frank Garvey (creator of the Junkyard Cabaret and Robot Ensemble). Staged in a cramped, dusty warehouse, the walls decorated with Garvey's surrealistic, apocalyptic oil paintings, the floor scattered with musical instruments, electronics, and an array of primitive-looking robots, the cabaret is driven by a musical score composed by Garvey and Daniel Berkman – an avant-garde fusion of folk, classic rock, industrial-gothic, and world music sounds – performed by the OmniCircus house band, DeusMachina. The show combines trademark OmniCircus elements – crotchety robots, Garvey's poetry, and a screening of the award-winning animated film The Mound – with a variety of monologues and interpretive dance numbers. A small ensemble of women dressed in various fetish costumes (from topless and masked to funky lingerie ensembles to black sack encasements), provide visuals to accompany the dark musical score, although the effect is often more kitschy than erotic. Audience members are invited to explore the space, meet the robots (and actors), and look at the artworks after the performance. (Shalson)

Not a Genuine Black Man Marsh, 1062 Valencia; 641-0235. $15-22. Thurs-Sat, 8pm. Through May 15. Brian Copeland performs his first solo show, a comedic yet poignant look at growing up in the suburbs.

Saint Joan of the Stockyards Venue 9, 252 Ninth St; 1-866-468-3399, www.custommade.org. $15-18. Fri-Sat, 8pm; Sun, 2pm. Through April 25. It's people! The meat ground up and spit out by the slaughterhouses of Chicago? It's people, people. People!!! But, then, is it really surprising that the same system grinding up hapless hogs in a nightmare industrial assembly line grinds down its workers as if they were no better than animals themselves? Somehow Bertolt Brecht makes the familiar revelation startlingly new all over again in this agitprop masterpiece, a splendid example of his "epic" style presented by Custom Made Theater Company, in which a charismatic Salvation Army evangelist named Joan Dark (Leah S. Abrams) goes on a journey of discovery into the bowels of the meat industry ruled over by top dog Pierpont Mauler (Jeff Bredt) of the swindling classes. In the Marxist framework of Brecht's very funny, song-laden, and razor-sharp exposé of the capitalist system, Joan's journey of discovery moves through pie-in-the-sky moralism, militant fundamentalism, half-way reformism, and on toward the inspiriting light of a revolutionary consciousness. Needless to say, the play still abounds in the most contemporary of social and political tropes. Brian Katz's lively and intelligent direction doesn't always make up for the unevenness in his large cast, but all's well out front with Abrams's strong and sympathetic Joan and Bredt's wonderfully suave but fragile villain. (Avila)

*Sandwich Exit Theatre, 277 Taylor; 673-3847, www.sffringe.org. $12-20 sliding scale. Fri/9-Sat/10, 8pm. Innocence is dead, and cooking shows have not looked the same since Martha Stewart's conviction or Banana, Bag and Bodice's "musical about animals and humans." While awaiting the rehabilitation of the former, you'll be interested to know the latter – a 60-odd-minute burlesque with a cat, a rabbit, and a potato bug – returns to the Exit Theatre unrepentant, even slightly expanded, after premiering at last year's San Francisco Fringe Festival to much applause and wafts of bacon grease. Couched in a cozy environment done up like a cross between a meat locker and Pee Wee's Playhouse, a clownish couple (Jessica Jelliffee and writer-performer Jason Craig) and their morose house cat (Parnell Klug) unpack the harm in the harmless construction of domesticity and lunch. Featuring sly musical accompaniment by David Malloy (Buffalo Knife Man to your left as you come in) and catchy, tuneful sing-alongs like "Poked in the Womb," it's a darkly absurd and satisfying send-up of the so-far futile attempt to declaw human nature. (Avila)

Talking with Angels Actors Center of San Francisco, 3012 16th St; 389-8975, www.talkingwithangels.com. $17-25. Extended run: Fri-Sat, 8pm. Through May 8. Shelley Mitchell performs her solo play, drawn from the diaries of four young women living in Nazi-occupied Hungary.

Three Hotels Thick House, 1695 18th St; 401-8081. $10-20. Thurs/8-Sat/10, 8pm; Sun/11, 5pm. Eastenders Repertory Company presents Jon Robin Baitz's profile of the corporateering class, those 21st-century colonialists in Armani neckties, as seen through the prism of a marriage in meltdown. Preceded by a shorter piece, Baitz's similarly themed but slight Four Monologues, Three Hotels unfolds as two sets of monologues by a disillusioned corporate executive (Craig Souza) and his emotionally shattered wife (Michaela Greeley). Their peripatetic life is set against the vicious and emotionally enervating company culture that begins to divide them after the random murder of their only child. Meanwhile, at the back of the stage, a series of slide projections showing, alternately, Morocco, the Virgin Islands, and Mexico act as a window into the various channels of life that continue implacably somewhere beyond the placeless formality of hotel walls. Baitz's skewering of the sociopathic monomania and cannibalism of a transnational corporate culture offers little we don't already know, even if there's pleasure to be had in his dark humor. Director Charles E. Polly gets strong, focused performances from Greeley and Souza, however, who together ensure that the play's ultimate emphasis on corruption comes over in compellingly intimate terms. (Avila)

*The Time of Your Life Geary Theater, 415 Geary; 749-2228, www.act-sf.org. $16-73. Wed/7-Sat/10, April 13-17, and 20-24, 8pm (also Wed/7, Sat/10, April 17, 21, and 24, 2pm); Sun, 2pm. Through April 25. See Theater review.

Bay Area

*Ghosts Berkeley Repertory's Roda Theatre, 2025 Addison, Berk; (510) 647-2949, www.berkeleyrep.org. $10-55. Wed/7 and Sun/11, 7pm (also Sun/11, 2pm); Thurs/8-Fri/9, 8pm (also Thurs/8, 2pm); Sat/10, 8pm. Director Jonathan Moscone and a charismatic cast breathe considerable life into Berkeley Repertory Theatre's production of Ibsen's morbid classic, a withering assault on the self-destructive moral hypocrisy of bourgeois society. Except for a sort of Royal Tenenbaums moment (in which our emotions end up unnecessarily and distractingly cued by a sentimental pop song), Moscone's direction moves things forward with elegant precision. (Avila)

The Miser Julia Morgan Theatre, 2640 College, Berk; (510) 704-8210, www.shotgunplayers.org. Free (donations accepted). Thurs-Sat, 8pm; Sun, 7pm. Through May 2. Shotgun Players kicks off its free-admission season with Molière's classic farce.

My Àntonia Mountain View Center for the Performing Arts, 500 Castro, Mtn View; (650) 903-6000, www.theatreworks.org. $20-48. Tues, 7:30pm; Wed-Sat, 8pm (also Sat, 2pm; no 2pm show Sat/10); Sun, 2 and 7pm (no 2pm show April 25). Through April 25. TheatreWorks presents the world premiere of Stephen and Scott Schwartz's adaptation of Willa Cather's coming-of-age drama.

My Old Lady Marin Theatre Company, 397 Miller, Mill Valley; (415) 388-5208, www.marintheatre.org. $28-45. Wed/7, 7:30pm; Thurs/8-Sat/10, 8pm (also Sat/10, 2pm); Sun/11, 2 and 7pm. Marin Theatre Company presents Israel Horovitz's dramatic comedy about reconciliation and forgiveness in families. A sad-luck 50-year-old American writer, Mathias Gold (Anthony Fusco), arrives in Paris hoping to sell an apartment he has inherited from his estranged father. The thrice-divorced, cash-strapped Gold, with something like the opposite of the Midas touch, instead finds he has inherited a viager, an apartment bought under market value that by Parisian law cannot be occupied until the present tenant dies. Present tenant is 94-year-old former school teacher Mathilde (Joy Carlin). Moved by Mathias's circumstances, she allows him to rent a room in the meantime, thereby infuriating her daughter Chloe (Nancy Carlin), who takes an immediate disliking to the unwanted lodger with a claim to her childhood home. After some initial pussyfooting, the play finally gets into deeper waters, vaguely shadowed by the history of French anti-Semitism, as family confessions and sordid revelations lead to some dicey choices. Horovitz's dialogue exhibits some of his trademark bite, but in the end it's a wonderful cast (and seeing the Carlins onstage together is a treat unto itself) that makes the most of this darkly amusing but uneven, overly sentimental play, meticulously directed by Amy Glaser. (Avila)

dance

Alonzo King's Lines Ballet Yerba Buena Center for the Arts Theater, 700 Howard; 978-ARTS, www.yerbabuenaarts.org. $20-50. Fri-Sat, April 14, and 15, 8pm; April 18, 7pm. $20-50. See Critic's Choice.

'Enlazos!' Brava Theater Center, 2789 24th St; 641-7657, www.ticketweb.com. Sat, 8pm; Sun, 3pm (special children's matinee). $6-17. Theatre Flamenco hosts this celebration of multicultural dance, with performances by Ensambles Ballet Folklorico (Sat) and Pampa y Estrellas and El Tunante (Sun).

*Erika Shuch Performance Project Intersection for the Arts, 446 Valencia; 626-3311, www.theintersection.org. Thurs-Sat, 8pm. Through April 17. $9-15 (Thurs, pay what you can). Erika Shuch's hour-long All You Need is brave. It's honest. It's also impossible. What she and her talented cohorts tried to do cannot be done: explore our capacity to go beyond what's generally considered human. The nature of the question denies its possibility of being answered. In the meantime they create for themselves and for us a piece of dance theater whose interpreters push themselves physically and emotionally about as far as they can go. Their abrasive rawness is almost frightening. The show limps but its seriousness of purpose – all the while being quite entertaining – delivers a respectable punch. Of particular note are the recurring loops of text that drill themselves into your brain and the range of the music – these performers know how to sing harmony. (Felciano)

Joe Goode Performance Group Marsh, 1062 Valencia; 826-5750. Wed, 8pm. $25-50 sliding scale. The company performs excerpts from Grace and Folk as part of the Marsh's "San Francisco Treasure Series."

San Francisco Ballet War Memorial Opera House, 301 Van Ness; 865-2000, www.sfballet.org. Tues/13, April 15-17, 8pm (also April 17, 2pm); April 14, 7:30pm; April 18, 2pm. $8-132. SFB performs Sir Frederick Ashton's Monotones I and II, Symphonic Variations, and Thaïs pas de deux; and Sir Kenneth MacMillan's Elite Syncopations.

'SkyDancers ... Women Who Fly Through the Air! A Feast and Festival of Aerial Dance' Dance Mission Theater, 3316 24th St; 273-4633. $18-20. Fri-Sat, 8pm; Sun, 6pm. $18-20. This week: Zaccho Youth Company, Zeina Asfour, Sonya Smith and Courtney Moreno, Lauren Steiner, Emily Leeds, and Terry Sendgraff choreographing for Wendy Diamond and Ramona Kelly.

Bay Area

'Blaze' Historic Sweet's Ballroom, 1933 Broadway, Oakl; (510) 597-1056, www.newstylemotherlode.com. Sat, 8pm. $10-20. Groups performing in this hip-hop dance showcase include New Style Motherlode Dance Company, Diamond Dance Company, Culture Shock, Mind over Matter, Funkanometry SF, Xplicit, Dance Unlimited, and Housing Authority II.

performance

'The Art of Aging' San Francisco Hilton, Continental Ballroom, 333 O'Farrell; (510) 548-3655, www.ticketweb.com. Tues, 7pm. $10-50. Dance pioneer Anna Halprin, Kairos Dance Theater of Minneapolis, Stagebridge, and others take part in a performance celebrating elders in the arts.

'CAFE Presents' Off-Market Theater (and Studio), 965 Mission; 896-6477, www.cafearts.com. $10. This week: "Macaroni Art Theater," sketch comedy (Fri-Sat, 8pm); "Ha Bloody Ha," live talk show hosted by Harmon Leon (Sat, 10pm, through April 24).

'The Doctor and the Clown' Center for Variety Arts, 608 Taraval; 242-4433. Fri, 8pm. Through April 23. $8. The comedic duo of Willy Bologna and Dr. Techno perform a variety of acts, including circus arts, adult puppets, musical numbers, "violent physical humor," and more.

'An Evening with Carol Channing' Geary Theater, 415 Geary; 749-2228, www.act-sf.org. Sun-Mon, 8pm. $20-70. See 8 Days a Week.

'Illuminata' Great American Music Hall, 859 O'Farrell; 389-TIXX, www.sunsettickets.com. Sat, 7 and 10pm. $25. See 8 Days a Week.

'Jaime Jacinto and Patty Cachapero: A Poetry and Playwrighting Journey' Bindlestiff Studio, 505 Natoma; 503-0520, www.kearnystreet.org. Fri, 7pm. Free. The writers kick off a monthlong series of workshops and other events with a reading and reception.

'The P.A. Cooley Hippety Hoppety Easter Special' San Francisco LGBT Community Center, 1800 Market; 861-5079, www.therhino.org. Sat, 8pm. $20. P.A. Cooley hosts a variety show highlighting queer talent, including comedian Lisa Geduldig, the Lesbian/Gay Chorus of San Francisco, and others.

'Va Va Voom Room' Plush Room, York Hotel, 940 Sutter; 885-2800, www.vavavoomroom.com. Extended run: Fri-Sat, 8 and 11pm (no shows May 14-15). Through May 22. $29.75. The New York City-based ensemble performs a burlesque and vaudeville cabaret.

'Wicked Messenger' Dark Room, 2263 Mission; 401-7987. Sun, 7pm. $5. This cabaret show, a benefit for Big Burlesque's Heather MacAllister, features the Lollies, Kitten of the Keys, Roky Roulette, an open mic, and more.

Bay Area

'Jane Austen in Berkeley: Episode One' Epic Arts, 1923 Ashby, Berk; (510) 841-9441, www.andreamock.org. Mon/5, April 12, and 19, 8pm. $7. Andrea Mock performs her solo show about a Berkeley mom who writes a best-selling novel, all while searching for the perfect mate.

comedy

Bazaar Cafe 5927 California; 831-5620. Tues, 8pm: "Doug Ferrari and Friends," stand-up comedy, free.

Climate Theatre 285 Ninth St; 863-1076. Mon, 8pm: "Monday Night Improv Jam," presented by the San Francisco Improv Co-Operative, $5.

Cobb's Comedy Club 915 Columbus; 928-4320, www.cobbscomedy.com. Wed, 8pm: "All-Pro Comedy Showcase," $7. Thurs-Sun, 8pm (also Fri-Sat, 10:15pm): Will Durst, Kevin Kataoka, Mark Nadeau, $15-20.

Java Beach 1396 La Playa; 665-5282. Wed, 8pm: "Doug Ferrari and Friends," stand-up comedy, free.

Punch Line 444 Battery; www.punchlinecomedyclub.com. Wed-Sat, 9pm (also Fri-Sat, 11pm): Brian Posehn, Dave Anthony, Ryan Stout, $10-20.

Purple Onion 140 Columbus; www.purpleonioncomedy.com. Wed, 9pm: Jim Short and friends, featuring Bob Rubin with Kevin Kataoka, $6.

San Francisco LGBT Community Center 1800 Market; 865-5633. Mon, 8pm: "Monday Night Gay Comedy," with host Bob Smith, $8-15 (sliding scale).

Bay Area

First Presbyterian Church 2619 Broadway, Oakl; (510) 465-0322, www.informedeating.org. Sat, 7pm: "Naturally Funny Comedy Show III: Politics as Usual," with Bill Santiago, Aundre the Wonder Woman, Joe Klocek, and Ross Turner, $20-25. Proceeds benefit the Center for Informed Food Choices and the National Radio Project.

spoken word

Open mics take place almost every night in cafés throughout the Bay Area. If you want to perform, show up about half an hour before start time to put your name on the list. A day-by-day guide to spoken word events and featured readers:

Wednesday: Brainwash Café 1122 Folsom, SF; (415) 440-5530. "Spoken Word Salon," with host Diamond Dave Whitaker, 8pm, free. Canvas Cafe 1200 Ninth Ave, SF; (415) 504-0060, mike@westcoastvideo.net. "Open Mic Talent Showcase," 7:30pm, free. San Francisco Public Library North Beach Branch, 2000 Mason, SF; (415) 274-0270. "Word Painters," with poets Jim Van Buskirk, Agneta Falk, Clara Hsu, and Stephen Kopel, 7pm, free.

Thursday: Mediterranean Cafe 2475 Telegraph, Berk; (510) 526-5985. "Word Beat Reading Series," with featured readers Jeanne Powell and Wendy Brown, followed by open mic, 7pm, free. Hotel Cosmo 761 Post, SF; www.artworksf.com. "Poetry (and More) at the Cosmo," with hosts Jeanne Powell and Philip T. Nails; this week, continuous open mic, 6pm, $3. 16th Street/Mission BART Plaza 16th St at Mission, SF; (415) 255-9881. "CAI Street Arts Workshop," open mic, 8:30pm, free. Dalva 3121 16th St, SF; (415) 753-8091. "Poetry Mission," with featured reader Rudy Waltz Jr, followed by open mic, 7pm, free. Italian-American Athletic Club 1630 Stockton, SF; www.porchlightsf.com. Porch Light storytelling series and Zoetrope: All-Story magazine present "Twins," readings and performances about twins, 7pm, $10.

Friday: Small Press Traffic Literary Arts Center, California College of Arts, 1111 Eighth St, SF; (415) 551-9278. Small Press Traffic hosts a reading with Rae Armantrout and Kaia Sand, 7:30pm, $5-10 sliding scale. Luggage Store Gallery 1007 Market, SF; www.luggagestoregallery.org. "Radiant Change," with poetry by Nicole Henares, Jack Hirschman, Aimee Suzara, Sarah Menefee, and others, 7:30pm, $5 (no one turned away for lack of funds).

Saturday: Martin Luther King Jr. Student Union UC Berkeley, Berk; www.calpoetryslam.com. "2004 College Unions Poetry Slam Finals," 8pm, $7-10. Chinatown Community Arts Program Gallery Chinese Culture Center, 750 Kearny, third fl, SF; (415) 957-1146. Asian American Women Artists Association presents a reading with poet Barbara Jane Reyes, 2pm, free.

Sunday: Cafe Prague 584 Pacific, SF; (415) 433-3811. Mark Schwartz hosts featured reader Vlad Pogorelov, plus open mic, 4pm, free. Cody's Books 2454 Telegraph, Berk; (510) 845-7852. "Poetry Flash," with Joanna Goodman and Tucker Malarkey, 7:30pm, $2.

Monday: Priya Indian Cuisine 2072 San Pablo, Berk; berkeleypoetryexpress@yahoo.com. "Poetry Express," featured readers Wendy Brown and Keith Mozier, with open mic hosted by Mark States, 7pm, free. Perry's Joint 1661 Fillmore, SF; (415) 928-8904. Featured readers Carl Wiener and Don Brennan, followed by open mic, 7pm, free. Canvas Cafe 1200 Ninth Ave, SF; (415) 504-0600, www.leftcoastwriters.com. "Left Coast Writers: Family Plots," featuring readings by Claire Savage, Penny Simi, Ann Harrington, and Doreen Wood, 7pm, free.