I was wondering where all the party extras from "Breakfast at Tiffany's" went to after the cops…read moreraided Holly Golightly's apartment. They come here to the funkiest part of Oakland the first Friday of every month. Boho types are alive and licking here in their various states of dress and degrees of piercing. All they need is Mickey Rooney in full Asian make-up shouting, "Mizz Go-rightry, I must protest!" Lots of cool gallery spaces. Johansson Projects is a particular must-stop with the grass growing on the ceiling. Lots of very skinny people in Shields-and-Yarnell haircuts. Art is meant to make the soul search, though some of the pieces I saw made the head scratch. The best part of the event has to be strolling through the Art Corridor on 23rd Street near Telegraph. Singing. Performance art. You name it...it's here. Find your inner bohemian, man.

The art murmur is definitely a great end to your friday nights…read more Location: Super convenient you can hop off 19th street bart and walk up telegraph. I would recommend public transportation as parking can be insane!! Although you can pay up to $15 for event parking or muscle you way through a residential areal nearly 10 blocks way and walk to the event. If you have children i would recommend attending this event earlier in the day bc as night falls most folks are pulling out liquor and recreational drugs. And this event is known to have crime and violence. However the event coordinators are aware so there is security in place maintaining safety. (whatever that means) THE ART: prices range from $1-$1,400 depending on the vendors/museums. You may have a young entrepreneur selling T-shirts that they screen printed themselves or local/ out of town street artist who create masterpieces out of legos or spray paint or charcoal or sharpie pens. The options are endless. I mean you can get some hand made body oils/ body butters or you can grab you some hand made jewelry. The sellers here are supper talented. I just saw a business man in a suite and tie beat boxing as i left the event. THE FOOD: At the end of the strip they have all types of food trucks. The cuisine ranges from sweet, oriental, bbq, mexican, sea food and so much more. An added bonus is that the local food joints are open for business so you can always dine in and vibe out to some live music.

Awesome place to see awesome live music. Saw a couple of independent bands. I will be back when I'm…read morein the area

Love the venue! I volunteer frequently, and the other volunteers are wonderful! Show up an hour…read morebefore the first band to volunteer and get into the show free! (U still have to have a membership card to volunteer, but totally worth it!)

As a high schooler I volunteered for our Key Club one year and vowed to come back as an adult…read more Finally, made it back last night to see Carousel and I was so impressed with the quality of the cast and the production. The dancing and their voices were very strong. The main cast was charismatic. I figured this would be amateurish like how summer shows are portrayed on tv shows but this is talented cast with nice sets and production value with some effects. These is definitely a lot dedicated staff that puts a lot of love into the shows. What's amazing is the cast only recently performed a different show. These guys are amazing! The food at the concession stands was yummy and the bathrooms were clean. Some door latches in the ladies room need to be realigned because they couldn't be latched but I expected portopotties so was happy have clean bathrooms with working soap dispensers and paper towels. The weather was pretty chilly all day so I was pleasantly surprised that I wasn't freezing my tush last night. A couple of blankets and a thermos of warm liquids did the trick. And, thank you to the generous donors who allow kids to watch for free. First night shows are also discounted for adults. For those who want to introduce your kids to theater without worrying that they can't sit through a whole productions this is an excellent family friendly way to give them a taste. They don't have to dress up and if you get a seat on the aisle they can take a break discreetly.

This venue fills a bit of the void left by the tragic closure of Cal Shakes earlier this year…read more Watching theatrical productions amongst the redwoods on a summer evening is not something I want the community to be without. We saw Anastasia this year, and the performers, designers, staff, and volunteers all created such a wonderful experience. The tickets were a little pricey, and the seats were a little hard, but there's no substitute for outdoor theater. (Bring layers so that you can bundle up once the sun sets!)

Harold is such a cool guy. Embracing the 60s culture. Great customer service he talented…read morecreative and always ready to give time for a successful event. Attend the events at ART HOUSE & CULTURAL CENTER you will love the experience

One of my close friends and his band had the wonderful opportunity to headline a show at the…read moreBerkeley Art House. Loved the cozy atmosphere, the people, and being able to view beautiful pieces of art all while listening to live music. I've never heard of this place until my friend's show and it is one of the coolest and most unique places I've even been to in Berkeley. I will be back in hopes of purchasing some pieces for my home and supporting local artists!

A very welcoming makerspace, with good access to various equipment and knowledgeable…read moremembers/volunteers.

Ace is a wonderful space full of workshops and different creative machines. They host many…read morecommunity events and remain accessible to everyone via volunteer program. I've personally learned how to 3D print and I plan on going to one of their many classes and social nights!

MADE is absolutely fantastic. Staff are exactly my people--quirky nerds who love video games. The…read moreselection is great. You'll see a wide variety of consoles, including the Sega Dreamcast and Commodore 64, but also old computers like the Apple II running Oregon Trail. Alongside the consoles and computers running video games, you'll see art pieces that show the insides of various consoles, and info papers that share the history of each one. The magic is in the details. Seeing some consoles have what seems to be a featured game, with info on that game's history and reception, is really cool. The Panasonic consoles had info on their wonky Zelda games, and the Xbox 360 had info on Sonic '06. I also love seeing info sheets about women in gaming. These bits of history really show how much MADE cares about teaching their attendees about video games. It's $20 to get in the door, and you can stay for as long as you'd like. You can even leave and come back throughout the day. It's a great deal and honestly a perfect way to spend a day.

I visited the Museum of Art and Digital Entertainment when it was on 3400 Broadway. I went back to…read moretheir newest location, and it was as good as the last time I visited.

"Boil, Boil, Toil and Trouble."…read more I had the good fortune of seeing "Macbeth" recently, on a warm summer evening. The theater is just a short (and beautiful!) walk up the hill, but they have a free shuttle if you prefer to ride. The resident dramaturge, Philippa Kelly, gives a scholarly lecture before the show. She set the historical context for the play. I appreciated getting the background on Macbeth, and especially the purpose of the 3 witches. The amphitheater is a comfortable venue, and suits either the comedies or the tragedies. (I have seen both here.) For Macbeth, the stage had clear partitions, behind which the characters (and the witches) could traverse. This was also a handy place for the witches to toss "blood" in several scenes. I sort of knew it was coming, but the red gore still had a big impact on me. I thoroughly enjoyed the performance of Macbeth. The actors had clearly studied hard, and the play was professionally executed. I was especially impressed with Lady Macbeth, played by Liz Sklar. Of course, she has a meaty role, sleepwalking in one scene, and trying to get the blood off her hands in another. For cold nights, the staff has blankets for a nominal charge. I was delighted to also see many food options, as well as beer and wine. There are lots of wood tables to sit at and enjoy your meal. The only criticism I have is that for Macbeth the audio was spotty in a few places. For instance, the loud, background effects drowned out the 3 witches in one scene. I thought the ticket was pricey, but of course, buying a season pass is a better value.

"WAR OF THE ROSES" - FOUR SHAKESPEARES' PLAYS INTO ONE…read more My last class I ever took as an undergrad at UC Berkeley was Shakespeare. In fact my final semester Shakespeare was the only class I took as I had completed all my courses for my Art History major the previous semester. So I wanted to really enjoy learning for my final semester at UC Berkeley. From that Shakespeare course I read and studied plays such as Twelfth Night, Othello, Merchant of Venice,Taming of the Screw, Hamlet, Anthony and Cleopatra, and Richard III. I came here to watch the "War of the Roses" last month. One of my co-worker she saw the play "War of the Roses", which comprises of 4 Shakespeare's plays - "Henry VI (Parts I, II, and III) and Richard III - into one. I've read Richard III but never read Henry VI - Parts I, II, and III. That was a unique concept as each play can be at least 3 hours when performed. The snipets from each play resulted the play of "War of the Roses" 3 3/4 hours performance. A little history note "War of the Roses" is about the English Civil War between two branches of the Plantagnet family - The House of York and House of Lancaster. Also the "War of the Roses" influenced the HBO show "Games of Thrones." The magazine at the theater provided an insight for the summary of the play. This was helpful to understand the flow of the play. One thing I was fascinated was the stage as it was a two-story stage. Most of the acting was the first level stage, but the upper stage was also used as The Tower of London for "Richard III". During the play I was fascinated how the actors were playing two roles where in "Henry VI" they would play one role and "Richard III" in another role. That shows skills from the actors learning lines of two characters. Since the theater is small you can a great view of the play - there are no nosebleed seats. As an outdoor theater I recommend bringing a jacket as the weather tends to get cold at night. Another recommendation is instead of paying tickets online where the prices can be over $40 depending on the seats call the ticket office to get $20 tickets on the day of the show. As stated before since this is a small theater the seating is close to the stage so it's better to call the ticket office on the than order online. If you like Shakespeare and want to watch one of his plays I recommend coming here to this theater.

Is this place a garage? It certainly feels like it with the bike rack and the garage door…read more Lighting also conduces a kind of Fight Club scenario although this is offset by the middle age crowd and great snacks. Seriously, of all the art galleries this is the place to go for snacks. Mango salsa, cheese platter, fruit, candy, meats, a wide variety of cookies and crackers, etc. There were more people around the snack table than the art! Poorly lit art is posted on the walls yet the main exhibition is inside a room with a red door. The room is fairly small which is kinda odd considering the grand space of the "garage". Right next to the red door room is another craft area for kids to make art. There's a table with a tarot card reader. It was funny listening to their "future" predictions. The gallery is located in a dark alleyway so watch your back. Go for the art, stay for the food.

The Red Door Gallery and Collective has an amazing vibe. In their community outreach gallery they…read moreare building bridges in to the community through art and activism. The show that I saw was with Reaching Out American, an art project and fundraiser for survivors of child abuse. In the main gallery their was a show called Portals which explored notions of the merging of spirit and matter. In the large space was a great celebration with great music, food, and art. Check out- it is a great place to hang every First Friday with the Oakland Art Murmur.