I've seen their last show (7/18) and the play was fantastic! The actors are really good and the…read moremusic was amazing! I really support the cause and I think that it gives a lot to the kids. It looked like the kids are running everything in the show, I've seen very few adults involved

Enthusiastic and passionate staff and students work together to provide fun entertainment, bringing…read morenew and classic pieces to the community,

Conductor and Choral Master Bryan along with administrative assistant Erin really worked together…read moreto create a beautiful wedding day for me and my family. Thanks to Bryan and his gorgeous chorus for their kind friendliness, professionalism, spotless performance, flawless tonality and lovingly offered voices and candid performance of such simplicity and grand execution, the likes i've known only on the east coast and in England. Bryan worked with me to bring to life some sacred works for my ceremony-- he made excellent suggestions, knew some fabulous musicians and put the hard work into what turned out to be not only ethereal but atmospheric and hauntingly beautiful; thank you Bryan and brilliant chorus. great memories and friendly staff are only the beginning of your Experience with Masterworks, if you choose to hire them for a classical sacred performance, you are creating a stand-out moment of beauty your guests will remember and be touched by for years to come. Excellent.

I started taking singing lessons with Mete as my dad was in hospice in my home in 2016. I had…read morealways wanted to learn to sing! It was so helpful to have this to look forward to during a such a sad time. Mete had been recommended by a neighbor, whose children study with him. I can't believe how well I've progressed - I even sang for my dad at his memorial celebration, in front of 50 people. I love my voice now, and I have so much fun singing! Mete is just the best teacher for me, so inspiring and supportive! I think most of his students are young people and children, but he's great with adults as well! He also teaches piano, and sings at events - he's just a sweetheart, and with an amazing voice and kindness!

Highly recommended!…read more Mete has been my vocal instructor for the past two months. I hadn't taken serious vocal lessons in the past so my voice was as untrained as it could get. :) He has been great at identifying where my strengths and weakness were and he could design the lessons in such a way that I made a lot of progress in such a short time. I am now able to produce operatic sounds that I didn't think I have in me! All this preparation is for my upcoming first album and Mete is critical to my singing quality both in technique and interpretation aspects.

Summer rock camp for me growing up was a great time! Making friends, practicing instruments, and…read morelearning how to be in a band! All of the senior counselors at the time I was there are proficient on their instruments and care a lot about the craft and process of being a great musician! I was lucky enough to teach through Mikes camp as well and feel the gifts the camp in its early years provided me later in my life and relationship to music and teaching on my own!

I've been attending Rock Camp for about six years now, starting when I was only ten years old. I…read morecome back each and every year because it is always the most memorable and exciting part of my summer. Mike and his staff are like family to me-- they're always so welcoming and friendly, and they put a tremendous amount of effort into making sure that each kid feels heard. Being in a small band (4-5 kids) with a professional musician as your counselor creates a safe space for kids to explore and grow as musicians. When putting together bands, Mike Finley makes sure to factor in skill level, as well as age. He puts kids into groups where he thinks they will be most comfortable, however, he always leaves room for growth. The distinguishing factor between Summer Rock Camp and its competitors (e.g. school of rock) is that Rock Camp will teach your kids about all aspects of music-- rather than simply copy a couple songs with their bands, kids have a chance to learn important lessons about music theory, rhythm, etc. These skills are what will set you apart as a musician in the long run-- kids are encouraged to be creative, and some bands even learn to write their own original pieces. Rock camp equips young musicians with the skills they need to thrive-- this camp helped me learn to collaborate with others, master the art of performance, and greatly improve my skills on the guitar. Everybody works toward the performance on Friday, and each kid gets a chance to showcase their hard work. Overall, it's extremely rewarding, no matter what your skill level is. I never felt like my was being compared to others at the camp-- the counselors create an extremely positive atmosphere that makes it easy to be proud of yourself and everything you accomplished in just five days. Rock camp has taught me so much, not only about music, but about myself. I met one of my biggest role models at this camp-- nearly all of the counselors are pursuing music professionally, and many of them have degrees in music from top universities around the country. It's truly a phenomenal staff, and they have a lot of experience with working with kids in a musical setting. I plan on coming back to Rock Camp every summer for years to come-- I have extremely fond memories of performing, rehearsing, and just messing around with the other campers and counselors. If your kid is interested in music at ALL, send them to this camp.

My first opera ever. Salome--gruesome story about a beautiful and majorly entitled princess. Men…read moreswooned and one was stupid enough to kill himself over her. Then she wanted to kiss a prisoner prophet who turned her down. So she had him killed and served his head on a platter. Ultimately they had her killed which was a good idea. Excellent voices and set. I was told this might have been a difficult first time opera but I'll definitely go again.

We are SF Opera subscribers but we drive down to Palo Alto once every season to catch an opera by…read moreWest Bay Opera. They are usually high quality and it's really fun to see an opera in such a small house. The Samson and Delilah we just saw didn't live up to previous operas we've been there but it was pleasant. They are creative with sets and it was a good production. The chorus needs a lot of improvement but the leads were good . There is a lovely outdoor courtyard for intermission. Ticket prices are much less than SF Opera and I admire their goal of making opera available for all.

(This review is just for the space itself, not from the perspective of someone who has had a lesson…read morehere.) The entire space has just undergone an extensive renovation and looks great! The practice rooms vary in size and all look very nice with good acoustics and sound proofing so you don't have to hear the person in the room next door, and they won't hear you either! There is a nice recital hall with a stage and 2 pianos . If you want to know more I recommend checking out their website. https://www.gradusadparnassum.com

Stanford Repertory Theater is great. Its productions are first rate, led by the really creative,…read morefun, intelligent, Rush Rehm. It's super affordable given the quality of their performances. I've seen everything from Euripides and Orson Welles ("Moby Dick - Rehearsed") to this summer's excellent, rich, and mind-expanding Naomi Wallace production, "Slaughter City", and soon "Waiting For Lefty." Although the Rep doesn't have the reputation of Yale or some of the New York theaters, and it's not as big as ACT in SF, it's just as good if not better. I'm so glad Stanford supports this drama program to help balance out all of the new, new, cutting edge, science and technology of Silicon Valley. Take "Slaughter City" for instance, playing now (for a couple more days). It's about human work, and history, and desire. Written in the 1990's, it's set in a spare and creatively staged slaughterhouse to examine labor and the centuries old tension between workers and bosses. Who gets the power and how, who pays and how? And true, maybe we're not slaughterhouse workers, but someone does that work for us, while we do other work, as surgeons or programmers, say. Maybe we're not subjected to physically bruising work conditions, but don't we have aches and pains from sitting 8-12 hours a day coding or typing or managing? We might also reflect on these labor struggles wonder about the future of work with automation. The play is also about history, with surreal and poetic moments that trace labor's perennial indignities and tragedies, the ghost of the Triangle ShirtWaist Fire, for instance, indentured through time to the ruthless "capitalist" who takes on the guise of "Sausage Man". So here's a play about labor, and power, and history, but it's also about desire. Oh, desire. Maybe these workers desire something simple -- a car -- a Ford or a Chevy. A young man desires an the older woman, and another woman is drawn to a woman dressed as a man. What does the manager desire in making his workers grovel and all of us squirm? When it's hot these characters desire cold, when it's cold they need warmth, when they can't breath they need air, and when they know they're going to die? They just want a few more minutes to live. What is it about desire that pushes humans to endure so much? All of this in a 90 minute production in an intimate theater where no seat is a bad seat. TV shows can't beat it for dramatic thought-provoking timeless entertainment, and all those shows borrow, steal, and reference classic theater. The Stanford Rep also has an amazing summer symposium that's amazing and totally worth attending. I do wish they sold season tickets.

Moby Dick-rehearsed. One of the best plays I've ever seen. Superbly acted. Wonderful choreography…read more So creative. Don't miss it! Playing until Aug 10th.

Some of the best live music on the west coast. Great intimate seating, free parking. Beer and wine,…read moreit can't be beat for Saturday evening entertainment. This is the best kept secret in San Mateo County for great music of all kinds.

Pacifica Performances at the Mildred Owen Concert Hall in Pacifica is a hidden gem of a musical…read morevenue. It is an intimate (but not too small) concert hall that features fantastic, diverse world-class performances. Maybe I shouldn't let the secret out, maybe us locals should keep it for ourselves but it is difficult to keep a wonderful thing to yourself, especially when it comes to music. Pacifica Performances has artists who play classical, bluegrass, jazz, blues, world, Celtic, etc. The facility is unusual - it's in an old school multipurpose room but the acoustics are very good. The atmosphere is low-key and casual and when the show starts, you are happily wrapped in the music. Check out the schedule at: www.pacificaperformances.org