First time going to the Alvin Ailey dance. The space was very nice. The venue was very spacious and…read moreclean. The performance was spectacular. I would recommend everyone visit at least once.!

Birmingham AL performance at BJCC. Started 40 minutes late. 25 minutes of performance was followed…read moreby a 45 minute "intermission" then the performance was cancelled. A wasted and very expensive evening.

The Dancers' Den has been restarted after a long hiatus in the Oakland Asian Cultural Center. The…read moreevent started in 2016 on an uneven schedule, but as of 2017 settled into the second Friday of the month pattern with some deviations. Check the Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/JBsDancersDen/ for dates. Old reviews can be found at https://www.yelp.com/biz/the-dancers-den-berkeley The venue: the dance floor in OACC is beautiful to look at, but is quite unpleasantly sticky (many dancers complained). If you have trouble shuffling (I did on both of my visits), move to the center of the floor, it feels better. The floor is large, yet it was quite crowded at times due to a lot of people attending. The temperature control is not sufficient for the crowd. There is not much seating; the problem was resolved by dancers using whatever seat is available and thus effectively sharing seats. Please do not misunderstand me, the OACC hall is still quite nicer than a typical swing dancing venue. The time and money: event starts at 7PM with an intermediate lesson followed by the beginner one at 8PM; dance party starts at 9PM and goes on until 11:45PM.This being a live music event, the party comes with a stiff price tag: $25 for both lessons and the party, with $5 discounts for skipping each of the two lessons. Both lessons were interesting and useful: I have been dancing swing for a lot of years, and this is one of the rare occasions where I have learned something from the beginner lessons; it was not just a warm-up for me. The pace of the beginner lesson is, however, somewhat high; this is OK for the truly beginner follows that have the dance basics (connection) in place, for beginner leads this is at best a refresher, attending few slower-paced lessons elsewhere is recommended for all but the most talented leads. The situation is ameliorated to a large extent by the intermediate dancers staying for the beginner lesson. The logistics: The OACC is located on the second floor of the of the Pacific Renaissance Plaza (Plaza's address is 388 9th St). Street parking is possible and free at the time of the event, but not easy to find. Parking is possible in the Plaza garage (entrance is at 988 Franklin St.), my cost was $2. Note that all garages close for the night, the Plaza garage is open until midnight, but you would want to get there prior to 11:45PM, so it might be wise to skip the last dance or re-park the car - at 11PM street parking is easy. The immediate neighborhood is very quiet and clean by the Oakland standards. The music was provided by The Fascinating Rhythms band that was playing without its vocalist but still sounded way better than their clips on the Internet. The crowd: attendance for the lessons was 20 to 80 people. The party itself brought in a huge crowd of way over 100 dancers, similar in size and skills to the 9:20 Special dance in SF with about an equal split between the leads and the follows. There were few beginner followers that were fun to dance with; mostly the partners I have danced with were intermediate and above. The crowd significantly thins out after 11PM, due to the garage situation there were only about 10 dancers on the floor for the last dance. Overall: a major event due to its popularity and high level of dancers' skills. Dancer's Den also fills in the Friday gap in the swing dance calendar of the Bay Area. Definitely recommended.

Everybody's got a story. Not everybody wants to stand in front of a roomful of people and tell…read moretheir story but that's what those audience chairs are for. When people ask me if Porchlight is good I give my standard line: There's nothing better than a good story well told. At Porchlight, SF's original story-telling venue (12 years running), center stage is reserved for 10-minute, pre-vetted stories told without notes. Pre-vetted doesn't mean that the stories can't jump the rails 8 minutes in but even when they do, it's worth watching and listening to. I've yet to have a bad time at this monthly Verdi Club event. The same goes for Porchlight Open Door, a more recent entry into the Porchlight oeuvre. Hosted by the same hilarious originators as Porchlight the Mothership, Open Door is a smaller event that lets audience members tell 5-minute stories on a pre-selected theme. Even if the story is a bomb (rare) it's 5-minutes max; You can hack it. If you decide to tell a story centered around the monthly theme arrive well before the 7 p.m. start time, find the hostess (Arline), and add your name to the list. Some months story-teller slots fill up early; some months the hosts are begging for more. And even if your story barely fits the theme nobody's going to shut you down. Open Door stories aren't pre-vetted. Anything can happen. A winner, selected by whimsy, is entitled to $50 plus a bag of hot nuts, and every storyteller gets a chit for a free drink. Alcohol makes all stories better, no? Yes. Open Door shows are held in a small back-room at the Hemlock Tavern on the last Monday of the month at 7 p.m. Admission is $5. and it's pretty much the best entertainment out there at that price point. It's an even better value if you get yourself up on stage to work out your issues: Cheaper than a shrink and far more entertaining.

The singing group's sell-out of their artistic legacy is alarming. They are trying to please a…read morecertain type of crowd. They are pursuing exotic elements at the expense of traditional values and integrity.

Interesting..I hadn't heard of this performance of Christmas music(chorus)...I found a promotion in…read morethe brochure at Symphony this year...it seemed like a good show to try for the first time...my parents would go..if I asked my mom for tickets...we saw lots of interesting shows...that was our tradition since 1990s..it's a holiday show with chorus...interesting variations on classics and a presentation with different music---something you hadn't seen or heard before..they held a tour in the Bay Area...and this was at USF campus church St Ignatius...super.

Free movie night in San Francisco - what?! really?! What's the catch? Two drink minimum - ahhhhhh,…read moreyes, of course. BUT a two drink minimum that no one really cares about. Minus one star for really uncomfortable seats - my poor arse! Bathroom lines are non-existent which is excellent for those with small bladders or those who drink a wee too much :o) We caught the premiere of the movie 'Before the Music Dies' and it was a very insightful documentary. Nothing that an intelligent educated person hasn't concluded him/herself, but nevertheless interesting. It's a movie every musician and music lover should watch! Warning: Beware of those obnoxious people who've had one too many to drink and talk throughout the entire movie! I even went up to those bitches and asked them very nicely if they would mind whispering. They just continued to talk normally! Grrrssss! Very very annoying indeed! Movie night is a great idea for any musical venue on an off-night!

Update: Is this only…read morea summer thing? I checked the Independent's website and didn't see any movie nights for November or December :( ********************************************************************* Pro: FREE! Con: With a two drink minimum. Pro: They don't really regulate that. I only had one beer. Con: I've outed myself as a kind of a cheapskate for not complying with the one reasonable request of a venue offering me a free movie. Pro: AND free popcorn! Unlimited. I planned to go back for more, but after eating two cups of buttery goodness the movie started... Con: ...half an hour late. And we came half an hour early. Pro: Granted it's the Independent, we were entertained with rock and indie hits while we waited for the show. Con: Just like at a show, I was deafened... I couldn't have a conversation with the person sitting across from me without yelling! And with all that waiting, we wanted to chat... Pro: Once the show started, the sound and picture didn't bother me at all. In fact, despite the small screen I was still able to catch every bit of blood and guts coming at me. Pro: The tipsiness factor ensued in numerous giggles (well-warranted, not immature) during the sex scene in 300. Come on, it's funny! Pro: The pleasant indoor accommodations prove the practicality of this venue on a year-round basis, versus Movie in the Park. Final rating: With the pros outweighing the cons, 4 stars. Better than average... and FREE, for godsakes! Support the Independent, yay-yeah!!!

I've been on Yelp for over a year now and this is the VERY FIRST review I'm contributing to the…read moreprocess. Woo hoo for me! No, actually, WOO HOO for Authentic Performance! Enrolled in this weekend workshop on its very first run about a year ago and I haven't been the same since. In a good way, of course. CeCe and Brian took me on a wild ride. I not only learned a lot about performing and performing my poetry but just as much (if not more) about myself, where I was in my life, and how it was I was going to get where I wanted to go. They created a space that my shy poet self felt safe enough in to explore, to challenge my boundaries, and to break a few of them too. On top of all of that, over the course of one weekend, I deepened a few friendships and made ones that I know I will have in my life for a long, long time. And how can that be bad, right?

I had the honor of being asked to present a FEMTalk and had a great experience. Jessica's staff was…read moreorganized and supportive, the audience was receptive and responsive and we all enjoyed our experience a lot. I have also had a great time and learned tons as an audience participant at FEMTalks. Highly recommended! Note: I just found this old review that I meant to post in 2012 and somehow never pushed the button. It's still true, so I'm putting it out now, 4 years later.

As a FEM Talks audience member, I've had the pleasure of attending and watching this amazing event…read moregrow from the very beginning. If you are an open-hearted woman in the Bay Area, there is something here for you! Jessica books speakers on relevant topics, the events themselves are engaging, thought-provoking and fun (where else are you going to find an evening of awesome that starts with a "WARM-UP DIVA"?), and you'll leave with new ideas and new connections. Tickets are very reasonably priced for the value & experience (and compared to other similar events), and if you're low on cash, you can volunteer in exchange for your ticket or take advantage of the Bring A Friend or Maiden/Matron discounts. As a FEM Talks speaker (August 2013), I found Jessica an absolute delight to work with. She's organized, knowledgeable, warm and effortlessly connects the speakers to each other and the audience. As a feminist, I am a fan of cooperation and sisterhood, not the "women have to be in competition with each other for scarce resources" b.s. that we've all been fed in this culture. If you want a taste of feminine cooperation, come to FEM Talks. You'll be glad you did!

BRRRRR.... As a…read morelongtime aficionado of Opera in the Park, I was excited to see they have yet another free outdoor event on Memorial Day weekend, Opera in Dolores Park...in theory, a great setting. Through no fault of the organizers, there was an unseasonable cold snap that sent shivers down our respective spines yesterday. The traffic passing behind the stage on Dolores was not helpful either...imagine if an urbanized passer-by was playing a lil' 50-Cent full-blast in the middle of an aria from "Tannhauser". OK, I'm not a Wagner fan...so maybe not so bad. Anyway, a nice roster of singers was assembled from the three operas playing during the SF Opera's summer season. A surprising number of basses and baritones were featured, including a stirring turn by Oren Gradus on "Il lacerato spirito" from Verdi's "Simon Boccanegra". The headliner was most definitely renowned mezzo Susan Graham, whom I just saw down in LA for a powerful, all-star staging of Monteverdi's "L'Incoronazione di Poppea". She is scheduled for a SF Opera run of Gluck's "Iphigenie en Tauride" next month. Obviously caught off-guard by the cold with her flimsy coat, she sped through "Non so piu cosa son" from Mozart's "Le Nozze di Figaro" clutching herself against the blustery winds. She sounded powerful, but I was feeling sorry for her. I actually thought the best performance came just before her - soprano Twyla Robinson's poignant rendition of "Sombre foret" from Rossini's "William Tell". It's definitely worth a picnic spread, and it's a helluva lot easier to get here than to Sharon Meadow in Golden Gate Park. Here's to sunny skies next year!

Opera in the (Delores) Park with five of my closest friends was one of my favorite days in San…read moreFrancisco. We brought enough food to feed a small army: fancy cheeses, crackers, nuts, olives, sushi, fruit, bread, and more. We also came equipped with at least one nice bottle of wine per person. We luckily staked out a spot early on as the lawn was packed. All of our "neighbors" at the event were super friendly and offered to share their food. We enjoyed the opera culture while feasting and sipping... When the others left, one friend and I decided to nap on the lawn. When we woke up, Delores Park was magically back to its original park-like state with no signs that an opera (and feast) had just occurred!