There’s a lot to see and do for Bay Area arts and entertainment fans this weekend. Here’s a partial roundup.
Concert picks: Patrick Landeza, The Residents, MC5
Here are three shows Bay Area music fans should know about.
Patrick Landeza: The jovial and oh-so-talented Bay Area teacher, author, writer and musician is among the world’s top slack key guitarists (he was the first mainland U.S. musician to capture Hawaii’s prestigious Nā Hōkū Hanohano award). He’s back with a new album featuring two of his sons, Justin Firmeza and Patrick Landeza Jr. The popular musician and his talented offspring will celebrate the release of “Patrick Landeza & Sons,” as well as Asian Pacific American Heritage Month with a show at Yoshi’s in Oakland tonight. Special guest is Mahealani Lee, a former Miss Universe, who will MC and perform hula.
Details: 8 p.m.; $25-$49; yoshis.com.
The Residents: San Francisco’s famed art-rock band, now in its 41st year of anonymously delivering high-concept satirical recordings and multimedia concerts to the huddled masses, returns to the stage with an updated live production based on its 1988 classic, “God in 3 Persons.” The show, starring the six-member band in collaboration with video artist John Sanborn, with guest vocalist Sivan Lioncub and Bay Area porn star Jiz Lee (who plays two “ambiguously gendered conjoined twins”), comes to the Presidio Theatre in San Francisco for two performances.
Details: 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday; $50; www.presidiotheatre.org, www.residents.com.
MC5: The legendary Detroit pre-punk, rabble-rousing garage rock band, which was nominated but not selected for induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame last week, brings its “Heavy Lifting Tour” to Bimbo’s 365 Club in San Francisco on May 13. The current lineup includes founding guitarist Wayne Kramer, drummer Stephen Perkins, bassist Vicki Randle, guitarist Stevie Salas. Kramer has reportedly said the current version of the band plans to release a new album this year — if so it would be the band’s first new release in 51 years.
Details: Flaming Groovies opens; show starts 8 p.m.; $39.50; bimbos365club.com.
— Randy McMullen, Staff
On stage: Don Reed, Magic Theatre premiere
Here are two productions Bay Area theater fans should know about.
Don Reed’s ‘Going Out’: With his engaging, utterly likable stage presence and superb storytelling skills, East Bay comedian/playwright/actor Don Reed’s shows are always a treat. He’s back at The Marsh in San Francisco with a revised version of his pandemic-themed “Going Out,” which finds Reed riffing on, as organizers put it, “the collective excitement and apprehension of being back out in the world,” from hitting clubs and shows to “combative moments” at a Walgreens store. Details: Through June 4; The Marsh, San Francisco; $25-$100; themarsh.org.
Magic Theatre’s ‘Sloth Play’: Magic Theatre presents the long-delayed world premiere of former San Francisco-based playwright Sam Chanse’s comedy/drama “Monument, or Four Sisters (A Sloth Play),” that centers on four sisters dealing with a devastating loss. The show incorporates a monumental road trip, the titular talking sloths and a bunch of cartoon bombs. Giovanna Sardelli directs a cast that includes Rinabeth Apostol, Lisa Hori-Garcia, Erin Mei-Ling Stuart and Sango Tajima. Details: In previews today and Friday, main run is Saturday through May 29; Magic Theatre at Fort Mason Center, San Francisco; $20-$70; www.magictheatre.org.
— Randy McMullen, Staff
Classical picks: Cal Symph, San Jose tribute
New works and repertory favorites highlight the classical scene this week. Here are five events you won’t want to miss.
Cuong’s “Trees”: The California Symphony is closing its season with the West Coast premiere of “Next Week’s Trees” by composer-in-residence Viet Cuong; inspired by a Mary Oliver poem, the work was introduced online in May 2021 and is finally making its in-person debut. Conducted by Donato Cabrera, the program also includes Tchaikovsky’s Symphony No. 5 and Elgar’s Cello Concerto, featuring Nathan Chan — a Bay Area prodigy making his hometown return — as soloist. Details: 7:30 May 14, 4 p.m. May 15; Lesher Center for the Arts, Walnut Creek; $20-$74; www.californiasymphony.org.
Mozart at New Century: Mozart’s “Sinfonia concertante” for violin, viola and orchestra is the main event on the New Century Chamber Orchestra’s season finale, with violist Paul Neubauer joining music director Daniel Hope and the orchestra. Two Mozart symphonies, including the brilliant No. 40 in G minor, round out the program. Details: 7:30 May 12 at First Congregational Church, Berkeley; 7:30 p.m. May 13 at First United Methodist Church, Palo Alto, 7:30 p.m. May 14 at Herbst Theatre, San Francisco; $30-$67.50; www.ncco.org.
In Memoriam: The San Jose Wind Symphony’s Sunday afternoon concert is dedicated to the memory of founding director Darrell Johnston, who died in May 2021. The program features clarinetist Jon Manasse in Carl Maria von Weber’s Clarinet Concerto No. 1; works by Bernstein and Rimsky-Korsakov are also on the schedule. Details: 3 p.m. May 15; McAfee Performing Arts Center, Saratoga; $7-$22; www.sjws.org.
Gold Coast and guests: “Cultural Crossroads” is the title of the Gold Coast Chamber Players’ season finale this weekend, with the Alexander String Quartet and Native American artist R. Carlos Nakai in a program that includes works by Dvorak, Florence Price, and original works and arrangements by Nakai. Details: 7:30 May 14, Don Tatzin Community Hall, Lafayette Library; $15-$45; gccpmusic.com.
Bullock’s “Voice”: The sublime Julia Bullock, a San Francisco Symphony collaborative partner, returns to Davies Symphony Hall with “History’s Persistent Voice,” featuring members of Symphony in an original work highlighting “the words, work, and experiences of Black American artists.” Conducted by Christian Reif, with video installations by Hana S. Kim, the program features music by composers Tania León, Jessie Montgomery, Carolyn Yarnell, Allison Loggins-Hull, and Pamela Z. Details: 7:30 p.m. May 17, Davies Symphony Hall, San Francisco; $17.50-$165; www.sfsymphony.org.
— Georgia Rowe, Correspondent
