And if We Shadows – scenes from a circus life” is an urban circus arts performance with over a dozen aerialists, acrobats, contortionists and circus specialists (aged between 14-34) along with a live score by beatboxer Carlos Aguirre. The show, which can best be described Rent, but with a teenage circus angle, or as a homegrown handcrafted hip-hop version of Cirque du Soliel, also features legendary breakdancers Iron Monkey & Finesse.

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101st Season Kick Off for the Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk - Opening Weekend will be a splashy affair when champion high divers return to the beach with a thrilling new aquatic show. From an incredible 80-foot tower dive to wild trampoline antics, these talented performers will keep everyone gasping The action-packed day also includes a preview performance by the Amazing Chinese Acrobats. Sky Divers (Saturday only) wrap up the day with a spectacular beach landing over the Cocoanut Grove. (more…)

The 2008 “Film Night in the Park” series kicks off with the 1936 classic “The Wizard of Oz.” Bring a blanket and a picnic to Dolores Park in the Mission District of San Francisco  and enjoy a film under the stars with 500 of your closest friends. This year’s film series runs from May to October and takes place at nine different parks all over the bay area. $6 suggested donation to keep this great series afloat, but it can be free if you’re too cheap. Complete 2008 Film Night in the Park Scheulce

Bring your tortillas (stale preferred), your costumed, your naked and your beer and participate in one of the largest races in America, and also one of the most strange and “San Francentric.” The Third Sunday in May sees this crown jewel of SF events with over 70,000 race/walk/stroll 7.46 miles from Bay (Howard/Beale) to Breakers (the western end of Golden Gate Park) in a costumed mass of people. Be prepared to see 1,000 ridiculous costumes, lots of naked people and the tired “salmon” swimming against the tide of racers. Although you’re supposed to register and pay $48-$59 to race, but many people just show up and race anyway. We won’t tell anyone.

Let’s go Green in May. Meet Christie Matheson Of Green Chic, a guide for your thoughtful decisions in every day life, from food to beauty to wine, travel and home and Anne Vollen of Green Zebra, valuable coupons to dozens of green retailers in San Francisco. Both authors support The Reading Tree, a San Francisco based non-profit dedicated to supporting early literacy and healthy reading habits.

Woven through actual letters, diary entries and haiku poetry, “From A Silk Cocoon” is an award winning documentary about the true story of a young couple whose shattered dreams and forsaken loyalties lead them to renounce their American citizenship while held in separate prison camps during World War 2. They struggle to prove their innocence and fight deportation during a time of wartime hysteria and racial profiling. Followed by Q&A with filmmaker and psychotherapist Satsuke Ina.

Psychoactives…the name itself conjures up hundreds of images: hippies at Woodstock, those “well acted” anti-drug PSAs, even Colombian drug cartels. One thing is for sure, human history and psychoactive use are intertwined.

The term psychoactive covers a wide range of compounds…ranging from caffeine & alcohol to heroin & meth. Within that range, there again exists a wide range of use…historical use, cultural use, recreational use, and abuse.

But what do psychoactives reveal about our brain and its neural mechanisms? the connection between our mind & body? our spirituality?

These questions & more will be answered by our panel this month. Dr. David Presti is Professor of Neurobiology at UC Berkeley. Fire & Earth are founders of the member supported site Erowid, delivering access to information about psychoactives. (more…)

One of America’s top political satirists, Will Durst, will discuss his new book, The All-American Sport of Bipartisan Bashing: Common Sense Rantings from a Raging Moderate, an equal-opportunity offender swats both partisan political pinatas from both sides of the spectrum upside their heads.

With its huge production-ready sound library, advanced KoreSoundВ® Browser, highly flexible Sound Matrix and analog-style controller, KORE 2 offers practically endless creative music making potential. The interactive workshops are aimed at boosting your workflow and deepening your knowledge of the Super Instrument. True to the motto “Find, Play & Tweak”, NI’s knowledgeable experts will be taking you inside KORE 2 and answering your questions on any of its powerful and groundbreaking features.

Topics to be covered:
the KoreSoundВ® Browser, the controller, morphing, effects sound design features advanced browser features KORE in a sequencer: management, host automation KORE as a live host: creating and organizing performances.

The free 5th annual Berkeley World Music Festival is a cultural program that offers over two dozen continuous musical performances throughout the Telegraph Avenue district, in cafes, street corners, and in People’s Park, plus a craft bazaar at People’s Park. Bands include Dengue Fever (Cambodian Pop/Psychedelic Rock), Sila and the AfroFunk Experience (Africa’s James Brown),  SambaDá (Brazilian Samba Afro Funk) plus Pakistani, Didjeridu Fusion,Cajun Dance Music, Ukrainian & Eastern European, Rebetika (Old Time Greek Blues) and more.

The Berkeley World Music Festival presents Cambodian-American psychedelic rock band Dengue Fever live at Amoeba Berkeley. Dengue Fever blends the rhythms of 60s Cambodian pop - heavily influenced by American surf, rock and early psychedelic garage bands - with their own eclectic mix of American and international styles.

Bay Area R&B icon Booker T. Jones and Detroit’s “Great Lady of Soul” Bettye LaVette kick off the Stern Grove Festival’s 71st Season of free Sunday concerts with an afternoon of soul. Rock and Roll Hall of Famer Booker T. Jones (of Booker T. and the MGs) is a legendary figure with an impressive string of hits, including the million-selling “Green Onions.” He has performed as a session musician on some of R&B’s most seminal songs, including “Sittin’ on the Dock of the Bay” and “Try a Little Tenderness.” (more…)

The 32nd Annual San Francisco Free Folk Festival takes place June 21 and 22, 2008 at the Ocean Campus of City College of San Francisco at the Community Health and Wellness Center on the south end of campus [directions]. The festival runs noon to 10pm both days where you can learn to Lindy Hop, hear a griot singer from Gambia, take a bagpipe workshop and hear a 92 year old folksinging grandmother. 10 stages and hundreds of performers and workshops should be able to keep you entertained. and it’s all free! [view complete schedule and lineup]

Get ready for an afternoon of African rhythms in the Grove when Nigeria’s prince of Afrobeat, Seun Kuti and Egypt 80, make their San Francisco debut. With blazing horns, unstoppable rhythms, hypnotic dancing, and marathon performances, Seun Kuti and Egypt 80 will have the Grove moving. Opening the afternoon will be local group, Sila and the AfroFunk Experience, who know how to get dance floors around the Bay Area in motion with an exhilarating sound and energetic performance.

Since 1938, Stern Grove Festival has been the Bay Area’s home for outstanding performing arts in a beautiful outdoor setting, completely admission-free. Bring a picnic and arrive early as the main garden often fills up by 1pm.

Public Transportation:
Muni buses: 23 and 28, exit at 19th Avenue and Sloat Boulevard
Muni Metro: K or M, exit at St. Francis Circle

Apple is offering a FREE 1/2 day seminar on using video production & editing software Final Cut Studio 2 and Final Cut Server (Apple’s new media asset management and workflow automation software). This in-depth seminar features workflows used by some of the industry’s leading film and video production companies. Apple experts will give step-by-step demonstrations that reveal how each of these customers used Final Cut Studio 2 and Final Cut Server to achieve exceptional results. Source: onedigitallife.com (more…)

A three-time Emmy Award-winner for his production design on Pee-wee’s Playhouse and the recipient of the 2000 Chrysler Award for Design Excellence, artist Gary Panter has drawn inspiration from diverse arenas over the past four decades. Closely associated with the underground comics and music scenes on both coasts, he is responsible for designing many record covers for Frank Zappa, the Red Hot Chili Peppers, and The Residents. Plus, he is a musician too. Gary will be performing live and signing copies of his new book.

Stern Grove Festival presents an annual favorite, the renowned San Francisco Symphony, with conductor James Gaffigan. The program includes Verdi’s Overture to La forza del destino, Rachmaninoff’s Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini, Opus 43 with Orli Shaham on piano, and Tchaikovsky’s Symphony No. 4 in F minor, Opus 36. The Symphony Jazz Sextet will open the afternoon with a short set of works by some of the great jazz legends. (more…)

Blending art and soul in one of the country’s most unique neighborhoods, the Fillmore Jazz Festival is the largest free Jazz festival on the West Coast, drawing over 90,000 visitors over the Independence Day weekend. From sunup to sundown, visitors can groove to the sounds of live music from multiple stages, browse the offerings of over 8 blocks (Fillmore between Jackson and Eddy) of fine art and crafts and enjoy gourmet food and beverages. Asian to Cajun, paintings to pottery, old favorites and new directions, the Fillmore Jazz Festival is not to be missed.

This year’s entertainment continues the tradition of showcasing outstanding artists from across the Jazz spectrum.