From Lyle Lovett to a world premiere musical to Make Music Day in San Jose and the one-of-a-kind “Garden of Memory,” there is a lot to see and do in the Bay Area.
Here is a partial roundup.
Head back to 5 & Dime in world premiere
Ed Graczyk was known primarily as a writer of children’s plays when in 1976 he created “Come Back to the 5 & Dime, Jimmy Dean, Jimmy Dean,” based on his own experiences in small-town Texas and, as he once put it, “my own observations and frustrations with progress that ignores a past.”
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Founder of one of Bay Area’s most beloved music venues dies Watch 70-plus concerts for free during San Jose’s Make Music Day Give blood, get a Metallica T-shirt: Here are the details, metal fans Two of modern rock’s top bands team up for classic tour Get out and play in the Bay Area this summerThe play revolves around the members of James Dean fan club (the title refers to the “Rebel Without a Cause” actor, not the country singer) who gather for a reunion at a small-town five-and-dime store. Through a blend of present action and flashbacks, we learn the stories and secrets of fan club members. Graczyk later adopted the play for the big screen, with Robert Altman directing a cast that included Sandy Dennis, Cher, Karen Black, and other A-Listers, some of whom had appeared in the Broadway production. The film was a modest commercial hit with mixed-to-generally favorable reviews. A restored version of the film was released in 2011.
Now “5 & Dime” is returning to the stage, only as a musical. The world premiere of “Come Back to the 5 & Dime, Jimmy Dean, Jimmy Dean, a New Musical,” features music by Dan Gillespie Sells and lyrics by Shakina, who also stars in the production. Directed by Giovanna Sardelli, “5 & Dime” is being presented by TheatreWorks Silicon Valley through July 13 at the Mountain View Center of the performing Arts.
Details: Tickets are $34-$115; theatreworks.org.
— Randy McMullen, Staff
Lyle Lovett sets 3 Bay Area gigs
The cowboy crooner heading back to the Bay Area.
Lyle Lovett is bringing his Large Band to the Uptown Theatre Napa on June 21 (8 p.m.; tickets start at $111), the Mountain Winery in Saratoga on June 22 (7:30 p.m., tickets start at $67) and the Luther Burbank Center for the Arts in Santa Rosa on June 25 (7:30 p.m., tickets start at $93.22).
Lovett got off to a fast start in his recording career, with his first two albums — the eponymous debut of 1986 and the 1987 follow-up “Pontiac” — delivering a flurry of Top 40 country hits. That bounty includes such fan favorites as “God Will,” “Why I Don’t Know,” “Give Back My Heart,” “She’s No Lady,” “I Loved You Yesterday” and — Lovett’s sole top 10 offering — “Cowboy Man.”
Even though he’d never reach those heights on the singles charts again, Lovett would keep right on racking up popular albums for years. Indeed, all of his late-’80s and ’90s albums — including “Joshua Judges Ruth,” “I Love Everybody” and, the best of the bunch, “The Road to Ensenada” — were certified gold.
Lovett is a fantastic songwriter, impactful vocalist and superb entertainer. Country music fans would be well served to try and catch him at one of these local shows.
Details: Visit lylelovett.com for links to buy tickets and more information.
— Jim Harrington, Staff
Make Music Day returns to San Jose
Have you ever heard an entire city break out into music? You’ll be able to on June 21 during San Jose’s “Make Music Day,” when 70-plus artists stage free performances in every nook and cranny of the urban fabric.
A local microcosm of national Make Music Day, which features more than a thousand cities worldwide staging free concerts, the San Jose event will see concerts at museums, public libraries, the CaliBunga Waterpark, breweries, restaurants and more. To give a taste, there’s a Dance of Peace at Terminal A of the San Jose Mineta International Airport and a teenage power-indie group at the Tech Interactive downtown. There’s a blues/folk singer who makes music videos for kids at the Educational Park library, an award-winning a cappella chorus of 50 women at the Cypress Center. And all of this is happening just in the first hour of the day-long event.
It’s both a smorgasbord for music lovers and a sonic treasure hunt through the city — plus a great way to explore San Jose and get those ever-important steps in. Try doing it while tap dancing.
Details: The free event takes place all day at various locations in San Jose; for details and a map of performances visit makemusicday.org/sanjose
— John Metcalfe, Staff
Classical picks: Requiem, ‘Garden of Memory’
The classical music scene offers the brilliance of the Verdi Requiem this week; “Garden of Memory” and the Interfaith Gospel Choir also deliver musical excellence. Here are performances music lovers won’t want to miss.
Stellar voices: The San Francisco Symphony returns to Verdi’s timeless Requiem this weekend. Conductor James Gaffigan leads two performances, featuring a stellar vocal lineup for this monumental work: soprano Rachel Willis-Sørensen, mezzo-soprano Jamie Barton, tenor Mario Chang, bass Morris Robinson, and the acclaimed SF Symphony Chorus. Three short works by Gordon Getty complete the program.
Details: 7:30 p.m. June 20, 2 p.m. June 22; Davies Symphony Hall, San Francisco; $39-$89; sfsymphony.org.
“Garden of Memory”: It’s a music event like no other: the annual Garden of Memory at Oakland’s Chapel of the Chimes brings together a full lineup of artists to perform over a single day. This year’s standouts include Sarah Cahill, Beth Custer, Paul Dresher, and the Rova Saxophone Quartet. Tickets sell fast, but volunteering slots are also available.
Details: 5-9 p.m. June 21; Chapel of the Chimes, Oakland; gardenofmemory.com.
More great singing: The Oakland Interfaith Gospel Choir, now counting more than 150 members, makes a special appearance in Livermore on Saturday with a one-of-a-kind program of black gospel and spiritual music.
Details: 8 p.m. June 21, Bankhead Theatre, Livermore; $25-$35; livermorearts.org.
— Georgia Rowe, Correspondent
Freebie of the week
In the Bay Area, it seems, the circus is always in town. That is, the region has long been home to a wide variety of circus acts. The tradition extends back to the days of the Pickle Family Circus in the 1970s and remains in full bloom today with the performers at Club Fugazi as well as such troupes as Zoppe Family Circus, Circus Vargas and others. And then there is Circus Bella, the San Francisco-based company known for its high-flying, family-friendly one-ring shows (generally an hour in duration), full of eye-popping acrobatics, juggling, clowning and more.
With great talent and infectious enthusiasm, the troupe is one of the most popular circus acts in the Bay Area. It’s one of the most generous, too, with many of their performances being free. In fact, the troupe spends the entire summer performing for free in parks and other venues around the Bay Area. They’re serving up a trio of such shows this weekend — at noon on June 20 and at noon and 2:15 p.m. on June 21 — as part of the wonderful Yerba Buena Gardens Festival, which annually presents a wide range of entertainers into October.
Details: The free performances are at the Yerba Buena Gardens lawn, on Mission Street, between Third and Fourth streets. Find the schedule and more information at ybgfestival.org. And more information on Circus Bella is at www.circusbella.org
W. Kamau Bell back at Berkeley Rep
Catching a show by the Bay Area comedic treasure W. Kamau Bell is never a bad idea. But if you do so this week, you’ll also be lending a financial hand to some struggling Bay Area theater companies hit by the loss of National Endowment of the Arts grants. Bell has developed a national following, thanks to his sharp, funny and opinionated stand-up performances, not to mention his acclaimed stint as host of CNN’s “United Shades of America,” which won five Emmy Awards, and his Showtime docuseries “We Need to Talk About Cosby,” which won a Peabody Award. He’s also the author of the best-selling “Do the Work: An Antiracist Activity Book,” as well as the memoir “The Awkward Thoughts of W. Kamau Bell: Tales of a 6′ 4″, African American, Heterosexual, Cisgender, Left-Leaning, Asthmatic, Black and Proud Blerd, Mama’s Boy, Dad, and Stand-Up Comedian.” And his comedy special, “Private School Negro,” is available on Netflix. If it’s not abundantly clear, Bell has a knack for tackling hot-button issues with intelligence, humor and savvy. This week at Berkeley Repertory Theatre, he’ll be performing his new standup show “Who’s With Me?” before taking it on a national tour. Performances run through June 22 at Berkeley Rep’s Roda Theatre. Tickets are $35-$99 and proceeds benefit NEA-stung Bay Area theaters including American Conservatory Theater, Berkeley Rep, Crowded Fire Theater, Magic Theatre, Marin Shakespeare Company, New Conservatory Theatre Center, and more.
Details: Tickets and more information are at www.berkeleyrep.org
— Bay City News Foundation
Making music out of Moliere
“Tartuffe,” a 17th-century farce by the comedic genius playwright Moliére, was turned into an opera buffa by American composer Kirk Mechem in 1980 and has been widely performed to acclaim ever since. San Francisco’s feisty little company Pocket Opera, which specializes in English-language renditions, has a performance scheduled for 2 p.m. Sunday in the GunnTheater at the Legion of Honor in San Francisco. It revolves around Tartuffe (the Imposter), a wily charlatan who is scheming to take everything he owns and holds dear from the ultra-gullible Orgon, a wealthy homeowner whose overweening sense of piety is leading him astray. Well-known Bay Area baritone Eugene Brancoveanu makes his Pocket Opera debut in the title role, with other Bay Area stalwart, soprano Shawnette Sulker, starring as Dorine. Bass-baritone Isaiah Musik-Ayala debuts as the unfortunate Orgon, and the other roles are filled by Courtney Miller as Elmire, Melissa Sondhi as Mariane, Max Ary as Valere and Alix Jerinic as Madame Pernelle. Conductor Kyle Naig makes his Pocket Opera debut leading a 15-piece orchestra.
Details: Find tickets, $35-$89, through pocketopera.org.
— Bay City News Foundation
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