There is a lot to see and do this weekend, from Jerry Seinfeld’s return to the Bay Area to piano great Jon Nakamatsu performing Copland’s Piano Concerto, to a play that goes bad (on purpose).
Here’s a partial roundup.
Seinfeld heads back to Bay Area
Jerry Seinfeld is ready to yuk it up with Bay Area fans.
The superstar comedian — best known for starring in his blockbuster eponymous sitcom, which originally ran from 1989 to 1998 and is available to this day via seemingly endless reruns — is set to perform two big shows, Sunday and Monday, at the lovely and historic Mountain Winery in Saratoga.
It’s your chance to see one of the most popular funnymen of all time live and in person.
His work on “Seinfeld,” which covered 180 shows over the course of nine seasons, was vastly acclaimed and impacted pop culture in so many ways. Key lines from that TV series are still quoted by millions to this day. The short list would include: “maybe the dingo ate your baby”; “no soup for you!”; “not that there’s anything wrong with that” and, of course, “yada, yada, yada.”
More recently, Seinfeld wrote, directed and starred in “Unfrosted,” a 2024 film comedy inspired by the story of how Pop-Tarts toaster pastries were created.
Details: Showtime for Seinfeld’s concert is 8 p.m.; tickets start at $156; mountainwinery.com.
— Jim Harrington, Staff
Texas band set to light up East Bay
It’s Cigarettes After Sex time.
We’re talking about the cool dream-pop band out of El Paso, Texas — of course — which has a sold-out show lined up for Saturday at Oakland Arena.
The wonderfully ambient indie-music trio, which consists of vocalist-guitarist Greg Gonzalez, bassist Randall Miller and drummer Jacob Tomsky, is touring in support of the well-received new album “X’s,” featuring the singles “Tejano Blue,” “Dark Vacay” and “Baby Blue Movie.”
It’s the third full-length studio outing for Gonzalez and company, following along the same sonic path (more or less) of the previous two artistic triumphs — 2017’s eponymous debut and 2019’s “Cry.” It is, however, the band’s first outing to crack the Top 40 on the overall Billboard pop charts.
Cigarettes After Sex makes great records. And they deliver on the live stage as well, as fans who caught their highly enjoyable set at the 2023 Outside Lands music festival could certainly attest. In other words, it’s no wonder why this show sold out well in advance. If you don’t have tickets yet, our advice is to check ticketmaster.com to see if any ducats have become available for the 8 p.m. We also highly recommend listening to the wonderful new record, which appears destined to make our list of the top 10 albums of 2024.
— Jim Harrington, Staff
Classical picks: Brahms, Nakamatsu, LVO
A Romantic concerto, music from the American Jazz Age, and an opéra comique by Donizetti are just three of the events music lovers will want to see and hear this week.
Brahms 4: Esa-Pekka Salonen, who has announced that he’ll retire as music director at the end of this season, returns to Brahms this week in a program featuring the composer’s fourth and final symphony, one that features some of his richest and most affecting music. Also on the program: Shostakovich’s Violin Concerto No. 1, featuring violinist Sayaka Shoji. Details: 7:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday, 2 p.m. Sunday; Davies Symphony Hall, San Francisco; $30-$179; sfsymphony.org.
“Jazz Age”: Symphony San Jose opens its 24-25 season with music from the Roaring 20s: special guest pianist Jon Nakamatsu returns to join the orchestra under conductor Elinor Rufeizen to perform Copland’s Piano Concerto, and the program also includes Gershwin’s “Rhapsody in Blue,” “An American in Paris,” and Ravel’s “Bolero.” Details: 7:30 p.m. Saturday, 2:30 Sunday; California Theatre, San Jose; $35-$115; symphonysanjose.org.
Livermore’s “La fille”: Livermore Valley Opera has two more performances of its fall production of “La fille du regiment” (The Daughter of the Regiment): directed by Marc Jacobs, the comic opera features a large cast that includes star soprano Véronique Filloux, tenor Chris Mosz as Tonio and baritone Eugene Brancoveanu as Sulpice. Alexander Katsman conducts. Details: 2 p.m. Saturday and Sunday; Bankhead Theater, Livermore; $25-$110; livermorevalleyopera.com.
— Georgia Rowe, Correspondent
When ‘Wrong’ is wonderful
“The show must go on” – despite the absolute worst of circumstances, is the message behind “The Play That Goes Wrong,” now being presented at San Francisco Playhouse. Enjoy Monty Python and Sherlock Holmes? Or meta humor, like a play-within-a-play? Then this Olivier Awards-winning comedy should be right up your treacherous alley.
Written by Henry Lewis, Jonathan Sayer and Henry Shields, and based on the Broadway original, the plot follows the antics of the Cornley Polytechnic Drama Society as it attempts to present opening night for “The Murder at Haversham Manor.” Everything that could go wrong, does. There’s a strangely lively corpse, a leading lady who happens to fall unconscious and a set that seems intent on testing the limits of the thespians’ health-insurance plans. Sound cues are missed, heads get bonked — in other words, it’s madcap fun.
Susi Damilano, who has handled the stage company’s adaptations of “Clue” and “The 39 Steps,” seems particularly well-chosen to direct this high-paced farce.
Details: Through Nov. 9; San Francisco Playhouse, 450 Post St., San Francisco; $30-$125; sfplayhouse.org.
— John Metcalfe, Staff
Art & Music & Murals in Concord
The city of Concord has a mural renaissance going on and you are invited to join in the celebration. Since 2022, the city has seen a dozen new murals arrive in the neighborhood around Todos Santos Plaza, a downtown hotspot that is home to a lively weekly farmer’s market and the Thursday night free Music & Market concert series, which runs through September. Overseen by Creative Concord, the murals project gets another new chapter this weekend with the unveiling of six new works amidst a two-day festival. The Art & Music Jam will also feature some 16 artists, most from the East Bay, creating new works at the event, plus live music from acts including Colombian-born singer Chika Di, R&B/electronica band The Seshen, reggae/island music outfit Paper Kayak and many more. And since you’ll be in the middle of one of Concord’s liveliest commercial areas, there will be plenty to eat and drink on hand. The event runs from noon to 6 p.m. Saturday and Sunday at Todos Santos Plaza, Willow Pass Road and Grant Street.
Details: Admission is free. More information is at www.creativeconcordca.com/
— Bay Area News Foundation
A sneak peek at New Ballet
We admit we still love it when they show those previews of upcoming attractions at the movie theater. That’s despite the fact that film “trailers” are widely available to watch on YouTube and other internet sites (and despite the fact many of them give away the entire freaking movie). They still feel special in the movie theater – enticing us with what the magic Hollywood is set to deliver. New Ballet in San Jose is looking to generate the same excitement this weekend with its annual free performance previewing the company’s upcoming season. That means you’ll get snippets of company productions of the “San Jose Nutcracker” (Dec. 14-23), an adaptation of the holiday classic that works in some fun Silicon Valley references; a series of cutting-edge new dances in a production titled “Fast Forward” (March 21-22) and what promises to be an evocative take on a dance classic, “Swan Lake” (May 17-18) backed by the New Ballet Orchestra.
Details: 6 p.m. Friday at San Jose Museum of Art (part of the museum’s Free First Friday event series); free, but it’s advisable to get tickets nonetheless; sjmusart.org.
— Bay Area News Foundation
Celebrating arts of Africa
These are exciting times for Cheza Nami, the Bay Area nonprofit that helps schools and other institutions develop programs and activities that promote cultural diversity and awareness. For one, the Pleasanton organization’s founder and director, Ciiku Ndung’u-Case, recently published her first book, “Wanjiku: Child of Mine,” a novel inspired by her vivid memories of growing up in Kenya, where she experienced family life on a rural farm and urban life attending school in bustling Nairobi.
Meanwhile, Cheza Nami this weekend is hosting its 12th annual Taste of Africa festival in Livermore. The event, from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday in the Plaza Lawn area outside the Bankhead Theater in Livermore, features performances by more than a dozen acts, including the Afro-Brazilian music group Ilê Aiyê, the Diamano Coura West African dance troupe, the Sudanese musical group Mokili Wa, and many more. Also on hand will be a wide variety of vendors selling African art, food and other products. And if that’s not enough, there will be educational displays and drumming and dance workshops.
Details: Admission is free; https://chezanami.org
— Bay Area News Foundation
A passion for the piano
The Steinway Society once again plays host this weekend to the great Ukrainian pianist Anna Fedorova, winner of both the Rubinstein and Moscow International Chopin competitions, who, if her publicists can be believed, has been seen playing the Rachmaninoff Second live on YouTube more than 35 million times, making it the most-viewed classical concerto on that platform. We won’t be hearing her do the Rach at 7:30 p.m. Saturday at the Visual and Performing Arts Center in Cupertino’s De Anza College, but her program is an impressive one: She’ll open with Ravel’s “Gaspard de la nuit,” following it up with Scriabin’s “Black Mass” Sonata No. 9 before moving on to the piano suite culled from Manuel de Falla’s “El amor brujo.” The entire post-intermission will be given over to Modest Mussorgsky’s “Pictures at an Exhibition.”
Details: $50-$75; steinwaysociety.com; or opt for a livestream, $25, with 48 hours of listening time.
— Bay City News Foundation
