Bay Area virtual and in-person events
Just because you’re stuck at home during the COVID-19 shutdown doesn’t mean you can’t explore the greater world. Here’s a sampling of family-friendly shows, concerts, activities and more streaming (and occasionally in-person again) over the next several weeks.
IN-PERSON
CuriOdyssey’s Outdoor Museum and Zoo: 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Wednesdays through Sundays, 1651 Coyote Point Drive, San Mateo. Outdoor exhibits include “Illusions” and “The Nature of Patterns”. Reserve tickets in advance. $13 to $16. https://curiodyssey.org/ Gallerie Valerie Grand Opening: 1 to 7 p.m. Saturday, Sunday, 628 Second Ave., Suite 203, Crockett. The gallery features its founder’s original stained glass along with a rotating fine art display and locally sourced crafts. Enjoy art, wine and conversation at the grand opening. Free. www.gallerievalerie.com
VIRTUAL
African American Online Film Festival: Now through Nov. 29. This annual festival includes 140 films by filmmakers from 18 countries sharing their distinctive voices and points of view through lenses not often available to an American public. https://bherc.tv/ All-Star Storytime Series with Berkeley Symphony: 11 a.m. Fridays on Berkeley Public Library’s Facebook page. Each week, a Bay
Area celebrity will read a beloved children’s book with musical accompaniment by members of the Berkeley Symphony. www.facebook. com/berkeleypubliclibrary/ BATS Improv Online Shows: This San Franciscobased improv group will stream free shows each week to bring a little improv magic into homes via Zoom. At 7:30 p.m. on the night of each show, click the link next to the show you want to see to connect to the BATS virtual theater. www. improv.org/online-shows/
Bay Area Children’s Theatre Creativity Corner:
This virtual “playborhood” offers kids stories that unfold via video, plus followup activities they can do on their own, inspired by the make-believe they’ve seen. Parents can submit their children’s creations to BACT, which is planning to share examples online. https:// bactheatre.org
Beat the Lock Escape Room: 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. daily. Solve a virtual escape room with your friends via an audio/video call and live feed that lets you play by instructing a game master to search for clues. $25. www. beatthelock.com
Bellarmine Mothers Guild Fashion Show: 8 p.m. Nov. 14. The virtual show will feature live models walking the runway in a socially distant “fashion” with only the essential production crew in attendance. The show’s online format guarantees everyone has a virtual frontrow seat while keeping everyone safe. $100. https:// www.bcp.org/fashionshow Bringing BADM to You:
Bay Area Discovery Museum offers a series of fun, engaging learning experiences to enjoy as a family. Explore three themes — science and math, body and brain and talk and play — designed to develop skills for children to succeed in school and life. Within each theme, you’ll find both step-by-step videos and activities with written-out instructions. https://bayareadiscoverymuseum.org/bringingbadm-to-you
Broadcast Platform, Marshstream:
7:30 p.m. nightly. Programming varies by night with offerings including short performances, book/writer discussions, singalongs, storytelling, game nights and more. Find more information at: www. themarsh.org.
Coastal Artists Virtual Pumpkin Festival: Through December. All coastal artists in San Mateo County, from Montara to Pescadero, will be featured for virtual sales. Categories include painters, photographers, jewelers, digital artists, potters, fiber arts/textiles, food and more. The main festival has been canceled due to COVID-19 closures. www. madeonthecoast.com
18 Reasons Cooking School: Check out a slate of new online classes. You may not have everything listed in the equipment and shopping list, but instructors will give you guidance on how to adapt their recipes to what you have access to. Learn new recipes and techniques. https://18reasons.org/
Festival Napa Valley’s Remote Ensemble Project:
This virtual performance of the “Va, Pensiero” chorus from Verdi’s opera “Nabucco” features instrumentalists and singers from 26 states, eight countries and five continents. They represent two dozen orchestras, ensembles, opera companies and music conservatories, such as the Juilliard School, San Francisco Conservatory of Music, Metropolitan Opera Orchestra and San Francisco Opera Orchestra. The performance can be seen on Festival Napa Valley’s YouTube channel: https://youtu. be/jHV9wLvNYxA
Full Moon Fridays — Live Cabaret Series: 8 p.m. Fridays. Featuring live cabaret style performances. https://www.facebook. com/42ndStreetMoon/ Funkmode Dance Studio Digital Workouts: Offering free dance videos, including breakdance, hip hop, youth dance party and more. Find the videos at https://www. youtube.com/user/FUNKMODE
Hillsdale High School Drama — “Almost, Maine”:
Nov. 13 through Dec. 13. A romantic comedy with student actors playing 19 different characters. Free. Registration is required. www.hillsdaledrama.com History San Jose Presents “Portraits of the Past — 100 Years Ago”: 12:30 p.m. Nov. 13. “Portraits of the Past” will showcase entertaining historical vignettes and tell the true stories of Silicon Valley a century ago. $7. www. portraitsofthepast.org/
Lamplighters Music Theatre Multimedia:
Lamplighters brings their wit and musicality to the virtual stage with an inside look into the company and the rich history of Gilbert and Sullivan. The monthly assortment includes new interviews and video essays, alongside archival vignettes highlighting the best of the company’s 68-year performance history. Free. lmt. lamplighters.org/patreon Left Coast Chamber Ensemble — Please Elaborate: 7:30 p.m. Monday. The concert includes “Nocturnal” for guitar and “Lachrymae” for viola and piano, along with “Oh Chaconne!” and “No Man’s Land Lullaby.” Free. Donations encouraged. www.leftcoastensemble.org/elaborate Livermore Shakes Educates: A Shakespeare resource webpage for kids and parents, this is an extension of the company’s “So Wise So Young” program for second, third and fourth graders. http://livermoreshakes. org/educates/
Magical Bridge Foundation Virtual Concerts and Sing-A-Longs: Enjoy free family-friendly, multigenerational and sensory-friendly shows at noon daily on the Magical Bridge Facebook page. https://www. facebook.com/pg/MagicalBridge/events/
Moraga Art Gallery Virtual Tour: View the Moraga Art Gallery exhibit and hear artists talk about their work and what motivates them. Visit the Lamorinda Arts Alliance website for the link to the virtual tour: https:// laa4art.org
Mount Diablo Peace & Justice Center 2020 Art & Writing Challenge: Middle and high school students in Contra Costa County are invited to submit visual art (any medium), creative writing and essays on the topic of “Our Connected Planet.” No fee. http://tinyurl.com/ mdpjc-artandwriting2020 “Dichterliebe (‘A Poet’s Love’)” from Opera San Jose: Available for streaming. In addition to English supertitles, Opera San Jose has announced plans to offer its virtual performances with Spanish and Vietnamese translations. $15-$50. www.Operasj.org
One Found Sound Virtual Watch Party — “Strum”:
6 p.m. Nov. 19. Featuring creative music video recordings of live performances. The musicians will join the live broadcast and take questions and comments from the virtual audience throughout the event via live chat. Free, donations accepted. www.onefoundsound.org
Opera San Jose — “Three Decembers”: Begins Dec. 3. An American opera about family — the ones we are born into and those we create. Gala opening Dec. 3 with post-show conversation. $40-$50. www. operasj.org/
Palo Alto Players — Homebound Cabaret Series: Through Dec. 13. These at-home cabaret experiences are streamed live with special guests.
Nov. 13-22, “If You Knew My Story;” and Dec. 4-13, “Holiday Family Sing Along.” $20 to $50. https://paplayers.org/season/
Pear Theatre, “Lysistrata”: Now through Nov. 8. A comedy about women enacting a sex strike to convince their husbands to end a war. $30-$37. www. thepear.org/season-19 Persian and Central
Asian Dance Classes:
Take daily classes on Zoom with teachers from all over the world including Iran, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Xinxiang and more. $10 to $20. www.pomegranategardendance.com
Playful People Productions Game Nights: 7 to 8:30 p.m. today, Nov. 20 and Dec. 18. Featuring musical theater-themed trivia, dance-offs, bingo, musical chairs and more. $30. https://bit.ly/POPFall2020 Santa Rosa Symphony concert: A 3 p.m. Nov. 15 YouTube broadcast with a live preconcert talk at 2 p.m. and a live postconcert Q&A with conductor Francisco Lecce-Chong. Beethoven’s “Symphony No. 2” and a celebration of the composer’s 250th birthday. Free. www.srsymphony.org/ School of Rock Remote Lessons: School of Rock is a performance-based music school for ages 5 to adult. Learn to play drums, guitar, keyboard, bass guitar and vocals by putting on seasonal rock shows. The school is offering a combination of one-on-one remote lessons and access to master classes on music theory, songwriting, instrument exploration and genre journeys. Cost varies. schoolofrock.com/sanramon Second Saturday @ California Symphony: 7 p.m. solo and ensemble performances include “It’s a Cellobration!” on Nov. 14 with Joshua Roman; and “Season in Song” on Dec. 12 with vocalists Kelley O’Connor and Nicholas Phan. Free. Go to californiasymphony.org/ tickets-events/calendar.
Smuin’s Virtual Classes:
Dancers of all levels participate in Zoom-based drop-in lessons covering styles from ballet to contemporary, to hip-hop. All classes are “pay what you can”. https://bit. ly/smuinclasses