5 events not to miss

The Panama-Pacific International Exposition opened Feb. 20, 1915, as overnight rains gave way to sunshine that sparkled off 102,000 cut-glass gems suspended from the Tower of Jewels, 435 feet up in the sky.

We cannot expect anything that dramatic for the fair’s centennial, but we can expect to see the Palace of Fine Arts in spotlit colors exactly as it was the day the fair opened 100 years ago. As the weekend and the year unfold, there will be 100th anniversary symposiums, lectures, a bike tour and art shows from here to Fresno dedicated to remembering and celebrating the Jewel City that stood for 287 days.

Here are five you won’t want to miss. Information comes from the PPIE100 Centennial Guidebook, created and published by the California Historical Society. A complete listing is at www.ppie100.org.

Lighting of the Palace of Fine Arts

The 100th anniversary of the fair’s opening will be celebrated by re-creating the historic 1915 lighting of the Palace of Fine Arts. View a film and light installation by Optic Flare in the Palace of Fine Arts Theatre lobby. Friday, Feb. 20, 9 to 10:00 p.m. 3301 Lyon St., San Francisco.

Community Day at the Palace of Fine Arts

Opening ceremonies for the centennial begin at noon Saturday, Feb. 21, with civic dignitaries and fair reenactors portraying Charlie Chaplin, Buffalo Bill Cody and Henry Ford. Music will continue all afternoon highlighted by a Uke-A-Thon, which anyone with a ukulele can join. There may be as many as 1,000 ukuleles, at 3 p.m.

Come evening the grounds will again be spotlighted and Optic Flare will present a film and light show in the Palace of Fine Arts Theatre lobby. 7 to 10 p.m.

All Community Day and light show events are free.

Lighting of the Ferry Building

The Ferry Building was a beacon throughout the fair, and on March 3, it will become a beacon again. The tower will feature old-fashioned-looking bulbs to spell out “1915,” the way it was done in 1915. The lights will then stay on until Dec. 4, the day the fair ended. March 3, 5:30 p.m., 1 Ferry Building. Free.

“City Rising: San Francisco and the 1915 World’s Fair”

A major overview of the fair put on by the California Historical Society opens Saturday, Feb. 21, in Innovation Hangar, where the Exploratorium used to be. A concurrent exhibition under the same name opens at noon Sunday, Feb. 22, at California Historical Society headquarters, 678 Mission St.

“Jewel City: Art From the Panama-Pacific International Exposition”

An exhibition involving 250 artworks, which were on display at the Fine Arts Palace, French Pavilion and other sites during the fair, will open Oct. 17 and run through Feb. 10 at the de Young Museum, 50 Hagiwara Tea Garden Drive.