THE BEST TV BANDS EVER
Flight of the Conchords, Monkees top the list,
1 “The Ocean After Nature”: San Francisco’s Yerba Buena Center for the Arts these days is hosting exhibits that blend art, politics and current events. “Take This Hammer,” running through Aug. 20, examines how Bay Area activism influenced local artists, and vice versa. And “Ocean After Nature,” which opened last week and runs through Aug. 28, features more than 20 works in various mediums that examine how oceans uniquely reflect the impact of a rapidly changing world. Bay Area artist Dimitra Skandali, known for her seaweed art and other sea-themed works, will be represented in the traveling exhibit.
Details: The YBCA galleries open 11 a.m. Tuesday through Sunday; $8-$10; 415-978-2787, www.ybca. org.
2 “Viva la Causa”: The legendary South Bay Latino theater troupe El Teatro Campesino is celebrating its 50th anniversary, and the latest chapter in that celebration is this immersive theater/exhibition experience based in the company’s San Juan Bautista home. As visitors tour the theater, a former packing shed, they will encounter a variety of exhibits and performances that reflect the history of the company.
Details: Thursday through July 17; $10-$15; 831-623-2444, http://elteatrocampesino.com.
3 SFDanceworks: San Francisco Ballet dancer James Sofranko’s dream of creating his own repertory company — one that embraces myriad choreographers and dance styles — comes to fruition this week as he debuts SFDanceworks with a wide-ranging weekend program at ODC Theater in San Francisco.
Details: 8 p.m. Thursday through Saturday; $20$45; 415-863-9834, www. sfdanceworks.org. Tony Lindsay:
4 The San Franciscan has been the lead singer for Santana for the past 25 years, and heads the local R&B band Spangalang. On Monday, he comes to Yoshi’s in Oakland with another outfit, The Soul Soldiers, featuring Nicolas Bearde, Fred Ross and Will Russ. The four talented crooners will tackle the songs of Marvin Gaye, Bill Withers, Lou Rawls and others.
Details: 8 p.m.; $23; 510238-9200, www.yoshis.com. case/lang/veirs:
5 As the story goes, Canadian-born crooner k.d. lang emailed Neko Case and Laura Veirs suggesting they all record an album together. The two quickly signed on and the result, some three years in the making, was the album “case/lang/veirs,” which was released last week. Now these three distinctive and wonderful performers are touring in support of the album and land at the Mountain Winery on Saturday.
Details: 7:30 p.m.; $53.50-$93.50; www.axs. com. The Golden Follies:
6 Pleasanton’s Firehouse Arts Center continues its string of patriotic/nostalgic shows with two performances by this tap-dancing, cancanning Las Vegas-style song-and-dance company consisting of women ages 60 through 91 from across Northern California.
Details: 2 p.m. Saturday and Sunday; $15-$25; 925931-4848, www.firehousearts.org. Michael Blackson:
7 Jafari Ferguson moved to the U.S. from Ghana in 1987 with dreams of being a comedian. He changed his name to Michael Blackson, which is of course a spin
on Michael Jackson, and modeled his style after Eddie Murphy. He has since become a staple on the comedy circuit, appeared on a host of cable and late-night TV shows, and had a notable cameo as “Angry African Man” in the 2000 film “Next Friday.” He’s bringing his stand-up show to San Jose Improv for five performances Thursday through Saturday.
Details: 8 p.m. Thursday, 7:30 and 9:45 p.m. Friday, 7 and 9:15 p.m. Saturday; $25; 408280-7475, http://sanjose. improv.com.
8 Aubrie Sellers: She’s the daughter of Nashville icon Lee Ann Womack, but Sellers has crafted her own sound, which she has dubbed “garage country.” The guitars on her acclaimed debut album “New City Blues” don’t twang, they snarl and buzz as they warp around Sellers’ sharp, straightforward delivery. Sellers is touring behind the buzzworthy new release and comes to Slim’s in San Francisco on Saturday.
Details: 8 p.m.; $15; www.slimspresents.com.
9 Grown Women Dance Collective: Former members of the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, Martha Graham Company, Bill T. Jones/Arnie Zane Company and others make up this troupe, which is a featured performer at the seventh annual Fallen Heroes, Rising Stars: A Juneteenth Celebration Through Dance on Saturday in Oakland. The collective’s program will pay homage to Natalie Cole, Phife Dawg, Nina Simone, Prince and more.
Details: 2 and 8 p.m.; Impact Hub Oakland; $25$40; www.grownwomendance.org.
10 “The Rules”: The title of Dipika Guha’s new play is a reference to the controversial 1995 book that offered women “Time-Tested Secrets for Capturing the Heart of Mr. Right” (the gist of it was: Don’t put out if you want to reel him in). Here, three women who are friends fall for the same guy. “Rules” is getting its world premiere as part of San Francisco Playhouse’s Sandbox Series of new works.
Details: Through July 16; Creativity Theater, San Francisco; $20; http://sfplayhouse.org.