SEE & HEAR:
Also available: ‘Tosca’ concert with wine pairings; Irish dance
Hershey Felder’s ‘Puccini’ is among many arts offerings.
At a time when live performances are still off-limits, except for small-sized outdoor shows, Bay Area arts companies are offering a wealth of streaming productions. Here are some of the shows available during the next week.
Theater/dance
“HERSHEY FELDER, PUCCINI” >> TheatreWorks Silicon Valley and Opera San Jose are both livestreaming the world premiere of Hershey Felder’s latest music/stage show, focusing on the life and music of famed composer Giacomo Puccini, creator of such beloved operas as “La Boheme” and “Tosca.” As Felder’s many followers know, his shows tend to be largely solo affairs in which he blends storytelling and musicianship to convey his tale, but “Puccini” also features a trio of opera stars — baritone Nathan Gunn, soprano Gianna Corbisiero and tenor Charles Castronovo.
DETAILS >> Livestreams 5 p.m. Sunday; available on demand through March 21; $55 per household; theatreworks.org or operasj.org.
CITY LIGHTS >> The San Jose theater company’ s“Next Stage” performance/ interview series continues with play wright-songwriter screen writer Michael Mitnick today and musician-performance artist Cellista on March 18. Mitnick, whose plays “The Siegel” (2018) and “Spacebar: A Broadway Play by Kyle Sugarman” (2013) were staged by City Lights, will appear in a Zoom interview with City Lights sound designer and actor George Psarras (who appeared in “Spacebar”). Cellista and her ensemble will perform her musical “stage poem” “Finding San Jose” in a virtual production carried on City Lights’ Facebook page.
DETAILS >> 8 p.m. today and March 18; access is free but donations encouraged; cltc.org/thenextstage.
CONTRA COSTA CIVIC THEATRE >> The El Cerrito company’s “Reading Stage” series continues Monday with a presentation of Bess Wohl’s fast-food comedy “American Hero.” The play centers on a trio of misfit “sandwich artists” at a submarine sandwich franchise who find their tenuous financial situations threatened by a workplace emergency.
DETAILS >> 7 p.m. Monday; suggested donation $10; ccct.org.
TOWN HALL THEATRE >> The Lafayette theater company is holding its annual fundraiser in a big way, with a 10-part virtual dramatization of Mike Bockoven’s 2016 horror-thriller novel “FantasticLand.” The series kicks off today with the release of episodes 1 and 2; follow-up releases come Tuesday, Wednesday, March 23, 24, 30, 31 and April 6 and 7. All episodes will remain on the Town Hall Theatre website for a few weeks. Also, at 6 p.m. each Monday during the run, Town Hall Theatre will host a live “Before the Storm” session on its Facebook page, featuring interviews and behind-the-scenes details about the series. The show, adapted by Bay Area playwright M.E. Ianiro and featuring a cast of more than 20 actors, focuses on the employees of the titular Florida theme park that is hit by a massive hurricane. But it’s after rescuers free the trapped employees a month later that the real horror is unveiled. (The show is not suitable for young children.) DETAILS >> $25 buys access to the entire series; www.townhalltheatre.com.
“RHYTHM OF THE DANCE” >> The National Dance Company of Ireland presents this high-spirited, St. Patrick’s Day-timed streaming show featuring traditional and contemporary Irish dance recorded before a live audience. The show is being shown on venue websites across America, including the Heritage Theatre in Campbell. The venues — many struggling from the lack of live entertainment during the pandemic — receive a portion of the ticket sales.
DETAILS >> Available Sunday though March 20; $17.50; www. ci.campbell.ca.us/353/HeritageTheatre.
Music
TAJMAHAL>> The Bay Area bluesroots music legend is performing a trio of livestreamed concerts in March, all of which are being carried by the UC Theatre in Berkeley. The series kicks off Saturday with Mahal performing with his Phantom Blues Band and guest Jon Cleary. On March 20 he hosts a “Rising Roots Showcase” featuring such up-and-coming artists as Rob Ickes and Trey Hensley, Amythyst Kiah, Annie Mack, Leyla McCalla, the Piedmont Bluz Acoustic Duo, Ranky Tanky, Allison Russell and Jontavious Willis. On March 27, Mahal performs with Oakland bluesR&B star Fantastic Negrito. DETAILS >> All shows livestream at 6 p.m. and will be available on demand 48 hours after the show ends; $25 individual tickets; $32 group ticket, $65 for all three shows; boxoffice.mandolin. com (search for Taj Mahal); www. theuctheatre.org.
MUSIC AT KOHL MANSION >> The chamber music series presents Quatuor Danel with guest soloist Pascal Moraguès on clarinet, in a performance that will stream Sunday and March 18. The performance was originally scheduled to stream in April. The quartet, which has won rave reviews since its 1992 founding, will perform César Franck’s String Quartet in D major, Movement IV: Finale Allegro molto, and Mozart’s Clarinet Quintet in A major, K. 581, “Stadler.”
DETAILS >> 7 p.m. Sunday, 6 p.m. March 18; $20 (series passes are $40-$80); musicatkohl.org.
LIVERMORE VALLEY OPERA >> The company continues to serve up free streaming music. This weekend kicks off a new concert series featuring wine pairings with Livermore Valley wineries. On Saturday, the company presents arias from “Tosca” featuring soprano Ann Toomey, tenor Alex Boyer, baritone Morgan Smith and lyric tenor Joseph Frank. Upcoming concerts will be offered on April 10 and May 8.
DETAILS >> Concert debuts 6 p.m. Saturday and will be available indefinitely on the company’s YouTube channel; free but donations encouraged; www.livermorevalleyopera.com.