My friend Dorothy was stuck in the slide at Children’s Fairyland in Oakland. I couldn’t see her, but I could hear her voice.
“I’m stuck in the slide!” she cried out.
We were at Children’s Fairyland in Oakland, joining other adults eager to frolic at the normally kids-only park at Lake Merritt for a “Mad Tea Party.”
The event seemed made for kids at heart, like me. So, on a chilly Saturday evening at the park, we donned our finest tea party attire, sipped some wine and cocktails, and milled about the event as a DJ played dance floor tunes and vendors sold scones and food truck fare, loving the vintage vibes and children’s fairytale theme,. Since no actual children were allowed at this event, we were finally given free reign to play to our heart’s content.
Dance With The Dark Works by J. Brian @ BOOK/SHOP 485 9th St. Oakland May 3, 2024
Four oversized canvases on display at Book/Shop both dwarfed their cozy surroundings while simultaneously broadening, deepening the space. Intense colors swirled and faltered, dropping off into a cream oatmeal backdrop.
My first impressions, however, were scented by the man seated on the floor at the front of the room, two city employees leaning above him, another outside on the wide brick sidewalk. It was First Friday in Old Oakland, and everyone was out. Those of us stuffed into the small storefront were here to see four new paintings by local artist J. Brian before heading out for the remainder of our nights.
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Agustín Maes
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May 6, 2024 3:45 pm
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Gina Gaiser
"Space Burger" 2024, digital photograph
“Revisiting Oakland: A Post-Pandemic Photographic Survey of Urban Landscapes“ Works by Gina Gaiser Manna Gallery 473 25th Street, Oakland Through June 1
Only four years ago we were washing our hands often, trying not to touch our faces, and staying six feet away from one another. Even when we went for walks to get out into the fresh air, the sequestered existence we led meant crossing the street when another person approached on the sidewalk. We were masked and leery, unsure of the potentially deadly airborne virus around us; a new reality. We’re still learning to cope with that reality, and its scars.
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Breezy Bratton
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May 3, 2024 9:30 am
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Via templehillevents.com
The Temple on the hill: Disney or Jesus?
Tapestry: Weaving the Community of Dance Oakland Temple Hill 4780 Lincoln Ave. Oakland April 27, 2024
I had seen the place a hundred times from other parts of the city, an Asian architecture-inspired white and well-lit angular structure with five golden spires protruding towards the heavens. The Oakland Temple, for this sunny early evening in the hills, was home to “Tapestry: Weaving the Community of Dance”. Happy for an excuse to explore the grounds during Bay Area Dance Week, I wandered around and took in the blossoming fragrant flowers blooming along the water features.
In the lobby, a pair of dancers from the Ballet Folklorico Mexicano de Carlos Moreno posed in their starched white garb for pictures, and families of dancers from over ten professional dance companies, studios, and youth dance groups gathered towards the front of the huge hall to see their loved ones prance and bound.
Nestled unassumingly between other quietly popular restaurants on a wide stretch of Broadway at 40th is Aman Cafe, home to Malaysian roti that are ultra flaky and just-buttery-enough to satisfy any true carb lover.
In need of a comforting and vegetable-forward meal, my friend and I sat down to grub down, after ordering a beverage each, two kinds of roti, and a pea shoot salad
Hip hop heads will grant Takuya Kuroda street cred from his time in NYC playing with one half of legendary duo Gang Starr and one of the greatest producers of all time, DJ Premiere, in Premiere’s BADDER band. Jazz aficionados will appreciate that in 2014 he was signed to Blue Note Records for his album Rising Son, the same record label to which John Coltrane and Miles Davis contributed. And so, prior to showtime at The New Parish on Thursday night, the anticipation amongst the crowd was tangible.
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Breezy Bratton
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May 1, 2024 10:17 am
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Ben Krantz Studio Photos
Romeo Channer as RED
REDREDRED by Amelio García Oakland Theater Project 1501 Martin Luther King Jr. Way Oakland Through May 19
REDREDRED, “the alternate telling of a story no one really knows,” was chaotic and brilliant when I saw it on April 26, its world premiere. Written by Amelio García, a transmasculine actor, playwright, and Fulbright Scholar from El Salvador, the story was inspired by Anne Carson’s novel Autobiography of Red: A Novel in Verse.
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Breezy Bratton
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Apr 28, 2024 11:51 am
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Breezy Bratton Photo
Castlemont High School Ensemble performs Kirk Franklin's "Revolution."
2nd Annual East Oakland Vocal Festival Phillip Reeder Auditorium at Castlemont High School 8601 MacArthur Blvd Bldg. 300 Oakland April 24, 2024
The energy was frenetic in the spacious Phillip Reeder Auditorium as students from six schools wearing black “Town Business Vocal Program” T‑shirts shrieked, did vocal warmups, and sprinted between purple seats the shade of grape jelly.
Host and MC Keenan Foster stood center stage both literally and figuratively as he introduced the event at the 2nd East Annual Vocal Festival within Castlemont High School. He aimed to bring his interests as music teacher and producer/songwriter at Town Business Inc. together in partnership with the nonprofit Elevate Oakland founded by Sheila E., Yoshie Akiba (of Oakland’s own Yoshi’s jazz club), among others, to “reignite the legacy of choral music and vocal performance for our youth in East Oakland.”
I had been to OMCA’s Friday night events a handful of times in past years (all pre-pandemic). While it had always felt worth the pop-by. I had never found myself drawn to really, really take in the scene. Luckily, the mix of dance, music and food at the outdoor gathering this balmy and still very sunny Friday evening was an excellent reentry into the possibilities for both me and the community, as the weekly event just restarted for the season this month.
The museum’s terraced sculpture garden has never, in my experience, looked better, than when olden hour rained down on a lawn of families picnicking and dancing, a small stage of activity, and beds and beds of lush plant life. Across the street on one side the lake sparkled. To another side, on the shadowed courthouse steps skaters took up nightly residency, shredding away the day’s public duties. (BBQing too, this night. Right on.)
Patrons at Weed Is A Plant order cocktails at the Hella Bees bar
Weed Is A Plant Hella Bees Bar 2340 Harrison St. Oakland April 20, 2024
The sun showed out as hundreds of people gathered around Lake Merritt, grilling and playing music in celebration of the iconic 420. Legend has it that this ubiquitous day celebrated by cannabis enthusiasts around the world became a thing when high school kids in The Bay met up after school to “puff puff pass” the stress of the day away. 4:20 was the code and time to hook up under the bleachers, behind the gym, or wherever they wouldn’t get caught.
Away from the crowds at the lake and other venues around town, Hella Bees and Hella Plants Market co-hosted “Weed Is A Plant,” a unique and more laid-back way to spend the day. Hella Bees, located in the old Rose Mary Jane dispensary location on Harrison, is a spacious, light-filled haven with a bar and backyard, perfect for a relaxed day party and an ideal setting for a 420 event.
Cindy Lee, Freak Heat Waves, Now Thee Stork Club 2330 Telegraph Ave. Oakland April 17th, 2024
On my way to Thee Stork Club, I could tell who was headed there by the heavy tattoos, DIY haircuts, and jean jackets. The show was completely sold out, and the club’s dark, moody rooms and halls teemed with patient fans.
The venue’s website categorized Cindy Lee, who headlined Wednesday night, as “punk.” Based on the diverse and eclectic artist biography, “high atmospherics and bracing melodies – a unique space where splendor naturally collides with experimentation,” and the event description, I figured the genre was being used as a catch-all term. I prepared my ears for something new.
Lalin St. Juste Live Bandcamp @ the Moxy Hotel 2225 Telegraph Ave. Oakland April 12, 2024
As folks filtered into the lobby of the Moxy Hotel to see local musician Lalin St. Juste, Max from Bandcamp opened the evening with background on the organization’s 15-year history of supporting independent musicians and praise for “this luminary performance and this luminary artist.”
