From the always-fun Mosswood Meltdown to Radio Day in the Bay Area and the acclaimed Music@Menlo classical festival, there is a lot to see and do in the Bay Area this weekend.
Here’s a partial rundown.
Devo set for major Meltdown
Devo is on its way to the East Bay.
The highly influential new wave band — which formed in Akron, Ohio, in 1973 — is set to headline the first day of the Mosswood Meltdown festival in Oakland. So, turn on out on July 19 to hear Devo perform such fan favorites as “Girl U Want,” “Planet Earth, “(I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction,” “Secret Agent Man,” “Uncontrollable Urge,” “Gates of Steel,” “Freedom of Choice” and, of course, “Whip It.”
Looking beyond Devo, the Mosswood July 19 lineup also features Osees, Exploding Hearts and other acts. The July 20 bill — yes, Mosswood Meltdown is a two-day affair — is topped by legendary riot grrrl act Bratmobile and also boasts Shannon and the Clams, La Luz, Oakland vocalist Kreayshawn and more.
Devo’s Mosswood Meltdown appearance is part of the band’s ongoing (and lengthy) farewell tour. Fans will have yet another chance to wave goodbye to Devo when it returns to the Bay Area for a performance on Oct. 16 at Shoreline Amphitheatre at Mountain View. That South Bay date is part of a co-headlining run with The B-52’s, the Athens, Georgia pop-rockers who are also in the midst of an ever-extending farewell jaunt.
Details: Mosswood Meltdown runs 11 a.m.-10 p.m. Saturday and Sunday; two-day festival passes start at $176.28, single-day VIP tickets are $227.83 for Saturday and $135.05 for Sunday; mosswoodmeltdown.com.
— Jim Harrington, Staff
Tune into Radio Day
Who said radio is dead? In one Bay Area city — the charmingly locked-in-time Alameda — the more-than-a-century-old medium is given a celebratory bash that gets bigger and more elaborate with each passing year.
The 2025 Radio Day by the Bay Festival, taking place July 19 at the headquarters of the California Historical Radio Society, fetes radio broadcasting’s golden age and its hopefully bright future. What will be “on the air?” Well, there’s a live jazz orchestra to keep the crowds swinging and live radio plays to deliver suspense and thrills. An auction offers the chance to own vintage gems like a 1950s “Lone Ranger” AM radio and a wood-paneled Zenith shortwave from 1939.
The radio society is giving tours of its museum with all its Inspector Gadget-type widgets and gizmos — be sure to check out the “Ham Station,” which does not feature smoked meat. And there’s a surplus-electronics sale, a boombox-building contest and food trucks, all set to the melodious commentary of local radio hosts Hoyt Smith and Sylvia Chacon.
Details: Event takes place 8 a.m.-3 p.m. July 19 at 2152 Central Ave., Alameda; californiahistoricalradio.com.
— John Metcalfe, staff
Classical picks: Music@Menlo, Zimmer’s greatest hits
The Bay Area’s classical music scene doesn’t take summers off – far from it. With festivals, special events and more on the calendar, here are three can’t-miss attractions coming our way.
Music@Menlo: Founded in 2003 by the dynamic husband-and-wife directors cellist David Finckel and pianist Wu Han, this annual chamber music festival always draws an impressive roster of top artists to the Bay Area. With the company’s 23rd season opening this weekend, “Constellations: Ensemble Magic” features events including 40 performing artists in seven mainstage programs, Carte Blanche concerts, pre-concert talks and much more.
Details: Friday through Aug. 9, Menlo School’s Spieker Center for the Arts, Menlo Park; $25-$90; musicatmenlo.org.
Movie Music: So many great works by classical composers find their way into the films we love, and composer Hans Zimmer has proven one of the most prolific. This week, selections from his movie scores, including “Gladiator,” “The Lion King” and others are center stage in “Movie Music of Hans Zimmer.” The event is presented by the San Francisco Symphony in two locations, with special guest contralto Sara Couden as soloist.
Details: 7:30 p.m. today at Frost Amphitheater, Stanford University; 7:30 p.m. Friday at Davies Symphony Hall, San Francisco; $69-$199; sfsymphony.org.
Bach in Carmel: One of the top attractions of this year’s Carmel Bach Festival comes this weekend, with a performance of Bach’s Mass in B-Minor. This towering work is a specialty for the organization, and this year’s soloists are soprano Clara Rottsolk, mezzo-soprano Guadalupe Paz, tenor Brian Gieble, and bass-baritone Dashon Burton.
Details: 3 p.m. Sunday; Sunset Center, Carmel; $37-$98; bachfestival.org.
— Georgia Rowe, Correspondent
‘My Fair Lady’ returns to roots
Forget the simmering romance that you might think of when you remember the 1964 movie musical “My Fair Lady.” Think instead of “Pygmalion.”
San Francisco Playhouse’s altogether delightful production of the musical, while complete with Lerner and Loewe’s familiar songs, takes its gravitas not from Hollywood but from George Bernard Shaw’s original play and the 1938 movie version that followed.
You know the story: Professor Henry Higgins makes a bargain with colleague Col. Pickering that he can take a raggedy street girl — Eliza Doolittle, whom he encounters selling flowers in Covent Garden — and transform her, basically move her up a few classes, by turning her screechy Cockney into the dulcet tones of a duchess. We watch Eliza grow into a lady, we follow her relationships with the three men in her new life and we see how confirmed bachelor Henry Higgins is ultimately changed by his interaction with her.
S.F. Playhouse’s large-cast play is a treat for all the senses: songs accompanied by a small backstage orchestra (music direction by Dave Dobrusky); a big, impressive rotating set (designed by Nina Ball); terrific performances both comic and emotional; a few great singing voices (Jillian A. Smith’s pure soprano as Eliza, and Nicholas Tabora’s wistful “On the Street Where You Live” as the smitten Freddy); and Abra Berman’s dazzling period costumes. And wait for the ending — it might surprise you, but it’s exactly right.
Details: Through Sept. 13, San Francisco Playhouse, 450 Post St., San Francisco; $52-$135; sfplayhouse.org.
— Jean Schiffman, Bay City News Foundation
Freebie of the week
There is a lot to love about Crockett, even if there is not a lot to Crockett, the tiny community in northern Contra Costa County. It’s so small its Wikipedia page refers to Crockett as a “census-designated place,” rather than a village or town or small city. Named for California Supreme Court Justice Joseph P. Crockett, the community has developed a reputation as a cool place to visit. There are lots of coffee shops, a beloved local bar/restaurant known as the Dead Fish, a charming antiques/speciality store that caters to feline fanciers, The Cat Vintage, and some lovely trails to hike in Crockett Hills Regional Park.
On July 20, you can check out all this fun stuff or just head to the 17th annual Sugartown Festival, an outdoor music festival and street fair whose name references the community’s history in the sugar business. The event runs 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. in Crockett’s downtown. You’ll find artists’ booths, food stands and live music at Rolph and Pomona streets. The music lineup includes a School of Rock kids band at 11 a.m., followed by such acts as Mitch Polzak and the Royal Deuces, playing rockabilly and country from 12:15 p.m.-1:30 p.m.; Salvage Title, playing rock covers from 2-3:30 p.m.; and Sacred Fire, a Santana tribute band featuring former musicians from Santana, playing 4-6 p.m.
Details: Admission is free, but if you want a VIP covered seat, you can get one for $20 that comes with a water mister, a drink and a snack bag; more information is at www.sugartownfestival.com
— Bay City News Foundation
ODC unveils new works at Sampler
ODC/Dance is now in its 54th year of bringing exciting and provocative works to folks in the Bay Area and beyond. On July 17-20, the company is staging its annual Summer Sampler featuring three works, two of which are world premieres. One is by longtime choreographer and ODC Fellow KT Nelson, whose “Nothing’s Going to Make Sense” marks her first new work performed by the company since 2017. The piece is a response to the sudden passing of Nelson’s husband and, according to ODC, combines “contradictions of loss and love, reality and fantasy, aloneness and togetherness.” The other premiere is by company Staging Director Mia J. Chong, who reportedly got her start in the dance world in an ODC studio when she was 5 years old. “Theories of Time” examines how we both react to and try to influence the passage of time. The third work on the bill is a revival of Catherine Galasso’s 2024 piece “10,000 Steps: A Dance About Its Own Making,” which, as its title suggests, explores the nature of motion and is defined by exactly 10,000 steps.
Details: Performances are 7:30 p.m. July 17-19 (with July 19 Saturday marking LGBTQ+ Night) and 5 p.m. July 20; $30-$100, odc.dance.
A buffet of dance styles
This is a great weekend for dance fans. Besides ODC/Dance’s annual Summer Sampler (see previous item), the Peninsula International Dance Festival returns for its fourth installment in San Mateo on Saturday and Sunday. Name your favorite style and it’s probably on display during this event: Flamenco, classical ballet, Indian Kathak, Chinese classical and folk dance, and much more. Participating troupes include the American Dance Theatre, which performs such U.S. dance forms representing Appalachia, Cajun, and swing era revival; Charya Burt Cambodian Dance, which is dedicated to reviving genres that at one point were banned by the Khmer Rouge; Association of Ramaytush Ohlone, presenting Native American styles; the Parangal Dance Company, which presents traditional dances from the Philippines; Ensambles Ballet Folklórico de San Francisco, which specializes in traditional Mexican dance; Ballet Nlolo Kongo, performing Congoles/Brazzaville styles; Peninsula Ballet Theatre; and Taiko Sobo, presenting Japanese works. All told, the event features 21 companies and some 250 dancers and musicians. The event is benefitted by consultation by choreographer Carlos Carvajal, who was co-artistic director of the San Francisco Ethnic Dance Festival from 2005-2018.
Details: Performances are 2 p.m. July 19-20 at the San Mateo Performing Arts Center; $40-$70; go to www.peninsulalivelyarts.org.
— Bay City News Foundation
Three is not a crowd: Music@Menlo, that venerable festival devoted to the richness, elegance and intimacy of chamber music, launches its 23rd season this week, with some 50 events presented over its three stages in Atherton through Aug. 9. Sunday afternoon’s 4 p.m. concert in the Spieker Center of the Arts seems an especially intriguing one. Dubbed “Trio Transformations” and given a repeat performance in the Stent Family Hall on July 22, this program to highlight how three essentially solo artists working in collaboration can amount to more than the sum of their parts, will deploy, in varying combinations, violinists Stella Chin, Jessica Lee, Richard Lin and Arnaud Sussmann, violist Aaron Boyd; cellists David Finckel (Menlo’s co-founder) and Jonathan Swensen and clarinetist David Shifrin. On their program will be Antonín Dvorak’s Terzetto in C Major for Two Violins and Viola; Johannes Brahms’ Trio in a Minor for Piano, Clarinet and Cello; Joseph Suk’s Elegy for Piano Trio and Bedrîch Smetana’s Piano Trio in G minor. Performance time is 4 p.m., with tickets, “$65-$87 ($26 for those under 30), available at music@menlo.org.
Byrd is the word: Revel in the polyphonic glories of William Byrd, perhaps the greatest and certainly most influential of all the English Renaissance composers, in a setting that surely would have felt home to him, as a composer of sacred songs. San Francisco’s Grace Cathedral is hosting two concerts they’re calling “Secret Byrd” to honor the 400-year-old-plus legacy of this giant of early music. Aided by the string players of the Bay Area-based ensemble The Wildcat Viols and with the interior lit by dramatic candlelight staged by Concert Theatre Works, Great Britain’s vocal ensemble The Gesualdo Six will explore Byrd’s oeuvre in depth. Cubed “weavers of rich and plangent tapestries” by BBC magazine, the six are directed by baritone Owain Park and include countertenors Guy James and Alasdair Austin, tenors Joseph Wicks and Josh Cooter and baritone Simon Grant. Performance times are 6:30 and 9:30 p.m. Thurday and Friday; find tickets, $60-$75, at www.sfems.org.