We’ve curated seven events and performances for you to enjoy this week in the San Francisco Bay Area. Whether you are looking for a world premiere musical in Swept Away, the acclaimed stage production of Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, or the unique dance of Ronald K. Brown and Evidence, we’ve got all the best events happening in the Bay Area this week. Check out what’s going on and find your tickets now!
Swept Away
“Tony Award-winning director Michael Mayer (Spring Awakening, Hedwig and the Angry Inch) blew the roof off Berkeley Rep in 2009 with Green Day’s American Idiot. Now he returns with a captivating world premiere musical, this time featuring a book by Tony Award-winning stage and screen writer John Logan (Red, Broadway’s Moulin Rouge!, Skyfall, Gladiator), and music and lyrics by “America’s biggest roots band” (Rolling Stone) and multiple Grammy Award nominee The Avett Brothers.
1888, off the coast of New Bedford, MA. When a violent storm sinks their whaling ship, the four surviving souls—a young man in search of adventure, his older brother who has sworn to protect him, a captain at the end of a long career at sea, and a worldly first mate who has fallen from grace—each face a reckoning: How far will I go to stay alive? And can I live with the consequences?”
Now through March 6, presented by Berkeley Repertory Theatre
Harry Potter and the Cursed Child
Nineteen years after Harry, Ron, and Hermione saved the wizarding world, they’re back on a most extraordinary new adventure—this time, joined by a brave new generation that has only just arrived at the legendary Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Prepare for spectacular spells, a mind-blowing race through time, and an epic battle to stop mysterious forces, all while the future hangs in the balance.
Now through September 4, presented by Curran
Garrick Ohlsson and Kirill Gerstein
“In this rare duo recital by two of today’s finest pianists, Bay Area favorite Garrick Ohlsson and Russian American master Kirill Gerstein team up to perform a program of Rachmaninoff, Ravel, and Busoni, including one of Busoni’s imaginative two-keyboard arrangements of music by Mozart.”
February 23, presented by Stanford Live
Creatures of Prometheus
“Originally conceived as a ballet work, Ludwig van Beethoven’s The Creatures of Prometheus tells the story of two clay statues made human by a cunning Prometheus. In this imaginative multimedia performance led by Esa-Pekka Salonen, Hillary Leben’s original animated projections combine with Beethoven’s talent for colorful and dramatic storytelling to bring to life the enchanting story of Prometheus’ 24 in the world of the mighty and capricious Greek gods.”
February 24–27, presented by San Francisco Symphony
Falling for Make Believe
“Ryan J. Haddad—the 2020 recipient of the Cornelia Street American Playwriting Award—has harbored a true love for theater since his childhood. When he was five, he created the Haddad Theater for his family to put on plays. As an actor today, Haddad can be seen in popular TV shows such as The Politician, Madame Secretary, and Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt. In Falling for Make Believe, Haddad draws on stories from his childhood in a witty, whimsical memoir full of showtunes.”
February 25–26, presented by Stanford Live
Memphis Jookin’: The Show featuring Lil Buck
“As a deep bass beat thumps through the sound system, he is transfixing: one moment gliding fluidly across the stage; the next, animated by a barrage of fleet jittery footwork—finally punctuated by a balletic 360-degree spin on the toes of his white high-top sneakers. He’s Lil Buck, a star of the homegrown Memphis street dance style called jookin’. Lil Buck became a YouTube star after director Spike Jonze uploaded a video of his dance improvisation with Yo-Yo Ma, and since then the young sensation has collaborated with everyone from Madonna to choreographer Benjamin Millepied. And in the West Coast premiere of this dazzling show, he—along with a DJ and an expert eight-dancer crew—transports us to the streets, the hallways, and the clubs where Memphis jookin’ was born.”
February 25–26, presented by Cal Performances
Ronald K. Brown and Evidence, A Dance Company
“Founded by Ronald K. Brown in 1985 and based in Brooklyn, New York, Evidence, A Dance Company focuses on the seamless integration of traditional African dance with contemporary choreography and spoken word. Through work, Evidence provides a unique view of human struggles, tragedies, and triumphs. Brown uses movement as a way to reinforce the importance of community in African American culture and to acquaint audiences with the beauty of traditional African forms and rhythms. The Equality of Night and Day, a new piece by Brown and Evidence, will make its Mondavi Center debut.”
February 26, presented by Mondavi Center for the Performing Arts