April 16, 2003

stage

Stage listings are compiled by Cheryl Eddy. Performance times may change; call venues to confirm. Reviewers are Robert Avila, Rita Felciano, Lara Shalson, and Chloe Veltman. See 8 Days a Week for information on how to submit items to the listings.

Theater

Opening

Angel Arms Xenodrome, 1320 Potrero; 869-5392. $15-20. Opens Thurs/17, 8pm. Runs Thurs-Sat, 8pm. Through April 26. The Continuum Theatre Ensemble opens its 2003 season with Timothy Wooster's play about confronting neurosis and finding peace through personal connections.

Darwin's Finches Thick House, 1695 18th St; 821-4849, www.encoretheatreco.org. $15-20. Previews Wed/16-Fri/18, 8pm. Runs Thurs-Sat, 8pm; Sun, 5pm. Through May 11. Encore Theatre Company presents the world premiere of Claire Chafee's latest play, a "romantic comedy for the depressed" about adult sibling rivalry.

The Legend of Shirley Mental Theatre Rhinoceros, 2926 16th St; 861-5079, www.therhino.org. $12. Opens Wed/16, 8:30pm. Runs Thurs/17 and Fri-Sat, 8:30pm; April 27, 3:30 and 7:30pm. Through April 27. Hardcore Thrush Productions presents Brit Zane's musical comedy about a Depression-era girl obsessed with Shirley Temple who befriends the "freaks" in a traveling sideshow.

LibidOff Exit on Taylor, 277 Taylor; 776-7427. $15-20. Previews Thurs/17-Sat/19, 8pm. Opens April 24, 8pm. Runs Thurs-Sat, 8pm. Through May 17. Three Wise Monkeys Theatre Company and Unidentified Theatre Company present Dawson Moore's dark comedy about a scientist who invents a patch to kill the male libido.

Queer Theory Exit Theatre, 156 Eddy; (510) 464-4468. $10-15. Opens Fri/18, 8pm. Runs Thurs-Sat, 8pm. Through May 17. Impact Theater presents the world premiere of John Fisher's play about a queer-theory professor investigating the idea that men and women in the 16th century were prone to switch from one gender to the other.

White Disabled Talent New Conservatory Theatre Center, 25 Van Ness; 861-8972. $15-25. Previews Wed/16-Fri/18, 8pm. Opens Sat/19, 8pm. Runs Wed-Sat, 8pm; Sun, 2pm. Through April 27. Greg Walloch performs his semi-autobiographical solo show, a monologue from the point of view of a twentysomething disabled gay man.

Bay Area

Partition Aurora Theatre, 2081 Addison, Berk; (510) 843-4822, www.auroratheatre.org. $28-38. Previews Wed/16, 8pm. Opens Thurs/17, 8pm. Runs Wed-Sat, 8pm; Sun, 2 and 7pm. Through May 18. Aurora Theatre presents Ira Hauptman's world premiere play about an early-20th-century Indian magician.

Surface Transit Berkeley Rep's Thrust Stage, 2025 Addison, Berk; (510) 647-2949. $38-54. Previews Fri/18-Sat/19, Tues/22, 8pm; Sun/20, 7pm. Opens April 23, 8pm. Runs Tues, Thurs-Sat, 8pm (also April 26, May 10, 2pm) (no show April 25); Wed and Sun 7pm (also April 27, May 4, May 18, 2pm; no show May 14). Through May 18. Acclaimed performer Sarah Jones performs her solo show, an interlinked tale of eight New Yorkers.

Ongoing

Are We Almost There? Shelton Theatre, 533 Sutter; 345-7575. $15-18. Thurs-Sat, 8pm. Open-ended. Travel is the theme of this musical-comedy revue.

Betrayal Venue 9, 252 Ninth St; 289-2000. $10-25. Thurs-Sat, 8pm; Sun, 2pm. Through April 26. Infidelity is an age-old intrigue; the innovation of Herold Pinter's Betrayal is this story of mid-life adultery is told in reverse, so the opening scene, set in the late 1970s, is the end of the affair. The suspense comes not from wanting to know what happens in the end, but rather from the desire to understand why it ended the way it did. This is an excellent framework for psychologically subtle acting, and the actors of Third Rail Power Trip's production rise to the occasion. Beneath the British veneer of polite manners, the characters conceal deep wells of emotion. Despite a few technical difficulties with the unreliable multimedia scene changes, Betrayal comes across as an honest play about a round-robin of lies. (Kerry Rodgers)

Blue Surge Magic Theatre, Bldg D, Fort Mason Center, Marina at Laguna; 441-8822. $17-37. Extended run: Wed/16 and Thurs-Sat, 8pm; Sun, 2:30 and 7:30pm. Through April 27. Rebecca Gilman's new play deconstructs an ideal couple against the economics of sex. Curt (John Flanagan), a working-class cop, plans to marry Beth (Corie Henninger), an upper-middle-class artist. They have their future well planned – but things are not as solid as they seem. After a botched raid on a massage parlor, Curt takes an avuncular interest in a young prostitute named Sandy (Kirsten Roeters); their ability to relate to one another rests on their mutual class background. Clearly cowed by his relationship with Beth, Curt not only feels comfortable sharing his dreams with Sandy, but he also seems eager to assume the role of male guardian. Amy Glazer, who directed the Magic Theatre's premiere of Gilman's The American in Me, gets the most from the playwright's vigorous, incisive, frequently witty dialogue while ensuring a lively pace. (Avila)

Calculus "Newton's Whores" San Francisco Performing Arts Library and Museum, 401 Van Ness, fourth fl; 255-4800. $18-20. Thurs-Sat, 8pm; April 27, 2pm. Through April 27. Chemist and playwright Carl Djerassi, in unapologetically didactic plays about scientific culture, sets out the politics, personalities, and ambitions that make up the gray area of scientific discovery. His latest explores the 18th-century turf war between two intellectual titans, Gottfried Leibniz (Robert Sicular) and Isaac Newton (Joe Lucas), over their independent discovery of calculus. Constructed as a play within a play, conjured by theatrical contemporaries John Vanbrugh (Lucas) and Colley Cibber (Sicular), the plot pivots on the 11-member committee convened to safeguard Sir Isaac's priority claim, with ethical implications for both Newton and science generally. A convoluted story line (freighted with expository dialogue relieved by the occasional Latin pun, and hopping repeatedly across time and place) exacerbates a stagnant quality arising from a lack of character development here. One gets lost in the minutiae of an intrigue whose full significance is never adequately established. At the same time, under Andrea Gordon's direction, the play receives the benefit of a first-rate cast that also includes Cynthia Bassham, Bob Ernst, Wanda Mccaddon, Stephen Pawley, and Simon Vance. If only Calculus were better than the sum of its parts. (Avila)

'Comedy on the Square' Shelton Theatre, 533 Sutter; 522-8900. $15. Performances include "Prop Comic!" with Fred Anderson (Sun/20, April 27, 3pm and 8:30pm [April 27, 8:30pm show is benefit performance for Art SF, with special guests]; May 4, 3pm; May 11-June 29, runs Sun, 3 and 7pm); and "Pushing 40," David Magidson's solo play about the male midlife crisis (Sun, 7pm, through May 4).

The Constant Wife Geary Theater, 415 Geary; 749-2228, www.act-sf.org. $11-61. Wed/16-Sat/19 and April 22-26, 8pm (also Wed/16, Sat/19, April 23, and 26, 2pm); Sun/20, April 27, 2pm. Through April 27. W. Somerset Maugham's keen social eye, sharp wit, and lenient attitude toward human nature lend The Constant Wife a Wildean flavor that appeals despite the ups and downs of American Conservatory Theater's current production. One reason the play holds up so well is that marriage, its primary target, hasn't changed all that much. Nor have attitudes toward it. London's Constance (Ellen Karas) and John Middleton (Jonathan Fried) seem an ideal couple – but John is having an affair with Constance's best friend, the perky Marie-Louise (a sprightly Ashley West). Constance won't intimate whether or not she knows of it – until Marie-Louise's husband, Mortimer (Charles Dean), makes a public accusation that leaves her no choice. To general bemusement, instead of accepting the accusation, Constance covers up for her guilt-stricken husband. Director Kyle Donnelly keeps Maugham's tightly drawn 1926 farce appropriately lighthearted but generates surprisingly little stage chemistry along the way. (Avila)

*God's Donkey: A Play on Moses A Traveling Jewish Theatre, 470 Florida; 399-1809. $12.50-25. Thurs-Sat, 8pm (no show Thurs/17); Sun, 2 and 7pm. Through April 27. Moses stutters and God scats in Aaron Davidman, Corey Fischer, and Eric Rhys Miller's lively retelling of the biblical tale of Exodus, which returns from a national tour to welcome Passover and close out A Traveling Jewish Theatre's 24th season. Fischer directs Davidman and Miller (who play Moses and God, respectively, among sundry roles), with musical accompaniment by the versatile and mesmerizing Daniel Hoffman, in a pert and inventive blend of comedy, drama, movement, and song. Traipsing across Richard Olmsted's pleasing and evocative desertscape, Davidman and Miller trace Moses's development from a pampered foundling in the Egyptian royal household, through his personal and political awakening, and to his reluctantly assumed role as liberator of his people. For all its levity and good-natured irreverence, the play wrestles intelligently with contradictions and ambiguities in a story that marks the beginning of "history" and modern identity for the Jewish people. (Avila)

*Hedwig and the Angry Inch Victoria Theatre, 2961 16th St; 392-4400. $25-35. Wed-Fri, 8pm; Sat-Sun, 7pm (also Sat, 10pm). Open-ended. Kevin Cahoon assumes the title role originated by John Cameron Mitchell in his 1998 Obie-winning glam musical, later a celebrated film. And while die-hard fans show up prepared to sing along, the show is so instantly contagious that no homework is necessary on the part ofs the uninitiated. For all its value as camp, Hedwig is a cabaret act of subtle sophistication; the story, like the best glam rock, has a quiet force that is the undercurrent of its self-conscious banality and cutting humor. (Avila)

In3 Exit Stage Left, 156 Eddy; 673-3847, www.theexit.org. $10-20. Thurs/17-Sat/19, 8pm. There are few venues less obviously conducive to public performance than Exit Stage Left, a squashed black box in the heart of the Tenderloin, which, contrary to its name, doesn't even have much of a stage to speak of. But In3, the first production in Exit Theatre's Resident Artist Series, turns the nondescript little room into bizarre and beautiful new terrain. Devised by an ensemble of actors, designers, a musician, and a choreographer, In3 is a complex and largely abstract counterpoint of jarring and fluid movement, and spiraling text, music, and color. Although the occasionally heavy-handed visual metaphors and frequent physical and textual non sequiturs take the production dangerously close to the realm of pseudo-theater of the absurd, David Malloy's gently explosive music gives In3 coherence and soul. (Veltman)

A Long Drink of Silence Shelton Theatre, 533 Sutter; 820-3910. $10-15. Fri-Sat, 8pm; Sun, 3pm. Through May 11. Jill Jackson's one-woman show blends memoir and song in a 90-minute appreciation of life's inevitable losses and opportunities. The story, ably directed by W. Kamau Bell, revolves around a good-natured but rambunctious Nashville child who chases elusive fame in New York City and temporary enlightenment on a Connecticut ashram-cum-sheep-ranch, before settling for taking things as they come, whether as a children's drama teacher or a veterinary assistant. Accompanying herself on guitar, Jackson punctuates her folksy and energetic account of the people and animals that informed her emotional development with a number of tuneful songs (including several original compositions). Less an actor than a genial ham, Jackson the performer grows on one even as Jackson the subject remains obscure. There's little more than a superficial sense of how she changed over the years, and gaps in the narrative that leave one less than satisfied (we never learn, for instance, anything about the ashram community, or why she eventually left, nor do we get any details about her boyfriend in NYC). In the end, she offers up familiar wisdom, albeit sincerely felt, but not much to root it in. (Avila)

The Producers Orpheum Theatre, 1192 Market; 551-2020. $39-81. Wed/16-Sat/19, 8pm (also Wed/16 and Sat/19, 2pm); Sun/20, 2pm. April 21-26: runs Mon-Sat, 8pm (also Wed and Sat, 2pm). Through April 26. The musical version of the much-treasured 1967 film repackages Mel Brooks's spasmodic genius for Generation Xanax, with lots of Broadway sugar helping the medicine go down. Nebbish and social phobic Leo Bloom (Don Stephenson) has a CPA's playful epiphany while doing the books for washed-up theatrical producer Max Bialystock (Lewis J. Stadlen): why gamble on a Broadway hit when raising more money than you need for a Broadway flop is a surer thing? Stephenson is charming if not very edgy as sidekick and basket case to Stadlen's larger-than-life, Gleason-esque Bialystock. If the stereotypes are hoary in this long, exuberant show, Brooks's nimble, good-natured tightrope dance over the chasm of bad taste remains somehow irresistible. (Avila)

R. Buckminster Fuller: The History (and Mystery) of the Universe Project Artaud Theater, 450 Florida; 626-DOME, www.foghouse.com. $25-35. Wed-Sat, 8pm (also Sat, 3pm); Sun, 2pm. Open-ended. Fuller was one of the great brainiacs of the 20th century, a philosopher, mathematician, inventor, and idealist who devoted his life to finding the best fit between nature and humanity. In D. W. Jacobs's fitful, two-hour monologue based on the life and writings of Fuller, actor Ron Campbell dexterously pings from one of the visionary's obsessions to another, inhabiting Fuller's eccentric soul with physical and verbal intensity. (Veltman)

Sub Pontio Pilato ODC Theater, 3153 17th St; 863-9834. $20. Thurs/17-Sat/19, 8pm. ODC Theater and the Paul Dresher Ensemble present the world premiere of Bay Area composer Erling Wold's latest chamber opera, a lyrical meditation on the multifaceted legacy of Pontius Pilate (John Duykers), the Roman governor of Judea who sentenced Christ to death. James Bisso's libretto – sung in English, Latin, Greek, and Hebrew in a nod to the cosmopolitan Roman world – takes Pilate's suicide as its point of departure and unfolds in that final moment Pilate's various historical reincarnations as villain, exile, martyr and saint. Berkeley Opera's Jonathan Khuner conducts the fine 11-piece orchestra, while tenor Duykers and the equally formidable soprano Kerry Walsh (as Pilate's wife, Procula) lead an appealing six-person cast. The decision to artificially amplify the voices, however, carries the usual problems (including, in one case, the repeated cutting out of the microphone), and is somewhat mysterious given the relatively intimate size of the venue. Melissa Weaver achieves mixed results in fashioning a sense of forward motion from the episodic nature of the story, but Wold's enchanting score – with its Stravinsky-like majesty and warm minimalist accents – keeps the drama afloat, reaching some particularly memorable heights by the second act, including a gently elegiac choral movement, before ending on a sly note of historical irony. (Avila)

*28 very short scenes about love Noh Space, 2840 Mariposa; 621-7978. $15. Fri-Sat, 8pm. Through April 26. Flirting with both theater and dance, this ensemble piece directed by Linda Carr is a visually arresting meditation on the dizzying highs, the despairing lows, the perplexing failures, and the knee-knocking thrills of falling in love. From the opening scene – a chaotic aural montage of chirping birds and out-of-service phone messages that morph into cries of pressing need ("Please hold" becoming a plaintive, "Please hold me!") – to the teetering dance-monologue about the delicate balancing act of breaking up without pulverizing the other person's heart (or at least without taking the blame for it), the play's five charming performers render familiar scenarios unique with their grace and humor. The piece suffers, however, from the limitation that, no matter how variegated, it only imagines one type of relationship. It's not until the final scene – a dance with daisies performed to Billie Holiday's "All of Me" – that we catch a glimpse of some of the many other forms that love can take. (Shalson)

Bay Area

Humpty Dumpty San Jose Repertory Theatre, 101 Paseo de San Antonio, San Jose; (408) 367-7255. $20-48. Wed/16-Sat/19, 8pm (also Sat/19, 3pm); Sun/20, 2 and 7pm. In Eric Bogosian's surprisingly tame new play, two thirtysomething couples – caffeinated, cell-phone addicted, overachieving urbanites – embark on a vacation in upstate New York. When the power goes out, the group's supercilious postmodern armor melts away amid the creeping fear that it might never go back on. Director John McCluggage gives the derivative script a slick production that makes the worn humor and clichéd characterizations as reasonably entertaining as the Hollywood movie you sense is on the horizon, especially in the second act, where the muscular cast gets to stretch out. (Avila)

Jane Eyre Mountain View Center for the Performing Arts, 500 Castro, Mountain View; (650) 903-6000, www.theatreworks.org. $20-43. Tues, 7:30pm (no show April 29); Wed-Sat, 8pm (also April 26 and May 3, 2pm); Sun, 2pm (also April 27, 7pm). Through May 4. TheatreWorks performs John Caird and Paul Gordon's musical inspired by the Charlotte Brontë novel.

Talking with Angels: Budapest 1943 Theater Aria, 142 Throckmorton, Mill Valley; (415) 389-8975. $20-25. Thurs-Sat, 8pm; Sun, 5pm. Through April 27. Shelley Mitchell performs her solo show, which follows four young women's search for enlightenment and refuge during the Holocaust.

The Vampires La Val's Subterranean Theatre, 1834 Euclid, Berk; (510) 704-8210. $10-20 (previews, pay what you can). Thurs-Sat, 8pm; Sun, 7pm. Through May 10. Shotgun Players perform Harry Kondoleon's scathing look at family relationships, including a character who may or may not be a vampire.

dance

Anima Mundi Dance Company Meridian Gallery, 545 Sutter; 398-7229. Sat, 8pm. $10. Members of the company perform with music by Christopher Castle.

Bay Area

'In Small Spaces' Buzz Gallery, 2316 Telegraph, Oak; (510) 465-4073. Fri, 8pm. $5. New company Foot and Meter Performance Works presents Elly Karl's Small Space, Set One and Kate Corby's The Wavering, plus accordion player Luke Brechtelsbauer.

Omega West Dance Company Plymouth United Church of Christ, 424 Monte Vista, Oakl; (510) 654-5300. Fri, 12:15pm. Free. The company performs during the community Good Friday service to commemorate parents who have lost children to violence.

Printz Dance Project Marin Civic Center, Showcase Theater, Civic Center at Avenue of the Flags, San Rafael; (415) 499-6800, www.printzdance.org. Fri-Sat, 8pm. $16. Printz Dance Project presents five repertory dances in their signature fusion style (a mix of modern, jazz, and hip hop), plus a new duet featuring guest artist Annie Rosenthal-Parr.

San Francisco Open DanceSport Championships San Francisco Airport Marriott, 1800 Old Bayshore Hwy, Burlingame; (650) 366-0504, www.sfopen.com. Fri-Sat, 9am-midnight. $8-40. Competitive ballroom dancers from the Bay Area and beyond perform in both amateur and professional events.

performance

BATS Improv Bayfront Theater, Fort Mason Center, Marina at Laguna; www.batsimprov.com. Fri-Sun, 8pm. $9-12. This week's shows: "Courtroom: Drama!" (Fri); "Improv and a Movie" (Sat); "Theatresports Sunday Players" (Sun).

'Code Blue at the Genome Zoo' Exploratorium, 3601 Lyon; 561-0308 (reservations recommended). Sat-Sun, 2pm. Through May 10. $6-10. True Mysteries presents Barbara Damashek's family-friendly play about the hidden world of laboratory science and genetic research.

'Dangerous Curves – The Femme Show' Luna Sea Theater, 2940 16th St; 863-2989. Fri-Sat, 8pm. $10-15. This show includes both ensemble and solo performances, including dance and poetry reading.

'Empress Council Benefit' Marlena's, 488 Hayes; 864-6672. Sat, 9pm. Free. Anjelica Devarox host a drag cabaret to benefit the Empress Council of San Francisco.

'EROShambo Surreal Robotic Cabaret' OmniCircus, 550 Natoma; 701-0686. Sat, 9:30pm. Ongoing. $10-15. A cast of musicians, performance artists, and robots appears in this original cabaret show.

'The Experience Junkies' Spanganga, 3376 19th St; 821-1102. Thurs, 8pm. Through April 24. $8. Storyteller and performance artist Zeke Tyrus presents his new show.

'Fast Joey and the TV Zone' Odeon Bar, 3223 Mission; (510) 385-6586. Sat, 9pm. $5. The group performs TV theme songs in a multimedia show.

Sean Fletcher and Isabel Reichert New Langton Arts, 1246 Folsom; 626-5416. Fri, 8pm. $5-10 sliding scale. The Oakland-based performance duo presents a new live-art piece that mimics a seminar on the commodification of art.

'I Swing Like That' Jon Sims Center for the Arts, 1519 Mission; 554-0402. Fri, 8pm. $5-10 sliding scale. Jon Sims artist in residence Cedric Brown performs his solo show that takes on traditional notions of jazz musicians.

'In the Summer House' Exit Cafe, 156 Eddy; 561-1418. Tues, 8pm. $5-10 (suggested donation). See 8 Days a Week.

'Monkey King and Other Children's Tales from Around the World' Randall Museum, 199 Museum Wy; www.randallmuseum.org. Sat, 1pm. $3-5. Abydos Theater presents a show of animal tales from around the globe, aimed at kids ages five through nine.

'Mouthful of Frogs' Spanganga, 3376 19th St; www.spanganga.com. Thurs, 10pm. $6. Spoken word artist Paul Addis presents a solo show about expatriation versus staying in America.

'Myths and Mountains Salon' Eth-Noh-Tec's Creative Space, 977 South Van Ness; 282-8705, www.ethnotec.org. Tues, 7pm. Free. The Asian American storytelling movement theater group hosts a salon-style performance, presented in conjunction with Kearny Street Workshop and the 18 Mighty Mountain Warriors.

'Porch Light, a storytelling series' Café du Nord, 2170 Market; aklatte@sbcglobal.net. Mon, 7pm. $10. This month's theme is "This Means War" and features tales by Bruce B. Brugmann, founder, editor, and publisher of the Bay Guardian; lawyer-biker Jayne Kelly deLopez; former Black Panther Brother Malcolm; poet-artist Alison Nowak; Desert Storm combat veteran Roberto Alverado, and others.

'Reservoir Dogs, the Play' Spanganga, 3376 19th St; www.spanganga.org. Fri-Sat, 10pm. $10-15. Monkey Trouble presents the stage version of the movie, adapted by H.L. Nolan.

Bay Area

'Exploring of Possibilities of Passion' Wheeler Hall, Rm 30, near Bancroft and Telegraph, UC Berkeley, Berk; (510) 526-7858, www.eroplay.com. Performance artist Frank Moore leads this interactive "lab of creativity."

'San Jose Art and Resistance Summit' Various locations, San Jose; (408) 938-3594. April 21-27. Formerly known as the Floricanto Festival, this seven-day event includes poetry slams, film screenings, experimental theater, visual arts exhibits, and more, all centered around the theme of using art as a tool for resistance.

'Technomania Circus' 21 Grand, 449B 23rd St, Oakl; (510) 44-GRAND. Thurs-Sat, 8pm. Through April 26. $12. This performance includes two acts, a vaudeville circus (8pm) with puppeteers, jugglers, and more; and "The Mysterious Mis-Adventures of the Disappearing Technoman" (10pm), a theater production using black lights.

comedy

Blue Bear Performance Hall Fort Mason Center, Bldg D, Marina at Laguna; 885-5678. Sat, 8pm: Flash Family performs improv, $7-14.

BrainWash Café 1122 Folsom; 861-3663. Thurs, 8pm: Comedy open mic hosted by Tony Sparks, free.

The Field 524 Union; 377-1662. Wed, 8pm: "Comedy Club," with host Ian Jensen, $5.

Fort Mason Center Marina at Laguna (check daily events sandwich board to see exact location); 453-9092. Sat, 1-4pm: Improv workshop with Jim Crenna, $10. Ongoing.

Java Source 343 Clement; 387-8025. Fri, 10:30pm and Sat, 10pm: Comedy open mic hosted by Tony Sparks, free.

Luggage Store 1007 Market; 255-5971. Tues, 8pm: Comedy workshop with Tony Sparks, $3.

New Pisa 550 Green; 207-0285, www.northbeachimprov.com. Fri, 9pm: "North Beach Improv," with host Uncle Vinny Rizzo, $10.

Palace of Fine Arts outside lawn, Richardson at Bay; www.blueblanketimprov.com. Sun, 11am: Blue Blanket Improv presents a free workshop and improv show. Ongoing.

Spanganga 3376 19th St; 341-16-4, ext 2. Fri-Sat, 8pm: "Uphill Both Ways" sketch comedy revue, $10.

Bay Area

Black Box 1928 Telegraph, Oakl; (510) 451-1932. Thurs, 8pm: The Oakland Playhouse improv troupe performs improv comedy, $6.

Temescal Arts Center 511 48th Ave, Oakl; (415) 869-5384. Sat, 8pm: "The Short and Long of It," improv with the Un-Scripted Theater Company, $7-10. Through April 26.

spoken word

Open mics take place almost every night in cafés throughout the Bay Area. If you want to perform, show up about half an hour before start time to put your name on the list. A day-by-day guide to spoken word events and featured readers:

Wednesday: BrainWash Café 1122 Folsom; 440-5530. "Spoken Word Salon," with host Diamond Dave Whitaker, 8pm, free. Poetry Center San Francisco State University, Humanities Bldg, Rm 512, 1600 Holloway; 338-2227. Ryoko Sekiguchi reads with translator Stacy Doris, 7:30pm, free. Eastwind Books of Berkeley 2066 University, Berk; (510) 548-2350. Poets Rick Barot and Eileen R. Tabios read, 6:30pm, free.

Thursday: Coppa D'Oro Cafe 3166 24th St; 826-8003. "Poetry on the Patio," spoken word and acoustic music open mic with host Charlie Getter, 6:30pm, free. Unitarian Center 1187 Franklin; 338-2227. Fred Moten and William Corbett read poetry, 7:30pm, $5 donation. New College Cultural Center 766 Valencia; 933-6825. "New College of California Emerging Artist Series" with poets Sarah Menefee, Armour Garland, and Marcia Roberts, plus dancer Alena Cawthorne, 7:30pm, free.

Friday: Small Press Traffic 1111 Eighth St; 551-9278. Cassie Lewis and Brydie McPherson read poetry and prose, 7:30pm, $5.

Saturday: Alliance Fran‡aise 1345 Bush; 338-2227. Abdellatif Laƒbi reads poetry, 6pm, free.

Sunday: Cody's Books 2454 Telegraph, Berk; (510) 845-7852. "Poetry Flash!" with Katy Lederer and Albert Flynn DeSilver, 7:30pm, $2. Hyena Playhouse 2390 Mission, Ste 10; 821-3601. "Hubbub: Queer Spoken Word" with featured readers Julia Serano and Jason Alley, and host Larry-bob, 3pm, $3 (no one turned away for lack of funds). Club Galia 2565 Mission; thisistheinverse@yahoo.com. "Move Against AIDS Qualifying Slam #2: InVerse," hosted by Karen Ladson, 8pm, $6.

Monday: Perry's Joint 1661 Fillmore; 931-5260. "Celebration of the Word," with featured reader James Cagney and open mic, 7pm, free. Goethe-Institut Auditorium 530 Bush; www.goethe.org. Zafer Senocak reads poetry in German, with translator Elizabeth Oehlkers Wright, 7pm, free.