THURSDAY, NOV. 20
PUNK
THE MUTANTS
When asked to list the names of influential bands in the area, several names will pop up: The Avengers, Dead Kennedys, Flipper and Operation Ivy. However, the Mutants remain one of the most underrated of early Bay Area punks. True ’77 punk, the band first formed in that seminal punk year, inspired by the burst of creative energy they saw around them. They played religiously throughout the state until the mid-’80s but would always reunite sporadically in the decades to follow. In 2022 they released their latest album, Curse of the Easily Amused, an archival collection that absolutely rips and should be a staple in any local punk’s collection. – MAT WEIR
INFO: Thu, 7:30pm, Ivy Room, 860 San Pablo Ave., Albany. $15. 510.526.5888.
FRIDAY, NOV. 21
JAZZ
ALICE COLTRANE TRIBUTE
In the nearly two decades since Alice Coltrane’s death in 2007 at the age of 69 her musical and spiritual journey has gained increasing recognition as an enduring source of inspiration inside and outside of jazz. The music she created in the decades after the loss of her husband, saxophone legend John Coltrane, reverberates more widely than ever, and her legacy has been well tended by her kin. As part of the John & Alice Coltrane Home’s Year of Alice project, and in the first for the Bay Area, vocalist Sita Michelle Coltrane—daughter of Alice and step-daughter of John—presents an evening of Alice’s music. She’s joined by a stellar cast of collaborators. – ANDREW GILBERT
INFO: Fri, 8pm, The Freight, 2020 Addison St., Berkeley. $44-$49. 510.644.2020.
FRIDAY, NOV. 21
THEATER
‘CABARET’
Directed and choreographed by Erika Chong Shuch, John Kander’s and Fred Ebb’s Tony award-winning musical is in terrific hands. Given the reins to ride this Tony Award-winning musical, Shuch introduces a production that blends the terrifying rise of 1930s Naziism and fascism with today’s no-less-horrifying escalation of violent antisemitism, anti-Asian rage, xenophobia, gender identity battles and authoritarianism. Notably but not surprisingly, given the talented cast, emerging from the gritty nightlife of the Kit Kat Club comes a tender love story between a young novelist and a cabaret singer. Equally nuanced, the club’s emcee fights like a tiger for other characters, and underneath all the ferocity caresses their hearts and their struggles with unexpected gentleness. – LOU FANCHER
INFO: Fri, 7pm, Oakland Theater Project at FLAX art & design, 1501 Martin Luther King Jr. Way, Oakland. $10-65. 510.646.1126.
SATURDAY, NOV. 22
BLUES
TERRIE ODABI
Over the past 15 years, Oakland vocalist Terrie Odabi has carried the Bay Area blues torch around the world, performing at top festivals, clubs and theaters. She’s a powerhouse who can calibrate her performances for intimate spaces like the Sound Room, leaning into material that calls on her soulful croon as well as her incantatory belting. Whatever dynamic she dials into, Odabi delivers her music with embracing warmth. She might sing about hard times, but she makes it clear that she’s throwing a party to which everyone’s invited. Featuring guitarist Kurt Crumpler, bassist Charles Spikes, saxophonist Danny Sandoval, drummer Pierre Parker and keyboardist Simon Russell, Odabi’s band is a formidable combo. – AG
INFO: Sat, 7:30pm, The Sound Room, 3022 Broadway, Oakland. $35. 510.708.9691.
SATURDAY, NOV. 22
HIP-HOP
WAX
Wax is mostly a rapper, also a producer, partly a singer and sometimes a comedian. His songs hit sideways, sometimes confessional and full of everyday poetry, sometimes cocky and sly. On his “Lifetime Achievement Award” tour, he leans into the warm, lo-fi storytelling on his 2025 album, still with that combo of sharp-tongued humor and disarming honesty. He’s seen highs and lows, laughed at both and made them rhyme. – SONYA BENNETT-BRANDT
INFO: Sat, 8pm, Cornerstone, 2367 Shattuck Ave., Berkeley. $33. 510.214.8600.
SATURDAY, NOV. 22
THEATER
MANUAL CINEMA
The witches in Shakespeare’s Macbeth famously cackle and chant: “Double, double toil and trouble.” But in Manual Cinema’s The 4th Witch, the story of a young girl orphan who becomes “unwittingly apprenticed” to the Weird Sisters is told entirely without text through shadow puppetry, actors in silhouette, sound and live music. This Cal Performances co-commission follows her as she chooses between reconciliation and vengeance. The show will be followed by a discussion with Manual Cinema, including a behind-the-scenes glimpse into how the production was created—by theatrical magic. – JANIS HASHE
INFO: Sat, 8pm, Cal Performances at Zellerbach Hall, 101 Zellerbach Hall., #4800, Berkeley. $48-$55. 510.642.9988.
SUNDAY, NOV. 23
COMEDY
JOHN MULANEY
John Mulaney’s “Mister Whatever” tour gives the razor-sharp comic extra edge. Known for precise timing, boyish charm and surreal storytelling, Mulaney continues to turn neuroses into high art. Now he’s reflecting on reinvention, recovery and the absurdities of adulthood, fatherhood and personhood. This go-around he’s a little more unfiltered, and the result is his biggest tour yet. Every master comedian turns their midlife crisis into a punchline, and Mulaney’s is perfectly crafted. – SBB
INFO: Sun, 7pm, Paramount Theatre, 2025 Broadway, Oakland. $270. 510.893.2300.
SUNDAY, NOV. 23
FILM
‘MOANA’ LIVE-TO-FILM
Disney Concert’s full-length screening of this award-winning animated film is made buoyant by the accompanying live music ensemble. The boisterous score’s Polynesian rhythms and songs like “How Far I’ll Go,” “You’re Welcome” and “Shiny” will likely have audience members, especially the younger set, performing a singalong. Moana tells the story of the determined, independent-minded daughter of a village chief. Setting sail to recover a mystical relic and save her community and its culture, the production exudes hope, resilience, strength, courage and pride in lineage. That’s a heavy load, but in no way burdensome. Lift your spirits; leave inspired. The two-hour-and-10-minute performance includes one intermission. – LF
INFO: Sun, 1pm, Cal Performances at Zellerbach Hall, 101 Zellerbach Hall #4800, Berkeley. $38-94. 510.642.9988.
MONDAY, NOV. 24
FILM
A NOSTALGIC NIGHT WITH MACAULAY CULKIN
Can it be true that it’s been 35 years since Macaulay Culkin portrayed the wily Kevin McCallister in the original Home Alone? Apparently, because Oakland’s Paramount Theatre is celebrating the anniversary of the ’90s classic with a screening of the film, followed by a moderated interview with Culkin, discussing the making of the movie, his favorite memories and why he thinks it’s become so beloved. A limited number of VIP tickets available for super-fans will include access to “an exclusive post-show Q&A.” Because, you know, he made his family disappear. – JH
INFO: Mon, 7:30pm, Paramount Theatre, 2025 Broadway, Oakland. $61-233. 510.893.2300.
TUESDAY, NOV. 26
ROCK
THE MARS VOLTA
For 24 years, the Mars Volta have stood at the forefront of experimental art-rock. Born from the ashes of influential El Paso act At The Drive-In, founding members Cedric Bixler-Zavala and Omar Rodríguez-López have kept the band a favorite among fans with their explosive live shows and carefully crafted concept albums. After making a huge mark on the mainstream music scene in the early 2000s, the Mars Volta announced a hiatus then broke up in 2013. Nine years later—in a perfectly Mars Volta sort-of-way—they announced their reunion online via coordinates to a location in Los Angeles, where fans could go to hear new music from the band via an art installation. – MW
INFO: Tue, 8pm, Fox Theater, 1807 Telegraph Ave., Oakland. $83-$198. 510.302.2250.
