Theater in the Woods

Jacob and I found ourselves following a fool in motley deep into the redwoods today. The fool was banging a tabor and singing hey, no, nanny, ho, or some such Elizabethan hum. People murmured around us: "We're not in Kansas anymore" and "This feels unreal."

It was a hike. It was a play. It was Theater in the Woods, and it happens every summer just down the street from our house. I'm almost embarrassed to say that this was the first time we went.

The production this year is Twelfth Night, and before you get too excited about it, I should warn you: it's sold out. But you can put it on your calendar for next year to get tickets early for this unique and fabulous Bay Area theater experience. 

We started out at a gathering point, a sunny spot in the woods, where Sebastian and Antonio shared a scene, and where we met the lovely Viola. Then we followed the characters through a narrow trail that wound it's way down into a gulch, and stopped below at a little stage in another, shadier clearing. The play continued to move, and the audience followed deeper into the forest to a second, more magical stage constructed across a babbling creek from a little amphitheater carved out of the earth. The play continued, and characters played cruel jests, hid their true identities, fell in love with twins, and generally made a delightful performance.

As we followed the play along the trails, I overheard one woman say, "This is like the road we drove here, in miniature." She was right, as tight and curvy as the hiking trail was, the road to the Theater in the Woods is a similarly fun adventure for drivers. Bear Gulch West, just off of Skyline between Highways 84 and 92, is a one-lane affair twisting through some of the thickest parts of the forest on Kings Mountain.

I spoke to our usher/hike guide, and he explained that several years ago the owner of the land was in an acting class in San Francisco with a bunch of folks, and that they had the brainstorm of putting on a play there in the woods. What an excellent idea, and well executed, I might add. I can't wait to see what they put on next year!

Smitten

The kids had been such troopers, helping me put up Kings Mountain Art Fair posters all along Hayes Valley. I had promised them a treat. We reached the little park at Octavia and Hayes, turned towards Linden, and there it stood, as if it had been dropped off a freight train and then gussied up by rove architects: Smitten Ice Cream.

So hip on so many levels - a cool neighborhood, a shipping container re-purposed into a food stand, and gourmet ice cream made to order using - get this - liquid nitrogen. I almost didn't want to like it, it was that hip. They take the flavored, milky cream, put it in a bowl, and mix it up with some liquid nitrogen, which has a very cool visual effect. It's like a cloud of smoke exploding from the bowl. Then they scoop it out into a cup.

The result is creamylicious.

They offer varying flavors, including malted vanilla, dark chocolate, and plum, with some variation on the menu everyday. And the liquid nitrogen really does create a creamier texture than average ice cream can boast. To be honest, it was almost too rich and creamy for my taste, although I dug the flavor of the dark chocolate. A little bit goes a long way.

 

Back to back with Smitten is another shipping container turned food cart serving Ritual Coffee. And next door is yet another container housing the Museum of Craft and Design, a mini-gallery.  Today, a food truck serving Korean BBQ had also pulled up to the mini-food and art mecca. The experience was only somewhat tarnished by the tour guide that led a group of tourists up and explained how hip it all was. Oh so San Francisco.

The SF jazz scene for children

We've been busy here since my last post, traveling to Mexico and London, watching the tsunami roll in, and generally living and loving life. But at long last, I'm back on the blog. Here's the latest:

Today we went to a jazz show at Herbst Theatre. That in itself is nothing unique, but the fact that we took the kids makes it a special event. Normally, I would not consider taking four-year-old Emil, who is something of a hell raiser, to a jazz show. But this show was different. It was planned with young audiences in mind.

Marcus Shelby and the other 2/3rds of his trio played a few tunes for the matinee audience, and spoke a lot about jazz and blues. They handed out a blues "family tree" that traced the roots of the music back to call and response. They played examples of blues hollers and blues cries, and counted out the measures of a standard, 12-bar blues rhythm so that the older kids and grown-ups among us could start to deconstruct the music and understand its form a little better.

We're definitely interested in catching the next two shows in the series, which will also feature the Marcus Shelby Trio, and will build on the theme of blues music. I hope they will spend a little more time playing music, and just a little less time talking. Emil was grooving right along with the music, though, and while a few kids did start to fuss and cry at moments during the show, you could hear all the parents joking together, "Ah, he's just got the blues."

Here are the details for the next two shows in the series, which will be general admission as today's was:

Saturday, April 2 at 11 am
"Family Matinee: The Blues — Telling Stories"
The Marcus Shelby Trio
Herbst Theatre, 401 Van Ness Avenue, San Francisco

Saturday, May 21 at 11 am
"Family Matinee: The Blues — Hearing & Feeling It"
The Marcus Shelby Trio
Herbst Theatre, 401 Van Ness Avenue, San Francisco


And if you don't have kids, there are dozens of other shows that might pique your interest. Check it out at JazzWest.com. We're lucky to have this non-profit bringing incredible music to the Bay Area.

Guerilla art afoot at the Night Market

Last night, a friend and I were searching an industrial neighborhood in San Francisco for something called the Guerilla Night Market. I felt a bit like Harry Potter, looking for train platform 9 3/4 at Kings Cross Station. But there, between the fog and the warehouses, dozens of moving vans had rolled in for the evening.

Each van had a different offering: an upside-down ball pit (a moving van loaded with helium balloons, crowded with people, creating the effect of actually being upside down in a ball pit, an uncomfortable sensation), the Dream Library (where you could deposit or check out dreams, as you wish), the Grope a Clown truck ('nuff said), the bowling van (hands down the coolest one to stand next to and listen to: rooooooolll, boom!), the Mac-n-Tude truck (set up like a Jersey Diner, with gum chewing waitresses fully in role, serving - yes - Mac-n-Cheese), and even a fine dining truck (3 course meal with wine pairings, white tablecloth and all).

There was a moving van converted into a bar, serving cheap, peaty Scotch while a gaunt woman half-heartedly swung on a dancing pole, and then there was the van with the live punky jugband-inspired music including a raunchy accordian player, a woman with prominent piercings bowing a saw, a hipster lanquidly playing a washtub bass, another girl clacking away with spoons. There were a few cushy chairs for listeners, and empty bottles and cans of PBR littered the space.  I caught them on video and posted it on YouTube here. 

The Night Market isn't an SF original idea. As I understand it, the first one took place in Brooklyn, but this was the SF premiere. It kind of devolved into a Burning Man hipster block party at some point, after visiting many of the trucks, or deciding the lines were too long to wait. But it was inspiring, I have to admit, as guerilla artwork often is.

This is the kind of cultural movement, though, that I admire. Good job, to everyone who made it happen.

Dickens Fair gets all steampunky

I am a fan of the Dickens Fair. It could be because I have spent countless hours escaping into Victorian novels, or that I love dressing up, but whatever it is, the Dickens Fair calls me back every year.

If you don't already know about the Dickens Fair, well, it's like a Renaissance Fair, only the setting is Victorian London, and the characters roaming the "streets" (created inside the Cow Palace with false storefronts, bars, dramatic stages, etc.) are literally characters from Dickens' novels, with a few from Jules Verne tossed in for good measure. It takes place every weekend between Thanksgiving and Christmas, and it's great fun for children and adults alike.

Last year, I was lucky enough to show up on the official Steampunk day. I had to pick my jaw off the floor, some of the costumes were so incredible. Elaborate gadgets, funky Victorian style. I was in heaven, but I was also in lust. I wanted a cool steampunk costume, too!  Well, I haven't made it yet, but it's in the works. Unfortunately, it won't be done in time for this year's steampunk day, which is taking place this Saturday, Dec. 11. But I'll be there with my girlfriends to oogle away.

Here's my tip on things not to miss: the living mannequins in the window of the Dark Garden corset shop, the safari carousel for children (a gorgeous, safari animal mechanical carousel - no electricity! - operated by a charming story-teller), and the Adventurer's Club. 

If you want to check out the Dickens Fair, go to the Cow Palace any Saturday or Sunday before Christmas. It's open from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m., but be sure to bring plenty of money. Admission is $25, parking is another $10, and the Artful Dodger's spirit is alive and well among the various food, drink, clothing, and random Christmas kitsch purveyors inside.

For more info, visit the website: www.dickensfair.com

Rancho Siempre Verde, best tree farm in the Bay Area

Since having kids, Christmas/Winter Solstice/Hannakuh has rekindled that magical glow it had when I was a kid. Watching Emil's chubby toddler body bounce up and down as we put up the tree floods my body with endorphins.

There are a few traditions around the Bay Area that we have adopted as our own, beginning with where we get our tree.

Rancho Siempre Verde is a cut-your-own tree farm 10 miles south of Pescadero. Out of the way? Yes. Worth the drive? Most def.

Forty foot swings that fly beneath towering trees with the ocean spread out in the distance, bottomless bags of marshmallows to roast at the bonfire, tractor rides around the ranch, wreathe-making, and the chance to pick your tree out from a wide variety of species. This year we picked an incense cedar, native to California, and as the name implies, gorgeously fragrant.

The only things you pay for are trees ($60, regardless of size, type, weight, etc.) and wreathes ($20 pre-made, $6 or $8 to make your own).  No other charges. Period. Not for parking, not for the fun activities, and not for picnic areas. And did I mention that dogs are totally welcome here? Cleo ran around like the wild mutt she is, sniffing other dogs and having the time of her life. Several families made use of the abundant picnic areas and set up camp for hours.

Rancho Siempre Verde is open 9am to 5pm, every weekend until Christmas, plus on Monday, Dec. 20. To learn more, check out their website: www.rsvtrees.com.

Bicycling your way through organic farms on the coast

I often run or hike along the blufftops at Wavecrest in Half Moon Bay with my dog Cleo. This is an incredibly beautiful place to run: cliffs, ocean, and if you're lucky a blue sky. It's a locale that never gets old. But one day last week I noticed an increased number of bikes traveling the normally scarce trails. What was going on?

It turns out the bikers were on an organic farm tour, and I have to say, they all looked quite happy.

The event, organized by Wheeled Migration out of Chico, was called the Slow Coast Bicycle Tour. It lasted four days/three nights, and included live music, tours of eight organic farms, and camping along the coast (a van carried all the gear, making the biking easy).

The farms toured included:

• Bike Hut / Potrero Nuevo Farm
• Harley Goat Farm
• Blue House Farm
• Fat Cabbage Farm
• 5th Crow Farm
• Pie Ranch
• Swanton Berry Farm
• Free Wheelin Farm

They aren't repeating the tour until next year, but I think I'll line up for it when it comes around. Then I can join the steady stream of smiling bikers.