Bay Area arts: 7 cool shows to see this weekend and beyond

There are a lot of great concerts and live shows to see this weekend in the Bay Area. Here is a partial rundown.

Salvant’s new/old songs comes to SF

Three-time Grammy-winning jazz singer Cécile McLorin Salvant’s extraordinary musical talents are seemingly matched only by her fertile imagination. And both facets of her talent will be on display during her weekend set at SFJAZZ Center, 201 Franklin St., San Francisco. Salvant is blessed with a rich, nimble voice that can delve effortlessly into blues, R&B and pop standards, and interpretive skills that are even more extraordinary when you consider that she is but 33 years old.

Salvant comes to SFJAZZ for four shows Friday through Sunday to showcase her acclaimed new album, “Mélusine,” a collection of Salvant originals and reinterpreted songs, some of which date as far back as the 12th century. “Mélusine” recounts an ancient folk tale about a woman who was cursed as a child to turn into a serpentine creature every Saturday. Singing in French, English, Occitan and Haitian Kreyol, Salant will be accompanied at SFJAZZ by her quintet featuring pianist Sullivan Fortner. More on the upcoming concerts is here.

Details: 7:30 p.m. May 5-6, 3 and 7 p.m. May 7; May 5 show will also be live-streamed for SFJAZZ members.; $40-$120; www.sfjazz.org.

Opening ‘Pandora’s Box’

Panned upon its release in 1929, G.W. Pabst’s 1929 silent film “Pandora’s Box” was rediscovered decades later and recognized as a Weimar era masterpiece. It was the first of three German films that turned Louise Brooks into an international Jazz Age star, and the print being presented May 6 by the San Francisco Silent Film Festival is the Deutsche Kinemathek restoration by San Francisco-based Angela Holm and David Ferguson (a project that was supported by film preservation fan Hugh Hefner).

Joined by San Francisco Music Conservatory students, Club Foot Orchestra accompanies the feature with the original score that premiered at the Castro as part of the 1995 San Francisco Film Festival. It’s the first time Club Foot has performed the music since a sold-out five-show 1995 Lincoln Center run, and many of the musicians who contributed compositions to the score­ — Richard Marriott, Sheldon Brown, Steve Kirk, Myles Boisen, and Beth Custer — are still active in the orchestra.

Details: 7 p.m. May 6; Paramount Theatre, Oakland; $35; 415-777-4908, silentfilm.org.

— Andrew Gilbert, Correspondent

The face has its place

Let’s face it, the art portraiture has come a long way in the past 12,000 years or so. An art form that dates back to the Neolithic era, portraits have been used to capture historical representations of the rich and powerful and portray myriad aspects of the human condition.

And what began as an art form largely defined by paintings has expanded into almost every conceivable genre: sculptures, photographs, and even films and videos and more.

Walnut Creek’s Bedford Gallery digs into the art of portraiture with its latest exhibit, “About Face.” Featuring works by some 80 juried artists as well as invitational artists including Claire Astrow, Dennis Brown, Jo Hamilton, Joel Daniel Philips and Andy Warhol, “About Face” not only reflects on contemporary trends in portraiture art but goes behind the faces to explore topics ranging from racism to the nature of existence.

As the Bedford puts it, “This juried and invitational show examines the age-old tradition of portraits, using a contemporary lens to speculate how future generations might perceive current societal values such as beauty, power, and cultural significance.”

Details: Through June 25; Bedford Gallery at Lesher Center for the Arts, Walnut Creek; hours are noon-5 p.m. Wednesday through Sunday; $5, free for members and children 12 and under; 925-295-1417, www.bedfordgallery.org.

— Randy McMullen, Staff

Classical picks: Branford Marsalis, John Williams, more

Marsalis at S.F. Symphony: Saxophonist Branford Marsalis joins conductor Thomas Wilkins and the orchestra in the first San Francisco Symphony performances of Erwin Schulhoff’s “Hot-Sonate,” a 1930 work that was banned by the Nazis and has finally assumed its rightful place in the repertoire. The program also includes Duke Ellington’s “Harlem,” “Three Dance Episodes” from Bernstein’s “On the Town,” and John Williams’ “Escapades” from the 2002 film “Catch Me If You Can.”

Details: 2 p.m. May 4, 7:30 p.m. May 5-6; $20-$135; 415-864-6000; sfsymphony.org.

“May the fourth be with you”: That’s what the Oakland Symphony is promising as the orchestra returns Friday night with “The Music of John Williams,” a family-friendly program featuring a sampler of some of the composer’s greatest Hollywood hits, including music from “E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial,” “Harry Potter,” and, of course, “Star Wars.”

Details: 8 p.m. May 4, Paramount Theatre, Oakland; $35-$90; 510-444-0802; oaklandsymphony.org.

“Brahms and Fandango”: Symphony San Jose’s weekend program features violinist Anne Akiko Meyers as soloist for “Fandango,” a new work by Mexican composer Arturo Marquez; works by Brahms and Gerald Finzi complete the program.

Details: 8 p.m. May 6, 2:30 p.m. May 7, California Theatre, San Jose; $55-$115; symphonysanjose.org.

Details on even more great classical concerts are here.

— Georgia Rowe, Correspondent

A man of many hats

Migguel Anggelo is often referred to as a multi-hyphenate because he has so many talents and personas that he can bring to his stage show. The Venezuelan American is, among other things, a singer, songwriter, actor, comedian, author, painter, costume designer, dedicated member of the LGBTQ+ community and a fervent practitioner of the art of self-acceptance.

It is that last talent that serves as the theme of sorts of Anggelo’s new stage show, “LatinXoxo.” In it, he explores the nature of what he considers he three primary identities: queer, Latino and immigrant, and how they intersect and sometimes clash with one another, and how they can be made to constrain him.

The 70-minute show presented in English and Spanish incorporates a wide variety of decades-spanning music (from boleros to contemporary and classic pop tunes), as well as theater, dance, storytelling, comedy, and costumes. Lots of costumes. Anggelo brings “LatinXoxo” to Stanford University’s Bing Concert Hall Studio for performances May 5 and 6.

Details: 8 p.m. both nights; $50; live.stanford.edu.

— Randy McMullen, Staff