|
Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...
|
March is truly coming in like a lion: this week is packed with big shows and other special events, including Fantastic Negrito’s album release party at The Guild, singer Tony Lindsay at Meyhouse Palo Alto and jazz master Branford Marsalis at Stanford Live — Grammy winners all. There’s also author Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie in an event presented by Kepler’s Books; the rock-infused musical “Fly By Night” at Hillbarn Theatre; a film celebration of the great outdoors at the Fox Theatre; a reception for abstract impressionistic painter Patricia Jones; and comedian Irene Tu in Sunnyvale.
Fantastic Negrito
The multi-Grammy Award-winning, eclectic Oakland musician Fantastic Negrito (Xavier Amin Dphrepaulezz), whose breakthrough came via National Public Radio’s Tiny Desk Concert series back in 2015, comes to the Guild to celebrate his recent release, “Son of a Broken Man.” The record dives into the complications of generational trauma and the father-son relationship and is his most personal album to date, according to the Guild’s event listing. Influenced by blues, rock and more, “Son of a Broken Man” was released on the artist’s own Storefront Records label.
March 8, 8 p.m., The Guild Theatre, 949 El Camino Real, Menlo Park; $49 general admission; guildtheatre.com.
Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie is the acclaimed author of books including “Purple Hibiscus,” “Half of a Yellow Sun” and “Americanah.” Her newest novel, “Dream Count,” follows four women – travel writer Chiamaka; her cousin Omelogor; her best friend Zikora; and her housekeeper Kadiatou – all of whom must reckon with their choices, their relationships and the nature of love. Kepler’s Literary Foundation is presenting an event featuring Adichie in conversation with Key Jo Lee of San Francisco’s Museum of the African Diaspora (MoAD), held at the Hammer Theatre Center at San Jose State University. “Dream Count” “pulses with emotional urgency and poignant, unflinching observations of the human heart, in language that soars with beauty and power,” according to the event listing.
March 8, 7 p.m., Hammer Theatre Center, 101 Paseo de San Antonio, San Jose; $17.79-$79.74, depending on ticket type; keplers.org.
‘Fly By Night’
In the rock-infused musical “Fly By Night,” by Kim Rosenstock, Will Connolly and Michael Mitnick, audiences follow the intertwined lives of a sandwich maker, a waitress and an aspiring actress during the 1965 Northeast blackout. Hillbarn Theatre takes on the “whimsical and heartfelt” show that “offers a touching and poignant journey that resonates with the beauty of unexpected connections,” according to the company’s website.
Through March 23, Hillbarn Theatre, 1285 E. Hillsdale Blvd., Foster City; $34-$62; hillbarntheatre.org.
Tony Lindsay
With a whopping 11 Grammy Awards, Tony Lindsay is best known for his many years as the lead singer for Santana. He’s also sung the National Anthem at various Bay Area Sporting events, been a singer with “Dancing With the Stars” and a prolific songwriter over the course of his long career, which also includes a number of solo records. He’ll perform the songs of Burt Bacharach with the Michael O’Neill Trio at his Palo Alto shows this weekend.
March 7 and 8, 6:30 and 8:30 p.m., Meyhouse Palo Alto, 640 Emerson St., Palo Alto; $50; meyhousejazz.com.
Banff Centre Mountain Film Festival
The Banff Centre Mountain Film Festival World Tour is an annual event sharing short films from around the world, celebrating adventure in the great outdoors. Spanning two nights, with different programming each evening, audiences can catch such films as “Going East” (Austria, 2024), about a group of skiers determined to get as far east as they can on a three-week ski trip using only public transportation, and “The Last Observers” (U.S.A, 2024), about the folks observing and recording the weather at one of the last manual weather stations.
March 7 and 8, 7 p.m., Fox Theatre, 2221 Broadway St., Redwood City; $32; foxrwc.showare.com.
‘Wandering Over the Line’ reception
Nothing like springtime to go exploring in nature, and for its March show, Portola Art Gallery is presenting “Wandering Over the Line: Paintings that Wrestle with Reality and Wander into Abstraction,” an exhibition of oil paintings by Patricia Jones. Visitors can find vibrant landscapes and still-lifes that draw on the influences of Russian and California impressionists, with whom she studied. “Patricia’s use of thick paint and loose brush strokes elevate our everyday surroundings to a new level and breathe fresh life into overlooked subjects that surround us every day,” according to a press release about the show. The gallery holds a reception on March 8 to mark the opening of her show.
Reception takes place March 8, 1-4 p.m., at Portola Art Gallery, inside the Allied Arts Guild, 75 Arbor Road, Menlo Park. The show will be on view through March 31. portolaartgallery.com.
An Evening with Branford Marsalis
Saxophonist and bandleader Branford Marsalis is a jazz master, a classical soloist with acclaimed orchestras and a composer of music for films and theater, earning Grammy Awards and Tony and Emmy nominations along the way (and even had stints serving as musical director of “The Tonight Show” and the host of National Public Radio’s “Jazz Set”). Marsalis will jazz up Stanford’s Bing Concert Hall with a performance March 12.
March 12, 7:30 p.m., Bing Concert Hall, 327 Lasuen St., Stanford; $25-$135; live.stanford.edu.
Irene Tu
Los Angeles-based comedian, actor and writer Irene Tu takes up residence for four performances at Rooster T. Feathers comedy club. Tu’s album “WE’RE DONE NOW” debuted at #1 on the iTunes comedy charts and she’s been seen on TV, online and at live shows around the country. Along with Tu, audiences can catch comedians Jeff Dean, a regular on the Bay Area comedy scene, and Walker Glenn, a stand-up comic, writer and podcaster.
March 13-14 at 8 p.m. and March 15-16 at 7 p.m., Rooster T. Feathers Comedy Club 157 W. El Camino Real, Sunnyvale; $25-$35; rooster-t-feathers.seatengine-sites.com.
Menlo Park sends Citibank’s ‘jarring’ branch remodel back to drawing boardMarch 24, 2026 2:58 pm