Events Around the Bay – Week of June 19, 2017

“Degas, Impressionism, and the Paris Millinery Trade”
From June 24 through September 24, 2017

Hot news! And I am not speaking about the weather in the city. Avoid the lines and book your tickets as soon as possible as the magnificent and exciting new exhibit of Degas is coming to the Legion of Honor, one of my very favorite museums in the Bay Area. Best known for his depictions of Parisian dancers and laundresses, Edgar Degas (French, 1834–1917) was enthralled with another aspect of life in the French capital—high-fashion hats and the women who created them. Degas’ fascination inspired a visually compelling and profoundly modern body of work that documents the lives of what one fashion writer of the day called “the aristocracy of the workwomen of Paris, the most elegant and distinguished.” Yet despite the importance of millinery within Degas’s oeuvre, there has been little discussion of its place in Impressionist iconography. This is definitely not to be missed. A visit to the Legion of Honor Museum is an experience which encompasses and awakens all your senses: amazing exhibits, gorgeous setting, architecturally stunning building, free organ concerts on the weekends and a lovely lunch with a stroll around the cafe garden is a dream. Just do it! The exhibition is organized by the Saint Louis Art Museum and the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco.

Tickets and Information
415-750-3600
legionofhonor.org
Legion of Honor
100 34th Avenue in San Francisco

Photo courtesy of Legion of Honor

Don Giovanni Will Sing for Free
June 30 at 7:30 p.m.

Take me out to the ball game… but this time to hear Mozart’s Don Giovanni in a live simulcast on the high-definition scoreboard at the famed AT&T Ballpark transmitted from the War Memorial Opera House, performed by the San Francisco Opera. Don Giovanni, opera’s most intriguing libretto with spellbinding music will introduce you to the evening of seductions without regrets until a ghostly dinner guest brings retribution. Gates open at 5 p.m. for the pre-registered fans. Bring a blanket and a picnic basket and enjoy one of the most beautiful operas under the stars. San Francisco knows how to do it with class.

Tickets and Information
Free admission
415-864-3330
www.sfopera.com
AT&T Ball Park
24 Willie Mays Plaza in San Francisco

Photo courtesy of SF Opera

MAUDIE to be Screened in the Bay Area
Opens June 30th

MAUDIE is based on the true story of folk artist Maud Lewis (starring an amazingly talented Oscar-winning British actress Sally Hawkins) and the unlikely romance between Maud and a hardened reclusive bachelor, Everett Lewis (starring Oscar-nominated American actor Ethan Hawke). Maud, a bright-eyed, intelligent woman, hunched with crippled hands from arthritis, yearns to be independent and to live away from her overly protective family. She escapes her solitary existence in her aunt’s home through her art, dreaming away the days, until in her early 30s she finds, and answers, an advertisement for a housekeeper. Maudie’s determination for her art, along with her partnership with Everett, blossoms into a career as a famous folk artist, bringing them closer together in ways they never imagined. Bring a hankie to wipe your tears of joy of art, love, inspiration, sadness and the challenges of the real world. This is the most incredible movie directed by Aisling Walsh and it was officially selected for the screenings at the Telluride Film Festival 2016, the Toronto International Film Festival 2016, and the 60th SFFILM Festival. Definitely worth the nominations for numerous Oscars at the 2018 Academy Awards.

Tickets and Information
Landmark Shattuck in Berkeley
Landmark Aquarius Twin in Palo Alto
Regency Cinemas Six in San Rafael
Century 16 in Pleasant Hill
Camera 3 in San Jose

Photos Courtesy of Sony Classics

Steinway Society Welcomes Young Artists to Saratoga
June 25 at 3 p.m.

The prestigious Steinway Society of the Bay Area is inviting the community’s patrons to hear four of the most promising and talented young pianists who will enrich our cultural life by performing classical music at a lovely setting of a private home in Saratoga. Hear them before they move away to perform at the grand symphony halls around the world. Misha Galant, 19, will play compositions by Rachmaninov and Franck; Munan Cheng, 10, will play Beethoven and Debussy; Evelyn Dimov, 12, will present Bach and Chopin, as well as a composition written by her Father Ilya Dimov; and Cameron Akioka, 17, playing Bach, Beethoven, Liszt and Prokofiev. Get inspired and have a wonderful afternoon of beautiful music, exquisite gourmet refreshments and a gratifying feeling that you support the Steinway Society’s outreach efforts, which promote excellence in music education in the Bay Area.

Tickets and Information
Suggested: a $50 per person tax-deductible donation
408-990 0872
www.steinwaysociety.com
For additional information, contact chen_e@pacbell.net

Photos of Misha Galant courtesy of Steinway Society