San Francisco

San Francisco Improv Fest:

PianoFight
144 Taylor St, San Francisco
Friday, August 18th – Sunday, August 20th, 2017

The San Francisco Improv Festival celebrates and presents the best that improvisational theater has to offer in all its forms, with veteran and rising improv talent from the Bay Area and beyond. Our thirteenth festival features improvisers from the house teams of major improv schools to independent, regional troupes and duos that kick major ass. Support your faves, take some risks, and throw down with us. See you there.

Photo by Flickr user gildardo

Chinatown Music Festival:

Waverly Pl (btw Washington & Sacramento, San Francisco
Saturday, August 12th, 2017
11:00am – 5:00pm | Free

This year, the Festival will feature the world debut of a newly commissioned composition by pianist and composer Jon Jang, and the theme of “Living Alleyways” to highlight the main arteries of the community and the vibrancy in the neighborhood through the arts. Nominated for the 2017 Robert E. Gard Award, a prestigious national award granted by the Americans for the Arts to projects that have integrated arts in the community in meaningful ways, the Festival is part of the “Chinatown Alleyways Project” and also part of Mayor Ed Lee’s $3 million initiative to spur economic development in Chinatown by demonstrating the neighborhood’s vibrancy and diversity through festivals and other cultural activities.  The Chinatown Music Festival was previously located at Portsmouth Square. Continue Reading

Photo by Flickr user guillo_t

Amadou & Mariam Playing:

Stern Grove
19th Ave & Sloat Blvd, San Francisco
Sunday, August 6th, 2017
2:00pm | Free

Amadou & Mariam are a GRAMMY-nominated duo from Mali whose unique “Afro-blues” sound has landed them on the stages of countless festivals around the world. The duo consists of married couple Amadou Bagayoko and Mariam Doumbia, who are both blind and have been performing together since 1983.

Ibibio Sound Machine is inspired by the golden era of West-African funk combined with modern, danceable electronic beats.

SF Jazz Concert John Luther Adams ‘Inuksuit’:

Sutro Baths
1004 Point Lobos Ave, San Francisco
Saturday, July 29th, 2017
1:00pm | Free

Described by The New York Times as “the ultimate environmental piece” and lauded by eminent New Yorker critic Alex Ross as “one of the most rapturous experiences of my listening life,” Inuksuit is an innovative composition for up to 99 percussionists placed singly or in small groups throughout a large open-air space. Named for the iconic human-shaped stone monuments erected by indigenous peoples of the Arctic to mark important locations, Inuksuit is intended to create a harmonious marriage of music and geography that allows the audience to create their own experience as they move within the vast performance area. As listeners’ walk, the balance between various musicians located within the space changes, mixed with the natural sounds of the environment – a primary aspect of the concept the composer calls “sonic geography.”

Renegade Craft Fair:

Fort Mason Center Festival Pavilion
2 Marina Blvd, San Francisco
Saturday, July 15th – Sunday, July 16th, 2017
11:00am – 6:00pm | Free

Hey San Francisco! We’re excited to return to Fort Mason Center Festival Pavilion for our second Fair of the year with an incredible summer celebration of independent craft and design! Featuring a carefully curated roster of local and national maker and artisan talent the fair will include exciting interactive features, a vibrant lineup of food vendors, craft libations, DJ sets, DIY workshops, vintage treasures, photo ops, and all-around good times to provide a truly one-of-a-kind weekend shopping experience.

Enjoy breathtaking views of The Bay and explore a curated selection of modern handmade goods including jewelry and accessories, art, fashion, ceramics, candles, illustration, stationery, home decor, cookware, apothecary, and more.

Gay Pride Parade:

Market Street from Beale to 8th, San Francisco
Sunday, June 25th, 2017
10:30am | Free

Resist regression, stand up against exclusion, demand equality, celebrate diversity. Join more than 240 parade contingents and thousands of spectators for the 47th Annual San Francisco Pride Parade and March.

Photo by Flickr user spicuzza

North Beach Festival:

North Beach District, San Francisco
Saturday, June 17th, Sunday, June 18th, 2017
10:00am – 6:00pm | Free

In its 63rd year, The North Beach Festival is considered one of the country’s original outdoor Festivals.
The event is situated in the historic North Beach District, known to locals and visitors alike as San Francisco’s Little Italy and the home of the famed beat generation. The Festival site includes numerous quaint streets in the heart of the district including Grant Avenue and Columbus Avenue.
The event will feature over 125 arts and crafts booths, gourmet food booths, two stages of live entertainment, Italian street painting, beverage gardens, kid’s chalk art area and the blessing of the animals.

Photo by Flickr user tyreseus

Haight-Ashbury Street Fair:

Haight-Ashbury District
Haight St. & Ashbury St, San Francisco
Sunday, June 11th, 2017
11:00am – 5:30pm | Free

The 2017 Haight-Ashbury Street Fair will be taking place on Sunday, June 11, 2017, from 11 am to 5:30 pm. HASF will be celebrating its 40th anniversary. This year also marks the 50th anniversary of “The Summer of Love”. This 40/50 milestone is sure to draw a lot of attention to the cultural and historical contributions that were developed The Haight and went on to influence a generation.

 

Colossal Clusterfest:

Civic Center Plaza
355 McAllister St, San Francisco
Friday, June 2nd – Sunday, June 4th, 2017

3 DAYS, 5 STAGES, 50+ COMEDIANS, LOTS OF BANDS.

Colossal Clusterfest is a comedy and music event of festival proportions, featuring Jerry Seinfeld, Kevin Hart, Bill Burr, Sarah Silverman, Ice Cube and more at San Francisco’s Civic Center and Bill Graham Civic Auditorium

Photo by Flickr user baia

SF International Arts Festival:

Fort Mason Center for Arts & Culture
2 Marina Blvd, San Francisco
Thursday, May 25th – Sunday, June 4th, 2017

The San Francisco International Arts Festival is an exciting 11 day program featuring 65 ensembles and individual performing artists from the Bay Area and 12 different countries taking place at Fort Mason Center for Arts & Culture from May 25-June 4. It is a program that celebrates diversity, multiculturalism, curiosity and the value of otherness—a commitment that advocates for experiencing the cultural expressions of other societies and civilizations as a way to help understand and embrace them. Click here to see the schedule of events and artist profiles.