This Weekend in the People’s Republic

Hooray, the weekend is upon us again! It’s a time to brush elbows with your neighbors at the farmer’s market, catch up on projects, and spend some extra time with friends and family either relaxing at home or at any of the great events we have coming up.

After the jump, read about my favorites.

Friday, 25 April 2008

Critical Mass (ACTIVITIES)
5pm, Central Park
Free

“Show your support for bicycle rights and have fun doing it!” Critical Mass takes place on the last Friday of every month, and in it, bicyclists (and sometimes skateboarders) demonstrate what a world with less automobiles looks like. And with the weather being in the 80s on Friday it will be a great day for a bike ride. More info.

The Chapin Sisters, Dame Satan, Two Sheds (MUSIC)
9pm, Delta of Venus
$6

It’s shows like this that are the reason I write for the Davis Voice. Performers like the Chapin Sisters and Dame Satan make me want to drag a crate onto street corners and yell at people through a megaphone: “Go to this show! I know what is good for you!” In the interest of propriety, articulation, and grace my editor has allowed me to contribute that sort of thing to his blog instead. The Chapin Sisters, with their “lilting voices, lush harmonizing, and lovely folk-influenced melodies” will make you swoon. Dame Satan will mesmerize you with their heartfelt folk songs that have been described as “chamber music meets jazz.” Go to this show. More info.

Nick Jaina (MUSIC)
11pm, Sophia’s Thai Kitchen
$5

These guys friggin rule.  Their energy is contagious, especially when they play a live set at my house for brunch they night after they kicked a late night after party with us… and slept all over the house.  One of many reasons that I love Davis, sometimes you can convince the band to (ahem) come home with you.  Live from the Great Northwest, it’s Nick Jaina, live in Davis.  -Kemble

“The blend of clarinets, accordion, violin, keyboards, random percussion, and guitar sounds like the anthems made for the most glorious hobo nation on earthsort of Tom Waits playing at a kangaroo
carnival, with brief interruptions for the funeral of Paul Simon and Elvis Perkins.” –Seattle Weekly

Saturday, 26 April 2008

Robotmedia (FILM FESTIVAL)
7pm-9pm, Chem 194 (UCD Campus)
Free

When I was a student at UCD I rarely missed a Robotmedia event. I felt that it was a great opportunity to see what sorts of films regular people could come up with, and it was lots of fun, too. Saturday’s themes are “Facial Hair” and “Survival.” More info.

Pinebox Boys (MUSIC)
10pm, Sophia’s Thai Kitchen
$3

I got the chance to see the Pinebox Boys play last year at Sophia’s. It may have been the energy of the audience that contributed so much to my enjoyment that night but the Pinebox Boys do exude some energy of their own, to say the least. These guys, for starters, are huge. They’re in the neighborhood of 7 feet tall, clad in black from the tops of their Stetson hats to the toes of their boots and would throw the fear of death in you if you ran into them in a dark alley. They perform songs about murder, misery, runaway hearses, necrophilia, cannibalism, and love. And according to them, “if you wrote the greatest murder ballads in the world, we’d listen to you.” More info.

Sunday, 27 April 2008

H.M.S. Pinafore (DRAMA)
3pm/7pm, Jackson Hall (Mondavi)
$24-59

“The internationally acclaimed Carl Rosa Opera returns to Mondavi Center with a stirring production of Gilbert and Sullivan’s much loved comic opera, H.M.S. Pinafore. Aboard the H.M.S. Pinafore, a hilarious tale of love, hypocrisy, and mistaken identities unravels when the Captain’s daughter falls secretly in love with a common sailor. Beautifully and imaginatively staged with exquisite period costumes, this sea-faring smash hit show is bursting with Gilbert’s brilliant satiric wit and packed with some of Sullivan’s most popular songs. H.M.S. Pinafore is a musical delight for everyone to enjoy.” More info.