When the ancient Polynesians invented surfing, they often used a paddle to help them navigate. Fast-forward a few millennia, and Stand-Up Paddleboarding, or SUP, finds itself trendy again. Part of its increasing popularity is that standing upright allows surfers to spot waves more easily and thus catch more of them, multiplying the fun factor. Paddling back to the wave becomes less of a strain as well. The ability to cruise along on flat inland water, surveying the sights, is another advantage. Finally, it’s a good core workout. If you’re sold on the idea, schedule an intro SUP lesson, free with board and paddle rental, and you may find yourself riding the waves like a Polynesian king.More
Many of us remember coming home from our elementary schools with freshly glazed pinchpots, cups, or whatever else our young imaginations could conjure up. Saturday mornings at the Randall Museum can bring that memory back, or create a new one for the youngsters. Ceramics make great gifts — especially on Mothers' and Fathers' Day. Hop on board for the Randall's once-weekly class, and for $6 and two weeks to have your work fired and glazed, you'll have all the materials you need.More
December is almost over - the New Year is coming up and everyone is busy drying off from the rain or holiday shopping. Let's take a look at what's happened this month.
December is almost over - the New Year is coming up and everyone is busy drying off from the rain or holiday shopping. Let's take a look at what's happened this month.
Star Trek lasted only two-and-a-half seasons, but its hold on our collective conscious has never waned. Who among us didn’t think about the Enterprise’s five-year mission to explore strange new worlds upon hearing that Mars had liquid water? We’re not a warp-capable civilization yet, but while you’re waiting, head to Oasis at full-impulse power for Star Trek Live!: Mudd’s Women, a hilarious version of the classic episode directed by D’Arcy Drollinger and Laurie Bushman.
Unlike the other line-by-line drag re-enactments we have in this town (Sex and the City, The Golden Girls), Star Trek isn’t a comedy. But because it’s such rich terrain for parody, the cast has no trouble wringing laughs out of the source material, from the droll gender role reversals to Scotty mispronouncing the word “can’t” as the c-word.
Leigh Crow (the world’s only female William Shatner impersonatrix) is reliably great with her deadpan lampooning of Shatner’s erratic cadence, playing up Kirk’s slightly buffoonish swagger, while Honey Mahogany as Lt. Uhura sits there poking random buttons at her console while highlighting the retro-future’s retrograde gender politics. Being coolly dispassionate to an extreme, Spock isn’t necessarily the juiciest role to play, but Amber Sommerfeld nails it. (She probably wears less eyeshadow than Leonard Nimoy did, too.) And Zelda Koznofski holds a little rocks glass full of Romulan Ale almost the entire time she’s playing Dr. McCoy. Her half-lidded, almost Rachel Dratch-like expression as she can barely contain her boozy contempt for the goings-on wins points for subtle absurdity.
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Peter Lawrence Kane
And of course, there are Mudd’s women: three leggy space-babes who may or may not make the perfect wives for lonely lithium miners. Played by Jef Valentine, Per Sia, and Jordan L’Moore, their wigs are styled as exact replicas of the original show’s, and even during the scenes where their good looks suddenly wither, those silver go-go boots go up to ya-ya.
Taking an under-30-minute show and stretching it nearly to two hours of laughs is pretty impressive, but the trivia contest hosted by Capt. Kirk just after intermission rewards fanboys who show up in Starfleet uniforms. Before you go, fall deep into a Memory Alpha rabbit hole, brush up on your Star Trek trivia, and cross this final frontier with confidence in your ability to win a drink ticket.
Star Trek Live!: Mudd’s Women, through Oct. 31, at Oasis, 298 11th St., 415-795-3180.
Bio:
Peter Lawrence Kane is SF Weekly's Arts Editor. He has lived in San Francisco since 2008 and is two-thirds the way toward his goal of visiting all 59 national parks.
Sub Pop recording artists 'clipping.' brought their brand of noise-driven experimental hip hop to the closing night of 2016's San Francisco Electronic Music Fest this past Sunday. The packed Brava Theater hosted an initially seated crowd that ended the night jumping and dancing against the front of the stage. The trio performed a set focused on their recently released Sci-Fi Horror concept album, 'Splendor & Misery', then delved into their dancier and more aggressive back catalogue, and recent single 'Wriggle'.
Opening performances included local experimental electronic duo 'Tujurikkuja' and computer music artist 'Madalyn Merkey.'"
