Music
The Filipino punk and hardcore music show Aklasan Fest comes to San Diego for the first time, after beginning in the Bay Area eight years ago. Aklasan, according to co-organizers Carmela Prudencio and JJ Weber, is a Tagalog word that is used to mean "uprising."
"For me, the Filipino identity is always going to be rooted in revolution, in anti-imperialism. I feel like it's a very Filipino thing to be able to uprise and to stand against oppressors and colonizers," Prudencio said.
Punk and hardcore music have been historically dominated by white, cisgender crowds, mostly men — at least in the mainstream. But for Prudencio and Weber, it's important to provide platforms and space for people of color and the LGBTQ+ community in punk and hardcore.
"Punk has been such an influence on my formative years, it's influenced my activism, my art curation, and being Filipino-American has been the center of all that," Prudencio said. "People that gravitate towards punk are usually folks that are anti-establishment or from marginalized communities."
Prudencio said that the landscape is shifting to be more inclusive — thanks to spaces and organizers like Teros Gallery; other festivals like Fear of Noise; and venues like Che Cafe and Tower Bar. "These are the venues that are helping to create opportunities for these bands to play. Space is always an issue in San Diego, so we kind of have to fight for it."
Aklasan Fest features nine acts, including Posy, Negative Blast, AninoKo, SOH, Final Bombardment, Silakbo, Presser, Obsolete Sun (JJ Weber), and Matt X Ibarra. The festival also includes local artists and organizers, as well as a Filipino vegan pop-up.
Listen to the full interview about Aklasan Fest on Midday Edition here.
Details: Doors at 3:30 p.m., Music at 4:30 p.m., Saturday, Aug. 12. Che Cafe, 1000 S. Scholars Dr., UC San Diego. $12 advance/$15 door. All-ages.
More music
"Windchime Meditation" is a performance of experimental music from local composer Zane Alexander, produced by Project [BLANK] as a free, pre-season concert. The song will be played on the built-in sound sculptures and musical instruments in the new North Park Mini Park — think massive chimes and xylophones for parkgoers to play, with mallets tethered to each one. It also features a somewhat improvisational accompaniment from the San Diego New Verbal Workshop, a community choral group formed by Alexander, Charissa Noble and Dom Cooper that's open to all. Bring lawn chairs, blankets and a picnic.
Details: Dusk, around 7 p.m. on Friday, Aug. 11. North Park Mini Park, 3812 29th St., North Park. Free.
"Promises, Promises," part of the La Jolla Music Society's SummerFest, spotlights the work of composer and cellist Paul Wiancko. For his work "Closed Universe," Wiancko will perform on cello, along with a piano quartet (violin, viola, another cello and piano) and glockenspiel. Wiancko, who is the cellist for the world-renowned Kronos Quartet, wrote "Closed Universe" in 2016 amidst what he referred to as a "news addiction." It's a beautiful, cinematic piece, almost with the breadth and complexity of a symphonic work — save for the undeniable intimacy of the cello.
Also on the program: Dohnányi's "Piano Quintet in C Minor" and Schubert's "Piano Trio No. 2 in E-flat Major," with Alisa Weilerstein on cello.
Details: 3 p.m. on Sunday, Aug. 13. The Baker-Baum Concert Hall at the Conrad, 7600 Fay Ave., La Jolla. $43-$85.
Visual art
Bread and Salt is open late with several receptions on Saturday, during Barrio Art Crawl. Two new exhibits are opening in the building. In the main gallery is Alejandro Zacarías' "Evocaciones II," featuring new works by the Tijuana-based sculptor. Zacarías is known for his assemblage work, including pieces that work with a lot of found and scavenged materials.
Also in the Bread and Salt complex, at the Athenaeum Art Center is Anna O'Cain's "There's Never Just One," which is something of a survey show, collecting a bunch of seemingly disparate works that are unified in the sense that they represent O'Cain's penchant for a wide variety of inspirations and forms for her art.
"Things are interconnected. It's pretty simple. Like in research, there's never just one thing that you can study at the time you're doing research, because I will go down several rabbit holes," O'Cain said. "And the truth is the rabbit hole may be much more interesting than what I thought I was researching. So it's really about there's never just one path, just one choice, just one way to do something."
Still on view in the building: Max Lofano's "Matinée," a must-see, site-specific installation at ICE Gallery; Kanthy Peng's "Objects in Mirror" exhibition which closes this weekend at Best Practice; and the De la Torre Brothers' "Midday Devil" in the Quint ONE space.
Barrio Art Crawl kicks off earlier in the afternoon a few blocks away along Logan Avenue, but the festivities are in the evening at Bread and Salt.
Details: 5-8 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 12. Bread and Salt, 1955 Julian Ave., Logan Heights. Free.
Annalise Neil: "Relational Gradient" is a new solo exhibition at Sparks Gallery. Neil, a San Diego mixed media artist, creates striking cyanotype and watercolor pieces. Blended in her pieces are complex topics and ideas like time and quantum physics with the almost comforting inclusion of familiar subjects like animals, feathers, mushrooms and oceans.
Details: Opens with a reception from 5-8 p.m. on Sunday, Aug. 13. On view through Oct. 15. Sparks Gallery, 530 6th Ave., downtown. Free.
"Waiting Room: Health and Wellness Explored Through Contemporary Craft" is a new group exhibition at the beautiful Central Library Art Gallery, curated by Bonnie R. Domingos, featuring the work of 17 artists that work in contemporary craft like metalwork, fiber art, ceramics, glass, woodworking and more. "Waiting Room" specifically looks at how craft can be used to tackle mental health and healing. Includes work by Adam John Manley, Christian Garcia-Olivo, Charlotte Bird, Cheryl Tall, Michelle Montjoy, Victoria Fu, Matt Rich and more.
Details: Opens with a reception from 6-8 p.m. on Friday, Aug. 11. On view through Oct. 15. 3300 Park Blvd., 9th Floor, downtown. Free. (Free parking is available with validation for two hours.)
Theater
"Evita" has barely opened in previews at Cygnet Theatre — and it's already been extended. Written by Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice and first performed in 1978, the musical follows the life of the beloved Argentinian First Lady Eva Perón.
Famous for "Don't Cry for Me Argentina," the musical won seven Tony Awards, and the Madonna-helmed 1996 film adaptation racked up a handful of Oscar nominations, too. Ariella Kvashny is Eva Perón, Berto Fernández is Perón and A.J. Mendoza is Che.
Details: On stage through Oct. 1. This weekend's shows are mostly sold out, with limited tickets remaining for 2 p.m. Sunday. Cygnet Theatre, 4040 Twiggs St., Old Town. $42+
Books
Author Peter Heller brings his newest novel, "The Last Ranger," to The Book Catapult on Saturday. Heller's popular 2012 novel, "The Dog Stars," is one of shop owner Seth Marko's favorites. In fact, the little "staff recommendation" tag on the shelf for the book reads "I envy you, friend, for you are about to read one of the best books of your life for the first time." Marko's recommendation must have an impact, because it's the store's all-time best seller. Heller has a new book out, "The Last Ranger," which centers on a park ranger at Yellowstone National Park, balancing the mundane, often patience-testing work of dealing with park visitors with the sublime nature — until a darker mystery crosses his (literal) path.
Details: 7 p.m. on Saturday, Aug. 12. The Book Catapult, 3010-B Juniper St., South Park. Free.
Dance
City Ballet of San Diego will hold a free, public performance, "Ballet Under the Stars," featuring participants in their summer intensive program. These are advanced students, and some of the company's principal dancers will also perform. Works include traditional ballet (including Vivaldi's "The Four Seasons") with contemporary and jazz ballet pieces. Advance RSVP is required.
Details: 8 p.m. on Friday, Aug. 11. Epstein Family Amphitheater, 9500 Gilman Dr., UC San Diego. Free.
For more arts events, or to submit your own, visit the KPBS/Arts Calendar. You can also sign up for my weekly KPBS/Arts newsletter here.
