Bay Area arts: 16 great shows and concerts to catch this weekend

With holiday entertainment in full swing there are a lot of great shows and concerts to catch this weekend in the Bay Area. Here is a partial rundown.

Holiday ‘Cinderella’ is back

The centuries-old Cinderella tale of an overlooked and demeaned girl getting the last laugh (and the handsome prince) when she is given the chance to shine has countless different versions with different origins that date back centuries and can be found around the globe. The versions most commonly seen in American popular culture reflect the tale’s European 17th-century beginnings and more often than not a largely White cast. And there is rarely a holiday connection, except, of course, for the 2019 teen rom-com “Cinderella Story: A Christmas Wish (which currently boasts a 40 percent audience approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes). But San Francisco’s African-American Shakespeare Company counters both of these trends with its adaptation of “Cinderella.” The production, directed by Tavia Percia and starring Jasmine Williams in the titular role, has become A-A Shakes’ popular holiday staple, which often sells out. Although the story line follows the traditional tale to a point, it also celebrates African American culture and serves up a female-empowerment narrative.

Details: Performances are 7 p.m. Dec. 20, 2 and 7 p.m. Dec. 21 and 2 p.m. Dec. 22; Herbst Theatre, 401 Van Ness Ave; $45, $18 for those 21 and under; www.african-americanshakes.org.

Meanwhile, here are three other holiday stage shows to see this weekend.

“The Jewelry Box”: Brian Copeland is a talented performer and writer and this funny and heartwarming tale about how, as a 6-year-old lad, he tried to find and procure a perfect Christmas gift for his mother remains one of his best-loved works. He’s reviving the show for the holiday season.

Details: 5 p.m. Dec. 21; The Marsh, 1062 Valencia St., San Francisco; $25-$100; themarsh.org.

“Truce: A Christmas Wish from the Great War”: It was a decade ago that City Lights Theater Company in San Jose presented the world premiere of the heartfelt play drawn from World War I, when in 1914 the warring factions agreed to lay down their arms in observance of Christmas. Now the hit play is back as City Lights’ holiday production.

Details: Through Dec. 22; City Lights Theater, 529 S. Second St., San Jose; $31-$70; cltc.org.

“Sisters Christmas Catechism”: This installment in the “Catechism” solo stage series created by Maripat Donovan is described as a mixture of comedy, mystery and a sure-to-be offbeat Nativity story. The touring show plays one night only in Livermore.

Details: 7:30 pm Dec. 19; Bankhead Theater, 2400 First St., Livermore; $55-$66; livermorearts.org.

— Staff and Bay City News Foundation reports

East Bay ‘Nutcracker’ returns

The “Nutcracker” holiday ballet has a pretty incredible history in the Bay Area. There’s the San Francisco Ballet, of course, which presented the first full-length U.S. production of the classic in 1944. The San Jose Dance Theatre’s annual version is some 60 years old. And a grand East Bay “Nutcracker” tradition returns this weekend to the Oakland venue where it has been performed for some 15 years. Oakland Ballet’s “Nutcracker” was created by company artistic director Graham Lustig, whose version, set in Edwardian era Vienna, follows the original version of E.T.A. Hoffmann’s story and incorporates elements of an oft-discarded act that features a fantastical dance in the lands of sweets. Oakland Ballet’s production also features a lovely art nouveau set and brilliant worn by a cast of some 40 dancers. Lustig’s “Nutcracker” premiered in New Jersey in 1999, but it is the pride of Oakland now. The production features the Oakland Symphony and Piedmont East Bay Children’s Choir.

Details: 1 p.m. Dec. 21-22; Paramount Theatre, 2525 Broadway, Oakland; post-performance “Sweet Dreams” reception lets visitors meet with performers; $34-$154; oaklandballet.org.

There are ‘Nutcracker’ and holiday dance productions all over the Bay Area, here are several options.

S.F. Ballet: Through Dec. 29; War Memorial Opera House, San Francisco; $19-$465; www.sfballet.org.

New Ballet ‘San Jose Nutcracker’: Presented in collaboration with Symphony San Jose; through Dec. 23; California Theatre, San Jose; $31.50-$121.50; newballet.com

Mark Foehringer Dance Project: Presents the one-hour “Mark Foehringer’s Nutcracker Sweets”; through Dec. 22; Cowell Theater, Fort Mason Center for Arts & Culture, San Francisco; $23.50-$59.50; nutcrackersweets.org.

Berkeley City Ballet “Nutcracker 2024”: 1 and 5 p.m. Dec. 21; Alan Harvey Theater, Piedmont; $35; berkeleycityballet.org.

Peninsula Ballet Theatre “Nutcracker”: 2 p.m. Dec. 21-22; San Mateo Performing Arts Center; $35-$70; www.peninsulalivelyarts.org.

“Hip-Hop Nutcracker”: 2 p.m. Dec. 21-22; Fox Theatre, Redwood City; $35-$70; www.peninsulalivelyarts.org.

Smuin Contemporary Ballet: Christmas Ballet program features new and classic works from the popular company; through Dec. 24; Blue Shield of California Theater at YBCA, San Francisco; $25-$119; www.smuinballet.org.

— Staff and Bay Area News Foundation

Here comes Muldaur’s ‘Holiday Swing’

Let’s get one thing straight, famed singer Maria Muldaur doesn’t have a thing against most holiday songs — just the sappy ones.

She created her “Holiday Swing” concert to remind us that all the bland, overly sentimental holiday tunes that belong in elevators don’t have to define our holiday music experiences. So she has assembled a collection of swinging jazz, blues and roots songs she considers an antidote to the usual fare.

What might these songs be? You’ll have to find out for yourself Sunday when Muldaur performs her “Holiday Swing” concert at the Backroom in Berkeley, backed by her Jazzabelle Quintet: Danny Caron on guitar, Ruthie Davies on bass, John R. Burr on piano, Kristin Strom on horns, and drummer Mark Lee.

Muldaur, best known for her 1973 hit “Midnight at the Oasis,” has a long, rich history that has produced more than 30 albums and countless collaborations with artists ranging from Jerry Garcia to Geoff Muldaur (her onetime husband) to Linda Ronstadt.

Details: 3 p.m. Sunday; 1984 Bonita Ave., Berkeley; $30 (kids under 12 free); backroommusic.com.

— Randy McMullen, Staff

12 golden voices of Christmas

World-renowned and San Francisco-based Chanticleer, the 12-member a cappella men’s vocal ensemble, has mounted their “A Chanticleer Christmas” program in various venues around the Bay since 1978. The traditional opening is a slow, candlelit procession into the church, cathedral or mission while the singers perform some Gregorian chant. This year’s version will include the motet “Ave Maris Stella” (Hail, Star of the Sea), which will have verses set by several different composers, and the group will continue to perform the early music that is their trademark for the first part of the program. Some more contemporary, rousing and joyous selections follow in the second half, including excerpts from Benjamin Britten’s famed “A Ceremony of Carols” and a relatively new piece from Canadian choral composer Sarah Quartet. The touring holiday show runs through this weekend.

Details: 7:30 p.m. Dec. 19 at Mt. Tamalpais United Methodist Church in Mill Valley; 4 and 6:30 p.m. Dec. 20 at Mission Santa Clara; 7:30 p.m. Dec. 21 at First Congregational Church in Berkeley; 8 p.m. Dec. 22 at St. Ignatius Church in San Francisco; 6 and 8:30 p.m. Dec. 23 at the Carmel Mission; $45-$91; www.chanticleer.org.

And here are two other holiday concerts you should know about.

“Holiday Spectacular!”: Cal Performances presents the San Francisco Gay Men’s Chorus and its annual heartfelt, hilarious program of holiday carols, satirical sketches, guest dancers, and drag artists; 5 p.m. Dec. 21, Zellerbach Hall, UC Berkeley; $45-$125; calperformances.org.

“Wintersongs”: Presented by Kitka, the acclaimed nine-woman vocal ensemble dedicated to the music of the Balkan, Caucasus and Slavic lands; through Dec. 22 in Oakland and San Francisco (also available for streaming $36-$56; kitka.org.

— Bay City News Foundation and BANG correspondents