Culture is making a comeback with the return of the SubZERO festival in downtown San Jose this weekend. It’s been three years since the DIY indie arts and music fest filled South First Street with sights and sounds, but organizer Cherri Lakey of Anno Domini gallery and Twofish Design says nobody should think the scene ever went away.
“San Jose is not a cultural wasteland,” she said. “The artists and performers are here. Perhaps a bit underground from working two jobs, going to school and taking care of family, but they are resilient and dedicated to being amazing artists that enrich our lives and our city with their beauty and creativity.”
Indeed, you’d be mistaken to think that downtown has been a ghost town since COVID-19 shut things down in March 2020. There have been South First Fridays art walks, live performances have returned to downtown theaters, and bars and restaurants seem to be doing bustling business in the Thursday through Saturday frame. But the return of SubZERO feels like a watershed moment that the creative community can get excited about.
In addition to gallery shows throughout and around the SoFA district, the two-day event will have artist booths for paintings, tech art, ceramics, fashion, poetry and live painting, as well as a beer garden, from 5 to 11 p.m. Friday and Saturday night. You’ll be able to catch roving performances by Tribal Baroque, Francisco Graciano and Persephone Belly Dancers, and the main stage — hosted by Mighty Mike McGee — will feature an eclectic lineup of rock, proto punk and synth pop. You can get schedules and updates at www.subzerofestival.com or by following the fest on social media.
Lakey says while the festival has been free since its start in 2008, public support for artists will help keep them creating here in San Jose. “If everyone that’s coming spends just $100 on artworks or creative merchandise they love,” she said, “we could pump nearly half a million dollars into our artistic and creative community.”
DANCING OVER TO LITTLE ITALY: Fans of the Poor House Bistro know that its patio on Barack Obama Boulevard has been closed the past couple of weeks because of staffing issues, and that also means the fundraiser it was hosting for Little Italy on June 5 to celebrate Italian Independence Day has been forced to change locations — to Little Italy itself. Admission to the festivities, which will take place from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. in the piazza behind 323 W. St. John St., is now free, though there will be a silent auction to benefit the Little Italy Museum.
Music will fill the air from noon to 6 p.m., with a combo of blues, New Orleans sounds and Italian classics. Food and drink can be purchased from Henry’s Hi-Life and Paesano’s Ristorante. And if you’re wondering when Poor House Bistro’s move to Little Italy will be complete, you’re not alone. Work continues on the historic house, with some permitting delays being one of the top culprits.
COMING ATTRACTIONS: Mark Foehringer, San Jose Dance Theatre’s new artistic director, makes his debut this weekend as the company brings “Sleeping Beauty” to the Hammer Theatre Center in downtown San Jose. Foehringer, a faculty member at San Jose State’s School of Music and Dance for eight years, was the recipient of two Fulbright Fellowships and has served as a stage director and choreographer for Bay Area opera companies including Opera San Jose and Festival Opera in Walnut Creek.
“Sleeping Beauty” will have three performances June 4 and 5, including a one-hour version aimed at families with young children (and with $15 tickets) at 11 a.m. June 4 and full-length shows at 7:30 p.m. June 4 and 2 p.m. June 5. Get tickets at www.sjdt.com.
GETTING ARTY IN PALO ALTO: The nearly two dozen artists in residence at the Cubberley Artist Studio Program in Palo Alto will be showing off their stuff at an open studios event on June 4. From 1 to 6 p.m., visitors can check out their work — including painting, mixed media, printmaking and costume design — at the Cubberley Community Center at 4000 Middlefield Road. And just to keep things moving right along, there will be pop-up dance and music performances throughout the day, along with free dance workshops. Get more information on the program at www.cityofpaloalto.org/casp.
Source: www.mercurynews.com