10/2-10/26
The Aqua Net haze has lifted and the droning reverb is a distant memory, so what’s up with the room full of snarling, wasted punks? You are no doubt standing somewhere in the center of artist Nancy Mizuno Elliott’s installation Old School: The Memorialization of Freedom and Excess at 21 Grand. Whether or not you count yourself among the pierced and puked, it’s easy to appreciate her humorous take on a subculture that takes itself pretty seriously. Using inflatable bop bags, ordinary chalkboards, and Gelly Roll pens, Elliott scrawls a haunting and ghostlike recreation of punk that’s so uncanny it’s sure to evoke both shudders and laughs. What she also hopes to achieve is a wee bit of empathy and understanding for the surly, antiestablishment youth she depicts — come on, just a quarter! 21 Grand resides at 449-B 23rd St., Oakland, and is open Thursdays 4-8 p.m. and Fridays-Sundays, 1-6 p.m. The opening reception is Friday, October 10, 7-10 p.m. — Justine Nicole
Credits: Nancy Mizuno Elliott The Empty Suitcase (Youth or Dare)
10/2-10/12
How Green Is their Valley?
If you took all the Bay Area’s film festivals and laid them end to end, they’d stretch from here to San Rafael — but very few of them could match the bohos-meet-industry spunk of the California Film Institute’s Mill Valley Film Festival , which runs through October 12 at five Marin County venues. At the vigorous age of 26, Mill Valley is one of California’s most interesting fests, a true destination event where the Marin Movie Mafia mingles with civilian art fanatics and the emphasis is on discovering new filmmaking talent rather than flogging the product. Highlights include appearances by actors Lili Taylor and Peter Coyote and director Denys Arcand, plus just the right amount of films — led by Thursday’s opening night pic, Tom McCarthy’s The Station Agent. For more info: CAFilm.org — Kelly Vance
SAT 10/4
Crawl On
Pissed parade
According to MyCastroValley.com, “Don Castro met William Hayward living at the mouth of the Palomares Canyon. … After Castro pointed out he was trespassing, the two eventually became friends.” We suspect there may have been a wee bit o’ booze lubricating that passage from foes to friends. And to honor that suspicion, we proudly present the Third Annual Castro Valley Crawl. It kicks off at 8 p.m. Saturday at Brewz Brotherz, 3717 Castro Valley Blvd., then teeters its way through seven other area taverns before hitting last call at the Valley Inn. E-mail [email protected] for details. — Stefanie Kalem
