Drum Tao

Cal Performances


Masters of thunderous spectacle and jaw-dropping athleticism, the taiko drummers of Drum Tao conjure “a visual cornucopia” (Broadway World) in their high-energy productions. The Japanese troupe blends cutting-edge stagecraft with centuries-old drumming traditions and breathtaking choreography to dazzle audiences worldwide. Contemporary music fuses with traditional instruments, vibrant costumes, and dramatic lighting for an unforgettable experience!

All My Sons

Berkeley Rep


By Arthur Miller, Directed by David Mendizábal. The American Dream comes at a price. But who truly pays it? Arthur Miller’s searing indictment of moral compromise erupts with new urgency in this groundbreaking production. Reimagined around a Puerto Rican family’s hard-won success, a father’s fateful decision sends aftershocks that ripple far beyond his own home and community. Berkeley Rep’s Associate Artistic Director David Mendizábal reexamines this American classic through a lens of race, ethnicity, and class, honoring Miller’s original text while sharpening its existing themes of justice and inequity. This powerful revival reveals a tragedy where the pursuit of prosperity collides with the reality of who America was built to serve. Post show discussion: Stay behind after the show for a discussion guided by members of Berkeley Rep’s artistic team!

The Notebook - Berkeley Students discount!

Broadway SF

February 10 - March 11, 2026: Use promo code CALBERKELEY1 and SAVE on tickets!
$10 from each ticket will go to Night Out / Night Off! Based on the best-selling novel that inspired the iconic film, THE NOTEBOOK tells the story of Allie and Noah, both from different worlds, who share a lifetime of love despite the forces that threaten to pull them apart. “Full of butterfly-inducing highs and beautiful songs” (Entertainment Weekly), THE NOTEBOOK is a deeply moving portrait of the enduring power of love. Chris Jones of The Chicago Tribune says THE NOTEBOOK is “absolutely gorgeous, not to be missed,” and The New York Daily News calls it “a love story for the ages.” THE NOTEBOOK is directed by Michael Greif (Dear Evan Hansen, Next to Normal, RENT) and Schele Williams (The Wiz, Aida), and features music and lyrics by multi-platinum singer-songwriter Ingrid Michaelson, book by Bekah Brunstetter (NBC’s “This Is Us”), and choreography by Katie Spelman.

Julia Keefe Indigenous Big Band

Cal Performances


A truly one-of-a-kind ensemble, the Julia Keefe Indigenous Big Band celebrates and extends the contributions of Indigenous and Native musicians, composers, and bandleaders throughout the rich history of jazz. Indigenous artists like Russell “Big Chief” Moore, Mildred Bailey, Oscar Pettiford, and Jim Pepper ascended into the limelight as star performers, but many other players were never recognized. Today Keefe’s dynamic ensemble shines a light on that legacy, featuring a “who’s who” of Indigenous musicians from a range of tribal affiliations across North and South America. A Cal Performances debut

Yaa Samar! Dance Theatre

Cal Performances


Yaa Samar! Dance Theatre, Gathering. Cal Performances Company Debut, West Coast Premiere. Conceived, written, and directed by choreographer Samar Haddad King, Gathering explores themes of love, loss, trauma, and dislocation. Through movement, text, song, and puppetry, an international cohort of collaborating artists tells a fictional story of a village under siege, and one woman’s struggle to reconcile her fragmented memories. Part staged work, part interactive experience, Gathering invites audiences to join as participants and witnesses in the collective action. “An uncommonly deft combination of dance and verbal theater” (The New York Times).

Poetry for the People: The June Jordan Experience

The Freight


Mixing words, music, and movement, POETRY FOR THE PEOPLE: THE JUNE JORDAN EXPERIENCE is an intimate portrait of the legendary poet, activist, and teacher known for her fierce commitment to justice and self-determination for all people. Performed by six actors from the Fountain Theatre, Los Angeles production and Jordan's collaborator and partner, composer/pianist Adrienne Torf, the show features Jordan's poetry, interviews, and other writing, along with her work set to music by Torf, John Adams, and Bernice Johnson Reagon. POETRY FOR THE PEOPLE: THE JUNE JORDAN EXPERIENCE was honored with the Theater Washington Helen Hayes Charles MacArthur Award for Outstanding New Play in 2023. This performance will be the only one outside of Los Angeles this year. *Premium tickets include admission to a postshow reception with the cast and sponsors.

Co-sponsored by the UC Berkeley African American Studies & African Diaspora Studies Department
Also check out these events sponsored by the department!
February 25: This Unruly Witness: June Jordan's Legacy
February 26: June Jordan's Poetry for the People: Legacies and Futures

Somi

Cal Performances

Riveting vocalist and composer Somi Kakoma, known simply as “Somi,” is truly a jazz artist for our globally connected times. The Midwestern daughter of parents who emigrated from Rwanda and Uganda, she found her musical voice traversing cultural bridges between Africa and the US, weaving Afropop, soul, and jazz into her sumptuous, elegant, deeply grooving body of work. A return to her singer-songwriter roots, the music on her latest release was composed in Lagos, Dakar, Paris, and New York, offering a sonic travelogue that weaves deeply personal storytelling with modern jazz and African sensibilities. “[Her music is] a party and a history lesson, it’s a manifesto and a poem, it’s a call to dance and think at once” (PopMatters).A Cal Performances Debut

Black Panther Party Museum Guided Tour

Dr. Huey P. Newton Foundation

Join NO/NO for a guided tour of the Black Panther Party Museum!

GUIDED MUSEUM EXPERIENCE
Step beyond the headlines and into the heart of a movement that changed the world. Led by our expert museum staff, this 60-minute guided experience offers a comprehensive journey through the history and impact of the Black Panther Party. Together, we’ll explore the grassroots organizing, revolutionary social programs, and the enduring political legacy that began right here in Oakland. This is more than a history lesson; it is a deep dialogue on self-determination and the power of community action.

MISSION
The Dr. Huey P. Newton Foundation preserves and promotes the true legacy and ideals of the Black Panther Party. We commission public art, create educational tools and exhibitions, interpret historic sites, and maintain the largest archival collection on the Black Panther Party worldwide. To elevate our message, we founded and manage the Black Panther Party Museum, the first of its kind, in downtown Oakland, California.

VISION
The Dr. Huey P. Newton Foundation is a tax-deductible 501(c)3 founded in 1995 by David Hilliard, former Chief of Staff of the Black Panther Party, and Fredrika Newton, Panther and widow of Huey P. Newton. They founded the organization to protect the Black Panther Party legacy and assure it lives on despite COINTELPRO, the FBI’s program to discredit, disrupt, and destroy, Black leaders. In a period when activists, professionals, and scholars alike seek to connect prior and current movements, we created the Black Panther Party Museum for people around the globe to learn, engage with, and be inspired by the teachings of Huey P. Newton and the collective Black Panther Party.

How Shakespeare Saved My Life

Berkeley Rep

Written and performed by Jacob Ming-Trent, Directed by Tony Taccone, A co-production with Folger Theatre and Red Bull Theater, World premiere
“America tried to take my life, and somehow a five-hundred-year-old white dude saved it.” In an autobiographical and music-filled tour-de-force, award-winning performer Jacob Ming-Trent dares to rescue himself from the “slings and arrows” of his past. Born with a gift for poetry but rejected as unfit to play the poet, his search for home yields results both hilarious and tragic. Invoking artistic geniuses like Biggie, Tupac, and Basquiat, he takes us on a propulsive ride that reaffirms the power of language and music. Directed by Tony Taccone, How Shakespeare Saved My Life begins with the Bard but becomes a ritual of communal salvation. Post show discussion: Stay behind after the show for a discussion guided by members of Berkeley Rep’s artistic team!

Dom Flemons

The Freight

Dom Flemons is known as “The American Songster" since his repertoire covers over one hundred years of American roots music. Flemons is a folk musician, black country artist, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, music scholar, historian, actor, slam poet, record collector, curator, podcaster, cultural commentator, influencer, and the creator, host, and producer of the American Songster Radio Show on WSM in Nashville. He is the Co-Founder and original member of the groundbreaking Carolina Chocolate Drops, the first ever black string band to win a Grammy Award. Over the past 25 years, he has received major awards, gained world-wide media recognition and has become one of the most influential and highly decorated voices in American roots music.

“Dom Flemons is one of the most accomplished American Folk Artists… few have pumped as much lifeblood into tradition as he has.” - MOJO Magazine

M. Butterfly

San Francisco Playhouse

David Henry Hwang’s M. Butterfly is a captivating drama that subverts Puccini’s Madame Butterfly through the true story of a French diplomat’s 20-year affair with a Chinese opera singer. As cultural and personal identities blur, the play challenges our assumptions about love, power, and deception. With its clever twists and poignant humor, M. Butterfly is a thought-provoking exploration of desire, illusion, and the complexities of human connection.

1988 Tony Award for Best Play
“A heated, intensely provocative show. It never lets up.” Deadline
“It will move you, it will thrill you, it may even surprise you. It is a play not to be missed, and it is a play once caught that will never be forgotten.” The New York Post

Cécile McLorin Salvant

Cal Performances

https://calperformances.org/events/2025-26/jazz/cecile-mclorin-salvant-2526/

Hailed as “her generation’s most imaginative and thrilling jazz interpreter” (Spin), vocalist and composer Cécile McLorin Salvant is much admired for beguiling projects that bring fresh perspectives to jazz performance through dramatic storytelling, vivid historical context, and daring original composition. A MacArthur Fellow and three-time Grammy winner, Salvant is classically trained and steeped in jazz, blues, and Caribbean music, as well as Baroque repertoire and musical theater—an extraordinary musician who also surrounds herself with many of the best and brightest artists on today’s scene.

Nutcracker

SF Ballet

On Christmas Eve 1944, SF Ballet made history with the American premiere of Nutcracker, launching a national holiday tradition that continues to enchant audiences. Set in 1915 San Francisco, Helgi Tomasson’s Nutcracker takes place in a city celebrating a new age of technology. As the lights dim and the music soars, snowflakes swirl, flowers dance, and a child’s imagination takes flight. Experience the magic of a Nutcracker that is as unique as it is heartwarming.
One unforgettable, magical Christmas Eve journey
On a foggy Christmas Eve in 1915, Drosselmeyer puts the finishing touches on a magical nutcracker doll. It’s his gift for the Stahlbaum family, who have invited him to join their holiday festivities. Customers drop by his shop for last-minute Christmas gifts and Drosselmeyer shows them toys and clocks. Later, outside the Stahlbaum house, as people hurry home to their Christmas revelries, Drosselmeyer arrives with his beautifully wrapped present.

The Monkey King

SF Opera

猴王悟空 by Huang Ruo and David Henry Hwang
San Francisco Opera World Premiere
Power alone is not enough. He’s arrogant. He’s disobedient. He’s becoming the most powerful being in creation, and he’s about to wreak havoc on heaven.
Based on the classic Chinese novel Journey to the West, The Monkey King makes its much-anticipated world premiere at the War Memorial Opera House. This new, action-packed opera combines high-energy music and text with puppetry, dance, Peking opera, and Buddhist sutras to tell the tale of the Monkey King’s beginnings. The Monkey King is a beloved figure and has inspired countless interpretations in popular culture. A monkey born from stone, Sun Wukong (the Monkey King) is determined to find immortality for his tribe. Many scoff at his aspirations, but he is set on proving them wrong with his signature cunning and charm. He wins every battle against legendary warriors, but the respect he longs for is always out of reach. What will it take for the gods to recognize him as an equal? Award-winning director Diane Paulus and puppeteer Basil Twist conjure up a whimsical world of gods, tricksters, superheroes, and rebels. Huang Ruo’s soaringly beautiful, energized score and David Henry Hwang’s incisive libretto blend traditional Chinese and contemporary Western styles into an extraordinary work that gives new voice to this enduring story. Carolyn Kuan makes her Company debut on the podium.
Pre-show activities: Pre-show opera talk and front of house activations before the show, plus a Monkey King art installation!

World's Beyond

Berkeley Symphony

Acclaimed conductor and Berkeley Symphony’s own Ming Luke conducts the 25/26 season’s third performance, Worlds Beyond. This program explores the artist’s voice at moments of transition and liminality. Alma Monarca, a new work from Juan Pablo Contreras co-commissioned by Berkeley Symphony, is inspired by Contreras’s memories of celebrating Día de los Muertos in his grandfather’s hometown of Pátzcuaro, Mexico. Next, soprano Laquita Mitchell leads audiences through Richard Strauss’s haunting Four Last Songs, written as the composer contemplated the end of his life. Missy Mazzoli’s Sinfonia (for Orbiting Spheres) lifts the audience into the cosmos, inviting us to view our lives from a new perspective. We close with Dmitri Shostakovich’s Ninth Symphony, a work that signifies the composer’s challenges navigating the political thresholds of his era.
Juan Pablo Contreras Alma Monarca
Richard Strauss Four Last Songs | Laquita Mitchell
Missy Mazzoli Sinfonia (for Orbiting Spheres)
Dmitri Shostakovich Symphony No. 9
Pre-show and post-show events: Berkeley symphony Symphonic series include a pre-concert talk at 3:00pm as well as a post-concert reception at 6pm, which will include snacks.

El Khat and Oruã

The Frieght

Due to circumstances beyond [The Freight’s] control, this performance has been canceled. We apologize for any inconvenience.
Get ready for a boundary-breaking night of global soundscapes, as we host an electrifying international co-bill with El Khat (Yemen/Berlin) and Oruã (Brazil).
El Khat channels the raw soul of Yemeni folk through a post-punk lens, crafting hypnotic grooves on handmade junkyard instruments. Led by Eyal El Wahab, this Berlin-based trio brings a gripping DIY aesthetic and sonic experimentation that’s as emotionally charged as it is rhythmically compelling. Sharing the bill is Oruã, the Rio de Janeiro psych-fusion collective blending MPB, samba, rock, and jazz into a swirling, modern expression of Brazil’s cultural pulse. Known for their explosive live energy and thoughtful lyricism, Oruã bridges tradition and futurism with infectious flair. This is not just a concert—it’s a visceral, cross-continental conversation between cultures, rhythm, and resistance. Don’t miss this singular night of musical reinvention at one of the Bay Area’s most beloved listening rooms.

Sutra

Cal Performances

The US tour of Sutra has been canceled, including scheduled performances at Cal Performances, due to recent injuries sustained by central members of the cast.
Sadler’s Wells and Shaolin Temple present Sutra with the Monks of Shaolin Temple | Cal Performances Company Debut | Bay Area Premiere
Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui, choreographer
Antony Gormley, visual creation and design
Szymon Brzóska, composer
Contemporary dance and ancient martial arts combine in this award-winning collaboration between Belgian choreographer Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui, sculptor Antony Gormley, composer Szymon Brzóska, and 20 Buddhist monks from the Shaolin Temple in China’s Henan Province.
Sutra explores the Shaolin kung fu tradition in the context of contemporary culture, inviting a cadre of modern-day practitioners to lend their skills—the flying kicks, backflips, and shadow-boxing practiced as part of their spiritual discipline—to a humorous fable about a European outsider learning about their monastery. With clever set design by Gormley and a chamber music score by Brzóska performed live, the production has earned rave reviews across the globe. “A brave, thrilling, elliptical piece…[an] odyssey into the mind of a Zen Buddhist” (The Telegraph, UK). 🎶 This performance features live music. Co-produced with Athens Festival, Festival de Barcelona Grec, Grand Théâtre de Luxembourg, La Monnaie Brussels, Festival d’Avignon, Fondazione Musica per Roma, and Shaolin Cultural Communications Company

Third Coast Percussion & Salar Nader, tabla | Murmurs in Time

Cal Performances

In a poignant tribute to the late tabla master and longtime Cal Performances friend Zakir Hussain, Chicago’s Third Coast Percussion continues a collaboration initiated with the music legend before his passing. The Grammy-winning ensemble, praised for performances that “push percussion in new directions, blurring musical boundaries and beguiling new listeners” (NPR), had commissioned Hussain to compose Murmurs in Time—a major work that combines the beauty and complexity of Hindustani classical music with the group’s new-music ethos. In this new work, Salar Nader, a tabla virtuoso and disciple of Hussain since age seven, performs his teacher’s part in the ensemble. The program also includes newly commissioned works from in-demand composer/performers Jessie Montgomery, Tigran Hamasyan, and Jlin, and a solo performance by Nader.

Lila Downs

Cal Perfomances

Celebrate Día de los Muertos, the Day of the Dead, with Grammy- and Latin Grammy-winning Mexican American singer Lila Downs. With “a stunning voice [and] a confident multicultural vision grounded in her Mixtec Indian roots” (Los Angeles Times), Downs is admired for organically bridging cultures and languages as both a musician and activist. Backed by an all-star band, this Berkeley favorite brings her powerful voice and vibrant stage presence to a festive set of original and traditional songs in Spanish and English, as well as indigenous languages from her native Oaxaca.