It’s spring-summer. May marks the start of San Francisco’s street-fair season, and it honors moms and Asian- and Pacific-American heritage. And it’s topped off with the city’s most effervescent, colorful and frenetic outdoor festival, Carnaval.
See Mother’s Day Events and Asian Pacific American Heritage Month Events for more celebratory activities.
MAY EVENTSSan Francisco Decorator Showcase
May 1-31
Put 30 or so top designers in a 1929 Presidio Heights mansion, and the result is a stunning site and sight that we get to tour and swoon over. The annual decorator showcase is a 33-year-old tradition benefiting San Francisco University High School's financial aid program. Friday evenings include special lectures on design.
At 3450 Washington Street. Open various hours on Tuesdays-Sundays and on Memorial Day. Tickets $25, 30.
Young at Art Festival
May 8-9 & 11-16
This showcase of student creativity includes dance, drama, choir and orchestral performances by San Francisco public school students. The mega-event (May 8, at 12:30 pm) is “Cultural Connections Through Dance,” starring 100 dancing elementary school kids. For 16 weeks, instructors from the San Francisco Ballet Center for Dance Education taught the students styles from country-western to West African.
At the Bandshell and de Young Museum, Golden Gate Park.
How Weird Street Faire
May 9, at 12-8 pm
Billed as “San Francisco’s most unique peace celebration,” the fair offers stages with electronic dance music, a fashion show, a yoga and massage therapy area and Bollywood music and dance lessons. An evening “Cosmic Dance” will try to break the world’s record for largest synchronized Bollywood dance, to a remix of the “Slum Dog Millionaire” finale song.
At Howard and New Montgomery streets. Requested donation $10, or $5 if you’re in costume.
An Evening Dedicated to the Protection of White Lions
May 11, at 5-8 pm
Lecture and book signing by Linda Tucker, author of Mystery of the White Lions: Children of the Sun God and founder of the Global White Lion Protection Trust, and a screening of a short National Geographic film about the lions.
At Stillheart Institute,16350 Skyline Boulevard, Woodside. Tickets $30. Info: 650 851-6622.
Three Heads Six Arms
May 12, at 10 am
Mayor Gavin Newsom leads a dedication ceremony to mark the world premiere of Zhang Huan’s colossal artwork, installed between City Hall and the Asian Art Museum. The Chinese artist is internationally renowned, and the 15-ton, 26-foot-tall copper sculpture was inspired by his finding desecrated religious statues for sale in markets in China.
At Civic Center. Free. Info: www.sfartscommission.org.
Bike to Work Day
May 13
Ditch the car. Join a morning convoy to pedal downtown from your ‘hood, organized by the San Francisco Bicycle Coalition. During the morning and evening commutes, pit stops around town will be stocked with coffee, snacks, bike mechanics and even Spanish and Chinese interpreters.
Dawn 2010
May 15, at 7:30 pm
A late-night cultural festival to mark the Jewish holiday Shavuot. Live music; a screening of Spike Jonze's short tribute to Maurice Sendak; talks by Sandra Bernhard and author Gary Shteyngart; and cocktails mixed by Daniel Handler (aka Lemony Snicket).
At California Academy of Sciences. Tickets $20-50.
Small Business Week
May 15-21
San Francisco and other cities focus on the little businesspeople, offering them expert advice, leads and networking opportunities. On May 15, shops along the main drags of several neighborhoods will woo customers with discounts and specials. Free workshops on branding, online marketing, management and other topics are scheduled for May 19 at San Francisco State University’s downtown campus, 835 Market Street.
ING Bay to Breakers
May 16
A spectacle of runners and walkers, some serious and most not, many costumed and some semi-dressed, who amass at the Embarcadero at 8 am and wind through town, finishing along Ocean Beach. The San Francisco tradition attracts about 32,000 registered participants and at least twice as many unregistered people, cheerleaders and bystanders.
Maker Faire
May 22-23
With the motto “Build. Craft. Hack. Play,” this fair is a tinkerer’s paradise. Check out bikes made with skis and furniture, jewelry crafted from toy parts, “alternative mutant vehicles” and homemade musical instruments. You too can do solar cooking and algae-growing at home.
At San Mateo County Event Center, 1346 Saratoga Dr., San Mateo. Ticket prices vary.
From Islam to America: A Conversation with Ayaan Hirsi Ali
May 26, at 6:30-8 pm
A former parliamentarian in the Netherlands, Hirsi Ali fled to the US after the murder of filmmaker Theo van Gogh, with whom she’d made a documentary about the domestic abuse of Muslim women. She discusses the opposition and threats she’s faced and her effort to reconcile her Islamic upbringing with her Western and democratic values.
At Herbst Theatre, 401 Van Ness Ave. Tickets $25, 40.
The Good-for-Nothing Lover
May 28, 29
Poetry, drama, dance, songs, calligraphy and painting are blended in this performance piece inspired by a 16th-century Chinese folk love song. Western and traditional Chinese musical instruments and jazz vocalist Coco Zhao of Shanghai provide the music.
At Cowell Theater, Fort Mason. Tickets $16-25.
San Francisco Carnaval 2010: Colors of Sound, Splashes of Culture
May 29-30, at 10 am-6 pm
The two-day explosion of Latin American and Caribbean cultures includes dancing galore (salsa, samba, merengue, calypso and cumbia, to name just a few varieties), drumming, music, food and soccer, on Harrison between 16th and 23rd streets. On May 30, the ever-popular Carnaval Grand Parade takes off at 9:30 am from 24th and Bryant and prances west to Mission Street, then to 17th Street, and then east to the festival area.
Free. Info: 415 642-1748 or www.sfcarnaval.com.
