There comes a time in every reporter's career when an actor must be interviewed because they've directed a short film. These moments are fraught with anxiety because the films are often vanity projects created for the sake of showcasing some nascent talent the actor believes has been overlooked, without ever questioning why. I'm happy to report this is decidedly not the case with Zach Woods' debut directorial effort, David, a hilarious, humanistic portrait of psychic healing that should be prescribed viewing for the sake of global mental health. » Read More

You wanted a staycation, you said. You need to catch up on streaming, you said. Well, the magic elf that lives in the sky certainly gave you what you wanted. During this period of house arrest, Netflix's cornucopia continues to spill narcos, zombies and real-life crime. Take a hard pass in favor of the adventures of a Suffolk sheep. A Shaun the Sheep Movie: Farmageddon cites ET, Men in Black, Doctor Who and Close Encounters of the Third Kind. The space invader is about a yard high, a sort of mischievous finger puppet shaped critter with tentacles. Topped with an azure puppyish head, he's a deep-space cousin to Peanuts' Snoopy. Shaun helps him phone home, while warding off trouble from the Ministry of Alien Detection, and the authoritarian » Read More

Janice Lobo Sapigao didn't expect her first year as the Santa Clara County Poet Laureate would be sucker punched by a global pandemic, but she's determined not to let that stop her from getting South Bay kids to love their own words. The Silicon Valley native took over the two-year poet laureate position in January. The honorary post comes with a mandate to increase poetry awareness and celebration. Sapigao, a Filipina American poet, author, writer, educator and active community member, has plenty of ideas for that. » Read More

The text on the marquee said it all: "The Ritz Closed Until Further Notice." The news came as a disappointment to fans of Xavier Dprehpaulezz--the imaginative blues singer and songwriter who performs under the moniker Fantastic Negrito--who was scheduled to wow the crowds at The Ritz on March 19. As the county and state ramp up efforts to prevent a spike in novel coronavirus cases, bars, nightclubs and live music venues are shutting down, and it is unclear when they will open again. » Read More

Talk, talk everywhere but not a drop of trust. "Opinion has become our driving force," says Quinn, who brings his new show, The Wrong Side of History, to Stanford for four performances March 13 and 14. "Free speech, exchange of opinion, open communication: These things are automatically thought of as evolutionary ways to get to enlightenment. But my whole show is, hey, maybe we've gone too far with free speech, once we have electronically made opinion this thing that everyone gives out all day, every day." » Read More

Not long ago, on a crisp October day in Rhode Island, professional ghost hunter Nick Groff went for a stroll along the pitch pine trees with his good friend Bob the Bone Finder. "He brought in his ground-penetrating radar and we scoped out the property for anomalies," Groff tells me. "We had some weird stuff happen." By now, Groff has spent the better part of two decades seeking out weird stuff. One of the founders and original stars of the Travel Channel show Ghost Adventures, Groff has investigated hundreds of allegedly haunted locations around the world. » Read More

We all know about Day of the Dead or Dawn of the Dead. But what about a Drive of the Dead? Every year at this time, The School of Arts and Culture at Mexican Heritage Plaza helps organize a Dia de los Muertos (Day of the Dead) weekend to acknowledge the Latin American holiday during which the living commemorate their departed loved ones through the construction of elaborate altars. » Read More

Reed Galen is an American political consultant who has worked long and hard for conservative causes. But in next week's election, he opposes conservative Donald Trump, whom he regards as an authoritarian tyrant. He writes, "Democracy is on the ballot. It's a binary choice between good/bad, honorable/dishonorable, healthy/sick, forward/backward. There has been nothing like this in our lifetimes." If you've read my words for awhile, you know I'm a connoisseur of ambiguity and uncertainty. I try to see all sides of every story. But now I'm departing from my tradition: I agree with Reed Galen's assessment. The American electorate really does face a binary choice between good and bad. » Read More

History is filled with plagues affecting the arts, but no one predicted this one. On Saturday, San Jose's New Ballet School will present a live-streamed production at the Hammer Theatre, a choreographed ballet with dancers wearing Covid-era masks. Human patrons will not attend, but the dance and the musical accompaniment will take full advantage of the Hammer's recent renovations to accommodate high definition, live-streamed events. » Read More