Monday, April 3
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Ann Richards San Jose Center for the Performing Arts; 255 Almaden Blvd, San Jose; 408.998.TIXS; Mon - 8pm; $29.75-$65.25 Not one to shirk responsibilities, even with the looming prospect of cancer surgery, former Texas Gov. Ann Richards honors her speaking engagement in San Jose. Recently diagnosed with cancer of the esophagus, Richards, 72, has fought disease before, including osteoporosis and alcoholism. She held the Texas governor's seat from 1991 to 1995, losing to George W. Bush in her re-election bid. Her speech at the 1988 Democratic Convention famously sent shock waves about George H.W. Bush —saying he was "born with a silver foot in his mouth." (TI) The Bad Plus Kuumbwa Jazz Center; $20 adv/$23 door; 7 and 9pm. Hailed as the indie rockers of the jazz world, the boys of the Bad Plus breathe new life into an old genre. In thrift shop suits and ripped jeans, this Midwestern trio comes to the stage full of playful energy without slipping into absurdity. This despite the fact that an evening with the Bad Plus will likely include innovative covers of Black Sabbath, Nirvana and the theme song from as well as an array of original hits. Musically fresh and brimming with youthful enthusiasm, The Bad Plus is not your grandfather's jazz. (Leyna Krow) 'I'm Gonna Kill the President! A Federal Offense' Mon, April 3. SSU, Darwin Quad, 1801 E. Cotati Ave., Rohnert Park. 7pm. Free. 707.664.2382. If it weren't for the words "A Federal Offense," immediately following the phrase "I'm Gonna Kill the President!" then the subversive and sensational guerilla theatre-piece—full title: I'm Gonna Kill the President! A Federal Offense—might, in and of itself, be a crime. The paranoid political comedy, which began its idiosyncratic life in Manhattan during the last Republican convention, has been touring the country since then, produced and performed by a troupe of actors appearing under outrageous pseudonyms. The show, which contains major interactive elements, was written by and stars one Hieronymous Bang, and is being brought to Sonoma County for one night only, in a free-to-the-public presentation on Monday, April 3. It is not held within the traditional confines of a theater, and brave theatergoers are instructed to meet in Darwin Quad to await instructions. The piece is tailored to each unique environment in which it is staged, and certain details have been adjusted to suit SSU. Past productions have seen spectators approached by secretive guerilla theater "operatives," told where to go and what to do before ending up assembling in an undisclosed location, where the big fun begins. The play revolves around a liberal would-be revolutionary who hatches a plot to bring about world peace by kidnapping the president. It's funny, sharp-edged stuff, if slightly incoherent, but the real twist begins when the audience is encouraged to participate in a bit of cell phone pranksterism. Is a prank call a federal offense? Can such a call, made during the course of a bit of underground political theater, be enough to attract the attention of the authorities? That's the big question we'll all be finding out on April 3, when Bang and his players bring their thing to Sonoma County. Remember: It's your constitutional right to attend radically funny political performances. Be there—just make sure you're not followed. (David Templeton) Calendar Home | Metroactive | Back | Next