I admit, I'm kind of an improv snob. I've performed and studied it for many years, and as a result,…read morewhen I watch improv, I'm usually do more analyzing than sitting back and enjoying. These players are the creme de la creme of improv in a city that has a lot of it. Lisa Rowland, Regina Saisi, Ben Johnson, Tim Orr, and Rafe Chase are among the most dynamic improv performers in the state (the nation?) let alone our fine city by the bay. If you're looking for gags, watch a Whose Line Is It Anyway rerun. If you're looking to see great acting and watch an amazing narrative unfold in real time, AND have a fantastic time, go to an Improv Playhouse show! You won't be disappointed.

Wow! No, WOW!!! What an incredible show! The talent, chemistry and execution of this troupe of…read moreimprov professionals is unparalleled. I was taken on an incredible journey hitting all the major human emotions including roll over laughter and all done on the fly! Truly amazing to watch the characters unfold and develop in real time and with no script! Each member of this troupe is a true superstar! You do not want to miss this show! Absolutely fantastic!

The Lindy on Sproul folks put on a free dance every Saturday afternoon (12 to 2ish) and three…read moreFriday nights a semester (9 to midnight). They have a decent portable outdoor sound system, and play a great variety of very danceable music. The crowd is mostly young (a lot of Berkeley students and recent graduates), and pretty friendly; people don't always ask newcomers to dance, but always cheerfully oblige when I do the asking. The only thing I don't like, though unavoidable for an outside dance, is dancing on the pavement, which makes pivots and spins hard for someone who is used to dancing on a wood floor. Overall, though, Lindy on Sproul is a lot of fun, and one of only a few good regular places to swing dance in the East Bay. And it's free! I kind of wish I'd gotten into dancing while I was a student and spent more time on that side of town, but I'm still hoping to make it part of my weekend routine...

Lindy on Sproul is a popular almost-weekly swing dance event in the heart of the Berkeley UC…read morecampus. The dance happens on Fridays and Saturdays. The Friday event is not weekly, consult the Facebook group https://www.facebook.com/LindyonSproul/ for the dates. The Saturday event apparently happens "rain or shine". I have attended both, so this review consists of two parts. Attendance is free, so are the lessons. Review for the Saturday event: Dance lessons start at 11:45AM (not precisely) and go on until approximately 12:30PM. Typically (not always!) two lessons are held: one for absolute beginners, one for intermediate dancers (the latter assumes that the regular swingouts are not an issue for the participants). After 12:30PM, the dance party starts. The general dance ends at approximately 2:30PM. The logistics: dance area is asphalt: keep your good shoes at home and be easy on your and your partner's knees. The dance happens on the "Upper Sproul". The shaded area is minimal, so sunscreen is a must on sunny days. This is not the best time for parking in the downtown Berkeley; I try to use the Telegraph-Channing garage (about $6), but expect that better deals might be available. There is no water, so bring your own water bottle. The music came from a single speaker, sufficient for a small group. The crowd is small: about 15-30 dancers, with significant imbalance between leads and follows (I have seen imbalance going both ways, recently there were way too many leads). Coupled with a high socialization element (read: ladies chatting in the shade), this creates an issue for an outsider lead, like me; bringing your own partner is recommended. Most dancers are intermediate to quite advanced, few are absolute beginners. This being Berkeley, there were few female leads and male follows, so be sure to check the preference when inviting a new person for the first time. The fun: like the Lindy in the Park (Golden Gate), this is a very public event, as it happens in the middle of a thoroughfare of the Berkeley campus . Your moves are thus frequently immortalized by multiple people taping the dance on their cell phones. I have also invited the onlookers to dance (with a mixed success). Small size of the group provides an opportunity to dance with few truly outstanding follows. Overall: the four stars are an average between close to five stars for a regular hailing from UCB and at most three stars for an outsider. For the latter, the event is not worth attending if any significant driving time is involved. Review for the Friday event: Dance lessons start at 8PM, dance floor opens at 9PM, pretty much on time. Berkeley is known for endorsing all sorts of questionable things but waging a war on car transportation, so allow 15-20 minutes for parking: the Friday evening in Berkeley is exactly the wrong time for this activity. Note that some of the garages close early and are thus unsuitable. Your best bet is the Telegraph-Channing garage ($4 flat fee) if it is not full. Once parked in this garage, exit toward Durant street, and you will be less than two blocks from the event. The dancing happens outdoors in the Upper Sproul area, literally on the street pavement. The pavement of the dance area consists of somewhat smooth bricks interspersed with bands of stone that provide very good friction - and make the turns hard. I generally preferred to stay on the bricks, which made some of the more complex moves possible. Still, this surface is hard on your shoes - and even harder on your knees. Keep your good shoes at home and limit your pivots. DJ music sound is pretty good for an outdoor venue. On the night I visited three DJs provided a good variety of music. There are two lessons, one for absolute beginners (at the bottom of the stairs in the future dance area), and one for more advanced dancers (at the top of the stairs on an even more atrocious surface). Both lessons are going at a quite slow pace, so dress warm on the cold nights. The crowd of about 100 dancers consists primarily of Berkeley students with a fairly large proportion of the beginners yet included few truly great follows (and, presumably, leads). The ratio of leads and follows is about even; with some leads abstaining from many dances this makes for a slightly more follows actually willing to dance in the beginning. By the end of the dance the situation evens out. Note for the beginner follows: do not sit on the stone steps in a 60-degree night, as you can get quite cold: more than one follow was very obviously freezing by the time I invited them to dance. There is no water provided, so bring your own water bottle.

Enjoyable, constructive classes that will absolutely improve your acting chops. Jeffrey and Darcy…read moreare personable, professional and, above all, knowledgeable about the craft and the industry. The structure and feedback are equal to the best classes I took in LA, and the sessions are always enjoyable. Highly recommended for anyone in the Bay Area who wants to do acting.

Knowledge, I came seeking knowledge and I found it with Jeffery Weissman and Darcy Marta, 2…read moreindustry professionals full of insight to the inner workings of The Motion Picture industry I was seeking. The classes are 3 hours of intensive immersion immediately. I feel lucky I was steered to this Studio. You can't hide in the background, your participation is expected day one. I highly recommend.

I've been spending most of my Sundays in Oakland, being quite lazy and reveling in new found…read morefreedoms, that of being the coffee-book-good company stature. So, when my inspiration asked me if I was interested in joining him for a Suzuki class, my curiosity piqued. See, I studied classical piano for 20+ years and my training started with the Suzuki method, a technique which prepared the student to acquire and hone fingering technique and skills to a proper level so that the basics of pedagogy would not be tainted by the time they had reached an intermediate/advanced level. These were utilized especially when grappling with the complex pieces of Liszt and Ravel. Obviously, my ears perked forward when I heard of this new technique being applied to theater arts. Wrong was I. Suzuki method taught by the charismatic Jeffrey Bihr, is a combination of several traditional classical Japanese basics utilized in dance and acting. I took classical Japanese dance, so these new movements were the exact opposite of the usual fluid and graceful movements I was use to. After an hour of warm up which constituted a lot of stretching, forming of outer energies, and channeling the creative concentration, we moved forward to the actual Suzuki training. This is no exception to the term hard and grueling practice. The movements are abrupt, concise, and centered in order to provide the body with a blunt firm level of energy, yet all the while exploding at the necessary moments to reflect what one must do in order to captivate/communicate to the audience. The feet, legs, and thighs are the masts of all movement, all the while strengthening the inner core of the body to expound movements through the upper body. Some examples of the exercises, are walking on tip-toe, but at a much faster pace, with the body leaning forward. I've seen this style in traditional Kabuki, where the actors are running smoothly yet determinedly across the stage with their hands poised on the handle of their swords. These movements, are set to pace to traditional Japanese folk music. Another new series of movements just learned, was shifting statue poses at any given moment prompted by Jeffrey's commands, all the while slowly lowering oneself to a squat position, holding, and then to standing position again. This was probably the most complex for me because not only did I have to concentrate physically on my bodily reactions as well as set my mental state at a consistent level of collaboration. Since I am not an actor nor am I experienced with theater, I thought these practices would not be for me: WRONG was I, again! The combination of physical and mental concentrations are grueling as my shirt was soaked after the hour of Suzuki training. Since the start of my first three classes, I have found it easier to focus, to concentrate, and to block out certain receptors when applying myself at work, painting on canvas, or when writing. I also feel, that this new practice of concentration and channeling of energies, will prove most efficient, when I am at the keyboard again. Wonderful set of artistic techniques taught by the respectful and artistic Jeffrey Bihr. Classes on Sunday run from 9:00 am - 11:00 am for $15. A steal! In addition to the Suzuki classes, Jeffrey also teaches other classes, that are on his website: Shakespeare Lab, Scene study/Character Lab, and Private Audition and Acting Coaching, just to name a few.

I have been holding weekly classes on mornings and evenings at Jeffrey Bihr Studio, as well as…read moremonthly workshops on the weekends, for the last year and a half. Each time I arrive at the space it feels warm and welcoming and my students echo that when they come and go from my events. It is a shoes-off studio, which is necessary and appreciated for my exercise classes when students are up and down from the floor. The studio is well-equipped, well lit, well heated when it's cold outside and pleasant with the doors and windows open when the weather is warm. The neighborhood is quiet and there is plenty of street parking within 1 block. Scheduling time with Leah, who manages the space, is easy and she replies quickly when things need responding to. I have been happy using JB Studio to hold my classes and recommend it for other bookings whenever I can.

Presentation Theater is part of the University of San Francisco complex…read more I came here a few years ago to attend the University of San Francisco Human Rights Film Festival. It's a beautiful theatre, decorated in a baroque style, that fits perfectly the style of the University that hosts it. I recommend to come here to attend the USF Human Rights Film Festival, because they show documentaries and movies that are otherwise hard to find. And it's FREE!

I just saw the play Pippin on Saturday and I always get the same feeling every time I watch a…read moreperformance here- there really is something great and majestic about this theater. It's small, but nevertheless possesses an air about it that is stately and historical. I definitely recommend watching a performance here to check out the theater and support the performing arts, especially the USF College Players.

After the Giants game, this group (4 of them) was performing. They were Awesome! We watch for…read moreawhile and truly enjoyed them. Nice job guys.

I had just got back from Sausalito and I heard the drums going off across from the ferry building…read moreat Justin Herman Plaza. It was the Cougar Cadet Corps drumline from Chipman Middle School in Alameda. The Corps is an after school program designed to teach respect and discipline through marching, drumbeats and dance/step routines. I briefly talked with one of the talented kids who create their own drumbeats and dance routines. They do not have an official drum or dance teacher. Their motto is: "Each one teach one." Diversity, Unity and Determination embody the spirit of the Cougar Cadet Corps. I was really feeling the performance and was extra generous with my donation. It was like something that has the crowd gathered around in the Manhattan subway at either the 42nd or 34th St stations. The kids bought their own drums out of pocket and nothing was supplied from school. Show your support and check out their myspace page: http://www.myspace.com/cougarcadetdrumline for upcoming shows!!

Great live theater productions. Vary creative. Seeing Pride & Prejudice. In 2 parts. It's great!…read moreJust have to say it...going to Butterfields 8's production of Pride and Prejudice let me escape for 2 days into another world. The Bennett family was so well played and so real, as we're the other characters...I was there in the moment the entire time. What an escape. It was like being at a PBS production in person. Thank you!

Wow! I took a class yesterday and I have the great feeling…read moreI will finally be able to dance! What I really liked about this class is that Kevin made it fun, challenging, interesting, and accessible to all of us (any levels really), by first breaking down the process and showing us how it was done, then making us practice it at normal speeds. He also took the time to correct us, give us more tips and hints, which is usually not done enough by instructors (I would love if my yoga instructor could correct me like Kevin does). We can also feel Kevin's strong background, as he knows all these techniques perfectly for men AND women (No clue how this can be done :p) This is something you try once and then you get hooked because you know you will finally be able to dance on the dance floor while having a lot of fun. Can't wait to get back to it next week and thanks Kevin for sharing your passion with us!