Entertainment

Summer theater traditionally kicks off with Shakespeare outdoors, and Cal Shakes in Orinda handles that nicely next weekend with the elegiac late masterwork "The Tempest." Of course, you can ignore Shakespeare and the outdoors all together with other offerings, from Danielle Moné Truitt's "3," which receives its Sacramento premiere June 7, to the classic Music Circus, which debuts at the end of June with a revamped schedule.

Saturday morning saw the official kickoff of the first Sacramento Music Festival, the new name adopted by the former Sacramento Jazz Jubilee.

We're taking a look at three new places, each with its own kind of appeal. One makes excellent baguettes and elegant sandwiches. One is already bringing plenty of excitement to a formerly under-producing California Pizza Kitchen, and one stylish little place in Davis served us some of the best Indian food in memory.

Our annual summer-reading roundup is coming to the a&e section June 17, but let's get a sneak peek, starting with "beach reads," which are big sellers every summer.

California Musical Theatre is presenting an eight-week run of the show critics have dubbed "a triple jolt of inspired craziness!" It's "Triple Espresso," an invigorating blend of music, magic and, yes, a hefty dose of comedy.

Willie Nelson has written and recorded some of the most enduring music of our time. He played a major role in helping to shape Austin into what it is today. He's worked with some of the biggest musicians in every possible genre.

A blues harp, a resonator guitar and some drums. These are all the instruments that Kurt Marschke needs in his incarnation as the one-man act Deadstring Brother.

Restaurant owner Sonny Mayugba was given an offer he almost could not refuse two weeks ago.

Monsoon has a big-city feel with a splash of traditional Indian décor. Large windows let in natural light and the walls are decorated with imported artwork.

This to do, starting today with ZuhG, Element of Soul and Playboy School bring funk and jam to the Cesar Chavez Plaza

We last spoke with Aziz Fattahi some years ago, when we'd first encountered his marvelous Village Bakery in Davis, across from the train station.

John Ascuaga's Nugget once regularly filled its showrooms with country acts, then considered taboo in casinos because they supposedly did not draw an affluent audience.

There are a couple of real pleasures in "Men in Black 3," the third installment of the sci-fi adventure-comedy series about cops policing a shadow world of aliens living among us

The Sacramento Jazz Festival & Jubilee has a new name – the Sacramento Music Festival – and some new sounds. We checked in with the man who knows the festival menu the best – Crawford Paton, the festival's food and beverage manager who recruits and oversees the 18 vendors.

Parade is now SATURDAY, at 10 a.m. All the Who, What and Where for the Music Festival

B Street Theatre stalwart and associate producer Jerry Montoya along with his 11-year-old son, Malachi, have taken something of a "Wicked" route with their new adaptation of "Hansel and Gretel" for the B Street Family Series.

The human figure has been a central image in art since prehistoric times. As demonstrated by "Focus on the Figure," a show of works by nine artists at the Pence Gallery, it still is a vital focus for contemporary artists.

Entertainment events in the Sacramento region.

Forget that "reality" show about young dancers on the Lifetime channel. "First Position," a debut documentary from Bess Kargman, is the real thing.

Bob Marley packed a lot of living into his 36 years. Hit records, international concert success, 11 children by seven different women, a face stenciled on more T-shirts than Che Guevara.

The kid attractor factor: Wacky aliens in battle with wise-cracking humans. Reviews for families of some other big movies.

When it comes to summer movies, there are the dark horses that are less easy to categorize. Defiant in their singularity, they include the surreal ("Ruby Sparks," "The Odd Life of Timothy Green") to films inspired by real events ("Hysteria").

Daniel Radcliffe plays a London lawyer sent to the middle of nowhere to settle the estate of a deceased woman. Also this week's dvd's include "This Means War" and "Red Tails"

In a matter of weeks, a YouTube video can take on a life of its own. Consider the viral brouhaha over the handheld video series "The Van Sessions" by San Francisco's Nicki Bluhm & the Gramblers.

The young playwright A. Rey Pamatmat unevenly merges two different themes in his new drama "Edith Can Shoot Things and Hit Them," now at the B Street Theatre in its B3 series.

Paula Vogel's knotty, time-shifting memory play "How I Learned to Drive" takes a meandering road to a gloomy lesson learned for its main character, Li'l Bit.

"Rubes," the animal-centric cartoon by Leigh Rubin, appears in more than 400 newspapers worldwide, including The Sacramento Bee, and Rubin himself will appear in Sacramento on Wednesday.

Welcome the Sacramento Music Festival, and say goodbye to the Sacramento Jazz Festival and Jubilee.

"Wicked," a different story of the Wicked Witch of the West and what happened in Oz before Dorothy and Toto got there, is on pace to become the most successful musical in Broadway's history.

While Ettore's remains a simple pleasure, it could stand a few tweaks - some with the cooking, some with the logistics of ordering and eating - that could elevate the experience without overhauling the concept.

In the bruising world of mixed martial arts, he's known internationally as the California Kid and the Fighting Pride of Sacramento.

Summer may be the best season for exploring new music. And this year has seen a strong crop of new and interesting recordings that are tailor-made for expanding musical horizons.

Ridley Pearson has a neat trick: He writes novels with one foot firmly planted in the adult suspense-thriller genre, the other in young-reader adventure. His worldwide sales and literary awards show it's working.

Jay Welden's watercolors of mountainous landscapes and watery byways are big, bold, and vigorous. Hiking up into the remote country around his home near Strawberry up Highway 50, Welden gives us plein-air paintings done on site, as evidenced from a group of photos that show his working process.

NEW YORK TIMES BEST-SELLER LIST

Author appearances and book events in the Sacramento region.

Whether you're in the mood for an ice-cold brewski or looking to celebrate local Asian culture, plenty of good times are on tap this weekend. The sixth annual Raley Field Brewfest kicks off tonight, while Sunday marks the 20th anniversary of the Pacific Rim Street Fest.

The Holmes Brothers started in small-town Virginia but over the years the harmony-driven band has become a staple of the Harlem blues scene.

Select from 16 appetizers ranging from $1.50 to $9 during happy hour. The house favorites are the oysters on the half shell; five-piece barbecued albacore, and "Better than Sex," an albacore sashimi with chili oil, ponzu sauce and jalapeños.

Bill Cosby is stopping off in Reno for a show tonight at the Silver Legacy, en route to his Massachusetts home from being the commencement speaker at the University of San Francisco.

From some of the earliest days of professional theater, acting troupes have traveled from city to city and town to town with their productions.

Singing, dancing, farms, friends and fairytales.

Local legend Kathy Barwick has been a reliable, sought-after player on the local music scene for the past 20 years. A nationally known flatpicking guitarist, Barwick also is a virtuoso on dobro, plus she can more than ably handle the mandolin and banjo.

Is the young, beautiful blonde woman truly a time traveler from a war-torn future, promising safety and enlightenment for a chosen few?

"Bernie" is a one-of-a-kind movie that establishes its own tone, walking a thin line between seriousness and absurdity.

If only "What To Expect When You're Expecting" had focused on the dads' group, we might have been onto something here.

And because it's a little cheeky and doesn't seem to take itself totally seriously, it's more enjoyable than one might expect from a movie based on a board game created in the 1960s.

"The Grey" Within its first several minutes, Joe Carnahan's man-against- nature thriller takes on contours and shadings far more sophisticated than the usual pulp programmer.

The world of "Darling Companion" is easy to take and relaxing to settle into.

Van Halen is postponing some dates on its summer concert tour.