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Palo Alto Festival of the Arts
This popular annual festival truly lives up to its name, offering a weekend immersed in the arts, celebrating all things visual arts, as well as highlighting performances by local musicians. The centerpiece of the event, as always, are the works of 250 fine artists and craftspersons. New this year, the festival is teaming up with the Pacific Art League to offer live demonstrations by some of the league’s member artists. Visitors can watch artists working in a variety of media, such as watercolor and Chinese calligraphy, and ask questions about their work and artistic process. Returning this year will be the Italian Street Painting Expo, featuring chalk art paintings by 17 different artists. Kids can get in on the street painting fun with the special Chalk-a-Lot area. With Chopin and Chandeliers, guests are encouraged to tickle the ivories on a piano all are invited to play, surrounded by colorful and sustainable chandeliers created from recycled plastic bottles. The culinary arts are part of the festival fun, too, with gourmet food, fine wines and beer.
Aug. 22-23, 10 a.m.-6 p.m., University Avenue, Palo Alto; admission is free; paloaltochamber.com/festival-of-the-arts
‘Pickleball’
You may know the name Jeff Daniels from his acting roles in projects such as “Dumb and Dumber,” “The Newsroom” and many others, but he’s also a playwright and founder of Purple Rose Theatre Company in Chelsea, Mich. His play “Pickleball” was inspired by his wife’s passion for the sport. The one-act comedy, recommended for ages 13 and up, follows a group of fiercely competitive neighbors who gather at their local pickleball courts where, according to Hillbarn Theatre, which is producing the Bay Area premiere of the show, “friendly matches quickly evolve into hilarious showdowns, revealing rivalries, secrets, and surprising friendships.”
Through Sept. 13 at Hillbarn Theatre, 1285 E. Hillsdale Blvd., Foster City; $32-$67; hillbarntheatre.org/pickleball.
Bill O’Connell
Pianist, composer and bandleader Bill O’Connell is known for his talent for drawing together different jazz styles, from modernist to Latin, into a singular sound that celebrates them all. He has released 18 recordings — his most recent album is 2025’s “Touch” with Santi DeBriano and Billy Hart. He’s a Steinway Artist and a four-time recipient of Jazz Writer of the Year award from the Society of European Stage Authors and Composers. He even garnered a Grammy nomination for his Latin jazz-inspired arrangement of “Chopsticks” featured on an album by drummer Richard Baratta. For his show at Meyhouse Palo Alto, O’Connell performs with bassist and composer Lincoln Goines, an Oakland-born artist with a longstanding career in New York’s Latin and studio scenes.
Aug. 21, 5 and 8 p.m., at Meyhouse Palo Alto, 640 Emerson St., Palo Alto; $38-$48; meyhousejazz.com/home.
The Untouchables and The Inciters
Sometimes called “America’s first ska band,” The Untouchables meld ska, R&B, rock and more into an energetic brassy, soul-forward sound. The group, formed in Los Angeles in 1981, tapped into the burgeoning ska and mod revival of the time, and became known for songs such as “Free Yourself,” “I Spy for the FBI” and “Wild Child.” The longstanding group has seen lineup changes over the years, but founding member Chuck Askerneese has kept the beat going with a roster of ska and punk veterans. Also on the bill are The Inciters, a Santa Cruz-based band that specializes in Northern Soul, a high-energy sound from across the pond that grew out of the mod scene in the ’70s. The group pulls it off on a grand scale, too, with 10 musicians in the lineup, including a full horn section.
Aug. 22, 8 p.m., at The Guild Theatre, 949 El Camino Real, Menlo Park; $30.46-$61.39; guildtheatre.com.
“Let’s Kiss and Tell” Book Talk
Romance author Joss Richard visits Books Inc., Mountain View, to celebrate her new novel, “Let’s Kiss and Tell,” in conversation with local author Jessica Joyce. The event will include a discussion, reading, audience Q&A and book signing with a copy of the book included. The novel chronicles the fake romance between sex columnist Lucy Reid and news reporter Marshall Oakley, who invent a relationship to solve their separate professional and personal problems but find their staged chemistry becoming real. It’s a slow-burn romance that explores themes of love and sexual autonomy.
Aug. 25, 7-8 p.m. at Books Inc., 317 Castro Street, Mountain View. Tickets are $24.92. eventbrite.com
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