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This is a good week for cinephiles, who can enjoy the Silicon Valley Jewish Film Festival as well as a short film fest in the South Bay, while the weekend also brings shows with jazz vocalist Jackie Ryan, long-running Bay Area psych-and-folk tinged band The Mother Hips and singer-songwriter Jonah Melvon; and “Carnival of the Animals,” a poetry, dance and music performance with an unusual inspiration.
Silicon Valley Jewish Film Festival
The festival returns this year with a bountiful lineup of events both in-person and virtual. In-theater screenings include opening night’s “The Performance,” based on a short story by Arthur Miller about an American dancer, Harold May (Jeremy Piven), and his troupe on tour in 1937 Europe who are booked to perform for Hitler. May must choose between keeping his Jewish identity a secret or revealing who he is. The family-friendly documentary “Shari and Lamb Chop” tells the story of the children’s entertainment legend Shari Lewis and her sheep sock puppet. The closing-night feature, “Call Me Dancer,” follows a young Mumbai street dancer who attends a dance school against his parents’ wishes and whose path crosses with a curmudgeonly Israeli teacher who becomes a mentor. Check out the full program for much more.
Oct. 26-Nov. 10, in-theater events held at the Oshman Family JCC, 3921 Fabian Way, Palo Alto and the AMC 14 theater, 700 El Paseo de Saratoga, San Jose; see program for schedule, locations and tickets; svjff.org.
Jackie Ryan
Jazz vocalist Jackie Ryan plays two shows at local jazz hotspot Meyhouse in Palo Alto, along with the Michael O’Neill Trio. Ryan, who’s been singing professionally since her youth, has performed nationally and internationally at major jazz festivals and venues including Jazz at Lincoln Center and Ronnie Scott’s Jazz Club in London. She sings in multiple languages and embraces a range of styles. Her albums include 2022’s “Recuerdos de mi Madre,” featuring Latin American love songs and dedicated to her mother, who was also a professional singer.
Oct. 26, doors at 5 p.m. for earlier show and 8 p.m. for later show, Meyhouse, 640 Emerson St., Palo Alto; $50 (requires $20 food/drink minimum); meyhouserestaurant.com.
The Mother Hips
Beloved and long-running Bay Area psych-and-folk-tinged rock band The Mother Hips make a stop at the Guild to celebrate the release of their latest record, “California Current,” which came out in late September and is the group’s 13th studio album. According to the band’s website, “After 30 years of recording and touring, ‘California Current’ proved to us that there is still so much to explore with our hearts, minds, and voices — and, once again, we laid it all down for the world to hear.”
Oct. 26, 8 p.m., The Guild Theatre, 949 El Camino Real, Menlo Park; $44.03; guildtheatre.com.
Jonah Melvon
The next event in Los Altos History Museum’s “Concerts in the Courtyard” series is billed as “Jazz Night” and features Bay Area MC, singer and songwriter Jonah Melvon with Left University. Born in San Francisco and raised in Oakland, Melvon is inspired by the revolutionary musical history of Northern California and his roots shine through in his lyrics, stating on his website, “My music is the Bay. The Bay lives in my music.”
Oct. 26, 4-7 p.m., Los Altos History Museum, 51 S. San Antonio Road, Los Altos; $20; losaltoshistory.org.
‘Carnival of the Animals’
“Carnival of the Animals,” written and conceived by spoken-word artist and activist Marc Bamuthi Joseph, is described as a response to the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection that brings together poetry, dance and music, with choreography by Francesca Harper and movement from Wendy Whelan. The music is a reinterpretation of Camille Saint-Saëns’ iconic composition, featuring two pianos, violin, cello, and “audio recordings to represent an experience of political unsteadiness,” Stanford Live’s event listing states. “This multidisciplinary performance, sampled with the creators’ own personal journeys, reframes their relationships to gender, race, and a perpetually evolving understanding of the world.”
Oct. 27, 2:30 p.m., Bing Concert Hall, 327 Lasuen St., Stanford; $15-$84; live.stanford.edu.
San Jose International Short Film Festival
October is not only spooky season, but its chillier weather also makes it a perfect time to catch a film festival in the Bay Area. The San Jose International Short Film Festival keeps it short and sweet with a long weekend highlighting bite-size fictional and documentary shorts from around the world that range from 2 minutes in length to nearly 40 minutes. The festival will screen 18 blocks, or sessions, of short films organized by theme, including the festival’s first documentary block, and a block of family-friendly and animated films. Opening night kicks off with half a dozen films and an after party for VIP and filmmaker pass holders.
Oct. 24-27 at CinéArts, Santana Row, 3088 Olsen Drive, San Jose. $10-$12 individual tickets per block of films/$35-$40 day pass/$150 all-access VIP pass. sjsff.com.
