Arts & Events

In a personal celebration of International Women's Day I recommend that everyone who has not already done so view the film Women Talking. Nominated for best film at the Academy Awards it is loosely based on actual events that occurred in a Mennonite community in Bolivia (to US Women) between 2005 and 2009. But it gives us pause to think about how to fight back against what is happening in Texas, Florida, other fascist Republican dominated states, the Supreme Court, Windsor California, as well as Afghanistan, and elsewhere that women are under the gun and power of male supremacy. For one thing, it's easy to boycott Walgreen's and to ask others to join the Courage Campaign's boycott. -more-

The illustrious Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra is currently in Berkeley under the auspices of Cal Performances, and on Tuesday, March 7 they presented the first of three concerts they will give here over three days. Under conductor Christian Thielemann, who makes his Bay Area debut, Vienna Philharmonic will traverse a century of Viennese music. When Christian Thielemann walked on stage at Tuesday’s concert, he struck me as looking more like a rugby player than a symphony conductor. He is husky and square-jawed. But make no mistake, Thielemann is a consummate conductor. -more-

Although I appreciate Handel’s extraordinary gift for composing beautiful music, I often find his works, especially his oratorios but also some of his operas, overlong, tedious and downright boring. Take, for example, Handel’s oratorio Solomon, which the highly regarded Baroque music group The English Concert just performed on Sunday, March 5, at Zellerbach Hall. The performance of Solomon was announced as lasting three hours and ten minutes, including two intermissions, though in fact it lasted far longer than that. When one considers Handel’s use of the da capo format, with its endless repeats, I find that my attention wanes and my impatience mounts. -more-

Worth Noting:

City meetings at 2180 Milvia in the Redwood Room (City Council committees) and at 1231 Addison in the BUSD Board Room (City Council and ZAB) are hybrid, in-person and by videoconference. All other city commission and board meetings in city buildings at 2939 Ellis the South Berkeley Senior Center, 2800 Park the Frances Albrier Community Center and Live Oak Park are in-person only.

• SUNDAY: At 2 pm is the North Berkeley BART Housing Site Walk
• MONDAY: At 12 noon the Community for a Cultural Civic Center (CCCC) meets via ZOOM. At 2:30 pm the Agenda and Rules Committee meets on a hybrid format on the draft agenda for the March 21 regular City Council meeting. The Peace and Justice Commission and the Personnel Board meet in person at 7 pm.
• TUESDAY: CANCELED - The planned Council worksession on BMASP (Berkeley Marina Area Specific Plan) has been canceled.
• WEDNESDAY: From 8 – 11 am is the planting of 40 native California trees. At 5:30 pm the Police Accountability Board (PAB) holds an in-person special meeting on fixed camera surveillance policies. At 7 pm the Parks, Recreation and Waterfront Commission meets at 7 pm with a full agenda on the marina, capital projects, aquatic park and grants.
• THURSDAY: At 10 am the Budget Committee meets in a hybrid format. At 7 pm ZAB meets in a hybrid format. Two projects are in the Hillside Overlay, the high fire hazard area. The Hayward Fault runs through the Berkeley Hills and many areas of the hills are mapped as hillside slide areas.
• SATURDAY: At 10 am the Berkeley Neighborhoods Council (BNC) meets for the first time in a hybrid format. The agenda is not posted yet. BNC meetings are always full and worth attending.
• SUNDAY: At noon there is a special gathering at Peoples Park

The Droste proposal to limit Public Comment at City Council meetings was rescheduled from February 28 to the March 14 City Council meeting as the first action item, item-20

The proposals were item-19 in February 28 council meeting agenda which is why these commentaries from Councilmember Kate Harrison, Phil Allen D-1 Resident and the Activist’s Diary from February 26, 2023 list the Droste & Robinson/Wengraf proposals as item 19.

• https://www.berkeleydailyplanet.com/issue/2023-02-26/article/50192?headline=Say-No-to-Undemocratic-Council-Proposal-to-Limit-Your-Right-to-Public-Comment--Kate-Harrison-Berkeley-City-Council-District-4
• https://www.berkeleydailyplanet.com/issue/2023-02-26/article/50199?headline=No-on-Item-19--Phil-Allen-D-1-resident
• https://www.berkeleydailyplanet.com/issue/2023-02-26/article/50200?headline=A-BERKELEY-ACTIVIST-S-DIARY-Week-Ending-2-26--Kelly-Hammargren

The full Agenda for the March 14 City Council meeting is after the calendar of meetings and after the draft agenda for the March 21 City Council meeting.

Check the City website for late announcements and meetings posted on short notice at: https://berkeleyca.gov/

Links to ZOOM support for activating Closed Captioning and Save Transcript are at the bottom of this calendar.

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BERKELEY PUBLIC MEETINGS AND CIVIC EVENTS -more-