Ain’t Too Proud—The Life and Times of the Temptations

This electrifying Broadway musical follows The Temptations’ journey from the streets of Detroit to the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. Winner of the 2019 Tony Award for Best Choreography, Ain’t Too Proud tells the thrilling story of brotherhood, family, loyalty, and betrayal. November 9-December 4, Golden Gate Theatre, SF, broadwaysf.com.

Alanis Morissette's Jagged Little Pill 

You live, you love, you learn at Jagged Little Pill—an exhilarating, fearless new musical based on Alanis Morissette’s world-changing music. Directed by Tony Award winner Diane Paulus this electrifying production about an imperfect American family “vaults the audience to its collective feet” (The Guardian). October 11-November 6, Golden Gate Theatre, SF, broadwaysf.com.

Gillian Laub: Family Matters 

This extensive photographic exhibition tells the story of an American family over the course of nearly two decades through the lense of traditions, celebrations, contemporary issues, and political tensions. October 13- April 9, Contemporary Jewish Museum, SF, thecjm.org/exhibitions.

Moulin Rouge! The Musical

Put on your can-can shoes, pop the champagne, and get ready for the winner of 10 Tony Awards® Moulin Rouge! The Musical. Enter a world of splendor and romance, glitz and grandeur, where Bohemians and aristocrats revel in electrifying enchantment. Baz Luhrmann’s film comes to life on stage, remixed in a new musical extravaganza. September 9-November 6 at the Orpheum Theatre, San Francisco. 

Ramses the Great and the Gold of the Pharaohs

Believed to be a god on Earth, Ramses ruled for 67 years erecting enormous temples, obelisks, and statues in his name and expanding Egypt’s empire. The De Young Museum’s exhibit features 181 priceless ancient Egyptian treasures from the pharaoh’s collection on display for the first time in the U.S. Through February 12, 2023, Golden Gate Park, San Francisco.

The Harmon & Harriet Kelley Collection of African American Art

This exhibition at the Bedford Gallery provides a rare opportunity to experience African American art and its contributions to U.S. art and culture. The works chronicle the lives of Black Americans—primarily during the 1930s-40s—through scenes of factory workers, dockworkers, farmers, bridge builders, and road menders. September 29 – December 18, Walnut Creek.

Undoing Time: Art and Histories of Incarceration

U.C. Berkeley Art Museum and Pacific Film Archive (BAMPFA) exhibition showcases the work of contemporary artists exploring the roots of confinement from different perspectives to better understand today’s mass incarceration crisis. September 3-December 18, Downtown Berkeley. 

Angela Davis–Seize the Time

The Oakland Museum of California (OMCA) opens the fall season with a compelling exhibit that's as timely and poignant as it is historical. Seize the Time takes a deep look into the life of Angela Davis—a political activist, philosopher, academic, scholar, and author—highlighting her role in the American Black radical resistance movement and offering perspectives on contemporary female empowerment. October 7-June 11, 2023, museumca.org.

The Nutcracker Suite

 Diablo Ballet’s 29th Season opens with The Nutcracker Suite, which takes place in the 1950’s when a family and their daughter Clara, return to the magical Fairmont Hotel for a Christmas Eve adventure. November 11-12, Lesher Center for the Arts, Walnut Creek, diabloballet.org.

Joan Brown

Bay Area painter and sculptor Joan Brown created art inspired by San Francisco, where she lived most of her life. This retrospective showcases Brown’s work in over two decades. November 19- March 12, San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, sfmoma.org.