Downtown, Civic Center & SoMa
From the moment conductor Michael Tilson Thomas bounces up on his toes and raises his baton, the audience is on the edge of their seats for another…
Must-see entertainment in Downtown, Civic Center & SoMa
Downtown, Civic Center & SoMa
Baseball fans roar April to October at the Giants' 81 home games. As any orange-blooded San Franciscan will remind you, the Giants have won three World…
Downtown, Civic Center & SoMa
Forget what you've learned about drag on TV – at this dedicated dragstravaganza venue, the shows are so fearless, freaky-deaky and funny you'll laugh…
Downtown, Civic Center & SoMa
Breakthrough shows launch at this turn-of-the-century landmark, which has hosted ACT's productions of Tony Kushner's Angels in America and Robert Wilson's…
Downtown, Civic Center & SoMa
Opera was SF's gold-rush soundtrack – and SF Opera rivals the Met, with world premieres of original works ranging from Stephen King's Dolores Claiborne to…
Downtown, Civic Center & SoMa
Everyone busts out their best sets at this opulent 1907 bordello turned all-ages venue – indie rockers like the Band Perry throw down, international…
Downtown, Civic Center & SoMa
The USA's oldest ballet company is looking sharp in more than 100 shows annually, from The Nutcracker (the US premiere was here) to modern originals…
Yerba Buena Center for the Arts
Downtown, Civic Center & SoMa
Rock stars would be jealous of art stars at YBCA openings, which draw overflowing crowds of art-school groupies with shows ranging from cyberpunk video…
Downtown, Civic Center & SoMa
Watch SF make merciless fun of itself at PianoFight supper club, featuring comedy showcases, ukulele-for-your-life Variety Show Death Matches, and Pint…
Downtown, Civic Center & SoMa
Long, lean dancers perform complicated, angular movements that showcase impeccable technical skills. Original works have included dance set to songs in…
Downtown, Civic Center & SoMa
SF's reigning megaclub hosts bands, literary slams and big-name DJs, with two floors of late-night dance action just seedy enough to be interesting…
Downtown, Civic Center & SoMa
In 2018 the city's newest music venue slid into the former home of douchey nightclub Ruby Skye, and lots of San Franciscans are happy about it. The 15,000…
Downtown, Civic Center & SoMa
Hidden in an alley behind Hotel des Arts, and brought to you by the folks from Madrone, comes this wacky downtown art bar. The interior is color-filled…
Downtown, Civic Center & SoMa
What a comeback: this 1917 theater has shed its 1970s porn-palace notoriety and reclaimed the limelight as the American Conservatory Theater venue for…
Downtown, Civic Center & SoMa
For ideas too big to squeeze into 10-minute TED talks, count on the Commonwealth Club. America's most influential public-affairs forum hosts several…
Downtown, Civic Center & SoMa
Once only musicians were allowed backstage at the Symphony's cavernous rehearsal space, because the acoustics weren't fit for audiences – but with digital…
Downtown, Civic Center & SoMa
Go Public for story-slam nights with NPR's the Moth, appearances by Questlove, European electronica fascinators like Jan Blomqvist, SF Opera pop-up nights…
Downtown, Civic Center & SoMa
Holding your breath is instinctual as you watch this classically trained modern-dance troupe throw themselves into precise, muscular choreography, with…
Downtown, Civic Center & SoMa
With a steady lineup of top-notch regional and national blues and jazz talent, this intimate place off Union Sq earns its reputation as the Bay Area's top…
Downtown, Civic Center & SoMa
First ladies of the world, look out: these dazzling Asian divas can out-hostess you in half the time and half the clothes. Cocktails and Asian-inspired…
Downtown, Civic Center & SoMa
Sprawling across the top floor of the Metreon mall complex, the 16-screen Metreon cinema has comfortable stadium seats with clear views of digital…
Downtown, Civic Center & SoMa
Big acts with international followings play this former vaudeville theater. Marquee names like Wu-Tang Clan, Iggy Pop, Kanye West and Sarah Silverman…
Downtown, Civic Center & SoMa
Not your grandma's ballet, Smuin debuts original balletic works inspired by cartoons, cello prodigies and Dr Martin Luther King's civil rights speeches…
Downtown, Civic Center & SoMa
Jazz cats have stalked the Tenderloin ever since Miles Davis, Billie Holiday, Charlie Parker and Dave Brubeck played underground clubs here – and Black…
Downtown, Civic Center & SoMa
This Victorian saloon ruled SF's '70s underground scene, when upstarts Whoopi Goldberg and Robin Williams took to the stage – and fresh talents surface…
Downtown, Civic Center & SoMa
Guaranteed good times by Gogol Bordello, New Found Glory, Shiny Toy Guns and female Stones tribute band Chick Jagger fit the bill at this intimate club,…
Downtown, Civic Center & SoMa
Big nights come with bragging rights at Mezzanine, with one of the city's best sound systems and crowds hyped for breakthrough shows by hip-hop greats…
Downtown, Civic Center & SoMa
The pool table and TV are mostly ignored at this artsy Parisian-style cafe-bar, where the local crowd roars for free live jazz, DJs, vintage soul and…
Downtown, Civic Center & SoMa
Known for launching big talent (including Robin Williams, Chris Rock, Ellen DeGeneres and David Cross), this historic stand-up venue is small enough for…
Downtown, Civic Center & SoMa
Line up at Union Sq's ticket booth to score half-price (or at least discounted) seats for unsold day-of, next-day or even future shows. Check the website…
Downtown, Civic Center & SoMa
Views are mesmerizing from the 21st floor of the Sir Francis Drake Hotel, where tourists and couples on date nights cut loose and dance to live bands …
Downtown, Civic Center & SoMa
Forget blockbusters – here San Franciscans catch the latest art-house flick or whatever won best foreign film at the Oscars with reserved seating in cushy…
