San Francisco
Every night at the Castro, crowds roar as the mighty organ rises – and no, that's not a euphemism. Showtime at this 1922 art deco movie palace is heralded…
San Francisco
Every night at the Castro, crowds roar as the mighty organ rises – and no, that's not a euphemism. Showtime at this 1922 art deco movie palace is heralded…
The Haight & Hayes Valley
Jazz legends and singular talents from Argentina to Yemen are showcased at North America's newest, largest jazz center. Hear fresh takes on classic jazz…
San Francisco
The more San Francisco changes, the more this incredible indie record store, art gallery and performance space stays the same. Vinyl enthusiasts will want…
The Haight & Hayes Valley
Throw a stone in SF and you'll probably hit a writer (ouch) or reader (ouch again) headed to/from Booksmith. Literary figures organize Booksmith book…
The Mission, Dogpatch & Potrero Hill
The landmark 1932 New Mission cinema, now restored to its original Timothy Pfleuger–designed art deco glory, has a new mission: to upgrade dinner-and-a…
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…
Japantown, Fillmore & Pacific Heights
Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin, the Grateful Dead – they all played the Fillmore and the upstairs bar is lined with vintage psychedelic posters to prove it…
San Francisco
Uproarious, original political satire since 1961, combining musical theater, Japanese kabuki, slapstick and Italian commedia dell'arte. Performances are…
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…
The Mission, Dogpatch & Potrero Hill
For 45 years ODC has been redefining dance with risky, raw performances and the sheer joy of movement. ODC's season runs from September to December, but…
Japantown, Fillmore & Pacific Heights
Sit in total darkness as Stan Shaff plays his unique musical instrument: an auditorium constructed in 1962 as a living sound sculpture, lined floor to…
The Haight & Hayes Valley
Bragging rights are earned with breakthrough shows at the small but mighty Independent, featuring indie dreamers (Magnetic Fields, Death Cab for Cutie),…
The Mission, Dogpatch & Potrero Hill
Brava's been producing women-run theater for 30-plus years, hosting acts from comedian Sandra Bernhard to V-day monologist Eve Ensler, and it's the nation…
North Beach & Chinatown
Snow White searches for Prince Charming in San Francisco: what could possibly go wrong? This Disney-spoof musical-comedy cabaret has been running since…
Swedish American Hall & Cafe du Nord
San Francisco
The Castro was once known as Little Scandinavia after the sailors who docked here – and the secret to their community spirit was the speakeasy running in…
The Mission, Dogpatch & Potrero Hill
The bottom of Potrero Hill tops the list for rocking with punk legends the Avengers, Pansy Division and Nerf Herder, and newcomers worth checking out for…
The Mission, Dogpatch & Potrero Hill
Enter the unmarked door on a quiet street and proceed upstairs to an intimate theater that has the distinct air of a vampire's parlor – albeit one with…
The Mission, Dogpatch & Potrero Hill
Musical prayers are answered in a 1914 California arts-and-crafts landmark with heavenly acoustics. The 40ft roof is regularly raised by shows by New…
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…
The Mission, Dogpatch & Potrero Hill
This vintage 1909 cinema is a neighborhood nonprofit with an international reputation for distributing documentaries and showing controversial films…
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…
San Francisco
Bands who sell out shows from Ireland to Appalachia and headline SF's Hardly Strictly Bluegrass festival jam here on weeknights, taking breaks to clink…
North Beach & Chinatown
There's no room to be shy at Cobb's, where bumper-to-bumper shared tables make the audience cozy – and vulnerable. The venue is known for launching local…
North Beach & Chinatown
Get your kicks at this 1931 speakeasy with stiff drinks, bawdy vintage bar murals, parquet dance floors for high-stepping like Rita Hayworth (she was in…
Japantown, Fillmore & Pacific Heights
Jumping since the '30s, the Boom Boom remains a classic Fillmore venue for blues, soul and funk. Except for the outdoor murals and vintage photos indoors,…
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…
The Haight & Hayes Valley
Blame it on the bossa nova or the ginned-up Deluxe Spa Collins – you'll be swinging before the night is through. Nightly jazz combos bring the zoot suits…
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…
The Mission, Dogpatch & Potrero Hill
Choose your seat wisely: you may spend the evening on the edge of it. One-acts and monologues here involve the audience in the creative process, from…
The Mission, Dogpatch & Potrero Hill
Some bands are too outlandish for regular radio – to hear them, you need San Francisco's Brick & Mortar. The bill here has featured national acts from…
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…
The Marina, Fisherman’s Wharf & the Piers
The Magic is known for taking risks and staging provocative plays by both up-and-coming and seasoned playwrights. If you're interested in seeing new…
Excelsior
This Greek-style amphitheater, located in McLaren Park, is one of the coolest outdoor performance spaces in the city. The acoustics are grand and the…
San Francisco
The 49ers were the National Football League's dream team from 1981–94, claiming five Superbowl championships. But after decades of chilly, fumbled games…
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…