Hammer Theatre Center (101 Paseo De San Antonio) in San Jose, CA. invites audiences to escape to the Italian Riviera during its National Theatre Live (NT Live) screening of Shakespeare’s “Much Ado About Nothing,” directed by Simon Godwin (“Twelfth Night,” “Anthony and Cleopatra,” “Romeo & Juliet”). Filmed in front of a live audience at the National Theatre in London, this beloved comedy of new beginnings features Katherine Parkinson and John Heffernan in a new production reset in the 1930s. This gleeful production takes place in the legendary family-run Hotel Messina visited by artists, celebrities, and royalty. When the owner’s daughter falls for a dashing young soldier, the hallways are ringing with the sounds of wedding bells. However, not all guests are in the mood for love, and a string of deceptions soon follow. Met with critical acclaim, “Much Ado About Nothing” has been hailed as “a blissful revival”  and “sweet, sparkly, sexy, somber, and touching.” The NT Livescreenings of “Much Ado About Nothing” will be presented at 7:00pm, Thursday, February 2 and 2:00pm, Sunday, February 5, 2023 at the Hammer Theatre Center. For tickets ($20) or more information, the public may visit hammertheatre.com or call (408) 924-8501.

     Fresh off her acclaimed performance in last year’s Academy Award winning film CODA, actress and activist Marlee Matlin will tell the story of her life, Hollywood career, and activism in a Bankhead Theater presentation Thursday, Feb. 16 at 7:30 p.m. In partnership with the Rae Dorough Speaker Series, The Bankhead is thrilled to bring to Livermore, CA. “An Evening with Marlee Matlin.” The Apple TV+ film “CODA” won the 2022 Academy Award for Best Picture and Matlin previously won the Oscar for Best Actress for her performance in the 1986 drama “Children of a Lesser God.” Deaf since age 18 months, Matlin is a staunch advocate for inclusion, acceptance and access. Her presentation will be offered in ASL and translated by an interpreter.

     BroadwaySF, part of the Ambassador Theatre Group, has announced that award-winning actor William Shatner, the Emmy® Award-winning actor who came to fame portraying Captain James T. Kirk on the original “Star Trek” television series, has signed on to provide special co-narration for the all-new concert tour, “Our Planet Live in Concert.”  Based on the Netflix original documentary nature series, the tour will play BroadwaySF’s Golden Gate Theatre (1 Taylor Street, San Francisco) on Saturday, March 4 at 8 PM.

     Audiences will experience the magic of “Our Planet” with the most memorable clips from the series projected on a large HD screen. Like the series, the live show is narrated on-screen by David Attenborough, who has brought the natural world to living rooms all over the world.

Charles Dickens’ endearing “A Christmas Carol” has beautifully withstood the test of time, and CenterREP’s stage production, currently playing at the Hofmann Theater at the Lesher Center for the Arts (1601 Civic Drive) in Walnut Creek, CA. through December 22, is the perfect way to welcome in this holiday season. It’s a charming story, brimming with music and dance, love and laughter, as well as compelling characters. Spectacular special effects throughout the show add to the excitement and surprise of the play, and even really scary ghosts, who, when introduced on stage, really gives the audience a scare!

It’s the most ‘bricktastic’ time of the year! Tis’ the season to make new traditions with holidays at LEGOLAND. The entire resort is bursting with holiday cheer through January 8, 2023, including a 30-foot LEGO Christmas tree that twinkles to holiday tunes.

Favorite holiday characters sare back and ready for hugs, pictures and selfies, and festive food offerings are plentiful.

From 4-D Movies to the LEGO Friends Beach Mission, LEGOLAND California offers entertainment to delight every member of the family. The Park is also filled with more than 60 kid-powered, kid-tastic rides, shows and attractions all built for fun!

     The 80-city “Disney Junior Live On Tour: Costume Palooza” national tour recently kicked off in California, and is geared toward Disney Junior’s most beloved super fans.

     The show brings beloved Disney Junior characters and favorite Marvel Super Heroes together live on stage for an immersive, interactive concert-style show with singing, dancing, 3D special effects, acrobatics, and more, with cirque-level performances, including trampoline routines from renowned acrobatic director John Brady. It features favorite songs from hit Disney Junior series, as well as new original music.

     It’s showtime! BroadwaySF, part of the Ambassador Theatre Group, presents ‘BEETLEJUICE: THE MUSICAL“ -- the ghost with the most that makes it’s San Francisco debut. ‘BEETLEJUICE is currently performing at Broadway SF’s Golden Gate Theatre (1 Taylor Street), San Francisco, CA. through December 31, 2022.

     Based on Tim Burton’s beloved film, “BEETLEJUICE” tells the story of Lydia Deetz, a strange an unusual teenager whose life changes  when she meets a recently deceased couple and Beetlejuice, a demon w ith a thing for stripes. When Lydia calls on Beetlejuice to scare away anyone with a pulse, this double-crossing specter unleashes a (Nether)world of pandemonium, and the biggest sandworm Broadway has  ever seen.

     Smuin’s joyful holiday tradition has returned to live in-theater after 21 months, spreading yuletide cheer at theatres around the Bay with its signature showcase of classical and contemporary dances set to delightfully festive tunes. “Smuin’s The Christmas Ballet,” currently performing through December 24 in Mountain View, Carmel, and San Francisco, celebrates the holidays with two colorful acts highlighting the best of both worlds: beautiful classical ballet set to beloved carols, and red-hot contemporary numbers set to pop favorites. Its 2022 edition features dances ranging from ballet, tap, and jazz, to swing and more, plus the unwrapping of two world premieres.

     This year's wildly popular, family-friendly experience features hundreds of new displays including larger-than-life animal lanterns throughout the Oakland Zoo. Enjoy a walkabout through the land down under with kangaroos and koalas, icons of the California coastline including whales, otters, and jellies, exotic animals of the tropical rainforest, and a trip to the past with a towering t-rex and a megalodon shark tunnel!

     The Winchester Mystery House has announced a lineup of special events that will take place throughout the holiday season.

     “The holidays are a very special time at Winchester Mystery House,” said General Manager Walter Magnuson. “Many people don’t realize that during Sarah Winchester’s lifetime, the spookiest day of the year was actually Christmas Eve. Families and neighbors would gather around the fire in shadow filled story circles to hear tales of specters and the supernatural.  We hope that our guests make a visit to the Winchester Mystery House part of their holiday tradition.”

     Dress up and join the party with “Disney Junior Live On Tour: Costume Palooza,” coming to the San Jose Civic Auditorium on December 8, then to the Luther Burbank Center in Santa Rosa on December 12.

     California Symphony recently celebrated the orchestra’s largest section, and its melodic heart and soul, with “All Things Strings,” conducted by California Symphony’s Music Director Donato Cabrera, which performed November 5 -6, 2022 at the Hofmann Theatre at Lesher Center for the Arts (1601 Civic Drive) in Walnut Creek, CA.

     Six mysterious guests assemble for a dinner party at Boddy Manor, and then become suspects when their host turns up deceased. But who is the killer? Ah, that’s the question in Center Repertory Company’s farce-meets-murder-mystery theatre stage adaptation of the classic Hasbro board game “Clue,” currently performing through November 20, 2022 at the Lesher Center for the Arts in Walnut Creek, CA.

Back by popular demand, “The Book of Mormon” — which played two previous sold-out and record-breaking engagements — returns to San Jose’s Center for the Performing Arts (255 S. Almaden Blvd.) for a limited engagement beginning Tuesday, November 22 and running through Sunday, November 27, 2022.

Music Icon Jose Feliciano to Make Appearance at Bankhead Theatre as Livermore Valley Arts Celebrates It’s 15th Anniversary Season.

BroadwaySF has announced the upcoming stage production of “Ain’t Too Proud: The Life and Times of The Temptations,” to be performed November 9 through December 4, 2022 at the Golden Gate Theatre (1 Taylor Street), San

The Smuin Contemporary Ballet recently kicked off its 29th season with “Dance Series 1” featuring a long-awaited World Premiere by brilliant Cuban choreographer Osnel Delgado, whose work Bay Area audiences were able to experience for the first time in ‘The Turntable.’

David Greig’s acclaimed play “Dunsinane” is currently performing through October 16, 2022 at the Marin Theatre Company. Being produced for the first time by an American team, Dunsinane is a captivating, imagined sequel to Shakespeare’s Macbeth that explores one man's attempt to restore peace in a country consumed by war. Macbeth is dead.

BroadwaySF, part of the Ambassador Theatre Group, has announced that tickets for “Christmas with C.S. Lewis,” starring David Payne, will play the A.C.T. Strand Theatre (1127 Market Street) for 6 performances November 18-20, 2022.

An exciting new exhibit, “Shape, Form, and Color: Modern Expressionism,” will be on display at the UNCLE Credit Union Art Gallery at the Bankhead Theater in Downtown Livermore, CA. from October 6 through December 4, 2022.