Creative celebrations The annual gala at the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art combines drag, dance, art, and fashion like nothing I’ve seen in SF. Drag queen Bonita Rose performs at Art Bash. Photo by Devlin Shand for Drew Altizer Photography. The San Francisco gala circuit seldom serves anything quite like Art Bash. SF MoMA’s annual soirée blew me away recently with six floors of entertainment, desserts, exhibits, and an open bar — not to mention plunging necklines and costumes that mingled alongside high-end couture and drag. People stared at the art but I most often looked at th ..read more

SF Throwbacks The art house cinema screens a diverse range of independent, foreign, and cult films, operating since 1909. Photo by Saul Sugarman for The Bold Italic. This article is part of SF Throwbacks, a feature series that tells historic stories of San Francisco to teach us all more about our city’s past. It’s also an excerpt from Alec Scott’s book, Oldest San Francisco — with a few additions from The Bold Italic. By Alec Scott “The Roxie has had more lives than a cat,” says Lex Sloan, the executive director of the nonprofit that owns and runs the cinema. “It has nearly ..read more

Schmooze and the City The boho-chic party at Savoy Tivoli celebrated two decades of Marcia Gagliardi — San Francisco’s aficionado in food, cocktails, and travel. April chewed me up and spit me out. From galas to ballets to celebrated nightlife, the roaring 20s are finally peering out from a global pandemic, divisive politics and very present societal struggles. We are finding moments of levity and I am here for it — replete in sparkly polka dots and platform sandals. Photos by Gooch and Molly DeCoudreaux Photography. Bottom right of Paul Gallo and Aaron Bermillo. Food lovers, dr ..read more

The haunting documentary at SF Film Festival shows programmers’ attempts to revisit our dead loved ones. Promotional images and screen grabs from “Eternal You” trailer. By Laura Stein If you could talk to the dead, would you? What if those dead were simulations generated by AI systems and the digital remnants of the deceased? We’re asked this by Eternal You, which premiered at the SF Film Festival this week. I’ve heard it called a horrifying documentary and a blueprint for death capitalism: We monetize everything nowadays, so why not spend money resurrecting a loved one? It ..read more

Out with the old, in with the new Many gathered en masse to ride from MacArthur station to Fremont on the last public run on the last of the legacy BART cars. Photos by M. T. Eley for The Bold Italic. By M. T. Eley A line of people coils fifteen hundred feet from the up escalator at Oakland’s MacArthur BART station on April 20th. I would know, l because I’m at the end of it. The reward: a ride that wouldn’t have amused any of us the last 52 years. But today, we are here en masse to ride from MacArthur station to Fremont on the last public run on the last of the legacy ..read more

Retail reminiscing What’s shopping like now in downtown San Francisco? Stores have always opened and closed in Union Square, but retail San Francisco nowadays needs a lifeline. Macy’s Union Square, photo by Tinou Bao. By Katie Sweeney People tell me San Francisco is dead — a veritable ghost town in the making. We’ve lost Nordstrom, Brooks Brothers, Whole Foods, The North Face, and many more. If it’s not barren streets then it’s accusations of feces and needles. Do you really think we’re just a zombie wasteland covered in trash? I took a stroll recently and found clean streets, t ..read more

From film to stage Set against live music, the high-fantasy aspects of a wildly successful franchise are finally palatable for this cynic. Unpopular opinion: I’m not a Lord of the Rings fan. This is a film franchise that’s grossed about $3 billion from beloved classic novels — I know I’m in the minority. I think it’s the renaissance faire World of Warcraft aesthetic of it all, from high fantasy books to the slow pace that kicks off Fellowship of the Ring. We get it, LotR: You’re an epic with lots of magical drama. If anything could change my view, it’s the San Francisco Symphon ..read more

LGBTQ+ San Francisco’s historic queer bar finds a new home after four years. Photo by Gooch featuring D’arcy Drollinger, who pulled double duty that night from LGBT Center Soirée. By Adriana Roberts “It’s the event of the season!” I can’t tell you how many times I heard this uttered this past Saturday amongst the packed, wall-to-wall throngs of people who came out for The Stud’s grand re-opening, as it finally threw open its doors at its new space at 1123 Folsom near 7th Street. Befitting a place that’s been around for 58 years, the theme of the party was “Time Machine,” as ..read more

Smoke out Hippie Hill was still thick with the smoke of countless joints despite organizers snuffing out the official festivities. Photo by Denise Cottin for The Bold Italic. Reported by Denise Cottin with words by Saul Sugarman. Photos by Derryl Pelletier and Cottin. The air on Hippie Hill was still thick with the smoke of countless joints, the sound of drums and laughter on 4/20 — even though we were told the party was over. Organizers announced in late March that San Francisco’s official “puff, puff pass” event must end due to budget constraints; Apparently the festivities co ..read more

Modern dance Part nightclub show, part contortion act. The provocative spectacle by San Francisco Ballet puts both feet firmly in the modern era. San Francisco Ballet in Aszure Barton and Sam Shepherd’s Mere Mortals. Photo by Chris Hardy. I wonder what aspiring dancers consider before pursuing a career onstage. In the world of ballet, I bet it is not: “One day I want to zip into a black latex onesie and do the twist for three minutes straight.” “Mere Mortals” at San Francisco Ballet gave so much sensory input that it feels impossible to convey in words, but I think that’s part of the ..read more