GLASS ART Susanna Conaway of feral studio is a stained glass artist who tries to break away from traditional stained glass iconography to make art with a decidedly contemporary flair. Conaway, a Berkeley resident, has built windows for nightclubs, restaurants and private residences. The Stained Glass Garden at 1800 Fourth St. is exhibiting work from Conaway’s new “Botanical and Color Studies” series (she also teaches there) and will host an artist’s reception with Conaway on Friday from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m.
SAVED BY THE BAY When Hitler rose to power in Germany in the 1930s, hundreds of intellectuals escaped to other countries around the world. A surprising number came to teach at UC Berkeley. A new exhibit at the Magnes Collection of Jewish Life and Art tells the stories of 70 intellectuals, artists, and writers who fled Nazism and and whose impact at UC Berkeley can still be seen today. These immigrants made new homes in the Bay Area and went on excel academically, garner awards, and offer a unique perspective on many of the major campus issues of the day, including the debate over free speech and the Cold War-era Loyalty Oath then required of University of California employees. These stories were unearthed in 2013 when students, faculty and Magnes curators interviewed current and retired faculty and dug into the University Archives. The Magnes, at 2121 Allston Way, is open Tuesday through Friday from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Admission is free.
A GAME, A CAUSE, A REUNION Tonight at 7:00 p.m. a special basketball game is taking place at Berkeley High School. It’s BHS vs San Leandro boys varsity in a game that see the establishment of an Automated External Defibrillator (AED) program for the BHS campus and the creation of the Greg Brown Memorial Fund for Student-Athlete Health and Safety. Members of the BHS Class of 1974 will be present at a special halftime ceremony to honor the memory of a fellow classmate, Greg Brown, who collapsed and was unable to be resuscitated during a school basketball game. The Greg Brown Memorial Fund will be used to maintain the AED program, as well as fund other BHS programs that enhance student-athlete health and safety. Seven AEDs will be installed on the BHS campus for use during the school day from 7:30 am- 5:00 pm, and some of these, as well as additional portable AEDs, will be available during evening and weekend sports practices and competitions, as well as at Community Theatre events. Game time is 7:00 p.m. at Berkeley High School, 1980 Allston Way, Berkeley CA 94704. Donations can be made to the Greg Brown Memorial Fund, P.O. Box 11525 Berkeley, CA 94712. All donations are tax deductible (Tax ID #94-3006966).
SLAM! HIT! OUCH! In honor of San Francisco Beer Week, Pyramid Brewery is hosting a dodgeball tournament. The epic game, hosted with the Recreational Adult Dodgeball League, starts at 1 p.m. and the price of admission is $10 or a donation to the Berkeley Food and Housing Project. (see what BFHP needs here.) Each donation gets a player one wristband, equivalent to one life. While there will be numerous prizes, including one for best costume, the last person standing – the tournament winner – will take home a Pyramid Kegerator worth $800. Pyramid will be pouring all of its 2014 beers during the tournament, too. (Cost is extra.) Pyramid Alehouse is at 901 Gilman St.
GET YOUR GIGGLES ON TheaterFirst is putting on Jeff Daniels’ uproarious comedy Escanaba in da Moonlight. It tells the story of the wacky Soady family, featuring Jullian Lopez-Morillas as the patriarch who wants nothing more than to see his hapless middle aged son bag his first buck. But is the son, who has never bagged a buck and is known as the “Buckless Yooper,” cursed? The play is set on Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, where residents are known as “Yoopers.” The play runs Feb. 7 to March 8 on Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays at 8 p.m. at Live Oak Theater, 1301 Shattuck Ave. Tickets are $25, $30 at the door.
Don’t miss these other events recently featured on Berkeleyside:
First Black History Month Celebration
Discovering “The Possible” at Berkeley Art Museum
Baryshnikov is back at Berkeley Rep with “Man in a Case”
Big Screen Berkeley: Stranger by the Lake is never boring
Big Screen Berkeley: Oscar-nominated short subjects
Check out Berkeleyside’s event calendar for many more events, and make sure to post your community happenings there too.
