On Deck this Week End in the Castro: Music, Movies, & Museums

This week-end will see a couple extra hundred thousand people invade the City for the annual, sold-out, Outside Lands Music Festival in Golden Gate Park and the ongoing America Cup sailing races that are running through September. If huge crowds aren't your thing there a few fun-filled choices here in the Castro to do and some are even FREE. Friday night is historically date night for many and for others it all kicks off at one of the many happy hours that rage in the 'Stro from 440 to the Pilsner Inn. There are also some great places to grab grub as well after work and before heading out to see what's what at one of the many nightclubs/bars that are throwing special events like Hard at QBAR, BoyBar at The Cafe, or Kinky Beats with Sergio at Cafe Flore. Literally every bar has something going on and if you wander around a bit I'm sure you'll find a vibe that suits your needs to a tee. Saturday I highly recommend heading to Jane Warner Plaza, 17th & Castro Streets, at 2PM for a FREE concert from the popular singer/songwriter, heart-throb of many Bears and non-Bears alike, Matt Alber. He will be joined by violinist Kippy Marks and MC, the busiest lady in the Castro, Donna Sachet. This event is sponsored by Castro/Upper Market Community Benefit District. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o673IltkN-Q If music isn't your thing I'd check out the fantastic double feature playing during the day over at the Castro Theatre. The Cliff House and Sutro Heights at 1PM and Remembering Playland at 3 PM. Both of these wonderfully crafted and historically pertinent films were made by filmmaker Tom Wyrsch will appear between screenings for a Q&A. The films contain rare archival footage and photos. If you're a native or wish to get a glimpse of what it was like to grow up among these uniquely San Franciscan attractions these films shouldn't be missed.            

Sunday at 1PM back over at Jane Warner Plaza is another FREE musical concert treat. Local favorites, P Funk all-stars, homegrown, RonKat's Katdelic. RonKat is a grammy nominated/song writer of the year winner. He was a vocalist/musician with George Clinton and Parliament Funkadelic for a decade. RonKat's music is a combination of funk and rock bridging tasteful elements of multi-genres in a musical blend of pure magic. I have seen this band several times over at the Boom Boom Room in the Fillmore District where they've made a home for themselves and was blown away every time. If you've got the rhythm this band can provide the groove to party too. This free event is also part of the CBD's LIVE! in the Castro concert Summer series.

Also ongoing: Migrating Archives: LGBT Delegates From Collections Around the World over at the Castro's own world-famous GLBT History Museum. Conceived by E. G. Crichton, artist-in-residence at the GLBT Historical Society, “Migrating Archives” includes poignant and evocative archival material from collections in Australia, Belgium, England, Hungary, Italy, the Netherlands, the Philippines, Scotland, South Africa and the United States. At the Randall Museum you can take the kids and learn about a variety of aspects of local animal, plant life and more. Ongoing is SF Arts Commission, in collaboration with the Randall Museum, installation Windswept, a wind-driven kinetic façade by Charles Sowers. The piece consists of over 500 freely rotating directional arrows, Windswept transforms a blank wall into a large-scale observational instrument that reveals the complex interactions between the wind and the environment.

Have a great week-end all!