Jessica Watson

Pummeled by the economic slump, Chinatown is set to receive a shot in the arm this June with the launch of Art in Storefronts.  The program, initiated by Mayor Gavin Newsom, attempts to revitalize economically burdened neighborhoods by giving vacant and neglected storefront windows a Joan Rivers-quality facelift with San Francisco-based artwork.  The selected artists -- priority given to locals -- will have a unique opportunity to stimulate their community from within as well as gain exposure for their work.

General perception states science and art are mutually exclusive fields.  Bay Area artists Paul Baker and Chris Angell beg to differ.  In their art show “Celestial Navigation,” March 17-21 at the Live Worms Gallery, Baker and Angell begin to blur the dividing line.  Baker, a self-described “scientific artist,” combines exotic materials like jade, mercury, petrified mammoth tusk, and laser beams to create ornate machines resembling a Niels Bohr experiment.  Multi-award-winning assemblage artist, Angell constructs raw-looking sculptures from slightly modified found objects.  It

RJ Muna

Dancers soaring across stage in their underwear are never to be missed. Especially when the women strip the men down to the barest of skivvies and redress them in haute couture created on the spot with masking tape, butcher paper, and tissue. Inspired by a manual on correct female conduct written in 1963, the world premiere of A Guide To Elegance features dancers moving to the sounds of Pamela Z's original score and a voiceover intoning the themes of the manual.

Cougars and cubs, Trader Vic's in Palo Alto is the place to be on this rainy Friday! Ladies get locks, men get keys, and you spend the night tracking down your match. The party starts at 8 and goes until midnight so you'll have plenty of time to find that special someone. Lock and key party will be followed by a "dance party" with a "professional DJ." Even if you're not a cougar or a cub, if you happen to be in Palo Alto tonight, it might be worth the $20 for the sheer spectacle.

Clifton Brown

Paul Kolnik

The problem with seeing an amazing show is having to turn around and describe said amazing show. Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater is apparently indescribable, as I've been sitting here for an hour trying to think of ways to adequately convey the sharp mastery of Revelations or the Dr. Seuss-like appeal of a dude in blue spandex with a tall blue feather on his head. Company auditions must screen for men with coiled springs instead of muscles and women who swing through combinations with a dynamic grace, because that's precisely what you get.

"And then, the Volcano erupted..." (Kidding!)

So you're uploading a photo to Facebook and trying to think of a caption. This process would be soooo much more fun if you could add a voiceover, right? Well, now you can. Emeryville-based Fotobabble has created a way to make talking photos.

French Miami.

It’s one thing to cover the bands -- it’s whole another wet ‘n’ wild burrito to book and promote the bands themselves. Ah, the lines get mighty fuzzy these days, where the blogosphere meets brick and mortar, and the latest entry into the party-throwing frenzy we call the SF music scene comes from Epicsauce.com.

Vampire Weekend

It feels like it was just yesterday when the festival touring circuit was over. Well, the winter hibernation is over, and with festivals like SXSW, Coachella, Sasquatch and Bonnaroo just around the corner, there are some big music decisions to make on the home front. Here are our March and April suggestions.

The fourth annual, biennial Experience Hendrix Tour is back in the US and bringing its all-star lineup of musicians celebrating the music of Jimi Hendrix to the Warfield tomorrow and Wednesday night. This year's lineup includes Jimi Hendrix Experience guitarist Billy Cox, Aerosmith''s Brad Whitford, Joe Satriani, Kenny Wayne Shepherd, Living Colour, and members of Los Lobos. The show has sold out a bunch of its other stops, but not San Francisco, so if you love Hendrix covers you're still in luck.