Mando Diao
at Bottom of the Hill (9 pm) Music
"Seeing Mando Diao live is like going to church. Our fans get the same feeling from us that some people get from religion." So says Gustaf Norén, guitarist, scalp-tingling singer, moody songwriter, and one-fifth of Mando Diao. The roots of the band trace back to 1995, with Björn present at the creation of Butler, the first incarnation of Mando Diao. MORE

Smuin Ballet's 2005 Fall Season
at Palace of Fine Arts (8 pm) Performance Arts
Don’t miss the explosive World Premiere by Michael Smuin, Bluegrass/Slyde. It's choreographed to the vibrant music of renowned bassist and MacArthur "genius" grant-award winner Edgar Meyer. MORE

Veronika Dobers
It is so good that you are here
at Don Soker Contemporary Art (10:30 am - 5:30 pm) Galleries
Reverse glass paintings. The exhibition consists of paintings on reverse sides of acrylic sheets, based on a traditional European technique. MORE

M.I.A.
at The Grand at the Regency Center (8 pm) Music
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If you read a lot about new music on the Web, odds are pretty good that, at some point between the September 2004 release of "Galang" and the March 2005 release of Arular, you were struck with the urge to turn your computer off or maybe even heave it out of a nearby window. MORE

Idlewild, Inara George
at Slim's (9 pm) Music
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Maybe it's the lush climate, maybe it's the protective isolation, but something about the Scottish Highlands yields a hearty strain of rock band. Idlewild, which sprung from these volcanic hills, formed at an Edinborough art school in 1995, thrashed around on pub stages for a year or two, then underwent a classic evolution. MORE

Deep Blue
at Red Vic Movie House (2, 7:15, 9:15 pm) Film
Deep Blue is an innovative motion picture experience that sets off on an epic, emotion-filled voyage through the last great frontier on earth: the ocean. MORE

28th Annual
Mill Valley Film Festival
Opening Night Gala
at CinéArts at Sequoia (9:30 pm - 12 am) Film
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Known as a filmmakers' festival, the annual Mill Valley Film Festival offers a high-profile, prestigious, non-competitive environment perfect for celebrating the best independent and world cinema. MORE

Franz Ferdinand with TV on the Radio & Cut Copy
at Bill Graham Civic Auditorium (8 pm) Music
Glasgow's art-damaged rock quartet Franz Ferdinand - named for the Austro-Hungarian Archduke whose murder sparked World War I - features bassist Bob Hardy, guitarist Nick McCarthy, drummer Paul Thomson, and singer/guitarist Alex Kapranos. MORE

Fear of a Brown Planet
at Project Artaud Theater (7:30 pm) Performance Arts
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Fear of a Brown Planet - Written and Performed by The Chicano Messengers of Spoken Word. Nationally acclaimed spoken word performers Paul Flores (HBO Def Poetry), Marc David Pinate (1999 National Slam Poetry Champion) and Amalia Ortiz (HBO Def Poetry & 2000 San Antonio Puro Slam Champion) present their new spoken word/hip hop theater play. MORE

Black & Decka
at Duplex (9 pm - 2 am) Clubs
New Thursday night residency. It seems like in-Pro has found a weekly residency. After a stunning performance by Black & Decka! at Duplex on September 2nd, the powers that be insisted that In Productions should handle every Thursday night. MORE

Jazz Mandolin Project
at Sweetwater Saloon (9 pm) Music
In the beginning, the group consisted of any jazz players that would come and play for a donation at the door. The premise was that it wouldn’t be looked at as a strict jazz gig but a session where the musicians would play whatever moved them, no matter what genre it took them to. MORE

The Baum Award 2005
at Berkeley Art Museum (11 am - 5 pm) Museums
BAM/PFA is pleased to announce that Lisa Kereszi is the 2005 recipient of The Baum Award for Emerging American Photographers. MORE

One City One Book ~ China Boy Book Discussion for teens
at 826 Valencia (6 pm) Literary Arts
One City One Book: San Francisco Reads, is the City's first ever citywide book club, launching Fall 2005. The book selection is China Boy, a novel about a young Chinese American boy growing up in SF's Panhandle district during the 1950s. MORE

The Air Show Network presents
Fleet Week 2005
at SF Waterfront (1 pm - 4 pm) Festivals/Fairs
The Blue Angels are back for the first time since 2003 and new to Fleet Week this year is the Red Bull Air Race World Series. The Red Bull Air Race World Series in San Francisco is the final race of a seven race series. MORE

Angelique Kidjo
at The Independent (9 pm) Music
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The explosive growth in the popularity of world music during the past several decades has broadened the boundaries of our world, reminding listeners of the vast cultural wealth and diversity in this wired age. MORE

FLAVOR
at DNA (9 pm - 4 am) Clubs
FLAVOR returns to the DNA with a 2 on 2 Team Urban Momentum Dance Contest for $750 with dancers representing Breakin', Funk Styles, House, and Abstract Moves. MORE

Perpetual Groove with special guest Delta Nove
High-Energy Electro Groove + Funk
at Jelly's (9 pm) Music
Savannah, Georgia-based Perpetual Groove continues to build momentum across the U.S. - and Japan, where the band toured for the first time this August - with its infectious quilt of musical styles. MORE

24 hours On Craigslist
Directed by Michael Ferris Gibson - In Person
at Red Vic Movie House (7:15, 9:15 pm) Film
You know Craigslist, it's the secret engine that drives the Bay Area economy, the place you likely found your last job, apartment, car, couch, bandmate, dance lesson, bankruptcy attorney or Friday-night date. MORE

FAGAALA
contemporary dance from Senegal
at Yerba Buena Center for the Arts (8 pm) Performance Arts
Yerba Buena Center for the Arts proudly presents "FAGAALA" performed by Compagnie Jant-Bi as part of the YBCA Presents Performance '05-'06 season. MORE

6 Stories High 2005
Premieres - Six New SF Stories of Mystery, Love, & Loss
at Bindlestiff Studio (8 pm) Performance Arts
A production premiering six new San Francisco stories from emerging Bay Area voices Ed Mabasa, Lisa Macabasco, Conrad Panganiban, Chuck Lacson, Ali Wong, and Anton Delfino. MORE

Doctor Atomic Goes Nuclear
at Pacific Film Archive (PFA) (7, 9 pm) Film
For most of us, the atomic bomb is only an image, a roiling cloud rising like a grim specter, over and over again. Yet in the world beyond images, nuclear arms proliferate, as do the wielders of such weapons. MORE

Craigslist Foundation presents
2nd Annual Nonprofit Boot Camp
at Bill Graham Civic Auditorium (8 am - 9 pm) Conference/Expo
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Join over 1,300 emerging nonprofit leaders at Craigslist Foundation’s 2nd annual Nonprofit Boot Camp. Get educated in all aspects of successfully starting and running a nonprofit, find inspiration and get connected with peers and valuable resources. MORE

The Urban Country Club
at Central Parking Lot (11 am - Sunset) Clubs
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Empower yourself through sports and the arts! Come listen to prolific hip-hop artist The RZA speak with Senior PGA Tour legend Walter Morgan and Ice-T’s longtime DJ Evil E as they discuss how hip-hop and golf elevated them from struggle to triumph. MORE

Fashion Addicts
Fall/Winter 2005 Fashion Show
at Bambuddha Lounge (9 pm - 2 am) Fashion
Azalea's Fall/Winter 2005 Fashion Show. To benefit American Red Cross - Hurricane Katrina Disaster Relief Fund. All net proceeds will be donated. MORE

Devo with Bow Wow Wow
at Paramount Theatre (7:30 pm) Music
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Have you spent at least a decade in college without declaring a major? Do you consider the Mac/PC debate a raging one? Do you own a Star Wars toy? Is it still in the package? If you answered yes to the above questions, chances are you're a Devo fan. MORE

California Palm
Two Brothers. One Contest. No Sleep 'till Hollywood.
at Shelton Theater (8 pm) Performance Arts
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California Palm, a warm, comedic drama written by Michael Struthers and directed by award-winning director Virginia Abascal, makes its premiere at the Shelton Theater. MORE

United Nations Association Film Festival Special Screening
at Eastside Theater (2 pm) Film
This is a special advanced screening featuring four films from the upcoming United Nations Association Film Festival. Admission is $5 for four films and the reception. MORE

Stephanie Gardner, Recent Paintings
Reception and Artist Dinner
at Volakis Gallery (6 pm - 8 pm) Galleries
Stephanie Gardner’s upcoming show at the Volakis Gallery will mark a transition in her career that has taken a meteoric trajectory over the last eight years. MORE

Decompression 2005
Decompression 2005
6th Anniversary Heat The Street F(a)IRE
at Indiana Street (12 pm - 10 pm outside / until 1:30 am in Cocomo) Festivals/Fairs
Welcome back! This is your invitation to decompress with playa artists, theme camps and performers from the Conscious, Subconscious and the Unconscious at our 6th Anniversary Heat The Street F(a)IRE! MORE

Madad: A Bellydance & Bhangra Benefit for the Red Cross
10 dance troupes, 3 djs, 1 good cause
at DNA Lounge (7 pm) Clubs
Madad, a Hindi word for "relief" and "aid," seemed like a perfect title for this benefit. This evening of belly dance, bhangra, and go-go performances will raise money for the Red Cross. MORE

DJ Skribble
With DJ Morse Code
at Fluid Ultra Lounge (9 pm - 2 am) Clubs
If you thought that your weekend was going to end with a Saturday night party and Sunday afternoon brunch, you thought wrong. MORE

Tracy Chapman
at The Fillmore (8 pm) Music
Ever since she burst upon the musical world in 1988 with her warm and magical debut album, Tracy Chapman has been one of our finest contemporary songwriters and a performer of striking originality, grace and charm. MORE

"Double Exposure"
at SOMA Artists Studios (11 am - 6 pm) Galleries
The diverse work of the SOMA Artists includes oil, acrylic and mixed media painting, sculpture, ceramics, weaving, print making and the video arts. MORE

Proof
by David Auburn
at City Lights Theatre Company (2 pm & 7 pm) Performance Arts
Proof is David Auburn's Pulitzer Prize-winning drama about Catherine, a young woman who has spent years caring for her brilliant but troubled father. MORE

Steel Pulse
at The Independent (9 pm) Music
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Steel Pulse have been perfecting their original and distinctly high-energy style of reggae music for a quarter of a century. As the only British reggae group to win a Grammy Award, their international success continues to inspire audiences of both new and long-dedicated fans. MORE

Cat on a Hot Tin Roof
A.C.T. goes to the Movies!
at Castro Theatre (7 pm) Film
In celebration of their 50th anniversary revival production of the American classic, Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, American Conservatory Theater presents a special one-night-only screening of the classic 1958 film starring Elizabeth Taylor and Paul Newman. MORE