Top 5 weekend arts events in San Diego: 'Ripcord,' jazz and art at the human scale

🎨 Visual art

'Actual Size'

Part of the Prebys Arts Ecosystem grant, Space 4 Art will open a new exhibition at Art Produce in North Park dedicated to the idea of the human scale: art that explores the everyday ways people coexist in contrast to the grandiose and alarming ways life can sometimes feel like "misleading advertising." Curator Lara Bullock has brought together a crew of exceptional local artists creating diverse works, including conceptual, sculptural, sound art and photography: Andrew Alcasid, Diana Benavídez, Nick Lesley, May-ling Martinez and Aldo Cervantes. These are artists who are pushing back against a world in which humans seem to have diminishing control, Bullock said: "They return us to the places where life is lived: ordinary objects, familiar rituals, the built environment, and the body itself." The exhibit opens with a free, public reception on Saturday.

Reception: 4-7 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 10. Exhibition runs through Nov. 7; gallery hours are 1-7 p.m. Fridays and by appointment | Art Produce, 3139 University Ave., North Park | Free | MORE INFO

🎵 Music

Courtesy of CCAE

Hidden City Sounds: LP and the Vinyl with a Community Jazz Jam

California Center for the Arts, Escondido will close their Hidden City Sounds free summer concert series with a dynamic local jazz ensemble followed by a community jam. LP and the Vinyl is helmed by the legendary Leonard Patton, a jazz, blues and gospel singer and owner of The Jazz Lounge in Rolando. Patton is joined by pianist Danny Green, bassist Justin Grinnell and drummer Julien Cantelm — all-star musicians from San Diego’s all-star local jazz scene. The evening will turn into a jazz jam. Feel free to soak it all in from the audience, or bring your own instrument and join in on the tunes.

7-9 p.m. Friday, Oct. 9 | CCAE, 340 N. Escondido Blvd., Escondido | Free | MORE INFO

🎭 Theater

'Ripcord'

Roustabouts Theatre Co. is set to open its production of playwright David Lindsay-Abaire's 2015 dark comedy, "Ripcord." Lindsay-Abaire has some comedic and dramatic writing chops, with some Tony Awards and a Pulitzer under his belt (for 2007's "Rabbit Hole"). In "Ripcord," he points his sharp wit at some women in a senior community, as roommates Abby and Marilyn are caught up in an absurd battle of wills. Linda Libby, Eileen Bowman, John DeCarlo, Samantha Ginn, Eddy Lukovic and Matthew Javier-Derek star in this Phil Johnson-directed show.

Oct. 8 through Nov. 1 | Scripps Ranch Theatre, 9783 Avenue of Nations, Scripps Ranch | $45 | MORE INFO

🍿 Film

Nexus Film Festival

Nexus is a live local performing arts and events project founded by musician Nicole Hernandez, who I recently spoke to for an episode of The Finest. The group is now launching a film festival, with its first screening taking place this Saturday. Local filmmakers will screen their work on the Fleet Science Center's Giant Dome Theater. San Diegan Chasen Dinh's short film "HACKED" is included in the lineup, and was inspired by a recent hack of the Canvas educational management system.

7 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 10 | Fleet Science Center, 1875 El Prado, Balboa Park | $25 | MORE INFO

💃 Dance

DISCO RIOT presents 'S P A C E Rising' 2026 Showcase

Local contemporary dance and creative movement nonprofit DISCO RIOT is back with a celebration of this year's S P A C E Rising collaborative residency program, with performances of three new works of choreography, the result of 10 weeks of intensive training, research, collaboration, creation and experimentation. The participating artists are Skyla Miles, Liz Fields, Tiffany Martinez-Delgado, Ethne Acosta, Eon Allum and Hope Worth. DISCO RIOT has posted a few glimpses of rehearsals on its Instagram, and the pieces promise to be a mix of expressive, abstract, fantastical and evocative.

7 p.m. Friday and Saturday, Oct. 9-10 | City Heights Performance Annex, 3795 Fairmount Ave., City Heights | Donation-based | MORE INFO

📚 Bonus: Kids

'A Book and a Ballerina'

This periodic ballet-plus-storytime activity from City Ballet of San Diego tours libraries around the region with sessions designed for kids ages 4-10, or roughly pre-K to fifth grade. A ballet dancer will read aloud a children's book, and then the kids in the audience can learn a few basic ballet steps and join in. Check the remaining storytimes here to see if the ballerinas will visit your own local library this year.

10:30 a.m. Saturday, Oct. 10 | Balboa Library Children's Area, 4255 Mt. Abernathy Ave., Clairemont | Free | MORE INFO