San Diego Book Crawl returns with shuttles and more goodies

S1: It's time for Midday Edition on KPBS. Today is our weekly arts and culture show will tell you about an event for book enthusiasts and much more. I'm Jade Hindman. Here's to conversations that keep you informed , inspired , and make you think. How the San Diego Book Crawl elevates local bookstores.

S2: I think that there is a real risk that independent bookstores aren't going to kind of be as successful as we need them to be. And quite frankly , Indians are where we find a lot more diversity on the shelves.

S1: Plus , our film critics join us with a list of action packed movies to watch. Then we'll have your weekend preview. That's ahead on Midday Edition. Booksellers across the country will celebrate Independent Bookstore Day this weekend , but San Diego is taking it a step further by putting together the San Diego Book Crawl , which runs from April 27th through April 29th. Terry Dan Herder is here to tell us more. She's the general book buyer for the UC San Diego bookstore. Terry , welcome.

S3: Thank you. I'm so happy to be here on to talk about my favorite weekend of the year.

S1: And so glad you're here to do it. And also , Susan Lee joins me too. She's this year's author ambassador. Her novels include soulmates and the name drop , and she's got more in the works. Susan , thanks for coming on.

S2: So excited to be here. America's Finest City will not be outdone. We need an entire weekend to celebrate our independent bookstores.

S1: All right. Well , I'm excited to to hear all about what's in store. So my first question then is what does Independent Bookstore Day mean to you all , Terry ? You said it's your favorite day of the entire year.

S3: So Independent Bookstore Day is a celebration of bookstores all over the nation that are independent , that are local , that are supporting the communities that we live in , the people that are buying the books for the stores and doing the shopping for the products that we carry and the things that we curate. And it's just an independent as a community store that really focuses on the community that we live in , and figuring out what everyone wants and needs in that community.

S1:

S2: Um , I think that there is a real risk that independent bookstores , um , aren't going to kind of be as successful as we need them to be. And quite frankly , Indies are where we find a lot more diversity on the shelves. It's where we find really important roles of booksellers who give great , um , recommendations and who care about the readers and the purchasers who are coming in. And I think it's super important to celebrate that and to highlight them. Yeah.

S1: Yeah. Well , in the book crawl , happening this weekend again celebrates and elevates these indie bookstores. 13 bookstores are participating this year. Tell me about the events planned , Terry.

S3: There are several events , and because we are all independent bookstores , we all have independently different things that we're doing. But we join forces and put books into the hands of of readers. And some of the things that we join on are the artwork and the author. Ambassador Susan Lee is this year's author ambassador. We try and tie it in with local and independent. And , um , we have a sponsor this year that helped us with the Totes Canterbury Classics is helping us out with that. So they will have a pop up of their products at Verbatim Books. And we this year , for the first time ever , we actually have shuttle buses that , um , people can purchase tickets for. However , we just sold out so there are no more tickets left for the book buses.

S1:

S4:

S3: It just means we'll have to have more buses next year.

S4: There you go. Well , Susan.

S1: Congratulations on being this year's author ambassador.

S4: Thank you. Yeah.

S1: Carrying the legacy on.

S2: And the funny thing is , I had already been scheduled to be out of the country for a few months. So I flew back just for this weekend. And , um , because it was important to me , um , and I have actually been partaking in the book crawl for a few years , even before I was a published author. Um , and so I love this event. It's one of my favorite weekends of the year , too. And one of the things , um , you know , to the question previous about the shuttle buses and what I think is so wonderful about this is that it fosters community that's beyond just like , hey , what book have you read ? Because I think a lot of readers and a lot of these bookstores , they really , um , focus on various genres , and not all of us are reading the same books. And , but a reader is a reader in that we want to celebrate books and we want to have access to books , and we want to celebrate these Indies that sell these books. So it's such a community effort , and it's just so great that San Diego is doing this. So I feel especially proud being a hometown girl. I've been here almost my entire life. I went to college at UCSD , so I cannot wait to stop by the bookstore. So it is , um. It's truly one of the biggest honors and bucket list items for my career as an author.

S4: That's great. Well , I.

S1: And tell me more about what an author ambassador does.

S2: Yeah , so I'm excited because I am going to visit most of the stores. Just timing wise , I'm not going to be able to get to everyone. I wish I could jump on one of those shuttle buses , but I'm going to spend a good amount of time and at least an hour at each of ten of the 13 stores throughout the course of the weekend. So four on Saturday , three on Sunday and three on Monday , and the schedule is posted online. I will be meeting readers , signing books , but also I have been to most of these bookstores or have some kind of relationship with the bookstore. So I am going to select a book off of their shelves. That means something to me , and what I think also helps represent that bookstore that day. So if you see me at any of the bookstores along my schedule , I will also have a book recommendation that I would love for a reader to pick up , if not my own. Um , but something that the bookstore carries , so I'm excited about that as well. And also just being able to do a lot of , um , press and publicity and social media for the entire event. And being like , Terry , a cheerleader for what we're trying to accomplish this weekend. So I am very excited. Yeah.

S1: Yeah. That's great. And the book crawl started back in 2018. Susan , you talked a bit about attending this event for years.

S2: I think in the beginning it was like , oh , neat. You know , a bunch of bookstores are saying , come to us on a certain day , you know , and it was , um , really tied into Independent Bookstore Day. I think what I have loved about I have just recently returned to San Diego. I was living in New York for over a decade , and what I was so surprised to find out is that the book community here is thriving. Uh , the publishing community , the readership is thriving in San Diego now , like just having people kind of band together and there being entire events like we've had , uh , we have a city festival of books. And then , um , being able to offer this to the readers of San Diego is super just unique and special. So , um , the growth of just the excitement around it , the growth of the participation. And I think what's fun is I've actually participated since 2018. I've collected each of the pins since that year. So it's been kind of kind of become a thing amongst people who have been here from the start over the last few years is kind of collecting , much like you can collect stamps for your passport this weekend. Um , those of us who have attended throughout the years are kind of collecting the goodies as well. So it's , um , it's really nice. It's a nice tradition that we're building here. Yeah.

S4: Yeah. And , Terry.

S1: You've helped organize the crawl for the past few years.

S3: And , um , every year we get more and more people involved. You know , I see it a lot like Susan does where it's it gives you an opportunity to be a , a tourist in your own town and go to parts of the city that you might not have gone to otherwise. And , you know , you meet all these new people and create relationships with other other people that are interested in , you know , have similar interests and even just different interests. It's it's it's very exciting. I think last year we had done an estimate of numbers of people who had crawled , and it was around 12,000. So wow. Amazing.

S4: Amazing.

S3: That's pretty cool to think that San Diego is a is a book town.

S1: I also feel like San Diego still has a really close knit book community , even though it's grown so much. Um , so I'm curious what that experience has been like for both of you.

S2: I , uh , you know , what's been really wonderful is , um , being able to go into the bookstores , recognize booksellers that I've seen in the past , um , run into readers that I've met before , going to events at each of these different bookstores , um , like book launches or , um , festivals and seeing so many familiar faces. That has been really wonderful. It's that that community that we're fostering. Um , and , you know , I'm not saying we're all like these , these stores are all businesses , but I just feel like there is more of a let's build each other up a mentality than there is a competitiveness. Um , a lot of these stores have specialties. And , you know , they , uh , there's a lot of recommendations for each other. Um , and I love that. I love that even as an author , I've met other authors in San Diego. So this , um , burgeoning book , uh , town , the city is , uh , we're going to we're going to give the other big cities , like New York , a run for their money when it comes to , um , you know , publishing and , and readership and book community and the power that , um , a book community wields , I think , in society today.

S4: Well , uh , you know.

S1: I want to talk about more about the events that you've got lined up for this crawl.

S4:

S1: Terry , I'll toss that one.

S3: You so I can just. I can tell you what we're doing at our story. UC San Diego bookstore on Saturday , we're actually going to have Suzy Germany and her mother , Zoe Germany in the store , uh , signing the book that they did together called Memory Garden. So , uh , they will be in the store from 11 to noon , and then from noon to one , we're going to have Serena Dolan. She is also at UCSD. Um , and she has a third book in a series coming out called Free Set , which is the final book in the the uh , reset preset reset series takes place in the future. And it's , it's it's a really great storyline , so you'll have to come and check her out. And then , of course , we have Susan Lee on Monday , uh , from ten to 10 to 11. And we're very excited about that. So that will be fun. And then we have Jessica Elliott , who is the author of Intentional and Holistic Approach to Building and Maintaining a Low Waste Lifestyle. She'll be in the store also talking about her book on Monday from noon to , uh , one. We also have bookstore trivia , where you get prizes that are pretty cool. We do it every half hour and we have crafts. Do it yourself crafts with the amazing Scott Paulson from the Geisel Library. He has been with us at every , uh , Independent bookstore day , and he usually brings really interesting instruments like Thurman's and harps , and he helps us figure out a way to create a bookmark from an a song from our name. So that's super fun. We also were one of the lucky recipients of the Libra Golden Ticket , so we will be hiding a golden ticket to get 12 credits from Libra FM , which is also an independent audiobook company. That is fantastic. And then we're just we're going to have 25% off the general books and the general book gifts and the in store and the book Crawl with all of the amazing prizes. Wow.

S4: Wow.

S1: Well , it sounds like a lot of fun and a lot to enjoy. I've been speaking with Terry Den Herder , the general book buyer at UCSD bookstore. Thanks , Terry. Thanks.

S4: Thanks. You're welcome.

S1: Also , Susan Lee , this year's author ambassador. Thanks to you too , Susan.

S4: Thank you.

S2: So much. We hope to see you at the book crawl , everyone.

S1: And that San Diego Book Crawl will run from April 27th through April 29th. You can find out more on KPBS. Org.

S5: Coming up , film.

S1: Critics Beth Accomando and Yazdi give us their list of action packed movies to watch.

S6: The movie is at an 11 at every time , and Patel is going for one and only one thing , which is to summon the mythic.

S1: You're listening to KPBS Midday Edition. Welcome back. You're listening to KPBS Midday Edition. I'm Jade Hindman. It is not quite summer , but action films are already hitting cinemas , so get ready for a heart pounding , riveting conversation with our midday movie critics as we highlight some new and old films to check out. Once again , I welcome Beth Accomando , our KPBS Cinema Junkie. Beth.

S4: Hey , hey , how's it going ? Good.

S1: Also Yazdi of movie Wallace podcast Yazdi. How is it going ? Good good good. It's always great to have you all in studio. So let's start with a film that is already playing in theaters. Monkey man here is part of the trailer.

S7: You need to fight for your mother. For all of us.

S8: And we're not quite. So my son.

S9: Don't call me son.

S1:

S10: And actor Dev Patel , whom people should recall from Slumdog Millionaire and Line , said that he wanted to make a revenge film about faith , and he turned to the legend of Hanuman for inspiration. And Hanuman is a Hindu god that appears as half human , half monkey , and he's known for his strength , loyalty and cleverness. So Patel , who also wrote and directed this film , which is no small task. So this film is really a blast. It moves quickly. Patel is great. He gives 110%. I only have one complaint and as an action junkie , I hate to see action films where the action is shot. Like all shaky cam with a lot of fast cuts , because to me that seems to signal that the person , the actor or the stunt team or the choreography team can't sustain a fight without making a cut. So that's the only real complaint I have. I thought at one point , like when he gets all dressed up in his John Wick suit and is ready to really wipe out the bad guys , I thought the style was going to change a little bit and become a little more steady and a fewer cuts , but it didn't. So , you know , it seems like Patel worked out and got to the point where he probably could sustain the action and the choreography. So I'm not sure where that decision kind of came from , but I really wish that it had been a visual style where you could see more of the action better and enjoy more of it , and kind of a more fluid sense.

S4: All right , fair enough.

S1:

S6: It's a very simple film , you know , Indian man avenges his mother. That's Monkey Man and its entirety. That's it. But there's an undeniable cinematic quality to this. Like a graphic novel penis with which the visuals come at you. And like you said , but the movie is at an 11 , and every , at every time. And Patel is going for one and only one thing , which is to summon the mythic and this maximalist approach , you know , results in a movie that is never not myth building with this particular character. So I , I liked it , and I like the fact that he is so committed as a first time filmmaker , and he keeps jumping off the cliff again and again. I mean , he has seemingly endless energy to give to this , but ultimately , I think , you know , what is the great strength of the film also becomes a bit of its weakness because , as Beth mentioned , for me at least , it wore out its welcome in the last act as you're pummeled with , you know , one more montage consisting of breakneck cuts. And I just wish he had been a little bit more judicious in doling out the good stuff. But but even then , I think this is a project of such unbridled passion. This is a labor of great love from him. So we need to give credit where it's due. This is one of the grittier , film watching experiences all right.

S1: You all are still tough critics for. All right , well , I mean , Yazdi Monkey Man is an Indian film in terms of its star and its location , but it is filtered through Hollywood.

S6: But let's start with RR , which is a movie which won an Oscar a couple years ago. I think that movie represents the pinnacle of action. You got to see that movie just for the sheer over-the-top panache with which these action scenes have been carried out. I , you know , it's something to behold. You know , I have my issues with the movie , but the action , oh boy , it's top rate. Um , I also want to recognize two other movies. One is a movie called doom , and it's had two sequels since then , doom two and doom three , and that movie kind of , uh , or those movies kind of ask you to leave your brains at the door , and they all consist of these ridiculous , over-the-top heists which have been rendered with so much giddy silliness that , you know , you can't watch those movies without a smile on your face. And on the other end of the spectrum is the movie paranoia , which means bird or dove. And that is a far more grittier gangster set film in Mumbai. And a lot of what you see as action in current Indian cinema comes from this particular movie. So that's definitely one to check out.

S1: And Beth , what is your what are your thoughts.

S10: Yeah , I would second all of those. And I would add the director for RR was SS Rajamouli. And anything he's done has a real pop entertainment , crowd pleasing vibe to it. Those films that he does are called Tollywood as opposed to Bollywood , and he's also done Baahubali one and two , which I had the. Pleasure of showing one of those , and watching these films with an audience is also a real plus , because it does rile them all up. And he also did one called EGA , in which a character comes back as a fly and there is a musical number with the fly. So , I mean , all of his stuff is great , but if you want a little more grit to your action and a little less over-the-top fun , I would add that anything by Ram Gopal Varma , he does these kind of Mumbai noir gangster films , and there's films like Shiva and Company , which I just love , and they're much more like the musical numbers kind of are more organic. It's you're at a cabaret or something , and that's where , you know , somebody starts to sing , but they're very dark , gritty , kind of real world based gangster films. And I love those too.

S1: All of them sound like something very interesting to check out. I mean , we can agree that John Wick sort of represents the pinnacle of modern action films. But Beth , you spoke to the director , and he noted that one of his inspirations actually comes from silent films. Yes.

S4: Yes.

S10: So Chad Stahelski was a stuntman turned filmmaker , and he even opens John Wick with a scene in which there is a projection on a New York City building of a silent movie. It was I'm not even sure which film it was , but it looks like an action scene from something that Charlie Chaplin or Buster Keaton might have done. But he has noted that he is inspired by these silent comedians , and the silent film actors were really kind of our first stuntmen. I mean , they were doing crazy , outrageous things to get a laugh , but they were risking their lives to do it. And so he notes inspiration from people like Buster Keaton , Harold Lloyd. These are also the people who inspired Jackie Chan in the 1980s , who's another one of the , you know , brilliant action stars and what Chad Stahelski takes from the silent comedians , not just kind of the danger of the stunt , but he really understands how using long takes wide , takes fewer cuts , really allows you to appreciate the action that's happening within the frame. Like , you don't have to cut away if you don't need to , and it really lets you appreciate the skill and the prowess of the stunt people , the choreography team , the actors. And so I think that's really one of the reasons why John Wick is so good. And both he and Jackie Chan also drew on MGM musicals and people like Gene Kelly. And again , for that sense of let the action play out so the audience can really appreciate it.

S1: And Yazdi , I know you've got a silent film recommendation for us.

S6: Yes , I adored the movie Safety Last , which , by the way , you can watch on YouTube any all day. It's a short hour and a half if that movie , um , and you have to watch that movie for the cleverness and the gumption because there is no special effects , there is no CGI , there is nothing here. It is a man climbing up , you know , on the face of a building. It's , uh , it's just remarkable because what what you're seeing is actually what happened. And this movie , of course , is very famous with Harold Lloyd climbing up to the top of this building where there is a clock. And then he , you know , jumps on it and hangs by the hands of the clock. And that's one of the most iconic scenes and in cinema. And I do agree that folks like Harold Lloyd and Buster Keaton , I mean , you can trace the DNA of any action movie right now to those guys. I mean , watching The general , for example , is just like a third eye opening. It's it's so. Good.

S11: Good.

S10: And you can see literal scenes stolen from those movies in Jackie Chan. Safety last is one , and there's Jackie Chan hanging off of a I don't know if it was a clock also , but he's hanging off the edge of a building just like Harold Lloyd did. So yeah , there's a long lineage there , and I really urge people to go and watch some of these silent films. You will be so amazed at the crazy stunts they do.

S1: Talk about suspense.

S10: It's it's inspired by the old TV series about a stuntman. But I believe that the movie , which I haven't seen yet , diverges completely from what the TV show was. But in that film we have Ryan Gosling playing a stuntman who ends up getting sent on some kind of secret mission. But the stunts in that look amazing. It's David Leitch , who was the co-director of the original John Wick , and so I'm sure it's going to be jam packed with fun stunts. But currently in theaters , we also have Guy Ritchie's kind of jaunty World War Two actioner , which is the Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare.

S12: What do we have here , Gustavo ? How do you know ? Batteries are , the better. They're dressed. Really ? Must get me one of those coats. There must be a for apple.

S10: So this claims to be inspired by real events , but it feels more like a kind of lightweight James Bond film. And one of the characters actually happens to be the James Bond author Ian Fleming , who did work for British intelligence. So this film was a lot of fun. It does have a high body count , but I feel like Nazis are the last villains available that you can kill without remorse and like , get away with it. So they're mowed down quite a bit. But I would also like to point out that Guy Ritchie turned to another real war story for last year's The Covenant. And that's a lot grittier , a lot more serious. And it's kind of showing a more mature Guy Ritchie in that film , something that I haven't really seen very often. So I would recommend both of those to people.

S1:

S6: What I recommend is Furiosa , the latest in the mad Max saga , which is going to be released later this year. And I think any discussion about modern day action cinema cannot be had without talking about mad Max Fury Road , which came out a few years ago. And that movie is exhausting because the entire two hour movie is is just action , non-stop. And I watched it like with my jaw on the floor and I could not get enough of it. Uh , again , very little special effects used. George Miller pretty much , you know , films , things as they're happening. There is never any confusion of who is doing what to whom and super shortcuts. Everything is so clear in your mind. He's one of the great masters , I think , when it comes to action cinema. And , you know , he's in his 70s right now and , you know , the fact that he's coming out with a new film is , uh , cause for a lot of excitement.

S10: Nobody does car stunts better than George Miller.

S13: Has the child my world was forever changed. My mother was magnificent. And he took it all from me.

S1: All right. And quickly to go out.

S10: I'll avoid all the Hong Kong action films , but I will suggest district B13 for introducing audiences to some jaw dropping parkour and hardcore Henry for how to use shaky cam right ? And then shoot them up for just ridiculous like Looney Tunes. Fun action. Yeah.

S1:

S6: It was from the British director Joe Wright , and it kind of didn't get the attention it deserved. I think it's about this little girl who is trained to become a ruthless assassin by her father in this Arctic wilderness , and she has to exact revenge against these ex-CIA spies who are coming at her , chief of which being Cate Blanchett. And I think we can all agree that Evil Blanchett is the best is the best Blanchett of all. So it's it's got some amazing action scenes. It's set in , you know , Germany and Spain and Morocco and just adds Sharon location with a very young Cersei Ronan in the lead role. Definitely worth checking out.

S1: Well , thank you both for an action packed viewing list. You can find more recommendations from both our critics on Beth's Cinema Junkie blog at KPBS. Org. I've been speaking with Beth Accomando , our KPBS , Cinema Junkie , and Yazdi , part of Movie Wallace Podcast. Thank you both so much.

S4: Thank you , thank you Jade.

S1: Still ahead , we're showcasing local artists in your weekend preview.

S14: We all need an audience in the work that we do , and that audience helps us understand our own work better , and it helps us discover and meet other people who are then going to inspire us on our own creative journey.

S1: KPBS Midday Edition is back after the break. Welcome back to KPBS midday Edition. I'm Jade Hindman. You know , every Thursday we like to check in with our KPBS arts producer , Julia Dixon Evans , to find out what's on her arts and culture radar. She joins us now with a weekend preview. Julia , welcome.

S15: Hey , Jade. Thanks for having me.

S1: Always glad to have you here. So this weekend marks the 12th annual Medium Festival of photography. What can you tell us about this event ? Yeah.

S15: So this is something that it draws a lot of local photographers and photography supporters , but also people travel here for this festival from all over the world. There's workshops and lectures and kind of a lot of emphasis on working photographers and craft and things to help them with their careers. But also there's photography exhibits and fun stuff to do. You don't have to be a photographer to benefit from this festival , and you also don't even have to be registered for the festival for a lot of the functions and events. Some of them , yes , but not all. And the festival , it starts today and runs through Sunday. It's based kind of at the Marriott in Old Town , but there's events all over the region , including in Tijuana. Wow.

S1: Wow. And you had a chance to sit down with the festival's founder , Scott Davis of Medium Photo , to talk about what's changed in the community and in the photography world since the festival began. So let's listen to that interview.

S15: This is the 12th annual festival.

S14: And I myself as a photographer , learned the most in my career by hearing other artists speak about their work and by attending educational workshops. And those didn't exist in San Diego. And I thought , we need this.

S15: And then I'm curious if you have seen things change since you began , whether with the way that you operate the festival or with the photography community as it's grown here.

S14: It definitely has changed. Um , a lot of that has to do with technology. You know , for some reason , people often ask if we only show analog photography. And the answer is absolutely not. Photography is a very diverse and far reaching medium , and most people who use photography today use digital. Um , that has changed somewhat , uh , in terms of the number of people who use analog , it's um , it's actually been increasing. And that's a really interesting aspect that we've watched over the years of the festival.

S15: Now , in the festival this year , the keynote speaker is Cara Romero. Can you tell us about her and her work and what she is bringing to the festival ? Yeah.

S14: So Cara is an indigenous artist from the Movie Nation. It's a mojave desert tribe based in what we call California and Nevada. Um , she's actually based out of Santa Fe today , but she grew up in that region and grew up also in in other parts of the United States. So her work foregrounds indigenous people as current residents of this continent and as the original residents of this continent. And she really plays beautifully with those ideas , both to celebrate indigenous people , but also to show them as people that are deeply engaged with all the concerns of the 21st century.

S15: All right. So let's talk about some of the other things that are happening in the festival. One of the things that I'm interested in is ways that people who love photography and love art can benefit from this festival and participate , even if they're not photographers or they're not art makers themselves.

S14: Um , so we have a lot of different opportunities for people to engage. One of them is a pop up photography market , and that is a space where photographers from the community will have tables and have an ability to share their work. Um , we'll have books for sale , we'll have prints for sale , can talk to you about the work that they do. We also have something we call the Open Portfolio Walk. And those are a number of participating photographers , about 45 in total , who are visiting San Diego. Many of them are actually from San Diego as well. And they are sharing portfolios of their work. There's a number of exhibitions that we have. We have. Artist talks that are free. We have exhibition receptions and also a bus trip to Tijuana on Sunday.

S15: Yeah , tell us about that. What is the connection or what is the draw for you to take this organization across the border ? Yeah.

S14: You know , Tijuana is really such an important part of our culture here in San Diego. And over the years , I've met many artists who live in Tijuana and are making work that really deserves to be seen by a wider audience. The other part of that is that Tijuana is a very difficult city to access. Um , the the navigation of the city is not easy. It's not easy to find art spaces. And so we started this program in 2018 of taking bus tours down and basically giving people access to a whole new culture and artists that they might not otherwise meet.

S15: Photography as a practice seems very much like a solo effort. I'm wondering what need is met by building community.

S14: You know , photography is a solo activity and we all need an audience in the work that we do , and that audience helps us understand our own work better , and it helps us discover and meet other people who are then going to inspire us on our own creative journey.

S1: And that was Scott Davis , founder of Medium Festival of Photography , which runs through Sunday. You were discussing ways for everyone in the community to experience the medium festival. You also mentioned some of the free things that people can check out. Give me a list. Yeah.

S15: Yeah. So one of the things that's at the Marriott , like the festival headquarters , is this photography pop up. It's kind of like a market. And that's running Thursday evening and then also Saturday throughout the day from 10 to 4. Also , Thursday evening is an open portfolio walk where people who have photography , they'd like to share with other people there. They're like tabling with their photography. So that's cool. That's Thursday at 630 at the Marriott. There's also a keynote lecture with photographer Cara Romero. This is not free , but you can get a ticket just for this event. It's at the San Diego Central Library downtown. That's Friday night at seven , and tickets are $20 for that. Unless you do have a festival pass. And then it's included. And Cara Romero has an exhibit that's opening the next day , opening on Saturday at Mopar Museum of Photographic Arts in Babo Park that opens Saturday. You can check that out from 11 to 5 on Saturday. That museum is always free or donation based , so that's one more thing. And then there's a couple of connected exhibits at Bread and Salt. These have free public openings from 5 to 7 on Saturday. There's size matters at the Athenaeum Art center , and then Monica Arriola is at best , practice. So those are a couple of things you can check out for free.

S1: Oh , that's always great. Well , let's see what else is going on in arts and culture this weekend in San Isidro. The semi-regular series Cedro Saturdays is back.

S15: Even the tacos while supplies last , apparently. So this is an event. It's a family friendly community event that's based in two spaces in San Isidro that are run by an organization called Casa Familia. There's the front art gallery and then El Salone , which is a theater there just about a block away from each other. A couple of the highlights at the front. You can check out this exhibition called Invisible Traditions. This is the gallery's annual Dia de la mujer exhibition. And every year they they do this at coincides with International Women's Day. And that exhibit is only open for just a few more weeks. It closes in early May , so check that out. And then also at the front , they just soft launched this new project called the Front Books , which is like a library and display area of art books that it's free and open to the public to , to use and reference those books that'll be open during gallery hours. So that's also during the Cedro Saturday's event. And then at the El Salone Theater , there's a performance , a theatrical performance of this production by a couple of Far South Border North grant recipients. There's Maybelle Reynoso and Johnny Bear Contreras. That's at 2 p.m. and then also at 3 p.m. , there's going to be a mural workshop for the community to participate in. So there'll also be vendors and artists displaying their work , live music and DJs and food all afternoon. It's from 1 to 4 p.m..

S4: Oh that's. Great.

S1: Great. And , you know , also the San Diego Opera is back on stage. What will they be performing ? Uh , they're.

S15: They're bringing Puccini's Madama Butterfly , and this is actually a San Diego Opera favorite. They last performed this in 2016. Um , the story follows a young woman in Japan who's known as butterfly. She falls in love with an American officer , Pinkerton , and as far as she knows , she marries him. And then he returns home and she waits for him. She gives birth to their son and raises him alone , but unbeknownst to her , Pinkerton is back with his American wife and family , and this is considered one of the Puccini masterpieces. The music is powerful and beautiful. They.

UU: They. Often made of.

S15: And they will be joined by the San Diego Symphony to to perform that. There are two performances. There's one Friday at 730 and Sunday at two at the Civic Theater. And if you can't make it to the opera , you could probably listen to the Weezer album Pinkerton , which is inspired by the opera. You have two options there.

S4: All right.

S1: Options are always good. You know , this weekend , there's also a lot of anticipated annual events like the San Diego Book Crawl and the big mission fed Art Walk in Little Italy and Art alive at the San Diego Museum of Art. Right ? Right.

S15: I mean , there's so many big things. Good luck if you are trying to choose or maybe trying to do all of them. But we'll start with the Artwalk since it's this one. One is free , and you can also just drop in and drop out anytime. There are 250 something artists bringing stuff like sculpture , painting , photography , jewelry and there's also performances and family activities. And this is the 40th year of this art walk in Little Italy. And it is in fact the longest running art walk of its kind in the region. It's kind of like the mother of of art walks in San Diego. And to get there , you can also download a free trolley pass that you can use all weekend. You can find that at the Artwalk San Diego org website while supplies last.

S1: All right. And let's talk flowers. The San Diego Museum of Art's annual floral show and fundraiser runs this weekend. It sounds exciting.

S15: They're they're basically sculptures that are based on works of art. And then those flowers or botanical displays are set right next to the artwork , so you can see what actually inspired it. Some of these are really literal that are shaped just like the artwork , and some of them are more abstract. It's really incredible to see. And this year's theme is about the art of India. So there will also be a special exhibition of South Asian paintings. And of course , one of the big draws is always the rotunda , where a selected designer gets to create this massive floral installation. And the the museum's lobby is like this two story space. And this year is Mega modi is doing that installation and Art alive technically starts tonight. There's a preview dinner and then the museum member preview is tomorrow , Friday morning , and it opens to the public at noon on Friday and will be on view all weekend , Saturday and Sunday afternoon. There's a kid friendly area , the Garden of Activities that's out in the sculpture garden. There's lots of little like creative crafts to do for families , and the whole thing is free for museum members or or. Tickets are $40 for adults and $5 for ages 7 to 17. Kids under seven are free , and they do recommend that you reserve a timed ticket either way.

S1: All right.

S15: It's gone , gone beyond Lily fangs and then local Jesus Gonzalez gang on beyond is this incredible Americana folk band. And this is their track from their full length album called 2030. This song is called coast. Da.

UU: Da. Da. Da da.

S15: And one more. This is at Soda Bar on Sunday night. Nico play will be coming to town , but local aloe vera will also play. This is their track Topo Chico , which I was instantly a fan of just from the song title. This is a great band and their sound is really fun and unique and it's just a really great listen.

UU: When I'm home , I don't want to go in my arms. At the bar.

S1: All right. There's a lot to check out this weekend. You can find details on these and more arts events , or sign up for Julia's weekly arts newsletter at KPBS , Sawgrass Arts. I've been speaking with KPBS Arts producer and editor Julia Dixon Evans. Julia , thank you , as always.

S15: Thank you. Jade.

S1: That's our show for today. I'm your host , Jade Hindman. Thanks for tuning in to Midday Edition. Be sure to have a great day on purpose , everyone.