eSavers

Originally from Lake Charles, Louisiana, Kober has bounded onto the national stage -- playing colleges, theatres and comedy clubs all over the country and bringing crowds to their feet with her original blend of stand-up, story-telling, and improvised rock-n-roll comedy. Leslie Berman of The SWLA Times writes,"Kober is one of the most talented comics of our time...." Jen Kober currently lives in Los Angeles, where she continues to develop new material and travel the globe spreading mass amounts of laughter worldwide with both her stand-up and improvised comedy shows. Jen loves Yoo-Hoo and ranch flavored Corn-Nuts and wonders why instant gratification takes so long.

Smokin', sizzlin' or scorchin' -- this tribute to the talented twosome of Jerry Leiber and Richard Stoller is a summer stroll through a legendary catalog of rock 'n' roll songs... forty-two songs in all. Memorable melodies such as Stand by Me, Poison Ivy, Hound Dog, Jailhouse Rock, Love Potion #9 and On Broadway are just a few of the great hits in this vibrant and nostalgic musical revue. Get out of the September heat and into the heat at Bus Barn with the jukebox musical that was the most acclaimed of 1995 and nominated for the Tony Award for Best Musical!

The San Jose Improv presents The Dinosaurs of Comedy, a show featuring four of San Francisco's top comedy veterans. Long-time San Francisco comedian Johnny Steele is the winner of the San Francisco International Comedy Competition and former host of the Live 105 morning show. Michael Meehan has appeared on The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson and Last Comic Standing. Larry "Bubbles" Brown has appeared twice on Late Night with David Letterman, and Steven Pearl has showcased his comedy at the Evening at the Improv.

Can music transform pain into beauty and unite two strangers? Susannah, a white, driven ethnomusicologist for the Library of Congress, is about to find out in her quest to find authentic, pre-slavery, African-American music. When she encounters Texas prisoner Pearl Johnson, an unlikely partnership develops between the street-smart Pearl and the ambitious Susannah. It isn’t long before Pearl is belting out radiant, soul-baring songs with the strength and beauty of the unaccompanied human voice. These vocal artifacts remind us of the power of music to help heal in the struggle between our collective past and the desire for individual histories. Does our past define us, and at what cost?

San Jose Taiko presents its annual Rhythm Spirit Concerts in Campbell. Taiko, the Japanese drum, is an instrument that embodies the spiritual essence and heartbeat of Japanese culture. Weaving traditional Japanese sounds with other world rhythms such as African, Latin, Filipino, American rock and jazz, San Jose Taiko presents an innovative and contemporary sound that bridges diverse styles and resonates with the Asian soul in America. This concert series is the group's annual theatre presentation for Bay Area audiences.

This concert features a mesmerizing current of fluid guitar music and stunning black-and-white photography. Grammy-nominated fingerstyle guitarist Alex de Grassi performs live to Yasujiro Ozu’s 1934 silent film classic A Story of Floating Weeds.  This is a rare opportunity to see this influential Japanese filmmaker’s original masterpiece on a big screen, and even rarer to hear it enhanced by de Grassi’s ever-changing improvised score. In the film, a traveling kabuki troupe revisits a small town where its aging director hopes to settle down with his former lover and grown son he has never known, but his jealous leading lady muddies the water.

A native of St. Petersburg, Russia, guitarist Grisha Goryachev has been acclaimed the world over for his blinding virtuosity and extraordinary musical sensitivity. As a master of both flamenco and classical styles, he has created a new genre all his own and garnered praise from such guitar luminaries as Paco de Lucía, Christopher Parkening, and Eliot Fisk.

Jérôme Mouffe is a brilliant guitarist from Belgium who has dazzled international audiences in various countries, including Spain, France, Italy, Austria, Germany, and the United States. Jérôme’s repertoire ranges from the Renaissance to the 20th century. His current focus for concert presentation and his upcoming CD is 19th century Italian composers including Paganini, Regondi, and Legnani.

This hilarious dark comedy was written by Tracy Letts, the Pulitzer Prize-winning author of Bug. It premiered at Chicago's Steppenwolf before going on to acclaimed productions in London and New York. Hired by the dissolute Smith family to murder the matriarch for insurance money, "Killer Joe" takes the daughter to bed as a retainer against his final payoff. Don’t miss this trailer-trash black comedy! Advisory: This play contains themes of an adult nature. It contains profanity, violence, nudity within sensual scenes, drug abuse, or any other elements which, when present, may be considered too intense for younger audiences. As a general guideline, RTE recommends this theatrical experience for audience members ages 18 years old and up.

For the past four years, the Playboy Comedy Show performed exclusively at The Palms Resort and Casino in Las Vegas. Now the San Jose Improv hosts this show goes on tour with some of the hottest stand-up comedians along with featured appearances by the Playboy Playmates. Creators Cort McCown and Paul Hughes set the stage for a night of fun and laughter with edgy comedy and adult- oriented humor. Recent tour performers include Jim Norton, Tommy Davidson, Harland Williams, Joel McHale, Bill Dwyer, Bryan Callen, Steve Byrne, Al Madrigal, John Caparulo, Sebastian, Robert Kelly, Daniel Tosh, Todd Glass, and Jon Reep. This evening's lineup features Dov Davidoff and Mrs. June 2010 Katie Vernola.

The Palo Alto Philharmonic opens the 2010-11 season with a special concert of Baroque music at the Palo Alto Art Center Auditorium. Music Director Thomas Shoebotham leads a select chamber orchestra in Bach’s Brandenburg Concerto No. 3, Vivaldi’s Concerto for Two Trumpets, Rameau’s Suite from Les Boreades, and the Bach Cello Suite in C Major.

This beautifully wrought drama, winner of the Pulitzer Prize in 2007, tells the story of the Corbett family's search for comfort in a world turned upside-down. A quietly moving play that's also witty and warm, the story explores the reconnection of relationships and the possibilities of hope after great tragedy. The play ultimately follows Becca and Howie Corbett's struggle back to the light of day, with Lindsay-Abaire showing the conflict, the anguish and the healing effects of humor with what the New York Times called, "meticulously mapped empathy." Note: Contains adult themes.

Comedian Brad Williams has lived a true comic Cinderella story. Born with Achondroplastic dwarfism, Brad would endure countless taunts and gawks from classmates and random people on the street. Instead of crying about it, Brad turned to humor. He discovered that by making jokes about his condition, he could make other people comfortable and get laughs in the process. Stand-up was a logical step for Brad and he began hitting the local open mic nights and coffeehouses. One night at a Carlos Mencia show, Carlos asked Brad if he wanted to perform. After his set, Mencia decided to bring Brad on the road with him as his opening act. Brad has been touring with Carlos ever since, even making a few appearances on The Mind of Mencia on Comedy Central. Brad's ability to make humorous observations that make everyone comfortable with difference is winning over audiences and proving that anyone can overcome their shortcomings.

Hosts Fernando Soltero and Robby Cole present a lineup featuring some of the Bay Area's most unique rising comedy stars, including Brendan Lynch, Mary Van Note, Cory Loykasek, and surprise guests.

Jonathan Safran Foer, best-selling aurthor of Everything Is Illuminated and Eating Animals, looks at our dining habits, insatiable appetites and the cultural meaning of food. He explores the ethical, environmental and health risks behind commercial fishing and factory farming and discusses his journey from carnivore to vegetarian. Hear from the man that actress Natalie Portman claims changed her from a "twenty-year vegetarian to a vegan activist."

Self-titled as an “all American immigrant,” Joe Wong came a long way from a rosy-eyed new immigrant to a blossoming comedian. His jokes range from ethnic, personal, political, observational to bizarre. It’s not always easy to categorize his humor, but it is always inspired.

Music shares a story... a passion... an energy! Internationally acclaimed pianist Gwendolyn Mok joins the Ives Quartet to perform Schumann's Piano Quintet in E-flat Major. This captivating work ushered in a new Romantic genre. Tonight's program also includes Haydn's Quartet in B-flat Major, Op. 50, No.1; Rudhyar's Quartet No. 2, Crisis and Overcoming; and Schumann's Piano Quintet in E-flat Major, Op. 44.

Music shares a story... a passion... an energy! Internationally acclaimed pianist Gwendolyn Mok joins the Ives Quartet to perform Schumann's Piano Quintet in E-flat Major. This captivating work ushered in a new Romantic genre. Tonight's program also includes Haydn's Quartet in B-flat Major, Op. 50, No.1; Rudhyar's Quartet No. 2, Crisis and Overcoming; and Schumann's Piano Quintet in E-flat Major, Op. 44.

This unique show blends stand-up comedy with science and humorous PowerPoint visuals. The show was developed by Tim Lee, a comedian and a PhD. Lee has become an underground sensation with over two million views of his YouTube videos. Audiences hungry for comedy that is smart and funny flock to his shows. Lee's comedy uses scientific phenomena and tools to explain everything from the hair that collects on a bar of soap to how his standards drop rapidly with abstinence.