The It List: Five things to do in Berkeley, weekend of June 21-23 – Berkeleyside

Fashion show in the redwood grove at the UC Botanical Garden
A rapt audience when the UC Botanical Garden last held a fashion show in its redwood grove. There’s a new edition of Runway in the Redwoods on Sunday. Photo: Paige Green/UC Botanical Garden

RUNWAY IN THE REDWOODS Runway in the Redwoods on Sunday is a nature-inspired fashion show and fundraiser at the UC Botanical Garden. The eight designers-in-residence who are participating have created pieces on the themes of Seeds, Growth, Bloom and Decay/Transformation. The works use natural fibers and plant-based dyes. The designers are Kristine Vejar, Erica Tanov,  Sierra Reading, Kenya Miles, Christina Kim, Aleishall Girard-Maxon, Angelina DeAntonis and Ashley Corso. The event takes place in the garden’s Mather Redwood Grove Amphitheater – a runway through the redwoods – with live music accompaniment, local artisanal wine, cocktails and appetizers. Pieces from the show, as well as other garments from the designers’ fashion lines, will be available for purchase. The fashion show is part of the Botanical Garden’s Year of Ethnobotany. Sunday, June 23, 4-6 p.m., UC Botanical Garden, 200 Centennial Dr.

PRIDE COMEDY NIGHT Producer/comedian Lisa Geduldig, best known for her annual Kung Pao Kosher Comedy (Jewish comedy on Christmas in a Chinese restaurant, duh) has assembled a Pride Comedy Night at the Freight & Salvage on Sunday. The line-up includes Marga Gomez (Robin Williams: “A lesbian Lenny Bruce”), Sampson McCormick (Gomez and McCormick, left), Karinda Dobbins and Geduldig herself. Sunday, June 23, 7 p.m., Freight & Salvage, 2020 Addison St.

JENNIFER WEINER If you’re suffering withdrawal symptoms because the Bay Area Book Festival is six weeks in the past, fear not. The festival, as part of their Women Lit series, has what it’s calling a “Girls’ Night Out” with bestselling author Jennifer Weiner talking about her new book, Mrs. Everything. Weiner will be interviewed by Inflection Point’s Lauren Schiller. There’s also a pre-event dinner with cocktails if you really want to make an evening of it. Saturday, June 22, 7:30 p.m., Brower Center, 2150 Allston Way.

ROCK ‘N’ FILM We raved last week about BAMPFA’s summer outdoor screening series It’s Only Rock ‘n’ Roll, which opened last week with a showing of the great Stop Making Sense. On Saturday, David James, who wrote the book that inspired the series, will be speaking about “the rich legacy of cinema’s dance with popular music” in an illustrated lecture. It should rev you up for A Hard Day’s Night next month. Saturday, June 22, 5:30 p.m., BAMPFA, 2155 Center St.

GERMAN REQUIEM The Berkeley Community Chorus & Orchestra will be performing Brahms’ German Requiem in three concerts in Hertz Hall over the weekend (a prelude the BCCO’s tour of Baltic states and Sweden this summer). Ming Luke leads the 240-member symphonic chorus and orchestra, with soloists Ellen Leslie (soprano) and Andrew Pardini (baritone). Concerts are free and are often very popular: BCCO insiders recommend the Friday night performance as the best chance to grab a seat. Friday, June 21, 8 p.m., Saturday, June 22, 3 p.m., Sunday June 23, 3 p.m., Hertz Hall.

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