Woody and Friends

THE ANGST-RIDDEN FILM DIRECTOR who created Annie Hall, Match Point and, most recently, Scoop is as renowned for his cerebral films and controversial marriage as he is for his self-deprecating remarks.

“How can I believe in God,” Woody Allen bemoans, “when just last week I got my tongue caught in the roller of an electric typewriter?”

Catching Allen in the act of performing with his lively New Orleans jazz band is as much of a curiosity as seeing him smile. He sits surrounded by his musicians, blowing into his clarinet with eyebrows raised, both feet stomping out the beat. Up close, the little veins in his forehead course with the thrill of performing the music he adores.

New Yorkers are accustomed to this joyous side of the award-winning director; the Woody Allen Band has a standing engagement Monday nights at Manhattan’s Café Carlyle. During the winter months, the group usually tours Europe. But for the first time, the Woody Allen Band is visiting the West Coast, and San Diego audiences can see the show December 19 at Copley Symphony Hall.

The special event comes courtesy of ArtPower! at the University of California, San Diego. On that evening, a preperformance dinner complemented by wine pairings is offered at Café Chloe in downtown San Diego. The $75 price includes dinner, wine and gratuity. Tickets for the concert range from $40 to $85, with a $10 discount offered to students. The intention of ArtPower! is to connect the UCSD student body and the community with artists who enlighten and entertain. Its season continues into 2007, with an eclectic lineup of lectures, dance and music performances staged at Mandeville Auditorium (unless otherwise noted).

Two outstanding chamber groups are highlighted next year: The progressive Kronos Quartet performs January 19, and the seven-time Grammy Award–winning Emerson String Quartet plays January 27. A concert by the sizzling Latin group Los Lobos is on February 8, followed by a world premiere by the Jupiter String Quartet at the Neurosciences Institute on February 16. An ensemble of young drummers known as the Taikoproject performs February 22, and the female dancers who make up the Brooklyn-based Urban Bush Women take the stage February 24. The dance troupe is known for stirring ideas about social change by integrating music, a cappella vocalizations and expressive choreography.

New York Times political and pop culture columnist Frank Rich discusses his new book, The Greatest Story Ever Sold: The Decline and Fall of Truth from 9/11 to Katrina, at the Price Center Ballroom on February 26. A world premiere by the Arditti String Quartet on March 2 showcases a new work by the winner of the UCSD Graduate Music Composition competition, and a performance by Australian dance company Chunky Move on March 8 reveals the conflicted feelings men have about dancing in public.

The three final shows of the season include the Takacs String Quartet on April 1, and what has been called a striking and starkly beautiful dance production. Themes of good and evil are alluded to in “Hell,” a dance created by choreographer Emio Greco and theater director Pieter C. Scholten, showcased April 19. The Amsterdam-based ensemble incorporates everything from Japanese butoh to judo in a vibrant work that concludes with the dancers performing nude to the allegro con brio movement of Beethoven’s Fifth Symphony. On April 22, singer Dulce Pontes makes her San Diego debut with a concert of fado (Portuguese urban folk music) selections.

Tickets range in price from $30 to $36; students get a $10 discount. Call the UCSD Box Office at 858-534-TIXS or visit artpower.ucsd.edu.

Do you like what you read? Subscribe to San Diego Magazine »