Arts & Events

On Friday, July 13, and Sunday, July 15, Berkeley Chamber Opera offers Giuseppe Verdi’s Giovanna d’Arco/Joan of Arc at the Hillside Club on Cedar Street. Following I Lombardi, Ernani, and I due Foscari, Giovanna d’Arco is Verdi’s seventh opera. It premiered in 1845 during the period Verdi referred to as his “prison” years, that is to say, the years when he churned out operas at a frantic pace to earn a living. Some scholars find more hints of Verdi’s future greatness in Giovanna d’Arco than in its immediate predecessors; but perhaps the most significant way in which this might be true is not musically but in this opera’s focus on father-daughter relations -- a subject that the mature Verdi returned to again and again, often very movingly. Loosely based on a play by Friedrich von Schiller, Giovanna d’Arco tells the tale of Joan of Arc’s mystical visions that inspire her to don helmet and sword to lead the French troops to victory over invading English troops. Departing from Schiller’s play in one respect, Temistocle Solera’s libretto eliminates Joan’s love-interest for the Frenchman Lionel and locates it instead in Carlo, or Charles VII, the French King. In both Schiller’s play and the Verdi-Solera opera, Joan of Arc is tormented by contending inner voices: a chorus of evil spirits urges her to seek the pleasures of the flesh while a chorus of angels entreats her to avoid worldly love and seek only the rewards of heaven. Throughout, Joan’s father, Giacomo, fears that his daughter has fallen in love with Carlo under the spell of evil spirits and a pact with the devil. -more-

Worth Noting:

As is often the case, community, board and commission meetings with interesting agendas are scheduled at the same time, very few are recorded and meeting minutes are sketchy at best.

Monday – the Homeless Commission has a site visit subcommittee meeting a 6:30 pm.

Tuesday – Landmarks subcommittee meets in the morning 10:30 on the Shellmound project. In the evening is the 3^rd Caring for Our Community on the homeless while at the same time City Council will be hearing at the work session about the differences in health outcomes by race and location (the council meeting should be video recorded).

Wednesday – The Commission on Labor will hear from Attorney Michael Grossman on ICE while the Planning Commission sits through a scoping session on the Environmental Impact Report for the Adeline Corridor.

Thursday – the agenda is not published yet for the Joint Subcommittee on Implementation of Housing Law



The agenda for the last City Council meeting (July 24) before summer recess is unbelievably long and available for comment (it is best to comment early if you want your email read council@cityofberkeley.info). At the Council Agenda Committee it was announced that there would be a Council meeting on Urban Shield on July 23, but that is not yet posted in the index.

July 24 City Council meeting Agenda Consent: 8. IKE Smart City Kiosks, 9. ACRO Temporary Staffing Contract, 10. Formal Bid Solicitations, 11. Minuteman Contract, 12. Contract Janitorial Service – Universal Building Services, 13. Ambulance Billing Services, 14. Aging Services Programs, 15. BOSS to Operate secure Storage, 16. Berkeley Way Application A1 Funds, 18. Housing Trust Funds for Housing Rehab, 19. Designating City’s Labor Negotiator, 20. MOU SEIU Local 1021 Maintenance and Clerical Chapters, 21. Unrepresented Employees Agreement, 24. Cyber Resilience Plan, 29. Selective Traffic Enforcement Program, 30. Rental Unmarked Vehicles, 31. Contract Crime Scene cleaners, 32. On-call services Phlebotomy and Sexual Assault Exams, 34. Sanitary sewer services, 35. & 41. Milvia Bikeway Project, 36. KPM Consulting, LLC. on-call Project and Construction, 38. Center Street Parking, 39. Recycling Transfer Station Rebuild Feasibility Study, 43. Use Agreements 1001, 1011 University, 44. Capital improvement paving, 45. Go Berkeley Residential Shared Parking Pilot contract, 46. Reject Bids Woolsley Street Project, 47. Reject Bids, Panoramic Hill Rehabilitation Project, 48. Art & Culture Plan, 49. ADU Pilot House the Homeless, 51. Posting Board and Commission meeting Minutes, 52. Ballot Measure Vision 2050, 54. RRFB Light San Pablo & Addison, 57. – 59. Support of Legislation Sanctuary State, Sexual assault investigations, Keep Families Together Act, Agenda Action: 60. 1446 Fifth Street Appeal, 61. a.&b. U1 Funds to repay Worker’s Comp 1001, 1007, 1011 University and 1925 Ninth Street, 62. Density Bonus, 63. Transfer Tax Ballot Initiative, 64. Rent Ordinance Ballot Initiative, 65. Emergency Preparedness 66. ADU Ordinance Updates, 67. Cannabis Nurseries, 68. Short Term Rental Ordinance, 69. Lobbyists Registration Ordinance, 70. Police Review Commission Charter Ballot Initiative, 71. Community service in lieu of Parking Penalties, 72. Use Nextdoor for Real Time BPD updates, 73. Allow City Staff to Serve as Commissioner, 74. Ballot measure 50-cents per ride tax on Transportation Network Companies, 75. Gender ID on public records, 77. Wildfire App for BPD to provide real time updates

https://www.cityofberkeley.info/Clerk/City_Council/2018/07_Jul/City_Council__07-24-2018_-_Regular_Meeting_Agenda.aspx

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