Thu, Sep 4

Montalvo Summer Gala Featuring Ringo Starr and his All Starr Band, which includes Sheila E, Paul Carrack of Squeeze, John Waite and Colin Hay of Men At Work. 8pm. $75-$300. Garden Theatre, Villa Montalvo, 15400 Montalvo Rd, Saratoga, 408.961.5858.

Opera Lecture The San Jose Opera Guild hosts a lecture on Mozart's "Die Zauberflote" ("The Magic Flute"), which will be presented by San Francisco Opera this fall. With lecturer Simon Williams, a professor at UC-Santa Barbara. 10am. Free to Guild members/$10 guests. Luncheon $10. No reservations required. Los Gatos History Club, 123 Los Gatos Blvd, Los Gatos. For more information, call 408.378.4823.

Music in the Park The annual free outdoor music series concludes with a performance by rocker Greg Kihn. 5pm-8:15pm. Free. Plaza de Cesar Chavez, Market and San Fernando streets, San Jose, 408.279.1775 or www.sjdowntown.com.

Triton Museum of Art Opening day "A Woman's Place," an exhibit of works by the South Bay Area Women's Caucus for Art. Reception: Sun, Sep 14, 1pm-3pm. Thru Sep 29 at the Rose Shenson Community Art Gallery at the Triton. Also: Opening day for an exihibit of abstract works by Mike Henderson. Reception: Thu, Sep 18, 6pm-8pm. Thru Nov 2. 1505 Warburton Ave, Santa Clara, 408.247.3754 or www.tritonmuseum.org.

Sat, Sep 6

Don Pasquale Opera San Jose presents Donizetti's well-loved opera buffa about an old man who gets taught a lesson in love with a sham marriage. Opening night, 8pm. Also plays Sun, Sep 7, 3pm, Tue, Sep 9, 8pm. Thru Sep 27. $43-$63. Montgomery Theatre, Market and San Carlos streets, San Jose, 408.437.4450 or www.operasj.org.

Sun, Sep 7

Artists Getting Together for JNF An art event featuring paintings, ceramics, jewelry, Judaica, photography, textiles, stained-glass and much more. Also, Israeli filmmaker and author Doron Nesher discusses his experiences as Israel Emissary for JNF in Northern California. A fundraiser for the Jewish National Fund. 4pm-8pm. Congregation Beth Am, 26790 Arastradero Rd, Los Altos Hills.

Banjo Jubilee The Peninsula Banjo Band hosts its 31st annual banjo event, featuring performances by Northern California banjo bands and soloists. Proceeds from the event benefit local charities. Noon-5pm. $15 at the door/$12 advance/$10 group rate (10 or more). Hyatt Rickeys, 4219 El Camino Real, Palo Alto, 650.347.1987 or 408.268.3956 or 650.851.7223.

Montalvo Gallery Opening reception for "Bean Finneran: Arcs in Time," an exhibition of site-specific installations in ceramic sculpture by artist Bean Finneran. The artist will speak at the reception. 3pm-5pm. Thru Nov 2. Regular gallery hours are Wed-Sun, 1pm-4pm. Montalvo Gallery, Villa Montalvo, 15400 Montalvo Rd, Saratoga, 408.961.5813.

Wired Gardens An interactive multimedia performance by Stanford's Center for Computer Research in Music and Acoustics. Presented as part of the "Changing Garden" exhibit. 2pm. Free. Cantor Arts Center, Stanford University, 650.723.4177.

Tue, Sep 9

Opera Lecture The San Jose Opera Guild hosts a lecture on Virgil Thomson's opera "The Mother of Us All," which plays this fall at the San Francisco Opera. With lecturer John Rockwell, former editor of the Arts and Leisure section of the New York Times.
10am. Free to Guild members/$10 guests.
No reservations required. Los Gatos History Club, 123 Los Gatos Blvd, Los Gatos. For more information, call 408.378.4823.

Wed, Sep 10

Spyro Gyra The legendary contemporary jazz group performs. With jazz guitar favorite Lee Ritenour. 7:30pm. $35-$65. Garden Theatre, Villa Montalvo, 15400 Montalvo Rd, Saratoga, 408.961.5858.

Ongoing

Art Museum of Los Gatos Multimedia sculptures by Richard Knight. Reception: Sun, Sep 14, 1pm. Exhibit runs thru Sep 26. Tait and Main streets, Los Gatos, 408.354.0071.

Buddy: The Buddy Holly Story San Jose Stage Company presents a play that tells the story of early rock & roll legend Buddy Holly, featuring Holly's music. Thu, Sep 4-Sat, Sep 6, 8pm, Sun, Sep 7, 2pm, Wed, Sep 10, 8pm. $28-$38. Extended thru Sep 28. San Jose Stage Company, 490 S. First St, San Jose, 408.283.7142 or www.sanjosestage.com.

d.p. Fong Galleries "N-Style Fashion" blown glass artworks by Todd Kobashi. Thru Sep 30. 371 S. First St, San Jose, 408.298.8877.

Gaslighter Theater Cheer the hero and boo the villain in the original melodrama "The Orphans of Campbell." The melodrama is followed by the Gaslighter's Nearly World Famous Vaudeville Review. Fri-Sat, 8pm. thru Aug 30. $12-$15. Dinner shows available for parties of 20 or more. Also: "Hot Off the Presses" or "A Good Newspaperman Is Hard to Find," a children's vaudeville show. Every Sat, 2pm. Thru Aug 30. Gaslighter Theater, 400 E. Campbell Ave, Campbell, 408.866.1408 or www.thegaslighter.com.

Japanese American Museum "1942: Luggage From Home to Camp." Thru June 2004. Tue-Fri, 11am-3pm, Sun, 11am-2pm. 535 N. Fifth St, San Jose, 408.294.3138 or www.jamsj.org.

A Midsummer Night's Dream The Shady Shakespeare Theatre Company presents Shakespeare's magical romantic comedy. Fri, Aug 29-Sun, Aug 31, 7pm. Thru Sep 14. Free (parking $4). Sanborn Skyline County Park, 16055 Sanborn Road (off Highway 9), Saratoga, 408.298.0649 or see www.shadyshakes.org.

San Jose Institute of Contemporary Art "Introductions South," a group show of works by emerging artists. Thru Sep 20. Also: "I'm the Pretty One," a nighttime installation by Kerry Loewen, thru Oct 25, and "Dwellings," a nighttime installation by Tracy Snelling. Thru Sep 20. Tue-Fri, 10am-5pm, Sat, noon-5pm. Closed Sun and Mon. 451 S. First St, San Jose, 408.283.8155 or www.sjica.org.

San Jose Museum of Art "Keith Carter: Poet of the Ordinary," an exhibit of black-and-white photography. Thru Sep 14. "Bean Finnerean Installation," sculptures of thousands of hanmade clay cylinders (thru Oct) and "Hidden Lives: Eleanor Prager and Don Martin," works from the museum's permanent collection (thru Jan 2004). "Collection Highlights," an exhibit of works from the museum's permanent collection. Thru Fri, Sept 12. Walking tours of public art in downtown San Jose. Docents lead four different 45-minute tours, which alternate weeks. Rain cancels tours. Every Mon thru Sep 29, noon. Meet at the museum. Tue-Sun, 11am-5pm, Fri, 11am-10pm, closed Mon. 110 S. Market St, San Jose, 408.271.6840 or www.sjmusart.org.

San Jose Museum of Quilts "Under Cover: Political Expressions in Traditional Quilts," an exhibition which focuses on traditional American quilts that give voice to political viewpoints or support political movements or social causes. Museum admission $4-$5. Thru Oct 26. Tue-Wed, Fri-Sun, 10am-5pm, Thu, 10am-8pm. San Jose Museum of Quilts and Textiles, 110 Paseo de San Antonio, San Jose, 408.971.0323 or www.sjquiltmuseum.org.

Stanford's Cantor Arts Center "Print Matters: Explorations With Paper in Contemporary Prints." Ongoing thru Oct. "The Changing Garden: Four Centuries of European and American Art." Thru May 2004. The center also features free docent-led tours of the Stanford campus' outdoor art collection. Two different tours are offered, one on the first Sun of the month, the other on the third Sun of the month. Both tours begin at 2pm. Tours are held rain or shine on an ongoing basis. Wed-Sun, 11am-5pm, Thu, 11am-8pm. Cantor Arts Center, Stanford University, Museum Way (off Palm Dr), Stanford, 650.723.4177 or www.stanford.edu/dept/ccva.

Triton Museum of Art Works by six local artists who are being recognized by the Arts Council of Silicon Valley. Thru Sep 7. "Patterns: Selections From the Permanent Collection." Thru Sun, Aug 24. "New Works by California Artists: Ev Thomas." Thru Sep. Works by Theodore Wores. Thru Feb 2004. Mon-Wed, 11am-5pm, Thu, 11am-9pm, Fri-Sun, 11 am-5pm. 1505 Warburton Ave, Santa Clara, 408.247.3754 or www.tritonmuseum.org.