Night+Day

wednesday
july 5
Caring and Sharing Talk about exhaustive research: To prepare for his "Love and Affection Tour," comedian Scott Capurro has spent long hours in bars and clubs, supermarkets and cafes -- even public pools and fruit stands -- conversing with the lovelorn and melancholy. In the process, he's met a lot of friends (not peers), mostly boys between the ages of 18 and 22. Scott has "guided them through some inner-body work, and perhaps a few deep-tissue massages." In return, they've taught him rap lyrics. Join in the schmoozefest (where, Capurro warns, "there will be so much love someone may have to be killed") at 8 p.m. at Josie's Cabaret and Juice Joint, 3583 16th St, S.F. The show continues through Sunday, July 9. Tickets are $12; call 861-7933.

You Better Work A celebration in honor of workers and their unions, "Laborfest '95" spans 12 days, and it offers a variety of recreational activities: film and video screenings, guided mural tours, art and photography exhibits (including work by Dorothea Lange and Walker Evans), and readings. Dedicated to supermarket and newspaper workers, the festival's first night features music by local (and Local) performers, and a special video show. The fun begins at 7:30 p.m. at LWU Local 34 Union Hall, 4 Berry, S.F. Tickets are $5-10; call 587-1220.

thursday
july 6
Love and Cutlery The latest effort by area playwright John Fisher (The Joy of Gay Sex), Medea: The Musical isn't really a song-and-dance version of Euripides' play -- it's about a theater company trying to produce the so-named show. In a bit of timely satire, Fisher himself appears as the ill-fated show's director, still smarting from a Shakespeare-festival fiasco (his leading man portrayed Hamlet as Bette Davis). Cutlery in hand, Fisher and Medea attack sacred cows (feminism, gay rights) and irritating theatrical practices (in particular, modern revisions of literary classics). Are the results bloody funny? Find out for yourself at an 8 p.m. preview performance at the Lorraine Hansberry Theatre, 620 Sutter, S.F. The show continues Wed-Sat at 8 p.m. through July 29. Tickets are $14-20; call 436-0806.

The Ice Queen She's blond, beautiful, French, intellectual, and emotionally remote. She made her debut in a Roman Polanski film, and currently, she appears on the new Malcolm McLaren album (unfortunately, McLaren does, too). She's Catherine Deneuve, and she's an icon: Why, she even has a magazine (the lesbian chic Deneuve) named after her. The tale of a cold bourgeoise woman with a steamy erotic life, Luis Bu–uel's Belle de Jour is tailor-made for Deneuve. Describing the 1967 film ("ravishing, perverse, hilarious, and poetic all at once"), Martin Scorsese sounds like Gene Shalit. Find out what got Marty so hot and bothered at a benefit screening for the Pacific Film Archive at 7:30 p.m. at the George Gund Theater, 2621 Durant, Berkeley. Tickets are $10; call (510) 642-1412.

Johnson and Johnson The Robert Henry Johnson Dance Company has rapidly gained an international reputation; technically precise, their performances mix neoclassical ballet with modern, African, and urban dance. In conjunction with the "Bay Area Dance Series," playwright/choreographer Johnson and his African-American crew are spreading three premieres over two separate full-length programs, one of which features a special guest appearance by Christina Johnson, principal dancer with the Dance Theater of Harlem. The program begins at 7:30 p.m. at Laney College Theater, 900 Fallon, Oakland, and continues through July 9. Tickets are $5-14; call (510) 889-9550.

friday
july 7
Bitchin' GTO Since its 1971 release, Two-Lane Blacktop has attained midnight-movie status, as reflected by its inclusion in the first of critic Danny Peary's excellent trio of books on cult films. Low on dialogue, high on speed (get it?), Monte Hellman's road flick stars snake-eyed, stubbly-faced Warren Oates, in a performance the esteemed Leonard Maltin felt should have gotten an Oscar. Bring Me the Head of Alfredo Garcia, a lesser-known Sam Peckinpah actioner, rounds out an Oates double-bill. The trip starts at 8 p.m. at Victoria Theatre, 2961 16th St, S.F. Tickets are $6.50; call 863-7576.

Thunder and Lightning Omulu Capoeira Group specializes in Afro-Brazilian dance, martial arts, music, and acrobatics. San Francisco Taiko Dojo studies and performs traditional Japanese drumming. Dancing Thunder brings the two companies together to explore shared (both Capoeira and Taiko involve improvisation) and distinct cultural identities (Capoeira emerged as a form of self-defense, whereas Taiko began as an expression of good will). Presented in conjunction with the S.F. Museum of Modern Art exhibit "Japanese Art After 1945: Scream Against the Sky," the movement and rhythm begin at 7:30 p.m. at Center for the Arts, 701 Mission, S.F. The program continues through July 9. Tickets are $12-18; call 978-2787.

saturday
july 8
Beer and Food Or food and beer, whichever you consider more important. Consume large amounts of both at KQED's International Beer and Food Festival -- 250 different brews (including banana and peach flavors) and 40 different restaurant booths. Also, free shuttle service will be on hand to cart happy campers home safely. A benefit for KQED, the three-hour event starts at 1 p.m. at the S.F. Concourse, Eighth & Brannan, S.F. Tickets are $35; call 553-2200.

Frankie and Adeva The new CD Welcome to the Real World brings together two of the most famous names in house music -- DJ/songwriter Frankie Knuckles and singer Adeva -- so its current status as the No. 1 dance album in America is hardly surprising. Credited by many as the inventor of house, Knuckles was recently name-dropped by Patsy and Edina on Absolutely Fabulous -- whether that's a curse or a compliment is for you to decide. Hear him, Adeva, and DJs Page Hodel and David Harness at 9:30 p.m. at Club Universe, 177 Townsend, S.F. Tickets are $10; call 985-5241.