Eric Kipp may be brilliant. Without a doubt, the spirit of San Francisco itself pulses quickly in his veins, because he is the creator of Hiking Yoga. It's exactly what it sounds like; you follow the charge up one of our butt-bustin' hills, and once you're up there, the organizer/sherpas hand... More >>

In ancient Rome, the god of fertility was honored in February, with ceremonial love lotteries and mock-floggings with a bloody goatskin. Even those are a pale reflection of truly bizarre courtships that unfold in the natural world. For example, the common garden snail is a hermaphrodite that... More >>

The Audium was started in 1965 by composer Stan Shaff and equipment designer Doug McEachern. Shows are Fridays and Saturdays, and you have to be there on time — they lock the door. The room fits 50 people or so. There are chairs arranged in a semicircle. There are something like 180... More >>

As a self-described "logical extension of a free public library," our local free walking-tour company is, like most libraries, a fascinating mash of nerdy and white-hot rad. The San Francisco City Guides walking tours happen every day (except major holidays), are free, and follow in the... More >>

Do yourself a favor: Today is the California Academy of Sciences Free Day. Emphasis on day -- perfect for the funderemployed, who more than anyone deserve a day of brain-melting beauty. So ditch the gray pounding and run-run-run pace of the city, in favor of the 4-story rainforest exhibit, to... More >>

Finding your voice as a writer is hard. Finding your voice as an erotic writer is all but impossible. In one direction is "awkward and clinical." In another is "Anne Rice." And there's literally hundreds of others that result in the rough equivalent of "I have a headache." Further complicating... More >>

Mud wrestling is so over. It's like Dynasty or that mechanical-bull thing that John Travolta made famous about 50 years ago in Oklahoma or Kansas or wherever that movie was. Here in sexy San Francisco -- in the enlightened 21st century -- we have lube wrestling, namely Go Deep: Let's Wrestle.... More >>

When you move to San Francisco and ask about the literary scene, Writers With Drinks is likely the first thing people tell you about. For one thing, most of us can get behind drinking as a social activity, especially when it’s being done by the witty and verbose. But the real reason is... More >>

Politicians and news outlets have started using the term "WPA" again — have you noticed? The Works Progress Administration, of course, put people to work during and after the Great Depression. Even artists were paid to work; the WPA encompassed projects that employed actors, painters, and... More >>

Poet Nikky Finney astonished the literary world with her eloquent acceptance speech for her 2011 National Book Award (host John Lithgow said, “That was the best acceptance speech for anything I’ve ever heard in my life”), and poets and writers all over the country shared the... More >>

If there is a playbook of rock band moves, the plan to "go somewhere weird and faraway to write and record new songs" would be on one of its most weathered pages. The reasoning behind the move is simple — new environments and situations inspire new ideas, etc. — and countless bands... More >>

Frankfurt might be the financial capital of Germany, but it also knows how to party. The city has been a hotspot for electronic dance music since the '80s, and in recent years it's enjoyed a reputation as a major player in the European house scene. The city's particular sound is best... More >>

Admit it: You're secretly nostalgic for the days of pancake makeup, Robert Smith hair, and goths. And hey, you're not alone. Recent years have seen the arrival of a number of parties exploring the darker side of club culture, one of which is Dark Room. It's a queer (but straight-friendly)... More >>

San Francisco’s craziest costume party is here once again. And it’s just like us to dress up for a 12k race. Sponsored by craigslist, the 102nd Bay to Breakers runs from the Embarcadero all the way across the city will feature costume contests with cash prizes. The course runs... More >>

The video for the Dillinger Escape Plan's "When I Lost My Bet" doubles as a nifty intro to the Morris Plains, N.J.-based outfit. The most disconcerting thing about Mitch Massie's gory fever dream of a clip, which promotes a track off the band's new record One of Us Is the Killer, is not its oil... More >>

Pusha T, half of the Virginia coke-rap duo Clipse and the last big-deal signee to Kanye West's G.O.O.D. Music label, works in mysterious ways. This helps explain how he came by his prodigious messiah complex (his first solo full-length, slated for release in July, is called My Name Is My Name):... More >>

Eve Ensler is the activist, playwright, and author responsible for worldwide hit The Vagina Monologues as well as the New York Times best-selling book I Am an Emotional Creature, among others. A woman who has spent much of her life exploring and documenting the female body and the issues which... More >>

The Center for the Art of Translation is without question one of the most impressive literary organization in the Bay Area, and recently it has been kicking things into high gear. On Wednesdays, it celebrate the launch of a new and expanded publishing arm, called Two Lines Press, with the... More >>

Formed in the early '90s, when guitarist Wata, bassist/guitarist Takeshi, and drummer Atsuo met while attending a Tokyo art school, the Japanese experimentalists in Boris have traveled a bewildering path from their early roots as drone/doom merchants. Early efforts Absolute Ego and Amplifier... More >>

In 2012, the Oxygen network premiered the reality show All the Right Moves. It followed Emmy-nominated choreographer Travis Wall as he started his dance company Shaping Sound with three lifelong friends. Could they make it as upstarts in today’s competitive dance industry? Would their... More >>

Jay Mohr is performing at the comedy club. He’ll be telling jokes, probably into a microphone, possibly in front of some projected background, or maybe there will be just a spotlight on him. Jay Mohr created the reality competition television program Last Comic Standing and he’s a... More >>

May sure is a busy time. School is ending, it’s Masturbation Month, and from May 18-26, the Sex Worker Film and Arts Festival is once again out to show San Francisco a good time. Started in 1999 as a forum for sex workers — including prostitutes, porn performers, exotic dancers, and... More >>

ArtPadSF brings the boutique art fair but skips the stodgy attitude. Founders Chip Conley and Maria Jenson proudly embrace the fair’s location in the gritty Tenderloin District, and ArtPad always makes room for emerging artists. For its third year, the event returns to “rock 'n'... More >>

Epic battles were waged, blood was spilt, villains vanquished, heroes triumphed and love endured, all on the battlefields conjured in our childhood bedrooms. Action fig-ures from GI Joe to Barbie, just inches high, loomed larger than life in our imagination. But then you grow up. To recapture... More >>

In a city that prides itself (see what we did there?) on having one of the most prominent and active LGBT communities in the world, how do you determine the best place to see a drag show? By going to the place with the most glitter! Described by one Yelp reviewer as "a slightly skeezy gay bar... More >>