Botti is back at SFJAZZ

Chris Botti is one of the most successful instrumentalists in history. The immensely talented jazz-pop trumpeter has hit No. 1 on the Billboard jazz albums chart on multiple occasions and sold millions of records during a professional career that dates back to the mid-’80s.

And after being nominated for multiple Grammy Awards, the Oregon native finally managed to win one when Grammy voters named “Impressions” the best pop instrumental album in 2013.

Botti has also worked with a regular who’s who in the pop world, having collaborated with James Taylor, Joni Mitchell, Sting, Shawn Colvin, Barbra Streisand, Aaron Neville, Rod Stewart and many others over the years. Oh, and did we mention he has also played with both Frank Sinatra and Aretha Franklin? Now, that’s impressive company.

He’s currently on the road supporting “Vol. 1,” which — incredibly — is just his first full-length studio outing since “Impressions” in 2012. It was produced by 16-time Grammy-winner David Foster and features violinist Joshua Bell, drummer Vinnie Colaiuta, guitarist Gilad Hekselman and Bay Area pianist Taylor Eigsti. Botti’s tour brings him back to San Francisco for his popular annual stint at SFJAZZ Center.

Details: Tuesday through Jan. 12; SFJAZZ’s Miner Auditorium; $55-$185; sfjazz.org.

— Jim Harrington, Staff

Barking up the right tree

Plenty of people — kids and their parents, mostly — have heard of Captain Underpants, the tighty-whitey-wearing superhero who fights crime with his unique “wedgie power.” Perhaps fewer have heard of the spin-off character Dog Man, also created by writer and illustrator Dav Pilkey: He’s a hero with the head of a dog sewn onto the body of a policeman, who also fights crime despite being nonverbal and prone to canine habits like chewing on furniture.

Well, now Dog Man has his own theatrical production. Running for one weekend at San Francisco’s Curran Theatre, “Dog Man: The Musical” (recommended for ages 6-10) chronicles the adventures of the titular hound as he strives to save his city from the villainous Flippy the cyborg fish. There’s plenty to delight young theatergoers, from slapstick to singing to “Petey, the world’s most evil cat, who has cloned himself to “exact revenge on the doggy do-gooder,” according to the show’s organizers. If that seems too intense for tots, there is one intermission where they can put themselves back together by eating sugary theater concessions.

Details: 11 a.m. and 2 and 5 p.m. Saturday, 11 a.m. and 2 p.m. Sunday; 80 minutes; Curran Theatre, San Francisco; tickets start at $48; www.broadwaysf.com.

— John Metcalfe, Staff

‘Hot’ stuff in San Francisco

Cross-dressing, or drag, entertainment is so common these days it’s easy to forget that when the film “Some Like It Hot” was released in 1959, the Motion Picture Production Code refused to endorse it because it featured two male actors — Tony Curtis and Jack Lemmon — disguising as women to hide from the mob.

The Production Code rebuff, as well as co-star Marilyn Monroe’s reported difficulty in filming and remembering her lines, apparently didn’t hurt “Some Like It Hot” too much — the film, directed by Bill Wilder, is considered one of the best comedic movies of all time.

It has been adapted twice for the stage — the 1972 musical “Sugar,” and a 2019 musical “Some Like It Hot.” The latter features music and lyrics by Marc Shaiman and Scott Wittman (the duo behind “Hairspray”) and a book by Matthew López and Amber Ruffin. After being delayed by the Covid pandemic, “Some Like It Hot” made its Broadway debut in 2022. Now it’s on a national tour that’s headed to the Orpheum Theatre in San Francisco.

Details: Presented by BroadwaySF; Tuesday through Jan. 26; 2 hours, 40 minutes, one intermission; tickets start at $55.50; www.broadwaysf.com.

— Randy McMullen, Staff

W&G back to ‘fowl’ things up

It’s always a pleasure to spend time with the kooky animated duo of inventor Wallace and his problem solver of a dog Gromit, even if the film they’re in feels a little like the same-old, same-old.

Such is the case with their latest entertaining Aardman Animations adventure, “Wallace & Gromit: Vengeance Most Foul,” which debuts this week. Also back in “Vengeance” is the dastardly criminal Feathers McGraw, the devious penguin that was a breakout star in what is arguably Wallace & Gromit’s greatest hit, “The Wrong Trousers.” The new film also introduces us to Norbot — a robotic, people-pleasing gnome created by Wallace that, of course, goes haywire. Trouble and nonsense ensue, not necessarily in that order, with Gromit always managing to save the bumbling Wallace from himself.

True to form, “Vengeance Most Foul” is stuffed with hilarious film references, sly asides and frantic chases. It’s might not be the best effort from creators/directors Nick Park and Merlin Crossingham, but the peppy comedy is definitely fun for the entire family.

Details: Rated PG; 1 hour, 19 minutes; Debuts Friday on Netflix.

— Randy Myers, Correspondent

Go with the ‘Glow’

Art, science and technology bend the boundaries of perception in dazzling, immersive installations in the Exploratorium’s annual “Glow” exhibition now on view in San Francisco.

Interactive and for all ages, “Glow” includes old favorite artworks and eight new ones that are meant to engage people with a broad array of interests and are “hands-on,” meaning visitors are invited to interact with the various displays.

Artist Zach Lieberman, who calls his process “poetic computations,” contributed “Sketches,” a study of light, shadow, refraction and illumination; and “Reflection Studies,” which invites people to play with typography and graphic design by “painting text” on a wall.

Meanwhile, “Light Lilies,” by the group known as Collective Paper Aesthetics, includes a static sculpture and an interactive area. Visitors are invited to construct their own pop-up architecture after viewing and observing an 8.85-foot sculpture made of 36 illuminated bilunabirotunda (three-dimensional polyhedron objects).

And “Well of Lights” is a returning installation featuring projected floating objects created with layers of plastic sheets and strobe lights created by Toshio Iwai, an Exploratorium artist-in-residence, in 1992. Exploratorium director of temporary exhibitions Allison Roach said the “beautiful and a longtime favorite” display was restored after extensive consultation with the artist.

Details: Through Jan. 26; The Exploratorium, Pier 15, the Embarcadero; San Francisco; $30-$40; exploratorium.edu.

— Lou Fancher, Bay Area News Foundation