San Francisco Mime Troupe at Dolores Park
A liberal San Franciscan missing the July 4 Mime Troupe performance is like a fire department missing its small-town Independence Day parade. Heck, we've never seen the July 4 fireworks, but we can't remember the last time we didn’t see the Mime Troupe. Of course, our recollection of the actual shows are a bit hazy, due in small part to the minor sun stroke and in much larger part to the after-show pitchers of margaritas we guzzled in the Mission with our theater-geek buddies (don't bring alcohol to the show). This year's offering is which imagines--imagines--some unnamed nation that is ruled by religious fervor and follows a civic teacher determined to crush the rhetoric. So bring your friends, blankets, nosh and sunscreen and partake in this annual liberal ritual. (And if you have conservative friends, bring them too--the Mime Troupe has been preaching to the choir for far too long now.)
Plays July 4 at Dolores Park; see the whole schedule

We Are Not These Hands at Ashby Stage
San Francisco company Crowded Fire crosses the Bay Bridge to try out the Ashby Stage, better known as the home of Shotgun Players. But never fear, San Franciscans! Ashby Stage is right across the street from the BART station, and if you're inclined to drive anyway, there's a fair amount of street parking. Next in a long line of world premieres that Crowded Fire has produced, We Are Not These Hands, by on-the-rise playwright Sheila Callaghan, explores two countries--one rich and one that has been destroyed by war, poverty and dictatorship. Yet, like cockroaches, Internet cafes have survived, and a couple of teenagers kill time at one café in particular until they meet a scholar from the other side of the river. Callaghan's work has been seen Impact Theatre--SFist Cheshire's stomping grounds--and is a good bet for the under-35 crowd looking for offbeat theater fare.
Playing through July 16

Updates: In a brilliant marketing move, The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, the hit off-kilter musical about misfits and outright losers that vie for top prize at a local spelling bee, presents special adult-only performances on July 11 and 23, and August 8 and 20. That's right, the show that features a kid with uncontrollable erections takes things ever further with these performances for people 17 and over only. Seriously, we know people who have seen the show twice already and are dying to nab tickets to these sure-to-be-raunchy performances. Also, the producers have announced a closing date of September 3 for Spelling Bee, so if you were planning on seeing it, oh, sometime, time to make definite plans.
A couple of weeks ago, we told you about American Limbo, a solo show at Magic Theatre based on Dante's Divine Comedy. Producing company Oakland Public Theatre has since announced that the opening date has been moved back to June 29.

Photo of The SF Mime Troupe (Keiko Shimosato, Michael Carriero, Amos Glick, Lisa Hori-Garcia, Velina Brown, Christian Cagigal, Victor Toman and Michael Sullivan) by Matisse Michalski.

For more stage options, check out the listings at the Guardian, the Express, the SF Weekly, and the calendar on Theatre Bay Area's website.

Godfellas,