Petaluma Community, Arts and Entertainment Roundup – Petaluma Argus-Courier

Looking for something artsy to do this month? How about just something super entertaining and maybe at least a little community-based?

Here you go, Petaluma.

May we present a roundup of just some of the shows, concerts, exhibitions and festivals taking place – indoors and outdoors – over November (and a little bit of December).

Community: Grand Bazaar

Saturday and Sunday, Nov. 8 and 9, 10 a.m.-3 p.m.

Taking place this weekend at the Petaluma Fairgrounds, the Grand Bazaar presents an opportunity to kick off the holiday season (yep, it’s on its way) with a festive community-wide open market – with proceeds and raffle earnings supporting the drug awareness nonprofit Micah’s Hugs. Over 125 artisans will be sharing their handmade creations, a gorgeous array of dazzling holiday decorations, one-of-a-kind gifts, personal care items and “indulgences.” This is an indoor event, with free parking and shuttles from the lot to the Bazaar.

Film: ‘Lost and Found in Cleveland’

Nov. 6, 7 and 9

Though shot in and around Cleveland, the star-studded comedy-drama “Lost and Found in Cleveland” was co-produced by Gary and Marcia Nelson of Sonoma, where the film will be having a short run this weekend at the historic Sebastiani Theatre. Described as an “American slice-of-life fable that follows the personal odysseys of five very different people,” the film is centered on an Antique Roadshow-style television show, and the stories behind the people who bring their treasures to a taping in Cleveland with hopes of fame, fortune or information. Also described as “Best in Show” meets “The Wizard of Oz,” the film features performances by Martin Sheen, June Squibb, Loretta Devine, Dennis Haysbert, Jon Lovitz, and Stacey Keach. The film screens at 7 p.m. on Thursday Nov. 6 and Friday, Nov. 7, and at 2:30 p.m. and 5:30 p.m. on Sunday, Nov. 9.  The Sebastiani Theatre is at 476 1st, St. in Sonoma.

Community: Penngrove Pub Anniversary Party

Saturday, Nov. 8, 3-10 p.m.

Celebrating the anniversary of Penngrove Pub, the bands Eddie & the Fog and Pride & Joy will be performing, all for a $5 cover. Pride & Joy begins at 6 p.m.. Penngrove Pub is at 10005 Main St.

Cinema Series: ‘Checkpoint Zoo’

Wednesday, Nov. 12, 6 p.m. (pre-screening talk), 7 p.m. screening

In the early days of the Russian-Ukrainian War, a group of Ukrainian zookeepers and volunteers risked their lives to evacuate thousands of animals from Feldman Ecopark, caught between Russian shelling and advancing front lines. Joshua Zeman’s 2024 film “Checkpoint Zoo” captures this real-life drama through a visceral and immersive mix of firsthand footage, rescue mission captures, archival news clips and intimate interviews. The film screens at the Santa Rosa Junior College’s Carole L. Ellis auditorium.

Choral Group Singing: Pacific Empire Chorus

Wednesday, Nov. 12 and 19, Dec. 3

As the Pacific Empire Chorus prepares for its big Holiday Market and Concert on Dec. 6, three special “guest nights” are planned, with local singers invited to stop by and join in on a rehearsal, with a chance to join in on a song the night of the big show. Rehearsals are 6-8 p.m., at the First Presbyterian Church of Petaluma, 939 B. St.

Benefit: Space Orchestra at Griffo Distillery

Saturday, Nov. 15, 5 p.m.

Petaluma’s Griffo Distillery invites the community to Feed the Frequency – an evening of legendary Joe Cocker tunes with The Space Orchestra – as an emergency benefit for Sonoma County’s KWMR community radio, which lost its federal funding from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting in July, leaving a 26% hole in its annual operating budget. Inside Griffo’s super-cool distillery Production Room, the Space Orchestra, fronted by Netflix star Sebastian Saint James, will perform all the songs from Cocker’s iconic Mad Dogs and Englishmen album. The bartenders will be mixing up some specialty drinks from its new seasonal cocktail menu, there will be wood-fired pizza and other delicious offerings from Nomad Provisions, and artists will be doing “live painting” as the show goes on. Admission is $40 per person, $225 for a four-person VIP cocktail table (including 1 complimentary cocktail per guest), and $450 for an eight-person VIP cocktail table (including 1 complimentary cocktail per guest, tour-and-tasting packages, 10% off all retail kits and bottles to go). Purchase advance tickets at EventBrite.com.

Music: Emma’s Revolution

Sunday, Nov. 16, 4 p.m.

The renowned folk duo Emma’s Revolution – Pat Humphries and Sandy O. – currently on their multi-city We Are the Power Tour, will be visiting Petaluma a couple of time over the next several days. As part of the Sanctuary Concert Series presented by the Unitarian Universalists of Petaluma, they’ll playing an afternoon show on Nov. 16, featuring acclaimed songs such as “Swimming to the Other Side” and “If I Give Your Name,” with advance tickets $20 per seat or $25 at the door. But first, the duo will be hosting a very special musical worship service at UUP on Sunday, Nov. 9 at 10:30 a.m. Unitarian Universalists of Petaluma is at 16 Fifth St., Petaluma.

Theater: The Resistible Rise of Arturo Ui

Through Nov. 16

A satire-drenched, highly parable-like stage play about a gangster-ruled Chicago in the 1930s, Arturo Ui’s “The Resistible Rise of Arturo Ui” is an allegorically echo of Adolf Hitler’s rise to power in 1930s Germany. Petaluma’s increasingly bold Mercury Theater will offer a production of the play beginning on Halloween. “Set during an economic slump, the play follows the small-time gangster Arturo Ui as he takes over the city’s vegetable trade through corruption, bribery, and violence,” describes the blurb on Mercury’s website. “Each event and character in the play has a parallel to real-life events in Nazi Germany, serving as a cautionary tale to audiences that people’s complicity and lack of resistance allow demagogues to take control.” MercuryTheater.org.

Literary: ‘Floating in the Middle’

Wednesday, Nov. 19

Local author Frances Rivetti will be reading from her new novel “Floating in the Middle,” at the Petaluma Historical Library and Museum. The book, described as a combination of domestic suspense and environmental drama, takes place along California’s eroding coastline. The museum is at 40 Fourth St., Petaluma.

Community: Winter Wine Stroll

Thursday, Dec. 4, 5-8 p.m.

Seven Petaluma wine-tasting rooms and wine bars, spaced out along a one-mile span through the downtown area, will be celebrating the season by pouring two or three of fan-favorite wines. There will be “light bites” available, and tailor-made surprises dreamed up by the staff at each location. Participating locations include Montagne-Russe Winery and Record Lounge, Barber Cellars, Adobe Road Winery, Avinage Wine Shop, Brooks Note Winery, Vine and Barrel wine shop, Sonoma Port Works, and La Dolce Vita Wine Lounge.