An estimated 71 million people are expected to be traveling in the United States this Fourth of July weekend, a record for the midsummer holiday according to AAA. But if you’re planning to skip the busy airports and parking lot otherwise known as I-580 and stay in town, there is a full menu of activities from which to choose. There are events for art enthusiasts, history buffs, sports lovers, punk rockers, and classical music aficionados. Choose your adventure, and stay cool out there.
If there’s something you’d like us to consider for this weekly list, email azucena@oaklandside.org. And if you want to promote something on our calendar, you can use the self-submission form on our events page.
Oakland Sports Unity Day
Sports fanatics, rejoice. On July 6, for the price of a single $30 ticket, you can see the Oakland Spiders face off against the Portland Nitro in ultimate frisbee, the Pioneer League’s Oakland Ballers take on the Yolo Highwheelers, and the Oakland Roots duel with Louisville City FC. The Ballers first pitch is at 1:05 p.m. at Raimondi Park, the Spiders game starts at 5 p.m. at Fremont High School, and the Roots game kicks off at 7 p.m. at Cal State University, East Bay’s Pioneer Stadium.
Saturday, July 6, multiple locations, tickets $30
Calli: The Art of Xicanx Peoples at OMCA
“Calli” is a word derived from the Nahuatl language that signifies the essence of home, family, and lineage. A new exhibit at OMCA, Calli: The Art of Xicanx Peoples, explores those topics and more through intergenerational, feminist, queer, and Xicanx-Indigenous artworks. The exhibit features a variety of media, including sculpture, painting, photography, and poetry, to showcase and honor the stories of Xicanx peoples across California. The exhibit includes an adobe Mesoamerican stylized temple installation from rafa esparza, a border-focused installation from Consuelo Jimenez Underwood that addresses issues such as land commodification, militarization, dehumanization, and ecological impacts, and Melanie Cervantes’ soft sculpture installation of the Aztec moon goddess, Coyolxauhqui, among other works. The exhibit will be on display through Jan. 25, 2025.
Wednesday through Sunday, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., $6 in addition to museum admission ($19), free for members. Oakland Museum of California, 1000 Oak St., Oakland
F.M “Borax” Smith Estate tour with the Oakland Heritage Alliance
Dive into Oakland history and stretch your legs along the way with a two-mile walking tour of the Arbor Villa, Francis Marion “Borax” Smith’s palatial estate. Smith founded an international industry (20-Mule Team Borax is still sold today), established the Key Route System, and became one of Oakland’s most famous, colorful entrepreneurs. Smith married Mary “Mollie” Rebecca Thompson Wright in 1875 and moved to Oakland from Nevada in 1881. In 1882 Smith began accumulating parcels of land in Oakland that became the estate called Arbor Villa. He and Mollie moved into Oak Hall, the mansion they had built on the estate, in about 1895. The residence was furnished with a pipe organ built by the Farrand and Votey Organ Co. of Detroit as their Opus 852 in 1898. The tour visits the site of Oak Hall, the 9th Ave. palm trees, the Mary R. Smith Cottages and other historic houses, including ones designed by Bernard Maybeck and Julia Morgan.
Saturday, July 6, 10 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., $15 for members of Oakland Heritage Alliance, $20 for non-members, McKinley Ave. and Home Place East, Oakland
Live at Piedmont Piano Company: Laurence Hobgood and Matthew Szemela
Pianist Laurence Hobgood and violinist Matthew Szemela first connected roughly a decade ago and they quickly recognized a musical connection, an ability to seamlessly play off of one another. Hobgood is also a composer and producer and has performed at Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center, the White House, John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, Tanglewood, Hollywood Bowl, and the Sydney Opera House. Szemela moves across musical genres and has performed around the world and has recorded with a variety of artists including Jay-Z, Beyonce, Rihanna, Savion Glover, Sting, Lana Del Rey, Josh Groban, Placido Domingo, Bob Weir, and Olivia Newton John.
Sunday, July 7, 5 p.m., tickets $20, Piedmont Piano Company, 1728 San Pablo Ave., Oakland
Mosswood Meltdown
Oakland’s punk party is back. This will be king of camp John Waters tenth year hosting the Mosswood Meltdown music festival. The two-day festival is headlined by the B-52s and The Mummies, and there will also be sets from Bay Area-mainstays Hunx and his Punx as well as Big Freedia, Redd Kross, Pure Hell (playing their first west coast show in over 30 years), Gibby Haynes and the Paul Green Rock Academy performing songs by the Butthole Surfers, and many more. The event also includes a Peaches Christ Drag Contest. There are also a handful of affiliated pre- and post-parties at the Elbo Room, Eli’s Mile High Club and Thee Stork Club. The festival launched in 2009 as Burger Boogaloo and rebranded as Mosswood Meltdown in 2021. Weekend passes for the festival begin at $199, Saturday passes at $129 and Sunday passes at $99.
Saturday and Sunday, July 6 and 7, 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. daily, tickets start at $99, Mosswood Park 3612 Webster St. in Oakland
Coming Soon to the Town: Smokey Robinson Soulfully Yours at the Paramount
Originally booked for February of this year, the Smokey Robinson show at the Paramount has been moved to October 5 and tickets are on sale now. Robinson, who has more than 4,000 song credits to his name from his 60-year career, is a member of both the Rock ‘n’ Roll Hall of Fame and the Songwriters’ Hall of Fame.
Saturday, Oct. 5, 5 p.m., tickets start at $88, Paramount Theatre, 2025 Broadway, Oakland
