Freebie(s) of the week: A couple of free concerts in the Bay Area this week promise a celebratory vibe and encouragement for those who want to bust a move or two. In Cupertino, the Summer Concert Series presents veteran Bay Area dance/party outfit, the Joint Chiefs. The Santa Cruz-based band has been serving up its take on classic R&B, soul and funk standards for more than 35 years, honing its sound through countless festivals, corporate gigs and community concerts. The music runs from 6:30 to 8 p.m. Thursday at the Memorial Park Amphitheatre, 21163 Anton Way, Cupertino. Blankets and lawn chairs are allowed. The series runs Thursday nights through Aug. 21. More information is at www.cupertino.gov/Parks-Recreation/Events. And in Walnut Creek, the Summer Sounds free concert series presents Michigan band VUP, which specializes in creative takes on classic hits by Stevie Wonder, Michael Jackson, D’Angelo, Chaka Khan and more, led by the powerhouse vocals of Arian Kertsman. The show starts at 5:30 p.m. Thursday at the Rudney Plaza at the Lesher Center for the Arts, 1601 Civic Drive. More information is at www.lesherartscenter.org/events.
Strings attached: The art of puppetry dates to the 5th century B.C., where Greek and Indian practitioners developed the form to entertain and create stylized portrayals of myths, legends and fables. While the world of puppetry has evolved and expanded since, the art form in some ways remains pretty much the same. Whether employing hand or arm movements, strings or mechanized arrangements, puppetry remains a popular form of storytelling; it’s been practiced to great success by San Francisco’s Fratello Marionettes since 1989. The company, using puppets it creates, has staged performances around the world. It has a big role in this weekend’s Napa Valley Puppetry Festival, running Friday and Saturday at The White Barn theater in St. Helena, offering performances, workshops, a Giant Puppet Parade and even a variety show titled “Forbidden Puppet Cabaret.” Most events cost $5. The White Barn, a 75-seat converted 1872 carriage house, is at 2727 Sulphur Springs Ave. in St. Helena. Events and performances are both inside and outside. More information is at nvpuppfest.com.
Ringing in the new: Since its debut in 1970, Palo Alto’s TheatreWorks Silicon Valley has earned a reputation as a company dedicated to presenting new productions. It’s planning to kick off its 55th season in September with a world premiere production of Bay Area playwright Lauren Gunderson’s new adaptation of Louisa May Alcott’s classic “Little Women.” The company’s 22nd annual New Works Festival, which kicks off this week, also is a big deal. Running Friday through Aug. 17, the festival offers performances and readings of more than a half-dozen new shows, many in more than one presentation. Among the highlights are “Vienna,” a musical by Irene Sankoff and David Hein, who created “Come From Away”; “Alice, Formerly of Wonderland,” an a cappella musical about the real life of the famed children’s novel protagonist; and “Bridges,” a new musical based on the songs of Oakland musical duo The Kilbanes. Opening the festival on Friday is the provocatively titled comedy “Old Cock,” which centers on the Rooster of Barcelos, who according to legend, comes back to life on the dinner table to help a wrongly accused man find innocence. In this new re-imagining by Tony Award-winning playwright Robert Schenkkan, the Rooster has more than a few pointed questions about his backstory. Performances are at the Lucie Stern Theatre in Palo Alto. Tickets range from $25-$40 for individual shows, $90 for a full-festival pass. Go to theatreworks.org.
The grande dames of opera: Mezzo-soprano Nikola Printz, a recent San Francisco Opera Merola trainee and Adler Fellow whose triumphant Schwabacher Debut Recital garnered lavish praise, is a frequent performer on stages across the Bay Area and beyond. Hear her channel some of the most high-profile dramatic characters of opera in a salon for Walnut Creek-based Festival Opera Sunday afternoon at the Piedmont Center for the Arts. In a program dubbed “Baroque Queens,” Printz channels such luminous figures as Cleopatra, Alcina, Juno, Dido and Ottavia as envisioned by composers Monteverdi, Vivaldi, Strozzi, Handel and Purcell. Printz will be accompanied by Joshua Mikus-Mahoney on cello, Jon Mendle on theorbo and lute and Zachary Gordin on harpsichord, and there will be an opportunity to mingle with the musicians at a post-concert reception. Tickets are $40; find them at festivalopera.org.
A critical musical mass: Duos, trios and quartets are time-honored ensembles of the chamber music tradition, but it is the thoroughly agreeable grouping of five collaborative musicians that Music@Menlo festival puts under the spotlight in Sunday afternoon’s recital at the Spieker Center for the Arts in Atherton. In various assortments, violinists Chad Hoopes, Jessica Lee, Kristin Lee, Richard Lin, Julian Rhee and Arnaud Sussman; violists Lawrence Dutton and James Thompson; cellists Dmitri Atapine, Nicholas Canellakis and David Finckel; clarinetist Sebastian Manz and pianist Wu Han will assemble onstage to perform string quartets by major composers from two centuries. Their program, called “Quintessential Quintets,” consists of Mozart’s String Quintet in B-flat Major, Carl Maria von Weber’s Clarinet Quintet in B-flat Major, Luigi Boccherini’s String Quintet in C Major and Camille Saint-Saens’ Piano Quintet in A minor. Concert time is 4 p.m., and there will be a repeat performance at 7 p.m. July 29 in the Stent Family Hall. Find tickets, $65-$87 ($25 for those under 30), at music@menlo.org.
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