It wasn’t much of a summer, was it? The weather stayed far too hazy and cool, and the kids are already back in school. Yet everyone in and around Marin County knows that fall is the best season as the weather often stays warm, if not hotter, and a new season of local arts is always intriguing and fun.
The slate for fall arts in Marin County appears to show another potpourri of the interesting and the entertaining, the thought provoking, the wildly creative and the just plain fun—so let’s take a tour of some upcoming events. This is by no means comprehensive but rather a representative list of the offerings available.
Design Marin has put together a series of events for industry professionals as well as for fans of art and design which will take place at various locations throughout the county. Events will include fireside chats, tours, panel discussions, dinners, social activities and open studios. A quick sampling of events includes “Built Different: Architecture and Marin’s Rebellious Spirit” taking place 10–11:30am, Wednesday, Aug. 26, at the Mill Valley Lumber Yard, 129 Miller Ave., Mill Valley; “A Curated Celebration of Interiors, Art, Culture & Storytelling” with Debbie Loughran from 2–4:30pm on Thursday, Aug. 27, at Camino, 444 Miller Ave., Mill Valley; and “An Evening on the Art of Storytelling” taking place 4:30-6:30pm, Thursday, Aug. 27, at The Marin Merchant, 325 Pine St., Unit B, Sausalito.
For more information, check out designmarin.org.
Marin County’s increasingly difficult-to-ignore Sound Summit Music Festival returns to the Mountain Theater, the gorgeous theater atop Mt. Tam. If the lineup weren’t always so darned impressive, getting there might be a detraction. This year’s festival takes place 11am to 7pm, Saturday, Sept. 12, and features headliner Father John Misty as well as Guster, La Luz, Angeline Saris and the Snack Machine as well as Marin County stalwart Jerry Harrison, a founding member of the Modern Lovers as well as a key member of the Talking Heads. He will helm his Jerry Harrison’s 50 Years of the Talking Heads project at the fest.
Tickets and more info at soundsummit.net.
The Mill Valley Fall Arts Festival is back from 10am to 5pm, Saturday-Sunday, Sept. 19–20, at Old Mill Park, 64 Cascade Dr., Mill Valley, featuring a slew of artists working in multiple mediums, a wine tasting add-on, several food trucks and booths, as well as family friendly fun in the “Children’s Grove” and live music.
For more information, go to mvfaf.org.
The always impressive Mill Valley Film Festival returns Thursday-Sunday, Oct. 1–11, at venues across Marin County. The lineup for this year’s festival has yet to be unveiled, but judging from festivals past one can look forward to a thoughtful mix of documentaries, animated and family films, and up-and-coming indies all peppered throughout with celebrity tributes and early screenings of awards hopefuls.
Keep an eye out for their announcement of films at mvff.com.
More information at marintheatre.org.
The Marin Symphony, 4340 Redwood Hwy. #409, San Rafael, continues its 75th Anniversary Party through the fall with a little something for fans of all kinds of symphonic music. Saturday-Sunday, Sept. 26-27, sees “Chamber Music 1: Brahms Piano Quartet” whereas on Saturday-Sunday, Oct. 24-25, everyone is invited to the movies with symphony performances of music from Close Encounters of the Third Kind, Star Wars, Back to the Future, The Incredibles, Mars Attacks! and 2001: A Space Odyssey.
More info at the website, marinsymphony.org.
It’s probably not a coincidence that many theater groups feature plays centered on leaders who are mad with power, narcissists, liars and/or phonies. Thus, the Marin Shakespeare Company will commence a performance of OG “No Kings Rally” progenitor Julius Caesar Friday, Aug. 14-Sunday, Sept. 13, in the Forest Meadow Amphitheater, 890 Belle Ave., San Rafael. MSC will also follow that up with the second annual “Seeds of Time Festival” Saturday, Oct. 3-Sunday, Oct. 18, at its downtown theater, 514 4th St., San Rafael. This unique fest is dedicated to reimagining classic texts through the lens of today’s diverse and innovative storytellers, and the six participants each have a mere three weeks to develop their plays before the curtain rises.
More information at marinshakespeare.org.
Additional fall theatrical programming can be found in last week’s edition (“Curtain Rises: Marin Theater Companies Get Ready to Kick Off 2026/27 Season” and online).
Marin County’s delightful Art Works Downtown is throwing a celebration for local artist Phyllis Thelen, who is soon to celebrate her centennial birthday, from 6:30-8:30pm, Friday, Sept. 11, at 1325–1337 4th St., San Rafael. The American experimental artist, environmental activist and cultural leader will be feted and while space is extremely limited, Art Works Downtown encourages donations in honor of Thelen’s 100th.
More information at artworksdowntown.org.
West Marin in the fall is truly something spectacular and so is Point Reyes Station’s celebrated Gallery Route One, at 11101 CA-1, Point Reyes Station. While any time is a great time to visit, we’re excited to highlight its annual “Box Show” which takes place Saturday, Aug. 29, through Saturday, Sept. 26. For those wondering what a “Box Show” is, it’s really what it sounds like; several local artists use a box as a piece of art and, as to be expected of Point Reyes, the boxes are a wonderful blend of clever, thoughtful and whimsical pieces that are each up for sale.
Get more info and see a lineup of artists at galleryrouteone.org.
Speaking of Point Reyes, those in town for the Box Show should be sure to stop by the village’s Swiss army knife community gathering place The Dance Palace, 503 B St., Point Reyes Station, to check out their artist for the month of August, Laurie Sawyer. Sawyer holds a degree in illustration from the Art Center College of Design and a degree in science illustration from California State University Monterey Bay, and her work reflects both the beauty and concern she has for our local environment. The paintings are displayed throughout the month of August.
More info can be found at dancepalace.org.
And finally, rounding out this roundup as well as an impromptu celebration of West Marin arts, Sausalito Center for the Arts, 750 Bridgeway, Sausalito, gets in on the fun with an exhibit titled “Spotlight West Marin.” Running Wednesday, Sept. 16-Saturday, Oct. 17, the exhibit will focus on works from, you guessed it, artists living and working in West Marin.
Find out more about the artists being featured and the space itself at sausalitocenterforthearts.org.
