This is Drama Masks, a Bay Area performing arts column from a born San Franciscan and longtime theatre artist in an N95 mask. I talk venue safety and dramatic substance, or the lack thereof.

As I write this, I have SomaFM’s “Jolly Ol’ Soul” channel playing in the background. The local indie radio network starts broadcasting its Christmas channels soon after Halloween, because why wait ‘til Black Friday when the entire economy is already geared up for the big day beyond it? As much as my cynical, anti-capitalist heart cringes at yuletide omnipresence every year, it’s hard to hate on SomaFM’s carefully-curated collection of holiday tunes. (I’m also fond of the “Xmas in Frisco” channel, which takes something of a South Park approach to its programming.)

Even without that cynicism, I’m willi

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