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The Kanbar Forum
The Kanbar Forum, our 3,600-square-foot venue, is a multidisciplinary theater space fitted with a Constellation acoustic system, one of the most advanced in the world, from Meyer Sound Laboratories, Inc. With this equipment, we can change the Forum’s acoustic properties with the press of a button, from a nonreverberant recording studio to an immersive concert hall. There are only a few places in the Bay Area with this setup; one of the others is TRI Studios in Marin, an experimental “playpen” for musicians like owner Bob Weir of the Grateful Dead.
The Forum can be configured in lots of ways, from a traditional theater seating setup to a caberet-style grouping of tables and chairs. It will be used for film screenings, After Dark events, live music, lectures, training sessions, and a variety of special events, including an upcoming series called Resonance, which explores the technology, culture, and perception of sound.
Accessibility
Please note that a wheelchair lift and assistive listening systems are both available in the Forum.
Upcoming Programs
Full-Spectrum Science: Fireworks
Sunday, June 28, 2020 • 1:00 and 3:00 p.m.
Come ooooo and ahhhh at the science behind these big booms! Where do fireworks come from? Who invented them? What causes their beautiful colors, and how do the bursting shells create such different patterns? Join us for some real illumination, and learn the difference between a jerb and a lance.
Full-Spectrum Science: Heat and Temperature
Sunday, July 26, 2020 • 2:00 p.m.
How does your thermostat work and how does a Thermos® know to keep a hot thing hot and a cold thing cold? The mysteries will be revealed in this talk.
Full-Spectrum Science: Lasers
Sunday, August 23, 2020 • 1:00 and 3:00 p.m.
In 1960, the laser was known as “a solution looking for a problem.” Now we can hardly imagine life without them. Learn what’s special about laser light, how it’s made, and how it’s used in everything from DVD players to eye surgery to fusion energy research.
