Full Lineup Announced for the Inaugural Market Street Arts & Theater Festival
BANDALOOP dances on the facade of 1128 Market, Dear San Francisco headlines the Circus Stage in UN Plaza, D'Arcy Drollinger and Oasis host drag karaoke aboard the Hotsy Totsy Cable Car, and DJ Mark Farina plays The Market, alongside free and ticketed performances at the Orpheum Theatre, ACT's Strand Theater, The Warfield, and The Theater at Bill Graham Civic Auditorium
***Saturday, October 17***
SAN FRANCISCO (September 21, 2026) – The Mid-Market Foundation today announced the lineup for the inaugural Market Street Arts & Theater Festival on Saturday, October 17, 2026, from 4 to 10 p.m. The festival brings together more than 100 partners for over 50 experiences at more than 35 locations across six blocks and three public plazas, along Market Street between 5th Street and Van Ness Avenue. For one night only, the corridor's historic theaters, independent venues, and small businesses are on the same bill. Registration is free at marketstreetartstheaterfest.eventbrite.com, and the first 500 registrants receive a $20 voucher to participating eateries.
The event kicks off in UN Plaza with performances by Dear San Francisco and vertical dancers, BANDALOOP on the facade of 1128 Market. DJ Mark Farina performs The Market with Monarch; SF Neo Futurists open their doors at 447 Minna; Misfit Cabaret performs at Hibernia; Danny Clay releases a record at The Roar Shack and Psyched! Radio sets up at Mi Cocina. The Orpheum Theatre opens its Sunroom for free, as ACT's Strand Theater, The Warfield and The Theater at Bill Graham Civic Auditorium present ticketed performances by SFBATCO, Jessie Ware, and Sara Bareilles (sold out). San Francisco Drag Laureate D'Arcy Drollinger and Oasis bring back the neighborhood favorite Hotsy Totsy Train on Market Street. At Saluhall, Market Street Arts’ festival headquarters will serve as a gathering place with giveaways, interactive activities, and more surprises.
"Mid-Market is home to San Francisco's most iconic theaters and its smallest independent rooms," said Fernando Pujals, Executive Director of the Mid-Market Foundation. "On October 17, they all come together. Mid-Market has always been San Francisco's theater district, and this festival invites everyone to experience the neighborhood at its best. You can watch dancers perform above UN Plaza, dance to a Mark Farina set at The Market, and finish the night singing on a cable car with drag performers, all within a short walk. With so much going on, you won’t be able to do it all."
Neighborhood Venues and Small Businesses
Between the big theaters, Mid-Market will run as a fringe festival, with surprises along the corridor, on sidewalks, street corners, and under marquees. Performances turn up inside bars, restaurants, galleries, shops and hotels along the corridor, and festivalgoers can plan a route or simply follow the crowd.
DJ Mark Farina with Monarch at The Market
Drag Queen Show Tune Sing Along at the Orpheum Theatre Sunroom
Skywatchers at ACT’s The Strand Theater (lobby)
SF Neo Futurists at 447 Minna
Misfit Cabaret at Hibernia
Danny Clay record release at Roar Shack
Psyched! Radio at Mi Cocina
200 Channels experience at the International Art Museum of America
Live jazz at Mr. Tipple's*
Comedy at Moe Greens* and The Function*
Opera at Rumpus Room
Denim Art at Holy Stitch
Soul line dancing and kinetic sculptures
Projection mapping
Performances at Counterpulse
Busk It street performers at SAMS and Haru
LINES Ballet at IKEA
Dueling pianos at Civic Center
Civic Center CBD's "Fall Family Festival"
The Compton's Cafeteria Riot
Beer garden at Limoncello in Civic Center
*Activations are separately ticketed or require purchase to enter
“Market Street is San Francisco’s theater district, and we’re working to make sure it is once again one of the city’s great destinations for arts, culture, and entertainment,” said District 5 Supervisor Mahmood. “That means thinking differently, bringing artists and audiences into public spaces, supporting our theaters and creative businesses, and finding innovative ways to connect our cultural institutions with the life of the street. This festival captures that vision in one night: bold, unexpected, and uniquely San Francisco. We’re not just preserving the legacy of Market Street, we’re reimagining it for a new generation.”
UN Plaza is the festival's open-air center. The free Main Stage runs all evening with circus, cabaret, and young performers, featuring Dear San Francisco, Circus Bella, People's Circus Theatre, ACT Young Conservatory, and Spectrum. Above the plaza, Oakland's vertical dance company BANDALOOP performs on the facade of 1128 Market. Audiences can settle in for a full set or catch a few minutes on the way to the next stop.
“We are proud to be part of this inaugural festival and applaud the efforts of everyone behind it,” said David Dower, Executive Director, Club Fugazi Experiences. “Mid-Market is an extraordinary arts corridor in the neglected heart of our city. The vibrancy, tenacity and diversity of San Francisco’s live performance scene has been hiding here in plain sight for generations. Hopefully this long overdue celebration can be a breakthrough for the city and for the artists and creative producers who have been so resilient for so long in this neighborhood against incredible odds. Including contemporary circus in the festival mix is exciting and an acknowledgment of the importance of this form to the history and character of San Francisco as an arts city that impacts the world.”
A neighborhood favorite from past Market Street Arts UNSTAGED events, the Hotsy Totsy Train returns with D'Arcy Drollinger and Oasis hosting Drag Queen Karaoke on board. The trolley will serve as a free hop-on, hop-off interactive karaoke experience running between 5th and 10th streets.
“I’m thrilled to see Market Street taken over by artists, performers, theater makers, and fabulous creative troublemakers, which includes me and my Oasis team,” said D'Arcy Drollinger. “San Francisco has always been at its best when we’re making art, making noise, and giving people a reason to put on something fabulous and leave the house. The Market Street Arts and Theater Festival is a celebration of exactly what makes this city so magical!”
The Orpheum Theatre opens its Sunroom for a free Broadway show tune sing-along hosted by Curve Ball. Three more landmark venues present separately ticketed performances: ACT's Strand Theater hosts SFBATCO's Every Saturday Night, The Theater at Bill Graham Civic Auditorium presents Sara Bareilles (sold out), and The Warfield presents Jessie Ware.
“ATG San Francisco is proud to be part of a festival that showcases the incredible range of artists and cultural organizations that make this city so special,” said ATG San Francisco General Manager Jamie Budgett. "With our theatres at the heart of Market Street, participating feels especially meaningful to us, and we’re excited to join our colleagues in celebrating this vibrant cultural corridor and the important role the arts continue to play in the everyday life of San Francisco.”
The Market Street Arts & Theater Festival creates paid opportunities and new audiences for local artists and brings visitors to restaurants, hotels, nightlife and small businesses across the corridor. The festival is supported by a $100,000 Culture Forward grant from the Svane Foundation, and by the Office of Mayor Daniel Lurie and the Office of Economic and Workforce Development (OEWD). The Mid-Market Foundation continues to welcome financial sponsors, venue partners, cultural and community collaborators, corporate sponsors, and production or in-kind supporters.
ABOUT MARKET STREET ARTS
An initiative of the MMBAF, Market Street Arts is a multi-year collaboration between the City, neighborhood stakeholders, businesses, residents, private donors, and corporate sponsors to actualize the true potential of Mid-Market. It capitalizes on Mid-Market’s centralized location and creative infrastructure as San Francisco’s historic theater district. Implementation strategies specifically leverage the neighborhood’s larger cultural venues with a fabric of new and existing creative entrepreneurs, arts organizations, businesses, public art, beautification, and events of various scales, serving as a multipronged platform for creative expression, human connection, and economic investment.
Market Street Arts is funded by the Mid-Market Foundation, a 501(c)(3) established in 2019 to conceive, implement, and manage transformative programs in partnership with the San Francisco Office of Economic and Workforce Development. Learn more at: www.MarketStreetArts.org
ABOUT THE MID-MARKET BUSINESS ASSOCIATION & FOUNDATION (MMBAF)
The Mid-Market Business Association is a 501(c)(6) that advocates on behalf of businesses, property owners, and other stakeholders along Market Street between 5th and Van Ness, and in the surrounding areas. The Mid-Market Foundation is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit established in 2019 that accepts charitable donations and seeks funding to conceive, implement, and manage transformative programs. Together, MMBAF works to create a safe, clean, and vibrant Mid-Market corridor where businesses thrive, community flourishes, and residents and visitors alike experience a welcoming neighborhood.
