Joey AlexanderThree-time Grammy Award-nominated jazz pianist and composer Joey Alexander's latest album, "Continuance," was released on Mack Avenue Records in November 2023 and this month he'll be performing it live at Stanford. According to Stanford Live, Alexander is known for his "mind-blowing" technique and ability to communicate joy, and his music also takes inspiration from outside the jazz world. "Continuance" includes a version of "I Can't Make You Love Me," best known as a Bonnie Raitt song, and the hymn "Great Is Thy Faithfulness," in addition to original compositions.Jan. 19, 7:30 p.m., Bing Concert Hall, 327 Lasuen St., Stanford. $32. live.stanford.edu.

'How I Learned What I Learned'Former TheatreWorks Silicon Valley Artistic Director Tim Bond returns to TheatreWorks to direct August Wilson's "How I Learned What I Learned" (co-conceived by Todd Kreidler), a solo memoir show about the life of the Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Wilson, starring Steven Anthony Jones. Bond, now the artistic director of the Oregon Shakespeare Festival, was also a close friend of Wilson's and is an acclaimed interpreter of his works, according to a press release from TheatreWorks. "I am honored to celebrate the legacy of self-respect and self-actualization of the monumental Black artist who was one of the greatest American playwrights of the 20th Century," Bond states in the release. Also, according to the release, TheatreWorks will bring the production on a weeklong tour of Bay Area communities following its run in downtown Mountain View.Through Feb. 3 at the Mountain View Center for the Performing Arts, 500 Castro St., Mountain View. Check individual performance ticket prices online. theatreworks.org.

Dan Ashley and Jay MiddletonPlenty of famous faces have performed at Club Fox, but followers of Bay Area news might find the frontman for the Dan Ashley Band to be particularly familiar. That's because Ashley, a journalist, has anchored the weeknight news for San Francisco's ABC7 for over three decades. As a singer and guitarist, Ashley's sound blends country, Americana and rock 'n' roll in a sound with an echo of 1980s Heartland rock. His 2021 solo album, "Out There," a collaboration with producer and writing partner Bill Bentley, draws on classic rock with a bluesy edge, with earthy vocals and gritty, rock-driven guitar. Ashley is touring with singer-songwriter Jay Middleton, who is himself a familiar face to Bay Area listeners, having most recently fronted the local party band All Star Jukebox and with a long career with bands such as Occam's Razor before that. Though he's penned plenty of songs for others that have charted, Middleton turned his songwriting skills inward during the early days of the pandemic, writing the songs that would become "Forward," his first solo album. Released in 2022, "Forward" features an uplifting blend of wailing rock guitar, a full-bodied funk-influenced horn section, gentle vocal harmonies ??" even a light country twang.Jan. 19, 8 p.m. at Club Fox, 2209 Broadway Redwood City. Tickets are $20-$25. eventbrite.com.

Kyla ZhaoLocal writer Kyla Zhao (the author of "Fraud Squad") will be at Linden Tree Books in downtown Los Altos to celebrate the launch of her new novel "Valley Verified," about a young New York City fashion writer who moves cross country and leaps into the intense tech world of Silicon Valley when she accepts a job at a new startup. According to Linden Tree's website, Zhao and store co-owner Flo Grosskurth will discuss "ambitious young women, the Zillennial experience, Silicon Valley startup culture and Patagonia vests" at the event. Zhao graduated from Stanford University in 2021 and has worked in tech marketing and journalism.Jan. 20, 1 p.m., Linden Tree Books, 265 State St., Los Altos. lindentreebooks.com.

'Misery'When a snowy car crash badly injures novelist Paul Sheldon, he learns there's something much more rigid and inescapable than deadlines: his "Number One Fan." Sequestered in a remote cabin by said fan, Annie Wilkes, Paul finds his convalescence transformed quickly into captivity when Annie becomes deeply displeased with his plans for her favorite character. Palo Alto Players gets the year off to a thrilling start with a stage adaptation of Stephen King's novel that hammers home some truths about the dark sides of fame and fandom. This tight, tense 90-minute show was adapted for the stage by William Goldman, who also wrote the screenplay for the 1990 film.Palo Alto Players present "Misery," Jan. 19-Feb.4 at the Lucie Stern Theatre, 1305 Middlefield Road, Palo Alto. Tickets $35-$60. paplayers.org.

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