Celebrate Nowruz with live music, storytelling, dance and more at the the Asian Art Museum’s event in San Francisco on Sunday, March 22.
Asian Art Museum
Spring’s arrival brings one of the world’s oldest celebrations.
Persian New Year, also known as Nowruz, marks the vernal equinox — this year, Friday, March 20 — and kicks off nearly two weeks of festivities rooted in renewal, community and the promise of a new season. Observed for more than 3,000 years in Iran and across the global diaspora, the holiday culminates with outdoor gatherings spent in nature, called Sizdah Bedar. This year’s two-day party at Los Gatos’ Vasona Park in early April, is set to include live music, dance, cultural activities and food vendors.
Here are more ways to celebrate throughout the Bay Area.
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San Jose Persian New Year Celebration
Enjoy Nowruz and Persian culture at an afternoon event featuring craft activities, performances by Amir School of Music, Beshkan Dance Academy, Bri Crabtree’s Silly Circus and more. Speakers scheduled include librarian Jill Bourne and district council members George Casey, Anthony Tordillos and Rosemary Kamei.
2-5 p.m. Saturday, March 14. San Jose City Hall Rotunda, 200 East Santa Clara St., San Jose. https://sjpl.bibliocommons.com
San Mateo Nowruz 2026
Enjoy Persian folkloric music and dance with Amir Abbas Etemadzadeh, Mohammad Ebrahimi, Somayeh Amini, Beshkan Dance Academy and Persian American Society student artists.
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1-3:30 p.m. Sunday, March 15. Free. San Mateo Public Library, 55 W. Third Ave., San Mateo. 650-522-7802. https://sanmateopublic.libcal.com
A traditional Persian New Year haft-sin display include green wheatgrass, garlic, apples, sumac, vinegar and money.
Lance Iversen/S.F. Chronicle
Sunnyvale Nowruz Celebration
Celebrate the Persian New Year at an afternoon event that’s set to include dance, crafts, and music including performances from Baharestan Persian Immersion School, the Beshkan Dance Academy and Afsaneh Arts.
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2-5 p.m. Sunday, March 15. Free. Sunnyvale Public Library, 665 W. Olive Ave., Sunnyvale. 408-730-7300. www.library.sunnyvale.ca.gov
Chahar Shanbeh Soori
For a 27th year, the Persian Society of Marin will celebrate saying farewell to the winter and welcoming the spring with an event set to include live music and sets from DJ Teymour, dance, and the ancient ritual of jumping over bonfires. Persian food, treats and beverages will be available. The mood this year is expected to be more somber and low-key than is typical, with the addition of a candlelight vigil to honor lives lost.
6-10 p.m. Tuesday, March 17. Free. McNears Beach Park, 201 Cantera Way, San Rafael. www.ipersian.org
Chahar Shanbeh Suri Festival
Welcome the warmth and energy of spring as the Berkeley Persian Center gets set to host its annual Nowruz event. Jump over bonfires and celebrate the change of seasons, ahead of the vernal equinox. In addition to the bonfires, there will be live Persian music, food, arts and crafts activities, and cultural organization booths.
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6-10 p.m. Tuesday, March 17. Free admission. Durant and Shattuck, 2029 Durant Ave., Berkeley. www.bayareapersianfest.com
Nowruz at UCSF
Woman Life Freedom at UCSF and UCSF Pediatrics RISE Coalition plan to host a celebration marking the new year and the first day of spring. This ancient holiday tradition, rooted in renewal, reflection and hope, is celebrated in many countries, including Iran, Afghanistan and Tajikistan.
The gathering seeks to provide an opportunity for the community to come together through art, cultural expression and shared presence. It’s set to include an art exhibition, light refreshments, live painting from Art by Mersa and more.
4:30-7:30 p.m. Thursday, March 19. Free, reservations recommended. Mission Hall UCSF, S.F. https://womanlifefreedom.ucsf.edu
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S.F. City Hall Nowruz observance
Celebrate Nowruz 1405 at an afternoon gathering hosted by Persian Women in Tech. It’s set to include cultural programming, with traditional performances and a haft-sin display, remarks from San Francisco Mayor Daniel Lurie and others, sweet treats and tea.
Noon-3 p.m. Friday, March 20. Free. South Light Court, San Francisco City Hall, 1 Dr. Carlton B. Goodlett Place, S.F.
The Children’s Discovery Museum in San Jose’s annual Nowruz Around the World event on Saturday, March 21, will include live dance, storytelling and cultural craft activities.
Children’s Discovery Museum
Celebrating Our Heart-Filled Heritage: Nowruz with the Persian Classical Trio
An evening of Persian culture, as part of the Oakland Asian Cultural Center’s Celebrating our Heart-Filled Heritage programming, is set to include a performance from musicians Pezhham Akhavass, Aryan Rahmanian, Ashkan Ghafouri and the Pezhham Tombak Ensemble dedicated to the memory of the thousands of Iranians who lost their lives while taking part in protests in January. Additionally, a Persian calligraphy demonstration and a marketplace will be part of the event.
7-9 p.m. Friday, March 20. Free, reservations recommended. Oakland Asian Cultural Center, Pacific Renaissance Plaza, 388 Ninth St., Oakland. 510-637-0455. www.oacc.cc
Persian New Year: Nowruz Art, Tea & Treats Workshop
Create traditional art, sip tea and eat Persian sweets during a cultural arts workshop and Nowruz celebration.
7-9 p.m. Friday., March 20. $15-$17.85. MintPress Art Studio, 2466 Bancroft Way, Berkeley. www.mintpress.org
Nowruz 1405: Light Over Darkness
Get moving at a posh Persian New Year’s party set in the penthouse lounge and rooftop space at Oakland’s 1900 Broadway multiuse complex. Scheduled entertainment includes live dance sets from DJs Alphire, Deer and Aphrooz and live traditional music with Bijan Ghiasi.
7-10 p.m. Friday, March 20. $80-$100. Rooftop and 39th Floor, 1900 Broadway, Oakland.
Nowruz Around the World
Welcome spring while exploring the customs and traditions of Persian New Year celebrations around the world. Enjoy live music and dance from San Jose’s Beshkan Dance Academy and Middle Eastern multi-instrumentalist Amir Etemadzadeh and story time. Learn about the haft-sin table display and explore with hands-on holiday activities.
9:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m. Saturday, March 21. Included with museum admission. Children’s Discovery Museum, 180 Woz Way, San Jose. 408-298-5437. www.cdm.org
The Children’s Discovery Museum in San Jose will host its annual Nowruz Around the World event on Saturday, March 21.
Children’s Discovery Museum
Novruz Turkic Festival
Welcome the arrival of spring and new beginnings as Turkic communities across the Bay Area get together for a celebration that’s set to include cultural programming, live music and dance performances, food vendors, children’s activities and games, a flag parade, and torch lighting ceremony.
Noon-5 p.m. March 21. Free. Belmont Twin Pines Community Center, 20 Twin Pines Lane, Belmont. www.acsnc.org
‘Symbols of Love’ with Shahrzad Dance Company
Celebrate Nowruz with an interactive family-friendly performance from Shahrzad Dance Company that includes (pretend) fire-jumping.
4-5 p.m. Saturday, March 21. Free. Merced branch, San Francisco Public Library, 155 Winston Drive, S.F. 415-355-2825. www.sfpl.org
The Children’s Discovery Museum in San Jose’s annual Nowruz Around the World event on Saturday, March 21, will include live dance, storytelling and cultural craft activities.
Children’s Discovery Museum
Asian Art Museum’s Nowruz Celebration: Light Always Prevails
Sal-e no mobarak: Happy spring and Persian New Year. Gather at the museum’s haft-sin table and enjoy goodies, music, cultural crafts, storytelling and dance. Important themes in Nowruz celebrations are reverence for nature, respect for family and community, doing good deeds, and forgiveness.
10:30 a.m. Sunday, March 22. Included with museum admission. Asian Art Museum, 200 Larkin St., S.F. 415-581-3500. www.asianart.org
Bridging the Borders with Sirvan Manhoobi and Friends
Hear sounds of Persian, Kurdish, Azeri, Bakhtyari and Lori cultures through sound with a live performance that’s set to include vocals, percussion, oud and shourangiz.
Noon-1 p.m. March 29. Free. San Francisco Public Library Main branch, 100 Larkin St., S.F. 415-557-4400. www.sfpl.org
Bay Area folk dancer Natalie Nayun, from left, oud player Sirvan Manhoobi, percussionist Amir Etemadzadeh and clarinetist Asaf Ophir and are scheduled to perform as part of “Echoes of Solidarity: Coming Together With Music and Movement” at the Red Poppy Art House in San Francisco on March 29.
Red Poppy Art House
Echoes of Solidarity: Coming Together With Music and Movement
A program of music and dance from Central Asia, from Iran to Afghanistan, is scheduled to include a performance from Bay Area folk dancer Natalie Nayun, oud player Sirvan Manhoobi, clarinetist Asaf Ophir and percussionist Amir Etamadzadeh, as well as an interactive shadow play and puppet-making workshop, ending with a collaborative theater performance.
7 p.m. March 29. $25-$35. Red Poppy Art House, 2698 Folsom St., S.F. 650-731-5383. www.redpoppyarthouse.org
Correction: An earlier version of this story noted the wrong day of Nowruz. March 20 is a Friday.