FRANK ZAPPA HAS the peculiar talent of knowing what makes America tick. An irreverent rock musician who came into his own in an era of blatant irreverence, Zappa has continued his barrage of musical satire for the past 20 years. Now he turns his wit to orchestral music to accompany puppet scenarios backed by the Berkeley Symphony Orchestra. The same fertile imagination that brought us "Freak Out," "Jewish Princess," "Catholic Girls," "Valley Girls," "Susy Creamcheese" and the Mothers of Invention, now offers Sinister Footwear and Mo ‘n Herbs Vacation, two of a series of satiric ballets. (read more)