Here are some of the best things to do this week in San Diego, from Monday, May 11 to May 15.
Check back Wednesday for our guide to things to do this weekend.
Monday
Orchids in the Wild: The annual display of Orchids in the Wild returns to San Diego Botanic Garden for a month-long flower showcase. The exhibit takes place in the Botanic Garden’s 8,000 square-foot Dickinson Family Education Conservatory. Guests will learn about the different types of orchids and their history. The orchid exhibition also contains plants on loan from San Diego County Orchid Society and Palomar Orchid Society members. Plus, there will be workshops and an orchid marketplace on weekends. Through June 1. 300 Quail Gardens Drive, Encinitas. $7-$20.760-436-3036, sdbg.org
Tuesday
San Diego International Fringe Festival now in session: The 2026 Fringe festival is now playing through May 24, with more than 40 shows by artists from the U.S., Mexico, Australia, Japan and India at 16 venues throughout San Diego and also in Tijuana. This year’s acts include new plays and musicals, music, standup and improv comedy, cabaret, Shakespearean swordplay, dance, drag shows and acrobatics. Individual tickets are $13 each, plus the onetime purchase of a $7 2026 Fringe tag. There will also be multishow ticket discounts. Full details at https://sdfringe.org/
Summer Reading: A Summer Reading Adventure event Tuesday will spotlight authors Kristy Woodson Harvey, Meg Donohue and Kate Luckinbill, granddaughter of Desi Arnaz with a discussion of their latest books. 7 p.m. Tuesday. Coronado Public Library, 640 Orange Ave., Coronado. Free. $19-$30 for guaranteed seating and book. adventuresbythebook.com/calendar-event/summer-reads-5-12-26/
Wednesday
From Screwball to Spoof movie series: A free new movie series, From Screwball to Spoof, kicks off Wednesday. The summer series showcases how movies make us laugh and discussions will be led by professor Garrett Chaffin-Quiray, who teaches cinema studies at Palomar Community College. Chaffin-Quiray will discuss the artistic and sociological character of the films after the screening. The featured film on May 13 is “Pillow Talk” (1959). 6 p.m. Wednesday. Runs monthly through Aug. 12 at the Oceanside Civic Center Library Community Room, 330 N. Coast Highway. Visit oceansidelibrary.org.
Gwendolyn Kiste author event: Gwendolyn Kiste will discuss her novel “The Haunted Houses She Calls Her Own.” 7 p.m. Wednesday. Mysterious Galaxy Bookstore, 3555 Rosecrans St., Suite 107, San Diego. Free. $18.95 for book. mystgalaxy.com
Deborah Santa author event: Deborah Santana will discuss her book “Loving the Fire.” 7:30 p.m. Wednesday. Warwick’s, 7812 Girard Ave., La Jolla. 858-454-0347, $30 (includes book). warwicks.com
Thursday
“The Play That Goes Wrong”: Lamb’s Players Theatre presents the San Diego professional premiere of this London-born stage comedy about a troupe of theater actors struggling to get through a performance while the everything collapses around them. 7 p.m. Thursdays and Fridays; 2 and 7 p.m. Wednesdays and Saturdays; 2 p.m. Sundays. Through June 14. 1142 Orange Ave., Coronado. $48-$98. 619-437-6000, lambsplayers.org
Friday
Moon Over the Pines: Pinot’s Palette is hosting an art class at night with music and drinks. The Moon Over the Pines event is designed to bring people together and help them learn to paint a nature scene featuring a full moon and pine trees. Guests will be given supplies, and the class will be held inside Pinot’s Palette studio under black lights. Drinks will be sold separately, and the event is for those 21 years and older. 8 to 10:15 p.m. Friday. 2820 Roosevelt Road, San Diego. $42. 619-675-0058, pinotspalette.com/libertystation
Ali Paris: La Jolla Music Society presents the Grammy-nominated, Moroccan musician, who will perform an eclectic mix of Western and Middle Eastern music on the quanun, a string instrument dating to the 14th century. 4:30 p.m. Friday. The Wu Tsai GRT.yrd, 7600 Fay Ave., La Jolla. Free. RSVP at theconrad.org/events/2026-ali-paris/
“Seussical the Musical”: San Diego Musical Theatre presents this musical for all ages based on the children’s books of Dr. Seuss, including “Horton Hears a Who” and “The Cat in the Hat.” Opens today and runs through June 7. 7 p.m. Thursdays-Saturdays; 2 p.m. Sundays. 4650 Mercury St., San Diego. $30 and up. sdmt.org
“Purpose”: La Jolla Playhouse presents the West Coast premiere of Branden Jacobs-Jenkins 2025 play that won both the Pulitzer Prize for Drama and Tony Award for Best New Play. It’s about the Jasper family, whose members have been pillars of Black American society for decades, but long-buried secrets threaten to topple the family empire. Previews Friday and Saturday. Opens Sunday and runs through June 7. 7:30 p.m. Tuesdays-Fridays; 2 and 8 p.m. Saturdays; 1 and 7 p.m. Sundays. Mandell Weiss Theatre, La Jolla Playhouse, 2910 La Jolla Village Drive, La Jolla. $30-$99. 858-550-1010, lajollaplayhouse.org
“Kim’s Convenience”: The Old Globe presents the national touring production of Ins Choi’s award-winning comedy that inspired his hit Netflix TV series. Choi plays the Korean-born Mr. Kim who runs a convenience store in Toronto while raising his Canadian-born children with traditional values. But generational and cultural changes rock Kim to his roots. Opens today and runs through June 14. 7 p.m. Tuesdays through Fridays; 2 and 8 p.m. Saturdays; 2 and 7 p.m. Sundays. Old Globe Theatre, 1363 Old Globe Way, Balboa Park, San Diego. $44 and up. 619-234-5623, theoldglobe.org
“The Cher Show”: Moonlight Stage Productions presents the closing weekend of this Broadway musical about music artist and actor Cher, starring “American Idol” and Broadway star Constantine Maroulis as Gregg Allman. 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday. Moonlight Amphitheatre, Brengle Terrace Park, 1200 Vale Terrace Drive, Vista. $49-$67. 760-724-2110, moonlightstage.com
“Beau Jest”: North Coast Repertory Theatre presents James Sherman’s 1989 comedy about an unmarried Jewish woman trying to please her pushy parents by hiring an actor to pose as her fiance. 8 p.m. today; 2 and 8 p.m. Saturday; 2 and 7 p.m. and Sunday. 987 Lomas Santa Fe Drive, Solana Beach. $53.50-$68.50. 858-481-1055, northcoastrep.org
“The Velocity of Autumn”: OnStage Playhouse presents the San Diego premiere of Eric Coble’s drama about an aging artist who barricades herself in her home to avoid being forced into a nursing home, leading her estranged son to return home after 20 years. 8 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays; 5 p.m. Sundays. Through May 24. 291 Third Ave., Chula Vista. $25 and up. 619-422-7787, onstageplayhouse.org
“Lend Me a Soprano”: Scripps Ranch Theatre presents Ken Ludwig’s new farce about a problem-plagued opera company in 1934 Cleveland. It’s a female-centered follow-up to his 1989 smash “Lend Me a Tenor.” 7:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday; 2 p.m. Sunday. Legler Benbough Theatre, Alliant International University, 9783 Avenue of Nations, San Diego. $27-$52. 858-395-0573, scrippsranchtheatre.org
“Arsilda, Regina di Pondo”: Opera Neo opens its 2026 summer opera festival with the U.S. premiere of this Antonio Vivaldi work about love, identity and renewal. 7:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday. First Unitarian Universalist Church of San Diego, 298 W. Arbor St., San Diego. $10-$75. operaneo.com/arsilda
San Diego Symphony presents Mendelssohn’s “Scottish”: Music and artistic director Rafael Payare conducts the orchestra in a program that includes composer-in-residence Jimmy López’s Peru Negro, along with Berg’s Violin Concerto performed by concertmaster Jeff Thayer and Mendelssohn’s Symphony No. 3 in A minor. 7:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday. Jacobs Music Center, 750 B Street, downtown. $42-$125. 619-235-0804, sandiegosymphony.org
Shaun Tomson author event: Shaun Tomson, former world champion surfer, will discuss “Surfer’s Code: 12 Simple Lessons for Riding Through Life.” 6 p.m. Friday. Camino Books,1555 Camino Del Mar, Suite 114, Del Mar Free. $19.99 for book.