S pring starts today, so our to-dos this week just need a little time to grow before exploding with color.
Wednesday, March 22
Ever enjoyed The Bard in a bar? At Olives and Oil in Seymour, the Valley Shakespeare Festival presents the first of two performances of Shakespeare’s The Taming of the Shrew. Drinking and dining starts at 6, the show at 7.
Thursday, March 23
At 8 p.m., On Your Feet!: The Story of Emilio & Gloria Estefan kicks off a four-day, five-show run at the Shubert. The biographical musical “features some of the most iconic songs of the past quarter-century, including ‘Rhythm is Gonna Get You,’ ‘Conga,’ ‘Get On Your Feet,’ ‘Don’t Want To Lose You Now,’ ‘1-2-3’ and ‘Coming Out of the Dark.’”
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Friday, March 24
Starting at 10 a.m. today, the Yale University Art Gallery presents In a New Light: Paintings from the Yale Center for British Art, an exhibition of works plucked from across the street at the YCBA, which recently closed for renovation. “The nearly sixty works on view span four centuries of British landscape and portraiture traditions,” organizers say, including works by Turner, Constable, Whistler and Bacon.
At Best Video in Hamden from 7 to 9, Onyeka Obiocha—the founder of Palm Wine, “a global natural wine social club”—leads “Pinot Noir Meets Neo-Noir: An Evening of Organic Wine Tasting” with help from hors d’oeuvres by Sanctuary Kitchen.
A 5-year anniversary weekend for Hoax Brewing, located at The Beeracks in East Haven, begins with an Emo Night CT party at 8 tonight, then follows up tomorrow starting at 1 p.m. with an official birthday party starring a bevy of beers and bands.
At 8:30 at Cafe Nine, a variety show hosted by Dot Mitzvah promises a night of “burlesque, magic, belly dancing, music, comedy and much more!”
Saturday, March 25
At Legacy Theatre in Branford, the world premiere of cofounder and artistic director Keely Baisden Knudsen’s The Tales of Christopher Robin & Winnie-the-Pooh takes the stage at 10 a.m. and noon (with a third performance at 2 p.m. tomorrow). The musical adaptation of works by A. A. Milne promises “a fun and witty exploration of the Hundred Acre Wood” for “audiences of all ages!”
At 1 p.m., Fair Haven Library caps off its OG Star Wars screening series with Return of the Jedi (1983). “Popcorn and soda are on us!”
Starting “around 9pm,” it’s back to Cafe Nine, where Etran de L’Aïr, a Tuareg/Saharan rock band with a “pan-African style” who’ve become “stars of the local wedding circuit” in their hometown of Agadez, Niger, give the crowd a sound they’ve probably never heard—at least, not before checking out their Bandcamp.
Also at 9, Stella Blues hosts its next For the Culture dance party—“a night of house and disco music” featuring DJs Jack McDevitt, Kered, Stubbs and Yedi.
Sunday, March 26
At 2 p.m. at the Blessed Michael McGivney Pilgrimage Center, “Fr. Paul Luniw, Ukrainian Catholic priest and egg artist extraordinaire, presents a free demonstration on the history and meaning of Pysanky,” i.e. “Easter eggs colorfully and ornately decorated using a wax batik (resist) method.”
Perry So, the third of four candidates auditioning to become the New Haven Symphony Orchestra’s new artistic director, conducts the NHSO through Beethoven’s Symphony No. 3, Samuel Barber’s Violin Concerto and Tania Léon’s Ácana at 3 o’clock at SCSU’s Lyman Center.
Closing out the week is a 3:30 opening reception at Kehler Liddell Gallery for wife-and-husband photographers Penrhyn and Rod Cook’s Vanishing ZIMBABWE, which captures some of that country’s beleaguered and beautiful wild animals.
Written by Dan Mims. Image 1 features members of Etran de L’Aïr. Image 2, by the Yale Center for British Art, features Joseph Mallord William Turner’s Dort or Dordrecht: The Dort Packet-Boat from Rotterdam Becalmed (1818), part of In a New Light. Image 3 features a still from Return of the Jedi. Image 4 features an image from Penrhyn and Rod Cook’s Vanishing ZIMBABWE. Readers are encouraged to verify times, locations, prices and other details before attending events.
