Spring arrives, technically, with plenty of parties plus a pair of party food gurus.
Monday, March 16
At 6:30 p.m., treat yo’self to a night of Parks and Recreation trivia at New England Brewing in Woodbridge.
Tuesday, March 17 - St. Patrick’s Day
With most of the city’s bars still beat from Parade Day, the festive atmosphere migrates outward, including to The Playwright in Hamden, Longley’s in Branford, The Breakwall in West Haven, Dockside in Milford and Best Video in Hamden.
If marking the day by taking in “lush photography of the Irish countryside” feels more conducive to your recovery from Sunday, head to Lyric Hall and catch a screening of The Quiet Man (1952). The Oscar-winning romantic comedy/drama follows a traumatized boxer who leaves America’s rings for his native Ireland, where the punches keep coming, albeit with kisses too.
Thursday, March 19
RJ Julia in Madison hosts “veteran food and cookbook writer and guest extraordinaire” Casey Elsass for a discussion of What Can I Bring? (2025), his best-selling recipe and guide book aimed at solving “the partygoer’s eternal dilemma.” The moderator is Dan Pelosi, a food influencer who is himself the author of a best-selling party food cookbook.
Friday, March 20
During a 12:30 talk, independent scholar and curator Rachel Stratton “explores the relationship and tension between the industrial post-war landscape and the natural world in Prunella Clough’s Machine and Birds,” a 1958 painting featured in the exhibition Going Modern: British Art, 1900-1960.
Color Local, a new art gallery curated by artist Jenny Krauss at Erector Square, opens its first show with its first opening reception from 6 to 8 p.m. The exhibition, Everyday Notes: Drawings by Jerry Montoya, features “hundreds” of pencil portraits of himself and his family drawn on 3”x3” Post-it notes, “which will cover the gallery’s walls.”
At 6:30 and 8:30, the Shubert’s cabaret space hosts performances by viral talent Stella Cole, known for applying “her rich tone, extraordinary vocal control, and original interpretations” to selections both canonical and contemporary.
Also at 6:30, back at NEBCO in Woodbridge, a magic and comedy show captained by “New York City’s top magician and mentalist” Matt Szat promises an “unforgettable,” “mind-blowing,” “hilarious” time.
At 7, Neighborhood Music School hosts 85 Years of Rhythm, a concert celebrating longtime local jazz drummer and NMS educator Jesse Hameen II. “This special birthday concert honors Jesse’s lifelong legacy of rhythm, artistry, and dedication to nurturing the next generation of jazz artists. Enjoy an unforgettable night of live performances filled with swing, soul, and celebration as friends, students, and fellow musicians come together in tribute.”
Saturday, March 21
From noon to 4, the New Haven Museum holds its next What’s in the Whitney Library session, each one a chance to explore a single curatorial thread through the museum’s impressive library holdings. This time, that thread is “map madness,” featuring “our immense collection of the Elm City’s most important cartographic illustrations, including our impressive collection of atlases, hand-drawn maps, and harbor surveys!”
Starting at 3 at Club Vandome, a day party offering “spring vibes” and a dance floor is led by DJ Funk Flex, who also promises “good music, sunshine, and positive energy”—and only one of those is beyond his control.
At 8, the Unitarian Society of New Haven, located in Hamden, hosts “musician, ritual leader and educator” Anat Halevy Hochberg, who, with her band, will perform “original arrangements of traditional Yemeni Jewish song through her Ahavat Hadassah project. Drawing from both the sacred men’s singing tradition rooted in piyyut and women’s folk songs, her work brings forward a wide range of Yemenite Jewish musical life—prayer, poetry, and everyday song.”
Sunday, March 22
At 3 p.m. in Woolsey Hall, the New Haven Symphony Orchestra presents Goin’ Home, a “soulful celebration of cultural identity and belonging” featuring works by Antonín Dvořák, Courtney Bryan and William Grant Still.
Written by Dan Mims. Readers are encouraged to verify times, locations, prices and other details before attending events.
