This Week in New Haven (May 7 - 13)

Five photographers, two Walkers, three playwrights, three traditions, two music legends and countless flowers are blooming this week in New Haven.

Monday, May 7
Walker Evans—notable taker of Depression-era photos, among many others, and a Yale photography professor in the 1960s and ’70s—is the subject of a free 4:30 p.m. panel discussion at the Whitney Humanities Center (53 Wall St, New Haven; 203-432-0670). Held in conjunction with Trapped in the Middle: Photographs by Julian Fisher, an exhibition of newer class-interested images now showing at the WHC, the seven-person panel is titled “Incidental Influence: Walker Evans Transforming Lives at Yale.”

Tuesday, May 8
Three other shutterbugs are getting an opening reception at the New Haven Lawn Club (193 Whitney Ave, New Haven; 203-777-3494). The show is New Haven, City of Lights, and the work, by Leigh Busby, Hank Paper and Faisal Saleh, features “popular scenes” in New Haven. 5 to 7 p.m. Free.

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Wednesday, May 9
Fellowship Place (441 Elm St, New Haven; 203-401-4227)—which “ adults living with mental illness by offering a full range of therapeutic support and rehabilitation services that promote independence, wellness and a meaningful life”—hosts entertainer Walker Vreeland for a performance of his work From Ship to Shape, “a funny and gut-wrenching autobiographical monologue about one young man’s struggle with mental illness in today’s world.” The performance happens at 7 p.m., between pre-show refreshments at 6:30 and a post-show talkback. Tickets cost $25, or $10 for students.

The Yale School of Drama’s 2018 Carlotta Festival of New Plays, featuring “three fully produced new plays by graduating playwrights performed in rotating repertory,” commences today and lasts several days. First up, at 8 p.m. in Yale’s Iseman Theater (1156 Chapel St, New Haven), is Majkin Holmquist’s Tent Revival. “Set during the evangelical revivalist tradition of the mid-twentieth century, Tent Revival tells the story of Ida, a young woman on the road with her family, pitching their tent, and spreading the Word. As they travel from one small Kansas town to another, Ida wrestles with doubt, questions her father’s ‘gift’ and struggles to find her own voice on the wide midwestern plains.” $25, or $20 for Yale employees, or $15 for students.

Thursday, May 10
From 7 to 10 p.m., the Arts Council of Greater New Haven (70 Audubon St, New Haven) is opening up the rooftop of its building to help build support for grace, local filmmaker Stephen Dest’s planned feature film about a successful but troubled architect who “must come to terms with his estranged daughter” and “her ailing mother,” from whom he is also estranged. The event is free, with food and drinks offered courtesy of 116 Crown, Caseus, Rudy’s and Veracious Brewing Company.

Friday, May 11
The Shubert (247 College St, New Haven; 203-562-5666) is hosting two consecutive concerts featuring rich musical legacies. Tonight’s show, starting at 8 p.m., stars rock and pop legend Rick Springfield, whose music has lately veered bluesier, and who’s set to deliver “an intimate solo performance of music and storytelling” ($52-77). Tomorrow’s show, also at 8 p.m., features country star Rosanne Cash—eldest daughter of Johnny but a legend in her own right—and her “collaborator, musical director, guitarist and husband” John Leventhal ($34-64).

Saturday, May 12
The 21st annual Artwalk, a.k.a. Artwalk 21, comes to the heart of Westville. Actually, it arrived last night, with a block party from 6:30 to 10 p.m. including live and DJed music, various “shows and openings” around the neighborhood and a ticketed beer garden ($20, or $15 in advance). Today, from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., there’s live music too, plus an outdoor art and artisan market, food trucks and kids attractions like a “spin art bike, climbing wall, camera obscura and more.” Free to attend.

At Creative Arts Workshop (80 Audubon St, Nw Haven; 203-562-4927), the New Haven Paint and Clay Club’s 117th Annual Juried Art Exhibition—adjudicated this year by Samuel Quigley, the director of the Lyman Allyn Art Museum in New London—has a free opening reception from 2 to 5 p.m.

Sunday, May 13 – Mother’s Day
Restaurants around the city are hosting Mother’s Day brunches, and flower shops will keep the city well-served. Here’s another flowery idea: a visit to the Pardee Rose Garden (180 Park Rd, Hamden), maybe with a picnic basket. Hundreds if not thousands of varied blossoms are already blooming there, and, as part of East Rock Park, it’s free and open to the public.

Written and photographed by Dan Mims. Readers are encouraged to verify times, locations and prices before attending events.