Confront global warming, embrace local cooling and savor the expressions of artists past and present.
Monday, November 11 – Veterans Day
A ceremony featuring words by local Vietnam War veteran Norman Bender and a performance of “Taps” by Peter Cannon—to be followed by wreath layings at monuments on the Green and at the southern end of Long Wharf Park—happens at Center Church Parish House (311 Temple St, New Haven) from 11 a.m. to noon.
Before, during and possibly after the ceremony, from 10 a.m. to noon (per the flyer) or 1 p.m. (per the Facebook event), Yale’s Leitner Observatory (355 Prospect St, New Haven) hosts a special viewing of the “transit” of Mercury, “when the planet Mercury passes directly (transits) between the Sun and Earth, becoming visible against (and hence obscuring a small portion of) the solar disk.” Free; weather permitting.
sponsored by
Tuesday, November 12
Sunrise New Haven, the New Haven Climate Movement, Unidad Latina en Acción and “other grassroots groups” have organized a Post-Election Rally for Climate Justice from 4 to 5 p.m. “We’ll gather outside City Hall (165 Church Street) to ask our elected officials: what’s your plan?”
Hartford-based rock act Bonsai Trees, whose latest album, Learn to Grow, polishes the band’s trademark youthful and confessional songwriting to a high sheen, kicks off a new tour by heading up a 9 p.m. bill at Cafe Nine (250 State St, New Haven; 203-789-8281). Helping the Trees grow are local hard rock/post-rock band Wayward City and singer-songwriter Jake Lasz. $5-10.
Wednesday, November 13
The Institute Library Story Sharing Group’s sixth annual Tellabration, “a two-part storytelling show for adults,” happens today and tomorrow from 7:30 to 9 p.m., when 16 total performers—“a mix of proven veterans and great new blood”—will regale listeners with tales from “a farm in Montana, a city street in Russia, a beach in Milford, and other locations both familiar and exotic.” Admission is $15 (or $10 for library members) and covers both nights. 847 Chapel Street, New Haven. (203) 562-4045.
sponsored by
Thursday, November 14
From 4 to 5 p.m., the Yale School of Art’s Holcombe T. Greene Jr. Hall (1156 Chapel St, New Haven) hosts a closing reception for We Don’t Really Know Each Other, an admirably honestly named show of curated painting, printmaking, photography, sculpture and graphic design work by the school’s first-year MFA students.
Starting at 7 p.m. in Woolsey Hall (500 College St, New Haven) and joined by “one of the most sought-after soloists in his generation, pianist Orion Weiss,” the New Haven Symphony Orchestra’s latest performance brings together Beethoven’s beloved Seventh Symphony and John Adams’s singular and immensely pleasurable Chairman Dances. $15-74 or $10 for college students, with free KidTix available.
Friday, November 15
From 6 p.m. to close, Elm City Social (266 College St, New Haven; 475-441-7436) is throwing a party to mark the opening of its seasonal ski lodge-themed rooftop, with “Heated Igloos, Warm Winter Cocktails, Ski Lodge Bites, ‘Shot’skis and more!” No cover; reservations recommended.
Meanwhile, at Battell Chapel (400 College St, New Haven) starting at 7:30 p.m., the Danish National Vocal Ensemble and the Yale Schola Cantorum, a chamber choir based out of the Institute of Sacred Music, perform a rich yet free program of 11 works.
Saturday, November 16
Marking four years since it turned nonprofit, the Best Video Film and Cultural Center (1842 Whitney Ave, Hamden; 203-287-9286) is holding a Fall Open House & “Fun”draising Extravaganza, whose quirky itinerary, which lasts from around 10 a.m. to around 10 p.m., includes musical performances, screenings, trivia, food trucks and a cookie contest. Donations of any amount are encouraged.
Nearby, “a horror film screening”—of local director Gorman Bechard’s Psychos in Love (1987)—“in an old church”—Whitneyville Cultural Commons (1247 Whitney Ave, Hamden)—starts at 7:30 p.m. But before then, at 6, you can meet and buy autographed merch from Carmine Capobianco, who acted, co-wrote and composed music for the low-budget flick and is participating in a post-screening Q&A at 9. Fair warning: Judging by the trailer, which you can find online, the movie contains more than its fair share of gore and nudity. $10.
Back in New Haven, short-run exhibition Dia de Muertos gets an opening reception featuring “live music, food by home chefs, a community altar, lights and magic” from 6 to 8 p.m. at Artspace (50 Orange St, New Haven; 203-772-2709). But the main attraction is the set of large and colorful puppets on display, many of which were carried during the recent Dia de los Muertos parade. Free.
Sunday, November 17
As if to prepare you for your own Thanksgiving reunion in 11 days, the Whitney Humanities Center (53 Wall St, New Haven) hosts a screening of the Jodie Foster-directed, Holly Hunter-starring film Home for the Holidays (1995), in which a far-flung family gathers once more to catch up, eat up and hash out any tensions and anxieties that boil over. 2 p.m. Free.
Leapfrogging Thanksgiving but also starting at 2 p.m., the Knights of Columbus Museum (1 State St, New Haven; 203-865-0400) hosts the New Haven Chorale for a performance of yuletide carols. The occasion? The opening weekend of the museum’s annual holiday show, Christmas in Europe. Free.
Written by Dan Mims. Image, of Leitner Observatory, photographed by Cara McDonough. Readers are encouraged to verify times, locations and prices before attending events.
