Days before two marquee arts institutions celebrate two marquee moments, another marquee arts institution unveils a literal marquee.
Monday, October 1
Danceable indie pop duo Mates of State, comprised of local married couple Kori Gardner and Jason Hammel, is a big act playing the intimate venue of Cafe Nine (250 State St, New Haven; 203-789-8281). The show starts at 8 p.m. with opener Jaunt, a band “who meld pop, … jazz, R&B and indie rock.” Free with RSVP, or $5 at the door.
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Tuesday, October 2
At 5:30 p.m. in the plaza out front, the Shubert Theatre (247 College St, New Haven; 203-562-5666) is lighting up its new digital marquee for the first official time, and you can be there to catch it. Replacing an analog 1980s-era board that required manual updating and too-frequent repair work, the new marquee “will allow the theatre to display video of all upcoming performances and post up-to-date information instantly.”
Yale neurologist Stephen Novella’s new cowritten book The Skeptics’ Guide to the Universe: How to Know What’s Really Real in a World Increasingly Full of Fake may present itself as especially important in this day and age, but its subjects of interest—“the difference between science and pseudoscience, essential critical thinking skills, ways to discuss conspiracy theories with that crazy coworker of yours and how to combat sloppy reasoning, bad arguments and superstitious thinking”—have been crucial for a very long time. Novella and his coauthors (Bob Novella, Cara Santa Maria, Jay Novella and Evan Bernstein) are discussing and signing the book at RJ Julia (768 Boston Post Rd, Madison; 203-245-3959) at 7 p.m. Free to attend.
Wednesday, October 3
“Medical mistakes lead to as many as 440,000 preventable deaths every year, making it the #3 leading cause of death in the United States.” So say the makers of To Err Is Human (2018), “an in-depth documentary about this silent epidemic and those working quietly behind the scenes to fix it,” which screens at 6 p.m. at Yale Law School (127 Wall St, New Haven). A Q&A with the director, Mike Eisenberg, happens after the screening, with dinner somewhere in the mix. Free.
Thursday, October 4
In Woolsey Hall (500 College St, New Haven; pictured above), it’s a very special opening night at the symphony, kicking off the New Haven Symphony Orchestra’s 125th season and longtime music director William Boughton’s last. The program includes Rimsky-Korsakov’s Scheherazade, Dvořák’s Violin Concerto in A Minor, the prelude of Humperdinck’s Hansel and Gretel and the world premiere of “a fanfare celebrating the historic relationship between the NHSO, Woolsey Hall and the Woolsey Hall organ”: TJ Cole’s To the Universe. Regular tickets cost between $15 and $74, with heavy discounts for college students and youth under 18.
Friday, October 5
The multifaceted multi-weekend annual arts festival City-Wide Open Studios, which showcases New Haven’s dazzling local arts scene, begins as it customarily does: with a grand opening reception, held from 5 to 8 p.m., at the home of organizer Artspace (50 Orange St, New Haven; 203-772-2709), where one work from each of CWOS’s hundreds of artists will be displayed. Pursuing this year’s theme of “Wellbeing,” tonight’s party also offers “a range of wellness-themed experiences” including yoga classes outside, massage chairs inside and a bar serving sustainable cocktails and mocktails. Meanwhile, a trio of artists will be live-sketching, one of 13 festival commissions will be debuted and the surrounding block of Orange Street will be closed off for Noodles On9, which features a dozen ninth-square vendors selling food and drink.
Saturday, October 6
Picking up where last night left off, City-Wide Open Studios jumps right into its first weekend: Erector Square Weekend, named for its location in the artist studio complex Erector Square (315 Peck St, New Haven). From noon to 6 today and tomorrow, “explore the personal studios of hundreds of local artists. Artspace volunteers will be on hand with maps, schedules of demonstrations and directions for visitors.” Free to attend.
At 7:30, members of Big Teeth, a performance collective of “acrobats, thespians, dancers and choreographers,” visit circus arts school Air Temple Arts (11 Research Dr, Unit 4, Woodbridge) to perform Ordinary Creatures, an original show “about monsters: those within us, the kind that grow out of the ground, those we see in others, the ones who wear lipstick, hide in the cellar, who aren’t sorry, the ones we wont admit to and those we unwittingly create. Through physical narrative, aerial acrobatics, vibrant ensemble exploration, dance and more questions than answers, we explore monstrosity in all its glittering facets.” $18, or $12 for children 12 and under.
Sunday, October 7
The blockbuster musical Les Misérables finishes up a four-day, seven-show run at the Shubert (247 College St, New Haven; 203-562-5666), with the wrenching plot and earworms theatergoers know and love but also “dazzlingly reimagined scenery inspired by the paintings” of Victor Hugo, who wrote the 1980 musical’s 1862 source material. Showtimes are 7:30 p.m. Thursday; 2 and 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday; and 1 and 6:30 p.m. today.
Written and photographed by Dan Mims. Readers are encouraged to verify times, locations and prices before attending events.
