Parking space parks, the Bard at the ballpark, and more weekend events
By: Jim Martinho - Friday, Sep 19, 2014 - 9:36am
(Photo credit: Rebar)
It’s shaping up to be a perfect late summer or early fall weekend, depending on how you want to look at things, and because I am a pessimist I’ll call it “basically winter because I can see my own breath at night.” So maybe pack a light jacket and enjoy this weekend’s events while the sun still functions as a source of warmth in addition to providing light.
* What if I told you about a wild four-night party, in a church, featuring Nice Guys, Miami Doritos, Immigrants, and Coke Weed? I’m actually not cool enough to know about parties like that, so this is a joke and those are names of bands playing at Church of Boston’s local music showcase, Boston En Masse. In the local music scene equivalent of a freeze-framed leaping group high five, each night is presented in association with a local music publication: Boston Hassle, DigBoston, Vanyaland, and Allston Pudding. 9.18 to 9.21. 8p. $10
* An annual international event where cities temporarily transform metered parking spots into miniature parks and public spaces, Cambridge’s PARK(ing) Day is back for another year after the disastrous 2013 campaign, “Don’t pahk ya cah in this pahk!” Projects range from the lame but necessary (recycling, voter registration) to fun and awesome (smoothie bar, mini mini-golf course). The event’s mission is to call attention to the need for more urban public space, or to the fact that you should have just walked from Inman to Central because you are never going to find a spot. 9.20. 9a. FREE
* Remember when Bruce played Fenway for the first time and it was a huge deal? Just this year the park has opened its gates for Tom Petty, Billy Joel, Zac Brown, and the singing spare change guy from Newbury Street, probably. Now Commonwealth Shakespeare Company is bringing the bard to the ballpark with Shakespeare at Fenway, a one-time performance with a cast of local celebrities. Tickets are $35, or $125 for an “MVP” ticket that features a post-show reception with the cast if you really want to ask Mike O’Malley if he ever got drunk and climbed the Aggro Crag. 9.19. 6:30p. $35-125
* One of the last shows to play at the Factory Theater before it closes, Science Fiction Theatre Company’s “The Singularity” is a black comedy set in a dystopian future, really the only kind of future that sci-fi will even acknowledge at this point. It’s about a woman who’s desperate to have a baby, and when hookups and sperm banks fail her, things get weird. 9.19. 8p. $25
* As I’m sure you know, Germany’s annual Oktoberfest celebration actually takes place in September, because “Oktoberfest” is just the German translation for “beer and cleavage party.” Somerville’s Aeronaut Brewing celebrates with German-themed barbecue, music from the Mad Bavarian Brass Band and the Somerville Symphony Orkestar, and plenty of Hefeweizen, Kristallweizen, Berliner Weisse and, of course, Oktoberfest. Free tickets sold out, but the Aeronaut team was nice enough to hook you up — enter the promo code BOSCAL on the Eventbrite page to get free admission (the code works for their Friday night Septemberfest party, too.) Or if you want to spend less time waiting at the bar and more time drinking Saturday, a $10 ticket gets you a mug and 1-liter pours of any German beer. 9.20. 2p. FREE/$10
* Galleries, studios, and artist homes open up their doors for your browsing pleasure at open studios in Jamaica Plain and the South End, who scheduled their events for the same weekend as if this was some kind of hilarious local arts scene version of “Bride Wars.” It’s OK though, both open studios are happening Saturday and Sunday so you can check out both neighborhoods, or probably skip them both to just go apple picking and watch football and why are you even reading this? 9.20 and 9.21. 11a. FREE
* This is like half cool event recommendation and half warning that Storrow Drive will be closed on Sunday: The annual Hub on Wheels citywide ride from Boston Bikes allows cyclists to briefly imagine Storrow as a car-free utopia bursting with sunshine and rainbows, explore hidden pathways and neighborhoods, and finish at a City Hall block party sponsored by Boloco. I’ve always heard that the best way to really experience the city is on a bike, or with a burrito stuffed into your face. 9.21. 2:30p. $50