Saturdays just got more interesting.
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In this April 13, 2016 file photo, Kevin Hart addresses the audience during the Universal Pictures presentation at CinemaCon 2016 in Las Vegas. (Photo by Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP, File)
If forecasts hold, this weekend should be a cooler one, which will make walking around festivals much more pleasant. The Chinatown Summer Festival heads to the historic neighborhood on Saturday, bringing live music and food trucks. West Philadelphia is the scene for both the Lancaster Jazz & Arts Festival and the community-based Katika Fest.
If you’d rather enjoy your weekend entertainment indoors, “Funny Girl” comes to the Academy of Music on its national tour, and the classic Hitchcock film “Notorious” gets the big screen treatment at Bryn Mawr Film Institute. Want to laugh? Two funny Kevins are in town. Kevin Hart is at the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino on Sunday and Kevin McDonald of Kids in the Hall is at City Winery on Saturday.
New Jersey | Delaware | Special Events | Arts & Culture | Kids | Food & Drink | Wellness | Comedy | Music
Not since The Grateful Dead has there been as devoted a fan following as people who love The Dave Matthews Band. Some fans travel with the band during their traditional summer tours and have seen upwards of 500 shows. If you’re one of them, you don’t need this listing, you already know DMB is at the Freedom Mortgage Pavilion this weekend! But if you didn’t, and you’ve never seen them live, here’s your chance.
After clawing his way to the top of the Hollywood call sheet, Philadelphia’s own Kevin Hart has dominated the comedy movie genre for some time. Now, he’s in Atlantic City on his Acting My Age tour, which means you’ll see all his new material live before it becomes a Netflix special.
Philadelphia’s Creative and Performing Arts High School, known colloquially as CAPA, claims many talented graduates. But Leslie Odom, Jr. is pretty special. He won a Tony and a Grammy for his portrayal of Aaron Burr in “Hamilton.” He’s acted on stage and screen, released five studio albums (a new one is coming in November), authored a memoir, and is currently starring in “Purlie Victorious” on Broadway. Somehow in the midst of all that, he’s heading to Delaware for a one-man show.
Shakespeare wrote so eloquently about the human condition that his plays still resonate with contemporary audiences. It also means that you can stage his work in many creative ways. For Delaware Shakespeare’s outdoor version of “Julius Caesar,” the cast is “gender expansive,” which means even if you’ve seen it before, you’ll see it differently.
It’s Jazz on the Ave. as the annual Lancaster Ave. Jazz & Arts Festival brings live music, vendors, and the West Philadelphia community to a neighborhood green space. The rain-or-shine event includes a Children’s Village, a Resource Village, a senior tent and rest areas with handwashing stations. Veteran bassist Jamaladeen Tacuma and his Quintet will headline.
Across town, you have the Katika Festival, another community-based event taking over a city greenspace. Food is the focus at Katika, as more than 40 food trucks and vendors are scheduled to pull up there. It will also include a double dutch battle, three deejays and a culinary showdown.
The Chinatown Summer Festival embraces Chinese culture in the form of live music and dance performances, including from the nearby Chinese Lantern Festival. It has the added benefit of food and other vendors and a Bonchon chicken drumstick eating contest. An outdoor screening in partnership with Scribe Video, extends the festival into the evening hours.
Based on the real-life story of performer Fanny Brice, “Funny Girl” is off its latest Broadway revival and on to a national tour. The Broadway musical run propelled a young Barbra Streisand to superstardom with the songs “People” and “Don’t Rain on My Parade.” Philly is its latest stop with relative newcomer Katerina McCrimmon receiving rave reviews in the lead role. Life imitating art?
Novelist Daniel Silva started as a journalist covering politics and wars for United Press International. It proved to be a great training ground for a second act as a New York Times best-selling author. He now has 27 books under his belt including his latest, “A Death in Cornwall,” out this month. You can meet him in person at his author signing happening Saturday.
Alfred Hitchcock’s 1946 movie “Notorious” is considered a classic of the film noir genre. Starring Cary Grant and Ingrid Bergman, it’s also a romance centered around the atrocities of Nazi Germany. The film is lauded for its stellar script, the chemistry of its stars and Hitchcock’s deft direction. Among its other accolades, it has a 96% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes. You can see it as Hitchcock envisioned it on the big screen at Bryn Mawr Film Institute.
I scream, you scream, we all scream for ice cream! On Ice Cream Day at the Please Touch Museum, kids and their parents/guardians can enjoy a day dedicated to the treat. Not only will ice cream sundaes be served, but activities including a ride on the museum’s famous carousel, storytime and the chance to try out being an ice cream proprietor at an imaginary in-house ice-cream stand are included.
West Philly enters the discount dining chat with the summer incarnation of University City Dining Days. During the week-long event, participating restaurants in the area will serve up a menu of “3 Courses, 3 Prices,” which means diners can choose from $20, $30 or $40 meals.
Day drinking at the zoo? That’s what the Summer Ale Festival promises. With a 6 p.m. start for early entry, the sun will still be up, so it counts. The festival showcases more than 100 craft beers, hard ice teas, hard ciders and local food trucks spread across the Philadelphia Zoo’s 42 acres. Music’s included in the deal, too, as Moon Poodle, Marielle Kraft, and Nik Greely & the Operators are slated to hit the stage. While the zoo is usually kid-friendly, this event is 21 and up only.
The WNBA will play its All-Star Game Saturday before many of its players head to Paris for the Summer Olympics. It should be a tough competition as it pits the WNBA All-Stars vs. the U.S.A. Basketball Women’s National Team going for its eighth straight Olympic gold. You can watch it live at the WNBA All-Star Game Watching Party, the latest in a series of women watching sports events hosted by Watch Party PHL.
If you need some self-care, puppies and yoga are an unbeatable combination. Puppy Yoga brings dogs and downward dogs together for a relaxed yoga class that benefits the Pennsylvania SPCA. And that’s not all! The ticket comes with a free beer. Sounds like relaxation to us!
Kevin McDonald was a member of “The Kids in the Hall,” an irreverent Canadian-based comedy troupe with a self-titled show that aired on CBC from 1989 to 1995. Over time, it became a cult classic that spawned tours and a 2022 revival. McDonald has some stories to tell about the troupe and his years with it, and he’ll do so at a performance at City Winery.
R&B stalwart “Uncle” Charlie Wilson is coming to Philadelphia and is bringing a few musical friends with him. Philly-based trombonist Jeff Bradshaw and R&B/blues singer Leela James will accompany headliner Wilson in a show for those who love classic R&B, jazz and blues music.
Olivia Rodrigo is a three-time Grammy winner who evolved from child actress to musical superstar in a few short years after departing from Disney’s “High School Musical: The Series.” Now, she’s on her second studio album “Guts,” and making a Philly stop on her sold-out tour of the same name.
Fleetwood Mac is among ‘70s bands like ABBA that have become so embedded in the culture of the times that their music is still impactful. Tusk bills itself as the world’s #1 Fleetwood Mac tribute band. We’ll take their word for it, but you can see for yourself when they take the stage at the Keswick Theater.
In 2018, Dr. Erin Bush founded the Young Women Composers Camp to address the gender disparity in classical music in conjunction with Temple’s Boyer Music School. From that beginning, it now hosts a summer festival and has assisted with the production of 150 world premieres. The Wildflowers Composers Concert showcases the work done in the summer program.
Saturdays just got more interesting.
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