If you have fond memories of solving crimes with Nancy Drew as a kid, then there’s an art exhibit you need to visit this weekend. But if art’s not your thing, we’ve got comedy legends, film festivals and Shakespeare to keep you busy all weekend. You’ve always wanted to see an all-women version of “The Winter’s Tale,” right? ART
Book Illustration: Nancy Drew and the Hardy Boys
Through Sept.12
The Brush Art Gallery
256 Market St., Lowell
Free, 978-459-7819
This exhibition contains 40 original illustrations for the covers of books from the “Nancy Drew” and “Hardy Boys” books, spanning 60 years. These images, with their meddling kids snooping around dark corners, either running from trouble or about to get into it, often upstaged the cheesy, ghostwritten content of the books themselves, inspiring three generations of young readers. RELATED: Frozen cocktails, marshmallow garnishes and more at Hojoko MUSIC
Britt Connors
Friday, 8 p.m.
Club Passim
47 Palmer St., Cambridge
$18, 617-492-7679
Singer-songwriter Britt Connors is a native of West Boylston, MA, but the spiritual home of her music is the South—a rootsy sound her bio describes cleverly as “Ya’ll-Ternative.”She may never have the hometown cred, but the clarity and warmth of her voice and the sincerity of her songs more than make up the difference. COMEDY
Steve Sweeney
Thursday through Saturday
Laugh Boston
425 Summer St., Boston
$20-$25, 617-725-2844
The relatively new waterfront venue Laugh Boston hosts one of the city’s true comedy vets, Steve Sweeney, this weekend.Sweeney was a member of the Boston comedy circle that included such legends as Steven Wright, Jay Leno and Lenny Clarke. Sweeney’s strong Boston accent is one of his trademarks — he even starred in a short-lived Boston-set sitcom, entitled “Park Street Under”. MOVIES
Films at the Gate
Friday through Sunday
Chinatown Park
Rose Kennedy Greenway, Boston
Free, 617-428-2380
This is the tenth year for Films at the Gate, the annual weekend of outdoor Chinese performances and film screenings in Chinatown. The festival starts officially on Friday, but there’s a kickoff block party tonight, with games and activities and a screening of “9-Man”, a documentary about Chinese volleyball. Check the website above for a full program. THEATER
‘The Winter’s Tale’
Through Sunday
Nathan Tufts Park
850 Broadway, Somerville
Free, 815-325-8526
Maiden Phoenix Theater Company presents Shakespeare’s “The Winter’s Tale.”Its radical shifts from tragedy to comedy, eccentric geography, random 16-year time jump and somewhat preposterous ending have baffled generations of scholars. It also contains the Bard’s single greatest stage direction: “Exit, pursued by a bear.” Maiden Phoenix’s version features an all-female cast and highlights themes of family relations and domestic violence.
5 things to do in Boston this weekend
Drew Sanderson
