THEATER
Blinders This satire by PatrickGabridgerevolves around a pair of men whom scientists claim to be genetically identical. The public believes they look alike, but a lone journalist seems to be the only person — aside from the audience —who sees two rather non-identical men. Can she stop their bid for president before she’s declared, in this backward world, insane? Homemade Fusion Local company The Opposite of People presents this intimate musical theater piece, a series of monologs about modern social life that they sum up thusly: “At once dangerously cynical, desperately romantic, and alarmingly humorous—it is a tale of love, loss, and candy bars.” There’s anopen bar, and audience members are invited to hang with the performers before and after the show. ART
Adam Vinson: Hoopla (and Other Necessary Distractions) Oil painter Adam Vinson likes to compose still lifes with various small objects—photographs, corks, paperclips, puzzle pieces, etc. His skill at representation borders on optical illusion — you feel you could reach in and grab something. One painting, of a glob of mint chocolate chip ice cream still in the scoop, can only be described as delicious. Music to Our Ears Music, as an object of cultural enjoyment, is both sonic and visual. Following up on last year’s “Guitar Heroes” show, Panopticon Gallery presents another collection of music-related imagery for the summer, with work from Glen Scheffer, Ron Pownall, Roger Farrington, Rowland Scherman, Leslii Stevens, Marc Lacatell, Alexander Harding, Stephen Sheffield, Liz Linder, Charlie Sawyer and Robert James Campbell. FESTIVALS
Boston Dragon Boat Festival Watch a bunch of teams of rowers race their dragon-helmed boats down the Charles. Saturday’s just time trials and practices at MIT’s Piece Boathouse, but Sunday’s finals races include a cultural festival near the Weeks Footbridge, with live performances of traditional Chinese arts — and also some Bhangra and Japanese taiko drumming, because what not? — plus arts and crafts tents and food vendors. BOOKS
James Renner This journalist will discuss his book “True Crime Addict,” in which he recounts his obsession with the 2004 disappearance of UMass student Maura Murray in New Hampshire. While we often have romantic notions of the journalist who sacrifices everything to get to the truth, in Renner’s case, his quest cost him his mental health, and could almost have cost him his life. MOVIES
Boston Open Screen Do you have a movie you’d like to show at the Coolidge Corner Theater? If it’s under ten minutes long, they’ll put it up on the big screen at this event. Sign up is at 7 p.m.; the films start playing at 7:30. This is a popular event, so if you want to come to watch, we’d suggest you show up early. MUSIC
Idomeneo Boston Opera Collaborative presents this work by Mozart, condensed to a two-hour length. It draws on Greek myth, telling of the Trojan Ear era Cretan King Idomeneus. In order to save his crew, he struck a bargain with Poseidon to sacrifice the first living thing he saw — and it turned out to be his son. That’s a tough one. Voices of Aloha This multilingual choral group from the University of Hawaii performs song and dance in the classic Hawaiian tradition, representing the unique mix of European, Oceanic and East Asian influences that constitute the culture of our most far-flung state. Yes, there will be hula and ukulele, but probably a lot you didn’t expect or know about. TOURS
Survival: Boston 1630 Despite the themes of certain recent horror films, witches weren’t the most immediate threat to the early Puritan settlers. This tour will take you back to the year of Boston’s founding, 1630. A thousand Puritan settlers arrived in the summer; by the end of the brutal winter, during which the harbor froze over, only half remained, and you’ll find out how. COMEDY
Maria Bamford This alternative comedienne always seemed quietly unhinged, but she actually did suffer from a severe mental illness that briefly derailed her career. As whacky as Bamford’s new Netflix series “Lady Dynamite” can be, it’s also a surprisingly candid depiction of a person’s breakdown, the pain of stigma and the slow, confusing road to recovery in a society that doesn’t necessarily encourage sanity. Solve for X Variety Show As the generation raised on “Bill Nye the Science Guy” well knows, science can be quite amusing. This night of science-themed comedy, which originated in Atlanta, includes comedians, storytellers and scientists. No word on their identities, but we’re told they’ve been featured on NPR’s “Ask Me Another,” The Onion and Story Collider, so expect intelligence, irreverenceand insight. BlindersFriday through June 25Arsenal Center for the Arts321 Arsenal St., Watertown$10-$25www.flatearththeatre.com
Friday through June 25
Arsenal Center for the Arts
321 Arsenal St., Watertown
$10-$25
www.flatearththeatre.com
Friday through Sunday
UFORGEGallery
767 Centre St., Jamaica Plain
$15-$18,theoppositeofpeopleboston@gmail.com
www.tinyurl.com/hfmusical
Friday through July 8
Sloane Merrill Gallery
75 Charles St., Boston
Free, 617-227-1775
www.sloanemerrillgallery.com
Friday through September 13
Panopticon Gallery
502c Comm. Ave., Boston
Free, 781-718-5777
www.panopticongallery.com
Saturday and Sunday
Charles River bank, near Weeks Footbridge
Cambridge
Free
www.bostondragonboat.org
Wednesday, 7 p.m.
Trident Booksellers and Café
338 Newbury St., Boston
Free, 617-267-8688
www.tridentbookscafe.com/event/book-launch-true-crime-addict?instance_id…
Tuesday, 7 p.m.
Coolidge Corner Theater
290 Harvard Ave., Brookline
$7, 617-734-2500
www.facebook.com/events/248130722211988/
Saturday through June 19
Edward M. Pickman Concert Hall
27 Garden St., Cambridge
$15-$35, info@bostonoperacollaborative.org
www.bostonoperacollaborative.org
Saturday, 8 p.m.
First Church in Cambridge
11 Garden St., Cambridge
Free
manoa.hawaii.edu/music/VoA
Saturday, 10 a.m. to 12 p.m.
Massachusetts State House
24 Beacon St., Boston
Free (register online)
www.eventbrite.com/e/survival-boston-1630-walking-tour-tickets-25729027213
Friday, 7:30 p.m.
The Wilbur Theater
246 Tremont St., Boston
$27-$32, 800-745-3000
www.ticketmaster.com
Sunday, 6:30 p.m.
Middle East Upstairs
480 Mass. Ave., Cambridge
$5-$10, 866-777-8932
www.ticketweb.com/t3/sale/SaleEventDetail?dispatch=loadSelectionData&eve…
This satire by Patrick Gabridge revolves around a pair of men whom scientists claim to be genetically identical. The public believes they look alike, but a lone journalist seems to be the only person — aside from the audience—who sees two rather non-identical men. Can she stop their bid for president before she’s declared, in this backward world, insane?
Homemade FusionFriday through SundayUFORGE Gallery767 Centre St., Jamaica Plain$15-$18, theoppositeofpeopleboston@gmail.comwww.tinyurl.com/hfmusical
Local company The Opposite of People presents this intimate musical theater piece, a series of monologs about modern social life that they sum up thusly: “At once dangerously cynical, desperately romantic, and alarmingly humorous—it is a tale of love, loss, and candy bars.” There’s an open bar, and audience members are invited to hang with the performers before and after the show.
Get your ‘Blinders’ on
Jake Scaltreto
