MUSIC
The Marriage of Figaro
This weekend is your last chance to see Boston Lyric Opera’s latest production of this beloved Mozart opera, in which the titular everyman hero must stop his own boss, Almaviva, from snatching away his wife-to-be, Susanna. Can a guy get a break? The music is among Mozart’s most celebrated; the opera itself one of the top ten most performed works in the genre.
Through May 7, John Hancock Hall, 180 Berkeley St., Boston. $47-$182. Visit site for more.
Draco Rosa
Once a member of the boy band Menudo, Puerto Rican singer-songwriter Draco Rosa has established a strong career, most notably in this country as the producer and co-writer of Ricky Martin’s big hits, including “Livin’ La Vida Loca,” “She Bangs” and “Shake Your Bon-Bon.” His own material tends toward melancholic romanticism rather than campy club fair.
May 6, 8 p.m., Berklee Performance Center, 136 Massachusetts Ave., Cambridge. $28-$48. Visit site for more.
The Black Lips
This Atlanta band has been at it since 1999, keeping the flag of straight-ahead, old school garage rock flying. They’re gaining as much attention for their GG Allin-inspired on stage antics as their reliably great music. The group’s latest album, “Satan’s Grafitti Or God’s Art?”, out Friday, was produced by Sean Lennon, a perfect figure to help conjure the Lips’ particular mix of 60’s and 90’s rock.
May 8, 7 p.m., Brighton Music Hall, 158 Brighton Ave., Allston. $18. 18+. Visit site for more.
BOOKS
Meta Wagner and Camille DeAngelis
These authors appear together with two different self-help/pop psychology texts with particular appeal to creative folks. Meta Wagner’s new book, “What’s Your Creative Type?”, might just help you enhance your creativity by helping you zero in on just what sort of creative you are. Camille DeAngelis’ “Life without Envy” contains advice for taming one of the more negative side effects of artistic competition.
May 4, 7 p.m., Porter Square Books, 25 White St., Cambridge. Free. Visit site for more.
CIRCUS
Throwback Tales: a Retro Spectacular
Circus artists don’t tend to tell us much about themselves—we just need to see some death-defying leaps to be satisfied—but in this show, the Boston Circus Guild bare their souls along with their skills, sharing true stories from their pasts alongside all the wild stunts. There’s also a retro (a.k.a. 80’s and 90’s) dance party during the intermissions, because why not?
May 4 through 12. Oberon, 2 Arrow St., Cambridge. $25-$45. Visit site for more.
THEATER
Yellow Bird Chase
Liars and Believers presents this family-friendly, charmingly silly-looking original fantasy play about a maintenance crew who end up on a wild goose chase—well, technically, it’s yellow bird chase, but who’s counting? See battles with “pirates, monsters, and terrible pop songs,” plus some very inventive puppetry and masks in this collaboration with Luminati, led by local cabaret star Johnny Blazes.
May 4 through 21, Calderwood Pavilion, 527 Tremont St., Boston. $15-$25. Visit site for more.
The Bridges of Madison County
SpeakEasy Stage Company brings us the 2014 Broadway musical adaptation of Robert James Waller’s 1992 romance novel, famously made into a 1995 film with Clint Eastwood and Meryl Streep. Though you might wonder what’s the value in adding songs to Waller’s bittersweet adultery tale, they are apparently very good songs—good enough to win the Tony Award for Best Original Score.
May 6 through June 3, Calderwood Pavilion, 527 Tremont St., Boston. $25-$52. Visit site for more.
DANCE
From the Horse’s Mouth
This performance, which has also been performed in other cities with unique ensembles, brings together a diverse group of dancers of many different ages and many different styles, each making a personal testimony to their love of dance and its meaning in their lives. Given how much less we tend to hear of dancers’ lives than musicians or actors, this is a rare treat.
May 5 through 7, The Dance Complex, 536 Mass. Ave., Cambridge. $12-$29. Visit site for more.
MOVIES
Buster’s Mal Heart
The hero of the new film from Sarah Adina Smith’s “Buster’s Mal Heart” is a wandering, disturbed, ratty-bearded fellow who, when he’s not breaking into people’s houses, calls into radio shows to elaborate his strange, paranoid ideas. But, we soon find out that he was once a normal guy with a family and a stressful job. How did he snap? That’s the question.
May 5 through 7, Brattle Theater, 40 Brattle St., Cambridge. $9-$11. Visit site for more.
ART
CityHeart Art Show and Sale
Since 2011, this annual show has been giving artists who’ve experienced homelessness a chance to share and sell their work, as well as to create it—they’re given free materials and studio time. It’s a reminder of what a privilege it is to be able to make and show art at all, as well as how empowering it can be.
May 6, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., Prudential Center, 800 Boylston St., Boston. Free. Visit site for more.
Jeannie Weissglass: The Secret Life of Porcupines
Amusing and disturbing are two great tastes that go great together, and Jeannie Weissglass combines them very well. In this mix of paintings and works on paper, she took inspiration from what Kabinett Gallery calls “American colonial sin.” Pure abstraction collides with recurring, cartoonish figures including George Washington-looking men, women in sexual positions, floating skulls and of course porcupines.
May 6 through June 14, Kabinett Gallery, 467 Shawmut Ave., Boston. Free. Visit site for more.
MAGIC
Four-Handed Illusions
Two master magicians, Joel Acevedo and Steve Kradolfer, join forces for this intimate evening of comedy and baffling illusion. The duo specializes in making things disappear or move across the room in impossible ways, as well as mentalism—the art of seemingly reading minds. The vibe is classy, held in the library of the stately Hampshire House, with a “coktail attire” dress code.
May 7, 3:30 p.m. and 7 p.m., Hampshire House, 84 Beacon St., Boston. $55. 21+. Visit site for more.
