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Lifeline: 10 Cool Things To Do In Two Weeks
TAMARA WILLIAMS Photo by Jeff Cravotta
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TAMARA WILLIAMS ON DANCE AND DIASPORAS
Dancer, scholar and assistant professor in the Department of Dance at UNC Charlotte Tamara Williams presents a lecture in conjunction with Isaac Julien: Lina Bo Bardi — A Marvellous Entanglement, British artist and filmmaker Isaac Julien’s nine-screen film installation/tribute to Italian-Brazilian architect Lina Bo Bardi. Williams, who has trained extensively in Afro-Brazilian dance, draws on her personal experience as an artist and scholar to illustrate how these dance forms reach across cultures and continents. In this way, she gives the audience a lens to appreciate the African Diaspora. More: Free; Jan. 27, 7:30 p.m.; virtual (Zoom); bechtler.org
HAYDEN CHILDRESS Promo photo
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HAYDEN CHILDRESS
“You’ve seen rabbits pulled out of hats … now see hats pulled out of rabbits.” This cryptic claim is made by Charlotte-based magician Hayden Childress, who studied sleight of hand at the age of 10 before launching his professional career at 16. The modern magician and mentalist, who was featured on the latest season of Penn & Teller: Fool Us on The CW Network, eschews glitzy Las Vegas legerdemain and ornate magical props for everyday objects. His performances combine magic, psychology, and audience participation. But do the rabbits mind that bit about the hats? More: $25-$35; Jan. 29, 8 p.m.; Stage Door Theater, 155 N. College St.; blumenthalarts.org
YES CHEF!, SIDESTEP DOG, ILL INTENTIONS, MIND VAC
Anxious, ambitious and hopeful, Yes Chef! is a musical contradiction — a scrappy indie combo that raises a full and luxurious racket. Queen City Nerve’s Best New Band in 2020 employs grinding guitars, coiling bass, heroic trumpet and a tapestry of trilling flutes — and that’s just in one song, “Chelsea,” which opens the band’s exuberant EP Drive Safe. Songwriter and guitarist Leith K. Ali entwines his vocal lines with bassist KC Marie Roberge in pensive yet triumphant tunes, emo oxymorons that are wistful introverted anthems and fanfares for the everyman. More: $7-$10; Jan. 29, 8 p.m.; Petra’s, 1919 Commonwealth Ave.; petrasbar.com
YUNGBLUD
Just when you think pop punk is tapped out along comes Yorkshire-born singer-songwriter Yungblud harnessing punk spirit, pop savvy and hip-hop credibility to examine mental-health issues under a veneer of snark and cynicism. Most of all, he understands that the best pop punk couples anger and defiance with hope to overcomes creeping self-disgust. Musically, it may be nothing new — Yungblud hails from a musical family and his grandfather played with T. Rex — but he puts it over with panache that doesn’t obscure his vulnerability. More: $39 and up; Feb. 1, 8 p.m.; The Fillmore, 820 Hamilton St.; livenation.com
WEDNESDAY NIGHT LIVE: FOLLOW YOUR HEART GUIDED GALLERY TOURS
Portraiture forms the bedrock of Mint Uptown’s American Art gallery. The museum’s collection includes portraits by leading artists including Gilbert Stuart, and Thomas Sully, and subjects range from historical figures to children. More recent portraits reside in Mint Uptown’s Modern and Contemporary collection. Who better to present these paintings of memorable personalities than indelible personality and living work of art Buff Faye, ‘The Queen of the Queen City?’ She’ll guide two gallery tours while DJ Selah Say spins tunes throughout the evening. More: Free; Feb. 2, 6:30 p.m. & 7:30 p.m.; Mint Uptown, 500 S. Tryon St.; mintmuseum.org
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‘THE SPINE OF NIGHT’ THE MENDERS, DAVID CHILDERS ADELE GIVENS THE LEGACY OF AFRICAN DRUMS
Imagine the coolest black-light poster come to life, or being immersed in a Philippe Druillet fantasy illustration, complete with brawny, bloodthirsty warriors and copious male and female full frontal nudity. Taking its name from an episode of astronomer Carl Sagan’s landmark TV show Cosmos, The Spine of Night expertly replicates the rotoscoped animation of Ralph Bakshi’s Lord of the Rings and Fire and Ice. But the plot of this heavy metal-inspired portmanteau fantasy, how the pursuit of power becomes an all-consuming downward spiral, seems firmly grounded in present reality. More: $10 donation; Feb. 2, 8 p.m.; VisArt Video, 3104 Eastway Dr.; visartvideo.org/events Gastonia garage rockers The Menders barreled out of the gate like a blast of brimstone last fall with their fourth full-length release, The Devil’s Reel, which the band bills as “an exploration into the temptation and wages of vice and sin, the weakness of will, and the triumph of the spirit.” Perhaps so, but the takeaway is an exhilarating yet melodic rush that feels roughhewn and reckless. There’s a chugging early ’70s vibe here, and while the lyrics rest uneasily in the here and now, the music channels Sweet’s Desolation Boulevard. More: $5; Feb. 2, 9:30 p.m.; Snug Harbor, 1228 Gordon St.; snugrock.com Comedian and actress Adele Givens has appeared in sitcoms including Martin and films like The Player’s Club. All of that pales next to her response to a heckler in a late ’90s Def Comedy Jam. Noting the guy’s small feet, she surmises that he has a tiny penis. “I couldn’t give him no blow job,” Givens says. “My big ass lips, his little dick, it wouldn’t work. It would be like trying to give a whale a Tic Tac.” The entire audience jumps to their feet and cheers. It’s a thing of beauty. More: $25-$30; Feb. 4-6, 7 p.m. & 9:45 p.m.; Comedy Zone, 900 NC Music factory Blvd.; cltcomedyzone.com Gantt’s Family First series connects with the roots of African-American expression through traditional African drumming. Guiding participants through the history and impact of African drums is Drums 4 Life, launched by Kojo Bey, who has performed and taught African drumming as a healing art for 20 years. Bey believes the power of the drum is unleashed when the drummer’s heart is filled with love. The program will cover drum-making as well as their diverse uses, which include communicating, celebrating and mourning. More: $10; Feb. 5, 12 p.m.; Gantt Center, 551 S. Tryon St.; ganttcenter.org
FAMILY FIRST: LEGACY OF AFRICAN DRUMS Photo by Nancy Pierce
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For every Sylvester Stallone, there’s a Frank Stallone; for every Groucho Marx a Zeppo — people shunted out of the spotlight because everyone is focused on the stars. Charlotte’s newest theater impresarios Proxymoran Productions present the story of the under-appreciated Puffs. For seven years, Harry Potter went to a wizard school and conquered evil. Puffs was there too, but no one bothered to tell his story — until now. The tale, subtitled Seven Increasingly Eventful Years at a Certain School of Magic and Magic, is for anyone who has never been destined to save the world. More: $15; Feb. 3-12, 8 p.m.; Stage Door Theater, 155 N. College St.; blumenthalarts.org
