28 Things to Do This Weekend

The Italian Market Festival (May 21st & 22nd) | Photo from www.italianmarketfestival.com

Friday, May 20th 

• Cirque Goes to the Movies @ The Kimmel Center In this Philly POPS world premiere, acrobats, jugglers, and aerial dancers swirl above the orchestra as it performs the scores of blockbuster classics like Star Wars, Harry Potter, Titanic, Mission Impossible, James Bond and many more.

https://soundcloud.com/the-philly-pops/cirque-goes-to-the-movies-star-trek

•  RealLivePeople Presents @ The Latvian Society The Philly-based modern dance company, whose inspiration stems from everyday human experience, presents a performance series featuring local, national and international artists.
  

  Photo by Plate3.com

• Get Pegged Cabaret @ FringeArts Every third Friday through June, La Peg is infused with a sultry ambience of dancing, daring, and drag. Joey Arias is this month’s featured performer.
• East Coast Black Age of Comics Convention @ The African American Museum & The Enterprise Center This annual convention celebrating black superheroes and characters draws comic book readers and writers from around the country. 
• Philadelphia International Tango Festival @ Christ Church Neighborhood House Grab your bandoneons and ballroom shoes for a lineup of seminars and performances by some of the world’s most renown Habanera hoofers. The fest features the dynamic dancing duos of Gustavo Naveira & Giselle Anne and Alejandro Larenas & Marisol Morales, among many other duets.
• Pop Up Yoga @ The Water Works Settle down for some Shavasana by the Schuylkill. Yoga Alfresco’s monthly Friday Pop Up appears on the outdoor pavilion behind the Art Museum. Proceeds of the class goes toward maintenance of the Water Works.
• Rufus Wainwright @ The Filmore His indie pop sound layered with an operatic timbre has climbed the charts and clutched nominations across both hemispheres.
• Margret Cho @ Helium Comedy Club The renowned humorist, actress and singer-songwriter stops in Philly along her PsyCHO Tour. Additional performance on the 21st.

Saturday, May 21st

• Rittenhouse Row Spring Festival Nearly 50,000 attendees come every spring to six blocks of Walnut Street for tons of food, shopping, and entertainment from neighborhood businesses.
• Kensington Kinetic Sculpture Derby and Arts Festival A parade of papier-mâché floats, apparatuses, and other products of the imagination cruise throughout Kensington, whose streets will be lined with dozens of food trucks, local crafts, clothing and artisanal vendors.
• Superhero Weekend @ The Please Touch Museum Whether you prefer capes or shooting webs, fly to Fairmount Park, where Please Touch transforms into a superhero hub all weekend. Visitors of all ages are encouraged to dress up, too.
• 93.3 WMMR & Budweiser’s MMR*Q* 2016 @ BB&T Pavilion The all-day music festival marks the start of Philly’s summer concert season. Performers include Disturbed, Shinedown, 3 Doors Down, Sixx: A.M., Collective Soul, Wolfmother, and Red Sun Rising.
• Titus @ The Painted Bride Part of PAPAYA at the Bride International Family Series, the play tells the tale of a ten-year-old boy named Titus who’s on the edge — quite literally — of his school’s roof. Perturbed with a boredom, he has several stories to tell with big lies and small truths.
• Magician Mark Zacharia’s “Back DESPITE Popular Demand” @ South Street Magic The one-man show amazes and amuses with audience-participation magic and mentalism.
  

  Courtesy of Mark Zacharia

• The Social Sessions: Chapter 1 @ The CHI Movement Arts Center The community arts collective explores the socioeconomic issues of Philly through performance artistry. Light is shed upon subjects of homelessness, abandonment and abuse through dance, film and poetry.
• Max Major’s Think Again @ The Franklin Institute   After sold-out performances last fall, mentalist Max Major returns to the Franklin Institute for an extended run of his nationally acclaimed act, THINK AGAIN! Surreal demonstrations upon himself and audience members will make you, ahem, think again about the capability of your own cognition.
• Tape Mural Marathon @ The Rotunda If you consider yourself a taping virtuoso, gather up your rolls of duct and Scotch and help create a community mural entirely of the sticky good stuff.
• Preakness @ The Piazza in Northern Liberties  Oversized hats populate the Piazza for the second jewel of the Triple Crown. This fourth-annual event not only celebrates the 141st annual Preakness, but raises proceeds for multiple sclerosis.
• Everything @ thefidget space Body-based performing artist Nicole Bindler and classically trained percussionist Ashely Tini join in a two-hour event of pure improv. The audience can come and go at any time during the show.
• Live From the Lot @ Electric Factory  In this double-bill festival, music resonates from Northern Liberties to the Main Line. On Saturday, step inside the Electric Factory, which will host headlining acts like Snarky Puppy, The Revivalists, and Foundation of Funk.
• Mel Brooks: Back in The Saddle Again! @ The Academy of Music One of the only living EGOTs (winner of an Emmy, Grammy, Oscar and Tony) hosts a Q&A after a screening of his legendary movie Blazing Saddles.

Sunday, May 22nd 

• Live From the Lot @ Ardmore Hall On Sunday, head out to the ’burbs for some sunshine as the fest resumes outdoors at Ardmore Hall with acts like Soulive & friends, The Greyboy Allstars, and Karl Denson.
• Celebration of Black Artists @ The Art Sanctuary Running through May 31st, this exhibit showcases a range of works from the some of the country’s most well-known African-American artists.
• Koresh Artist Showcase @ Koresh Dance Studios In an intimate black-box theater off of Rittenhouse Square, the contemporary dance company hosts its annual Showcase Series, presenting the performance artistry of emerging local dancers and choreographers.
• 9th Street Italian Market Festival  What would South Philly be without a block party bursting with oodles of gabagool and seas of cannolis?
• Strawberry Festival @ Peddlers Village Revel in strawberry fields (or themes) forever with an extensive selection of strawberry butters, strawberry fritters, strawberry pies, strawberry T-shirts, and more.
• Craft Philly @ Olde City Artisans, master craftsmen, and hipster artists display their wares just a hop, skip and a jump away from the Liberty Bell, Independence Hall and the Constitution Center.
• Apocalyptica @ The Trocadero  This Finnish band bridges a daunting gap between the classics and grunge.