John Armleder, Works About Nothing
Institute of Contemporary Art
118 S. 36th St.
Wed-Fri, 12-8 p.m.; Sat-Sun, 11 a.m.-5 p.m., free with PennCard
(215) 898-7108
www.icaphila.org
Drawings are usually seen as the most incomplete, preliminary form of art. In this installation, drawings are given the spotlight. Hundreds of drawings hung wall-to-wall and floor-to-ceiling offer a broad and experimental view of drawing itself. The collection includes works in a variety of mediums, a special edition wallpaper and collection of books prepared just for this exhibition.
Project Basho Open Studio Tour
Project Basho
1305 Germantown Ave.
Fri-Sat, 12 p.m., free
(215) 238-0928
www.projectbasho.org
As part of Philadelphia Open Studio Tours (POST), Project Basho will be offering visitors the chance to experience its exhibits. This is POST's seventh annual city-wide event, and it will include 236 professional visual artists in 20 Philadelphia neighborhoods, including of course, Project Basho. Project Basho - weird-ass title, awesome art.
Gregg Rogell
Helium Comedy Club
2031 Sansom St.
Wed-Thu, 8 p.m.; Fri-Sat, 8 p.m. & 10:30 p.m., $15-20
(215) 496-9001
www.heliumcomedy.com
Maybe you first saw Gregg Rogell on Comedy Central or maybe you remember him from The Aristocrats (that movie where comics told their version of the joke about a family auditioning for a talent agent and the various sexual acts they perform). Either way, he's gonna be in Philly doin' the whole Aristocrats thing, which in my opinion, makes him kinda crazy - but you know, in a good way.
Dane Cook's Tourgasm
The Electric Factory
421 N. 7th St.
Sat, 8 p.m., $37.50
(215) 627-1332
www.electricfactory.com
Ready to laugh at the riotous stand-up comedy of Dane Cook right here in good ol' Philadelphia? Too bad. Dane Cook isn't actually performing on this stop of Dane Cook's Tourgasm, but don't miss seeing the stars of the hilarious HBO "docu-comedy," Gary Gulman, Robert Kelly and Jay Davis. Tourgasm is sure to give you an extra-warm, satisfying. cathartic experience.
Say Anything
The Electric Factory
421 N. 7th St.
Tonight, 7:30 p.m., $14
(215) 627-1332
www.electricfactory.com
Formed while the musicians were still in high school under the leadership of Max Bemis, Say Anything is best known for their punk-rock debut, .Is a Real Boy, and their efforts to resist selling out. Yeah, I probably would do it for the moolah but I guess they have higher ideals. Strange.
Stephen Kellogg & the Sixers
World Caf‚ Live
3025 Walnut St.
Tonight, 7:30 p.m., $18-20
(215) 222-1400
www.worldcafelive.com
A rocker with a definite country twang, Stephen Kellogg has been dubbed a "classic songwriter with a thoroughly modern approach; literate, melodic, passionate and fresh" by Grammy Award Winner Roseanne Cash. And with a freaking cereal brand as his last name, Stephen Kellogg will be sure to snap, crackle and pop (sounds violent now, but on stage it's fabulous) in his performance at World Caf‚ Live.
Live Concert with Uri Caine
Slought Foundation
4017 Walnut St.
Tonight, 8 p.m., $15
(215) 222-9050
www.slought.org
The first event in "The Philadelphia Series," a series featuring local jazz musicians, this live concert at the Slought Foundation will showcase Uri Caine, a classical and jazz pianist and composer. With resum‚ eye-poppers like the release of 16 albums, a commission from the Pennsylvania Council on the Arts and an undergrad degree from Penn, Caine holds definite bragging rights.
Five for Fighting
World Caf‚ Live
3025 Walnut St.
Sun, 7:30 p.m., $26.50-36.50
(215) 222-1400
www.worldcafelive.com
John Ondrasik of Five for Fighting brought us "Superman (It's Not Easy)" a few years back, a song which was popular upon its initial release but became almost iconic in the aftermath of 9/11. Now Ondrasik is back with his newest release, Two Lights, and we in Philly get to say "yea" or "nay" to whether this man will be a legend or little more than a one-hit wonder. Oooh, such power.
DJ Shadow
Theatre of Living Arts
334 South St.
Mon, 8 p.m., $32.50
(215) 922-1011
www.theateroflivingarts.net
Did your mother ever tell you that it was better to be seen and not heard? Well, DJ Shadow decided to switch that up when he chose a name in order to remain behind the scenes of his musical productions. Using a fairly simple assortment of equipment and drawing inspiration from a wide variety of sources, DJ Shadow creates a beat that is sure to keep you pumped.
Combatants for Peace Program with Music
City Hall
Broad & Market streets
Thu, 5 p.m., $12-15
(215) 686-2840
www.combat4peace.com
Promoting a "message of heart and hope from Israel/Palestine to William Penn's City of Brotherly Love," Israelis and Palestinians join forces on this day to discuss their past violence and support of a two-state solution. Former Palestinian fighter Souliman Khatib and former Israeli Defense Force pilot Yonatan Shapira will be featured at the City Hall reception.
Shawn Decker Talk/Book Signing
Borders Books and Music
1 S. Broad St.
Tonight, 7:30 p.m., free
(215) 568-7400
He's funny. And his blood doesn't clot. Oh, and he has HIV. Seriously. Shawn Decker is an acclaimed HIV-positive hemophiliac humorist who will be signing books at the Broad Street Borders. A close, personal friend of John Berendt and Augusten Burroughs, Decker is both irreverent and inspirational.
Big! Gay! Show!
Society Hill Playhouse
507 S. 8th St.
Sat, 7:30 p.m., $15-20
(215) 923-0210
www.societyhillplayhouse.org
Gratuitous exclamation points aside, Society Hill's Big! Gay! Show! promises to be nothing short of fabulous. Billed as a "Homo Vaudeville," the city's top singers and novelty acts will be showcased. And just for kicks, the night will also include some rounds of gay trivia.
Table Talk: Middle Church: Reclaiming the Moral Values of the Faithful Majority
White Dog Caf‚
3420 Sansom St.
Mon, 6 p.m., $36
(215) 386-9224
www.whitedog.com
For those of us who have let our moral values slide in our college years, Dr. Bob Edgar, former Pennsylvania congressman and general secretary of the National Council of the Churches of Christ, is giving a talk at the White Dog Caf‚. Edgar will focus on establishing a religious voice of mainstream America that is free from the radical religious right.
She's Gotta Have It
International House
3701 Chestnut St.
Tonight, 7 p.m., $5 students
(215) 387-5125
www.ihousephilly.org
Director Spike Lee's debut film is celebrating its 20th anniversary this year, and International House Philly is holding a screening to commemorate this milestone. Following the showing, Reelblack will be hosting a discussion with some members of the film's cast.
NO! A Documentary by Aisha Simmons
Painted Bride Art Center
230 Vine St.
Tonight, 7 p.m., free
(215) 925-9914
www.paintedbride.org
The Philadelphia premiere of Aisha Simmons's documentary is sure to be intensely emotional. The film grapples with sexual violence in African-American communities and offers intimate testimonies from victims in an effort to express the negative repercussions of collective silence. By the way, you've gotta RSVP if you wanna attend, so don't be that dumb-ass who forgets and just shows up, OK?
American Blackout
Scribe Video Center, 3rd floor
4212 Chestnut St.
Fri, 7 p.m., $5
(215) 222-4201
www.scribe.org
I'm sure that as a kid you probably whined about the fact that you felt like your life wasn't fair and that nobody ever listened to you, but that's nothing compared to the shit that disenfranchised voters had to deal with during the 2000 and 2004 presidential elections. American Blackout chronicles these voting irregularities, bringing oft-mentioned but rarely investigated issues to light.
Venus
Arts Bank at the University of the Arts
250 S. Broad St.
Thu-Fri, 8 p.m.; Sat, 2 p.m. & 8 p.m., $8 students
(215) 545-1664
www.uarts.edu/events
Venus, a play by Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Suzan Lori-Parks, tells the story of an African woman who is abducted to London in the early 19th century to be put on display in the circus. (I guess the man who swallows fire for a living was busy that day.) With its diverse cast, the play questions our notions of what is foreign and touches on the then controversial issue of slavery.
Six Actors in Search of a Plot
Painted Bride Art Center
230 Vine St.
Fri-Sat, 8 p.m.; Sun, 3 p.m. & 8 p.m., $12.50-25
(215) 925-9914
www.paintedbride.org
While the title evokes images of a devious plot scurrying onstage in a heated manhunt (umm. maybe that's just me), Six Actors in Search of a Plot is a radical conception of Israeli-Palestinian relations. Six actors attempt to conceive a "common human story," only to find that their intrinsic conflict negates the possibility of any plot. Definitely higher-level hide-and-go-seek.
Unwrap Your Candy
Walnut Street Theatre
825 Walnut St.
Until Nov. 12; Wed, 7 p.m.; Thu-Sat, 8 p.m.; Sun, 2 p.m., $10-30
(215) 704-0033
www.lunatheater.org
I like candy. I like it a lot. Unfortunately for the candy-lovers out there, Doug Wright's Unwrap Your Candy really has very little to do with the delectably sweet substances. In actuality, the show presents a series of one-act plays that address the terrors of childhood and adulthood alike. And with such dangers out there, I have one thing to tell you: unwrap your own fucking candy!
Penn Football v.
Columbia
Franklin Field
233 S. 33rd St.
Sat, 1 p.m., $5-25
(215) 898-6151
www.pennathletics.com
You know the drill - Penn football needs you to show those folks at Columbia that we're not your average Ivy-Leaguers (no pencil-pushing Poindexters here). So pop some bread in the toaster and head on over to Franklin Field to cheer for the red and the blue. You'll do that guy with the helmet car proud.
