5 Things

Oh…what? Is it Thursday again? Sorry, too busy getting ready for the sweet schedule of events going on this weekend.

February 7, 2013; 6:57 AM • by Susan Howson

Oh…what? Is it Thursday again? Sorry, too busy getting ready for the sweet schedule of events going on this weekend.

1. HYPE at Ledbury & Shockoe Denim

Here’s the deal. There aren’t a whole lot of resources in town for young professionals that aren’t just weird boozy mixers. I mean, sure, we like to mix it up in a boozy way sometimes, but sometimes we like to develop our professional skills and get some damn takeaways. I like the HYPE stuff because it’s not patronizing, it’s not fluffy, it’s just a useful resource that is also pretty fun. Tonight’s event brings young, successful folks in front of other young, successful folks–namely the pros behind Ledbury and Shockoe Denim. It’s free for subscribers, but if you’re just discovering HYPE, grab a ticket at the door and spend your evening touring the lovely, up-and-coming Shockoe Design District.

• Thurs. Feb. 7 • 5:30 PM
• Event begins at Siné Irish Pub, 1327 E. Cary St.
• $20 for non-subscribers, free for subscribers, bring cash for the bar

2. Swan Lake

Richmond Ballet is back, kicking off the second half of their 2012-2013 season with the moody, sophisticated, icily gorgeous Swan Lake. Set to what is arguably Tchaikovsky’s finest work, the ballet features a sorcerer, a black swan, and this lady, who is definitely looking over at someone in the wings and going “Heyyyyyy,” right? RB is even importing some stars and costumes for this weekend of classic bliss, and who knows when you’ll get a chance to see this Petipa staging again in your life. Yeah, that’s right. I went there.

• Fri. Feb. 8 – Sun. Feb. 10 • see site for times
• Carpenter Theatre at Richmond CenterStage, 600 E. Grace St.
• $20-$125

3. RVA Environmental Film Festival

Sometimes we don’t believe a thing until we’ve seen a movie about it. For instance, I never TRULY believed that real love can cross decades and plumb oceanic depths until I saw Titanic. But the Third Annual Environmental Film Festival is smarter than we are, and they’ve worked hard to put together a program packed with entertaining and informative films about the causes close to their hearts. Backed by a slew of sponsors, this collection of feature films, shorts, and documentaries is free to the public, and I just don’t see how anyone could pass up two days of free movies.

• Sat. Feb. 9 – Sun. Feb. 10 • see site for schedule
• Byrd Theatre, 2908 W. Cary St.
• Free!

4. Home and Garden Show

In my mind, all 10 years of the Home and Garden Show have been populated exclusively by ladies in pink suits and pink hats. But if you think about it…a lot of us have homes and a big portion of us have gardens! It could be ANYBODY at this massive trade show, which will knock your pink hat off with landscaping, interior, and exterior ideas from the pros.

• Fri. Feb. 8 – Sun. Feb. 10 • 6:30 PM – 9:30 PM
• 403 N. 3rd St.
• $8 – $10 (children get in free)

5. Yo Gabba Gabba! Live! Get the Sillies Out!

I spend every morning in Gabbaland, while I get ready for work. Once my son saw Plex the Magic Robot, he was desperately hooked. And it’s great because–and of course you already know this because I’m sure you spend tons of time reading about the show and talking about it to your bored friends, like I do–Yo Gabba Gabba! is about dancing and DJing and also not biting your friends and all that kind of thing. But mostly dancing and DJing, and I can’t understand why a show based around a magical DJ didn’t exist before. Oh, and there’s always some good guest stars, like legendary Biz Markie, who will also be making an appearance on this tour. Embarrassingly, I could talk about this all day, even though the show isn’t particularly funny or well-written. The concept is solid: babies are cute and they like colorful things and they also oddly love dancing.

• Wed. Feb. 13 • 3:00 & 6:00 PM
• Landmark Theatre, 6 N. Laurel St.
• $27 – $127. I know, but the dancing is pretty dang funny.

February 7, 2013 6:57 AM 1