5 Things

Russian ballet, crafty craftersons, a dome-blowing digital dome theatre, green beers, and basketball. It’s March, people. Get into it!

March 13, 2014; 7:40 AM • by Susan Howson

Family-oriented? Check out 5 Things for Families. You won’t be sorry, and you won’t miss naptime.

1. 2014 Atlantic 10 Men’s Basketball Tournament

The basketball season has officially lasted longer than my cache of jokes to make about how ignorant I am about it all. Thus it goes! Both VCU and UR travel to Brooklyn, NY for a knock-down, drag-out battle over something or other. It all begins today, and if you can’t hop a bus or affix your EZ-Pass firmly to your windshield and get to NYC, then you can watch it on your television set. Our guide will tell you everything to know about all that and possibly, maybe more.

Thursday, March 13th – Sunday, March 16th • see site for times
Brooklyn/Various Channels on Your Television
You can probably make the trip and a game or two for a couple hundred clams, or you can stay right here and cheer your team on for freeish

2. Moscow Festival Ballet, Giselle

Giselle is an eerie, beautiful ballet about betrayal and ghosts and love and some other things. Join the Moscow Festival Ballet, all 50+ of them, at the Modlin Center, for a look at how things are done in the classic Russian style. It’s not often we get this kind of treat in town, so do some stretches, open up your wallet, and let the ballet into your heart.

Thursday, March 13th – Friday, March 14th • 7:30 PM
Jepson Theatre, Modlin Center for the Arts, University of Richmond, 28 Westhampton Way
$40 with discounts available

3. Craftsmen’s Classic Art & Craft Festival

There are craft shows and there are Craft Shows. And the Craftsmen’s Classic is an enormous exhibition featuring the real deal (which, in my mind, is a bunch of Ron Swansons), with talented folks selling their artisanal wares and sometimes even making it ON-SITE. It’s a trivial amount to spend to get in, and the access you’ll have to one-of-a-kind things to buy will last a lifetime (or until Sunday).

Friday, March 14th – Sunday, March 16th • see site for hours
Richmond International Raceway Complex, 600 E. Laburnum Avenue
$7 for adults, $1 for children

4. The Dome at the Science Museum of Virginia

The Dome (which I guess is what we’re calling it now?) will be reopened this Saturday with brand new technology. The definition will be SO high and the seams SO invisible at this, the largest digital dome theatre in Virginia, that you will pretty much convince yourself that you are actually flying through space/the ocean/into the jaws of a shark. That seemed like a better idea in my head.

Begins Saturday, March 15th • see site for showtimes
Science Museum of Virginia, 2500 W. Broad Street
$9 ($5 for members)

5. St. Patrick’s Day Festivities

The weirdest holiday is back again, bringing with it lots of festivals and foam hats! As usual, there are plenty of doings to do and jigs to jig and drinks to drink. Check out our guide for times, locations, suggestions, and that sort of thing. And please drink responsibly. No one wants to see that.