5 Things

An amazing dance troupe out of new New Zealand AND a place with a candy garden!?! Just two of the 5 Things going on this weekend.

March 7, 2013; 6:22 AM • by Susan Howson

Does anyone read this part?

1. Black Grace

Let me ask you this, if you ran a dance troupe, what would your ultimate goal be? Like, at what point would it feel like you’ve really made it big? WOULD IT BE WHEN HONOLULU DECIDED THAT ONE DAY OUT OF EVERY YEAR WOULD BE “YOUR DANCE TROUPE” DAY?? Yeah, I thought so. Black Grace comes from New Zealand, nay, explodes out of New Zealand ready to your blow your face off with their mix of contemporary moves and Pacific Island dance traditions. They’re so good, the Mayor of Honolulu couldn’t resist naming February 6th after them. And maybe neither will you.

Thurs. Mar. 7 • 7:30 PM
Modlin Center for the Arts at University of Richmond
$40 for adults, $36 for seniors, $34 for UR employees, $10 for UR students

2. Virginia Opera: A Streetcar Named Desire

STELLLAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA (probably sounds a lot better when sung, especially to a score composed by the great André Previn).

Fri. Mar. 8 • 8:00 PM, Sun. Mar. 10 • 2:30 PM
Carpenter Theatre, 600 E. Grace St.
$23.50 – $119

3. Kids’ Carniball: Destination Germany!

Forget Elmo. Forget Caillou (seriously, forget that guy, he’s the worst). And forget Barney (is that even still a thing?). What kids want these days is a chance to meet famous German composers like Ludwig Van Beethoven and J.S. Bach! Let your little pied pipers lead you on down to CMoR for German music, dancing, balloon animals (dachshunds, the most popular balloon animal), caricatures, and…(maybe I shouldn’t tell you this part) a CANDY GARDEN?!!?!? Who knew Germany was such a kid-friendly place. (Answer: every German kid.)

Sat. Mar. 9 • 10:00 AM – 4:00 PM
CMoR Central, 2626 W. Broad St.
Included with museum admission (free to members)

4. Brewbies: Celebrating Women in Beer

Don’t be fooled like I was by the title of this event. You won’t be finding women IN beer at Capital Ale House on Saturday night. What you’ll find instead: women in the craft beer INDUSTRY. Listen to beermakers talk about what it’s like to have XX chromosomes in a world that expects those chromosomes to be saturated with cosmos and pear-tinis. Then, get soused with women-made beer while you listen to Gina Talmas and the Cow Tippin’ Playboys. Don’t forget to call a cab for a ride home, and let’s all hope you don’t get stuck with one of those women drivers!

Sat. Mar. 9 • 7:00 PM
Capital Ale House Music Hall, 623 E. Main St.
$15

5. CAA Men’s Basketball Championship

OK, I’ve had some coaching on this one, but apparently my coaches were not in Shaka Smart’s league, because I still don’t quite get how basketball is organized. Basically, here’s what’s happening at the Coliseum over the course of a few days: college teams do exciting things and sometimes win games and then possibly (I think?) might go on to “March Madness” which is another exciting thing where they could get “invited” even if they don’t win. Look, whatever. Basketball is hella fun to watch, and that’s all I care about. Get yourself some tickets to some live games that may not involve VCU or UR (shock! awe!) and get cheering.