Art demands that we pursue new paths, and while the Grand Rapids Ballet Company's repertoire  this weekend is a rehash of choreography we have already seen grace the stage, this program deserves your attention (and your attendance)  because of the way it was assembled.

In a bold move, Beyond Ballet – Interactive Forward Motion
will present a program curated, not by their artistic directors, but by you, the viewer.

The result of this "let the people decide" process has yielded a very eclectic and noteworthy lineup, as our internationally culled dancers will perform the jazz inspired "A Foggy Day," the Dvorak themed "The American Quartet," the old-world inspired piece "By Django," and the very popular "Trois."

While there will be plenty of fresh, new work to hit the stage in the years to come, this is a great time to celebrate the awesome creations that have made and sustained the Grand Rapids Ballet Company as one worthy of Michigan's bright cultural spotlight.
 

Admission: $20- 35.

Once a year, the UICA hosts a fundraising event so unique that its considered by many in the visual arts world as simply the very best art event in the city.

Live Coverage, based on the wildly popular Art Institute of Chicago's Bare Walls fundraising event, takes a large exhibition space, fills it with 50 pieces made by some of the areas best artists and then asks them to create an original piece of art in the span of only a few hours.  No problem, right?

Wrong!  This is more than just an up close presentation or peek within the creative world.  It is like watching an entire season of Project Runway, compressed to the span of only a few hours.  Keen eyes will see a wonderful gamut of emotions in the faces of all the artists who donate their time to this great event.

And this is not just because ol' Tommy Allen is "performing" live for the first time in years, but because of the legacy of this event. (I am a bit nervous, since at press time I still have not figured out what I want to create.)

This year the organizers have once again focused on adding a real street feel, with graffiti representations of all the former buildings that have housed UICA in the past, present and future.  They will be rendered by our area's finest street artists throughout the UICA exhibition space and torn down after the event.  I always remember the words of Calvin professor Ervina Boeve': "Art is temporal as well."

To really bump up the theatrical feel of the last  Live Coverage event to held at the Sheldon space before the Institute moves next fall to a new location, the planners have added construction motifs that will run throughout the space with hard hats, waste barrels and plenty of flashing lights adorning the event.

Live Coverage offer guests the opportunity to purchase one-of-a-kind works of art created right before their eyes. With admission, patrons will be able to take part in the live and silent auctions, listen to pulsating DJ "live curated" music, and nosh on an array of fine food and drinks from area businesses. It will be an exciting night for all.

Admission: $60/70 members/non-members  (see website for inexpensive VIP packages)

There are two types of people in Grand Rapids when it comes to the visually arresting comedy of the Super Happy Funtime Burlesque troupe: Those who despise the show and those who cannot get enough of its biting look at everything from local politics, community establishments and the recent (and puritanically stupid) rule about pasties-to-nipple size ratio.  

If you darken the door of this heavily booked act, you know at this point what to expect…..or do you?

Sure, with a title like "2010: A Burlesque Odyssey"  you can be sure to hear at least one joke failing with a groan as the word, "Uranus," drops from the stage.  

But the  show is about to enter a brand new orbit as SHFB breaks out a new and tighter musical theater production format, with an actual storyline instead of the traditional strand of loosely connected skits with bobbies peppered in between whirling hula hoop numbers.

The lead stars of this new production are the popular comedians Sarah Jean Adventuretime and her husband, Philly Goodtimes, who get lost in space while on their Sci-Fi Honeymoon.  When you add characters like the living large actor, Joe the Cabdriver as the nefarious Lord Zanthor the Chaste and some brand new burlesque stars, then you've one of the most original and daring works of theater to hit the Midwest in a long time!

2010: A Burlesque Odyssey will also features an all-new soundtrack by the End Times Orchestra (which just celebrated its new release of new work last month) and stars the fabulous burlesque babes as the Space Babes!  This event will sell out, so you will want to secure tickets in advance and avoid the long lines.

Admission: $15 at the door or $12 in advance

Okay, it would be a cheap gimmick if I said this love story is a dog of a show, but this touching drama about a relationship forged over decades couldn't be further from the truth.

Husband-and-wife acting team Gary E. Mitchell and Mary Beth Quillin have waited long enough to perform together, and now they get to showcase their talents in a Pulitzer Prize nominated work, Love Letters.


A number of notable actors and actresses have performed the roles of Andrew Makepeace Ladd III and Melissa Gardner, childhood friends whose lifelong correspondence begins with birthday thank you notes in second grade.

Gary E. Mitchell is a Grand-Award winning actor who has appeared on many Grand Rapids stages, including Actors' Theatre, Grand Rapids Civic Theatre, Jewish Theatre Grand Rapids, and Heritage Theatre Group. Local audiences will remember him most recently as the rowdy scallywag Stephen Hopkins in GRCT's production of 1776.

Mary Beth Quillin returns to the DST where she recently appeared in the Pigeon Creek Shakespeare Company's production of Pericles, Prince of Tyre.

Penelope Notter, associate director at Grand Rapids Civic Theatre, once remarked after seeing an earlier performance of Love Letters with Mitchell and Quillin that the couple's interpretation of  the drama "will touch your heart, amuse you and may bring a tear to your eye."


Admission: $12 Adults, $6 Students/Seniors

If you have any incling to attend this show, I suggest you click the link and do it fast, since this fundraiser to benefit Soulseedz is just about sold out.

If you are not familiar with Hothouse Flowers' sound, you may want to take a gamble on a sure thing and attend this concert at One Trick Pony, hands down the most intimate of venues for the singer/songwriter in downtown Grand Rapids.

This Irish band made a name for itself during the late '80s and early '90s with a passionate, bombastic fusion of rock & roll combined with the roots sounds of Irish folk, American gospel and soul.

The band got its start the old fashioned way, when a group of high school friends led by Fiachna O'Braonain (guitar) and Liam O'Maonlai (vocals and keyboards) began busking on the streets of Dublin. 

The Cinderella part came after they won the Street Entertainers of the Year award in 1985, garnering a glowing write-up in Rolling Stone and thus a record deal with U2 private label.

In addition, it is for a good cause and that makes shelling out a few extra bucks on a Sunday night that much more inviting for the giving and adventurous heart.

Admission: $20 (very limited seating.)

I am not sure how much more can be written about this rite of passage for the livers of our region, but here we go.  

It is a given that the downtown streets will be crawling with hordes of people with green beer stained teeth, hopping from grub to pub this St. Patrick's Day. But for hardcore fans, they can actually kick off their day with a breakfast beer beginning 7 AM daybreak at McFadden's.

So you don't get the wrong idea, there will be plenty of other non-drinking activity such as the Grand Rapids St. Patrick's Day Parade,  the St. Patty's Pacer 5K Fun Run, or the Spectrum Health Irish Jig.

But who am I kidding? This holiday sees more drinking than probably any other time of the year.  

And just remember if you have a bit too much to drink, the cabbies will shepherd you home as you sing the praises to the saints that you will have a year to sleep it off.

If you want to see a comprehensive list of St. Patty's Day events, please visit my link above where a complete list of events and entertainment has been created for your selection.  (Thanks to Josh of GRnow for producing this annual list!)

As always, please be responsible.

Admission: Various