The Umbrella Dance
Anne-Marie Mulgrew and Dancers Company will perform a reimagined version of its signature travelling dance video installation, “The Umbrella Dance,” June 11 at 5pm. The event is hosted by the Delaware River Waterfront Corporation in conjunction with its Fermentation Festival, following COVID guidelines. This free public performance is AMM & DCO’s first live presentation in 2021 and kicks off the Company’s 35th anniversary season. In addition to the live performance, AMM & DCO will screen its best hits consisting of dance films and performance clips on the Cherry Street Pier video screen. annemariemulgrewdancersco.org
Freshwater Mussels, Our Blue-Collar Bivalves
Freshwater mussels are the most imperiled animals in both America and the Delaware River watershed, and restoration of mussels has become a national priority, especially as these hard-working animals perform the vital service of filtering our water. A coalition of public and private partners has ambitious plans, including propagating as many as a million mussels annually in labs and ponds to restore their populations. Lance Butler, senior scientist with the Philadelphia Water Department, one of the partners, presents the astonishing sweep of this ambitious program, designed to help these blue-collar bivalves thrive in our waterways again. Schuylkill Center for Environmental Education. June 10 at 7pm. schuylkillcenter.org
Willie returns to Philly
Willie Nelson, Blackbird Presents, Live Nation, and the Outlaw Music Festival Tour are on the road again. Willie will once again be live and in concert with his family and friends as part of a 14-stop tour starting this summer. VIP packages including great seats and exclusive festival merchandise will be available. Sept. 11. TD Pavilion at the Mann. manncenter.org
Antoinette Nwandu’s ‘Pass Over’
Theatre Exile and Theatre in the X present Antoinette Nwandu’s “Pass Over.” “Pass Over” tells the story of two Black men, Moses and Kitch – friends hanging out on a city street corner, sharing dreams of an escape from their circumstances. When a stranger wanders onto their corner with his own agenda, he derails their plans of finding their promised land. June 10 at 7pm. theatreexile.org
Pride Month with Festive Fitness
Join Mike Watkins of Festive Fitness this Pride Month for a donation-based outdoor workout at the Spring Gardens, with all proceeds benefiting The Attic Youth Center, Philadelphia’s only independent LGBTQ Youth Center. Saturday, June 12, 11-11:45. Suggested Donation of $10-$20. festivefitnessphilly.com
Tribute to Ron Rubin
On June 10 at 7pm, the National Museum of American Jewish History is hosting a tribute to Ron Rubin, a passionate Philadelphia civic leader and developer who helped make Philadelphia’s streetscape and skyline what it is today. Rubin passed away in April; he would have been 90 in May. His friends, colleagues, and family are co-hosting this celebration of his life. nmajh.org
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Make Music Philly will join over 90 cities across the U.S. and 120 countries worldwide to celebrate Make Music Day on June 21. Make Music Philly is part of Make Music Day, the worldwide music celebration held each year on June 21. With the pandemic starting to recede, there will be a number of in-person musical performances and participatory events available this year. Visit makemusicphilly.org for details and to register. Meanwhile, here are some of the highlights.
J.W. Pepper
The largest sheet music retailer in the world will be offering free music lessons from their talented staff members from 12:30 to 3:30pm at the main office in Exton.
Flower Pot Music
Join this fun, participatory event making music with flower pots. Tentative location: Clark Park 6pm Rehearsal and 7:30pm performance.
Community Ring
Malmark Corporation will host Community Ring, a hands-on ringing and drumming event featuring handbells, handchimes and cajons on the grounds of their manufacturing site in Plumsteadville with three sessions: 10am, 1pm and 3pm. Ice cream and soft pretzels will also be available by another Plumsteadville family business, The Salt Box.
Rock, pop, classical event
Local 77 Musicians Union and the Elegance String Quartet are inviting musicians with string instruments to join them for a fun rock, pop and classical participatory event. Tentative location is Clark Park with scheduled time to be published shortly
Ukulele Circle
Keep Music Alive will host a Ukulele Circle at the Kelly Music & Arts Center in Havertown from 7pm to 8:30pm.
Bucket Drum Circle
Rockdale Music will host a Bucket Drum Circle at Sundown in Aston starting at 7:30pm.
Lit buildings
One & Two Liberty Place, FMC Tower, Cira Centre and Cira Garage in Philadelphia will join buildings and landmarks across the country by lighting up in orange for #MakeMusicDay on the evening of June 21.
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Live jazz, great art and a flea market you need to visit
The sites and sounds of Philly are once again open for business. Here are a few you’ll want to check out.
Tour to Dye For
My Local Brew Works, Philadelphia’s soon-to-launch nano-brewery focusing on contract brewing, special events, and direct-to-public brewing, is sliding into Philly Beer Week with this year’s most spirited event – First Look: Tour To Dye For – a brewery tour led by founders of My Local Brew Works, including the Globe Dye Works (an event and work space focusing on makers and the creative community), and wrapping with beer tastings and parting gifts from MLBW. There’s a tour scheduled for Saturday, June 12 from 1-4pm. Due to the exclusive nature of First Look: Tour To Dye For, participants are required to confirm the day prior via text correspondence from My Local Brew Works. Interested participants of legal drinking age must register on the My Local Brew Works website, providing first and last name, email address, phone number, and favorite beer. www.mylocalbrewworks.com.
Pride workout
Come Alive 215 and Meet Philadelphia have joined forces to present one of the most unique, fun and heart-pumping outdoor events for Philly Gay Pride Month. Come Alive 215 x Meet Philadelphia Pride Workout, Drag Show and Picnic Brunch brings together a morning of movement, celebration, charity and community on Saturday, June 12, from 9:15am to 1:30pm. Fitness gurus Kim Harari and Shannon Brennan will bring their electric, contagious and community-driven fitness experience to the Lawn at Park Towne Place (2200 Benjamin Franklin Parkway). The event will feature a 45 minute workout programmed for all fitness levels, followed by a drag show and a picnic brunch. Tickets are on sale now for $65 each with a portion of proceeds going to support two local charities: The Attic Youth Center and William Way LGBT Community Center. Tickets are available at hellopride.eventbrite.com. For more about Come Alive 215, visit comealive215.com.
One Africa! One Nation! Uhuru Flea Market
One Africa! One Nation Uhuru Flea Market is an economic development institution of the African Peoples Education and Defense Fund . This seasonal, monthly market located in Clark Park provides a low-cost economic platform for established and budding small businesses. Vendors make and sell a wide array of products for the whole family. For more information, visit uhurufleamarket.blogspot.com. June 12, 9am – 5pm.
Live jazz
Fabrika, 1108 Frankford Avenue, will be one of the first places to experience live jazz in Philadelphia with the launch of CHOPS – a jazz series that takes place every Wednesday from 6- 9pm at the Fishtown entertainment venue. The club has locked down some well-known names from both the Philly and NYC jazz worlds, including pianist/composer Luke O’Reilly and Samara Joy McLendon, winner of the 2019 Sarah Vaughan International Jazz Vocal Competition. Visit fabrikaphilly.com for details.
Derive
All art comes from somewhere, a place, a reference, a memory, a state of mind. The Da Vinci Art Alliance’s Members Exhibition, Derive, will explore the diverse origins from which their community of artists creates art. This exploration will take the form of two artist-submitted components: an artwork and a source image. Through this exhibition, we asked our members: where does your artwork come from? On view through June 20 at Da Vinci Art Alliance and as a recorded video tour on the Da Vinci Art Alliance website. davinciartalliance.org
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