March 8, 2017: Your Arts and Culture Adventure Picks

By UMS

This post is a part of a series of posts curating adventurous arts and culture experiences in Southeast Michigan. Sign up for email updates (choose “Arts & Culture Adventures” list).

Spring is nigh! It’s International Women’s Day! There is so much to celebrate! Last night, I attended the Wallenberg Lecture at Rackham Auditorium and if you’re looking for a dose of hope today, I definitely recommend checking out the lectures from years past. Hopefully this and the list of happenings below will help you ring in spring with some good-hearted will power.

The Truth Is I Hear You at Cranbrook Art Museum

How do you define truth? What are your personal truths? This community involved video project, spearheaded by The Cause Collective showcases the responses and definitions from Michiganders throughout Southeast Michigan. During the summer of 2016, the Truth Booth, an inflatable video recording studio in the shape of a giant speech bubble toured eleven locations in Metro Detroit and Flint collecting statements to the prompt “The Truth Is…”. The responses are compelling, heartfelt, funny, complex, and so much more. The exhibition runs through March 19, so make your way to Cranbrook ASAP for a cup of truth. Tickets range from $6 to $10. More.

Personal Space at Public Pool

Want to get up close + personal with some really wonderful artwork by Detroit-based artists? Then does Public Pool in Hamtramck have the show for you. Personal Space has been more than a year in the making and is a collaboration between cool-kid-in-the-publication-biz Grand Circus Magazine and curator Isabella Achenbach. The exhibition will feature prominent and really quite exceptional Detroit-based artists highlighting their work that focuses on the way bodies interact and situate themselves within their larger, or sometimes intimate, spaces. Opening night is March 11 from 7 – 11pm and if you miss it, you can catch it during Public Pool’s open hours every Saturday through April 22. It’s free. Don’t miss out. More.

Macdeath at Planet Ant Theatre

Macbeth. Maybe you read it in high school or maybe you went and saw your cousin’s high school production of the play. Maybe you just have a friend named Beth. Regardless, you probably haven’t seen a high school production of Macdeath. This original musical comedy is an adaptation of Shakespeare’s classic by Mikey Brown and Shawn Handlon, and instead of Scotland as the scene, it’s set in a dystopian, post-apocalyptic world (on stage at Planet Ant in Hamtramck). Planet Ant is a haven for improv, scripted productions and has churned out some real heavy hitting actors + artists like Keegan-Michael Key of Key & Peele. I don’t know what is in store for Macdeath, but I can tell you, I’m intrigued and I’m going. Tickets are $20 and it runs on Friday through Sunday until March 18. More.

55th Ann Arbor Film Festival at the Michigan Theater

If you’re reading this in Ann Arbor, you’re just down the street, or a couple of streets, from the third-oldest film festival in North America. In it’s 55th year, the Ann Arbor Film Festival is a jewel upon the crown of arts wonders in Michigan. This year, they’re back full force at the Michigan Theater (and a few other spots, too) and will be showing some really cosmic work. I’ve given the films a peruse and some thematic highlights include: a vogueing teen, a Mexican mother searching for a Donald Trump piñata, clowns, and a Skype exorcism. Some events are free but ticketed events + screenings cost $8 or $12, the AAFF runs from March 21-26. More.

After Industry at Wasserman Projects

Headed to Eastern Market in Detroit soon? Then pop by Wasserman Projects, a gallery + event space that hosts performances, talks + panels in conjunction with their impressive exhibitions. The current show on view is entitled After Industry and conveys our lovely consumptive, consumerist world teetering on collapse through the work of Italian sculptor Willy Verginer, Norweigan painter Christer Kalstad, and Michigan-based photographer Jason DeMarte. I haven’t been yet, but I’m about to carve out some time on a Saturday (when they’re open) to see it as it runs through April 8.  Entrance to Wasserman Projects is free. More.

Steve Reich @ 80 at Hill Auditorium

Look out Michigan, Chicago coming through! Contemporary music sextet eighth blackbird and percussion wunderkids Third Coast Percussion are joining forces to perform Steve Reich’s masterpiece Music for 18 Musicians. This performance is not worth missing as it takes 4 Steinway pianos to perform and is extremely technical, rhythmic, and spellbinding. There will also be three performances happening on various levels of Hill Auditorium prior to the concert to contextualize Steve Reich’s musical background. If you’re not sold yet, I’ll leave you with this quote from David Bowie, who listed the album as one of his 25 favorite: “Balinese gamelan music cross-dressing as minimalism.” Honor him, make it your new favorite, and go. More.

Thanks for giving this a read! Which events do you have on your calendar? Have any suggestions? Feel free to shoot me an email at adamedesj@gmail.com, or comment below. I’d love to hear from you!

Photos courtesy of artists and performance spaces.

Adam DesJardins is a UMS Blogging Fellow. Learn more about the blogging fellows program.