It’s the time of year when you need a really good reason to step away from the comfort of air conditioning or the box fan that’s aimed directly at your face. This week you can party with your favorite street performer, attend a benefit or two for a good cause, or see an art exhibition that will remind you winter is coming and you better do fun stuff outdoors while you still can.
| 1. | Monday, July 14 – Musical Comedy with Keytar Bear and Friends |
Johnny D’s Comedy Showcase features a full roster of acts being funny through music, from brass bands to ukelele to local legend Keytar Bear. You can also consider the show a benefit to help offset the costs of dry cleaning K.B.’s bear suit, because after a few humid days spent jamming outside the Old State House that thing’s gotta smell like an actual bear’s been living inside it. That groovy bass line isn’t the only thing that’s a little funky around here. (6 p.m., $4, 21+)
| 2. | Monday, July 14 – Bastille Day at the Beehive |
Bastille Day in France must be a little bittersweet this year, what with the archrival Germans celebrating their fourth World Cup title yesterday (Deutschland? More like Douche-land, amirite France?) But we wouldn’t let that stop the great American tradition of latching on to another country’s national day of pride as an excuse to drink on a weekday, so check out the 7th Annual Bastille Day Celebration at the Beehive in the South End, featuring new takes on traditional French cuisine and cocktails, plus a performance by Australian jazz band C’est si Bon. (7:30 p.m., FREE, all ages)
| 3. | Tuesday, July 14 – Playhouse in the Park |
Franklin Park’s Elma Lewis Playhouse in the Park opens for another summer of free outdoor performances by some of Boston’s best local acts. Located in the footprint of the Overlook Shelter ruins, the playhouse once brought national talents to the Franklin Park stage — Duke Ellington opened the season every Fourth of July weekend until his death in 1974 (more like Douche Ellington, amirite people who hate Duke Ellington?) Every Tuesday through August 5 will feature an 11 a.m. family show and 6 p.m. grown-ups concert, with the first installment showcasing OrigiNation and Athene Wilson. (11 a.m./6 p.m., FREE, all ages)
| 4. | Tuesday, July 14 – Taste of Cambridge |
If you could take an actual bite out of Cambridge it would probably taste like brains and biopharmaceuticals with just a hint of patchouli from the aging hippies of Central Square, so luckily the 12th annual Taste of Cambridge instead features bites from 100 of the People’s Republic’s best restaurants, from Alden and Harlow to Zuzu. The event takes place in the University Park sculpture gardens near Kendall Square and proceeds benefit five local drug and alcohol treatment centers. (5:30 p.m., $15-75, all ages)
| 5. | Tuesday, July 14 – Make-A-Mark Gala |
Enjoy cocktails, food, live music, and dancing in one of the waterfront’s best venues at Courageous Sailing’s annual Make-A-Mark Gala to benefit the organization’s youth programs and scholarships. The dress code is “summer cocktail attire” so at the very least throw on a blazer over your standard jorts-and-tank-top outfit. (6 p.m., $75, all ages)
| 6. | Wednesday, July 15 – Art Appreciation Night |
You want to be a person who appreciates art, but every time you go to a museum you just get really hungry. What do they expect with these still lifes of delicious fruit baskets everywhere, while bringing in your own food is generally frowned upon if not banned outright? That’s where the Liquid Art House gallery/restaurant/lounge concept really shines — there’s no need to worry about getting hangry, so you can just enjoy the art. Proceeds from Wednesday’s Art Appreciation Night will benefit the Ronald McDonald House of Boston. (6 p.m., $25, all ages)
| 7. | Wednesday, July 15 – Landmarks Orchestra |
You want to be a person who appreciates classical music, but every time you go to Symphony Hall you just get thrown out because you don’t have a ticket because that shit is expensive, they have to pay like 50 musicians including the guy who hits the triangle like three times per concert. So don’t miss the Landmarks Orchestra’s free concerts at the Hatch Shell, with Wednesday’s opening night program featuring a variety of pieces leading up to Carl Orff’s “Carmina Burana,” a meditation on love, nature, and fortune’s inescapable power. (7 p.m., FREE, all ages)
| 8. | Thursday, July 16 – “Winter” Opening Reception |
If you’re pretty sick of perpetual swamp-ass and that one guy who needs to inform everyone that it’s not the heat, it’s the humidity, you might even find yourself missing winter a little bit. Well get a hold of yourself because winter actually sucks and you don’t actually want to experience single-digit temps and double-digit snow accumulation, so instead just check out the Nave Gallery Annex “Winter” exhibition of works inspired by the season. The exhibition is dedicated to Dave Lamb, the singer/songwriter from the great Providence band Brown Bird who passed away from leukemia earlier this year. Brown Bird’s music will play throughout Thursday’s opening reception. (6 p.m., FREE, all ages)
Photo credit: Marcia Taylor/Creative Commons
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This article was provided by our content partner, The Boston Calendar.