THUR 4/23: Plays, Beer, Rock, Country, Film

Wow. I've got a lot of CTB to do... It's going to be a beautiful weekend, and there is a lot of good cheap/free stuff going in. Stay tuned...

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THUR 4/23

5:30pm, 7pm
Inaugural Harvard Playwrights Festival
at New College Theater Studio, 10 Holyoke St, Cambridge (Harvard Sq)
FREE

11 plays from 11 undergrads that took an advanced playwriting course with Gideon Lester and playwright Christine Evans (whose "Trojan Barbie" is currently at the A.R.T.) are having staged readings over the next couple days. I didn't find info about the plays, so it's a crapshoot.

Tonight's plays by Alison Rich ('09) and Sara Wright ('09). Take your chances...

Performances through SUN 4/26.

THUR 4/23 to SAT 4/25

5pm to 7pm
Craft Beer Tasting
at Wine Gallery, 375 Boylston Street, Brookline
FREE

If you're in the neighborhood, you should try some extraordinary beers. There's a Craft Brewer's Conference in Boston this week, so Wine gallery is offering various tastings. Tonight's featured
breweries are: Nogne O, Jolly Pumpkin, and High & Mighty.

THUR 4/23

9pm
I Pistol, Soap Stars, No Casino, quarterlifeCRISiS
at Olivers/Cask 'n Flagon, 62 Brookline Ave, Boston (Kenmore Sq)
$9

I sorta forgot that a buddy of mine has a new band, I Pistol, that's playing tonight. If every band performs as well as their recordings, it's brain-meltingly splendid night of powerpop. It all sounds good, but I've got to share my feeling that quarterlifeCRISiS might be a bunch of douchebags -- from the stupid name to the stupid lower-case/upper-case BS to the promo pictures, they left a bad taste in my mouth. (I hope they play last.)

THUR 4/23

9:30pm
"Cash Bash 2": Johnny Cash Tribute
Feat: Sarah Levecque Band, Rev. Bob & The Darkness, Georgia Overdrive
at Johnny D's, 17 Holland St, Somerville (Davis Sq)
$10

The last "Cash Bash" included clips from Johnny's historic concert at Folsom Prison, and a long version is playing Friday night at the Somerville Theatre as part of IFFBoston. There's going to be Cash videos interspersed between the music. Without a "Man in Black" theme, this would be a high-quality night of country/roots music. It's difficult to pigeonhole Rev. Bob & the Darkness, but the bands are going to blend well. I expect some awesome Cash cover versions tonight from all.

THUR 4/23

10:30pm
Movers & Shakers, Soul-le-lu-jah DJ's, James Lindsay, Will Fisher
at Plough & Stars, 912 Mass. Ave, Cambridge (Central Sq)
FREE / 21+

Hey, folks. You don't have much more time to catch Movers & Shakers at the Plough for free. Rock with DJ's and poetry and stuff. It's guitarist Marc's birthday, so who knows what hi-jinks will occur. There's going to be dancing, 'cause Soul-le-lu-jah is DJ'ing. There's going to be spoken-word as well...

THUR 4/23 thru MON 4/27

Various Times
Independent Film Festival of Boston
at Somerville Theatre, 55 Davis Square, Somerville
$9

IFF Boston gets in full swing tonight with screening s on all screens at the Somerville Theatre. I like the looks of the documentaries like "Invisible Girlfriend" (7:54pm) and "Trimpin" (10:15pm) as well as the feature film "Bronson" (10pm), which is based on the life of British criminal who changed his name to Charles Bronson.
"Invisible Girlfriend" looks so wild that you might think it's staged, but I don't think it's the case (directors in attendance). Here's the setup: a foul-mouthed weirdo is followed on a 400-mile bike ride to New Orleans to visit his "girlfriend", Joan of Arc. "Trimpin" is a profile of this sculptor/sound artist who creates amazing pieces that are musical instruments (or sometimes consist of musical instruments).

I should give props to "Speaking In Code" (7pm) which is a Boston-made documentary, but I'm not that interested in techno music.

All of today's screenings are in Somerville. Other venues will include Brattle Theatre, Coolidge Corner Theatre, and Institute of Contemporary Art. [Schedule]