THUR 7/16: Candy, Science, Lanterns, Shakespeare, Rock, Etc

I know there's a chance of rain tonight, but I'm listing outdoor events. Check at the website or call if you're wondering.

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THUR 7/16

Noon
"Golden Ticket Giveaway"
at TD Garden (North Station) and TD Bank Boston branches
FREE

If you can get there quick enough, you might get a prize-winning candy bar. As I mentioned earlier, the grand prize is a pair of tickets to every event at The Garden for a year.

THUR 7/16

5pm to 8pm
Summer Museum Nights: "Life's a Niche"
at Harvard Museum of Natural History, 26 Oxford St, Cambridge (Harvard Sq)
$4.50 / $3.50 seniors, non-Harvard students / $3 ages 3 to 18

It's the second "Summer Nights at the Museum", and next month will be "The Best Fossils Darwin Never Saw"... One Thursday per summer month, you can get into the HMNH for half the usual admission (after 5pm).

Besides the mind-blowing "Glass Flowers" and some of the weirdest fossils et cetera, there will be gallery talks by Harvard grad students at 5pm and 7pm based on the theme: Evolutionary biology graduate student Luke Mahler examines biodiversity tonight ("Life's a Niche") with gallery talks at 6pm and 7pm that shows what a Caribbean lizard tells us about life in the present and past.

THUR 7/16

6pm to 9pm
Annual Lantern Festival
at Lake Hibiscus, Forest Hills Cemetery, 95 Forest Hills Ave, Jamaica Plain
FREE ($10 suggested donation per lantern)

This is based on the Japanese midsummer Bon Festival, a Buddhist ritual in memory of loved ones in which lanterns represent the souls of the dead are floated out to sea and prayers are offered so that they might rest in peace. You can write some thoughts about your departed on the shades of the lantern, then watch it float about Lake Hibiscus at sunset. Flickr is full of beautiful scenes from previous years.

From 6pm to 8pm, the evening starts with performances from gospel singer Ron Murphy, the Samurai drummers of Tsuji Daiko, Quincy Choral Society, and dance performances from Cynthia Laksawana & Jennifer Hannigan, Tsai-Fong Dance Troupe, and Showa Boston Institute.

If you don't have anything to say to the dead, you can sit back and just enjoy the proceedings (but you could donate for a lantern)... It's also okay to bring picnic. A flashlight is suggested, but you'd be okay without one -- in my experience.

THUR 7/16 (thru THUR 8/6)

6:45pm
"The Complete Works Of William Shakespeare (abridged)"
at Christian Herter Park, 1175A Soldiers Field Road, Brighton (near Charles River, across from WBZ)
FREE

It doesn't hurt to support the art buy paying ($15) at a Friday-thru-Sunday performance, but I'm hear to tell you about the free shows for 5 consecutive Thursdays. I tried to attend a production of this show a few years ago (it was r-a-i-n-e-d out), but it sounds hilarious. About 20 years ago, a 3-man troupe premiered their mash-up of 37 Shakespeare plays in slightly more than 90 minutes at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival.

It's happening where the Publick Theatre has performed Shakespeare on a yearly basis, but they're "on hiatus." Besides the Bard being twisted for free, there are grills at the park for anyone to make burgers or whatever...

If you have valid student ID, you can get in for free on Fridays too.

THUR 7/16 (thru SAT 7/25)

7:30pm
"The Wedding on the Eiffel Tower" (and other absurdities of Love)
at Mary O’Malley Park, Commandant’s Way, Chelsea (Waterfront)
FREE

Apollinaire's annual bilingual theatre production returns to Chelsea. I know it's not easy to get there by public transportation, but I rarely list anything over there.

Three short plays are performed Wednesday through Sunday -- in English on Wednesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays; in Spanish on Fridays and Sundays.

The program includes:

- "The Wedding on the Eiffel Tower" by Jean Cocteau
- "Jack or the Submission" by Eugene Ionesco
- "Humulus the Mute" by Jean Anouilh

All quality choices to spark an adventure on the other side of the Tobin...

THUR 7/16

Sarah Borges & The Broken Singles (11:55pm), The Dirty Truckers (10:55pm), Stonehoney (9:55pm), The Sneaks (9pm)
at TT the Bear's Place, 10 Brookline St, Cambridge (Central Sq)
$9

I've been a fan of Sarah Borges from the first few notes I heard. Beautiful voice, killer band, great songs, excellent choice of covers, and her live shows are a guaranteed good time. If you've ever thought her sound was too country for you, give the new stuff a listen -- it's still excellent without much twang.

Although The Dirty Truckers get inject some twang, these Rumble finalists are mainly going to deliver some kick-ass guitar-rock in a Petty/Stones vein. On the other hand, Stonehoney has twang coming out of their collective ears. This group is overflowing with songwriters -- including Phil Hurley from Gigolo Aunts and it's very country-rock with harmonies like Eagles for people that don't like Eagles. The practically twangless Sneaks get things started.

THUR 7/16

10pm
Micachu & The Shapes, Anni Rossi
at Great Scott, 1222 Comm Ave, Allston
$10 / 18+

Micachu & The Shapes basically play avant-garde music that happens to be catchy. With unorthodox instruments and loads of dissonance, it still comes out a little poppy. However I don't know if I'd enjoy a full live set or CD if I was sober. Anni Rossi seems relatively normal, but there's a slightly skewed vibe to her indie-pop.