South Street Spring Festival, Fishtown Flea, Sly Fox Bock Fest and Goat Race, and other fun happenings, May 4-11

A massive outdoor block party takes over South Street for the area's annual springtime festival. This year's event features 12 blocks of entertainment, eats and drinks from dozens of restaurants, and more than 100 vendors. Plus, three stages will host 30 live bands, and a Philly Taco Eating contest will pit a bunch of hungry competitors in a challenge to devour a Jim's Cheesesteak wrapped inside a Lorenzo's pizza slice. In conjunction with the South Street Spring Festival, Brauhaus Schmitz will host the sixth annual Maifest outside of its 700-block location with German fare, flower headbands, and a Maypole dance. — Grace Dickinson

11 a.m. to 8 p.m. Saturday, South and Front Streets, pay-as-you-go, southstreet.com/things-to-do

Just outside of Evil Genius Beer Co., the Fishtown Flea will take over the street with dozens of vintage and craft vendors from around the area. Pitruco Pizza will also be slinging wood-fired pies alongside several other food vendors, and DJ-spun tunes will play all day long. Come out to shop for shoes, jewelry, goat's milk soap, and more at the outdoor fair, intended to highlight some of the area's best local indie talent. — G.D.

10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, Evil Genius Beer Co., 1727 N. Front St., pay-as-you-go, facebook.com/events

Get those dancing shoes ready. The Schmidt's Commons reignites its monthly First Friday salsa night on Friday, featuring a free lesson at 7 p.m. followed by an open salsa session with live music starting at 7:30 p.m. Food and drinks will be provided by Gunners Run, Revolution Taco, and El Camino Real Philadelphia, and Elvis Bonilla y su Orquesta will perform the tunes. — G.D.

7 to 10 p.m. Friday, The Schmidt's Commons, 1001 N. 2nd St., free, theschmidtscommons.com/event

South Jersey's largest home-brew club is taking over Tonewood Brewing on Saturday for its 8th annual Big Brew Day. Come out to enjoy tasty home brews, live music, and more. Club members will be available to answer any questions from new and prospective home brewers and will also be showcasing an array of brewing methods on-site. — G.D.

9 a.m. to 4 p.m., Saturday, Tonewood Brewing, 215 W. Clinton Ave., Oaklyn, N.J., $20, barleylegalhomebrewers.com

From empanadas to crepes to cupcakes, dumplings, meatballs, and more, eats of all types will be served up in Phoenixville this Saturday as dozens of food trucks roll into town. An array of vendors — selling everything from jewelry to dog biscuits — will also set up shop, and area restaurants will offer specials throughout the afternoon. The event is rain or shine, so mark your calendar and prepare to chow down. — G.D.

Noon to 6 p.m. Saturday, Main St. (from Church to Price St.) and Bridge St. (100 & 200 blocks), Phoenixville, pay-as-you-go, phoenixvillefoodfestival.com

Watch Miss Moogoo, Willy, Baxter, and a bunch of other goats race to the finish line at Sly Fox's annual Sly Fox Bock Fest. The name of the winning goat will be used to entitle the brewery's annually released Maibock. Held on a giant grassy field next to the brewery, the event also features live German Oompah music, and, of course, a ton of different bock beers available to try. — G.D.

11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sunday, Sly Fox Brewing Co., 331 Circle of Progress Dr., Pottstown, pay-as-you-go, slyfoxbeer.com/bockfest

Calling all gardeners. The Chestnut Hill Home & Garden Festival brings together 150 vendors to historic Germantown Avenue. Heirloom vegetable plants, flowering baskets, and other items will be for sale, while garden sculptures and displays will be available for enthusiasts to admire. Meanwhile, a variety of arts, crafts, handmade furniture, and quilts will be on sale, as will a ton of delicious eats from a variety of area restaurants. Enjoy it all while taking in the tunes from live bands playing across two stages throughout the afternoon. — G.D.

11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday, 8000 to 8600 blocks of Germantown Avenue, Chestnut Hill, free, chestnuthillpa.com/events

Head to the Shore this weekend for Ocean City's massive spring block party. Taking over nearly 10 blocks of Asbury Avenue, the outdoor event brings more than 350 craft, food, and other vendors to the area. The annual event will also include live music and seaside entertainment for an all-day block party fit for the whole family. — G.D.

9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday, Asbury Ave. from 5th to 14th Streets, Ocean City, N.J., 609-399-1412, visitnj.org/nj-events

George Balanchine's groundbreaking masterpiece Jewels returns to the Pennsylvania Ballet stage to close out the 2017-2018 season. The three-act performance celebrates different aspects of Balanchine's life, with inspiration from the French Romantics, the American metropolitan world, and Imperial Russia. Five shows will unfold, Thursday through Sunday. — G.D.

May 10-13, the Academy of Music, 240 S. Broad St., $35 and up, paballet.org/jewels

Pop into participating independent comic book stores in the Philadelphia area to enjoy all-day specials and, as the name suggests, free comic books! Celebrate local small businesses and pick up some new reads, be they old classics or fresh off the press, and swag such as posters and more. — Thea Applebaum Licht

11 a.m. to 8 p.m. Saturday, at participating locations.

Philly's 2018 slam poetry champion is crowned at this spoken-word competition, the largest of its kind in the city. Eleven of the city's top slam poetry artists take to the stage for four rounds of recitation, with additional performances by the members of The Philly Pigeon (Kai Davis, Jasmine Combs, and Jacob Winterstein). –T.A.L.

8:45 p.m. to 11:30 p.m. Friday, PhilaMOCA, 531 N. 12th St. $10 at the door, $15-$20 reserved seating, www.philamoca.org

It's been 20 years since Marah, the Conshohocken-born, South Philly-bred band led by Bielanko brothers Dave and Serge issued their ramshackle and free-spirited debut album Let's Cut the Crap and Hook Up Later on Tonight. Since Serge rejoined the band in 2015, Marah have reestablished themselves as a fabulous bar band, and this weekend they'll revisit Let's Cut the Crap, from the bagpipes to the Harry Kalas sample on "Rain Delay," in two area shows. The Boot & Saddle show, with former Go to Blazes guitarist Tom Heyman opening, is long sold out. The recently added one at 118 North, the new songwriters haven in Wayne, is not. — Dan DeLuca

8:30 p.m. Friday at Boot & Saddle, 1131 S. Broad St. Sold out. 267-639-4528. bootandsaddlephilly.com And at 8:30 p.m. Saturday at 118 North, 18 N. Wayne Ave., Wayne. 620-971-2628. 118northwayne.com

It's a hometown gig for Upper Darby's own Rundgren, touring with the band that was his chief performing outlet from the mid-1970s to mid-1980s. Two members from that period of prog-rock exploration are in the band in drummer Willie Wilcox and bassist Kasim Sulton, who sang "Set Me Free," the band's New Wavey 1979 hit. They'll be joined by Gil Assayas, the generations-younger Israeli musician who was suggested as a replacement for the ailing keyboardist Ralph Schuckett, who had to pull out of the tour for health reasons. No telling if Rundgren will stick to the Utopia set list or throw in new material like the anti-Trump "Tin Foil Hat," his collaboration with Donald Fagen from last year's guest-heavy solo album White Knight. — D.D.

7 p.m. Saturday at Tower Theater, 69th and Ludlow St. $20-$75. 610-352-2887. thetowerphilly.com. 

Animal Collective has been a deliberately malleable project. Its four key members, originally from Baltimore but now far-flung, rarely convene these days, and last year's Meeting of the Waters EP was made by only two, Avey Tare and Geologist. Sunday's show at Union Transfer features a different permutation: Geologist (Brian Weitz) opening for, and then playing with, Panda Bear (Noah Lennox) — although it is not billed as an Animal Collective show. Panda Bear's solo albums, such as 2007's marvelous Person Pitch, specialize in joyfully layered vocals, sometimes sounding like celestial choirs, sometimes like barbershop quartets, often like a trippy version of the Beach Boys. With loops and samples, Lennox re-creates those layers live, and he's been working on a follow-up to 2015's Panda Bear Meets the Grim Reaper, so new music may be in store. — Steve Klinge

8 p.m. Sunday at Union Transfer, 1026 Spring Garden St. $20. 215-232-2100, utphilly.com.

What a difference an Oscar makes. Before 2018's Academy Awards ceremony, the queen of Mexico City's music scene was a wifty Björk-esque songstress (see: 2009's Hu Hu Hu) turned forlorn pop romanticist (2015's Hasta la Raiz) turned indigenous and traditionalist folkie (the two volumes of Musas from 2017 and 2018). The she recorded "Remember Me," the theme song of Disney/Pixar's Coco, which won best original song. Truly though, Lafourcade is the finest thing about that film – a delicate creature and a strong empowered soul. — A.D. Amorosi

8 p.m. Monday, Theater of Living Arts, 334 South St. $35-$40, ticketmaster.com