Simone Biles wows at Wells Fargo and 18 other things to do this weekend, Nov. 4-6
Celebs this weekend are flocking to Philly in support of Hillary Clinton, but there's a lot of bipartisan fun to be had, too.
/arc-anglerfish-arc2-prod-pmn.s3.amazonaws.com/public/AQ3IUEVS45CLNGT3MTHCFRIJ7M.jpg)
Celebs this weekend are flocking to Philly in support of Hillary Clinton: Cyndi Lauper and Debra Messing will hang with Ed Rendell and Katie McGinty on Friday; Stevie Wonder will play a set at Coda then, too; and Katy Perry stops by the Mann on Saturday, where Clinton will be stumping as well.
For more bipartisan fun, head to Old City, where you can now go on a behind-the-scenes tour of the Shane Confectionery candy factory. Up in Fishtown, Say Yes to the Dress' Randy Fenoli will host a Girls Night at SugarHouse. Around the city, the Philadelphia Jewish Film Festival is starting up its 36th year, and we've got the picks on its best flicks.
Of course, there's always the multiplex, where Doctor Strange is hitting the big screen. Did you know the doctor himself, played by Benedict Cumberbatch, is from Philly?
GYMNASTICS
Kellogg's Tour of Gymnastics Champions
Bow down to the queen. Simone Biles, the one and only mega-gold medalist, a.k.a. the best in sport, a.k.a. major Zac Efron crusher, is joined by other tumbling terrors. Like who? Like 2012 Olympic team and all-around champion Gabby Douglas, 2012 Olympic team and floor-exercise champion Aly Raisman, 2008 Olympic all-around champion Nastia Liukin, and 2012 Olympic team gold-medalist Jordyn Wieber. The talented ladies will wow in the events that made them famous and got them some hard-earned metallic glory.
Hey, Simone, if you want to hang out later, or potentially be best friends after the event, we'd be cool with that. - Molly Eichel
7:30 p.m. Friday, Wells Fargo Center, 3601 S. Broad St., $29 to $299, 800-298-4200.
MOVIES
"Political Advertisements IX: 1952-2016"
Someone should come up with a political campaign ad generator so you can type in your name and get both the pro and con. (As in: "Plan This! has helped millions to find fun and contentment for years - vote for them," and "Plan This! is always trying to tell you what to do - tell them you want the freedom to find your own kicks.")
Since you haven't had enough of political ads this season (you haven't, right?), this compilation by Muntadas & Marshall Reese gathers TV spots from the last 64 years, including the once-televised, oft-repeated 1964 "Daisy Girl" spot that helped Democrat Lyndon Johnson rout Republican Barry Goldwater. Seen as hard-hitting in its more genteel era, it seems almost quaint in these less-civil times. - Michael Harrington
7 p.m. Friday, International House, 3701 Chestnut St. $9; $7 students and seniors. 215-387-5125.
In Paul Haggis' absorbing 2007 thriller, a military policeman's search for the killers of his son, a soldier recently returned from Iraq, leads to larger questions about the effects of battle and the way violence pervades our lives. - M.H.
7 p.m. Friday, Peace Center of Delaware County, 1001 Old Sproul Rd., Springfield, free, 610-544-1818.
BOOKS
The North Carolina author based her novel Children of Italy on memories of her great-grandparents, and the secret history she discovered after they were gone. The book tells the tale of an Italian immigrant who becomes a West Virginia coal miner and, after 12 years, finally earns the money to bring his wife and children over, despite being involved in an affair with a local woman. Though the family are reunited, they must deal with the travails of passion and prejudice as they try to make a life in America. - M.H.
3 p.m. Saturday at the Charles Santore Library, 932 South Seventh St. Free, 215-686-1766.
DANCE
The esteemed troupe makes its first Philadelphia appearance in a decade, performing its namesake's masterworks Appalachian Spring, Errand into the Maze, Dark Meadow Suite, and a reimagining of her affecting solo Lamentation Variations by contemporary choreographers. - M.H.
8 p.m. Friday, 2 and 8 p.m. Saturday, and 2:30 and 7:30 p.m. Sunday, Prince Theater, 1412 Chestnut St. $20 to $60, 215-422-4580.
COMEDY
As the old saying goes, "politics ain't beanbag" - but when did it turn into roller derby? Usually, at this stage of a presidential campaign, we'd recommend turning to someone with a calming analytic take on events, but 2016 calls for the apoplectic, if spot-on, reflections (or rants) of the sharp-eyed, sharp-tongued Mr. Black. - M.H.
8 p.m. Saturday, Academy of Music, Broad and Locust Streets. $55 and $65, 215-893-1999.
Amy Schumer's buddy brings her bawdy cabaret act to town. Not for the faint of heart, but worth any potential offense. (Besides, also on the bill is the incomparable Murray Hill.) - M.E.
8 p.m. Friday, at the Fillmore Philadelphia, 29 East Allen St. $28.50, 215-309-0150.
BEER
The Great Harvest Cider and Beer Festival
Bella Vista's Hawthornes gets in the fall spirit with - what else? - beer. Think hard ciders, pumpkin beers, and lagers. Kids and pets are welcome to Hawthornes' South 11th Street takeover, but bring cash if you want to buy. - M.E.
1-8 p.m. Saturday, Hawthornes Cafe, 738 S. 11th St., 215-627-3012.
Yards Brawlerfest with Marah & Low Cut Connie
A pugilistic Saturday afternoon double bill that stands more than a puncher's chance of being one of the best shows of the season. Headliners Marah are a great live band back in fighting shape with the return of Serge Bielanko to the outfit fronted by his brother Dave. Their overlooked 2008 album, Angels of Destruction, was reissued on vinyl in October. Low Cut Connie, led by piano-pounding Jerry-Lee-Lewis-meets-Liberace ham Adam Weiner have a new album recorded at Ardent Studios in Memphis on the way. Also on tap: Blayer Pointdujour & the Rockers Galore, DJ Bearbait, and lots of beer. Proceeds benefit Musicians on Call and Beat the Streets Philadelphia. - Dan DeLuca
2 p.m. Saturday, Yards Brawlerfest, 500 Spring Garden St. $20 to $55. .
ART
This exhibit, featuring digital photography by Mark Dorf, Julianna Foster, and Nick Pedersen - in which images are manipulated to tell stories both topical and personal - ends its run this weekend. - M.H.
9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Friday and Saturday, Main Line Art Center, 746 Panmure Rd., Haverford. Free, 610-525-0272, mainlineart.org.
MUSEUMS
The Great War, as it was called when it happened, is remembered as a turning point in European culture and aesthetics. But PAFA says this huge show of 160 works by 80 artists is the first to examine how American artists responded to the war. Works in the show document the ghastly and the triumphant and include huge canvases and ugly propaganda posters. Because the war happened when modernism was only beginning to take hold here, there is also a wide range of styles, from the illustrative to the abstract. -Thomas Hine
Through April 9, Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, 128 N. Broad St., $8-$15, 215-972-7600.
KIDS
See a mermaid swim with the sharks, then visit with her on dry land. It's OK to bring those who are not as enamored of the fair and fishtailed: There're also pirates - aaaaarrrrrrr! - M.H.
Saturday to Sept. 13, Adventure Aquarium, 1 Riverside Dr., Camden. $25.95, $18.95 ages 2 to 12, ages 2 and younger free. 856-365-3300.
Treasures From the Mineral Vault
The Academy of Natural Sciences has got a lot of stuff. Sometimes, it's a long wait to see some of it. This yearlong exhibit, opening Saturday, draws on the thousands of specimens dating to the earliest days of the institution in 1812, and some items haven't been put on public display in decades. While being dazzled by four large cases featuring different varieties of quartz, calcite, fluorite, and feldspar, visitors can learn why some minerals are shaped like cubes and others like prisms, why some sparkle and others come in varied colors, and most important: the difference between a rock and a mineral. - M.H.
Through November 2017, Academy of Natural Sciences, 1900 Benjamin Franklin Parkway, 215-299-1000.
Head to the Wells Fargo Center with this family-friendly event that is a must for all budding Flyers fans. Activities include a giant Ferris wheel, a chance to take a shot on goal, autograph opportunities, and carnival games. - M.E.
1:30-6 p.m. Sunday, Wells Fargo Center, 3601 S. Broad St. $15-$35 (additional charges for autograph sessions and some games), 800-298-4200.
BIKES
There's nothing that can make you appreciate your two-wheeled transportation like a SEPTA strike. Learn more about what's new in bicycle technology, or go on a 30-mile bike ride starting at 7 a.m. Saturday at Paine's Park (MLK Drive and the Parkway) and ending at the Bike Expo. - M.E.
10 a.m-6 p.m. Saturday; 10 a.m.- 4 p.m. Sunday, Pennsylvania Convention Center, 1101 Arch St. $30-$40 (all-access pass); $12-$15 (day pass); 215-740-7068.
MUSIC
Boston's Debo Band revive and extend the kinetic funk music of Ethiopia from the late '60s and early '70s. Drawing on songs from the fertile period documented in the revelatory Éthiopiques series and adding their own originals to the tradition, they create a rollicking racket of dance music, by turns sinuous and blaring. Led by sax player Danny Mekonnen and fronted by quavering vocalist Bruck Tesfaye, Debo Band features a dynamic array of horns, accordions, and violins among its dozen or so members. They veer from psychedelic rock to hard funk to big-band jazz - often within a single song, as on "Ele" from this spring's Ere Gobez, their second album. Prepare to dance. - Steve Klinge
7 p.m. Friday, World Cafe Live, 3025 Walnut St. $17. 215-222-1400, worldcafelive.com.
As clever as they are cute, this trio of Brits come on with the perkiness of early Lily Allen in non-love songs about the struggle to get out of bed in the morning and the pleasures of being taken by surprise by an irresistible pop song on the radio. With producers Gus Lobban and Jamie Bulled providing simple, video-game-inspired beats, vocalist Sarah Midori Perry raps mostly in English and sometimes in Japanese on the instantly catchy, smartly observed (and probably cloying to some) new set, Bonito Generation. - D.D.
8 p.m. Friday, Coda, 1712 Walnut St. $12, 267-639-4630.
You haven't heard "La Bamba" until you've heard it performed live by this Los Angeles combo renowned for its mix of son jarocho folk music and punk sensibility. It's also the only time you're likely to hear a donkey jawbone played as an instrument. - M.H.
7:30 p.m. Sunday at the Rotunda, 4014 Walnut St. $10 to $30, crossroadsconcerts.org.
Patterson Hood and Mike Cooley were determined to get American Band, Drive-By Truckers' 11th album, out before Election Day, to maximize the immediate relevance of its songs about race relations, gun violence, and liberal Southerners' perspectives on the state of our union. The album ranks with the band's best: It's provocative and thoughtful, angry and reflective. On Wednesday, we get to see how songs like "What it Means" and "Kinky Hypocrite" play on the day after. One thing's guaranteed: The Truckers are one of America's most reliably great live bands, and their shows are cathartic celebrations of rock-and-roll. Given the moment, however, this one is especially noteworthy. - Steve Klinge
8:30 p.m. Wednesday, Union Transfer, 1026 Spring Garden St. $25 to $28, 215-232-2100.