MUSIC
Pop & Rock
LEIKELI47 Clad in a balaclava, this Brooklyn MC-producer has blazed a bright trail through hip-hop since her mixtape days; her second proper album, last year’s “Acrylic,” is a casually freewheeling trip through genres and styles, with her seen-it-all insouciance tying it all together. April 1, 8 p.m. $20 and up. The Sinclair, Cambridge. 617-547-5200, www.sinclaircambridge.com
MARIAH CAREY The hit-minting belter returns to town behind her splendid 2018 album, “Caution,” which proves her voice is just as powerful when she’s singing in a hushed whisper. April 2, 8 p.m. $59.95 and up. Boch Center Wang Theatre. 800-982-2787, www.bochcenter.org
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LET’S EAT GRANDMA British mates Jenny Hollingworth and Rosa Walton revel in the weird on “I’m All Ears,” which turns their ghostly twinned vocals, instrumentals equally inspired by warped film reels and ’80s pop-goth, and the sweet sounds of a cat chowing down into blissed-out alt-pop. April 3, 8 p.m. $20 and up. The Sinclair, Cambridge. 617-547-5200, www.sinclaircambridge.com
MAURA JOHNSTON
Folk & World
WESLEY STACE’S CABINET OF WONDERS The artist periodically known as John Wesley Harding returns with the variety show he’s dubbed his “Cabinet of Wonders.” This April Fool’s edition includes contributions from Juliana Hatfield, Barrence Whitfield, Fountains of Wayne’s Chris Collingwood, Robert Pinsky, Eugene Mirman, and others. April 1, 8 p.m. $25-$35. City Winery, Boston. 617-933-8047, www.citywinery.com
J.P. CORMIER He’s a guy you may well have never heard of, and yet he’s done it all, from Cape Breton to Nashville: trad fiddler extraordinaire, multi-instrumentalist sideman who’s played alongside the likes of Waylon Jennings and Stompin’ Tom Connors, producer, and award-winning, genre-spaning solo artist. April 4, 8 p.m. $20. Spire Center for the Performing Arts, Plymouth. 508-746-4488, www.spirecenter.org
IBERI Taking their name from an ancient term for the country of Georgia, this six-man ensemble is dedicated to preserving, exploring, and reinventing the multiple traditional polyphonic vocal strands of their homeland. This is their first Boston-area appearance. April 4, 7:30 p.m. $28. First Church Congregational, Cambridge. 617-876-4275, www.worldmusic.org
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STUART MUNRO
Jazz & Blues
LASZLO GARDONY TRIO The acclaimed pianist’s inventive playing ranges from ruminative to rambunctious, yet remains ever elegant. His top-notch rhythm section comprises understandably ubiquitous bassist John Lockwood and dynamic drummer Bob Gullotti. April 4, 7:30 p.m. $20-$25. Regattabar, Cambridge. 617-395-7757, regattabarjazz.com
JASON RICCI & THE BAD KIND The Maine-born and Memphis-seasoned harmonica virtuoso, a Blues Music Award winner, has worked with the likes of Junior Kimbrough, RL Burnside, Ana Popovic, Joe Louis Walker, and many more. April 5, 8 p.m. $16. Bull Run Restaurant, 215 Great Road, Shirley. 978-425-4311, www.bullrunrestaurant.com
AARDVARK JAZZ ORCHESTRA WITH RICKY FORD Boston’s own progressive big band continues its 46th season with a celebration of Duke Ellington’s 120th birthday, featuring tenor saxophonist and Hub native Ricky Ford — who has played with the likes of Charles Mingus, Mercer Ellington, and Abdullah Ibrahim — performing Ellington compositions including “Chinoiserie” and “Praise God and Dance” (from the Second Sacred Concert). Also, the premiere of Aardvark leader Mark Harvey’s “Of the People,” and other originals. April 6, 8 p.m. Free. MIT’s Kresge Auditorium, 77 Massachusetts Ave., Cambridge. 617-452-3205 or 617-776-8778, www.aardvarkjazz.com
KEVIN LOWENTHAL
Classical
COLLAGE NEW MUSIC Five pieces from Yu-Hui Chang, Richard Festinger, Andrew Imbrie, and Eric Moe, all being heard in Boston for the first time. With a special guest appearance by the acclaimed new-music soprano Tony Arnold. March 31, 8 p.m. Pickman Hall, Longy School of Music, Cambridge. 617-850-2044, www.collagenewmusic.org
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ANNE AZÉMA AND SHIRA KAMMEN With voice, hurdy-gurdy, vielle, and harp, Azéma and Kammen present “Leale Amie,” medieval songs from 13th-century France. Presented by the Cambridge Society for Early Music. April 1, 7:30 p.m. Christ Church, Cambridge. 617-489-2062, www.csem.org
BOSTON SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA Los Angeles Philharmonic music and artistic director Gustavo Dudamel leads the BSO for two weeks, starting with a seasonally apropos pairing of Schumann’s Symphony No. 1, “Spring,” and, you guessed it, Stravinsky’s “The Rite of Spring.” Note: There’s no Thursday performance. April 5-9. Symphony Hall. 888-266-120o, www.bso.org
CHAMELEON ARTS ENSEMBLEE The program “upon one note” strings together chamber music in the key of C by Haydn, Poulenc, Knussen, and Schubert. April 6-7. First Church in Boston. 617-427-820o, www.chameleonarts.org
ARTS
Theater
CARDBOARD PIANO As a civil war escalates in Northern Uganda, a young lesbian couple provides refuge to a wounded child soldier in a church, where their encounter results in tragic consequences. Although it’s hobbled by a couple of static stretches and plot contrivances, the drama by South Korea-born playwright Hansol Jung nonetheless achieves a potent resonance by focusing intently on the destructive impact and lingering wounds that can be caused by homophobia. Directed by Benny Sato Ambush. Through April 14. New Repertory Theatre. At MainStage Theater, Mosesian Center for the Arts, Watertown. 617-923-8487, www.newrep.org
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THE STRANGE UNDOING OF PRUDENCIA HART In David Greig’s eerily absorbing, supernaturalism-inflected play, Prudencia Hart (played by Becca A. Lewis), an academic who specializes in the study of Scottish folklore and ballads, encounters a mysterious stranger (Keith James Foster) one snowy night. Also featuring Brooks Reeves as Prudencia’s academic nemesis. When the National Theatre of Scotland presented the US premiere of “The Strange Undoing of Prudencia Hart’’ seven years ago in a New Haven tavern, my review described it as an “inventive excursion across the border of everyday life into strange and mythic realms.’’ Directed by Danielle Fauteux Jacques, with music direction by David Reiffel. April 5-May 4. Presented by Apollinaire Theatre Company. At Chelsea Theatre Works, Chelsea. 617-887-2336, www.apollinairetheatre.com
THE SONG OF SUMMER The world premiere of a play by the inventive Lauren Yee (“Hookman’’) about a pop singer — seemingly on top of the world thanks to a hit tune that’s playing all over the radio — who abruptly quits his concert tour and journeys hundreds of miles to his hometown. At the dwelling of his childhood piano teacher, he makes a discovery that could transform his life and career. Taibi Magar directs. Through April 14. Trinity Repertory Company, Providence. 401-351-4242, www.trinityrep.com
DON AUCOIN
Dance
BATSHEVA DANCE COMPANY Dance pioneer Ohad Naharin — best known for the Gaga dance style — and his renowned Tel Aviv troupe make their long-anticipated Boston debut. They perform the choreographer’s new evening-length “Venezuela.” Set to a sound score ranging from Gregorian chant to rap to primal screams, the work has been described as both unsettling and exuberant, cast in two linked 40-minute sections in which familiar movement from the first half takes surprising contextual turns in the second half. April 5-6. $35-$85. Boch Center Shubert Theatre. 866-348-9738, www.celebrityseries.com
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FLAMENCO NUEVO: JUANITO PASCUAL TRIO The dynamic guitarist and musicians are joined by a varied cast of percussive dance artists: flamenco dancer Nelida Tirado, kathak dancer Anjali Nath, and contemporary tap firebrand Ian Berg. For this cross-genre collaboration, expect to experience rhythmic influences that range from ancient traditions to jazz and rock. April 6, 7:30 p.m. Free with reservation (but $10-$20 suggested donation). Wellesley College’s Jewett Auditorium, Wellesley. 781-283-2028, www.wellesley.edu/events
KELLEY DONOVAN & DANCERS The choreographer and her troupe offer a one-night-only performance of two works that explore how our internal awareness affects the way we connect with others: “In a Language I Can Understand” and “Only Connect.” The movement uses imagery from the tarot and is based on the dancers’ individual readings and numerology. April 6, 8 p.m. $15-$20. Third Life Studio, Somerville. 617-388-3247, www.kddcompany.wordpress.com
KAREN CAMPBELL
Galleries
JOIRI MINAYA: GAZING BACK In installations, videos, and more, Minaya focuses attention on people and places often rendered invisible by established power structures. Subverting the artist’s gaze as a tool of power, she aims to return agency to subjects historically glossed over due to colonialism, racism, and sexism. Through May 4. University Hall Gallery, University of Massachusetts Boston, 100 Morrissey Blvd. 617-287-5705, www.umb.edu/in_the_community/arts/university_gallery
THE MOON: ETERNAL PEARL Nearly 50 years after Neil Armstrong set foot on its surface, curators Kate James and Kathleen O’Hara muse on the moon as touchstone. More than 20 artists, including Kiki Smith and Lois Dodd, consider an array of lunar associations — to romance, science, time, the uncanny, and more. Through May 1. Concord Center for the Visual Arts, 37 Lexington Road, Concord. 978-369-2578, www.concordart.org
DOROTHEA VAN CAMP: GRAVITATIONAL LOOPHOLES Van Camp has in the past explored the printed mark with computer drawings and in paintings, but last year, she returned to the printing press. Making the dense, atmospheric prints in this show, she says, was a “metaphor for this moment” — the unyielding pressure of the press, the resistance of her especially viscous inks. Through April 27. HallSpace, 950 Dorchester Ave., Dorchester. 617-288-2255, www.hallspace.org
CATE McQUAID
Museums
HUMA BHABHA: THEY LIVE Bhabha fuses castoffs with a modernist aesthetic that muddies the purity of the latter with the alarming accretion of the former, making her often-monumental works the ideally complex totems for our very troubling times. Add in some Francis Bacon, Philip Guston, Alberto Giacometti, David Cronenberg, and a sharp eye for the ravages of war, and you’ll find a show like no other. Through May 29. Institute of Contemporary Art, 25 Harbor Shore Drive. 617-478-3100, www.icaboston.org
NATURE’S NATION: AMERICAN ART AND THE ENVIRONMENT The landscape has been a defining aspect of American identity for centuries — long before there was even a United States of America to define. What happens when that landscape is in distress, whether by environmental or social calamity? That’s what this show seeks to address. Through May 5. Peabody Essex Museum. East India Square. 978-745-9500. www.pem.org
THE BAUHAUS AND HARVARD Among several exhibitions marking the groundbreaking Modernist design school’s centenary, this is among the meatiest, given the school’s history with Bauhaus cofounder Walter Gropius, the onetime chair of architecture at Harvard’s Graduate School of Design. Consider it a vision of better living through design a century later, with all the caveats that come with that. Through July 28. Harvard Art Museums. 32 Quincy St., Cambridge. 617-267-9300, www.harvardartmuseums.org
MURRAY WHYTE
EVENTS
Comedy
JIMMY TINGLE Cambridge’s resident satirist and former lieutenant governor candidate uses his optimistic “Humor for Humanity” show to benefit Solutions at Work, a charity that helps homeless people become self-sufficient. March 31, 3 p.m. $15-$325. First Church, 11 Garden St., Cambridge. www.jimmytingle.com
TIM DILLON Once when Dillon was out of work, a friend told him, “You gotta see yourself as the world sees you, and that’s the job you do.” Dillon countered, “OK, that may be true, but you can’t just be a retired detective. I can’t just walk around New York City with a cup of coffee being racist.” He headlines CitySide Comedy Monday. April 1, 8:30 p.m. Free. CitySide, 1960 Beacon St., Brighton. 617-566-1002, www.citysidebar.com
RUSSELL PETERS The international stand-up star is making a mini-tour of the area with his “Deported” show, playing Medford and Boston. The early Wilbur show is sold out. April 5, 7:30 p.m. $49-$59. Chevalier Theatre, 30 Forest St., Medford. 800-838-3006, www.chevaliertheatre.com. April 6, 9:45 p.m. $50-$65. Wilbur Theatre, 246 Tremont St. 617-248-9700, www.thewilbur.com
NICK A. ZAINO III
Family
FIRST FRIDAY NIGHTS FREE! In celebration of the first Friday night of each month, the Discovery Museum opens its doors to everyone at no cost. Kids of all ages can enjoy what the interactive museum has to offer. The museum will also be accepting donations of non-perishable food for the Acton Food Pantry and Open Table of Concord and Maynard. April 5, 4:30-8 p.m. Free. Discovery Museum, 77 Main St., Action. discoveryacton.org
WELLESLEY STEM EXPO With over 100 exhibits, the Wellesley STEM Expo is something the whole family can enjoy. The event is interactive and hands-on, created to foster interests in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. April 6, 10 a.m.-2 p.m. Free. Wellesley High School, 50 Rice St., Wellesley. wellesleyeducationfoundation.org
DESIGN YOUR OWN DRESS OR T-SHIRT Young fashion lovers rejoice! With the help of Picture This Clothing, kids will get a chance to design their own clothing items. Using paper, markers, crayons, and paints, children will have the opportunity to send away their designs and get a real-life version sent back to them within 30 days. Parents are welcome to join in too! April 6, 10 a.m.-noon. $44. Beansprout Gifts, 12 Essex St., Melrose, signupgenius.com.
LILLIAN BROWN
MARK YOUR CALENDAR
April 10 Muse at TD Garden ticketmaster.com
April 13 Lil Tracy at Brighton Music Hall ticketmaster.com
April 13 Grace Kelly at City Winery citywinery.com
April 27 Maren Morris at House of Blues livenation.com
April 28 Cher at TD Garden ticketmaster.com
May 4 Marianas Trench at House of Blues livenation.com
May 5 Parachute at Royale Boston axs.com
May 8 Ben Platt at Wang Theatre ticketmaster.com
LILLIAN BROWN