MUSIC
Pop & Rock
LUKE BRYAN The pop-country superstar shrugged off his spring break fixation with last year’s “Kill the Lights,” but that doesn’t mean he’s not all about a good time. His Saturday night show has been sold out for ages, but you can still score tickets for Friday; the strong support bill includes Little Big Town, Chris Stapleton, and Dustin Lynch. July 15, 16, 5:30 p.m. $39.50-$125. Gillette Stadium Foxborough. 800-745-3000
BOB DYLAN + MAVIS STAPLES Here’s a case of iconic performers venturing toward new horizons while moving in opposite directions: Dylan with classic-pop standards made famous by Sinatra, Staples in songs by modern-day troubadours and alt-rockers. July 14, 7:30 p.m. $39.50-$129.50. Blue Hills Bank Pavilion. 800-745-3000, www.livenation.com
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DEAD & COMPANY Maybe Dead & Company, the new Grateful Dead spin-off with singer-guitarist John Mayer (but no Phil Lesh), came too soon after you’d shed your tears for “Fare Thee Well.” Maybe you didn’t think Mayer could cut it. Maybe you didn’t want to drive to Worcester in the rain last November. Or maybe you were there, in which case you already know this combo can deliver transcendence. July 15, 16, 6:30 p.m. $55-$104. Fenway Park. boston.redsox.mlb.com
Folk & World
RYAN MCKASSON AND ERIC MCDONALD This East Coast/West Coast pairing brings together fiddle master McKasson from the Seattle area and guitarist-mandolinist and ballad singer McDonald from these parts to play traditional Scottish music, as well as the duo's contemporary extensions of it. July 15, 7 p.m. $20 donation suggested. Nunes Barn, Sudbury. 781-648-5579. www.facebook.com/events/1092833457457220
ROB ICKES AND TREY HENSLEY A good week for pairs — this one, a collaboration of the renowned (Blue Highway member Ickes, one of the world’s premier dobro players) and the rising (guitarist-vocalist Hensley), came about serendipitously, when Hensley happened to be on hand to provide a scratch vocal for a Blue Highway recording session. July 19, 10 p.m. $10. Atwood's Tavern, Cambridge. 800-838-3006. www.brownpapertickets.com
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LERA LYNN Lynn comes to town Tuesday in support of her recent release, "Resistor," which finds her continuing to push beyond the moody, quasi-Americana of her earlier efforts. Get there on time and see Nashville singer-songwriter Andrew Combs open in solo mode, and perhaps include some songs from his next record. July 19, 8 p.m. $15. The Sinclair, Cambridge. 800-745-3000. www.ticketmaster.com
Jazz & Blues
CARLOS AVERHOFF JR. The native Cuban tenor saxophone virtuoso and composer’s IRESI Project — “named for the Yoruba word that means the light of your soul,” says Averhoff — features Grammy-nominated pianist Manuel Valera, ubiquitous bassist John Lockwood, and ebullient Cuban drummer Francisco Mela playing uncompromising contemporary Afro-Cuban jazz. July 14, 7:30 p.m. $16. Regattabar. 617-395-7757, www.regattabarjazz.com
JOE KROWN TRIO Hammond B-3 organist Krown, soulful singer and guitarist Walter "Wolfman" Washington, and funky drummer Russell Batiste have been playing together every Sunday at the Maple Leaf Bar in New Orleans for almost a decade. And now they’re bringing their bluesy, Crescent City grooves to the Bay State. July 16, 8 p.m. $20-$25. Bull Run Restaurant, 215 Great Road, Route 2A, Shirley. 877-536-7190, www.bullrunrestaurant.com
MAN ON LAND Mark Redmond’s invaluable Mandorla Music Series presents its milestone 50th concert, featuring a collective trio of some of Boston’s finest — pianist Brian Friedland, bassist Greg Loughman, and drummer Austin McMahon — playing their thoughtful, witty, and engaging original compositions. July 16, 8 p.m. $12-$15. Third Life Studio, 33 Union Square, Somerville.
www.thirdlifestudio.com/#!upcoming-concerts/c3ut
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Classical
MONADNOCK MUSIC Artistic director Gil Rose opens the festival’s summer season with an imaginative program devoted to music written for the legendary dancer and choreography Martha Graham. Featuring works by Menotti, Carlos Surinach, and William Schuman, with the Boston Modern Orchestra Project. July 16, 8 p.m., Peterborough Town House, New Hampshire. 603-924-7610, www.monadnockmusic.org
TANGLEWOOD Tanglewood shifts into high gear this week. Violinist and conductor Pinchas Zukerman presides over Friday’s all-Mozart program, and on Saturday Christoph von Dohnanyi leads a keenly anticipated performance of Strauss’s luminous “Four Last Songs” with soprano Renée Fleming, on a program that also includes works by Ives and Tchaikovsky. Then on Sunday pianist Yuja Wang takes on Ravel’s Piano Concerto in G under the baton of Gustavo Gimeno, who also leads works by Gershwin and Stravinsky. Ozawa Hall, meanwhile, will host the Knights on Thursday in a century-hopping program, linking Haydn with Bob Dylan and Gabriel Kahane. Lenox. 617-266-1200, www.tanglewood.org
BOSTON LANDMARKS ORCHESTRA Led by music director Christopher Wilkins, the Landmarks Orchestra continues its popular series of free Wednesday night concerts with a visually themed program highlighting the legacy of Isabella Stewart Gardner. Images from the Gardner’s collections will be projected, and Peggy Stuart Coolidge’s “Isabella” will receive its world premiere. Also on the program: music by Falla and Offenbach as well as, naturally, Mussorgsky’s “Pictures at an Exhibition.” July 20, 7 p.m., Hatch Shell at the Esplanade. 617-987-2000, www.landmarksorchestra.org
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ARTS
Theater
THE T PARTY Natsu Onoda Power, who directed her “Astro Boy and the God of Comics’’ at Company One Theatre two summers ago, returns to helm another New England premiere of her work. “The T Party’’ consists of eight loosely connected scenes, plus songs and videos, that add up to a journey across the spectrum of gender identity. July 15-Aug. 13. Company One Theatre. Roberts Studio Theatre, Calderwood Pavilion, Boston Center for the Arts. 617-933-8600, www.companyone.org
THE KRITIK World premiere of a comedy by playwright-actress Brenda Withers about a small-town theater critic in provincial 19th-century Russia who causes a ruckus when he tries to publish his first genuinely honest review. Directed by Withers, with Jonathan Fielding as the critic. Also in the cast: Stacy Fischer, Molly Kimmerling, Robert Kropf, and Alex Pollock. July 14-Aug. 6. Harbor Stage Company, Wellfleet. 508-514-1763, www.harborstage.org
CAT ON A HOT TIN ROOF Rebecca Brooksher delivers a scorching performance as Maggie the Cat in Tennessee Williams’s classic drama, trying desperately to rekindle the passion of an alcoholic husband whose self-willed oblivion is so complete that he has renounced not just Maggie but life itself. Through July 16. Berkshire Theatre Group at Fitzpatrick Main Stage, Stockbridge. 413-997-4444, www.berkshiretheatregroup.org
Dance
OUTSIDE THE BOX This free annual festival includes a big lineup of dance performances in a wide range of genres spread over four days and several stages around Boston Common. Participating companies include Continuum Dance Project, Luke Murphy, Tony Williams Ballet, Luminarium Dance Company, Paula Josa-Jones, Rainbow Tribe, and Boston Ballet II. July 14-17. Free. Boston Common. 617-936-0203, www.otbboston.com
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ARTBEAT 2016 Somerville’s two-day arts festival, this one dedicated to exploring all types of “roots,” includes dance performances by Weber Dance, Nozama Dance Collective, Jo-Mé Dance, Tony Williams Ballet, Brayton Dance, and Continuum Dance Project. July 16, starting at 12:30 p.m. Free ($3 suggested donation). Somerville Theater, Somerville. 617-625-6600, ext. 2985, www.somervilleartscouncil.org
SOUTHERN VERMONT DANCE FESTIVAL Over four days, this annual Brattleboro festival features a host of classes, lectures, and performances. The works of 35 choreographers, emerging and professional, are showcased in three gala concerts, an informal showing, free community events, and a closing concert, with styles ranging from ballet to hip-hop and tap. July 14-17. Free-$75. Various locations in Brattleboro, Vt. 802-489-7833, www.southernvermontdancefestival.com
Galleries
GASTóN UGALDE: ART AND TERRITORY In his multimedia works, this Bolivian artist roots his ideas in his native landscape, spiritual traditions, and folk arts, then adds cunning sociopolitical twists that comment on capitalism, depletion of natural resources, and more. Through Aug. 20. Gallery Kayafas, 450 Harrison Ave. 617-482-0411, www.gallerykayafas.com
KATE GILMORE: WALLFLOWER Gilmore makes and stars in comical videos that prod at social constructs of gender. Usually decked out in heels and a pretty dress, she takes on preposterous tasks. Here she moves furniture and more through a hole in the floor. Through Aug. 6. Rosebud, 683 Main St., Watertown. 781-736-3434, www.brandeis.edu/rose
BEN BUTLER: CONFIGURATIONS Starting with found objects rooted in New England’s history — finials, spades, cranks — Butler fashions totemic sculptures. Abstraction, humor, and odd juxtapositions transform the antiques into otherworldly icons. “I’m making ceremonial objects,” Butler has said, “for an unknown ceremony.” Through July 31. Laconia Gallery, 433 Harrison Ave. 401-675-7653, www.laconiagallery.com
Museums
RODIN: TRANSFORMING SCULPTURE A survey of sculptures in plaster, bronze, and marble, along with related drawings by the greatest sculptor of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Through Sept. 5. Peabody Essex Museum, East India Square, Salem. 978-745-9500. www.pem.org
DRAWINGS FROM THE AGE OF BRUEGEL, RUBENS, AND REMBRANDT Forty Netherlandish, Dutch, and Flemish drawings from the 15th to the 18th centuries, all from Harvard’s collection, one of the most comprehensive in the United States. Through Aug. 14. Harvard Art Museums, 32 Quincy St., Cambridge. 617-495-9400, www.harvardartmuseums.org
GEOFFREY FARMER Farmer, who has been selected to represent Canada at the 2017 Venice Biennale, presents a room-size installation of hundreds of his small-scale, puppet-like sculptures made of photographic cut-outs and fabric, as well as a projection of random photographs from a clippings library and an installation of cut-out photographs of sculpture. Through July 17. Institute of Contemporary Art, 25 Harbor Shore Drive. 617-478-3100, www.icaboston.org
EVENTS
Comedy
THE BEST OF IMPROVBOSTON Former and current ImprovBoston members of the house’s Main Stage cast perform some of the best pre-written sketches and improv on the weekends this summer. Friday’s show is a free preview. Most Fridays and Saturdays through Aug. 27 at 7:30 p.m. Free to $25. Laugh Boston, 425 Summer St., Boston. 617-725-2844, www.laughboston.com
KENNY ZIMLINGHAUS AND GREG JOHNSON Good friends and currently colleagues in the New York City scene, former WFNX morning show host Zimlinghaus and Boston College graduate Johnson return to play on their old stamping grounds. July 15-16, 8 p.m. $20. Nick’s Comedy Stop, 100 Warrenton St., Boston. 617-963-6261, www.nickscomedystop.com
DON’T READ THE COMMENTS! Blogger and cookbook author Dan Whalen hosts this show in which bloggers and journalists talk about their worst trolls, and improvisers try to put a more positive spin on them with scenes based on the comments. Saturdays through July 30, 11 p.m. $12. ImprovBoston, 40 Prospect St., Cambridge. 617-576-1253, www.improvboston.com
Family
WGBH FunFest We all scream for ice cream — even Curious George and Arthur Read. Bring the kids down to WGBH Studios for some scoops, interactive games, and a chance to hang out with everyone’s favorite monkey and aardvark. It’s children’s programming at its sweetest. July 16, 10 a.m.-4 p.m. $10. WGBH Studios, 1 Guest St. www.wgbh.org/support/funfest.cfm
The Fairytale Olympics We know after watching the Olympic Trials that Needham native Aly Raisman will head to the Rio Games, but how would our favorite fairy tale characters have fared? Find out at the Children’s Museum in Easton, where kids will have the opportunity to watch storybook puppets compete in “not so traditional” activities. July 20, 1:30 p.m. $9. The Children’s Museum in Easton, 9 Sullivan Ave., North Easton. childrensmuseumineaston.org/summer-drop-days/
Fencing Demonstration on the Lawn Why let the professionals have all the fun? Our friends at Marx Fencing Academy are visiting Concord to help those over 7 years old peacefully channel their swordfighting ancestors. July 20, 7-8 p.m. Free. Concord Free Public Library, 129 Main St., Concord. www.eventkeeper.com/code/events.cfm?curOrg=CONCORD#4646934
Sonia Rao
MARK YOUR CALENDER
July 21 The Julie Ruin at The Sinclair www.songkick.com
July 23 Paul Anka at South Shore Music Circus www.vividseats.com
July 23 Flight of the Conchords at Blue Hills Bank Pavilion concerts.livenation.com
July 24 Sugar Ray at House of Blues www.songkick.com
July 28 Pat Benatar at Lynn Memorial Auditorium www.vividseats.com
July 29 Huey Lewis and The News at South Shore Music Circus www.vividseats.com
July 30 Josh Groban at Blue Hills Bank Pavilion concerts.livenation.com
Aug. 14 Boston at Wang Theater www.citicenter.org
Carly Sitrin