Thursday, May 07, 2009

THUR 5/7: Plenty of Cheap Options...


It might be a difficult choice for the politically-inclined individual with a discussion on Afghanistan and Zinn speaking. One might even want to mix 'n mingle with the liberal radio folks.

Or maybe it's a night to dance and/or laugh...

--------------------------------------------------------------

THUR 5/7

6pm
Howard Zinn & Jimmy Tingle present: "A Young People's History of the United States"
at Brattle Theatre, 40 Brattle St, Cambridge (Harvard Sq)
$5 (tix available at Harvard Book Store or 617-661-1515)

Howard Zinn should be considered a great American for simply writing "A People's History of the United States", historical episodes from a perspective of the people who were actually being affected instead of the grand actions of statesmen and generals. Everyone should read it, and I guess the different editions should be considered channels to reach as many people as possible.

Zinn and humorist Jimmy Tingle will probably engage in a thought-provoking discourse.

THUR 5/7

6pm to 9pm
AM1510 revolutionBOSTON: Kickoff Party
at Revolution Rock Bar, 200 High St, Boston (Financial District)
FREE w/ RSVP

Progressive talk radio returns to Boston. I assume there will be some free drinks/apps... RSVP to get on the guest list. I wonder if Jay Severin will be there...? (More info at Blue Mass Group)

THUR 5/7

6:30pm to 8pm
"Afghanistan": Panel Discussion
at Rabb Lecture Hall, Boston Public Library, 700 Boylston St, Boston (Copley Sq)
FREE

Afghanistan seems to be the perennially forgotten nation. It usually gets attention only when a larger concern is involved. Now a panel discussion is scheduled when Pakistan's government might be on the verge of overthrow.

What's the best-case scenario for Afghanistan? This panel will discuss the history and the current issues:

-- Paul Fitzgerald & Elizabeth Gould (authors of "Invisible History: Afghanistan's Untold Story")
-- Nick Mills (Prof. of Journalism at BU, author of "Karzai")
-- Sima Wali (former Afghan exile, President of Refugee Women in Development)

Moderated by Alan Berger (Boston Globe editorial board)

THUR 5/7 (and TUES 5/12)

7pm, 9:30pm
Boston 48 Hour Film Project
at Kendall Square Cinema, 370 Binney St, Cambridge
$9.75

About 90 filmmaking teams created shorts from start to finish over this past weekend. On Friday they were each given a genre, a character, a prop and a line of dialogue. After writing, acting, and editing in 48 hours, they turned in the final product on Sunday night.

All of them are shown over 4 nights (2 sessions per night); tonight and next Tuesday to see them until the eventual 'best of' screening. I've watched a few of these instant films in the past, and they are usually pretty good.

THUR 5/7

8pm to Midnight
MP3 Beatdown: Championships
at Puma City, about 28 Northern Ave, Boston (Waterfront/Fan Pier)
FREE

Teams from local outfits of cool and hipness (stores, free weeklies, DJ's, etc) do battle by bringing mp3 players with their phattest jamz.

I remembering reading a report from the first report the first "Beatdown" (in February), and teams advance via head-to-head bursts of mp3 mixes -- maybe 5 to 15 minutes. I really believe the GIF below is from a previous night.

Think of getting free drinks at the open bar (beginning at 8pm) as a competition between you and the masses...

THUR 5/7

10pm
Pariah Beat
at Alchemist Lounge, 435 S Huntington Ave, Jamaica Plain
FREE

There are a few biggish bands with accordion and violin around town that make a rootsy stew of rock/gypsy/country/folk, but Pariah Beat pops with brightness and passion.

THUR 5/7

10pm
"Lafta Obscura" w/ Ken Reid, Sean Sullivan, Nate Johnson
at Somerville Theatre Screening Room, 55 Davis Sq, Somerville
$10

AltCom: The Alternative Comedy Festival has returned for an expanded second year. Besides the bigger comedy names (thru SUN 5/10), they're presenting a few programs with a local scope like this version of a comedy night that used to happen at the Paradise Lounge.

Three funny guys perform in the "Screening Room", apparently a new addition at the Somerville Theatre. Do you know why this is my favorite movie theatre? They sell beer.

Note: If you want to go to one of the main shows, try entering LAUGH as the promo code at Ticketmaster for a discount...

2 comments:

Nick said...

Pariah Beat: one of the most bizarre live acts I've seen in Boston. Definitely worth checking out though. They were kind (drunk) enough to entertain us as we waited in line outside of the Midway for over an hour to see Sidewalk Driver (capacity at the Midway is like 30 people now or something ridiculous).

Unknown said...
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.

ShareThis2