Editor’s Note: Welcome to V3 Weekend, Vanyaland‘s guide to help you sort out your weekend entertainment with curated selections and recommendations across our three pillars of Music, Comedy, and Film/TV. It’s what you should know about, where you need to be, and where you’ll be going, with us riding shotgun along the way.
Music: Crystal Ballroom 1st birthday weekend
Last year we heralded the opening of a new live music venue at a time where many around the city were closing, and we’re stoked to see Crystal Ballroom is still going strong. This weekend the venue at the Somerville Theatre in Davis Square celebrates its first birthday with a triple-slate of awesomeness: Tonight (October 7), Ali McGuirk (pictured) with Dutch ReBelle team up for one inspired showcase of New England’s finest; Saturday (October 8) welcomes New York rapper Billy Woods with ShrapKnel; and Sunday (October 9) closes things out with a seasonally welcoming and drag-minded Runway Witch Fashion Show. On each night, Crystal Ballroom will be giving away concert tickets, movie passes and other fun stuff, so join in and raise a glass to celebrate a stage just when we need it the most.
1st BIRTHDAY WEEKEND :: Friday, October 7 to Sunday, October 9 at Crystal Ballroom, 55 Davis Square in Somerville, MA :: 7 p.m. each night :: Event and ticket info
Comedy: Dan Cummins at Laugh Boston
There are more than a few great comedy options around town this weekend, but tonight and tomorrow (October 7 and 8) we’re headed to the Seaport to catch up with a Vanyaland fave in Dan Cummins, who kicked off the first of three nights at Laugh Boston on Thursday. Jason Greenough breaks down why in this week’s Mic’d Up: “Always one to keep it brutally honest with an eloquent and well-articulated flair, the Suck Master General returns to the seaport after a number of re-schedulings. With a new special taping within reach at the end of the year, this particular gathering of meatsacks (Cummins’ loyal, enthusiastic and dedicated army of fans) is coming at a perfect time, where he’s well entrenched in his Symphony of Insanity Tour and a new but well-sculpted hour that is sure to be upfront, open and honest in the best possible way – per usual.”
DAN CUMMINS :: Friday, October 7 and Saturday, October 8 at Laugh Boston, 425 Summer St. in Boston, MA :: 7 and 10 p.m., $30 :: Event and ticket info
Film/TV: Beetlejuice at The Loring Greenough House
The world is a very scary place, so horror tends to hit differently right now. We’ll opt for some laughs with our usual October haunts this weekend as The Loring Greenough House (no relation to our comedy editor) in Jamaica Plain hosts an outdoors screening of Tim Burton’s fantasy horror comedy Beetlejuice. It’s part of the community-based educational and social organization’s Friday Night At The Movies series, and goes down on the Loring Greenough lawn. We probably don’t need the reminder, but here’s that Beetlejuice synapsis you ordered: “A 1988 Halloween classic from Tim Burton about a recently deceased couple, played by Geena Davis and Alec Baldwin, who hire a ‘bio-exorcist’ to rid their Connecticut home of its new, alive owners, played by Catherine O’Hara, of Schitt’s Creek, Jeffrey Jones and Winona Ryder. Starring Michael Keaton as ‘Betelgeuse’.” It’s a classic for a reason.
BEETLEJUICE :: Friday, October 7 at The Loring Greenough House, 12 South Street Boston, MA :: 7 p.m., ages 12 and up, $5 to $7 :: Event and ticket info