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: The Town And The City Festival in Lowell
Anticipation for this year’s The Town And The City Festival began late last year, when the two-day Lowell music and arts festival unveiled its first round of performers more than five months in advance. The solid lineup has only grown more impressive since, and now the walkable downtown fest — spanning a dozen-plus venues across Lowell, from rock clubs like Taffeta to more intimate settings, a la Brew’d Awakening, Gallery Z, and Lala Books — is set to do Jack Kerouac proud as it descends on Lowell Friday and Saturday (April 26 and 27). Performers on board for this weekend include Robyn Hitchcock, Darlingside, Amythyst Kiah (pictured up top), Clap Your Hands Say Yeah, Bermuda Search Party, Air Traffic Controller, Orbit, Coral Moons, Tysk Tysk Task, Colleen Green, Jen Kearney, Linnea’s Garden, Willie Alexander, Sapling, 2023 Rock and Roll Rumble champs One Fall, and plenty others. Hit the flyer below for the full slate, and hit Lowell this weekend for one grand celebration.
THE TOWN AND THE CITY FESTIVAL :: Friday, April 26 and Saturday, April 27 at various venues and locations around downtown Lowell, MA :: Event page and information
Comedy: Robert Kelly at Laugh Boston
It’s a special occasion when a proper legend returns to town, and that’s what goes down in the Seaport on Friday and Saturday (April 26 and 27) as homegrown comedy icon and Kill Box comedian Robert Kelly hits Laugh Boston for a quartet of appearances. As usual, Mic’d Up serves it up: “There’s just nothing like a homecoming show with the one and only Bobby Kelly. Always one to be a straight shooter, there’s no telling what stories the Medford native will tell, and that’s what makes him one of the most top-notch acts you’ll see. Up front, always real, and always focused on bringing the laughs in buckets.”
ROBERT KELLY :: Friday, April 26 to Saturday, April 27 at Laugh Boston, 425 Summer St. in Boston, MA :: 6 and 9 p.m. both nights, $33 :: Advance tickets
Film/TV: ‘Do Not Expect Too Much From The End of the World’ at Alamo Drafthouse
While Vanyaland film editor Nick Johnston often goes a few thousand words deep in his movie reviews to tell you, in painstaking detail, why something is either awesome, acceptable, or just plain sucks, V3 Weekend takes a more surface level view of cinema. And by that we mean, a lot of what we hype here falls into a category of “Oh shit, this looks cool.” That’s the scene here with the brilliantly-titled Do Not Expect Too Much from the End of the World, the 2023 Romanian black comedy that screens at Alamo Drafthouse in the Seaport on Friday and Saturday (April 26 and 27). Here’s the pitch ahead of the trailer below: “From Golden Bear winner Radu Jude, Do Not Expect Too Much from the End of the World takes a fierce and darkly comic swipe at modern-day life. Overworked and underpaid production assistant Angela (Ilinca Manolache) is assigned to film a workplace safety video for a multinational corporation in Bucharest. When one of the interviewees makes a statement that ignites a scandal, Angela has to reinvent the story. Featuring appearances from Nina Hoss, Uwe Boll, and Angela’s TikTok alter-ego Bobiță, Jude’s anarchic satire is a wild and unforgettable ride through the vulgar indignities of the 21st century.” Fuck it, we’re in.
‘DO NOT EXPECT TOO MUCH FROM THE END OF THE WORLD’ :: Friday, April 26 and Saturday, April 27 at Alamo Drafthouse, 60 Seaport Blvd. in Boston, MA :: Friday at 1 p.m. and Saturday at 5:45 p.m., $10.99 :: Screening info and advance tickets