Staffpicks

Feb. 19-20 Frank X Walker Reading and master class University of Louisville Belknap Campus, 852-6801 louisville.edu/english/creative-writing Thursday, 7:30 p.m.; Friday, 10 a.m. “instead of writing/his spelling words/he signed a contract/he could barely read/inked a commitment/in big block letters/to the NBA/and NIKE/and SPRITE …another little genius/who will never test out/of a dream/that kills legitimate futures/every night/under street lights/wherever these products/are sold” writes Kentucky’s poet laureate Frank X Walker in “Death by Basketball,” a poem from his groundbreaking “Affrilachia.” Want to hear more? Walker will read from this and other collections Thursday night at U of L’s Ekstrom Library Bingham Poetry Room. Want to learn more? Take part in the master class he’ll lead Friday in the Bingham Humanities Building Room 300. Both events are part of the Anne and William Axton Reading Series and are free and open to the public. —Laura Snyder

FEB. 20-21 Handmade Book Show and bookmaking workshop Zephyr Gallery 610 E. Market St., 812-786-0026 ideaslouisville.com Free As part of IDEAS’ “Who’s Louisville?” project at Zephyr Gallery, Steam Exchange is exhibiting handmade books on Friday, Feb. 20, from 5:30-7:30 p.m. (there will also be a Roots & Wings Poetry Jam and music by AMPED). Steam Exchange uses the arts to teach science, technology, engineering and math, thus changing STEM into STEAM. They have been working with Meyzeek Middle School helping students create handmade books. They are also conducting a bookmaking workshop on Saturday, Feb. 21, from 10:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m. (the first Musicians Round Table will take over the gallery from 1-3 p.m.). IDEAS is also conducting a used art and poetry book drive through March. —Jo Anne Triplett

FRIDAY, FEB. 20 Twenty First Century Fox Decca 812 E. Market St., 749-8128 deccarestaurant.com Free; 10 p.m. I’ve always been a sucker for three-guitar bands. Maybe it’s because the good ones can make it work, fitting three different players, with inevitably three — at least slightly — different styles together and not making it seem unnecessary or unfocused. Twenty First Century Fox applies that attack to smart pop-rock with quirky time signatures, exploring the edge of mixing and matching some cutting-edge ideas, without falling into complete obscurity. The excellent harmony-heavy dream-pop band Lady Pyramid is also performing. —Scott Recker

Feb. 20-22 ‘Talley’s Folly’ The Alley Theater 633 W. Main St., 713-6178 thealleytheater.org $16; 8 p.m. Fri.-Sat., 2:30 p.m. Sun. Modest in means — a cast of two and a crumbling, formerly elaborate boathouse (the titular folly) — Lanford Wilson’s Pulitzer Prize-winning play “Talley’s Folly” relies not on spectacle and incident, but on ideas and language to draw us into a romance fraught with risk. Sally Talley (Carrie Chastain) is the cautious but progressive black sheep daughter of a small-town Protestant family. Matt Friedman (Gary Tipton) is a Jewish accountant from the city, a fellow of sometimes comic erudition. On July 4, 1944, Matt shows up at the Talley boathouse (sans invitation) with his heart set on winning Sally’s. It might be a simple romance. But America is in turmoil. One war is ending, but on the homefront, issues around race, religion and economic justice are coming to a boil. And hearts are connected to minds. Produced by the As Yet Unnamed Theater Company; directed by Sandy Richens Cohrs. —Marty Rosen

SATURDAY, FEB. 21 City State Tapes Vol. 1 Release Show Dreamland 810 E. Market St. dreamlandislouisville.org $10; 8 p.m. Up and coming label City State Tapes has been making waves since they started in September of last year. That continues this Saturday at Dreamland. Catering to electronic/avant-garde music, they are hosting an event this weekend for the bulk release of five of their artists: the experimental violin work of S. Soltau; the electronic interplay of Connor Waldman; the sonic exploration of the venerable Shedding; the warm drone warble of label co-founder CPR; and the glitched-out insanity of Introvert, whose early single “Cold Beats” made LEO’s six best local songs of the month in January. And this is only part one of a planned series to document this nascent, but growing, part of our music scene, with future volumes already in planning stages. The cover also gets you a download of your choice. —Syd Bishop

Saturday, Feb. 21 Seed Swap New Earth Organics & Hydroponics 9806 Taylorsville Road, 261-0005 newearthgardencenter.com Free; 7-9 p.m. In our Monsanto-dominated, GMO-ruled food chain, a local seed swap is nothing short of a tiny revolution. New Earth Organics & Hydroponics is hosting one such revolution this Saturday. The seed swap promises to be as much as a celebration of sustainability and a communal event — swapping seeds and the stories behind the seeds — as it is a practical way for gardeners to ensure bio-diversity and independence from corporate farming. No seeds? Seed swappers are notoriously generous, so no worries. Jam Pan Food Truck will be there too, mon, with their spicy jerk and some tasty ginger beer. Join the revolution, but register first by contacting Nancy Roberts at [email protected] or joining the event on Facebook. —Laura Snyder

SATURDAY, FEB. 21 Masquerade 2015: Black and White Ball Art Sanctuary 1433 S. Shelby St., 694-0637 pandoraprods.org $75; 7 p.m.-12 a.m. Powerful. Provocative. Theater. Three words that Pandora Productions lives by. Saturday is their annual “Masquerade: Black and White Ball,” Pandora Production’s biggest fundraiser of the year. Masqueraders will be treated to live entertainment by Billy Goat Strut and DJ Sleepy-T, as well as a live paint-off between two local artists, Joshua Jenkins and Joy Wilson. The paintings will be auctioned off along with other great items as part of the silent auction. There will also be an open bar and heavy hors d’oeuvres offered. Remaining productions for Pandora this season include “Edith Can Shoot Things and Hit Them” (early March), “Yank” (May), “My Big Gay Italian Funeral” (September) and “Perfect Arrangement” (November). —Aaron Yarmuth

Saturday, Feb. 21 Year of the Sheep After Party The Gillespie 421 W. Market St., 584-8080 cranehouse.org $25; 9:30 p.m - 1 a.m. Come have a BAAAAAAAAD ass time this weekend and celebrate the year of the sheep! Welcome in the Lunar New Year with dancing, gambling, food and more fun, all while supporting the Asia Institute-Crane House and their mission “to unite and strengthen the Asian community in the city of Louisville through cultural and professional events, education and social networking.” Anyone interested in connecting with Asian culture is welcome to join the party and enjoy Asian cuisine from the city’s best chefs, a cash bar, poker, black jack, other games and a silent auction. This 21-and-over event is annually attended guests dressed in colorful traditional Asian clothing, and the Chinese dragon typically makes an appearance, bestowing good luck on all. —Aaron Yarmuth

Sunday, Feb. 22 Oscar Watch Party Copper & Kings Brandy Distillery 1121 E. Washington St., 873-0067 louisvillefilm.org $100; 7 p.m. OK, so the Louisville Film Society’s (LFS) Oscar Watch Party is a bit pricier than our typical Staff Pick, but as it includes a year-membership ($50) with 100 percent of ticket proceeds benefiting this nonprofit cultural resource, I thought some of you film buffs would be interested in celebrating the film industry’s biggest night with LFS. New Executive Director and acclaimed documentarian Soozie Eastman says, “The only difference between our celebration and a Hollywood Oscar party is the distance!” There will be a red carpet, heavy hors d’oeuvres, dessert stations, full open bar with Hollywood-inspired libations, film trivia during commercial breaks with prizes and also a silent auction. This is LFS’s primary fundraiser and membership drive, helping them to support local filmmakers and bring independent and innovative cinema to the city! —Laura Snyder

Sunday, Feb. 22 Christina Paszitsky Laughing Derby 1250 Bardstown Road, 459-0022 laughingderby.com $15; 7:15 p.m. Christina Pazsitsky is a riot. She’s acerbic, witty and unflinching when she walks on stage. Don’t be fooled by her less than intimidating demeanor; she may look like bouquet of flowers but she can be a mouthful of acid when she wants to be. Born in Canada and raised in the San Fernando Valley, Pazsitsky has been working comedy clubs all over the country since 2001. She was a regular contributor to E!’s top rated talk show “Chelsey Lately,” where Pazsitsky would sit at the round table offering her unique commentary on all the news and gossip of the day. She also does a weekly podcast with her husband, comedian Tom Segura, called “Your Mom’s House,” which Stitcher chose as a finalist in the Best Comedy category for the 2012 Stitcher Awards. —Brent Owen

Feb. 20 - 28 ‘Mr. Burns, A Post-Apocalyptic Play’ The Clifton Center 2117 Payne St., 896-8480 theatre502.org $17; 8 p.m. “The Simpsons’” may be the pop culture narrative master of allusion and adaptation. Take for example, Season Five, Episode 2 “Cape Feare,” a reworking of Scorsese’s 1991 film, which is a remake of a 1962 movie, which is based on the novel “The Executioners.” Couple The Simpsons’ fascination with retelling and reiteration with one of its main settings — a nuclear power plant — where dimwitted, bumbling Homer regularly takes civilization to the brink of disaster — and you’ve got the perfect setup for a post-apocalyptic play that examines the significance of storytelling and theater. In this dark comedy, brought to you by Theatre [502], society is left with one oral history to understand its pre-apocalypse roots, and, that’s right, it’s the survivors’ recollection of “The Simpsons’” episode “Cape Fear.” Doh! —Laura Snyder

THROUGH MARCH 4 Tremain Farrar and Steven Howell Tim Faulkner Gallery 1512 Portland Ave., 389-0347 timfaulknergalleryart.com Welcome, Tremain Farrar and Steven Howell. The Tim Faulkner Gallery has recently added them to its roster, with plans to officially introduce them at the gallery’s next “Meet the Artist Night” on Saturday, Feb. 21 from 7-10 p.m. Farrar is a recent graduate from the Savannah College of Art and Design. Her specialization in visual storytelling is a “reinvention of mythology and nature with a refined emphasis on self-portraiture.” You have to be intrigued with Howell, whose resume states he’s a graduate from U of L’s School of Medicine. Another reason: Howell works in scherenschnitte (“scissor cuts” in German) combined with collage and other mixed media. He says his work “express[es] the personal inner world to the greater outer world.” —Jo Anne Triplett