THURSDAY JANUARY 14
Detroit Lives! The Exhibit
FIST PUMPING FOR THE D!
The mission of Detroit Lives! is to spread positive vibes about Detroit through traditional and social media, public art and an apparel line. The group's efforts to date will be highlighted as part of Detroit Lives! The Exhibit, a showcase for some of the grass-roots efforts taking place in the city. The exhibit will also include info on Loveland, a micro-real estate project selling Detroit land for just $1 an inch, a photo essay by Vanessa Miller capturing young people changing the status quo, and the premiere of the Detroit Lives! short film The Farmer and the Philosopher, which profiles Mark Covington, chairman of the Georgia Street Community Collective, and Toby Barlow, writer and creative director of Team Detroit. The reception begins at 6 p.m. and includes a performance by Alan Scheurman, as well as DIY screen-printing. The film rolls at 8 p.m., followed by a Q&A session with Barlow and Covington. At the Ladybug Gallery, 1250 Hubbard St., Detroit; info at detroitlives.org.
THURSDAY-SUNDAY JANUARY 14-17
The Full Monty
FANGLE DANGLE
There's nothing to like some good, old-fashioned full-frontal male nudity to stave off those mid-winter recession blues. In this Americanized stage version of the 1997 Brit comedy, unemployment forces a group of best friends to take drastic measures — suiting up (or rather, un-suiting) Chippendale-style for the ladies of the town. Laughs, along with some self-discovery, ensue. It all starts swinging Thursday at the Ladies Night Out, featuring hors d'oeuvres from Royal Oak's Café Muse and a preview of the final dress (or undress) rehearsal. Regular performances take place 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday and 2 p.m. Sunday at the Baldwin Theatre, 415 S. Lafayette Ave., Royal Oak; 248-541-6430; tickets for Ladies Night Out are $25, all other shows $16 and $18; runs through Feb. 7.
FRIDAY JANUARY 15
Fly
JAZZ IN THE AIR
Brad Mehldau, Chick Corea, Lee Konitz and numerous jazz scribes have been raving about this sax-piano drums trio for years. Fly, meanwhile, hasn't exactly jumped on the notices; last year it recorded just the second disc (third if you count work released under drummer Jeff Ballard's name) of the decade it has been around. So, obviously (and rightly) the group is interested in something more than 15 minutes of fame. With Mark Turner on saxophone and Larry Grenadier on bass along with Ballard, Fly is finding a sound of its own that's airy and engaging. The aforementioned Konitz has compared Turner to the late Warne Marsh, which is insider praise, but believe us, high praise indeed. At 7 and 8:30 p.m. as part of Friday Night Live! at the Detroit Institute of Arts, 5200 Woodward Ave., Detroit; 313-833-7900.
FRIDAY JANUARY 15
DAM Design Show
LET THERE BE LIGHT
The DAM Design Show explores the creative process from start to finish, dissecting how artists, designers, architects, engineers and other builders and makers create artistic yet functional objects. This year, 14 designers create "light," exhibiting finished products along with sketches and scale models. The show opens with a black-tie reception that includes an accessory fashion show and cuisine from area restaurants, including Angelina Italian Bistro, Atlas Global Bistro and Roast. Designers whose pieces will illuminate the gallery include Dane Barnes, Maxwell Davis, Jef Hancock and Taru Lahti. From 7 to 10 p.m. at the Detroit Artists Market, 4719 Woodward Ave., Detroit; 313-832-8540; tickets for the reception are $55, $45 members; on display through Feb. 13.
SATURDAY JANUARY 16
Drive
START YER BLOODY ENGINES, WILL YA?
It's all about the auto in Drive, which celebrates the behemoth of the American highway just in time for the North American International Show. The exhibit features the work of three artists — Timothy Buwalda, Liz Cohen and Cheryl Kelley — who make prominent use of autos in their work. Buwalda creates large-scale paintings of cars so destroyed that their mangled parts first appear to be geometric abstractions; Cohen's photographs, from a series titled "Bodywork," explore the transformation of an East German Trabant into a Chevrolet El Camino while Cohen herself explores her own metamorphosis, taking turns as designer, mechanic and bikini-clad hood ornament; and Kelley paints hyper-realistic images of cars on aluminum surfaces, drawing attention to the contrast between the macho machine and its sensual surface. Drive opens with a reception from 5 to 7 p.m. and displays through Feb. 20, at David Klein Gallery, 163 Townsend St., Birmingham; 248-433-3700.
SATURDAY JANUARY 16
MCB5
ANTI-ANNIVERSARY BASH
Motorcityblog, Detroit's self-described "anti-blog," celebrates five years of promoting Detroit's music, arts and culture happenings with a blog-worthy happening of its very own. MCB5 includes a smash lineup of local bands, as well as a Detroit music photography display. Taking the stage are Blasé Splee, Kinetic Stereokids, the Lincolns UK, performance artist Satori Circus, Mick Bassett & the Marthas, Electric Fire Babies and, in a rare appearance, Ken's Loud Band, featuring eclectic songwriter Ken Stanley. The celebration commences at 7 p.m. at the Music Hall's Jazz Café, 350 Madison Ave., Detroit; 313-887-8500; info at motorcityblog.net; $10.
SATURDAY JANUARY 16
Cory Arcangel
DIGITALLY DEFINED VIEWING
Brooklyn-based artist Cory Arcangel is concerned with the digitized detritus of our hyper-technological society, from the repurposing of obsolete gaming systems to the appropriation of iconic pieces of media, such as Guns n' Roses' "Sweet Child o' Mine" video. In Creative Pursuits, his first solo North American exhibit, Arcangel presents new works of digital and analogue media that, with intelligence and unrelenting humor, question the dividing line between the amateur and the expert. At 8 p.m. Saturday, Arcangel opens the exhibit by taking part in a performance with University of Michigan's Digital Music Ensemble. Arcangel (who studied classical performance and electronic music composition at the Oberlin Conservatory) and audience members will get the chance to play with the ensemble's wide range of sound-producing gadgets, creating a completely improvised show. At 2 p.m. Sunday, Arcangel and U-M Museum of Art curator Jacob Proctor will lead a tour and discussion of the exhibit. The installation will be on display through April 11, at UMMA, 525 S. State St., Ann Arbor; 734-763-UMMA.
MONDAY JANUARY 18
MLK Day Celebration
PEACE, LOVE AND BROTHERHOOD
In honor of Martin Luther King Jr. Day, the Charles H. Wright Museum is offering a full day of hustle and bustle, including family-friendly workshops, film screenings and theatrical productions. Festivities kick off at 7:30 a.m. with a ticketed ($35, $30 members) breakfast celebration featuring keynote speaker the Rev. J. Drew Sheard and a performance by the Detroit School of Arts Achievers Ladies Ensemble. Other activities begin at 9 a.m.; highlights include the Rochester College theater department performing The Meeting, a fictional account of a meeting between Malcom X and Martin Luther King Jr.; and a workshop focusing on the music of the Civil Rights movement. Events continue until 5 p.m. at the Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History, 315 E. Warren Ave., Detroit; 313-494-5800.
TUESDAY JANUARY 19
A Dozen Things I Want to Do on Stage
AS REAL (OR AS FAKE) AS IT GETS
Baltimore artist Rebecca Nagle combines staged performance and unscripted performance art in her one woman cabaret, A Dozen Things I Want to Do on Stage. The performance draws from both 1920s political theater and 1970s radical feminist performance, utilizing burlesque, poetry, contortion and audience participation in moments that are both rehearsed and spontaneous. The audience is left to guess what is reality and fantasy as Nagle destroys the distinction between the two. The dozen things Nagle does range from the playful to the unsettling, including folding herself into a small box, taking a truth serum then letting the audience ask her questions and disemboweling herself on stage. Yikes! From 8 to 11 p.m. at the Abreact Performance Space, 1301 W. Lafayette Blvd., #113, Detroit; info at theabreact.com; with dance by Tzarinas of the Plane.
