Your Weekly Recommendations (July 29-Aug. 2)
Monday
With more than 50 bands signed up to perform on nine stages, the Vans Warped Tour continues to be the most popular concert series for hard rock, alternative, and post punk bands. Organizers have found new, talented bands and fit them into the lineups between more established acts. This dynamic keeps this show interesting and fresh from year to year. $32.50, 11:30 a.m. Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre, 707 Pavilion Blvd. 704-549-5555, livenation.com.
Tuesday
This pop trio became instant celebrities thanks to the exposure on the Disney Channel. While the brothers’ music made teenaged girls swoon, the band’s down-to-earth personality and strong morals made them a safe pick for parents. And although the brothers are adults now, they are still one of the biggest preteen acts. $25-$79, 7 p.m. Time Warner Cable Uptown Amphitheatre, 1000 N.C. Music Factory Blvd. 704-916-8970, livenation.com.
Visit any doctor’s office, mechanic’s waiting room, or elevator and you’re bound to hear Train’s music. The San Francisco trio has achieved a level of universal appeal that isn’t easy to come by in today’s fractured media market. $20-$75, 7 p.m. Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre, 707 Pavilion Blvd. 704-549-5555, livenation.com.
This monthly event, produced by local comedian Blayr Nias, is the best showcase of Charlotte’s stand-up comedy scene. Audience members vote for their favorite comedian, and the performer with the most votes gets a chance to be an opening act for one of the Comedy Zone’s touring comics. $10, 8 p.m. Charlotte Comedy Zone, 900 NC Music Factory Blvd. 980-321-4702, cltcomedyzone.com.
Wednesday
This Sevan Kaloustian Greene play examines what happens when Eastern and Western cultures collide in a town where the biggest news of late was the recent addition of a Target store. The play was a 2012 nuVoices for a nuGeneration New Play Festival Winner. $26-$31, 7:30 p.m. Actor’s Theatre of Charlotte, 650 E. Stonewall St. 704-342-2251, actorstheatrecharlotte.org.
Many of today's alternative bands can thank a lot of their success to this band. Forming in the late 1970s, this British band created the post-punk sound of combining poetic lyrics with intricate melodies and an aggressive sound. $25 in advance, $28 day of the show, 8 p.m. Chop Shop, 399 E. 35th St. 704-765-2466, chopshopnoda.com.
Thursday
Kenny Chesney has created the soundtrack for lounging in the sand, flirting with pretty girls, and having a beer with your friends. It’s the Jimmy Buffett side of country music, focusing more on the problems of a hangover rather than the perils of life back home. $35-$90, 7 p.m. Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre, 707 Pavilion Blvd. 704-549-5555, livenation.com.
Friday
Opening Reception at Elder Gallery
Elder Gallery will hold a reception to celebrate the opening of their annual landscape show. This year's theme, the American landscape, comes to life through the work of ten artists whose paintings encompass scenes depicting the diverse natural scenes of our nation. Exhibiting artists include Martha Armstrong, Mary Erickson, Leon Makielski Angelita Surmon, David Skinner, Calvin Jones, Carl Blair, Jill Jones, Jimmie James, and Carl Plansky. Free, 5:00-8:00 pm. Elder Gallery, 1520 South Tryon St. 704-370-6337, elderart.com. (This exhibit will be on display through Aug. 31)
The Ziad Jazz Quartet, led by saxophonist Ziad Rabie, will perform the jazz from some of the biggest Latin jazz legends. The set will include pieces from Chick Corea, Tito Puento, Cal Tjader, Michel Camillo, Antonio Carlos Jobim, Chucko Valdez, and Paquito D’Rivera. To help deal with the overwhelming popularity of this concert series, organizers have added a second performance. But it would be wise to get there early still. Free for museum members, $12 for non-members, 6 p.m. and 8:15 p.m. Bechtler Museum of Modern Art, 420 S. Tryon St. 704-353-9200, bechtler.org.
For their newest exhibition, Mona Gallery commissioned collaborations by pairs of artists in their inventory and in the Charlotte community. The show features joint work by Roy & Barbara Strassberg, Kyle Worthy and Karen O’ Leary, Sharon Dowell and Amy Bagwell, Terry Shipley and Kate Vasseur, Aspen Hochhalter and Natalie Abrams, and Carmella Jarvi and Chris Craft. The most interesting pairings are between artists with different mediums, like photographer Hochhalter with Abrams' encaustic and Dowell's painting with Bagwell's poetry. Free, opening reception begins at 6 p.m. 1900 N. Brevard St. 704-390-0495, monacharlotte.com. (This exhibit will be on display through Aug. 30)
Grab your hairspray, your best neon Spandex top, and relive some of the 1980s glory with some of the kings of glam rock. This bedazzled four-piece was one of the leaders of the Reagan-era sound of wailing lead singers, screeching guitars and hair that slipped the surly bonds of sanity. And while many of the members have changed over the years, that Dokken sound remains the same. $20, 8 p.m. Amos Southend, 1423 S. Tryon St. 704-377-6874, amossouthend.com.
Just about everyone has had a relationship with Dr. Seuss. So to see this magical, fantastical world on the stage is a treat. In this adaptation, the books bleed into one another as the characters tell you the stories from other Seuss stories. This show is made up of kids and teenagers and is filled with blues, Latin, soul, and gospel music. $15 for adults, $5 for children, 7 p.m. Booth Playhouse, 130 N. Tryon St. 704-372-1000, carolinatix.org. (This is opening night for this production, which will continue through the weekend.)
