Photograph by Julieta Cervantes
Richard Thomas (“Atticus Finch”) and Melanie Moore (“Scout Finch”)
To Kill a Mockingbird
Orpheum Theatre, 203 S. Main St.
Performances through Sunday, August 21
In honor of the school year revving back up, I figured I’d bless you, dear reader, with the best essay I ever wrote in high school. But alas I am no longer in possession of it, and no I didn’t commit it to memory. I do, of course, remember my thoughtfully chosen topic — Sharpay Evans and Lord Voldemort, the villains of High School Musical and the Harry Potter series, respectively, are basically the same character. Do you see it? Or do I need to spell it out for you, perhaps in a more digestible five-things-to-do style instead of my previously preferred medium of a five-paragraph-style essay?
Okay, so, take for instance the characters’ approaches to theater. Now, Sharpay is more evident, seeing that she is president of the drama club at East High and is gunning for the lead in the school’s musical (hence the entire plot of the movie), but I got a tickling feeling that Voldemort would delight in being center stage. After all, they’re both gluttons for attention and admiration — much unlike a character such as Boo Radley, who just doesn’t want to be bothered. They wouldn’t relate to him as he takes the stage this weekend at the Orpheum along with the other beloved characters from Harper Lee’s classic To Kill a Mockingbird.
Set in Alabama in 1934, this stage play brings to life Lee’s enduring story of racial injustice and childhood innocence. Performances are Friday at 7:30 p.m., Saturday at 2 p.m. and 8 p.m., and Sunday at 1 p.m. and 6:30 p.m. Tickets ($29-$125) can be purchased here.
photograph by memphis rox climbing
Global Climbing Day
Memphis Rox Climbing, 879 E. McLemore Ave.
Saturday, August 20, 9 a.m.-4 p.m.
Next point: Our antagonist's share the same motivation: They both want to reach the top. Sharpay wants to bop to it, and Voldemort wants to … er … kill his way to it. Either way, they want to be above everyone else, and as someone who has reached the top of a rock-climbing wall at Memphis Rox one time (and one time only) and couldn’t stop her legs from shaking, I can say with confidence that life isn’t for everyone.
But, hey, climbing to the top may be for you, or maybe climbing near the top, or maybe just getting off the ground a few feet. That doesn’t make you a bad guy. In fact, this Saturday, the good people at Memphis Rox are celebrating all the good stuff about climbing, like the inclusivity and community it can bring.
At the special celebration, guests can enjoy free goat yoga at 9:15 a.m. (register here), tie-dye some shirts, munch on some food, and take in a 2:30 p.m. film screening of Keep the Lights On, Memphis Rox’s latest short film that explores how energy costs affect residents’ ability to pay rent, afford medical care, and feed their families. A panel discussion will follow. Plus, some professional climbers like Manoah Ainuu, Nina Williams, Fred Campbell, and Nathaniel Coleman (a silver medalist from the 2020 Olympics 😱) are gonna be there — you know Sharpay wouldn’t miss a chance like that, and neither should you.
Crosstown Splashdown
Crosstown Concourse, 1350 Concourse
Saturday, August 20, noon-4 p.m.
Whether or not you agree with all of the antics of Sharpay and the Dark Lord, you have to admit they make quite a splash — enough of a splash to land themselves here on MEMPHISMAGAZINE.COM. You know what else is making a splash? — and I’m not talking about this splashy segue here — Crosstown Concourse.
This weekend, the Concourse is saying goodbye to summer with an enchanting magic-themed afternoon, where families can beat the heat with a waterslide and sprinklers and take a turn at the spin-art machines, skee ball, interactive bubble art, and more, all for free.
photograph by Henry Hustava on Unsplash
Memphis Armored Fight Club
Black Lodge, 405 N. Cleveland
Saturday, August 20, 4-8 p.m.
Here’s a question that’ll make your brain hurt: Who would win in a fight — You-Know-Who or Sharpay Evans? Now at first glance, you might be tempted to say Voldemort because of his background in, you know, murder and dark magic and all that jazz, but there’s no way Sharpay isn’t trained in stage combat. I bet that girl knows her way around a sword in addition to jazz hands. Could she defeat the Dark Lord? Unless they square up in a ring one day, I doubt we’ll ever know for sure, with them being fictional and existing in different universes and being a part of different franchises under different entertainment conglomerates. But that doesn’t mean that we can’t catch a good old-fashioned fight without them — and I mean old-fashioned fight.
As it so happens, this Saturday, the Memphis Armored Fight Club is heading to the Black Lodge for exhibition fights in medieval style, starting at 4 p.m. There will also be a screening of King Arthur: Legend of the Sword, during which the audience can use soft kits to practice their fighting skills themselves, and maybe if you practice hard enough you could one day beat Sharpay and/or Voldemort in a sword fight. The cover charge is $5.
Photograph courtesy emerald theatre company
Hal Harmon in Cupid Retires to Palm Beach, Florida, one of the vignettes that will be performed this weekend.
Don’t Say Gay!
TheatreWorks, 2085 Monroe
Sunday, August 21, 6 p.m.
It’s fun to poke fun at fictional villains, especially in the guise of schoolwork or actual work, but it’s also fun to poke fun at real-life villains. And I’m going to stay in my lane with the fictional villains while Emerald Theatre Company takes on the real-life ones this weekend with their Don’t Say Gay fundraising event. For it, over 20 local actors will perform in vignettes, monologues, and musical performances that spotlight the humor, harassment, and heartbreaking laws several states are enacting against LGBTQ+ people.
In addition to two musical performances, some of the 13 vignettes and monologues will be from Debunking Disney about an angry middle-aged man and his views on the “Don’t Say Gay” bill and on Disney, Don’t Pee Straight about a transmasc student and his principal who discuss bathroom choices, and Sober Hates and Debbie Cakes which touches on the hypocrisy of some Christians. Plus, state Representative Torrey Harris will make a special appearance.
Tickets ($20) can be purchased at the door. The show will benefit Emerald Theatre Company and TheatreWorks at the Square.
