All Over Albany

Stuff to do this weekend

Funny how four day weeks can somehow seem longer. Well, the weekend is back and chock full of fun options.

After the jump -- our weekly round-up of things that look promising. If you've got something else in mind, let us know about it.

Whatever you're up to, have a great weekend!

1st Friday
Tonight is 1st Friday in Albany. On the list of things to see:
+ The sculpture show at Marketplace Gallery, with performance, wood and stone sculpture
+ The 33rd Photo Regional at Albany Center Gallery
+ The Pride Week kickoff show at the Capital Pride Center in Center Square
+ The ASAP Daisies Art for ALS silent auction preview at The Albany Barn on North Swan Street (the auction is Saturday).
+ There's a post-party at Marketplace Gallery and the Capital Swing Dance ($15) at the Albany Elks Club (25 South Allen).

Roller Derby
The Hellions of Troy face off against The Skyland Roller Girls on Saturday night at Rollerama in Schenectady. Doors at 7, Whistle at 8. $12, $3 for kids 12 and under.

Freihofer's Run for Women
The annual Freihofer's Run for Women is tomorrow in downtown Albany. Registration is pretty much closed at this point, but you can cheer others on. And there are a few road closures to watch out for.

Mountain Jam
The Mountain Jam music festival is this weekend at Hunter Mountain. The lineup includes My Morning Jacket, Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeroes, Mavis Staples, The Avett Brothers, Bela Fleck, and Tim Reynolds. It looks like there are single-day tickets still available for some days.

More music

+ Tonight at SPAC: Soulful singer/songwriter Ray Lamontagne. Also on the bill: Brandi Carlile and Secret Sisters. $29.50 - $45.00

+ Tonight at Brewery Ommegang members of R.E.M, the Dream Syndicate and others perform in The Baseball Project. Gates open at 7 pm. The show starts at 8. $15 in advance; $20 at the show.

+ Tonight at Union College: "The Caribbean Piano in Afro-Cuban Jazz: Tribute to Noro Morales," featuring pianists Rebecca Cline and Nicki Denner. $15

+SPAC's Battle of the Bands starts tonight at 6 at The Spa Little Theater. $15 gets you in to see all ten finalists, plus a pass to the post-battle Stone Revival Band show at Putnam Den featuring moe drummer Vinnie Amico. 6 p.m.

+ Tonight at Valentine's: Happy hour starts at 6 with Pony in the Pancake. Downstairs at 8 there's a CD release party for Che Guevara T Shirt.

+ The Celtic rock group Enter the Haggis is at Helsinki Hudson tonight at 9 pm.

+ Saturday at Valentine's: B3nson night with Sgt Dunbar, Barons in the Attic, and others. (This was originally the Beware! The Other Head of Science farewell show, but that changed.) Downstairs at Valentines tomorrow: Charmboy, Alta Mira, Charlie Watts Riots.

+ The Sanctuary for Independent Media' Live from Lock One in concert recording series continues on Saturday with Todd Nelson's TN3. $10 admission ($5 student/low income) benefits the Youth Media Sanctuary Project. 8 p.m.

+ The Van Dyck in Schenectady hosts a Jazz Guitar Summit featuring Jazz guitarists Bucky Pizzarelli, Howard Alden and Gerry Beaudoin on Saturday night. Shows at 7 & 9:30. $22 in advance/ $26 door.

Comedy
+ The Linda is hosting an Underground Comedy stand-up night featuring John Mulroony, Russ Davignon and Josh Vincent. Saturday at 8 pm. $10

+ Mopco has an improv show Underground at Proctors tonight at 8. $14 adults, $6 students/seniors.

Film
+ The Berkshire International Film Festival got underway yesterday and runs through Sunday at venues throughout Great Barrington and Pittsfield. Passes to the events seem to be sold out, but it looks like you can still buy individual tickets to many of the films for around $10 a piece.

+ The summer films in Ballston Spa's Wiswall Park start up tonight with the animated movie Megamind. The film starts after the sun goes down, so tonight it should be around 9. Free.

+ Tonight at 11 pm The Rocky Horror Picture Show is being screened at The Linda with a shadow cast. 9 pm - $8

+ The Spectrum is simulcasting The Roundabout Theater Company's Tony-nominated revival of Oscar Wilde's The Importance of Being Earnest from Broadway. Sunday at noon. $15, kids under 12 $12

Theater
+ This is the last weekend to catch Hubbard Hall's production of Sondheim's Merrily We Roll Along continues this weekend at Hubbard Hall in Cambridge. $25, $15 students and children.

+ Blood Type: Ragu, Frank Ingrasciotta's one man autobiographical look back at his Sicilian relatives in Brooklyn, just opened at Capital Rep. You can see it tonight at 8, Saturday at 3 & 7:30, Sunday at 2:30. $30- $50

Balloon Festival
This could be a good weekend for a drive to Washington County. Weather permitting, Cambridge is holding a hot air balloon festival. Here's the schedule.

What's the plural of Elvis?
The annual Elvisfest is underway in Lake George. Oh, and if you've always wanted to get married by The King but can't make time to get to Vegas, this is your lucky weekend.

Museums

+ One more week to check out Graphic Design -- Get the Message! at The Albany Institute of History and Art. Tonight Laura Shore from Mohawk Fine Papers will be giving a talk about environmentally friendly graphic design and printing. The talk is at 6 and it's free as part of 1st Friday.

+ MASS MoCA has a few new exhibits to check out: The Workers, Memery: Imitation, Memory, and Internet Culture, and Nari Ward: Sub Mirage Lignum.
Also new at the museum: I Am Searching for Field Character, "a series of public conversations, performances, installations, workshops and a beer garden with a slew of artists, writers, designers and thinkers visiting North Adams, Massachusetts, over the course of the summer."

Chase waterfalls
With all the rain we've been having, we're thinking that the areas waterfalls must be looking pretty good right now. Looking for some? Here's a place to start. (And do be careful.)

Road Trip
Three day weekends are a great excuse for a road trip. Take a shopping trip to Northampton or spend 12 hours in Ulster County, Bennington, Vermont or Columbia County.

Farmers' Markets
The Delmar Farmers' Market opens for the season this Saturday -- there will be llamas. Check out the markets in Troy or Saratoga on Saturday, or the Schenectady Greenmarket on Sunday.

Brunch
Spend a lazy morning/afternoon lingering over brunch and a Bloody Mary or enjoy a great diner breakfast.

Ice Cream
Have you picked a favorite summer ice cream joint yet? If not, you can try to narrow down the selections with the Tour de Soft Serve or AOA's Ice Cream Tour.

AOA is a media sponsor of the Hellions. Capital Rep advertises on AOA. The Albany Institute has advertised on AOA in the past.

photo: Sebastien B