All Over Albany

The week ahead

Here are a few things to keep in mind, look forward to, or keep busy with this week, from the weather (hello, winter), to a many-colored coat, to poetry, to hoops, to cooking, to music...

Weather

Here's the paraphrased forecast for this week:

Monday: Sunny, high of 19.

Tuesday: Sunny and 24.

Wednesday: Sunny and 37.

Thursday: Some sun and upper 30s.

Friday: Repeat.

Weekend: Maybe some rain and snow, 30s.

Winter... is that you?

Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat

Monday-Tuesday: A touring production of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat will be at Proctors for a short run. It's the Tim Rice/Andrew Lloyd Webber musical based on the biblical story. Monday and Tuesday 7:30 pm - $20 and up

Poetry

Tuesday: The Nitty Gritty Poetry Slam series has its first slam of the year lined up at The Low Beat. open mic sign up at 7 pm / open starts at 7:30 pm - $5

Hoops

UAlbany
Wednesday: The UAlbany men's basketball team will be at SEFCU Arena to take on UMBC. Yep, when it's Great Danes and Retrievers you can throw out all the records. Wednesday 7 pm - $12 and up

Siena
Thursday: The Siena men's basketball team will be at the TU Center to face Fairfield. Thursday 7 pm - $8 and up

Cooking

If one of your resolutions was to cook at home more...

Fresh pasta
Monday: Gio Culinary Studio has a hands-on class about making fresh pasta from scratch at home. "Students will learn all about making a no-fail perfect pasta dough, and create various pasta shapes, some by hand, and some with the assistance of a pasta machine attachment. Each pasta will be paired with its own unique sauce." Monday 6:15 pm - $60

Sushi 101
Monday: Yasuo and Kathy Saso -- formerly of Saso's in Albany -- will be leading a hands-on beginners class at Different Drummer's Kitchen about making sushi: California roll, cucumber roll, spicy shrimp roll, make-your-own sushi roll. Monday 6 pm - $65

Knife skills
Tuesday: Gio Culinary Studio has a hands-on kitchen knife skills class. "This is a comprehensive crash course in the basics of real cooking. Students will learn how to properly and safely use a Chef's Knife and keep it sharp, along with fabricating a whole chicken and basic cooking techniques. Students will use the new skills to assist in producing some finished dishes to be enjoyed in class." Tuesday 6:15 pm - $65

Cast iron
Friday: Deanna Fox will be at Different Drummer's leading a hands-on class about cooking with cast iron pans. "This class will teach the basics of caring for cast iron and include recipes such as skillet potatoes, caramelized onions, cornbread, cast iron steak, tarte tatin, and seasonal cobbler." Friday 6 pm - $65

Ice skating

It's actually going to be winter-like this week, so it could be a good time to go skating at the outdoor rink on the Empire State Plaza. It's open 11 am to 8 pm every day and skating is free. Skate rental is $4 for adults, $3 for kids. An after-work skate + dinner downtown somewhere afterward can be fun.

Movies

This first week in January is often a little slow for stuff to do, so it can be a good time to catch a movie, especially now that the big end-of-year releases are out. The Big Short is good (and surprisingly funny, given the subject matter). Carol has gotten very strong reviews and it's now playing at the Spectrum. And if you're the last person to have not seen The Force Awakens, now's a chance to see it in a theater that's not completely jammed.

Also: Proctors is showing Spectre -- the James Bond film released a few months back -- on the GE Theater's big screen various times this week (and tickets are $5).

Music

Friday: Bully at Helsinki Hudson
Alt rock. 9 pm - $10

Friday: Hot Club of Saratoga
Gypsy jazz quintet. 8 pm - $20

Friday: Good Fiction at The Hollow
EP release show for local group. With: Carl Daniels and the Black Box, Linear North. 8 pm - $10

Saturday: Albany Symphony Orchestra at the Palace
"The New Year Begins: Blue Danube & Brahms." 7:30 pm - $19 and up
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These are a just a few things for this week, not a comprehensive list. Know of something people should be looking forward to this week? Please share!

AOA is a media sponsor of the ESP ice skating rink.