All Over Albany

Stuff to do this weekend

Hello winter! Nice of you to drop by.

What should we do while you're in town? Snowmen? A little skiing maybe?

After the jump -- a whole list of stuff to do with this chilly winter weekend -- from embracing the cold with winter festivals to hiding from it in theaters and museums.

Doing something you don't see here? Tell us about it in the comment section.

And whatever you're up to, remember your scarf and have a fantastic weekend.

Lake George Winter Carnival
Saturday-Sunday: It's weekend two of the four-weekend Lake George Winter Carnival. This weekend's events include truck races, ice diving demonstrations, a BBQ cook-off, horse and carriage and sleigh rides, a parade, a chili cook-off, ice diving demonstrations, s'mores and a hot chocolate bar, fireworks and more. Saturday and Sunday starting at noon -- free admission

Home Expo
Friday-Sunday: The Times Union Home Expo returns to the TU Center this weekend with demonstrations, experts and products for home improvement and renovation. Boats, RVs, an appearance by the Fabulous Beekman Boys and more. Friday from 3-8 pm, Saturday 10 am-6 pm, Sunday 10 am-5 pm -- $5-$10 / $14 weekend pass / free for kids 14 and under

Balls

Heartbreaker's Ball
Saturday: Takk House is hosting a Heartbreakers Ball, an 80s themed Valentine party with snacks, booze and music by Hot Cousin. Saturday 8 pm -- $8 admission

Bartenders' Ball
Saturday: The Saratoga City Center hosts the 20th annual Bartenders'Ball. This year the ball is a benefit for CAPTAIN, a youth services program, and has a cruise ship theme. Saturday 6:30 pm -- tickets start at $60

Looking Through A Glass Onion: Deconstructing The Beatles' White Album
Saturday: Composer/producer Scott Freiman is hosting more of his popular Beatles' lectures at Proctors. "Looking Through A Glass Onion" is a look at the creation of the The White Album (1:30 pm) and "ROLL UP! Deconstructing Magical Mystery Tour" is as it says on the label (7:30 pm). Saturday 1:30 pm and 7:30 pm -- $25 ahead ($10 students) / $30 day of ($15 students)

Stage

Poor People's TV Room
Friday: EMPAC is hosting a performance of Poor People's TV Room, the new work by choreographer Okwui Okpokwasili and director Peter Born. "Poor People's TV Room takes inspiration from the Bring Back Our Girls campaign, started by a group of Nigerian women in 2014 to raise awareness about the Boko Haram kidnappings of 300 young Chibok girls. ...Acknowledging a history of Nigerian women's collective action, Okpokwasili weaves the Bring Back Our Girls narrative with The Women's War of 1929, an early anti-colonial revolt organized by women of six Nigerian ethnic groups. By the end, the performance takes unexpected turns to explore Nigerian time, perception, media, violence, and identity." Friday 8 pm -- $18 / $6 students

Selected Shorts
Sunday: Troy Music Hall hosts a live version of one of NPR's most popular programs, Selected Shorts. "Host Sonia Manzano (Sesame Street), Michael Cerveris (Fun Home), and Jim True-Frost (The Wire) perform moving and comical stories about chance encounters, love, loss, and new beginnings all playing into the theme of Lovers and Strangers." Sunday at 3pm -- $25

The Game's Afoot
Saturday-Sunday: Home Made Theater opens a production of The Game's Afoot, a comic spoof on the classic Sherlock Holmes mysteries. Saturday 7:30 pm and Sunday at 2 pm -- $24-$27 / $21-$24 students and seniors

Grand Concourse
Friday-Sunday: Albany Civic Theater continues a production of Heidi Schreck's Grand Concourse. The story of faith and forgiveness follows a nun who runs a Bronx soup kitchen with unsentimental efficiency and an idealistic young volunteer. Friday and Saturday 7:30 pm, Sunday 3 pm -- $18

Dial M for Murder
Friday-Sunday: Curtain Call Theater presents the mystery classic Dial M for Murder. Friday and Saturday 8 pm -- $24

Assisted Loving
Friday-Sunday: Capital Rep continues its production of Assisted Loving. It's the story of a man whose 80-year-old father drags him into his search for a new romance after 50 years of marriage. Friday 8 pm, Saturday 3 pm and 8 pm, Sunday 2 pm -- $20 and up

Irish Love Stories
Friday: The Irish American Heritage Museum hosts an Irish Seanachie story evening featuring Irish love stories. Friday 7 pm -- $10

Comedy

National College Comedy Festival
Friday-Saturday: The National College Comedy Festival returns to Skidmore College this week. Stand-up, sketch and improv groups from colleges around the country will perform at Skidmore. And the festival is headlined by Aparna Nancherla. Advance tickets are sold out, but a limited number of standby tickets will be available at the door (show up 45 minutes ahead for the best chance of getting them). Friday-Saturday -- $14 for 7 pm shows / $20 for 10 pm shows

Warren B. Hall
Friday-Saturday: Warren B. Hall headlines at The Comedy Works this weekend. Friday and Saturday 7:30 pm and 9:30 pm -- $15 ahead / $20 day of

Dale Jones
Friday-Sunday: Dale Jones headlines this weekend at the Albany Funny Bone. Jones is known as a high energy comic who in the style of old school comedians like Abbott and Costello and Tim Conway. Friday-Sunday various times -- $15

Storytime Time
Friday: MopCo on Jay Street hosts Ethan Ullman's Storytime Time, a curated evening of comedic, true stories told by the Capital Region people who lived them. Friday 8 pm -- $10 / $6 for students and seniors

Chortle Kombat
Saturday: Chortle Kombat returns to the Mop & Bucket Company. Teams of improvisors compete against each other creating scenes and songs based audience suggestions. Saturday 8 pm -- $15 / $6 for students and seniors.

BeneFITS of Laughter
Saturday: NYC-based comedian Evan Williams brings his stand up act to Seamer 10 in Albany for the BeneFits of Laughter fundraising show for the theater. Also on the bill is local comedian Ethan Ullman. Saturday 8 pm -- $15

Regina Carter
Saturday: The acclaimed jazz violinist Regina Carter will be at The Egg to play a show inspired by Ella Fitzgerald. Saturday 8 pm -- $34

Earlier in the day, Carter will be at UAlbany for a "Creative Life" conversation with WAMC's Joe Donahue as part of the NYS Writers Institute. Saturday 4:30 pm, uptown campus Performing Arts Center -- free

Music

Friday: Noam Pikelny at Helsinki Hudson
Ace banjo player. 9 pm -- $20

Friday: Big Mean Sound Machine at The Hollow
"A thunderous dance party that fuses Afrobeat, Jazz, Funk, and Psychedelia..." With: Hartley's Encore. 8 pm -- $12

Saturday: Get the Led Out: The American Led Zeppelin at The Palace
Like it says on the label. 8 pm -- $29.50 ahead / $32.50 day of

Saturday: Andy Black at Upstate Concert Hall
From Black Veil Brides. With: William Control, Palaye Royale. 7:30 pm -- $17 ahead / $20 day of

Saturday: Sō Percussion at MASS MoCA
"The innovative ensemble Sō Percussion explores America's fraught relationship with guns in this theatrically staged concert. Taking mallets to disassembled sniper rifles and assorted drums, the musicians serve as Greek chorus, commenting instrumentally on sung and spoken texts drawn from the nightmares and nostalgia of armed experiences." 8 pm -- $18 ahead / $24 day of / $12 students

Saturday: That 1 Guy at Parish Public House
"As inventor and player of The Magic Pipe, That 1 Guy's show has to be seen to be believed, as he single-handedly (and foot-edly) plays his amazing instrument, made out of miked steel pipes with a single, thick bass string wired from top to bottom, not to mention an Appalachian handsaw, an electric cowboy boot and belching smoke." 8 pm -- $12 ahead / $15 day of

Saturday: Musicians of Ma'alwyck at Cohoes Music Hall
Chamber music ensemble. 7:30 pm -- $19

Saturday: The Opera Saratoga an outdoor performance of Schubert's Winterreise is full.

Sunday: Less Than Jake + Pepper at Upstate Concert Hall
Ska. With: The Attack, The Bunny Gang. 8 pm -- $22.50 ahead / $25 day of

Sunday: Birds of Chicago at Helsinki Hudson
"[A] sprawling collective of soul-inflected, groove-based Americana..." With: Levon Henry. 8 pm -- $15

Sunday: Girl Blue at Caffe Lena
AKA Arielle O'Keefe. 7 pm -- $12

Film

Oscar nominated shorts
The Spectrum is screening the 2017 Oscar-nominated animated and live action short films this weekend.

The Bling Ring
Friday: The NYS Writers Institute Classic Film Series presents Sofia Coppola's The Bling Ring, the story of a group of fame- and fashion-obsessed teenagers who use the Internet to track celebrities' whereabouts in order to rob their homes. (It's showing the film because Nancy Jo Sales, who wrote the article and book from which the film was adapted, will be in town next week as part of the visiting writers series.) Friday 7:30pm at Page Hall on the UAlbany Downtown campus -- free

Song and dance films at The Madison
The Madison is screening films known for their music and dancing this weekend: Dirty Dancing, West Side Story and The Sound of Music.

Show Boat
Saturday: The Voorheesville Public Library Live at Lincoln Center series continues with a screening of the Lincoln Center Theater production of Show Boat. Saturday 2 pm -- free

Skating

Empire State Plaza
The ice skating rink at the ESP is open this weekend (weather permitting). Friday-Sunday 11 am-8 pm (closed 3-4 pm for maintenance). It's free to skate. Skate rentals are $4 / $3 for kids / free on Fridays.

Frida: US figure skating champ Ryan Bradley will give a demonstration and take part in a public skate at the rink. Friday 2-4 pm -- free

Swinburne: The city of Albany's Swinburne Skating Rink is also open for the season. see the link for hours -- $1 admission / under 18 is .50 / skate rental $3

Ice skating party
Sunday: Buckingham Pond Conservancy hosts an ice skating party at the pond in Albany. Sunday 1pm to 3pm -- free admission

Saratoga Frozen Springs Classic
Friday-Sunday: The Saratoga Frozen Springs Classic pond hockey tournament returns to Saratoga Spa State Park this weekend. Registration is already closed for teams, but it's free to stop by and watch. Friday 7-10 pm, Saturday 8-10 pm, Sunday TBA -- free for spectators

Fat Bike Rally
Saturday: Saratoga Spa State Park hosts the Saratoga Fat Bike Rally -- a day of races, group rides and other activities with "fat bikes" -- mountain bikes with extra wide tires. Friday 8 am-4:30pm at the park's warming hut

Ice Fishing Contest
Saturday: Thompson's Lake at Thacher State Park hosts its annual ice fishing contest. Winter activities and cash prizes. Saturday 6 am-1 pm -- $10 per person, kids under 12 free

Clifton Park Winterfest
Saturday: Locations around Clifton Park will participate in the town's annual Winterfest celebration with horse drawn sleigh rides, bonfires, performances, soup contests, a Clifton Park Idol contest and more. Saturday 10:30 am-4 pm -- free admission

Museums/galleries

Captured Moments
Friday: The Albany Institute recently opened Captured Moments, its new exhibit of photos from its large photography collection. The exhibit will be on display through May 21.

This is the last weekend for Rock and Roll Icons, an exhibit of 1970s and 1980s rock and roll act photography by Capital Region resident Patrick Harbron. (On display through February 12.)

State Museum
The State Museum recently opened a new exhibit about ice ages in New York. And the The People's Art: Selections from the Empire State Plaza Art Collection continues with works by artists such as Mark Rothko, Jackson Pollock, Helen Frankenthaler, Franz Kline, David Smith, and Alexander Calder. (On display through September 3, 2017.)

Also at the State Museum: Hudson Valley Ruins. (On display through the end of 2017.)

Together Until the End: Schenectady in the First World War
The Schenectady County Historical Society recently openedTogether Until the End: Schenectady in the First World War, an exhibit on Schenectady during WWI. (It's at 32 Washington Ave in Schenectady.)

Nick Cave Until
MASS MoCA is exhibiting Until, a new immersive installation by artist Nick Cave. Blurbage: "Through exuberant, politically charged materials, Cave probes issues relating to gun violence, race, and gender inequality. Wrapped in bright glitter, the work is sharp and also painfully beautiful." (On display through August 2017.)

Norman Rockwell Museum
The Norman Rockwell Museum in Stockbridge Hanna-Barbera: The Architects of Saturday Morning. (On display through May 29.)

Gravity and Light
The Opalka Gallery has Gravity and Light: Caroline Ramersdorfer Sculpture, 1985-2016. "Starting with huge blocks of marble, granite and other stone, Ramersdorfer carves intricate interiors as if from the inside out, harnessing light and the material's innate properties." (On display through March 5.)

Patterns
The Tang has Sixfold Symmetry: Pattern in Art and Science. "Patterns, systems, and networks are all around us, and in this digital age we are increasingly aware of their influence on our lived experience. This exhibition explores some of the ways in which human beings create and manipulate patterns, and why we are intrinsically driven to do so." (On display through March 12.)

The Legendary Miss Lena Horne
Saturday: Albany artist Elizabeth Zunon will be at the Little Book House of Stuyvesant Plaza for a signing of the new picture book The Legendary Miss Lena Horne, which was authored by Carole Boston Weatherford and features illustrations by Zunon. (Earlier: Talking with Albany artist Elizabeth Zunon about illustrating a legend, drawing on her family's history, and stoking her creativity) Saturday 1 pm

Markets

Troy Makers Market
Saturday: Local craft vendors will display and sell wares at the Troy Makers Market in conjunction with the Troy Waterfront Farmers Market at the Troy Atrium. Saturday 9 am to noon

Farmers' markets
+ Troy Waterfront Farmers Market is in the Atrium for the season. Saturday 9 am-2 pm
+ The Saratoga Farmers' Market is in the the Lincoln Baths in Spa Park. Saturday from 9 am-1 pm
+ The Schenectady Greenmarket is indoors at Proctors. Sunday from 10 am-2 pm.
+ The Spa City Farmers' Market is indoors at the Lincoln Baths. Sunday from 10 am-3 pm

Day trips
Explore New Paltz, head for The Berkshires, the Catskills, or Columbia County.

The Madison, The Mop & Bucket Company, The Albany Institute of History and Art, Troy Music Hall and NYS OGS advertise on AOA.

photo: David Katzenstein