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 (heat wave), to hoops, to stories, the family history, to skating, to music...

Weather

Here's the paraphrased forecast for this week:

Monday: Cloudy, snow in the afternoon, an inch or so. Low 30s.

Tuesday: Some sun, mid 30s.

Wednesday: Some sun, mid 30s.

Thursday: Cloudy, mid 40s.

Friday: Cloudy, maybe rain, upper 40s.

HEAT WAVE.

Hoops

Patroons
Monday: The Albany Patroons are back in action at the Washington Ave Armory against the Ohio Cardinals. Monday 7:05 pm -- $10 and up

UAlbany
Wednesday: The UAlbany men's basketball team takes on Stony Brook at SEFCU Arena. Wednesday 7 pm -- $12 and up

Stories

Tuesday: The Front Parlor storytelling series is back at The Ale House in Troy. This month's theme is "passion." Tuesday 7:30 pm

Family history

Monday: The Schenectady County Historical Society is starting an eight-week family history workshop with genealogist Judith Herbert. "Both beginners and seasoned genealogists who wish to learn more should join us for an intensive genealogy course. This course will focus on locating, collecting, analyzing and assessing the value and accuracy of records that are vital to genealogical research. Each topic will get into the fine details of genealogical research which are often missed, even by practiced genealogists." Mondays 7 pm -- $275

Screen

Victoria
Thursday: WMHT is showing a preview of the new season of Victoria at the Albany Institute. Diane Shewchuk -- the curator of the museum's exhibit about Victorian fashion -- will be there to answer questions about costumes. And admission is free that evening at the museum. Thursday 5 pm and 6:30 pm -- free (registration required)

Movies
This can be a good week to catch up on the movies that came out in December. A ton of high-profile, anticipated, or positively-reviewed films are playing locally now.

Skating

The ice skating rink at the ESP is open for the season, and if you're looking for some midweek fun, you might think about stopping by for an evening skate (or day skate, depending on your schedule). The rink is open Monday-Sunday 11 am-8 pm (closed 3-4 pm for maintenance) -- *weather permitting*. It's free to skate. Skate rentals are $4 / $3 for kids / free on Fridays.

Swinburne: The city of Albany's Swinburne Skating Rink is also open for the season.

Wine and Dine for the Arts

Thursday-Saturday: The annual Wine and Dine for the Arts festival returns to downtown Albany. (This year's main location will be at the Empire State Plaza.) The multi-day event includes tastings, chefs and restaurants, seminars, and competitions for sliders and bartenders. Thursday-Saturday various times and prices

Music

Wednesday: Hamell on Trial at The Low Beat
Staring a Wednesday residency in January. 7 pm

Thursday: Rebelution at Upstate Concert Hall
Reggae. With: Raging Fyah. 8 pm -- $25

Thursday: The Last Revel & The Slocan Ramblers
Bluegrass. 7 pm -- $20

Friday: Ja Rule at Upstate Concert Hall
Hip hop. With: PaPa Shallah, Nemesis of Mind Over Matter, Youseff Milad, DJ IROC. 8 pm -- $25 ahead / $28 day of

Friday: Ominous Seapods at Cohoes Music Hall
Blues/folk still jamming. (The Friday Saturday show is sold out.) 8 pm -- $22 ahead / $27 day of

Friday-Saturday: Chris Smither at Caffe Lena
Singer/songwriter. 8 pm -- $30

Friday: Elvis Birthday Bash with Mark Gamsjager & The Lustre Kings
As it says. 9 pm -- $20 ahead / $25 day of

Saturday: WAR at The Egg
"Lonnie Jordan, original lead singer, keyboardist and musical director brings the legendary band WAR and its signature mix of funk, jazz, R&B and Rock & Roll to the stage for an evening of classics..." 8 pm -- $34.50 and up

Saturday: Carolyn Wonderland at The Massry Center
Blues/soul. 8 pm -- $25 / $10 students

Sunday: Schenectady Symphony Orchestra at Proctors
"The Adventures of Boof Margarine, by filmmaker/composer Dave Keen who is a Niskayuna native, pays homage to the silent comedies of the golden era of cinema." 3 pm -- $12 and up

Sunday: Albany Pro Musica High School Choral Festival at Troy Music Hall
"Choirs from local high schools will all perform individually, followed by a grand finale - 260 voices and instrumentalists under the baton of APM Artistic Director José Daniel Flores-Caraballo." Sunday 5 pm -- $15 / $5 students

Sunday: McKinley James at The Ale House
Rockabilly. 8 pm -- $10

Sunday-Monday: Deeper Than the Skin: Greg Greenway and Reggie Harris Celebrate MLK, Jr. at Caffe Lena
"With beautifully performed songs and words, they share a compelling story of racial injustice faced down with creative resistance, friendship, music and joy." 7 pm -- $22
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These are a just a few things for this week, not a comprehensive list. Look for out "Stuff to do this weekend" list for the upcoming weekend on Friday.

Know of something people should be looking forward to this week? Please share!

Troy Music Hall advertises on AOA. And AOA is a sponsor of the ESP skating rink.