In the days ahead, catch a performance at a new comedy club, there’s an art show perfect for Mother’s Day, and VCU Arts Theatre returns with a virtual rock musical. Plus, baseball is back, and Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden holds a wedding expo. Have a great week!
Jokes Downtown
With the area’s only comedy club shuttered for renovations, it’s probably a good time to open another one, despite our pandemic predicament. Enter the Sandman Comedy Club, which opened April 29 at 401 E. Grace St. The former bank turned nightspot features Adam Ferrara this week, whom you might remember from the Showtime series “Nurse Jackie” or the FX drama “Rescue Me.” He’s currently featured in the CBS show “Why Women Kill,” and as part of a government mandate for all comedians, he has his own podcast. Ferrara brings the funny May 6-8.
—Craig Belcher, Arts & Entertainment Editor
Play Ball!
The Richmond Flying Squirrels return to the Diamond this week with a series against the Hartford Yard Goats May 4-9. While opening day is sold out, there are still tickets available for the other games. Special events during the week — other than the exciting return of Minor League Baseball, hot dogs, cold brews and Nutzy — include a salute to the service industry on May 5, front line workers’ night May 6, happy hour on May 7, fireworks May 8 and a Mother’s Day celebration May 9.
—Jessica Ronky Haddad, Editorial Director
Those Crazy Kids
VCU Arts Theatre is bringing the Tony Award-winning Broadway rock musical “Spring Awakening” to life, by combining live action and film for virtual viewing May 5-16. Director Kikau Alvaro teamed with Anthony Smith, music director, and Dorie Barton, film director, to adapt the show about late 19th-century German students trying to figure out who they are and how they can function in a restraining and oppressive culture. Streaming and ticketed performances run May 5-8 at 8 p.m. A video-on-demand option is available May 5 at 8 p.m. through May 16 at 11:45 p.m.
—Harry Kollatz Jr., Senior Writer
Nice Day for a Garden Wedding
As the editor of Richmond Bride, a year without in-person wedding expos has felt off to me, but weddings haven’t looked the same since March 2020. Times have been difficult in the wedding industry, and seeing restrictions eased and couples planning dream weddings again makes it seem like we’re starting to reach the light at the end of the tunnel (or, in this case, that ring at the end of the aisle). With weddings in mind, Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden is hosting Celebrations Abloom! on Wednesday, May 5, at 5:30 p.m. This is an opportunity to see the garden decked out in matrimonial splendor and chat with Lewis Ginter’s preferred vendors, enjoy sips and bites by Meriwether Godsey, and have a chance to win a free facility rental at Lewis Ginter. Event registration closes May 4 at midnight.
—Nicole Cohen, Special Projects Editor
‘The Apple and the Tree’
Artist Jeanie Collin Keys and her daughter, Andréa Keys Connell, open their show, “The Apple and the Tree,” on Thursday, May 6, at 4 p.m. at Quirk Gallery. This is the first time that Keys and Connell, who served as head of the clay area for VCU Arts from 2010 to 2017, have exhibited their work together, and it is the first mother-daughter exhibition hosted by the gallery. The free show pairs Keys’ dreamy paintings, which she says are visual journeys through time and imagination, with Connell’s fantastical figurative ceramic sculptures and mixed-media pieces.
—Susan Morgan, R•Home Managing Editor
Other Suggestions
- The Science Museum of Virginia considers “The Voice of Women Veterans” May 5.
Voting ends Friday!
Cast your vote for Richmond magazine’s 34th annual Best & Worst survey! Support the businesses, events and neighborhoods you know and love by sharing your picks and enter to win prizes from some of the region’s favorites, including The Mill at Fine Creek and Fine Creek Brewing Co., WPA Bakery, AAA Flooring, and Papeterie. Voting continues through May 7.
River City Roundup is Richmond magazine's weekly compilation of the best things to see, do and experience in the region, compiled by our editors. Get each week's installment directly in your inbox every Monday by subscribing to our e-newsletter.