LGBTQ Poet
Award-winning performance poet and activist Andrea Gibson closes out the Sunken Garden Poetry Festival at the Hill-Stead Museum in Farmington on Aug. 5. Gibson’s poetry focuses on gender norms, social reform and the struggles of LGBTQ people. The evening starts at 5 p.m. with Gibson and Connecticut Public Radio personality Chion Wolf as emcee. At 6, the winners of the Fresh Voices Student Poets competition will read, and at 6:45 Gibson will perform. A book signing follows at 8 p.m.
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Iron & Grain is the scheduled food truck, and singer/songwriter Merritt Gibson performs. Tickets are $15 online, $20 at the gate; children under 18 free. Parking free. Details and tickets: hillstead.org.
Charity Beer Fest
Eli Cannon’s Tap Room, 695 Main St., Middletown, hosts its 9th annual Charity Beer Fest Aug. 6 at 5 p.m. with tastings from more than 70 breweries and eats from local food trucks like NoRA Cupcake, Mercado, Captain Scott’s Lobster Truck and Whey Station. Tickets are $45 for general admission and $20 for designated drivers, and proceeds will benefit the Middlesex Coalition for Housing and Homelessness. Buy tickets here. facebook.com/elicannonsfans.
Caribbean & Jerk Festival
Authentic Caribbean cuisine, cool island beverages, colorful costumes, dance, and island rhythms transform Mortensen Riverfront Plaza in Hartford into the Taste of the Caribbean & Jerk Festival from 1 to 11 p.m. on Sunday, Aug. 5. The festival was originally scheduled for Saturday, but was moved because of the forecast of rain. Free admission. riverfront.org
Breakdancing Shakespeare
If hip-hop music be the food of love, rap on! Hartford Stage’s summer “Breakdancing Shakespeare” program — with 18 local teens — is partying, Elizabethan-style, with “Twelfth Night” on Aug. 3 at 7 p.m. and Aug. 4 at 2 and 7 p.m.
The program, now in its 12th year, does “modern hip-hop telling” of Shakespeare plays. “Twelfth Night” has been adapted by Scott Bartelson (a stage management associate at Hartford Stage) and is directed by Nina Pinchin, Hartford Stage’s associate director of education. $10. Details at 860-527-5151 and hartfordstage.org.
‘Cyrano’ At Goodspeed
Before a single one of its duels has been fought and before a single one of its songs (by members of the great indie rock band The National) has been sung, the musical “Cyrano” has already made history at Goodspeed Musicals.
“Cyrano” set box office records when tickets first went on sale in May. The show, based on the classic adventure/romance “Cyrano de Bergerac” by Edmond Rostand, is receiving a workshop production Aug. 3 through Sept. 9 at the Goodspeed’s intimate Norma Terris Theatre, 33 N. Main St., Chester.
This premiere production is notable for its star power. “Cyrano” stars Peter Dinklage (pictured) of “Game Of Thrones” fame as Cyrano, and Haley Bennett from the movie “The Girl on the Train” as Roxanne. Performances are Wednesday at 2 and 7:30 p.m.; Thursday at 7:30 p.m.; Friday at 8 p.m.; Saturday at 3 and 8 p.m.; and Sunday at 2 and 6:30 p.m. Tickets are $70. 860-873-8668; goodspeed.org.
PoCo Fest
Yes, there will be a cornucopia of spuds and ears at the North Branford Potato And Corn Festival Aug. 3 to 5 at Auger Field, but there will also be a wine and beer garden, amusement rides, entertainment on two stages, craft and food vendors, a car and motorcycle show, a tractor pull, hay rides, Saturday-night fireworks, a 5K cross country race, and a petting zoo.
This event is held rain or shine. Parking is available onsite for $10. Free parking available at shuttles from the Stanley T. Williams Community Center and the North Branford Auditorium Parking Lot. Friday from 5 to 11 p.m.; Saturday 10 a.m. to 11 p.m.; and Sunday 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Free. nbpotatofest.com
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