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Week ahead: Music, theater, arts, and more

The Aardvark Jazz Orchestra.Kayana Szymczak for the Boston Globe

Pop & Rock

ELVIS PERKINS

“I had the impulse to hear what would happen if left to and with my own devices. Not surprisingly this is the thing that sounds the most, to me, like myself.” That’s how, in the press notes, Perkins describes his new third album, “I Aubade,” which he recorded mostly at home on four-track tape machines. The result is a haunted collection of songs that hum with lo-fi warmth and sound effects both dizzying and delightful. April 15, 8 p.m. Tickets: $15. Brighton Music Hall. 800-745-3000, www.ticketmaster.com

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APUTUMPU MUSIC FESTIVAL With a mission to “elevate artists who are receiving local acclaim or starting to gain local renown,” this inaugural Boston edition of Aputumpu is a welcome addition to the local festival landscape. With a focus on groove, the two-night event is an eclectic snapshot of interesting music coming out of Boston, from Americana hell-raisers Tigerman WOAH to Ethiopian funk agitators Debo Band to soul ensemble Mad Satta. Full lineup at www.aputumpu.us. April 10-11, 7 p.m. Tickets: Festival pass is $30, and single-day tickets are $22, $17 in advance. Middle East Downstairs, Cambridge. 617-864-3278, www.ticketweb.com

MATT AND KIM The mark of a good sing-along is the realization that you didn’t even know you were singing along. It just rolls off your tongue. Matt and Kim, an indie-pop duo based in Brooklyn (with roots in Rhode Island and Vermont), specialize in songs like that. “New Glow,” their latest album released this week, is full of effusive pop songs in search of a party. Be sure to catch the opening set from WATERS. April 12,
8 p.m. Tickets: $25. House of Blues. 800-745-3000, www.livenation.com

JOHN MELLENCAMP Now in his 60s, Mellencamp has settled nicely into the role of sage singer-songwriter. His past few albums, including last year’s “Plain Spoken,” have been stark, storytelling affairs with an emphasis on tales of hard-won victories delivered in his seasoned voice. Bonus: The fire-breathing country singer-songwriter Carlene Carter will open, likely singing tunes from last year’s “Carter Girl,” a tribute to her Carter Family lineage. April 15, 7:30 p.m. Tickets: $42.50-$129.50. Citi Wang Theatre. 800-745-3000, www.ticketmaster.com

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JAMES REED

Folk & World

JIM KWESKIN AND GEOFF MULDAUR After playing together in the late 1960s in the short-lived but influential jug band that bears Jim Kweskin’s name, they went their separate ways, but Kweskin and Muldaur have been reuniting again of late — in an improbable reunion of the Jug Band in 2013, in Muldaur’s Texas Sheiks project, and as a duo. April 10, 8 p.m. Tickets: $30. Club Passim, Cambridge. 617-492-7679. www.passim.org

RODRIGO AMARANTE Brazilian expat Amarante is known primarily for his wildly diverse exploits in samba-rock outfit Los Hermanos, big band Orqestra Imperial, side project Little Joy, and ongoing collaborations with Devendra Banhart. But with last year’s release of his solo debut, “Cavalo,” the multilingual multi-instrumentalist should also be known for the singular music he’s making under his own name. April 11, 8 p.m. Tickets: $15. Red Room at Café 939. 617-747-2262. www.cafe939.com

WILLIAM ELLIOTT WHITMOREWhitmore trades in a folk-punk hybrid he calls “roots-folk music,” sung with a voice that sounds like a jagged weld of Tom Waits and Howlin’ Wolf. On his new record, “Radium Death,” he’s gotten a bit electric, and a bit full-band, too. Paper Bird member Esme Patterson is supporting. April 12,
7 p.m. Tickets: $16. Arts at the Armory, Somerville. 800-745-3000. www.ticketmaster.com

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RANDY ROGERS BAND/STONEY LARUE This double bill is tailor-made for those who like their country rocking and rowdy, pairing the epic heartland twang of the veteran road warriors in the Randy Rogers Band with the music of Red Dirt stalwart Stoney LaRue.
April 15, 9 p.m. Tickets: $20. The Sinclair, Cambridge. 800-745-3000. www.ticketmaster.com

STUART MUNRO

Jazz & Blues

THE AARDVARK ORCHESTRA

The venerable big band continues its 42d season under director Mark Harvey (recently named by the Jazz Journalists Association as Boston’s 2015 Jazz Hero) with new Harvey compositions including “Sisyphus of the Snow Banks,” old favorites like “De-Evolution Blues,” and last year’s “Commemoration (Boston 2013),” dedicated to survivors and victims of the Marathon bombings. Plus, Billy Strayhorn’s “Almost Cried,” honoring his centennial. April 11, 8 p.m. Free. MIT's Kresge Auditorium 48 Mass. Ave., Cambridge. 617-452-3205, www.aardvarkjazz.com

LUTHER “GUITAR JUNIOR” JOHNSON & THE MAGIC ROCKERS The master of Chicago West Side blues guitar, in the tradition of Otis Rush and Magic Sam, celebrates his 76th birthday with his rough and ready Rockers.
April 11, 8 p.m. $20. Chan's Fine Oriental Dining, 267 Main St., Woonsocket R.I. 401-765-1900, www.chanseggrollsandjazz.com

FOURTH ANNUAL A-TOWN JAZZ FESTIVAL Hosted by trombonist Dan Fox, this year’s concert features trumpeter Greg Hopkins with bassist/composer Manuel Kaufmann’s Manduca Sexta, vocalist Lydia Harrell with her LovelySinger Band, Latin jazz quartet the Hernandez/Rosario Project, and more. April 12, 2 p.m. Tickets: $5-$15. Arlington Center for the Arts, 41 Foster St., Arlington. 617-909-7776, www.morningsidemusicstudio.com

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GASLIGHTING NEC’s 10th annual Film Noir Concert, helmed by the nonpareil Ran Blake, will feature Contemporary Improvisation Department students and faculty creating a new score to scenes from a screenplay and two different film productions of “Gaslight.” Performers will include Blake and fellow pianist and MacArthur grant winner Jason Moran.
April 13, 8 p.m. Free. NEC’s Jordan Hall. 617-585-1260. www.necmusic.edu

KEVIN LOWENTHAL

Classical

BOSTON EARLY MUSIC FESTIVAL Soprano Amanda Forsythe and countertenor David Hansen are in the spotlight for an evening of selections by Handel and Monteverdi, partnered by the excellent BEMF Chamber Ensemble under the direction of Paul O’Dette and Stephen Stubbs. April 10, 8 p.m., 617-661-1812, www.bemf.org

BOSTON SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA Gunther Schuller’s “Dreamscape,” Strauss’s “Ein Heldenleben” and Mozart’s Piano Concerto No. 27 are all on the agenda for Andris Nelsons’s final Symphony Hall performances this season. The estimable Richard Goode returns as soloist. April 9-14, Symphony Hall. 617-266-1200, www.bso.org

BOSTON MUSICA VIVA Richard Pittman’s new music ensemble wraps up its season with a premiere by Shirish Korde alongside works by Chou Wen-Chung, Franco Donatoni, and Sebastian Currier. April 11, 8 p.m., Longy’s Pickman Hall. 617-354-6910, www.bmv.org

CHAMBER MUSIC PLUS The Parker Quartet returns to Harvard’s Paine Hall with an Augusta Read Thomas premiere (April 10, www.music.fas.
harvard.edu
); Boston Artists Ensemble has works by Mozart and Brahms along with a Matthew Aucoin premiere (April 12 at Andover Newton Theological School’s Wilson Chapel, www.bostonartistsensemble.org ); Musicians of the Old Post Road offers the local premiere of Georg Benda’s melodrama of 1775, “Ariadne auf Naxos” (April 12, Modern Theatre at Suffolk University, www.oldpostroad.org ); and Boston Classical Orchestra has an all-Beethoven program in Faneuil Hall (April 12, 617-423-3883, www.bostonclassicalorchestra
.org
)JEREMY EICHLER

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THEATER

NEEDLES AND OPIUMRobert Lepage, the Canadian playwright-director-actor whose “The Andersen Project’’ was one of Boston’s theatrical highlights of 2012, returns with a production built on vignettes set in Paris and New York — inspired by the work of Jean Cocteau and Miles Davis — that unfold in a cube suspended in mid-air. April 9-12. By Robert Lepage/Ex Machina. Presented by ArtsEmerson. At Cutler Majestic Theatre, Boston. 617-824-8400, www.artsemerson.org

CITY OF ANGELSThe three best reasons to see this film noir-inspired musical about a screenwriter whose fictional gumshoe starts talking back to him are named Ed Hoopman (as the gumshoe), Leigh Barrett (as his secretary), and Jennifer Ellis (as his ex-wife). When any member of this trio is center stage, this production crackles; when they’re not, the wattage dims perceptibly. Directed by Spiro Veloudos. Through May 2. Lyric Stage Company of Boston. 617-585-5678, www.lyricstage.com

DON AUCOIN

GOD’S EARThis 2007 play by Jenny Schwartz treats a conventional theme — a couple have lost their 10-year-old son — in an unconventional manner, as the husband and wife speak in clichés and non sequiturs, and the cast includes not only their 6-year-old daughter but also the Tooth Fairy, a blonde barfly, a transvestite flight attendant, and a GI Joe action figure. Directed by Thomas Derrah, the production is as imaginative as the script, and the cast, headed by Tamara Hickey, Gabriel Kuttner, Marianna Bassham, and John Kuntz, is superb. Through April 12. Actors’ Shakespeare Project at Davis Square Theatre, Somerville.
866-811-4111, www.actorsshakespeareproject.org

BIG FISHThe 2013 Broadway musical based on Daniel Wallace’s 1998 novel has been scaled down by its creators, John August and Andrew Lippa, and though the score and the lyrics remain pedestrian and sentimental, August’s book is pointed and poetic (he wrote the screenplay for the 2003 Tim Burton film), and SpeakEasy Stage offers an appealingly homespun production with an accomplished cast of 12 anchored by Steven Goldstein as tall-tale teller Edward Bloom and Aimee Doherty as Edward’s wife, Sandra. Through April 11. SpeakEasy Stage Company at Wimberly Theatre, Boston Center for the Arts. 617-933-8600, www.speakeasystage.com

JEFFREY GANTZ

METAMORPHOSISThis year’s visit from the Big Apple Circus is filled with more than the usual amounts of surprise and delight. Director West Hyler has not only gathered an eclectic assortment of jaw-dropping circus acts, he’s put them together in combinations that are constantly entertaining, whether it’s a musical interlude by the charming clown Francesco or contortionists, jugglers, and trapeze artists. A thrilling bit of family entertainment that everyone will enjoy. Through May 10. Big Apple Circus. At City Hall Plaza. 888-541-3750, www.bigapplecircus.org TERRY BYRNE

Dance

RUBBERBANDANCE GROUPWorld Music/CRASHarts presents this eclectic, athletically gifted company from Montreal in the Boston premiere of its latest production, “Empirical Quotient.” Fusing a wealth of dance styles and circus arts skills, Victor Quijada’s choreography explores the dynamics of human relationships and self-perception. April 10-11, $36-40. Institute of Contemporary Art. 617-876-4275, www.worldmusic.org

DANCING AROUND A SQUAREThe Dance Complex and Green Street Studios continue “Holding Hands” in this jointly presented mini-festival, which expands the cooperative synergy between the two Central Square dance organizations. For three days, both organizations will host a variety of dance events featuring an impressive lineup of artists from around the region and beyond. April 10-12, Passes $25-$100. Dance Complex and Green Street Studios, Cambridge. 617-547-9363, www.dancecomplex.org

CHOOSE YOUR OWN MYTHOLOGY Mariah Steele/Quicksilver Dance’s fifth anniversary concert explores how ancient and modern myths affect our view of the world. The program includes six dances and one dance on film and features music by composer Ryan Edwards and an interactive sculpture designed by Anne Loyer. April 10-11, 8 p.m., Free. Simmons Hall at MIT, 229 Vassar St., Cambridge. Reservations requested: quicksilverdance@gmail.com, www.quicksilverdance.com

KEIGWIN + COMPANY Choreographer/performer Larry Keigwin has been so busy creating new works, he hasn’t stepped onstage to perform for three years — until now. In his acclaimed company’s upcoming Jacob’s Pillow/MASS MoCA engagement, he premieres a solo exploring fear and anxiety aptly titled “Panic.” Expect this program to offer a mix of high art, low humor, and terrific dancing. April 11-12, $18-$38. Hunter Center, Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art, North Adams. 413-662-2111, www.mass
moca.org
KAREN CAMPBELL

ART

Galleries

FINAL EXPOSURE: PORTRAITS FROM DEATH ROW Photographer Lou Jones traveled the country to shoot black-and-white portraits of condemned prisoners that convey the humanity of his subjects and their dark histories, while questioning the death penalty. Through April 17. Huret & Spector Gallery, Emerson College, 10 Boylston Place.
617-872-3467, www.emerson.edu/huret

DEEP WOUNDS Brian Knep’s interactive digital projection plays over the names of Harvard alumni who died in the Civil War. First installed in 2006, it returns as part of the Harvard Civil War Project’s effort to reconsider that conflict. Through May 7. Memorial Hall Transept, Harvard University, 45 Quincy St., Cambridge. 617-495-8676, www.ofa.fas.harvard.edu/visualarts/brian_knep.php

MICHAEL DAVID:MISCELLANIES, 1980-2015 A selection of paintings, drawings, and monoprints by an artist whose attention to small detail and emotional resonance imbue his often monochromatic work with melancholy. Through May 10. Laconia Gallery, 433 Harrison Ave. www.laconiagallery.com

Carly Glovinski

Carly Glovinski: Land-Line

Glovinski’s 2-D and 3-D works weave information, pattern, and color into art that straddles representation and abstraction, nods to landscape, and features methodical mark-making. The theme of systematic organization ties it all together. Pictured: “Evolving Coast.’’
Through May 17. 3S Artspace, 319 Vaughan St., Portsmouth, N.H.
603-766-3330, www.3sarts.org

CATE McQUAID

Museums

HOKUSAI A survey of the legendary Japanese artist’s seven-decade career, including woodblock prints, paintings, and illustrated printed books, drawn from the MFA, which has the finest collection of Hokusai’s work outside of Japan. Through Aug. 9. Museum of Fine Arts. 617-267-9300.

www.mfa.org

JOAN JONAS: SELECTED FILMS AND VIDEOS 1972-2005 In advance of (and coinciding with) Jonas’s showing in the US Pavilion at the Venice Biennale, the List Visual Art Center, which was chosen to organize the Venice show, is presenting a survey of the film work of this hugely influential performance and video artist. Through July 5. List Visual Arts Center. 617-253-4680, listart.mit.edu

PRETTY RAW: AFTER AND AROUND HELEN FRANKENTHALER A new view of postwar-to-contemporary American art, as seen through the lens of Helen Frankenthaler who stained her canvases with softer colors. Includes work by Grace Hartigan, Larry Rivers, Jane Freilicher, Andy Warhol, and others. Through June 7. Rose Art Museum, Brandeis University, Waltham.
781-736-3434, www.brandeis.edu/rose

J.C. LEYENDECKER AND THE SATURDAY EVENING POST Leyendecker (1874-1951) made 322 covers for the Saturday Evening Post, and was a mentor to Norman Rockwell. This show displays cover tear sheets for all of Leyendecker’s Post covers, as well as a selection of the celebrated illustrator’s original paintings. Through June 14. Norman Rockwell Museum, Stockbridge. 413-298-4100, www.nrm.org

SEBASTIAN SMEE

NIGHTLIFE

Clubs

HELENAThe LA-based DJ who grew up in Australia recently collaborated with David Puentez for the house track “Circa.” Expect more tracks from the young artist, who told Vibe.com, “My focus now is all about the music because I know I’m not going to break through to the next level without tracks.” April 11, 8 p.m. $10. 116 Boylston St., Boston. 617-482-7799, www.whiskysaigon.com

SHLOHMOElectronic artist Henry Laufer used his dad’s old 1980’s gear for his new album, “Dark Red.” The producer’s sophomore effort is full of moody, atmospheric, emotional soundscapes. April 12,
8 p.m. $20. Brighton Music Hall, 158 Brighton Ave., Boston.
617-779-0140, www.crossroadspresents.com

REDLIGHTExpect things to be hot, steamy, and danceable when DJs Kryder and Tom Staar bring their party to Bijou Fridays. April 10,
10 p.m. $25. Bijou, 51 Stuart St., Boston. 617-357-4565,
www.bijouboston.com

CNTRLProducer Richie Hawtin brings this tour, subtitled “Individuality & Creativity in Technology-Based Music,” to eight college towns, starting with Boston. The nighttime party features Hawtin, Matthew Dear, Matador, and Ean Golden. April 15, 8 p.m. Middle East, 472-480 Mass. Ave., Cambridge. $35. 617-864-3278, www.mideastclub.com

Milva DiDomizio

Comedy

GREG PROOPS The stand-up and improv comic (and voice of “Bob the Builder”) tapes an episode of his podcast, “The Smartest Man in the World,” Thursday and does headlining sets Friday and Saturday. April 9 at 8 p.m., April 10-11 at 8 p.m. and 10:15 p.m. $25-$35. Laugh Boston, 425 Summer St., Boston. 617-725-2844, www.laughboston.com

LEWIS BLACK: THE RANT IS DUE: PART DEUX The “Daily Show” essayist brings his trademark bark and growl to the Shubert for two shows. His “Lewis Black and Friends: A Night to Let Freedom Laugh” with Dick Gregory, Tom Smothers, Ahmed Ahmed, Cristela Alonzo, and John Fugelsang airs April 16 on AXS TV. April 10-11, 8 p.m. $59.50. Shubert Theatre, 265 Tremont, Boston. 800-982-2787, www.citicenter.org

BANNED IN BOSTON KISS 108’s Matt Siegel hosts this comic musical revue with a cast of local entertainment, business, and political notables, from Governor Charlie Baker to Aerosmith’s Tom Hamilton and Ray Magliozzi of “Car Talk.” Proceeds benefit Urban Improv, which teaches students to apply improv techniques to real-world situations. April 10, 7:30 p.m. $150-$250. House of Blues, 15 Lansdowne St., Boston. 617-524-7049, www.urbanimprov.org

MARC MARON “Maron” kicks off season three on IFC May 14, and the reflexively analytical comic and host of the “WTF” podcast, who started his career in Boston clubs, will spend the next two months doing stand-up on the road. The early show at the Wilbur is sold out. April 11 at 9:45 p.m. $29. The Wilbur Theatre. 866-448-7849, www.thewilbur.com

AHMED AHMED The Egyptian-born, California-raised stand-up comedian sneaks in a couple of late-night shows at Laugh Boston. He’s also on “Lewis Black and Friends” show (see Black entry above). April 10-11, 11:59 p.m. $25. Laugh Boston, 425 Summer St., Boston.
617-725-2844, www.laughboston.com
NICK A. ZAINO III

KIDS

SCIENCE AND CONSERVATION DAY AT Franklin Park Zoo Highlights include a keynote address by Dr. Jennifer Snell Rullman, assistant director of conservation for Snow Leopard Trust, and Frogwatch Citizen Science training . April 11, 10 a.m. $25-$35. Franklin Park Zoo, One Franklin Park Road. Boston. 617-541-5466. www.franklinparkzoo.org

O, Ship! Aboard the Ship! This interactive journey guides participants around the globe with stories, music, dance and more. April 11, 12, and 18,
2 and 4 p.m. $10. Deane Hall, Calderwood Pavilion at Boston Center for the Arts, 527 Tremont St., Boston. 617-426-5000. badhabitproductions.org

Zines and Comics! Families can play with typewriters and take part in more hands-on fun that comes with making a magazine. The event is free. April 11, 1 p.m. Parts and Crafts, 577 Somerville Ave. Somerville. 617-207-8016. partsand
crafts.org
Alex StillS

EVENTS

Winter Tomato Tasting Clover Food Lab gets tomatoes
10 months a year from Backyard Farms, a 42-acre greenhouse in Maine that grows a sustainable winter tomato. Varieties will be available for tasting. April 9, 10 a.m.-noon. Clover Food Lab Kendall Square, 5 Cambridge Center, Cambridge. 617-395-0240. www.eventbrite.com/e/winter-tomato-tasting-wtim-of-backyard-farms-tickets-16234037443

Vitruvian Things Artist Mitch Shiles “presents a visually saturated examination of our assertions as humans with non-human forms.” April 10, 7 p.m. Washington Street Art Center, 321 Washington St., Somerville. 617-623-5315. www.washingtonst.org/events.php?id=78

Opening Wine Reception: Focus on Autism Symposium Art Show This event welcomes artists John M. Williams, James Brennan Finnerty, and Jessica Park, whose autism-themed art will be on display through April 30. April 11, 5 p.m.-8 p.m. Lesley University, Atrium Gallery, University Hall, 1815 Mass. Ave., Cambridge. 617-868-9600. www.lesley.edu/NewsDetail.aspx?id=21077

Swim Across America BOSTON TEAM RELAY CHALLENGE This event supports pediatric cancer programs at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and MassGeneral Hospital for Children Cancer Center. Club and recreational swimmers are invited for this two-hour relay challenge. April 12, 10 a.m. Blodgett Pool, Harvard University, Cambridge. www.swimacrossamerica.org/site/TR?fr_id=3351&pg=entry

Alex Stills

MARK YOUR CALENDAR: TOP PICKS

April 22-29 13th Annual Independent Film Festival Boston at various venues www.iffboston.org

April 24-May 3 9th Annual Jazz Week at various venues www.jazzboston.org

April 25-27 39th Annual Art in Bloom: Festival of Fine Arts and Flowers at the Museum of Fine Arts www.mfa.org

April 30 Eric Church at TD Garden www.ticketmaster.com

April 30-May 10 Boston Ballet performs “Edge of Vision” at Boston Opera House www.bostonballet.org

May 2 Wendy Williams at The Wilbur www.thewilbur.com

ABC’s “Nashville” Live at Citi Performing Arts Center www.ticketmaster.com

May 2-3 Sesame Street Live at the Orpheum www.livenation.com

May 3 Toro y Moi at Paradise Rock Club www.ticketmaster.com

Pat Benatar and Neil Giraldo at Lynn Auditorium www.ticketmaster.com

May 4 Paramore at Citi Performing Arts Center www.ticketmaster.com

May 7 Florida Georgia Line at Dunkin’ Donuts Center, Providence www.ticketmaster.com

ERYN CARLSON