Celebrate 50 years of hip hop, watch selections of legendary documentarian Appalshop or grab a book and get ready for some storytelling at the library’s Summer Reading Extravaganza. Here’s what to do in Pittsburgh this weekend:
Hip hop turns 50
Celebrations of the 50th anniversary of hip hop continue with the much-belated Pittsburgh debut of The LOX. The group rose to fame in the late ’90s with its first album, “Money, Power & Respect.” Now Sheek Louch, Styles P and Jadakiss are finally playing here together, with supporting performances by Pittsburgh’s 1Hood and UNION. The concert, courtesy of 1Hood and the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust, is Fri., Aug. 11, at the Byham Theater.
The Sound Inside
Adam Rapp’s critically acclaimed play “The Sound Inside” makes its Pittsburgh premiere at barebones productions. It’s a two-character psychological thriller about a writing professor and her “brilliant but enigmatic student.” Max Pavel co-stars with real-life writing professor, award-winning author and former Pittsburgher Elena Passarello. Performances at the barebones black box, in Braddock, run Fri., Aug. 11, through Aug. 26.
Documentaries from Kentucky
Appalshop is a legendary media, arts and education center in the Kentucky coalfields, known for its deeply rooted, socially committed documentaries. At 3 p.m. Sat., Aug. 12, as part of the Carnegie Museum of Art Film Series, award-winning filmmaker Mimi Pickering presents a selection of Appalshop short-form classics, including “Chemical Valley” (1991), “Evelyn Lewis,” a 1995 portrait of a Black community activist in Eastern Kentucky, and Pickering’s own “Buffalo Creek Flood: An Act of Man” (1975).
Books, stilt walkers and storytellers!
It’ll feel more like a festival than usual this weekend on the grounds of the Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh’s main branch, in Oakland. From noon to 5 p.m. Sun., Aug. 13, the Annual Summer Reading Extravaganza will offer live music (including an appearance by local rapper Frzy), crafts, games and storytelling, not to mention local authors, Puppets for Pittsburgh, an on-stage double-dutch demo, a roaming stilt walker and more.
