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What to do in Philadelphia from March 15 to 21

Gatsby Gala Aboard the Moshulu, Stickwork Sculpture Artist Patrick Dougherty, Harry Potter Trivia, and other events around Philadelphia, Mar. 15-21

This month, internationally acclaimed artist Patrick Dougherty will create his newest stickwork sculpture at the Morris Arboretum. He’s calling on the public to come out and help.
This month, internationally acclaimed artist Patrick Dougherty will create his newest stickwork sculpture at the Morris Arboretum. He’s calling on the public to come out and help.Read more

St. Patrick’s Day is this Sunday, and in Philadelphia that means Irish potatoes are in peak season. Staff writer Grace Dickinson visited Stutz Candy Co. in Hatboro to see how an old-school candymaker rolls out the cinnamon-coated, coconut cream spheres. (And if that polarizing treat turns you off, consider another local St. Patrick’s Day tradition: the Erin Express.)

This week, staff writer Bethany Ao took a look at the many free overdose-reversal training sessions that the city and community organizations are offering. And on a lighter note, today is Pi Day — the quirky holiday for math nerds. Princeton, N.J., goes crazy for it. The hometown of Albert Einstein and the stomping grounds of many prize-winning mathematicians, Princeton celebrates with “an irrational number of events," including a circle-fueled vow renewal/wedding ceremony.

There’s plenty more to do this week, including the Meek Mill concert(s), the early-morning dance party Daybreaker, Pancakes and Booze Art Show, and working with a renowned sculptural artist at the Morris Arboretum.

— Jenn Ladd (@jrladd, jladd@philly.com)

ART

The Philadelphia Pancakes and Booze Art Show

This traveling national pop-up show at Underground Arts features beer and a mountain of free pancakes, of course, but what you should really come for is the art. More than 75 Philadelphia artists display their best work as live music plays, DJs spin, and attendees get body-painted. — Thea Applebaum Licht

8 p.m., Saturday, Underground Arts, 1200 Callowhill St., $10, $15 line jumper, 21+, pancakesandbooze.com

Volunteer with Stickwork Sculpture Artist Patrick Dougherty

Internationally acclaimed artist Patrick Dougherty weaves together twigs, branches, and saplings to create large standing structures that have appeared on museum grounds, college campuses, and botanical gardens all over the United States and beyond. While he creates his newest stickwork sculpture at the Morris Arboretum — debuting on March 30, when it’s fully completed — he’s calling on the public to come out and help. Join Dougherty now through March 29 to help construct the piece(s), which will stay on the arboretum’s grounds for a year or two, depending on how long they hold up. Volunteers age 16 and older can sign up for four-hour shifts. — Grace Dickinson

Through March 29, Morris Arboretum, 100 E. Northwestern Ave., free, contact Lisa Bailey at baileyL@upenn.edu or call 215-247-5777, Ext. 157, morrisarboretum.org

FILM

The Women’s Film Festival 2019

Created five years ago by Philly film enthusiasts Phuong Nguyen and Layne Marie Williams, this 10-day festival spotlights female filmmakers, screening movies centered on the female perspective at seven different venues in the city. Catch events all through the weekend, and pick up an all-access pass to come back for the duration of the festival. — T.A.L.

Various times, through March 23, Drexel URBN Annex Screening Room, 3401 Filbert St., $10, $8 for students, free on Sunday, thewomensfilmfestival.org

‘My Sister Hali’

For 14-year-old Hali Sheriff, life ended far too soon. The front-runner for the 1968 Olympics women’s gymnastics team died in 1966 in a plane crash alongside her parents. More than 50 years later, Paul Sheriff — Hali’s brother and a Temple graphic design professor — opens up about the traumatic experience in a new film that revisits his sister’s career. My Sister Hali presents a powerful narrative driven by both the joy of competition and the pain of living through a devastating loss. Arrive early to the free screening to sit in on a discussion of the film’s score, after which a pianist and cellist will perform live music for the movie. — G.D.

4 p.m., Sunday, Temple Performing Arts Center, 1837 N. Broad St., free, events.temple.edu

‘Salvador Dalí: In Search of Immortality’

Settle in for a one-night-only screening of this new Spanish documentary, which mixes footage of talking heads as well as clips of Dalí himself to shed light on the eccentric painter’s life. The film also focuses on his relationship with Gala, his Russian wife, and the many places he spent time in — including his first studio in a fishermen’s hut in Port Lligat, Spain, and the castle he bought for Gala in Púbol. — G.D.

7 p.m., Wednesday, Landmark’s Ritz Five, 214 Walnut St., $15, landmarktheatres.com/philadelphia/ritz-five

DANCING

Gatsby Gala Aboard the Moshulu

Put on your best flapper dress or tweed jacket for a night of dancing aboard the stately sailing vessel. Tickets to this roaring ’20s-themed event include a two-hour open bar, a buffet, hors d’oeuvres, and live jazz. — G.D.

9 p.m., Saturday to 1 a.m. Sunday, Moshulu, 401 S. Christopher Columbus Blvd., $45, moshulu.com

Daybreaker PHL: The Future is Feminine

Daybreaker, the energetic early-morning dance party and yoga session, returns this month with a Women’s History Month theme. A number of female talents, including singer and performer Mariah Del Rio, will perform at the Foundry this Friday. (A portion of ticket proceeds will go to Girls Who Code, a nonprofit working to close the gender gap in the computer science field.) — G.D.

6 to 9 a.m., Friday, the Foundry, 29 E. Allen St., $15 and up, daybreaker.com

TRIVIA

Harry Potter (Movie) Trivia

Can you recall which Ravenclaw loves Radish earrings? How about the name of the half-blood prince? Show off your trivia wizardry among other Potterheads at Goose Island Brewhouse. Tickets are free, but teams are required to register online. — G.D.

7 p.m., Tuesday, Goose Island Brewhouse, 1002 Canal St., free, hpmoviesgooseislandphilly.eventbrite.com

FAMILY

The Color of Science

The Franklin Institute hosts a group of nine local STEM professionals from diverse backgrounds, including doctors and medical researchers, professors, a mechanical engineer, and a forensic scientist for the Philadelphia Police Department. You and your children will be able to ask questions and meet the experts driving science forward in Philadelphia. — T.A.L.

9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., Saturday, the Franklin Institute, 222 N. 20th St., free with museum admission, 215-448-1200, fi.edu

Family Astronomy Night

Bring out the whole family for a night of stargazing at the Bucks County Audubon Society. Gaze through telescopes and learn about planets, stars, and constellations. Little ones can look forward to crafting activities, too. — G.D.

7 p.m., Saturday, Bucks County Audubon Society, 2877 Creamery Rd., New Hope, $5 to $10, bcas.org

MUSIC

Meek Mill

It’s been nearly a year since Meek Mill got his get-out-of-jail card, when the Philadelphia rapper was released on bail from the two- to four-year prison sentence for parole violations on decade-old drug and gun charges that have dogged him throughout his career. A legal cloud still hangs over his head, but since his release, Mill is on a winning streak. His music has grown more thoughtful and incisive, without losing his trademark toughness. He has headlined Made In America, celebrated his good fortune with his Championships album, cofounded the Reform Alliance criminal justice organization (with in-the-news New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft, among others), and entertained at the NBA All-Star Game. This weekend, he brings his Motivation Tour home for two shows at the Met, the North Philly venue not far from where he was raised. — Dan DeLuca

8 p.m., Friday and Saturday, the Met Philadelphia, 858 N. Broad St., sold out (resale tickets available), 800-653-8000, themetphilly.com

Teenage Fanclub

For nearly 30 years, Teenage Fanclub has been the most democratic of bands, splitting album credits and live set lists equally among its three talented songwriters. But with the departure last year of founding bassist Gerard Love, the Scottish band’s set on Friday night will differ. No cause for concern, though: Norman Blake and Raymond McGinley have plenty of songs to go around, and the quintet, which now includes keyboardist Euros Childs (of Gorky’s Zygotic Mynci), just released a new single, “Everything is Falling Apart.” Thankfully, it does not refer to the state of this beloved band. “Everything flows” is more like it. North Carolina’s the Love Language opens. — Steve Klinge

8:30 p.m., Friday, Union Transfer, 1026 Spring Garden St., $25, 215-232-2100, utphilly.com

The Flesh Eaters

It’s only been 35 years between albums for the all-star edition of the Flesh Eaters, the Los Angeles band fronted by punk poet Chris Desjardins. The new I Used To Be Pretty bristles with energy and features Dave Alvin and Bill Bateman of the Blasters, John Doe and DJ Bonebrake of X, and Abington’s own Steve Berlin of Los Lobos — plus singer Julie Christensen, Desjardin’s ex-wife, who sang with him in the Flesh Eaters and in his band Divine Horsemen. — D.D.

9 p.m. Friday, Johnny Brenda’s, 1201 N. Frankford Ave., $25 to $30, 215-739-9684, johnnybrendas.com

Stella Donnelly / Faye Webster

Three days before the Harvey Weinstein story broke in 2017, Stella Donnelly released “Boys Will Be Boys,” an understated song written in response to the sexual assault of a friend. It’s devastating in its damnation of the culture of misogyny: “They said ‘Boys will be boys,’ deaf to the word ‘no.’” Donnelly — who is from way out in western Australia, from the town of Fremantle — had previously released an EP called Thrush Metal, but the new Beware of the Dogs is her proper full-length debut. It contains a fleshed-out version of “Boys” and 12 other songs that demonstrate a sharp wit and a refusal to suffer fools. She’s touring with Faye Webster, the Atlanta indie songwriter whose songs intriguingly mix country and R&B. — D.D.

9 p.m., Saturday, Johnny Brenda’s, 1201 N. Frankford Ave., $12, 215-739-9684, johnnybrendas.com

Pixies

The quintessential Boston-based post-punk elders with the stop-start dynamics and screamo emotionalism didn’t just reunite its original members Frank Black/Black Francis, Joey Santiago and David Lovering to rehash the hits. They have their own podcast series, “Past is Prologue, Pixies.” They brought in a fresh, flinty bassist, Paz Lenchantin, and are recording a new album with her (she cowrote “All I Think About Now” in dedication to Kim Deal, Pixies’ original bassist). And they’re actually oddly enough promoting the fact that, for years, Lovering has been a professional magician as a side gig. Anything is possible. — A.D. Amorosi

7:30 p.m., Monday, the Fillmore, 29 E. Allen St., $27.50 to $55, thefillmorephilly.com

Jungle

This five-year-old British neo-R&B production outfit has updated the old Soul II Soul shuffle of the 1990s to include vivid live instrumentation, creepy breakup songs, and — on the sound of its newest album, For Ever — a balmy California vibe in league with its relocation to Los Angeles (for the purposes of recording). Producers/instrumentalists Josh “J” Lloyd-Watson ​and Tom​ “T” McFarland​ could be the next Chic or the Chainsmokers if they so choose. — A.D.A.

8:30 p.m., Wednesday, Union Transfer, 1026 Spring Garden St., $23, utphilly.com