BOISEvisitWEEKLY PICKS boiseweekly.com for more events TOM S EW ELL
See a weeping willow crying on its pillow at Stagecoach Theatre’s Always, Patsy Cline.
THURSDAY-SUNDAY APRIL 28-MAY 1 theater ALWAYS, PATSY CLINE
Hear U.S. Poet Laureate W.S. Merwin drop mad rhymes at the Egyptian Theatre.
WEDNESDAY APRIL 27 reading U.S. POET LAUREATE HITS TOWN Our country’s poet laureates are selected with great care by the Librarian of Congress, who consults with the current and former laureates and poetry critics. While it’s a pretty sweet honor, with a stipend and lots of freedom to work on their craft, poet laureates have a high bar set for bringing fresh ideas to the national poetry scene. Our current U.S. Poet Laureate, W.S. Merwin, will be in Boise on Wednesday, April 27, to share some of his fresh ideas. Merwin has some lofty titles under his belt. He was awarded the Pulitzer Prize for two different books of poetry, first in 1971 for The Carrier of Ladders and the second in 2009 for The Shadow of Sirius. He was also awarded the National Book Award for poetry in 2005 for Migration: New and Selected Poems. Merwin is the latest literary star to appear in Boise for The Cabin’s Readings and Conversations series. And as a special treat, you can meet Merwin at an awesomely named pre-event reception, I Think Therefore Iambic, at Beside Bardenay. There will be appetizers and a no-host bar. Afterward, Merwin will read at the Egyptian Theatre. Pre-event reception, 6-7 p.m., $25. Beside Bardenay, 612 Grove St., 208-426-0538, bardenay.com. Reading at The Egyptian Theatre, 7:30 p.m., $12 students, $35-$55 adults. The Egyptian Theatre, 700 W. Main St., 208-345-0454. For tickets, call The Cabin at 208-3318000 or visit thecabinidaho.org.
16 | APRIL 27 – MAY 3, 2011 | BOISEweekly
Never the shrinking Southern belle, Patsy Cline broke the mold for a generation of female country music stars. Before Cline, female country musicians were “window dressing” for male stars—she changed all of that as a top-billed star. She refused to be introduced as “pretty Miss Patsy Cline,” preferring more personal introductions, like Johnny Cash’s famous, “the one and only Patsy Cline.” And now, Stagecoach Theatre is celebrating her life by presenting Always, Patsy Cline, a musical (of course) chronicling Cline’s unique life and career until her tragic death in a plane crash in 1963. When she died, she was only 30 years old, demonstrating just how much impact she had in her short life. The play—expanded from the biography Honky Tonk Angel: The Intimate Story of Patsy Cline—centers on the friendship Cline formed with fan Louise Seger. The two met before Cline’s performance at The Esquire Ballroom in Houston, and continued to correspond until Cline’s death. In addition, the play features her music, including her famous songs “Crazy,” “Walking After Midnight” and “I Fall to Pieces.” Through Saturday, May 14. Thursdays, 7:30 p.m.; Fridays and Saturdays, 8:15 p.m.; Sundays, 2 p.m.; $12-15. Center for Spiritual Living, 10464 Garverdale Court, 208-375-0751, stagecoachtheatre.com.
WEDNESDAY APRIL 27 comedy CHAOS CONTEST: BOISE’S NEWEST GAME SHOW Tired of going to mediocre concerts to justify your barhopping habit? Or attending trivia nights that are more predictable than the ending
of new Adam Sandler movies? Fatty’s Bar is here to resuscitate your night on the town with Chaos Contest, a five-round gameshow hosted by Janelle Wilson and Mikey Pullman. Similar to The Price Is Right, the Chaos Contest pulls participants from the crowd. The events are shrouded in secrecy until the night of the event, but prior Chaos Contests engaged contestants in challenges
like who could heckle Pullman the best while he does his stand-up comic act, or who could come up with the best interpretive, sexually charged dance to accompany a Christmas carol. The atmosphere is like a high school reunion—everybody can feel free to have a laugh at his or her own expense. Prizes will be given away throughout the evening to bar patrons in attendance, as well as a WWW. B O I S E WE E KLY. C O M