Things to do this week

WHAT’S GOING ON

Select events happening in metro Detroit this week. Submit your events to me trotimes.com/calendar. Be sure to check venue websites for COV ID-19 policies.

FRI-SUN, MAY 13-15

Motor City Comic Con

Michigan’s longest and largest comic and pop-culture convention is back and bigger than ever. The event, first launched in 1989 and now held across three days at Novi’s Suburban Collection Showplace, features more than 250 comic book creators, writers, and artists, in addition to actors from television and film available for autograph opportunities. At comic cons, though, fans can be the stars, too, and this year features cosplay contests for both kids and adults. Another highlight this year is The Christopher Reeve Legacy Reunion celebrating one of the biggest superheroes of all time, featuring stars from all four Superman films as well as artists and writers from the Superman ’78 DC Comic Series. An exclusive limited-edition variant cover of Superman ’78 No. 1 will also be available to commemorate this year’s Motor City Comic Con. A portion of proceeds from the comic book will benefit the Christopher and Dana Reeve Foundation, which is dedicated to curing spinal cord injury by funding innovative research and improving the quality of life for individuals and families impacted by paralysis. Superman actor Christopher Reeve was paralyzed after a 1995 horse riding accident. —Lee DeVito

From noon-7 p.m. on Friday,10 a.m.-7 p.m. on Saturday, and 10 a.m.-5 p.m. on Sunday at the Suburban Collection Showplace; 46100 G rand River A ve., N ovi; motorcitycomiccon.com. Tick ets start at $30 for adults and $10 for children age 6-12. A ll children age 12 and under get free admission on Sunday.

SAT, MAY 14

X: The Life and Times of Malcolm X

Detroit Opera will pay homage to Detroit Red. The opera house will premiere X : The Life and Times of Malcolm X on Saturday. The awardwinning opera was written by Anthony Davis, and will be directed by Robert O’hara and conducted by Kazem Abdullah for the Detroit performances.

The timing of the performance falls close to the celebration of Malcolm X Day, a holiday, though not yet recognized by the federal government, that falls on the third Friday of May, near Malcolm X’s birthday.

Yuval Sharon, the artistic director for the Detroit Opera, suggested the opera’s revival as he continues to navigate his first season with the opera house. “Since its New York City Opera premiere in 1986, X looked and sounded like no other opera of its time, or any since,” Sharon said in a press release. “The piece was so unconventional that it sat unproduced for decades thirty-five years later, Detroit Opera is leading the charge on what will be the second professional production of the opera, in a way that will prove that Anthony Davis and Thulani Davis were ahead of their time when the piece was premiered.”

Davóne Tines, the Detroit Opera’s artist-in-residence for the 2021-2022 season, will take lead in the production portraying Malcolm X. “This story, as Robert seeks to tell it, asks us ‘How are YOU Malcolm X?’,” Tines said in a press release. “In that frame, this residency with Detroit Opera has been a part of my own meta preparation for the role because I wanted to see how I could, in my own way, be useful to the Detroit community Malcolm X had been a part of.”

In addition to the performances, there will be a series of community events surrounding the premiere of X. On May 12, “X”: A Legacy for the 21st Century, a panel discussion , will take place at the Chrysler Black Box Theatre and will feature Roshelle Riley, the city of Detroit’s Director of Arts and Culture, Tamara Payne, author of The Dead are Arising: The Life of Malcolm X, and Illyasah Shabazz, daughter of Malcolm X and Betty Shabazz.

—Alex Washington

Flower Day is back in Detroit’s Eastern Market.

X : The Life and Times of Malcolm X premieres at 7:30 p.m. on May 14 at the Detroit Opera, with two additional performances on May 19 and May 22; 526 Broadway St., Detroit; 313-237-7464; detroitopera.org. Tickets start at $29.

SUN, MAY 15

Eastern Market Flower Day

May in Detroit means Flower Day at Eastern Market, which has been sorely missed after going on a two-year hiatus due to COVID-19. (The event pivoted to online ordering in 2020, and then came back as a series of scaled-down events dubbed “Flower Season” in 2021.) Now, everyone’s favorite excuse to head to the Russell Street sheds, get some sunshine, and buy flowers is back on Sunday. Whether you’re working on your backyard garden or looking to brighten up a boring apartment, you’ll find all manner of hanging baskets, houseplants, and flats at the market. Of course, you can buy flowers and plants from Eastern Market pretty much any

EVAN GONZALEZ, DETROIT STOCK CITY

weekend, but flower season is in full effect in May. There will also be three Flower Season Tuesday Markets on May 17, 24, and 31. Probably better to check those out if you don’t feel like fighting the Sunday crowd and dealing with hectic parking.

—R andiah C am ille G reen

From 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. at Eastern Market; 2934 Russell St., Detroit; easternmarket.org.

STARTS MON, MAY 16

Downtown Street Eats

Food trucks and pop-ups for lunch in downtown Detroit? Yes, please. Detroit’s Cadillac Square and the Woodward Esplanade will host a rotating fleet of 75 food trucks for Downtown Street Eats, Michigan’s largest food truck experience. They’ll be serving tasty eats on weekdays from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. starting Monday, May 16 and running through Oct. 14. The food trucks will vary each day, and the first week includes Los Dos Amigos, Smoke Ring BBQ, Little Brothers Burgers, Stix & Stone Pizza, House of Mac, and more.

—R andiah C am ille G reen

From 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. May 16 through Oct. 14. Cadillac Square and the Woodward Esplanade are located next to Campus Martius; 800 Woodward A ve, Detroit. Check for weekly lineups at downtowndetroit.org.