January 11, 2024
Provided image/Philadelphia Auto Show
The auto show's Custom Alley, pictured above, features tricked-out cars customized by local residents.
The second weekend of the new year is shaping up to be a marathon of culture, community and cars.
Philly Loves Bowie Week, the annual citywide tribute to the late glam rocker, bids farewell on Friday and Saturday with a dance party, a screening and a concert. But the Philadelphia Auto Show is just getting started at the Pennsylvania Convention Center, where it will run Saturday through next Sunday, Jan. 21. Opera lovers can enjoy arias at the East Passyunk Opera Project's latest "Love Notes" show, and art enthusiasts can check out a new exhibit on queer identity at InLiquid Gallery. There are also dozens of ways to give back for MLK Service Weekend, which stretches into the Monday holiday.
Put on your red shoes and dance the blues: The Trestle Inn is throwing a happy hour/dance party Friday celebrating the music of David Bowie. The 6-9 p.m. bash is one of the final events of Philly Loves Bowie Week, but Trestle Inn's party — featuring a $9 Bowie-themed sour cocktail benefiting the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia — isn't the only one in town.
Also on Friday, the Landmark Ritz Five will host a special 10 p.m. screening of "The Rocky Horror Picture Show" with a live shadow cast and Bowie pre-show tribute. And on Saturday, Union Transfer will close the week with the popular finale concert "A Night of Stardust," featuring musicians like Emm Gryner, a former backup vocalist for Bowie, and Gina Schock, the longtime drummer for The Go-Go's.
Motorheads can gawk at a '60s Bentley or the furry Mutt Cutts van from "Dumb and Dumber" during the Philadelphia Auto Show, which starts Saturday. The nine-day expo includes an outdoor course where attendees can test drive Toyotas and a sprawling indoor e-track featuring some of the latest electric vehicles (you'll have to be a passenger princess for those rides). Tickets start at $20 for teens and adults and $12 for kids.
Numerous nonprofits are seeking volunteers Saturday through Monday as part of MLK Service Weekend, the yearly tribute to Martin Luther King Jr.'s legacy of community service. Opportunities include cleanups, food packaging and delivery and sorting seeds for community gardens. Philadelphians also can drop off winter clothing donations at the Betsy Ross House or Franklin Square.
Now through Feb. 24, the "beLONGING" exhibit will be on view at InLiquid Gallery on 1400 N. American St. The collection features the work of four queer artists, all alums of Philly art schools and all grappling with concepts of self in their pieces. After seeing the art, visitors can head to the zine-making station to make their own niche publication.
On Saturday, the East Passyunk Opera Project will debut the third show in its "Love Notes" series, a concert exploring many different kinds of devotion. "Love Notes 3: Notes to Self" is all about introspection and self-growth, as interpreted by the featured sopranos and tenors. The concert will run at 6:30 p.m. and 9:30 p.m. at Society Hill Dance Academy, and each $35 ticket comes with two signature drinks from Top Dog Cocktails.
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