1. “Pompeii: The Exhibition”
The Carnegie Science Center welcomes visitors back to August of 74 A.D., the moment when Mt. Vesuvius covered the Roman city in ash, burying it for 1,700 years. This immersive exhibition features more than 180 artifacts — including frescoes, mosaics, statues, weapons, tools, jewelry and medical equipment — on loan from the Naples National Archaeological Museum in Italy, some of which are on their first U.S. tour. Visitors will also experience the city through projections, audio, video, photographic murals and graphic reproductions. It runs through April 23; carnegiesciencecenter.org.
2. Highmark Blues & Heritage Festival (Saturday)
There aren’t many 82-year-old artists as relevant as Mavis Staples, who appeared on the last Run the Jewels album and worked with Jeff Tweedy of Wilco a few years before that. Staples, of course, was a member of The Staple Singers, the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame gospel group known for such hits as “Respect Yourself,” “I’ll Take You There” and “Let’s Do it Again.” She plays the August Wilson Cultural Center, Downtown, at 8 p.m. Friday ($47.25). The Saturday lineup at Highmark Stadium at Station Square features Robert Cray Band, Robert Randolph and the Family Band, Third World, Rare Essence, Jon Cleary and the Absolute Monster Gentlemen and Dumpstafunk. It begins at 11 a.m. Proof of vaccination required. $37.50; ticketmaster.com.
3. Phantom Fall Fest
Once we hit October, Kennywood generally becomes the domain of teens for Phantom Fright Nights. This year, for the first time, the little ones can have some Halloween fun at the park as well with Phantom Fall Festival, featuring festive food, an autumn atmosphere and rides during the day. At night, it gets darker in more ways than one, with five haunted houses and four scare zones. It runs through Oct. 31. Times are 6-11 p.m. Fridays, noon-11 p.m. Saturdays, noon-10 p.m. Sundays. $34.99; kennywood.com.
4. Swingin' at the Club (Sunday)
Principal pops conductor and trumpeter Byron Stripling will launch the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra Pops series at Heinz Hall with a tribute to Harlem's famous clubs in a night of swing music, “from the smooth elegance of Duke Ellington, to the hi-de-ho swing of Cab Calloway.” Joining Stripling and the PSO will be singer Carmen Bradford, who spent nine years with the Count Basie Orchestra, and dancer Leo Manzari, who has been seen in “So You Think You Can Dance” and the Showtime drama “Homeland.” Times are 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday and 2:30 p.m. Sunday. $22-$99; pittsburghsymphony.org.
5. Punk in Drublic (Saturday)
“Created in the mind and liver” of NOFX frontman Fat Mike, this punk-rock craft beer festival takes the name from one of his band’s best albums. The always hilarious NOFX headlines, joined by hardened Warped Tour veterans Pennywise, Less Than Jake and Sick of it All, plus a pair of younger bands in Get Dead (from San Francisco) and Stolen Wheelchairs (from Philly). The festival offers four hours of craft beer tastings showcasing over 100 craft beers, including local favorites. At the Wheel of Misfortune, you can win a spanking, a boot licking, verbal abuse or a warm flat beer. It’s at the Lots at Sandcastle from 1 to 9 p.m. $49.50-$59.50; druskyentertainment.com.
More to do
Saturday: Chamber Orchestra of Pittsburgh begins its season at Levy Hall at Rodef Shalom, Oakland, with a bold stroke: a newly commissioned concerto for flute with local performer and educator Zoe Sorrell. To round out the program, the orchestra will also perform Ravel's "Le Tambeau de Couperin" and Stravinsky's "Pulcinella Suite”; copgh.org.
Saturday: “Sharif Bey: Excavations” showcases Bey’s contemporary ceramic and mixed-media sculptures with artworks that first inspired him as a child visiting Carnegie Museum of Art. It opens Saturday and runs through March 6; cmoa.org.
Saturday: Downtown theaters, galleries, churches, government offices, hotels, commercial residential spaces and more are open for DOORS OPEN Pittsburgh, a behind-the-scenes tour of 30+ buildings. It runs from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tickets are $15; $10 seniors and $5 kids 6-17; DoorsOpenPgh.org.
First Published: September 30, 2021, 4:41 p.m.
Updated: October 1, 2021, 3:00 p.m.
