Printer Friendly Version - Arts & Ideas: Mark These on Your Festival Calendar

Zikina features Uganda native Gideon Ampeire with a variety of traditional East African instruments rarely found in the US, including enanga (zither), adungu (harp), and kalimba (thumb piano)—all of which he builds himself. The performance is Thursday, June 14 at 7:30 p.m. at Trinity Church on the New Haven Green. Photo courtesy of Arts & Ideas

With so many performances, lectures, experiences available at this year’s Festival of Arts and Ideas, how do you determine which to attend?

Here are some suggestions for performances and events that look particularly interesting.

Food Experiences: Midpoint Istanbul + Ordinary. This dinner on Thursday, June 14 combines the foods and flavors in a fusion of European and Asian cuisines with the mixology from Ordinary, which is known for its craft cocktails.

Outdoors: Shana Schneider of Fitstyle by Shana, which combines experiences with fitness, will lead a Fitstyle Art Walk on Saturday, June 9 and Sunday, June 10. You will learn more about Yale and downtown New Haven while racking up the steps, then you’ll quench your thirst at Barracuda Bar & Bistro. For those who want something even more outdoorsy, canoe the West River (Wednesday, June 20), kayak the Q River (Thursday, June 21), or visit the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s outer island in the southernmost Thimble Islands to tour, bird watch, and more on Tuesday, June 29 and Thursday, June 21.

Ideas: How can you envision something that would be altered by your observation of it? That’s the topic for a conversation between quantum physicist Michel Devoret and visual artist Martha W. Lewis “I’ll Be Your Qubit! The Entanglement of Quantum Physics and Art,” Tuesday, June 12. Dar Williams, a singer-songwriter who has toured the country for more than 30 years, discusses what she’s learned about “How to Make Your Town Somewhere Everyone Wants to Live” based on her observations and her book What I Found in a Thousand Towns. It’s on Sunday, June 17.

Altar’d Spaces: This program of musical performances in the three churches that line the New Haven Green began last year. Among the offerings are Zikina on Thursday, June 14, described as Ugandan folk fusion with funk, rock and jazz grooves. The Joe Carter Samba Rio Band brings Brazilian jazz influences on Wednesday, June 13.

Concerts on the Green: Four concerts are scheduled including Amir ElSaffar, members of the Rivers of Sound Orchestra, and the New Haven Symphony perform on Sunday, June 17. ElSaffar—a trumpeter and composer—and the two groups will perform a blend of jazz, Iraqi magma music and classic music.

To check out all the events and get details on times, locations, and costs as well as to purchase tickets, visit artidea.org.