Things to do in Western Pa.: Feb. 3, 2021

Feeling down after Punxsutawney Phil predicted six more weeks of winter? Maybe what you need is a good laugh.

You’re in luck. Arcade Comedy Theater has a reading of classic Black sitcoms, South West Communities Chamber of Commerce has a comedy date night and Rowhouse Cinema has its annual “Sweded” film spoof festival.

Get a breath of fresh air by geocaching in Frick Park or signing up for the Great Backyard Bird Count.

Or check out an art, history or music happening.

The details are here, in this week’s Big List.

Art

• Artist talk: A Café Art session is planned for 1-4 p.m. Saturday at Greensburg Art Center in Hempfield. Artists Ginger and Gary Hepler will make a presentation on their combined practice in painting and welding. Light refreshments will be served.

Details: 724-837-6791 or greensburgartcenter.org

• New exhibition: The Westmoreland Museum of American Art in Greensburg will reopen to the public on Sunday, featuring the new exhibition, “Pattern Makers.” Exploring the presence and meanings of patterns in works from the museum collection not often on view, the exhibition runs through May 9.

Museum hours will be 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Wednesdays-Sundays. Visitors must register in advance.

Details: 724-837-1500 or thewestmoreland.org

• Reopening: The Mattress Factory in Pittsburgh’s North Side will reopen to the public on Feb. 10. New hours will be 11 a.m.-8 p.m. Wednesdays and 11 a.m.-6 p.m. Thursdays-Sundays. Boxspring Café will reopen at a later date.

Timed-entry tickets are required, with 10 tickets sold per time slot. Staff members will direct guest traffic to avoid congestion in the galleries.

Details: mattress.org

• Billboards: The Diversity Billboard Art Project is on display through Feb. 27 in the Harlan Gallery of the Seton Hill Arts Center in downtown Greensburg. Although the gallery is not open to walk-ins, visits can be arranged by contacting gallery director Todd Keyser at tkeyser@setonhill.edu.

• Public art projects: Westmoreland County Bureau of Parks and Recreation is offering grants to nonprofit organizations to support arts-related projects and activities that will benefit county residents. Eligible projects may involve music, theater, dance, puppetry and other performing and visual arts. Virtual arts-related projects also will be accepted.

Projects must take place from June 1-Dec. 31. Applicants should be familiar with all criteria before submitting. Deadline is March 30.

Details: 724-830-3950 or co.westmoreland.pa.us/parks

• Artist market: Applications are being taken through April 15 for the 7th annual Mt. Lebanon Artists’ Market, set for Oct. 2-3. The juried arts festival will include about 60 artists offering professional quality, original art in various media. Booth fees will be refunded if the market is canceled due to covid-19.

Details: mtlebopartnership.org

Birding

• Bird count: A free webinar for people interested in participating in the 24th annual Great Backyard Bird Count will begin at noon Feb. 9. The session will feature project coordinators from the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Audubon and Birds Canada. The count will take place Feb. 12-15.

Registration for the webinar is available here.

Comedy

• Sitcom reading: Local actors will present a staged reading homage to the classic Black sitcoms, “Living Single” and “Moesha,” streaming at 9 p.m. Thursday. The show opens Arcade Comedy Theater’s Black History Month celebration, with other events including readings, a stand-up comedy roast, storytelling, improv and variety shows.

Details: arcadecomedytheater.com

• A good laugh: South West Communities Chamber of Commerce, headquartered in Bridgeville, is hosting an online comedy date night at 9 p.m. Feb. 13. Performers include Aaron Kleiber, Helen Wildy, Leslie Cavala, Michael Buzzelli and Brittany Alexis. A ticket is $15 per household.

Details: 412-221-4100 or southwestcommunitieschamber.org

Film

• Movie spoofs: Pittsburgh’s Row House Cinema will release its virtual “The Sweded Film Festival for Creative Re-Creations” on Feb. 12. The compilation reel offers homemade versions of “Die Hard,” “Air Force One,” “No Country for Old Men,” “The Lighthouse,” “The Wizard of Oz,” “Ferris Bueller’s Day Off” and “Stop Making Sense,” made during quarantine.

The in-theater festival launched four years ago, inspired by Michel Gondry’s 2008 film “Be Kind, Rewind,” in which two video-store workers create brief-but-bizarre movie remakes, unintentionally creating a fad.

A virtual ticket is $3.99 at rowhouse.online.

• Cinema at home: Pittsburgh Cultural Trust’s current Harris @ Home film series is available for streaming through Feb. 15. Titles include “Rock Camp: The Movie,” documentary on program that brings would-be shredders together for lessons with real-life rock stars; “The Reason I Jump,” exploring the experiences of nonspeaking people with autism from around the world; and “The Changin’ Times of Ike White,” about a music prodigy convicted of murder who went off the grid after an early release and acclaimed album.

Details: trustarts.org

History

• Family ties: The Senator John Heinz History Center will present “The Bonds of Family and Legacy,” exploring the Black family through history, literature, visual arts, social policy and the culture of the culinary arts, at 6 p.m. Feb. 11 via Zoom. The free program is presented in partnership with the National Underground Railroad Freedom Center.

Advance registration is required at heinzhistorycenter.org.

Kids’ stuff

• At-home exploration: Children’s Museum of Pittsburgh and MuseumLab has developed a new series of virtual/remote workshops with more than 100 live classes explore subjects such as making, science, engineering, math, art processes and outdoor exploration. Workshops are designed for age ranges 3-6, 7-10 or 11-14.

Workshops for ages 3-6 and 7-10 use supplies commonly found at home, with a list provided at registration. Workshops for ages 11-14 will ship supplies to each registered participant. Fees vary.

Details: pittsburghkids.org

Music

• Live on stage: Essential Machine will play at 7 p.m. Thursday in Greensburg’s The Palace Theatre, as part of the weekly VIP Experience livestream concert series. The free concert will stream on The Palace Theatre and Westmoreland Cultural Trust Facebook pages.

Details: thepalacetheatre.org

Outdoors

• Treasure hunt: Venture Outdoors will host a geocaching activity to celebration National Girls and Women in Sports Day from 1-3 p.m. Sunday in Pittsburgh’s Frick Park. Participants will find hidden cache containers and learn about famous women in sports.

No prior geocaching experience necessary. Registration cost includes GPS unit rental.

Details: ventureoutdoors.org

Theater

• ‘Love is a devil’: Pittsburgh Shakespeare in the Parks will offer a digital production of “Love’s Labour’s Lost,” streaming live at 7 p.m. Feb. 11-15. Featuring eight actors playing all the characters, the comedy “considers what happens when the conventions of courtly love succumb to passion — with some help from some witty wordplay,” PSIP says.

Admission is $17 in celebration of PSIP’s 17th season, with donations in any amount encouraged to support annual free performances in Pittsburgh city parks.

Details: pittsburghshakespeare.com

• New works: Pittsburgh CLO’s “Songs for a New Year” collaborative project features a newly commissioned work debuting at 5 p.m. each Thursday through Feb. 18 on the organization’s Facebook and YouTube pages. Works include a dance, visual or movement piece scored to a new song. This week’s video is “I Remembered,” with music and lyrics by Kasaun Henry and Jillian Walker.

Details: pittsburghclo.org

Written word

• Go deep: Parsec, a Pittsburgh-based speculative fiction group, is accepting submissions of short stories for its 19th annual “Triangulation” anthology. The group is looking for original, unpublished and unsold fantasy, science fiction and horror stories from non-professional writers.

Theme is “Still Waters, Deep Thoughts.” Deadline is April 15; there is no entry fee. Winners receive cash prizes.

Details: parsecink.com