The Magnificent 7: Must See, Must Do, September 13-19

Shannon Curtis Credit: Courtesy of Wyat Taylor

The Synth and the Fury

Saturday 16

And now for something completely different. Shannon Curtis, touring in support of her 2022 album Good to Me, makes her Vermont debut alongside her husband and collaborator, Jamie Hill, at the Flynn in Burlington. Combining elements of concerts, TED Talks and visual art, the show places the album’s 1980s-inspired synth-pop numbers in the context of what inspired them: climate change, rising fascism, and Curtis’ anxiety about and hope for the future.

Hard Time

Monday 18

Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah Credit: Courtesy of Limitless Imprint Entertainment

Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah, the author of the acclaimed story collection Friday Black, stops by the University of Vermont’s Dudley H. Davis Center in Burlington to discuss his new, award-winning novel, Chain-Gang All-Stars. The book imagines a dystopian, not-too-far-away future where prisoners fight to win their freedom in gladiator-style death matches, and one such woman yearns to defy the system.

Myth Congeniality

Friday 15-Sunday 17

The Iliad, The Odyssey Credit: © Voyagerix | Dreamstime

At Plattsburgh, N.Y.’s Y at the Oval, Adirondack Regional Theatre takes audiences on a rip-roaring trip up Mount Olympus with The Iliad, The Odyssey and All of Greek Mythology in 99 Minutes or Less. This hilarious, high-octane adaptation speeds through and remixes familiar tales, turning Pandora’s box into an unsettling wedding gift and the creation of man into a botched subcontractor job.

Tree’s Company

Saturday 16

Forest Festival Credit: © Glacyer | Dreamstime

Locals of all ages celebrate the Green Mountain State’s eponymous greenery at Forest Festival in Woodstock’s Marsh-Billings-Rockefeller National Historical Park. Visitors breathe in their surroundings during horse-drawn wagon rides and guided nature walks and watch demonstrations of traditional woodworking and Abenaki artisanry.

Bright and Brew-tiful

Saturday 16

Oktoberfest Credit: Courtesy of Courtesy of Trapp Family Lodge

Stowe’s von Trapp Brewing Bierhall throws its annual Oktoberfest on the first day of the official Munich event, offering area beer lovers the perfect opportunity to don their lederhosen and brush up on their keg-tapping skills. Pretzels, bratwurst, schnitzel and goulash fuel revelers between rounds of pilsners and lagers, and local band Inseldudler keep the Bavarian vibes alive.

Alors On Danse

Sunday 17

Bal Folk Credit: Courtesy of Dylan Ladds

There’s no experience or partner required at Bal Folk, an evening of French social dancing among the apple trees at Scott Farm in Dummerston. After a community jam session, francophone folk duo Eloise & Co. soundtrack various line, circle, spiral and pair dances. Proceeds help the orchard recover from this year’s crop loss.

Flood Pressure

Ongoing

“Levitation Club” by Delia Robinson Credit: Courtesy

Here’s a reason to visit Berlin’s Central Vermont Medical Center even in good health: Montpelier artist Delia Robinson presents her new solo show “Gravitational Reprieve” in the lobby. Her paintings, inspired by the July floods, depict a topsy-turvy world of waterlogged chaos and confusion — but with a comic edge.