5 Things To Do This Weekend, March 25-27: Bunnies, maple syrup and Batman

artwalk1. Coming off of a four-day binge watch of the very good “Daredevil” on Netflix, I’m amped up for more comic movies (and more Punisher, please). But you know what? I just don’t know if I want to put myself through “Batman v. Superman” this weekend. It just sounds noisy and grim and exhausting. Fortunately, there’s plenty else to do this weekend besides that. In Bangor on Friday night it’s the first Downtown Bangor Art Walk of the season, set for 4 to 8 p.m. and featuring all sorts of open studios and galleries, all over town. Also that evening, there’s some local rock with Wyld Lyfe, the Cards and Livid Orange at the Central Gallery, there’s the Stripped with Sam acoustic songwriter night at Nocturnem Drafthaus, there’s the Pitch Black Ribbons at Paddy Murphy’s, there’s Celtic group the Napper Tandies at Black Bear Brewing in Orono, there’s the Allison Ames Band at the Boomhouse in Old Town, and there’s banjo man Hal Meyers at 4Points BBQ & Blues in Winterport. On Saturday, there’s the annual March Dragness Drag Show at Hollywood Casino at 7 p.m.; later, there’s Bangor area rockers Wait, Vaughn and Mirth at the Central Gallery, there’s John Nowak at Nocturnem, Tomorrow Morning at Paddy’s, the Tyler Healy Band at the Boomhouse in Old Town, and the True Blues revue featuring blues musicians Guy Davis, Alvin Youngblood Hart and Corey Harris at the Collins Center for the Arts in Orono.

KGFREEZEcover2. Friday night in Portland brings one of the best local music lineups of the season — the semi-regular Come Together showcase at Portland House of Music, this time around featuring KGFREEZE (pictured), Tall Horse, Lady Essence, Pretty Sad, Jeff Beam Music’s Looping Pedal, and The Up and Ups. That night, there’s also the Tribute 2 James Taylor at Empire, and there’s guitarist Johnny A at One Longfellow Square — and there’s also two big shows this weekend that are sold out — Percy Hill at Port City on Friday, and Lake Street Dive at the State Theatre on Saturday. On Satuday, take your pick from either Turkuaz and Lespecial are at Port City Music Hall, the tribute to Jay-Z at Empire, guitarist Robben Ford at Portland House of Music, alternative hip hop with Milo, 32French, Brzowski and God.Damn.Chan at the Space Gallery, and bluesman James Montgomery at One Longfellow Square.

3. On the midcoast, Friday night brings the annual Trekkapalooza musical showcase, a fundraiser for the teen organization Trekkers, set for the Strand Theatre in Rockland; this year’s event features Miner’s Creek, Fading Dawn, Playing Possum, Mondaynite Jazz Orchestra, and the Dirty Birds. Also that night, there’s guitarist Cedric Rogers at the Unity College Center for the Performing Arts. On Saturday, there’s songwriter Chris Smither at the Strand Theatre, there’s Group Therapy and Bottomless Funk at the Speakeasy, there’s rockers The Shizzle at the Myrtle Street Tavern, and there’s Bill Barnes Jazz at Rock City Coffee — all in Rockland.

4. Theatrically speaking, there are a handful of cool shows this weekend that’ll appeal to all sorts of folks. In Bangor, the Gracie Theatre at Husson University hosts “Forbidden Hollywood,” a musical revue of movie music set for 7:30 p.m. Saturday. Also in Bangor, it’s the final weekend of the musical “The Last Five Years,” set for the Penobscot Theatre at the Bangor Opera House. And in Portland, there’s a new show at Mad Horse, the premiere of local playwright Brent Askari’s new play “Digby’s Home,” all weekend at Mad Horse’s South Portland theater.

maple15. Sunday has dueling things that are both the most early Spring things there are. It’s both Maine Maple Sunday, and it’s Easter. There are sugar houses all over the state that will be open for visitors and for tastings of syrup, candy and other maple-y treats, mostly clustered in central Maine; visit the Maine Maple Sunday website for a map of all locations. And of course, Easter brings all sorts of lovely things from egg hunts and dinners to sunrise services, whether you’re religious or not. Happy Spring!

Emily Burnham

About Emily Burnham

Emily Burnham is a Maine native, UMaine graduate, proud Bangorian and a writer for the Bangor Daily News, where she's worked since 2004. She reports on everything from local bands to local food to all the cool things going on in the Greater Bangor area. In her quest for stories, she's seen countless concerts and plays, been lobster fishing, interviewed celebrities, hung out with water buffalo and played in a ukulele orchestra. She's interested in everything that happens in Maine.