18 Things To Do in Cincinnati This Week (Feb. 5-11)

WEDNESDAY 05

ONSTAGE: Buddy: The Buddy Holly Story
Playhouse in the Park’s Buddy: The Buddy Holly Story tells the tale of the Rock & Roll sensation via mini concerts and vignettes. Through Feb. 16. Tickets start at $30. Playhouse in the Park, 962 Mt. Adams Circle, Mount Adams, cincyplay.com.
Photo: Mikki Schaffner Photography

WEDNESDAY 05

ART: From Rituals to Runways: The Art of the Bead at the Behringer-Crawford Museum
Covington’s Behringer-Crawford Museum has basically found a way to turn back time by displaying four of superstar singer/actress Cher’s detailed and glittering beaded costumes from the 1960s and 1970s. Worn by the mononymous Goddess of Pop during concerts as well as appearances on the Sonny & Cher Show, the outfits were designed by the legendary Bob Mackie — the fashion icon who has created looks for seminal divas of stage, screen and song including Bette Midler, Diana Ross, Liza Minnelli, RuPaul and Elton John. The dazzling vintage numbers will be exhibited as part of the museum’s From Rituals to Runways: The Art of the Bead, which examines “the art and integral roles that beads have played in society over the centuries, from prayer and devotion, to art, fashion and d?cor.” It’s the perfect Mermaids-style appetizer to Cher’s Cincinnati stop of her “Here We Go Again Tour,” which comes to downtown’s Heritage Bank Center on April 7. Through May 10. $9 adults; $8 seniors; $5 kids; free for members. The Behringer-Crawford Museum, 1600 Montague Road, Devou Park, Covington, bcmuseum.org.
Photo: Provided by the Behringer-Crawford Museum

THURSDAY 06

ONSTAGE: All the Way
Cincinnati Shakespeare Company’s All the Way is a political thriller set in 1964. Though February 15. $56 adults; $52 seniors; $28 students; starts at 7:30. The Otto M. Theater, 1195 Elm Street, Cincinnati, cincyshakes.com.
Photo: Mikki Schaffner Photography

THURSDAY 06

ONSTAGE: The Moth Mainstage
The Moth, a curated storytelling event that originated “on a back porch in small-town Georgia” more than 20 years ago, has spent the past couple decades sharing more than 40,000 stories via its live events, podcast and Public Radio Exchange’s Peabody Award-winning The Moth Radio Hour. This week, The Moth Mainstage comes to Memorial Hall for an evening of riveting and true personal tales that play off of a specific theme. Five individuals — Phill Branch, Patience Carter, Ruby Cooper, Frimet Goldberger and Samuel James, according to The Moth’s website — will take the stage to spin stories that have evolved from the concept of “Ether: Mediators and make-believers, betwixt and between.” This event is currently sold-out, so hopefully you know someone with tickets. 7:30 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 6 and Friday Feb. 7. $28-$48. Memorial Hall, 1225 Elm St., Over-the-Rhine, memorialhallotr.com.
Photo: Henry Cromett

THURSDAY 06

EVENT: Friends of the Public Library Winter Used Book Sale
The Friends of the Public Library of Cincinnati and Hamilton County is hosting its annual, gigantic winter sale in its used book warehouse to raise funds for the public library. And the affordable items aren’t limited to those of the luddite variety — shoppers can expect to find all types of media, from CDs and DVDs to games, puzzles and gifts. Staffed by volunteers, the stock is constantly changing and there are daily surprises, where different items will be discounted. Members day is Sunday, when current members get 50 percent off. 10 a.m.-7:30 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 6 and Friday, Feb. 7; 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 8; noon-5 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 9. Free admission. The Friends’ Used Book Store at the Warehouse, 8456 Vine St., Hartwell, cincylibraryfriends.org.
Photo via Facebook.com/cincylibraryfriends

FRIDAY 07

MUSIC: Lee Rocker
Lee Rocker of the Stray Cats plays the Fairfield Community Arts Center. 8 p.m. Friday, Feb. 7. $25-$30. Fairfield Community Arts Center, 411 Wessel Drive, Fairfield, fairfield-city.org.
Photo: Alex Solka

FRIDAY 07

MUSIC: The Motels
The Motels play “Totally 80’s Live” at Bogart’s with Bow Wow Wow and When in Rome II. 8 p.m. Friday, Feb. 7. $20. Bogart’s, 2621 Vine St., Corryville, bogarts.com.
Photo: Marseille & Company Management

FRIDAY 07

CLASSICAL: L’enfant et les Sortileges
The Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra performs the whimsical childhood opera L’enfant et les Sortileges. 8 p.m Friday and Saturday. $14-$130. Music Hall, 1241 Elm St. Over-the-Rhine, cincinnatisymphony.org.
Photo: Fay Fox

FRIDAY 07

EVENT: Bockfest Sausage Queen Prelims at Mecklenburg Gardens
The 28th-annual Bockfest — an annual celebration of spring, bock beer and the city’s brewing heritage — takes over downtown and Over-the-Rhine Feb. 28-March 1 with a plethora of activities, starting with a parade that steps off from downtown’s Arnold’s Bar & Grill. Each year, the gender-neutral Bockfest Sausage Queen has the honor of leading the Bockfest parade — along with some guys dressed like monks walking with a goat pulling a keg of bock beer — carrying a symbolic tray of bockwurst. In the weeks leading up to the Bockfest festival, there is a series of Bockfest Sausage Queen preliminary competitions. And the third preliminary competition will be held at Mecklenburg Gardens Friday (get sign-up details online). There are three rounds — a Q&A, sausage tray modeling and a talent portion — during which potential Queens are judged on their personality, presence and talent. The winners of the Sausage Queen preliminary rounds will compete in the finals on Feb. 29 at Bockfest Hall to see who will be crowned the Sausage Queen (and Beard Baron — we have one of those, too; it’s a guy or gal with the best facial hair) to lead the 2021 parade. 9 p.m. Friday, Feb. 7. Free admission. Mecklenburg Gardens, 302 E. University Ave., Corryville, bockfest.com.
Photo: Hailey Bollinger

SATURDAY 08

COMEDY: Ben Bailey
Comedian Ben Bailey is probably most recognized as the host of Cash Cab, the popular game show that was resurrected this past year. However, he’s also had a solid career as a headlining stand-up comic and has started dabbling in music. In 2019, he released an album under an assumed name, which he refused to share with CityBeat. “I want the music to stand on its own,” he says. On the comedy front, he still writes about whatever strikes him as funny. “I’ve got a bit on people asking, ‘Hot enough for ya?’ I have section on why people are building houses for birds,” he says. “It’s just random stuff that I find funny.” With 65 new episodes of Cash Cab in the can and airing on Bravo, Bailey plans to be on the road roughly every other weekend this year, including a stop at Bogart’s. Locally-based Kelly Collette features. 7:30 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 8. Tickets start at $35. Bogart’s, 2621 Vine St, Corryville, bogarts.com.
Photo via Facebook.com/RealBenBailey