Friday, May 7
Art Schooled
Secret Gallery at The Ruppe has assembled Visionaries, a group show of selected works from high school students in Albuquerque. While New Mexico students were stuck at home remote learning for most of last year, their passion to create art continued unabated. This free exhibition allows a number of local teens the opportunity to show off what they’ve been working on during the pandemic. The opening reception takes place at ABQ Artwalk on May 7 from 5 to 9pm. It includes a parking lot artisan market, music from DJ Aimie Jane and TJ the DJ, plus food from the Chamoy Bar & Pop Fizz. Secret Gallery is located inside the old B Ruppe Drugstore at 807 Fourth St. SW. (Devin D. O’Leary)
Friday, May 7
Shop and Sit
Enjoy awesome food, craft beer, drinks, shopping, local arts and crafts and live music at the Friday Night Market 2021 Grand Opening. The El Vado at 2500 Central Ave. SW brings back its popular weekend shop-and-eat party, taking place every Friday night from 5 to 8pm starting May 7. Felix y los Gatos are this year’s inaugural band. Listen to some hometown Burque blues while you enjoy food and drink from various vendors in El Vado Eats Courtyard and shop at the historic motel’s always creative selection of boutiques. Admission is free; the shopping and eating is up to you. (Devin D. O’Leary)
Friday, May 7
Theater in a Box
Adobe Theater presents its latest “video on demand” stage performance. AdobeFest: Life in a Box is a series of six original and innovative 10-minute plays written by local playwrights. The plays loosely address the theme of experiencing life as lived in the somewhat confined space of the present and are described as “funny, endearing and sure to tickle your fancy.” The collection is available for online viewing May 7 at 12am through May 16 at 11:59pm. The Adobe Theater is using ShowTix4U to deliver content until such time as it’s safe to do live theater. ShowTix4U is a streaming platform for theatrical performances. Tickets are $15 and are available at adobetheater.org. (Devin D. O’Leary)
Saturday, May 8
Pan-Pacific Pride
The National Museum of Nuclear Science & History and the Asian Leadership & Outreach Committee presents Virtual Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Day. This online event takes place May 8 starting at 10am. Join in for a day of prerecorded and live sessions that include beautiful ethnic dancing, acrobatic martial arts, origami experimentations, educational talks regarding Asian culture and delicious food demonstrations. Preregistration is required, but it is free to attend. An agenda will be available on the virtual platform once you have registered. For complete info go to nuclearmuseum.org/visit/events/virtual-asian-pacific-islander-american-heritage-day. (Devin D. O’Leary)
Saturday, May 8
Albuquerque Museum and the Albuquerque Public Schools Fine Arts Department are pleased to present an online exhibition of student photography. Focus on Youth showcases artwork from high school students enrolled in photography programs across the district. It will be on view for free on the Museum’s website (cabq.gov/FOY) from May 8 to September 5, 2021. This exhibit has been held every year in Albuquerque since 1986. Because of the pandemic, students didn’t have access to their school’s darkroom last year. Many students didn’t have access to photo software or inkjet printers either. But they had their cellphones and some had access to digital cameras, which allowed for this year’s online exhibit. Because of the pandemic, organizers also asked students to concentrate on special categories, including: “Within Reach” (photographing the student’s limited environment due to the pandemic) and “Escaping Lockdown” (looking at the time when students had a chance to get out and escape the pandemic lockdown). (Devin D. O’Leary)