KRAUT AND KAROLS
Christmas Bazaar (Christkindlmarkt)
German Society of Pennsylvania
611 Spring Garden St.
Sat, 12 p.m., $4-$12
(215) 627-2332
http://germansociety.org/bazaar.html
As the semester draws to a close and all of our dreaded deadlines creep up on us, doing something crazy like enjoying a holiday may be the farthest thing from our minds. Perhaps you missed Fresh Grocer's subtle hint of starting their Christmas music weeks before Thanksgiving, and maybe you mistook the Salvation Army carolers downtown for other interesting characters who approach you for money in West Philly. To make sure you don't completely miss out, the German Society of Pennsylvania's Christkindlmarkt (how fun is that to say?) is serving up a tantalizing array of holiday funness. The afternoon's events will include a savory German style holiday meal, a raffle, silent auction and gift fair. And if your religious inclinations are more of the dreidel than the jolly red man variety, just think of it as a cultural experience - it can't hurt you.
- Rachel Friedman
courage under fire
The Bravery
The Trocadero
1003 Arch St.
Tonight, 8 p.m., $10
(215) 922-LIVE
www.thetroc.com
Oh, the viral nature of the Internet. Whether your informant is Wikipedia, Pitchfork or Amazon.com, there are two factoids that will inevitably be mentioned when the Bravery comes up. The first is that the band is apparently the latest poor man's version of the Killers, and the second is that two of its members used to be in some ska dealie called Skabba the Hutt. Just as thou shalt continue to LOL at Gawker's Paris Hilton insult train, it seems that on the Internet, thou shalt compare every new band to some other band that's like six months older. Well, so what if the Bravery are Skipper to the Killers' Barbie or Dr. Phil to the Strokes' Oprah? They've still got synthesizers aplenty, keyboards galore and an abundance of catchy beats. At least, that's what it says on the Internet, so it must be true.
- Heather Schwedel
estrogen-fueled comedy
5 Funny Females Tour
Laff House
221 South St.
Tonight & Fri., 11 p.m., $15
(215) 440-4242
www.laffhouse.com
Susan Alexander wants you to know that chicks can be funny. And to prove her point, she decided to assemble a rotating list of diverse comediennes to perform on her 10-city 5 Funny Females Tour. Among the women ready to break out on the scene is the Philly-based Tara Young. Young, who is known for her special brand of self-deprecation and "midnight dark sarcasm" will be accompanied by Las Vegas Comedy Competition Wild Card winner Chantal Carrere, Portland Comedy Competition finalist Stacia Jensen and Jen Kober of Showtime's Whiteboyz in the Hood. Descriptions of their individual acts range from quirky to clever to outrageous to energetic to edgy, and with Alexander playing host, it will be hard to find a dull moment in the show.
- J.R.
dashing through the show
The Variety Show
Holiday Party
Falling Cow Gallery
732 S. 4th Street
Sat, 6-8 p.m., free
(215) 627-4625
www.fallingcow.org
With Thanksgiving now come and gone, the holiday season has officially started, and with it comes a severe inundation of parties with too much family time and too little eggnog. However, the Falling Cow Gallery offers a different kind of holiday fare. "The Variety Show" will feature the work of over 40 artists from around the world. This extensive show includes works made of every kind of medium imaginable, even melted toy plastic. The artists' work will be on sale the night of the event, with all pieces reasonably priced below $500. The perfect opportunity to mingle with Philly's art elite and pick out a gift or two, this free event is being held Saturday night. And with that, let the Chrismukkah festivities begin!
- Julia Rubin
all or nun
Our Lady of 121st Street
Randall Theater
2020 N. 13th Street
Tonight & Fri, 8 p.m.; Sat, 2 and 8 p.m., $15
(888) 695-7849
www.temple.edu/theater
There are several hilarious movies involving nuns, namely Sister Act and Sister Act 2: Back in the Habit. Just try to picture Whoopi Goldberg in that outfit without cracking up - it's impossible. This is probably because nun comedy, in all its sacrilegious glory, is inherently genius. For example: what do you get when you've got a dead nun and an empty casket? Most likely, a situation ripe for farcical brilliance! That's the premise of this play, Our Lady of 121st Street, now being performed by students in Temple University's theater department. Set in Harlem, it was penned by Stephen Adly Guirgis, a playwright known for his raw dialogue and complicated characters. So on top of the nun-inspired humor, the audience can expect a more layered portrayal of human depth, sadly the one thing that stood in Whoopi's way when Oscar nominations came out.
- H.S.
