FRIDAY night entertainment starts with UMPHREY’S McGEE at the Observatory in NORTH PARK.
For tribute band fans, the RED NOT CHILI PEPPERS are at the House of Blues DOWNTOWN.
Or you can ramble on over to PALA CASINO, for an all female LED ZEPPELIN tribute – Zepparella.
The bluegrass band THE BROTHERS COMATOSE will be at the Belly Up Tavern in SOLANA BEACH. Hopefully they don’t put anyone to sleep.
You can catch a new theater show this weekend. THE PIRATES OF PENZANCE will be at the Stage House Theatre In EL CAJON. Any time you get a chance to see a Gilbert & Sullivan production, you should take it.
SATURDAY night will be a big night for fans of punk rock. The PUNK ROCK RODEO is a block party in OCEAN BEACH with 20 venues showcasing a variety of punk bands. The clubs participating include Winston’s, Holding Company, Hodad’s, Harp, Humble Heart, and more.
If you prefer singers who are a bit more gentle on your ears, check out the STEVIE NICKS tribute group at the RAMONA SOUNDSTAGE.
Or a tribute to LEON REDBONE done by local music legend GREGORY PAGE at All Things Music in VALLEY CENTER.
In sports, if you don’t want to watch MARCH MADNESS on TV but prefer seeing athletes live…we’ve got the SAN DIEGO WAVE FC vs Utah Royals at SNAPDRAGON STADIUM.
The SAN DIEGO LEGION rugby team will take on the MIAMI SHARKS at TORERO STADIUM.
The SAN DIEGO SOCKERS will play an indoor game at Frontwave Arena in Oceanside. It’s going to be Hispanic Heritage Night.
SUNDAY I’m going to try to hit a few shows. The BORREGO SPRINGS MUSIC FESTIVAL, which actually goes on all weekend, but it’s the end of the weekend when it feels more like a time for a Sunday drive far out east for shows. They’ve got a variety of genres, with bands performing country, Americana, rock, and classical music. There will also be food trucks and other activities.
That evening, I’ll try to catch a swing band I was obsessed with about 30 years ago – the SQUIRREL NUT ZIPPERS. They’ll be at the Belly Up Tavern.
The big movie opening this weekend is DISNEY’S SNOW WHITE. I won’t get into all the controversies (not using dwarf actors, Rachel Zegler being pro-Palestine, etc.); because at the end of the day, you’re just wondering if this is a movie to take your kids or grandkids to see (because I can’t imagine any adult enjoying it). I hate to sound so “grumpy” in my review, but the whole middle section made me feel “sleepy.” The animated dwarves looked odd, since they were CGI. It didn’t help that one looked like Alfred E. Newman (Mad magazine), another like Mickey Rooney, another like Andy Rooney, and I can’t remember, but probably one that looked like Principal Rooney from Ferris Bueller! The CGI animals looked beautiful, although some might feel it’s odd seeing them with real actors, since the humans aren’t animated. Gal Gadot (Wonder Woman) looks good in the part as the Evil Queen, but as with most of her movies, I just don’t care for her acting. Zegler sounded great when she sang, but the new songs were mediocre at best. We all know the story, so I don’t need to tell you what it’s about. I’ll just say that it’s baffling that they spent $250 million making it, and instead of being wowed by set designs and costumes, it felt like it was filmed at Disneyland. The entire production was bland and boring, and feels like a big cash-grab (yes, they’ll easily make that $250 million back). My wife and I, and the other critics we talked with at the screening, were all disappointed. 1 ½ stars out of 5.