4/8/10: Today’s Tips: Thursday

MUSIC: Carrie Rodriguez @ the Van Dyck, Schenectady. The Austin singer-songwriter-fiddler-mandolinist and her crack band should deliver a knock-out show at the intimate VD as she kicks off her tour in support of her excellent, about-to-be-released third solo album, “Love and Circumstances.” (Read CD review.) 7pm. $17.

THEATER: The Bread & Puppet Theater’s “Dirt Cheap Money Cabaret” @ Time & Space Limited, Hudson. Political puppetry featuring the Jolly Battle between Mountaintop Removal Protesters and Mountaintop Machinery, an ancient take on bananas, singing turkeys, a President and a chair, Theater Blue, Civil Society Decommissioning Songs and more, interspersed with commentary from Karl Marx and music by the Even Cheaper Brass Ensemble. 8pm. $10; children 12 and under $5.

MUSIC: Tony Benn @ Revolution Hall, Troy. County Clare singer-songwriter Benn has been compared to Damien Rice and John Martyn, and that’s good enough in our book. Plus Kevin McKrell – whose roots in the Nippertown Irish music scene go all the way back to Donnybrook Fair – shares the bill. 8pm. $10.

FILM: “Man on Wire” @ EMPAC at RPI, Troy. It’s a thriller. No, it’s a documentary. Wait. You’re both right. The tale of Phillippe Petit – who walked a tightrope between the World Trade Center towers in 1974 – is the ultimate true-life caper movie, full of suspense, humor and poetry. 7:30pm. $5.

MUSIC: Hungrytown @ the Crandall Library, Glens Falls. The Folklife Concert Series continues with the Vermont-based duo of Ken Anderson and Rebecca Hall as they serve up old-school country-folk. 7pm. Free.

MUSIC: The Hold Steady @ the Bearsville Theater, Woodstock. Missed ’em at The Linda last night? Well, you’ve got another chance… With the Oranges Band. 8pm. $20.

ART EXHIBIT RECEPTION/GALLERY TALK: Chris Duncan’s “Recent Works” @ Union College’s Mandeville Gallery, Schenectady. Union art professor exhibits his marvelous metal scultures, as well as works on paper. The exhibit runs through Sunday, May 9. Reception is 5-7pm. Free.

READING: Chang-rae Lee @ UAlbany’s Performing Arts Center Recital Hall, Albany. The Korean-American novelist reads from his latest book, “The Surrendered” – the story of a Korean orphan, and American GI and a troubled missionary wife who meet after the Korean War. 8pm. Free.