12/3/15: Today’s Top Tips: Thursday

EVENT: TEDxAlbany 2015 @ Overit, Albany. An annual independently organized event dedicated to ideas worth sharing. This year’s event will feature presentations on nutrition, immigration, social empathy, diversity in literacy, transgender issues and more. 8am-5pm. $90.

MUSIC/FUNDRAISER: Vanessa Carlton @ Troy Savings Bank Music Hall, Troy.
The singer-songwriter has grown up considerably since making a big splash with her 2002 hit single, “A Thousand Miles.” In support of her new album Lieberman, she lands in Troy to play a benefit concert for the Capital Region Coalition to End Homelessness. With Canadian singer-songwriter Joshua Hyslop. 7:30pm. $27 & $36.

MUSIC: Anais Mitchell @ Caffe Lena, Saratoga Springs. The captivating singer-songwriter captured a lot of attention with her 2010 all-star folk-opera, Hadestown, and she’s continued to push the envelope and confound expectations ever since. With the duo of Bridget Kearney (Lake Street Dive) & Benjamin Lazar Davis (Cuddle Magic). 7pm. $24.

MUSIC: Unsilent Night @ various locations, North Adams. Phil Kline’s luminous soundscape played by the audience on boomboxes paraded through the city streets. A unique musical experience. Meet at 5:15pm at MASS MoCA’s upside down trees.

MUSIC: Mary Halvorson & Colin Marston @ EMPAC at RPI, Troy. Jazz and extreme metal collide in a double bill of contrasting solo sets by two serious guitar virtuosos. 8pm.

MUSIC: The Weight @ the Colonial Theatre, Pittsfield. Jim Weider and Randy Ciarlante (from The Band), Brian Mitchell and Byron Isaacs (of the Levon Helm Band) and Marty Grebb (who worked with Rick Danko and Richard Manuel) perform songs from the catalog of The Band. 8pm. $25, $35 & $45.

EVENT: The Victorian Streetwalk @ various locations, Saratoga Springs. It’s the annual throwback holiday celebration with caroling, lots of other live music, belly dancers, live reindeer, children’s activities and more. 5-10pm. FREE.

MUSIC: Grace Potter @ the Calvin Theatre, Northampton. The Vermont rocker rolls into town in support of her solo debut album, Midnight. With Oh Whitney. 8pm. $35 & $45. GO HERE to read a recent concert review…

MUSIC: Alenni Davis @ the Low Beat, Albany. It’s St. Rose Night. With Sydney Schizzano and Ryan Leddick. 8pm.

MUSIC: The Sword @ Upstate Concert Hall, Clifton Park. Led by John Cronise [vocals, guitar], the Austin metal band comes roaring into town in support of High Country. With Royal Thunder. 8pm. $20.

MUSIC: Agency @ Putnam Den, Saratoga Springs. 9:30pm. Pay what you want.

MUSIC: Firestarter @ Pauly’s Hotel, Albany. According to New Noise Magazine, “Firestarter… is definitely ‘the next big thing’ in terms of pop punk.” Led by singer-guitarist Matt LaPerche, the rockin’ quartet is kicking off their two-week tour tonight in support of their latest EP, A Life Inconsistent. With Routine, At Bay and Sex. 7:30pm. $8.

THEATER: “A Christmas Story: The Musical” @ Capital Repertory Theatre, Albany. The modern holiday classic about nine-year-old Ralphie Parker and his quest for an Official Red Ryder carbine-action 200-shot Range Model air rifle – now with music and songs. 7:30pm. $20-$55. Through Sunday, December 27.

MUSIC: Fabian Almazan & Rhizome featuring Camila Meza @ The Falcon, Marlboro. Featuring Fabian Almazan (piano), Camila Meza (vocals, guitar), Megan Gould and Tomoko Omura (violins), Karen Waltuch (viola), Noah Hoffeld (cello), Linda Oh (bass) and Henry Cole (drums). 7pm. Donations encouraged.

MUSIC: Marcus Ruggiero @ Bailey’s Cafe, Saratoga Springs. 7pm.

MUSIC: Tommy Verrigni @ the Stockade Inn, Schenectady. 7pm. FREE.

THEATER: “Macbeth” @ Skidmore College’s Janet Kinghorn Bernhard Theater, Saratoga Springs. The Shakespeare classic directed by Holly L. Derr. 8pm. $12; $8 students & seniors. Through Sunday, December 6.

PARTICIPATORY MUSIC: Winter Bluegrass Jam @ the Crandall Library’s Folklife Center, Glens Falls. New monthly pickin’ session. 7-8:30pm. FREE.

FILM: “(T)ERROR” @ Sanctuary for Independent Media, Troy. A counterterrorism informant takes on what he swears is his last job for the FBI and invites filmmakers to follow his covert efforts to befriend a suspected jihadist — without informing his superiors. See how far we are going to prevent terror and exactly what liberties we are sacrificing to get there. 5:30pm community potluck; 7pm screening; 8:30pm panel discussion with filmmakers Lyric R. Cabral and David Felix Sutcliffe; Marlene Jenkins, mother of one the defendants featured in the film; Lynne Jackson, co-founder of Project SALAM in Albany; and Justin Harrison, NYCLU Capital Region Chapter Legal Committee chair. Kathy Manley, chair of the Legal Committee of the National Coalition to Protect Civil Freedoms, will moderate. $10 suggested donation; $5 student/low income.

FILM: “Us and the Game Industry” @ Opalka Gallery, Albany. This 2014 documentary explores the motivations and processes of computer game designers at the frontier of experimental game development. According to The Los Angeles Times, “It should absorb gamers and non-gamers alike.” 6:30pm.

FILM: “Can You Dig This?” @ The Linda, Albany. The film follows the inspirational journeys of four unlikely urban gardeners in South Los Angeles, discovering what happens when they put their hands in the soil. 7pm. $10.