from left: ArtBeat 2013 focuses on the theme "micro;" teams compete in the greasy pole competition at Festival Betances; Sallie Ford & The Sound Outside play at Great Scott (Liz Devine, AP)
Making plans? Short on ideas? No worries. See Milva DiDomizio and June Wulff's picks for the top things to do around the Hub this weekend.
FRIDAY
SMALL FORTUNE There's a wealth of tiny things to do at ArtBeat 2013. In keeping with this year's theme of "micro," plans are afoot for a Micro Mini-me Parade featuring a tiny circus and other small attractions, a microMeet where you can meet new people in minutes, and a Micro Museum measuring 10"x16"x8". All the small stuff is in addition to the big line-up of more than a dozen bands, dance troupes, 75 craft vendors, and kids' activities. Among the performers are the Either/Orchestra, Whiskey Kill, Intimations Dance, and Found Audio. July 19, 6-10 p.m. (rain date July 20). Seven Hills Park, behind Somerville Theatre, 55 Davis Sq., Somerville. July 20, 11 a.m.-6 p.m. (rain date July 21). Throughout Davis Square including Seven Hills Park, Elm St., Holland St., Somerville. Suggested donation $3. 617-625-6600, www.somervilleartscouncil.org/artbeat/2013
SOMETHING SLIPPERY Every year at Festival Betances, teams of people race to the top of a 40-foot greased pole. The Latino cultural festival starts tonight with a community procession and a performance by La Banda Criolla. Saturday is International Day with salsa, samba, Japanese drumming, and hip-hop. Sunday features the greasy pole contest and a community plenazo highlighting Afro-Puerto Rican folkloric music and dance. July 19, 6-9 p.m. July 20, 11 a.m.-9 p.m. July 21, 1-8 p.m. Free. Plaza Betances, 100 W. Dedham St., Boston. 617-927-1737, www.iba-etc.org
A CENTURY OF CYCLING Join the the Boston French Film Festival in Celebrating the Tour de France. An evening of documentaries includes screenings of Louis Malle's 1962 "Vive le Tour" and Claude Lelouch's 1965 "For a Yellow Jersey." July 19, 5:30-7:10 p.m. $11. Museum of Fine Arts, Remis Auditorium, 465 Huntington Ave., Boston. 800-440-6975, www.mfa.org/film
SATURDAY
GUESS WHO'S COMING TO THE CALDERWOOD Think of this as a recital at the end of the year where you get to see the result of hard work. For two weeks, members of the Huntington Theatre Company's Playwriting Fellows program have been writing, rewriting, and giving legs to four original plays. First up at the Summer Workshop Readings is Lenelle Moïse's "The Many Faces of Nia" about a Jewish housewife who finds out her son is dating a black woman. July 20, 5 p.m. July 21, 2 p.m. Free (reservations required). Calderwood Pavilion, 527 Tremont St., Boston. 617-266-0800, www.huntingtontheatre.org/summerworkshop
MERCURY RISING It's summer, not spring, but the Mercury Orchestra is playing Stravinsky's "Le sacre du printemps" ("The Rite of Spring"), anyway. It's the 100th anniversary of the groundbreaking piece, featured on a program with Rachmaninoff's final work, "Symphonic Dances." July 20, 8 p.m. $20, $25. Sanders Theatre, 45 Quincy St., Cambridge. 617-826-9092, www.mercuryorchestra.org
SUNDAY
ALL ABOARD In the YouTube teaser for her latest release "Massachusetts," singer-songwriter Lori McKenna says, "If 'Massachusetts' were a book and the songs were chapters, then together they would tell the story of a life." Hear the Stoughton-based, self-described housewife and townie sing her stories on a Rock and Blues Concert Cruise with Tall Heights. July 21, boarding 2 p.m., departure 3 p.m. $28. 21+. Provincetown II leaving from 200 Seaport Blvd., Boston. 617-431-1175, www.rockandbluescruise.com
OUTSIDE INSIDE Sallie Ford's dad was a puppeteer, her mom was a musician, her older sister favored musical theater, and her younger sister tap danced. The middle child came into her own as singer, songwriter, and leader of Sallie Ford & The Sound Outside. The Portland, Oregon rockers' growing fan base includes the Avett Brothers. July 21, 9 p.m. $14, $12 advance. Great Scott, 1222 Comm. Ave., Allston. 800-745-3000, www.boweryboston.com
