Nine Things to Do in Broward and Palm Beach This Week

Thursday, June 4

If you have not yet made the trek to the Norton Museum of Art in West Palm Beach, now is the time. Not only is it air-conditioned but starting June 4, the museum is offering free admission for Florida residents on Thursdays through September 3 — oh yeah, and the art is pretty great too. This is especially exciting because it’s on Thursday that the museum offers extended hours and hosts its weekly Art After Dark event, with live music, special tours, and refreshments. This first free Thursday Art After Dark will feature a performance by singer/songwriter Josh Miles, a chef demonstration, a Curator Conversation with Tim B. Wride on the “Imaging Eden” exhibit, a talk from Florida Wildlife Corridor Director Mallory Lykes Dimmitt about her group’s 1,000-mile, 100-day exploration through the Florida Everglades and into the Okefenokee Swamp in southern Georgia, and more.

The museum is also expanding its free Saturday admission to Palm Beach County residents from monthly to weekly beginning Saturday. The museum offers free admission year-round to Florida teachers and school administrators with valid IDs. The Norton Museum of Art is located at 1451 S Olive Ave, West Palm Beach. Call 561-832-5196, or visit norton.org.

Comedian Michael Ian Black has many irons in the fire, even if roughly none of them has crossed over into the mainstream. As he told an audience in 2011, “You guys may know me from such shows as Canceled, Comedy Central Presents No Longer on the Air, and my sitcom Two and a Half Episodes.” Humility will get him everywhere; actually Black’s résumé includes two of the most beloved sketch-comedy series of all-time, Stella and The State, whose inventive brand of humor found common ground between political satire and pop surrealism. An early episode of The State featured Sid Vicious and Nancy Spungen on an episode of $7,000 Pyramid; in another, the 9-year-old son of a sleepy suburban family misinforms the FBI that his parents are Nazi war criminals. It was destined to become a niche cult hit, perennially ahead of its time, much like Black’s style in general. A thinking person’s comedian with a penchant for pop-culture references, vocal grotesqueries, and left-field observations about modern life, Black continues to avoid mainstream stardom with his latest ventures, naturally adored by his cult and ignored by the masses: the brainy podcast How to Be Amazing and a Netflix reboot of Wet Hot American Summer.

See Black perform at the Fort Lauderdale Improv, located at 5700 Seminole Way in Hollywood, at 8 p.m. Thursday, 8 and 10:30 p.m. Friday, and 7 and 9:45 p.m. Saturday. Tickets cost $22. Call 954-981-5653, or visit improvftl.com. 

Friday, June 5

All sorts of craziness is supposed to go down on the full moon. Men turn into wolves. Witches fly on brooms. The term “lunatic” derives from the Latin “luna,” and it once was used to describe those who were affected by periodic bouts of insanity stemming from changes in the moon. The world, overall, is said to go a bit crazy. This month, it might be time to do something a bit crazy yourself, like get off the couch and out of the house. Beauty & the Feast, the global eclectic restaurant on Fort Lauderdale Beach, is hosting the June Full Moon Dinner Party, a celestially inspired soiree worth putting on those party pants for.Taking place Friday night on the oceanfront fifth-floor terrace of the Atlantic Hotel & Spa, the fete features a three-course meal of gourmet barbecue, a fireworks show, and plenty of entertainment to keep you going through the evening.

The cost to attend is $25, which includes entrance, dinner, and nonalcoholic beverages. Eating begins at 7 p.m., dinner starts at 7:15, and the party kicks off at 8. Reservations are required; seating is limited. Beauty & the Feast is located at 601 N. Fort Lauderdale Beach Blvd. in Fort Lauderdale. Call 954-567-8020, or visit society8.com. 

Seven years ago, while being interviewed for a weekly publication similar to this one, Lisa Lampanelli broke the ice with a preemptive question of her own, “So, you write for one of them weekly homo papers?” Since 2002, when she turned heads and busted guts on her first New York Friar’s Club celebrity roast with such characteristically unanswerable salvos, Lampanelli has burnished her reputation on profanities far worse than this one, peppering her act with liberal doses of n-words, c-words, and many other colorful descriptors you still can’t say on television. As with her major influence, Don Rickles, most of her politically incorrect humor came at the service of audience members who boldly accepted front-row tickets only to be prime targets of the so-called “Queen of Mean.” But something happened over the past couple of years: She changed, along with her act. The plus-sized comedian shed 100-plus pounds via gastric-bypass surgery, and her material has morphed from a torrent of crowd-based insults to personal anecdotes about her new life as a slim and single woman with an occasional Miley Cyrus coif. As she assured Howard Stern earlier this year, she may no longer hate her body, but “don’t worry, I still hate myself from the neck up; that’s a different operation.”

Lampanelli brings her “Leaner Meaner Tour” to Hard Rock Live, located at 1 Seminole Way in Hollywood, at 8 p.m. Friday. Tickets cost $44 to $64. Call 800-745-3000, or visit myhrl.com. 

Saturday, June 6

Sometimes heroes don’t wear capes and facemasks, don’t have fancy superpowers, and their good deeds — while much appreciated — fly just under the radar without much recognition. Take the volunteers who dedicate their time to care for surrendered, abandoned, or neglected former pets and animals that make their way to the Florida Humane Society, the 501c3 nonprofit in operation since 1993. Ask any four-legged pup or feline that received some extra TLC, a temporary home, or play time from one of these people and they would be deemed heroes, for sure. Saturday’s 5K Muttsquerade offers these folks and their supporters a chance to suit up in costumery and run or walk while raising awareness once again for the work the Florida Humane Society does. The day includes a 7:15 a.m. 5K human walk or run, a 7:20 a.m. dog walk, T-shirts, snacks, refreshments, awards for best costumes, and an afterparty at Hurricane Bar and Lounge (640 E. Atlantic Ave., Delray Beach).

Registration costs $30 for the 5K or $20 for the dog walk. Festivities will happen at Anchor Park, 340 S. Ocean Blvd., Delray Beach. The Delray Downtowner will give rides for runners who park at Old School Square Parking Garage. Register at exit52events.com. 

“Prom at the Coffeehaus is the prom everyone wants to go to,” says Undergrounds Coffeehaus owner Aileen Liptak. In its sixth year at the Haus, this above statement rings true and precisely because it’s not where primped prom kings and queens will park their rented stretch limos or drop some of the estimated $900 an “average” family will spend on prom this year. Instead, it’s because the independent coffee shop’s prom is the exact opposite, in the very best way, Liptak says. “You can bring who you want, dress how you like, and just be yourself. No pressure, just fun, coffee, and a ‘Prehistoric’ theme this year.” If you made it out to last year’s “Under the Sea”-themed prom, you’ll remember that costumes are strongly encouraged for the night. This year’s Prehistoric Prom inspirations are courtesy of Jurassic Park, Flintstones, Encino Man, and anything that speaks to your inner caveperson. So grab a Jeff Goldblum look-alike date (and hold onto him for dear life, because that is a rare and precious thing) and get on over to the Haus for high camp, music, movies, dancing, photo ops, snacks, caffeine, festivities, and a prop volcano.

Bonus: This free prom is all-ages, so those of us in need of a prom night do-over for the memory banks can find it here at Undergrounds Coffeehaus, 3020 N. Federal Highway, Suite 5A, Fort Lauderdale. Prom starts at 8 p.m., with musical guests the Necrophiles going on at 11. Call 954-630-1900, or visit undergroundscoffeehaus.com.

Sunday, June 7

While it seems that everyone has aligned himself with at least one niche category of nerd activity, we must take a moment to recognize that mainstay special-interest column of record people. Some are obsessed with odd press versions, imports, or incredibly obscure genre-specific flagship records. Some simply appreciate the aesthetics of owning physical copies of the records they love. No matter what the case may be, the level of fervor and enjoyment these people get from spinning musical discs is not something to be ignored. Your friends over at the Hollywood Vine-nyl Society are once again hosting their semiquarterly shindig. Twelve vinyl aficionados will be bring 50 of their own cherry-picked favorites to jam all afternoon. Described as “bringing your own deck of cards to a poker game,” there will be a throng of bona fide record addicts present to buy, sell, barter, or just casually brag about their personal gems. Whatever your level of vinyl nerdom, the presence of a fully stocked wine shelf and a 1950s-themed hootenanny should be more than enough to get you out of the house and over to that raging sock hop.

The Hollywood Vine-nyl Society will convene Sunday at Hollywood Vine Wines and Spirits, located at 2035 Harrison St. in Hollywood. The party is slated to go down at noon and requires no admission fee. Call 954-922-2910, or visit hvine.com. 

Tuesday, June 9

Support your local Picassos as they share their work at Saltwater Brewery’s Group Art Show from 7 to 10 p.m. Tuesday. The event will feature local painters and photographers, who will take over the Reef Room to present their creations, and also those spending the evening to appreciate art, good food and drink, and fun with community locals. Accompanying the artistic celebration will be food trucks for the hungry, live music to complement the atmosphere, and raffles to give away fun gifts to those present. The art show will give members a chance to win some art and meet the artists behind the work.

As part of Saltwater Brewery’s artists series, group art shows at the brewery take place the second Tuesday of every month, so your chance to hang out with cool local artists doesn’t end. Saltwater Brewery is located at 1701 W. Atlantic Ave. in Delray Beach. Call 561-865-5373, or visit saltwaterbrewery.com.

Wednesday, June 10

When it comes to parties, there is no better theme than the luau. It’s got everything: tropical music, decorative outfits, scantily clad people, pork, cocktails, you name it. Pretty much anyone who has ever thrown a fete has gone with the Hawaiian theme. None, however, compares to the Hukilau, a tiki soiree on steroids. Starting Wednesday, the four-day fest brings the retro celebration of Polynesian pop culture back to Fort Lauderdale for the 14th-annual event. It features numerous activities spread across town at venues ranging from the official hotel of the Hukilau — the Hyatt Regency Pier 66 and the B Ocean Hotel— to the legendary base of operations, the Mai-Kai. Tiki’s best barmen take over at Pier 66 on Thursday from 4 to 6 p.m., bringing mixologists from across the country, including Jeff “Beachbum” Berry (Latitude 29, New Orleans), Martin Cate (Smuggler’s Cove, San Francisco), Paul McGee (Lost Lake, Chicago), and Brian Miller (Tiki Mondays With Miller, New York City). There’s a three-hour cruise with Dawn Wells of Gilligan’s Island on Friday. Symposiums with Disney artists and an Oscar-nominated filmmaker will take place throughout the course of the Hukilau. Guests also have the chance to purchase exclusive merchandise and watch live entertainment such as exotica and jazz, surf, and rockabilly bands.

The cost to attend ranges from $5 for the most basic, one-event ticket to $130 for a Thursday-to-Sunday Aloha Pass. The Mai-Kai is located at 3599 N. Federal Highway in Fort Lauderdale. Visit thehukilau.com/buy-tickets. 

For more events happening in Broward and Palm Beach counties, visit our online calendar listings. Got an event you'd like to submit? Use our handy online submission form. Don't forget to include a photo.