With spring break over, there are only a few weeks until April and the end of the semester. Though New England keeps teasing us with hints of spring (70 degrees Sunday followed by a snow storm Monday), it is finally time to break out the T-shirts and capris and stalk the streets of Boston once again.
Spring is the time for all the best concerts in the Boston area. This season will have performers like Lady Gaga (March 30 at the House of Blues), Sum 41 (April 30 at Harper’s Ferry) and No Doubt (June 20 at the Comcast Center) coming our way. Venues like Harper’s Ferry and the Paradise Rock Club feature local and national talent nightly and have reasonable ticket prices if you pay at the door.
Northeastern’s afterHOURS pulls in some quality bands as well, and we always have Springfest later this month, which inside sources tell me is looking to be awesome this year.
But if concerts are a bit too high speed for you, head to Central Square in Cambridge where the Cantab Lounge holds poetry readings every Wednesday. Admission is $3, and even if you don’t have poetry to read, the atmosphere is welcoming and the poetry isn’t all love sonnets and Robert Frost.
Those athletic souls out there probably already know about the NikeTown Running Club that meets Wednesdays at Nike’s Newbury Street location. However, those of us not as dedicated to running Boston’s slushy streets during winter may be more inclined to do so now that spring is around the corner. With April 20 and the Boston Marathon edging closer every day, NikeTown’s running club allows the chance to bring out the marathon runner in all of us.
Speaking of Newbury Street, most Northeastern students have probably heard of (or at least passed by) Boston’s iconic Johnny Cupcakes store ‘- and learned the hard way that they do not sell cupcakes, but rather, expensive T-shirts. What many people may not know is that Johnny Cupcakes and the Coolidge Corner Theatre host a monthly midnight screening of one of store owner Johnny Earle’s favorite films. Last month it was ‘Back to the Future,’ and this Saturday it is ‘The Karate Kid.’ Each screening is only $7.75 a ticket, and patrons can buy a Johnny Cupcakes-themed T-shirt there too, making it both economically feasible and a good fashion choice.
The Coolidge Corner Theatre in Brookline also gives viewers a chance to see classic films on the big screen ‘- though without a cool co-sponsor. Their upcoming 75th Big Screen Classics series will feature ‘West Side Story’ March 16 and ‘Annie Hall’ on April 20.
If you are still at a loss to find something to do to keep yourself entertained until the semester is done and you can go home to enjoy your summer vacation (or the start of summer classes/continuation of your spring co-op), then you might as well wander the street, my friend. There is nothing more beautiful than the Christian Science Center and reflecting pool in the springtime and there is always something going on in Faneuil Hall or Cambridge’s Harvard Square. Just make sure you get off the Northeastern campus and out onto Boston’s streets, because the city in springtime is something to appreciate.
‘- Terri Schwartz can be reached at [email protected].
