5 things to do this weekend, including play 'A Strange Loop' and 'Ancestors and Place' at the MFA

You don’t need a reason to want an escape this weekend, but if you do have a reason, there’s more than one way to achieve that. First, we have plants — plants everywhere in both a documentary about a local farm and an annual flower festival. Then, there’s also a wide selection of music including a new(ish) musical and a history-inspired celebration. It’s all here in your weekly roundup.

Worcester’s Mechanics Hall will hold a pay-what-you-can concert Thursday evening celebrating the newly unveiled portraits of Black Americans, each with a tie to the abolitionist movement, the city and the hall’s history. The portraits feature Frederick Douglass, who was among the hall’s earliest speakers, activist Sojourner Truth and William and Martha Brown, local entrepreneurs and advocates in the mid-1800s. The hall commissioned the paintings, and their addition marked the first time Black figures have been included in the gallery. Kathleen Gagne, executive director and co-chair of The Portraits Project at Mechanics Hall, told WBUR that the portraits would be used as a backdrop for educational programming about the Hall’s history as a place for change, and this concert is one of the first of such events. The evening will feature the Worcester Youth Orchestras, Worcester Chamber Music Society, Worcester Chorus Women’s Ensemble of Music Worcester, and several guest organists. The concert begins at 6:30 p.m.

The Glitter Boys are no strangers to sequined attire, but they’ll really be leaning into it for a special Vegas-themed edition of their long-running DJ set. The duo, who spin classic dance hits on vinyl, has a weekly show at the Sinclair, and every so often they bring their act elsewhere for a change of pace. This Saturday, they’re heading to the 3,500-person Roadrunner in Allston-Brighton for what the promotional material calls “a night of style and sin.” In addition to their usual tunes, they’ll also bring an extra flair with casino games, circus acts by the Boston Circus Guild and even a Vegas-style wedding chapel. Just remember, what happens in Roadrunner doesn’t necessarily stay in Roadrunner. General admission tickets cost $25.

“A Strange Loop” was the talk of the New York City theater scene during the early years of the pandemic and had already won a Pulitzer before even arriving on Broadway. The musical’s combination of humor, queerness and apparent meta-narration gripped audiences. Michael R. Jackson penned the book, music and lyrics and also starred in the leading role on Broadway. The story follows a queer Black man named Usher who works as an usher and also happens to be writing a musical about a queer Black man. The leading role in this production from SpeakEasy Stage and Front Porch Arts Collective will be played by Kai Clifton, who audiences may recognize as Sofia in Umbrella Stage’s “The Color Purple” or Ursula from the Palace Theatre’s “The Little Mermaid.” Maurice Emmanuel Parent directs. Tickets start at $25. If you want something a little more mythological, check out the national tour of “Hadestown” this weekend at the Boch Center. I’m usually skeptical of touring companies, but I saw this production last year at The Hanover Theatre in Worcester, and it was a musical joy. [Check out our spring guide for more theater recommendations.]

“Growing Through Covid-19” is about a 144-year-old, family-run garden center in Wayland, Massachusetts that met its match in 2020 when the pandemic swept the globe and upended nearly everyone’s way of life. The trailer opens with the line: “March and April of 2020 were probably the worst time of my life; COVID-19 put us a million dollars into debt.” Five generations of the Russell family have kept this farm growing and in business. The pandemic forced them to change, and they decided to document the experience. The documentary has received acclaim as an official film festival selection in New York, Wales, London and more. The film will be screened for one week at West Newton Cinema; tickets are $10. The 7 p.m. showing on April 27 will be followed by a Q&A with director Genevieve Skehan, producer Elizabeth Russell-Skehan and documentary subjects Tim and Dan Skehan.

At the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, a new exhibit on the artwork of Indigenous Americans comes at a fascinating time. After a recently announced policy change from the federal government setting timelines for certain objects to be repatriated to respective Native communities, the MFA and several other museums around the country announced plans to pull Native objects from display. “Ancestors and Place” pulls from a different class of objects. Most of the works come from artists in residencies at print studios that experimented and engaged with how many Native communities view the concepts of ancestry and place in more expansive ways than are commonly held. The exhibit includes artworks from rising and prominent artists, including Wendy Red Star, Jaune Quick-to-See Smith, James Lavadour and Raven Chacon. Although the works will be on display through October, there’s an added incentive to visit the museum this week: the 48th annual festival of flowers, which pairs plants with artworks across the museum.