5 Things To Do This Weekend, From An Annual Big Head Festival To Acrobatics At ArtsEmerson

Are you counting down the days to the weekend like I am? Get a head start on planning and check out these events happening in Boston proper and beyond.

As a kid, I knew the National Center of Afro-American Artists not by its official title but as the "Big Head Museum," fondly referencing "Eternal Presence," the large metal sculpture that rises from a hill on the museum's grounds. The museum has been a cornerstone in the black community since it was founded by Elma Lewis in 1968. Each year, the museum hosts a community festival celebrating its history and its civic engagement in the neighborhoods of Roxbury and Dorchester. This family friendly affair includes music, local vendors, food, community yoga and art-making. The event opens with a ceremony that calls for an honoring of the earth and ends with a discussion on natural hair.

The circus arts extend past clowns and slight of hand tricks. Montreal-based circus troupe, The 7 Fingers, melds acrobatics, dance and performance in their show, "Passengers." The production opens ArtsEmerson’s 10th season, marking the production's U.S. premiere. The ethereal show takes viewers on a proverbial ride through the experiences of eight individuals who are traveling on a train. It reflects on body movement as much as it does on identity and belonging, reshaping the spectacle of circus art by attaching it to intensely human stories. (Read Jenn Stanley's feature about the production.)

Did you know that the Peabody Essex Museum is the United States’ oldest continually operating museum? It began as a space for wealthy, maritime 18th century Salem to store its treasures. Today, the museum has established itself as a destination of arts and culture, and as part of its continual expansion, the museum is opening a new 40,000 square foot wing. The wing isn't merely a place to store artifacts and art — the PEM wants to inspire conversation that helps viewers grapple with the problematic past of museums and the West's complicated relationship to the countries from which they acquired art. This celebration, free and open to the public, will include art-making, performances and a tour of the new wing. (Read this piece on the expansion of the Peabody Essex Museum.)

Gender parity in the film industry is still a point of contention — according to research conducted by the New York Film Academy since 2007, women are consistently underrepresented in the film industry, both onscreen and behind it. The Boston Women's Film Festival is the city's leading festival for international films created by women, featuring or highlighting the stories of women. The festival runs all weekend and has screenings across different neighborhoods in the city. Some films I'm particularly excited about are "Fast Colors," playing Thursday night at the Museum of Fine Arts and "Endzeit (Ever After)," a film that follows two women surviving the aftermath of a zombie apocalypse.

Looking for something artistic to do with the kids this weekend? Check out this cute, craft centered event at the ICA. Artists Brooke Scibelli and Dyllan Nguyen of Non Issue, a Boston-based art studio, will lead the session, working with families as they create hand crafting items. Children will learn useful artistic and composition skills while working on their projects and parents can choose to sit back or join the kiddos in their artistic endeavors. This event is free for up to two adults per family when accompanied by children ages 12 and under. Children under 17 are always admitted to the ICA for free.