Fleetwood Mac (from left, Christine McVie, Neil Finn, Mick Fleetwood, Stevie Nicks, Mike Campbell and John McVie).
A roundup of arts events taking place around the state, through March 13:
POP/ROCK
• Fleetwood Mac brings its new lineup (with Neil Finn of Crowded House and Mike Campbell of Tom Petty’s Heartbreakers joining Stevie Nicks, Christine McVie, John McVie and Mick Fleetwood) to Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City, March 9 at 8 p.m., and the Prudential Center in Newark, March 13 at 8 p.m. The band’s setlists have been dominated by Fleetwood Mac classics though they also have been touching on Finn’s and Campbell’s past work.
• The Grateful Dead’s Bob Weir will perform with the Wolf Bros — bassist Don Was and drummer Jay Lane — at the Count Basie Center for the Arts in Red Bank, March 13-14 at 8 p.m. Was co-founded the group Was (Not Was) and has also produced or co-produced albums for artists such as The Rolling Stones, Bob Dylan, Bonnie Raitt and The B-52’s. Lane has played in Weir’s RatDog group as well as Phil Lesh & Friends, Primus, the Charlie Hunter Trio and many others. This trio also toured in the fall, drawing most of their songs from the Grateful Dead repertoire; the Basie shows will be their first in New Jersey.
• A Bowie Celebration: The David Bowie Alumni Tour is just what its title says it is. Musicians who backed the late David Bowie at various points of his career (including keyboardist Mike Garson, guitarists Earl Slick and Charlie Sexton, and bassist Carmine Rojas) or simply admired him (singers Bernard Fowler and Corey Glover, drummer Lee John) will join forces for an evening of Bowie’s songs. The tour comes to the State Theatre in New Brunswick, March 9 at 8 p.m.
• NRBQ — featuring original member Terry Adams (keyboards, vocals) as well as Scott Ligon (guitar, vocals), Casey McDonough (bass, vocals) and John Perrin (drums) — performs at the Outpost in the Burbs, March 8 at 8 p.m., with Big Mamou opening. The show will be at the First Congregational Church at 40 S. Fullerton Ave., Montclair. (For a chance to win two tickets, send an email to njartscontest@gmail.com by 10 a.m. March 7 with the word “NRBQ” in the subject line.)
SHEMEKIA COPELAND
BLUES
• The fiery blues singer-songwriter Shemekia Copeland will perform at the Rent Party concert series at The Woodland in Maplewood, March 8 at 8 p.m., with Shark Hat opening. Like all Rent Party shows, this one will raise money to help combat hunger in the community. (For a chance to win two tickets, send an email to njartscontest@gmail.com by 10 a.m. March 7 with the word “Copeland” in the subject line.)
• Roxy and Dukes in Dunellen will host a Blues-a-Palooza concert, March 10 at 3:30 p.m., to benefit the Jersey Shore Jazz and Blues Foundation. The Billy Hector Band, The Anthony Krizan Band and The Bob Lanza Band will perform.
FOLK
• The Pollak Theatre at Monmouth University in West Long Branch will present “Lonesome Traveler” — a touring version of a show that explores 20th century American folk, and has been presented off-Broadway and elsewhere — March 9 at 8 p.m. Peter Yarrow, who played a big part in that history as a member of Peter, Paul & Mary, will be featured as a guest star.
GEORGE WALKER, 1922-2018
CLASSICAL
• George Walker of Montclair, who died last year at the age of 96, became, in 1996, the first African-American composer to win the Pulitzer Prize for Music. The Montclair Orchestra will honor him at its 5 p.m. March 10 concert at the Central Presbyterian Church in Montclair, by performing his 1946 composition, Lyric for Strings. The program, which has the theme of “Lyric,” will also include Mozart’s Clarinet Concerto in A Major, K. 622 (with clarinetist Innhyuck Cho), Mozart’s Symphony No. 40 in G Minor, K. 550; and Olli Mustonen’s Nonet II.
• The New Jersey Symphony Orchestra performs with guest conductor Jun Märkl and pianist Ingrid Fliter at Prudential Hall at NJPAC in Newark, March 7 at 1:30 p.m. and March 8 at 8 p.m.; the Count Basie Center for the Arts in Red Bank, March 9 at 8 p.m.; and the State Theatre in New Brunswick, March 10 at 3 p.m. The program will include Debussy’s La mer and Prélude à l’après-midi d’un faune; Mendelssohn’s Piano Concerto No. 1; and Britten’s Four Sea Interludes from Peter Grimes.
FAMILY
• The Shakespeare Theatre of New Jersey at Drew University in Madison will present abridged, family-friendly versions of two of The Bard’s best, “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” and “Romeo and Juliet,” March 9 at 11 a.m. and 2:30 p.m., respectively. This version of “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” is appropriate for all ages; “Romeo and Juliet,” for ages 11 and older. In conjunction with the New Jersey Theatre Alliance’s month-long Stages Festival, two free children’s tickets will be offered for every paid adult ticket.
• The mathematical constant Pi (π) is roughly 22/7, or 3.14. And former Princeton resident Albert Einstein was born on March 14. And so March 14 (3/14) is known, in Princeton, as Pi Day. Pi Day Princeton, a series of events taking place on March 9 and 14, features a variety of activities — mostly free, and many related to pie, pi and Einstein — in various locations, including pie eating, pie throwing, pi reciting, an Einstein look-alike contest, an Einstein in Princeton walking tour, and live music.
BRAD OSCAR
THEATER
• The McCarter Theatre Center in Princeton will present the world premiere of “The Gods of Comedy,” a new play by Ken Ludwig (whose previous work includes “Lend Me a Tenor,” “Moon Over Buffalo” and “Baskerville: A Sherlock Holmes Mystery”), with previews beginning March 12, the official opening night on March 16, and the last performance on March 31. The cast in this play, which is about a woman who calls on the ancient Greek gods for help with her love life, includes two-time Tony nominee Brad Oscar as Dionysus.
OTHER
• Actor Gianni Russo, best known for his role in “The Godfather” as Carlo Rizzi (The Godfather’s no-good son-in-law), will sign copies of his book, “Hollywood Godfather: My Life in the Movies and the Mob,” March 13 at 6 p.m. at Bookends in Ridgewood.
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