🚴 Hike, cycle, and kayak with an outdoor club | Things to Do

Welcome to Father’s Day weekend! I’ve been lucky enough to spend a lot of time with my dad this month, playing music and singing together. How are you celebrating your dad/father figure/parent? Let me know!

This week’s lineup:

— Rosa Cartagena (@_RosaCartagena, Email me at [email protected])

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As summer heats up, you might be looking for different ways to explore this region’s rich natural landscape, whether that’s finding great places to swim, hiking trails, or opportunities to get on the water. If jumping in alone sounds daunting, you’re in luck — Philadelphia boasts a great network of outdoor clubs where you can bond with others while hiking, cycling, or paddling. See if one of these clubs might be right for you.

​⚽ Gooooal: Philadelphia is in the spotlight this month as one of 11 host cities for the FIFA Club World Cup. Welcome international soccer stars like Kylian Mbappé while catching matches at the Linc. Here’s everything you need to know.

🏳️‍🌈 World premiere: The first-ever authorized stage adaptation of James Baldwin’s beloved novel Giovanni’s Room — a story of gay love and anguish set in Paris — just opened at Philadelphia’s Quintessence Theatre. Read why it’s the buzziest show of the season.

💚 Ease on down: Head to Broad Street for the final weekend of The Wiz, the spectacular musical that (fun fact!) had its Broadway tryout in Philly’s Forrest Theatre 40 years ago. This vibrant revival still packs a lot of magic.

🎭 Incoming from Scotland: Following a run at the renowned Edinburgh Festival, the coming-of-age play Square Go has landed at Philly’s Inis Nua. The touching comedy centers on two teens preparing for a big fight in the boy’s bathroom. With stellar performances, the play is a true delight.

👗 Fabulous fashion: A piece of Philadelphia’s fashion history is on display in the Philadelphia Museum of Art’s exhibit “Boom: Art and Design in the 1940s.” Worth $36,000 today, the Balenciaga 66 dress traveled from Paris to Wanamakers. Even Nicole Kidman recently wore a version of the fascinating artifact.

🎭 New and old: A new opera from Liberty City Arts premiering this weekend revives historical feminist poets as characters onstage at Christ Church Neighborhood House. The Sisters connects Ancient Greek poet Sappho with 19th century writers Emily Dickinson, Elizabeth Barrett Browning, and Amy Lowell to reflect on womanhood, artistry, and their legacies through the music and libretto of composer Patricia Wallinga. The run is one weekend only.

📅 My calendar picks this week: Art for the Cash Poor, Culture Fest 2025, West Park Arts Fest

One of my favorite things to enjoy in the summertime is an outdoor art performance, especially when they pop up in unexpected places. The experimental dance work TERRA: Bodies & Territories, from Philadelphia choreographer Silvana Cardell, opens in the forest of the Schuylkill Center for Environmental Education this weekend and next. Dancers ages 7 to 70 will perform the immersive piece that, Cardell says, “both reveals and amplifies the threat of patriarchal domination over women’s bodies and natural spaces.” The all women and femme creative team includes Wilma Theater legend Blanka Zizka as a dramaturge. Don’t miss the accompanying exhibit, also on display at the Schuylkill Center.

🥔 Crunchy news: Herr’s annual potato chip flavor contest, Flavored by Philly: Crunch Off, delivers chips inspired by local restaurants. The winning flavor will become a regular Herr’s offering.

🎉 Freedom rings: Juneteenth is coming up next week and organizations across Philadelphia are hosting celebrations, concerts, and educational events, from a Juneteenth Jubilee at Bartram’s Garden to a block party at the African American Museum. Here’s where you can commemorate and celebrate.

🎥 Date night: Skip AMC and head to a local park for one of the many free outdoor movie screenings happening around town this summer. Catch Groundhog Day, Wicked, and more fun flicks.

🦩 Pretty in pink: The Philadelphia Zoo will soon welcome new residents — 14 African flamingos. Their arrival is part of the recently opened and expanded Flamingo Cove exhibit.

🍽️ Grand openings: This month will see 19 new restaurant openings in the Philadelphia region, bringing everything from vegan Puerto Rican food to smoked cocktails to an Alice in Wonderland-inspired tea house.

🚣‍♀️ Fresh trail: Kayakers will be happy to hear that the 15-mile Cooper River Water Trail, from Camden to Haddonfield, just opened 1,100 acres of previously inaccessible water. Learn more about this hidden gem.

Pop music critic Dan DeLuca breaks down the best upcoming shows:

🎷 Thursday: Indefatigable 101-year-old sax man and bandleader Marshall Allen keeps on keepin’ on: Sun Ra Arkestra is at the Music Hall at World Cafe Live.

🎤 Friday: At the Fillmore, Maryland alt-R&B singer Gallant plays upstairs at the Foundry, while downstairs there’s a ska-punk party with “Less Than Jake’s Summer Circus” tour, which features Fishbone, the Suicide Machines, and Bite Me Bambi on the undercard.

🎸 All weekend: There’s a full slate of shows in Atlantic City this weekend. The big one is Josh Homme and Queens of the Stone Age bringing their “The End Is Nero” tour to the Hard Rock on Friday. The “Happy Together” tour comes to Ovation Hall with the Turtles, Jay and the American, the Cowsills, and more on Friday. Guitar hero Robin Trower is at the Music Box at the Borgata on Saturday, and songwriter-producer David Foster is at Caesars on Saturday, with wife Catherine McPhee and trumpeter Chris Botti.

🎸 Sunday: Last year, Ringo Starr canceled a show with His All Star Band at the Mann on afternoon before the show, due to illness. On Sunday, the Beatle will be back at the Fairmount Park venue. The 84-year-old drummer and singer will, as always, be getting by with a little help from his friends, which in this case includes members of Toto, Men at Work, and Average White Band.

Read more music picks.

Thanks to the folks who shared the beach reads they’re most excited about this season! Sounds like we’re all getting into fantasy and horror in particular, but I’d love to hear from more of you about the titles making your summer reading list. Let me know!

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