Eco-friendly events to explore

From Earth Day and Arbor Day celebrations at Potter Park Zoo to recycling events and second-hand sales, this weekend is packed with opportunities to decrease your carbon footprint and honor the Earth. There are also new art exhibits and theater productions, a 5K, a masquerade ball and much more.

For Friday evening’s live music, we have singer-songwriter Henry Herig at East Lansing’s Mash Bar at 7; folk musicians Katie Stanley and Kate Peterson at University United Methodist Church and an ensemble of local jazz musicians, led by saxophonist Walter Blanding, performing the music of Wayne Shorter at UrbanBeat, both at 7:30; Frog and Koop of blues-rock band Frog & the Beeftones at the Peanut Barrel and country musicians Trey Lewis, Hayden Coffman, and the Jessie Campbell Band at Grewal Hall at 224, both at 8; classic-rock cover band Medusa at the Green Door at 8:30; indie-rock bands La La Delivery, Blood at Ease and Leisure at the Avenue at 9; and post-2000s cover band JP & the Energy at Mash Bar at 10. Saturday evening, we have eight-piece band Stone Street Revival performing ‘60s and ‘70s AM radio hits at UrbanBeat at 7; folk-rock band Frontier Ruckus with country-rock band Flatfoot and singer-songwriter Lucas Powell at Grewal Hall at 224 and folk-rock band Kyle Brown & the Human Condition with instrumental rock band Moscow Mexico and singer-songwriter Aaron Johnson at Mac’s Bar, both at 8; and R&B, soul, funk and blues cover group Mixed Flavors at the Green Door at 8:30. Ending the weekend on Sunday is the Meridian Community Band at Williamston High School at 3 p.m., LCC music Professor Iskander Zakirov performing selections from three of Bach’s piano sonatas at Okemos Community Church at 4 p.m., the LCC Rock Band at Mac’s Bar at 6 p.m. and folk musician Ben Traverse at the Avenue at 7 p.m.

Art displays on view this weekend include the Mid-Michigan Art Guild’s “Artistic Visions” exhibit at REACH Studio Art Center, which is open by appointment; the Mid-Michigan Art Guild’s Spring Member Show at the Neighborhood Empowerment Center, which is open 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Friday; “Realm of Daydreams - The Wonders of Fantasy Art” at the Art Williamston gallery, which is open 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Friday; the annual Ingham Student Art Exhibit and “Transitory: A Study Of Human Anatomy & Our Own Impermanence,” a solo exhibition by Grand Rapids artist Thiago Porraz, at the Lansing Art Gallery, which is open 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Friday and Saturday; an exhibition by engineer and retired physics teacher Jack Hetherington at the Haslett Library’s Bookend Gallery, which is open noon to 4 p.m. Friday and noon to 2 p.m. Saturday; “Seeing in 360 Degrees: The Zaha Hadid Design Collection,” “DOOMSCROLLING,”  the 2024 Master of Fine Arts Exhibitionand the 2024 Art, Art History, and Design Faculty Triennial at the MSU Broad Art Museum, which is open 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Friday through Sunday; and “Corazón por La Justicia,” a social justice exhibit by eight Michigan artists, at Casa de Rosado Galeria & Cultural Center, which is open 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday and Sunday.

Peppermint Creek Theatre Co.’s production of “Alabama Story” wraps up 7 p.m. Friday and Saturday and 2 p.m. Sunday at Stage One at Sycamore Creek Eastwood, and “Murder on the Orient Express” wraps up 7:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday and 2 p.m. Sunday at Owosso’s Lebowsky Center for Performing Arts. Additionally, Williamston Theatre continues its run of “Bright Half Life” 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday and 2 p.m. Saturday and Sunday, and All-of-Us Express Children’s Theatre begins its two-weekend run of “The Wind in the Willows” 7 p.m. Friday and 3 p.m. Saturday and Sunday at East Lasing’s Hannah Community Center.

Events for the kids include the weekly story time and parkour workshop 10 a.m. Friday at AL!VE health park in Charlotte; an Arbor Day celebration noon to 3 p.m. Saturday at Potter Park Zoo, featuring tree-themed activities and free tree saplings to take home; an earring and keychain crafting workshop 4 p.m. Friday at Charlotte Community Library; a Campfire Science Night 6 to 9 p.m. Friday at Woldumar Nature Center, featuring hikes, hands-on experiments and s’mores; and an Earth Day celebration noon to 4 p.m. Saturday at Potter Park Zoo, featuring conservation-themed activities and demonstrations.

Delta Mills United Methodist Church will hold a rummage sale 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Friday to raise funds for local missions and nonprofit organizations.

Peckham Inc. will host a lecture by Not Impossible Labs founder Mick Ebeling 10:30 a.m. Friday (April 26) at its headquarters on Capital City Boulevard. Ebeling will discuss the idea of impossibility, “the underlying psychological effects it has on an organization, and how to overcome ‘impossible’ so true innovation can take place.”

Cristo Rey Community Center’s annual Run for Giving 5K run/walk begins 9 a.m. Saturday at Brenke Fish Ladder. The event will be chip-timed, and proceeds will benefit the community center’s direct assistance programs, including its community kitchen, food pantry, personal needs pantry and clothing closet.

Meridian Township will collect unwanted appliances, documents, egg cartons and latex paint at its Spring Recycling Day 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday at Chippewa Middle School. LAFCU’s west Lansing branch will also offer secure document shredding 10 a.m. to noon Saturday.

Local mothers will be selling unwanted baby and kids’ items at the Mom2Mom sale 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday at the Commons of Williamston.

Everybody Reads will celebrate Independent Bookstore Day with live readings by Michigan authors Cait West, Dawn Burns and Sara Moslener 2 p.m. Saturday. An open mic will follow the featured readings.

Friends of the Mason Library will host a Storybook Character Masquerade Ball 5 to 10 p.m. Saturday at the Veterans of Foreign Wars post in Mason to raise funds for library renovations. The event will include children’s activities, music and dancing with Sparty DJs, door prizes, a costume contest, a photo booth and appetizers. Meals and alcoholic beverages will be available for purchase.

The Lansing Art Gallery’s Bare Minimum event returns 7 to 9 p.m. Saturday, offering free beer and original artwork priced at $10. The art includes life drawings by Michigan State University students and paintings and sketches by local artists.

DeWitt’s Looking Glass Brewing Co. will host its monthly comedy show 8:30 p.m. Saturday, featuring Michigan comedians Nick Leydorf and Mike Stanley.

Finally, Tease A Gogo will hold a spring-themed burlesque show 9 p.m. Saturday at Country Creek Reception Hall in Dimondale. Singer-songwriter Matthew Shannon will open the show at 7:30 p.m.

Whatever you choose to do, I wish you the best of weekends.

(Have an event? Be sure to list it free at lansingcitypulse.com/calendar. Think it’s worth at least a short story? Send a news release to nicole@lansingcitypulse.com for consideration.)