“Have you seen my burlesque dancers?” ChrisK asked me as he handed out a flier for an exhibition of Neo-burlesque fashion design at the Intersections Gallery on 3933 Lancaster Avenue. Dressed in full burlesque regalia as part of a “roving exhibition,” three performers made their way up and down Lancaster Avenue like many of the other attendees of this weekend’s LOOK! festival, a two-month celebration of the arts that opened Friday on Lancaster Avenue. Spanning 36^th to 40^th streets, LOOK! is an extensive and diverse showcase of local work put on by the University City District.

A good few of the event’s 13 venues are reclaimed windows, storefronts, and in some cases whole buildings newly renovated for the event. At least one gallery built new stairs just for the occasion.

Much of the work on display was the recent output of local artists such as Randy Dalton, also a member of Dumpster Divers of Philadelphia. In the basement of the Community Education Center on 3500 Lancaster Avenue. Dalton’s Blue Grotto collected and arranged over 100 blue lights, curios, and ephemera to give this neighborhood’s art scene the “blue ribbon” it richly deserves, says the artist.

This street is lined with lots of different memories. At 3854 Lancaster, Melissa J. Frost installed an image from a punk show at Killtime, a venue located at this address from the early 1980s until 2003. Adding an interactive, technological flair to the event, a Drexel communications class presented “Augmented Avenue: Memories of Lancaster Avenue”, at the Projects I Gallery on 3820 Lancaster Ave. Using smartphone technology, students created phone-readable codes that correspond to certain locations in the neighborhood accompanied by short personal narratives of community members.

Other highlights included live funk and jazz, paste-up art works adorning telephone poles, and the debut of a guerrilla art installation on the roof of Dr. Kermit Gosnell’s now-infamous clinic where an incalculable number of people died under the doctor’s care. Like many of the pieces in LOOK! the installation called special attention to the building itself; a banner hung on the corner of the building with a collection of definitions of the verb, “regard”.

These exhibitions continue until Nov. 30. More information here.

– Jane

The Rotunda (4014 Walnut Street) will host three afternoons of children’s musical play “Becky Butterfly and the Story of the Wayward Wasp.” The first one is today at 3 p.m. The show is produced by Fantasy Weavers, a production company affiliated with the musical’s author, Philly composer Kate Quinn.

The play focuses on a wasp named Kevin who has been born a male worker in the female workers’ world (and gets bullied because of that by other wasps) and Becky the butterfly whose family Kevin bullies in turn. Basically, the message is: it’s okay to be different and bullying is not acceptable.

The show is free for kids under 10 years old. Adult tickets are $7 and $5 for students, seniors, and children over 10. Other shows are scheduled for Oct. 9 and 16. To buy tickets online click here.

The Project Theater Project (PTP), a community-based theater company that produces quality alternative amateur theater, is working on the production of the school edition of the rock opera RENT that will be staged here in West Philly. PTP’s objective is to foster positive social change and cultural development in our community by working with diverse and underrepresented groups, such as youth, the elderly, and the disabled. Local high school students were invited to participate in the auditions for this show.

Now that the auditions are over a fundraising campaign is underway to help make this production successful. PTP has set up a fundraising Indiegogo page for this purpose. Although the costs of attaining the rights have already been covered through the partnership with The Rotunda, they need to raise more money to help pay for staff, sets, sound, costumes and some other necessities. The goal is to raise $3,000 by the end of November.

In another fundraising effort PTP is hosting a benefit concert at The Rotunda (4014 Walnut St.) on Friday, Sept. 30. The concert will begin at 7 p.m. and will feature a wide range of local music artists, bands, theater companies, and teens from the show. For the full lineup check this page.

RENT School Edition is the second show produced by PTP (the first one was William Finn’s “March of The Falsettos” in 2008). The show tickets will not exceed $10 for adults and will be free for educational institutions and other community groups. Here’s a video interview with PTP director Rich Wexler about this project:

Dock Street Brewery will host the only Philadelphia’s screening of the new documentary Urban Roots on Tuesday, Sept. 20, at 8:30 p.m. The film, produced by Tree Media, tells the story of the urban farming phenomenon in Detroit.

The film follows a group of local farmers who are working to turn a troubled industrial city into a model of local farming and sustainability. It is a timely and inspiring film that shows hope for us all in a sustainable and prosperous future after the end of the industrial age.

The screening is free and Dock Street is donating $1 per beer sold during the screening to the Tree Media Foundation which works to put farms in local schools. The film will be screened on the new and improved projector screen. It is recommended that you arrive early to secure a seat.

Here’s a trailer:

Urban Roots Trailer from Tree Media on Vimeo.

Here’s a summary of a few events going on in the hoods this weekend.

Sustainable Saturdays: The West Philadelphia Local Food Series

Where: Various locations When: Saturday, 9:00 a.m. – 8 p.m.

The last in the Sustainable Saturdays series is tomorrow, Sept. 17, starting at 9 a.m. The theme is “Preserving the Harvest” and it includes workshops on canning and fermentation, the West Philadelphia Homebrewing Competition, a sneak peek at Mariposa Food Coop (4824 Baltimore Ave.), Apple Cider Tour & Tasting, and Philly Homegrown West Philadelphia Farm-to-Table Trolley Tour. Tickets are still available for the Homebrewing Competition ($7) and the Trolley Tour ($50). For more information and the schedule visit this page.

Clark Park Fall Equinox Festival & Uhuru Flea Market

Where: Clark Park “B” (43rd & Chester, around and in the Bowl) When: Saturday, 10 a.m. – 7 p.m.

The bi-annual Clark Park Music and Arts Festival (Fall edition) is also happening tomorrow, Sept. 17. The festival celebrates all things West Philly and offers a wide range of activities and entertainment, including live music (rock and non-rock), arts and crafts, kids activities, and popular food trucks and vendors. The music begins at noon. See the flyer for the full bands line-up.

This year’s last Uhuru Flea Market will be going on at the same time around the park’s Bowl. Check it our for some cool stuff, such as antiques, collectibles, ethnic arts and crafts, books, records, jewelry and more. If you want to help vendors unload or clean the park you can volunteer by calling: 857-233-7508 or email: philly [at] uhurusolidarity.org.

The open casting call for the locally staged, “school edition” of RENT has been extended with three more auditions. Organizers want young actors. Besides high school kids, college freshmen 18 years old and younger are now welcome to participate in the tryouts. For the open call instructions go to this page.

The extended audition process will include all day Saturday, Sept. 17, 10 a.m.-5 p.m., Monday, Sept. 19, 6-9 p.m., and Tuesday, Sept. 20, 6-9 p.m. The auditions are taking place at The Rotunda (4014 Walnut Street). Please email Rich at projecttheaterproject [at] gmail.com to make an appointment. For more information about this project go to Project Theater Project’s Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/groups/projecttheaterrent.