Culture Calendar: July 2015

What to do, watch, and see this month.

July 3–12: Copenhagen Jazz Festival
The Copenhagen Jazz Festival returns for its 37th edition, hosting more than 1250 concerts across 100 venues spread throughout the Danish capital. Acts like Kurt Elling, Larry Graham, Bill Frisell, and other stars from around the world will play jazz in all its incarnations, from modern to swing, and more. Some concerts have free admission; purchase tickets at the door or at jazz.dk or at the venues’ websites.

July 3–11: Karlovy Vary International Film Festival
This Czech film festival, founded in 1946, has grown to include screenings of more than 200 films from around the world, with an emphasis on features from countries in the former Soviet Union. Attracting as many as 11,000 people annually, Karlovy Vary has the added advantage of a picturesque European setting: it takes places in a quaint town known for its hot springs. This year’s star guests include Richard Gere, who will be promoting his film Time Out of Mind, and Jamie Dornan, who presents a new feature called Anthropoid filmed in the Czech Republic.

July 4: America's Best Independence Day Celebrations
Looking for something different this year? Check out our list of unique Fourth of July celebrations across the nation, from Bar Harbor, Maine's food-focused festivities to Capitan, New Mexico's Smokey Bear Stampede. See the slideshow »

 

July 6–11: Danny Elfman’s Music from the Films of Tim Burton
Fans of Tim Burton and Danny Elfman won’t want to miss this string of live multimedia performances at Lincoln Center, which follow sold-out runs in L.A. and London. The concerts bring Elfman’s film scores for movies like Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Edward Scissorhands, and The Nightmare Before Christmas to life on stage with an orchestra and choir, accompanied by projected images of Burton’s story boards, drawings, and sketches. Danny Elfman himself will appear to reprise the role of Jack Skellington from The Nightmare Before Christmas. From $45; Avery Fisher Hall; 10 Lincoln Center Plz; 212-721-6500.

July 9–12: Market Art + Design in the Hamptons
Market Art + Design debuts in Bridgehampton this year, with a new location and concept. As the new title suggests, the annual modern and contemporary art fair brings design to the fore for the first time this season, showcasing the works of design talents from across the United States alongside works by contemporary artists. The fair, housed in a new waterfront venue at Fairview Farm, kicks off with an opening night gala complete with live music, food, and art benefitting Peconic Land Trust, which works to support and conserve the heritage and farms of Long Island. For more things to the in the Hamptons this summer, see our update. From $20; 19 Horsemill Ln.

July 9–August 8: Vera Paints a Rainbow
Designer Vera Neumann was best known for her colorful scarves, textiles, linens, and tablecloths, which were extremely popular throughout the '50s, '60s, and '70s—Marilyn Monroe posed with Neumann's silk scarves in her last photo shoot. What's lesser known is that all of Neumann's designs started as paintings and drawings. This month, New York's Alexander Gray Associates puts these works on display in its new show, Vera Paints a Rainbow, where her watercolors, ink drawings, and collages cover a wide range of subjects—including bold geometric patterns, florals, and, of course, rainbows. For more on Neumann's artworks, read our story from the July/August issue. 510 W. 26th St.; 212-399-2636.

 

July 10–12: International Folk Art Market in Santa Fe
The annual market features more than 150 artists from Algeria to Zimbabwe, selling every conceivable form of folk art: ceramics, jewelry, sculpture, paintings, and textiles will all be on display. This is the 12th year that the market has been held, and it now attracts as many as 20,000 people, among them representatives from the top home and fashion brands in the U.S., all in search of inspiration. Accompanying the artworks, the market's International Food Bazaar offers shoppers a taste of cuisines from around the globe. For more on what's happening in Santa Fe this summer, read our guide to the city this season. From $15; 404 Kiva Ct.; 505-992-7600.

July 10: Cameron Carpenter at Tanglewood
The Julliard-trained, Grammy-nominated organist dresses like Billy Idol, self-promotes like Liberace, and he's made it his mission to move the pipe organ from the church to your headphones. Armed with a custom, high-tech touring organ and a flair for the dramatic, he's enraged purists, delighted critics, and rejuvenated the genre of organ music. Catch the action this month in Lenox, Massachusetts. From $10; 297 West St.; 617-266-1200.

July 11–November 15: Beauté Congo at Fondation Cartier
The Cartier Foundation for Contemporary Art will celebrate the painting and artistic output of the Democratic Republic of the Congo from 1926 to the present. Congolese painters in the 20th century brought the world around them to life in geometric and vibrant paintings that depicted village life, local legends, and nature; and later included political, urban, and social subjects in their works. The exhibition includes works from artists working in various media, including paintings, music, sculpture, photography, and comics. 261 Boulevard Raspail; 33-1/42-18-56-50.

July 13: Lin-Manuel Miranda’s Hamilton on Broadway
Hamilton, the acclaimed new musical from Lin-Manuel Miranda (the man behind the 2008 hit In the Heights), makes its Broadway debut this month, with a full opening in early August. Praised for its diverse cast and crackling, scrappy energy, Hamilton follows the journey of founding father Alexander Hamilton from his beginnings as an immigrant to his rise as an American statesman. For more on the show's surprising rise, read our story from our July/August issue. From $57; Richard Rodgers Theatre; 226 W. 46th St.; 212-221-1211.

July 14: Go Set a Watchman by Harper Lee
The long-hidden sequel to Harper Lee’s beloved To Kill a Mockingbird comes out this month amid a still-bubbling storm of controversy over the 89-year-old author’s ability to sign off on publication. Written in the 1950s, the novel follows the same cast of characters from Mockingbird set in the same Alabama town, but takes place 20 years later, although the book was actually written before Mockingbird. For an inside look into the book's setting, then and now, in Monroeville, Alabama—Lee's hometown—see our story from the July/August issue.

July 17–26: Napa Valley Festival del Sole
Napa Valley’s Festival del Sole, now in its 10th year, has something for every kind of visitor: jazz, opera, theater, and dance performances, as well as food, wine, and fitness events. This year, festivalgoers can attend a concert from renowned soprano Deborah Voigt, a performance of Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 by the Russian National Orchestra, and a gala hosted by Kevin Spacey. Taste of Napa, the festival’s food and wine event, will feature tastings from 70 wineries and restaurants. Passes from $39; 915 Trancas St.; 888-337-6272 FREE.

July 17: Ian McKellen in Mr. Holmes
The indomitable Ian McKellen stars in this latest portrayal of the Sherlock Holmes character as an older, retired version of the detective. Set in 1947 in a quiet English village, the now-elderly Holmes finds himself wrapped up in a case that he failed to solve 50 years earlier. Also starring Laura Linney and Milo Parker, the film premieres in the U.S. at the San Francisco International Film Festival on July 17.

July 17: Woody Allen’s Irrational Man
Woody Allen’s latest film is set in a small college town, with a plot that’s tied up in the affair of a professor (Joaquin Phoenix) and his student (Emma Stone). Debuting this month, Irrational Man is the final film to be produced by Allen’s long-time production partner Jack Rollins, who passed away on June 18. Rollins had worked on Allen’s films since the 1970s. Limited release

July 19: Waxahatchee at Pitchfork Music Festival
With her confessional lyrics, defiantly DIY aesthetic, and upper-arm tattoos, Waxahatchee's Katie Crutchfield, who performs later this month in Chicago, has been called "Lena Dunham with a guitar." But the 26-year-old feminist indie rocker with an Alabama lilt trades in a quieter, more honest kind of intimacy, spitting uncomfortable truths over spare guitar riffs that reveal a steely, savage core. From $65; Union Park, 1501 W. Randolph St.

July 21–26: Hemingway Days
Hemingway Days, a festival that seeks to commemorate anything and everything Ernest Hemingway, celebrates its 35th anniversary this year in the Florida Keys. The famed writer's affection for Key West endured through his life; he wrote and lived there throughout the 1930s. Various locations throughout Key West.

 

July 21: Our Man in Charleston by Christopher Dickey is Released
New book Our Man in Charleston tackles the drama of the civil war through the eyes of Robert Bunch, a British diplomat stationed in South Carolina. Sent to Charleston in 1853, Bunch’s role in the gathering conflict became one of a spy: even as his Confederate neighbors sought to convince him of the South’s good intentions, Bunch kept the British government fully informed of their true plans. Dickey, who has previously written books on terrorism and espionage, is currently the foreign editor of The Daily Beast. For more on Dickey and his book, read our story from the July/August issue.

July 22–August 30: Annie Baker’s John at Signature Theatre
The first installment from Pulitzer-wining playwright Annie Baker’s five-year residency at the Signature Theatre, John, will debut July 22. The play is set in a bed & breakfast in Gettysburg and revolves around a young couple and the inn’s owner, and stars Christopher Abbot, from Girls, as Elias and Hong Chau, from A to Z, as Jenny. 480 W. 42nd St.; 212-244-7529.

July 25–August 28: Bayreuth Richard Wagner Festival
The biggest event on every Wagner lover’s calendar, the Bayreuth Festival once again brings the composer's greatest operas to the German town this summer. As in previous years, Wagner’s Ring Cycle (four operas inspired by Norse mythology, including The Rhine Gold and The Valkyrie) will be the main event; but performances of Tristan and Isolde and Siegfried will also be staged during the nearly month-long festival. Founded, in part, by the composer himself in 1876, the festival is also held in a theater Wagner helped designed. From $34; Bayreuth Festspielhaus; Festspielhügel 1-2; 49-921/7878-780.

July 27–August 23: Cymbeline Alfresco
The 2015 season of The Public Theater’s free Shakespeare in the Park continues with Cymbeline after The Tempest finishes its run on July 5. Daniel Sullivan directs Lily Rabe and Hamish Linklater in this romantic and dramatic play, making it the third time the actors have teamed up for the series. (The duo also starred in The Merchant of Venice and Much Ado About Nothing in 2010 and 2014). Delacorte Theater, Central Park; 212-539-8500.

July 30–August 2: Seattle Art Fair
The Seattle Art Fair will make its debut on the world art stage this July with a roster of big-name galleries and collectors. The fair will be co-produced by Paul G. Allen, an art collector and a co-founder of Microsoft. To accompany the fair, public artworks by artists like Robert Montgomery and Wendy Red Star will be erected throughout Seattle. Blue-chip galleries including David Zwirner and PACE, both from New York, will both have booths at the event. From $20; CenturyLink Field Event Center; 800 Occidental Ave S.; 206-381-7555.

July 31–August 2: Newport Jazz Festival
The venerable Newport Jazz Festival is back this summer with a line-up sure to please jazz fans of all stripes, with artists like Jamie Cullum, Christian McBride, and Arturo Sandoval booked over three days of outdoor musical performances. The festival’s gala, held on Saturday night, will feature Cassandra Wilson, Michel Camilo, and The Breakers. For more local events this summer, see our story on what's new in Newport. Tickets from $40; Fort Adams State Park; 84 Fort Adams Dr.; 401-848-5055.

July 31: The End of the Tour: David Foster Wallace Biopic
After making waves at Sundance in February, James Pondsoldt's film about author David Foster Wallace opens in limited release on July 31. The film reveals Wallace's character by focusing on a single week-long road trip Wallace spent with the journalist James Lipsky, an experience the latter later turned into a book. Wallace, the author of the critically acclaimed novel Infinite Jest and other contemporary epics, died in 2008. For more on Ponsoldt's film, read our review here.

Image Credits: Courtesy of Mariane Ibrahim Gallery, Seattle; Courtesy Anyano Hisa.

sourced:departures.com