Diana Krall, the HSO and lots of comedy
Tributes abound for things to do in the arts scene the week of April 3 to 9. Diana Krall’s latest album honors her longtime producer, actor and comedian Roger Kabler presents a long-form impersonation of Robin Williams, and Marsha Mason revives interest in “Lost in Yonkers,” the 1991 comedy/ drama by her late ex-husband Neil Simon.
Dreamcatcher
Eclectic L.A.-based jazz guitarist Lee Ritenour performs April 3 at 8 p.m. at Infinity Hall, 32 Front St., Hartford. $39 - $59. infinityhall.com.
‘Next to Normal’
“Next to Normal” is about a family sharing their struggles with clinical depression, grief and catastrophic changes in their lives. The acclaimed musical, with book and lyrics by Brian Yorkey and music by Tom Kitt, is at Westport Country Playhouse, 25 Powers Court, Westport from April 5-24. Marcos Santana, who helmed “In the Heights” for the playhouse in 2019, serves as both director and choreographer. Performances are Tuesday at 7 p.m., Wednesday through Saturday at 8 p.m. and Sunday at 3 p.m., plus 2 p.m. matinees on
April 13 and 20. $35-$70. westportplayhouse.org.
Krall at The Bushnell
The intoxicating jazz singer and pianist Diana Krall plays at one of the best concert halls in the state, The Bushnell, 166 Capitol Ave., Hartford, on April 6 at 8 p.m. Her most recent album is a tribute to her producer Tommy LiPuma, who died in
2017, and includes stirring versions of such standards as “Don’t Smoke in Bed,” “How Deep Is the Ocean” and Bob Dylan’s “This Dream of You.” $69-$146. bushnell.org.
Mason’s Simon
Four-time Oscar nominee Marsha Mason is co-directing and starring in her late ex-husband Neil Simon’s Pulitzer-winning drama “Lost in Yonkers” April 7 through May 1 at Hartford Stage, 50 Church St., Hartford. The play is about boys sent to live with their domineering grandma (played by Mason) in 1940s Brooklyn. Performances are Tuesday through Thursday at 7:30 p.m., Friday at 8 p.m., Saturday at 8 p.m. and Sunday at , with added matinees $30-$100. hartfordstage.org.
‘Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga’
The band Spoon formed in 1993 in one of the coolest music cities of that era — Austin, Texas — and was one of the defining indie bands of the late ‘90s and early ‘00s, with such relatable songs as “The Way We Get By,” “The Underdog” and “Everything Hits at Once.” Spoon has stayed together, released its 10th album “Lucifer on the Sofa” earlier this year and is at College Street Music Hall, 238 College St., New Haven on April 8. Margaret Glaspy opens the 8 p.m. show. $35-$49.50. collegestreetmusichall.com.
Tony Woods at the Funny Bone
Black comedy legend Tony Woods, a founding member of both Def Comedy Jam and Bad
Boys of Comedy and an acknowledged mentor of Dave Chappelle, has three shows at the Funny Bone Comedy Club, 194 Buckland Hills Drive Suite #1054, Manchester, April 8 at 7:45 and April 9 at 7 and 9:30 p.m. $24. hartford. funnybone.com.
Rachmaninoff and Tchaikovsky
There are just two pieces on the program for the latest Masterworks concert by the Hartford Symphony Orchestra, April 8 to 10 at The Bushnell’s Belding Theater, 166 Capitol
Ave., Hartford: Rachmaninoff ’s Piano Concerto No. 3 in D minor, Op. 30; and Tchaikovsky Symphony No. 5 in E minor, Op. 64, TH 29. The guest piano soloist is Henry Kramer. HSO Music Director Carolyn Kuan conducts. Performances are Friday and Saturday at 8 p.m. and Sunday at 3 p.m. $38-$72. hartfordsymphony.org.
‘The King’s Jester’
Hasan Minhaj is a comedian, actor and comedy news star who shifted from “Daily Show” duties to 40 episodes of his own show “Patriot Act” from 201720
on Netflix. Minhaj is at Mohegan Sun Arena, 1 Mohegan Sun Blvd., Uncasville, April 9 at 7:30 p.m. $39.50-$94.50. mohegansun.com.
OK, boomer
The off-Broadway hit “The Boomer Boys Musical” by Billy Van Zandt, Jane Milmore and Wayland Pickard is a comic exploration of the male art of growing old ungracefully, featuring songs such as “His Prostate is the Size of a Buick,” “My God I Am My Father” and “The Colonoscopy Rap.” A tour of the show is at the Ridgefield Playhouse, 80 East Ridge, Ridgefield, April 9 at 8 p.m.
ridgefieldplayhouse.org.
Robin Williams lives on
Roger Kabler’s one-man show “Robin, The Ultimate Robin Williams Tribute Experience” honors the hyperactive comedy legend with a feature-length impersonation, followed by an audience Q&A with the doubtless exhausted Kabler. April 9 at 8 p.m. at Seven Angels Theatre, 1 Plank Road, Waterbury. $35. sevenangelstheatre. org.
Christopher Arnott can be reached at carnott@ courant.com.