Weekend: Literature and lots of drama

Shane’s shout-out:

Derrick Freeman swept the hip-hop categories at the 2014 Best of the Beat awards, adding yet another accolade to the celebrated percussionist, vocalist, actor, and all around musical chameleon. His ace band, Smoker’s World, features a rotating cast of some of the city’s best musicians who lay down classic hip-hop grooves while Freeman delivers thoughtful, intricate rhymes. The band has been making a ruckus around town for the past year and heads to St. Claude for a show at The Hi Ho Lounge this Friday to kick off a busy month of shows.

Wednesday / Water works: This week The Louisiana Endowment for the Humanities kicks off a new reading series to spotlight local presses. LSU Press authors Craig Colten and Oliver Houck will discuss their new work, take questions from the audience and sign books. In Southern Waters: The Limits to Abundance, Colten addresses how the South can navigate the twin risks of too much water and not enough. Houck’s latest book, Downstream Toward Home: A Book of Rivers, recounts his six decades exploring America’s waterways, from unnamed creeks and Louisiana swamps to the rivers of western canyons and the Alaskan tundra. The event begins at 7 pm and is free and open to the public. Click here for the Facebook event page.

Thursday / Belle weather: It’s back! Gone With The Breaking Wind returns for a limited run at Mid-City Theater. Varla Jean Merman is back as the biggest belle of em all, along with Golden Girls Ricky Graham, Sean Patterson, Brooklyn Shaffer, Brian Johnston and Jefferson Turner, in this fan-favorite Southern spoof. Shows run Thursday through April 19, with performances Thursday, Friday and Saturday at 8 p.m. and Sunday at 6 p.m., at Mid-City Theater,. Tickets are $30, here.

Saturday / 50 years an Indian: Big Chief Victor Harris – FiYiYi – has masked as a Mardi Gras Indian for 50 years.Big Chief Fi Yi Yi has garnered local, national, and international acclaim for his creativity and exquisite suits; several were selected for exhibition at The New Orleans Museum of Art in 2008, while others are on view at the Backstreet Museum. The Vic Harris Committee and Backstreet Cultural Museum will celebrate the anniversary and his service to the community with music, dance, and commendations on Saturday, April 4, from 4 to 6 p.m. in the Georges Auditorium at Dillard University. The event is free, open to the public.

Big Chief Victor Harris gets a salute on Saturday.

Saturday / Drama reunion: Have you missed a few shows you wanted to catch at Cafe Istanbul lately? Here’s your chance to make up for last time. The Cafe Istanbul Mash-Up invites back all of the people who have performed there over the last four years: Mardi Gras Indians, musicians, magicians, trapeze artist, singers, comedians, poets, drag queens and any other performance artist who wants to perform. The cost of admission is whatever you can afford and there’s no requirement for entry. The last two Mash Ups were packed and awesome. The fun starts at 9 p.m. Saturday at Cafe Istanbul, 2372 St. Claude Ave.

Sunday / Easter picnic: The New Orleans Mission will host its third Easter celebration for the local community with festivities including an Easter egg hunt (10 a.m.), a variety of games for children, free barbecue lunch and a special performance by Christian rapper, Juan Champion, at 9:30 a.m. This day long celebration goes from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Sunday in A.L. Davis Park at LaSalle and Washington and is free and open to the community.

Sunday / Easter play: Celebrate Easter Sunday with a live stage play and visual media encounter. He Loves Me, presented by D.B. Morton Ministries, features singer and recording artist Bishop Paul Morton, presiding bishop of the Full Gospel Baptist Church Fellowship. The innovative production will benefit the D.B. Morton Arts & Entertainment Summer Camp. It takes place Sunday at 7 p.m. at Greater St. Stephen Full Gospel Baptist Church, 5600 Read Blvd. For more information about D.B. Morton Ministries visit www.debrabmorton.org. Tickets to He Loves Me are $15 here.