What’s Good: March 13-19, 2025
Our weekly guide to what’s going on around Buffalo and in the world of pop culture.
We’ve expanded our sports listings and given them their own space: check out The Sports Page for records, recent scores, and upcoming games from the UB Bulls and every Buffalo pro and semi-pro team.
Thursday, 3/13
Damar Hamlin (Mainstage Theater, UB Center For the Arts, 7pm, $35-$55/$5 UB students)
The beloved (and recenty re-signed) Bills safety talks about his devotion to charity work after his on-field cardiac incident in 2022, as part of the UB Distinguished Speakers Series.
Infekt (Iron Works, 49 Illinois St, 8pm, $24.50, 18+)
German dubstep artist. w/Chango, Riddim NYC, LAZ-R
Fred Mascherino (Rec Room, 79 W Chippewa St, 6pm, $23, 16+)
ex-Taking Back Sunday frontman. w/Holdfast, Hello London, GumShoe
Rockabilly Steve (Nietzsche’s, 248 Allen St, 6-8pm, FREE)
Roots rock with some zydeco thrown into the pot.
East Coast Dave & the Kitchen Crew (Nietzsche’s, 248 Allen St, 9pm-mid, FREE)
Tina Williams & Ed Croft (Duende, 85 Silo City Row, 6-8pm)
Crespobeats (Electric City, 433 Pearl St, 6pm, FREE)
The WBFO DJ spins in the club every Thursday from 7-9 and then live to air from 9-11.
Improv Mixer (Buffalo Improv House, 255 Great Arrow Ave #207, 7:30pm, $5 suggested)
Join in some low-stakes improv comedy, or just sit back and enjoy the show!
Poetry Open Mic & Game Night (Twentysixallen, 26 Allen St, 6pm)
Co-hosted by Sara Ali and Meg Specksgoor
Friday, 3/14
Tony Rock (Helium, 30 Mississippi St, 7/10pm, $32-$45)
Chris’ younger brother is also a talented stand-up, who’s also appeared in Think Like a Man and Real Husbands of Hollywood, and hosts Apollo Live and All Def Comedy Live.
The Pictures Generation (Hallwalls, 341 Delaware Ave, 7:30pm)
A screening of short films that directors Gretche Bender, Jack Goldstein, Robert Longo, and Sidney Sherman created while at Hallwalls in the mid 1970s. RSVP at Hallwalls.org
Continental Reunion Party (Electric City, 433 Pearl St, 7:30pm, $14-$40)
A tribute to Buffalo’s beloved ’80s/’90s goth club, featuring DJs Aaron Andrews, Arcatek, and Bud
Stravinsky & Ravel (Kleinhans Music Hall, 3 Symphony Circle, 10:30am, $16.50-$64.50)
A performance exploring storytelling in music, featuring Ravel’s Shéhérazade, and Stravinsky’s Pulcinella Suite, The Faun and the Shepherdess, and The Song of the Nightingale.
TopHouse (Asbury Hall, 341 Delaware Ave, 7pm, $28adv/$33, 18+)
High-energy folk/bluegrass/trad/rock. w/The Wildwoods
Castles and Creatures (Buffalo Improv House, 255 Great Arrow Ave #207, 7pm, $12)
An improv comedy show based on (but not affiliated with!) everyone’s favorite role-playing game.
Confessions (Buffalo Improv House, 255 Great Arrow Ave #207, 8:30pm, $12)
Improv comedy based on the audience’s anonymous confessions.
Honey Group (Rec Room, 79 W Chippewa St, 6pm, $6.50-$13)
DJ sets by Mvrbles, Ryan Dils, Mickey
Crikwater (The Caz, 2221 Seneca St, 6pm, $79-$84)
Local Irish trad group. Dinner included.
Consider the Source (Iron Works, 49 Illinois St, 7pm, $18adv/$23, 18+)
Instrumental prog rock. w/Mono Means One
Marabella Band (Nietzsche’s, 248 Allen St, 6-7:30pm, FREE)
Roots rock/Americana.
Brian Lindsay Band (Nietzsche’s, 248 Allen St, 7:30-9:30pm, FREE)
Roots rock/soul.
Freight (Nietzsche’s, 248 Allen St, 10pm, $10)
Ithaca roots rock. w/Tom Robert Band
LG7 (Rec Room, 79 W Chippewa St, 6pm, $23, 18+)
Album release party for Lady Gaga’s latest (*not a performance by Lady Gaga). Gaga drag, outfit ontest, and the new album played start-to-finish.
The Dave Hill Group (Pausa Art House, 19 Wadsworth St, 6:30pm, $15-$19)
The Skiffle Minstrels (Duende, 85 Silo City Row, 6-8pm)
Live Band Karaoke (Rec Room, 79 W Chippewa St, 10pm, $8)
Belt out your favorites in front of a live band.
New Movies This Week
Black Bag (in wide release)
Michael Fassbender is an intelligence agent who has to sniff out a mole — and one of the suspects is his wife (Cate Blanchett) in director Steven Soderbergh’s latest.
Novocaine (in wide release)
The always-charming Jack Quaid has a rare disorder where he can’t feel pain, and has to use this to his advantage when the girl of his dreams (Amber Midthunder) is taken hostage in a bank robbery.
The Day the Earth Blew Up (in wide release)
Warner Brothers have finally released this 2022 film, which pits Porky Pig and Daffy Duck against aliens.
Opus (in wide release)
A young writer (Ayo Edibiri) gets more than she bargains for when she visits the remote compound of a pop star who disappeared 30 years earlier (John Malkovich) to surround himself with cult-like followers (Juliette Lewis, Amber Midthunder, Tony Hale.
The Last Supper (Maple Ridge 8, Transit Center)
A drama about the last days of Jesus Christ.
The Electric State (Netflix)
The Russo Brothers (Avengers: Endgame) have gotten negative reviews from straying too far from the source material, a graphic novel in which a teenage girl and her robot travel across a dystopian 1990s America in search of her lost brother. With Millie Bobby Brown, Chris Pratt, Ke Huy Quan, Stanley Tucci, Giancarlo Esposito, and Jason Alexander.
Court – State vs. a Nobody (Elmwood Center)
A passionate defense attorney fights against prejudice and corruption in the justice system while representing a falsely accused teenager who the system presumes guilty. In Telugu with subtitles.
Dilruba (Elmwood Center, Transit Center)
An engineering student protects a woman from an abuser. They start dating, until a worse villain tries to come between them. In Telugu with subtitles.
The 4 Rascals (Bo Tu Bao Thu) (Walden Galleria)
A troublemaking foursome plot to “solve” a love triangle. In Vietnamese with subtitles.
Mithde (Elmwood Center)
Punjabi students contemplate going abroad after school. In Punjabi with subtitles.
Perusu (Elmwood Center)
A funeral becomes a fiasco when two brothers discover their dead father isn’t entirely gone. In Tamil with subtitles.
Saturday 3/15
Tony Rock (Helium, 30 Mississippi St, 7/10pm, $32-$45)
Chris’ younger brother is also a talented stand-up, who’s also appeared in Think Like a Man and Real Husbands of Hollywood, and hosts Apollo Live and All Def Comedy Live.
Johnny Mnemonic in B&W (Hallwalls, 341 Delaware Ave, 7:30pm)
Four years before The Matrix, Keanu Reeves starred in a different cyberpunk movie about uploading information to Keanu’s brain, in Robert Longo’s directorial debut. RSVP at Hallwalls.org
Good Neighbors! (Buffalo Improv House, 255 Great Arrow Ave #207, 7pm, $18)
An improv comedy show based on true stories from notable Buffalonians.
Downtown Buffalo St. Patrick’s Day Parade (Delware Ave, 2pm)
You don’t have to have any Irish in you to celebrate the Emerald Isle.
The Old Neighborhood St. Patrick’s Day Parade (Valley Community Association, 93 Leddy St, 11am)
The 30th Annual edition of this neighborhood tradition. Live music by the Reardon and Garvey Band.
Stravinsky & Ravel (Kleinhans Music Hall, 3 Symphony Circle, 7:30pm, $16.50-$64.50)
A performance exploring storytelling in music, featuring Ravel’s Shéhérazade, and Stravinsky’s Pulcinella Suite, The Faun and the Shepherdess, and The Song of the Nightingale.
The Living Braindead (Nietzsche’s, 248 Allen St, 8pm, $10)
Album release party. w/Smitten For Trash, Shambles
Iliza Shlesinger (Shea’s, 650 Main St, 7pm, $51-$94)
Shlesinger won Last Comic Standing in 2008, and has gone on to six Netflix specials and The Iliza Shlesinger Sketch Show.
Standard Living (Milkie’s, 522 Elmwood Ave, 4:30pm, $5)
w/Echolocator
Kriggy (Milkie’s, 522 Elmwood Ave, 8pm, $12)
w/Makeout Tactics, Romcom Victims, Silver Proof
Gates of Steel (The Caz, 2221 Seneca St, 3pm, $5)
Tribute to Irish and Irish-American punk, after Old First Ward parade.
Grub (The Caz, 2221 Seneca St, 7:30pm, $15)
Experimental funk trio from Niagara Falls. w/Merangutang
The King’s Highwaymen (Nietzsche’s, 248 Allen St, 7pm, FREE)
Local punk/Irish trad band.
Greater Buffalo Firefighters Pipes and Drums (Duende, 85 Silo City Row, 2:30pm)
w/Evan Anstey & the Old Ways, The Wazmopolitans
John Hasselback Jr. Quintet (Pausa Art House, 19 Wadsworth St, 6:30pm, $17-$23)
One of the world’s greatest baritone sax players.
Dead Flowers (Iron Works, 49 Illinois St, 2pm, 18+)
Rolling Stones tribute.
Floyd Live (Electric City, 433 Pearl St, 7pm, $33)
Pink Floyd tribute
The Town Pants (Iron Works, 49 Illinois St, 7pm, $24adv/$35, 18+)
Celtic roots rock.
Celtic Sessions (Nietzsche’s, 248 Allen St, 4-7pm, FREE)
Sunday 3/16
Cary Elwes (Mainstage Theater, UB Center For the Arts, 3pm, $40-$60)
The actor tells behind-the-scenes tales from the set of his most beloved film, The Princess Bride.
Tony Rock (Helium, 30 Mississippi St, 8:15pm, $32-$45)
Chris’ younger brother is also a talented stand-up, who’s also appeared in Think Like a Man and Real Husbands of Hollywood, and hosts Apollo Live and All Def Comedy Live.
Dirty Dancing in Concert (Shea’s, 650 Main St, 7pm, $56-$99)
A live band plays along with the film, whose soundtrack abruptly changes from ’50s period piece to totally ’80s.
Rachel Scanlon (Helium, 30 Mississippi St, 6pm, $30-$39)
This LA stand-up hosts the podcast Two Dykes and a Mic.
Folkfaces (9th Ward, 341 Delaware Ave, 1-5:30pm, $5)
Celebrate St. Patrick’s Day, as the parade passes by the venue.
Tom Keefer & Celtic Cross (The Caz, 2221 Seneca St, 4:30 doors/6pm, $10-$12.50)
WNY-based Celtic rock.
The Hunks of Funk (Nietzsche’s, 248 Allen St, 3-7pm, $5)
w/Evan & the Laed-keys
Goblin Hovel (The Cave, 71 Military Rd, 3-7pm, $12.50adv/$15)
w/Brave the Sea, Captain Tom
Jazz Cache (Nietzsche’s, 248 Allen St, 8:30pm-mid, FREE)
Rotating cast of Buffalo jazz musicians.
Monday 3/17
Leight Stoner (Nietzsche’s, 248 Allen St, 6-8pm, FREE)
Captain Tom & the Hooligans (Nietzsche’s, 248 Allen St, 8pm, $15)
$5-off Celtic costume discount. w/Crikwater, Part-Time Genius, Kidd Kyle & the Big Deal
Songwriter Showcase (Nietzsche’s, 248 Allen St, 8pm-mid, FREE)
Singer-songwriters from 8-9, and then an open mic for the rest of the evening.
Tuesday 3/18
Panorama of Being (Hallwalls, 341 Delaware Ave, 8pm, $8/$6 students)
Cinematic works by nine female media artists, including stop-motion animation (yay!), AI-generated imagery (boo!), video performance, diary films, travelogues, and mockumentaries. Part of the KLEX festival.
Spafford (Iron Works, 49 Illinois St, 7pm, $25adv/$30, 18+)
90s-inspired jam band.
Heavy Trip (Rec Room, 79 W Chippewa St, 7pm, $21, 16+)
w/Nine Layers Deep, Everhawk
Silver Arrow Band (9th Ward, 341 Delaware Ave, 7pm, FREE)
Watch the band play old and new material and do a Q&A, at this open rehearsal.
Steam Donkeys (Nietzsche’s, 248 Allen St, 6-8:30pm, FREE)
Long-serving “cosmic Americana” group.
Rust Belt Comedy Showcase (Nietzsche’s, 248 Allen St, 9-10pm, FREE)
A rotating cast of local stand-ups.
The Stripteasers (Nietzsche’s, 248 Allen St, 10pm-mid, $4)
Weekly burlesque show.
Open Mic (Cucina @ Hotel Richardson, 444 Forest Ave, 6-8pm)
This weekly open mic features music, poetry, and comedy. Register at jkonze@douglasdev.com.
Karaoke (Milkie’s, 522 Elmwood Ave, 8pm)
Wednesday 3/19
Buffalo Chamber Players (Asbury Hall, 341 Delaware Ave, 7pm, $28adv/$32)
The Ice Is Talking, featuring works by John Luther Adams, Vivian Fung, Anna Thorvaldsdottir, and Jan Dismas Zelenka.
Kevin James Thornton (Helium, 30 Mississippi St, 7:30pm, $39-$49)
Thornton’s comedy has over 700k TikTok follows, and he’s received widespread acclaim for his one-man show about growing up gay in a small religious town.
Terry Savastano (Nietzsche’s, 248 Allen St, 7pm, FREE)
Joe Wunderle (Nietzsche’s, 248 Allen St, 9pm, FREE)
Ohio singer-songwriter.
Comedy Open Mic (Milkie’s, 522 Elmwood Ave, sign up 7pm, show 9:30pm)
Everybody’s Live with John Mulaney (Netflix)
Mulaney’s freewheeling live talk show Everybody’s In LA returns, running weekly for the next 12 weeks.
