‘Cigarette Surfboard’ screening at URI and other events | Your Weekend 401 guide to Rhode Island

Making surfboards as an environmental statement, a Laotian family’s journey documented in Woonsocket, and a mid-winter party at the Jamestown Art Center. Here’s what’s happening in Rhode Island this coming week

Taylor Lane with Cigarette Surfboards
Taylor Lane with Cigarette Surfboards.
Still from “Cigarette Surfboard” documentary by Ben Judkins
Share
Taylor Lane with Cigarette Surfboards
Taylor Lane with Cigarette Surfboards.
Still from “Cigarette Surfboard” documentary by Ben Judkins
‘Cigarette Surfboard’ screening at URI and other events | Your Weekend 401 guide to Rhode Island
Copy

Looking for some tips on what to do this weekend and beyond? We’ve got you covered. Here are a few recommendations from Ocean State Media afternoon host Mareva Lindo and Executive Producer of Audio Innovation James Baumgartner.

Cigarette Surfboard

During a 2025 cleanup of trash on Rhode Island beaches, 17.8% of the trash was cigarette waste. It’s a problem around the world and one surfer from California decided to make surfboards using cigarette butts found on the beach. The documentary “Cigarette Surfboard” follows his journey. The filmmaker will be at the screening to answer questions and show off a couple of the surfboards.

  • Where: Corless Auditorium at URI’s Narragansett Bay Campus
  • When: Wednesday, Jan. 28, 6:30 p.m.
  • Website: URI.edu

The Heart of Wattayai

from “The Heart of Wattayai” by Vimala Phongsavanh

“The Heart of Wattayai” by Vimala Phongsavanh features photographs and family keepsakes that trace one Laotian family’s story of loss, strength, and migration.

  • Where: Museum of Work and Culture, Woonsocket
  • When: On display through Feb. 28
  • Website: RIHS.org

JAC Frost ‘26

JAC Frost will feature immersive digital art by Julio Berroa
JAC Frost will feature immersive digital art by Julio Berroa
Jamestown Art Center / Yarrow Thorne

If you’ve got the mid-winter blues and want to go to a party with DJs, signature cocktails and immersive digital art, head to the Jamestown Art Center for JAC Frost ‘26.

  • Where: Jamestown Art Center, Jamestown
  • When: Saturday, Jan. 24, 7:00 - 10:00 p.m.
  • Website: jamestownartcenter.org
Trinity Repertory Company’s 49th “A Christmas Carol,” directed by Richard and Sharon Jenkins, offers a traditional but delightful take on Charles Dickens’ classic tale
An exhibit explores the stories of the oldest continuously operating jail in the country, two classical concerts to choose from, folk music from the Faux Paws and “A Christmas Carol” is back at Trinity Rep
The state senator shares his takeaways from the Washington Bridge hearing and weighs in on gun policy, health care strains, and the push for a new medical school at URI
A group of nonprofits from Rhode Island found themselves at the heart of a dispute over food aid that reached all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court
New research led by Brown University scientists suggests cannabis may curb short-term alcohol consumption — but raises big questions about swapping one substance for another