From Newport stages to Woonsocket sounds | Weekend 401

Catch Alan Doyle live, Ballet RI on tour, a documentary on the history of podcasting, and Roomful of Blues celebrating a new album

Ballet RI’s “Pure Dance” program lands in Fall River, blending technical brilliance and expressive storytelling across choreography by Balanchine, Wheeldon and Yanowsky.
courtesy Ballet RI
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Ballet RI’s “Pure Dance” program lands in Fall River, blending technical brilliance and expressive storytelling across choreography by Balanchine, Wheeldon and Yanowsky.
courtesy Ballet RI
From Newport stages to Woonsocket sounds | Weekend 401
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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.

‘Age of Audio’ documentary premieres in Rhode Island

Learn about the history of podcasting in this new documentary with some local connections. Featuring the voices of people like Ira Glass of This American Life, comedian and podcaster Marc Maron, and Providence-based Audrey Mardavich of Radiotopia, “Age of Audio” makes its Rhode Island debut with this special, one-time screening. A live panel discussion on independent podcasting will follow, moderated by filimmaker and podcaster Chuck Staton, featuring:

  • Audrey Mardavich, Executive Director of Radiotopia
  • Carl Byrd of Codex Podcast (Rhode Island’s Longest running Podcast)
  • John Balleste, a.k.a. JMACK of The JAMCK Experience
  • Christina Sev of The Spark Up Podcast

Director Shaun Michael Colón will also do a live Q&A after the screening.

From the “Age of Audio” documentary: Legendary radio personality Ira Glass of talks about the impact of podcasting on This American Life, as well as the success of enormously popular audio documentary series Serial.
“Age of Audio” still/[open-ended] films

Alan Doyle with special guests Bandits on the Run

Doyle, the “perennial merrymaker” of the folk-pop band Great Big Sea, just released “Welcome Home,” his fourth full-length solo studio album and 20th overall. Opening for him is Indie-folk-pop trio Bandits on the Run, touring the country in anticipation of their upcoming LP, “Rough Magic.”

Pure Dance by Ballet RI

My colleague James Baumgartner loved this show when he saw it in Providence, and now you have a chance to see it in Fall River! It’s a program that celebrates the “power, precision, and poetry of the moving body,” via three works by three choreographers: “Allegro Brilliante” by George Balanchine; “Liturgy” by Christopher Wheeldon; and “Fading Creatures” by Yury Yanowsky.

  • Where: Margaret L. Jackson Arts Center, Bristol County Community College, Fall River, Mass.

Roomful of Blues CD release party

The classic Rhode Island blues band celebrates the release of “Steppin’ Out.” Featuring lead vocalist D.D. Bastos, guitarist Chris Vachon, sax player Rich Lataille, and trumpeter Christopher Pratt.

  • Where: Chan’s in Woonsocket

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Though Mayor Brett Smiley said he plans to veto the Providence Rent Stabilization Act, city councilors appear to be one vote short of a veto-proof supermajority. Councilor John Goncalves, who has not taken a public position on the legislation, is seeking to delay the vote
Mayor Roberto DaSilva points to school investments, new housing projects, and a post-bridge recovery as key to easing costs and reshaping the city’s future
Museum curator Melaine Ferdinand-King says the museum will highlight the cultural and historical contributions of Black Rhode Islanders
Rhode Island Gov. Dan McKee lauded the bystanders who stopped a mass shooting in Pawtucket and called the team ‘an inspiration for all Rhode Islanders’
A Providence chef and cocktail bar move into the final round of the 2026 James Beard Awards
Without stoves or modern tools, participants learned to prep a full 18th-century meal over an open flame in a historic Rhode Island home