THE ESSENTIAL A&E PICKS FOR APR 14 - 20 

• Ron Gatreau

Bren Smith: Sea Farming, Sustainability and the Future of Food
At the age of 14, Newfoundland native Bren Smith quit school and headed out to sea on a fishing boat. But as he spent more time in his career at sea, it started to become clear to him that the practices he saw were unsustainable. "Most of the fish I was catching was going to McDonald's," Smith said to PBS' NewsHour in 2021. "So I was, like, right at that peak of one of the most unsustainable forms of food production on the planet, producing some of the most unhealthy food on the planet. And that's when I began to realize, if I'm going to make a living on a living planet ... we need to change our relationship to the ocean."

Smith responded by founding GreenWave, a non-profit dedicated to regenerative ocean farming. In his 2020 "climate memoir" Eat Like a Fish, he chronicled his transition from fisherman to activist, and the steps he believes can provide a vision for the future. This week, he offers a presentation on "Sea Farming, Sustainability and the Future of Food," explaining how he bridges land and sea farming to create a new model that brings high yield with low impact.

The Natural History Museum of Utah presents Bren Smith in a virtual talk on Thursday, April 14 at 7 p.m. The event is free and open to the public, but advance online reservation is required in order to receive the meeting link. Visit nhmu.utah.edu/events/lecture-series/bren-smith for reservations and additional event information. (Scott Renshaw)

• Robin Roemer

Tig Notaro
After more than 15 years as a professional comedian, Tig Notaro became an "overnight" viral sensation in 2012 when she did a legendary set about her then-recent breast cancer diagnosis. The 2015 Sundance Film Festival documentary Tig chronicled Notaro's subsequent attempts to dive back into her career, wondering if she could live up to that legend now that she was no longer dying. And as it turns out she didn't have anything to worry about, at least professionally; the subsequent decade has marked a fertile run of acting gigs in movies and television, co-directing the 2022 Sundance comedy AM I OK? with her wife Stephanie Allynne, plus a still-thriving stand-up career showcasing her gifts as a deadpan storyteller.

Those gifts—and her determination to find innovative ways of telling a story—were most recently on full display in her 2021 HBO special Drawn, which found multiple gifted animators rendering the comedian and her colorful tales. That material ranged from nostalgic reflections on Kool-Aid Man commercials to the bloody aftermath of her experience getting her wisdom teeth removed, and even the unexpected appearance of a spider while she was on stage.

Tig Notaro visits The Complex (536 W. 100 South) on Friday, April 15 at 7 p.m. as part of her "Hello Again" tour. Tickets are $39.50 - $59.50; the presenter requires full vaccination or proof of negative COVID test within the past 72 hours for admission, and masks must be worn at all times while not actively eating or drinking. Visit thecomplexslc.com for tickets and additional event information. (SR)

• University of Utah

Utah Poetry Festival
It's a bummer that poetry is still perceived as such a rarefied art form, perhaps too closely connected to frustrating high-school English classes and the idea that poems are some kind of puzzle that needs to be "solved." The simple beauty of language, and its ability to evoke emotion through careful construction, means so much more than someone's lingering grudge against Donne or Keats. And if you're ready to begin mending your relationship with verse—or already have a perfectly happy relationship with it—the Utah Poetry Festival is waiting for you.

Celebrating April's National Poetry Month with in-person and virtual events statewide throughout the month of April, the Utah Poetry Festival offers its centerpiece events this week. On Friday, April 15 at 7 p.m., Utah poet laureate Paisley Rekdal (pictured) hosts a virtual reading of new work from books by Utah poets Jay Hopler, Kimberly Johnson and Nan Seymour. Saturday, April 16 brings several roundtable and "craft talk" online events, including a panel for teachers, a discussion of poetic structure and tips on organizing a poetry manuscript. And that evening, at 7 p.m., Rekdal hosts another reading with Danielle Dubrasky, Nancy Takacs and John Belk.

For most of these virtual events, you can register via the event website at utahpoetryfestival.com. Additional in-person events are also available, including a Queer Poetry Night on Sunday, April 17 at Under the Umbrella Bookstore (511 W. 200 South, Suite 120). Visit utahpoetryfestival.com for the full festival schedule of events and their locations. (SR)

• Courtesy of the Artist

loveDANCEmore Spring Artist-in-Residence Performance: Nora Lang & Jordan Danielle
Spring is a time of new emergence—and while we understandably associate that idea mostly with the natural world, it's also a perfect time for the emergence of fresh new artistic voices. The Salt Lake City-based dance organization loveDANCEmore gets into this spirit with the first of two spring programs showcasing work by four of the company's artists-in-residence.

The first of the performances features Nora Lang and Jordan Danielle, with a thematic component centered loosely around gender identity. Lang's piece (pictured) is described by the artist as representing "fairy tales infused with a cast of trans and non-binary dancers," attempting to reclaim the queerness excised from such stories by traditional Christian values. New Jersey native Danielle reprises their work I'm usually finding myself somewhere at 3 am, which began its development in 2021 as part of loveDANCEmore's Sunday Series.

The performance by Lang & Danielle takes place April 15 – 16 at Sunset Studios (1400 S. Main St.) beginning at 7:30 p.m. nightly. While the event is free and open to the public, reservations are recommended, and $15 per person donation is encouraged, either online or at the door. A virtual presentation will also be available via the organization's website on April 22-23. The second artist-in-residence program is scheduled for May 6-7 at the International Peace Garden, featuring work by Mitsu Salmon and Nora Price. Visit lovedancemore.org for reservations, donations and additional event information. (SR)