The Delray Beach Historical Society dives for shipwrecks, a documentary discovers the American dream in former Pizza Huts, and indie darling Cat Power plays a hometown concert. Plus, Men at Work and more in your week ahead.
TUESDAY
What: “Shipwrecked in South Florida” lecture
When: 6 p.m.
Where: Delray Beach Historical Society, 3 N.E. First St., Delray Beach
Cost: $12
Contact: 561/274-9578, delraybeachhistory.org
Shipwrecks may have tragic backstories, but their permanence in our waters can have a beneficial impact on the communities in which they sink: They create artificial reefs and support marine diversity, boost ecotourism, and provide their own underwater history exhibit, 24/7. The latter aspect is of particular interest to the Delray Beach Historical Society, which will focus on shipwrecks’ historical value at this presentation, part of the institution’s “Summer at Sea” lecture series. DBHS Archivist Kayleigh Howald will discuss the array of vessels buried at sea in South Florida—from Delray Beach’s famous wreck of the S.S. Inchulva British steamship to some of the 112 offshore reefs created by shipwrecks in Fort Lauderdale alone. Refreshments will be served beginning at 6 p.m., with the lecture starting at 6:30.
WEDNESDAY
What: Opening (preview) night of The Shark is Broken
When: 8 p.m.
Where: Actors’ Playhouse, 280 Miracle Mile, Coral Gables
Cost: $40 (post-opening night performances $50-$95)
Contact: 305/444-9293, actorsplayhouse.org
Before Jaws became a universally beloved blockbuster that reimagined what a cinematic experience could be, it was an expensive shot in the dark for its young and largely unknown director, Steven Spielberg, who had to assuage a restive, bickering cast and deal with crises including a malfunctioning mechanical shark. These micro-dramas on the set of one of the most enduring American films of all-time is the subject of Ian Shaw and Joseph Nixon’s The Shark is Broken, a comedic play about the making of Jaws. Actors portray the main cast of Jaws—Richard Dreyfuss, Roy Scheider, and Robert Shaw, the father of playwright Ian—as their boredom, drinking habits, and frustrations with each other reach a boiling point across several weeks of filming, each of the players unaware they are making cinematic history. The play was well-received in both England and on Broadway, where it premiered in 2023. This regional premiere from Actors’ Playhouse stars Ian Batchelor, Adam Poole, and Wesley Slade, and it runs through Aug. 9.
THURSDAY
What: Men at Work with Toad the Wet Sprocket and Shonen Knife
When: 7 p.m.
Where: Pompano Beach Amphitheater, 1801 N.E. Sixth St., Pompano Beach
Cost: $43.59-$46.69
Contact: 561/223-7231, pompanobeacharts.org
Australian pop-rockers Men at Work have enjoyed a legacy that long outlasts their modest original run, which included just three albums from 1979 to 1986 before the original lineup dissolved. The band, led by singer, songwriter, and guitarist Colin Hay, peaked with its first release, 1981’s Business as Usual, which spawned the group’s three greatest hits—“Who Can it Be Now?,” “Down Under,” and “Be Good Johnny”—and spent 15 weeks atop the U.S. Billboard chart. Expect to hear nine tracks from Business on this tour, featuring Hay, the only member of the original Men at Work lineup, joined by expert interpreters from the Los Angeles music scene. Toad the Wet Sprocket, the ‘90s alt-rock hitmakers behind “Walk on the Ocean” and “All I Want” will play an extensive opening set, and we encourage you to arrive early for Shonen Knife, a cult act from Japan inspired by 1960s girl groups and the early days of punk, whose joyful sound can be heard on a staggering 24 LPs since 1982.
What: Cat Power
When: 7 p.m.
Where: ZeyZey, 353 N.E. 61st St., Miami
Cost: $46.20 ($86.75 for VIP)
Contact: zeyzeymiami.com
For an artist who has reportedly lived in Miami since 2003, Cat Power’s Chan Marshall doesn’t play South Florida as often as you’d think; her last headlining set, in Fort Lauderdale, was in 2019. This year, though, she’s starting the next leg of her tour close to home with this set in an emerging Little Haiti venue that opened in 2023. Since her early days as a formative punk and folk-influenced artist on the landmark indie label Matador Records to her most recent album—a song-by-song live recreation of an important 1966 Bob Dylan set—Marshall has explored myriad genres and musical flavors, from lo-fi to lush, blues to R&B. On this tour, she’s playing all of 2006’s masterpiece The Greatest, a tribute to Memphis soul which put Cat Power’s music on the map for many. The second half of the set will feature select hits and covers from an artist whose reinterpretations of classics—from Billie Holiday and Joni Mitchell to Iggy Pop, Prince, and The Replacements—has made her one of our finest chroniclers of the growing American Songbook.
SATURDAY
What: Screening of Slice of Life: The American Dream. In Former Pizza Huts.
When: 7 p.m.
Where: Lake Worth Playhouse’s Stonzek Studio Theatre, 713 Lake Ave., Lake Worth Beach
Cost: $9
Contact: 561/296-9382, lakeworthplayhouse.org
For all the artisanal pizza options Americans have at their disposal, Pizza Hut is still a behemoth in the fast-food industry, boasting some 6,000 locations nationwide. But these spots have survived the “strategic closure” of approximately 250 underperforming locations. So what happens to these former Pizza Huts, with their signature trapezoidal-shaped windows? This inventive 2024 documentary from directors Matthew Salleh and Rose Tucker follows several occupants who have moved into buildings once occupied by the iconic American brand, from a country bar to a gourmet restaurant to an LGBTQ+ church in Boynton Beach to a cannabis depot (“Bud Hut”). As the movie’s subtitle offers, the directors see these enterprising owners as embodiments of the American dream, coast to coast, each with a potent story to share.
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