Select events happening in metro Detroit this week. Submit your events to metrotimes.com/calendar.
Aluna
Friday, Jan. 21: If you like electropop and don’t know who Aluna is, it’s time to fix that, and here’s your chance. The recently solo artist, who fronted British electronic duo AlunaGeorge, will bring her unique brand of experimental hip-hop and house beats to Deluxx Fluxx this Friday. While she previously performed as the vocalist for AlunaGeorge, this tour marks her first run behind the decks as a DJ. The Detroit pitstop is part of her Diskotek tour, which kicked off in Atlanta in December. Aluna has championed house and techno music as an inclusive space for Black, brown, and queer communities, and recently announced her own music festival to take place in New Orleans this May. Noir Fever, as it’s called, will feature a lineup of all Black artists. With a tour flyer featuring slogans like “cum c me dj,” “dressed like ur blessed,” and “dance music is b(l)ack,” we don’t expect anything less than a dope, all-night dance party from her Detroit show. —Randiah Camille Green
Doors at 8 p.m. at Deluxx Fluxx; 1274 Library St., Detroit; deluxxfluxx.com; Tickets are $15 in advance or $20 at the door.
Dance Theatre of Harlem
Saturday, Jan. 22 and Sunday, Jan. 23: After being delayed for two nearly two years because of COVID-19, the Dance Theatre of Harlem will finally debut “Higher Ground,” a new performance set to five songs from Stevie Wonder, at the Detroit Opera House. The performance, named after Wonder’s 1973 song of the same name, was originally supposed to premiere in Detroit in March 2020. Unless you’ve been living in an underground doomsday prep bunker for the last 60 years, you should know that Wonder is an absolute Motown legend. Last month the dancers visited the Motown Museum for a bit of inspiration. The program will have a two-day run, and also features a performance of Claudia Schreier’s “Passage,” which recognizes the 400th anniversary of enslaved Africans arriving in Virginia. —Randiah Camille Green
The program starts at 7:30 p.m. on Saturday, Jan. 22 and 2:30 p.m. on Sunday, Jan. 23 at the Detroit Opera House; 1526 Broadway St, Detroit; michiganopera.org; Proof of full vaccination or negative COVID-19 test within 72 hours prior required for entry (at-home tests are not accepted), and masks must be worn at all times. Tickets start at $29 and up.
George Clinton
Sunday, Jan. 23: The mothership has landed. Well, it will when George Clinton and Parliament Funkadelic bring the funk to Sound Board at Motor City Casino. For a while, it was rumored that the Prime Minister of Funk was set to retire. In fact, just before the panini, err pandemic, began Clinton and P-Funk went on a farewell tour in 2019, that included a stop at Michigan Lottery Amphitheatre at Freedom Hill. But now, all plans of retirement are off the table for the 80-year-old funk legend. Dr. Funkenstein announced his un-retirement plans to Rolling Stone in 2021, even going as far to say if he died on stage, he'd be content. “I feel good as hell right now,” Clinton told Rolling Stone. “So if I go out on stage, yeah, cool. ‘You went out funking.’" George Clinton and Parliament Funkadelic will funk up the stage one more time at Sound Board. —Alex Washington
Originally rescheduled from 2020 and June 24, 2021, tickets purchased for the original show dates will still be honored. Doors open at 8 p.m.; 2901 Grand River Ave., Detroit; 313presents.com. Tickets start at $48.
Revelations at M Contemporary Art
Through Feb. 4: Ten metro Detroit artists have teamed up for a group exhibition at M Contemporary Art in Ferndale. Featuring portraits, still life, and self-portraits in acrylic and oil paint, Revelations puts the talent and dedication of Detroit’s art scene on full display. The show celebrates a range of styles and skills from master painters like Richard Lewis, who has been a mentor to many Detroit artists (dude has a Master’s degree from Yale School of Art) to newcomers like Cydney Camp. Senghor Reid, the son of acclaimed artist Shirley Woodson, and the popular mural painter Sydney G. James also have pieces in the show. While the collection may seem rather simple, and perhaps a bit random to those not in the know, stories of defiance, self-discovery, and introspection lie beneath the layers of paint. The exhibit is on until Friday, Feb. 4. —Randiah Camille Green
M Contemporary Art is located at 205 E. 9 Mile, Ferndale; mcontemporaryart.com; Hours are Thursday through Saturday, 12 p.m. to 6 p.m. Entry is free, masks required.
Charles H Wright Museum of African American History
Through Aug. 22: Detroit's Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History will exhibit an extensive collection of King Tutankhamun's personal possessions starting Jan. 17, just in time for Martin Luther King Day. The exhibit opened Monday.
King Tutankhamun: Wonderful Things from the Pharaoh's Tomb will be on display until Aug. 22. The exhibit is divided into five sections — an introduction to Ancient Egypt, The Archeological Discovery, The Private Pharaoh, The Public Pharoah, and The Royal Burial.
On display will be a vast collection of gold glinted replicas including King Tut’s golden shrine, mummy case, chariot, and of course the bejeweled royal mummy itself. This year marks the 100th anniversary of the discovery of King Tut’s tomb. —Randiah Camille Green
The Charles H Wright; 315 E. Warren Ave., Detroit; 313-494; thewright.org. Admission is $15 for adults.
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