Monday's blah, but your week doesn't have to be. So, here are some hip haunts and choice events to hit up:
"OUR TOWN." MODERN. WITH A TWIST: Book over to Clare Hall as a deft & dressed-du-jour troupe turns the page on this riveting rethinking of an American standard, based on David Cromer's long-running Off-Broadway staging. Kevin Ferguson directs as our town raises the curtain on "Our Town," in a mod re-fangling of playwright Thornton Wilder's famed Grover's Corner community. When: Sept. 10-12, 17, 19, 24-26 & 26, times vary. Adults $15, students and seniors $12. Buy tickets | Clare Hall Performing Arts Center St. Francis of Assisi
BULL DURHAM BLUES FESTIVAL: "If Beale Street could talk," it'd tell you to slide over to Durham for some soul-stirring Delta-esque ditties in the "Blues All Around Town"-themed annual two-day tuneful treat. Saturday, get in the rhythm at DPAC as legendary cats Rock and Roll Hall of Famer Buddy Guy, Betty LaVette and The Wild Magnolias headline. When: Sept. 10 & 11, times and prices vary. Buy tickets | Durham Performing Arts Center
LEWIS BLACK: Rile up your inner rantster when Lewis Black — of "The Daily Show"'s spewing segment Back in Black fame — scours the stage at DPAC with his "In God We Rust" tirade of a tour. When: Sept. 10, 8pm. Starting at $30. Buy tickets | Durham Performing Arts Center
HOPSCOTCH MUSIC FESTIVAL: Get hopped (and scotched) up as Indy-hatched Hopscotch hosts a slew of homegrown, national and global talents for the three-day fest--to the tune of 120 bands across 10 venues; day parties strummed up by local labels; and a free Raleigh City Museum cultural series. Saturday, tune in to Local Time at Raleigh Times, as they pair with 88.1 to host one of a dozen free, all-ages day parties showcasing seven of Raleigh's best bands, an afternoon art fair and a for-purchase limited-edition Plastic Frame Press poster from Chris Williams (11a-6p, free). When: Sept. 9-11. Event prices and times vary. More info on Hopscotch
POPS IN THE CITY: Roll over to Raleigh Ampitheater as the North Carolina Symphony strikes a chord to wind down the waning days of summer and sets the tempo for their 2010-11 Season kick-off with a free outdoor concert. Go global in your backyard with a range of rhythms--from latin-flave favs to Handel & Mendelssohn masterworks to Broadway's best. Stretch the Sunday score with a pre-show prima performance--in sync with Hopscotch--by avant-garde sampling soundster and multi-instrumentalist Dosh, as he bends the boards with his electro and experimental tonal fusions. When: Sept. 12, 7pm. Free. More info | Raleigh Amphitheater
