There are plenty of ways to get cultured this weekend in Cleveland! See a workshop production of Mi Muñequita at Cleveland Public Theatre, view Force Majeure, the breakthrough film by Swedish filmmaker Ruben Östlund, compare Cleveland “then” and “now” at a new Heights Arts photography show opening, and join the community in brainstorming ways to enhance the Jim Mahon Green in Ohio City. 

In Case of No Emergency: The Films of Ruben Östlund
Thursday 3/5 6:30 pm — Force Majeure
Friday 3/6 9:35 pm —Force Majeure
Thursday 3/5 8:50 pm — Play
Friday 3/6 7:15 pm — Play
Thursday 3/12 6:45 pm — Involuntary
Friday 3/13 9:25 pm — Involuntary           
Sunday 3/15 6:30 PM —The Guitar Mongoloid       
Cleveland Cinematheque, 11141 East Boulevard
$7 for those age 25 & under. $9 age 25 and up.

Discover the darkly humorous world of Swedish filmmaker Ruben Östlund. Often described as equal parts satirist and anthropologist, Ostlund will be featured as part of a three-weekend-long series at the Cinematheque that starts Thursday. 

In Case of No Emergency: The Films of Ruben Östlund is a touring retrospective. It is traveling to 15 cities across North America and Cleveland and Minneapolis are the only Midwestern cities hosting it.

Östlund has been a rising star in Swedish cinema for over a decade. However, it wasn’t until his fourth feature film, Force Majeure, that he fully broke through as an artist. Force Majeure is one of the most acclaimed films of 2014. It Won the Jury Prize in Cannes’ Un Certain Regard competition and a European Film Award nomination for best picture of the year. Although the Polish drama Ida took the nomination, it was also shortlisted for this year’s Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film.

“Force Majeure is a funny, chilly, Kubrickesque drama about an affluent Swedish family on a ski vacation in the French Alps. But their trip is spoiled—and their trust shattered—by a brush with death caused by a sudden avalanche,” states Cinematheque’s website.

Mi Muñequita (My Little Doll)
March 5th - 7th
Thursday/Friday at 7 pm
Saturday at 7 pm and 10:30 pm
Cleveland Public Theatre
$12

Dark comedy has a way of making you both laugh and cry with its taboo and often wildly inappropriate sense of humor. This weekend, you’re invited to view CPT's workshop production of Mi Muñequita, a dark comedy or farce written by Uruguayan playwright Gabriel Calderón that will be performed, as written, in Spanish. 

This U.S. premiere is presented by Cleveland-based Latin American ensemble Teatro Publico and directed by ensemble member Dante Fernando Larzabal. 

“This weekend’s Mi Munequita show is going to be amazing—lively, bold and wonderfully entertaining,” says Cathleen O’Malley, CPT’s Director of Audience Engagement. “At the same time, audiences will be experiencing this exciting next phase of evolution for the Teatro Publico ensemble—a real 'game change' as far as emerging leadership from within the group…and for CPT as we connect with our longtime and new audience members across the gulf of language..”

Mi Muñequita is Spanish for “my little doll” and the play revolves around a dysfunctional upper middle class family and two brothers in a feud where the daughter is used as a pawn in a revenge plot. The young daughter enters a fantastical relationship with her baby doll, which is played by an adult actress who projects her as an ultra ego.

“It’s a satirical comedy about what goes unsaid in the sterile living room of an upper class family and how rage, betrayal and vengeance can simmer for years and can arrive in disastrous ways,” said O’Malley.

Since it’s a workshop production early in its development, the play will not be fully produced. CPT welcomes Cleveland’s Spanish speaking community as well as those with little to moderate Spanish speaking skills interested in experiencing theatre in another language. 

Due to sexual references and subject matter Mi Muñequita is recommended for mature audiences only age 16 and up.

Impermanence Opening Reception
Friday, March 6th 6 -9 pm
Heights Arts 2175 Lee Road
Free

Embrace the past and look into the future -- quite literally at the same time -- this Friday at Heights Arts. In the spirit of Cleveland's ongoing evolution, Heights Arts invites the community to view Impermanence, a photography exhibition that pair photographs showing the same view of a site at different historical times.

Using an academic approach known as “Rephotographic Survey,” each of the 11 photographers in the show reexamines the original photograph, first by finding the exact location and then recreating the details such as the time of day, season and where the original photographer was standing.

“Where the camera is positioned, plus its angle of view and depth of focus must exactly match the original composition,” explains guest curator and photographer Daniel Levin. “In some cases, it took real effort on the photographer’s end to get to the exact location where the original image was recorded. You may find you are now standing in the middle of a street, or an obstacle may now be in your way. In a few of the photographs, there is little to recognize from the old image. In others there are surprisingly only slight changes in the scene, despite decades or up to a century of time passing. Either way, these photographs are magical."

Embrace the change of downtown Cleveland, Ohio City, University Circle, Little Italy, and the Heights through photographs that parallel “then” and “now.” Impermanence is on view at Heights Arts through Saturday, April 18, during normal gallery hours.

Jim Mahon Green workshop
Saturday, March 7th
10 - 1 pm
St. John’s Church, 2600 Church Ave.
free

You may have driven past Jim Mahon Green for years and never known that it's a park and active green space. The two acre plot of land -- located in the West 30's along Detroit Avenue and butting up against the Shoreway -- could probably use some enhancements so that more people know about it and use it. This Saturday, join LAND studio and Ohio City Incorporated in discussing ways to enhance and activate this green space with incredible Lake Erie and Ohio City views. It will be a hands-on open house format workshop to share your ideas for this cool spot.