‘35mm: A Musical Exhibition’

(Friday-Saturday, Nov. 17-18)

The Zootown Cabaret, an auditioned UM musical theater group, is staging an unconventional new show with Missoula ties.

In “35mm: A Musical Exhibition,” still photographs (seen on a projection screen) formed the inspiration for the music. New York composer-lyricist Ryan Scott Oliver, a rising star in the theater world, wrote songs in a variety of genres based on photographs by his husband, Matthew Murphy, a theater and dance photographer who grew up in Missoula.

Details: 7 p.m. doors, 7:30 p.m. show. $17 general, $10 students. Contains mature themes and language.

Bass loops take the lead

(Saturday, Nov. 18)

During the low points of 2020, Cole Grant, a bassist who plays with the local jazz-jam-improv group Transcendental Express, spent a lot of time jamming not with his friends, but a looping pedal.

That time turned into an album’s worth of short loops that he released as a beat tape.

He’s expanded that effort with a new project under the name C Dylla G. (The name’s an homage to the late producer James Yancey, who went by J Dilla.)

Quarantine long over, he brought in collaborations for a triple-album’s worth of new beats, each around a minute and 20 per record. You can hear work by saxophonist Lhanna Writesel, multi-instrumentalist Sean Burress, singer-songwriter Gabrielle Tusberg and former “Pea Green Boat” host Annie Garde.

To bring the loops to life for a release show, Grant booked Suite Two, a community performance space, and booked three artists that will interpret one album each: DJ Slacks, S_nya and Doctor Fly, plus visuals by Rainbow Gorilla.

Details: 8 p.m., $10 suggested donation. Suite Two is located at 1001 S. Fourth St. W.

Funksgiving at the Wilma

(Saturday, Nov. 18)

The Bozeman tradition of Funksgiving, now in its ninth year, is expanding to Missoula.

A ’70s costume party, in which the bands and the audience can dress up, has sold out the past three years in its home city.

The music is provided by the Sweet Groovalicious Funk Machine with some special guests: L.A. singer Adryon de Leon, Bozeman country singer Paige Rasmussen, and local vocalist Kelley Sinclair. Montana “power disco” duo Desperate Electric will open.

Some proceeds will go to the nonprofit Montana Land Reliance, which works with “private landowners to permanently protect agricultural lands, fish and wildlife habitat and open space,” according to its website.

Details: Tickets are $20 advance, $23 day of, logjampresents.com. Doors at 7 p.m., show at 8.

Stephanie Land reading at MPL

(Sunday, Nov. 19)

The Missoula author of the best-selling memoir “Maid,” which was turned into a Netflix series, has written a follow-up book, “Class: A Memoir of Motherhood, Hunger, and Higher Education.”

Released early this month, the book covers Land’s experience raising a young daughter on her own while finishing an English and creative writing degree at the University of Montana.

At this hometown celebration, she’ll discuss the book with local novelist and vlogger Hank Green.

Details: Free, 7 p.m. MPL Cooper Room on the fourth floor.

Original play addressing MMIP

(Sunday, Nov. 19)

A new play by a local Indigenous writer that addresses the epidemic of Missing and Murdered Indigenous People will get a stage reading this weekend.

“Can’t Drink Salt Water” is an original work by Missoula playwright Kendra Mylnechuk Potter (Lummi). She wrote and starred in an original full-length show, “The Buffalo Play,” which premiered in Missoula and New York. She was also the subject of a documentary, “Daughter of a Lost Bird,” about her adoption by a white family in Missoula and her search for her adult mother.

According to the Rep, the play follows two stories: “a mother’s relentless search to find her missing daughter with the journey of a young woman newly arrived at Bethel House, an evangelical shelter for victims of sex trafficking.”

The director of this reading is Pirrone Yousefzadeh and the cast includes Indigenous actors from around the U.S. and Canada, including Elva Guerra of the FX series “Reservation Dogs.” 

This is a staged reading, meaning there’s no set and costumes, and the Rep has committed to a full production in the future.

Details: 4 p.m., Montana Theatre, PAR/TV Building. Tickets are $5-$50 at montanarep.com. Recommended for adult audiences.

String Orchestra of the Rockies concert

(Sunday, Nov. 19)

The SOR’s final concert of the calendar year, “Musical Stars and Serenades,” features two soloists and a youth guest orchestra.

The soloists are the group’s music director, Maria Larionoff, a violinist and former concertmaster for the Seattle Symphony, and Adam Collins, cellist and professor at UM. They’ll take the spotlight on Vivaldi’s Concerto for Violin, Cello and Strings.

The orchestra’s “Risings Stars” group, which includes UM undergraduates and area high school students, will join them for Dvorak’s Serenade for Strings.

Details: 4 p.m., UM Music Building Recital Hall.

Glacier Symphony with Native poetry

(Saturday-Sunday, Nov. 18-19)

For “Vision Spirit Land,” the symphony has some special collaborations from an Indigenous poet and artist.

The centerpiece of the concert is the world premiere of “The Hunting Moon,” a symphonic piece by the group’s conductor John Zoltek. It includes nearly 15 poems by Heather Cahoon, a UM professor and member of the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes. The narration will be accompanied by guest soloist Suzanne Teng on flute. The pre-concert and intermission will feature work by Monica Gilles-BringsYellow, a Missoula-based Salish visual artist, and the concert will have two ceremonial songs by Kevin Kickingwoman, a Blackfeet artist, Browning High School instructor and the 2023 Montana Teacher of the Year. Besides Zoltek’s original composition, the concert features Ralph Vaughan Williams’ “Visions” and pieces by Samuel Barber and Dvorak, along with visuals.

Details: Saturday at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday at 3 p.m. in McClaren Hall at Wachholsz College Center at Flathead Valley Community College in Kalispell.

Quick hits

Local show at Free Cycles: The Benevolents (7 p.m.) and the Two Tracks (8:30-10 p.m.). The Benevolents are a local folk-rock-jam group; while the Two Tracks are a Sheridan, Wyoming, Americana outfit that recently released a new album, “It’s a Complicated Life” that was deemed to be “pure excellence” by American Songwriter magazine. Admission is $5 at the door, no one will be turned away for lack of funds. All ages. Friday, Nov. 17.

Locals at the Badlander: Catch a three-pack of old-school musicians with The Skurfs, Modular Haze and Bacon and Egg. 7 p.m., $10, on Friday, Nov. 17.

‘Napoleon Dynamite’ reunion: The cast of the cult film is celebrating its 20th anniversary with a screening and an on-stage discussion: Jon Heder as the title character, Efren Ramirez as Pedro and Jon Gries as Uncle Rico. Friday, Nov. 17, 8 p.m. Dennison Theatre, griztix.com.

Noise-heavy groups at VFW: Attendees of the late noise/heavy/anything event Total Fest may recall Gaythiest of Portland. They’ll play with local metal-doom outfit Swamp Ritual and a local noise-improv group whose name includes the word “Panic,” led by Tricia Opstad and Dusty Shriver. Friday, Nov. 17, $10, all ages, Doors at 8 p.m., show at 7:30 p.m.