SEE BALLOON! One of the great holiday traditions returns to the skies over downtown Stamford. The giant helium balloons getting ready to participate in the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day parade in New York City prepare for a test run at the UBS Parade Spectacular on Nov. 23. Festivities—including marching bands, floats and more—step off at noon. UBS PARADE SPECTACULAR NOV. 23, NOON DOWNTOWN STAMFORD (203) 348-5285, stamford-downtown.com The Short List GETTING INSIDE ‘DARK MINDS’ Serial killer expert, author, host of Investigation Discovery series “Dark Minds” and Connecticut resident M. William Phelps is at the Goshen Public Library on Nov 18 to present “Dark Minds: It Takes a Killer to Catch a Killer.” He will be talking about cold cases, both here in Connecticut and across the nation. (860) 491-3234, goshenpublib.org. REAL HEROES On Nov. 2, downtown Hartford is proud to honor locals who have served this country in the annual Connecticut Veterans Parade. The parade starts at 12:30 p.m. at the intersection of Buckingham and Washington streets, then proceeds through the city, by the State Capitol and through the Soldiers and Sailors Memorial Arch in Bushnell Park. (860) 986-7254, ctveteransparade.org. THEY HAVE NOT YET BEGUN TO SEARCH Okay, they have begun the search, but no one has found it yet. “Adventure Series—Searching for the Bonhomme Richard, Flagship of John Paul Jones” on Nov. 20 at Latitude 410 Restaurant & Tavern at Mystic Seaport details the ongoing investigation for the wreck of the iconic Revolutionary War vessel. (860) 572-5331, mysticseaport.org. GILBERT, SULLIVAN AND FRIENDS For one night only, Troupers Light Opera presents An Evening of Operetta: Gilbert and Sullivan and Friends on Nov. 1 at Pequot Library in Southport. The evening will include selections from each of Gilbert and Sullivan’s operettas—H.M.S. Pinafore, The Pirates of Penzance and The Mikado, among them—plus other pieces from the group’s favorite works. trouperslightopera.org. GATHERING FOR THE HOLIDAYS What is the holiday season without A Nice Family Gathering? At the Burton Leavitt Theatre in Willimantic Nov. 7-16, the hilarious award-winning comedy by Phil Olson follows the first Thanksgiving after the passing of the patriarch of the Lundeen family—who has come back as a ghost to tell his longtime wife that he loved her, except she’s already got a date for dinner! (860) 423-2245, windhamtheatreguild.org. A WICKED RETURN The national touring production of the Broadway smash Wicked returns to The Bushnell in Hartford Nov. 5-23. Based on the The Wizard of Oz, the award-winning musical chronicles the story of the witches of Oz, their unlikely friendship and eventual bitter rivalry. (860) 987-6000, bushnell.org. See November 2014 calendar listings at connecticutmag.com/calendar Front row Alton Brown, the food show host seen on hits like “Iron Chef” and “Good Eats,” brings his “Edible Inevitable Tour” to the Palace Theater in Waterbury on Thursday, Nov. 13, at 7:30 p.m. The two-hour show features a variety of ingredients including stand-up comedy, extremely messy food experiments and music. Below, he shares some of his recipe for success. Tell us about the show—it seems like it incorporates a lot of different elements. It does. I believe it to be the first traveling culinary variety show. There is something for everyone. There is live music—I’m actually performing some of my food songs which I’ve never done before. Then there’s everything from things my “Good Eats” fans would recognize, like puppets and kind of sketch comedy, all the way up to two very large, very unusual culinary demonstrations that are not the kind of thing that anybody has ever seen before, unless they’ve already seen the show. How did you decide to add music? You can’t have a variety show without music. I spent a good bit of my teen years and early 20s playing music in bands and writing music, so I decided to return to that. I had let it go for years. I decided to get back into that again, reteach myself how to play guitar again enough to do it and start writing food songs, which I find to be pretty funny. The songs in the show cover a wide range of styles from country and western to rap, so I think I’m going to abuse every musical form that I possibly can except for perhaps the symphony. When you go out to a restaurant, what are you looking for? I tend to like food that tastes good… I like food that tastes good and is given to me without pretension, and a decent cocktail will also really help. I don’t like menus that change every day, I think it’s fine to have a couple of specials, but once I hook into a place and really like a particular dish, I want to know that it’s going to be there for a while. Have you explored the Connecticut food scene at all? I have not but I’m sure as heck going to when I get there. I’m going to be using a lot of social media to have my fans guide me through the culinary scene of every town I hit and I’m looking forward to doing that there. You’ve done a lot of different shows and projects, are there any that you’re particularly proud of? The high point of my career so far has been “Good Eats” because it was 100 percent my baby. I wrote the scripts, I directed 200 of the episodes. It was handcrafted pretty much by myself and a very, very close crew of professionals who are better than any other people I’ve ever worked with. If I were to die today, which I’m kind of hoping doesn’t happen, what I would hope to be remembered for above all would be “Good Eats.” But if I live a little bit longer, I like to think I’ll do something that will be better. Anything else we should know about the show? It’s very much a family show. I don’t think there are a lot of entertainment forms left that are appropriate for all ages. In this day and age family friendly usually means that it’s kind of stupid and it’s vapid and parents have to tolerate it. I would like to think we’ve put together a show that’s the antithesis of that. “EDIBLE INEVITABLE TOUR” THURSDAY, NOV. 13 | 7:30 PM PALACE THEATER | WATERBURY (203) 346-2000, palacetheaterct.org Theater Acclaimed playwright Branden Jacobs- Jenkins will make his Yale Repertory Theatre debut this fall with the world premiere of his latest work, War. Known for his sharply written characters who cut through the literary landscape to pull at the emotions we all share and tell stories that are intensely personal and difficult to define, his latest play is no exception. War tells the story of Tate and Joanne, who you meet at the hospital bedside of their comatose mother. Grief turns them bitter as they attack each other’s smallest words and biggest choices. Two strangers ambush the pair and make a shocking claim about their grandfather’s WWII tour of duty. “The word ‘war’ actually means two different things in English and German,” says Jacobs- Jenkins. “I like that something can look like one thing, but have two different meanings. I’m really interested in that slipperiness of language, the way it succeeds and fails us in defining ourselves and each other and our world—the sadness and the comedy—the theater of it, basically.” This play is described as an “all-too-human portrait of a family navigating the landmines of the past as they try to broker peace with each other—and themselves—in the present.” That description could be applied to most of the playwright’s work. But in the territory of family portraits where many other artists tread, Jacobs-Jenkins stands above. His play Appropriate, which The New York Times called “highly entertaining, sharp, and peopled with complex characters,” was awarded the 2014 OBIE Award for Best New American Play, along with another of his works, An Octoroon. War is being directed by Lileana Blain-Cruz, a graduate of the Yale School of Drama. Recently, she directed Christina Anderson’s Hallow Roots for The Public Theater’s Under the Radar Festival. War opens on Nov. 21 and runs through Dec. 13 at the Yale Repertory Theatre at 1120 Chapel Street. For more information, visit yalerep.org. Art Guilford Artistry ‘Tis the season for Guilford Art Center’s annual Artistry: American Craft s for the Holidays exhibition. Beginning on Nov. 1 and running through Jan. 4, 2015, hundreds of handmade craft s will be featured, including ceramics, glass, jewelry, fiber, ornaments, accessories, toys, specialty foods and more. The exhibition showcases the efforts of more than 250 artists, all of whom are American, with the majority from New England, including a large Connecticut contingent, which is key to the center’s mission of supporting local talent. “The opportunity to buy American-made goods is always appealing,” says Maureen Belden, executive director of the arts center, who notes that the exhibition has been ongoing for more than 30 years. “It’s a beloved, historical event. The creativity never ceases to amaze.” An opening reception will be held on Nov. 6 from 5 to 8 p.m.; it is free and open to the public. Belden points out that the exhibition is juried, which means plenty of high-quality pieces for eager shoppers who are searching for one-of-a-kind gift s. “It’s really great for someone who is seeking something special,” she says, adding that there will be works from many old favorites as well as plenty of items from a cadre of new artists. Personal shoppers are available for gift -giving advice, and the center’s entire gallery and shop will be dedicated to Artistry. Belden also notes that new works will constantly be added as pieces are sold, so the show of the first week will be entirely different than the one a few weeks later. As Belden says, “Expect the unexpected.” Proceeds from Artistry benefit the exhibiting artists and the center’s educational and community programs. Hours are Monday through Saturday, 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., and Sunday noon to 5 p.m. (203) 453-5947, guilfordartcenter.org History Taking Flight For whatever reason, the long, illustrious history of aviation seems like a boys’ club, with the exploits of male pioneers, innovators and heroes dominating the discussion. But they were hardly alone in mastering the wild blue yonder—and we’re not just talking about stewardesses, either. “Women’s contributions have been critical, but you don’t always read about them,” says Caroline d’Otreppe, Director of Educational Programs at the New England Air Museum in Windsor Locks, which on Nov. 2 hosts “Women Take Flight,” an event that features the extraordinary women who have been critical in the evolution of aviation. “Connecticut has been actively involved in aviation history, from the first balloon flights on the New Haven green in the late 1700s and pursuing technology. As time went by, it broadened to women—the World War II years really required women to step up to the plate.” And step up they did, taking active roles in designing, building and piloting aircraft and eventually, spacecraft. “Women Take Flight” will include more than 25 of these pioneers as well as a number of re-enactors portraying women critical to early aviation history. Visitors will be able to interact one-on-one with these special guests. Among those expected to attend are: Bee Haydu, World War II Woman Air Force Service Pilot (WASP) and recipient of the Congressional Medal of Honor; Nagin Cox, a Jet Propulsion Laboratories engineer on the team that developed and operated the Curiosity Rover on Mars; Patricia Beckman, Commander U.S. Navy (retired), flight test navigator and first woman qualified as a crewmember in the F-15 and F-18; Lucy Young, commercial and Navy fighter pilot; Terry VandenDolder, American Airlines and U.S. Air Force pilot (retired); and Trish Margarido, medic with Life Star. Visitors will also enjoy hands-on activities, see examples of women’s work in aviation and hear about careers and other amazing experiences in aviation and aerospace. As d’Otreppe says, “There are lots of interesting stories to tell.” (860) 623-3305, neam.org