Courtesy of Circus Flora
The Flying Wallendas.
June 2–July 3 | Circus Flora: Pastime
Circus Flora turns 30 this summer and pays tribute to its home-base city with Pastime, a toast to St. Louis’ favorite sport. Set during the 1950s, it follows the scrappy—and unbelievably acrobatic—Mound City Zephyrs. For more on Pastime, see Melissa Meinzer's preview here. Big Top in Grand Center.
June 2 | Picnic on the Riverfront
CityArchRiver invites everyone to the table for this picnic—and with a 2,016-foot-long table, there will definitely be room. Neo-ragtime pianist Ethan Leinwand kicks off the entertainment, followed by dynamic R&B band Good4TheSoul. The event wraps up with fireworks. There will be picnic food on sale, or you can bring your own. Of course, the point isn't the grub, but a chance to explore a newly remade riverfront area, featuring new sidewalks, new railings, benches, bike racks, and trees. Free. 5–8:45 p.m. Gateway Arch Grand Staircase, Leonor K. Sullivan.
June 2–25 | New Line Theatre: Atomic
The story of the atom bomb's creation is so weirdly mythic, it's been fodder for all number of books, operas, plays, and films. And now, it's a rock opera focused not on Oppenheimer, but the more overlooked—but just as interesting—Leo Szliard. Who better to debut this production than New Line, who's been dubbed St. Louis' "bad boy of musical theater" for the past 25 years? $10–$25. Marcelle Theater, 3310 Samuel Shepard.
June 3–26 | Shakespeare Festival-St. Louis: A Midsummer Night's Dream
Rick Dildine could make even the deadly dull genre of industrial video production interesting. So of course any Shakespeare production bearing his fingerprints is going to be magical. And that includes one of Wm.'s well-known, oft-produced Midsummer Night's Dream—this production is so innovative, you'll feel like you're seeing it for nearly the first time. (Check out this show preview for details.) Free. Nightly at 8 p.m., except on Tuesdays. Shakespeare Glen, Forest Park.
June 4 | John Hartford Tribute
Even if you think you don't know John Hartford, trust us, you know John Hartford: He's the guy who wrote "Gentle on My Mind." (Which you've heard at at karaoke, if nowhere else.) He wasn't just a prolific songwriter whose compositions were covered by artists like Glen Campbell, but he was also a riverboat pilot, banjo and fiddle virtuoso, poet, and TV comedy writer. Some of St. Louis' most accomplished Americana musicians—including Dugout Canoe, Lonesome Pines, and Root Diggers—pay tribute to his genius. $10, $12 day of show. Off Broadway, 3509 Lemp.
