Bob Baker Marionette Theater has agreed to buy its Highland Park home after a year of fundraising — the troupe has raised $4.5M but still needs funds to close and repair the building.

Cincinnati’s Cindependent and Over‑the‑Rhine festivals are merging into a single, more accessible Cindependent Film Festival set for Sept. 17–19, 2026 at Memorial Hall.

Yuvika Tolani will be the first permanent artistic director of Seattle’s Union Arts Center, starting May 4, 2026. Her appointment comes as the merged company scales programming downtown.

El Paso-born Greg Gonzalez surprised Coachella audiences by joining Karol G to debut a ballad the pair produced together, blending dream-pop and Latin-pop on the main stage.

A $50M performing-arts complex on the Detroit–Grosse Pointe Park border is nearing completion, promising a mid‑400s‑seat theater and the Manoogian art gallery. Organizers are finalizing an opening schedule amid lingering permitting questions.

The 64th Sakura Matsuri turned Pennsylvania Avenue into sumo rings, cosplay stages and a kimono‑clad Samoyed as roughly 40,000 people visited the street festival.

Big Chief Demond Melancon will take hand‑sewn Mardi Gras Indian suits and bead portraits from the Lower Ninth Ward to the Venice Biennale this spring.

CAMi opens May 1–3 in Garfield Park with free exhibitions, performances and neighborhood programming across a renovated 40,000‑sq‑ft campus.

The Pearl — the venue that reopened the Mercury Cafe at 2199 California Street — will close at the end of April, owners say, citing rising costs and failed funding efforts.

The Northern California Cherry Blossom Festival returns to Japantown April 11–12 with performances, vendors and big crowds. Expect street closures and a reroute of the 2 Sutter line.

County and city officials moved to smooth logistics for the Baywatch reboot in Venice Beach, promising a liaison and permit fixes to keep filming and local jobs in town. Officials say tighter daily coordination should protect beach access while production continues into July.

A last hurrah at Austin’s Paramount before a major restoration: Casablanca in 35mm, a Spy Kids 25th‑anniversary screening with a live family band, and an April Jedi preview.

The Burrow opened at 94 Miracle Mile as a members-driven salon offering intimate jazz nights and vinyl listening sessions alongside ticketed events.