Weekend spotlight: ‘SNL’ vet Fred Armisen; jazz and more jazz

In the 11 years he spent on Saturday Night Live, Fred Armisen was always one of the brightest lights. Never overshadowed by the considerable likes of Kristen Wiig, Bill Hader and Kate McKinnon, Armisen was a utility player who created indelible characters, made the audience laugh, made everyone else look good and even made the commercial breaks tolerable.

That was a particularly fertile era for SNL.

Mush-mouthed Stuart from The Californians, we’re looking at you. And Fericito the timbales player. And Lawrence Welk, Liberace, Steve Jobs, Prince and British punk rocker Ian Rubbish, who proudly supported conservative Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher.

He is also a dedicated music fan, and a professional drummer – he was the backbone, for years, of the house band on Late Night With Seth Myers.

Between 2011 and 2018, Armisen co-wrote and co-starred in the cult TV comedy series Portlandia. Then there was the often-hilarious Documentary Now! (with Bill Hader and others).

It should come as no surprise, then, that Armisen is also a standup comedian. His current tour, “Comedy for Musicians But Everyone is Welcome,” stops by the Tampa Theatre Saturday, for shows at 7 and 9:30 p.m. Find tickets here.

Jazz saxophonist Branford Marsalis, left, brings his quartet to the Central Park Performing Arts Center tonight. Publicity photo.

Jazz (all that)

The St. Petersburg Jazz Festival concludes with tonight’s performance by The Pershounin Quartet inside the Museum of the American Arts & Crafts Movement, a sleek and quite classy venue for a jazz, classical or acoustic concert. Double-bassist Alexander Pershounin, a member of the University of Florida music faculty, is quite at home in both jazz and classical settings. This quartet (bass, saxophone, drums/percussion and guitar), is strictly the former, with Pershounin’s original compositions “inspired from Latin, jazz, world and folk music.” Tickets for tonight’s 7:30 p.m. concert are here.

In Largo, jazz saxophone legend Branford Marsalis and his group are onstage at 7:30 tonight at the Central Park Performing Arts Center. Find tickets here.

Jazz saxophonist Dylan McHann at is onstage Saturday at The Studio@620, exploring the lesser-known works of Horace Silver and Cedar Walton. McHann’s band includes pianist Connor Rohrer, Cooper Madden on bass and John Jenkins on drums. Find more info, and tickets, at this link.

Concerts

Singer/songwriter Chris Stills (son of music legend Stephen Stills and his first wife, French pop singer Veronique Sanson) is onstage Friday at the Safety Harbor Art & Music Center. Find tickets at this link.

Progressive metal singer/songwriter Geoff Tate, who was the lead singer for Queensryche for 30 years, plays the band’s Operation: Mindcrime album in its entirety Friday at Ruth Eckerd Hall. Find tickets here.

The Florida Bjorkestra performs music from Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Dr. Horrible’s Sing-along Blog Saturday at the Palladium. Read all about this show in our story from Monday.

Country singers Lorrie Morgan (“Watch Me,” “What Part of No”) and Pam Tillis (“Mi Vida Loca,” “Maybe it Was Memphis”) share the bill Saturday at the Capitol Theatre. They’re both daughters of country music royalty – their fathers were, respectively, George Morgan and Mel Tillis. Find tickets here.

The Florida Orchestra’s concertmaster Jeffrey Multer will lead a performance of Vivaldi’s The Four Seasons at Centro Asturiano de Tampa, 1913 Nebraska Avenue in Ybor City, Friday at 8 p.m. The program also includes Symphony No. 39 in E-flat Major, K.543 by Mozart. Tickets are available here. (Saturday’s Mahaffey Theater concert is sold out.)

American Stage’s production of the musical “Hair” continues in Demens Landing Park. Photo provided.

On theater stages

American Stage is in its second weekend of a month-long run of the ‘60s musical Hair outdoors at Demens Landing Park. This weekend, it’s onstage tonight through Sunday (evenings only!). Find tickets here.

The Lion King is this week’s entry in the Straz Center for the Performing Arts’ touring Broadway season. There are numerous showtimes between tonight and Sunday afternoon. Find details and tickets at this link.

Martin McDonaugh’s dark comedy The Pillowman breathes its last with Sunday’s matinee. The Jobsite Theater production is also onstage (at the Straz Center, in the Shimberg Playhouse) tonight, Friday and Saturday. Tickets and info are here.

A touring production of “The Lion King” is onstage through Sunday at Morsani Hall in Tampa’s Straz Center. Publicity photo.

The Pershounin Quartet, Museum of the American Arts and Crafts Movement.

Your Weekend Spotlight appears every Thursday in the Catalyst’s CREATE section. 

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