Five Reasons to Leave the House This Memorial Day Weekend

Photo by Alex Lau

ART
MFA Memorial Day Open House

Admission will be free to all visitors at the MFA on Memorial Day, and guests can create their own art after browsing through the galleries, sketch live models in the museum courtyard, and take tours throughout the day. Special exhibits “Hokusai,” “Elemental,” and “In the Wake: Japanese Photographers Respond to 3/11” will also be open. “Everything is open for families to enjoy together,” said Linda Apple, Director of Volunteer and Community Programs. “It’s a chance to take a tour, explore on your own, and see some great art.”

Free, Monday, May 25, 10 a.m.-4:45 p.m., Museum of Fine Arts, 465 Huntington Ave., Boston, mfa.org.

MUSIC
Boston Calling Music Festival

What better way to kick off the summer than with the city’s greatest outdoor music fest? Boston Calling returns again to City Hall on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, with headliners Beck, Pixies, and My Morning Jacket. Food and beverages from Tasty Burger and other local vendors will be available, along with beer and wine for those 21 and over.

$50+, Friday, May 22-Sunday, May 24, 12:00-11:00 p.m., City Hall Plaza, 1 City Hall Square, Boston, spring.bostoncalling.com.

DANCE
Somerville Arts Council Dancing in the Streets

This street dance festival features local contemporary and modern dance companies performing all throughout the city in various parks, lots, and squares. This weekend, Quicksilver Dance, a Cambridge-based contemporary group, kicks off the series in Union Square Plaza. “It’s a unique series of contemporary dance spread throughout the city in non-traditional locations, like a basketball court and bank parking lot,” said Gregory Jenkins, director of the Somerville Arts Council. “We’re trying to take it into neighborhoods that may not get to see dance ordinarily.”

Free, Saturday, May 23, 5-6 p.m., Union Square Plaza, 75 Union Square, Somerville, somervilleartscouncil.org.

COMEDY
Last Comic Standing Runner Up at Laugh Boston

Looking for a way to ease into the long weekend with some laughs? Comedian Lachlan Patterson, runner-up of the last season of NBC’s Last Comic Standing, performs at Laugh Boston this weekend starting Thursday night. Recently, Patterson has also performed sets and made TV appearances on The Tonight Show, FX’s Legit and Comedy Central’s Tosh.0.

$25-$35, Thursday, May 21-Sunday, May 23, 8:00 p.m., Laugh Boston, 425 Summer St., Boston, laughboston.com.

DANCE
Boston Ballet’s “Thrill of Contact”

See Boston Ballet’s last performances of its 2014-2015 season this weekend with “Thrill of Contact.” This program features a collection of works choreographed by Balanchine, Forsythe, and Robbins, and also exhibits the world premiere of “fremd,” choreographed by Boston Ballet’s own principal dancer Jeffrey Cirio. On Saturday, ticketholders are invited to join company and principal dancers and Boston Ballet Assistant Artistic Director Russell Kaiser for a pre-curtain talk an hour before the performance.

$29+, Friday, May 15-Sunday, May 24, 7:30 p.m., Boston Opera House, 539 Washington St., Boston, bostonballet.org.