Essentials: Entertainment Picks July 31-Aug. 6 

THURSDAY JULY 31

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Frank Buffalo Hyde
Art, like any discipline, has its own language, and an artist has his or her own vocabulary. In the artistic language of American Indian artist Frank Buffalo Hyde, fuchsia and bright blue, polka dots and stripes are not simply a decorative backdrop, but rather the beginnings of a distinctively ironic artistic vernacular. Buffalo Hyde—who's descended from the Nez Perce and Onondaga, trained in Chicago and has shown in Santa Fe and nationally for 15 years—paints with a language that speaks (in the old movie Indian cliché) with forked tongue, showcased in an exhibit beautifully curated by Audrey Zelia Smith. Buffalo Hyde paints Western and American Indian cultural references, and uses pops of color, polka dots and stripes to make bold statements about difference or otherness, the displacement of his people and the heritage of his nearly lost culture. He contextualizes with imagery like American Indian women in cheerleading costume doing highflying acrobatics, a buffalo placed on a hamburger—the iconic American fast food—or a portrait of Picasso in tribal headdress. "I-Witness Culture" (pictured) and "I-Witness Nature" are both vertical paintings of an iPhone held at arm's length—the former with a traditional Native warrior, the latter with a view of a landscape. In the background of each are colorful diagonal stripes. In both cases, Western modernity is juxtaposed with Native American heritage, emphasizing how their traditional culture and their land have been dismantled. (Ehren Clark)
Frank Buffalo Hyde @ Modern West Fine Art, 177 E. 200 South, 801-355-3383, ongoing. ModernWestFineArt.com

THURSDAY JULY 31

Sundance Summer Theatre: Fiddler on the Roof
Throughout the summer months in Utah, outdoor venues make use of the sunny weather and spectacular scenery to provide unique seasonal theater experiences. While some of those venues require a long drive and time commitment, the beautiful outdoor amphitheater at Provo Canyon's Sundance Resort offers a closer alternative for a classic Broadway musical. For 2014, Sundance Summer Theatre—in conjunction with Utah Valley University—presents Fiddler on the Roof, the beloved 1964 tale of a turn-of-the-century Jewish community in Russia, and a patriarch trying to keep his family living a traditional life. Enjoy the familiar songs like "If I Were a Rich Man," "Sunrise, Sunset" and "Tradition" with Mount Timpanogos providing an impressive backdrop. If you want to expand your evening in the canyon, enjoy the special pre-show barbecue dinner adjacent to the amphitheater for an added charge. (Scott Renshaw)
Sundance Summer Theatre: Fiddler on the Roof @ Sundance Resort Amphitheater, 8841 N. Alpine Loop Road, Sundance, 866-734-4428, through Aug. 16, 8 p.m., $21-$30, pre-show barbecue dinner 6:30 p.m., $16. SundanceResort.com

THURSDAY JULY 31

Brandie Posey
Self-deprecation is damned funny when done right, and Brandie Posey has got the act locked down tight for venting about the obnoxious crap in her life. The Los Angeles-based comedian/writer/producer has been steadily rising in the national eye over the past year through live performances on the coast and in online media. Aside from being a performer for both The Upright Citizens Brigade and The Hollywood Improv theaters, she's the host of Lady-To-Lady, a popular podcast on Maximum Fun and occasional stage show. In 2013, she dropped by Salt Lake City to perform for the Comedy Carnivale, and now, she's finishing her Three Weddings & a Comedy Tour at 5 Monkeys. She'll be backed up by local talent including Aaron Orlovitz, Natashia Mower and Christopher Stephenson, with Jason Harvey hosting the show. (Gavin Sheehan)
Brandie Posey @ 5 Monkeys, 7 E. 4800 South, Murray, 801-266-1885, July 31, 8 p.m., $5. BrandiePosey.com

Deer Valley Music Festival: Disney in Concert
Take the opportunity and experience the magic that is Disney through Disney in Concert: Tale as Old as Time, performed by the Utah Symphony and sung by talented Broadway vocalists. Get inspired by The Hunchback of Notre Dame's "Out There" and The Lion King's "The Circle of Life," or have some carefree fun during a sing-along to "Hakuna Matata." All the many varied moods from Disney's expansive catalog will be explored, from Aladdin's jazzy "Friend like Me" to modern ballads such as "I See the Light" from Tangled. And well-loved Disney villains also have their place in the performance, during the Villains' Medley. The night will feature a little something for everyone, be you young or old, prince or pauper, mermaid or beast. (Camri Mecham)
Disney in Concert: Tale as Old as Time @ Deer Valley Snow Park Outdoor Amphitheater, 2250 S. Deer Valley Drive, Park City, 435- 649-1000, Aug. 1, 7 p.m., $32-$69. DeerValleyMusicFestival.org, ArtTix.org

FRIDAY AUG. 1

Park City Kimball Arts Festival
The annual Park City Kimball Arts Festival that takes place on Park City's historic Main Street is much more than three days of hundreds of exhibiting artists. Its organizers have gone out of their way to make it a more inclusive celebration of all the artistic things that make Park City such a unique mountain enclave. Perhaps one of the best parts of the festival is the Taste of Art program, where many of the area's celebrated cafes and award-winning restaurants will offer deals and specials to hungry visitors. The weekend's Festival After Dark includes events like Friday night's City Park screening of the 2013 Sundance Film Festival favorite Twenty Feet from Stardom—and if seeing the documentary isn't enough, Muscle Shoals with Lisa Fischer (featured in the film) will play at Deer Valley on Sunday night. Also at Deer Valley, the Utah Symphony continues its summer music festival with two concerts featuring the music of Disney and Neil Diamond. Or you can wander over to Canyons Resort for a free show featuring Honey Island Swamp Band. And The Egyptian Theatre on Main Street will feature two national comics, Maria Shehata and Dave Goldstein. Regardless of your artistic preference, the Kimball Arts Festival offers something enticing—whether that's some new ceramic wares, a shiny piece of handcrafted jewelry, a large painting or photograph, or simply the opportunity to get out of the valley heat and into the cool, fresh mountain air. (Jacob Stringer)
Park City Kimball Arts Festival @ Main Street, Park City, 435-649-8882, Aug. 1-3, Friday 5-9 p.m., Saturday 9 a.m.-7 p.m., Sunday 9 a.m.-6 p.m., $5-$10, free for Summit County residents. ParkCityKimballArtsFestival.org

SATURDAY AUG. 2

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Paula Kelly Harline: The Polygamous Wives' Writing Club
Paula Kelly Harline's The Polygamous Wives' Writing Club is a slim, elegantly composed volume that condenses several decades of history in a remarkably concise fashion. It's drawn from the diaries of 19th-century Mormon pioneer women in polygamous marriages who were outside the main church and political power structure of the time, whose stories have thus yet to be examined closely in studies of the period. But rather than risk the sprawl of structuring the book around long, unedited passages taken verbatim from these women's diaries, Harline makes the aesthetically welcome decision of summarizing and quoting selectively, providing periodic interludes for historical and cultural background purposes. The result is a book that, even to an outsider, proceeds at a pleasant, informative clip and provides illuminative insight into under-examined lives. Many of the accounts in the book reveal a sisterhood among the wives that endured desipte social and political pressures and personal hardships. The book's press release notes that polygamy and the role of women have both been hot topics for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints going back to the 19th century, and that "many would argue that the polygamous wives of the 21st century are nothing like those of the 19th century." For the most part, Harline leaves that issue alone, and instead presents history with little overt editorial comment, much to the book's benefit. (Danny Bowes)
Paula Kelly Harline: The Polygamous Wives' Writing Club @ Weller Book Works, 607 Trolley Square, 801-328-2586, Aug. 2, 2 p.m., free. WellerBookWorks.com

MONDAY AUG. 4

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Tour of Utah
"America's toughest stage race," the Tour of Utah, is back this month for its 10th anniversary. Considering that the 2013 edition drew more than a quarter-million spectators and made $17.5 million for the state, the race—once again to be nationally televised—should be another windfall for the local economy. The race has been growing to the degree that this year, it's expanding to seven days and, for the first time, will have one of its stages hosted by a city outside of Utah, with Day 5 taking the race just over the border to Evanston, Wyo. Of the 16 competing teams, five are just coming off the famed Tour de France. Most are based in the United States, with the exception of two Italian teams, one Dutch, one Australian and one Brazilian, the last of which is also currently ranked No. 1 in the world. Fox Sports will be televising 14 hours of the competition live, for those unable to make it in person.For those who can, the race at large is free to all spectators, but deluxe ticket packages are available to optimize the sporting experience, up to and including a stay in the team hotel with the competing cyclists. Competing for the first time this year are women cyclists, in a special event immediately prior to the third stage of the men's event earlier in the afternoon, with three-time national champion Alison Powers a particularly notable name in the women's race. (Danny Bowes)
Tour of Utah @ various Utah and Wyoming locations, 801-325-7000, Aug. 4-10, free, VIP tickets $75-$2,000. TourOfUtah.com

Forward 13: Waking Up the American Dream
In the wake of the 2008 financial collapse, many documentary filmmakers set out to explore how it happened, who was to blame, and what the fallout was. But there's a difference when a filmmaker approaches the topic not as a frustrating abstraction, but as something that touched his life personally. Patrick Lovell—a veteran TV producer and former Park City resident—places his own experience front and center in Forward 13, describing how financial setbacks led to his own house going into foreclosure in 2011 after a protracted process attempting to renegotiate the terms of his loan. From there he begins a cross-country journey talking to people on various sides of the contentious subject of income inequality, from Occupy Wall Street protesters to representatives from conservative advocacy groups. Catch this distinctly human face of a national crisis, then stick around for a Q&A with Lovell after the screening. (Scott Renshaw)
Forward 13: Waking Up the American Dream @ Broadway Centre Cinemas, 111 E. 300 South, 801-321-0310, Aug. 6, 7 p.m., free. SaltLakeFilmSociety.org