THE ESSENTIAL A&E PICKS FOR MAY 13 - 19 

• Stan Clawson

South Salt Lake's Mural Fest
It's been a good couple of years for mural artists and their fans as cities around the country rediscover the bang-for-your-buck benefits of embracing street art. But few municipalities have leaned as heavily into the trend as South Salt Lake, which is celebrating its annual Mural Fest with an artist meet & greet on May 15.

Expanding what it bills as the largest collection of street art in the state, SSL will debut this year's 10 commissioned pieces from Bill Louis, Emily Ding, George Baker, Hayley Barry, Joseph Toney, Miles Toland, Traci O'Very Covey, Brooklyn Ottens and Matt Monsoon, HIMED & HOKZYN and the Roots Art Kollective. Those works come after similar cohorts in each of the last three years as South Salt Lake wisely makes use of its over-abundance of brutalist industrial facades to add some color to residents' and visitors' lives.

The free, socially distance-friendly event is slated to run from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m., with self-guided biking and walking tours originating from West Temple and 2100 South (a stone's throw from both the Central Pointe TRAX station and the S-Line streetcar, FWIW). And, of course, one of the perks of mural art is that it's available for public viewing at all hours, rain or shine, so there's no stopping anyone at any time from finding a route map at themuralfest.com and taking advantage of an excuse to get outside. But visitors on Saturday night will have the benefit of food trucks and live entertainment at each of Mural Fest's official tour sites. (Benjamin Wood)

• Courtesy Photo

In the Balance: Ballet for a Lost Year
Utah's own Ballet West is the focus of a new, nine-episode documentary series by filmmakers Diana Whitten and Tyler Measom that premiered online on May 7, with new episodes scheduled to be released weekly. To make In the Balance: Ballet for a Lost Year, filmmakers were given unfettered access to the ballet company as it pivoted to the era of Covid-19.

"We followed the dancers, the choreographers, the crew, and the staff as they navigate colossal logistical and emotional challenges in anticipation of opening night, wondering if the curtain will rise," Measom and Whitten said in a prepared statement. "Gently set against the backdrop of a volatile world, the series explores how art can be essential in a time of crisis, how passion can displace fear, and how collective grief can be alchemized into beauty."

Whitten was among the producers of 2019's Biography: I Want My MTV on A&E, which Measom also directed. But more recently, Measom co-directed the excellent Netflix docu-series Murder Among the Mormons, which examines the events and environment around the Mark Hofmann bombings that left two Utahns dead in October of 1985.

The first episode of In the Balance debuted on Ballet West's social-media channels, with future installments expected to launch there as well. Visit balletwest.org/balance for more information. (BW)

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Invention @ the Capitol Theatre
What if some of the most notable inventions of human history were accidentally wiped from the timeline? That's the question explored—playfully—by the latest production from the Children's Dance Theatre Program, which is set for a five-show run—May 19-22—at the Capitol Theatre.

The two-act, 90-minute Invention follows a young inventor who cracks the code on time travel and sets about visiting the storied creators that inspired her, only to find that her meddling has somehow caused critical technological advancements to have never been achieved. Through a series of dance numbers, audiences are reminded of the various breakthroughs that made household names out of the likes of Leonardo da Vinci, Marie Curie and Alexander Graham Bell, with the connecting thread of a race against time to restore history to its proper order.

Housed at the University of Utah's Tanner Dance Program, the Children's Dance Theatre is a 70-plus-years-old institution featuring hundreds of dancers between the ages of 8 and 18. The company showcases new original work each year at the Capitol Theatre, with Invention originally scheduled to bow in 2020 before the global pandemic prompted a postponement and a retooling of the choreography to incorporate masks and other safety measures.

Tickets to the family-oriented production are $27.50, or $15 for each of two live-streamed virtual performances. For information or tickets, visit arttix.org. (BW)

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Jim Breuer @ The Depot
Saturday Night Live alum Jim Breuer has talked over the years about the stress and pressures of working on the venerable NBC sketch-comedy show—where he left a mark playing "goat boy" and doing impressions of Joe Pesci and Robert De Niro, among other characters. By way of a recent example, Breuer told podcasting titan Joe Rogan in March that his three-year SNL stint made him "such a dark human being."

Perhaps that's part of why the veteran comedian has seemingly worked nonstop over the past two decades, from starring opposite Dave Chappelle in the cult comedy Half Baked to appearing on dozens of TV and radio programs, performing multiple comedy specials and tours and, more recently, launching a podcast of his own.

His latest outing, the Freedom of Laughter Tour, is making a pit stop in Salt Lake City on May 15 for a pair of evening performances at The Depot. Tickets range from $41.50 to $51.50 and are 21+ for both the 7 p.m. and 10 p.m. performances. And make sure to invite your pandemic bubble, as seats must be purchased in groups of 4, 6 or 8. For more information on tickets and coronavirus protocols, visit depotslc.com. (BW)