The Red & Black’s event guide to happenings — news, variety and sports — in and around Athens from April 15 – April 21.

Pick of the Week

Heads vs. Feds — Debate about the Legalization of Marijuana

High Times Magazine isn’t a guide to first-class airfare, but it does advocate the one thing that can send you floating above cloud nine without an airplane. It’s green, illegal and has had a major impact on the history of rock’n’roll. It’s most commonly known as marijuana, pot, weed or Mary Jane. The debate to legalize it just won’t go away.
High Times editor Steve Hager will go head-to-head with Drug Enforcement officer Robert Stutman, who spent his years cleaning up the streets of New York and has been called “the most famous narc in America” by New York Magazine. Stutman has delivered his anti-drug campaign on shows like “60 Minutes” and “Good Morning America,” but now he’ll engage in fervent debate with a marijuana enthusiast.
Don’t miss this highly-anticipated debate to see if marijuana laws will soon go up in smoke.

Where: Tate Theater
When: 7:30–9 p.m., Monday
Price: Free
Contact: union@uga.edu

Thursday, April 15

Events and Opportunities

What: Take Back the Night
Where: Tate Plaza
When: Noon–9 p.m.
Price: Free
Verdict: You can help prevent future assaults by attending a march downtown ending in a personal candlelight vigil. Contact: ugawsso@gmail.com

What: 36th Annual Great Southland Stampede Rodeo
Where: UGA Animal and Diary Sciences Instructional Arena
When: 8 p.m.
Price: $12 UGA students with ID
Verdict: Yippee-kay-ay, Mother Bull! Strap on your boots and favorite cowboy hat at the University’s Block and Bridle Club annual rodeo. Contact: www.uga.edu/bandb/GSSRodeo

What: Earth Day Celebration
Where: Odum School of Ecology
When: 6 p.m.
Price: Free
Verdict: By our powers combined, we can be Captain Planet. Odum will host a reception, film and environmental discussion. Contact: ldendy@uga.edu

What: “Ferngully: The Last Rainforest” (1992)
Where: Tate Student Center Theater
When: 8 p.m.
Price: $2 general; $1 students
Verdict: Robin Williams plays a batty fruit bat in an animated tale of environmental heroism. Contact: union@uga.edu

What: Little Red Book Celebrates a Very Merry Unbirthday and Our Spring Issue
Where: Pauley’s/The Loft, 134 East Clayton Street
When: 8 p.m.–12:15 a.m.
Price: Free
Verdict: Come in every outrageous birthday wear except your birthday suit. Grab an issue of the fashion magazine full of Alice in Wonderland themed photography. Contact: juliemcguire.lrb@gmail.com

Music

Who: District Attorneys, Featuring Unholy Tongues and T.J. Mimbs
Where: Caledonia Lounge
When: 10 p.m.
Price: $5 (21+) $7 (18-20)
Verdict: These rock star lawyers didn’t exactly pass the bar exam, but they’re welcome in any bar in downtown Athens. Contact: 706- 549-5577

What: Holly Williams
Where: 500 College Ave., adjacent to Hotel Indigo
When: 9 p.m.
Price: $12 advance, $15 at door
Verdict: Williams is a common last name, but Holly isn’t lying when she boasts of being the grandchild of country music pioneer Hank Williams. She has his name, and his talent. Contact: www.indigoathens.com/musicperformances.html

Friday, April 16

Events and Opportunities

What: UGA Night at Six Flags Over Georgia
Who: Sponsored by the Department of Campus Life
Where: Six Flags Over Georgia
When: 6 p.m.–midnight
Price: $28 until noon Friday; $33 at the gate
Verdict: Riding the Georgia Scorcher without standing in long lines under scorching heat is one of the perks of Georgia’s largest amusement park exclusively open to UGA students for one day. Contact: 706-542-8514, www.uga.edu/campuslife

What: “Avatar” (2009)
Where: Tate Student Center Theater
When: 3 p.m., 6 p.m., 9 p.m.
Price: $2 general; $1 students
Verdict: “Yo, listen up here’s a story about a little guy that lives in a blue world.” Contact: 706-542-6396, union@uga.edu

What: Abbey West presents Reality Tour 2010
Where: Abbey West Apartments
When: 4–7 p.m.
Price: Free
Verdict: Splash into spring with a slippery soaked swimwear fashion show. Contact: www.campusapts.com/AbbeyWest/RealityTour2010/GuestRegistration.aspx

Lectures and Classes

What: 16th Annual Andrea Carson Coley Lecture: “Religiously Queer, Queer Religiously”
Where: Ramsey Concert Hall, Performing Arts Center
When: 12:30–1:30 p.m.
Price: Free
Verdict: Religion and homosexuality don’t have the best relationship, but Harvard professor Amy Hollywood will explain why they go hand-in-hand. Contact: 706-542-0066, tlhat@uga.edu

What: Informal Forum: “The $9 Trillion Debt—Breaking the Habit of Deficit Spending”
Who: Sponsored by the Russell Forum for Civic Life in Georgia, Russell Library
Where: Russell Library Auditorium, West Entrance, Main Library
When: 3–4:30 p.m.
Price: Free
Verdict: Find out if you’re smarter than Alan Greenspan and discover the best solutions to our financial crisis. Contact: 706-542-5766

Saturday, April 17

Events and Opportunities

What: UGA Island Party 2010
Who: Beta Upsilon Chi
Where: Legion Field
When: 3–8 p.m.
Price: Free, $30 for a 6-member volleyball team
Verdict: If stuck on an island, what would you bring? Not rum; this tropical island bash is alcohol-free, but keeps 100 percent of the fun. Contact: www.ugabyx.org/

What: 21st Annual Boybutante Ball
Where: 40 Watt Club
When: 10 p.m.
Price: $20
Verdict: Lipstick smears the walls of this high-heeled, fishnet-filled philanthropic drag concert and dance. Proceeds to go HIV/AIDS services. Contact: boybutante.org

What: 17th Annual Piedmont Gardeners’ Garden Tour
Where: Five private gardens in Athens
When: 10 a.m.–4 p.m.
Price: $10 in advance, $15 day of the tour.
Verdict: It’s finally spring. Time to see and smell the beautiful flowers — and then probably sneeze from all the pollen. Contact: piedmontgardeners.org/GardenTour.html, or call 706-548-5760

What: Prevent Child Abuse Walk 2010
Where: St. Mary’s Hospital
When: 10 a.m.
Price: Free
Verdict: Protect the future generation of this nation by giving children a safe home. Contact: www.pcaathens.org/t-shirts.html

What: The All-Star Comedy Jam
Where: Classic Center Theatre
When: 8 p.m.
Price: $27, $32, $50
Verdict: Jamie Foxx Laffapalooza comic star Lavar spends his nights on stage handing out jokes and his days handing out meds as a pharmacist. Contact: 706-357-4444

What: Bringin’ Back The ’90’s
Who: Gamma Sigma Sigma
Where: Club 300
When: 9 p.m.–2 a.m.
Price: $5
Verdict: Everybody, rock your body — Backstreet’s back, and so is Britney Spears’ virginity at this ’90s pop revival.

What: Paleontology Open House
Where: Sandy Creek Nature Center and ENSAT Center
When: 1–3 p.m.
Price: Free
Verdict: Learn how fossils reveal pre-historic secrets, like where Larry King came from. Contact: www.accleisureservices.com

What: Fluke Mini-Comic Festival
Where: Ciné
When: 11 a.m.–6 p.m.
Price: $5
Verdict: This non-commercial comic festival is laid back fun to compensate those who don’t get laid enough. Contact: flukeisawesome.blogspot.com

What: Botanical Garden Scavenger Hunt
Where: State Botanical Garden of Georgia
When: 10 a.m.–noon
Price: $8 members, $10 non-members (per team)
Verdict: Jimmy Buffet once said “Searching is half the fun; life is much more manageable when thought of as a scavenger hunt as opposed to a surprise party.” Take what he said literally. Contact: www.uga.edu/botgarden, 706-542-1244

What: Terrapin Brewery 8th Anniversary Party
Where: Terrapin Brewery
When: 5–8 p.m.
Price: $10
Verdict: Beer has been devoured by college students for ages, but Athens’ Terrapin has only lived to see eight years of that history. Contact: www.terrapinbeer.com

Music

What: Strawberry Flats
Where: The Melting Point
When: 8:30 p.m.
Price: $10
Verdict: Nothing is real and there’s nothing to get hung about, Strawberry Flats forever…will perform psychedelic covers of The Doors, Cream, Led Zeppelin, Jimi Hendrix and, of course, the Beatles. Contact: 706-254-6909

What: Performance: KT Sullivan: Songs of Jerome Kern
Who: Sponsored by the UGA Performing Arts Center
Where: Hodgson Concert Hall
When: 8 p.m.
Price: $19 or $24
Verdict: Broadway singer KT Sullivan has gone from London to New York to Athens. Contact: www.uga.edu/pac.

Sports

What: Softball doubleheader vs. Auburn
Where: Softball Complex
When: 1 p.m. and 3 p.m.
Price: Free
Contact: www.georgiadogs.com

What: Women’s tennis vs. Tennessee
Where: Dan Magill Tennis Complex
When: Noon
Price: Free
Contact: www.georgiadogs.com

What: Track & Field — Bulldog Limited
Where: Spec Towns Track
When: 10 a.m.
Price: Free
Contact: www.georgiadogs.com

Sunday, April 18

Events and Opportunities

What: Craig Waters and the Section Live in the Lobby on WUOG 90.5 FM
Where: Lobby of Tate Center, WUOG 90.5 FM
When: 7–9 p.m.
Price: Free
Verdict: Take a break and jam out at Tate. Contact: http://shows.wuog.org

What: Cocktails for Canines
Where: The Melting Point
When: 6 p.m.
Price: suggested donation of $5 at the door
Verdict: The alcohol is for the humans, but the money will benefit the dogs of the Humane Society. Contact: 706-254-6909

What: Jeannette Rankin High Hat Tea and Silent Auction
Where: State Botanical Garden of Georgia
When: 1–3 p.m.
Price: $35 reserved seat, $20 general admission
Verdict: You can silence anything but music. Enjoy fancy hors d’oeuvres at this silent auction with live music. Contact: 706-542-1244

Music

What: African-American Choral Ensemble Spring Concert
Where: Milledge Avenue Baptist Church
When: 4 p.m.
Price: Free
Verdict: Whoopi Goldberg would be in awe of this group of singers who perform spirituals and gospel music.
Contact: aace09@gmail.com

Monday, April 19

Events and Opportunities

What: “Blue Gold — World Water Wars” (2008)
Who: Sponsored by the University Housing Sustainability Committee
Where: Cindy Rooker Fireside Lounge, Rooker Hall
When: 7 p.m.
Price: Free
Verdict: Watch this award-winning documentary investigate whether humans can survive the wars of the future. Contact: 706-542-7068

Classes and Lectures

What: A Jewish Eyewitness in Palestine Speaks
Where: MLC, Room 102
When: 7–10 p.m.
Price: Free
Verdict: Anna Baltzer has appeared on “The Daily Show with Jon Stewart” and is now coming to speak about to the University community on the Israeli/Palestinian debate. Contact: uga.edu/palestine/

Tuesday, April 20

Events and Opportunities

What: South African Wine Tasting
Where: Ciné
When: 7–11 p.m.
Price: $17
Verdict: Wine enthusiasts will pop their cork over tasting wine from overseas. Contact: www.athenscine.com

Music

Who: Motion City Soundtrack with Fun, A Rocket to the Moon, Sing It Loud
Where: 40 Watt Club
When: 7 p.m.
Price: $16
Verdict: Sing Motion City Soundtrack out loud to the moon.
Contact: 706-549-7871

What: Dank Sinatra, Manta, The Jumper Cables
Where: Tasty World
When: 10 p.m.
Price: $5-10
Verdict: Frank Sinatra may be dead, but this band has just as much class and talent. Contact: www.tastyworlduptown.com/home.cfm

Wednesday, April 21

Music

Who: Zoso
Where: Melting Point
When: 9 p.m.
Price: $10
Verdict: Climb the stairway to heaven with this Led Zeppelin tribute band. Contact: 706-254-6909

Events and Opportunities

What: 2nd Annual Georgia’s Antebellum Trail Pilgrimage
Where: Different historical landmarks call for itinerary
When: April 21–25
Price: $25 per person includes access to your choice of seven attractions and/or events
Verdict: Frankly, my dear, you should give a damn about Athens’ Southern history.
Contact: 800.709.7406

Sports

What: Baseball vs. Winthrop
Where: Foley Field
When: 6 p.m.
Price: Free
Contact: georgiadogs.com