5 things to do this weekend, including FunkFest and 'Waitress: The Musical'

I wish I could bake all of my worries into a pie like Jenna does in “Waitress.” Half a cup of stress about a PR representative not answering my emails, a tablespoon of concern over the dwindling options on my Hinge app and a pinch of annoyance over my roommates not cleaning the kitchen. Alas, I am not a great baker — my brother got all of that talent. If cookies could change peoples’ perspectives the way Jenna’s pies do, Jake would be repairing the political divide with a nice chocolate chip cookie or a generous snickerdoodle. Unfortunately, we don’t have that technology yet. So if you want to dream of what that could be like while witnessing a troubling then heartwarming story set to music, check out The Cape Playhouse’s production of “Waitress.” If you think “I Want” songs are useless and would rather consume a cup of flour than hear another reprise, check out the other events happening in and around Boston this weekend.

It can be frustrating scrolling through upcoming performances and not finding any of interest to you. Enter The Nova Comedy Collective and The Rockwell in Somerville’s Davis Square who are teaming up to host “Adventure Improv,” an improv show completely tailored to the audience’s suggestions. Audience members will have the chance to participate in mini games and challenges throughout the show, and children will be invited onstage to become a part of different scenes. (If you don’t like participatory performances, this show might not be for you.) Along with improvised scenes, actors will also make up songs and dances. This show could truly be about anything, so make sure to shout out your suggestions if you’re passionate about a particular setting or topic. Tickets range from free for toddlers to $20.

If you love James Brown and Earth, Wind & Fire, head over to “FunkFest: A Celebration of All Thangs Funky” at FOUND in Central Square. A Trike Called Funk, Cambridge Arts and Central Square Business Improvement District are presenting the free event. Participants can move with the BeanTown Lockers, watch dance performances by Sincere & Moon and The Hood Lockers from Philadelphia, witness live graffiti painting by Brian “Life” and vibe to music by DJ Ed Word Galán — co-founder of creative venture A Trike Called Funk — and DJ Act One.

If jazz is more your speed, Historic New England and Mandorla Music are hosting the second annual David Chesnut Jazz Festival on Saturday, Aug. 10 at the Eustis Estate in Milton. Named for the former coachman and chauffeur at the estate in the 1890s and early 1900s who had an appreciation for the genre, the festival aims to celebrate community and inclusivity. Attendees will hear sets by modern jazz Adventure Time Trio and the Sheryl Bailey Quartet, led by jazz guitarist and Berklee educator Bailey, among others. Festival goers are encouraged to bring chairs and picnic blankets to sit on. There will also be family-friendly activities directed by the Boston Outdoor Preschool Network and food and drinks for purchase from Fresh Food Generation and Dorchester Brewing Company. Historic New England members can purchase tickets for $15, and nonmembers can attend for $20.

Sugar, butter, flour — the essentials for a flaky-crust pie baked with love and anxiety and stress and concern over an emotionally abusive husband and a yearning for something more. “Waitress” — a film turned musical with tracks by Grammy-winning singer-songwriter Sara Bareilles — revolves around a waitress named Jenna who bakes and serves delectable pies at a local diner in the American South. Her pies are so delightful that they have the power to shift customers’ demeanors and even world views. Jenna fantasizes about a better life away from her terrible high school sweetheart and small town, but when she finds out she is pregnant and enters a lust-fueled romance with her obstetrician, her daydreams evolve into an actionable plan. The production started in previews at American Repertory Theater in 2015 before running on Broadway for four years from 2016-2020 and earned a nomination for the Tony for Best Musical. If you weren’t able to catch the show then or have been anxiously waiting to see it again, The Cape Playhouse started their run on Aug. 7 and will continue through Aug. 24. Tickets range from $45 to $125.

Have you ever been shocked by the odd and mysterious world your brain developed in a lucid dream? “Surreal Spaces,” an exhibition at Childs Gallery on Newbury Street, explores peculiar interior and exterior spaces visualized by printmakers, whether utopian or nightmarish. “Taking cues from history, mythology, science fiction and fantasy, the works represent artistic worldbuilding at its best; each piece is a cosmos unto itself, a lived reality of some other people or civilization,” the gallery writes in a press release. The show features work by David Avery, Erik Desmazières, Annemarie Petri, Gerard Trignac and more. The gallery’s exhibition “Jason Berger: American Fauve,” featuring work by the late Boston Expressionist painter, also runs through Sept. 15.