This Friday is March 17, so you know what that means: get ready for a sea of tipsy revelers in shamrock suits, green bandanas and T-shirts with cheeky riffs on old Irish sayings. It's St. Patrick's Day, and people will be pinching.
If you'd like to join that party, we've listed a few bar crawl options for you below. But if you'd rather avoid the leprechaun mobs, check out the city's alternative programming, from a zoo fundraiser to a special "Black Panther" screening with a live orchestra.
Drink Guinness and green beer at a bunch of bars
People will be diving in and out of bars all weekend long for St. Patrick's Day, but if you want to join an organized route with drink discounts, secure tickets to the Shamrock Crawl in Old City, the Shamrock Stroll or Kiss Me, I'm Irish Bar Crawl in Center City or any of the many others. If all else fails, head to McGillin's Olde Ale House for a green pint.
See 'Black Panther' with a live orchestra
The Philadelphia Orchestra takes you on a journey to Wakanda with this three-night concert featuring the music of "Black Panther," set to the 2018 Marvel movie. Playing Friday night at 7 p.m. and Saturday and Sunday at 2 p.m. at Verizon Hall, the shows benefit the United Negro College Fund. Tickets start at $35.
Watch bunnies paint and bears eat at the Philadelphia Zoo
As part of its annual Zoo-a-thon fundraiser, the Philadelphia Zoo is hosting a series of extremely adorable events Friday through Saturday. A $16 ticket gets you access to special zookeeper chats about gorillas and reptiles, alpaca or goat walks and all kinds of feedings, including an Andean bear peanut butter feeding on glass. Wesley the rabbit will also create original paintings, with just a tiny bit of help on his brushwork.
Watch big (fake) cats sing and dance
This weekend is your last chance to see "Cats" — the musical, not the creature — at Kimmel's Cultural Campus. The Tony-winning show is playing at Miller Theater for an extremely limited run through Sunday as part of its 19-city national tour. If you're still scrubbing "digital fur technology" from your brain, try seeing the real(ish) thing.
Catch Jill Scott or Muse live
Philadelphia's own Jill Scott returns to her hometown for an 8 p.m. show at The Met on Saturday, a stop on her Who Is Jill Scott? tour. The tour draws its name from Scott's debut album, which turns 23 this year. If you're more into arena rockers, the English band Muse will play Wells Fargo on Sunday at 6:30 p.m. with opener Evanescence.
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