Monday

Son Little performs from 7 p.m. to midnight at The Sinclair, 52 Church St., Harvard Square. General admission is $18 in advance, or $20 at the door. Probably the coolest thing you can do this week is come see Son Little (born Aaron Earl Livingston) weave together Los Angeles blues, soul, gospel and rock ’n’ roll in a show with plenty of room for his exhilarating swagger (check out his “Hey Rose” in the video above) and showcase tearjerkers. North Carolina singer-songwriter Christopher Paul Stelling opens. Information is here.

Tuesday

“The Last Sacred Place of Poetry” documentary and discussion from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. at the Cambridge Public Library’s Central Square Branch, 45 Pearl St. Free. After a screening of her film about Harvard Square’s iconic Grolier Poetry Book Shop comes a discussion between director and producer Weiying Olivia Huang and poet, writer, translator, and academic Patrick Sylvain. Information is here. 

Wednesday

“Resetting the Table: Food and Our Changing Tastes” exhibit from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. (until Nov. 28, 2021) at the Peabody Museum of Archaeology and Ethnology, 11 Divinity Ave., in the Agassiz neighborhood near Harvard Square. General admission is $15 but free for Massachusetts residents from 3 to 5 p.m. The pre-Thanksgiving lull, just before many people sit down to tables crowded with people and food, is the perfect time to check out this new exhibit – which literally sets the table for a formal Harvard dinner in 1910 to explore food choices and eating habits in the United States, including the hidden ways tables are shaped by cultural, historical, political and technological influences. Information is here.

Friday

Friday After Thanksgiving Chain Reaction from 1 to 4 p.m. at MIT’s Rockwell Cage Gymnasium, 106 Vassar St., in the Area II neighborhood. General admission in advance is $13.50, or $5 for kids; it’s $16 and $7.50, respectively, at the door, while kids under 5 get in free. This 22nd annual post-holiday event celebrates one-of-a-kind engineering feats of Rube Goldberg-esque complexity – giant chain reactions that really must be seen in person for maximum appreciation. Information is here.

“Wit & Mirth” from 8 to 9:30 p.m. at Lilypad, 1353 Cambridge St., Inman Square. Admission is $10. In 1698, Thomas d’Urfey published the smash-hit book of comic songs “Wit & Mirth.” David William Hughes sings some of them, some of his own and some of yours that he’ll make up for you, honed at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe. FringeGuru called it “Hilarious.” Information is here.

Bridgeside Cypher from 8 to 11 p.m. (and repeating Saturday) in Graffiti Alley, across from Pearl Street on Massachusetts Avenue, Central Square. Free. A collective of hip-hop artists perform at Central Square’s most colorful and iconic location, starting with an hour of freestyle circle and an hour of live video recording and open mic. Information is here.

Black Friday Holiday Prep comedy show from 8 to 11:30 p.m. at The Jungle, 6 Sanborn Court, Union Square, Somerville. Admission is $8. Come nurse your shopping wounds with comedy from Rob Crean, Zenobia Del Mar, Jai Demeule, Will Pottorff, Brandon Vallee and Liam McGurk and music from Marianne Toilet & The Runs. Hosted by Alan Richardson and Matt Minigell. Information is here.

Saturday

Annual tree lighting from 4 to 6:30 p.m. at The Charles Hotel, 1 Bennett St., Harvard Square. This family event – complete with a visit from Santa – includes free hot chocolate and cookies from Henrietta’s Table cookies and and clam chowder from Legal Sea Foods, as well as story time with The Harvard Coop and then live jazz as children help decorate holiday trees. As a benefit to Cambridge Family & Children’s Service, participants are asked to bring donations of personal hygiene products such as deodorant, shampoo and toothpaste; cold-weather clothing for adults and children; and household items such as laundry detergent and toilet paper. Information is here.

The Capitol Steps in “The Lyin’ Kings” from 5 to 6:30 p.m. and 8 to 9:30 p.m. at the Sanders Theatre, 45 Quincy St., near Harvard Square. Tickets are $32 to $47. If you’re the sort who finds the political satire of The Capitol Steps hoot-worthy, it’s only fair to admit the troupe is coming to town. This is the 21st annual visit. Information is here.

Sunday

Late Night Gaming from 10:15 to 11:45 p.m. at The Comedy Studio, 1 Bow Market Way, Union Square, Somerville. Free. Eli Levy hooks a Nintendo Switch to the studio’s projectors and sound system for open rounds of “Super Smash Bros Ultimate,” “Mario Kart 8,” “Super Mario Party,” “Mario Tennis Aces” and others and welcomes BYO board games, card games or tabletop games. Information is here.

Pindrop Sessions’ “Holidazed” from 7 to 10 p.m. at Aeronaut Brewing, 14 Tyler St., near Union Square, Somerville. General admission is $20 (with fees, $22.85). Brian Calhoon’s Marimba Cabaret reimagines show tunes and pop covers for marimba, vibraphone and voice in a musical coming out story that won the 2017 Critic’s Choice Award at PortFringe Theater Festival, where audiences called it“fun, unexpected, inventive, and full of heart.” Information is here.

Odds Bodkin’s “Mid-Winter Miracles: Musical Tales for Christmas and Chanukah” from 3 to 4 p.m. a The Burren, 247 Elm St., Davis Square, Somerville. Tickets are $10. Professional storyteller and musician Odds Bodkin accompanies himself musically while running through folktales from Old England, the Jewish tradition and Old Germany. Information is here.