We like to say that metro Detroit has it all, but you only have so much time to experience it! Every week is a choose-your-own-adventure, and we have some fun options to raise if you don’t know were to start.

This weekend, prepare to laugh with shows like “Shucked” and “Jurassic Park: The Musical”. Celebrate local efforts and learn about food sovereignty with the Detroit Food Commons Fest. You can also take a nice walk through downtown Royal Oak on Mother’s Day looking at everything you could ever need to make your yard a mini-paradise.

Check out the events below for more details! 

Upcoming events (May 8-14)

Jurassic Park: The Musical

Planet Ant Theater

May 8-9

$30-35

Back by popular demand, “Jurassic Park: The Musical” is a retelling of the classic high-stakes dinosaur film—this time, as a prehistoric parody for your amusement with original songs. This show contains mature humor, and isn’t recommended for audiences under 16 years of age. Both showings start at 8 p.m., and this is the last weekend to experience it, so don’t wait!

Detroit Food Commons Fest

8324 Woodward Ave.

May 9

Free

Join the award-winning Detroit People’s Food Co-op for their second anniversary celebration! They’ll have vendors, food, political education and activities for guests to enjoy. Plus, a bouncy house and fun games for kids! This event is in the North End and will be going from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Shucked

Midland Center for the Arts

May 9-10

$49.50+

On May 9 and 10, the Midland Center for the Arts will show the Tony Award-winning musical, “Shucked.” Saturday performances will be held at 2 p.m. and 7 p.m., and Sunday performances will be held at 1:30 p.m. and 6:30 p.m. Admission starts at $49.50. For more information, visit the Midland Center for the Arts’ website.

Royal Oak in Bloom

6th and Main Street lots in downtown Royal Oak

May 10

Free

A long-held Mother’s Day tradition in downtown Royal Oak. Step out and start beautifying your outdoor space with offerings of flowers and plants, statues, decorations, furniture and more. You can add another lawn gnome to your collection, get starter plants for your garden, or make a backyard perfect for attracting birds and butterflies. Food vendors will be there to make sure you don’t go hungry or thirsty either. Stop by anytime from 7 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Arab Film Festival

Arab American National Museum

May 8-10

$15

The Arab American National Museum is bringing a world of film to metro Detroit with a curated set of global short films, documentaries, and full length feature. All are subtitled, making a tremendously rich selection of cinematic art accessible for all. Many showings also include discussion and activities to experience film to the fullest. View the showings and buy tickets in advance for this final weekend of films, themed “Remember. (Re)imagine.”

Riverfront Herbal Walk

Cullen Plaza

May 11

Free

Stroll along the beautiful Detroit Riverfront with local herbalists. As you walk, you’ll learn how to identify and best handle different plants, and be able to take home your own herbal creation. Bring a water bottle and dress for the weather. This event runs from 5:30-7 p.m.

Last month, hundreds of Oakland County residents packed a Pontiac meeting room. They came to speak against a proposal that would put surveillance drones, built by a company called Flock Safety, into the hands of the county sheriff.

Police nationwide have used Flock cameras to run thousands of immigration-related searches on behalf of ICE.

Many residents did not get a chance to speak. Just before the discussion began, Commission Chair Dave Woodward held a vote to move public comment to the end of the meeting, after the contract had already passed.

When Commissioner Charlie Cavell asked for a roll call vote — to make every commissioner go on the record — Woodward denied it and moved on.

The drones were approved, 14-4.

After that meeting, residents launched a campaign to recall Woodward, and by late April, petition language was approved. 

Yesterday, Woodward appealed that approval in Oakland County Circuit Court. If a circuit judge upholds the petition language, organizers will have 60 days to gather roughly 9,000 signatures across Royal Oak, Birmingham, and parts of Troy.

Woodward has called the recall “a distraction.” 

He joined Robyn Vincent on The Metro to discuss the recall effort, his business connections that have prompted ethical concerns, and whether he should have handled that April meeting differently.

Editor’s note: During this conversation, Woodward said some people involved in the recall campaign are advocating for political violence. The Metro reviewed the social media posts Woodward referred to. In one, a person supporting the recall effort praised Luigi Mangione — the man charged with killing UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson in December of 2024 — calling him “the closest thing to a superhero we have.” A leader of the recall campaign says that supporter is no way affiliated with the campaign. 

Listen to The Metro weekdays from 10 a.m. to noon ET on 101.9 FM and streaming on demand.

Subscribe to The Metro on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, NPR.org or wherever you get your podcasts.

More stories from The Metro