Weekender Spotlight

NESCOPECK TOWNSHIP — The Briggs Farm Blues Festival will return for its 28th year with a pre-party on Thursday night. That will kick off a weekend of blues music, which will be played by local, regional and national artists on the Main and Back Porch stages.

EXT JUNGLE NIGHT

LOS ANGELES — National Public Radio journalist Felix Contreras, best known for chronicling Latino music in his podcast “Alt.Latino,” will be honored this year at the 38th annual Hispanic Heritage Awards.

NEW YORK — Their reunion? It’s smooth like butter. The K-pop septet BTS will return in spring 2026 with a new album and world tour.

The New York Times’ list of the 100 best films of the 21st century so far has now been released. It is a list that was compiled by the ballots of esteemed filmmakers from across the industry, and, I must say, I find the list quite favorable.

NEW YORK — A sheer dress silhouetting a black body suit, Usher’s signature crowd interaction and a tweet from her child’s father: that concoction created a nearly two-week social media frenzy starring Keke Palmer back in 2023. Now, the multi-hyphenate creative has channeled that experience into her new album, “Just Keke.”

Most movies are lucky to predict one thing. Danny Boyle’s 2002 dystopian thriller “28 Days Later” managed to be on the cutting edge of two trends, albeit rather disparate ones: global pandemic and fleet-footed zombies.

LONDON — Festival season can be surprisingly physically demanding. Hours spent standing, walking or dancing can put extra strain on the heart, especially for those with preexisting conditions such as heart disease, high blood pressure or diabetes, explains Gosia Wamil, M.D., Ph.D., a cardiologist at Mayo Clinic Healthcare in London.

WILKES-BARRE — The Luzerne County Arts & Entertainment Hall of Fame announced on Thursday that tickets are on sale now for the organization’s third annual induction ceremony.