Editors' Picks the Best of the City this Month

Shadowbox Live's "Gallery of Echoes"

May 1 to 4

Shadowbox Live draws inspiration from the permanent collection of the Columbus Museum of Art for this 21-song multimedia performance. Dance performances, video installations and original rock 'n' roll express the museum's two-dimensional art in living color. Stev Guyer, Shadowbox founder and president, explains "Gallery of Echoes" this way: "Imagine if you stopped to look at a painting, it unfolds in front of you, moving through space to cover every inch of your vision. A curator's voice begins to whisper in your ear, telling the story of the piece. Music transforms the brush strokes into melodies and harmonies that become the painting's soundtrack. And nearby, inspired performers experience the work through dance, song and spoken word." shadowboxlive.org -Kristen Schmidt

Columbus spring flea

May 4

Once a season, local artists, collectors and boutique owners set up shop at open-air market Columbus Flea, and event proceeds are donated to the Mid-Ohio Foodbank. Vendors will be at Seventh Son Brewing on May 4 for Spring Flea, with plenty of handmade jewelry, original artwork, vintage records and clothing, and an array of other oddities for shoppers to peruse. Food trucks will bring the eats, DJ George Brazil will bring the tunes, and we're counting on Mother Nature to bring the sunshine. columbusflea.wordpress.com -Michelle Sullivan

CCAD Senior Fashion Show

May 9

Home to an array of independent boutiques and retail giants alike, Columbus has developed a reputation as the fashion capital of the Midwest, and CCAD's annual senior fashion show is one of the best showcases of the city's burgeoning design talent. Complete with a VIP cocktail reception before and a runway dance party after, the show last year drew 800 guests and raised nearly $200,000 for the CCAD general scholarship fund. So pull together your best runway-appropriate attire (complete with dancing shoes, of course), grab a drink and prepare to be wowed by the next generation of fashion gurus. ccad.edu -Emily Thompson

Rock on the Range

May 16 to 18

Cleveland calls itself the birthplace of rock 'n' roll, but with this year's Rock on the Range, Columbus cements its status as the nation's new home of hard rock. Since 2007, Rock on the Range (held at Crew Stadium) has grown from a one-day oddball concert (the lineup that year included ZZ Top and Papa Roach) to a weekend-long music festival that brings in thousands of people from across the U.S.-more than 100,000 attended last year's sold-out show. The 2014 lineup promises to be one of the event's most notable, with headliners Guns N' Roses, Avenged Sevenfold and Kid Rock. rockontherange.com -Jenny Rogers

Columbus Dance Theater's "O. Twist"

May 30 to 31

Spend an evening with the Columbus Dance Theatre as they revive Charles Dickens' classic about the orphan boy "despised by all and pitied by none." Longtime artistic director Tim Veach promises to bring a "new, edgy, urban" aesthetic to the Lincoln Theatre, with original choreography to the music of Columbus-grown producer RJD2, who created "A Beautiful Mine," better known as the "Mad Men" theme, with MC Aceyalone. columbusdancetheatre.com -Anthony Dominic