Five Things You Need to Know Today: April 1

1. Board of Aldermen. The Newton Board of Aldermen will meet tonight at 7:45 p.m. in the Aldermanic Chamber at City Hall. The board will discuss and potentially vote on a number of items tonight including sidewalk cafe furniture and permit fees/parking plan for Newton North neighborhoods. Tonight's reports docket is included in the .pdf section to the right.

2. Yard waste collections. Resume this week in Newton.

3. "Etty: A One-Woman Play." Susan Stein will perform "Etty" this evening at the Newton Free Library. The one-hour performance, directed by Austin Pendleton, is based on the letters and diaries of Holocaust victim Etty Hillesum. The free performance starts at 7 p.m. and will be held in the Druker Auditorium.

4. Piano celebration. The Scandinavian Cultural Center is hosting a special Piano celebration from April 1-7 as part of a campaign to bring a concert-quality grand piano to Newton. The week-long celebration kicks off today with performances from Newton Public School students. The free concert starts at 3:30 p.m. and will be held at the Scandinavian Cultural Center in West Newton.

5. Go Tigers! The Newton North girls' varsity softball team will face Braintree in a home game today at 3:45 p.m.