Calendar of Events
Upcoming events and things to do in Asheville, NC. Below is a list of events for festivals, concerts, art exhibitions, group meetups and more.
Interested in adding an event to our calendar? Please click the green “Post Your Event” button below.
Romare Bearden (Charlotte, NC 1911–1988 New York, NY), African American writer and artist, is renowned for his collages. He constantly experimented with various techniques to achieve his artistic goals throughout his career. This exhibition highlights works on paper and explores his most frequently used mediums, including screen-printing, lithography, hand-colored etching, collagraph, monotype, relief print, photomontage, and collage.
Bearden’s work reflects his improvisational approach to his practice. He considered his process akin to that of jazz and blues composers. Starting with an open mind, he would let an idea evolve spontaneously.
“Romare Bearden: Ways of Working highlights Bearden’s unique artistic practice and masterful storytelling through art,” says Pamela L. Myers, Executive Director of the Asheville Art Museum. “We are thrilled to collaborate with Jerald Melberg Gallery to present these extraordinary works on paper in conversation with Bearden’s collage Sunset Express, 1984 in the Museum Collection (on view in the Museum’s SECU Collection Hall). This exhibition will also provide a glimpse into the cultural histories and personal interests that influenced his art-making practice, and we hope it encourages introspection and dialogue with our visitors.”
Jerald Melberg states, “Romare Bearden’s groundbreaking artistic practice continues to captivate audiences worldwide. With an unparalleled legacy of creativity and innovation, Bearden’s contributions to art remain deeply influential years beyond his life.” We have enjoyed organizing this exhibition with the Asheville Art Museum to showcase his artistic genius and inspire visitors from the Western North Carolina region and beyond.”
This exhibition is made possible in part by the Judy Appleton Fund. Many thanks to the Jerald Melberg Gallery for the loan of these important artworks and to Mary and Jerald Melberg for their long-standing support of the arts, artists, and the Asheville Art Museum.
Included with admission
Back by popular demand, The Vanderbilts at Home and Abroad exhibition offers guests:
- An opportunity to view rarely-seen treasures from the Biltmore collection
- A first-hand look at the Vanderbilts’ lifestyle
- Deeper insights into George, Edith, and Cornelia’s personalities, both at home and on their extensive travels
Access to exhibitions at The Biltmore Legacy is included with Biltmore daytime admission.
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Western North Carolina is important in the history of American glass art. Several artists of the Studio Glass Movement came to the region, including its founder Harvey K. Littleton. Begun in 1962 in Wisconsin, it was a student of Littleton’s that first came to the area in 1965 and set up a glass studio at the Penland School of Craft in Penland, North Carolina. By 1967, Mark Peiser was the first glass artist resident at the school and taught many notable artists, like Jak Brewer in 1968 and Richard Ritter who came to study in 1971. By 1977, Littleton retired from teaching and moved to nearby Spruce Pine, North Carolina and set up a glass studio at his home. Since that time, glass artists like Ken Carder, Rick and Valerie Beck, Shane Fero, and Yaffa Sikorsky and Jeff Todd—to name only a few—have flocked to the area to reside, collaborate, and teach, making it a significant place for experimentation and education in glass. The next generation of artists like Hayden Wilson and Alex Bernstein continue to create here. The Museum is dedicated to collecting American studio glass and within that umbrella, explores the work of Artists connected to Western North Carolina. Exhibitions, including Intersections of American Art, explore glass art in the context of American Art of the 20th and 21st centuries. A variety of techniques and a willingness to push boundaries of the medium can be seen in this selection of works from the Museum’s Collection. |
Join us for an introduction to planning and layout of land for small-scale farming. Our case study will be a property around the corner from the SAHC Community Farm in Alexander, NC.
We will conduct a site analysis of the property’s conditions using a number of land planning tools, with a Permaculture approach. We’ll inventory conditions such as soils, water, wind, aspect and more to create a multi-layered map of the site as a base for decision making. Using this information, together we will draw up a concept for the site, addressing needs and challenges identified in the analysis phase.
This workshop will be particularly appropriate for participants who already own or lease land, as well as those who plan to do so in the future. Our focus will be on growers, and the public is welcome!
Ever wanted to try improv comedy? Have you been going to the open mics and looking for advice to get to the next level? Or maybe just looking for other femme and queer friends interested in comedy.
Come out to Catawba Brewing South Slope on Sunday 8/27 for a one day workshop let by Marlene Thompson (Second City, Asheville Improv)
Open to all femme and non-binary identifying people and all comedy levels
ages 18+
List of Supporters (Discounts, donat
It’s back! Our Kolo Bike Park monthly after-school club runs every Tuesday & Thursday afternoon for ages 6-13 from 3-6 pm.
This club is for our local shredders to keep riding and growing their mountain bike skills all year long. This club is NOT to teach children how to ride and it is a requirement that they enjoy biking and can successfully ride their bike off-road before joining. Our highly skilled and trained staff will help campers working on bike handling and riding all the features and trails our 125-acre park has to offer.
- $350 per camper per month
- Runs Tuesdays and Thursdays in October, and November. Please note that you need to purchase a membership for EACH month!
- $20 discount for either multiple months or for each multiple campers (you may not stack discounts, sorry!)
- We run rain or shine! If it is too muddy to ride, we will adjust programming for bike maintenance lessons, alternative activities, etc.
- Campers must bring their own bike, helmet, water bottle, snack, and any protective gear each day
- A $25 cancellation fee will be charged in canceled less than 2 weeks before the first session.
- No refunds for cancellations made within 2 weeks of the first session!
You may book online or call our office at 828.225.2921. To book online choose October 3 for the October Club and November 2 for the November Club.
Calling all disc golf enthusiasts! Aston Park now has a disc golf course ready to challenge players from all skill levels. With 3 different tee-off points at each of the 6 goal baskets, the course maximizes this compact park space to entertain users for a full 18 holes. Come and celebrate the course Grand Opening and Ribbon Cutting event Thursday, October 26 3:30-6:30pm featuring live music, a scavenger hunt, prizes, and more! This event is being put on by the South French Broad neighborhood association, which is credited with visioning, planning, and installing the disc golf course using funding from the City’s Neighborhood Matching Grant program and in conjunction with Asheville Parks and Recreation.
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Students will receive a solid foundation in beginner Ukulele skills for vocalists. Chords, Rhythm patterns, and basic theory will be introduced through songs with an uplifting message. Students will also learn to play the song that the Songwriting Class will be writing and get to record it in the One Mic Studio.
October is National Archives Month and Buncombe County Special Collections is celebrating with a spooky scary dive into the archives for two special events at East Asheville Library. Trunk of Troubles will share basic care and storage tips for family documents and photographs, and Spine-Chilling Special Collections puts archival horrors on display for Halloween.
Using a “Trunk of Trouble,” Western Regional Archives Lead Archivist Heather South will share basic care, handling, and storage instructions for taking care of your family documents and photographs. Whether it’s your grandfather’s World War II letters home, your parent’s wedding photos, or even your high school scrapbook, we’ll share ways to save and preserve these historical treasures for future generations.
The free program provides insight on where to start and ideas for inexpensive solutions to frequent troubles. “The Trunk of Trouble” uses examples and samples all about the do’s and don’ts of preservation for books, paper, and photographs. It’s an informative and fun way to join in on the preservation conversation.
Join us on a walking tour of the Foundy in the River Arts District where we learn about the only existing Street Art Gallery in Asheville and all the artists who have created graffiti and mural installations that have made our town an urban art destination.
Participants must meet the following guidelines:
- 40 years of age or older
- Not have had a mammogram within the past year
- Be uninsured
- Have no breast problems or concerns
In this 8-week semester, young artists will learn to create dynamic relationships through theatre games, improvisation, and scene work. With an emphasis on ensemble storytelling, character creation, physicality, and voice and speech, students will leave feeling more collaborative, creative, and confident making bold choices on stage and in life. No prior experience is necessary, only an open mind! With new material every semester, this class can (and should) be taken multiple times. We will end the semester with a taped video performance that will be emailed out to all families!
Queer Music Exploration – Students will explore guitar, bass, drums, singing and piano with a focus on learning music by artists from the LGBTQ+ community. Students will have the chance to interact with their peers and share their experiences through music.
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Business After Hours
Join the Asheville Museum of History Thursday, October 26 at 6pm live in the Reuter Center at UNCA or via Zoom. This event airs live and will be recorded.
Arts and Crafts historian Bruce E. Johnson will share the history behind his book Biltmore Industries and Tryon Toy-Makers and Wood-Carvers: The Lives and Works of Eleanor Vance and Charlotte Yale. Fresh from the Moody Bible College, young Eleanor Vance and Charlotte Yale arrived in Biltmore Village in 1901 and soon were deeply involved with All Souls’ Church. Drawing upon her extensive training as a woodworker, Vance began teaching young men and women how to construct and carved exquisite walnut serving trays, bookends, bowls, picture frames, hearth brushes, and fireplace bellows.
Edith and George Vanderbilt provided the fledgling Arts and Crafts industry with the workshop space, encouragement, and support necessary for Vance and Yale to open and manage Biltmore Estate Industries in 1905. They soon added the weaving of wool homespun cloth to their inventory in their shop across from the railway depot.
But George Vanderbilt’s unexpected death in 1914 left his widow Edith unprepared to manage their 125,000-acre estate, 250-room house, and all of Biltmore Village. Sensing their time at Biltmore Estate Industries was about to end, in 1915 Vance and Yale moved to Tryon. Two years later, Edith Vanderbilt sold the Industries to Fred L. Seely, president of the Grove Park Inn. In 1917, he began moving the woodworkers and weavers into the five buildings he constructed in what is now Grovewood Village, adjacent to the grounds of the Grove Park Inn.
In Tryon, Vance and Yale again began teaching young men and women not only how to carve walnut bowls, frames, and bookends, but also to make colorful children’s toys. From 1915 until their retirement in 1943, the women led Tryon Toy-Makers and Wood-Carvers, creating hundreds of carved items and painted toys which have become collectors’ items today.
About the Speaker:
Bruce Johnson moved to North Carolina in 1985 and soon founded the annual National Arts and Crafts Conference and Shows at the historic 1913 Grove Park Inn. In 1910, he was recognized with the Thomas Wolfe Memorial Literary Award. For the past ten years he has been gathering research material for his new 200-page, hardback book, which features 239 vintage and color photographs, descriptions of nearly 500 of their works, and fourteen of the identification shopmarks used at Biltmore Estate Industries, Biltmore Industries, and Tryon Toy-Makers and Wood-Carvers.
Additional information is available on Facebook at Biltmore Industries & Tryon Toy-Makers and Wood-Carvers
Tickets: $5 for AMoH/OLLI members/ $10 for General Admission. We also have no-cost, community-funded tickets available. We want our events to be accessible to as many people as possible. If you are able please consider making a donation along with your ticket purchase. These donations are placed in our Community Fund, which allows us to offer tickets at no cost to those who would not be able to attend otherwise.
Viewing: Registrants will receive a confirmation email with Zoom link with which to view the program. For those attending in person, no further steps are required. This event is held in the Reuter Center at UNCA (300 Campus View Rd, Asheville).
(Images: Biltmore Industries and Tryon Toy-Makers and Wood-Carvers: The Lives and Works of Eleanor Vance and Charlotte Yale, courtesy Bruce Johnson)
For questions, email Trevor Freeman at [email protected]
Join us for an evening with folk trio Palmyra at Citizen Vinyl on Thursday, October 26.
7 p.m. show / 6 p.m. doors. $15 advance / $20 at the door. Neo-folk songwriter and performer Vandiver opens the show.
Established in the Shenandoah Valley, Palmyra explores the fusion of traditional folk string instruments, three part harmonies and foot percussion. In 2022, Palmyra made their Newport Folk Festival debut, were named the FloydFest 2022 On The Rise Winner, and performed over 200 tour dates on acclaimed stages up and down the East Coast. The trio captures the collective spirit of three Virginia natives, Teddy (he/him), Manoa (he/him), and Sasha (they/them). Palmyra’s songs are intimate and contemplative, with arrangements that allow them to create the illusion of a full, larger-than-three ensemble. The trio’s sound is a nod to Appalachia and Midwestern Americana, apparent through their stirring craftsmanship and dedication to a folk-driven, innovative experience throughout each live performance.
Vandiver is the moniker of Asheville Neo-folk songwriter and performer, Andrew Hammond. Born and raised In Hall County Georgia at the southern tip of Appalachia, Vandiver would find its musical beginnings farther north, in Brooklyn, NY. A bit of alchemy happens when a gentle folk singer is wrung through the cogs of a hundred apathetic gutter punk dive bars. Vandiver’s nylon stringed guitar and his meticulous “every word counts” approach to songwriting, support a soulful, delicate and explosive vocal show. Since the release of the What May Rot EP, and a move to the vibrant music scene of Asheville, NC. Vandiver’s music has leaned even deeper into the support of its Appalachian roots.
In this 8-week session, teen artists will learn from industry experts in acting, character development, scene work, and more! In their weekly acting class students will explore the nuances of theatre technique and provide a framework approaching scenes and monologues. This session is ideal for students who are passionate about theatre, excited to collaborate in a pre-professional environment with peers and industry experts, and looking to grow and develop as artists.With new material every semester, this class can (and should) be taken multiple times. We will end the semester with a taped video performance that will be emailed out to all families!
Adam Rothman, professor of History at Georgetown University, will be speaking on Georgetown’s history of enslavement and his current research on Thursday, October 26 at 7 p.m. at the UNC Asheville Reuter Center, Manheimer Room.
Rothman is the director of the Center for the Study of Slavery and Its Legacies and co-editor of the recent book “Facing Georgetown’s History: A Reader on Slavery, Memory, and Reconciliation” which details the university’s history of enslavement and its recent efforts to confront its past.
In “I Came As a Shadow,” John Thompson writes about Georgetown’s slaveholding legacy, especially the sale of 272 enslaved people in 1883 that was made to save the financially struggling university. Aside from tracing the descendants of the 272 individuals, Rothman’s research explores how institutions and communities confront their shameful pasts.
This event is part of the Common Word Community Read series, a set of lectures and discussions centered around a shared text with the goal of engaging a collective educational experience. The program is curated by Wiley Cash, New York Times bestselling author, alumnus of the class of 2000, and UNC Asheville’s Executive Director of Literary Arts. The selection for fall 2023 is “I Came As a Shadow” an autobiography by the late John Thompson, the head basketball coach at Georgetown University from 1972 to 1999, where he won the NCAA championship in 1984.
Accessibility
UNC Asheville is committed to providing universal access to all of our events. If you have any questions about access or to request reasonable accommodations that will facilitate your full participation in this event, please contact the Event Organizer (see below). Advance notice is necessary to arrange for accessibility needs.
Visitor Parking
Visitors may park in faculty/staff and All Permit lots from 5:00 p.m. until 7:30 a.m., Monday through Friday, and on weekends, holidays, and campus breaks. Visitors are not permitted to park in resident student lots at any time.
Prior to 5pm, any visitor (regardless of their reason for visit) need to adhere to the current practices listed on the parking website. Get your visitor parking permit here
GHOST COMEDY BUS TOUR
Grab a local beer, crucifix and a rubber chicken* —You might survive this hour long hilarious haunted ghost tour of Asheville.
- Guided comedy bus tour of Haunted Asheville
- 60 minutes; tours run nightly after dark
- $33 per person (Ages 17+ only)
- Departs from 76 Biltmore Avenue
*Legal Note: Crucifix not required to board the bus; we do not condone exorcisms, chickens, rubber, or any combination of the three.
In celebration of the podcast Palimpsest’s fifth season launch this Halloween, join creators Jamieson Ridenhour and Hayley Heninger for an intimate live performance featuring a pre-launch sneak peek at the new season followed by haunted refreshments.
Palimpsest is a single-voiced horror audio drama about memory, identity, and the things that haunt us. Each 10-episode season is a self-contained story exploring the spaces between horror, fantasy, and psychological realism. Recently wrapping up its fourth season with over half a million downloads, Palimpsest has critics calling it “a masterclass in atmosphere” and “audio fiction’s best foray into the Gothic.”
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“Palimpsest is audio fiction’s best foray into the Gothic.”
-Wil Williams, DiscoverPods
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“Palimpsest is a masterclass in atmosphere. I absolutely cried.”
-Elena Fernández-Collins, AudioDramatic
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“Palimpsest is perfect for those who like their horror with a little Shirley Jackson vibe.”
-Tor.com
Steve Simon & The Kings of Jazz are Brevard’s newest and most exciting and entertaining jazz band with a sound that combines the funkiness of George Benson, the soulfulness of Ray Charles and the smoothness of Diana Krall all wrapped together in big Count Basie style arrangements of American and Latin jazz classics. If you are looking for an amazing live jazz experience then check out the hottest jazz band in the coolest city in North Carolina performing every Thursday at The DFR Lounge from 7pm to 9pm
Written by Samuel D. Hunter
Keith, a mortgage broker and Ryan, a yogurt plant worker, are two men who, at first glance, have nothing in common. Their meeting, in Keith’s cubicle, evolves from a business discussion to a thoughtful exploration of parenthood, financial insecurity, and empathy. Both intimate and expansive, Samuel D. Hunter’s heartbreaking new play argues for hope even in the face of extreme disappointment as two men with seemingly very different lives grow to care for one another.
Content advisory: strong language
Beginner’s workshop lesson at 7:30 P.M., then 8-11 P.M. Contra Dance with Country Waltzing at the break and the final dance. This is a partner dance but it’s not necessary to come with a partner. We have different live bands and callers.
The most sought after trio in the world, the Grammy nominated Eroica Trio enraptures audiences with flawless technical virtuosity, irresistible enthusiasm and sensual elegance. The three women who make up this celebrated ensemble electrify the concert stage with their passionate performances. The New York Times writes, “There is an edge of the seat intensity to every note they produce.”
The Trio won the prestigious Naumburg Award, resulting in a highly successful Lincoln Center debut and has since toured the United States, Europe, Middle East, South America and Asia. While maintaining their demanding concert schedule, the Eroica Trio has released eight critically lauded recordings for Angel/EMI classics Records, garnering them multiple Grammy nominations. The first all female chamber ensemble to reach the top echelon of the field, the women of the Eroica Trio have shattered the age-old gender barrier, leading the vanguard and inspiring many to follow.
ARTISTS
Erika Nickrenz, piano
Sara Parkins, violin
Sara Sant’Ambrogio, cello
Auditorium seating is reserved.
Poetry Open Mic Hendo is the all-new sister event of Poetry Open Mic Asheville, the
longest-running open mic in Western North Carolina, this weekly event welcomes all people and all forms of creative expression at
Hendersonville’s only Kava lounge.