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.

Saturday, May 10, 2025
Terms of Endearment
May 10 @ 3:30 pm
Hendersonville Theatre

Adapted for the stage by Dan Gordon
Produced by special arrangement with Playscripts, Inc. (www.playscripts.com)

May 1-11, 2025

Thursday, 5/1 at 7:30 (pay what you can available on 4/17)
Fridays at 7:30
Saturdays at 3 pm
Sundays at 3 pm

Director: Jonathan Forrester

Approximate Run Time: 2 hours
Rating: PG-13 due to adult language and situations. Depictions of drinking, smoking, drug use, illness and death.

Challenges in life and love test the resilience of a mother-daughter relationship in Dan Gordon’s adaptation of Terms of Endearment, based on the book by Pulitzer Prize-winner Larry McMurtry and James L. Brooks’s screenplay of the Oscar-winning film. Though Emma is often exasperated by her highly-opinionated mother, Aurora, they talk daily about their problems, from Aurora finding unexpected love even as she becomes a reluctant grandmother to Emma’s struggle in her troubled marriage. But when they need one another most, will they be able to find courage in each other? This funny and touching story captures the delicate, sometimes fractured bonds between mothers and daughters, husbands and wives, and lovers, both old and new.

The cast of Terms of Endearment:

Tate Albert – Garrett Breedlove

Mark Hodgdon* – Rudyard/Dr. Maise

Victoria Lamberth – Aurora Greenway

Lauren Otis – Emma Greenway

Jered Shults – Flap Horton

Mary Weisberger – Patsy/Doris/Nurse

*Making their Hendersonville Theatre debut

Asheville Tourists vs Brooklyn
May 10 @ 6:00 pm
McCormick Field

Head on out to the ballgame at McCormick Field. Asheville is taking on Brooklyn. Game starts at 6:05pm.

An Evening With Chris Thile and Asheville Symphony
May 10 @ 7:00 pm
Thomas Wolfe Auditorium

An Evening with Chris Thile features a true array of genres. You’ll hear Thile’s new work ATTENTION! A narrative song cycle for extroverted mandolinist and orchestra, the third movement of Barber’s masterful Violin Concerto – which he will play on mandolin – and more.

MacArthur Fellow and Grammy Award-winning mandolinist, singer, songwriter Chris Thile, who the Guardian calls “that rare being: an all-round musician who can settle into any style, from bluegrass to classical,” and NPR calls a “genre-defying musical genius,” is a founding member of the critically acclaimed bands Punch Brothers and Nickel Creek. For four years, Thile hosted public radio favorite Live from Here with Chris Thile (formerly known as A Prairie Home Companion). With his broad outlook, Thile creates a distinctly American canon and a new musical aesthetic for performers and audiences alike, giving the listener “one joyous arc, with the linear melody and vertical harmony blurring into a single web of gossamer beauty” (New York Times).

Darko Butorac, conductor

Chris Thile, mandolin

Annie the Musical
May 10 @ 7:00 pm
Wortham Center for the Performing Arts

Based on the popular comic strip by Harold Gray, Annie has become a worldwide
phenomenon and was the winner of seven Tony Awards, including Best Musical. The
beloved book and score by Tony Award winners, Thomas Meehan, Charles Strouse and
Martin Charnin, features some of the greatest musical theatre hits ever written,
including “Tomorrow.”

With equal measures of pluck and positivity, little orphan Annie charms everyone’s
hearts despite a next-to-nothing start in 1930s New York City. She is determined to
find the parents who abandoned her years ago on the doorstep of a New York City
Orphanage that is run by the cruel, embittered Miss Hannigan. With the help of the
other girls in the Orphanage, Annie escapes to the wondrous world of NYC. In adventure
after fun-filled adventure, Annie foils Miss Hannigan’s evil machinations… and even
befriends President Franklin Delano Roosevelt! She finds a new home and family in
billionaire, Oliver Warbucks, his personal secretary, Grace Farrell, and a lovable
mutt named Sandy.

Into the Wilds
May 10 @ 7:00 pm
The Hideaway

Into The Wilds (The ACT Gala)

Saturday, May 10, 2025 from 7:00 PM-10:00 PM

The Hideaway, 49 Broadway St, Asheville

Saturday, May 10, 2025
7:00 PM – 10:00 PM
The Hideaway | 49 Broadway St, Asheville
Tickets: $150 per guest | Ages 21+ | Cocktail Attire with a Touch of Whimsy

You never know what you might discover when you venture… Into The Wilds.
Join us for a wild, wonderful, and whimsical evening benefitting Asheville Community Theatre.

  • Indulge in wonderful performances from Broadway royalty… Ben Cameron and Britt Mack.
  • Mingle at the open bar – featuring a wild signature cocktail.
  • Savor delicious and thoughtfully prepared cuisine.
  • Discover unique experiences & one-of-a-kind treasures for auction.
  • Arrive in cocktail attire with a touch (or more) of whimsy!
The Heart of Comedy!
May 10 @ 7:00 pm – 10:00 pm
Flood Gallery Fine Art Center

Adult comedy with a heart! Featuring comics from both Carolinas at the new Flood Gallery!

Come enjoy a hilarious night of laughs, show your support for our headliner Chris “Hillbilly” Pritchett who needs a new heart, and celebrate the reopening of Flood Gallery after Hurricane Helene! Our tentative comedian line-up includes:

1. Brendan From Long Island (Host)
2. Austin Arney
3. Jason Henson
4. Joseph Thompson
5. Kim H. Falls
6. Reggie Massey
7. Paul Ain’t Right (DJ)
8. Geo. Wagner
9. Nate Bechtel
10. Bob Maier
11. Superdad Jones
12. Hillbilly (Headliner)

Food and drinks available, $10 suggested donation. Doors open at 6:30. Produced by Brendan C. Ahern of “Rainy Night Theatre”.

Juked
May 10 @ 7:30 pm
Wortham Center for Performing Arts

Different Strokes! Performing Arts Collective presents Juked – RESCHEDULED

PLEASE NOTE: Performances of DS!PAC’s JUKED originally scheduled for February 6–23, 2025 have been rescheduled to May 1-18, 2025. Ticket holders will be contacted with more information.

Thursday – Saturday, May 1 – 17, 2025 at 7:30 p.m.
Sunday, May 18, 2025 at 3:00 p.m.

WORLD PREMIERE written by Mildred Inez Lewis

Juked is a retelling of Sophocles’ tragedy Electra. This version is set in 1950s Asheville and the “kingdom” is a chain of drink houses (private homes offering illegal alcohol) owned by the well-off, African-American Memnon family. Juked examines the relationship between Electra, her mother, and her sister, and asks what happens after tragedy. How do we recover? Juked is part of the Emerging Black Playwrights New Play Series and first debuted in its development phase, as a staged reading in November 2023. 

King James
May 10 @ 7:30 pm
NC Stage Company

“King” LeBron James’s years playing in Cleveland bring promise to a city in desperate need. His tenure also unites Shawn and Matt in an unlikely bond forged by fandom. Over twelve years the men navigate their turbulent friendship through their shared love of basketball—and the endless amiable arguments that erupt from that love.

Performances of King James will be held on the days and times listed below. The lobby and concessions area will open one hour prior to showtime. Concessions may be taken into the theatre during the performance.

April 24 – May 18, 2025

Wednesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays at 7:30

Sundays at 2pm

Friday 4/25 and 5/2 at 7:30pm

Friday 5/9 and 5/16 at 2pm

Terms of Endearment
May 10 @ 7:30 pm
Hendersonville Theater

Challenges in life and love test the resilience of a mother-daughter relationship in Dan Gordon’s adaptation of Terms of Endearment, based on the book by Pulitzer Prize-winner Larry McMurtry and James L. Brooks’s screenplay of the Oscar-winning film. Though Emma is often exasperated by her highly-opinionated mother, Aurora, they talk daily about their problems, from Aurora finding unexpected love even as she becomes a reluctant grandmother to Emma’s struggle in her troubled marriage. But when they need one another most, will they be able to find courage in each other? This funny and touching story captures the delicate, sometimes fractured bonds between mothers and daughters, husbands and wives, and lovers, both old and new.

Thursday, 5/1 at 7:30 (pay what you can available on 4/17)
Fridays at 7:30
Saturdays at 3 pm
Sundays at 3 pm

The Book of Will
May 10 @ 7:30 pm
Montford Park Players

The Montford Park Players proudly presents “The Book of Will” follows the journey of William Shakespeare’s friends and fellow playwrights as they struggle to preserve his legacy after his death. Amid betrayal, heartbreak, and ambition, they work to compile his works into the First Folio, ensuring his immortality in the world of theater.

Shows are Friday, Saturday, and Sunday at 7:30 each night.

And always FREE! No Sunday performances for the last weekend of each show.

BADBADNOTGOOD
May 10 @ 8:00 pm
The Orange Peel

BADBADNOTGOOD in concert with Baby Rose on Saturday, May 10 at The Orange Peel.

Show: 8pm | Doors: 7pm

Ages 18+
Sunday, May 11, 2025
CATS
May 11 all-day
Flat Rock Playhouse

April 25 – May 17

Cancelled last fall due to Hurricane Helene, CATS is back! An extravaganza of fantasy and theatre magic, CATS has enchanted audiences for decades with its fiercely energetic dancing, showbiz razzle-dazzle, and unforgettable lyrics drawn from T.S. Elliot’s Old Possum’s Book of Practical Cats. As one of the most popular Broadway blockbusters of all time and winner of seven Tony Awards, this certified classic has brought cheer to millions of theatre lovers of all ages! Don’t miss this all-new production! You and your family are sure to leave the theatre tapping your toes and ‘feline’ groovy!

Event Times: 2:00 PM & 7:30 PM

Ticket Prices: $60 / $70 / $80

National Geographic: The Greatest Wildlife Photographs
May 11 @ 12:00 am – 7:00 pm
North Carolina Arboretum

Arboretum visitors will witness some of the most surprising animal behavior in the new National Geographic exhibition, The Greatest Wildlife Photographs.” The very best wildlife pictures from the pages of National Geographic magazine have been chosen to be displayed in this exhibition. Curated by renowned nature picture editor, Kathy Moran, this exhibition is a celebratory look at wildlife with images taken by National Geographic’s most iconic photographers such as, Michael “Nick” Nichols, Steve Winter, Paul Nicklen, Beverly Joubert, David Doubilet and more. Showcasing the evolution of photography, the images convey how innovations such as camera traps, remote imaging, and underwater technology have granted photographers access to wildlife in their natural habitat.

For 115 years, National Geographic has pioneered and championed the art of wildlife photography, and captivated generations of engaged audiences with a steady stream of extraordinary images of animals in nature. From the very first such image to appear – a reindeer in 1903 – National Geographic Society’s publications have broken new ground and push the bar higher again and again, establishing an unmatched legacy of artistic, scientific, and technical achievement. These are the Greatest Wildlife Photographs. This is included with admission to NC Arboretum.

Mother’s Day Brunch at Golden Hour
May 11 @ 10:00 am – 2:00 pm
The Radical

Golden Hour invites moms and their families to join them for a special feel-good brunch. Bring the whole crew and make some golden memories with Mom.

 Iron and Ink: Prints from America’s Machine Age
May 11 @ 11:00 am – 6:00 pm
Asheville Art Museum

Our latest exhibition, Iron and Ink: Prints from America’s Machine Agefocuses on a dynamic era in American history when industrialization and advances in technology transformed urban landscapes and redefined the nature of work and leisure nationwide.

Showcasing Collection prints from 1905 to the 1940s, Iron and Ink explores connections between industrial labor, urbanization, and the growing middle class. The exhibition highlights works by Works Progress Administration artists from the 1930s whose powerful images of machinery, skyscrapers, and daily life—both at work and recreation—capture this transformational era in American society.

This exhibition is organized by the Asheville Art Museum and Robin Klaus, PhD, assistant curator.

Coatlicue & Las Meninas
May 11 @ 11:00 am – 6:00 pm
Asheville Art Museum

The mirror has been a powerful symbol invoked in the arts across centuries and cultures. Mirrors double reality, question the veracity of your perception, open portals to other dimensions, and act as objects of magic and divination. In the series Black Mirror/Espejo Negro (2007, ongoing), Pedro Lasch employs the mirror as an emblem that interrogates the tension between presence and absence, colonial histories, and the politics of visibility. The selections from the series displayed in this installation conceptually bring together canonical works of art from early modern Europe and prominent pre-Columbian sculptural figures, whose superimposed images emerge specter-like through darkened glass. Each work includes an accompanying text the artist produced for that pairing.

Flora Symbolica
May 11 @ 11:00 am – 6:00 pm
Asheville Art Museum

For millennia, humans and flowers have enjoyed a rich and intertwined history spanning time and cultures. Fossilized flowers have been found at early human burial sites and flora is used in medicines and remedies. Flowers have also evolved into symbols of love, purity, and rebirth, alongside their enduring role as objects of beauty and ornamentation. Flora Symbolica: The Art of Flowers explores the meanings and messages of flowers in American art of the 20th and 21st centuries, highlighting the timeless connections among art, nature, and human experience.

Greetings From Asheville
May 11 @ 11:00 am
The Asheville Art Museum

This exhibition explores how the land, the people, and the built environment of Asheville and its surrounding environs were interpreted through early 20th century vintage postcards. Some images show the sophisticated architecture of the region, including views of downtown Asheville, the Biltmore Estate, and Grove Park Inn. Other images show views of the scenic mountains and landscapes that first drew tourists and outdoor enthusiasts to the region.

Mother’s Day Brunch at The Silo Cookhouse
May 11 @ 11:00 am – 3:00 pm
The Silo Cookhouse at The Horse Shoe Farm

Come celebrate the mothers in your life at The Silo Cookhouse with a seasonal brunch featuring local ingredients. Menu highlights include Farmhouse Hash, Spring Vegetable Galette, Fruit Tart, Blackberry Merlot Chocolate Cake, and more!

Mother’s Day Brunch at Kanuga
May 11 @ 11:30 am – 2:00 pm
Kanuga

Celebrate Mother’s Day with this special brunch event! Join us for a delicious meal surrounded by beautiful scenery. Treat your mom to a day she won’t forget with a variety of dishes to choose from. Show your appreciation for all that she does with a lovely meal in a charming setting. Don’t miss out on this opportunity to make her day extra special!

A Rose by Another Name: Paper Flower Workshop
May 11 @ 1:00 pm – 4:00 pm
NC Arboretum

A Rose by Another Name: Paper Flower Workshop with Charlie Zimmerman.

Have you ever wished for flowers that would last forever? You can make your very own everlasting blooms out of paper! In this guided floral artistry workshop, you’ll learn basic techniques for crafting paper flowers with realistic petals, stamens, sepals, and more, while creating your own paper rose to admire and share. Throughout class we’ll talk about the botany of flowers and consider the role of each structure for plant reproduction and pollination. All tools and materials for constructing two paper roses are included.

Asheville Tourists vs. Brooklyn
May 11 @ 1:00 pm
McCormick Field

Head on out to the ballgame at McCormick Field. Asheville is taking on Brooklyn. Game starts at 1:05pm.

Annie the Musical
May 11 @ 2:00 pm
Wortham Center for the Performing Arts

Based on the popular comic strip by Harold Gray, Annie has become a worldwide
phenomenon and was the winner of seven Tony Awards, including Best Musical. The
beloved book and score by Tony Award winners, Thomas Meehan, Charles Strouse and
Martin Charnin, features some of the greatest musical theatre hits ever written,
including “Tomorrow.”

With equal measures of pluck and positivity, little orphan Annie charms everyone’s
hearts despite a next-to-nothing start in 1930s New York City. She is determined to
find the parents who abandoned her years ago on the doorstep of a New York City
Orphanage that is run by the cruel, embittered Miss Hannigan. With the help of the
other girls in the Orphanage, Annie escapes to the wondrous world of NYC. In adventure
after fun-filled adventure, Annie foils Miss Hannigan’s evil machinations… and even
befriends President Franklin Delano Roosevelt! She finds a new home and family in
billionaire, Oliver Warbucks, his personal secretary, Grace Farrell, and a lovable
mutt named Sandy.

King James
May 11 @ 2:00 pm
NC Stage Company

“King” LeBron James’s years playing in Cleveland bring promise to a city in desperate need. His tenure also unites Shawn and Matt in an unlikely bond forged by fandom. Over twelve years the men navigate their turbulent friendship through their shared love of basketball—and the endless amiable arguments that erupt from that love.

Performances of King James will be held on the days and times listed below. The lobby and concessions area will open one hour prior to showtime. Concessions may be taken into the theatre during the performance.

April 24 – May 18, 2025

Wednesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays at 7:30

Sundays at 2pm

Friday 4/25 and 5/2 at 7:30pm

Friday 5/9 and 5/16 at 2pm

The Greenville Symphony presents Season Finale: Beethoven and Brazil
May 11 @ 3:00 pm
Peace Concert Hall

Peace Concert Hall
Saturday, May 10 at 7:30 pm
Sunday, May 11 at 3:00 pm

PROGRAM
Jessie Montgomery: Starburst
João Guilherme Ripper: Cinco Poemas de Vinicius de Moraes
Ludwig van Beethoven: Symphony No. 6 in F major, “Pastoral”

Join us for the grand finale of our season with a captivating concert that celebrates the enduring legacy of Beethoven alongside the vibrant rhythms of Brazil. From the cosmic brilliance of Jessie Montgomery’s Starburst to the lyrical beauty of João Guilherme Ripper’s Cinco Poemas de Vinicius de Moraes, this is a journey of musical exploration and cultural fusion. Our season finale culminates with the timeless majesty of Beethoven’s “Pastoral” Symphony, transporting you to the serene landscapes of the countryside.

GUEST
Tess Altiveros, soprano

Terms of Endearment
May 11 @ 3:30 pm
Hendersonville Theatre

Adapted for the stage by Dan Gordon
Produced by special arrangement with Playscripts, Inc. (www.playscripts.com)

May 1-11, 2025

Thursday, 5/1 at 7:30 (pay what you can available on 4/17)
Fridays at 7:30
Saturdays at 3 pm
Sundays at 3 pm

Director: Jonathan Forrester

Approximate Run Time: 2 hours
Rating: PG-13 due to adult language and situations. Depictions of drinking, smoking, drug use, illness and death.

Challenges in life and love test the resilience of a mother-daughter relationship in Dan Gordon’s adaptation of Terms of Endearment, based on the book by Pulitzer Prize-winner Larry McMurtry and James L. Brooks’s screenplay of the Oscar-winning film. Though Emma is often exasperated by her highly-opinionated mother, Aurora, they talk daily about their problems, from Aurora finding unexpected love even as she becomes a reluctant grandmother to Emma’s struggle in her troubled marriage. But when they need one another most, will they be able to find courage in each other? This funny and touching story captures the delicate, sometimes fractured bonds between mothers and daughters, husbands and wives, and lovers, both old and new.

The cast of Terms of Endearment:

Tate Albert – Garrett Breedlove

Mark Hodgdon* – Rudyard/Dr. Maise

Victoria Lamberth – Aurora Greenway

Lauren Otis – Emma Greenway

Jered Shults – Flap Horton

Mary Weisberger – Patsy/Doris/Nurse

*Making their Hendersonville Theatre debut

Juked
May 11 @ 7:30 pm
Wortham Center for Performing Arts

Different Strokes! Performing Arts Collective presents Juked – RESCHEDULED

PLEASE NOTE: Performances of DS!PAC’s JUKED originally scheduled for February 6–23, 2025 have been rescheduled to May 1-18, 2025. Ticket holders will be contacted with more information.

Thursday – Saturday, May 1 – 17, 2025 at 7:30 p.m.
Sunday, May 18, 2025 at 3:00 p.m.

WORLD PREMIERE written by Mildred Inez Lewis

Juked is a retelling of Sophocles’ tragedy Electra. This version is set in 1950s Asheville and the “kingdom” is a chain of drink houses (private homes offering illegal alcohol) owned by the well-off, African-American Memnon family. Juked examines the relationship between Electra, her mother, and her sister, and asks what happens after tragedy. How do we recover? Juked is part of the Emerging Black Playwrights New Play Series and first debuted in its development phase, as a staged reading in November 2023. 

Terms of Endearment
May 11 @ 7:30 pm
Hendersonville Theater

Challenges in life and love test the resilience of a mother-daughter relationship in Dan Gordon’s adaptation of Terms of Endearment, based on the book by Pulitzer Prize-winner Larry McMurtry and James L. Brooks’s screenplay of the Oscar-winning film. Though Emma is often exasperated by her highly-opinionated mother, Aurora, they talk daily about their problems, from Aurora finding unexpected love even as she becomes a reluctant grandmother to Emma’s struggle in her troubled marriage. But when they need one another most, will they be able to find courage in each other? This funny and touching story captures the delicate, sometimes fractured bonds between mothers and daughters, husbands and wives, and lovers, both old and new.

Thursday, 5/1 at 7:30 (pay what you can available on 4/17)
Fridays at 7:30
Saturdays at 3 pm
Sundays at 3 pm

The Book of Will
May 11 @ 7:30 pm
Montford Park Players

The Montford Park Players proudly presents “The Book of Will” follows the journey of William Shakespeare’s friends and fellow playwrights as they struggle to preserve his legacy after his death. Amid betrayal, heartbreak, and ambition, they work to compile his works into the First Folio, ensuring his immortality in the world of theater.

Shows are Friday, Saturday, and Sunday at 7:30 each night.

And always FREE! No Sunday performances for the last weekend of each show.

Of Mice & Men
May 11 @ 8:00 pm
The Orange Peel

Of Mice & Men and Until I Wake in concert

Sunday, May 11

Show: 8pm | Doors: 7pm

The Orange Peel