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.
2.2. 23 The Orange Peel’s Comedy Basement PULP
What: Stand up Comedy at The Orange Peel’s Pulp Lounge
When: Thursday 2.2.2023. 8p-11p, doors at 7:30p
Where: The Orange Peel’s Comedy Basement, Pulp Lounge103 Hilliard Ave, Downtown Asheville
Tickets: $14 (available at door or The Orange Peel website)
Cocktails available while you laugh the night away to some of the area’s best Stand Up Comics in a ridiculously fun adult environment!! .
Open mic comics signup at door get 3-5m. [Free entry for performing comics, free snacks at comics table]
Stand up comedy featuring Roman Fraden. Hosted by Cody Hughes
FB Event: https://fb.me/e/5QB8e3jo7
For more info about this show contact Michele Scheve, [email protected]
Roman Fraden: Romanis a Los Angeles-based comedian and a regular performer at classic Hollywood venues including The Comedy Store, The Laugh Factory, and The Hollywood Improv. He has trained with Upright Citizens Brigade (UCB) Theatre, performed in various ensemble casts in film and on stage, and has opened for Mark Normand, Margaret Cho, and Patton Oswald. His one man show ‘Back In The Closet’ made it’s world premiere at Edinburgh Fringe Festival in 2018. He currently is living in Asheville while still performing everywhere.
Host Cody Hughes: Cody is a comedian who cut his teeth in Chicago and Atlanta. He is now based out of West North Carolina and tours the Southeast. He has opened for Lewis Black, John Oliver and Maria Bamford among others and hosts the regular Slice of Life Comedy shows at The Orange Peel’s Pulp Lounge.
About Pulp: The speakeasy inspired hideaway offers a cozy space for show-goers to relax and enjoy a beverage during the concert. Boasting over 200 different Bourbons and Whiskeys, alongside a myriad of other spirits, it is a must-visit for cocktail lovers and Bourbon sippers alike. Pulp will also open various other nights to feature local artists and “Slice of Life” open-mic comedy nights. To stay informed with the happenings at Pulp, visit the Orange Peel’s website, and follow @pulp_avl on Instagram.
About Slice of Life Comedy: Slice of Life Comedy is owned and run by long standing Ashevillian Michele Scheve. Michele was the Founder and Publisher of the hit satire newspaper “The Asheville Disclaimer” in 2002 (till 2015). She also Hosts one of 103.3 Asheville FM’ longest running and most popular shows, “Slumber Party AVL”, which began in 2011. In addition to these established platforms, Michele also Co-Founded and Co-Owns Buzz Radio Asheville, which features only local music and comedy 24/7. Slice of Life Comedy began as a partnership, between Michele and comedian Kelly Rowe, doing live shows at Pulp Lounge in 2010, highlighting local up-and-coming comics through Open Mic events. From there, Slice of Life Comedy began booking feature shows, After-Party shows for national headline acts and collaboration with more and more venues and producers in the scene. Today, Slice of Life Comedy is the Premiere Partner for shows at some of Asheville’s most well-known and beloved venues.

Purchase a subscription to the Music on the Rock® Winter / Spring Concert Series and receive a 10% Discount!
Don’t miss out!
Performances are limited. Join us for a rockin’ night with these enduring tunes and the incredible artists that will have you swooning and hungry for more!

Join us throughout February as we celebrate Black Legacy Month with programs and events for all ages! In addition to the programs listed below, we will have special story times and exhibits at most of our libraries.
- Bright Star Touring Theatre: African Folktales – February 1 at 4pm at the Weaverville Library (for children ages 3 and up)
- Book Club: Jazz by Toni Morrison – Thursday, February 2 a 3pm at the Weaverville Library
- Book Club: The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett – Tuesday, February 7 at 6pm
- Book Club: The Personal Librarian by Marie Benedict Tuesday, February 14 at 1pm at the Leicester Library
- Book Club: Life in Motion: An Unlikely Ballerina by Misty Copeland – February 16 at 2:30pm at the Skyland/South Buncombe Library
- Book Club: The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett – February 21 at 7pm at the Fairview Library
- Black Experience Book Club: The Furrows by Namwali Serpell – February 23 at 6:30pm at the Noir Collective, co-sponsored by the East Asheville library
Drop by your local library and check us out. Email or call if you have any questions.
Our librarians have also put together a Black Legacy Month reading list for all ages.
Black Legacy Month Reading List 2023
Books for Adults
Adult Fiction
- Parable of the Sower by Octavia Butler
- On Girlhood: 15 Stories from the Well-Read Black Girl Library edited by Glory Edim
- What the Fireflies Knew by Kai Harries
- Black Leopard, Red Wolf by Marlon James
- The Love Songs of W.E.B. Dubois by Honoree Fannone Jeffers
- How Long ‘Til Black Future Month? by N.K. Jemison
- Deacon King Kong by James McBride
- Take My Hand by Dolen Perkins-Valdez
- Black Bottom Saints by Alice Randall
- The Violin Conspiracy by Brendan Slocumb
- Harlem Shuffle by Colson Whitehead
- Seven Days in June by Tia Williams
- Red at the Bone by Jacqueline Woodson
Adult nonfiction
- Uncomfortable Conversations with a Black Man by Emmanuel Acho
- Carefree Black Girls: A Celebration of Black women in Popular Culture by Zeba Blay
- The 1619 Project edited by Nikole Hannah-Jones
- Rest is Resistance by Tricia Hersey
- Wow, No Thank You by Samantha Irby*
- The Sum of Us by Heather McGhee
- All That She Carried by Tiya Miles
- Please Don’t Sit On My Bed In Your Outside Clothes by Phoebe Robinson*
- You’ll Never Believe What Happened to Lacey by Amber Ruffin*
- Counting Descent by Clint Smith
- The Body Is Not an Apology by Sonya Renee Taylor
- Here For It by R. Eric Thomas*
- Koshersoul: the faith and food journey of an African American Jew by Michael W. Twitty
*especially good on audio because the authors read their work!
Picture books for families to share
- My Heart Flies Open by Omileye Achikeobi-Lewis
- Only the Best: The Exceptional Life and Fashion of Ann Lowe by Kate Messner
- My N.C. From A to Z by Michelle Lanier
- Shhh! The Baby’s Asleep by JaNay Brown-Wood
- Curls by Ruth Forman
- Fly by Brittany J. Thurman
- Opal Lee and What it Means to be Free: The True Story of the Grandmother of Juneteenth by Alice Faye Duncan
- Build a House by Rhiannon Giddens
- Bright Brown Baby, A Treasury by Andrea Davis Pinkney
- Born on the Water by Nikole Hannah-Jones and Renee Watson
Chapter books for older kids
- Isaiah Dunn is My Hero by Kelly J. BaptistBlended by Sharon Draper
- Ikenga by Nnedi Okorafor
- Stamped: Racism, Antiracism, and You by Jason Reynolds and Ibram X. Kendi
- Tristan Strong Trilogy (Tristan Strong Punches a Hole in the Sky, Tristan Strong Destroys the World, and Tristan Strong Keeps Punching) by Kwame Mbalia
- From the Desk of Zoe Washington by Janae Marks
- Black Boy Joy: 17 Stories Celebrating Black Boyhood edited by Kwame Mbalia
- Freewater by Amina Luqman-Dawson
- Operation Sisterhood by Olugbemisola Rhuday-Perkovich
- The Door of No Return by Alexander Kwame
Books for teens
- Quincredible by Rodney Barnes
- The Legendborn Cycle (Legendborn and Bloodmarked) by Tracy Deonn
- All Boys Aren’t Blue by George M. Johnson
- You Should See Me in a Crown by Leah Johnson
- Survive the Dome by Kosoko Jackson
- Revolution in Our Time: The Black Panther’s Promise to the People by Kekla Magoon
- Ain’t Burned All the Bright by Jason Reynolds
- Bitter by Akwaeke Emezi
- On the Come Up by Angie Thomas
- Okoye to the People by Ibi Zoboi
we are looking for local businesses to partner with to sponsor our upcoming theatre season, concert series, and special events! As a non-profit, local, community theatre, we are able to make events happen in our community through donations and sponsorship support. With your help, we can continue to provide quality live theatre, concerts, and more! Interested in becoming a season or show sponsor? We take donations at any level! For more information about sponsorship levels, visit the sponsorship page on our website here: SPONSORSHIPS – Hendersonville Theatre
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The Friends of the South Buncombe Library are pleased to announce their first live, in-person book sale of 2023! We will have thousands of books in fiction and non-fiction at bargain prices, in every genre and for every age group. Prices have changed since our last sale, but are still a bargain: most adult hardbacks are $2.00 and paperbacks are $1.00. Children’s items are still just $1.00 & 50¢! And all movies and music are $1.00. Proceeds benefit your library in so many ways: purchasing library supplies and equipment, newspapers, and large print books; providing children’s programs; and improving the grounds. Sale Hours: 10am-4pm Friday and Saturday, with 10am-12pm on Friday reserved for Friends of the Library members. Not a member? We’re happy to sign you up at the door; the minimum donation is just $10.00. AV material and children’s book bag sale on the last hour of business Saturday, if supplies allow! |
Black Diamond Enterprise presents Black Poetry Theatre* for Black History Month @ The Foundry (*along with other happenings), Feb. 3rd, 5pm. This is a FREE event. Come join us as we explore the Joy, Pain, Sunshine & Rain of life. Enjoy the encouragement and singing with us!
Check for other dates as well.
La Vie Boheme! Join the HS Company in the musical that shaped a generation of audiences and taught us all to measure our life in love.
Set in the East Village of New York City, Rent School Edition is about falling in love, finding your voice and living for today. Winner of the Tony Award for Best Musical and the Pulitzer Prize for Drama, it has become a pop cultural phenomenon with songs that rock and a story that resonates with audiences of all ages.
Based loosely on Puccini’s La Boheme, Rent School Edition follows a year in the life of a group of impoverished young artists and musicians struggling to survive and create in New York’s Lower East Side, under the shadow of HIV/AIDS. The physical and emotional complications of the disease pervade the lives of Roger, Mimi, Tom and Angel. Maureen deals with her chronic infidelity through performance art; her partner, Joanne, wonders if their relationship is worth the trouble. Benny has sold out his Bohemian ideals in exchange for a hefty income and is on the outs with his former friends. Mark, an aspiring filmmaker, feels like an outsider to life in general. How these young bohemians negotiate their dreams, loves and conflicts provides the narrative thread to this groundbreaking musical.
Please note, this performance is rated PG-13. This musical contains mature themes that center around the AIDS Crisis.

Written by Carlyle Brown
Directed by Stephanie Hickling Beckman
ABE LINCOLN AND UNCLE TOM IN THE WHITE HOUSE portrays a gripping re-imagination of the the events the night before Abraham Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation. Alone in the Executive Office, President Abraham Lincoln is struggling with signing the Emancipation Proclamation when he is mysteriously visited by Uncle Tom, the fictional character in Harriet Beecher Stowe’s abolitionist novel Uncle Tom’s Cabin; or, Life Among the Lowly. These two iconic characters from life and literature—one real, the other fiction—attempt to understand each other across a chasm of race in the midst of the Civil War. Throughout one late night and into the dawning day, they find themselves crossing over into each other’s world in a tale of suffering, self-discovery, and redemption.
“I hadn’t read the book [Uncle Tom’s Cabin], and I had fallen victim to the mentality that says when you hear the name Uncle Tom you get the picture of the worst individual you could imagine, In reading the book, I found a character of honor and dignity and I thought, maybe this character deserves to be looked at again.” – James A Williams
By Duncan MacMillian with Jonny Donahoe
Directed by Charlie Flynn-McIver and Starring Scott Treadway
One of the funniest plays you’ll ever see about depression—and possibly one of the funniest plays you’ll ever see, full stop…There is something tough being confronted here—the guilt of not being able to make those we love happy—and it is explored with unflinching honesty.” —The Guardian (UK)
Content Warning: Although the play balances the struggles of life while celebrating all that is wonderful in living each day, Every Brilliant Thing contains descriptions of depression, self-harm, and suicide. It is recommended for audience members 14 and older. If you or somebody you know is struggling, please call 988, The Suicide & Crisis Hotline.
One of classic literature’s most beloved romantic comedies, this sharp social satire takes on the nuances of love and marriage in a way that transcends time — humorously skewering the hypocrisies and absurdities of the English class system, while putting women characters front and center. A local favorite each season, Aquila Theatre returns to bring this classic thrillingly to life, with all the passion, energy and visual flair for which this world-class company is known.
Connect with Aquila Theatre
- Master Class: Learn from Aquila Theatre in a Physical Theatre Master Class on February 4 for actors ages 16+. Learn more here.
- Pre-show Discussions: February 3 & 4 at 7 p.m. Tina McGuire Theatre.

Purchase a subscription to the Music on the Rock® Winter / Spring Concert Series and receive a 10% Discount!
Don’t miss out!
Performances are limited. Join us for a rockin’ night with these enduring tunes and the incredible artists that will have you swooning and hungry for more!

Join us throughout February as we celebrate Black Legacy Month with programs and events for all ages! In addition to the programs listed below, we will have special story times and exhibits at most of our libraries.
- Bright Star Touring Theatre: African Folktales – February 1 at 4pm at the Weaverville Library (for children ages 3 and up)
- Book Club: Jazz by Toni Morrison – Thursday, February 2 a 3pm at the Weaverville Library
- Book Club: The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett – Tuesday, February 7 at 6pm
- Book Club: The Personal Librarian by Marie Benedict Tuesday, February 14 at 1pm at the Leicester Library
- Book Club: Life in Motion: An Unlikely Ballerina by Misty Copeland – February 16 at 2:30pm at the Skyland/South Buncombe Library
- Book Club: The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett – February 21 at 7pm at the Fairview Library
- Black Experience Book Club: The Furrows by Namwali Serpell – February 23 at 6:30pm at the Noir Collective, co-sponsored by the East Asheville library
Drop by your local library and check us out. Email or call if you have any questions.
Our librarians have also put together a Black Legacy Month reading list for all ages.
Black Legacy Month Reading List 2023
Books for Adults
Adult Fiction
- Parable of the Sower by Octavia Butler
- On Girlhood: 15 Stories from the Well-Read Black Girl Library edited by Glory Edim
- What the Fireflies Knew by Kai Harries
- Black Leopard, Red Wolf by Marlon James
- The Love Songs of W.E.B. Dubois by Honoree Fannone Jeffers
- How Long ‘Til Black Future Month? by N.K. Jemison
- Deacon King Kong by James McBride
- Take My Hand by Dolen Perkins-Valdez
- Black Bottom Saints by Alice Randall
- The Violin Conspiracy by Brendan Slocumb
- Harlem Shuffle by Colson Whitehead
- Seven Days in June by Tia Williams
- Red at the Bone by Jacqueline Woodson
Adult nonfiction
- Uncomfortable Conversations with a Black Man by Emmanuel Acho
- Carefree Black Girls: A Celebration of Black women in Popular Culture by Zeba Blay
- The 1619 Project edited by Nikole Hannah-Jones
- Rest is Resistance by Tricia Hersey
- Wow, No Thank You by Samantha Irby*
- The Sum of Us by Heather McGhee
- All That She Carried by Tiya Miles
- Please Don’t Sit On My Bed In Your Outside Clothes by Phoebe Robinson*
- You’ll Never Believe What Happened to Lacey by Amber Ruffin*
- Counting Descent by Clint Smith
- The Body Is Not an Apology by Sonya Renee Taylor
- Here For It by R. Eric Thomas*
- Koshersoul: the faith and food journey of an African American Jew by Michael W. Twitty
*especially good on audio because the authors read their work!
Picture books for families to share
- My Heart Flies Open by Omileye Achikeobi-Lewis
- Only the Best: The Exceptional Life and Fashion of Ann Lowe by Kate Messner
- My N.C. From A to Z by Michelle Lanier
- Shhh! The Baby’s Asleep by JaNay Brown-Wood
- Curls by Ruth Forman
- Fly by Brittany J. Thurman
- Opal Lee and What it Means to be Free: The True Story of the Grandmother of Juneteenth by Alice Faye Duncan
- Build a House by Rhiannon Giddens
- Bright Brown Baby, A Treasury by Andrea Davis Pinkney
- Born on the Water by Nikole Hannah-Jones and Renee Watson
Chapter books for older kids
- Isaiah Dunn is My Hero by Kelly J. BaptistBlended by Sharon Draper
- Ikenga by Nnedi Okorafor
- Stamped: Racism, Antiracism, and You by Jason Reynolds and Ibram X. Kendi
- Tristan Strong Trilogy (Tristan Strong Punches a Hole in the Sky, Tristan Strong Destroys the World, and Tristan Strong Keeps Punching) by Kwame Mbalia
- From the Desk of Zoe Washington by Janae Marks
- Black Boy Joy: 17 Stories Celebrating Black Boyhood edited by Kwame Mbalia
- Freewater by Amina Luqman-Dawson
- Operation Sisterhood by Olugbemisola Rhuday-Perkovich
- The Door of No Return by Alexander Kwame
Books for teens
- Quincredible by Rodney Barnes
- The Legendborn Cycle (Legendborn and Bloodmarked) by Tracy Deonn
- All Boys Aren’t Blue by George M. Johnson
- You Should See Me in a Crown by Leah Johnson
- Survive the Dome by Kosoko Jackson
- Revolution in Our Time: The Black Panther’s Promise to the People by Kekla Magoon
- Ain’t Burned All the Bright by Jason Reynolds
- Bitter by Akwaeke Emezi
- On the Come Up by Angie Thomas
- Okoye to the People by Ibi Zoboi
We’re putting our build crew back together and we’d love to have you join us. Every 2 weeks, we’ll meet at 9 am for hands-on set construction! Whether your talents are building, painting, or you just want to learn, come out and join us every other Saturday for some creative fun. Tools and work gloves are helpful but not required
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The Friends of the South Buncombe Library are pleased to announce their first live, in-person book sale of 2023! We will have thousands of books in fiction and non-fiction at bargain prices, in every genre and for every age group. Prices have changed since our last sale, but are still a bargain: most adult hardbacks are $2.00 and paperbacks are $1.00. Children’s items are still just $1.00 & 50¢! And all movies and music are $1.00. Proceeds benefit your library in so many ways: purchasing library supplies and equipment, newspapers, and large print books; providing children’s programs; and improving the grounds. Sale Hours: 10am-4pm Friday and Saturday, with 10am-12pm on Friday reserved for Friends of the Library members. Not a member? We’re happy to sign you up at the door; the minimum donation is just $10.00. AV material and children’s book bag sale on the last hour of business Saturday, if supplies allow! |
This Physical Theatre Master Class is designed to allow participants to experience the requirements and disciplines of working and performing in a physical theatre company. It focuses on forming an ensemble style of acting that will interpret and serve the text, as well as explore the ways in which kinesthetic empathy operates. By sharing some of the Aquila Theatre Company’s rituals, in the form of movement, and improv, the participant will explore the imaginative and physical resources that the company uses to create its own unique theatrical style.
Skill Level: Intermediate
Ages: 16+
La Vie Boheme! Join the HS Company in the musical that shaped a generation of audiences and taught us all to measure our life in love.
Set in the East Village of New York City, Rent School Edition is about falling in love, finding your voice and living for today. Winner of the Tony Award for Best Musical and the Pulitzer Prize for Drama, it has become a pop cultural phenomenon with songs that rock and a story that resonates with audiences of all ages.
Based loosely on Puccini’s La Boheme, Rent School Edition follows a year in the life of a group of impoverished young artists and musicians struggling to survive and create in New York’s Lower East Side, under the shadow of HIV/AIDS. The physical and emotional complications of the disease pervade the lives of Roger, Mimi, Tom and Angel. Maureen deals with her chronic infidelity through performance art; her partner, Joanne, wonders if their relationship is worth the trouble. Benny has sold out his Bohemian ideals in exchange for a hefty income and is on the outs with his former friends. Mark, an aspiring filmmaker, feels like an outsider to life in general. How these young bohemians negotiate their dreams, loves and conflicts provides the narrative thread to this groundbreaking musical.
Please note, this performance is rated PG-13. This musical contains mature themes that center around the AIDS Crisis.

Written by Carlyle Brown
Directed by Stephanie Hickling Beckman
ABE LINCOLN AND UNCLE TOM IN THE WHITE HOUSE portrays a gripping re-imagination of the the events the night before Abraham Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation. Alone in the Executive Office, President Abraham Lincoln is struggling with signing the Emancipation Proclamation when he is mysteriously visited by Uncle Tom, the fictional character in Harriet Beecher Stowe’s abolitionist novel Uncle Tom’s Cabin; or, Life Among the Lowly. These two iconic characters from life and literature—one real, the other fiction—attempt to understand each other across a chasm of race in the midst of the Civil War. Throughout one late night and into the dawning day, they find themselves crossing over into each other’s world in a tale of suffering, self-discovery, and redemption.
“I hadn’t read the book [Uncle Tom’s Cabin], and I had fallen victim to the mentality that says when you hear the name Uncle Tom you get the picture of the worst individual you could imagine, In reading the book, I found a character of honor and dignity and I thought, maybe this character deserves to be looked at again.” – James A Williams
By Duncan MacMillian with Jonny Donahoe
Directed by Charlie Flynn-McIver and Starring Scott Treadway
One of the funniest plays you’ll ever see about depression—and possibly one of the funniest plays you’ll ever see, full stop…There is something tough being confronted here—the guilt of not being able to make those we love happy—and it is explored with unflinching honesty.” —The Guardian (UK)
Content Warning: Although the play balances the struggles of life while celebrating all that is wonderful in living each day, Every Brilliant Thing contains descriptions of depression, self-harm, and suicide. It is recommended for audience members 14 and older. If you or somebody you know is struggling, please call 988, The Suicide & Crisis Hotline.
A piece of advice from 44 B.C.: Beware the Ides of March. Fresh from his success on the battlefield, a triumphant Caesar returns to Rome a virtual dictator, prompting his close circle to decide that he must be stopped — through whatever means necessary. This striking production breathes new fire and fury into the timeless tale of the fall and rise of Rome’s ruling class, inviting audiences on a journey into the world of conspiracy and betrayal.
Connect with the artists and works in master classes and during pre-show discussions.
Connect with Aquila Theatre
- Master Class: Learn from Aquila Theatre in a Physical Theatre Master Class on February 4 for actors ages 16+. Learn more here.
- Pre-show Discussions: February 3 & 4 at 7 p.m. Tina McGuire Theatre.
By Duncan MacMillian with Jonny Donahoe
Directed by Charlie Flynn-McIver and Starring Scott Treadway
One of the funniest plays you’ll ever see about depression—and possibly one of the funniest plays you’ll ever see, full stop…There is something tough being confronted here—the guilt of not being able to make those we love happy—and it is explored with unflinching honesty.” —The Guardian (UK)
Content Warning: Although the play balances the struggles of life while celebrating all that is wonderful in living each day, Every Brilliant Thing contains descriptions of depression, self-harm, and suicide. It is recommended for audience members 14 and older. If you or somebody you know is struggling, please call 988, The Suicide & Crisis Hotline.
This is a hybrid event, meaning there is an option to attend virtually and a limited number of seats are available to attend the event in-store.
The event is free but registration is required for both in-person and virtual attendance.
Please click here to register for the VIRTUAL event. The link required to attend will be emailed to registrants prior to the event.
Please click here to register for the IN-PERSON event. Note the important event details on the RSVP form.
This event includes a book signing. If you would like a signed book but can’t attend in person, use the order comments field when you order below to request a signed copy and tell us to whom the book should be personalized.
If you decide to attend and to purchase books, we ask that you purchase from Malaprop’s. When you do this you make it possible for us to continue hosting author events and you keep more dollars in our community. You may also support our work by purchasing a gift card or making a donation of any amount below. Thank you!
Glenis Redmond is the First Poet Laureate of Greenville, South Carolina. She is a Kennedy Center Teaching Artist, and a Cave Canem alumni. The Listening Skin (Four Way Books) is her sixth poetry book. She is presently working on a seventh collection, Port Cities: Portals of the Second (Domestic) Middle Passage. She received the highest arts award in South Carolina—the Governor’s Award—and was inducted into the South Carolina Academy of Authors. Redmond received her MFA in Poetry from Warren Wilson College. For more, visit http://www.glenisredmond.com
In The Listening Skin, Glenis Redmond returns to the ancestors and the deep knowing that comes from being ever ready to receive the wisdom they give us. She plants us again in the South Carolinian soil and reaches across decades and continents back to the motherland for historical context, for truth, and for healing. She does not flinch from racism nor the complexities of what it means to carry trauma inside the Black body. These poems are beautifully rendered but don’t shrink. I am grateful for the depth and breadth of the music and the keen use of the line in this collection, but mostly I’m taken by the way Glenis holds us up to the light. In her sure hands we shine!
—
Molly Rice has held several residencies teaching poetry, storytelling, theatre, film, and English as a Second Language in hundreds of schools, colleges, and organizations in North Carolina, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Russia, and Hungary. She has taught for seventeen years at St. Stephens High School where she is director of the Tractor Shed Theatre. She’s published in magazines including Fortnight Magazine, The Stinging Fly, and Iodine Poetry Journal. She resides with her husband and son in Hickory, North Carolina. For more, visit https://www.mollyrice.com
In Molly Rice’s Forever Eighty-Eights, there are “no crystal stairs” in her southern mill hill childhood. Yet, the poet pushes onward following an urgent pulse, while unflinchingly calling forth ghosts, wounds, and secrets of the past. She bids them to come out of their hiding places, while she battles both hardships and heartbreaks. In this work, Molly reckons, but she also fathoms beauty and pays homage by uplifting people, places, and moments deeply rooted in North Carolina. With her forging she creates a throughway—each poem a stair to “reach landings and turn corners.”
What: Asheville’s Premier Standup Feature & Open Mic comedy
When: Sunday, February 5, 6:30pm (Come early to get your food and drinks!)
Where: Asheville Pizza & Brewing Co., Theater 2
675 Merrimon Avenue in North Asheville (onsite parking)
Tickets: $14
Comedy open mic. [signup at the door to get 3-5m. Free entry for performing comics, free pizza at comics table]
Hosted by Morgan Bost featuring Allison Shelnut, Jess Cooley and Larry Griffin
FB: https://fb.me/e/3Yb5s4IfD
Join us throughout February as we celebrate Black Legacy Month with programs and events for all ages! In addition to the programs listed below, we will have special story times and exhibits at most of our libraries.
- Bright Star Touring Theatre: African Folktales – February 1 at 4pm at the Weaverville Library (for children ages 3 and up)
- Book Club: Jazz by Toni Morrison – Thursday, February 2 a 3pm at the Weaverville Library
- Book Club: The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett – Tuesday, February 7 at 6pm
- Book Club: The Personal Librarian by Marie Benedict Tuesday, February 14 at 1pm at the Leicester Library
- Book Club: Life in Motion: An Unlikely Ballerina by Misty Copeland – February 16 at 2:30pm at the Skyland/South Buncombe Library
- Book Club: The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett – February 21 at 7pm at the Fairview Library
- Black Experience Book Club: The Furrows by Namwali Serpell – February 23 at 6:30pm at the Noir Collective, co-sponsored by the East Asheville library
Drop by your local library and check us out. Email or call if you have any questions.
Our librarians have also put together a Black Legacy Month reading list for all ages.
Black Legacy Month Reading List 2023
Books for Adults
Adult Fiction
- Parable of the Sower by Octavia Butler
- On Girlhood: 15 Stories from the Well-Read Black Girl Library edited by Glory Edim
- What the Fireflies Knew by Kai Harries
- Black Leopard, Red Wolf by Marlon James
- The Love Songs of W.E.B. Dubois by Honoree Fannone Jeffers
- How Long ‘Til Black Future Month? by N.K. Jemison
- Deacon King Kong by James McBride
- Take My Hand by Dolen Perkins-Valdez
- Black Bottom Saints by Alice Randall
- The Violin Conspiracy by Brendan Slocumb
- Harlem Shuffle by Colson Whitehead
- Seven Days in June by Tia Williams
- Red at the Bone by Jacqueline Woodson
Adult nonfiction
- Uncomfortable Conversations with a Black Man by Emmanuel Acho
- Carefree Black Girls: A Celebration of Black women in Popular Culture by Zeba Blay
- The 1619 Project edited by Nikole Hannah-Jones
- Rest is Resistance by Tricia Hersey
- Wow, No Thank You by Samantha Irby*
- The Sum of Us by Heather McGhee
- All That She Carried by Tiya Miles
- Please Don’t Sit On My Bed In Your Outside Clothes by Phoebe Robinson*
- You’ll Never Believe What Happened to Lacey by Amber Ruffin*
- Counting Descent by Clint Smith
- The Body Is Not an Apology by Sonya Renee Taylor
- Here For It by R. Eric Thomas*
- Koshersoul: the faith and food journey of an African American Jew by Michael W. Twitty
*especially good on audio because the authors read their work!
Picture books for families to share
- My Heart Flies Open by Omileye Achikeobi-Lewis
- Only the Best: The Exceptional Life and Fashion of Ann Lowe by Kate Messner
- My N.C. From A to Z by Michelle Lanier
- Shhh! The Baby’s Asleep by JaNay Brown-Wood
- Curls by Ruth Forman
- Fly by Brittany J. Thurman
- Opal Lee and What it Means to be Free: The True Story of the Grandmother of Juneteenth by Alice Faye Duncan
- Build a House by Rhiannon Giddens
- Bright Brown Baby, A Treasury by Andrea Davis Pinkney
- Born on the Water by Nikole Hannah-Jones and Renee Watson
Chapter books for older kids
- Isaiah Dunn is My Hero by Kelly J. BaptistBlended by Sharon Draper
- Ikenga by Nnedi Okorafor
- Stamped: Racism, Antiracism, and You by Jason Reynolds and Ibram X. Kendi
- Tristan Strong Trilogy (Tristan Strong Punches a Hole in the Sky, Tristan Strong Destroys the World, and Tristan Strong Keeps Punching) by Kwame Mbalia
- From the Desk of Zoe Washington by Janae Marks
- Black Boy Joy: 17 Stories Celebrating Black Boyhood edited by Kwame Mbalia
- Freewater by Amina Luqman-Dawson
- Operation Sisterhood by Olugbemisola Rhuday-Perkovich
- The Door of No Return by Alexander Kwame
Books for teens
- Quincredible by Rodney Barnes
- The Legendborn Cycle (Legendborn and Bloodmarked) by Tracy Deonn
- All Boys Aren’t Blue by George M. Johnson
- You Should See Me in a Crown by Leah Johnson
- Survive the Dome by Kosoko Jackson
- Revolution in Our Time: The Black Panther’s Promise to the People by Kekla Magoon
- Ain’t Burned All the Bright by Jason Reynolds
- Bitter by Akwaeke Emezi
- On the Come Up by Angie Thomas
- Okoye to the People by Ibi Zoboi
Recommended for Grades 6-12
The fate of a nation hangs in the balance. Journey to a world of conspiracy and betrayal in Aquila Theatre’s striking new production of Julius Caesar by William Shakespeare. Aquila’s nationally-renowned work gives the classics modern relevance and enriches students’ understanding of English literature. With a modern take on ancient themes of war and violence, this production may contain mature content.
Reservations for individuals (10 people or less): $12 each. To reserve, call the box office at 828-257-4530 ext. 1, email [email protected], or complete the Student Series Reservation Form.
Reservations for groups (11 people or more): $11 each. To reserve, download and complete the Student Series Reservation Form. Please note that all group reservations require a deposit of $1 per ticket. Please contact the box office if you have questions.
Learn more about Aquila Theatre here.
Performance Length: Approx. 2 hours, 20 minutes
February 6-April 17 (Spring Break March 13-17)
MONDAY 4:30PM – 5:30
Instructor: Zoe Zelonky
This fun and high-energy 10-week class combines the three fundamentals of musical theater, acting, singing, and dance, in an accessible and exciting way! With a focus on singing technique, musicality, movement, and storytelling, students will learn new skills and make friends as they develop songs from Broadway musicals. No prior experience is necessary. With new material every semester, this class can (and should) be taken multiple times! We will end the semester with a performance for family and friends on Monday April 24 in the evening!
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- Payment plans are available through the Box Office at 828.693.0731.
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A $50 deposit is required to secure the student’s spot in the class. The full payment must be completed by the first day of class.
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Students and families that register for more than one class are offered a $25 discount for each additional class. This offer applies to multiple classes for one student or family discounts for siblings.
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*Need-based scholarships are available upon application.
February 6 – April 17 (Spring Break March 13-17)
MONDAY 5:45-6:45PM
Instructor: Zoe Zelonky
In this 10-week session discover the fun and fundamentals of musical theatre technique by integrating acting, singing, and simple choreography in the development of a Broadway repertoire. Students will learn proper vocal technique, story-telling through song, musical theatre-style choreography, and how to work within an ensemble. Apply your skills at the end of class performance for friends and family on Monday April 24 in the evening. With new material every semester, this class can (and should) be taken multiple times.
Dates: February 6 – April 17
Grades: 3rd-5th
Day/Time: Monday 5:45-6:45
Tuition: $190
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- Payment plans are available through the Box Office at 828.693.0731.
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A $50 deposit is required to secure the student’s spot in the class. The full payment must be completed by the first day of class.
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Students and families that register for more than one class are offered a $25 discount for each additional class. This offer applies to multiple classes for one student or family discounts for siblings.
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*Need-based scholarships are available upon application.
Join us throughout February as we celebrate Black Legacy Month with programs and events for all ages! In addition to the programs listed below, we will have special story times and exhibits at most of our libraries.
- Bright Star Touring Theatre: African Folktales – February 1 at 4pm at the Weaverville Library (for children ages 3 and up)
- Book Club: Jazz by Toni Morrison – Thursday, February 2 a 3pm at the Weaverville Library
- Book Club: The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett – Tuesday, February 7 at 6pm
- Book Club: The Personal Librarian by Marie Benedict Tuesday, February 14 at 1pm at the Leicester Library
- Book Club: Life in Motion: An Unlikely Ballerina by Misty Copeland – February 16 at 2:30pm at the Skyland/South Buncombe Library
- Book Club: The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett – February 21 at 7pm at the Fairview Library
- Black Experience Book Club: The Furrows by Namwali Serpell – February 23 at 6:30pm at the Noir Collective, co-sponsored by the East Asheville library
Drop by your local library and check us out. Email or call if you have any questions.
Our librarians have also put together a Black Legacy Month reading list for all ages.
Black Legacy Month Reading List 2023
Books for Adults
Adult Fiction
- Parable of the Sower by Octavia Butler
- On Girlhood: 15 Stories from the Well-Read Black Girl Library edited by Glory Edim
- What the Fireflies Knew by Kai Harries
- Black Leopard, Red Wolf by Marlon James
- The Love Songs of W.E.B. Dubois by Honoree Fannone Jeffers
- How Long ‘Til Black Future Month? by N.K. Jemison
- Deacon King Kong by James McBride
- Take My Hand by Dolen Perkins-Valdez
- Black Bottom Saints by Alice Randall
- The Violin Conspiracy by Brendan Slocumb
- Harlem Shuffle by Colson Whitehead
- Seven Days in June by Tia Williams
- Red at the Bone by Jacqueline Woodson
Adult nonfiction
- Uncomfortable Conversations with a Black Man by Emmanuel Acho
- Carefree Black Girls: A Celebration of Black women in Popular Culture by Zeba Blay
- The 1619 Project edited by Nikole Hannah-Jones
- Rest is Resistance by Tricia Hersey
- Wow, No Thank You by Samantha Irby*
- The Sum of Us by Heather McGhee
- All That She Carried by Tiya Miles
- Please Don’t Sit On My Bed In Your Outside Clothes by Phoebe Robinson*
- You’ll Never Believe What Happened to Lacey by Amber Ruffin*
- Counting Descent by Clint Smith
- The Body Is Not an Apology by Sonya Renee Taylor
- Here For It by R. Eric Thomas*
- Koshersoul: the faith and food journey of an African American Jew by Michael W. Twitty
*especially good on audio because the authors read their work!
Picture books for families to share
- My Heart Flies Open by Omileye Achikeobi-Lewis
- Only the Best: The Exceptional Life and Fashion of Ann Lowe by Kate Messner
- My N.C. From A to Z by Michelle Lanier
- Shhh! The Baby’s Asleep by JaNay Brown-Wood
- Curls by Ruth Forman
- Fly by Brittany J. Thurman
- Opal Lee and What it Means to be Free: The True Story of the Grandmother of Juneteenth by Alice Faye Duncan
- Build a House by Rhiannon Giddens
- Bright Brown Baby, A Treasury by Andrea Davis Pinkney
- Born on the Water by Nikole Hannah-Jones and Renee Watson
Chapter books for older kids
- Isaiah Dunn is My Hero by Kelly J. BaptistBlended by Sharon Draper
- Ikenga by Nnedi Okorafor
- Stamped: Racism, Antiracism, and You by Jason Reynolds and Ibram X. Kendi
- Tristan Strong Trilogy (Tristan Strong Punches a Hole in the Sky, Tristan Strong Destroys the World, and Tristan Strong Keeps Punching) by Kwame Mbalia
- From the Desk of Zoe Washington by Janae Marks
- Black Boy Joy: 17 Stories Celebrating Black Boyhood edited by Kwame Mbalia
- Freewater by Amina Luqman-Dawson
- Operation Sisterhood by Olugbemisola Rhuday-Perkovich
- The Door of No Return by Alexander Kwame
Books for teens
- Quincredible by Rodney Barnes
- The Legendborn Cycle (Legendborn and Bloodmarked) by Tracy Deonn
- All Boys Aren’t Blue by George M. Johnson
- You Should See Me in a Crown by Leah Johnson
- Survive the Dome by Kosoko Jackson
- Revolution in Our Time: The Black Panther’s Promise to the People by Kekla Magoon
- Ain’t Burned All the Bright by Jason Reynolds
- Bitter by Akwaeke Emezi
- On the Come Up by Angie Thomas
- Okoye to the People by Ibi Zoboi
February 7 – April 18 (Spring Break March 13-17)
Tuesday 4:30-5:30
Instructor: Christa Matheus
This 10-week class is designed for curious young performers eager to explore the “FUN”-damentals of acting. Through high-energy theatre games, improvisation, pantomime, storytelling, and ensemble-based activities, students will hone their theatre skills, build meaningful connections with other young artists, and discover their creative potential! Showcase what you learned at the end of class performance for friends and family on Monday April 24 in the evening. With new material every semester, this class can (and should) be taken multiple times.
Dates: February 7 – April 18
Grades: 3rd-5th
Day/Time: Tuesday 4:30-5:30
Instructor: Christa Mattheus
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Payment plans are available through the Box Office at 828.693.0731.
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A $50 deposit is required to secure the student’s spot in the class. The full payment must be completed by the first day of class.
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Students and families that register for more than one class are offered a $25 discount for each additional class. This offer applies to multiple classes for one student or family discounts for siblings.
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*Need-based scholarships are available upon application.
ACTING
6th – 8th Grades
February 7 – April 19
Tuesday 5:45-6:45
Instructor: Christa Matheus
In this 10-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. Apply your skills at the end of semester performance for friends and family on Monday April 24 in the evening. No prior experience is necessary, only an open mind! With new material every semester, this class can (and should) be taken multiple times.
- Payment plans are available through the Box Office at 828.693.0731.
-
A $50 deposit is required to secure the student’s spot in the class. The full payment must be completed by the first day of class.
-
Students and families that register for more than one class are offered a $25 discount for each additional class. This offer applies to multiple classes for one student or family discounts for siblings.
-
*Need-based scholarships are available upon application.
This is a hybrid event, meaning there is an option to attend virtually and a limited number of seats are available to attend the event in-store. The event is free but registration is required for both in-person and virtual attendance.
Please click here to register for the VIRTUAL event. The link required to attend will be emailed to registrants prior to the event.
Please click here to register for the IN-PERSON event. Note the important event details on the RSVP form.
This event includes a book signing. If you would like a signed book but can’t attend in person, use the order comments field when you order below to request a signed copy and tell us to whom the book should be personalized.
If you decide to attend and to purchase books, we ask that you purchase from Malaprop’s. When you do this you make it possible for us to continue hosting author events and you keep more dollars in our community. You may also support our work by purchasing a gift card or making a donation of any amount below. Thank you!
Twelve-year-old Enly Wu Lewis is determined to go to band camp and follow in the footsteps of his musician father, who died years ago. But his mom, a single parent working two jobs, is saving every penny for his older brother’s college tuition. So Enly sets out to earn the money for camp on his own, by busking with an obscure instrument he can only kind of play. When someone drops a winning scratch-off lottery ticket into his tip box, Enly thinks it’s the answer to his problems–but he’ll have to overcome teenage thieves and his own family if he wants to achieve his dreams.
Jennie Liu is the daughter of Chinese immigrants. She has been fascinated by the attitudes, social policies, and changes in China each time she visits. Her young adult novels have won honors including a Freeman Book Award Honorable Mention and an In the Margins: Best Books for Teens award . She lives in North Carolina with her family.

