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.
Blue Ridge Roller Derby Greet & Sweet at The Hop
Date: Saturday, November 1
Time: 2:00–4:00 p.m.
Location: The Hop Ice Cream Café and Pop Bubble Team, 640 Merrimon Avenue, Asheville, NC
Admission: Free
Join Blue Ridge Roller Derby skaters for a fun afternoon at The Hop! Meet members from all three home teams and travel teams while enjoying delicious ice cream treats. Learn more about roller derby, watch some cool skate demos, and pick up official BRRD merchandise.
There will also be a raffle for free merch and tickets to an upcoming bout. Families are welcome—come learn about both junior and adult roller derby programs, and sign up to skate, volunteer, or just get involved with the BRRD community.
Don’t miss it—see you at The Hop this Saturday from 2 to 4 p.m.!
I9PA Release Party (10 Year Anniversary Edition)
Roll down to the Asheville Yards on Saturday, Nov. 1st for a day of bicycle fun in support of Asheville on Bikes and the AVL Unpaved project.
3-6pm: Bring the kids and your bikes for AoB’s pop-up bike park and the Maro inflatable obstacle course! Recyclery will be here to teach bike maintenance skills!
6pm: I9 raffle winners announced! We’re raffling off Industry Nine Custom Hydra2 Alloy Wheel Raffle in support of AVL Unpaved.
6:30-7:30pm: Newspaper challenge! Bring your bike and complete our newspaper delivery obstacle challenge.
The dance, bike, and beer release party goes until 9pm!
Signup begins 6pm / Perform 6:30-8:30.
Everyone is welcome! Any genre…song, music, spoken word, poetry, storytelling, comedy, short films, demos, etc. Supportive listening room in an art gallery setting. Each performer gets up to 12 minutes each. All performances will be livecast.
Actor and comedian Jamie Lissow is currently a regular weekly guest on the #1
rated late night talk show, Gutfeld! on Fox. Jamie is best known for his starring
role in two seasons of the Netflix Original Series “Real Rob”, alongside SNL
alums Rob Schneider, Adam Sandler, Norm MacDonald and David Spade; a show
Jamie co-wrote and co-produced. Jamie has appeared on The Tonight Show, The
Late Late Show, Last Comic Standing, has his own half hour Comedy Central
special and a Dry Bar Comedy Special with over 20 Million views. Jamie recently
wrapped his first movie, Daddy Daughter Trip, where he appears alongside John
Cleese, Rob Schneider, and Micheal Bublé – a movie he co-wrote and produced.
Jamie is currently writing and will be starring in the feature film, The Animal 2,
for Fox/Tubi and headlining stand-up comedy shows across the country.
Get ready for another Blue Ridge Roller Derby Home Team Throwdown! The league’s three home teams — The Black Balsam Batties 🦇 The Swarm 🐝 and the Copperhead Outlaws 🐍 — will face off in a series of three thrilling 30-minute bouts on Sunday, November 9, at the Smoky Mountain Event Center in Waynesville.
Event details:
Doors open: 2 p.m.
First bout: 3 p.m.
Tickets: $10 (kids 11 and under get in free)
Location: Smoky Mountain Event Center, Waynesville, NC
This family-friendly event features halftime games, local food and drink vendors, and plenty of roller derby excitement — all just a 30-minute drive from Asheville.
Time for another Blue Ridge Roller Derby Home Team THROWWWDOWWWN! Our three home teams will be facing off again to see who can take the win in three thrilling 30 minute bouts at 3pm on Sunday, NOVEMBER 9TH, at Smoky Mountain vent Center.
Doors open at 2pm
The first bout begins at 3pm
Tickets are $10 (kids 11 and under get FREE admission) – link in bio in our Linktree or scan the QR code
Our bouts are FAMILY FRIENDLY with fun half time games, great food and drinks from local vendors, and in a beautiful setting at Smoky Mountain Event Center in Waynesville, just a 30 minute drive from Asheville.
IF YOU ARE INTERESTED IN BEING A VENDOR at this bout or our December game, please email [email protected]
We look forward to seeing you on the 9th!!!
Everyone is welcome! Any genre…song, music, spoken word, poetry, storytelling, comedy, short films, demos, etc. Supportive listening room in an art gallery setting. Each performer gets up to 12 minutes each. All performances will be livecast.
Friday November 14th Neon Moon Comedy presents Comedy Night at Lookout Brewing Company at 7pm
With Headliner Ryan Cox Comedy (upcoming Drybar Comedy special coming soon!)
Featuring Sarah Love, Jordan Julius and Jason Reel
Hosted by Chris Gullo (As seen in movies on Amazon Prime Video and Tubi)
Tickets are only $15 and will be available on Tickpick.com and in the taproom!
Tickets available at
https://tinyurl.com/bdetu922
Come on out for a fantastic night of laughs and great drinks!
Lookout Brewing is located at 103 S Ridgeway Ave #1 Black Mountain, NC, 28711
The 4th annual Blackhawk Bolt 5k and 1 Mile Fun Run is a unique road-to-trail race fully located on the North Buncombe High School campus to benefit the NBHS PTSO.
MaxxMusic presents: GARRISON KEILLOR TONIGHT!
Sunday, November 16, 2025 at 7:30 p.m.
Garrison Keillor Tonight is an evening of stand-up, storytelling, audience song, and poetry. One man, one microphone. There are sung sonnets, limericks, and musical jokes, and the thread that runs through it is the beauty of growing old. Despite the inconvenience, old age brings the contentment of LESS IS MORE.
Your mistakes and big ambitions are behind you, nothing left to prove, and small things give you great pleasure because that’s what’s left. (“I was unhappy in college because it was a requirement for an ntellectual, but then I went into show business and discovered that people won’t pay to be made inhappy; their kids will do it for free.”)
There is the News from Lake Wobegon, a town booming with new entrepreneurs, makers of artisanal firewood and gourmet meatloaf, breeders of composting worms, and dogs trained to do childcare. But some things endure, such as the formation of the Living Flag on Main Street, citizens in tight formation wearing red, white, or blue caps, and Mr. Keillor among them, standing close to old neighbors, Myrtle Krebsbach (“Truckstop”) and Julie Christensen (“Bruno, The Fishing Dog”) and Clint Bunsen. And an a – cappella sing-along with the audience singing from memory an odd medley of patriotic songs, pop standards, hymns, and ending with the national anthem.
Asheville’s longest running comedy open mic happening every Wednesday night. The show starts at 8:00, and there is no cover. Anyone wanting to perform can sign up starting at 7pm, and will get four minutes on stage. Local and not-so-local, professional and not-so-professional comics perform or just anyone wanting to get up in front of people and try to make them laugh. Always fun. Always free.
Signup begins 6pm / Perform 6:30-8:30.
Everyone is welcome! Any genre…song, music, spoken word, poetry, storytelling, comedy, short films, demos, etc. Supportive listening room in an art gallery setting. Each performer gets up to 12 minutes each. All performances will be livecast.
Standup Comedy Picture Show with headliner Petey Smith McDowell
Comics on the show do standup with slide show pictures to illustrate their sets. This is sure to keep you in your seats figuring out what you just looked at!
Thursday November 20, 7:30-9p in The Orange Peel’s comedy basement. PULP is a bourbon speakeasy (400+ varieties) located under the iconic stage. No food is served but we do have free snacks while they last and outside food is permitted (no drinks of any kind).
$17 tickets available at door or The Orange Peel’s website
Host is Hilliary Begley voted repeatedly Asheville’s Favorite comic in the Mountain Xpress. Film debut in the Netflix original Dumplin’ as Aunt Lucy, or “Jennifer Anniston’s fat sister,” and Austin Film Festival winning movie When We Last Spoke with Cloris Leachman, now streaming on Amazon Prime.
Feature Cloud Hudson is a comedian, lighting designer, and weather forecaster (licensed meteorologist) with a knack for finding the silver lining around every storm cloud. Their comedy blurs the lines between science and magic in a quest for collective understanding. But don’t let this intellectual spirituality fool you- Cloud uses only the most unhinged examples of the disgustingly divine to draw clouds of laughter from crowds that matter.
Plus comedians Derek Boskovich & Aaron Naylor!
For more info contact Michele at [email protected]
New Show Added! Coming off of a big year and the success of his 2024 The Be Funny Tour, Comedian Nate Bargatze comes to the Bon Secours Wellness Arena for his 2025 BIG DUMB EYES WORLD TOUR. Two shows: 3pm and 7pm.
Hailed as “The Nicest Man in Stand-Up,” by The Atlantic Magazine and “One of the Funniest People,” by CBS Morning, Grammy nominated comedian, podcaster, director and producer Nate Bargatze is selling out shows and breaking venue attendance records with more than 1.2 million tickets sold on his The Be Funny Tour. He is currently the #1 earning comedian in the world according to Pollstar’s recent report, and #12 in overall live tour tickets sales, putting him in the company of Coldplay, Madonna and U2.
Bargatze recently hosted Saturday Night Live for the second time in one year, to rave reviews with Vulture.com asking the question, “Has Nate Bargatze Cracked The SNL code?” Bargatze hosted SNL for the first time in 2023, securing high ratings for the program with Vanity Fair calling him, “A Great Saturday Night Live Host,” and Entertainment Weekly exclaiming, “A frighteningly funny Halloween episode.”
This is how South Asheville does Turkey Day! Kick off Thanksgiving morning with a relaxed 5K through the beautiful Biltmore Park neighborhood – where the vibes are festive, the shirts are vintage-cool, and the finisher medals are worth the effort! Whether you’re running, walking, or just trotting it out for the pie, this event is for everyone. Awards for festive costumes and top finishers in each age group!
This is how South Asheville does Turkey Day! Kick off Thanksgiving morning with a relaxed 5K through the beautiful Biltmore Park neighborhood – where the vibes are festive, the shirts are vintage-cool, and the finisher medals are worth the effort! Whether you’re running, walking, or just trotting it out for the pie, this event is for everyone. Awards for festive costumes and top finishers in each age group!
Asheville’s longest running comedy open mic happening every Wednesday night. The show starts at 8:00, and there is no cover. Anyone wanting to perform can sign up starting at 7pm, and will get four minutes on stage. Local and not-so-local, professional and not-so-professional comics perform or just anyone wanting to get up in front of people and try to make them laugh. Always fun. Always free.
Fri & Sat, Dec 5 & 6 • 8 pm
Helen Hong, a fan favorite on NPR’s Wait Wait Don’t Tell Me and host of Go Fact Yourself, has acted on Never Have I Ever, Silicon Valley, and The Thundermans. Her stand-up special Well Hong streams on Amazon Prime and Apple TV+.
The Comedy Zone: Back with a fresh lineup of powerhouse talent, this hit comedy series features comics seen on Netflix, Comedy Central, The Tonight Show, and more. Smart, fast, and fiercely funny—get ready to laugh out loud and leave smiling.
VIP table upgrades available.
Wortham Presents The Comedy Zone: Helen Hong
Fri & Sat, Dec 5 & 6 • 8 pm
Helen Hong, a fan favorite on NPR’s Wait Wait Don’t Tell Me and host of Go Fact Yourself, has acted on Never Have I Ever, Silicon Valley, and The Thundermans. Her stand-up special Well Hong streams on Amazon Prime and Apple TV+.
The Comedy Zone: Back with a fresh lineup of powerhouse talent, this hit comedy series features comics seen on Netflix, Comedy Central, The Tonight Show, and more. Smart, fast, and fiercely funny—get ready to laugh out loud and leave smiling.
VIP table upgrades available.
Fri & Sat, Dec 5 & 6 • 8 pm
Helen Hong, a fan favorite on NPR’s Wait Wait Don’t Tell Me and host of Go Fact Yourself, has acted on Never Have I Ever, Silicon Valley, and The Thundermans. Her stand-up special Well Hong streams on Amazon Prime and Apple TV+.
The Comedy Zone: Back with a fresh lineup of powerhouse talent, this hit comedy series features comics seen on Netflix, Comedy Central, The Tonight Show, and more. Smart, fast, and fiercely funny—get ready to laugh out loud and leave smiling.
VIP table upgrades available.
Wortham Presents The Comedy Zone: Helen Hong
Fri & Sat, Dec 5 & 6 • 8 pm
Helen Hong, a fan favorite on NPR’s Wait Wait Don’t Tell Me and host of Go Fact Yourself, has acted on Never Have I Ever, Silicon Valley, and The Thundermans. Her stand-up special Well Hong streams on Amazon Prime and Apple TV+.
The Comedy Zone: Back with a fresh lineup of powerhouse talent, this hit comedy series features comics seen on Netflix, Comedy Central, The Tonight Show, and more. Smart, fast, and fiercely funny—get ready to laugh out loud and leave smiling.
VIP table upgrades available.
Join Blue Ridge Roller Derby on December 7 for a lively, holiday-spirited finale to the home team season.
Ring in the holiday season with Blue Ridge Roller Derby as they present their spirited Reindeer Games Home Team Finale on Saturday, December 7, at the Smoky Mountain Event Center in Waynesville. Doors open at 2 p.m., and the first of three action-packed 30-minute bouts hits the track at 3 p.m.
This holiday-themed showdown brings all the cheer—with none of the quiet. Fans can expect fast skating, big hits, and the high-energy competition that defines roller derby, all wrapped in seasonal fun. The event is family-friendly and will feature festive halftime games along with delicious food and drinks from local vendors. The Smoky Mountain Event Center provides a beautiful backdrop for an afternoon of wintertime excitement, just a short 30-minute drive from Asheville.
Tickets are $10, and children 11 and under enjoy free admission. Online ticket sales close the day of the event, but tickets will also be available at the door.
Local businesses and artisans interested in being vendors are invited to contact [email protected].
Tickets: https://www.zeffy.com/en-US/ticketing/blue-ridge-roller-derbys-december-7-home-team-games
What happens when a room full of humans walk on stage with no script… and only Love guiding the moment? Come witness the magic of a Spirited Improv Performance.
A Spirited Improv performance is unlike anything you’ve ever witnessed. More than entertainment, Spirited Improv is an enlivening emergent experience of collective creativity. It’s an improvisational showcase of the human spirit at play with invitations into music-making, dance, singing, acting, costumed silliness, story-telling, and ritual that deeply nourish the heart and soul. It offers a warm, playful, and safe container where laughter, tears, and connection flow freely.
Imagine entering a space where performers have no script, no plan, just a deep trust in Love, in each other, and in the creative aliveness of the moment. As an audience member, you are not just a passive witness; rather, you are part of the alchemy. You are invited to release judgment and practice radical acceptance of yourself and each human in the room, creating an encouraging play space for all. Whether you choose to simply offer your loving presence, share a prompt, tell a story, or step onto stage, you’re woven into the collective experience. What unfolds is spontaneous and sacred, hilarious and healing, shaped by the energy of Love in the room guiding it all.
Past audience member said, “Your spiritual improv was like going to a restaurant for the first time, and having one of the best meals of my life. I LOVED IT and was so grateful to have that unique experience of connection and healing.”
Asheville’s longest running comedy open mic happening every Wednesday night. The show starts at 8:00, and there is no cover. Anyone wanting to perform can sign up starting at 7pm, and will get four minutes on stage. Local and not-so-local, professional and not-so-professional comics perform or just anyone wanting to get up in front of people and try to make them laugh. Always fun. Always free.
This two-day wrestling tournament will field teams across the region competing on eight mats on the floor of the Harrah’s Cherokee Center – Asheville in Downtown Asheville. This is an individual tournament, double elimination format with wrestle backs to 6th place. This event is hosted by the Harrah’s Cherokee Center – Asheville and the Asheville Buncombe Regional Sports Commission in conjunction with our local high schools.
We will have a Girls Invitational Division this year. Because this is a new division, it is important to get the girls registered early. We are excited about this new division and the promotion of girls wrestling.
Stuff your stockings with some COMEDIC ANARCHY this Holiday Season!
Adult comedy night, featuring an action-packed cast of comics from both Carolinas!
Doors open at 6:30. Suggested donation $10 at door. Light food and refreshments available. And bring a toy to be donated!
Produced by Brendan C. Ahern of “Rainy Night Theatre”.
Follow us on Facebook for updates!
Spirited Improv is a 5-week expressive arts and spiritual development experience that invites you to play, heal, and reconnect with your creative essence. Unlike traditional improv, this series isn’t about comedy or performance techniques, it’s about presence, expression, and connection.
Guided by creator Jessica Chilton, a seasoned performer, expressive arts therapist, and spiritual practitioner, you’ll step into a welcoming space where vulnerability is met with love, creativity is encouraged, and every emotion has room to breathe. You’ll explore spontaneous movement, sound, character work, song, storytelling, ritual, and group co-creation. Each session includes grounding meditation, heart-centered intention, and spacious improvisational activities that awaken joy, courage, and curiosity.
Throughout the series, you practice releasing control and trusting the unknown, an experience participants often call “both liberating and deeply healing.” As the group’s trust and connection deepen, a final performance is created. It’s not scripted or rehearsed; instead, it emerges from the collective heart and the spiritual aliveness of the moment.
The closing performance becomes a celebration of everything you’ve reclaimed: your voice, your playfulness, your presence, your courage, and your connection to community.
Slice Standup Comedy Pageant Winter Finale
Thursday January 15, 2026
7:30p-9:00p, doors at 6:30p
The Orange Peel’s Comedy Basement, Pulp Lounge, 103 Hilliard Ave, Downtown Asheville
Tickets: $18 (available at door or website)
These shows sellout!
Hosted by Hilliary Begley from Netflix & Amazon Prime!
Cocktails available while you laugh the night away to some of the area’s best Stand Up Comics in a ridiculously fun adult environment!!
Free snacks while availability lasts! You may bring your own food in (no drinks)!
Participants are 4 WINNERS of Fall/Winter Contests 8/21 & 10/16
Pageant Winner gets title and $150 cash prize.
Audience votes thru ballot!
Contestants:
8/21 winner Ryan Gordon
8/21 winner Derek Boskovich
10/16 winner Min McWilliams
10/16 winner Zakiya Bell-Rogers
Plus a runners-up battle for the wild card featuring comics who had the most votes but didn’t win a spot:
10/16 1st runner up Josie Beers
10/16 2nd runner up Zach Stephens
8/21 2nd runner up Aaron Naylor
The final pageant is more than just great standup! Contestants must vie for the title through games & questions from our celebrity judges. Audience votes thru ballot.
More info contact Michele at [email protected]
Fri & Sat, Jan 16 & 17 • 8 pm
Sid Davis impressed A-list comics with his unique style, earning “Best in Fest” honors at the San Luis Obispo Comedy Festival for three years. Discovered by Joan Rivers in 2014, he skyrocketed with ComedyTime TV. Candid about the medical condition that delayed his start, his 2020 Dry Bar Comedy special earned millions of views.
The Comedy Zone: Back with a fresh lineup of powerhouse talent, this hit comedy series features comics seen on Netflix, Comedy Central, The Tonight Show, and more. Smart, fast, and fiercely funny—get ready to laugh out loud and leave smiling.
VIP table upgrades available.