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.

Thursday, July 26, 2018
Summer Sizzle
Jul 26 @ 8:00 am – 5:00 pm

Half Day Camps ($125)
June 25 -29
July 9-13
July 23-27
July 20-Aug. 3

Cool Summer Nights at Tweetsie Railroad
Jul 26 @ 9:00 am – 9:00 pm
Tweetsie Railroad

Every Saturday in July the park stays open late, until 9:00 p.m., so you can make more time for family memories. Enjoy evening train and stage shows, rides at dusk, and fun throughout the park.

Kids Clay Camp — Fairy Tales In Clay Clay Camp Ages 4-8
Jul 26 @ 9:00 am – 12:00 pm
Odyssey ClayWorks
Kids  Clay Camp --  Fairy Tales In Clay Clay Camp Ages 4-8 @ Odyssey ClayWorks   | Asheville | North Carolina | United States

Fairy Tales In Clay Clay Camp Ages 4-8 with Cassie Mazur

July 23-27
Monday- Friday, 9am-12pm

What is your favorite fairy tale? Jack and the Beanstalk? The Princess and the Pea? Alice in Wonderland? Maybe one of the new classics, like Trolls! Cassie will be your guide to this exciting world of fantasy where magic and mystery reign. You will learn to sculpt with skill and bring your favorite characters to life.

Libraries Rock with Lulu Loves Stories
Jul 26 @ 10:30 am – 11:30 am
105 N. Dougherty St.

Phone: 828-250-4756
Email: [email protected]
Event Type: Story Telling,Summer Reading Programs
Age Group: Family – (children of all ages)
Location: 105 N. Dougherty St. – Black Mountain
Library: Black Mountain

The bedrock of humanity’s heart lies in its stories passed down generation after generation.  Ms. Lulu will share a few of her favorite stories and folktales from around the world-antics included for your entertainment and education.  All ages welcome.

Preschool Story Time
Jul 26 @ 10:30 am – 11:15 am
260 Overlook Rd.

Phone: (828) 250-6488
Email: [email protected]
Event Type: Story Time for Kids
Age Group: Preschool – (ages 3-5)
Location: 260 Overlook Rd. – Asheville
Library: Skyland / South Buncombe

Preschool story times are geared towards 3-5 year-olds and include singing, stretchers, and creative activities.

Kids Clay Camp — On Your Mark, Get Centered, Throw! Clay Camp Ages 6-10
Jul 26 @ 2:00 pm – 5:00 pm
Odyssey ClayWorks
Kids Clay Camp --  On Your Mark, Get Centered, Throw! Clay Camp Ages 6-10 @ Odyssey ClayWorks   | Asheville | North Carolina | United States

On Your Mark, Get Centered, Throw! Clay Camp Ages 6-10 with Sara Ballek

July 23-27
Monday- Friday, 2-5pm

Your dreams of becoming a Clay DJ will come true in this week full of wheel throwing! Not only will students learn how to use the potter’s wheel, but they will also create fun, funky objects for daily use! After the pots come off the wheel, lively decorating and sculpting will add the finishing touches to their masterpieces!

Folkmoot USA
Jul 26 @ 7:00 pm
Smoky Mountain Center for the Performing Arts
Folkmoot USA @ Smoky Mountain Center for the Performing Arts |  |  |

Folkmoot USA, The State International Festival of North Carolina, is a two-week celebration of the world’s cultural heritage through folk music and dance. Held each summer across the beautiful mountains of Western North Carolina, Folkmoot features performers demonstrating cultural heritage through colorful, authentic, and original reproduction costumes, lively dance, and traditional music.

Screening: Alice’s Restaurant – Arthur Penn Film Series
Jul 26 @ 7:00 pm
Fine Arts Theatre
Screening: Alice's Restaurant - Arthur Penn Film Series @ Fine Arts Theatre |  |  |

In partnership with the Fine Arts Theatre, we’re celebrating the work of Black Mountain College alumnus Arthur Penn with two screenings of his classic films on the big screen. The films will be preceded by a short talk on Arthur Penn’s legacy in American film, a legacy rooted in his experiences at Black Mountain College.

July 12th – “Bonnie and Clyde” (1967). Arthur Penn’s modern classic was revolutionary in its time, opening the door for the hyper-violent, morally ambiguous films produced throughout the 1970s. Warren Beatty and Faye Dunaway star as two star-crossed lovers on a doomed crime spree across Depression-era America. They’re Young, They’re In Love, They Kill People.

July 26th – “Alice’s Restaurant” (1969). This film, based on the song by Arlo Guthrie and starring the musician as himself, captures the essence of late 1960’s counter-culture. Starting with a trip to the dump on a fateful Thanksgiving Day, the film follows Guthrie and his friends through a frenetic series of events that lampoon the Vietnam War and American society.

Shelby Lynne
Jul 26 @ 8:00 pm – Jul 27 @ 12:00 am

Shelby Lynne Moorer was born in Quantico, Virginia, on October 22, 1968, and raised in Frankville, Alabama. She came from a musical family and her house was filled with the sounds of classic country music as well as The Beatles and Elvis. Her mother was a natural singer, and her father began teaching her to play guitar around age seven. Lynne once said in an interview, “I was singing before I could talk.”
After high school, Lynne decided to leave her Alabama life behind, for Nashville in 1989, so she could pursue her musical dreams. Once in Tennessee, Lynne met veteran songwriter Bob Tubert, and she gave him her demo tape. Tubert liked it and played it for the TV producer of Nashville Network’s Nashville Now, who invited Lynne to perform on the show. The performance caught the attention of CBS Records, and Lynne was offered a contract with the label.
Over the next three years, Lynne produced an album a year: Sunrise (1989), Tough All Over (1990) and Soft Talk (1991), landing a few hits along the way. In 1991, she won the Academy of Country Music’s Top New Female Vocalist award.
Never complacent, after two more albums, Lynne became hungry for a change from the Nashville system, and for her next album she enlisted producer Bill Bottrell, who had worked with such artists as Michael Jackson, Madonna and Sheryl Crow. The resulting album, I Am Shelby Lynne (1999), recorded far away from Nashville on the Northern California coast, earned Lynne the Grammy for Best New Artist in 2000—which was especially poignant as she had been in the music business nearly 13 years.
Love, Shelby was released in 2001, followed by two self-produced albums:Identity Crisis (2003) and Suit Yourself (2005). Just a Little Lovin’, her critically acclaimed tribute to Dusty Springfield, was released in 2008. And the same year Suit Yourself came out, Lynne made her acting debut in the Johnny Cash biopic Walk the Line, playing Cash’s mother. She has also appeared on the TV shows Head Case (2007) and Army Wives(2009).
Again showcasing her need to take a different path, Lynne founded her own label, Everso Records, and its first release, Tears, Lies, and Alibis, debuted at No. 16 on Billboard’s Top Independent Albums chart in April 2010. The album resonated with critics as well, and Newsday called it “her strongest album in a decade.” After this critical success, Lynne released her first-ever holiday collection, Merry Christmas, in time for 2010’s holiday season.
In 2011, Everso released Revelation Road, and Lynne headed out on a year-long solo acoustic tour. In 2013, a five-song EP, Thanks, came out to rave reviews from the likes of Mother Jones and The New York Times. Lynne said of the album: “These songs are a way to express my love and gratitude to the universe and to all of the music appreciating souls out there for the friendship and fellowship that music brings us.”
In 2014, I Am Shelby Lynne got the deluxe reissue treatment.
I Can’t Imagine was released in the spring of 2015, it was her first album for Rounder. The tour that followed included complete concert performances of the new recording and I Am Shelby Lynne in a single set.
Lynne and sister Moorer teamed for the Side by Side tour, and considered recording an album together. The plan was shelved until 2017 when they got together in Los Angeles with producer Teddy Thompson and a small group of invited guest musicians including Benmont Tench, Erik Deutsch, Doug Pettibone, and Val McCallum. The sisters chose to record a host of covers from the classic country canon, alongside contemporary fare by pop and Americana songwriters. Their lone co-written original was the set closer “Is It Too Much?” Titled Not Dark Yet, the album was released by Thirty Tigers in August. They sold out venues across the U.S. And U.K. Lynne recently wrapped her first starring film role called Here I Am, a rock and Roll saga, directed by Cynthia Mort (Nina, Tell Me You Love Me).  Lynne co-wrote the music and film score. The new single Off My Mind is currently available online.
shelbylynne.com

Friday, July 27, 2018
2018 Folkmoot Festival
Jul 27 all-day
Folkmoot Friendship Center
2018 Folkmoot Festival @ Folkmoot Friendship Center | Waynesville | North Carolina | United States

Named by USA Today as one of the Top Twenty Festivals in North Carolina, Folkmoot is a ten-day event, held across the mountains of Western North Carolina in Waynesville, Clyde, Lake Junaluska, Maggie Valley, Canton, Cherokee, Franklin, Hickory, Asheville, and Hendersonville. The 2018 festival dates are July 19 – 29 and feature cultural ambassadors/dance performing groups from Ghana, Italy, Czech Republic, Mexico, Venezuela and Northern Cyprus, Thailand and local Appalachian and Cherokee dancers and musicians.

Tickets are now on sale for all performances and can be purchased at Folkmoot.org, in person at the Folkmoot Friendship Center, or by calling 828-452-2997.

7TH ANNUAL REUSE CONTEST
Jul 27 all-day

For the seventh consecutive year, the Asheville Habitat ReStore at 31 Meadow Road near Biltmore Village is encouraging residents to show off their creativity and talent for a chance to win in the ReStore ReUse Contest. Garden shed, artist studio, chicken coop…tree house, playhouse, tiny house…if you recently built a structure like this using predominantly reused building materials, Habitat wants to know. The contest runs July 1-August 31 and submissions must be sent electronically. Information and entry form will be available on ashevillehabitat.org starting July 1 st . The purpose of the contest is to showcase innovative building projects constructed predominantly of used building materials. “Our customers often tell us about the projects they make using materials purchased at the ReStore. This contest is a great way to showcase their projects and inspire others to reuse, recycle and repurpose usable materials,” said Scott Stetson, ReStore General Manager. Five judges will select winners in the following categories: Furniture, Homesteading, Live and/or Work Space, Home Décor, Youth (age 16 and under), and Best in Show. Winners will be announced in mid-September.

Backpack to the Future – 2018 School Supply Drive
Jul 27 all-day
United Way

While having school supplies may simply be an item on the ‘to-do’ list for many parents and guardians, for others, the calculator that their child needs, or a backpack without last year’s broken zippers, may not be in the cards. 2018 SSD logoThese parents—and especially their children—should not have to worry about heading into school without the necessary supplies. This is why the United Way has this drive and, by contributing the supplies our students need to succeed, we’re investing in the future of our community. Together we are stronger. United, we make a difference. #BackpacktotheFuture.   

This year’s 2018 school supply drive will be July 9th trough July 27th.  If you visit www.handsonasheville.org/schoolsupplydrive, you will see that there are links for that online shopping avenue, a downloadable supply list for going to the store yourself, a downloadable “toolkit” should you decide to hold your own drive, and if you would simply like to donate, in general, to the School Supply Drive’s efforts, there is an option for that as well. Any and all options and the donations we receive help us invest in our future!

BUGS! A Musical Spectacle
Jul 27 all-day
Magnetic 375
BUGS! A Musical Spectacle @ Magnetic 375 | Asheville | North Carolina | United States

BUGS! is a new musical exploring the insect world. Through a series of funny and uplifting vignettes, this immersive spectacle asks us to pause, look closely, and consider the little things.

Public performances are Fridays at 7pm, Saturdays at 1pm and 3:30pm, and Sundays at 1pm, with added performances Sunday July 22 at 3:30pm and Thursday July 26 at 7pm. Visit Asheville Creative Arts’ website for information on tickets: $12 (July 19-22); and $12/students and $23/adults (July 26-29).

K9s in Flight Frisbee Dogs
Jul 27 all-day
Tweetsie Railroad

These incredible dogs have delighted audiences nationwide at halftime shows on television. Don’t miss them live at Tweetsie Railroad! Shows at 11:00 a.m., and 1:00 and 3:00 p.m. Saturday evening show at 7:00 p.m.

Mamma Mia!
Jul 27 all-day
Flat Rock Playhouse

The #1 most requested musical at FRP and international phenomenon…MAMMA MIA!

Dance the night away to such ABBA favorites as “Dancing Queen,” “Take a Chance on Me,” “The Winner Takes It All” and “Thank you for the Music” in this delightful musical comedy and Broadway sensation.

Following the release of the brand new musical movie, Mamma Mia 2 in movie theaters on July 20th, see where it all began at the Flat Rock Playhouse Mainstage from July 27th to August 18th as WE present Mamma Mia!

Matinees: Wednesdays, Thursdays, Saturdays and Sundays at 2:00PM

Evenings: Wednesdays and Thursdays at 7:30PM. Fridays and Saturdays at 8:00PM

Flat Rock Playhouse Mainstage
2661 Greenville Highway Flat Rock, NC 28731

Summer Sizzle
Jul 27 @ 8:00 am – 5:00 pm

Half Day Camps ($125)
June 25 -29
July 9-13
July 23-27
July 20-Aug. 3

Cool Summer Nights at Tweetsie Railroad
Jul 27 @ 9:00 am – 9:00 pm
Tweetsie Railroad

Every Saturday in July the park stays open late, until 9:00 p.m., so you can make more time for family memories. Enjoy evening train and stage shows, rides at dusk, and fun throughout the park.

Kids Clay Camp — Fairy Tales In Clay Clay Camp Ages 4-8
Jul 27 @ 9:00 am – 12:00 pm
Odyssey ClayWorks
Kids  Clay Camp --  Fairy Tales In Clay Clay Camp Ages 4-8 @ Odyssey ClayWorks   | Asheville | North Carolina | United States

Fairy Tales In Clay Clay Camp Ages 4-8 with Cassie Mazur

July 23-27
Monday- Friday, 9am-12pm

What is your favorite fairy tale? Jack and the Beanstalk? The Princess and the Pea? Alice in Wonderland? Maybe one of the new classics, like Trolls! Cassie will be your guide to this exciting world of fantasy where magic and mystery reign. You will learn to sculpt with skill and bring your favorite characters to life.

Kids Clay Camp — On Your Mark, Get Centered, Throw! Clay Camp Ages 6-10
Jul 27 @ 2:00 pm – 5:00 pm
Odyssey ClayWorks
Kids Clay Camp --  On Your Mark, Get Centered, Throw! Clay Camp Ages 6-10 @ Odyssey ClayWorks   | Asheville | North Carolina | United States

On Your Mark, Get Centered, Throw! Clay Camp Ages 6-10 with Sara Ballek

July 23-27
Monday- Friday, 2-5pm

Your dreams of becoming a Clay DJ will come true in this week full of wheel throwing! Not only will students learn how to use the potter’s wheel, but they will also create fun, funky objects for daily use! After the pots come off the wheel, lively decorating and sculpting will add the finishing touches to their masterpieces!

Cruisin’ with Blossman
Jul 27 @ 6:00 pm – 8:00 pm
Blossman Gas
Cruisin' with Blossman @ Blossman Gas |  |  |

Antique, Classic Car & Bike Cruise-In. All invited! Food and refreshments available with a donation benefiting Meals on Wheels of Buncombe County. No alcohol on premises. Restrooms on site. Music. Bring your chairs!

Saturday, July 28, 2018
2018 Folkmoot Festival
Jul 28 all-day
Folkmoot Friendship Center
2018 Folkmoot Festival @ Folkmoot Friendship Center | Waynesville | North Carolina | United States

Named by USA Today as one of the Top Twenty Festivals in North Carolina, Folkmoot is a ten-day event, held across the mountains of Western North Carolina in Waynesville, Clyde, Lake Junaluska, Maggie Valley, Canton, Cherokee, Franklin, Hickory, Asheville, and Hendersonville. The 2018 festival dates are July 19 – 29 and feature cultural ambassadors/dance performing groups from Ghana, Italy, Czech Republic, Mexico, Venezuela and Northern Cyprus, Thailand and local Appalachian and Cherokee dancers and musicians.

Tickets are now on sale for all performances and can be purchased at Folkmoot.org, in person at the Folkmoot Friendship Center, or by calling 828-452-2997.

7TH ANNUAL REUSE CONTEST
Jul 28 all-day

For the seventh consecutive year, the Asheville Habitat ReStore at 31 Meadow Road near Biltmore Village is encouraging residents to show off their creativity and talent for a chance to win in the ReStore ReUse Contest. Garden shed, artist studio, chicken coop…tree house, playhouse, tiny house…if you recently built a structure like this using predominantly reused building materials, Habitat wants to know. The contest runs July 1-August 31 and submissions must be sent electronically. Information and entry form will be available on ashevillehabitat.org starting July 1 st . The purpose of the contest is to showcase innovative building projects constructed predominantly of used building materials. “Our customers often tell us about the projects they make using materials purchased at the ReStore. This contest is a great way to showcase their projects and inspire others to reuse, recycle and repurpose usable materials,” said Scott Stetson, ReStore General Manager. Five judges will select winners in the following categories: Furniture, Homesteading, Live and/or Work Space, Home Décor, Youth (age 16 and under), and Best in Show. Winners will be announced in mid-September.

Backpack to the Future – 2018 School Supply Drive
Jul 28 all-day
United Way

While having school supplies may simply be an item on the ‘to-do’ list for many parents and guardians, for others, the calculator that their child needs, or a backpack without last year’s broken zippers, may not be in the cards. 2018 SSD logoThese parents—and especially their children—should not have to worry about heading into school without the necessary supplies. This is why the United Way has this drive and, by contributing the supplies our students need to succeed, we’re investing in the future of our community. Together we are stronger. United, we make a difference. #BackpacktotheFuture.   

This year’s 2018 school supply drive will be July 9th trough July 27th.  If you visit www.handsonasheville.org/schoolsupplydrive, you will see that there are links for that online shopping avenue, a downloadable supply list for going to the store yourself, a downloadable “toolkit” should you decide to hold your own drive, and if you would simply like to donate, in general, to the School Supply Drive’s efforts, there is an option for that as well. Any and all options and the donations we receive help us invest in our future!

K9s in Flight Frisbee Dogs
Jul 28 all-day
Tweetsie Railroad

These incredible dogs have delighted audiences nationwide at halftime shows on television. Don’t miss them live at Tweetsie Railroad! Shows at 11:00 a.m., and 1:00 and 3:00 p.m. Saturday evening show at 7:00 p.m.

Mamma Mia!
Jul 28 all-day
Flat Rock Playhouse

The #1 most requested musical at FRP and international phenomenon…MAMMA MIA!

Dance the night away to such ABBA favorites as “Dancing Queen,” “Take a Chance on Me,” “The Winner Takes It All” and “Thank you for the Music” in this delightful musical comedy and Broadway sensation.

Following the release of the brand new musical movie, Mamma Mia 2 in movie theaters on July 20th, see where it all began at the Flat Rock Playhouse Mainstage from July 27th to August 18th as WE present Mamma Mia!

Matinees: Wednesdays, Thursdays, Saturdays and Sundays at 2:00PM

Evenings: Wednesdays and Thursdays at 7:30PM. Fridays and Saturdays at 8:00PM

Flat Rock Playhouse Mainstage
2661 Greenville Highway Flat Rock, NC 28731

Pathfinder Society Fantasy Tabletop Role-playing
Jul 28 all-day
Wyvern's Tale
Pathfinder Society Fantasy Tabletop Role-playing @ Wyvern's Tale |  |  |

Pathfinder Society (PFS) is a Fantasy Role-playing game where you play as adventurers building an epic reputation as explorers, monster slayers, and archaeologists. PFS Organized Play offers an opportunity for fantasy role-playing in a structured and consistent gaming environment, worldwide! With the aid of other bold adventurers, explore and discover an ancient world filled with wondrous magic and beset with unnameable evils. Discover the great mysteries that await in the world of Pathfinder.

We play at the Wyvern’s tale every other Saturday from 12:30 – 4:30 (first game of the day) and 5:30 – 9:30 (for the evening game) and are happy to help you jump right in and join the adventure. Unlike a home game, you don’t have to commit to playing every week, drop in when you can and catch a single adventure!

We run events all over Western North Carolina, join us for a game at many of the Friendly Local Gaming Stores in the region (see our website for details on locations and times)

THE 2018 BREVARD MUSIC CENTER | LEONARD BERNSTEIN FESTIVAL
Jul 28 all-day
Brevard Music Center

By highlighting these and other works, Brevard Music Center is presenting some of Bernstein’s greatest output and showing a wonderful variety of his music that is at the core of American classical music experience. We spend so much time celebrating the works of European masters like Beethoven, Mozart, Mahler, and Dvôrak. And those works all deserve to be celebrated. But they must stand alongside Bernstein, Copland, and Gershwin—these masters gave American classical music its voice.

It’s wonderful for Brevard to be joining in with orchestras and institutions all around the world in celebrating the birth of one of the most compelling musicians of our time…or any other time.

THE 2018 BREVARD MUSIC CENTER   LEONARD BERNSTEIN FESTIVAL
Sun., June 24Beloved Bernstein
Mon., July 9Bernstein & Friends
Thurs., July 12: Leonard Bernstein/An American Icon (free lecture/details to come)
Fri., July 13: A Bernstein Celebration
Sat., July 14West Side Story (movie + live symphony)
Sun., July 15: Bernstein the Educator
Thurs., July 26 & Sat., July 28Candide (opera with English supertitles)
Sun., August 5: Season Finale: Bernstein’s Mass

WWW.BREVARDMUSIC.ORG/BERNSTEIN

Summer Sizzle
Jul 28 @ 8:00 am – 5:00 pm

Half Day Camps ($125)
June 25 -29
July 9-13
July 23-27
July 20-Aug. 3

Cool Summer Nights at Tweetsie Railroad
Jul 28 @ 9:00 am – 9:00 pm
Tweetsie Railroad

Every Saturday in July the park stays open late, until 9:00 p.m., so you can make more time for family memories. Enjoy evening train and stage shows, rides at dusk, and fun throughout the park.

R. Buckminster Fuller: The History (+ Mystery) of the Universe
Jul 28 @ 7:00 pm
Black Mountain College Museum + Arts Center
R. Buckminster Fuller: The History (+ Mystery) of the Universe @ Black Mountain College Museum + Arts Center |  |  |

Actor and storyteller David Novak performs this one-man play written by D.W. Jacobs from the life, work, and writings of inventor, designer, and BMC summer faculty member Buckminster Fuller

$10 for BMCM+AC members + students w/ID / $15 non-members