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, April 13, 2023
The Young (and not-so-young) Person’s Guide to the Orchestra with Igor Begelman
Apr 13 @ 4:00 pm
Tryon Fine Arts Center
Short Story Discussion via Zoom “The Birthday” with Ellen Brown
Apr 13 @ 7:00 pm – 8:00 pm
online

Thomas Wolfe Short Story Discussions are a partnership between the Wilma Dykeman Legacy and the Thomas Wolfe Memorial State Historic Site. Our text is The Complete Short Stories of Thomas Wolfe, edited by Francis E. Skipp with a Foreword by James Dickey (New York: Scribner’s, 1987).

Friday, April 14, 2023
LEAF Visiting Teaching Artists May 2023 Catalog
Apr 14 all-day
online
Playhouse Jr. Summer Camps Registration Open
Apr 14 all-day
Flat Rock Playhouse

 

The Education program at Flat Rock Playhouse is undergoing a name change! We are excited to streamline our program and we can’t wait to share the news with you!

Our new name will be Playhouse Jr.!

 

This new name will encompass many things. You might ask….what is Playhouse Jr.?

• Playhouse Jr. is classes and camps for K-12th Graders and Adults.
• Playhouse Jr. is mainstage shows performed by our Playhouse Jr. students and families.
• Playhouse Jr. is our touring company that visits our local schools and is performed by our fall apprentices.
• Playhouse Jr. is a licensing program for our new and exciting Playhouse Jr. touring shows!

Playhouse Jr. means many things and we are excited to share this news with our community!

We are introducing a new software system for our Playhouse Jr. families! This new system will make your life easier! Once you have registered you are in our system for good. That means that once you register all you have to do is access your account to purchase any classes and camps moving forward. No need to register every time!

To register for our new system and to enroll in classes please visit this link: https://app.jackrabbitclass.com/regv2.asp?id=548849

Questions? Please email [email protected]!

Want to register over the phone? No problem! You can call our Education Director, Lauren Hopkins at (828)693-0403 ext. 246 starting Monday March 6!

Summer Camps at Pisgah Astronomical Research Institute-PARI
Apr 14 all-day
PARI

Camps for all passions and interests

Summer STEM & Astronomy, and Space Exploration Camps

Residential summer camps for kids in grades 6th-12th on topics like astronomy, robotics, cryptography, and 3D modeling and printing, and more. Including our premiere camp experience, Above and Beyond.

25" Optical telescope observing at night

Weekend STEM & Astronomy, and Space Exploration Camps

Curriculum or astronomical event based camps for educators and scout leaders.

Don Cline making presentation

Tailored Camps

Build your own camping experience according to your interest.

Summer Counselor Application
6/1 – 7/31
Ages 17 years 6 months – 99
$0.00
REGISTER
Counselor in Training Application – Full Summer Session
6/11 2 PM – 7/27 10 AM
Ages 16 years 6 months – 18 years 6 mont
$0.00
REGISTER
Counselor in Training Application – Mini Session 1
6/11 2 PM – 6/30 10 AM
Ages 16 years 6 months – 18 years 6 mont
$0.00
REGISTER
Exoplanet Exploration
6/11 4 PM – 6/22 10 AM
Grades 8th – 12th
$3,960.00
REGISTER
Secrets of a Spy Station
6/25 4 PM – 6/30 10 AM
Grades 6th – 8th
$1,700.00
REGISTER
Counselor in Training Application – Mini Session 2
7/2 2 PM – 7/27 10 AM
Ages 16 years 6 months – 18 years 6 mont
$0.00
REGISTER
Above & Beyond
7/2 4 PM – 7/13 10 AM
Grades 9th – 12th
$3,960.00
REGISTER
Milky Way Trailblazers
7/16 4 PM – 7/27 10 AM
Grades 9th – 12th
$3,960.00
REGISTER
The Kesha Young Health Careers Scholarship 
Apr 14 all-day
online

Mission Health is accepting applications from throughout the community for the Kesha Young Health
Careers Scholarship , with the aim of supporting the education goals for high school seniors and college
students of color from Western North Carolina who are pursuing careers in healthcare.
For more than 25 years, Mission Health has been awarding the Kesha Young Health Careers Scholarship,
with more than $1 million given to make college more affordable for high school seniors and college
students of color from Western North Carolina who are pursuing careers in healthcare. The scholarship
is named in honor of Kesha Young, a 22-year-old, bi-racial woman who was born with mental and
physical disabilities and underwent multiple surgeries at Mission Hospital. Kesha died just months
before she was scheduled to earn her high school diploma. Despite her health struggles, Kesha was
described by her adoptive parents as embodying the characteristics that are vital to how healthcare
team members engage with patients, families and visitors, with a strong spirit, warm smile and positive
encouragement.
At Mission Health, we recognize that having a diverse workforce, especially in healthcare, is very
important to provide the best possible care to our patients and communities. This is integral to who we
are as a company. Our mission statement is based around recognizing and affirming the unique and
intrinsic worth of each individual: “Above all else, we are committed to the care and improvement of
human life.”
The completed application, along with all additional materials, must be received by 5 p.m. on Friday,
April 14th, 2023 for consideration. Recipients will be notified in early May and invited to a reception at
Mission Hospital on Wednesday June 7th.

Work out for free at Linwood Crump Shiloh Community Center
Apr 14 all-day
Linwood Crump Shiloh Community Center

Asheville Parks & Recreation (APR) recently renovated fitness centers at Linwood Crump Shiloh and Stephens-Lee community centers – and community members can enjoy use of cardio equipment, exercise machines, free weights, open gym time, and more through June 30, 2023. During this time, APR will waive membership and daily pass fees so more people can access the necessities for a regular fitness routine. Locals can sign up online or at either community center to receive a fitness center key fob that can be scanned at either location.

 

“Our team is committed to creating spaces in which everyone feels welcome,” according to D. Tyrell McGirt, APR Director. “We are in the community building business. The gyms and fitness rooms at these two locations are filled with everything you’d expect from other top-notch fitness facilities and dedicated to body positivity and accessible wellness. By waiving the cost to use them for the first six months of the year, we hope more friends and neighbors will be able to connect with each other and maintain healthy lifestyles.”

Work out for free at Stephens-Lee Community Center
Apr 14 all-day
Stephens-Lee Community Center

Asheville Parks & Recreation (APR) recently renovated fitness centers at Linwood Crump Shiloh and Stephens-Lee community centers – and community members can enjoy use of cardio equipment, exercise machines, free weights, open gym time, and more through June 30, 2023. During this time, APR will waive membership and daily pass fees so more people can access the necessities for a regular fitness routine. Locals can sign up online or at either community center to receive a fitness center key fob that can be scanned at either location.

 

“Our team is committed to creating spaces in which everyone feels welcome,” according to D. Tyrell McGirt, APR Director. “We are in the community building business. The gyms and fitness rooms at these two locations are filled with everything you’d expect from other top-notch fitness facilities and dedicated to body positivity and accessible wellness. By waiving the cost to use them for the first six months of the year, we hope more friends and neighbors will be able to connect with each other and maintain healthy lifestyles.”

Activating Indigenous Beats: Hip Hop Nativo Festival: Lecture with Artists: Indigenous Hip Hop and Activism, Critical Perspectives on Contemporaneity Series, with interpreters
Apr 14 @ 11:00 am – 12:15 pm
Lipinsky Auditorium at UNC Asheville

Indigenous Hip Hop and Activism, Critical Perspectives on Contemporaneity Series, with interpreters

Free & open to all.

Activating Indigenous Beats: Hip Hop Nativo Festival

April 11 @ 12:00 pm – May 14 @ 5:00 pm

The University of North Carolina Asheville is pleased to announce the “Activating Indigenous Beats: Hip Hop Nativo” Festival and Residency. The week-long event will welcome Indigenous hip-hop artists, mural artists and a DJ from North and South America to campus to celebrate hip-hop culture and highlight the power of music and literature as tools for promoting awareness about Indigenous and African American realities in Abiayala (the Americas). The event, in partnership with the Museum of the Cherokee Indian and Asheville hip-hop artists and community leaders, is free and open to the public.

Student Creative Activity and Research Forum
Apr 14 @ 5:00 pm – 7:00 pm
UNC Asheville-Highsmith Union

 

This special event will be held Friday, April 14th, 2023, in the Mountain Suites at Highsmith Student Union. Come experience a wide variety of creative activity and research projects. Creative projects ranging from “Masala Shakespeare” to discovering iconographic links in 18th century portraits to hearing newly composed music from a 14-student musical ensemble. Research projects spanning a breadth of interesting subjects including the effects of cell phones on working memory to  examining music and its perceived effects on individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorder to partisan cheerleading and misinformation.

More than 70% of UNC Asheville Students participate in Creative Activity and Research sometime within their undergraduate studies. The outstanding examples of those students have been nominated by Departmental Chairs to be recognized for this special award. 

Invited to attend this event are Faculty, Donors, Students, Prospective Students, Family members and interested Members of the Community.  Hors d’oeuvres and light refreshments will be served.

 

Spring 2023 Projects Include:

Art & Art History

  • Hannah Durham, How did the landscape of southern Appalachia govern life and the characteristics of traditional craft found within the region?
  • Bonnie Elander, Discovering Iconographic Links in a Perpetual Silver Covenant Chain: Eighteenth-Century Portraits of Hodinöhsö:ni׳ Diplomats from British North America

Biology

  • Jackson Coker, Gennie Bassett, Role of a dinucleotide signaling molecule in Staphylococcus aureus pathogenesis
  • Cassius Guthrie, Population Dynamics of the Lesser Chestnut Weevil in the Northeastern United States
  • Claudia Prieto Alcaide, Genetic Diversity Within, and Hybridization Between, Two Imperiled North American Pitcher Plants
  • Ari Puentes, Assessing the Effects of Prescribed Fires on Mycorrhizal Fungal Communities in Upland Mixed Oak-Pine Forests in DuPont State Recreational Forest, NC.

Chemistry & Biochemistry

  • Vesper Fraunfelter, Heterologous expression of Pseudomonas aeruginosa ATP synthase in E. coli to facilitate antibiotic discovery
  • Casey Kellogg, Two-tiered approach to combating antibiotic resistance
  • Bryce Pugh, Development of cleavable antibiotic-adjuvant hybrid compounds for increased accumulation in gram-negative bacteria
  • Sam Shepard, Negative charge disrupts the chemical microenvironment of the H+ exit channel in Escherichia coli ATP synthase

Computer Science

  • Luke Foster, Caleb Styles, Cameron Martensen, Gilbert Matos, and Lake Smith, Fleet Management System
  • Matthew Kothe, uMaxEnt Deep Learning

Drama

  • MJ Gamelin, Theatre of Play: Exploring the Intersection Between Drama and Roleplay Gaming
  • Various Students, Scene from Elektra

Economics

  • Jacob Diehn, Differences in Category of Immigrant on Economic Assimilation Rates
  • Aubrey Emmett, The End(s) of Economics: Towards a Theological Economics of Eschatology

English

  • Riley Johnson, Love That Dismembers: Constructing A Subversive Monster Story In “Appetite”
  • Georgina Provencio Martinez, Masala Shakespeare
  • Shelby Sizemore, Hedda’s Pistols and Jane’s Wallpaper: Gender Role Rebellion in Nineteenth-Century Literature

Environmental Studies

  • Andrea Carver, Lights Out! Asheville
  • Joseph Walston, Evaluating Endangered Pitcher Plant (Sarracenia jonesii) Leaf Morphology and Flowering as They Relate to Soil Nutrient Status

Health & Wellness

  • Karlee Fish, The Impact of Income Inequality on Health

Mass Communication

  • Xander Lord, Dana Stewart, Sawyer Serdula, Walker Lezotte, Seth Maile, Luke Beijer, Jane Turlington, Betrayal (short film)
  • Lee Robinson, The Monstrous Womb: Motherhood and masculine anxiety in horror

Master of Public Health

  • Irene Ulrich, Gender-Affirming Primary Care: Research and Materials

Mathematics & Statistics

  • Morgan Lancaster, DEI in the Mathematics Classroom
  • Spencer Guess, Wallis’ Method and Wallis Curves

Music

  • Clayton Jordan, Composing Under the Influence: Incorporating the Techniques of my Favorite Musicians in Original Songs 

Political Science

  • Braden Ball, “Stop the Steal” and other Lies: Partisan Cheerleading and Misinformation

Psychology

  • Morgan Hopkins, Attitudes toward generic singular pronouns in text
  • Alexandria Lahm, A Reddit Post is Worth a Thousand Words: Conspiratorial and Magical Beliefs
  • Caroline Scholer, Examining Music and Its Perceived Effects on Individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorder
  • Laura Searles, The Effect of Smartphones on Working Memory

Sociology & Anthropology

  • Christian Donaldson, THE LANGUAGE OF GRIEF: Autoethnographic Reflections of Loss in American Culture
Saturday, April 15, 2023
Asheville Performing Arts Academy Summer Theatre Workshops Registration Open
Apr 15 all-day
Asheville Performing Arts Academy

APAA Summer Camp Banner (Facebook Post (Square)) (560 × 373 px)

We’re offering TWO grade levels this summer for our workshops:

  • Younger Ages (Rising First – Third Grade) and
  • Older Ages (Rising Fourth – Tenth Grade)

Pricing

First Student: $350 per week
Sibling & Multiple Week Camp Discounts are available

APAA Summer Camp Banner (Facebook Post (Square)) (1)

Madagascar Workshop

June 12-16 & July 17-21

 

Get read to MOVE IT, MOVE IT!

Join Alex the Lion, Marty the Zebra, Melman the Giraffe, Gloria the hip hip Hippo and, of course, those hilarious, plotting penguins in this crack-a-lackin’ adventure from New York City to Madagascar.

Matilda Workshop

June 19-23 & July 24-28

 

It’s time to act like REVOLTIN’ CHILDREN!

Matilda is a little girl with astonishing wit, intelligence and psychokinetic powers. Matilda’s school life isn’t completely smooth sailing, however – the school’s mean headmistress, Miss Trunchbull, hates children and just loves thinking up new punishments for those who don’t abide by her rules. But Matilda has courage and cleverness in equal amounts, and could be the school pupils’ saving grace!

4
5-1

Shrek Workshop

June 26-30 & July 31-August 4

 

Come and let your FREAK FLAG FLY!

It’s a “big bright beautiful world” as everyone’s favorite ogre, Shrek, leads a cast of fairytale misfits on an adventure to rescue a princess and find true acceptance. When Shrek sets off with a wisecracking donkey to confront Farquaad, he’s handed a task — if he rescues feisty princess Fiona, his swamp will be righted. Shrek tries to win Fiona’s love and vanquish Lord Farquaad, but a fairytale wouldn’t be complete without a few twists and turns along the way.

The Little Mermaid Workshop

July 10-14 & August 7-11

 

Discover what it means to be PART OF YOUR WORLD!

In a magical underwater kingdom, the beautiful young mermaid, Ariel, longs to leave her ocean home — and her fins — behind and live in the world above. But first, she’ll have to defy her father, King Triton, make a deal with the evil sea witch, Ursula, and convince the handsome Prince Eric that she’s the girl whose enchanting voice he’s been seeking.

APAA Summer Camp Banner (Facebook Post (Square))
LEAF Visiting Teaching Artists May 2023 Catalog
Apr 15 all-day
online
Playhouse Jr. Summer Camps Registration Open
Apr 15 all-day
Flat Rock Playhouse

 

The Education program at Flat Rock Playhouse is undergoing a name change! We are excited to streamline our program and we can’t wait to share the news with you!

Our new name will be Playhouse Jr.!

 

This new name will encompass many things. You might ask….what is Playhouse Jr.?

• Playhouse Jr. is classes and camps for K-12th Graders and Adults.
• Playhouse Jr. is mainstage shows performed by our Playhouse Jr. students and families.
• Playhouse Jr. is our touring company that visits our local schools and is performed by our fall apprentices.
• Playhouse Jr. is a licensing program for our new and exciting Playhouse Jr. touring shows!

Playhouse Jr. means many things and we are excited to share this news with our community!

We are introducing a new software system for our Playhouse Jr. families! This new system will make your life easier! Once you have registered you are in our system for good. That means that once you register all you have to do is access your account to purchase any classes and camps moving forward. No need to register every time!

To register for our new system and to enroll in classes please visit this link: https://app.jackrabbitclass.com/regv2.asp?id=548849

Questions? Please email [email protected]!

Want to register over the phone? No problem! You can call our Education Director, Lauren Hopkins at (828)693-0403 ext. 246 starting Monday March 6!

Summer Camps at Pisgah Astronomical Research Institute-PARI
Apr 15 all-day
PARI

Camps for all passions and interests

Summer STEM & Astronomy, and Space Exploration Camps

Residential summer camps for kids in grades 6th-12th on topics like astronomy, robotics, cryptography, and 3D modeling and printing, and more. Including our premiere camp experience, Above and Beyond.

25" Optical telescope observing at night

Weekend STEM & Astronomy, and Space Exploration Camps

Curriculum or astronomical event based camps for educators and scout leaders.

Don Cline making presentation

Tailored Camps

Build your own camping experience according to your interest.

Summer Counselor Application
6/1 – 7/31
Ages 17 years 6 months – 99
$0.00
REGISTER
Counselor in Training Application – Full Summer Session
6/11 2 PM – 7/27 10 AM
Ages 16 years 6 months – 18 years 6 mont
$0.00
REGISTER
Counselor in Training Application – Mini Session 1
6/11 2 PM – 6/30 10 AM
Ages 16 years 6 months – 18 years 6 mont
$0.00
REGISTER
Exoplanet Exploration
6/11 4 PM – 6/22 10 AM
Grades 8th – 12th
$3,960.00
REGISTER
Secrets of a Spy Station
6/25 4 PM – 6/30 10 AM
Grades 6th – 8th
$1,700.00
REGISTER
Counselor in Training Application – Mini Session 2
7/2 2 PM – 7/27 10 AM
Ages 16 years 6 months – 18 years 6 mont
$0.00
REGISTER
Above & Beyond
7/2 4 PM – 7/13 10 AM
Grades 9th – 12th
$3,960.00
REGISTER
Milky Way Trailblazers
7/16 4 PM – 7/27 10 AM
Grades 9th – 12th
$3,960.00
REGISTER
Work out for free at Linwood Crump Shiloh Community Center
Apr 15 all-day
Linwood Crump Shiloh Community Center

Asheville Parks & Recreation (APR) recently renovated fitness centers at Linwood Crump Shiloh and Stephens-Lee community centers – and community members can enjoy use of cardio equipment, exercise machines, free weights, open gym time, and more through June 30, 2023. During this time, APR will waive membership and daily pass fees so more people can access the necessities for a regular fitness routine. Locals can sign up online or at either community center to receive a fitness center key fob that can be scanned at either location.

 

“Our team is committed to creating spaces in which everyone feels welcome,” according to D. Tyrell McGirt, APR Director. “We are in the community building business. The gyms and fitness rooms at these two locations are filled with everything you’d expect from other top-notch fitness facilities and dedicated to body positivity and accessible wellness. By waiving the cost to use them for the first six months of the year, we hope more friends and neighbors will be able to connect with each other and maintain healthy lifestyles.”

Work out for free at Stephens-Lee Community Center
Apr 15 all-day
Stephens-Lee Community Center

Asheville Parks & Recreation (APR) recently renovated fitness centers at Linwood Crump Shiloh and Stephens-Lee community centers – and community members can enjoy use of cardio equipment, exercise machines, free weights, open gym time, and more through June 30, 2023. During this time, APR will waive membership and daily pass fees so more people can access the necessities for a regular fitness routine. Locals can sign up online or at either community center to receive a fitness center key fob that can be scanned at either location.

 

“Our team is committed to creating spaces in which everyone feels welcome,” according to D. Tyrell McGirt, APR Director. “We are in the community building business. The gyms and fitness rooms at these two locations are filled with everything you’d expect from other top-notch fitness facilities and dedicated to body positivity and accessible wellness. By waiving the cost to use them for the first six months of the year, we hope more friends and neighbors will be able to connect with each other and maintain healthy lifestyles.”

Southern Appalachian Weather and Climate Workshop
Apr 15 @ 8:00 am – 5:00 pm
UNC Asheville-Highsmith Union

The Southern Appalachian Weather and Climate Workshop, held April 14-15 in Highsmith Union, brings together a diverse group of federal, academic, students, and broadcast media to share research, operations, and communication of weather, water, and climate events. The workshop will cover a broad range of topics concerning weather, water and climate, with oral and poster presentations throughout the event.

The development of the Southern Appalachian Weather and Climate Workshop is a collaborative effort between the various Universities and NOAA/NWS offices of the Southern Appalachian region.  Please refer to the Planning Committee menu page for more information.

The conference goals are:

  • Promoting interactions and effective communication between research and operations
  • Promoting student interactions with the weather enterprise
  • Sharing specific uses and research of weather, water, and climate data, information, and predictions.
  • Assessing observed or potential weather, water, and climate impacts.
  • Identifying gaps in research, operations, or communications of weather hazard and safety information.
  • Developing effective partnerships between the Operational and Research community.
Savory Hub Naturalist Series: Stream Health + Critters
Apr 15 @ 9:00 am – 12:00 pm
Hickory Nut Gap Farm
    • Do a deep dive in our shallow streams and creeks on the Farm with our friends at Asheville’s own Environmental Quality Institute!
    • Start off with Stream Macroinvertebrate Information Exchange protocol and get into the stream for active sampling and identification.
    • Learn about our Holistic Land Management from Farm Director Virginia, and how this practice works in tandem with waterways and stream health.
    • Spotted on the farm by our farm crew, staff & neighbors: crawdads, salamanders, toads, frogs, snakes, snails and other mollusks! Our waters have been monitored by local organizations for Eastern Hellbender activity, and we have actively breeding hellbender populations.
    • Attendees will break for an included biscuit brunch* from butcher Brian’s kitchen, as kick-netting is hungry work. When attending classes, you will receive a 5% discount in the Farm Store & Butchery!

    Be a Savory Scholar, sign up for our next in the Savory Hub Naturalist Series: Soil Health & Creatures with UNCA’s Environmental Lecturer Jake Hagedorn!

     

    Cost: $25/person, 2 pack for $40, biscuit brunch is included.

    *If you have dietary restrictions, please reach out to [email protected] and we can accommodate.

  • This will be a physical activity outside on farm grounds, and water is involved! Wear appropriate footwear and outerwear.
  • The EQI guides will be bringing enough hip-waders for everyone, but if you have your own please bring!
  • This class is not recommended for kids in middle school or younger for content comprehension.
  • Our Farm Store will be open 10am-5pm. When attending classes, you will receive a 5% discount in the Farm Store & Butchery!
  • When you purchase admission for events here at the farm on our website, we will have a will call list. You simply check in with the event staff and give them the name of the purchaser! Want to stay up to date on our Events & Sales? Check out our Farm Store Facebook Group.

Featured Speakers & Guides:

Tyler

Tyler Hickman is currently the Stream Monitoring Coordinator for EQI, a position served through AmeriCorps’ Project Conserve. He received his BS in Biology with a concentration in Ecology, Evolution, and Environmental Biology from Appalachian State University (ASU) in 2019, and is currently a graduate student in ASU’s Aquatic Conservation Research Lab finishing his master’s thesis on endangered freshwater mussel distribution. He is a strong proponent of science-based conservation efforts and the inclusion of community members at all levels in those efforts.  

Madelyn

Madelyn is the Environmental Quality Institute’s Assistant Director. She received her BS in Environmental Studies from the University of North Carolina Asheville (UNCA) and has been a resident of WNC for 30 years. She is passionate about stream health and looks for any opportunity to talk about aquatic insects and how they can help identify stream pollutants. Madelyn has been a part of the EQI family since 2014, first as a volunteer, then AmeriCorps member, Board member, and now full time Staff.

Virginia Hamilton

Virginia is our Farm Director here at the home of the brand in Fairview. She received her BS in Environmental Studies from Warren Wilson College and her MS in Land Resources & Environmental Science from Montana State University. Prior to completing her MS, she was the assistant farm manager at Warren Wilson College in Swannanoa, NC for five years. She is interested in the ecology of working lands and any and all opportunities to invite landowners and community members to participate in the scientific process. She believes that working farms and forests are the key to thriving and resilient rural communities that are poised to support the communities around them. Virginia also spearheads our Ecological Outcome Verification efforts with the Savory Institute.

About the Savory Institute

The Savory Institute’s mission is to facilitate the large-scale regeneration of the world’s grasslands and the livelihoods of their inhabitants great and small, through holistic land management. Savory Institute is working in collaboration with research institutions and partners, to measure the outcomes of managing holistically, by monitoring the health of ecosystem processes, levels of permanent soil carbon, quality of life of the people, as well as financial vitality. Hickory Nut Gap is a verified Savory Hub as of 2021- to equip our partner farmers, local farmers, ranchers, and pastoralist communities with the tools and knowledge to regenerate grasslands in a localized context. To learn more about the Savory Institute, click here.

About the Environmental Quality Institute

The Environmental Quality Institute is a nonprofit laboratory that operates chemical and biological stream monitoring programs in western North Carolina. EQI coordinates sampling and data analysis for our 2 programs – VWIN (Volunteer Water Info. Network – chemical monitoring) and SMIE (Stream Monitoring Information Exchange – aquatic insects).  VWIN has operated since 1990 and provides monthly chemical monitoring at more than 160 stream, river, and lake sites. The VWIN program is extremely cost-effective and reliable because trained community volunteers collect the samples, while analyses are performed at our nonprofit, state-certified lab. SMIE has operated since 2005 and is a collaboration of several western NC non-profit, educational institutions, and local, state, and federal agencies. The SMIE volunteer biological monitoring program focuses on aquatic invertebrates to help determine stream health for over 50 streams in WNC. To learn more about the EQI, click here.

Savory Hub Naturalist Series: Stream Health + Critters
Apr 15 @ 9:00 am – 12:00 pm
Hickory Nut Gap Farm

Do a deep dive in our shallow streams and creeks on the Farm with our friends at Asheville’s own Environmental Quality Institute!
Start off with Stream Macroinvertebrate Information Exchange protocol and get into the stream for active sampling and identification.
Learn about our Holistic Land Management from Farm Director Virginia, and how this practice works in tandem with waterways and stream health.
Spotted on the farm by our farm crew, staff & neighbors: crawdads, salamanders, toads, frogs, snakes, snails and other mollusks! Our waters have been monitored by local organizations for Eastern Hellbender activity, and we have actively breeding hellbender populations.
Attendees will break for an included biscuit brunch* from butcher Brian’s kitchen, as kick-netting is hungry work. When attending classes, you will receive a 5% discount in the Farm Store & Butchery!
Be a Savory Scholar, sign up for our next in the Savory Hub Naturalist Series: Soil Health & Creatures with UNCA’s Environmental Lecturer Jake Hagedorn!

 

*If you have dietary restrictions, please reach out to [email protected] and we can accommodate.

Land of the Sky 101 Book Club
Apr 15 @ 10:30 am – 12:00 pm
Pack Memorial Library

Land of the Sky 101 is a community learning circle for those who are interested in an introduction to the history of Asheville, Buncombe County and Western North Carolina. A nine -part series of readings and discussions is modeled after the themes of the exhibit “An Incomplete History of Buncombe County” mounted in the BCSC reading room. From October 2022 through July 2023 (with a break in December) participants will explore the history of our region focusing on themes ranging from ancient history to the late 20th century revitalization of the Downtown area.

Read
Each month readers can choose from two selections; one light read like a novel, or groups of essays and poems, and one rigorous non-fiction read written by an expert on the subject. Pick one or both! The choice is yours!

Learn
Each session will be facilitated by a Buncombe County Special Collections librarian or special guest who will share their expert knowledge, additional resources, and set the context for the conversation.

Discuss
At least 45 minutes of each session will be set aside for group discussion. The learning circle is a place to get curious about your community and meet new friends. Come for the history, stay for the fellowship!
Click here to view a complete list of dates and titles.

Registration is limited and required. Sessions for the 2022-2023 cohort will be held at 10:30 am on the third Saturday of each month at Pack Memorial Library. Sessions run from October 2022 until July 2023. Your registration will reserve your place for all nine sessions, and we hope participants will plan to attend each meeting.  If you cannot attend a session, please let us know in advance so we may allow those on the waiting list to participate.

Sunday, April 16, 2023
Asheville Performing Arts Academy Summer Theatre Workshops Registration Open
Apr 16 all-day
Asheville Performing Arts Academy

APAA Summer Camp Banner (Facebook Post (Square)) (560 × 373 px)

We’re offering TWO grade levels this summer for our workshops:

  • Younger Ages (Rising First – Third Grade) and
  • Older Ages (Rising Fourth – Tenth Grade)

Pricing

First Student: $350 per week
Sibling & Multiple Week Camp Discounts are available

APAA Summer Camp Banner (Facebook Post (Square)) (1)

Madagascar Workshop

June 12-16 & July 17-21

 

Get read to MOVE IT, MOVE IT!

Join Alex the Lion, Marty the Zebra, Melman the Giraffe, Gloria the hip hip Hippo and, of course, those hilarious, plotting penguins in this crack-a-lackin’ adventure from New York City to Madagascar.

Matilda Workshop

June 19-23 & July 24-28

 

It’s time to act like REVOLTIN’ CHILDREN!

Matilda is a little girl with astonishing wit, intelligence and psychokinetic powers. Matilda’s school life isn’t completely smooth sailing, however – the school’s mean headmistress, Miss Trunchbull, hates children and just loves thinking up new punishments for those who don’t abide by her rules. But Matilda has courage and cleverness in equal amounts, and could be the school pupils’ saving grace!

4
5-1

Shrek Workshop

June 26-30 & July 31-August 4

 

Come and let your FREAK FLAG FLY!

It’s a “big bright beautiful world” as everyone’s favorite ogre, Shrek, leads a cast of fairytale misfits on an adventure to rescue a princess and find true acceptance. When Shrek sets off with a wisecracking donkey to confront Farquaad, he’s handed a task — if he rescues feisty princess Fiona, his swamp will be righted. Shrek tries to win Fiona’s love and vanquish Lord Farquaad, but a fairytale wouldn’t be complete without a few twists and turns along the way.

The Little Mermaid Workshop

July 10-14 & August 7-11

 

Discover what it means to be PART OF YOUR WORLD!

In a magical underwater kingdom, the beautiful young mermaid, Ariel, longs to leave her ocean home — and her fins — behind and live in the world above. But first, she’ll have to defy her father, King Triton, make a deal with the evil sea witch, Ursula, and convince the handsome Prince Eric that she’s the girl whose enchanting voice he’s been seeking.

APAA Summer Camp Banner (Facebook Post (Square))
LEAF Visiting Teaching Artists May 2023 Catalog
Apr 16 all-day
online
Playhouse Jr. Summer Camps Registration Open
Apr 16 all-day
Flat Rock Playhouse

 

The Education program at Flat Rock Playhouse is undergoing a name change! We are excited to streamline our program and we can’t wait to share the news with you!

Our new name will be Playhouse Jr.!

 

This new name will encompass many things. You might ask….what is Playhouse Jr.?

• Playhouse Jr. is classes and camps for K-12th Graders and Adults.
• Playhouse Jr. is mainstage shows performed by our Playhouse Jr. students and families.
• Playhouse Jr. is our touring company that visits our local schools and is performed by our fall apprentices.
• Playhouse Jr. is a licensing program for our new and exciting Playhouse Jr. touring shows!

Playhouse Jr. means many things and we are excited to share this news with our community!

We are introducing a new software system for our Playhouse Jr. families! This new system will make your life easier! Once you have registered you are in our system for good. That means that once you register all you have to do is access your account to purchase any classes and camps moving forward. No need to register every time!

To register for our new system and to enroll in classes please visit this link: https://app.jackrabbitclass.com/regv2.asp?id=548849

Questions? Please email [email protected]!

Want to register over the phone? No problem! You can call our Education Director, Lauren Hopkins at (828)693-0403 ext. 246 starting Monday March 6!

Summer Camps at Pisgah Astronomical Research Institute-PARI
Apr 16 all-day
PARI

Camps for all passions and interests

Summer STEM & Astronomy, and Space Exploration Camps

Residential summer camps for kids in grades 6th-12th on topics like astronomy, robotics, cryptography, and 3D modeling and printing, and more. Including our premiere camp experience, Above and Beyond.

25" Optical telescope observing at night

Weekend STEM & Astronomy, and Space Exploration Camps

Curriculum or astronomical event based camps for educators and scout leaders.

Don Cline making presentation

Tailored Camps

Build your own camping experience according to your interest.

Summer Counselor Application
6/1 – 7/31
Ages 17 years 6 months – 99
$0.00
REGISTER
Counselor in Training Application – Full Summer Session
6/11 2 PM – 7/27 10 AM
Ages 16 years 6 months – 18 years 6 mont
$0.00
REGISTER
Counselor in Training Application – Mini Session 1
6/11 2 PM – 6/30 10 AM
Ages 16 years 6 months – 18 years 6 mont
$0.00
REGISTER
Exoplanet Exploration
6/11 4 PM – 6/22 10 AM
Grades 8th – 12th
$3,960.00
REGISTER
Secrets of a Spy Station
6/25 4 PM – 6/30 10 AM
Grades 6th – 8th
$1,700.00
REGISTER
Counselor in Training Application – Mini Session 2
7/2 2 PM – 7/27 10 AM
Ages 16 years 6 months – 18 years 6 mont
$0.00
REGISTER
Above & Beyond
7/2 4 PM – 7/13 10 AM
Grades 9th – 12th
$3,960.00
REGISTER
Milky Way Trailblazers
7/16 4 PM – 7/27 10 AM
Grades 9th – 12th
$3,960.00
REGISTER
Work out for free at Linwood Crump Shiloh Community Center
Apr 16 all-day
Linwood Crump Shiloh Community Center

Asheville Parks & Recreation (APR) recently renovated fitness centers at Linwood Crump Shiloh and Stephens-Lee community centers – and community members can enjoy use of cardio equipment, exercise machines, free weights, open gym time, and more through June 30, 2023. During this time, APR will waive membership and daily pass fees so more people can access the necessities for a regular fitness routine. Locals can sign up online or at either community center to receive a fitness center key fob that can be scanned at either location.

 

“Our team is committed to creating spaces in which everyone feels welcome,” according to D. Tyrell McGirt, APR Director. “We are in the community building business. The gyms and fitness rooms at these two locations are filled with everything you’d expect from other top-notch fitness facilities and dedicated to body positivity and accessible wellness. By waiving the cost to use them for the first six months of the year, we hope more friends and neighbors will be able to connect with each other and maintain healthy lifestyles.”

Work out for free at Stephens-Lee Community Center
Apr 16 all-day
Stephens-Lee Community Center

Asheville Parks & Recreation (APR) recently renovated fitness centers at Linwood Crump Shiloh and Stephens-Lee community centers – and community members can enjoy use of cardio equipment, exercise machines, free weights, open gym time, and more through June 30, 2023. During this time, APR will waive membership and daily pass fees so more people can access the necessities for a regular fitness routine. Locals can sign up online or at either community center to receive a fitness center key fob that can be scanned at either location.

 

“Our team is committed to creating spaces in which everyone feels welcome,” according to D. Tyrell McGirt, APR Director. “We are in the community building business. The gyms and fitness rooms at these two locations are filled with everything you’d expect from other top-notch fitness facilities and dedicated to body positivity and accessible wellness. By waiving the cost to use them for the first six months of the year, we hope more friends and neighbors will be able to connect with each other and maintain healthy lifestyles.”

In-Person | Writers at Home: Mildred K. Barya Launches The Animals of My Earth School in conversation with Tina Barr
Apr 16 @ 5:00 pm
Malaprop's Bookstore and Virtual

Writers at Home is a monthly series featuring work from UNCA’s Great Smokies Writing Program and The Great Smokies Review. April’s event will feature Mildred Barya launching her newest poetry collection The Animals of My Earth School in conversation with Tina Barr.

This event is in-person only. Registration is required, and there is a limited number of seats available to attend the event. There is no virtual attendance option.

Please click here to register for the IN-PERSON event. Note the important event details on the RSVP form.

If you’re unable to attend this event, you can still get a signed copy of The Animals of My Earth School by pre-ordering from Malaprop’s below. For personalization, use the order comments field to tell us to whom the books should be signed, e.g. “To Martha.”

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!


Mildred Kiconco Barya is a writer from Uganda and the author of four full-length poetry collections, most recently The Animals of My Earth School released by Terrapin Books, 2023. Her prose, hybrids, and poems have appeared in Shenandoah, Joyland, The Cincinnati Review, Tin House, Prairie Schooner, and elsewhere. She’s now working on a collection of creative nonfiction, and her essay, “Being Here in This Body”, won the 2020 Linda Flowers Literary Award and was published in the North Carolina Literary Review. Barya teaches creative writing and literature at UNC-Asheville, serves on the boards of African Writers Trust and Story Parlor, and coordinates the Poetrio Reading events at Malaprop’s Independent Bookstore/Café. She blogs here www.mildredbarya.com.

Tina Barr’s most recent book, Green Target, won the Barrow Street Press Poetry Prize and the Brockman-Campbell Award. Previous books include The Gathering Eye, winner of the Tupelo Press Editor’s Award, and Kaleidoscope. She’s received fellowships from the NEA, The Tennessee Arts Commission, & the Pennsylvania Council on the Arts. Her poems have been published in The Harvard Review, The Gettysburg Review, Alaska Quarterly Review, American Journal of Poetry, Crosswinds, Brilliant Corners, Barrow Street, North American Review, Mudfish, Tar River Poetry, Poetry South, and elsewhere. She blogs here https://tinabarr.com.

Praise for the book
In The Animals of My Earth School, Mildred Kiconco Barya gives us magnificent hungers and provocative feasts. Her poems tutor us via insects, mammals, birds, and reptiles in the slippages of time and place and the swerves between “dreaming and becoming” that inform our interwoven habits and habitats. With language and structures that are “sinewed with complexity,” her poems swing between singing and saying, between “praying and preying.” Barya’s spirited, multi- species collection asks questions no answers can satiate. But we are assured that “when we arrive at our door, teeth on edge,/ we taste beyond question what we have become.”
—Laura-Gray Street, poet & The Ecopoetry Anthology (co-editor)

Monday, April 17, 2023
LEAF Visiting Teaching Artists May 2023 Catalog
Apr 17 all-day
online
Playhouse Jr. Summer Camps Registration Open
Apr 17 all-day
Flat Rock Playhouse

 

The Education program at Flat Rock Playhouse is undergoing a name change! We are excited to streamline our program and we can’t wait to share the news with you!

Our new name will be Playhouse Jr.!

 

This new name will encompass many things. You might ask….what is Playhouse Jr.?

• Playhouse Jr. is classes and camps for K-12th Graders and Adults.
• Playhouse Jr. is mainstage shows performed by our Playhouse Jr. students and families.
• Playhouse Jr. is our touring company that visits our local schools and is performed by our fall apprentices.
• Playhouse Jr. is a licensing program for our new and exciting Playhouse Jr. touring shows!

Playhouse Jr. means many things and we are excited to share this news with our community!

We are introducing a new software system for our Playhouse Jr. families! This new system will make your life easier! Once you have registered you are in our system for good. That means that once you register all you have to do is access your account to purchase any classes and camps moving forward. No need to register every time!

To register for our new system and to enroll in classes please visit this link: https://app.jackrabbitclass.com/regv2.asp?id=548849

Questions? Please email [email protected]!

Want to register over the phone? No problem! You can call our Education Director, Lauren Hopkins at (828)693-0403 ext. 246 starting Monday March 6!

Work out for free at Linwood Crump Shiloh Community Center
Apr 17 all-day
Linwood Crump Shiloh Community Center

Asheville Parks & Recreation (APR) recently renovated fitness centers at Linwood Crump Shiloh and Stephens-Lee community centers – and community members can enjoy use of cardio equipment, exercise machines, free weights, open gym time, and more through June 30, 2023. During this time, APR will waive membership and daily pass fees so more people can access the necessities for a regular fitness routine. Locals can sign up online or at either community center to receive a fitness center key fob that can be scanned at either location.

 

“Our team is committed to creating spaces in which everyone feels welcome,” according to D. Tyrell McGirt, APR Director. “We are in the community building business. The gyms and fitness rooms at these two locations are filled with everything you’d expect from other top-notch fitness facilities and dedicated to body positivity and accessible wellness. By waiving the cost to use them for the first six months of the year, we hope more friends and neighbors will be able to connect with each other and maintain healthy lifestyles.”