Life imitates art imitating life in Proud Mary Theatre Company’s first-ever holiday production, The Gayest Christmas Pageant Ever!, streaming over the Christmas holiday weekend December 23-27.

Written by playwright Joe Marshall, this South Carolina (and Virtual) premiere is about a struggling gay theatre company and their efforts to produce a great holiday play with a crazy, drama-addicted team that has just a few weeks to produce…the gayest Christmas pageant ever! This holiday camp-fest is a fast-paced comedy packed with hilarious dialogue and 40 over-the-top characters meant for non-conservative adults of all ages!

Life imitates art imitating life in Proud Mary Theatre Company’s first-ever holiday production, The Gayest Christmas Pageant Ever!, streaming over the Christmas holiday weekend December 23-27.

Written by playwright Joe Marshall, this South Carolina (and Virtual) premiere is about a struggling gay theatre company and their efforts to produce a great holiday play with a crazy, drama-addicted team that has just a few weeks to produce…the gayest Christmas pageant ever! This holiday camp-fest is a fast-paced comedy packed with hilarious dialogue and 40 over-the-top characters meant for non-conservative adults of all ages!

I’ve done part of this hike and it’s nice but I haven’t done the Pump Gap section. So I don’t know what this part of the trail is like other than it will be downhill and probably rocky. It should be about 3.5 miles one way but could be more.

This is a car shuttle hike meaning we leave cars at each end of the trail head. The hike is located in the Hot Springs so we could possibly have a meal after (but would be based upon COVID restrictions).

Let’s meet at the Ingles in Weaverville (the one across the street from Publix) at 9:45 with a departure at 10 a.m. Park near the gas station, road side. I have a white Hyundai. Suggested car pool donation is $5 each. If you carpool please wear a mask in the car and bring hand sanitizer.

We will drive out to the trailhead in Hot Springs, leave a car and then drive back up to the other trailhead. This part will involve carpooling so please make sure you are ok with that.

Once hiking, we immediately start uphill and this is one of the hardest parts of the hike but it’s short. We will travel along the AT with a gentle uphill most of the way, but it is scenic.

Eventually we will come to the intersection with the Pump Gap trail and take it back down to the trail head. Who knows what the trail holds? It’s about 1 mile down this section.

Please wear proper hiking shoes, hiking poles are recommended. We won’t be stopping for lunch so bring a snack if you want. Don’t forget the water.

I don’t put attendee limits on my hikes so you don’t have to worry about having a spot. Therefore, you can sign up a day before the hike.

Juliana Heng is the founder of I Laugh KL Comedy Show, one of the founding members of Parti Komedi Rakyat (PKR) – a comedy troupe, and has been doing stand-up comedy since September 2017. They strive to be a comedian who gets real, talking about issues considered taboo in the Asian society. Juliana has performed in Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand (Bangkok) & England (London, Nottingham & Manchester). Recently, they emerged as the Finalist of Bangkok International Comedy Competition 2019, KING GONG at The Comedy Store – London (December 2019) & BEAT THE FROG at The Frog & Bucket Comedy Club, Manchester (January 2020).

A one-hour medley show by this Malaysian stand-up comedian, storyteller and poet explores the different ways to tell one’s life story. Even with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), why not live life with spunk?

NOTE: Matured content, mild sexual innuendos, emotionally triggering, graphical depiction of domestic violence & can be too real

We regret to inform you that due to circumstances out of our control, this show has been cancelled. Tickets will be refunded at point of purchase. Please allow 2 – 4 weeks for refunds to fully process.

Described by Jay Leno as “the best joke writer in America,” by British comedian Gary Delaney as the best joke writer in the world, and by “Weird Al” Yankovic as one of the funniest people on the planet, Emo Philips has performed over 7000 times throughout the English-speaking world, including a multi-week run at the Playhouse Theater in London’s West End. Since starting out in Chicago in 1976 at the age of twenty, Emo has had award-winning comedy albums, several cable specials (including an hour-long one on HBO), and many appearances on network television, both in America and in the UK. He has appeared in films (most notably, as the table-saw demonstrator in UHF) and has lent his distinctive voice to animated TV shows (such as Slacker Cats, Doctor Katz, Adventure Time, and Home Movies), but his first love, stand-up, remains his true one.

The hosts of this morning talk show have slept in…and they’re totally stoned. Headlines, interviews, human interest stories, and more. Wake and Bake with STONER MORNING SHOW!

Juliana Heng is the founder of I Laugh KL Comedy Show, one of the founding members of Parti Komedi Rakyat (PKR) – a comedy troupe, and has been doing stand-up comedy since September 2017. They strive to be a comedian who gets real, talking about issues considered taboo in the Asian society. Juliana has performed in Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand (Bangkok) & England (London, Nottingham & Manchester). Recently, they emerged as the Finalist of Bangkok International Comedy Competition 2019, KING GONG at The Comedy Store – London (December 2019) & BEAT THE FROG at The Frog & Bucket Comedy Club, Manchester (January 2020).

A one-hour medley show by this Malaysian stand-up comedian, storyteller and poet explores the different ways to tell one’s life story. Even with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), why not live life with spunk?

NOTE: Matured content, mild sexual innuendos, emotionally triggering, graphical depiction of domestic violence & can be too real

What we’re about

The YMI Cultural Center hosted Black History Brunch. Speeches, poems, songs, and performances will also be apart of the brunch. A selection of catered meals will also be provided for the people attending. This event’s primary purpose is to open Black History Month and know local black performers in Asheville. It is an event where people could get entertained but also educated on Black History. Join us at the YMI Cultural Center on Feb. 13th from 10 am – 2 pm. Hope to see you there!

You are invited to the YMI’s Black History Brunch!

On Feb. 13th, from 10 am – 2 pm, the YMI Cultural Center will host the YMI Black History Brunch. Speeches, poems, songs, and performances will be given. A selection of catered meals by our Cooking with Comedy alumnus, Clarence Robinson, will also be provided for the people attending. This event Is to open Black history month up and get to know some local black performers in Asheville. Join us in getting a crash course lesson in Black history and support your local talent. We’ll see you there!

*Pre-order your meals ahead of the event to reserve your spot*

Hailing from Old Hickory, Tennessee, rising stand-up star Nate Bargatze’s comedy is both clean and relatable. He has been featured as one of Esquire’s “Best New Comedians” by Jim Gaffigan, Rolling Stone’s “Comedians to Watch” by Marc Maron, Variety’s “10 Comics to Watch” for 2015, and as #1 on Vulture‘s “50 Comedians You Should Know” in 2015.

Following the showbiz footsteps of his dad, a former clown turned world-class magician, Bargatze’s debut TV special, Full Time Magic, and debut album, Yelled at By a Clown, came out in 2015. The album reached #1 on the iTunes Comedy Charts and remained on Billboard’s Top Ten Comedy Charts for weeks. His first half-hour Netflix special, The Standups, premiered in 2017, and his first solo one-hour Netflix special, The Tennessee Kid, came out this year. He currently has a deal with 20^th Century Fox to develop his own TV show.

Bargatze has made multiple appearances on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, Late Night with Jimmy Fallon, Conan, and @midnight. Off-screen, he performed as part of Fallon’s Clean Cut Comedy Tour and Chris Rock’s Total Blackout Tour, along with live shows for the troops in Iraq and Kuwait. He regularly appears at Bonnaroo, SXSW, Oddball Comedy Festival, Sasquatch, Clusterfest, and the Just For Laughs Montreal Comedy Festival.

Official Website

We will meet at the Ingles on Tunnel Road. I’m not that familiar with this Ingles, but if there is a gas station at this Ingles please park over by it. I have a white Hyundai and will stand outside the car. Suggested car pool donation will be $2-$3 each as this is not a far drive to the trailhead.
Meeting time is 9:45 with a departure of 10 a.m.
We will then drive out to Warren Wilson to the trailhead which is in a parking area for one of the living areas. Parking is at a minimum so car pool if you can. If carpooling, please wear a mask in your driver’s car and sanitize your hands.

Once we arrive at the trailhead we will meander through the woods. I haven’t done this trail for probably 4 years so I hope it will all come back. But you might want to plan on a few mishaps and a retracing of steps.

We start out gradually uphill, will past through a dark forest with trees planted in rows, find the trail that goes down hill for a least half a mile, turn left and head towards Swannanoa River, walk up to a man made lake, retrace our steps, head towards the agricultural area of WW, turn right, crawl through the fence and pick the trail back up, now going uphill and re-intersect the trail we started out on.

This trail isn’t hard but it does have it’s ups and downs.
Bring a snack if you like but we won’t be stopping for a meal.
As usual wear shoes with a good tread, bring water, and a hiking pole if needed. There are no creek crossings.

What we’re about

 Mingus Creek

4 miles | easy

Historic cemeteries and mill, wildflowers

2021 CLASSIC HIKES OF THE SMOKIES

Discover America’s most-visited national park with a guided day hike! The Classic Hikes of the Smokies feature interpretation of the history, flora, and fauna of park trails. Hikes vary in distance, difficulty, and location within the park to provide a comprehensive overview of the Smokies, exposing hikers to high Appalachian vistas, streams teeming with aquatic life, the best collection of log structures on the Eastern Seaboard, and much more.

After completing registration…
You will receive an email the Friday before the hike with directions, and more information. All hikes begin at 9 a.m