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.
isclaimer Stand-up Lounge is the longest running comedy open mic in Asheville happening every Wednesday night. The show starts at 9:00, and there is no cover. Anyone wanting to perform needs to sign up by 9pm, and will get five 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.
The AIR Passport is your buy-one-get-one (BOGO)* ticket to some of Buncombe County’s highly acclaimed independent restaurants. Visit an old favorite or try a new member of the area’s vibrant independent restaurant community. AIR Passports make great gifts, but they go fast.
The AIR Passport offers BOGO from 60 area eateries with discounts up to $15 per participating restaurants. All proceeds from the AIR Passport go to benefit the ongoing efforts of AIR to keep Asheville’s food scene eclectic and authentic.
“It is one of our largest fundraisers of the year,” Anderson said. “We are able to use these funds throughout the year for educational classes, events and other opportunities for our members and their staff.”
Participating restaurants in the 2020 AIR Passport:
| 828 Pizzeria North | Ducker Tea Room | Rosabees |
| 828 Pizzeria South | Early Girl DT | Rosetta’s |
| AUX Bar | Early Girl West | Roux |
| Baked Pie North | Early Girl North | Rustic Grape |
| Baked Pie South | Farm Burger | Sante |
| The Barrelhouse | French Broad Choc | Sawhorse |
| Bhramari | The Glass Onion | The Social Lounge |
| The Bier Garden | The Grey Eagle | Strada |
| Black Bear BBQ | Hemingway’s Cuba | Sunny Point |
| The Blackbird | Isa’s Bistro | Tupelo Honey DT |
| Blue Dream Curry | Jack of the Wood | Tupelo Honey South |
| Bouchon | Karen Donatelli | Daphne-Twisted Laurel |
| Button & Co Bagels | The Laughing Seed | Twisted Laurel West |
| Buxton Hall | Little Jumbo | Ultimate Ice Cream N |
| The Cantina | The Lobster Trap | Ultimate Ice Cream E |
| Chai Pani | Luella’s North | Vinnie’s Italian |
| Chestnut | Luella’s South | Well Played |
| Chupacabra | The Native Social | White Labs |
| Collaboratory | Pack’s Tavern | White Duck Taco DT |
| Copper Crown | The Oysterhouse | White Duck Taco RAD |
| The Corner Kitchen | The Red Stag Grill | White Duck Taco South |
| Creekside Taphouse | RendezVous |
Since 2010 master scientific glass blower, Jason Probstein has been presenting live glassblowing demonstrations here at our art gallery.
And once again we are proud to announce that Jason will be blowing his unique Christmas ornaments and glass artworks here at Mountain Made gallery from now to December 23rd, 2019.
Jason will be demonstrating Thursdays, Fridays, Saturdays and Mondays from 11:00 am to 2:00 pm. He will also be blowing glass every Sunday from Noon to 2:00 PM.
We invite you come by Mountain Made for a fun, family-friendly event
Come join in the fun with stories and songs, then make a hands-on art project just for the little ones! The Education Department staff is visiting public libraries for preschool storytime at locations near your neighborhood.
Storytime & Art takes place at West Asheville Library on second Thursdays.
Our program for preschool-aged students accompanied by an adult is at a library near you! During the school year, come join in the fun with stories and songs, then make a hands-on art project just for the little ones.
The Holidays have never felt so magical! Get on Asheville’s homegrown purple bus tour and experience a sightseeing history tour injected with enough seasonal cheer to make your belly laugh like a bowl full of jelly. We explore Downtown, the South Slope, Historic Montford, and the River Arts District. This 90 minute holiday extravaganza only happens in December. Get your tickets now!
Free for Members or included with Museum admission. This performance is presented in conjunction with Appalachia Now! and supported by the Community Foundation of Western North Carolina.
Anna Helgeson
Arone Dyer & Dronechoir
Avey Menard
Chandra Shukla
DeWayne Barton
Elaine Bleakney
Elisa Faires
Half|State
Kima Moore
Marcyanne Hannemann
Mountain Bitters
Richard Brewster
Shane Parish
Sonic Parlour
Spectral Habitat
Ted Pope
Zach Cooper
Presented in conjunction with Appalachia Now!, in partnership with MAP/REVOLVE.
Performances
Music, dance, performance art, and other live performances bring artworks in our the Museum’s Collection and special exhibitions to life. Performances include discussion of the intersections between art forms.
One of our goals in this community is to support other small, local businesses. This Holiday season we are excited to host Mistletoe & Merlot, A Holiday Craft Market designed to showcase makers, artist and craftspeople of Asheville.
This is a community event open to all of your family and friends. Come and enjoy FREE wine and food, while browsing items from local vendors. Need to cross some things off your Christmas list? This will be a one stop shop for all of your gift-giving needs.
We are excited to host:
Sweet Abode Artisan Soaps, Asheville Bag Lady, Mommabear Hoodies, Art by Pam Granger Gale, Art by Julie Armbruster, Jewelry by Designed to Dream, Poetry Prints by Morgan Holmes, Stones and Rocks by Carolyn Johnson, Winter wear by Coroin, Pottery from Batton Clayworks and candles and body care by Sage and Sunflowers.
And, don’t miss the raffle, where will be gifting items from each vendor throughout the night!
“In this bilingual romantic comedy, circumstances both hilarious and tragic bring together a young Israeli woman, who has little command of English, and a young American man, who has little command of romance. Is their inevitable love an accident … or is it destiny, generations in the making?”
“a hilarious and heartwarming romantic comedy” – The New York Times
The AIR Passport is your buy-one-get-one (BOGO)* ticket to some of Buncombe County’s highly acclaimed independent restaurants. Visit an old favorite or try a new member of the area’s vibrant independent restaurant community. AIR Passports make great gifts, but they go fast.
The AIR Passport offers BOGO from 60 area eateries with discounts up to $15 per participating restaurants. All proceeds from the AIR Passport go to benefit the ongoing efforts of AIR to keep Asheville’s food scene eclectic and authentic.
“It is one of our largest fundraisers of the year,” Anderson said. “We are able to use these funds throughout the year for educational classes, events and other opportunities for our members and their staff.”
Participating restaurants in the 2020 AIR Passport:
| 828 Pizzeria North | Ducker Tea Room | Rosabees |
| 828 Pizzeria South | Early Girl DT | Rosetta’s |
| AUX Bar | Early Girl West | Roux |
| Baked Pie North | Early Girl North | Rustic Grape |
| Baked Pie South | Farm Burger | Sante |
| The Barrelhouse | French Broad Choc | Sawhorse |
| Bhramari | The Glass Onion | The Social Lounge |
| The Bier Garden | The Grey Eagle | Strada |
| Black Bear BBQ | Hemingway’s Cuba | Sunny Point |
| The Blackbird | Isa’s Bistro | Tupelo Honey DT |
| Blue Dream Curry | Jack of the Wood | Tupelo Honey South |
| Bouchon | Karen Donatelli | Daphne-Twisted Laurel |
| Button & Co Bagels | The Laughing Seed | Twisted Laurel West |
| Buxton Hall | Little Jumbo | Ultimate Ice Cream N |
| The Cantina | The Lobster Trap | Ultimate Ice Cream E |
| Chai Pani | Luella’s North | Vinnie’s Italian |
| Chestnut | Luella’s South | Well Played |
| Chupacabra | The Native Social | White Labs |
| Collaboratory | Pack’s Tavern | White Duck Taco DT |
| Copper Crown | The Oysterhouse | White Duck Taco RAD |
| The Corner Kitchen | The Red Stag Grill | White Duck Taco South |
| Creekside Taphouse | RendezVous |
The sale will feature work by students in fiber, jewelry, clay and woodworking. Pieces available at the holiday sale showcase students’ technical skills learned in the program as well as their individual style and creativity.
HCC’s Professional Crafts programs offer an innovative, affordable, groundbreaking craft education. Through a unique blend of studio experience, classroom education and hands-on business experience, students can achieve the skills necessary to become viable independent studio artists or to become valuable, skilled employees in the expanding craft industry.
Since 2010 master scientific glass blower, Jason Probstein has been presenting live glassblowing demonstrations here at our art gallery.
And once again we are proud to announce that Jason will be blowing his unique Christmas ornaments and glass artworks here at Mountain Made gallery from now to December 23rd, 2019.
Jason will be demonstrating Thursdays, Fridays, Saturdays and Mondays from 11:00 am to 2:00 pm. He will also be blowing glass every Sunday from Noon to 2:00 PM.
We invite you come by Mountain Made for a fun, family-friendly event
Midnight Summit returns! Best enjoined by a roaring fire, this vanilla milk stout perfectly melds together creamy notes of vanilla, chocolate, and coffee.
Get your first taste of this seasonal brew at our Taproom release party!
As with all our seasonal releases, a dollar from every pint of Midnight Summit sold will go to the Southern Appalachian Highlands Conservancy, one our Community Partners.
The Holidays have never felt so magical! Get on Asheville’s homegrown purple bus tour and experience a sightseeing history tour injected with enough seasonal cheer to make your belly laugh like a bowl full of jelly. We explore Downtown, the South Slope, Historic Montford, and the River Arts District. This 90 minute holiday extravaganza only happens in December. Get your tickets now!
You’re invited to Enter the Earth’s 18th Annual Christmas party on Friday, Dec 13, 2019. Join us from 6-8pm at the Enter the Earth gallery in the Grove Arcade for nibbles and drinks and to kick off the raffle with all proceeds donated to LEAF Community Arts.
At 9pm we will head over to the Asheville Music Hall for a night of funk with George Porter Jr. featuring Joe Marcinek and the Josh Blake Trio. We also welcome local musicians to jam! Showtime is 9:30pm. There will be an online silent auction starting a week before the event. Keep an eye out for some AMAZING items to fulfill your holiday gift list and support LEAF as we enter our 25th year! All proceeds from this event will also benefit LEAF Community Arts.
Friday, December 13th, 2019
6pm-8pm: FREE Pre-party at Enter the Earth
Grove Arcade
1 Page Ave Suite 125
Asheville, NC 28801
9pm-2am: ETE’s 18th Annual Xmas Party
Asheville Music Hall
31 Patton Ave
Asheville, NC 28801
The Black Mountain Center for the Arts Theatre proudly presents…The Santaland Diaries, written by David Sedaris and adapted for the stage by Joe Mantello.
PLOT SUMMARY: When a down-on-his luck wannabe actor arrives in New York City at the end of the year, the only employment he can find is at Macy’s department store — working in Santaland for the holiday season, as a reluctant, but relentlessly cheerful, elf. Newly christened “Crumpet”, our clever anti-hero shares his observations of the mayhem in front of and behind the scenes during one chaotic December, from aggressive parents and drunken Santas, to flirtatious actors, poor hygiene, and the racially charged hazards of being a “Pointer Elf.” Will Crumpet find a moment of pure Christmas spirit? Will he end up in Santa’s cottage with Snowball the elf? Will he escape with his life on Christmas Eve before being torn apart by enraged customers?
This show contains mature content and is for adults only.
Evening performances on Friday and Saturdays at 7:30 pm and matinees on Sundays at 2:00 pm.
“In this bilingual romantic comedy, circumstances both hilarious and tragic bring together a young Israeli woman, who has little command of English, and a young American man, who has little command of romance. Is their inevitable love an accident … or is it destiny, generations in the making?”
“a hilarious and heartwarming romantic comedy” – The New York Times
Andrew Michael is an Atlanta raised comic who is fueled by his love for comedy, claw machines, and chimichangas. Andrew provides a goofy yet intimate look into his life and the people that surround it. Andrew’s comfortable presence on stage has made him a favorite in the Atlanta comedy scene. In 2015 Andrew was audience choice for “Best Local Comedian” and his show WonderComedy won “Best Comedy Night” in the Creative Loafing ATL’s “Best of Atlanta” issue in 2015 & 2018. Andrew is a regular at the world famous Laughing Skull Lounge in Atlanta where he performs on weekend “Best of Atlanta” showcase shows and opens for headliners. He’s also performed at the Crom Comedy Festival, The Fest in Florida, Red Clay Comedy Festival, Altercation Comedy Festival. The Laughing Skull Comedy Festival and the High Plains Comedy Festival in Denver.
featuring Shaunak Godkhindi
Tickets $10 advance, $12 day of
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/lazoom-comedy-andrew-michael-tickets-73164189059
When an out of work slacker takes a job as an elf in Macy’s Santaland, his hilarious observations of the shoppers and employees are much more naughty than nice. This one-man-act can only be described one way: crazy funny. It’s the 18th year in a row for this show at ACT! Starring Tom Chalmers.
This 2 day indoor holiday market will feature 20 local artists and small businesses. Watercolor paintings, wire bonsai tree art, jewelry, organic clothing, natural home cleaning products, locally sourced seasonings and herbs, leather goods, home décor and much more! Event will also offer a drawing for a raffle basket filled with products from all of the vendors!
Dec 13th 5pm-8pm AND Dec 14th 10am-2pm
Join us January 19 – 26, 2020, as we celebrate our 18th year as the fearless, boundary pushing performing arts festival. We are returning bigger and bolder than ever, beginning a little early, with a free preview party, 7 pm, January 11th at Fleetwood’s in West Asheville. Enjoy art installations from ZedAVL and Geneva Bierce Wilson, be delighted by everyone’s favorite site-specific dance troupe The Accidentals, and grab a newly printed guide so you can start planning your festival!
Fringe Freak Passes go on Sale December 6!
Buy a Freak Pass now to pick from 25 different ticketed shows, which run Thursday, January 23 through Sunday, January 26. The Freak Pass is only $65. Freak Passholders are given priority with reserved seats. There are a limited number available, when they are gone, they’re gone! Price goes up to $75 on January 1st.
As well as over 100 ticketed show times from local, national and international artists, we have FREE Random Acts of Fringe popping up all over town, all week long, and lots of parties! The Kickoff party returns to the Lazy Diamond at 7 pm, co-hosted by the Buncombe County Tourism Development Authority, from 6-9pm, on Sunday, January 19th. Check out the new Artist Wine Party, hosted by Zapow Gallery, 7 pm, Tuesday, January 21st. Free after-parties return, starting at 10 pm, Thursday at Sly Grog, Friday at Mothlight and Saturday at The Block Off Biltmore, There you can enjoy more Random Acts of Fringe, meet the artists and chat about your favorite shows! See AshevilleFringe.org for all the details.
Individual tickets for each show are $14-$19 and go on sale January 1. See www.AshevilleFringe.org individual show descriptions and ticketing links.
The AIR Passport is your buy-one-get-one (BOGO)* ticket to some of Buncombe County’s highly acclaimed independent restaurants. Visit an old favorite or try a new member of the area’s vibrant independent restaurant community. AIR Passports make great gifts, but they go fast.
The AIR Passport offers BOGO from 60 area eateries with discounts up to $15 per participating restaurants. All proceeds from the AIR Passport go to benefit the ongoing efforts of AIR to keep Asheville’s food scene eclectic and authentic.
“It is one of our largest fundraisers of the year,” Anderson said. “We are able to use these funds throughout the year for educational classes, events and other opportunities for our members and their staff.”
Participating restaurants in the 2020 AIR Passport:
| 828 Pizzeria North | Ducker Tea Room | Rosabees |
| 828 Pizzeria South | Early Girl DT | Rosetta’s |
| AUX Bar | Early Girl West | Roux |
| Baked Pie North | Early Girl North | Rustic Grape |
| Baked Pie South | Farm Burger | Sante |
| The Barrelhouse | French Broad Choc | Sawhorse |
| Bhramari | The Glass Onion | The Social Lounge |
| The Bier Garden | The Grey Eagle | Strada |
| Black Bear BBQ | Hemingway’s Cuba | Sunny Point |
| The Blackbird | Isa’s Bistro | Tupelo Honey DT |
| Blue Dream Curry | Jack of the Wood | Tupelo Honey South |
| Bouchon | Karen Donatelli | Daphne-Twisted Laurel |
| Button & Co Bagels | The Laughing Seed | Twisted Laurel West |
| Buxton Hall | Little Jumbo | Ultimate Ice Cream N |
| The Cantina | The Lobster Trap | Ultimate Ice Cream E |
| Chai Pani | Luella’s North | Vinnie’s Italian |
| Chestnut | Luella’s South | Well Played |
| Chupacabra | The Native Social | White Labs |
| Collaboratory | Pack’s Tavern | White Duck Taco DT |
| Copper Crown | The Oysterhouse | White Duck Taco RAD |
| The Corner Kitchen | The Red Stag Grill | White Duck Taco South |
| Creekside Taphouse | RendezVous |
Sign up by November 8! In Drawing Journey Journals, travel the Museum’s galleries, drawing as you go in handmade journals with watercolor pencils; then, transform your sketches into paint in the Studio. Engage in basic drawing exercises during each class, as well as learn tips and tricks to inform your drawing with the elements of composition, light, perspective, and color. Carry drawing and writing techniques used in class over into your personal travel journals, plein air painting, and self-expression.
Click the button below to learn more, or call 828.253.3227 x122 to register by phone.
Come in your favorite PJ’s to Asheville Outlets (ShopAshevilleOutlets.com) Saturday, December 14th from 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. and join us for a jolly morning of games, holiday arts & crafts, entertainment, and a delicious breakfast. Following breakfast, families can visit Santa for FREE photos and take home a photo memory of their visit! Breakfast with Santa is for children 12 and under please. RSVP is required. To RSVP, please visit: www.eventbrite.com/o/asheville-outlets-28015804399. Located inside Food Court.
Breakfast With Santa
December 14, 2019 – 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. inside Food Court
Come in your favorite PJ’s and join us for a jolly morning of games, holiday arts & crafts, entertainment, and a delicious breakfast. Following, families can visit Santa for FREE photos and take home a photo memory of their visit! Breakfast with Santa is for children 12 and under please. RSVP is required.
The Appalachian Christmas craft show brings together vendors from across the Appalachian region to sell their unique and beautiful crafts. The show is hosted by the Junaluska Woman’s Club and all profits go toward charitable organizations. The show is open to the public.
CURVE Holiday Market!
CURVE Studios & Garden is hosting a Holiday Market on Second Saturday December 14, 2019!
CURVE will be decorated for the festivities… our 10 artist elves will be in the studios working away… with refreshments served all day from 10am to 5pm
3, 5 & 7 River Arts Place in Asheville’s River Arts District
“Bringing People to Art and Art to Life in Asheville’s River Arts District” for over 30 years!
Let us know if you can make it on Facebook!: https://www.facebook.com/events/513341212787358/
December 7 & 14 | 10:00a-4:00p
The Holiday Makers SALE is a chance to shop fine craft at a discounted rate. Over 30 of our makers gather their leftover stock from 2019, and give a peak at their 2020 designs! Choose from a variety of gift items including ceramic tableware, fine jewelry, hand-woven and dyed wearables, bound journals and etched cards, blown vases and ornaments, turned wooden bowls and more. Shop local!
Join us on Saturday, December 14th for our Holiday Seconds Sale and Open House from 10am-6pm! Enjoy complimentary refreshments, free kids activities from 11-2pm AND one of our truly epic holiday seconds sales with 50-80% off overstock and seconds! Be sure to arrive early for the best selection. This event is free and open to the public.
Join us for the Nature Center’s annual holiday celebration. There will be festive arts and crafts, games, educational programs, animal encounters and of course an appearance from SANTA! Get your child’s photo taken with Santa from 12-4pm.
Regular admission rates apply. As always, Friends members get in free!