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.
Gather your closest ghouls and raise money for your school! The Haunted Trail at Pisgah Brewery is back with festive family fun for it’s 7th year. The Haunted Trail is ideal for children ages 3-12 years old. The night includes a heart pumping walk through the Trail with live actors, spooky sounds, and spectacular props. After adrenaline reaches peak levels during the walk, guests spill out screaming and laughing into the Party at Pisgah Park. The party warmly welcomes trail-goers with Halloween crafts, contests, activities and local food trucks, as well as Pisgah beer on tap for the grown-ups! The younger ghouls can enjoy the (actor-free) “Sweet Peek Tour” of the Trail at 6:45pm before it gets dark.
Our Ghouls For Schools program puts the “fun” in fundraising, and is giving back to local schools for its 4th year in a row. The program gives $1 back from each ticket to your PTA or PTO of choice. Ingles Markets will award an additional $1000 as a grand prize to the school that gets the most participants. In addition to the give back program, we will be hosting a silent auction at the festival to benefit the Eliada Academy. Great community sponsors like Ingles Markets, Mellow Mushroom, The Adventure Center of Asheville, Best Bites Dental, Union Transfer, The DM Shop and Asheville Plays help make the Ghouls For Schools program possible.
The Haunted Trail is produced by Asheville Plays!. Asheville Plays! was founded by a local husband and wife team who create lasting memories through the power of play. They specialize in corporate team building for adults, and unique special events for families. The Haunted Trail is Asheville Plays! signature event, and they are striving to make The Trail a treasured part of your family’s tradition.
For more information, visit www.hauntedtrailwnc.com. For more information about Asheville Plays!, visit www.ashevilleplays.com
BRANDIE POSEY Originally from Annapolis, Maryland, Brandie Posey is a stand up comedian, writer and producer who now calls LA’s comedy scene home. She has been featured as a performer at the Bentzen Ball, New York Comedy Festival, RIOT Comedy Festival, San Francisco Sketchfest, FEST in Gainesville, Bridgetown Comedy Festival, High Plains in Denver, among many others. She has opened for all of your favorite comics, including Kyle Kinane, Maria Bamford and the legendary punk band Against Me! Brandie has appeared on MTV, E! and Comedy Central. She made her feature film debut in the indie dark comedy, “The Worst Year Of My Life” directed by Jonathan Smith and her first stand up record Opinion Cave debuted at #1 on iTunes & #12 on Billboard.com. Brandie’s comedic style has been described as a “Riot Grrl on acid”.
Brandie tours the country, headlining every dark corner with a microphone that will have her – from a basement in Whitesburg, KY to the stages of the Kennedy Center (twice!). She is the co-creator & host of Picture This!, the popular comedy-animation show with consistently sold out shows in Los Angeles & New York. In 2018 Picture This! shot a pilot for TruTV in partnership with Page Hurwitz & Wanda Sykes’ Push It Productions. At the Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre & The Hollywood Improv, Brandie co-hosts Lady to Lady alongside Barbara Gray & Tess Barker. Lady to Lady is also a celebrated weekly podcast with over 7 million downloads & loyal fans around the world.
Tickets $10
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/comedy-at-fleetwoods-lisa-curry-brandie-posey-tickets-71705806999
Buncombe County Special Olympics’ annual Coffee for Champions fundraiser returns for a third year on October 1. During the month of October, local coffee shops donate up to five cents for each cup of coffee purchased at their establishments to support Special Olympics training and competitions for area youth and adults.
“We are a completely volunteer-driven, donation-funded program focused on inclusionary sporting opportunities for individuals with intellectual and physical disabilities,” said Karla Furnari of Buncombe County Recreation Services, who is also a Buncombe County Special Olympics coach and Local Coordinator. “Coffee for Champions helps build connections between our athletes and the community. It also allows us to move away from labor intensive fundraising campaigns that often pull volunteers from other critical program needs such as coaching and transporting athletes.”
A map on the organization’s website lists participating coffee shops:
- Donating Five Cents Per Cup
- Ivory Road Café & Kitchen (1854 Brevard Road in Arden)
- Mosaic Café & Coffee House (1 Town Square Boulevard in Biltmore Park)
- Trout Lily Market (1297 Charlotte Highway in Fairview)
- Donating One Cent Per Cup
- Dynamite Roasting Company (3198 US Highway 70 in Black Mountain)
- PennyCup Coffee Company West (362 Depot Street in Asheville’s River Arts District)
- PennyCup Coffee Company East (6 Beverly Road in Asheville’s Haw Creek)
- PennyCup Coffee Company North (857 Merrimon Avenue in North Asheville)
- Round Earth Roasters (518 Hendersonville Road in Asheville)
Buncombe County Special Olympics is made possible through funding from donors and support from Buncombe County Government. To donate or volunteer, visit buncombecountyspecialolympics.org.
Special Olympics was founded by Eunice Kennedy in 1968 to celebrate changing attitudes about the talents of people with intellectual disabilities. Buncombe County Special Olympics provides year-round sports training and athletic competition for youth and adults. Sports include alpine skiing and snowboarding, aquatics, athletics, basketball, bocce, bowling, cheerleading, gymnastics, powerlifting, soccer, and tennis. The organization also offers the Adaptive Athlete Program in a partnership with South Slope CrossFit and Buncombe County Recreation Services.
The Asheville Moth GrandSLAM 2019
October 28, 2019 • 8:00 PM
The Moth Website
The Moth presents the GrandSLAM, a battle of wits and words – fierce, hilarious, heartbreaking and all points between. The Moth is dedicated to finding intriguing people to tell inspired stories. At The Moth StorySLAM, those people find us. On this night, using words as weapons, they compete to determine The Moth’s Asheville GrandSLAM Story Champion.
Open Mic Open format. We host it all at the Alley Cat. Come out and see an amazing display of talent. Every Tuesday 8pm. Sign ups start at 7pm or earlier
Just before Halloween, WATM will be hosting a family-friendly Halloween Pet Parade
>> PET PARADE <> GOURD DECORATING <> LIVE MUSIC <<\
As always, the market will be filled with the sounds of live music! Come out to shop and hang out to watch the great local talent.
Buncombe County Special Olympics’ annual Coffee for Champions fundraiser returns for a third year on October 1. During the month of October, local coffee shops donate up to five cents for each cup of coffee purchased at their establishments to support Special Olympics training and competitions for area youth and adults.
“We are a completely volunteer-driven, donation-funded program focused on inclusionary sporting opportunities for individuals with intellectual and physical disabilities,” said Karla Furnari of Buncombe County Recreation Services, who is also a Buncombe County Special Olympics coach and Local Coordinator. “Coffee for Champions helps build connections between our athletes and the community. It also allows us to move away from labor intensive fundraising campaigns that often pull volunteers from other critical program needs such as coaching and transporting athletes.”
A map on the organization’s website lists participating coffee shops:
- Donating Five Cents Per Cup
- Ivory Road Café & Kitchen (1854 Brevard Road in Arden)
- Mosaic Café & Coffee House (1 Town Square Boulevard in Biltmore Park)
- Trout Lily Market (1297 Charlotte Highway in Fairview)
- Donating One Cent Per Cup
- Dynamite Roasting Company (3198 US Highway 70 in Black Mountain)
- PennyCup Coffee Company West (362 Depot Street in Asheville’s River Arts District)
- PennyCup Coffee Company East (6 Beverly Road in Asheville’s Haw Creek)
- PennyCup Coffee Company North (857 Merrimon Avenue in North Asheville)
- Round Earth Roasters (518 Hendersonville Road in Asheville)
Buncombe County Special Olympics is made possible through funding from donors and support from Buncombe County Government. To donate or volunteer, visit buncombecountyspecialolympics.org.
Special Olympics was founded by Eunice Kennedy in 1968 to celebrate changing attitudes about the talents of people with intellectual disabilities. Buncombe County Special Olympics provides year-round sports training and athletic competition for youth and adults. Sports include alpine skiing and snowboarding, aquatics, athletics, basketball, bocce, bowling, cheerleading, gymnastics, powerlifting, soccer, and tennis. The organization also offers the Adaptive Athlete Program in a partnership with South Slope CrossFit and Buncombe County Recreation Services.
Anything Goes Karaoke on Wednesdays. Its so much fun and it gets a little wild. Come out and party with us Sign ups start at 8pm music shortly after.
Select a wine on draft and fill a plēb urban winery 500mL or 1L growler for a reduced price (see menu for availability and pricing). Growler purchase is separate. Carry out only.
https://www.facebook.com/events/859748727719594/?event_time_id=859748877719579
The Collaboratory’s Head Chef, Polo Alonso, and Master Brewer, Wayne Wambles, worked together to create a 5 course meal, perfectly paired with our own Collaboratory original craft brews. Come enjoy a special night and bring beer tasting to the next level.
$50 per person or $80 per couple.
First course:
Beer cheese fritter with hot pepper jam and cucumber basil relish
Second course:
Winter squash salad – Roasted delicata squash tossed with pomegranates, kale, and cabbage
Served over a truffle herb crema and pepita seeds with a beet reduction
Third course:
Dry rubbed North Carolina catfish with a roasted melon BBQ glaze over succotash
Intermezzo (palate refresher):
Cucumber basil granita
Fourth course:
Herb encrusted Hickory Nut Gap NY club filet with melted Brie over roasted fingerling potatoes and shaved asparagus topped with pickled heirloom tomato and mustard seeds
Dessert:
Vanilla panna cotta with an apple cherry compote and almond chocolate bark
Join us for this special 4 course meal with optional wine pairing to celebrate Day of the Dead. A more fine-dining style menu, this will feature regional Central American dishes with culinary twists designed by Chefs Jill Wasilewski and Susie Sharples.
Bring the kids for an after school Trick or Treat at the WNC Farmers Market. All costumed kids receive a fresh NC apple and other surprises. Stores will have folks dressed in costume. Come and join us for this Halloween celebration!
Kids of ALL AGES are invited to a howling good time during the Asheville Outlets’ (ShopAshevilleOutlets.com) annual Halloween BOO BASH on Thursday, October 31st from 5:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. An annual favorite, Boo Bash will feature multiple trick-or-treating spots at participating retailers, strolling magic, arts and crafts activities, balloon art, strike a pose at our photo spot, and MORE! All activities are FREE and open to the public (first come, first served, while supplies last).
Vermont Ave is closed to traffic from 5:30 to 9:00 on Halloween night to create a safe and fun trick-or-treating environment. Residents receive 1500 – 2000 trick-or-treaters (or more?).
That’s a lot of candy!
Bring the whole family for a night of fun activities, inflatables, and candy! It all takes place at the Asheville Mall on October 31 from 6 to 9 PM. Visit biltmorechurch.com/fun for more details and to register for this FREE event.
Halloween night at Haiku I Do!
Two dance floors powered up by some of Asheville’s finest
?️DJ Bowie
?️DJ Brett Rock
?️Cpt. Hyperdrive
?️DJ Cotton Kandy
?️Trillium Dance Company
Come in costume and get a discount at the door!
High Gravity at Sierra Nevada Brewing Co.
Mills River, North Carolina
Doors: 9:00PM
Costume Contest Winner Announced: 9:50PM
Film & Performance Begins: 10:00PM
Tickets
General Admission: $10.00 ($13 at the door)
Prop kits available for purchase onsite.
Beer & Snacks available for purchase. Hazy Little Thing IPA on special.
This event is STRICTLY 21+. Valid ID with Admission Ticket will be necessary to enter.
We’re making this Halloween a Hazy one.
Join us for a wild classic: Rocky Horror Picture Show. Dress your best, prepare for absurdity, and cheer on the live shadow cast from Unexpected Pleasures Performance Troupe—acting out the entire film as it’s screened behind them!
In this cult classic, sweethearts Brad (Barry Bostwick) and Janet (Susan Sarandon), stuck with a flat tire during a storm, discover the eerie mansion of Dr. Frank-N-Furter (Tim Curry), a transvestite scientist. As their innocence is lost, Brad and Janet meet a houseful of wild characters, including a rocking biker (Meat Loaf) and a creepy butler (Richard O’Brien). Through elaborate dances and rock songs, Frank-N-Furter unveils his latest creation: a muscular man named “Rocky.”
Bring the entire family and come enjoy The Victory Cup Hot Air Balloon Festival!
Join dozens of vendors, chefs, local musicians, artists, cooking demonstrations, pop-up art galleries, PLUS food and alcohol tasting partners. We are capping this exclusive event to a limited number of attendees, all tickets must be purchased in advance and online. Kids under three years old are free.
Weather permitting, tethered rides will be available Saturday Morning and Saturday Evening.
Weather permitting, Saturday will include a morning launch and evening glows and tethered rides. Not just about the balloons, Saturday will include Live Music, a Wine Tasting Tent, a Battle of the Chefs Tasting Competition, Polo Matches and a kids play area!
Saturday’s VIP Passes include private bars, a catered lunch, centerfield access to balloon launches and polo matches, a catered lunch and a Best of Texas dinner on the field (with the Pilots and Players)!
All details at: https://victorycup.org/southcarolina/.
https://www.facebook.com/events/932298843827547/
There will be a TON of sausage samples this year!! We listened to the feedback from last year and you’ll get to not only sample lots of different sausages, but we’re also showing you how we make it in a live demo. Brian, our butcher, has 18 different flavors and will be adding a special sausage just for the festival.
With your ticket, you’ll take part in:
- Sausage sampling ALL DAY LONG!
- Fantastic sausage-centric menu
- Live sausage making demos
- Adult Musical Chairs (with prize)
- Oktoberfest Games like “Pass the Pretzel”
- Local beers and ciders
- Fresh soft pretzels by Blunt Pretzels
- Live Music by Mile High Band
- Hot Beverages by Snowbird Mountain Coffee
- All Fall Festival activities like hay rides, etc.
Food Truck Festivals of America is bringing the 3rd Annual Asheville Food Truck & Craft Beer Festival to Asheville Outlets on Saturday, Nov 2, in Asheville, NC from Noon-5pm (VIP hour 11am-Noon). While popular food trucks dish out fan favorites, craft ales and beers will be available for sale. There will also be music playing, lawn games to enjoy, and an artisan market where local artists will showcase their work.
For those foodies that want a little more out of their festival experience, the VIP hour is for you (from 11am-Noon)! VIP tickets are $25 in advance online and entitle you to:
• Early access to the festival
• No lines!
• One free dessert from our designated VIP food truck
• Unlimited bottled water throughout the festival
• $1 off any craft beer throughout the festival
This year for beer lovers looking for something special FTFA is introducing their new Beer Lovers Package. These tickets are $40 in advance online only and includes:
• Early access to the festival (11 AM)
• 3 beer tickets for 3 craft beers of your choice
• $1 off additional craft beers
• Free FTFA koozie
• Unlimited bottled water
You can also purchase our Beer 6-pack add on in advance and get 6 beers for the price of 5!
Ticket Information
General admission tickets will be available for purchase in advance online for $5, or at the gate for $10. Children 12 and under are free.
For more information or to purchase VIP or General Admission tickets please visit www.foodtruckfestivalsofamerica.com.
Paying Tribute to the Amazing Work of Those Who Keep Us Safe
First Responders will receive Free Admission at all festivals – from police, to fire, to EMTs – with a valid ID.
More Information
For the very latest news please follow @FTFofAmerica on Twitter and “like” us on www.facebook.com/FTFofAmerica/.
Swan Lake, which has mesmerized audiences for over a century, is based on a German fairy tale. Tchaikovsky’s score tells the tragic love story of Prince Siegfried and Swan Princess, Odette, who is cursed to be a swan by day but a young woman at night. The Russian Ballet Theatre’s new production will captivate audiences with time-honored Russian traditions while adding new choreography, hand painted sets, radiant hand sewn costumes, artistic hair designs and special effects makeup.
The production’s hand-painted sets and more than 150 hand-sewn costumes were created in the tradition of the great masters by young, accomplished designer Sergei Novikov (Mariinksy Theatre, Omsk State Music Theatre, St. Petersburg State Music Hall). The SFX makeup is done by Award-winning Irina Strukova (Crazy Rich Asians, Netflix, HBO) and will make ballet devotees feel as though they are seeing the beautiful Swan Lake for the first time!
Spend some time with your family detoxing naturally in the Salt Cave. Adults $25, 4-12 years old $15, 3 and younger are free.
From traditional paintings, jewelry, wood, pottery, and glass, to unique photography, furniture, clothing, and mixed media art; the idea behind Artisanville is to have something for everyone to appreciate and to take home.
Artisanville invites its guests to investigate and explore our unique items during a two-day long fine art and craft show. With over 175 regional and national artists—each handpicked and personally invited to the event— this show promises to surprise and entrance you. Visitors can interact with artisans, see live art demos, purchase beautiful artwork, or simply enjoy the craftsmanship behind each piece. When in need of a break, art lovers can also relax, get a drink or snack, listen to live music and log into the Internet at the new Art Patron Lounge area. There are even free drawings for “Artisanville bucks” to spend at the show. Be sure not to miss ARTISANVILLE…the newest Fine Art/Fine Craft Show coming to Greenville, SC!
.png)
The Buncombe County Public Library system is supporting Asheville writers during National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo) by offering quiet writing spaces, raffle prizes, and a NaNoWriMo NoMo’ party in early December.
NaNoWriMo is a writing challenge to write 50,000 words of a novel during the thirty days of November. It began in 1999 and is supported by an international nonprofit organization of the same name.
The Black Mountain Library, Leicester Library, Pack Library, North Asheville Library, South Buncombe Library, and West Asheville Library will all be offering quiet spaces for writers to work on their 50,000 word count goal throughout the month. Some branches will offer tea, coffee and snacks as well. The Pack Library Youth Services department will host a Teen Writer’s Café every Friday afternoon. “We wanted to have a space at a library in the county every day where a writer could come plug in their laptop or pull out their notebook and chip away at their word count with no interruptions,” Anna Booraem, Branch Manager of the South Buncombe Library, says.
Each time a writer comes to one of the library writing spaces to work on their novel in November, they will be entered into a raffle for prizes to be given away at the NanoWrimo NoMo’ party. The raffle prizes will include treats from local businesses, including Dynamite Coffee, as well as some official NaNoWriMo swag.
The NaNoWriMo NoMo’ party will be held at the Lord Auditorium in the Pack Library on Saturday, Dec. 7, from 2-3:30 pm. The party is for any writer who participated in NaNoWriMo. There will be food, activities and opportunities to meet other writers, as well as a “micro mic” that will give each writer a chance to read one paragraph from their novel to the group.
This event creates a space for all of WNC and surrounding communities to join together in honor of fermentation, food preservation, farming and food resiliency in Madison County, NC. All profits & proceeds from the festival will be donated to the Beacon of Hope Food Bank of Marshall, NC. There will be FREE demos on food preservation & fermentation, music, family friendly activities and of course local and regional fermenters, foodies and crafting vendors ranging from local farms to local potters, fermenters, crafters and much more!
Please Check Out More Info Through Our Facebook Event Page!
Starting Thursday October 24 at 5pm, Bring your family & friends to join you as you make your way in…and hopefully out of the scariest experience you’ve ever had. Think you can get out? Get your tickets and find out!
Lose your head at Cherokee, NC’s newest and most thrilling Halloween attraction: The Sleepy Hollow Experience. Step into a fresh, horrifying new take on the world of the classic Washington Irving tale as the audience becomes part of the action. But be aware of what’s in front of you… and behind you… The Headless Horseman is waiting… Nationally renowned theatre producer Brian Clowdus invades Unto These Hills this Halloween season with a 360-degree immersive theatrical nightmare that has taken the country by storm. In this modern retelling, Ichabod Crane is still being pursued by the Headless Horseman, but the pulse-quickening drama and terror have increased tenfold. Don’t miss this reimagining, which was named one of the “Top 5 Halloween Plays” in the USA by American Theatre magazine.
The Sleepy Hollow Experience
October 17th-November 3rd
Thursday-Sunday at 7:00pm and 9:30pm
Mountainside Theatre, 688 Drama Road, Cherokee, NC 28719
For tickets visit: www.cherokeehistorical.org
The Buncombe County Public Library system is supporting Asheville writers during National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo) by offering quiet writing spaces, raffle prizes, and a NaNoWriMo NoMo’ party in early December.
NaNoWriMo is a writing challenge to write 50,000 words of a novel during the thirty days of November. It began in 1999 and is supported by an international nonprofit organization of the same name.
The Black Mountain Library, Leicester Library, Pack Library, North Asheville Library, South Buncombe Library, and West Asheville Library will all be offering quiet spaces for writers to work on their 50,000 word count goal throughout the month. Some branches will offer tea, coffee and snacks as well. The Pack Library Youth Services department will host a Teen Writer’s Café every Friday afternoon. “We wanted to have a space at a library in the county every day where a writer could come plug in their laptop or pull out their notebook and chip away at their word count with no interruptions,” Anna Booraem, Branch Manager of the South Buncombe Library, says.
Each time a writer comes to one of the library writing spaces to work on their novel in November, they will be entered into a raffle for prizes to be given away at the NanoWrimo NoMo’ party. The raffle prizes will include treats from local businesses, including Dynamite Coffee, as well as some official NaNoWriMo swag.
The NaNoWriMo NoMo’ party will be held at the Lord Auditorium in the Pack Library on Saturday, Dec. 7, from 2-3:30 pm. The party is for any writer who participated in NaNoWriMo. There will be food, activities and opportunities to meet other writers, as well as a “micro mic” that will give each writer a chance to read one paragraph from their novel to the group.