Weekend Arts Events (Dec. 25-27)
FRIDAY
BENJI HUGHES
The beloved Charlotte songwriter plays a Christmas show at Snug Harbor. Hughes recently signed to Merge Records and will release a full-length through the label next year. Also on the bill: The Fat Face Band, a New Orleans-style jazz outfit that’s from Charlotte.
LIBERTY WALK
Fifteen sites uptown are represented in the Liberty Walk, an interactive tour of bronze markers telling the early history of Charlotte and Mecklenburg County. Pick up a brochure at the Visitor’s Information Center at 330 S. Tryon St., or just start in front of the Wells Fargo Plaza at 301 S. Tryon St., and follow the markers in the pavement for a trip through the historical adventure of the city’s Revolutionary War days. A “Charlotte Liberty Walk” app is available at handheldhistory.com to help you along.
SATURDAY
BYOG
On Saturday, Christmas will be over. So what now? Well, the Visulite is one of the few music venues giving you something to check out in the form of jam band BYOG. The five-piece is joined by Groove Fetish, the Wilmington group known for a blues-infused jam sound of its own.
PANDA-MONIUM
PANDA-monium is even that celebrates the beloved, bamboo-eating animal through the IMAX film Pandas: The Journey Home and related activities. Kids can even create their own panda paws with Discovery Place's craft-making sessions.
UNDECK THE HALL
NASCAR Hall of Fames’s annual day-after-Christmas event invites the public to come help remove decorations from the museum’s several trees. Some of the objects include signed memorabilia, toy cars, and tickets to races. Regular admission is required for the event.
SUNDAY
THE GREAT AMERICAN TRAILER PARK CHRISTMAS MUSICAL
This is a familiar December title for the Actor’s Theatre of Charlotte. Tunes such as “Christmas in My Mobile Home” offer insight into the humor found in the fictional Armadillo Acres trailer park.
LEVINE MUSEUM OF THE NEW SOUTH
History is complex. There are countless perspectives on and modern-day applications for the South’s most significant events. The Levine not only puts those events in context, but it offers multimedia exhibits, forums, and artistic expressions that are tethered to our past. Giving Back: The Soul of Philanthropy Reframed and Exhibited, Pop-Up, Abridged Edition (through Feb. 28) displays 20 black-and-white photographs and narratives that highlight acts of generosity in the African-American community. ¡NUEVOlution! Latinos and the New South (through Oct. 30, 2016) examines the major increase in Latino residents in Charlotte and other Southern cities, and how the Hispanic population will help shape the future of the South.
BECHTLER MUSEUM OF MODERN ART
The Bechtler is more than just a rolling roster of fine art exhibitions. Films, chamber music, and presentations tie into the works, with jazz concerts as a separate monthly offering. Portraying the Patron: Andy Warhol and the Bechtlers (through Jan. 18) displays the interaction between the famed art patrons and the pop-art legend in 1973. Sam Francis: Rapid Fluid Indivisible Vision (through March 7) explores the work of the abstract expressionist artist, regarded as a leading interpreter of color and light.
