A fandom convention, a music festival and the return of Lookouts baseball highlight the upcoming calendar. Here’s a look:
* Barking Legs Theater, 1307 Dodds Ave., welcomes old-time musician Lon Eldridge to the Garden at 7 p.m. Thursday as the lead-off performer for the second season of the Chattanooga Song Circle, a series featuring original songs by local artists. Tickets are $12.50 in advance, $15 at the door. Purchase at barkinglegs.org/events.
* Downtown Dine Around, set for 5-8 p.m. Thursday, is a chance to sample specialties at 11 restaurants in Cleveland, Tennessee. Tickets are $25. Visit mainstreetcleveland.com for the list of stops and where to purchase tickets.
* The Ringgold Playhouse will open its 2021 season with a five-performance run of Neil Simon’s “I Ought To Be in Pictures,” about a New York teenager who drops in on her estranged father in California in hopes he, a screenwriter, can get her, an aspiring actress, in a movie. Shows are at 7:30 p.m. Thursday and Friday, 2 and 7:30 p.m. Saturday and 2 p.m. Sunday at the Ringgold (Georgia) Depot, 155 Depot St. Tickets are $10 general admission, $8 seniors and students. Find out more on the company’s Facebook page.
* Free trees and ice cream: The Parks & Recreation Department in Athens, Tennessee, will give away dogwood, pecan and northern red oak tree seedlings, donated by the Tennessee Division of Forestry, 10 a.m.-2 p.m. (or while supplies last) on Friday at the Market Park pavilion, 106 S. Jackson St. Mayfield Dairy Farms will have ice cream sandwiches to distribute as well. The giveaways are part of the city’s Arbor Day celebration, noting that Athens has received “Tree City USA” status for the 40th consecutive year from the National Arbor Day Foundation. Questions? Call 423-744-2700, ext. 3, or email recreation@cityofathenstn.com.