St. Patrick's Day send-offs, an arm-wrestling championship and an Ed Johnson commemoration are among events taking place this weekend in the Chattanooga area.
[READ MORE: 7 ways to celebrate St. Patrick's Day in the Chattanooga area]
The Chattanooga River Market missed its scheduled grand opening due to the weather last weekend, so its seasonal debut will be Saturday and Sunday in the Tennessee Aquarium plaza. It will remain on a two-day schedule through April 10, then revert to Saturdays only for the rest of the season.
If you reserved trees last month from the Tennessee Environmental Council for Tennessee Tree Day, don't forget pickup dates are Friday and Saturday. The goal is to plant 75,000 native trees in the state's 95 counties this weekend.
MUSIC
- St. Patrick's Day in the Choo Choo Gardens, 1400 Market St., is 6-11 p.m. Thursday, featuring Ashley and the X's, The Red Rogues, Evan Kennedy Trio and Highlander Pipe and Drum Band. No cover. tinyurl.com/ChooChooPats
- St. Paddy's tunes: The Alhambra Highlanders Pipes and Drums have 20-plus stops scheduled Thursday, Friday and Saturday around Chattanooga, highlighted by a pub crawl starting at 5:30 p.m. Saturday. They'll stop at Mellow Mushroom, Sticky Fingers, Big River Grille, Walk On's, Puckett's, The Leapin' Leprechaun, Taco Mamacita and Sing It or Wing It, leading up to the Party on the Parkway outside The Honest Pint at 10 p.m. Full schedule: Facebook.com/AlhambraHighlanders
- Mizpah Congregation, 923 McCallie Ave., hosts Nefesh Mountain, a husband-and-wife duo combining bluegrass and Jewish musical styles, at 6 p.m. Friday. Admission is free. Masks and vaccinations are required. atreadwell@jewishchattanooga.com
- Songbirds, 35 Station St., has two upcoming shows. Rock band Drivin N Cryin plays Friday at 7 p.m. Tickets are $25. Experimental bluegrass band The Way Down Wanderers will play at 7 p.m. Saturday. Tickets are $15. songbirdsfoundation.org
- The Signal, 1810 Chestnut St. has three shows scheduled. Friday features rock band Blues Traveler, with Danielle Howle opening, at 8 p.m.; tickets are $35-$70. Country singer Kolby Cooper will perform at 8 p.m. Saturday, with James Tucker opening. Tickets are $15-$30. Novelty heavy-metal band Steel Panther will play at 8 p.m. Sunday, with Any Given Sin opening. Tickets are $27-$55. thesignaltn.com
- The Caverns, 555 Charlie Roberts Road in Pelham, Tennessee, presents three nights of concerts for the season 11 taping of PBS' "Bluegrass Underground" series. Three-day ticket packages are sold out, as is Sunday's show with Asleep at the Wheel, Moon Taxi, Shooter Jennings and Adia Victoria. Tickets remain for Friday's show with Molly Tuttle & Golden Highway, Cha Wa, Gangstagrass and Brit Taylor at 7 p.m. and Saturday's show with The Milk Carton Kids, Watkins Family Hour, Katie Pruitt and Buffalo Nichols at 5 p.m. (all times Central). Daily tickets are $60-$75. thecaverns.com
- Unheard-of//Ensemble has two shows scheduled in Chattanooga during its March tour of the South. Friday, the contemporary chamber ensemble will perform at 7:30 p.m. in the Humanities Building at Chattanooga State Community College, 4501 Amnicola Highway. The program of music and visuals explores American landscapes through the lens of climate change. Monday, the musicians will premiere "A Speck of Light," a composition by University of Tennessee at Chattanooga music professor Jonathan McNair, at 7:30 p.m. in First-Centenary United Methodist Church, 418 Oak St. This reflection on mental health is based on a poetry cycle by Jane Kenyon. Other performers include the UTC Women's Chorale and spoken-word artist Erika Roberts. Admission is free to both performances. chattanoogastate.edu, utc.edu
- Chattanooga Symphony & Opera will perform "Broadway Tonight" in the Pops Series at 7:30 p.m. Saturday at Memorial Auditorium, 399 McCallie Ave. Featured vocalists are Mamie Parris and Bronson Norris Murphy. Masks are required. Tickets are $15-$90. chattanoogasymphony.org
- Tivoli Theatre, 709 Broad St., welcomes Randy Houser at 8 p.m. Saturday. Among other hits, the country artist is known for "Boots On" as a singer and "Honky Tonk Badonkadonk" as a co-writer. Ella Langley opens. Tickets are $39-$59. tivolichattanooga.com
- Community Baptist Church, 11718 McGhee Road in Apison, will welcome The Sharps gospel quartet at 10:30 a.m. Sunday. thesharpsquartet.com
- Lee University in Cleveland, Tennessee, has three upcoming events. U-Church, a community worship service led by students, starts at 7:30 p.m. Sunday in the Conn Center, 150 11th St. NE. Two spring concerts by three campus ensembles are next week, both starting at 7:30 p.m. in Pangle Hall, 340 Church St. NE. Monday features the Symphony Orchestra with the five student winners of the 2022 Concerto and Aria Competition. Tuesday is a joint concert by the Ladies of Lee and the Lee University Chorale, their first since 2014. All of these shows are free and nonticketed. Livestreams: leeu.live
- Walker Theatre, 399 McCallie Ave., welcomes P.J. Morton on his My Peace Tour at 8 p.m. Sunday. Morton has been nominated for 16 Grammy Awards (including two this year) in pop, gospel and R&B categories and has won three. Tickets are $30-$50. tivolichattanooga.com
OUT & ABOUT
- History Happy Hour at the Museum Center at Five Points, 200 E. Inman St., Cleveland, Tennessee, gets the St. Patrick's Day treatment 5:30-7 p.m. Thursday. Arnold Elementary teacher Siema Swartzel will tell stories of Irish music, Appalachia and her travels to Ireland. Tickets are $15 for members, $25 for nonmembers. The program includes appetizers and an open bar. museumcenter.org
- Bee's on a Bicycle, 1909 Market St., welcomes spring 6-7:30 p.m. Thursday with a Fairy Garden Trunk Show, the first of 20-plus seasonal activities at the boutique garden shop. Owner Cath Shaw Truelove recommends bringing photos of the yard where you plan to place your fairy garden so she can suggest proper sun or shade plantings. Cost is $30, $25 of which goes toward your choice of supplies. Eventbrite.com
- Rock the Riverfront's Impulse interactive seesaws are open 10 a.m.-10 p.m. daily at the Chattanooga Green, 100 Chestnut St. Special activities include oversize games and a bar opening at 5 p.m. Thursday for St. Patrick's Day. Friday features oversize games, art vendors, adult beverages and DJ Mike Key starting at 6 p.m. Saturday opens with "Get Fit With Greg," a family program (delayed from the previous Saturday) featuring T2 Fitness personal trainer Tobe Taylor, music from MillionDollaMan Keenan Daniels and scooter demonstrations from 9-11 a.m. Free soccer play with Operation Get Active starts at noon. Additional St. Patrick's Day activities are scheduled at 6 p.m. Saturday, including art events by Art 120 and music by Joel Karabo Elliott with Roots Grown Deep Band and Orquesta MaCuba. Sunday features art vendors and food trucks 11 a.m.-5 p.m., plus a spring equinox celebration starting at 6:30 p.m., an Enchanted Dance performance with giant puppets at 7:30 p.m. and a community drum circle and dance party at 8 p.m. rivercitycompany.com
- The Comedy Catch, 29 Station St., welcomes Bryan Kellen at 7:30 and 9:45 p.m. Friday and Saturday. Tickets are $17-$19. thecomedycatch.com
- Plant Natives Marketplace, presented by the Tennessee Valley Chapter of Wild Ones, will be set up 9 a.m.-3 p.m. Saturday at First Horizon Pavilion, 1826 Reggie White Blvd. Native plant nurseries, vendors, exhibitors and food trucks will have products for sale. Free admission. tnvalleywildones.org
- Tri-State Arm-Wrestling Championship, marking its 22nd year in a new location, starts at 1 p.m. Saturday at The Leapin' Leprechaun, 100 N. Market St. Most of the competition will be between men in various weight classes, but there are also chances for women and teens to show their strength. Weigh-ins start at 10 a.m. Cost is $30 for pros, $25 for novices, free for teens. Facebook.com/pg/leprechaunchatt/posts/
- An Evening With Archie Manning, featuring the former NFL great (and the father of two others), starts at 7 p.m. Saturday in the L. Quintin Lane Gymnasium at Cleveland State Community College, 3535 Adkisson Drive, Cleveland, Tennessee. Manning will talk about leadership, life skills, decision-making and motivation. A live auction will follow. Tickets are $50-$150 (buy two, get one free). mycs.cc/archie
NFL great Archie Manning, shown here at the College Football Hall of Fame Awards in New York in December 2010, will be in Cleveland, Tenn., on Saturday for a motivational talk. / AP Photo/Kathy Willens- Party on the Parkway. This is the seventh year for this event at Patten Square, 6 p.m. to midnight Saturday. Nine bands are scheduled to play on two stages, one inside The Honest Pint, 35 Patten Parkway. Tickets are $15 in advance, $25 day of. Proceeds will benefit SoundCorps. parkwayparty.com
- Shamrock City, the annual St. Patrick's Day celebration at Rock City, 1400 Patten Road, Lookout Mountain, Georgia, concludes this weekend. The festival includes Irish food, specialty beer, music and dance performances, shamrock scavenger hunt, panning for gold and the signature waterfall flowing green. Tickets are $28 ($18 for children 3-12). seerockcity.com
- Chattanooga River Market hours are 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Saturday, 11 a.m.-4 p.m. Sunday. Artists, crafters, musicians and food vendors will be set up on the Tennessee Aquarium plaza, 1 Broad St. chattanoogamarket.com
- Ed Johnson Commemoration: Events commemorating the 116th anniversary of the lynching of Ed Johnson will begin with a virtual program on "The Inescapable Legacy of Racial Trauma in America" at 1 p.m. Saturday at Facebook.com/EdJohnsonProject (Facebook account not required to view). It will be followed at 3 p.m. with an in-person commemoration on the south end of the Walnut Street Bridge. This is the first such event since the memorial was completed. The program will include words of inspiration, a call-and-response reading and an artistic performance. The theme is "Building Bridges in a Time of Crisis." tinyurl.com/EJComm
- Black Creek Reading Series returns for its second installment 6-8 p.m.Tuesday in the Black Creek Clubhouse dining room, 4700 Cummings Cove Drive. The free, adults-only evening features eight local writers, each of whom will have 10 minutes to share their fiction, nonfiction and poetry. danaliseshavin@gmail.com.
THEATER
- Chattanooga Theatre Centre, 400 River St., opens a musical version of "Little Women" on Friday. Shows start at 7 p.m. Thursday, 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday, 2:30 p.m. Sunday through April 3. Tickets are $20-$30. theatrecentre.com
- The Colonnade Players will present the final weekend of "9 to 5: The Musical" at 7:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday and 2:30 p.m. Sunday (Saturday's show will be interpreted for the deaf). Tickets are $13-$17. catoosacolonnade.com
ARTS
- WanderLinger Gallery at WanderLinger Brewing Co., 1208 King St., will feature a show by artists Laurie Geisen, Leah Dalton, Joshlyn Baker and Kate Colquitt 6-8 p.m. Saturday. Talks by the artists will start at 7:15 p.m. Rik@WanderLinger.com