Multiple tasting events, Songbirds shows, Chris Tomlin highlight weekend in Chattanooga area

Staff Photo by Matt Hamilton / Chattanooga resident Tonya Upshaw, left, looks on as Starliyah Justice, 7, right, spins children on the Los Trompos interactive art installation at Rock the Riverfront on the Chattanooga Green on March 21. Sunday is the last day to play on the spinning tops.
Staff Photo by Matt Hamilton / Chattanooga resident Tonya Upshaw, left, looks on as Starliyah Justice, 7, right, spins children on the Los Trompos interactive art installation at Rock the Riverfront on the Chattanooga Green on March 21. Sunday is the last day to play on the spinning tops.

Food and beverage samplings highlight multiple events this weekend, including Taste at the Chattanooga Convention Center, the Taco & Tequila Crawl at downtown bars and Sips of Latin America, which closes out Rock the Riverfront. Here's a chronology.


ARTS

— Stove Works, 1250 E. 13th St., will host Blah Blah Blah, its monthly series of artist talks, 5:30-7 p.m. Thursday. The nine artists in residence will have 10 minutes apiece to talk about the hows and whys of their work. stoveworks.org

— Institute of Contemporary Art at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga will present the second round of the 2023 BFA Senior Thesis Exhibition on Friday. Twenty-four students are graduating with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree. Works by 12 of the artists are featured through Thursday in the gallery. The other 12 students will introduce their works in artist talks 5-6:30 p.m. Friday in Benwood Auditorium in the Engineering, Math and Computer Science Building, with a reception following until 8 p.m. in the ICA galleries across the street in the Fine Arts Center, 752 Dr. Roland Carter St. The second show continues through April 22. icachatt.org

— AVA Gallery, 30 Frazier Ave., will hold an opening reception for two new shows, "Transformation: Exploring the Art of Book-Making With Barry Moser" and the Scenic City Clay Juried Member Showcase, 6-9 p.m. Friday. Both shows continue through May 26. avarts.org

— Hunter Museum of American Art, 10 Bluff View, will host the 10th annual Student Symposium: Intersecting Queerness 1-2:30 p.m. Saturday. The event features virtual presentations by undergraduate students nationwide. The exhibition "Beauford Delaney's Metamorphosis Into Freedom" sets the tone. There is no cost to participate. huntermuseum.org

— River Gallery, 400 E. Second St., will showcase artist Peggy Epton in a stitched fiber demonstration 1-4 p.m. Saturday. Epton describes herself as a "see it, sew it" artist. river-gallery.com

— Walker County African American Museum and Cultural Center, 309 N. Main St., LaFayette, Ga., will hold a dedication ceremony for a new exhibit honoring Kenneth "Bubble Gum" Batie at 2 p.m. Saturday. Batie was the first Black DJ at radio station WFLA in LaFayette. walkercountyafricanamerican.com


COMEDY

— The Comedy Catch, 29 Station St., has a Next Level Comedy Showcase for rising regional talents at 7:30 p.m. Thursday. Tickets are $12. The weekend features a special engagement by Jeff Allen, whose Dry Bar Comedy videos have amassed more than 300 million views. Shows start at 7:30 p.m. Friday, 6 and 8:15 p.m. Saturday. Tickets are $35 (all $45 VIP tickets are sold out). A Sunday show by Shelly Belly (Michelle Rider) is sold out. Monday features Girls Night Out: The Show, a male dance revue, at 7 p.m. Tickets are $25-$65. thecomedycatch.com

— Walker Theatre, 399 McCallie Ave., will feature actor and comedian Josh Wolf at 7:30 p.m. Saturday. He's appeared on the sitcoms "All of Us" and "Cuts" and was a regular on "Chelsea Lately." Tickets are $29-$49. tivolichattanooga.com


FILM

— Notre Dame High School, 2701 Vermont Ave., will host the gala premiere of the docudrama "Father Ryan: A Higher Call" at 7:30 p.m. Saturday. Father Patrick Ryan was a priest at Sts. Peter and Paul Parish in Chattanooga who died Sept. 28, 1878, while caring for victims of the yellow fever epidemic. He is considered a servant of God, the first step in the process of being declared a saint in the Catholic Church. Tickets are $5 general admission, $20-$30 for VIP admission, which includes a reception with the cast and crew at 6:30 p.m. eventbrite.com


  photo  Staff Photo / Father Patrick Ryan's grave is seen in Priest Circle in Chattanooga's Mount Olivet Cemetery in 2018. He served as pastor for Sts. Peter and Paul's Parish between 1872 and 1878. A film about his life will have a gala premiere Saturday at Notre Dame High School.
 
 

MUSIC

— Barking Legs Theater, 1307 Dodds Ave., will welcome Alan Shikoh for Jazz in the Lounge at 7 p.m. Wednesday. Cover is $5. barkinglegs.org

— Chattanooga Community Orchestra will perform at 2 p.m. Wednesday at Morning Pointe of Shallowford, 7719 Shallowford Road. This is one in a series of spring concerts by the ensemble originally known as the Senior Neighbors Orchestra. Admission is free. facebook.com/seniorneighborsorchestra

— Abba's House, 5208 Hixson Pike, will host a concert by contemporary Christian artist Chris Tomlin on his Stories of Worship tour at 7 p.m. Thursday. Tickets are $24-$89. christomlin.com

  photo  Arkansas Democrat-Gazette Photo/ Contemporary Christian singer Chris Tomlin, pictured in 2016, will bring his Stories of Worship tour to Abba's House in Hixson on Thursday.
 
 

— Road to Nightfall, a competition for local bands to win a headlining slot in the Nightfall Summer Concert Series, has two more preliminary contests at 7 p.m. Thursday and Friday at The Granfalloon, 400 E. Main St. One winner from each of five preliminary nights is chosen by audience vote to advance to the finals May 6. Cover is $10 either night. SoundCorps.org/RoadToNightfall

— Lee University in Cleveland, Tenn., has two performances this week. The Modigliani String Quartet will close out the Presidential Concert Series at 7:30 p.m. Thursday in Squires Recital Hall, 130 Parker St. NE. Tickets are $5-$15. Learn more at leeuniversity.edu/pcs. "Holsinger Conducts Holsinger," celebrating David Holsinger's career as a composer and his final concert conducting Lee's Wind Ensemble, is at 7:30 p.m. Friday in Conn Center, 150 11th St. NE. Admission is free, but tickets are required. A reception will follow. eventbrite.com

— Songbirds, 35 Station St., has three shows this weekend. The Songbirds Radio Hour: Episode 8 is 7-10 p.m. Thursday with roots rocker Kyshona and In the Company of Wolves. Admission is free. Country artist Jon Wolfe performs at 7 p.m. Friday. Tickets are $18-$22. Local folk-rock artist Jennifer Daniels will be in concert at 7 p.m. Saturday to mark the release of her new paranormal romance novel, "The Elixir." Tickets are $15. songbirdsfoundation.org

— Barrelhouse Ballroom, 1501 Long St., has three shows ahead. Country up-and-comer Megan Moroney has sold out her Thursday show with Logan Crosby. Rock band The Connells will play at 8 p.m. Friday, with support from Surrender Human. Tickets are $20-$25. DJ Sullivan King will stop on his Thrones of Blood tour at 8 p.m. Tuesday. Tickets are $25-$30. barrelhouseballroom.com

— Walker Theatre, 399 McCallie Ave., will welcome blues artist Jimmie Vaughan and the Tilt-a-Whirl Band at 8 p.m. Friday. Tickets are $29-$49. tivolichattanooga.com

— The Caverns, 555 Charlie Roberts Road, Pelham, Tenn., has two shows this weekend. World music pioneer Taj Mahal will play at 8 p.m. CDT Friday. Tickets are $69. The Del McCoury Band, the most awarded act in bluegrass history, will play at 3 p.m. CDT Sunday with support from Crawford & Power. Tickets are $60. thecaverns.com

— Chattanooga Symphony & Opera will present a chamber concert, "Mozart & Haydn," at 3 p.m. Sunday in the Humanities Building at Chattanooga State Community College, 4501 Amnicola Highway. Tickets are $10-$35. chattanoogasymphony.org

— University of Tennessee at Chattanooga will present its Symphony Orchestra in a spring concert at 3 p.m. Sunday in the UTC Fine Arts Center, 752 Roland Carter St. The 60-member college/community ensemble will perform music by Tchaikovsky, Copland and Stravinsky. Admission is free. Livestream: livestream.com/utc/symphony-concert-apr2023

— Southern Adventist University will present a Wind Symphony concert, "Our Father's World," at 7:30 p.m. Sunday in Collegedale Seventh-day Adventist Church, 4829 College Drive. Admission is free. Livestream: southern.edu/events/concerts.html


OUT & ABOUT

— Chattanooga Burger Week is happening this week. Twenty-eight area area restaurants are offering $7 burger deals through Sunday. Options for dine-in, takeout and delivery may vary. chattanoogaburgerweek.com

— Rock the Riverfront is coming up on its final weekend at the Chattanooga Green, 140 Riverfront Parkway. The interactive art installation Los Trompos (spinning tops) is open 10 a.m.-8 p.m. daily. Weekends add live music, art vendors, family activities and food trucks during select hours. This weekend's entertainment includes DJ K2 5-7 p.m. Friday and The Essentials 6-7 p.m. Saturday. Also Saturday, noon to 4 p.m., is Sips of Latin America, where a $20 ticket buys samples of more than 10 beverages from diverse vendors. Admission is free. rivercitycompany.com

— Taste, a premiere food tasting benefiting the Kidney Foundation of Greater Chattanooga, takes place 5-8 p.m. Thursday at First Horizon Pavilion, 1826 Reggie White Blvd. The event includes food samples from dozens of area restaurants, plus music, a silent auction and cash bar. The $50 ticket includes samples, souvenir and one bar drink ticket. There's also an option for a $100 drive-thru pickup ticket that includes food samples from all vendors and a souvenir. tastechatt.com

— Tennessee Wine Train leaves from Tennessee Valley Railroad Museum, 4119 Cromwell Road, at 6 p.m. Thursday. The two-hour excursion features a three-course dinner with wine pairings chosen by a master sommelier. Other dates are available monthly through December. Tickets are $125 per guest for a private table for two; $95 per guest for a table of three to four guests. goldenslope.com/wine-train

— Benjamin McArthur Endowed Lecture, named in honor of a late professor, is 7 p.m. Thursday in Mabel Wood Hall's Ackerman Auditorium at Southern Adventist University, 4881 Taylor Circle, Collegedale. Historian Eric Anderson will speak on "Smashing Icons: Reflections on Thomas Jefferson and Others." The lecture will inaugurate the lecture series in honor of the late professor. Admission is free. southern.edu/mcarthurlecture

— Sportsmen's Banquet is Friday at First Baptist Church, 201 N. Main St., LaFayette, Ga. The schedule for the second annual event includes an expo of boats, tractors and cars, 5-6:45 p.m.; dinner, 5:30-6:15 p.m.; and music by Chris McDaniel and message by pro fisherman Clay Dyer, 7 p.m. Tickets are $20 per individual, $125 for a table of seven. lafayettefirst.life/men

— Vintage Market Days, an upscale, indoor/outdoor market of art, antiques, clothing, jewelry and seasonal plantings, will be open 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Friday through Sunday at Mountain Cove Farms, 994 Dougherty Gap Road, Chickamauga, Ga. Tickets are $10 any day and reusable every day. vintagemarketdays.com

— Georgia Numismatic Association will hold its biggest coin show in the state this weekend at the Dalton Convention Center, 2211 Dug Gap Battle Road, Dalton, Ga. The expo features more than 1,500 collectors and 500 dealers from around the country. Hours are 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Friday and Saturday and 10 a.m.-3 p.m. Sunday. General admission is free. A $50 early bird ticket grants access Thursday and extra hours the rest of the weekend. gamoney.org

— Park Day, a nationwide volunteer effort organized by the American Battlefield Trust to help with cleanup at battlefields and other historic sites, is coming up Saturday. Tennessee sites taking part include Reflection Riding Arboretum & Nature Center in Chattanooga. Georgia sites include Dalton Confederate Cemetery, Prater's Mill Historic Site and Rocky Face Ridge Park, all in Dalton; Dunagan Cemetery in Rocky Face; and Resaca Confederate Cemetery. Details and registration: battlefields.org/parkday

— Chattanooga Autism Celebration Walk is 9 a.m.-noon Saturday at Coolidge Park, 150 River St. The celebration of neurodiversity by the Chattanooga Autism Center will include mix-and-mingle time, games and photo booth, with an optional 2-mile walk at 11 a.m. Cost to participate in the fundraising walk is $15-$30. chattautismwalk.com

— Reflection Riding Arboretum & Nature Center, 4o0 Garden Road, has three field outings Saturday. A wildflower walk to search out spring ephemerals is 10-11 a.m. Cost is $5-$10. A free Community Prop Swap is 1-2 p.m. Visitors are invited to bring native seeds, cuttings and divisions to share and take new plant material home. The staff will lead propagation demonstrations. The final Tech Trek of April is 2-3 p.m. Participants will learn to use the iNaturalist app to identify plants and animals. The newly acquired skills can be used in the City Nature Challenge, a global identification project, April 28-29. Cost is $5-$10.Registration is required. reflectionriding.org/events

— Taco & Tequila Crawl will head out to nine Chattanooga bars noon-5 p.m. Saturday. The $25 general ticket includes four tacos, lanyard and drink discounts at each stop. Check-in is at Mezcla, 2 Cherokee Blvd. The $37 VIP ticket adds T-shirt, another taco, early access (11 a.m.). Check-in is at Edley's, 205 Manufacturers Road. eventbrite.com

— Model Train Expo is noon-5 p.m. Saturday at the Chatsworth Depot, 219 N. First Ave., Chatsworth, Ga. Hobbyists from Atlanta and Chattanooga will have model trains of various scales set up inside and outside the depot, including a ride-on train. Tours of adjacent properties also will be available, including the Wright Hotel (1-4 p.m.), the caboose (noon-5 p.m.) and Section House in City Park (1-4 p.m.). Admission is free, but donations are appreciated. Raffle tickets for a chance to win a model train set are $2 each or three for $5. whitfield-murrayhistoricalsociety.org

— History program: Lee and Gordon Mills, 71 Red Belt Road, Chickamauga, Ga., will be the site of a Chickamauga and Chattanooga National Military Park program, "Soldiers Fishing: Finding Sustenance and Healing in Calm Waters," at 2 p.m. Saturday. The program will detail how fish contributed to Civil War soldiers' diet and how they fished without carrying poles or tackle. Chairs, sunscreen and water are recommended. nps.gov/chch

— Plant a Tree for Tennessee has a Sunday deadline for reserving a free ornamental tree seedling for Green Interchange's statewide planting event April 22-23. Plants will be available for pickup in Chattanooga at either of the two Firestone Complete Auto Care locations. greeninterchange.org

— Yom HaShoah: Remembrance Day for the Holocaust and Heroism is set for 7 p.m. Monday at the Jewish Cultural Center, 5461 North Terrace. The commemoration includes a candlelighting and prayers for those lost, as well as the premiere of the video "Untold: Stories of a World War II Liberator" by Chattanoogan Deborah Levine about her father. Admission is free. jewishchattanooga.com

SPECTATOR SPORTS

— Chattanooga Lookouts, the Double-A affiliate of the Cincinnati Reds, are in their first home series of the season against the Mississippi Braves at AT&T Field, 201 Power Alley. Daily promotions include a Chick-fil-A giveaway, delivered via app, Wednesday; Thirsty Thursday drink specials; postgame fireworks Friday; and Spin To Win prize giveaways Saturday. These games start at 7:15 p.m. Sunday's game starts at 2:15 p.m. The first 500 fans through the gate receive a bucket hat, and families can play catch on the field after the game. Free general-admission tickets are available to fans 55 and older for Senior Day and to those who donate a canned good or other nonperishable for the Chattanooga Area Food Bank as part of Food Drive Sunday. Tickets are $7-$12. lookouts.com

(READ MORE: 9 things to know for the Chattanooga Lookouts' 2023 season)


THEATER

— Chattanooga Theatre Centre, 400 River St., will present "Plant, Grow, Pick!," theater designed for ages 3-6, at 10:30 a.m. Thursday. Tickets are $5-$10. theatrecentre.com

— Chattown Poets will present an open mic and poets in the round at 7 p.m. Thursday at Gate 11 Distillery, 1400 Market St. Featured poets are Talor Iman, Strawberry and Jamnjaq. Admission is free. chattown.net

— Rhyme N Chatt, an interactive poetry organization, will present "A Pizza (Piece of) Spring" open mic, plus live painting and music, 7-10 p.m. Friday at Slim & Husky's, 401 E. M.L. King Blvd. RNCpoetry@gmail.com.

— Dalton Little Theatre, 210 N. Pentz St., Dalton, Ga., offers "Sylvia," about a dog, the couple who adopt her and the comedy that ensues, the next two weekends. Showtime is 7 p.m. Friday and Saturday, 2 p.m. Sunday and 7 p.m. April 21-22. Tickets are $11-$16. daltonlittletheatre.com

— Ensemble Theatre of Chattanooga will present the world premiere of Artur Solomonov's "How We Buried Joseph Stalin" the next two weekends at Barking Legs Theater, 1307 Dodds Ave. Shows start at 7:30 p.m. Friday, 2:30 and 7:30 p.m. Saturday and 7:30 p.m. April 20-22. Tickets are $15-$20. our.show/ensemble-theatre-of-chattanooga/44718

— The Seed Theatre, 6237 Vance Road, will present the world premiere of "Pennywhistle" by local playwright Brenton Haley, the next two weekends. Showtime is 7 p.m. Friday and Saturday, 2 p.m. Sunday (same schedule April 21-23). The play is for mature audiences. Tickets are $20. theseedtheatre.org

— UTC Theatre Company will present Branden Jacobs-Jenkins' "Everybody," a 2018 Pulitzer Prize finalist, in performances at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday through April 22, with a final-day matinee at 2 p.m., in the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga Fine Arts Center, 752 Roland Carter St. Tickets are $10-$12. utc.edu

Find more events, and add your own, at times freepress.com/cnevents.

Contact Lisa Denton at ldenton@timesfreepress.com  or 423-757-6281.

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