Thursday, May 12
“Omitted History”
Hannah Block Community Arts Center, 120 S. 2nd St. • Free but must reserve tickets
“Omitted History” will entail a night of six theatrical monologues celebrating historical figures, particularly those from the Wilmington region or North Carolina with prized stories and unrepresented community contributions.
The six-part series performance will begin this Thursday at 7:30 p.m., featuring two monologues. Performance nights are May 12, Sept. 8, and Nov. 10, each consisting of two monologues. The writers, actors, and historian Dr. Herbert Harris will hold a Q&A following each performance.
OTHER THURSDAY HAPPENINGS
Pleasure Island Jeep Jam — The 2022 Pleasure Island Jeep Jam is going on this weekend at the Fort Fisher Air Force Recreation Area in Kure Beach. The kickoff party is at Good Hops Brewing on Thursday, 5 p.m. – 10 p.m. Friday and Saturday events at the rec area take place from 11 a.m. – 11 p.m. and Sunday’s event. Vendors, food trucks and live music will take place throughout the weekend. There will be a poker run, cornhole tournament and Jeeps. See the full schedule here; tickets are $10-$40.
Paige Bacon — End of Days Distillery will host musician Paige Bacon from 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. at 1815 Castle St. The food truck Franchy’s will serve from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. Bacon is a local singer and songwriter who will also perform May 13 at Mac’s Speed Shop on Oleander from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m.; at The Mullet Bar in Southport on May 14, 7 p.m. to 10 p.m.; and at Pilot House, May 15, 12 p.m. to 3 p.m.
Hampstead 4-Mile Race — The Hampstead 4-mile run and 1-mile Fun Run will take place 6:30 p.m. to8:30 p.m. The 4-mile run costs $40 to register, and the 1-mile Fun Run costs $15 to register. The annual race starts and ends at AXIS Fitness in Hampstead at 14536 B, US Hwy 17. T-shirts are available for $15 — proceeds will benefit local athletics. The race will go through Salters Haven and Majestic Oaks Neighborhood.
Monthly Movie Night — Independent Works is hosting a May movie night from 4:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. in its private auditorium at 2223 Blockbuster Rd. All ages are welcome to attend but should RSVP. Independent Works is an organization consisting of a group of families with adult children on the Autism spectrum whose goal is to create an inclusive environment and long-term rental housing community for adults with autism and other neurodiversities.
Jazz at the Mansion — The new season of sounds from the Cape Fear Jazz Society’s summer series kicks off at Bellamy Mansion Thursday at 6:30 p.m. The Taylor Lee Band will perform and attendees are invited to bring blankets and chairs to enjoy music on the lawn — beer, wine and snacks will be for sale. Tickets, available at the door, are $20 for general admission, $15 for members and volunteers, and $10 for students/military. Proceeds benefit the Cape Fear Jazz Society and the Bellamy Mansion Museum.
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Friday, May 13
Wilmington Greek Festival
St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church, 608 South College Rd. • Tickets: $3 admission, free for kids 12 and under
Opa!
This weekend Wilmington will hold its annual Greek Festival at the St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church across from UNCW. The event takes place on both Friday and Saturday, 11 a.m. to 10 p.m., and Sunday, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Marking 30 years of celebration, folks will be able to enjoy authentic, homemade Greek food prepared by the congregation from family recipes. There will be music from a live Greek band, dancing, a marketplace and cooking demonstrations.
There will be free parking at the UNCW Auxiliary Parking Lot behind Taco Bell. There is also a drive-through for folks who wish to only pick up food. No pre-order or registration is necessary.
OTHER FRIDAY HAPPENINGS
“Sleuth: A Mystery” — Thalian Association Community Theater is opening its latest show, a 1970’s mystery that was adapted as a Laurence Olivier and Michael Caine film. Taking place in the English countryside, mystery writer Andrew Wyk invites his wife’s lover, Milo Tindle, to visit. Tindle shares Wyke’s love for games, which sets off a chain of events leaving the audience in the throes of Wyke’s imagination. Revenge and power thread the show, with tickets going for $39, at Thalian’s Ruth and Bucky Stein Theater. It runs May 13-29, Thursday through Saturday, 7:30 p.m., and Sunday, 2 p.m.
Southport Plein-Air Festival — Up Your Arts and the City of Southport hosts a weekend-long event, May 13-14, showcasing artists working “en plein air” — painting outdoors. Elements of Hispanic culture will be showcased throughout the two-day festival, according to event planners. There will be Spanish and Brazilian guitar performers, traditional Hispanic meals and food trucks, as well as a children’s area set up with Mexican folk-art projects. An artists’ reception and dinner (ticketed) kicks off events Friday, along with a free evening concert by the Back Porch Rockers on the community building lawn. On Saturday, at Keziah Memorial Park at the corner of Moore and Lord streets, the festival is free and open to the public. The full schedule of events can be found here.
Saturday, May 14
Port City Highland Games
3600 Randall Parkway • Tickets: $10, beer and food sold separately
The Port City Highland Games celebrates the Scottish and Celtic culture through a day of music, fun competition and imbibing. Taking place at Randall Parkway on Saturday, competitors can participate in a hammer toss, sheaf toss, weight for distance, turning the caber and other events.
There will be bagpipe playing throughout the day, as well as live music from The Blarney Brogues, Celtic Musicians of Wilmington, and Port City Bagpipes and Drums. Dancing also will be performed, displaying the sword dance (ancient dance of war), seann triubhas (political protest dancing) and Highland fling (victory dance), among other styles.
A British car show will be set up on the grounds, plus there will be kid’s games. Beer and food will be served. The opening ceremony will start at 10 a.m., gates open at 9 a.m. and events last until 5 p.m.
The event is rain or shine with parking on site. Proceeds benefit paws4people Foundation.
OTHER SATURDAY HAPPENINGS
Beale Street Barbershop 10-Year Anniversary Party — Live music and an art opening is planned for Saturday as Beale Street Barbershop (710 S 17th St.) celebrates 10 years in the community. Artists Joe Hunt and David Meffert will have their works on display, with live music by Josh Youse, Jerry Powell, Brown Dirt Cowboys, Heart Bender, Soul – R Fusion, Cross-Eyed Cat, Mark Sinnis and 825, The Temp Agency, Street Clones, and The Explainers, playing every hour at the top of the hour from 1 p.m. to 10 p.m. Open to those ages 21 and over; beer and wine available by donation or BYOB.
– THIS EVENT CANCELED AFTER THE ARTICLE WAS PUBLISHED –
Flock of Food Trucks — Carolina Beach Lake Park (400 Lake Park Blvd. S.) will welcome a slew of trucks Saturday. Island Women has organized the Flock of Food Trucks for a $5 entry from noon to 4 p.m., featuring live music, games, a kid’s zone, and beer and wine. All food and drinks are sold separately.
Becoming Cucalorus Open Mic — Wilmington’s independent film fest is hosting a new open mic called “The Becoming” — welcoming artists to share their most “raw, unfiltered, uncut, and unapologetic poetry.” Free to attend at Jengo’s Playhouse (815 Princess St.); beverages and snacks available for purchase at the bar.
Small-Batch Beer Festival — Hi-Wire Brewing (1020 Princess St.) will celebrate the area’s small-batch brews Saturday from noon to 4 p.m. It will offer 16 Carolina craft breweries’ one-off batches currently not found on the market. Live music will be performed by The Hatch Brothers with Wheelz Pizza on site from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. Local vendors will sell waresas well. The event will have beer tokens for $4 each to taste the limited offerings in 6-ounce servings. Participating breweries include 12 Bones, New Anthem, NoDa Brewing, Wrightsville Beach Brewery, Wilmington Brewing Company, Sierra Nevada and almost a dozen more.
Patti LaBelle — The R&B soul singer Patti LaBelle will perform five-plus decades of original songs, as well as gospel and pop standards at the Wilson Center (703 N. 3rd St.). LaBelle has sold 50 million records worldwide, won two Grammys and was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame. She also has been recognized by the NAACP seven times, winning Entertainer of the Year and Outstanding Female Artist, among other accolades. Tickets starting at $54; doors open at 6:30 p.m.
Sunday, May 15
Boogie in the Park: Signal Fire
Ocean Front Park, 105 Atlantic Ave. • Free
Wilmington’s favorite reggae-rock musicians, Signal Fire, will take the stage in Kure Beach this Sunday for a free show.
The band — made up of Sean Gregory on guitar and vocals, drummer Kenneth Forrest, bass and vocalist Cullen Seward, and Carl Blackmon on keyboard — follows the mantra of “spreading unity through music,” as heard through three albums released to date.
Concertgoers are welcome to bring beach chairs or blankets. Shows take place and feature a different band on the first and third Sundays of the month through Labor Day, 5 p.m. to 7 p.m.
See the full schedule — and read about other area concert series — here.
OTHER SUNDAY HAPPENINGS
Springtime Sip n Shop — Outer Dunes Brewing on North Market Street will have food trucks, beer and local artisans and makers — Pomona Shrub Co., Jessie Blue Shop, Soulful Jewelry, Snowshoe Workshop, Southern Sparrow — set up on Sunday to peddle handcrafted wares. Emily Burdette will perform live music from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m., with food served by WilmiRicans Food Truck, 1 p.m. tp 4:30 p.m., and The Cheesesteak Hustle, 5 p.m. to 8 p.m.
“The Best of Broadway” — The Wilmington Choral Society will perform at the Wilson Center at 4 p.m. Led by conductor Byron Marshall and accompanied by Luis Barragan, “The Best of Broadway” spans decades of tunes from well-known Broadway shows and composers. Audiences will recognize tracks from “West Side Story,” “Oklahoma,” “The Phantom of the Opera,” “Grease,” “Sweeney Todd,” “Les Misérables,” “The Jersey Boys,” “Hairspray” and more. Tickets are $18.
Ritt and Wilder Deitz — Father and son Ritt and Wilder Deitz have released the album ”Hinge,” featuring piano, horns and acoustic guitar sounds, calling it a Springsteen-meets-Steely Dan vibe. Wilder first began touring with his dad at 8 years old during Ritt’s “After the Mountains” tour. Wilder has since founded the Wilder Deitz School for Creative Music, helping artists of all genres from hip-hop to string music to soul. The two will bring their acoustic Americana set to the intimate space of Ronald Sachs Violins (616-B Castle St.) at 8 p.m. Tickets are $10; masks optional.
Have events to consider for Li’l Friday? Email info@portcitydaily.com
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