Vampyre If you think goth and ballet make strange bedfellows, then A) You haven't read enough Edward Gorey and B) You have yet to experience Terpsicorps' newest production, Vampyre. This "gothic tale of love, death and immortality,” choreographed by Heather Malloy, takes its inspiration from Lord Byron, Mary Shelley, Percy Shelley and John Polidori, whose […]

Josh Phillips Local singer/songwriter/ping-pong champ Josh Phillips blends reggae, folk, rock and soul into songs that are both meaningful and party-ready. Phillips has been hard-at-work on a follow-up to his solo debut, Wicker. That next album — produced by Eric Sarafin (Ben Harper) — is now near completion, hence the Josh Phillips Folks Festival's album […]

Womansong It's a ladies' night out, in a sense. Local all-female vocal collective Womansong performs on stage at UNC-Asheville's Lipinsky Auditorium with Wild Bodema, a women's drum troupe. And that's just part She Sings, an evening of music. The Sue Ford Trio presents original songs, Asheville Contemporary Dance Theatre previews the dance "Beauty" from full-length […]

Jan Karon In The Company of Others, the latest novel by Jane Karon, is centered around a familiar character: Father Timothy Kavanagh of her Mitford series. The nine-book Mitford collection was set in a fictional N.C. town, but it likely borrowed some elements of Karon's longtime home, Blowing Rock. Karon's latest series focuses on the […]

DJ Skillz at Emerald Lounge One doesn’t have to look hard in Asheville to find an Americana or indie rock show to attend. But what if you’re looking for hard-driving hip-hop and sexy R&B? Not quite so easy to find. About six months ago, Social Life Times promoter Timmy Smith, frustrated by this void in […]

Fanaticon Ready for a very different sort of festival? Fanaticon returns for its second year with "comics, collectibles, pop culture and more." Unlike your typical summer fest, Fanaticon is mostly indoors. There's less ziplining and corndog eating, more trivia (movie and trivia night is on Thursday, May 19), costumes, sci-fi and heady panel discussions. The […]

Diva*licious Cinq The annual musical fundraiser Diva*licious (now in its fifth season) may involve drinks and hors d'oeuvres, but the real treat takes place on the main stage when contestants (Carol Duermit, Sara Fields, Murphy Funkhouser, Rachelle Roberts, Bradshaw Call, Andre Ellerby, Ty Shelton and Chuck Taft) vie for audience votes and the ACT Diva […]

Evening of poetry at The Altamont Part swanky date-night, part world tour, on Friday, May 6 The Altamont hosts five area poet-translators reading English-language versions of renowned bards. Thomas Rain Crowe reads Hafiz; Caleb Beissert reads Pablo Neruda and Federico García Lorca (both readers perform to musical accompaniment). Other readers include Malaprop's owner Emöke B’Racz, […]

French Broad River Festival It's officially festival season: The 14th annual French Broad River Festival takes over Hot Springs with a weekend’s worth of the great outdoors, water, sports and music. Headliners include BoomBox, The Bottle Rockets, Great American Taxi and Snake Oil Medicine Show. Tickets ($75) include camping, bands, registration fees for whitewater and […]

Footloose! At first it was a Kevin Bacon vehicle with an '80s-reminiscnet soundtrack. Footloose came back this year on the big screen with dancer Julianne Hough as the love interest. In between, the Kenny Loggins-fueled spectacle made it onto Broadway. Catch the musical version in Asheville: Bioflyer productions mounts the show as a benefit for […]

Hush Little Beachcomber book signing Hush Little Beachcomber, by Dianne Moritz, is a charming storybook (for ages 4-8) that recounts a fun day at the beach. Better, it's meant to be sung to the tune of "Hush, Little Baby." (Try it: "Hey, little beachcomber, what do you say? Let's take a trip to the beach […]

Travis Medford's art It's been awhile since graphic designer Travis Medford worked at Xpress (he's now a designer at Lark Crafts), but his posters still decorate the walls around our offices. They'll also hang on the walls of Push Skate Shop & Gallery: Medford's art exhibit, The Third Other, is a collection of new works […]

Runaway Circus and the Loose Caboose Ever heard of a "Portal Party"? Apparently it's what happens when a mysterious gift is delivered to a boring birthday party. It's also the name of the fifth annual community circus by Asheville's Runaway Circus and the Loose Caboose. Acrobatics, juggling, trapezes and tricks are just some of what […]

Little Tybee Part orchestral, part moody jazz-pop, part modern-ambient, Little Tybee is an odd collection of sounds and influences that fall together in wondrous ways. The band, which takes its name from a tiny island off the coast of their native Georgia, recently released its sophomore album Humorous to Bees. They play the Grey Eagle […]

St. Patrick's Day at the White Horse Must be the luck o' the Irish — you get live music from The Wooly Jumpers (featuring members of the Red Wellies) as well as players from the Irish Session. Says the White Horse, "Food will be served and some of the beer may even be green!  Dancing […]

Blue Ridge Rollergirls season opener Asheville's all-female, flat-track roller derby league returns with its first home game of the season: the St. Patrick's Day Slay. And the smack-down is a double-header, with The French Broads going up against the Twin City Derby Girls at 5 p.m. followed by the Blue Ridge Rollergirls All-Stars taking on […]