Here are the five best events going down in Charlotte and the surrounding area today, Nov. 6, 2009 — as selected by the folks at Creative Loafing.

• Here and Now exhibition at Joie Lassiter Gallery

•  Paranormal Investigators Convention at Ramada Airport South and Conference Center

• Eyes of the Elders CD release party at Snug Harbor

• The Lady’s Coffee exhibition at The Art House

• Charlotte Comedy Theater at Prevue Music Hall

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Check out these events going down in Charlotte and the surrounding area this weekend— as selected by the folks at Creative Loafing.

Friday, Nov. 6

Paranormal Investigators Convention
Ramada Airport South
Things will get spooky during the Paranormal Investigators Convention, a three-day event which stops in Charlotte Nov. 6-8, and features a variety of seminars and workshops on paranormal activity and ghost-hunting led by experts in the field. This includes celebrities like Steve Gonsalves, Dave Tango, and Tiffany Johnson of Ghosthunters, and more.

• Art Drop by Lark & Key Gallery tonight – during NoDa’s Gallery Crawl – for the opening reception of Revisit: A Group Exhibition. It features works by Duy Huynh, Charlotte Foust, Angie Renfro, Flora Bowley, Jen Swearington, Linda Plaisted and Sofia Barao. more…

• Music Charlotte music act, Eyes of the Elders, will celebrate the release of its new CD with a party tonight at Snug Harbor. Get out and support local music! more…

Saturday, Nov. 7

Emergence
Twenty-Two
Head to Plaza-Midwood tonight for the opening of a new art gallery called Twenty-Two. Its first exhibition is titled Emergence. It features funky abstract creations by artists Mike Watson and Nick Bloomberg.

• Festival Don’t get the wrong idea. Though there is a “Viking Village” at the 6th Annual ScanFest of the Carolinas, it’s not filled with ruthless brutes. Check out cultural displays on Scandinavian countries (that’s Denmark, Sweden, Norway, Iceland and Finland), dance performances, authentic cuisine, arts and crafts and more during this fest. more…

• Special Event The Pig Pickin’ Oyster Roast at Common House will feature more than just barbeque, including live music, a cornhole tournament, and beer. more…

Sunday, Nov. 8

Runway for the Ballet
Booth Playhouse
Runway for the Ballet is a little like Project Runway meets So You Think You Can Dance, and it’s for a good cause. This fashion and dance affair benefits North Carolina Dance Theatre and will exclusively feature fashions from a variety of boutiques on the runway. NC Dance Theatre’s Innovative Works, will also be showcased.

• Theater Matthews Playhouse of Performing Arts presents performances of E. B. White’s classic tale, – about a pig named Wilbur and his friendship with a spider named Charlotte – Charlotte’s Web. more…

• Benefit It’s good to laugh, and even better to be doing some good in the process. Charlotte improv group, The Chuckleheads will perform this special show at Sandtrap Bar & Billiards to raise funds Victoria Martinsen, a 6-year-old child with cancer. more…

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As the headline suggests, here are a few picks of art exhibition openings to check out this weekend in Charlotte and the surrounding area — as selected by the folks at Creative Loafing.

• Winter Whites exhibition at Ciel Gallery. Opening reception: Fri., Nov. 6, 6 p.m.- 9 p.m. Juried exhibition of white-themed art. The exhibition will feature a variety of mixed media, including mosaic, textile art, acrylic, photography, and clay.
Exhibition continues through Jan. 9, 2010.
Ciel Gallery, 1519 Camden Rd. 704-577-1254.

• Soul Essence: Spirit Portraits/Innertainment exhibition at Gallery 620. Opens on Nov. 6. Featuring Carol Marley’s Spirit Portraits-Photography and Micaila Milburn-Thomas’ Masks and Sacred Geometry.
Gallery 620, 620 W. Morehead St. 704-618-9966.

• A Kaleidoscope of Color & Style exhibition at Green Rice Gallery. Opening reception: Fri., Nov. 6, 7 p.m.- 9 p.m. Featuring new works by Paul Hastings. Exhibition continues through Nov. 29. Green Rice Gallery, 451 E. 36th St. 704-344-0300.

• Works by Arless Day exhibition at Hidell Brooks Gallery. Opening reception: Fri., Nov. 6, 6 p.m.- 8 p.m.
Exhibition continues through Dec. 19.
Hidell Brooks Gallery, 1910 S. Blvd., Ste. 130. 704-334-7302.

• New Urbanscapes exhibition at Jerald Melberg Gallery. Opening reception: Fri., Nov. 6, 6 p.m.- 9 p.m. Exhibition features drawings by Susan Grossman.
Exhibition continues through Dec. 26.
Jerald Melberg Gallery, 625 S. Sharon Amity Rd. 704-365-3000.

• Here and Now exhibition at Joie Lassiter Gallery. Opening reception: Fri., Nov. 6, 6 p.m.- 9 p.m. Featuring works by Radcliffe Bailey, Willie Little, and Etiye Dimma Poulsen.
Exhibition continues through Nov. 30.
Joie Lassiter Gallery, 1440 S. Tryon St. Ste. 104. 704-373-1464.

• Revisit: A Group Exhibition at Lark & Key Gallery and Boutique. Opening reception: Fri., Nov. 6, 6 p.m.-9 p.m. The exhibit features works by Duy Huynh, Charlotte Foust, Angie Renfro, Flora Bowley, Jen Swearington, Linda Plaisted and Sofia Barao.
Exhibition continues through Jan. 31, 2010.
Lark & Key Gallery and Boutique, 453 E. 36th St., Ste. B. 704-379-1826.

• Works by Ashlynn Browning, Dan Allegrucci, and Ashley Lathe exhibition at Pantone 278. Opening reception: Fri., Nov. 6, 6 p.m.-9 p.m.
Exhibition continues through Nov. 30.
Pantone 278, 1710 Camden Rd.

• Innermost Thoughts: The Paintings of Harriet Marshall Goode exhibition at Providence Gallery. Wine and cheese reception with the artist: Fri., Nov. 6, 6 p.m.-9 p.m. Exhibition will feature new figurative paintings by Goode.
Exhibition continues through Nov. 30.
Providence Gallery, 601 Providence Rd., Ste. A. 704-333-4535.

• New Works by William Jameson, Kim Schuessler, and Terry Delapp exhibition at Shain Gallery. Opening reception: Fri., Nov. 6, 6 p.m.-9 p.m.
Exhibition continues through Nov. 30.
Shain Gallery, 2823 Selwyn Ave. 704-334-7744.

• The Lady’s Coffee exhibition at The Art House. Opens on Nov. 6. Featuring works by Natasha Powell. Exhibition explores themes such as self-respect, self-image, social consciousness and interdependent relationships.
Exhibition continues through Nov. 30.
The Art House, 3103 Cullman Ave. 704-962-9700.

• Emergence exhibition at Twenty-Two Gallery. Grand opening of Twenty-Two Gallery and opening reception: Sat., Nov. 7, 7 p.m. Featuring art by Mike Watson and Nick Bloomberg.
Exhibition continues through Nov. 29.
Twenty-Two Gallery, 1500 Central Ave. 704-342-0122.

• Fine Arts and Design Faculty Exhibition at Winthrop University’s Rutledge and Elizabeth Dunlap Patrick Galleries. Opening reception: Fri., Nov. 6, 6:30 p.m. – 8 p.m. Features works by 19 artists and designers.
Exhibition continues through Jan. 14, 2010.
Winthrop University, 106 McLaurin Hall, Rock Hill, SC. 803-323-2493.

• Conversations with Echo exhibition at Winthrop University’s Elizabeth Dunlap Patrick Gallery. Opening reception: Fri., Nov. 6, 6:30 p.m. – 8 p.m. Exhibition by Paul Martyka, associate professor of fine arts. Focuses on hand-printed paper cut collages. Artist talk in Elizabeth Dunlap Patrick Gallery on Thurs., Nov. 12, 11 a.m.
Exhibition continues through Jan. 14, 2010.
Winthrop University, 106 McLaurin Hall, Rock Hill, SC. 803-323-2493.

• Trials and Revelations exhibition at Winthrop University’s Rutledge Gallery. Opening reception: Fri., Nov. 6, 6:30 p.m. – 8 p.m. An exhibition by Seth Rouser, Department of Fine Arts instructor.
Exhibition continues through Jan. 14, 2010.
Winthrop University, 106 McLaurin Hall, Rock Hill, SC. 803-323-2493.

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Here are the five best events going down in Charlotte and the surrounding area today, Nov. 5, 2009 — as selected by the folks at Creative Loafing.

• The Persecution and Assassination of Jean-Paul Marat as Performed by the Inmates of the Asylum at Charenton Under the Direction of the Marquis de Sade at Carolina Actors Studio Theatre

• Innovative Works at Booth Playhouse

• Captured! By Robots at Milestone

• NoDa Stand-Up Comedy Showcase at Prevue

• MFA Alumni Reading at Queens University

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This year, the Young Affiliates of the Mint’s annual shindig, the Black & White Gala, will be held on Thursday, Nov. 5 at the Holiday Inn Charlotte Center City. Do you have your tickets?

Proceeds from the event, now in its 7th year, go toward sponsoring children to attend art camps at The Mint Museum. To hear more about the event, check out Black & White Gala’s chair Emily Walker on News 14.

Check out this link to see photos from last year’s gala.

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Here are the five best events going down in Charlotte and the surrounding area today, Nov. 4, 2009 — as selected by the folks at Creative Loafing.

• Author Ron Rash to sign Serena at Park Road Books

• The Good Doctor at Winthrop University

• Get To Know The Show: South Pacific at Duke Energy Theatre

• Mastodon at The Fillmore

• The Ties That Bind exhibition at The Light Factory

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Today, Creative Loafing witnessed the unveiling of French artist Niki de Saint Phalle’s sculpture the “Firebird,” which sits at the plaza of Knight Theater and the Bechtler Museum of Modern Art – set to open on January 2, 2010 in Uptown Charlotte. The sculpture, which is 17-feet and comprised of reflective mirrors, glass, and specs of color, is pretty damn impressive, too. (Just take a look at the photos below.)

Cyndee Patterson, board chair of Bechtler Museum of Modern Art; Heinz Roth, honorary consul of Switzerland; Urs Ziswiler, Switzerland ambassador to the United States; Andreas Bechtler, lead patron of the Bechtler Museum of Modern Art; and John Boyer, president and CEO of Bechtler Museum of Modern Art, all spoke during the event.

CL also got a peek at the inside of the museum (see pics below), though sadly it doesn’t contain art just yet. When it does, the collection will feature mid-century modern art by an array of talented and well-known European and American artists, including Alberto Giacometti, Jean Tinguely, Le Corbusier, Niki De Saint Phalle, Sam Francis, Andy Warhol, Joan Miro, Pablo Picasso, Barbara Hepworth, Nicolas De Stael, and more.

The anticipation of the museum’s opening and its convenient location to other newbie venues devoted to the arts, such as the Knight Theater, Mint Museum Uptown (opening in October of 2010), and Harvey B. Gantt Center for African-American Arts & Culture, is enough to get one super giddy. Boy, we can’t wait.

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The 80th anniversary season of Carolinas Concert Association began with some radical changes. Founded during the Great Depression, CCA seemed destined for awhile to succumb to the Great Recession. Rebranded as Charlotte Concerts and transported to the cozier confines of Halton Theater, the born-again series resurfaced on October 23 with the Perlman/Schmidt/Bailey Piano Trio.

Perlman/Schmidt/Baily Piano Trio - Left to right: Giora Schmidt, Navah Perlman, Zuill Bailey

Comprised of pianist Navah Perlman (yes, Itzhak’s daughter), violinist Giora Schmidt, and cellist Zuill Bailey, the group warmed up with Beethoven’s Piano Trio No. 6 in E-flat, written after the Pastoral Symphony No. 6, when the composer’s reputation and fame – if not his considerable artistic powers – were still on the ascent. It’s a surprisingly sunny and straightforward piece, without some of the feints and misdirection we see elsewhere in Beethoven, but the group’s chemistry didn’t mesh ideally with the hall.

Too much resonance haunted the treble, yet Perlman was disinclined to ease off on the pedals of the Yamaha, smudging the outer allegro movements. Schmidt could have helped more, but he sounded diffident in the opening movement and ignored his chances to assert himself in the ensuing allegretto. The third movement displayed Schmidt’s lyrical side to far better advantage, winking here and there with a scherzo charm and swaying with a lovely 3/4 lilt. His final affirmations in the closing allegro had all the sizzle that had been missing earlier.

Zuill Bailey had a better sound going for him at Halton than when I heard him back in August, playing the Beethoven Cello Sonatas with Simone Dinnerstein at (le) poisson rouge in New York. Halton flattered all of the cello – even when Bailey was in the background plucking pizzicatos. He was most assertive in the outer movements, particularly virtuosic in the finale.

Perlman had better moments when Beethoven’s writing remained submerged in the bass clef, but the first treble notes with real bite from the pianist had to wait until after intermission when the P/S/B attacked the Brahms Piano Trio No. 1 in B. Perlman’s chords were crisp in the opening allegro, Schmidt was suddenly ferocious, and Bailey showed he could add extra edge to his mellow sound at the right times. In the middle movements with their shifting tempi, Schmidt had some mercurial lapses, best when sharing the rhapsodic mode of the second movement with Perlman or espousing the more ardent second subject of the ensuing adagio. But the launch of the fast section in the scherzo movement was absolutely electric, and in the allegro agitato finale, Schmidt and Bailey carried on the argument with Hungarian zest while Perlman stirred the pot.

Three encores followed, the players introducing the bonbons with disarming informality. The first new jewel on the Central Piedmont Community College campus, Halton seems to make that possible in a way that Belk never has. Otherwise, the new Charlotte Concerts instantly showed itself to be very much in the same mold as the old Carolinas series, which over the years brought the likes of Sharon Isbin, Isaac Stern, Van Cliburn, the Philadelphia Orchestra, the New York Philharmonic, and the St. Petersburg Ballet to town.

But does anybody know about the born-again Charlotte Concerts? I’m not sure the new outfit filled Halton nearly as well as the old outfit filled the Belk at the NC Blumenthal Performing Arts Center.

The “reorganized” Charlotte Concerts doesn’t seem to have retained the CCA’s audience or their mailing list. Doesn’t seem likely that faithful CCA followers received notices – or special offers – to renew their subscriptions. I didn’t. Such superfluous notices (in addition to a steady stream of press releases) are a fact of life at Charlotte Symphony and every other established performing arts organization in town that I review. The organizational amnesia at the new website also belies the cheerful rebranding spin that the recent cover story in The Charlotte Observer put on the new series. So the CCA reorganization figures to be a smoothly covered breach. Charlotte style.

Returning to the more important points. Charlotte Concerts figures to be every bit as good as Carolinas Concert Association always was over the past 79 seasons – once we all get past this nasty patch with the economy – if more people find out about it. So instead of delving further into the dirty linens lurking in the old CCA’s cupboards and boardrooms, let me spread the word about the lineup for the rest of the Charlotte Concerts season.

Friday, January 22, 2010 at 8pm
Van Cliburn Competition Gold Medalist Haochen Zhang
Halton Theater at Central Piedmont Community College, 1206 Elizabeth Ave.

Tuesday, February 16, 2010 at 7:30 p.m.
The Five Browns
80th Anniversary Celebration in Collaboration the NC Blumenthal Performing Arts Center
Knight Theater, 430 South Tryon St.

Tuesday, March 16, 2010 at 8 p.m.
“Bach to the Future”
Collaboration of Charlotte Concerts and The Ethos Consortium
Halton Theater at Central Piedmont Community College, 1206 Elizabeth Ave.

Friday, April 16, 2010 at 8 p.m.
Empire Brass
In conjunction with CPCC’s annual ArtsFest celebration
Halton Theater at Central Piedmont Community College, 1206 Elizabeth Ave.

Call the CPCC box office at 704-330-6534 for all the shows at Halton and the NC Blumenthal Performing Arts Center box office at 704-372-1000 for the February 16 show at the Knight. And try to be patient with these selfless lovers of the performing arts. They’re reorganizing. Sort of like the Federal Government.

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Here are the five best events going down in Charlotte and the surrounding area today, Nov. 3, 2009 — as selected by the folks at Creative Loafing.

• Gemini at Lake Norman Comedy Zone in Galway Hooker

• Thomas Friedman at Davidson College

• Hymns at Snug Harbor

• Karaoke at Fox and Hound in Huntersville

• Interpreting Wabi-Sabi exhibition at Hodges Taylor Gallery

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Kaye Iverson's "Aspens in Winter"

If it’s this cold in the fall (although as I write this, the temperature’s expected to be in the low 70s — screwy North Carolina weather), it crosses my mind that perhaps Charlotte will have a harsh, snowy winter this year. That in mind, Ciel Gallery’s latest exhibition, titled Winter Whites, is coming just in time. The exhibition will feature predominantly white-colored art — by 33 artists — created by a mix of mediums, from mosaics to photography and paintings to clay works. The opening reception is on Nov. 6, from 6 p.m.- 9 p.m. Oh, and don’t forget to bring a coat, as you might get cold. Exhibition continues through Jan. 9, 2010.

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