Fall is the season when leaves drop and gardens go dormant. But throughout Charlotte's arts scene this October, things are coming back to life.
A longtime theater company is staging a comeback. Charlotte Ballet is reviving familiar works alongside a new piece inspired by a phoenix rising from the ashes. And a growing music conference is returning to Charlotte for its fourth year.
To help pick through Charlotte's cultural treats this October, WFAE's Nick de la Canal is joined by this month's First Friday Arts panel: Lawrence Toppman, critic at large for The Charlotte Ledger; WFAE Director of Community Engagement Rubie Britt-Height; and WFAE Program Director Joe Kendrick.
Lawrence’s picks
Charlotte Ballet’s Black Box Series @ Center for Dance (Oct. 2-17)
Lawrence’s first pick: Charlotte Ballet’s Black Box Series, an intimate program staged at the company’s Center for Dance on North Tryon Street.
This year’s program brings back two works Charlotte audiences have seen before: artistic director Alejandro Cerrudo’s “Dos y Dos y Dos” and Mthuthuzeli November’s “From Africa With Love.”
It also includes a new work by German-American dance duo FLOCK, inspired by the phoenix and ideas of rebirth and storytelling.
“Sometimes the best stuff of their season can be found in this show,” he says.
Charlotte Symphony’s “Scheherazade” @ Belk Theater (Oct. 9-10)
The Charlotte Symphony will perform its first concert in this season's Classical Series this month.
Music Director Kwamé Ryan will lead a program with pianist Orion Weiss performing Samuel Barber’s Piano Concerto, along with “One Foot After The Other” by the symphony’s new Spotlight Artist, composer Levi Taylor. The program closes with Rimsky-Korsakov’s “Scheherazade.”
“Absolutely a good program to see,” he says. “Very well balanced.”
“Maytag Virgin” @ The Arts Factory
For theater, Lawrence recommends Carolina Actors Studio Theatre’s production of “Maytag Virgin” by playwright Audrey Cefaly.
Set in a small Southern town, the play centers on two neighbors who, somewhat against their own inclinations, find themselves falling in love.
The production is part of the revival of Carolina Actors Studio Theatre, or CAST, which returned after several years away from Charlotte’s theater scene.
Lawrence says one of CAST’s signatures is what the company calls immersive theater, using the entire space to help set the tone for the production.
Rubie’s picks
“Stitched Together: Community Conversations” with Corey Pemberton @ Mint Museum Uptown (Oct. 3)
Rubie’s first pick: visual artist Corey Pemberton’s exhibition “Living Well,” now on view at the Mint Museum Uptown.
On Oct. 3, the museum hosts “Stitched Together: Community Conversations” with Pemberton, followed by tours of the exhibition.
Pemberton, an artist-in-residence at the McColl Center, uses glass, textiles, photography and other materials to explore family, home, identity and community.
Rubie says the event offers visitors a chance not just to see the exhibition, but to engage with Pemberton and others around the ideas behind it.
Mint 2 Move Cultural Dance Night @ Mint Museum Uptown (Oct. 9)
Rubie’s next pick is for anyone who would rather experience art on the dance floor.
Mint 2 Move Cultural Dance Night returns Oct. 9 with “Brooklyn to Charlotte,” an evening that celebrates Afro-Latin music, dance and culture and pays tribute to the influential LeBron Brothers. The night includes dance lessons from Rumbao Latin Dance Company, music from DJ Carlos LeBron and percussionists, live painting and cultural vendors.
“This is great to just come together and relax after you’ve worked all week and just have so much fun,” she says.
Public Square: “Freedom and Responsibility: What We Owe Each Other” @ Carolina Theatre (Oct. 29)
Later in the month, Rubie recommends the inaugural Public Square event presented by the Charlotte Mecklenburg Library Foundation.
The civic conversation series launches Oct. 29 at the Carolina Theatre with “Freedom and Responsibility: What We Owe Each Other.”
Rubie says the discussion takes on a fundamental question: “Where individual liberty ends and collective responsibility begins.”
Joe’s picks
Ryan Davis & the Roadhouse Band @ Snug Harbor (Oct. 2)
Joe starts with a show Friday night at Snug Harbor: Ryan Davis & the Roadhouse Band, appearing alongside Styrofoam Winos and Motocrossed.
The seven-piece Roadhouse Band is difficult to categorize. Joe says listeners may hear country in the group’s sound, but “country-adjacent” may be a better description.
Joe says Davis’ songs tend to be long and lyrically dense, with lines that may take some time — and repeated listens — to fully sink in.
Bruce Cockburn with Livingston Taylor @ Carolina Theatre (Oct. 30)
For the end of the month, Joe recommends Canadian singer-songwriter Bruce Cockburn.
Cockburn has built a career spanning more than five decades and 35 albums, moving among folk, rock, jazz and world music while frequently exploring political and spiritual themes.
“Think about how many artists you can name that have had a 50-year career and they remain vital, and they’re still breaking new ground,” Joe says.
For listeners who haven’t encountered Cockburn’s music before, Joe says the Carolina Theatre performance offers a good introduction.
Confluence Carolinas (Oct. 7-10)
Finally, Joe recommends Confluence Carolinas, the annual gathering of musicians and music industry professionals in Charlotte.
The conference portion runs Oct. 7-9, with daytime panels, workshops and networking events focused on the music business. The accompanying Confluence Music Fest runs Oct. 8-10, bringing performances to venues around Charlotte before a Saturday festival finale.
Joe will be part of the conference himself, joining a discussion about radio and music discovery.
The event is produced by Music Everywhere Charlotte and emphasizes artists and music industry professionals from across the Carolinas and Southeast.
