Arts Agenda Search
Kevin James
Tue., May 28, 8 p.m.Comedy
When it comes to playing the role of an overbearing couch potato, Kevin James need not sweat. The actor/comedian who plays Doug Heffernan — a blue-collar worker who makes mountains out of mole hills in his average life — on the CBS sitcom The King of Queens, delivers (and we’re not talkin’ packages). There’s humor to his hysterics. Morphing into other dumbfounded characters in the film world (his latest part is in Grown Ups 2, to be released in July), it’s safe to say that when James goes solo for stand-up, he does it with the same exaggerated enthusiasm. As long as he puts his usual melodramatic spin to whatever random shit — jet skis, banks, airports, and greeting cards were past targets — crosses his mind, his upcoming gig at Ovens Auditorium is going to be a hoot.
$49.55-$71.15
Free Craft Session - Spooling Around
Thu., May 30, 7:30 p.m.Visual Arts
Crown Town Handmade presents a free craft class for all ages and skill levels on the last Thursday of every month. Wear your craftiness on your sleeve, or maybe your ears or around your neck. Join Crown Town Handmade and make some super cute jewelry from wooden thread spools. These are totally customizable and a great way to use up the last bits of a favorite fiber, ribbon, or fabric! We'll bring the supplies, you bring any special bits and your crafty ideas! FREE
That's A Dope Show!
Thu., May 30, 8 p.m.
(704) 332-6608Comedy
You've never seen stand up comedy as dope as this! Chesney Goodson (Charlotte Magazine's Best Up-And-Coming Comic 2013) and DopeName Productions present That's A Dope Show! A night of interactive comedy, music and more! Blending standup with sketch and musical elements, as well as a unique Twitter experience you'll have to see for yourself, this will be a truly ambitious and memorable show. Support groundbreaking local artists as they bend the rules and challenge expectations! Come be a part of the night your friends will be talking about for months! $5
Shakespeare's Sonnets
May 29-31, 7 p.m. and Sun., June 2, 7 p.m.Theater/Dance/Performance Art
Presented by Citizens of the Universe. For more information, visit www.citizensoftheuniverse.org. $5 suggested donation
Wall Sculptures by Stanley Burford
Through June 1Visual Arts
Opening reception on April 12, from 6 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.
PROOF
Thursdays-Saturdays, 8 p.m. and Sundays, 2:30 p.m. Continues through June 2 704-455-8542Theater/Dance/Performance Art
Catherine, a troubled young woman who has spent years caring for her father, a brilliant but unstable mathematician. Following his death, she must deal with the arrival of her estranged sister and the attentions of her father’s former student who hopes to find valuable work in the notebooks he left behind. A burgeoning romance and the discovery of a mysterious notebook draw Catherine into the most difficult problem of all: how much of her father’s madness —or genius — did she inherit?
$18.00 - $28.00
Avenue Q
Sat., May 25, 8 p.m., Sun., May 26, 2:30 p.m., Wed., May 29, 7:30 p.m., Thu., May 30, 7:30 p.m., Fri., May 31, 8 p.m., Sat., June 1, 8 p.m. and Sun., June 2, 2:30 p.m.Theater/Dance/Performance Art
Lovers of irreverence can rejoice greatly, for the potty-mouthed puppets of Avenue Q are bringing their song-and-angst routine to Theatre Charlotte, May 17–June 2. Recent college grad Princeton is the newest tenement tenant on this queer city block, wondering how he can parlay an English degree into a livelihood while instantly smitten — how could he not be? — by equally anxious and awkward Kate Monster. The song list is self-recommending to anyone who has ever suffered through the varnished truths of Sesame Street and Mister Rogers, including such hits as “It Sucks to Be Me,” “Everyone’s A Little Bit Racist,” and the imperishable “The Internet Is for Porn.” Blue-chipper Billy Ensley is directing a formidable cast that stars Andy Faulkenberry as Princeton and KC Roberge as Kate. Genders be damned, the supporting cast includes Matt Kenyon as Lucy the Slut and Veda Covington as Gary Coleman. Yes, that Gary Coleman. $25-$27
Proof
Sat., May 25, 8 p.m., Sun., May 26, 2:30 p.m., Thu., May 30, 8 p.m., Fri., May 31, 8 p.m., Sat., June 1, 8 p.m. and Sun., June 2, 2:30 p.m.Theater/Dance/Performance Art
Premiering at the Manhattan Theatre Club in May of 2000 and working its way up to Broadway just five months later, David Auburn’s Proof is ... well ... proof that starting small can lead to bigger and better things. In 2001, the play picked up a Pulitzer Prize for “Drama” and a Tony Award for “Best Play,” before going on a continuous run that came to a close in 2003. Afterwards, it was adapted into a film, starring Gwyneth Paltrow, Anthony Hopkins and Jake Gyllenhaal. Reemerging in the quarters of Carolina Actors Studio Theatre, this production doesn’t really need a plug, but for folks who struggle with finding good solutions for things to do, consider this your cheat sheet. But be forewarned: This isn’t the happiest of plays. It revolves around Catherine (played by the talented Karina Roberts-Caporino), who sacrificed her own dreams to care for her mentally ill father (George Gray), a former mathematical genius, while her sister ran off to New York. With his death, Catherine faces her estranged sibling and one of her father’s former students, who thinks that an undiscovered, breakthrough manuscript may be hidden in her father’s office. Add to all this a blossoming romance and some questionable sanity and you’ve got the general equation for Proof.
$18-$28
The Factories Don't Install Emotion Tapes
Through June 14Visual Arts
A solo exhibition of artwork by artist Amy Bagwell. Opening reception on April 17, from 6 p.m.-8 p.m. Held in Ross Gallery I, located inside of the Overcash Building. Free admission
The Color Purple
Sun., June 16, 4 p.m. 1-800-745-3000Theater/Dance/Performance Art
From the classic Pulitzer Prize-winning novel by Alice Walker, and the moving film by Steven Spielberg, comes a soul-stirring new musical and landmark event. Northwest School of the Arts is proud to present the North Carolina encore $13-$18
All Together (Et si on vivait tous ensemble?)
Tue., June 18, 7:30 p.m.Film
The Charlotte Film Society presents the 2011 film All Together. Five old friends decide to move in together as an alternate to living in a retirement home. They hire a handsome graduate student, who is writing a thesis on the aging population, as their live-in caretaker. Discussion after the film will be led by Robert Reimer, PhD, Chair and Professor of Languages and Culture Studies, UNC Charlotte. $5 for Film Society members, $8 for non-members
Painting the Figure in Oil, Workshop with Osiris Rain
Starts June 4. Tuesdays, 7 p.m. Continues through June 18 704-604-4195Visual Arts
This workshop will cover the “basics” for the artist working in oils. Students will delve into techniques and tools, i.e., color, value, edges and paint quality, and their relationship to the aesthetic considerations of the surface. Concept, composition, the artist’s /painter’s psychology, and its effect on one’s canvas will be possible avenues of exploration. Students will work from the live model for this three day workshop (one night a week for three weeks). This will be a laid back workshop, students are welcome to B.Y.O. beer, wine, coffee, tea, etc.
$180.00
Least Likely Friends
June 12-22Theater/Dance/Performance Art
The new play by Tonya Bludsworth (Carrie Ann's Kiss). For more information, visit www.leastlikelyfriends.com.
Damn Yankees
Fri., June 21, 8 p.m., Sat., June 22, 8 p.m., Sun., June 23, 2:30 p.m., Tue., June 25, 7 p.m., Wed., June 26, 7:30 p.m., Thu., June 27, 7:30 p.m., Fri., June 28, 8 p.m. and Sat., June 29, 8 p.m.Theater/Dance/Performance Art
Faust meets professional baseball in the Broadway classic. Performances will take place in Halton Theater.
In Search of Sustenance, New Paintings by Osiris Rain and Joe C. Helms
Sat., July 6, 7 p.m. 704-604-4195Visual Arts
It is the nature of great art to allow it’s audience to see through the makeup of humanity and behold both it’s ugliness, as well as the daylight of it’s beauty through the soot and smog of the everyday grey. In Search of Sustenance is the expression of how two artists approach this concept. Through their individual techniques, philosophies, and visions, Osiris Rain and Joe Helms answer the question, “What makes us sustain?” Whether it be love, ideology or the simple carnal instinct to survive, the poetry of this exhibit speaks to the humanity in all of us.
Free
