Your 5-minute guide to the best things to do in Charlotte | Oct. 5-11
Friday
▪ If you love to play film critic, here’s your chance to have your say when the 21st Annual Manhattan Short Film Festival screens its nine best entries. Audiences can submit their picks for best film and actor following the screenings of the films, which were chosen from more than 1,500 entries from 73 countries. Showtimes are at 7 p.m. Friday, 2 and 7 p.m. Saturday, and 2 p.m. Sunday. Northwest School of the Arts. $10.
▪ The Charlotte Symphony Orchestra revisits one of classical music’s most important works with a performance of “Beethoven’s Fifth.” Its Beethoven program also includes “The Ruins of Athens Overture” and a guest performance by classical pianist Garrick Ohisson, who’ll play Beethoven’s “Piano Concerto No. 4.” 7:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday and 3 p.m. Sunday. Belk Theater. $29-$132.
▪ Lady Gaga and Bradley Cooper channel Barbara Streisand and Kris Kristofferson in what could turn out to be Oscar gold, with Cooper directing the remake (actually the third remake) of “A Star Is Born.” Moviegoers can see how it measures up when the film hits theaters Friday. Check local listings for times and theaters.
▪ Charlotte Motor Speedway transforms for the holidays, but there aren’t a zillion Christmas lights lining the track quite yet. This time the raceway celebrates the season with a different kind of light. “The Glow: A Jack O’Lantern Experience” features larger-than-life Halloween displays and 5,000 elaborately hand-carved, illuminated pumpkins. Carvers will be on hand for demos and questions. Snacks and drinks available. 7:30 p.m. Thursday-Sunday through Oct. 28. $22.99 ($10.99-$16.99 for kids).
Saturday
▪ Stop and smell the roses — literally — before fall is truly upon during the 2018 Charlotte Rose Show at Daniel Stowe Botanical Garden, presented by the Charlotte Rose Society. Visitors can peruse roses grown in the Carolinas, including hundreds of hybrid teas, floribunda, shrub and climbing roses. $12.95 (with discounts for seniors and kids; includes regular garden admission). 1-5 p.m. Saturday and 9 a.m.-3 p.m. Sunday.
Monday
▪ “The Dawn Wall,” a feature-length documentary about rock climbers Tommy Caldwell and Kevin Jorgeson’s ascent up Yosemite Valley’s 3,000-foot El Capitan, enjoys a special one-night theatrical engagement. 7 p.m. AMC Concord Mills 24 and Regal Stonecrest at Piper Glen 22. $13.40.
Wednesday
▪ The national tour of the hit Broadway hip-hop musical “Hamilton” finally hits Charlotte’s Belk Theater with its ethnically diverse cast and soundtrack for a weeks-long run of nearly-sold-out shows. The opening-night performance is at 7:30 p.m. $154.50-$354.50. If you can’t score or afford tickets, #Ham4Ham digital lotteries will randomly award 40 tickets a day for $10 each (two tickets per purchaser) through the “Hamilton” app. The first lottery opens Monday at 11 a.m.; there’ll be one held for every performance through Nov. 4.
▪ Actress Jodie Whitakker steps into the iconic role of the time-traveling Doctor in the BBC’s sci-fi series “Doctor Who,” and Whitakker’s first episode — aptly titled “The Woman Who Fell to Earth” — premieres at 1:45 p.m. Sunday on BBC America. But fans can catch the theatrical release at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday and Thursday at AMC Concord Mills 24, Regal Stonecrest at Piper Glen 22, or Tinseltown in Salisbury. $13.38.
▪ With roles in “Blockers” and “Tag,” comedian Hannibal Buress may have upped his profile as a movie star this summer, but he remains in his element on the standup stage. He’ll treat UNC Charlotte students to his live standup when he headlines the Homecoming Comedy Show. 8 p.m. Halton Arena. $20 (free to current UNCC students).
Thursday
▪ As part of its Fall Works, Charlotte Ballet presents the world premiere of resident choreographer Sasha Janes’s “Facsimile,” which is set to the music of Leonard Bernstein and features colorful, carnival-inspired costumes designed by Janes’s mother Jennifer, Also on the triple bill, which celebrates Bernstein’s centennial, are Jerome Robbins’s “Fancy Free” and Medhi Walerski’s “Petite Ceremonie.” 7:30 p.m. Thursday and Friday (Oct. 12), and 2 and 7:30 p.m. on Oct. 13. Knight Theater.