Your guide to entertainment in Charlotte this week
Friday
Festival
Mint Hill Madness
4-11 p.m. (also 10 a.m.-11 p.m. Saturday and noon-6 p.m. Sunday). Mint Hill Veterans Memorial Park, 8850 Fairview Road, Mint Hill. Free. www.minthillmadnessfestival.org.
Celebrate the founding of Mint Hill at this festival that includes live music, a carnival, an arts-and-crafts fair, a parade and fireworks. Other activities include the Battle of Mint Hill (a fitness competition competed in four-person teams) and the NFL Punt, Pass and Kick competition for kids ages 6-15.
Music
Dave Matthews Band
8 p.m. PNC Music Pavilion, 707 Pavilion Blvd. $40.50-$85. www.livenation.com.
The long-touring band that sings “Ants Marching” and “Crash Into Me,” among others, has sold more than 30 million records worldwide.
Festival
Speed Street
12:30-9 p.m. (also noon-8:30 p.m. Saturday). Tryon Street from Stonewall to Trade streets. Free, but $15 for nightly concerts. www.600festival.com.
A full weekend of activity to coincide with the Coca-Cola 600 features live music, a hot dog eating contest, autograph zone, driver appearances, family entertainment and more. Friday night’s concerts feature Montgomery Gentry and Chris Young; Saturday’s concerts feature Gal Friday, Kellie Pickler and The Band Perry.
Saturday
Music
JoyFest
3 p.m. Carowinds, 14523 Carowinds Blvd. $62.99 and up at the door. www.joyfest.org.
Gospel artists take to the stage at Carowinds, with performances from: Chant & Tye, Jonathan McReynolds, Erica Campbell, Marcus Wiley, Tasha Cobbs, Marvin Sapp and Fred Hammond. Your JoyFest ticket includes admission to Carowinds.
Theater
‘Much Ado About Nothing’
8 p.m. (also various performances through June 11). Frock Shop, 901 Central Ave. $30. paperhousetheatremuchado.brownpapertickets.com.
Experience this production by traveling through the play, inside, outside, around corners and stairs. In part a party and completely silly, you are in the room with the actors as they and you travel through the story and through the house. Be prepared to travel up stairs, stand on grass, observe action and maybe even participate.
Movie
‘National Parks Adventure’
11:30 a.m., 1:30 p.m. and 3:30 p.m. Discovery Place, 301 N. Tryon St. $5-$10. www.discoveryplace.org.
Explore the wilds of America in this new giant-screen film, narrated by Robert Redford. This IMAX film takes audiences on the ultimate off-trail adventure to soar over red rock canyons, hurtle up craggy mountain peaks and other outdoor playgrounds of Yellowstone, Glacier National Park, Yosemite, the Everglades and Arches.
Theater
‘Clybourne Park’
8 p.m. (also Friday). Duke Energy Theater, 345 N. College St. $15-$20. www.blumenthalarts.org.
A “bookend play” to “A Raisin in the Sun,” this show focuses on the neighborhood that the Youngers were to move into right before the final curtain falls. It explores their impending arrival, as well as 50 years after they have settled into the community.
Sunday
Festival
Memorial Day Celebration
9 a.m.-10 p.m. U.S. National Whitewater Center, 5000 Whitewater Center Parkway. $45 for Terrace access that includes catered meal, private cash bar and viewing deck; free after $5 parking fee, otherwise. www.usnwc.org.
A full day of activities begins with the Memorial Day Trail Race (5 and 8 miles, $30-$42 registration) at 9 a.m., and also includes yoga, a cornhole tournament and concerts by Civil Twilight (4 p.m.), Banditos (6 p.m.) and Steep Canyon Rangers (8 p.m.). Fireworks at 9:30 p.m. conclude the evening.
Activity
Sunday Slow Riders Bike Tour
2 p.m. Legion Brewing, 1906 Commonwealth Ave. Free, but RSVP requested. www.plancharlotte.org.
Join for a special Sunday Slow Ride with bike leaders Pamela Murray and Katie Zager as the group explores the Blue Line and Blue Line Extension. Be prepared to ride 10-15 miles at an easy pace, with several stops to talk about the development that has occurred along the light rail corridor. Bring your own bike and helmet.
Sports
Coca-Cola 600
6 p.m. Charlotte Motor Speedway, 5555 Concord Parkway S., Concord. $52.43 and up. www.charlottemotorspeedway.com.
See NASCAR drivers hit the Charlotte track for the second week in a row, this time in a points race that includes the full field. A pre-race concert features Lee Brice, starting at 3:55 p.m.
Week ahead
History
Memorial Day at Historic Brattonsville
Mon 5.30 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Historic Brattonsville, 1444 Brattonsville Road, McConnells, S.C. $5 children, $8 adults, $7 seniors 60+. www.chmuseums.org.
Join the Historic Brattonsville staff for a recreated 1870s wreath-laying ceremony. You’ll look at the origins of this holiday during the tumultuous years after the Civil War. Musket firing, children’s drills, house tours and cooking demonstrations included.
Theater
‘The Bluest Eye’
Wed 6.01 7:30 p.m. Duke Energy Theater, 345 N. College St. $28. www.blumenthalarts.org.
Opening night of a play based on the book by Nobel Prize-winning author Toni Morrison that is about the tragic life of a young black girl in 1940s Ohio. This adaptation explores the toll that a legacy of racism has taken on a community, a family and an innocent girl.
Comedy
‘Charlotte Squawks: 12 Angry Hens’
Thu 6.02 7:30 p.m. (also various performances through June 26). Booth Playhouse, 130 N. Tryon St. $24.50 and up. www.blumenthalarts.org.
“Saturday Night Live” meets Broadway meets the Queen City in this 12th edition of Charlotte Squawks. The creative team of Mike Collins and Brian Kahn collaborate with area’s most talented performers to parody current issues in pop culture, sports, life and politics.
Movies
An Evening of Charlotte Film
Thu 6.02 7:30 p.m. Charlotte Museum of History, 3500 Shamrock Drive. Free, but preregistration required. www.charlottemuseum.org.
The Charlotte Museum of History will host an evening of short films directed by local artists. Notable films from the 2014 and 2015 Charlotte 48 Hour Film Project will be screened and the films’ directors will be on hand for Q&A.
Theater
PlayPlay! Theatre presents ‘Mi Casa’
Fri 6.03 Noon, ImaginOn, 300 E. 7th St. $8. www.ctcharlotte.org.
Children’s Theatre of Charlotte presents this play aimed at children from birth to age 3 that explores the beauty of the Spanish language in a collaboration with Mexican artist and Charlotte resident, Rosalia Torres-Weiner.
This story was originally published May 25, 2016 at 11:03 AM with the headline "Your guide to entertainment in Charlotte this week."