The newest interactive exhibit at Charlotte's Discovery Place is If These Walls Could Talk. The exhibit investigates the science and history of the structures that humans create, from mud-brick houses to soaring skyscrapers. Created by the Science Museum of Minnesota, the exhibit features an array of interactive displays and hands-on activities. The science center will enhance the exhibit with lectures on environment-friendly construction, future of solar energy and more. For further details call 704-372-6261 or visit www.discoveryplace.org.
17 - THURSDAY
A lot of people in this area are downright fanatic about old-time music, specifically the tunes created by the old string bands that predate the birth of bluegrass. You'll feel like you've hit the old-time jackpot if you head over to the Levine Museum of the New South to hear Bob Carlin. Carlin knows as much as anyone, and that's saying something, about the American musical past. He has recorded several albums, worked with the legendary John Hartford and over the past few years, has become quite the in-demand session man, including work on Dolly Parton's acclaimed Halos and Horns bluegrass CD. Carlin has also written a book, String Bands in the North Carolina Piedmont. He will play a little, read a little and talk a little about the music so many Carolinians crave, at 7pm at the Museum. Tickets are $15, or $10 for Charlotte Folk Society and Museum of the New South members; ticket includes concert, hors d'oeuvres and one complimentary drink. Cash bar available. For more info or reservations, call 704-333-1887, extension 224. (Grooms)
18 - FRIDAY
Carolina Pro Musica, Charlotte's early music ensemble, presents Viva, Italia! at St. Martin's Episcopal Church at 8:15 this evening. The program of music from 17th and 18th century Italy features works by Monteverdi, Vivaldi, Corelli, Scarlatti, and some even lesser known composers. Highlighted are the dramatic aria from Monteverdi's lost opera, Arianna, and Vivaldi's only cantata for soprano and flute. Tickets are $15 for regular admission and $7.50 for students and seniors. They're available through the ensemble's website, www.carolinapromusica.org, or at the door (1510 E. 7th Street). For more info, visit the website or call 704-334-3468. (Vespa)
The healing power of origami comes to Charlotte, the origami capital of the Carolinas, as Tarradiddle Players perform A Thousand Cranes at Children's Theatre. At the heart of Katherine Schultz Miller's drama is the icon of Hiroshima, 12-year-old Sadako Sasaki. When she learned she had leukemia caused by atomic radiation, Sadako set out to fulfill the Japanese legend by folding a thousand origami cranes to cure herself. Faith, courage, and the consequences of war are all in the thematic wing-span of this touching, uplifting play, which won the NEA Playwriting Award. Nikki Adkins stars through Sunday at 1017 E. Morehead Street. Tickets are $12 for the center or $10 for the side — and rapidly vanishing. Call 704-333-8983. (Tannenbaum)
A long overdue Charlotte Symphony debut of Elgar's Symphony #1 crowns this week's concert at Belk Theater. But it's only one of multiple debuts at the PAC through Saturday. Cellist Daniel Muller-Schott straddles the guest soloist's chair, bringing his winning Tchaikovsky Competition credentials to the service of Haydn's Cello Concerto in C. While M-S makes his CSO debut, British conductor Anthony Bramall makes his first appearance on a US podium. Nor is the Elgar the only work he'll be introducing to Symphony subscribers. The ensemble will open up with Britten's orchestration of Henry Purcell's Chacony in G Minor, among the composer's most famous theatre music. Tickets are $14-$68 and available by calling 704-972-2000. (Tannenbaum)
19 - SATURDAY
Tanya Bannister joins the Charlotte Philharmonic Orchestra at Ovens Auditorium for an evening that combines Russian flamboyance and Riverdance pizzazz. Winner of the 2003 Concert Artists Guild International Competition, Bannister will handle the keyboard honors in CPO's Rachmaninoff and Romance. She'll plunge straight into the Rach's Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini — with maybe a few extra Variations on a Theme of Paganini tossed in (the PR seems a bit confused on that point). High-voltage folkdance will be the province of the Walsh-Kelly School of Irish Dance. Ever-genial maestro Albert Moehring and his CPO cohorts will accompany this revelry by playing "Irish Legend," an original composition by Robert Kerr, who completes the Celtic flavoring with his fiddling. Tickets are $25. Call 704-846-2788. (Tannenbaum)
20 - SUNDAY
The Seasons of Soul series presents multi-instrumentalist Peven Everett at Amos' Southend tonight. The Illinois-born producer, writer and vocalist is also proficient on almost a dozen different instruments, ranging from trumpet to guitar, and uses that diverse talent to create a wide variety of sounds including jazz, soul, house, samba and bombossa. His talents have landed him sideman gigs with Roy Hargrove, Betty Carter, and Branford and Wynton Marsalis, and his song "I Can't Believe I Loved Her" was one of the most popular deep house records of 2003. His most recent, Latest Craze, features many of those elements in a soulful mix that continues to win over critics and fans alike. The doors open at 8:30pm. For more information, call 704-377-6874 or go to www.amossouthend.com. (Schacht)
The Afro-American Cultural Center celebrates its 30th anniversary with a heritage gala featuring music by the Grammy Award-winning African-American female a cappella ensemble Sweet Honey in the Rock, dances by Chuck Davis African-American Dance Ensemble and the visual artwork of Tejoula Turner. Festivities begin at 5:30pm with a reception in the Bank of America Founders Hall followed by performances at 7pm in the Belk Theater of the Blumenthal Performing Arts Center. Tickets for the reception and performance are $75 and individual tickets for the performance only are $40. Tickets can be ordered through the AACC website at www.aacc-charlotte.org or by calling 704-374-1565. (Shukla)
23 - WEDNESDAY
The Parrotheads and their margaritas will be out in force tonight as their hero and icon Jimmy Buffett stops in at the Charlotte Coliseum for an 8pm show. Buffett is famous for his tropical country-pop, a celebratory mix of beach bumming and humor best captured in his hit song "Margaritaville." But Buffett's also an author, restaurateur and in charge of the multi-million dollar enterprise that is Jimmy Buffett, now in its fourth decade. Tickets for the show, if they're still available, run from $45-$65. For more information, go to www.charlottecoliseum.com. (Schacht)
