Here's your weekend family fun ...
This Friday is the first Friday in March, which means downtown Raleigh restaurants, galleries, shops and museums will be open with special deals or hours. These include Marbles Kids Museum, N.C. Museum of Natural Sciences, N.C. Museum of History, ArtSpace, Raleigh City Museum and more. First Friday can be a family-friendly outing, especially for families with school-aged kids and up if you want to venture beyond the museums. For all the details, go to the
First Friday website.
Among the special events Friday evening is the history museum's presentation of a
new readers' theater work about Sojourner Truth, the 19th-century abolitionist and women's rights activist. The piece is set for 7 p.m., Friday, at the history museum in downtown Raleigh. Four professional actors in the performance group Voices in Concert will present the play, which is best for kids 10 and up. There are some passing references to violence, particularly against African women. Tickets are $5 per person. Admission is free for kids ages 12 and under. You can buy tickets online or at the door on Friday night. The history museum also has a
free concert at 2 p.m., Sunday, featuring the songs of mill workers, union strike songs and more.
Marbles Kids Museum is marking
Dr. Seuss' birthday with special events from 9:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m., Friday (which also happens to coincide with the opening of The Lorax at Marbles' IMAX Theatre and at movie theaters across the region).
The
Harlem Globetrotters make its annual stop at the RBC Center at 7 p.m., Friday, in Raleigh. Tickets start at $20 plus fees.
We have some big consignment sales this weekend. Read
my earlier post for details.
The Friends of the Chapel Hill Public Library will hold a
book sale Friday through Sunday. New and used books will be available. Children's books start at just 50 cents a piece.
Applause! Cary Youth Theatre presents "Jason and the Argonauts" this weekend. Shows are 7:30 p.m., Friday and Saturday, and 2 p.m., Sunday, at the Cary Arts Center. "Sail the seas with Jason and his crew of heroes on a quest to find the Golden Fleece. This wild new retelling of the ancient Greek myth is modern, unpredictable and hilarious – truly a “comedy of tragic proportions," says the description. Tickets are $10 for adults, $8 for students and seniors and $5 for children age 5 and under. All tickets at the door are $10.
Flyleaf Books in Chapel Hill has two events geared toward kids. At 10 a.m., Saturday, the store will have a preschool storytime and craft activity. At 2 p.m., Saturday, local author R.K. Hardy will read from his young adult novel "The Cheetah Diaries." Hardy's book is best for kids ages 12 and up.
Bright Star Touring Theatre will perform two shows at the N.C. Museum of Art on Saturday. Shows are 11 a.m. and 1 p.m. American Dreams, designed for all ages, is a fast-paced introduction to America and the American Dream told through a variety of stories. Tickets are $5. The museum also will have some free drop-in crafts from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., Saturday. You do not need a ticket to the performance to do the crafts.
Click here for details, to buy tickets and for more information about all of the other great programs at the museum.
Atlas International School will host a foreign language circle time at Quail Ridge Books and Music at 11 a.m., Saturday, in Raleigh. Kids ages 0 to 6 can enjoy singing, dancing, marching and finger plays. Parents can learn more about Atlas.
And young adult author Lauren Oliver will stop at Quail Ridge at 3 p.m., Sunday. Oliver, author of "Before I Fall" and "Delirium" has written "Pandemonium," which is best for ages 14 and up. This is a signing line ticket event, which means you need to purchase one of her books at Quail Ridge to get a ticket for her to sign it. Oliver was mentioned in Time's 2012 "User's Guide" issue as the big young adult author to watch this year, Quail Ridge tells me.
