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Weekend Roundup: Exciting Things to Do This Weekend; Check ‘em Out and Make Plans Dec. 5-7

By Madison Fisler Lewis

Dec. 5, 2014. The High Country has so many exciting events to offer its community and visitors. Check our site every Friday for something new and exciting to look forward to while you’re watching the hour hand crawl to 5 o’clock. Find live music down the street, explore a nearby town’s local secrets or try out a new square dancing class. There’s always something fun to do in the High Country.

Weekend-Long Events

To check out this week’s movie trailers and this week’s movie review, click here.

Santa at the Boone Mall: Nothing says Christmas in the High Country like Santa Claus, so it’s a good thing that he has made his way down from the North Pole to The Boone Mall, so children can sit on his lap, take a picture and tell Kris Kringle exactly what they want to find under their Christmas Tree. For more information, click here.

Chetola Resort Festival of Lights: Each evening through January, guests can drive through the streets of Chetola Resort and be transported to a winter wonderland full of illuminated scenes and meticulously decorated buildings throughout the resort. Thousands are on display for all to see, and the spectacle attracts plenty of excited onlookers every year. Taking in the lights has become a family tradition for many High Country families, and for visitors as well. Some families drive up every year to see the beautiful sights at the resort, and many children have grown up with the Festival of Lights as an integral part of their Christmas traditions. For more information, click here.

A Christmas Carol: Heritage Hall will present the Johnson County High School Players’ rendition of Charles Dickens’ “A Christmas Carol” just in time for the holidays. The show will take the stage Dec. 5-7. Tickets for the show are $10 for adults and $5 for students. For more information, click here.

Christmas in Oz, Y’all: Tickets are now available for BeanStalk Community Theatre’s upcoming holiday Production, “Christmas in Oz, Y’all!” The show follows Dorothy and Aunt Em, of Wizard of Oz fame, as they are transported to the North Pole. There, the duo meets a whole host of holiday characters who will help Dorothy get home. For more information, click here.

Madrigal Feast: Blood! Tears! Romance! And a dagger! The Choir of St. Mary of the Hills in Blowing Rock requests the pleasure of your company at the legendary musical and gastronomic treat, “The Revels of Winter.” With four courses of magnificent medieval-style food and drink provided by Gideon Ridge Inn, madrigals and carols sung by the costumed choir as they serve spirits and comestibles, and original (occasionally bawdy) entertainment written and performed by the jester and wench, the evening promises to be one of general amusement and high revelry. For more information about this event click here.

Toy Drives: For some High Country residents, the holiday season means cold weather, higher electric and heating fuel bills, more groceries and other bills that can pile up and make it difficult on many families, and that strain is exacerbated by the need to purchase food and gifts. Luckily, the High Country has more than its fair share of nonprofit organizations and individuals willing to help out and spread some cheer to neighbors in need. For more information about the toy drives, click here.

Live Music at Twigs: Twig’s Restaurant in Blowing Rock hosts live music every Friday and Saturday night, from 9 p.m. until 1 a.m. featuring great local and regional artists with no cover charge.

Green Mother Goods Grand Reopening: Green Mother Goods will host grand reopening specials Dec. 5-6 featuring organic cotton and hemp apparel and accessories, stainless steel bottles and containers, fair-trade global artisan crafts and knitwear, local-made handcrafts and jewelry, natural baby products and children’s toys and sustainable, responsibly manufactured goods. The new located is at 196 Boone Heights Dr. across from Goodwill. For more information, call 828-236-7010.

Friday, Dec. 5

First Friday Art Crawl: On Friday, Dec. 5, downtown Boone will be taken over by the First Friday Art Crawl. Like always, this month’s crawl will feature food, drinks and live music with work and exhibitions from local artists. And as usual, everyone is invited to come out and enjoy some Friday night fun. If you’ve never experienced First Friday Art Crawl, here is your chance to get in on what the locals already know! Head on down to downtown Boone and enjoy a Friday night out on the town. Here’s what is happening this month.

Turchin Center Opening Celebration: From Dec. 5 through March 21, 2015, the Turchin Center for the Visual ARts will be home to artist Andrew Fullwood’s latest exhibit. Located in the Mayer Gallery’s West Wing, the Andrew Fullwood: Allurement Exhibition will feature 15 enchanting pieces. The exhibit will be open during the Turchin Center’s regular hours of operation. Admission is free. For more information about this event, click here.

Live Music at Lost Province: On Friday, Dec. 5, Lost Province will feature live music featuring Swing Guitars Trio. The night will also be a Freakin’ Firkin Friday at Five, which will feature the release of a special 12-gallon cask of beer at 5 p.m.

Saturday, Dec. 6

Holiday Scholarship Concert: On Friday, Dec. 5, Appalachian State University’s Hayes School of Music will host a Holiday Scholarship Concert at the Schaefer Center for the Performing Arts. The concert serves as a fundraiser to benefit scholarships for students in the Hayes School of Music. For more information about this event, click here. 

Boone Area Cyclists Holiday Party: Boone Area Cyclists will host the annual Holiday Party on Dec. 9 at 6 p.m. at Bistro Roca in Blowing Rock, which has generously donated space and food for the party for several years. Appalachian Mountain Brewery, Blowing Rock Brewing Company and Flat Top Brewing Company are also donating beers for the event. Tickets for food and drink are $10 for members and $15 for non-members.

Boone Christmas Parade: It’s beginning to feel a lot like Christmas! The High Country has already seen a good bit of snow so far and the weather has that familiar nip in the air, but for many High Country residents and visitors, it isn’t really Christmastime until Santa is spotted on King Street! The annual Downtown Boone Christmas Parade will bring Santa Claus, floats, performances and more to King Street to help kick off the most merry of seasons. For more information about this event, click here.

Appalachian Mountain Brewery Chili Cookoff: With the cold weather well underway, it’s easy to get wrapped up in the holiday fun with warm houses, hot chocolate and hot meals. But for some of our High Country neighbors, keeping their families warm and fed this winter is a struggle. On Dec. 6, Appalachian Mountain Brewery will host a Chili Cook Off starting at 6 p.m. to benefit the Hunger and Health Coalition to raise money to ensure that everyone can have a warm and happy holiday. For more information, click here.

An Appalachian Christmas Concert: Come celebrate the spirit of the holidays with Joe Shannon’s Mountain Home Music as it offers the final concert for 2014 – “An Appalachian Christmas.” This annual, free performance has become a favorite tradition for many families here in the High Country. The show will take place on Saturday, Dec. 6, at Grace Lutheran Church in downtown Boone. The show begins at 7:30 p.m. Click here for more information.

Banner Elk Christmas in the Park: Kick off the Christmas season with Banner Elk. On Saturday, Dec. 6, the town will host Christmas events including Breakfast with Santa, two showings of the movie “Arthur Christmas,” cookie decorating, ornament making, Christmas market and more. The Parade of Lights has a new route that will make the parade slightly longer and travel past more businesses in Banner Elk. For more information, click here.

Live Music at Lost Province: On Saturday, Dec. 6, Lost Province will host live music featuring Justin and Josh with no cover charge, from The Native L playing acoustic and original music.

Contra Dance: The Boone Country Dancers will be at the Old Cove Creek School in Sugar Grove for its next community contra dance on Saturday, December 6. Everyone is welcome to attend the contra dance regardless of dance experience. The evening will begin with a beginners’ workshop from 7:30-8:00 p.m. The goal of the workshop is to teach the fundamentals of contra dance with a focus on having fun. After the workshop, the regular dance will run from 8:00-11:00 p.m. with a waltz break at 9:30 p.m.

Watauga Community Band Christmas Concert: The Watauga Community Band performs its Christmas Concert on Saturday, Dec. 6, at 7 p.m. in the Blowing Rock School Auditorium. The band, under the direction of Bill Winkler, will ring in the holiday season with such favorites as Leroy Anderson’s Sleigh Ride, and George Frideric Handel’s The Hallelujah Chorus from The Messiah. The band will also perform Pyotr Tchaikovsky’s The Nutcracker and John Niles’ I Wonder as I Wander. Several small groups of band members will also play a selection of holiday music. The concert is free, and all are welcome to attend.

Flapjack Flip: The Watauga Education Foundation will host a Flapjack Flip on Saturday, Dec. 6, from 7:30-11 a.m. at Watauga High School. Pancakes, local sausage, country ham and homemade blueberry syrup will be served. Featuring Santa Claus, musicians, holiday shopping and raffle packages.

Sunday, Dec. 7

Live Music at the Green Park Inn: On Sunday, Dec. 7, the Green Park Inn’s Music on the Veranda (Indoors!) will present The Harris Brothers starting at 5 p.m. For more information about this event, call 828-414-9230.

Messiah Sing-Along: The 10th annual “Messiah” sing-along will be presented Sunday, Dec. 7, at 6 p.m. in Broyhill Music Center’s Rosen Concert Hall at Appalachian State University. Pi Kappa Lambda music society will collect donations to benefit to music scholarships in the Hayes School of Music. The sing-along will proceed in inclement weather unless the university closes.

Sunday Jazz Brunch: On Sunday, Dec. 7, Canyons in Blowing Rock will host the weekly Sunday Jazz Brunch with Todd Wright. Starting at 11 a.m., the event will feature live jazz music at Canyons located at 8960 Valley Blvd. in Blowing Rock. For more information about this event, call 828-295-7661.