Monthly Archives: March 2019

Mardi Craw 2019 at the Little Rock Zoo on Sunday, March 3

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Mardi Gras may be Tuesday, but the Little Rock Zoo celebrates Mardi Craw on Sunday, March 3.

Mardi Craw at the Zoo features sustainable crawfish and catfish, too! The good folks from Crawfish Country Catering are back and you won’t want to miss these bugs! Crawfish Country Catering is straight from Ville Platte, LA and serves up some of the biggest and best bugs in the south and we bring them to you fresh at Mardi Craw’n for the Zoo! You can’t beat these bugs!

Craft beer can also be enjoyed by those at least 21 years of age. And you’ll need to quench your thirst after a generous portion of king cake. It is a fun-packed afternoon of food and festivities.

The event begins at noon with catered crawfish, catfish, corn on the cob and potatoes. Enjoy live entertainment from Crescent City Combo, Mardi Gras themed fun and some special animal encounters in the Zoo atmosphere.

To guarantee a ticket, advance purchase is encouraged.  Tickets may be available at the gate, but Zoo events tend to sell out in advance.  Ticket covers admission to the Zoo as well as food and drink for the event.

NO TEARS SUITE, commissioned by OXFORD AMERICAN being performed tonight

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In September 2017, Oxford American premiered a 60-minute jazz composition entitled No Tears Suite, written by Little Rock jazz pianist Chris Parker and vocalist Kelley Hurt. The duo created the work in honor of unity on the 60th anniversary of the Little Rock Central High School desegregation crisis.

In this reprisal, Parker and Hurt will again be joined by five exceptional jazz artists, including GRAMMY-winning jazz drummer Brian Blade, who played in the original 2017 ensemble, in addition to fifteen members of the Arkansas Symphony Orchestra who will premiere the new, expanded symphonic arrangements of the No Tears Suite written by GRAMMY-nominated arranger, composer and bassist Rufus Reid.

The program starts at 8pm tonight at the Mosaic Templars Cultural Center, 501 W 9th Street.  Tickets may be purchased here.

The artists include:
Geoffrey Robson, conductor
Kelly Hurt, vocalist
Chris Parker, piano/composer
Rufus Reid, bass/arranger
Brian Blade, drums
Bobby LaVell, tenor saxophone
Marc Franklin, trumpet
Chad Fowler, alto and baritone saxophones

Ten Minute Play Showcase today

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ACANSA is proud to announce the second-annual Ten-Minute Play Showcase, a celebration of new work written, directed and enacted by local artists. The festival will be co-produced and directed by Hilary Trudell, founder of The Yarn and the Director of Local Programming at the Clinton School of Public Service.

Performances are at 3pm and 7pm in the Arkansas Repertory Theatre Annex.  Tickets are $10 and can be purchased here.

  • The Unicorn: A Musical – Written by Nancy Baxter and Paul Stephan,  and directed by Andy Vaught
  • The Great American Winnebago Extravaganza – Written by Jack Clay and directed by Molly Emerson
  • The Three Banishments of Shelbie – Written by Andy Vaught and directed by Nathan Adam Sullivan
  • The Misadventures of Atychimus and Casus – Written by Katy Divino and directed by Andy Vaught
  • The Visit – Written by Crystal C. Mercer and directed by Dr. Carla (C.C.) Carter
  • Anyone – Written by Anna Wong and directed by Juain Young
  • Ghost Shadows – Written by Allison Frase Reavis and directed by Jake Whisenant

200 Years of Arkansas

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On March 2, 1819, the Arkansas Territory was authorized by an act of Congress, to take effect  on July 4, 1819.

The Arkansas Territory was created from the portion of the Missouri Territory. It originally encompassed all of what is now Arkansas and much of what is now Oklahoma. The westernmost portion of the territory was removed on November 15, 1824, a second westernmost portion was removed on May 6, 1828, reducing the territory to the extent of the present state of Arkansas.

The Territorial capital was Arkansas Post from July 1819 until June 1821. At that point in time it was moved to Little Rock. In 1819, there was no permanent settlement in Little Rock. It would not be until early February 1820 that a permanent settlement would be established.  On 1818, the Quapaw Treaty had anticipated a future settlement in Little Rock.

Women Making History – Erle Chambers

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First woman sworn in as a member of the Arkansas General Assembly: Erle Chambers.

Miss Chambers of Little Rock was elected in 1922 at the same time as Frances Hunt of Pine Bluff. But because members were sworn in based on their last names, she was actually sworn in first.

She had trained as an attorney at both the University of Arkansas and the University of Chicago, but never practiced law.  She served as Pulaski County probation officer from 1913 until 1917. At that time, she went to work for the Tuberculosis Association, where she would work until her death in 1941.

Miss Chambers served in the Arkansas General Assembly from 1923 until 1926.

Artists announced for 61st Annual Delta Exhibition at the Arkansas Arts Center.

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The Arkansas Arts Center’s 61st Annual Delta Exhibition will feature work by 49 exceptional artists from the Mississippi Delta region. The exhibition will be on view May 3 through June 30, 2019.

Guest juror Kevin Cole selected 50 artworks by 49 artists, representing 10 states. The works were chosen from more than a thousand entries by 408 artists.

Showcasing artists living and working in Arkansas and its border states, the Annual Delta Exhibition presents a vision of contemporary art in the American South. Founded in 1958, the exhibition features work in an array of media to provide a snapshot of the Delta region now – while reflecting on the region’s strong traditions of craftsmanship and observation.

The 61st Annual Delta Exhibition will be the last major exhibition on view before the Arkansas Arts Center’s upcoming renovation and expansion project. Groundbreaking on the transformational renovation project is scheduled for this fall. Continuing its long and illustrious history, the Delta Exhibition will pop up at locations across Central Arkansas and beyond while the Arts Center’s MacArthur Park building is under construction.

Cole, the show’s juror, is an Atlanta-based artist best known for sculptural works, paintings, and intentional use of color. An Arkansas native, Cole’s work was featured in the 42nd Annual Delta Exhibition (1999) at the Arkansas Arts Center. Cole was inducted into the Arkansas Black Hall of Fame in 2018.

Artists featured in the 61st Annual Delta Exhibition include:

  • John Alhen of Little Rock, Ark.
  • Joshua Asante of Little Rock, Ark.
  • Carrie Ballinger Porter of Little Rock, Ark.
  • Loren Bartnicke of Auburn, N.Y.
  • Kenneth Baskin of Lake Charles, La.
  • Zachary Blair of Little Rock, Ark.
  • Kim Brecklein of Harrison, Ark.
  • Cynthia Buob of Columbus, Miss.
  • Debra Callahan of Jonesboro, Ark.
  • Olevia “Libby” Caston of Russellville, Ark.
  • Julie Darling of Memphis, Tenn.
  • Karen DeJarnette of Little Rock, Ark.
  • Virmarie DePoyster of North Little Rock, Ark.
  • Dylan Eakin of Seattle, Wash.
  • Ivy-Jade Edwards of Memphis, Tenn.
  • Scinthya Edwards of Helena, Ark.
  • DebiLynn Fendley of Arkadelphia, Ark.
  • Bryan Frazier of Little Rock, Ark.
  • Janet Goodyear of Eureka Springs, Ark.
  • John Green of Little Rock, Ark.
  • Alice Guffey Miller of Monticello, Ark.
  • Heather Christine Guenard of Cabot, Ark.
  • Pam-ela Harrison of Dallas, Texas
  • Carol Hart of Fayetteville, Ark.
  • Amber Imrie of Sunnyvale, Calif.
  • Sherry Leedy of Kansas City, Mo.
  • Mark Lewis of Tulsa, Okla.
  • Jason McCann of Maumelle, Ark.
  • Keith Melton of North Little Rock, Ark.
  • Daniella Napolitano of Little Rock, Ark.
  • Dale Newkirk of Hammond, La.
  • Kevin O’Brien of Ocean Springs, Miss.
  • Mark Payne of Pine Bluff, Ark.
  • Rashawn Penister of Pine Bluff, Ark.
  • Yelena Petroukhina of Little Rock, Ark.
  • Jason Rankin of Little Rock, Ark.
  • Zachary Roach of Memphis, Tenn.
  • Jay Sage of Oklahoma City, Okla.
  • Ray Scott of Little Rock, Ark.
  • Sandra Sell of Little Rock, Ark.
  • Hunter Stamps of Lexington, Ky.
  • Laura Terry of West Fork, Ark.
  • Holly Tilley of Little Rock, Ark.
  • Mabry Turner of Little Rock, Ark.
  • Katelyn Vaughan of Monroe, La.
  • Michael Warrick of Little Rock, Ark.
  • Lauren Welshans of Little Rock, Ark.
  • Nancy Wilson of Little Rock, Ark.
  • Emily Wood of Little Rock, Ark.

The 61st Annual Delta Exhibition is sponsored (at this time) by Isabel and John Ed Anthony; Bank OZK; Philip R. Jonsson Foundation; Mrs. Lisenne Rockefeller; Dianne and Bobby Tucker; Terri and Chuck Erwin; Friday, Eldredge & Clark, LLP; the AAC Contemporaries; Phyllis and Michael Barrier; Robert Chandler; Sandra and Bob Connor; East Harding Construction; Barbara Rogers Hoover; and Don A. Tilton, The Capitol Group. Reception support is provided by Catfish Farmers of America. The Grand Award is supported by The John William Linn Endowment Fund. The exhibition is supported by the Andre Simon Memorial Trust in memory of everyone who has died of acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS).

Tonight at the Old State House Museum – Erin Enderlin in Concert

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Image may contain: 1 person, guitar and indoorThe Old State House Museum (OSHM) will host rising country music star Erin Enderlin on March 1, 7-9 p.m., for a free community concert.

Doors open at 6:30 p.m. Admission is free and open to the public. Beer and soft drinks will be served.

The museum can validate parking at the DoubleTree hotel; metered parking near the hotel is free after 6 p.m.

Recently named one of CMT’s Next Women of Country and Arkansas’s Country Music Songwriter of the Year, Enderlin is an Arkansas native and award-winning singer/songwriter currently based in Nashville, Tenn.

Her critically acclaimed sophomore album, “Whiskeytown Crier,” was co-produced by Jamey Johnson and Jim “Moose” Brown and features Chris Stapleton, Randy Houser and Ricky Skaggs. An in-demand songwriter, Enderlin penned Alan Jackson’s “Monday Morning Church,” Lee Ann Womack’s “Last Call,” and others for Luke Bryan, Randy Travis, Terri Clark, Joey + Rory and many more.

During the March 1 concert, Enderlin will present the guitar she used when writing “Monday Morning Church,” which she is donating to OSHM. The guitar will be included in the museum’s collection of Arkansas music artifacts.

Enderlin is touring with Jamey Johnson during February and March, and she will take a detour to Arkansas to play the March 1 show. All tour dates are available on her website at https://www.erinenderlin.com/p/tour.

Previously, Enderlin has toured with artists including Willie Nelson, Kip Moore and Marty Stuart. She was recently named Nashville Scene’s Runner-up for Best Singer-Songwriter in Nashville behind Jason Isbell.