FUN
Fiesta en Soma
SoMa 501 celebrates “the richness of Latin American traditions” and honoring Hispanic Heritage Month with live music, food, dance performances and “interactive activities,” according to a news release, with the third Fiesta en SoMa, 4-9 p.m. Friday, along Little Rock’s Main Street between 12th and 15th streets in the SoMa neighborhood.
Among the festival highlights:
◼️ A tamale taste-off competition, in which restaurants and individual cooks compete for a chance to win cash prizes and trophies. Sampler tickets are $15; visit givebutter.com/tamaletasteoff.
◼️ Music by DJ Nica and Mariachi America
◼️ Food trucks offering cuisines from several Latin American countries
◼️ Street vendors
◼️ Dance lessons by Club 27 and a presentation by Ballet Folklorico Reflejos Mexicanos
◼️ New this year, a performance by TAC Wrestling.
Overall admission is free; fare from food trucks and merchandise from vendors, of course, costs money. Visit somalittlerock.com/fiestaensoma or email [email protected].
(Special to the Democrat-Gazette)
Hillcrest HarvestFest
Kavanaugh Boulevard in Little Rock’s Hillcrest neighborhood will close between North Monroe Street to Walnut Street, 6 a.m.-10 p.m. Saturday for the annual HarvestFest in Hillcrest, 11 a.m.-7 p.m. The street party features more than 120 vendors, 15 food trucks, a local beer garden, a pie contest, an all-day concert on the Lost Forty stage (with performers Isaac Alexander, Case Oats and headliner Lucius) and a kids entertainment zone (featuring pumpkin painting, story time and activities from the Central Arkansas Library System), live animal encounters from the Little Rock Zoo, arts and crafts, bubble magic courtesy of Big Poppa Bubble and a performance from the Pulaski Heights Middle School Cheer Squad. The annual dog show, presented by Hounds Lounge Pet Resort & Spa and Healthy Life Pet Clinic, offers awards for best-dressed and most talented pups, a red carpet entrance and Wag Bags for the first 50 entries — all proceeds supporting CARES for Animals. Primary beneficiary of proceeds for the rest of the festival is The Allen School, which supports special-needs children up to age 5 and prepares them and their parents for kindergarten. Admission is free. Visit hillcrestharvestfest.com.
Library grandly reopens
The Central Arkansas Library System grand-reopens its Main Library, 100 Rock St., Little Rock, after a two-year redesign and rebuild, 9 a.m.-4 p.m. Saturday. (The library actually opened to the public on Monday.)
Festivities kick off with a 9 a.m. opening ceremony; the Philander Smith University Panther Doll Cheerleaders will put on a 10 a.m. show in the library parking lot. Activities for kids include mini-train rides, music from Papa Rap, balloon craft by Vicente Yanez, Kindness Rock painting, a bounce house, face-painting, a carousel and games and bubble wand-making. There will be a 1-3 p.m. karaoke session for teenagers.
Adults can take part in three “Digital Treasures: Discover Your Library’s Databases” sessions, each with a different focus, at 11 a.m. and 1:30 and 3 p.m. in the new basement Technology Center, and a 1:30 p.m. “Demo with Sweet Creations by Tiffany” in the new Teaching Kitchen.
Boulevard Bread Co. will be open in the brand-new café space; other grand-opening food offerings come from Kingdom Made Treats, The Dogfather, Mr. Keith’s Kettle Corn and Delicioso Tamales & Catering.
The redesigned library parking lot will be closed; free shuttles will run all day to the library from the Clinton Presidential Center, 1200 President Clinton Ave.
A complete schedule is available at events.cals.org/event/14629479.
Conway ArtsFest
The Conway Alliance for the Arts holds its 19th Conway ArtsFest, 10 a.m.-2 p.m. Saturday at Fifth Avenue Park, 600 Fifth Ave., Conway, featuring “hands-on art experiences for all ages,” according to a news release, include screen printing, cyanotype and canvas painting, Gelli printmaking, tie-dyeing, button-making and poetry writing. The festival will also include performances by the Conway High School Chamber Orchestra, the Roundy Roundabout, Arkansas AcroYoga and the University of Central Arkansas Theatre. Admission is free. Visit conwayarts.org/artsfest.
Costume contest
The Stardust Big Band holds its 10th Halloween Costume Contest, 3 p.m. Sunday at the Arlington Resort hotel, 239 Central Ave., Hot Springs. There are prizes in four categories: best female, best male, best couple and audience favorite. (There’s no contest for children but they can come in costume.) You may bring a sweet treat for your table and guests but no other food from outside the hotel. Beverages from the lobby bar can be taken to the ballroom; ice water will be served at the tables. Admission is $10, free for K-12 students. For more information, email [email protected].
(Special to the Democrat-Gazette/Ron Elkman)
THEATER
‘Spamilton’ spoof
A touring cast of eight performs “Spamilton: An American Parody,” 7:30 p.m. Thursday at the Center for Humanities and Arts Theatre, on the University of Arkansas Pulaski Technical College, 3000 W. Scenic Drive, North Little Rock. Creator Gerard Alessandrini is also the comic mastermind behind “Forbidden Broadway.” The show spoofs recent Broadway blockbusters, including celebrity satires and pop culture zings, with hip-hop piano accompaniment. Tickets are $55 and $65 via uaptc.edu/charts. Dinner, beer, wine and light concessions will be available; a full buffet dinner, catered by the UA-PTC Culinary Institute, is available with advance purchase, for $25.
A-State ‘Emma’
Arkansas State University’s theater department will kick off its 2025-26 season with a production of “Emma,” Kate Hamill’s adaptation of the Jane Austen classic, 7:30 p.m. Friday and Oct. 10-11 and 2:30 p.m. Sunday and Oct. 12 in the Drama Theatre at A-State’s Fowler Center, 201 Olympic Drive, Jonesboro. The department’s content warnings include mild romantic situations and notions of matchmaking, gentle social satire, occasional passive-aggressive dialogue and very mild suggestive themes (but nothing explicit). Tickets are $15, free for A-State students. Call (870) 972-2781 or visit AState.edu/tickets.
ART & EXHIBITS
Traveling ‘Till’ exhibit
“Emmett Till & Mamie Till-Mobley: Let the World See,” exploring the life and legacy of Emmett Till, the 14-year-old boy whose 1955 lynching became a catalyst for the Civil Rights movement, and the activism of his mother, Mamie Till-Mobley, to keep his memory alive, opens Thursday at the Mosaic Templars Cultural Center, 501 W. Ninth St., Little Rock. The exhibition, created by The Children’s Museum of Indianapolis in collaboration with the Emmett Till Interpretive Center and the Till family, includes photographs, oral histories and interactive displays.
In conjunction with the exhibit, the center will host Sankofa Sundays Oct. 5 and Nov. 2, during which attendees can take a guided tour and eat a catered lunch. (“Sankofa,” from the Akan language of West Africa, means “go back and fetch it”; it is represented by a bird looking backward while moving forward, according to a museum statement.)
The Nov. 2 Sankofa Sunday will also include a performance by the Arkansas Symphony Orchestra. The orchestra will also give a separate performance on Oct. 11. Admission to each event is free. Get details on lunch options, sign up and pay in advance at tinyurl.com/y7bmz7tr.
The exhibit will remain up through Jan. 4. Museum hours are 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Tuesday-Saturday. Admission is free. Call (501) 683-3593.
Woodwork and paintings
Wood sculpture and paintings by Robyn Horn go on display with a 5-9 p.m. Friday Hot Springs Gallery Walk reception at Justus Fine Art Gallery, 827A Central Ave., Hot Springs. The exhibition remains up through Oct. 31. Gallery hours are 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Wednesday-Saturday and by appointment. Admission to the reception and gallery is free. Call (501) 321-2335 or visit justusfineart.com.
ETC.
Health Expo
The Arkansas Democrat-Gazette Health and Wellness Expo will feature vendor exhibits, educational seminars and Arkansas Travelers Bingo, 9 a.m.-1 p.m. Saturday at City Center, 315 N. Shackleford Road, Little Rock. Sponsor is the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, which is offering health screenings (no appointment needed) as well as information on injury prevention, vascular health and breast cancer. Gardening expert Janet Carson will be among the participants; there will also be panels focusing on heart health, cancer guidance and other health topics. There will be prize drawings throughout the day. Admission is free. Register at bit.ly/40WZvvV.
‘ The preceding article may include information circulated by third parties ’
‘ Some details of this article were extracted from the following source www.nwaonline.com ’
