FUN
'Unleash the Beast'
The world's top 40 bull riders go head-to-head against big bovines and each other, vying for early points in the competition for 2024 PBR World Champion, as the Professional Bull Riders "Unleash the Beast," 7:45 p.m. Friday (Round 1) and 6:45 p.m. Saturday (Round 2 and the championship round) at North Little Rock's Simmons Bank Arena. Tickets are $19-$109 plus service charges ($5 higher day of show). Call (800) 732-1727 or visit ticketmaster.com or PBR.com. VIP Elite Seats, in three tiers, include premium seats and a personal on-site concierge. Visit pbr.com/elite-seats-unleash-the-beast.
MUSIC
Argenta benefit
Monticello native, pianist, music director Michael Rice, now based in New York but a familiar presence at the Arkansas Repertory Theatre and the erstwhile Argenta Community Theater (now the Argenta Contemporary Theater), headlines "Michael Rice: A Homecoming Concert" at the theater, 405 Main St., North Little Rock, 2 and 7 p.m. Sunday. Joining Rice will be area performers Bob Bidewell, Jean Cantrell, Karen Q. Clark, Sarah Dailey, Daniel Felton, Ben Grimes, Lauren Lasseigne, Kathryn Pryor, Claire Rhodes, Amanda Smith, Judy Trice, and Will Trice. Tickets are $50-$75; proceeds benefit the Argenta Contemporary Theatre Education Program. Visit argentacontemporarytheatre.org.
'Two Romantics'
Arkansas Symphony Orchestra principals Andrew Irvin, violin; and David Gerstein, cello; join pianist Julie Cheek for a Festival of the Senses chamber music concert, 7 p.m. Sunday at St. Luke's Episcopal Church, 4106 John F. Kennedy Blvd., North Little Rock. For the program, titled "Two Romantics: Virtuosity & Melody," Irvin and Gerstein will play Friedrich Hermann's Grand Duo Brillant for Violin and Cello. And the three musicians will play the Piano Trio No. 1 in B major, op.8, by Johannes Brahms. A meet-and-greet reception will follow in the church's Parish Hall. Admission is free. Call (501) 753-3578 or email baxternan@aol.com.
'Chatauqua' chamber music
LR Chamber Winds performs a program titled "Chautauqua: Music of the Winds," featuring three woodwind trios and a mixed-winds ensemble, 7:30 p.m. today at University of Arkansas-Pulaski Technical College Center for Arts and Humanities Theater, 3000 W. Scenic Drive, North Little Rock. The program: Concertino for Flute, Clarinet and Piano by Ernest Bloch; "Tribute Trio for Flute, Alto Saxophone and Piano" by Russell Peterson; Divertimento for Eleven Wind Instruments by Gary D. Ziek; and "Fuzzette, The Tarantula, A Fable for Narrator, Flute, Alto Saxophone and Piano" by Robert Muczynski. Michael Chance conducts. The concert is part of the Little Rock Winds' Diversions chamber music series. Admission is free. Call (501) 666-0777 or visit lrwinds.org.
ART & EXHIBITS
"Assorted Vessels 001" by Matthew Castellano is part of an exhibition titled "The Universe According to the Dish Pit," on display starting Friday at the Argenta Library in North Little Rock. (Special to the Democrat-Gazette)
'Dish Pit' paintings
"The Universe According to the Dish Pit," large, abstract, mixed-media paintings, up-cycled skateboard decks and intricate Chine Colle prints by Little Rock artist Matthew Castellano, opens with a 5-8 p.m. Argenta Third Friday Art Walk reception Friday at the Argenta Library, 420 Main St., North Little Rock. Castellano's work aims to "collectively transport viewers into a world that explores the realms of skateboarding, artistic creation and the dynamics of food service," according to a news release. The exhibition remains up through April 5. Library hours are 9 a.m.-6 p.m. Monday-Friday. Admission to the reception and the exhibition is free. Call (501) 687-1061.
Post-war farmers
Plantation Agriculture Museum, 4815 Arkansas 161, Scott, on Saturday opens an exhibit called "Muttsu no Kazoku: Six Families' Journey from Internment to Scott," exploring the life of six Japanese-American families before, during and after World War II, including their internment in the Rohwer War Relocation Center, with special focus on their post-war lives in Scott. A special 10 a.m.-3 p.m. Sakura Matsuri (cherry blossom festival) will include games, vendors, martial arts demonstrations and a taiko drum performance. A formal opening ceremony at 5 p.m. will focus on special guests, including representatives of the six families, with hors d'oeuvres; guests are can tour the exhibit until 7 p.m. The exhibition remains up through July 27. Park hours are 8 a.m.-5 p.m. Wednesday-Saturday, 1-5 p.m. Sunday. Call (501) 961-1409 or visit ArkansasStateParks.com.
Architectural exhibition
"ELEVATE: Shaping Spaces, Changing Narratives," two-dimensional designs and three-dimensional models by 60 students at the Fay Jones School of Architecture and Design at the University of Arkansas, is on display through March 21 at Thea Foundation, 401 Main St., North Little Rock. The exhibition is in collaboration with and with support from RISE (Reinvest in Students Everywhere) and studioMAIN. Hours are 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday-Thursday. Admission is free. For more information, visit tinyurl.com/3mkxhk6u.
"Leaves of Grass: Walt Whitman" by Ray Allen Parker, a garment designed by Kristen Franyutti and "Slam Dunk" by Jessica Lambert go on display today Thursday March 14 at the Bradbury Art Museum at Arkansas State University in Jonesboro. (Special to the Democrat-Gazette/Kim Vickrey)
Three ASU exhibitions
Three exhibitions -- "Panoply: 26 Painted Lives: Ray Allen Parker," "Sugar & Venom: Kristen Franyutti" and "Sportsball: Jessica Lambert" -- open with a 5-6:30 p.m. reception today at the Bradbury Art Museum in Arkansas State University's Fowler Center, 201 Olympic Drive, Jonesboro.
"Panoply: 26 Painted Lives," up through May 29, gathers 26 larger-than-life oil paintings by Parker that explore the faces and figures of friends, family and creative heroes. In "Sugar and Venom," inspired by the artist's recent travels to Doha, Qatar, ASU faculty member Kristen Franyutti explores the concept of biological systems gone awry in a future matriarchal ecosystem inhabited by otherworldly creatures through seven works of wearable art. And artist and ASU faculty member Jessica Lambert describes "Sportsball" as "[exploring] competition, endurance and discipline using video performance and sculpture." "Sugar & Venom" and "Sportsball" are on display through April 3.
Admission to the reception and exhibitions is free. Gallery hours are noon-5 p.m. Tuesday-Saturday; the museum will also open from noon-5 p.m. April 8 during the solar eclipse. Call (870) 972-3434, email mmcmahan@astate.edu or visit BradburyArtMuseum.org.
'Impact of Exchange'
"Impact of Exchange: Stories from U.S. Exchange Alumni," a four-panel traveling photography exhibit featuring images taken by alumni of U.S. government exchange programs during their time abroad, remains up on the lawn of the MacArthur Museum of Arkansas Military History, 503 E. Ninth St., Little Rock, through April 10. The museum will host a ribbon-cutting ceremony and reception at 5 p.m. March 26. The exhibit is the work of Little Rock-based nonprofit Global Ties Arkansas, in partnership with the U.S. State Department's Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs' Office of Alumni Affairs, Global Ties U.S. and Photoville. Call (501) 376-4602.
ETC.
Seeking asphalt artists
The Downtown Little Rock Partnership, in collaboration with the City of Little Rock and SOMA 501, is seeking an artist or artist team to design and implement an asphalt artwork. The ground plane mural will span the complete square of the intersection of 13th and Main streets in the South Main (SoMA) neighborhood.
The DLRP is administering the $15,000 available for artist stipend(s) and supplies, as well as transportation to and from the site and travel and, if needed, lodging during all phases of the project. The partnership will work with the artist(s) "to create an installation plan and ensure the artwork is appropriate for street application," according to a news release. "Engaging the community for artwork installation is both allowed and encouraged."
The project, according to the Request for Qualifications, aims to:
◼️ Improve safety for pedestrians and cyclists
◼️ Beautify the historic SoMA streetscape and encourage visitors to spend more time in the area
◼️ Slow vehicular traffic, while increasing pedestrians and cyclists
◼️ Bring more art to this burgeoning neighborhood and be the first street surface installation at a full intersection in the city, and
◼️ Promote collaboration and civic engagement in the community.
Deadline to apply is March 25; applicants should submit materials submitted digitally via email to PublicArt@downtownlr.com.
Funding for the project comes from the Bloomberg Philanthropies Asphalt Art Initiative grant program. Little Rock is one of 25 cities in North America chosen from more than 200 applicants. Find additional details at downtownlr.com/pages/public-art/murals/open-projects/ or email kleyenberger@downtownlr.com.