The Weekend Ten: Top things to do, places to be

LITTLE ROCK — 1 BANJO

It will be a weekend of hand-clapping and handiwork at the Ozark Folk Center in Mountain View. The annual Tribute to Grandpa Jones will feature performances by John McEuen and Sons, 7 p.m. Friday, $20, and Michael Martin Murphey, 7 p.m. Saturday, $25. Ramona Jones and Family will also join in. During the day, the park’s Craft Village will have a special Hands On in the Park, 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Saturday-Monday, with opportunities for guests to try their hands at crafts. Some activities, such as weaving, drawing and quilting are free with park admission. Others, including making your own candles, soap-on-a-rope or stamped leather key fobs, have additional costs. Admission is $10, $6 for children 6-12. Call (870) 269-3851 or visit ozarkfolkcenter.com.

2 BALL

R&B group Cameo headlines the Delta Classic 4 Literacy Old Skool Concert at 7 p.m. Friday at the Statehouse Convention Center, Little Rock. Also performing: Dru Hill and ’90s boy band Troop. Tickets are $25; $1 of each ticket supports literacy and education programs at Arkansas Baptist College. Call (501) 492-4900, e-mail atmyron@designgroupmarketing.com or visit Cameoconcert.ticketleap.com. The concert is part of the activities surrounding the seventh annual Delta Classic, which at 5 p.m. Saturday pits the University of Pine Bluff Golden Lions vs. Langston (Oklahoma) University at Little Rock’s War Memorial Stadium. Tickets are $25-$35 ($20 in the student section); call (501) 492-0698 or visit deltaclassic4literacy.com.

3 BLUES Hot Springs gets the blues this weekend — the 16th annual Hot Springs Blues Festival, Friday and Saturday in the downtown Hill Wheatley Plaza. Zac Harmon headlines the Friday night lineup (gates open at 5 p.m., show starts at 6); also on the Friday-night bill is Memphis bluesmen Eric Hughes and Brandon Santini and their bands and Ray Bonneville. On Saturday, gates open at 3 p.m. and the music begins at 4, with headliners the Fabulous Thunderbirds taking the stage about 9:50 p.m., preceded by the Bart Walker Band and Marquis Knox. Admission: $10 per day, $15 in advance for a weekend pass. Call (501) 815-2939 or visit spacityblues.org.

4 (PUNCHING) BAG Touring in support of his latest album Punching Bag, country music artist Josh Turner finishes up the 2012 Pepsi Concert Series at Magic Springs with a concert, 8 p.m. Sunday. Lawn seating is free with park admission, but reserved seating is $5 and VIP seating is $10. Admission to the park, 1701 E. Grand Ave., Hot Springs, is $44.99, $29.99 for ages 55 and older and people under 48 inches. Call (501) 624-0100 or visit magicsprings.com.

5 BRONCS Pack up the family for a trip to the Bar of Ranch at Clinton for the National Championship Chuckwagon Races, Friday-Sunday. This weekend of horse-related activities includes trail rides, barrel races and, of course, the chuckwagon competition. Joni Harms, The Kentucky Headhunters, Restless Heart, Phil McGarrah & Runnin on Empty and Darryl Worley are the musical performers this year. Admission to the ranch, 2848 Shakerag Road, is $25 per day, $15 on Sunday, and children 6-12 are half-price. Call (501) 745-5250 or (501) 745-8407 or visit chuckwagonraces.com.

6BAT The Arkansas Travelers take on the Northwest Arkansas Naturals at 7:10 p.m. today and Friday and the Springfield Cardinals at 7:10 p.m. Saturday, 2 p.m. Sunday and 1 p.m. Monday, wrapping up a season-ending home stand at Dickey-Stephens Park, at the North Little Rock end of the Broadway Bridge, 400 W. Broadway. Get ticket information at (501) 664-1555, by e-mailing travs@travs.com or at travs.com.

7 BENSON Multimedia works by North Little Rock artist Sarah Mattingly-Benson highlight the Arkansas Summer Show at the Faulkner County Library, 1900 Tyler St., Conway, with an opening reception, 6-7 p.m. today (“a sensory experience with visual artwork, summer sounds and refreshments [including] watermelon, lemonade, iced tea and other ‘Southern summer’ treats”) and a 7 p.m. artist presentation. The exhibition is on display 9 a.m.-7 p.m. Monday-Thursday, 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Friday-Saturday, 1-5 p.m. Sunday through Sept. 15. Admission to reception, artist presentation and the exhibition are free; 20 percent of art sales will benefit the Friends of the Library. Call (501) 327-7482 or email Nancy@fcl.org.

8 BLAZES The William F. Laman Public Library, 2801 Orange St., North Little Rock, examines a dark time in history with its newest exhibit, “Fighting the Fires of Hate: America and the Nazi Book Burnings,” Friday-Oct. 28. The traveling exhibit from the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum looks at the strong American reactions to book burnings in Germany in the early 1930s and the ways the burnings served as a rallying point for the United States during the war. The opening reception, 6-8 p.m. Sept. 7, will include music performed by violinist Meredith Maddox Hicks. Admission is free and gallery hours are 9 a.m.-9 p.m. Monday-Thursday, 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Friday-Saturday, 1-5 p.m. Sunday. Call (501) 758-1720 or visit lamanlibrary.org.

9BYE

“This may be the last chance the Von Trapp Family has to sing together for a long, long time,” as the current production of Rodgers and Hammerstein’s The Sound of Music at Murry’s Dinner Playhouse, 6323 Colonel Glenn Road, Little Rock, closes this weekend. Final performances are at 7:30 p.m. today-Saturday. Doors open at 6 p.m. Tickets (including buffet and show) are $31 tonight, $33 Friday-Saturday, $20 for children and those (with confirmatory ID) who are 16 going on 17. (Show-only tickets are $25, $15 children.) Call (501) 562-3131 or visit murrysdinnerplayhouse.com.

10 BROWSE Explore the recently remodeled Mather Lodge as Petit Jean State Park celebrates Founders’ Day, Saturday. The park will celebrate its history with walking tours, presentations, games, stories and a game of “Petit Jean-style” softball. Admission is free. Call (501) 727-5441 or visit petitjeanstatepark.com.

Weekend, Pages 29 on 08/30/2012

Print Headline: THE WEEKEND TEN