Jan. 22
Children’s Musical Theater Auditions
RUSSELLVILLE — The Arkansas Center for Music Education is seeking actors and singers for the Spring 2015 Wee Children’s and Children’s Musical Theater program. Rehearsals will be held Thursdays, starting today, at ACME, 502 Tyler Road. The Wee Children’s Musical Theatre production of The Pirates Who ALMOST Did Something, open to boys and girls ages 4 to 7, will rehearse from 5-6 p.m. The Children’s Musical Theatre production of Pirates! 2: The Hidden Treasure, open to boys and girls ages 8 to 13, will rehearse from 5-6:30 p.m. Auditions for main characters and solo singers for Pirates! 2 will be held today at the first rehearsal. Students are encouraged to arrange to pick up audition materials prior to the rehearsal. A parent or guardian is asked to attend the first rehearsal and meeting with students. To register for either musical or arrange to pick up audition materials, or for more information, email info@ac-me.org or call (479) 264-9107.
Jan. 22-30
Library Art Exhibit
CONWAY — The Faulkner County Library is hosting the public art exhibit And Then, I: Monuments to Pivotal Moments. The exhibit features installations of ceramic and figurative sculptures by Barbara Satterfield of Conway. Each set of figures creates a portrait of a turning point in time experienced by a group of women. The exhibit will be on view through Jan. 30. There will be a special meet-the-artist event at 2 p.m. Sunday. For more information, call the library at (501) 327-7482 or email Nancy@fcl.org.
Jan. 24 and 27
AARP Safe Driving Courses
CONWAY — Two AARP safe driving courses will be offered during January in Conway. The first class will be from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday at St. Joseph Catholic Church, 1115 College Ave. To register for the class, call (501) 247-2655. The second class will take place from 12:30-4:30 p.m. Tuesday at the Faulkner County Senior Center, 1620 Donaghey Ave. To register, call (501) 327-2895.
Jan. 26
Audubon Society Meeting
CONWAY — The Arkansas River Valley Audubon Society will meet at 7 p.m. in Room 10, downstairs, in Donald W. Reynolds Hall at Hendrix College. There will be a student at the door to direct people to the meeting. The program will be announced. Refreshments will be served, and visitors are welcome. For more information or detailed directions, call (501) 727-5470.
Jan. 28
QuickBooks for Beginners
RUSSELLVILLE — The Arkansas Small Business and Technology Development Center will present QuickBooks for Beginners from 9 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. at Arkansas Tech University. This hands-on workshop will introduce QuickBooks to small-business owners and their employees who have little or no experience using this accounting software. Topics will include setting up a new company; reconciling accounts; and working with lists, customers, vendors, assets and liabilities. Computers will be provided for use during the seminar. The cost is $65, and registration is required by calling (479) 356-2067 or visiting asbtdc.org/training/russellville-events.
Ongoing
Friends of Thomas Team Meeting
CONWAY — Friends of Thomas Team members gather from 10 a.m. to noon the fourth Saturday of the month at the Faulkner County Library. Upcoming sessions, sponsored by the Central Arkansas Model Railroad Club, will include this Saturday, followed by Feb. 28 and March 28. Admission is free, and all families are welcome to attend and discover the tools of the trade and favored brands of trains, as well as gather tips for a home layout or be part of a club layout crew. Children 5-12 years old may become Junior Engineers. A parent, grandparent or other adult must accompany each child and serve as his or her coach. Preregister for the sessions at admin@trains.buzz. The club also offers two Train Open House events for the public at the McGee Center per year.
Swing Dance Lessons
CONWAY — Beginner swing dance lessons will be held by the Conway Rounders from 7-8 p.m. every Tuesday, through March 2, at Wesley United Methodist Church, 2310 E. Oak St. For more information, call (501) 428-9026.
TeamKID
MAUMELLE — Southern Hills Baptist Fellowship and JumpZone have teamed up to offer a free children’s program, TeamKID, for first- through sixth-graders. The program is held at 6:30 p.m. each Wednesday at the JumpZone building. For more information, call (501) 851-7729 or visit www.southernhillsbaptist.tv.
Midday Manna
CONWAY — A Bible lecture and luncheon led by Wanda Landers takes place from 11:45 a.m. to 12:50 p.m. the second Tuesday of each month at Woodland Heights Baptist Church, 4215 Prince St. Lunch, including a drink and dessert, is served for $5. For child care by reservation, call (501) 329-0001.
Tea Party Meeting
HEBER SPRINGS — Arkansas’ We the People Tea Party of Cleburne County meets at 6:30 p.m. the first and third Thursdays of every month at St. Barnabas Anglican Church, 1101C W. Main St. Various issues are discussed. For more information, call Marlin Schwartz at (847) 977-5261.
Upcoming
Tchaikovsky, Mozart Festival
MAUMELLE — The Arkansas Symphony Orchestra will hold its Masterworks Tchaikovsky and Mozart Festival on Jan. 31 and Feb. 1 at the Maumelle High School Performing Arts Center, 100 Victory Lane. The guest conductor will be Vladimir Verbitsky, and the featured violinist will be Randall Goosby. For more information, call (501) 666-1761, email info@arkansassymphony.org, or visit www.arkansassymphony.org.
Saint Louis Brass Quintet Concert
RUSSELLVILLE — The Saint Louis Brass Quintet will appear in concert at 7:30 p.m. Feb. 2 in Witherspoon Auditorium, 407 W. Q St., at Arkansas Tech University. The free concert is open to the public. The quintet features Allan Dean on trumpet, Melvyn Jernigan on trombone, Jeff Nelson on horn, Daniel Perantoni on tuba and Ray Sasaki on trumpet. The quintet will offer free master classes, also open to the public, from 4:30-5:30 p.m. in Witherspoon Hall. For more information about the group’s events, contact Sean Reed, assistant professor of music, at sreed18@atu.edu. To learn more about performances hosted by the Arkansas Tech Department of Music, call (479) 968-0368 or visit www.atu.edu/music.
Reading and Book Signing
CONWAY — Local author Krystal Murphy will read from and sign copies of her new book, They Call Her Jimmie Lee Cooper, at 10 a.m. Feb. 4 at the Faulkner County Library. The book tells the story of the family matriarch, born in 1918 in Bradley County, and chronicles the struggles and triumphs of an Arkansas family. Murphy is an Arkansas native who has been writing stories since her teens. She has self-published four books. All library programs are free and open to the public. For more information, call the library at (501) 327-7482, email Nancy@fcl.org, or visit Facebook or Twitter.
To submit an item for the Calendar of Events, mail information to Calendar of Events, River Valley & Ozark Edition, P.O. Box 2221, Little Rock, AR, 72203; fax to (501) 378-3500; or email to rvonews@arkansasonline.com. Deadlines for calendar-item submissions are noon Friday for Thursday editions and noon Tuesday for Sunday editions.