Elsewhere in entertainment, events and the arts this weekend:
ART: Panoramic paintings
"A Wider View of Arkansas: a panoramic view of scenic Arkansas," panoramic paintings by Paul Caldwell, goes on display with a 6-8 p.m. reception Friday at Cantrell Gallery, 8208 Cantrell Road, Little Rock.
The exhibit will remain up through July 1, 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday-Saturday. Admission is free. Call (501) 224-1335 or visit cantrellgallery.com.
'Soul' paintings
"Longhua Xu: The Soul of Arkansas," paintings by Longhua Hu, the Arkansas Arts Council's 2019 Arkansas Living Treasure, goes on display Friday in the Cabe Gallery of the Historic Arkansas Museum, 200 E. Third St., Little Rock. The exhibit will be up through Oct. 16, with a reception at 5 p.m. June 10 as part of the Spa City's 2nd Friday Art Night.
Paintings by Hot Springs artist Longhua Xu go on display Friday at Little Rock’s Historic Arkansas Museum. (Arkansas Department of Parks, Heritage and Tourism)
Xu immigrated with his family from China to Hot Springs in 1989. This series of paintings emerged from photographs of family outings with Xu's late wife, their children and grandchildren; paintings of farmers markets, swap meets and other social events "are love letters to his adopted state," according to a news release.
Gallery hours are 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Tuesday-Saturday, 1-5 p.m. Sunday. Admission is free. Call (501) 324-9351 or visit historicarkansas.org.
'Boyfriends, Etc.'
"Boyfriends, Etc." — oil paintings by Arkansas artist Natalie Conway — is on display May 13-Aug. 5 at 211 South, within the offices of Engel & Volkers Northwest Arkansas, 211 S. Main St., Bentonville. Admission is free. Gallery hours are 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday-Friday; during Bentonville Farmers Market, 9 a.m.-noon Saturday; and by appointment. Email kellie.lehr@gmail.com or visit nwa.evrealestate.com/211-South.
“He Doesn’t Do Agape at All,” part of “Boyfriends, Etc.,” oil paintings by Arkansas artist Natalie Conway, is on display at 211 South in Bentonville. (Special to the Democrat-Gazette)
Paper 'cuts' & portraits
The Arts & Science Center for Southeast Arkansas, 701 S. Main St., Pine Bluff is holding a reception for the exhibitions "In Between" by Tammy Harrington and "Life's a Card Game" by Rashawn Penister, 5-7 p.m. today.
"In Between," on display through July 30, combines Harrington's work as a printmaker with the Chinese folk art of paper cut. Penister's exhibition, up through June 25, features mixed-media portraits inspired by the idiom "to play the cards you're dealt," cutting playing cards into different shapes and creating portraits of well-known figures, including Miles Davis and Kendrick Lamar, and anonymous subjects.
Admission is free. Gallery hours are 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Tuesday-Friday, 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Saturday. Call (870) 536-3375 or visit asc701.org.
Jaydon Clark plays Marty in Benton’s Young Players production of “Madagascar — A Musical Adventure Jr.” (Special to the Democrat-Gazette/Matthew Burns Photography)
THEATER: 'Madagascar' musical
Benton's Young Players stage "Madagascar — A Musical Adventure Jr." (music and lyrics by George Noriega and Joel Someillan, book by Kevin Del Aguila, based on the DreamWorks animated feature), 7 p.m. Thursday-Friday, 2 and 7 p.m. Saturday, 2 p.m. Sunday at the Royal Theatre, 111 S. Market St., Benton. The production uses a strobe light and employs haze. Sponsor is Saline County Children's Dentistry. Tickets are $18; $15 for senior citizens 60 and older, members of the military and college students with valid ID; $8 for K-12 students. Visit TheRoyalPlayers.Ticketleap.com.
MUSIC: 'Together Again'
The River City Men's Chorus, in its first live performance in more than two years, comes "Together Again" in song, 3 p.m. Sunday and 7 p.m. Monday and May 19 at Second Presbyterian Church, 600 Pleasant Valley Drive, Little Rock.
The roughly one-hour program, performed without intermission, includes "Come to the Music" and "The Awakening" by Joseph M. Martin; "Danza" by Linda Spevacek; "Courage Lives" by Mark Patterson with alternate lyrics by David Glaze; "We Pray for Peace," music by Jean Sibelius, lyrics by Carolyn Winfrey Gilette, with a chorus for the audience; and arrangements of "What a Wonderful World," "Bridge Over Troubled Water," "Feeling Good," "Always Look on the Bright Side of Life," "We Rise Again" and the traditional spirituals "He's Got the Whole World in His Hands" and "Like a River in My Soul." Glaze conducts.
Doors open one hour before "curtain time." Admission is free. Call (501) 377-1080.
Organist Kevin Kwan performs Friday at the Cathedral of St. Andrew in Little Rock. (Special to the Democrat-Gazette)
Organ tributes
Kevin Kwan, organist and director of music at Christ and St. Luke's Episcopal Church in Norfolk, Va., will give a concert in celebration of the life of Robert Young Ellis, and in memory of Emily Cooper Gibson, 7:30 p.m. Friday on the Nichols & Simpson organ at the Cathedral of St. Andrew, 617 Louisiana St., Little Rock.
The program: "Prelude and Fugue" in c minor, BWV 546, by Johann Sebastian Bach; "Ciacona" in e minor by Dieterich Buxtehude; "Fantasie" in a minor by Cesar Franck; "Suite on Christ and St. Luke's" by Carl Haywood; "Meditation on 'Draw us in the Spirit's Tether'" by Gerre Hancock; "Jerusalem, My Happy Home" and "Amazing Grace! How Sweet the Sound" by George Shearing; and an improvisation on "We Shall Overcome" by Haywood.
Presenters are the Central Arkansas Chapter, American Guild of Organists; the Robert Ellis Trust; and Gerald Gibson. Admission is free. Call (501) 374-2794.
'Howling' winds
The Little Rock Winds Chamber Players will be "Howling at the Moon," 3 p.m. Sunday at Highland Valley United Methodist Church, 15524 Chenal Parkway, Little Rock. The program includes Dana Wilson's saxophone quartet, "Howling at the Moon"; Florence Price's "Octet for Brass and Piano"; Gordon Jacob's "Old Wine in New Bottles"; and the second and third movements from Philip Sparke's "Dance Movements." Tickets are $15, free for students. Visit lrwinds.org.
Timeless hymns
"Timeless Treasures of America's Favorite Hymns" is the theme of the Little Rock Musical Coterie's meeting, 2 p.m. Sunday at Trinity United Methodist Church, 1101 N. Mississippi St., Little Rock. Organist Janine Tiner and pianist Eloise Stowe, will accompany the audience in singing "Joyful, Joyful, We Adore Thee" by Henry Van Dyke, "Great Is Thy Faithfulness" by Thomas Chisholm, "Amazing Grace" by John Newton, "Here I Am Lord" by Dan Schutte and "God Be With You Till We Meet Again" by Jeremiah Rankin. Guest performers are Don Brazile, tenor; Suzanne Loerch, soprano; the Ladies Ensemble of Hot Springs Music Club; violinist Celia Wallace; and pianist Don Bingham. A meet-the-performers reception will follow in the Sanctuary Atrium. Admission is free. Call (501) 327-1118.
FILM: 'Made in Arkansas'
More than 50 new short films, features and documentaries, as well as "a few favorites from the 2020 and 2021 virtual festivals," will screen as part of the Made in Arkansas Film Festival, starting a 6 p.m. Friday, 9 a.m. Saturday and Sunday at the Ron Robinson Theater, 100 River Market Ave., Little Rock. Beer, wine, and concessions will be sold throughout the festival and intermissions will take place between each block. Day passes are $10; full weekend passes are $30. To buy tickets and find a full schedule of events, go to RonRobinsonTheater.org.
Festival sneak peek
Jonesboro's Foundation of Arts, in association with the Arkansas Cinema Society, is offering a sneak peek at its April 2023 OASIS Film & Digital Fest, which will take place alongside the already existing OASIS Arts & Eats, 2 p.m. Saturday at the Forum Theater, 115 E. Monroe Ave., Jonesboro. Admission is free. Call (870) 935-2726 or visit oasisfest.org.
The event includes a 6 p.m. screening of "Antiquities," mostly shot in a North Little Rock used furniture store. A recorded question-and-answer session with producer, writer and actor Graham Gordy and producer, writer and director Daniel Campbell follows.
The Oasis festival, April 21-23, 2023, is "a celebration of film and the art of film-making in the northeast Arkansas region, as well as across the state of Arkansas," according to a news release.