Date: March 28, 2025 | Story: Stephanie Maxwell Newton |
Look to Arkansas arts organizations to engage your senses through exhibit openings, theater line-ups, music festivals, and so much more
May 16-17
FreshGrass at The Momentary
Mark your calendar for the fifth year of FreshGrass, Bentonville’s roots and folk music festival held on the grounds of The Momentary (themomentary.org) May 16-17. The event invites award-winning musicians to the stage along with programming such as artist talks, workshops, and competitions. For the 2025 event, headliners include Shakey Graves, the Béla Fleck Edmar Castañeda Antonio Sánchez Trio, Lukas Nelson, and Rosanne Cash with John Leventhal. One-day general admission tickets start at $89 for non-members.
April 15
415 Event
Arts on Main (artsonmainvb.com) presents 415 Event on April 15 at its headquarters in Van Buren. Billed as “the party of the year,” the significance of the event’s name and date is three-fold: April 15 is World Art Day and the birthday of artist Leonardo Da Vinci, and 415 is the street address of Arts on Main’s office and community space. This year, organizers promise “funky beats and yummy eats” in the form of a silent disco (in which attendees listen to music on headphones rather than over a loudspeaker) and tacos available from a local food truck. The festivities begin at 6 p.m. at Kings Opera House for a brief welcome before moving next door to the Arts on Main facility. Tickets are $50 (discounts are available for young adults and multiple tickets), and funds raised support Arts on Main’s programs.
“Untitled (Studio shoot with Marcia McBroom. Album cover for The Players’ Association featuring David Sanborn and Mtume)” by Kwame Brathwaite
April 19
“Kwame Brathwaite: The 1970s”
Little Rock’s Arkansas Museum of Fine Arts (arkmfa.org) celebrates the work of photographer and activist Kwame Brathwaite with a special exhibit of his work from the 1970s. As co-founder of the African Jazz Art Society and Studios and a series of Afro-centric fashion shows featuring a group known as the Grandassa Models, Brathwaite used his photography to promote these movements. He is also often credited with popularizing the phrase “Black is Beautiful” while championing natural beauty, Black pride, and self-expression. “Kwame Brathwaite: The 1970s” examines the artist’s legacy through a collection of portraits taken both in the studio and in the field. The exhibit is on view beginning April 19 in the Berta and John Baird Gallery. Admission is free.
David Sedaris, author of Me Talk Pretty One Day and more.
April 24
David Sedaris
American author David Sedaris has become a household name—and grown somewhat of a cult following—thanks to his knack for humorous, relatable storytelling. Over the past 30 years, Sedaris has published 11 story and essay collections, been a regular guest on National Public Radio’s This American Life, been nominated for two Grammy Awards, and been elected to the American Academy of Arts and Letters, all while touring regularly to perform his works and connect with fans. On April 24, the beloved humorist returns to Northwest Arkansas for an appearance at Walton Arts Center (waltonartscenter.org) as part of the theater’s LOL@WAC comedy series. The show begins at 7 p.m. and admission is $55.
Members of Ballet Arkansas perform “Romeo & Juliet: The World’s Greatest Love Story” earlier in the company’s spring season.
April 25-27
Ballet Arkansas
Ballet Arkansas’s (balletarkansas.org) spring season continues with the traditional-meets-contemporary “Nouveau,” an avant-garde performance accompanied by the Arkansas Symphony Orchestra’s Quapaw String Quartet. Performances are April 25 and 26 at the Arkansas Museum of Fine Arts. That same weekend, the company presents “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” set to German composer Felix Mendelssohn’s score and featuring a cast of community performers. Also held at Arkansas Museum of Fine Arts, see this rendition of Shakespeare’s beloved comedy April 26 and 27.
May 23-27
“Art In Bloom”
With “Art In Bloom,” Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art (crystalbridges.org) invites florists to create artful arrangements based on pieces from the museum’s collection. This year’s theme, Inside/Out, takes this premise one step further (while also extending the length of the exhibit) by integrating sculptures along the museum’s trails with container gardens. The indoor portion of the exhibit is May 23-27; the outdoor portion also opens May 23 and remains on view through June 8. Both experiences of “Art In Bloom” are free and open to the public.
Steve H. Broadnax III, Arkansas Repertory Theatre’s new artistic director
May 27
The Rep: New Direction
Arkansas Repertory Theatre (therep.org) welcomes Steve H. Broadnax III as its new artistic director in time for the 2025 SummerStage season. Audiences might know the Little Rock native from performances in previous shows at The Rep, including last year’s Jitney, though Broadnax brings with him experience directing on Broadway and serving as co-head of the Master of Fine Arts in Directing program at Penn State University. His first production at the helm of The Rep is a personal one: The season opens on May 27 with the world premiere of Me & The Devil, which Broadnax wrote. Described as a “play with music,” the production centers around a blues musician at a Southeast Arkansas juke joint. Me & The Devil runs through June 8 with regular admission starting at $30; ask about discounts for seniors, military, and educators, as well as pay-what-you-can opportunities. The SummerStage season continues with God of Carnage, Hair, The Amen Corner, and The Glass Menagerie.
Culture Cravings
Additional helpings of theater, dance, music, and more throughout the spring
APRIL 1: The Second City 65th Anniversary Show at Walton Arts Center in Fayetteville
APRIL 4-6, APRIL 10-12: The Play That Goes Wrong at South Arkansas Arts Center in El Dorado
APRIL 5-6: Arkansas Symphony Orchestra presents “Fairies and Flowers” featuring the works of Henry Purcell, Jean Françaix, and Felix Mendelssohn at Robinson Center in Little Rock
APRIL 6: Tyler Childers “On the Road” tour with special guest Cory Branan at Simmons Bank Arena in North Little Rock
APRIL 8: Back to the Future: The Musical at Walton Arts Center in Fayetteville
APRIL 9-19: Gypsy at Argenta Contemporary Theatre in North
Little Rock
APRIL 11-13: Oasis Film and Digital Media Festival at The Forum Theater
in Jonesboro
APRIL 15-16: Arkansas Symphony Orchestra presents “River Rhapsodies: Timeless Strings” featuring the works of Johannes Brahms, Gabriel Fauré, and Vaughan Williams at the ASO Stella Boyle Smith Music Center in Little Rock
APRIL 16-MAY 4: In the Grove of Forgetting at TheatreSquared in Fayetteville
APRIL 19-20: Pop-up show with oil painter April Burris at Art Group Gallery in Little Rock
APRIL 24-26: “Exploring Abstraction,” a workshop with pastel artist Debora Stewart at Art Group Gallery in Little Rock
APRIL 25-MAY 4: 2025 Arts & the Park: Artventurous in Hot Springs
APRIL 26: Oasis Arts and Eats Fest in Jonesboro
MAY 1-18: ArtoSphere at Walton Arts Center in Fayetteville
MAY 1-31: Eureka Springs Festival of the Arts
MAY 2: Resilience and Rest: Artist Talk with Yashua Klos at Arkansas Museum of Fine Arts in Little Rock
MAY 3-4: Arkansas Symphony Orchestra presents “Song of the Night: Mahler’s Seventh Symphony” at Robinson Center in Little Rock
MAY 10-11: Arkansas Symphony Orchestra presents “Circus at the Symphony” at Robinson Center in Little Rock
MAY 14-24: On Golden Pond at Argenta Contemporary Theatre in North Little Rock
MAY 23: Fridays on the Lawn return to Arkansas Museum of Fine Arts in Little Rock
JUNE 1-30: “Things Remembered,” an exhibit of work by Donna Twyford at Art Group Gallery in Little Rock
JUNE 4-29: A Gentleman’s Guide to Love and Murder at TheatreSquared in Fayetteville
JUNE 13-AUGUST 31: The Long View: From Conservation to Sustainability: Works from the Bank of America Collection opens at Arkansas Museum of Fine Arts in Little Rock
JUNE 16-22: Bentonville Film Festival
