WCU Fine Art Museum marks 20 years
In celebration of its 20th anniversary, the Fine Art Museum within the Bardo Arts Center (BAC) is currently hosting an…
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Drum Tao comes to WCU
Acclaimed Japanese ensemble Drum Tao will swing through Southern Appalachia for a special performance at 7:30 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 19,…
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A deep dive into the world of art
Thomas Schlesser’s “Mona’s Eyes” is a slow motion read that will baffle readers looking for a conventional pathway to storytelling. …
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Folkmoot presents New Orleans jazz, funk
Renowned jazz/funk ensemble Kanola Band will perform at 7 p.m. Feb. 14, at the Folkmoot Friendship Center in Waynesville. Whether…
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Cataloochee Ranch welcomes bluegrass legend
Americana/bluegrass act Darren Nicholson will hit the stage for an intimate performance at 5 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 18, at the…
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‘Valentine’s Day Open House’
There will be a special “Valentine’s Day Open House” from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 14, at the…
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HART presents ‘The White Chip’
A special production of “The White Chip” will hit the stage at 7:30 p.m. Feb. 20-21 and 27-28 and 2…
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‘Rough House’ at City Lights
Alison Lyn Miller will discuss her new book, “Rough House: A Father, a Son, and the Pursuit of Pro Wrestling…
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‘Yonder Mountain Record Show’
Presented by Astro Record Store, the “Yonder Mountain Record Show” will be held from noon to 3 p.m. Sunday, Feb.…
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HCAC’s ‘Inspired by a Song’
The Haywood County Arts Council (HCAC) latest exhibit “Inspired by a Song” is being showcased at Haywood Handmade Gallery in…
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Cherokee pottery exhibition
A special showcase, “Didanisisgi Gadagwatli: A Showcase of Pottery from the Mud Dauber Community Workshop,” is now on display at…
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‘No plugs, no pedals, only bluegrass:’ Asheville Mountain Boys release new album
The Asheville Mountain Boys’ self-titled debut album drops on Feb. 12, heralding the arrival of a new era of old-school…
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‘I wanna know what love is…’
“I wanna know what love is/I want you to show me.”— Foreigner There’s love and then there’s Love. In Glenn…
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Cataloochee Ranch goes Americana
Americana/folk singer-songwriter A. Lee Edwards will perform at 5 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 11, at the Cataloochee Ranch in Maggie Valley.…
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WCU Fine Art Museum turns 20
In celebration of its 20th anniversary, the Fine Art Museum within the Bardo Arts Center is hosting an exhibition of…
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Stecoah welcomes Cherokee Historical Association
On the morning of Monday, Jan. 12, a group from Cherokee Historical Association visited the Stecoah Valley Center in Robbinsville.…
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I built a world: A conversation with Bronwyn Keith-Hynes
Whirlwind. Virtuoso. Rollicking. Heartfelt. Those were some of the sentiments I had ricocheting around my mind watching Bronwyn Keith-Hynes perform…
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Close the screens, leave home, enjoy an adventure
Ordering some item from a company like Amazon — a smock, a special coffee, cotton swabs, whatever — is quick,…
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Scotsman celebrates Robert Burns
The annual “Burns Night Supper” will be held from 6-9 p.m. Wednesday, March 4, at The Scotsman Public House in…
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Cherokee pottery exhibition
A special showcase, “Didanisisgi Gadagwatli: A Showcase of Pottery from the Mud Dauber Community Workshop,” is now on display at…
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If I could share your company: A conversation with Willis Alan Ramsey
In truth, there are two camps when it comes to Texas singer-songwriter Willis Alan Ramsey: you’re either completely obsessed with…
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Disappointing reads, or ‘Lit in the Pits’
Since 1999, hundreds of my reviews have appeared in The Smoky Mountain News. Of those, I would guess that less…
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Voices in the Laurel spring registration
The Voices in the Laurel choirs have announced that spring registration is now open and the organization invites new/returning singers…
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Being at home in your ‘place’
“Tell me where you’re from and I’ll tell you who you are.”— Wallace Stegner I have just finished reading a book…
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A night at the opera: WCU composer debuts performance based on the work of Ron Rash
Ron Rash has never been to an opera. But later this month, he’ll sit down to enjoy an opus based…
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Some kind of wonderful: Don Brewer of Grand Funk Railroad
In the 1970s, Grand Funk Railroad was one of the bestselling American rock bands on the planet. To that, in…
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Parallel lives: a memoir that created memories
“The unsullied memory of unpremeditated gestures of kindness. These are the bread of angels.”— Patti Smith This is going to…
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A year in review: The best albums of 2025
Editor’s Note: Since August 2012, Garret K. Woodward has held the position of arts and entertainment editor for The Smoky…
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Old gold: war, time machines, and good books
In my younger years, I read Herman Wouk’s “The Caine Mutiny” and “Marjorie Morningstar,” but somehow neglected two other bestsellers,…
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Hidden holiday gems from Dickens
Recently, my mother gifted me “A Christmas Carol and Other Holiday Treasures” (Canterbury Classics, 2013, 540 pages). While I’ve read…
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Lighting the fuse: New album showcases historic 1925 ‘Asheville Sessions’
A century ago, a record producer from New York City headed into Western North Carolina in search of the sound of…
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Looking for something good: The Infamous Stringdusters roll into WNC
It’s been 20 years since the inception of The Infamous Stringdusters, the Grammy-winning string act whose tone and swagger encompasses…
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Discovering ‘Stoner,’ the novel I almost missed
In a review written in 2013 of John Williamson’s “Stoner,” Tim Kreider snagged the attention of The New Yorker readers…
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Highway junkie: A conversation with Andy Thomas
There’s a heaviness when you listen to Andy Thomas’ latest album, “Highway Junkie.” Not only from the swamp rock meets…
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Author creates a marvelous world for children
If you go to a child’s birthday party and bring a book as a present, you may not win the…
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Where the river goes: Dean DeLeo of Stone Temple Pilots
With the untimely passing of founding member and longtime lead singer Scott Weiland in 2015, and the tragic death of…
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Rediscovering place in Southern Appalachia
As author Thomas Rain Crowe discovered during his own long journey from Western North Carolina to California to Europe (and…
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It's a great day to be alive: A conversation with Darrell Scott
At age 66, legendary singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Darrell Scott is having a career rebirth of sorts. Though he’s always been…
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The founding of ‘The Farm’ in Tennessee
Georgia poet and author Rupert Fike and I lived in the San Francisco Bay area during the 1970s in a…
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Lonesome road blues: New album celebrates late Haywood banjo legend
In what will amount to an early Christmas present for bluegrass pickers and music lovers across Western North Carolina and…
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Toltec wisdom resonates in today’s world
Recently, I was gifted the use of a book to read on Native American wisdom by my Sylva dentist Dr.…
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Palette of the plateau: Highlands Food & Wine Festival celebrates 10 years
Each year, I find myself covering a wide array of cultural festivals across Western North Carolina and greater Southern Appalachia…
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‘A history of the western tradition’
Recently, a teacher of history asked me, a former teacher of history, about ways to bring history alive for high…
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Down in the holler: Fireside Collective releases latest album
Since its inception in 2014, Asheville-based Fireside Collective has evolved from a ragtag bluegrass act into one of the rising…
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Love letter to an unexpected place
Henry T. and Priscilla M. Ireys will share their new book, “The Keep: Living with the Tame and the Wild…
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The musical bridge: Appalachian Road Show to play Smoky Mountains Bluegrass Festival
Last month, at the International Bluegrass Music Association (IBMA) award show in Chattanooga, Appalachian Road Show took the stage to…
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Keep your fancy free — reading at whim
Fifty years ago this year, I dropped out of graduate school and my studies in medieval history, and set off…
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A Baby Beat poet finds his voice
“Power Spots” (Edgework Press, 2025) by Ron Myers is a first press-published book of his poetry by someone who is…
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Roving jewel: Angela Autumn comes to Franklin
Raised in the small town of Zelienople, Pennsylvania (pop: 3,769), singer-songwriter Angela Autumn recalled having an isolated childhood, one that…
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Poe biography prompts a newfound respect
“In my younger and more vulnerable years” are the words with which narrator Nick Carraway kicks off “The Great Gatsby.”…
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