RiverBeat Music Festival
Tom Lee Park
Friday-Sunday, May 2-4
RiverBeat Music Festival returns this year, with headliners Missy Elliott, The Killers, and Anderson .Paak & the Free Nationals. Also performing are a bunch of other people including some local folks, and I have neither the space nor the energy to list them all out, so check out the full lineup here. Single-day tickets are $99, and three-day passes are $249.
Memphis Art and Fashion Week
Memphis Brooks Museum of Art
Friday, May 2-Saturday, May 10
Walk, walk, fashion, baby. Work it, move it to the Brooks, baby, as the museum presents its Art and Fashion Week, a weeklong series of events highlights the artistry of fashion, featuring exclusive experiences with renowned designers, thought-provoking discussions, and unforgettable moments. There will be a Blue Suede Vintage After Hours Shopping event, Met Gala Watch Party, Culinary Couture: Dinner by Karen Carrier, Backstage with Korto Momulu talk, Runway at the Museum, and Cocktails with the Curator: Black Dandyism. Read more about the week here.
Trolls Garden Party
Memphis Botanic Garden
Friday, May 2, 6:30 p.m.
This 21+ event will have you embracing nature and exploring the Memphis Botanic garden after hours. Guests will enjoy live music, interactive activities, gourmet food trucks, and more — all while visiting Thomas Dambo’s “Trolls: Save the Humans” exhibit. Tickets are $35 for nonmembers and include three complimentary cocktails. Also this weekend is the family-friendly Troll Fest, on Saturday, May 3, 10 a.m.-4 p.m. There will be crafts, games, music, community partners, vendors, artists, and more.
Raising Ilana’s Mother
TheatreSouth
Friday-Saturday, May 2-3, 8 p.m. | Sunday, May 4, 2 p.m.
Madness, failure, yearning, and dreams yield danger, humor, reimagined psalms, and more in this unconventionally classic mother-child drama, where Jewish culture could be its own character in the cast. Time travels fluidly between 1950 and 2002, allowing for magical meetups as the action bubbles across metro-Jerusalem, New York suburbs, and beyond. Get tickets ($23.02) here.
Chalkfest
Memphis Brooks Museum of Art
Saturday, May 3, 10 a.m.-1 p.m.
Chalk it up to a good time at the Brooks’ free Chalkfest, where you can join local artists and transform the Brooks’ plaza into the most colorful work of art. Explore the galleries and exhibitions for inspiration, dance to music from the Soul Shockers and DJ Siphne, and enjoy art activities and face painting with Nicole Dorsey. Plus, watch local artists Kaylyn Webster, Carl E. Moore, Craig Thompson, and Mikaela Colina recreate favorites from Memphis’ art’ collection.
Bookstock
Benjamin L. Hooks Central Library
Saturday, May 3, 11 a.m.-3 p.m.
This fest is for the books. Literally. This free, family-friendly event features a lineup of keynote speakers (Roxane Gay, author of Hunger & Difficult Women, and Shamichael Hallman, author of Meet Me at the Library), 60 local authors’ exhibits, performances, workshops, exhibits, and activities for all ages. Find out more here.
Overton Square Crawfish Festival
Overton Square
Saturday, May 3, 11 a.m.-5 p.m.
Overton Square is hosting its Crawfish Festival, with live music, ice-cold beer, and a local artist market.
Puppy Palooza
Crosstown Concourse
Saturday, May 3, 11 a.m.-2 p.m.
Crosstown Concourse is putting on its Puppy Palooza with pet photos and caricatures, dog adoptions, a costume contest, toy giveaways and bacon bubbles, a magic show and DJ, a blessing of the animals, agility courses, yard games, and more. The day is free to join.
Alton Brown Live: Last Bite
Orpheum Theatre
Saturday, May 3, 4 p.m.
In the Middle Ages, May was considered the month of three milkings because, apparently, with all the fresh spring grass the cows were eating, you could milk them three times in one day during May. And that friends is where my food fun facts end for the day, but if you want more, check out Alton Brown’s show at the Orpheum, where the famed foodist will “present several of his favorite culinary mega-hacks, sing some of his funny food songs, and in general offer a culinary variety show the likes of which human eyes have never seen.” Tickets ($51.90-92.90) can be purchased here.
