Events Calendar

It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas here in the beautiful Western NC Mountains.

A festive shopping event featuring fabulous art, crafts, gifts, adornments for the home as well as delectable holiday food and NC wines.

Easy to find…

Just off I-26 at exit 40 (across from the Asheville Airport)
WNC AG Center, Davis Event Building Gate # 5

‘Tis the Season Holiday Fair is just minutes from the Biltmore Estate which is adorned with Christmas during the holiday season. The Grove Park Inn who hosts the well known Gingerbread House Competition and all the downtown festivities in the area that go on throughout the holiday season.

On exhibit Saturdays and Sundays from 12 – 4 p.m., Rocky Cove Railroad is a G-Scale (garden scale) model train that demonstrates the coming of trains to western North Carolina at the turn of the 20th century. The exhibit is located below the Grand Promenade. Please note, Rocky Cove Railroad will not operate in rainy or wet conditions.

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Downtown trolleys add to the excitement and enjoyment of Greenville’s Main Street experience. The red and blue open-air trolleys offer a vintage look and feel complete with a cow catcher on the front and wooden bench seats inside. Trolleys are wheelchair accessible and are equipped with bicycle racks.

Are you looking for an excuse to knit or crochet for a good cause? Help make baby hats and blankets and adult hats, scarves, and slippers to support at-risk newborns and homeless adults.  Your handmade knitwear will keep our neighbors warm.  Volunteers with basic skills in knitting or crocheting are welcome. Please bring your own needles or crochet hooks and a pattern.

Check out Knit-n-Give on WLOS: http://wlos.com/news/only-on-wloscom/close-knit-group-of-women-use-their-talents-to-help-asheville-charities

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“How is it that the coolest new show on Broadway is a 1943 musical?” says The New York Times.

This is Oklahoma! as you’ve never seen or heard it before — reimagined for the 21st century, and now the Tony Award^® winner for Best Revival of a Musical. Funny and sexy, dark and jolting, this acclaimed production of Oklahoma! “lets us experience Rodgers and Hammerstein’s greatness anew” (The New Yorker).

Stripped down to reveal the darker psychological truths at its core, Daniel Fish’s production tells a story of a community circling its wagons against an outsider, and the frontier life that shaped America. Upending the sunny romance of a farmer and a cowpoke, this Oklahoma! allows the classic musical — and our country — to be seen in a whole new light.

“This production shocked me and moved me,” raves Frank Rich of New York Magazine. “This is the Oklahoma! that was there all along.” The Daily Beast raves “Forget your traditional idea of Oklahoma! Daniel Fish’s daring, brilliant, utterly absorbing re-interpretation is dark and different — brilliantly so.”

Official Website

The Soldier Bishop: Ellison Capers, a special exhibit created by Faith Memorial Chapel, Cedar Mountain, NC, now on display at the Upcountry History Museum, presents the unshakable faith of Rt. Reverend Ellison Capers and how his fortitude created a lasting legacy.

Though he lost loved ones and survived many of his own near-death experiences in some of the most horrific engagements of the American Civil War (1861-1865), Capers’ trust in God and the path before him never faltered. In 1865, at the age of 28, he was promoted in the military to Brigadier General receiving recognition for his leadership and distinguished service. After the war Capers was elected Secretary of State for South Carolina. Even so, his calling to Christ was overpowering. The Governor told him, “You can be a Governor, Senator, or anything you like. You will be a fool to give all this to become a preacher.”

In 1866, Capers accepted a call to Christ Church Episcopal in Greenville, South Carolina, where he served for 20 years. He was consecrated as bishop of the State of South Carolina in 1893 and moved to Charleston. To escape the summer heat, he purchased a plot of land in Cedar Mountain, NC, and erected a cottage. This inspired in Mrs. Capers a dream to erect an Episcopal chapel for the local population. In 1894, this dream became a reality, and “Faith Chapel” was built.

“Faith Chapel” fell into disrepair following Capers death in 1908. In honor of his enduring influence and guidance, a disciple of Capers, the Reverend Dr. Alexander Mitchell from Greenville, began a movement to rebuild the chapel and dedicated the new church, “Faith Memorial Chapel,” in Capers’ memory in 1941.

The exhibit shares the story of Ellison Capers and the history of Faith Memorial Chapel. Historical artifacts, including Capers’ original military sword, the musket balls that nearly killed him, his war diaries and handwritten letters to his wife from the battlefield, and the preserved renderings for rebuilding the Chapel dedicated to his memory, highlight key moments of Capers life’s journey through war, faith, and salvation.

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Select Evenings in November and December | 5:00–9:00pm

Experience Columbia’s longest running holiday tradition.

THE POLAR EXPRESS™ with the Great Smoky Mountains Railroad is back in 2021! The 1¼ hour round-trip passenger excursion comes to life as the train departs the Bryson City depot for a journey through the quiet wilderness for a special visit at the North Pole. Set to the sounds of the motion picture soundtrack, guests on board will enjoy warm cocoa and a treat while listening and reading along with the magical story. Children’s faces show the magic of the season when the train arrives at the North Pole to find Santa Claus waiting. Santa will board THE POLAR EXPRESS™, greeting each child and presenting them with a special gift as in the story, their own silver sleigh bell. Christmas carols will be sung as they return back to the Bryson City Depot.

Winter Lights returns to the gardens November 19-January 1

Tickets are now sold PER VEHICLE, not per person.

We are thrilled to announce that the 2021 Winter Lights holiday event will welcome members and guests back into the gardens as it returns to the traditional outdoor walk-through open-air show format. The famously tall 50-foot lighted tree and the Quilt Garden will be back, outfitted with new designs in lights, while throughout the gardens, popular arrangements will mingle with ones never seen before.

You can find everything you need to know about Asheville’s Brightest Holiday Tradition at the tabs above, and be sure to secure your tickets now.

We hope you will join us this holiday season!

Winter Lights is the Arboretum’s largest annual fundraiser, and supports many parts of its mission driven programming.

“How is it that the coolest new show on Broadway is a 1943 musical?” says The New York Times.

This is Oklahoma! as you’ve never seen or heard it before — reimagined for the 21st century, and now the Tony Award^® winner for Best Revival of a Musical. Funny and sexy, dark and jolting, this acclaimed production of Oklahoma! “lets us experience Rodgers and Hammerstein’s greatness anew” (The New Yorker).

Stripped down to reveal the darker psychological truths at its core, Daniel Fish’s production tells a story of a community circling its wagons against an outsider, and the frontier life that shaped America. Upending the sunny romance of a farmer and a cowpoke, this Oklahoma! allows the classic musical — and our country — to be seen in a whole new light.

“This production shocked me and moved me,” raves Frank Rich of New York Magazine. “This is the Oklahoma! that was there all along.” The Daily Beast raves “Forget your traditional idea of Oklahoma! Daniel Fish’s daring, brilliant, utterly absorbing re-interpretation is dark and different — brilliantly so.”

Official Website