FUN
Main Street in North Little Rock’s Argenta District shuts down from Broadway to Fifth Street for the spring’s final Dogtown Throwdown, 4-10 p.m. Friday through 10 p.m. Saturday. Friday night’s musical act is Whoa Dakota, 7 p.m. on the main stage next to the Argenta Library, 420 Main. Southern soul band Red & The Revelers perform at 7 p.m. Saturday. During the day Saturday, the library and First Security Bank host hands-on summer crafts, outdoor games and “interactive fun,” 10 a.m.-2 p.m. The North Little Rock Animal Shelter’s mobile adoption unit will have pets looking for permanent homes from 9 a.m.-noon. Two vendor markets on Saturday showcase local artisans and makers, 2-6 p.m. at Flyway Brewing, 314 Maple St., 2-6 p.m., and 11 a.m.-6 p.m. at Argenta Plaza, 510 Main. Dogtown Throwdown takes a summer hiatus, returning in September. Visit argentaartsdistrict.org.
The Central Arkansas Library System holds a used book sale, 2-5 p.m. Thursday, 10 a.m.-2 p.m. Friday-Saturday at the Port Industrial Hub, 7773 Sloane Drive, Little Rock. Paperbacks are $1, hardbacks and bargain boxes, sealed boxes containing many books of the same subject or genre, are $2. (501) 918-3000, visit cals.org.
And speaking of libraries, North Little Rock’s William F. Laman Public Library, 2801 Orange St., is partnering with Little Rock shop Control Records to host a Free Vinyl Swap, 9:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m. Saturday in The Studio on the library’s second floor, with free coffee and pastries and a live DJ. Music lovers of all stripes can trade records, meet fellow collectors “and celebrate the enduring appeal of vinyl.” (501) 758-1720; NLRlibrary.org.
MUSIC
Members of Arkansas Circus Arts — acrobats, jugglers, silk and strap artists, stilt dancers, a balloon artist, a hula hooper and an “Adagio Acrobatic Artist” — join the Arkansas Symphony Orchestra as it plays light and heavy classics and film music for its 2024-25 First Orion Pops season finale, “Circus at the Symphony,” 7:30 p.m. Saturday and 3 p.m. Sunday at Little Rock’s Robinson Center Performance Hall, 426 W. Markham St. at Broadway. (501) 666-1761; ArkansasSymphony.org.
And not exactly the weekend, but Alison Krauss and Union Station, featuring Jerry Douglas, performs at 7:30 p.m. Monday at First Security Amphitheater, 400 President Clinton Ave., in Little Rock. You can bring blankets but lawn chairs and umbrellas are not permitted. (501) 375-2552; littlerock.com.
THEATER
The Weekend Theater, 1001 W. Seventh Street at Chester Street, Little Rock, continues its run of “Carrie the Musical,” based on the Stephen King novel and the 1976 film, 7:30 p.m. Friday-Saturday, 2:30 p.m. Sunday through May 18. WeekendTheater.org.
Murry’s Dinner Playhouse, 6323 Colonel Glenn Road, Little Rock, continues its run of “Leading Ladies” by Ken Ludwig, 7:30 p.m. Wednesday-Saturday (12:30 p.m. matinee Wednesday May 14), 12:45 and 6:45 p.m. Sunday through May 24. Buffet opens 90 minutes before curtain. (501) 562-3131; murrysdp.com.
ART AND EXHIBITS
“BFA Projects,” showcasing the work of UA Little Rock BFA students, is up through May 17 in the Brad Cushman Gallery in the UA Little Rock Windgate Center of Art + Design, 2801 S. University Ave., Little Rock. Gallery hours are 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday-Friday, 11 a.m.-2 p.m. Saturday.
At the Arkansas Museum of Fine Arts, 501 E. Ninth St., Little Rock, studio photographs by the late Kwame Brathwaite, who started out in the 1960s using photography to promote “Black is Beautiful,” through Oct. 12. Gallery hours are 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Tuesday and Saturday, 10 a.m.-8 p.m. Wednesday-Friday, noon-5 p.m. Sunday. (501) 372-4000; arkmfa.org.
The Arkansas League of Artists Member Show remains up through Friday May 9 at the Argenta Library Gallery, 420 Main St., North Little Rock, 9 a.m.-6 p.m. Monday-Friday. (501) 687-1061; NLRlibrary.org.
Cantrell Gallery, officially reopened in its new space, 8202 Cantrell Road, Little Rock, is showing “Treehouse Treasures: a collector’s collection” Part 2 through May 24, artworks from the collection of the gallery’s original owner, Helen Scott, who is down-sized her home. The gallery is also celebrating 55 years in business. Gallery hours are 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Tuesday-Saturday. (501) 224-1335.
“The Creative Collective III,” 80 artworks by high school students and faculty at Little Rock Central, Conway, Joe T. Robinson, Parkview, Bryant, Maumelle and North Little Rock, is on display through May 22, in the Thea Foundation Gallery, 401 Main St., North Little Rock, 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday-Thursday, with extended hours (5-8 p.m.) during Argenta Arts District Third Friday Art Walk. theafoundation.org.
At UA Little Rock’s Windgate Center of Art + Design, “Beverly Buys: Gone But Not,” 11 cyanotypes by Hot Springs photographer Beverly Buys, is on display through May 30 in the Focus Gallery, 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday-Friday, 11 a.m.-2 p.m. Saturday. “Dawn Holder: Strange Meetings,” mixed-media ceramics by Holder, a sculptor and installation artist, is on display through July 11 in the North and South Galleries, 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday-Friday, 11 a.m.-2 p.m. Saturday. And in UA Little Rock’s Fine Arts Building, “On the Horizon,” oil paintings by William Beckman, is on display 9 a.m.-5 p.m. weekdays through June 30 in Gallery One.
And “Crimson Moon,” pieces from the jewelry collection of Leesa Renshaw, remains on display, 11 a.m.-4 p.m. Tuesday-Sunday through June 1 at ESSE Museum and Store, 1510 Main St., Little Rock, (501) 916-9022; essepursemuseum.com.