FUN
501FEST 2026, “a celebration of our community and the people who sustain it” marking 501 Day, which happened on May 1, features live entertainment, a Creators’ Village marketplace of local vendors, interactive art installations, food trucks and “engaging activities designed for the entire family,” 4-8 p.m. Friday and 11 a.m.-6 p.m. Saturday at 350 E. Second St. in Little Rock’s River Market District. 501festival.com.
Main Street in North Little Rock’s Argenta District shuts down between Fourth and Fifth streets for this month’s Dogtown Throwdown, 4 p.m. Friday-10 p.m. Saturday. Restaurants along the strip extend service into the street and musicians perform for the resulting block party, including Whoa Dakota at 7 p.m. Friday at Argenta Library and the Chris DeClerk Band at 7 p.m. Saturday on the Main Stage next to Argenta Library. Saturday’s lineup also includes a Kids Zone and a Vintage Market. argentaartsdistrict.org.
The Central Arkansas Library System’s Dee Brown Library and Recycle Bikes for Kids team up for the third annual Southwest Bike Rodeo, 10 a.m.-noon Saturday at the Southwest Community Center parking lot, 6401 Baseline Road, Little Rock. Volunteers will help conduct bike safety inspections, guide young riders through a series of skills stations and fit protective helmets. It’s aimed at youngsters 8 and older who can already balance and pedal a bike. Recycle Bikes for Kids is providing free bicycles for the first 30 registered participants who don’t already own one. (501) 568-7494; CALS.org.
And the 61st QQA Tour of Homes spotlights historic houses in North Little Rock’s Argenta District, 1-5 p.m. Saturday and Sunday, starting at 800 Main St. in North Little Rock (the old North Little Rock Electric Building). quapaw.com.
MUSIC
Singer-actresses Nicole Parker, Alli Mauzey and Scarlett Strallen are “The Three Broadway Divas” joining the Arkansas Symphony for the season’s final pops concerts, 7:30 p.m. Saturday, 3 p.m. Sunday at Little Rock’s Robinson Center Performance Hall, 426 W. Markham St. at Broadway. The program includes songs from “Wicked,” “Funny Girl,” “Gypsy,” “Chicago” and “The Phantom of the Opera.” ASO Associate Conductor Valery Saul makes her farewell appearances on the podium — she’s headed to a similar job at the Nashville Symphony next fall. (501) 666-1761; arkansassymphony.org.
The Arkansas Chamber Singers perform the world premiere of “Parables,” a collaboration between composer William Averitt and musician and poet Robert Bode, in a concert titled “Parables and Poetry: A Celebration of Composer William Averitt and Poet Robert Bode,” 5 p.m. Saturday in the sanctuary of St. James United Methodist Church, 321 Pleasant Valley Drive, Little Rock. Lorissa Mason conducts. Attendees are invited to “Meet the Composer & Poet” at 3 p.m. in the church’s Welcome Center. A reception will follow the concert. arkansaschambersingers.org.
COMEDY
Comedian Brad Williams, on his “Tall Tales” tour, headlines at 7 p.m. Thursday, Little Rock’s Robinson Center Performance Hall, 426 W. Markham St. at Broadway. (501) 244-8800; Ticketmaster.com
THEATER
Argenta Contemporary Theatre, 405 Main St., North Little Rock, closes out its run of “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory” runs, 7 p.m. Thursday-Friday, 2 and 7 p.m. Saturday and 2 p.m. Sunday through May 9. argentacontemporarytheatre.org.
And “Ken Ludwig’s Baskerville,” Ludwig’s comedy-thriller adaptation of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s Sherlock Holmes mystery “The Hound of the Baskervilles,” is onstage through May 23 at Murry’s Dinner Playhouse, 6323 Colonel Glenn Road, Little Rock. Buffet opens 30 minutes before curtain time — 7:30 p.m. Wednesday-Saturday, 12:45 and 6:45 Sunday. (501) 562-3131; murrysdp.com.
ART AND EXHIBITS
“Will Barnet: Seasons of Life,” works on paper by Barnet from the Arkansas Museum of Fine Arts Foundation Collection, is on display through Oct. 11 at the museum 501 E. Ninth St., Little Rock, 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Tuesday and Saturday, 10 a.m.-8 p.m. Wednesday-Friday, noon-5 p.m. Sunday. amfa.org.
“Impressions of Spain,” paintings by Sean LeCrone inspired by a recent journey through the Iberian Peninsula, is on display through May 16 at the Art Group Gallery, in the Pleasant Ridge Town Center, 11525 Cantrell Road, Little Rock. Gallery hours are 11 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday-Saturday, 1-5 p.m. Sunday. (501) 690-2193; artgrouparkansas.com.
“Aggregate: BFA Projects,” work in drawing, graphic design, painting, ceramics, illustration, furniture design and metalsmithing by bachelor of fine arts students at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock’s School of Art and Design, is on display through May 17 at the Windgate School of Art + Design at UA Little Rock, 5617 W. 28th St., Gallery hours are 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday-Friday, 11 a.m.-2 p.m. Saturday-Sunday. (501) 916-5117.
“Remote Wonder: Richland Creek Wilderness,” recent photographs by Paul Caldwell centering on Richland Creek, a tributary of the Buffalo River, up through July 18 at Cantrell Gallery, 8202 Cantrell Road, Little Rock, 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Tuesday-Saturday. (501) 224-1335; cantrellgallery.com.
“The Three SoMa Sisters: History, Nature, Wellness, and Anita Davis’ Mission to Thrive in SoMa” is on display through Aug. 30 at ESSE Museum & Store, 1510 Main St. in Little Rock’s SoMa neighborhood. The exhibit explores how Davis has created a community focused on her three SoMa enterprises: the museum, the Bernice Garden and The Authentic Self Collective. (501) 916-9022; essepursemuseum.com.
Hearne Fine Art, 1001 Wright Ave., Little Rock, is showing “Women Create Space. Grace. Power: A Multimedia Survey of Thirteen Black Women Artists,” through June 13. Gallery hours are 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday-Friday, 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Saturday. (501) 372-6822; hearnefineart.com.
“Disfarmer: Portraits of Rural Arkansas,” early 20th-century black-and-white portraits of Arkansans by Mike Disfarmer, is up through June, 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Tuesday-Saturday, 1-5 p.m. Sunday, at the Old State House Museum in Little Rock. (501) 324-9685.
“Thomas Hart Benton,” a traveling exhibition of original artwork created by the artist during World War II, is up through July 31 at the MacArthur Museum of Arkansas Military History, 503 E. Ninth St., Little Rock. 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Tuesday-Saturday, 1-5 p.m. Sunday. (501) 376-4602; littlerock.gov/macarthur.
And “Kuimeaux’s World,” drawings and paintings by late Little Rock native Dwight “Kuimeaux” Drennan, is on display through spring 2027 at Little Rock’s Historic Arkansas Museum, 200 E. Third St. 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Tuesday-Saturday, 1-5 p.m. Sunday. (501) 324-9351.