FUN
The Arkansas Cornbread Festival returns, 11 a.m.-4 p.m. Saturday, centering on 14th and Main streets in Little Rock’s SoMa neighborhood, rain or shine. The cornbread competition pits home cooks and professional chefs vying for People’s Choice honors, based on tasters’ votes — you’ll need to buy a Tasting Ticket. Proceeds benefit Arkansas Foodbank and the festival itself. The festival also features live music, local vendors, a kids zone. arkansascornbreadfestival.com.
Dinosaurs from the Triassic, Jurassic and Cretaceous periods; deep-sea creatures, including Megalodon, that swam in ancient oceans; and Ice Age creatures take over Little Rock’s Statehouse Convention Center, Markham and Main streets, with three days of Jurassic Quest. 1-6 p.m. Friday, 8 a.m.-8 p.m. Saturday and 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Sunday. jurassicquest.com/events/ZTJ8RX.
The Central Arkansas Library System brings its used book sale back downtown, 2-5 p.m. Thursday, 10 a.m.-2 p.m. Friday and noon-4 p.m. Saturday at its Roberts Library, 401 President Clinton Ave., Little Rock. Paperback books will be $1, with hardcover books going for $2. cals.org/cubs.
MUSIC
Memphis-born bassist, composer and teacher Rodney Jordan performs for Jazz at The Joint, 7:30 p.m. Friday at the ACT II Sharon Heflin Theater, 315 N. Main St., North Little Rock. jazzatthejoint.org.
Lincoln, Nebraska, folk and bluegrass trio The Wildwoods perform at 8 p.m. Saturday at Little Rock’s White Water Tavern, 2500 W. Seventh St. (501) 375-8400; whitewatertavern.com.
And the Little Rock Folk Club is bringing in Irish singer-songwriter-guitarist Pat Byrne, 7:30 p.m. Saturday at Hibernia Irish Tavern, 9700 N. Rodney Parham Road, Little Rock. (501) 246-4340; hiberniairishtavern.com.
THEATER
Murry’s Dinner Playhouse, 6323 Colonel Glenn Road, Little Rock, continues its run of the musical “A Gentleman’s Guide to Love and Murder” through Nov. 14. Buffet opens 90 minutes before curtain. — 7:30 p.m. Wednesday-Saturday, 12:45 and 6:30 p.m. Sunday. (501) 562-3131; murrysdp.com.
ART AND EXHIBITS
New this week:
“Smokes and Ladders,” explorations of light, shadow and architectural forms by Jason McCann and portraits “celebrating youth, freedom and lived experience” by Michael Shaeffer, goes on display with a 5-7:30 p.m. reception Friday at Thea Foundation, 401 Main St. in North Little Rock’s Argenta Arts District. It’s up through November, 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday-Thursday. theafoundation.org.
“Juxtaposition” — oil paintings by Baxter Knowlton and abstracts by Jeff Horton — opens with a reception, 5-8 p.m. Friday in the newly renovated parish hall at Christ Episcopal Church, 509 Scott St., Little Rock. It’s up through Feb. 1, 9 a.m.-4 p.m. weekdays (ring the doorbell at the parking lot door for assistance).
Continuing:
“The Big. The Bold. The Bizarre,” more than 90 oversized and unconventional objects from the Clinton Presidential Library collection, the Clinton family’s personal collection and the libraries of presidents Harry S. Truman, John F. Kennedy, George H.W. Bush, Barack Obama and Joe Biden, is on display thorugh Feb. 14 at the Clinton Presidential Center, 1200 President Clinton Ave., Little Rock. 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday-Saturday, 1-5 p.m. Sunday. clintonpresidentialcenter.org.
“Art Empowers,” an auction benefiting World Services for the Blind and The National Federation of the Blind of Arkansas, continues through Dec. 4 at Cantrell Gallery, 8202 Cantrell Road, Little Rock. Among the items available: artworks by Salvador Dali, David Armstrong, Georges Dussau, Howard Finster, Ginna Ford and William McNamara. 32auctions.com/ArtEmpowers
“Memento of Mortality,” pen drawings on paper, mounted on cardboard and cut by hand by North Little Rock artist Paul Perkins, on display through Nov. 28 at the William F. Laman Public Library, 2801 Orange St., North Little Rock. Library hours are 9 a.m.-7 p.m. Monday-Thursday, 9 a.m.-1 p.m. Friday-Saturday. (501) 758-1720; nlrlibrary.org.
“The Age of Anxiety: German Expressionism in Art and Film,” a melding of early 20th century German Expressionist art and period films, is up through Jan. 10 at the Arkansas Museum of Fine Arts, 501 E. Ninth St., Little Rock, 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Tuesday; 10 a.m.-8 p.m. Wednesday-Friday; 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Saturday; noon-5 p.m. Sunday. (501) 372-4000; arkmfa.org.
“Painting the Arkansas Parks,” a traveling exhibition of paintings based on sketches at state parks in each of Arkansas’ five major geographic regions, is on display through January in Trinity Gallery for Arkansas Artists at Historic Arkansas Museum, 200 E. Third St., Little Rock.
“In Hot Water: Betting on the Spa City,” an exploration of the rise and fall of gambling in Hot Springs, is on display through 2027 at the Old State House Museum, 300 W. Markham St., Little Rock, 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Tuesday-Saturday, 1-5 p.m. Sunday. arkansasheritage.com/events/
“Barbie and Friends,” a display of “the dolls, styles, and cultural moments that have inspired generations,” including the first Black Barbie and Black Ken, is up through Feb. 28 at ESSE Museum & Store, 1510 Main St., Little Rock. (501) 916-9022.
Made-in-Arkansas objects, including paintings and sculptures, is on display in the “Collecting Arkansas Made” exhibit at Historic Arkansas Museum, 200 E. Third St., Little Rock. Hours are 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Tuesday-Saturday, 1-5 p.m. Sunday. (501) 324-9351.
“Play in Arkansas,” examining how people have created joy through play and how the history of play can contribute to understanding of both past and present, is on display through Dec. 15 at the University of Arkansas Little Rock Downtown, 333 President Clinton Ave., Little Rock. The exhibit includes handmade and mass-produced toys, dolls and game paraphernalia, as well as a memories section, where individuals can share their personal reflections on childhood play. Hours are 9 a.m.-4 p.m. Monday-Friday.
“Through Darkness to Light: Photographs Along the Underground Railroad,” color photographs by Jeanine Michna-Bales and narratives that tell the story of the Underground Railroad and the enslaved people who risked their lives along its many routes, is on display through Jan. 7 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.
“Material Nature: Gifts From the John and Robyn Horn Collection” is on display through April 25 in the Robyn and John Horn Gallery in the Windgate Art School at the Arkansas Museum of Fine Arts, 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. (501) 372-4000; arkmfa.com.
“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.
“Manufacturing Victory in Arkansas: Supplying the Battlefront and Changing the Homefront During World War II,” “highlight(ing) the role and contributions of ordnance plants in Arkansas during the war,” remains on display through Dec. 31, 2027, at the MacArthur Museum of Arkansas Military History, 503 E. Ninth St., Little Rock, 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Tuesday-Saturday, 1 p.m.-5 p.m. Sunday. (501) 376-4602.
