Calendar of Events

"Andrew Lippa's Wild Party"

• May 24, 2012
• Location: Workshop Theatre
• Address: 1136 Bull Street, Columbia, SC 29201
• Venue: Workshop Theatre
• Recurrence: Recurring weekly on Sunday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday
• Times: Tuesday - Saturday 8 pm; Sunday 3 pm

Adapted from a book-length poem written in and about the Roaring Twenties, Andrew Lippa's Wild Party is the story of one wild evening in the Manhattan apartment shared by Queenie and Burrs, a vaudeville dancer and a vaudeville clown. In a relationship marked by vicious behavior and recklessness (mirroring the time in which they live), they decide to throw a party to end all parties.

A Carolina Chair Affair

• May 24, 2012
• Location: Columbia Museum of Art
• Address: 1515 Main Street, Columbia, SC 29201
• Venue: Columbia Museum of Art
• Times: Tuesday - Friday 11 am - 5 pm; Saturday 10 am - 5 pm; Sunday Noon - 5 pm

Corporate and community support is vital to the success of the Columbia Museum of Art. Community leaders are our friends, advocates, and most importantly partners, who enable the Museum to continue its vision of providing world-class art and educational opportunities to our community and its visitors. A Carolina Chair Affair is a unique opportunity to honor these men and woman and their many contributions to the arts and the Museum's summer exhibition, The Art of Seating: 200 Years of America...

Abstract Art in South Carolina: 1949-2011

• May 24, 2012
• Location: SC State Museum
• Address: 301 Gervais Street, Columbia, SC 29201
• Venue: South Carolina State Museum
• Recurrence: Recurring daily
• Times: Open Tuesday - Saturday 10 am - 5 pm; Sunday 1 -5 pm; Open Mondays - Memorial Day through Labor Day; Closed Easter.

Abstract Art in South Carolina: 1949-2011 looks at the evolution and influences of abstract painting and sculpture in South Carolina. The exhibit includes work by pioneering artists such as William Halsey, Corrie McCallum, J. Bardin, Carl Blair and Merton Simpson, and contemporary artists currently working in communities across South Carolina today, such as James Busby, Shaun Cassidy, Enid Williams, Paul Yanko, Katie Walker and Tom Stanley, among many others. In all, work by more than 40 arti...

Back Porch 7 Days a Week

• May 24, 2012
• Address: 1616 Gervais St., Columbia, SC 29201
• Venue: Back Porch on Gervais
• Recurrence: Recurring weekly on Thursday
• Times: 5pm until Close

Every Thursday night the back Porch is hosting the Mad Men and Women Young Professional's night. Join us and let the madness of the 9-5 grind wash away with whiskey, wine, and great music.

Blooming Butterflies

• May 24, 2012
• Location: Edventure
• Address: 211 Gervais Street, Columbia, SC 29201
• Venue: EdVenture Children's Museum
• Recurrence: Recurring daily
• Times: Monday-Saturday: First entry is at 9:30 a.m. Last entry is at 4:30 p.m. Sunday: First entry is at 12:30 p.m. Last entry is at 4:30 p.m.

Come explore the world of the butterfly! Visit EdVenture's living exhibit, a 2,500 square foot enclosed habitat designed to showcase the lifespan of over 20 species of butterflies. The exhibit is filled with dozens of species of trees and plants that support hundreds of butterflies from more than 20 different species native to the Southeast. Be sure to check out the Bloom Room to observe chrysalises and emerging butterflies. Look, but please don't touch! Although it is tempting to touch these...

Bold Banners: Early Civil War Flags of South Carolina

• May 24, 2012
• Location: SC Confederate Relic Room & Military Museum
• Address: 301 Gervais Street, Columbia, SC 29201
• Venue: South Carolina Confederate Relic Room and Military Museum
• Recurrence: Recurring weekly on Sunday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday
• Times: Tuesday - Saturday 10 am - 5 pm; First Sunday 1 - 5 pm

Rich. Colorful. Bold. Words that may not initially evoke images of Civil War flags but the South Carolina Confederate Relic Room & Military Museum's upcoming exhibit shows that many of the earliest Civil War flags were hand-crafted works of art and not simply "stars and bars." Bold Banners: Early Civil War Flags of South Carolina will be exhibited at the Relic Room from May 6, 2011 through September 29, 2012. The exhibit will display some of the earliest flags representing units fr...

City Art presents Michael Fowler

• May 24, 2012
• Location: City Art Gallery
• Address: 1224 Lincoln Street, Columbia, SC 29201
• Venue: City Art Gallery
• Times: Monday - Thursday 10 am - 6 pm; Friday 10 am - 5 pm; Saturday 11 am - 3 pm

Columbia Design League Selects

• May 24, 2012
• Location: Columbia Museum of Art
• Address: 1515 Main Street, Columbia, SC 29201
• Venue: Columbia Museum of Art
• Times: Tuesday - Friday 11 am - 5 pm; Saturday 10 am - 5 pm; Sunday Noon - 5 pm

CDL Selects is a complement installation to the nationally traveling exhibition, The Art of Seating: 200 Years of American Design. Drawn solely from the design collection of the Columbia Museum of Art, CDL Selects contains over 60 exceptional examples of 20th-century design in a variety of media forms-seating furniture, tables, lamps, and related decorative arts; sculpture; industrial design and in a variety of media, including ceramics, glass, and metal. Board members of the membership affiliat...

Five After Five Spring 2012 Concert Series

• May 24, 2012
• Location: Five Points Fountain
• Venue: Five Points
• Recurrence: Recurring weekly on Thursday
• Times: Thursdays 6:30 PM

Come out to the Five Points Fountain for great live music from a variety of local bands every Thursday, 6:30, through May 31.  April 26: Abbey Road LIVE Initially a tribute to the monumental ";Abbey Road"; album, the band has expanded its scope to include more than 100 Beatles tunes, from all eras of the Fab Four's career. The band specializes in complete, start-to-finish album performances of masterpieces such as "Abbey Road", "Magical Mystery Tour" and &q...

Five Points After Five

• May 24, 2012
• Venue: Five Points
• Recurrence: Recurring weekly on Thursday
• Times: 6:30 pm - 10:00 pm

Springtime in Columbia means many things, but for music lovers in the Midlands, it means the return of the Five Points After Five (FAF) concert series. This April marks the start of another great season that will be packed with great, local music and good times for the Five Points community. The season starts this Thursday, April 5, and will continue each Thursday until May 31. This season’s line up offers a variety of musical tastes with several great bands from all over the Palmett...

Make Your Move! Strategic Play Through the Centuries

• May 24, 2012
• Location: EdVenture Children's Museum
• Address: 211 Gervais Street, Columbia, SC 29201
• Venue: EdVenture Children's Museum
• Recurrence: Recurring weekly on Sunday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday
• Times: Tues-Sat 9am-5pm, Sunday noon-5pm

This returning exhibit will feature new additions and enhancements you won't want to miss! From simple amusements to complex exercises in strategic thinking, games have been a part of our lives since ancient times. Make Your Move! explores the origins of the world's best-loved games in an exhibit featuring oversized game pieces and play areas that give children a chance to explore the fun of strategic play in a new dimension.

Meet the Designers: Runaway Runway

• May 24, 2012
• Location: Columbia Museum of Art
• Address: 1515 Main Street, Columbia, SC 29201
• Venue: Columbia Museum of Art
• Recurrence: Recurring weekly on Sunday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday
• Times: Tuesday - Friday 11 am - 5 pm; Saturday 10 am - 5 pm; Sunday Noon - 5 pm

Get up close and personal with outfits from the 2011 Runaway Runway fashion show and learn about the conceptual and construction process behind each outfit. From a bubble wrap gown to a Mad Hatter spin-off, these creations feature post-consumer materials, range in theme and materials and are wild eco-friendly fashions!  

Moneyville

• May 24, 2012
• Location: EdVenture Children's Museum
• Address: 211 Gervais Street, Columbia, SC 29201
• Venue: EdVenture Children's Museum
• Recurrence: Recurring daily
• Times: 9 am - 5 pm Monday - Saturday; 12 Noon - 5 pm Sunday (Open Mondays from Memorial Day through Labor Day)

You'll see money-and math-in a whole new way. You'll discover that money is really all about making choices-with the power of math. Money isn't just dollars and cents. The ancient Aztecs used chocolate for money, and Yap Islanders used 500-lb. stones! So what is money and how does it work? You and your family can explore the history, science, math, and economics behind money in Moneyville.

Northeast Farmers Market

• May 24, 2012
• Location: Lake Carolina
• Address: 100 Lake Carolina Boulevard, Columbia, SC 29229
• Venue: Lake Carolina
• Recurrence: Recurring weekly on Thursday
• Times: 3:00 pm - 7:00 pm

The Northeast Farmers Market returns to Lake Carolina for the 2012 season on Thursday, May 17 from 3:00 - 7:00 p.m. Stop by to pick up your fresh produce and other goods! New vendors will be joining us this year including fresh seafood and fresh baked breads from a local bakery. We will also feature live music and much more!

Rhythm and Blooms

• May 24, 2012
• Location: Riverbanks Zoo & Garden
• Address: 500 Wildlife Parkway, Columbia, SC 29210
• Venue: Riverbanks Zoo & Garden
• Recurrence: Recurring weekly on Thursday
• Times: 6:00 PM - 9:00 PM

Every Thursday in May. Music and flowers after hours-you won't experience a night like this anywhere else in Columbia! Guests can enjoy live entertainment and local artists in the Botanical Garden every Thursday in May from 6-9pm. Cash bar and food will be available for purchase at the event. May 3: Whiskey Tango Revue May 10: Liquid Blue (World's Most Traveled Band) *Special extended hours until 10pm. Concert begins at 8pm. May 17: Devils in Disguise May 24: Bobby Houck of the Blue Dogs Ma...

Sit Right Down

• May 24, 2012
• Location: Columbia Museum of Art
• Address: 1515 Main Street, Columbia, SC 29201
• Venue: Columbia Museum of Art
• Times: Tuesday - Friday 11 am - 5 pm; Saturday 10 am - 5 pm; Sunday Noon - 5 pm

National Art Honors Society students display three dimensional design skills by creating model chairs while students in CMA's One Room School House program use a print making technique to design upholstery fabric. These 3D and 2D works make for an engaging exhibition on furniture design! Different chair designs are available for your sitting pleasure - tell us which one is your favorite with our interactive survey. Design your own chair at our young artist station and have a seat on a toadstool...

Sumter Iris Festival

• May 24, 2012
• Location: Sumter's Swan Lake - Iris Gardens
• Times: Friday & Saturday 10 am - 7 pm; Sunday 10 am - 5 pm

Sumter's Iris Festival is South Carolina's oldest continuous festival and is consistently ranked among the top festivals in the Southeast. The 3-day festival includes concerts, an arts and crafts show, a flower show, a quilt show, car shows, and a number of contests and children's activities. The fun begins the evening before the festival, with the annual Crowning of The King & Queen followed by the Taste at the Gardens, featuring great music and great food from some of the area's leading r...

Tales for Tots

• May 24, 2012
• Address: 211 Gervais Street, Columbia, SC 29201
• Venue: EdVenture Children's Museum
• Recurrence: Recurring monthly on the 4th Thursday
• Times: 11am on the fourth Thursday of every month

Experience Tales for Tots at EdVenture – a fun and educational series that features a read-to-me time followed by a character appearance that is sure to make stories come alive! Especially for young children ages 0-4 years.

Tangible History: Stoneware from the Holcombe Family Collection

• May 24, 2012
• Location: South Carolina State Museum
• Address: 301 Gervais Street, Columbia, SC 29201
• Venue: South Carolina State Museum
• Times: Tuesday - Saturday 10 am - 5 pm; Sunday 1 - 5 pm

From the oldest traditional art form east of the Mississippi River to the birthplace of the American alkaline-glazed stoneware tradition, South Carolina represents some of the most important milestones in ceramic arts. This exhibition will focus on the broad history of traditional pottery found in South Carolina, and will feature the incredible collection of the Holcombe Family from Clinton, South Carolina, housed on loan to the State Museum. This exhibit will include pottery made by the Spanis...

The Art of Recovery

• May 24, 2012
• Location: SC State Museum
• Address: 301 Gervais Street, Columbia, SC 29201
• Venue: South Carolina State Museum
• Recurrence: Recurring weekly on Sunday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday
• Times: Tuesday through Saturday 10 a.m. – 5 p.m.; Sunday 1 – 5 p.m

Art by clients of the South Carolina Department of Mental Health will be on display in this exhibit, put together from competitions open to people receiving services through the department. The Art of Recovery project showcases the talents of people living with mental illnesses and the role that creative processes like art can play in the recovery process.

The Art of Seating: Two Hundred Years of American Design

• May 24, 2012
• Location: Columbia Museum of Art
• Address: 1515 Main Street, Columbia, SC 29201
• Venue: Columbia Museum of Art
• Times: Tuesday - Friday 11 am - 5 pm; Saturday 10 am - 5 pm; Sunday Noon - 5 pm

Most chairs encountered throughout the day define themselves fairly simply - a place at the family table, a comfortable spot with a great view of the river, a seat of corporate power. When looking at the 43 chairs selected for The Art of Seating: 200 Years of American Design, however, there is much more to see than simple pieces of furniture. These works of art have compelling stories to tell about our national history, the evolution of American design and incredible artistry and craftsmanship....

The Civil War in South Carolina: Soldiers of the Palmetto State, 1861 - 1865

• May 24, 2012
• Location: South Carolina State Museum
• Address: 301 Gervais Street, Columbia, SC 29201
• Venue: South Carolina State Museum
• Recurrence: Recurring weekly on Sunday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday
• Times: Tuesday-Saturday 10 am - 5 pm; Sunday 1 - 5 pm

The second installment of the Museum's series of exhibits focusing on the sesquicentennial of the Civil War will examine the early formations of military units in South Carolina and how the state's soldiers served the Confederacy from the spring of 1861 to Appomattox, four years later.

Titanic: The Artifact Exhibit

• May 24, 2012
• Location: SC State Museum
• Address: 301 Gervais Street, Columbia, SC 29201
• Venue: South Carolina State Museum
• Recurrence: Recurring daily
• Times: Open Tuesday - Saturday 10 am - 5 pm; Sunday 1 -5 pm; Open Mondays - Memorial Day through Labor Day; Closed Easter.

On April 15, 1912, Titanic, the world's largest ship, sank after colliding with an iceberg claiming more than 1,500 lives and subsequently altering the world's confidence in modern technology. One hundred years later, the South Carolina State Museum will pay tribute to the tragedy which continues to resonate through Titanic: The Artifact Exhibition, where legendary artifacts conserved from the Ship's debris field are showcased offering visitors a poignant look at this iconic ship and its passen...

Trustus Theatre presents "In The Next Room or The Vibrator Play"

• May 24, 2012
• Location: Trustus Theatre
• Address: 520 Lady Street, Columbia, SC 29201
• Venue: Trustus Theatre
• Recurrence: Recurring weekly on Sunday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday
• Times: Thursday 7:30 pm; Friday & Saturday 8 pm; Sunday at 3 pm

 A play by Sarah Ruhl, Directed by Ellen Douglas Schlaefer "In the Next Room or the Vibrator Play" is a comedy about marriage, intimacy, and electricity. Set in the 1880s at the dawn of the age of electricity in a seemingly perfect, well-to-do Victorian home, proper gentleman and scientist Dr. Givings has innocently invented an extraordinary new device for treating "hysteria" in women (and occasionally men): the vibrator. Adjacent to the doctor's laboratory, his young ...

Wine Tasting

• May 24, 2012
• Address: 6000 Garners Ferry Road, Columbia, SC 29209
• Venue: Shoppes at Woodhill
• Recurrence: Recurring weekly on Thursday
• Times: 5:00 to 8:00 PM

Weekly wine tasting at WineStyles Wine and Gifts (Shoppes at Woodhill). Five wines open. Cost is $5, refunded if you purchase something from the tasting lineup.