Elsewhere in entertainment, events and the arts this weekend:
FUN: 'Dream Big' on ice
Courageous Disney characters Mickey, Minnie, Miguel, Moana, Anna, Tiana, Elsa, Belle and Genie lead the cast of Disney animated characters as "Disney On Ice Presents Dream Big" skates into North Little Rock's Simmons Bank Arena, 7:30 p.m. today-Friday; 11 a.m., 3 and 7 p.m. Saturday; and 3 p.m. Sunday. Tickets are $22-$72 (plus service charges; there is an eight-ticket limit and prices are "subject to change based on market demand," according to a news release), with some $17 select opening-night seats. Visit ticketmaster.com. Guests 14 and younger can come in costume; everybody age 2 and up must have a ticket. Face coverings are "highly recommended."
Kids Fest
Bounce houses, obstacle courses, slides, a Nerf Battle Maze and photo ops with princesses and superheroes are part of VXV Events' inaugural Kids Fest Little Rock, 11 a.m.-6 p.m. Friday, 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Saturday at the Statehouse Convention Center, Markham and Main streets, Little Rock.
The festival will also feature video and tabletop games and giveaways. Entertainment includes stage shows by magician Dorian LaChance, music by kids group The Starling Seven and a martial arts display by All Star Martial Arts. Artist Jason Turner hosts children's art workshops; there will be a coloring area where kids can color pre-existing pictures or make their own art. Girl Scouts and Boy Scouts will operate information booths; the Arkansas Food Bank will collect canned goods.
Admission is $15 in advance, $25 at the door, and includes access to all activities except the Battle Maze, for which there is an additional $15 fee (but you get to keep the Nerf gun). Visit kidsfestlittlerock.com.
MUSIC: Chancellor's Concert
University of Arkansas at Little Rock music department students, faculty, and ensembles perform for the university's inaugural Chancellor's Concert, 7:30 p.m. today in the Stella Boyle Smith Concert Hall, Fine Arts Building, UALR, 2801 S. University Ave., Little Rock.
The Trojan Steel Band will perform before the concert in the Fine Arts Building lobby. Student soloists include soprano Valerisse Bell performing "The Crucifixion" by Samuel Barber; clarinetist Harris Hogue playing "Syrinx" by Claude Debussy; soprano Hannah Blacklaw singing "Astonishing" from Jason Howland's musical "Little Women"; tenor Brent M. Foster II singing the aria "Ev'ry valley shall be exalted" from "Messiah" by George Frideric Handel; vibraphonist Luke Allred playing "Blues for Gilbert" by Mark Glentworth; and soprano Mya Little singing "Pres des remparts de Seville" from "Carmen" by Georges Bizet.
The Piano Ensemble will play an arrangement of Ludwig van Beethoven's "Egmont Overture." The program will also include the Chamber Singers performing "Elijah Rock," arranged by Moses Hogan; the Concert Choir singing "City Called Heaven" arranged by Josephine Poelinitz with tenor Damion Snowden and student conductor Carmen Ramirez; the Jazz Ensemble performing "Things Are Looking Up" by George Gershwin with vocals by Mya Little; the Percussion Ensemble performing "Go" from "Amid the Noise" by Jason Trueting; the Women's Choir performing "Koowu" by Maryam Khoury (with Ramirez conducting) and "Music Down in My Soul," arranged by Moses Hogan; the Trombone Quartet performing the "Super Mario Main Theme"; and the Wind Ensemble performing "British Eighth" by Zo Elliott, arranged by Quincy Hilliard.
Admission is free. Call (501) 569-3294 or visit ualr.edu/music.
Rutter 'Requiem'
The Ouachita Singers and Concert Choir perform "Requiem" by John Rutter with soprano soloist Kara Claybrook and an orchestra consisting of OBU faculty and students and members of the Arkansas Symphony Orchestra, 7:30 p.m. Tuesday in Ouachita Baptist University's Jones Performing Arts Center, 409 Ouachita St., Arkadelphia. The combined groups will also perform Mark Hayes' "Te Deum," with soloists mezzo-soprano Natilan Crutcher and baritone Gary Gerber. The Ouachita Singers open the program with "The Conversion of Saul" by Z. Randall Stroope. Joshua Brown conducts. Admission is free. Call (870) 245-5143 or email [email protected].
Harding University in Searcy hosts its 48th Spring Sing musical variety show today-Saturday. (Special to the Democrat-Gazette) THEATER: Spring Sing
Hundreds of students involved in seven productions, plus four hosts and the Harding University Jazz Band, are taking part in Harding University's 48th Spring Sing musical variety show, 7 p.m. today-Friday, 2 and 7 p.m. Saturday in Harding's Benson Auditorium, 201 S. Blakeney St., Searcy. Members of a score of social clubs perform (in competition for cash prizes to be donated to charity), with themes including bees, Disney, rock 'n' roll, Saturday morning cartoons, archaeologists, haunted Harding and "where's Waldo?" Tickets are $20, $25 for Saturday night. Call (501) 279-4255 or visit hardingtickets.com. More information and a full schedule are available at harding.edu/springsing.
ETC.: 'Growing Seedlings'
James Shelton, state Department of Agriculture, Forestry Division, Baucum Nursery Manager, will focus on "Growing Seedlings in Your Yard (Redbuds, Dogwoods, Tulip Trees, etc.)" for the Mount Holly Garden Series, 9 a.m. Saturday at the Bell House in the center of Mount Holly Cemetery, 1200 Broadway, Little Rock. Admission is free; take a lawn chair. Call (501) 372-3372 or email [email protected].
The rest of the garden series lineup (9 a.m., Mount Holly Cemetery Bell House):
- ◼️ May 21: "All the Buzz on Our Busiest Pollinators — Native Bees," Leslie Cooper, QuailForever
- ◼️ June 18: "Living Jewels — The Magical Land of Koi," Mark Gibson, owner, Green Thumb Water Gardens
- ◼️ July 16: "Raising Muscadines in Your Home Vineyard," Allen Hall
- ◼️ Aug. 20: "The World of Hostas," Master Gardener Susan Rose
- ◼️ Sept. 17: "African Violets 101," Danny Tidwell, Arkansas African Violet Society
- ◼️ Oct. 15: "Hanging Out With Bats," Lauren Marshall, Witt Stephens Nature Center.