Category Archives: Events

Photo Courtesy of Havana Dave’s

This weekend’s picks focus on two things I share a lot about here on the blog: Music and Food Trucks. Tonight you have a chance to catch some amazing Blues over at the Bullpen in Durham. Then on Saturday there will be a rare North Raleigh Food Truck Rodeo. I’m hoping to stop by to try my very first Cubano from Havana Dave’s! I share the details for all of my picks below. Also, keep an eye out for some fun openings next week. Word is the Level 7 Rooftop Bar at the new AC Hotel in North Hills will open on Monday and I hear that the Sir Walter Coffee Shop in downtown Raleigh should be opening very soon as well!

Friday

Pat “Mother of Blues” Cohen performs at The Bullpen
For years, Pat sang in New Orleans six nights a week, performing at a wide array of venues including the House of Blues, until Katrina destroyed her home. She relocated to North Carolina and has recently started touring with the Music Maker Blues Revue. This Friday at 8:30pm you can hear her perform at The Bullpen in Durham right next to the Durham Bulls Stadium. The Bullpen is known for great wings and a nice selection of local beer.

Saturday

North Raleigh Food Truck Rodeo
The first ever North Raleigh Food Truck Rodeo will happen on March 25 from 3-7pm at Lifepointe Church located at 9500 Durant Road in North Raleigh. This event is open to the public so bring a chair or blanket and come enjoy great food, local bands, and fun for all ages. Sales from the event will benefit Make A Wish of Eastern NC.

Food Trucks Scheduled:
Havana Dave’s
Sarges Chef on Wheels
JAM Ice Cream
Arepa Culture
Zekes Meats

Sunday

Classic Hangs at Rebus Works
Oak City Chamber Players, Rebus Works, and Chef Battistella are excited to bring another Classical Hang. Music starts at 5pm. Classical Hang is an event to help bring together the community closer together using beer. Enjoy amazing food in a relaxed atmosphere (with no rules) to listen to great “classical” music played by a string quartet. Suggested $10 donation.

Hard to believe it has already been five years but next Monday, March 27th Sola Coffee Café in North Raleigh will celebrate its 5th year in business. Sola has always been a gathering spot for the community so it is no surprise to see they are encouraging the community to join them in supporting part of the “Sola Family” on this special day.

The anniversay celebration will include lots of surprises and an opportunity for customers to help families with children who have life threatening medical conditions. On Monday Sola will donate all coffee and espresso sales to Make-A-Wish Foundation. Customers will also be able to make insividual contributions as well.

“We wanted to express our gratitude to Raleigh by coming together and supporting a unique need within our community,” said Jeanne Luther, co-owner. “We received a request of support from one of our Sola families and we immediately began to think how we could help. After meeting for coffee with Grace, we began to make a plan.”

As Make-A-Wish parents, Colin & Grace McNevin are participating in the Trailblaze Challenge, a 26.5 mile day hike in honor of their son, Liam. He has been actively receiving chemotherapy treatments through Duke University Children’s Hospital since 2014, when he was first diagnosed with ALL Leukemia days after his 3rd birthday. In hiking, they are seeking to enable other families in similar situations to fulfill a wish. For more info on their story http://bit.ly/teammcnevinwishes.

About Sola Coffee Café
Since Sola Coffee Café opened their doors in March, 2012 they have been one of my favorite places to get a great cup of Counter Culture coffee and delicious healthy food. They have also been a great source of live music on weekends featuring talented local and touring acts. Sola has received numerous awards for excellence and has become an integral part of the Raleigh community. They recently finished an expansion of their kitchen to create a fresh juice bar, larger catering space and offer more outdoor seating. They are always adding cool things to their menu too. Like a toast bar in the morning and healthy acai bowls. For more details about their menu and schedule of upcoming events at the cafe visit http://www.solacoffee.com.

Sola Coffee Café
7705 Lead Mine Road
Raleigh, NC 27615
Open Monday – Saturday (Closed on Sundays)
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SolaCoffeeCafe
Instagram: @solacoffee
Twitter: @SolaCoffee

I always love to share about local races around the Triangle so I am happy to pass along news of a the new Raleigh-Durham-Chapel Hill (RDC) Marathon and Half Marathon. This inaugural road race takes place this fall on Sunday, November 12, 2017, with the start and finish lines located at The Streets at Southpoint shopping mall in Durham.

The RDC Marathon and Half Marathon will host approximately 1,500 total participants (1,000 half marathon runners and 500 full marathon runners) on a USATF-certified course that features the popular American Tobacco Trail. This unique venue gives participants and spectators the opportunity to wine, dine, shop and run all in one place. There will be easy access to The Streets at Southpoint and the many restaurants, shops, breweries and recreational activities in the Triangle area.

“We are extremely excited about this race and what this unique venue offers both racers and spectators,” said Jason Biggs, race organizer and FS Series co-owner. “We wanted this to be a destination race, and this venue allows participants to enjoy the best of the Triangle area prior to Sunday’s events.”

The RDC Marathon and Half Marathon has proudly teamed with the Team Drea Foundation and will raise funds to find a cure for Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS), also commonly referred to as Lou Gehrig’s Disease.

Biggs watched Andrea Peet compete at past FS Series events while courageously battling ALS. Biggs is proud to join her effort to find a cure for ALS.

“I am deeply grateful to FS Series and the RDC Marathon for supporting our mission,” said Peet, namesake and founder of the Team Drea Foundation. “Being diagnosed with ALS at age 33 and told you only have two to five years to live puts things into perspective real quick. I pledged to spend my remaining time raising money for research and spreading awareness about this awful disease that leaves people paralyzed and unable to eat or breathe. Health-permitting, I’ll be out there taking on the RDCMarathon with you on my recumbent trike!”

Race Registration
Registration for the race opens Monday, March 20th. The cost is $70 for the Half Marathon and $90 for the Full Marathon. Registration includes a race sweatshirt, sponsor t-shirt, and finishers medal. For more information visit www.RDCmarathon.com. You can also follow them on twitter at @RunRDC and on instagram at @runrdc for race updates.

This weekend we finally see a break from the colder temps. Take advantage of it and get outside to explore. Here are my top picks for the weekend! Happy Exploring!

Friday

Saint Patrick’s Day Celebration at Big Boss
Celebrate St. Patrick’s Day at Big Boss Brewery in Raleigh with an evening of Food Trucks, Live Music, and a new Nitro stout to debut this week! Music by The Trousers, and The Oak City Rockers. Bands begin at 7pm. No tickets needed.  

Saturday

Rebus Works Saturday Market & Bruch Food Truck
Enjoy a Mini-Farmers Market and Saturday Brunch with Chef Brian Battistella’s “No Boundaries” food truck serving some New Orleans inspired fare. Seating provided inside rebus works. You can view the food truck menu here. Brunch is from 10am-1pm. Rebus is located at 301 Kinsey Street near downtown Raleigh.

Sunday

Imagine Circus at North Hills
Check out the professional cirque style performances (fun costumes & makeup, stilt walkers, hoop dancers etc…) of Imagine Circus on Sunday as they film a promotional video at North Hills on the green behind Starbucks from 2-5pm. You can learn more about Imagine Circus here.

Deborah Cox as Rachel Marron and Company in The Bodyguard
(Photo by Joan Marcus)

On Tuesday “The Bodyguard” opened at DPAC. Based on the hit 1992 movie of the same name the show in many ways is really a tribute performance to Whitney Houston and the songs she made famous. I went into the show expecting a fun experience that would teleport me back to my senior year in high school when Houston topped the charts with several hits from the movie’s soundtrack. The show delivered on the nostalgia, but what I didn’t expect was to be blown away by the vocals of the amazing Deborah Cox, who plays Rachel Marron, the role made famous in the movie by Houston.

Cox is a vocal powerhouse in her own right with Grammy nominations and multi-platnum R&B albums among her many impressive career accomplishments. Listening to her sing number after number throughout the evening was a real treat. She is in almost every scene of the show and sings almost each time she is on stage. How she pulls off so many wardrobe changes and delivers each song with such a powerful voice night after night is incredible. If you go into the show expecting a top-notch tribute to Whitney Houston you will not be disappointed.

Cox’s amazing performance is supported by equally stellar vocals from Jasmin Richardson, who plays Nicki, the jealous sister. Jasmin Richardson almost steals the show each time she is on stage. Her depiction of the supportive but jealous sister always in the shadow of her superstar sibling was perfectly delivered. The fact that when she sang she showed off a talent to rival that of Rachel added real substance to the conflict. The story and real life mirrored each other. It is no wonder that Richardson is the understudy for the role of Rachel Marron. Richardson, much like Nicki in the story, could easily fill the shoes of the lead role and be a superstar if fate would have it.

Judson Mills as Frank Farmer, Deborah Cox as Rachel Marron and Charles Gray as Bill Devaney in The Bodyguard
(Photo by Joan Marcus)

Judson Mills plays Frank Farmer, the reluctant Bodyguard to the Rachel Marron. While this role was made famous by Kevin Costner in the film, Mills does his best to make it his own. Mills version is just as masculine as Costner’s but a bit more laid back than the film version. He injects little bit of humor into the role. Mills doesn’t sing in the production, well except for one scene, but I don’t want to give too much away. Let’s just say it is a crowd favorite.

The ensemble of dancers for each number were all top notch – bringing a real life concert feel to each of the numbers in the musical. I think my favorite scene was when three drunk women in a bar do a hilarious karaoke rendition of Where Do Broken Hearts Go. Its kind of amazing how they nail singing poorly (on purpose). Its kind of hard to do and make it entertaining. But they totally nail it and get some of the biggest laughs of the night in the process.

The show has its moment when it has the 90’s feel. You can help but feel the tug of the 90’s when listening to some of songs you recall hearing so well on the radio back then. And in several scenes the ensemble are dressed in dance clothes reminiscent of the 1990’s. But the show is done in current time. With actors using cell phones in scenes, and talking about videos going viral on the internet. It was nice to see the story pulled into the modern times and not use 90’s culture as a shtick.

In many ways The Bodyguard feels like a mini-concert and an excuse to feature the hit songs of Houston. But if we are being honest that is what the audience is really there for and not the story. So if tribute a to Houston was the goal in that regard the production truly delivers. I expect to hear more great things from Cox and Richardson in the future. While they may be playing the superstar and supporting role in this production in real life they are both very much stars shining brightly.

“The Bodyguard” shows at DPAC through Sunday, March 19th. For tickets visit https://www.dpacnc.com/events/detail/the-bodyguard.