Gallery Opening Reception
Contemporary and Modern Art
Exhibition Group Show
Fri. Aug. 18
5-8 p.m.
Columbus Street Art Gallery
81-A Columbus St.
853-9517
www.columbusstreetartgallery.com
A new and exciting exhibition is soon to be underway at the Columbus Street Art Gallery. The CSAG routinely features exhibition shows embracing East Side community artists, including artists, sculptors, musicians, and craftspeople. Ted Pickering is the featured artist of the month, and a reception will be held at CSAG in honor of his work. The gallery will also show mixed media, paintings, and sculpture by Cassandra Jenkins, Ben Kelly, Tiffany Shine, Robert Washington, and James Smart. The exhibition will be on display through Sept. 30. After the CSAG opening on Fri. night, there will be a preview party of Ted Pickering’s sculptures at a garden reception at Kudu Coffee House at 4 Vanderhorst St. from 8-10 p.m.
FRIDAY
MUSICAL EVENT — Hold my helping hand
Hootie & The Blowfish Fourth Annual Homegrown Concert
Fri. Aug. 18
Gates open at 6:30 p.m.
$20-$36
Family Circle Tennis Center
161 Seven Farms Dr.
Daniel Island
1-800-514-ETIX
www.etix.com
The Grammy Award-winning local boys Hootie & The Blowfish return to Daniel Island this month for their fourth annual Homegrown Concert. The band will be promoting their fifth studio album, Looking for Lucky, and their new LIVE in Charleston DVD, and will be joined by opening act The Gin Blossoms. But the Homegrown Concert is about more than just good music. The event doubles as a donation drive that aims to provide much-needed school supplies to local students. Ticket holders are asked to bring a single school supply item to the concert as a donation, which will be collected and distributed throughout Charleston County. Over the past three years, the event has been a huge success and fans have donated enough supplies to fill three entire school buses. This is your chance to rock out with your friends while you help out students in need. Tickets are available from eTIX by phone or on the web.
FRIDAY
EVENT — The British aren’t coming!
Charles Towne Landing Opening Ceremony
Thurs. Aug. 17
11 a.m.
Free
Charles Towne Landing
1500 Old Towne Road
852-4200
www.charlestowne.org
The Plymouth Rock of the Carolinas, Charles Towne Landing, is finally reopening to the public. The 36-year-old historic park marks the location where British settlers arrived from Barbados in 1670 to establish the first permanent European settlement in the Carolinas. The 665-acre park hasn’t been the same since Hurricane Hugo hit, but the opening ceremony will mark the “end of the beginning” of the redevelopment of the site. New facilities at the park include a visitor center filled with interactive exhibits, a new marsh boardwalk where visitors can observe the construction of the life-size replica of the 17th-century trading ship The Adventure, and new habitats and trails through the Animal Forest, a naturalistic zoo that is home to otters, bears, puma, and bison. The opening celebration will also include day-long living history lessons until Sunday, from demonstrations of live cannon firings and musket drilling to lectures about period farming and handcrafts. There is plenty to see and do, so bring the kids and catch up on your local history in a fun, family-friendly environment.
THURSDAY
FESTIVAL — Not the Austin Powers kind of shagging
Charleston Beach Music and Shag Festival
Aug. 17-20
Various locations, times, and prices
www.charlestonbeachfest.com
www.pivotsbeachclub.com
At any local wedding reception, fancy nightclub, or waterfront bar, when the right tune comes up — or even simply the right swingin’ mid-tempo dance beat — you will likely become witness to state dance “the shag” in its full glory. Even these days, decades after the advent of the original Coastal Carolina dance craze, the shag is alive and well. Nightclub J.B. Pivots, located in West Ashley at 1662 Savannah Hwy., is a major hotspot for shaggers and beach music lovers. Pivots is also a main sponsor for the First Annual Charleston Beach Music and Shag Festival, set to kick off this week at The Plex, J.B. Pivots, and the Exchange Park Fairgrounds in Ladson. Featured musical acts include The Drifters (pictured above), The Tams, Maurice Williams, East Coast Party Band, Rick Godfrey, The Fantastic Shakers, The Coppertones, Craig Woolard Band, DJ Jim Bowers, and more. For detailed information on the various events happening around the Lowcountry or to get tickets for either individual events or the whole weekend, visit the official Charleston Beach Music and Shag Festival website.
THURS-SUN
EVENT — We’re not in Kansas anymore
Gay Prom � “Somewhere Over the Rainbow”
Fri. Aug. 18
7 p.m.-2 a.m.
The Map Room
1650 Sam Rittenberg Blvd.
(803) 318-6900
mmoore@scequality.org
It’s time to dust off your tux and shine up your dancin’ shoes. The Map Room is hosting a gay prom themed “Somewhere Over the Rainbow” on behalf of the South Carolina Equality Coalition (SCEC), Charleston Social Club, and We Are Family. Admission is free, but donations are greatly appreciated. There will be a raffle and an auction, and all proceeds will be matched by a very generous donor in support of SCEC’s Fairness for All Families Campaign against the Family Discrimination Amendment. Now, even though this is being touted as a “gay prom,” all are welcome, regardless of sexual orientation. Sorry kids, but you must be 21 to join in the festivities. Just like traditional prom evenings, there will be a contest for king and queen. Get prom pictures taken and purchase hand-made corsages and boutonnieres, bid on auction items, or enter the raffle. Wear your most outrageous attire and bring all your friends. Come out, have some fun, and support equality!
FRIDAY
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