Karen’s mom Helen came to visit us for Mother’s Day weekend and we kept her dance card full. Charlotte celebrated its 250th anniversary this year. The year-long celebration of CLT250 was a festival of music, food and art called “SHOUT!” that ran from April 29 through May 11. We spent Friday (5-10-19) walking all over uptown to take in all we could.
David Dimitri performed his one man circus before walking the tightrope from his tent to a high platform in First Ward Park where he took a selfie with the crowd below. Thousands of reflectors on bendy stems scatter light from projectors in the creation of Kanva behind us representing wheat swaying in Canadian fields.
Australia’s “TALL TALES” was performed by the group Strange Fruit atop 16-foot sway poles. They are intrepid sailors aboard a swirling ship on the high seas. Click on boatdancers video for a glimpse of their combination of theatrical dance and circus acts.
Strange Fruit performing physical feats as their boat spins.
Tyron Street was closed to traffic and overflowing with fanciful artworks. PRISMATICA presented 25 spinning prisms laminated with dichromic film that reflect every color in the visible spectrum.
We stopped at Mert’s Heart and Soul restaurant to refuel for more walking. Their fried catfish, cornbread and baked beans were incredible. Mert’s is one of Charlotte’s most visited and best comfort food eateries. Looks like a few soles left the display in the men’s room with some sticky-fingered customers.
We paused to view Nick Napoletano’s interactive augmented mural before checking out the 40-foot tall, inflated, white rabbits on the Green. From there it was on to the “highlight” of Friday night!
Blue Lapis Light dancers were suspended by cables off the 15-story high government building. They flew, spun and tumbled through the air creating the most spectacular modern dance performance I’ve ever witnessed. It was breathtaking and amazing.
Saturday (5-11-19) the forecast called for rain, then even more severe rain and possible tornados. Not what we’d hoped for the North Carolina Brewers and Music Festival at Historic Rural Hill in Huntersville, NC. We donned foul weather gear, hiking boots and hats, carried golfer’s umbrellas and went anyway. 46 breweries offered unlimited tastes of their best beer and 9 bands were scheduled to play. It poured rain and we had to leave for an hour because of a tornado scare, but we sampled suds, watched people slip and fall in the mud and had a great time. Helen’s favorite beers were the Watermelon and Pina Colada ales from Fonta Flora. She also made a lot of new friends.
Billy Graham was born and raised on his family’s dairy farm in Charlotte. Sunday we toured the Billy Graham Library. That’s his 2-story, childhood home behind me that was dismantled and moved twice before it ended up here.
Karen had to work a half-day on Monday, so I took Helen to the Big Rock Nature Preserve to walk through the woods. The giant stones were a frequent campsite and lookout post for native Americans.
We didn’t see everything and I couldn’t fit all we did into this story so Helen will just have to come back for more. That is, when she rests up from this visit.