Mountain Xpress 03.08.17

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9 INROADS How interstate highways changed the face of WNC

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23 BUILDING RESILIENCE Regenerative farming offers keys to a sustainable future

28 BACK TO BASICS UpCountry Brewing owner John Cochran talks about his journey from Terrapin Beer Co. founder to Asheville craft brewer

32 CLEAR, PRESENT AND SLIGHTLY DANGEROUS Jon Stickley Trio schedules a hometown pre-release album celebration

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O PINION

Send your letters to the editor to letters@mountainx.com.

STA F F PUBLISHER & MANAGING EDITOR: Jeff Fobes ASSISTANT TO THE PUBLISHER: Susan Hutchinson ASSOCIATE EDITOR: Virginia Daffron A&E EDITOR/WRITER: Alli Marshall FOOD EDITOR/WRITER: Gina Smith WELLNESS EDITOR/WRITER: Susan Foster OPINION EDITOR: Tracy Rose STAFF REPORTERS/WRITERS: Able Allen, Thomas Calder, Virginia Daffron, Dan Hesse, Max Hunt CALENDAR EDITOR: Abigail Griffin CLUBLAND EDITORS Abigail Griffin, Max Hunt

CARTOO N BY RAN D Y M O LT O N

Taking a crash course in democracy I went to my first precinct meeting [Feb. 25] in my entry into what it’s like to be an involved citizen. The room was full to overflowing, and we heard all the other precinct meetings were as crowded. I had the same wild joy I did at the Women’s March in Washington — so many of us, such fervent faces. Now I am meeting people outside my tribe. This is what I wanted: to get larger, to work in community, to hear other stories, to stop recycling my own.

Seems the only way to rise above the grief and dread I wake to every day is to be active, to be learning how to make change, not just talking about it. I’m such a newbie, but I show up, I listen, ask questions and read — a crash course in democracy.

I remember one of our chants as we marched down the Mall, “This is what democracy looks like!� It stirs my heart, seems one of the most creative ways I can channel all the feelings I carry around like an underground river that rushes beneath my waking consciousness — but I hear it.

Every conversation starts with the state of the country, not “How are you� or the weather. It’s as if we are pouring words into the chaos, pulling

each other out, throwing lines. The more obvious river is the one we are all surging forward in: this new reality that is a flood. We are being carried forward and not to where my worst fears live. As I look at everyone’s faces at the meetings, I see others like me who care enough to show up.

That phrase, a thousand points of light, that’s us — but a thousand is a modest estimate. I heard that there are over 7,000 Indivisible groups across the country, and that’s just one of many organizations working for change. The sleeping giant has awoken. I hear its roar, and that sound is music to me. We are not alone. I look around the tables to the faces of my neighbors, young and old, seasoned veterans and new recruits. Beautiful.

I signed up to be a delegate to the county convention where I can have a voice in the Democratic platform going forward: a new voice, one of many much-needed voices. Who would have thought. — Ginger Graziano Asheville

We should discuss Trump administration I would like to respond to the letter “Practice What You Preach� by

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O P I NI O N

Send your letters to the editor to letters@mountainx.com.

Mr. Tim Hartigan in the Feb. 22 issue [Xpress]. I care about this country very much, and, according to the dictionary, that makes me a patriot, too.

I can only speak for myself, but I really think I speak for many when I say that I am very angry at the current administration. I see our freedom of speech and free press being threatened, and that is not “fake news.” There are various state legislatures that are attempting to make “protests” against the law.

As a patriot, I am furious that the First Amendment, the right to gather in peaceable protest and right to freedom of speech, is being threatened.

Citizens should be angry and fight for our democracy. I would never mistreat, curse or deride anyone who had a difference of opinion, although I may argue with them.

We should all be discussing this current administration’s lack of experience and dictatorial zeal to limit our freedom. With all due respect, sir, we have given Mr. Trump a chance, and in one month, he has declared the press “an enemy of the American people,” ruined innocent people’s lives with the Muslim ban (that’s “not a ban”) and is threatening to take people’s health care away with no plan in place.

He preaches fear and force. I am very afraid for this country because I do love my neighbors.

— Ellen Foltz Asheville

We need women’s voices, leadership I am writing in response to Carl Mumpower’s letter regarding the Women’s March [“Women’s Marches Lack Mature Focus,” Feb. 1, Xpress].

I appreciated the responses of the women and I want to respond as a man. My letter will provide contrast and show why we need women running things. Their responses were thoughtful, calm, and clearly conveyed their distaste of Mumpower’s remarks without being nasty. They left me with a sense of maturity and gentility.

My response, however, is more typical of how we men do things. I was embarrassed to be a member of the same gender as he, when I read Mumpower’s letter. I don’t know what kind of doctor he is, but if he is a medical doctor — yikes! …

There is an unavoidable truth to evolution that you cannot deny, just like you cannot deny gravity, no matter how much you choose to dislike it.

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Just as we used to think Neanderthals were stupid and eventually died off, science shows they may have been just as evolved as our current lineage, and, in fact, may still be with us.

I do believe, however, that there is a line of humans who have not evolved and they are also still among us. For some reason, their brains just have not been able to keep up and still want the Earth to be flat.

They still want to believe the fairy tales that were written by Stone Age people who thought stars were holes in the sky. … It’s just that we have to stop letting them (stupid people) run things, and we need to stop treating them as if they are smart and pretending their stupid ideas are relevant and credible.

I suspect … [Mumpower] enjoys tweaking the “liberals” who are so misguided.

Thank you, women of Asheville and of the world, for standing up to the men who make the rest of us look bad. We need you, we need your voices and we need your leadership.

Your example will ensure that my next letter will be more gentle, calm and loving.

— Ron Greenberg Weaverville Editor’s note: Former City Council member Carl Mumpower is a psychologist.

Civility solution is already available I greatly admire you for your civility challenge you’ve issued to the readership [“A Polite Way to Put It: Xpress Issues Civility Challenge,” Feb. 22], although the cynic in me not only suspects that you’ll have your hands more than full policing the comments sections, you’ll also have an uptick in troll activity by the smartasses who want to see what they can slip by you.

(Coded lingo by white supremacists, for example.) I must confess, however, that I’ve never felt a letters or comments section should be regarded as the journalistic equivalent of a Speakers’ Corner in Hyde Park; if people want to voice their opinions at will, they can start their own newspaper or blog.

At any rate, the partial solution has been available to you all along: moderated and verified comments.

For as long as there have been newspapers and Letters to the Editors sections, it’s been a policy of reputable journalism outlets to require that every letter contain the writer’s name, address, and a

contact number. Upon receipt of a letter, one of the publication’s editors would telephone the letter writer and verify who they were and what they wrote. (This was one of my tasks when I worked at a paper some years ago.)

Obviously, this was not a foolproof system, since anyone could in theory sign a fake name to a letter, or have an unpublished phone number. But it was still relatively reliable, and it certainly cut down on the percentage of folks scheming to get anonymous and inflammatory commentary into the paper. The letters were effectively “moderated,” as well, as letters sections typically bore the disclaimer “Letters to the Editor may be edited for clarity and space” (and, by implication, “taste”).

I see no reason, other than lack of manpower or laziness on the part of a journalistic outlet, why similar policies couldn’t be enacted for online comments sections, which are simply a digital iteration of a Letters to the Editor section.

— Fred Mills Arden Editor’s response: The internet is inherently a different medium than broadcast or print, because it is a network in which potentially every user can be a publisher.

The dynamics are so different that Congress recognized as much in the Telecommunications Act of 1996, which sets out different standards for what is published online versus in print. Consequently, Xpress’ policy regarding publication in print of letters to the editor must adhere to a different legal standard than online comments. While we could adopt a policy that allows only moderated and verified comments, we have not done so because it runs counter to the freer flow of information found on the internet. Our civility challenge, however, does reflect our desire to apply some filters and controls on that flow.

Remembering a dedicated teacher It is my sad duty to inform your readers of the loss of a beloved member of our community. John Casey died from cancer on Feb. 24, 2017.

He had been professor of philosophy at Warren Wilson College since 1991 and was still teaching classes two weeks before his death. Known by all simply as Casey, he was in many ways the soul of the college, somebody who embraced its values — the values of a

C A RT O O N B Y B R E NT B R O W N deeply examined life, clear thinking, hard work, social justice and environmental stewardship.

Hundreds of former students in the Asheville area remember his invigorating classes in environmental ethics, Eastern thought and alternative philosophies. Casey was born in Kansas in 1943 and received his undergraduate degree from Coe College in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. He earned his Ph.D. in philosophy from the University of Iowa. Before coming to Warren Wilson College, Casey had a varied career teaching philosophy in colleges across the Midwest and making contemporary art furniture as sole proprietor of his business The Woodworks.

During his 26 years at Warren Wilson College, Casey served the college in many roles, as a leader of campus governance, as the chair of the Integrative Studies program, as the head of the Business Affairs Committee, as the chair of the college land-use committee and as vice president for academic affairs and dean of the college.

Yet he will be remembered most as a dedicated teacher and a caring colleague. Those of us who were lucky to have offices near him will cherish memories of a great storyteller who enlivened our conversa-

tions with his stories of growing up in the 1940s and 1950s on the Great Plains, moving from town to town as his father built grain elevators throughout the region, or of his college years and political activism in the 1960s, or of the many years when he made his living in the Midwest as a skilled woodworker.

Besides hundreds of former students and grateful colleagues, Casey leaves behind his dearly loved wife, Rebecca, who unselfishly opened her home to friends and students as she cared for Casey in his final days. ...

With sadness for the loss of a great friend, — Philip Otterness Warren Wilson College Swannanoa

We want to hear from you!

Please send your letters to: Editor, Mountain Xpress, 2 Wall St., Asheville, NC 28801 or by email to letters@mountainx.com.

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O P I NI O N

Send your letters to the editor to letters@mountainx.com.

A win-win situation Guardian ad litem program changes lives

BY HERB BAILEY I am a guardian ad litem, the courtroom voice for foster children, representing their wants, needs and best interests. There are more than 5,000 children in North Carolina who need a GAL, and about 1,300 of them don’t have one. Unfortunately, the program lacks an advertising budget: It relies on local resources and good old-fashioned wordof-mouth. I’m sharing my story in hopes that you, too, will recognize this unique opportunity to change a child’s life while achieving something special in your own.

In 2012, my 83-year-old father was a “big brother” to a young boy in Wilmington via the Big Brothers Big Sisters organization.

Inspired, I called the Jackson County Department of Social Services to inquire about the local program and learned that there wasn’t one. Instead, the office personnel steered me to the GAL program, and Shannon Cowan, the supervisor, told me about volunteer opportunities.

At the time, I was a single man with two boys who were attending college.

As Shannon explained the program to me, I felt compelled to help kids in my community. I’d been privileged to have a near-perfect, Norman Rockwell kind of upbringing, with a mom and dad to help me navigate life’s lessons. I reasoned that I had good parenting skills, a big heart and a desire to be more engaged in my community. How could I pass up such a wonderful opportunity to give a foster child a little support?

It was one of the best decisions I’ve ever made!

Foster children are assigned a Department of Social Services social worker to address their basic wants and needs, but it’s the guardian ad litem volunteer who ensures that the child’s best interests are being met. That’s why GALs have so much latitude in contacting teachers, doctors, pastors, lawyers and so on to gather the appropriate facts and assist the child’s “family team” (social workers, teachers, guidance counselors, principals, psychologists, pastors and others who add value to a child’s growth and development). GALs seek accurate information, much as a parent would do for their own child. For example, we can access private information about the juvenile. We are the judge’s eyes and ears, focused on the well-being of one or more assigned children. While the DSS is concerned with the family dynamics, GALs

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HERB BAILEY consider what’s best for this individual child. And if this sounds daunting, rest assured that the program provides exceptional training that’s required before you can receive your first assignment.

My involvement with the Jackson County GAL program brought a special young man into my life. He was entering adolescence at the time; his mother had died before he entered grade school.

His father, who’d died a couple of years earlier, had raised the boy and his older brother high upon a mountaintop. The many extended family members had refused to provide foster care, much less consider adoption. So he became a ward of the state and was assigned to the Jackson County DSS. Shannon Cowan had studied the case and matched me

with this child. I’ll be forever grateful for her insight and support.

My GAL child had experienced tremendous trauma, and after his dad’s death, his older brother had abandoned him and moved across the country to start his own adult life. Over the next four years, the child was shuffled from one therapeutic foster-care placement to another, mostly outside Jackson County, due to the shortage of suitable options in the area (an unfortunate circumstance that the state really needs to address). As an adolescent, this boy was in desperate need of a loving environment and special training to address hygiene, education and basic life-coping skills.

Meeting those needs has been a team effort involving Joe Allen, a dedicated social worker; the terrific counselors via the boy’s current therapeutic foster placement; our awesome District Court judges; and attorneys Heather Baker and Mary Holliday. With their love and support, this child has not only overcome significant trauma but is now pursuing his heart’s creative desire: to be involved in community theater.

Upon graduating from high school, he plans to pursue vocational training and explore college options. The world is now “his oyster.”

I, meanwhile, learned that you can make a difference in a child’s life!

In The Pilgrim’s Progress, John Bunyan wrote, “You have not lived today until you have done something for someone who can never repay you.” Those words constantly remind me of my own responsibilities and opportunities.

And what about you: Are you “living today”? X Herb Bailey is a guardian ad litem in Jackson County.

Get ready Volunteers are the lifeblood of the guardian ad litem program. The next training for GAL volunteers in Jackson, Macon and Swain counties will start Thursday, March 16, in Sylva. For more information, or to register, call Joe Allen at the Macon County GAL office (828-349-7222) or Shannon Cowan at the Jackson County office (828-587-2087).

NEWS

INROADS

How interstate highways changed the face of WNC

BY MAX HUNT

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mhunt@mountainx.com Whether you’re cruising the scenic stretch of Interstate 26 in Madison County, cresting the Swannanoa Gap on Interstate 40 or sitting in traffic on the Bowen Bridge, it’s hard to live in Western North Carolina without feeling the impact of interstate highways.

Ever since the National System of Interstate and Defense Highways was launched in 1956, those roads have drastically changed the communities they pass through — or don’t. For some, the “coming of the road” has brought greater economic opportunities and access to the wider world; for others, it’s meant losing their homes and indelibly changing their environment and way of life.

And as the state Department of Transportation moves forward with plans for the long-awaited, much-debated I-26 Connector in West Asheville, a look at past interstate projects — and the changes they wrought — may offer insight into the issues now in play.

PRE-PAVEMENT DAYS Prior to the passage of the FederalAid Highway Act, which established the interstate system, traveling to or from the Southern Appalachians was a drawn-out, sometimes hazardous undertaking. Canton native Phillip Williams recalls the long trips his great-grandfather would take to peddle his produce and meats in Asheville.

“It was a three-day affair: They would strike out the first day and camp in what is now Candler … get up before daylight the next day and take the load into Asheville, do his business, return to the Candler camp, spend the night and return to Cruso the next day.”

In his book The New Road, local photographer Rob Amberg quotes Madison County native J.D. Thomas as follows: “There wasn’t any paved roads, and if it was rainy weather and the ruts was real deep, you’d break a tire, you’d break an axle.” From his home in Sprinkle Creek, “It took all day long to go to Marshall.”

The introduction of two-lane highways such as U.S. 70 and U.S. 23 made access easier, but increased traffic and industrial shipping often created logjams in small towns along the route. Before I-40 was completed,

LAST EXIT TO ASHEVILLE: Since the introduction of the interstate highway system in 1954, freeways have changed the topography, geography and culture of Western North Carolina. Photo via the North Carolina Collection, Pack Memorial Library, Asheville “The main road to get to Knoxville was through Madison County,” says former state Rep. Ray Rapp, who also served three terms as Mars Hill’s mayor. “If you talk to folks from the ’50s and early ’60s, it was bumper-to-bumper traffic” going through Marshall.

Black Mountain, too, was “one of the huge traffic jams” back then, says Bob McMurray, executive director of the Black Mountain/Swannanoa Chamber of Commerce. “The ABC store used to be here where the visitor center is. They used to say you could be in traffic, go out and buy a bottle and be back in your car before the line moved.”

The stretch of I-40 through WNC wasn’t finished until the early 1980s; the same held true for I-240. And the “future” designation won’t be removed from I-26 between West Asheville and Mars Hill until the required upgrades, which aren’t slated to begin until 2022, are completed.

(See “Down the Road: The Future of Future I-26,” May 20, 2015, Xpress.)

INTERSTATE INTRIGUE Often, political pressures and maneuvering dictated the routes these roads would take. Interstate 40, for example,

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was originally supposed to “basically mimic 25/70 through Hot Springs and Newport, [Tenn.]” says Amberg. “That was the better route, but there were political things going on that put it through the Pigeon River Gorge.”

And for those in the project’s path, the construction of I-40 often meant the loss of family property in an area where good farmland is scarce. Asheville native Wayne Caldwell says his wife’s family was forced to sell 5 or 6 acres of their Candler farm during the highway’s construction. “They weren’t happy about losing the property or the settlement DOT proposed for them,” the local author adds.

“It was just quite disruptive.”

Williams was too young at the time to recall the particulars, but he remembers “hearing a lot of bitterness directed at certain families who were in the know about where and when the interstates would come, and hoodooed many poor families out of land at a cheap price,” only to sell it to the state at a premium.

The politically motivated route I-40 took also posed a host of engineering problems, most notoriously in the Pigeon River Gorge, where the highway crosses into Tennessee. Over the past few decades, numerous rock slides have

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N EWS injured — sometimes fatally — commuters navigating the narrow, twisting pass.

“There was always an issue of rockfalls there,” former DOT geologist Russell Glass told the Winston-Salem Journal in 2009. “We used to run a 24-hour patrol there to push rocks out of the way.”

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Political intrigue was also at the center of the controversial Interstate 240 project, specifically the millions of cubic yards of rock removed from Beaucatcher Mountain to make the Beaucatcher Cut. First, an 11th-hour decision by the DOT to choose a cut rather than two threelane tunnels made it possible for a local contractor to get the job. Second, whichever contractor won the contract would inherit the waste material: 300 million cubic yards of crushed granite. Third, several contractors who bid on the project also formed a real estate partnership that bought up steep mountain parcels on the north side of Tunnel Road. If any contractor belonging to the partnership won the bid, a substantial portion of the crushed granite would be trucked to those parcels, transforming them into buildable commercial real estate.

“Few events made such a visual impact on our consciousness and, at the same time, represented how political forces in this region work,” Asheville historian Rob Neufeld wrote in a 2009 timeline about the project.

When it was announced in 1967, local environmentalists and other concerned residents launched a legal battle against the DOT that lasted more than a decade. Betty Lawrence, who helped spearhead the Beaucatcher Mountain Defense Association in the ’70s, remembers “spending my lunch hours going up to the law library on the 10th floor of the Buncombe County Courthouse and looking up cases” in an effort to halt construction.

“We got a thousand people up to Zealandia in October 1976 to protest the cut,” she says; the Tudor Revival mansion was built in 1908 for diplomat and businessman Philip Henry. One of those protesters was Fred Wolfe, the brother of acclaimed Asheville author Thomas Wolfe. “Fred was advanced in years but still going relatively strong,” Lawrence recalls. “He came up and gave a great speech, saying Wolfe was a mountain man, and he loved our mountains. …

He’d say, ‘Don’t tear it down!’”

Despite those efforts, and Zealandia’s being listed in the National Register of Historic Places in 1977, the courts sided with the DOT, and by 1980, the massive gash through Beaucatcher Mountain was complete.

For Lawrence, the cut meant losing “some of the real magic of Asheville. I used to go up there and pick the wild red raspberries that grew all over. Asheville was a city surrounded by mountains, and now it’s a city surrounded by mountains with one great big gash.”

Nonetheless, she says, the battle over Beaucatcher Mountain was lifechanging. “It taught me an awful lot, on several levels. I ended up going to law school in 1980, inspired in large part by my experiences trying to stop the DOT.” Besides irreparably altering an Asheville landmark, the construction cut a swath through the working-class communities east of downtown, skirted the historic Montford neighborhood and plowed through West Asheville. Shortly after 240 was built, urban renewal mostly relocated those east-end communities, which local photographer Andrea Clarke documented extensively in images now housed in Pack Library’s North Carolina Collection.

“There was a densely populated, mixed-race neighborhood all around First Baptist Church,” says Caldwell, who serves as the church’s historian.

“There was a lot of stuff down in that little valley; people lived and worked there.

Now we have a hotel and a YMCA and a great big parking lot for the church.”

MOUNTAIN MAJESTY North of Asheville, construction of the nine-mile stretch of future I-26 between Mars Hill and the Tennessee border began in 1992. The sparsely populated portion of Madison County presented highway engineers and residents alike with an entirely different set of challenges. Former DOT design engineer John Lansford says it was “by far the largest project, both in cost and in sheer size of the work involved” that he’s been involved with.

The largest earthmoving project in state history, it includes the highest bridge in North Carolina, which runs through Buckner Gap 125 feet up.

“Trout streams had to be avoided or bridged; access to property had to be maintained where possible,” Lansford recalls. “The construction had to be feasible … and impacts to the natural terrain and scenery had to be considered throughout.”

For Madison County residents, however, the road was a double-edged sword, according to Rapp. “People want the economic benefits, the ease of access to modernity and everything that brings,” he points out, “but you can’t stand there and watch them dynamite a mountain and not feel a certain set of angst about what you’re doing to the

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RURAL MEETS THE ROAD: The construction of I-26 through Madison County was the largest earthmoving project in North Carolina history and involved years of grading, cuts, the construction of the highest bridge in North Carolina, the rerouting of dozens of streams and springs, and the relocation of local homes and a cemetery. Photo by Max Hunt environment, what you’re about to bring into the region.�

Amberg, a longtime resident whose book documents the road’s construction, sees the project as an icon of greater changes in Madison County. “In a way,� he says, laughing, the county “has been brought into maybe not the 21st century but certainly the 20th. Much of it I really feel good about; at the same time, there is an element of what a former girlfriend used to call ‘dis-ease.’ This was slow Madison County, and suddenly, it explodes to include all these different things. The road becomes sort of symbolic of that.�

GIVE AND TAKE Perhaps the biggest changes wrought by the interstates in WNC are those that can’t be easily seen. “I can’t help but think of Billy Edd Wheeler’s song ‘The Coming of the Roads,’ where Billy sings, ‘I can’t help but blame your going on the coming of the road,’� notes Rapp. “I think of where the current Welcome Center is [on I-26 near the Tennessee line], which is one of the most beautiful welcome centers in the United States. But in the process, it buried what had been a longtime apple orchard.�

And while I-26 has given residents and travelers alike easier transit through the area, says Rapp, it can also blind commuters to the communities they pass through. “It’s a way through the region, not necessarily stopping here,� he says. “Go through Greensboro, for example: You’re racing right through shopping districts and neighborhoods,

and you’re oblivious to what those neighborhoods are.�

Communities not directly in an interstate’s path, however, may have a hard time attracting visitors at all. “There were a lot of small businesses like restaurants, stores, gas stations and motor courts that are no longer around after the interstates were fully open,�

Williams recalls. “The interstate system pretty much killed the railroads, the downtowns, the old city neighborhoods and the mom and pop businesses — and probably contributed to the demise of farming as a vocation/lifestyle.�

Black Mountain, says McMurray, has prospered thanks to its close proximity to I-40, but nearby communities such as Marion have had a harder time grabbing a piece of the pie. “They have a nice downtown,� he notes. “They’re just so far away from the interstate.�

And as interstates crept into the region, Marshall, which had been a stop for travelers as far back as the old Buncombe Turnpike of the early 1800s, soon found itself a backwater. “The old 25/70 now is almost a preservation corridor,� says Rapp. “When Interstate 40 was constructed,� he maintains, it “turned Marshall into a ghost town. That was a long history there that was disrupted.�

To ensure that the local culture wouldn’t be overwhelmed by the new wave of development triggered by I-26, a conscious effort has been made to draw visitors off the interstate and into the county’s further reaches, says Rapp. In Mars Hill, “We developed the visitors center so we could encourage people to not just pass through Madison County but to stop and visit. We did it with a

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CONTINUES ON PAGE 12 MOUNTAINX.COM

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The idea of straightening out “malfunction junction,” as many residents call the intersection of I-26, I-240 and I-40 in West Asheville, is nothing new.

The I-26 Connector project has been in the planning stage since 1989, stalled by a series of delays due to funding issues and public concerns about the project’s scope and scale.

“The original time frame had construction finishing in conjunction with the opening of Interstate 26 through Madison County in 2003,” says Ricky Tipton, a construction engineer for the DOT’s Highway Division 13. As community members called for further study of alternative routes, however, “The project was slowed down so these concerns could be considered,” he explains.

The issues, says City Council member Julie Mayfield, include the project’s size and its impact on neighborhoods, city greenway projects and bike and pedestrian access to nearby streets. “What the city is really pushing for DOT to do is explore the flexibility and use of DOT plans,” notes Mayfield, who’s been involved with the connector through her work with the Western North Carolina Alliance (now MountainTrue). One big objective, she says, “is to turn Patton Avenue into a true urban boulevard and gateway to downtown.”

Last May, the DOT announced that it had finally settled on Alternative 4B, which calls for separating interstate traffic from Patton Avenue, building a new bridge linking future I-26 to West Asheville, and reconnecting the adjacent Hillcrest neighborhood to the highway.

With an estimated cost of $600 million to $800 million, the massive project could be completed sometime in the late 2020s, according to the agency’s webpage.

“We would anticipate about four years of construction time to complete each section,” Tipton explains. Over the coming months, “The department will continue to work to finalize the environmental impact statement. Once that’s complete, final designs can be completed, right of way acquired and then construction.”

Information about upcoming meetings, he adds, can be found at ncdot. gov/projects/I26Connector, and affected homeowners will be contacted by mail.

But 4B, says Mayfield, “still comes with a whole litany of concerns. It’s very important for people to understand

that the city isn’t just blindly endorsing what DOT has done. We’re working very actively to minimize the impact of this project and make it a benefit to the city, rather than something that’s just happening to Asheville.”

And for the neighborhoods most likely to be affected, promises go only so far, notes activist Dewayne Barton of the Burton Street community. “At first, they were going to come through the neighborhood and plow through several homes. I think it was the community’s effort that really made DOT rethink that. Now, my focus has been what’s going to be their investment after the work is done?”

Back in 2010, he points out, the community generated a plan spelling out its needs “because we knew this expansion was coming. We’re looking at sidewalks, the streets being paved, solar panels on the roofs.”

Nonetheless, says Barton, neither the city nor the DOT has offered much in terms of concrete action. “On paper and on air, they’re saying they’re behind the community, but we’re talking about infrastructure — bricks-and-mortar type things. … A couple City Council members have shown interest, but where’s the visual project? A physical thing that a community can see and say, ‘Oh, it came through! They actually did what they said they was going to do.’”

IN THE REARVIEW MIRROR “Modernization is a force that is inexorable — it’s coming,” says Rapp. “The question with the I-26 Connector, just as we saw in Madison County, is how do we help preserve the things we cherish?”

Caldwell, meanwhile, says, “The human cost of progress is something that I think city and county and DOT officials don’t pay enough attention to.

It’s like the Great Smokies park: It was a good thing, and I’m glad they did it, but we need to remember that there are people who are still bitter about it.”

For her part, Lawrence sees the continued community involvement with the connector project as an encouraging sign that residents are taking an active interest in how their city is shaped.

“I don’t think anybody’s efforts toward making the highway’s design better are in vain, even if they’re not successful,” she says. “It comes up time and again.

This isn’t the only project we’re going to have to be mindful of.”

Mayfield, however, says residents frustrated by the seeming lack of progress need to be patient. “It’s a complicated project: You’re putting an interstate through a city. This thing is going to be here for decades, and we’re not going to have a chance to ‘fix’ it once

it goes up. So we have to fix it before it goes up.”

Barton, meanwhile, calls on community members to stay involved, whether it’s “technical expertise to update our website, passing out fliers or calling City Council members and county commissioners and expressing their concerns.”

Long after the construction dust has settled, notes Rapp, the decisions made today will continue to affect the city and its residents. “It’s going

to force us to redefine communities and community life in the region,” he predicts. “That’s going to happen in Asheville as it does in Mars Hill, as it does along these corridors. How is your neighborhood going to change when the road comes through? You have to begin those kinds of conversations about how you want to direct the change that’s going to come.” X

Community meetings The N.C. Department of Transportation will meet with community members in two Asheville neighborhoods that will be affected by the Interstate 26 Connector project.

The two meetings will be held concurrently, March 21, 6-8 p.m.

• For the Fairfax Avenue and Virginia Avenue community in West Asheville, the meeting will be held at Grace Baptist Church, 718 Haywood Road.

• For the Hillcrest Apartments community in West Asheville, the meeting will be held at the Community Room at 100 Atkinson St. For the latest information from the city of Asheville on efforts to coordinate community input on the project, visit the I-26 Connector project page at avl. mx/3gm. Contact city Transportation Director Ken Putnam at 828-259-5943 or KPutman@ashevillenc.gov with questions. X

MOUNTAINX.COM

MARCH 8 - 14, 2017

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EWS B U N C O M B E NB E AT

NEWS

Drawing the line Apodaca successor pushes districts for Asheville Council

BY VIRGINIA DAFFRON

In the end, Council voted unanimously to move forward with plans to poll city voters on whether and how to district. The elected officials instructed Dawa Hitch, the city’s communications director, to fast-track the selection of a qualified consultant with hopes of completing the poll in March. Hitch pointed out that expediting the polling might result in a higher price tag than the $10,000 she had estimated for a poll to be finished in May.

vdaffron@mountainx.com State Sen. Chuck Edwards has taken up the cause of district elections for seats on Asheville City Council, an issue championed by his predecessor, fellow Republican Sen. Tom Apodaca, shortly before Apodaca’s retirement last year.

Apodaca’s former 48th District — now represented by Edwards — includes a small area of the city of Asheville as well as Henderson and Polk counties. The longtime senator introduced a bill to create district elections in the city at the end of last year’s legislative session.

Though that bill failed, Asheville Mayor Esther Manheimer said at Council’s Tuesday, Feb. 28, formal meeting, legislators made clear then “we could expect to see this concept return to the legislature.” With that prediction — or

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Coming MARCH 15 & 22 14

MARCH 8 - 14, 2017

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COUNCIL MEMBERS SOUND OFF

NEW SENATOR IN TOWN: Republican Sen. Chuck Edwards represents District 48 in the N.C. General Assembly. The district includes a small section of South Asheville.

Photo courtesy of Edwards threat — in mind, City Council was scheduled to vote on a polling effort to gauge Asheville residents’ interest in district elections at Tuesday’s meeting. Edwards sent an email to Manheimer on Tuesday afternoon that appeared to attempt to force the mayor’s hand.

“I wanted to inform you of my intent to soon file a bill in the Senate that will require Asheville to conduct district elections,” wrote Edwards in the email, which Manheimer read aloud. “It will provide that six will be the number of required districts. It will also offer some flexibility for your Council to determine the geography of the districts. ...

“I am open to realistic conversations as to the timing of the requirements.

I am confident that this measure will pass both the Senate and the House.

As a courtesy, I am informing you of this intent, with the hope that your discussion should revolve more around how to district and forgo the discussion of should we district. My actions are the result of trends taking place within municipalities as well as the feedback of the citizens of Buncombe County,” Edwards wrote.

Manheimer summarized the message: “That is the, ‘I’m going to do it whether your community says yes or no.’”

Council members also expressed their displeasure with the tactics initiated by Apodaca and carried forward

by Edwards.

“The people definitely need to have a voice,” commented Council member Keith Young.

Vice Mayor Gwen Wisler said it was “extremely disappointing” that “we are back to ‘Raleigh says,’ and it doesn’t matter what Asheville residents say.”

While she regrets the necessity of spending money on polling, Wisler continued, “The information we get from polling will assist in making the decision if Raleigh does just unilaterally go ahead and say, ‘You’re going to get districted.’ At least this information will help us determine what those districts should look like.”

Council member Gordon Smith wondered aloud, “What’s happened to that core Republican value around local control? Because it appears to have evaporated.” Smith called the apparent effort to override “municipalities’ self-determination” a move to impose “affirmative action for Republicans in the city of Asheville.”

The city’s elections are nonpartisan contests. Six members of the current Council are Democrats; Brian Haynes is unaffiliated.

Saying she had met within the past month with Edwards on “this and a whole range of other things,” Council member Julie Mayfield said: “He said that he was continuing to get calls. And I said to him, ‘Well, that’s funny because I haven’t gotten any calls and I haven’t gotten any emails.’”

Directing her comments to “the people who are advocating for this,” Mayfield said: “We need to hear from you, who you are and why you want

B U N COM B E B EAT HQ this. ... It’s frankly a little outrageous that you would choose to go to the legislature instead of to us first, or even at all. So if you want this, please, please let us know, because I will tell you the emails that I am getting now are saying, ‘Why are we even having this conversation now?

Asheville is fine, leave it alone.’”

Mayfield also advocated holding a public forum during the legislature’s spring break in April. A forum would allow citizens to express their views in an open meeting, and it would provide an opportunity for legislators to make their case for district elections to Asheville citizens, she said.

City resident Pat Thobe commented that residents need to be educated on the pros and cons of district elections before the poll is performed. “Nationally,” she said, “districting is a very manipulative strategy.” Thobe pointed out that even the language of the issue reveals how districts could impair municipal unity: “The very word ‘dividing’ Asheville into districts is divisive.”

CHAMBER’S TWO CENTS The day after City Council met, the Asheville Area Chamber of Commerce

weighed in on steps the city should take on district elections. Writing in an email newsletter, the chamber predicted that a switch to district elections is inevitable. “Therefore, let us not waste time spending months gauging public interest,” the email continued. “Let us spend that time wisely on educating our citizenry and engaging knowledgeable consultants and experts on how we draw the districts.”

The chamber favors an election structure that “... allows each district (whether it be 4 or 6) to vote a couple of candidates through to a general election. Thereafter, every city voter can have a say on who sits on the Council as a whole.

Geographic representation is guaranteed by having the candidates come from districts, but the whole citizenry still would get to vote for all candidates.”

In some proposed districting schemes, residents would only get to vote for candidates who live in and would represent their own districts.

The chamber also wrote that it advocates electing all Council seats at one time in even-numbered years, a change it says would increase voter turnout and minimize the disrup-

To read all of Mountain Xpress’ coverage of city and county news, visit Buncombe Beat online at avl. mx/3b5. There you’ll find detailed recaps of government meetings the day after they happen, along with previews, in-depth stories and key information to help you stay on top of the latest city and county news. X

tions often associated with campaigns and elections.

Council members are currently elected in staggered elections held during odd-numbered years. Three of the six Council positions are up for election every other year; Council members serve four-year terms. The mayor also serves a four-year term and is selected during one of the odd-year elections. Manheimer will ask city voters to return her to office in 2017.

Other incumbents whose Council terms end this year include Cecil Bothwell, Smith and Wisler.

Bothwell has announced that he will run for re-election, while Smith has said he will not. Wisler has not yet declared her intentions. X

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COMMUNITY CALENDAR MARCH 8 - 16, 2017

CALENDAR GUIDELINES For a full list of community calendar guidelines, please visit mountainx.com/calendar. For questions about free listings, call 2511333, ext. 137. For questions about paid calendar listings, please call 251-1333, ext. 320.

BENEFITS ART AFFAIR OF ASHEVILLE opendoorsasheville.com • SA (3/11) - Proceeds from this gala and art auction benefit Open Doors Asheville. $100. Held at Wedge Brewery, 37 Paynes Way ASHEVILLE MARATHON & HALF ashevillemarathon.com • SA (3/11) & SU (3/12), 7:30am - A portion of proceeds from this full and half marathon race benefit local charities. See website for prices and times. Held at The Biltmore Estate, 1 Lodge St. DINE TO BE KIND ashevillehumane.org/ dine-to-be-kind • TU (3/7) - A portion of proceeds from meals purchased at many area restaurants on this day benefit the Asheville Humane Society. See website for more information.

HELPMATE AT TEN THOUSAND VILLAGES CPrice@helpmateonline.org • SA (3/11), noon-6pm - A portion of proceeds from items purchased benefit Helpmate. Free to attend.

Held at Ten Thousand Villages, 10 College St. PUBLIC EVENTS AT UNCA unca.edu • SU (3/12), 3:14pm Proceeds from "A Race for Pi" one-mile run benefit the Asheville Initiative for Math at UNC Asheville and its Marvelous Math Club.

Registration required: unca. edu/pi-run. $10.

SHAMROCK RUN BENEFIT RUN gloryhoundevents.com/event/ shamrock-5k10k • SA (3/11), 8:45am Proceeds from this 10K, 5K and fun run benefit Asheville Catholic School. $30 10K/$25 5K/10 fun run. Held at Asheville Catholic School, 12 Culvern St. PURPLE HEARTS CSA facebook.com/ PurpleHeartsCSA • TU (3/14), 6-11pm - A portion of proceeds from dinners purchased benefit The Purple Hearts CSA. Held at the Bull and Beggar, 37 Paynes Way, Suite 7 WNC HISTORICAL ASSOCIATION wnchistory.org • Through FR (3/10) - Open registration for the Fernihurst

16

MARCH 8 - 14, 2017

Fundraising Dinner prepared by the AB Tech Culinary Department and benefiting the WNC Historical Association. The dinner takes place Thursday, March 16, 6pm. Registration: wnchistory.org. $75. Held at SmithMcDowell House Museum, 283 Victoria Road

BUSINESS & TECHNOLOGY A-B TECH SMALL BUSINESS CENTER 398-7950, abtech.edu/sbc • WE (3/8), 10am - "SBA: Programs and Services for Your Small Business," seminar. Registration required.

Free. Held at A-B Tech Enka Campus, 1459 Sand Hill Road, Candler • WE (3/8), 6-9pm - "SCORE: Social Media for Business," seminar. Registration required. Free. Held at A-B Tech Enka Campus, 1459 Sand Hill Road, Candler • SA (3/11), 9am-noon "SCORE: How to Build Your Customer Base," seminar.

Registration required. Free.

Held at A-B Tech Enka Campus, 1459 Sand Hill Road, Candler • TU (3/14), 2-4pm - "Business Taxes," seminar. Registration required. Free. Held at A-B Tech Enka Campus, 1459 Sand Hill Road, Candler • WE (3/15), 10-11:30am - "Doing Business with the Government," seminar. Registration required.

Free. Held at A-B Tech Enka Campus, 1459 Sand Hill Road, Candler • WE (3/15), 6-9pm "SCORE: Advanced Internet Marketing," seminar.

Registration required. Free.

Held at A-B Tech Enka Campus, 1459 Sand Hill Road, Candler • TH (3/16), 1-4pm - "ABCs of Trademarks for Small Businesses," seminar.

Registration required. Free.

Held at A-B Tech Enka Campus, 1459 Sand Hill Road, Candler • TH (3/16), 6-8pm - "Business Formation: Choosing the Right Structure," seminar.

Registration required. Free.

Held at A-B Tech Enka Campus, 1459 Sand Hill Road, Candler G&W INVESTMENT CLUB klcount@aol.com • 3rd WEDNESDAYS, 11:45am - General meeting. Free to attend. Held at Black Forest Restaurant, 2155 Hendersonville Road, Arden

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SAVIOR OF THE SOUTH: The School of Integrated Living, or SOIL, is offering hands-on training in how to eat the well-known invasive vine kudzu. “Rather than malign kudzu — a plant that was at one point widely regarded as the ‘savior of the South’ for its impressive erosion controlling capacities — we’re asking, ‘What does the plant have to teach us? Is it offering us something we haven’t been willing to receive?’” says Justin Holt, who is co-organizer of the event along with Zev Friedman. The four-day workshop teaches participants how to process kudzu roots for their edible and medicinal starch, and explores other uses for the vigorous vine. The workshop is free to attend and takes place in Sylva from Thursday, March 16, until Sunday, March 19. For more information or to sign up, visit schoolofintegratedliving.org/programs/kudzu-camp/. Photo courtesy of the School of Integrated Living CLASSES, MEETINGS & EVENTS A NEW ERA IS DAWNING (PD.) Hope in a Time of Chaos.

Expected for generations, the World Teacher, Maitreya, is in the world. Not a religious leader, but a modern man, concerned with modern problems. His galvanizing energy inspires people to stand up for justice and equality…to see that we are one human family. Signs/miracles/UFOs. What role will you play in the coming time? Saturday, March 18 - Asheville Friends Meeting, 227 Edgewood Road. 2pm. • Free. 828-3980609.

COOKING CLASSES WITH OFRI (PD.) • Indian: March 11, 6pm-9pm • Thai: March 18, 6pm-9pm. • Dumplings around the world: April 1, 6pm-9pm. Sign-up on site or over the phone: 917 566-5238. Come join us! www. ofrishomecooking.com POLE DANCE, AERIAL ARTS + FLEXIBILITY CLASSES AT EMPYREAN ARTS (PD.) • Mondays at 6:45pm is Pole Spins & Combos • Mondays at 8:00pm is Exotic Pole Dance • Tuesdays at 11:00am is Beginning Aerial Arts • Tuesdays at 8:00pm

+ Thursdays at 1:00pm is Flexibility/Contortion • Wednesdays at 8:00pm is Floor Fluidity Dance • Thursdays at 11:00am is Beginning Pole • Fridays at 7:15pm is Beginning Pole • Fridays at 8:30pm is Chair Dance • Saturdays at 4:00pm is Breakdancing No experience needed, Drop-ins welcome, For more information check out Empyreanarts. org or call/text us at 828.782.3321 ASHEVILLE CHESS CLUB 779-0319, vincentvanjoe@gmail.com • WEDNESDAYS, 6:30pm Sets provided. All ages and skill levels welcome. Beginners lessons available. Free. Held at North Asheville Recreation Center, 37 E. Larchmont Road ASHEVILLE NEWCOMERS CLUB ashevillenewcomersclub.com • 2nd MONDAYS, 9:30am Monthly meeting for women new to Asheville. Register for location: ashevillenewcomers@ gmail.com. Free to attend.

ASHEVILLE TOASTMASTERS CLUB 914-424-7347, ashevilletoastmasters.com • THURSDAYS, 6:15pm General meeting. Free. Held at YMI Cultural Center, 39 South Market St.

BUNCOMBE COUNTY PUBLIC LIBRARIES buncombecounty.org/ governing/depts/library • WE (3/8), 5:30-7pm "Preventing Identity Theft," workshop with OnTrack.

Registration required: 255.5166. Free. Held at North Asheville Library, 1030 Merrimon Ave. • TU (3/14), 10am-5pm - "Pi Day," with free moon pies.

Free. Held at Swannanoa Library, 101 West Charleston St., Swannanoa • TU (3/14), 6:30pm - Adult coloring club. Free. Held at Enka-Candler Library, 1404 Sandhill Road, Candler LEICESTER COMMUNITY CENTER 2979 New Leicester Highway, Leicester, 774-3000, facebook.com/ Leicester.Community.Center • 2nd TUESDAYS, 7pm - Public board meeting. Free.

ONTRACK WNC 50 S. French Broad Ave., 255-5166, ontrackwnc.org • THURSDAYS (3/9) through (3/23) - “Manage Your Money Series,” seminar. Registration required. Free.

• TU (3/14), noon-1:30pm “Savings and Goal Setting,” seminar. Registration required.

Free.

• TU (3/14), 5:30-7pm “Understanding Savings.

Get it. Keep it. Improve it,” seminar. Registration required.

Free • WE (3/15), 5:30-7pm “Budgeting and Debt Class.” seminar. Registration required.

Free.

TARHEEL PIECEMAKERS QUILT CLUB tarheelpiecemakers.wordpress. com/ • WE (3/8), 10am - General meeting and presentation on "enclosed seam pillow cases." Free. Held at Balfour United Methodist Church, 2567 Asheville Highway, Hendersonville TRANSITION ASHEVILLE 296-0064, transitionasheville.org • MO (3/13), 6:30-8pm "Defund Dakota Access Pipeline," presentation. Free.

Held at St. Mary's Episcopal Church, 337 Charlotte St. VETERANS FOR PEACE 582-5180, vfpchapter099wnc.blogspot.com/ • 2nd TUESDAYS, 6:30-8:30pm - General meeting. Free to attend. Held at Firestorm Cafe and Books, 610 Haywood Road WNC ASPERGER'S ADULTS UNITED facebook.com/ WncAspergersAdultsUnited

• SA (3/11), 6-8:30pm Monthly meeting and social support group meeting. Bring a potluck dish to share. Free.

DANCE POLE FITNESS AND DANCE CLASSES AT DANCECLUB ASHEVILLE (PD.) Pole Dance, Burlesque, Jazz/ Funk, Flashmobs! Drop in for a class or sign up for a series:• 4 Week Beginner Jazz/Funk to Missy Elliott - Begins Feb. 23• 6 Week Intro to Pole - Begins Feb. 28• Tues., Thurs. and Fri. at 12PM - Pole class for $10• Memberships available for $108/month• 1st class free with the mention of this ad.

DanceclubAsheville.com 828-275-8628 Right down the street from UNCA - 9 Old Burnsville Hill Rd., #3 STUDIO ZAHIYA, DOWNTOWN DANCE CLASSES (PD.) Monday 12pm Barre Wkt 4pm Ballet Wkt 5pm Bellydance Drills 6pm Hip Hop Wkt 6pm Bellydance Special Topics 7pm Classical Ballet Series 8pm Tribal Bellydance Series • Tuesday 9am Hip Hop Wkt 6pm Intro to Bellydance 7pm Bellydance 2 8pm Advanced Bellydance • Wednesday 12:30pm 80/90s Fitness Wkt 5pm Hip Hop Wkt 5pm Bollywood 6pm Bhangra Series 8pm Lyrical Series • Thursday 9am Hip Hop Wkt 4pm Girls Hip Hop 5pm Teens Hip Hop 6pm West African Drumming 8pm Sassy Jazz Series • Saturday 9:30am Hip Hop Wkt 10:45 Buti Yoga Wkt • Sunday 6:15pm Restorative Yoga • $13 for 60 minute classes, Wkt $6. 90 1/2 N. Lexington Avenue. www.studiozahiya.com :: 828.242.7595 ASHEVILLE MOVEMENT COLLECTIVE ashevillemovementcollective. org • FRIDAYS, 7-9pm Community ecstatic dance wave. $8-$20. Held at Terpsicorps Studios, 1501 Patton Ave. • SUNDAYS, 8:30-10:30am & 10:30am-12:30pm Community ecstatic dance wave. $8-$20. Held at Asheville Masonic Temple, 80 Broadway CITY OF MORGANTON MUNICIPAL AUDITORIUM 401 South College St. Morganton, 433-SHOW, commaonline.org • TH (3/9), 7:30pm Cinderella, Russian National Ballet. $25-$35.

SWING ASHEVILLE swingasheville.com • TUESDAYS, 8-11pm - Jazz N' Justice: Beginner swing lessons at 8pm. Open swing dance with live jazz at 9pm. $10 beginner lesson/$5 open dance. Held at The BLOCK off biltmore, 39 South Market St.

FOOD & BEER ASAP COMMUNITY SUPPORTED AGRICULTURE FAIR asapconnections.org/events/ csa-fair-2/ • TH (3/16), 4-7pm Community supported agriculture fair to meet farmers and learn about their CSA programs. Free to attend.

Held at Jubilee Community Church, 46 Wall St. CALDWELL CUSINE 726-2478, kandreasen@cccti. edu • TH (3/9), 6pm - Culinary arts students present a Spanish themed meal.

Registration required. $21.

Held at J.E. Broyhill Civic Center, 1913 Hickory Blvd., SE Lenior FAIRVIEW WELCOME TABLE fairviewwelcometable.com • THURSDAYS, 11:30am1pm - Community lunch. Admission by donation. Held at Fairview Christian Fellowship, 596 Old Us Highway 74, Fairview LEICESTER COMMUNITY CENTER 2979 New Leicester Highway, Leicester, 774-3000, facebook.com/Leicester.

Community.Center • WEDNESDAYS, 11:30am1pm - Welcome Table meal.

Free.

LIVING WEB FARMS 176 Kimzey Road, Mills River, 505-1660, livingwebfarms.org • TU (3/14), 7-8:30pm "Capturing Wild Cultures in the Kitchen," workshop forcusing on starters for fermentation of vegetables, beverages, bread and cheeses. $10.

LIVING WEB FARMS 891-4497, livingwebfarms.org • TH (3/9), 5-6:30pm "Nutrient Dense Foods," presentation by Dan Kittredge of the Bionutrient Food Association. Free to attend.

Held at French Broad Food Co-op, 90 Biltmore Ave., Asheville MILLS RIVER FARMERS MARKET millsriverfarm@gmail.com • TH (3/9), 6:30pm Vendor meeting for interested and past vendors.

Free. Held at Mountain Horticultural Crops Research and Extension Station, 74 Research Drive Mills River

GOVERNMENT & POLITICS CITY OF ASHEVILLE 251-1122, ashevillenc.gov • WE (3/8), 5:30pm Haywood Street Visioning Committee presents its draft vision for the Haywood and Page properties near the US Cellular Center and Basilica of St. Lawrence. Free. Held at US Cellular Center, 87 Haywood St., Asheville

• TU (3/14), 5pm - Asheville City Council public hearing.

Free. Held at Asheville City Hall, 70 Court Plaza

KIDS ASHEVILLE ART MUSEUM 175 Biltmore Ave., 253-3227 • 2nd TUESDAYS, 11am12:30pm - Homeschool program for grades 1-4.

Registration required: 2533227 ext. 124. $4 per student.

ASHEVILLE MUSEUM OF SCIENCE 43 Patton Ave., 254-7162, colburnmuseum.org • 2nd & 4th FRIDAYS, 9-9:45am - "Little Explorers Club," guided activities and free play for preschoolers. $3.50 per child/Free for caregivers.

BARNES AND NOBLE BOOKSELLERS ASHEVILLE MALL 3 S. Tunnel Road, 296-7335 • SA (3/11), 11-11:30am Storytime with Matthew Van Fleet reading Dance. Free to attend.

BUNCOMBE COUNTY PUBLIC LIBRARIES buncombecounty.org/ governing/depts/library • 2nd WEDNESDAYS, 4-5pm - "After School Art Adventures," guided art making for school age children with the Asheville Art Museum. Free. Held at Leicester Library, 1561 Alexander Road, Leicester • FR (3/10), 4pm - Teen cosplay group. Snacks included. Free. Held at Enka-Candler Library, 1404 Sandhill Road, Candler • SA (3/11), 2pm - "Beauty and the Beast Spectacular," event with activities and crafts. Costumes welcome.

Free. Held at Fairview Library, 1 Taylor Road, Fairview • MO (3/13), 10:30am "Asheville Symphony for the Very Young," music program for babies, toddlers and children up to age five.

Free. Held at Pack Memorial Library, 67 Haywood St. • MONDAYS, 10:30am "Mother Goose Time," storytime for 4-18 month olds. Free. Held at Skyland/ South Buncombe Library, 260 Overlook Road • WE (3/15), 11am "Asheville Symphony for the Very Young," music program for babies, toddlers and children up to age five.

Free. Held at North Asheville Library, 1030 Merrimon Ave. • WE (3/15), 3:30-4:30pm - Makers and Shakers: Printmaking with the Asheville Art Museum for ages five and up. Free. Held at Pack Memorial Library, 67 Haywood St. • TH (3/16), 11am "Asheville Symphony for the Very Young," music program for babies, toddlers and children up to age five.

Free. Held at West Asheville Library, 942 Haywood Road

FLETCHER LIBRARY 120 Library Road, Fletcher, 687-1218, library.hendersoncountync. org • WEDNESDAYS, 10:30am Family story time. Free.

HENDERSONVILLE SISTER CITIES hendersonvillesistercities.org • Through FR (3/31) - Writing and art submissions on the theme of "We're Going Places," accepted for the international Young Artists & Authors Showcase.

Information: sistercities.org/ YAAS or HVLsistercities@ gmail.com. Free.

MALAPROP'S BOOKSTORE AND CAFE 55 Haywood St., 254-6734, malaprops.com • WEDNESDAYS, 10am - Miss Malaprop's Story Time for ages 3-9. Free to attend.

RIVERLINK 252-8474, riverlink.org • Through MO (3/20) Submissions accepted for the annual Voices of the River Art and Poetry Contest for pre-K to 12th grade students.

Contact for full guidelines.

SMITH-MCDOWELL HOUSE MUSEUM 283 Victoria Road, 253-9231, wnchistory.org • Through SA (3/11) - Open registration for the "Crafty Historian: Colonial Button

Dolls," workshop for ages 7 and up taking place Saturday, March 18, 10:30am-12:30pm.

Registration: wnchistory.org/ crafty-historian. $7.

SPELLBOUND CHILDREN'S BOOKSHOP 640 Merrimon Ave., #204, 708-7570, spellboundchildrensbookshop. com • SATURDAYS, 11am Storytime for ages 3-7. Free to attend.

• SA (3/11), 1pm - C.M. Surrisi presents their book, Vampires on the Run. Free to attend.

SWANNANOA VALLEY MONTESSORI SCHOOL 101 Carver Avenue, Black Mountain, swanmont.org • FR (3/10), 3:15-4:15pm “Pop-In and Play Toddler Time.” Registration required.

Free.

OUTDOORS BALSAM MOUNTAIN TRUST 81 Preserve Road, Sylva, balsammountaintrust.org • Through TH (3/9) - Open registration for the "Beginning Backpacking," primer class on the gear necessary for overnight backpacking trips. Class takes place on Saturday, March 11, 10am-2pm. Registration required: balsammountaintrust.org. Free.

CHIMNEY ROCK PARK 1638 Chimney Rock Park Road, Chimney Rock, 6254688 • SA (3/11), 11am - "Early Spring Walk," naturalist led 1.5 mile hike. Admission fees apply.

FRIENDS OF THE SMOKIES 452-0720, friendsofthesmokies.org, outreach.nc@ friendsofthesmokies.org • TU (3/14) - Four-mile guided hike at Mingus Creek. Includes a visit to the Mountain Farm Museum and Oconaluftee Visitor Center. Registration: Hike.

FriendsOfTheSmokies.org. $35/$20 members.

LAKE JAMES STATE PARK 6883 N.C. Highway 126, Nebo, 584-7728 • FR (3/10), 9:45am - "Boat Tour," ranger guided boat tour focusing on waterfowl.

Registration required. Free.

• SA (3/11), 9am - "Linville Lake James Hike," ranger-led 2.5-mile moderate hike. Free.

• SA (3/11), 1:45pm - “Boat Tour,” ranger guided boat tour focusing on waterfowl.

Registration required. Free.

• SU (3/12), 10am - "Paddy's Creek Hike," ranger-led 3-mile, moderate hike. Free.

• WE (3/15), 8am - "Walk Like a Duck," ranger-led, 2-mile birdwatching walk. Free.

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MARCH 8 - 14, 2017

17

C O N S C I O U S PA R T Y

By Kat McReynolds | kmcreynolds@mountainx.com

8th annual Art Affair

C OMMUNITY C ALE NDAR

PISGAH ASTRONOMICAL RESEARCH INSTITUTE 1 PARI Drive, Rosman, 862-5554, pari.edu • FR (3/10) - Night sky viewing and tour. Registration required. $20/$15 seniors & military/ Free for children under 10.

PISGAH CHAPTER OF TROUT UNLIMITED pisgahchaptertu.org/ New-Meetinginformation.html • 2nd THURSDAYS, 7pm - General meeting and presentation by Jake Rash, coldwater research coordinator for the NC Wildlife Resources Commission. Free to attend. Held at Ecusta Brewery, 36 E Main St., Brevard

PARENTING

COLORING PERCEPTIONS: Using space donated by the Wedge Brewing Co., Open Doors teaching artist and donor Michelle Baker, pictured center, has been guiding local middle school students through a project involving body image and self-esteem titled “I Am a Work of Art.” Their finished products will be presented at the nonprofit’s Art Affair fundraiser. Photo courtesy of Open Doors

675 Hr. Massage Program Begins in April

Discounts Available - Apply online AshevilleMassageSchool.org 828-252-7377 18

MARCH 8 - 14, 2017

WHAT: An art party benefiting Open Doors of Asheville WHERE: The Foundation WHEN: Saturday, March 11, at 6:30 p.m.

(VIP reception at 6 p.m.)

WHY: Event chair Dosty Quarrier can list several reasons why the Foundation in the River Arts District is an ideal setting for Open Doors' eighth annual Art Affair. Not only do the old buildings, with their murals and graffiti, embody this year's “Urban Canvas” party theme, but many recipients of the nonprofit’s services — typically students in low-income households who are at risk of falling behind in school — live in nearby neighborhoods. Perhaps most importantly, though, the area is experiencing a boost of revitalization, in part from tenants like The Wedge Brewing Co., and 12 Bones. “It symbolizes what we want to do with the kids,” she says.

Providing educational resources to break the cycle of poverty is Open Doors’ top priority, Quarrier explains, but athletic and artistic programming are close runners-up. Currently, the nonprofit serves about 150 youths in these capacities, assessing “the whole child” to see who needs tutoring, who would excel in art lessons

MOUNTAINX.COM

and who belongs on the soccer field, for instance.

Art Affair represents a significant source of funding for these activities, and it’s made possible by a pool of supporters with varying talents. This year, 40 restaurants are donating small plates for guests, and 75 artists have offered their creations up for auction — with some retail price tags in the thousands. “We do both a live and silent auction,” Quarrier says, noting mediums like ceramics, painting, wood, glass and jewelry. Auctioneer Andrew Brunk (known from “Antiques Road Show”) will officiate.

An upscale ambiance further distinguishes the fundraiser. “We have local artists that work on the decor, and Ananda hair salon shuts down their whole salon to style all of the [Open Doors] committee members,” Quarrier says, noting that the art handlers are also dressed en vogue.

“It's a real art spectacle.”

In addition to bidding rights, attendees enjoy an open bar with beer, wine and craft cocktails. Open Doors will also present its 2016 Laureate of the Year Award to an individual working to combat child poverty.

Visit opendoorsasheville.org for more information or to purchase tickets, which cost $100 per person. X

SWANNANOA VALLEY MONTESSORI SCHOOL 101 Carver Avenue, Black Mountain, swanmont.org • TH (3/16), 9:3010:30am - Monthly tour. Registration required. Free.

SENIOR OPPORTUNITY CENTER 36 Grove St., Asheville • TH (3/9), 1-3pm "Grand Day Out," grandparents can bring children to participate in games and crafts with other families.

Free/$1 per child.

SWANNANOA VALLEY MONTESSORI SCHOOL 130 Center Ave., Black Mountain, 669-8571, swanmont.org • 3rd THURSDAYS through (5/18), 9:30am - School tour. Registration required. Free to attend.

PUBLIC LECTURES PUBLIC LECTURES AT A-B TECH 398-7852, abtech. edu, marthagball@ abtech.edu • WE (3/15), 3pm “Asheville’s Jewish Women,” lecture by historian Sharon Fahrer in honor of Women’s History Month. Free.

Held in Ferguson Auditorium

PUBLIC LECTURES AT BREVARD COLLEGE 884-8251, raintrlh@ brevard.edu • WE (3/8), 3:30pm - "U.S. Foreign Policy and Petroleum," lecture

by Dr. Jennifer Schiff. Free. Held in McLarty-Goodson Room 125 • WE (3/15), 3:30pm - Great Decisions Lecture: "Trade and Politics," lecture

by Julie Snyder, former official at the Department of Commerce. $10.

Held in McLartyGoodson Room 125 PUBLIC LECTURES AT UNCA unca.edu • TU (3/7), 7pm - World Affairs Council: “U.S. Foreign Policy and Petroleum,” lecture

by Jennifer Schiff. $10. Held in the Reuter Center • WE (3/8), 7pm - "The Educated Imagination in Uncertain Times," a discussion let by linguist Mary Louise Pratt. Free. Held in the Reuter Center • TH (3/9), noon1:30pm - "Arts of the Contact Zones in Time of Border Crossings," a discussion led by anthropologist and poet Renato Rosaldo. Free. Held in the Highsmith Union Swannanoa Room • TU (3/14), 7:30pm - World Affairs Council Great Decisions Lecture Series: “Trade and Politics,” lecture

by Julie Snyder, former official at the Department of Commerce. $10.

Held in the Reuter Center

SENIORS SERVICES AND SUPPORT FOR SENIORS (PD.) • Companionship and respite care • Accompaniment to appointments • Monitoring and family liaison • Meal preparation • Nursing home visits • Housesitting • Consultation and Mentoring • Conscious Aging Workshops. Evalina Everidge, RN (828) 577-7841.

SeasonedPathways. com AGUDAS ISRAEL CONGREGATION 505 Glasgow Lane, Hendersonville, 693-9838,

by Abigail Griffin

agudasisraelsynagogue.org • WEDNESDAYS, 11am-2pm - The Hendersonville Elder Club for older adults of all faiths. Free.

COUNCIL ON AGING OF BUNCOMBE COUNTY, INC. 277-8288, coabc.org • FR (3/10), 2-4pm "Medicare Choices Made Easy," workshop.

Registration required. Free.

Held at Goodwill Career Training Center, 1616 Patton Ave. • TH (3/16), 2-4pm - "Medicare Choices Made Easy," workshop.

Registration required. Free.

Held at Fairview Library, 1 Taylor Road, Fairview SENIOR OPPORTUNITY CENTER 36 Grove St., Asheville • WEDNESDAYS, 1:30-4pm - "Bid Whist," card players club. Free.

• FRIDAYS, 12:30-3:30pm "Canasta," group card game gathering. Free.

• TUESDAYS, 2-3pm - "Senior Beat," drumming, dance fitness class. For standing or seated participants. $3.

• THURSDAYS, 1-2pm Contemporary line dancing class. Join anytime. $5 per class.

SPIRITUALITY ABOUT THE TRANSCENDENTAL MEDITATION TECHNIQUE • FREE INTRODUCTORY TALK (PD.) Deep within everyone is a wellspring of peace, energy and happiness. With proper instruction anyone can effortlessly transcend the busy or agitated mind and directly experience that rejuvenating inner source. Learn how TM is different from mindfulness, watching your breath, common mantra meditation and everything else.

NIH-sponsored research shows deep revitalizing rest, reduced stress and anxiety, improved brain functioning and heightened well-being. Thursday, 6:30-7:30pm, Asheville TM Center, 165 E. Chestnut.

828-254-4350. TM.org or MeditationAsheville.org ASTRO-COUNSELING (PD.) Licensed counselor and accredited professional astrologer uses your chart when counseling for additional insight into yourself, your relationships and life directions. Readings also available. Christy Gunther, MA, LPC. (828) 258-3229.

EXPERIENCE THE SACRED SOUND OF HU (PD.) If you’re in trouble, in pain, in need of comfort, or in need of love, sing HU quietly to yourself. If you know how to sing HU, you can open yourself to the Holy Spirit.

You can open yourself to the inner guidance available to help you take the next step.

• Sunday, March 12, 2017, 11am, fellowship follows.

Eckankar Center of Asheville, 797 Haywood Rd. (“Hops and

Vines” building, lower level), Asheville NC 28806, 828-2546775. (free event). www.eckankar-nc.org FULL MOON TRANSMISSION MEDITATION (PD.) Want to help the world?

Where to start? Group meditation that 'steps down' energies from the Masters of Wisdom for use by people working for a better world.

Non-sectarian. Simple, altruistic service for the world. • Free. Wednesday, March 15, 7pm, Crystal Visions. 5426 Asheville Hwy. Information: 828-398-0609.

OPEN HEART MEDITATION (PD.) Now at 70 Woodfin Place, Suite 212. Tuesdays 7-8pm.

Experience the stillness and beauty of connecting to your heart and the Divine within you. Suggested $5 donation.

OpenHeartMeditation.com BUNCOMBE COUNTY PUBLIC LIBRARIES buncombecounty.org/ governing/depts/library • WE (3/15), 6pm - "Healing on the Spiritual Path: Medically Verified," presentation by Bruno Asheville.

Information: brunoasheville. com. Free. Held at North Asheville Library, 1030 Merrimon Ave. CENTER FOR ART & SPIRIT AT ST. GEORGE 1 School Road, 258-0211 • 2nd SUNDAYS, 7-9pm Dances of Universal Peace.

Free.

CENTRAL UNITED METHODIST CHURCH 27 Church St., 253-3316, centralumc.org • WE (3/8), 6-7pm - 180 year anniversary celebration with a community dinner and tour.

Registration: 253-3316. Free.

GRACE LUTHERAN CHURCH 1245 Sixth Ave., W. Hendersonville, 693-4890, gracelutherannc.com • Through WE (3/15) Open registration for the "YOUnique" workshop to explore personality and health. Workshop date: Saturday, March 18.

Registration required. Free.

• 2nd FRIDAYS, 1-2pm Non-denominational healing prayer group. Free.

SHAMBHALA MEDITATION CENTER 60 N Merrimon Ave., #113, 200-5120, asheville.shambhala.org • WEDNESDAYS, 10-midnight, THURSDAYS, 7-8:30pm & SUNDAYS, 10-noon Meditation and community.

Admission by donation.

URBAN DHARMA 225-6422, udharmanc.com/ • THURSDAYS, 7:30-9pm Open Sangha night. Free. Held at Urban Dharma, 29 Page Ave

SPOKEN & WRITTEN WORD BUFFALO NICKEL 747 Haywood Road, 5752844, buffalonickelavl.com/ • WE (3/15), 7pm - Spoken word open mic hosted by Nancy Reeder and Lloyd Arneach. Sign-ups begin at 6:30pm. Free to attend.

BUNCOMBE COUNTY PUBLIC LIBRARIES buncombecounty.org/ governing/depts/library • SA (3/11), 3pm - West Asheville Book Club: The Bridge Ladies by Betsy Lerner.

Free. Held at West Asheville Library, 942 Haywood Road • TU (3/14), 1pm - Leicester Book Club: The Sandcastle Girls by Chris Bohjalian. Free.

Held at Leicester Library, 1561 Alexander Road, Leicester • TH (3/16), 2:30pm - Skyland Book Club: Our Souls at Night

by Kent Haruf. Free. Held at Skyland/South Buncombe Library, 260 Overlook Road FIRESTORM CAFE AND BOOKS 610 Haywood Road, 255-8115 • SU (3/12), 7:30-9pm Readings by Tom Downing and Melanie McGee Bianchi readings as part of the Zelda Sayre Fitzgerald Celebration.

Free to attend.

FLETCHER LIBRARY 120 Library Road, Fletcher, 687-1218, library.hendersoncountync.org • 2nd THURSDAYS, 10:30am Book Club. Free.

• 2nd THURSDAYS, 1:30pm Writers' Guild. Free.

GRATEFUL STEPS 30 Ben Lippen School Road, Suite 107, 277-0998, gratefulsteps.org • MONDAYS, 6:30-9pm, THURSDAYS, 9:30am-noon & SATURDAYS, 9:30-noon through (4/29) - "Writing Secrets of the Pros," fundraiser class series helps writers discover professional techniques for writing fiction, non-fiction or poetry.

Registration required: 828505-9221 or weirwnc417@ gmail.com. $25 per class.

MALAPROP'S BOOKSTORE AND CAFE 55 Haywood St., 254-6734, malaprops.com • WE (3/8), 6pm- Michael Knight presents his novel, Eveningland. Free to attend.

• FR (3/10), 4-5pm - Poetry on request with Tracey Schmidt.

Free to attend.

• FR (3/10), 6-9pm - Monika Gross of At a Site Theater offers readings of Zelda Fitzgerald's work. Free to attend.

• SA (3/11), 4-5pm - Poetry on request with Katherine Soniat.

Free to attend.

• SU (3/12), 3-5pm - George and Elizabeth Ellison present their essays, Literary Excursions in the Southern Highlands. Free to attend.

• MO (3/13), 7pm - Natalie Goldberg presents her book, The Great Spring: Writing, Zen and this Zigzag Life. Free to attend.

• TU (3/14), 7pm - Walter Ziffer presents his book, Confronting the Silence: A Holocaust Survivor's Search for God. Free to attend.

• WE (3/15), 7pm - Phillip Lewis presents his book, The Barrowfields. Free to attend.

• TH (3/16), 7pm - Tim Gautreaux presents his book of short stories, Signals. Free to attend.

STORIES ON ASHEVILLE’S FRONT PORCH facebook.com/ storiesonashevillesfrontporch • SU (3/12), 2pm - “Tales from the Porch” storytelling concert Kathy Gordon, Catherine Flaherty, RoseLynn Katz and Becky Stone. $15/$12 advance. Held at Folk Art Center, MP 382, Blue Ridge Parkway SWANNANOA VALLEY MUSEUM 223 W State St., Black Mountain, 669-9566, history. swannanoavalleymuseum.org • FR (3/10), 11:30am - Historic Book Club: I am One of You Forever, Fred Chappell.

Registration required. Free.

SYNERGY STORY SLAM avl.mx/0gd • WE (3/8), 8pm - Storytelling open-mic on the theme of "lies." Sign-ups begin at 7:30pm. Free to attend. Held at Odditorium, 1045 Haywood Road WILMA DYKEMAN LEGACY 458-5813, wilmadykemanlegacy.org, stokely.jim@gmail.com • TH (3/9), 5:30pm - Thomas Wolfe Book Club: The Child

by Tiger, discussion led by Dr. Darin Waters. Free. Held at Thomas Wolfe Memorial, 52 North Market St.

VOLUNTEERING TUTOR ADULTS IN NEED WITH THE LITERACY COUNCIL (PD.) Dedicate two hours a week to working with an immigrant who wants to learn English or with a native English-speaking adult who has low literacy skills. Sign up for volunteer orientation on 3/29 (5:30 pm) or 3/30 (9:00 am) by emailing volunteers@litcouncil.com. www.litcouncil.com ASHEVILLE DOWNTOWN ASSOCIATION 251-9973, ashevilledowntown.org • WE (3/15), 6-9pm Volunteer orientation and Downtown After 5 kickoff.

Free to attend. Held at Orange Peel, 101 Biltmore Ave. BIG BROTHERS BIG SISTERS OF WNC 253-1470, bbbswnc.org • TH (3/9), noon - Information session for those interested in volunteering to share their interests twice a month with a young person from a single-parent home or to mentor one-hour a week in elementary schools and after-school sites. Free. Held at United Way of Asheville & Buncombe, 50 S. French Broad Ave. BLUE RIDGE RAIDERS mizzarnette@gmail.com • SATURDAYS through (5/6) Volunteer to help with ticketing, concessions and apparel for Blue Ridge Raiders home games. Contact for full guidelines.

HANDS ON ASHEVILLEBUNCOMBE 2-1-1, handsonasheville.org • TU (3/7), 5:30-8:30pm Volunteer to help pack food

items into backpack-sized parcels that are distributed to local schools. Registration required.

• WE (3/8), 4-5:30pm Volunteer to help keep up with the maintenance of the Verner Community Garden.

Registration required.

• TU (3/14), 1-4pm - Volunteer to help sort and organize donations to Buncombe County Schools Crisis Closet.

Registration required.

HOMEWARD BOUND OF WNC 218 Patton Ave., 258-1695, homewardboundwnc.org • 3rd THURSDAYS, 11am "Welcome Home Tour," tours of Asheville organizations that serve the homeless population. Registration required.

Free to attend.

MOUNTAINTRUE 258-8737, wnca.org • FR (3/10), SA (3/11), TU (3/14), WE (3/15) & TH (3/16), 10am-4pm - Volunteer to help plant live-stakes along eroding riverbanks. Registration: mountaintrue.org/eventscalendar/ WNC KNITTERS AND CROCHETERS FOR OTHERS 575-9195 • MO (3/13), 7-9pm Volunteer to create handmade items for local charities.

All skill levels welcome.

Free. Held at New Hope Presbyterian Church, 3070 Sweeten Creek Road For more volunteering opportunities visit mountainx.com/ volunteering

Please contact Jenny Thomas at 828-254-9917 to purchase tickets or for more information

MOUNTAINX.COM

MARCH 8 - 14, 2017

19

WELLNESS

PAY NOW OR PAY LATER

The Asheville Project manages health issues on the front end

BY LESLIE BOYD leslie.boyd@gmail.com Polly McDaniel knew her health could be better when she took a job with Asheville city government a year and a half ago. Her blood pressure was high, she was overweight and she has clinical depression.

But McDaniel hardly knew where to start to improve her health. She wanted to exercise, but her knees were in terrible shape, and she had little time between work and family obligations.

But the city has a program that helps employees like McDaniel manage chronic conditions: The Asheville Project began a little over 20 years ago, on Feb. 1, 1997, and it has helped to reduce health care costs dramatically.

“It’s not just about my blood pressure or my depression,” McDaniel says. “I meet with someone regularly, and she talks to me about everything.”

The Asheville Project was initiated to try to reduce costs and help people be healthier despite chronic illness, says John Miall, who was the city’s risk manager at the time.

“It boiled down to how we want to spend our health care dollars,” Miall says.

The idea was that if people could be incentivized to manage chronic health conditions, they would be healthier, and the city’s costs would be much lower. For example, glucose testing supplies are a few thousand dollars a year, but the cost of limb amputation, strokes, renal failure or blindness — all common complications of diabetes — can reach hundreds of thousands of dollars per person.

The idea was to offer to cover the cost of medications and testing supplies if employees agreed to follow the protocols necessary to manage their diabetes.

“That first year, all we did was diabetes, and the health plan spent 32 percent less on people with diabetes in the first year alone,” Miall says. “I call that stunning results.”

When cardiovascular conditions were added (high blood pressure and high cholesterol), the cost of care dropped 51 percent over three years, Miall says.

20

MARCH 8 - 14, 2017

LESS COST, BETTER HEALTH: Polly McDaniel gets a blood pressure check from nurse Nancy Walker. McDaniel’s blood pressure has dropped significantly since she enrolled in the Asheville Project as a city employee. Photo by Leslie Boyd In the first 14 years of the Asheville Project, not one employee had to go on dialysis because of diabetic kidney failure.

Others began to take notice, and Miall traveled across the country, telling other cities and companies how to set it up. Mission Health, which helped to develop the project with the city, adopted it in 1999.

Buncombe County government also has adopted it.

Currently, the project deals with a number of chronic conditions: diabetes and prediabetes; asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease; depression; high cholesterol; and hypertension. Mission has added people who are on long-term bloodthinner therapy. Complications of these illnesses are expensive, so preventing or even delaying the onset of complications can save millions of dollars for a large employer.

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The project pairs patients with community pharmacists, who meet with them regularly to discuss concerns. At first, the city recruited local pharmacists, and some still work with the project, but since it has grown, the city contracts with Piedmont Pharmaceutical Care Network.

Caroline Lewis is regional director for PPCN, a pharmacist and McDaniel’s consultant.

“The fact is, you have to treat the whole person,” Lewis says. “You can ask whether the person is taking the prescribed medication and taking it correctly, but you also want to know the person is getting regular eye exams and dental care, that they’re doing something to reach or maintain a healthy weight, that they’re getting exercise.”

“We talk about everything,” McDaniel says of her medical consultations through the Asheville Project. “We talk about my stress

levels, my ability to exercise — anything I’m concerned about.

McDaniel says she was having trouble sleeping several months ago and talked about it with Lewis.

“We looked at what I might be doing, and it turned out I was drinking a lot of iced tea,” McDaniel says. “She told me to go for decaffeinated tea, and the problem went away as soon as I made the switch.”

While doctors spend an average of five to seven minutes with a patient, PPCN pharmacists spend 30 to 60 minutes. Initially, the appointments are monthly, and later, if the person’s condition is stable, they meet quarterly.

Lori Brown, a pharmacist and director of clinical operations at Mission, says some 1,200 employees are on the rolls now, and as with the city of Asheville, other clinicians have been added to the mix, including dietitians, diabetes nurse educators, licensed clinical social workers and nurse case managers, all of whom work with patients' primary care physicians to improve outcomes.

The caregivers can help patients set priorities in their care.

"For example, diabetes affects every system in the body, and someone who's newly diagnosed may not even know where to start — they need to learn about diet and medication, controlling blood pressure, getting an eye exam.

There's a lot to learn, and it can be confusing," says Brown.

The Asheville Project caregivers can help people sort it all out.

Many times, Brown says, it's not the lack of knowledge that keeps people from being effective in managing their health; often it's the other curveballs in life, such as a late meeting at work that doesn't leave time for cooking a healthy dinner. Children's activities or caring for an elderly parent can also put a person's focus elsewhere. Caregivers associated with the project can help patients learn ways to think about their health despite all their other obligations.

Lewis says that often the biggest piece of the puzzle is helping people learn the skills they need to manage their health — how to buy and cook healthier foods, work in some exercise time and practice stress-reduction techniques.

As of the end of 2015, 88 percent of those enrolled in the Asheville Project either improved or were at goal for LDL cholesterol levels; 86.5 percent were either improved or at goal for blood pressure levels; and 88.9 percent of people with diabetes or prediabetes showed improvement in A1C, a long-term blood glucose measurement.

At Mission, Brown says that studies early on showed more people were seeing the doctor and getting prescriptions, but costs declined by about $2,000 per patient nonetheless.

"Emergency care is much, much more expensive," Brown says.

Since McDaniel enrolled in the program, she has been able to lower her blood pressure and manage her depression. She has had a knee replacement and has scheduled surgery for her other knee. She has lost about 5 percent of her body weight and plans to get into a regular exercise routine as soon as she has recovered from her second knee replacement.

“I’ve made positive changes, and I’ve managed to lower my stress levels,” McDaniel says. “I feel better, and I know I’ll continue to do so.” X

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The other big piece, Miall says, is making sure medications are taken correctly, and people can’t do that if they can’t afford them or don’t understand the instructions. Many people still don’t understand that antibiotics must be taken to completion or that they can’t save a few to use next time they get sick.

“One thing to note here is that up to 40 percent of prescribed medications are never filled,” Miall says.

“Another one-third are not taken to completion or not as directed.”

Sometimes, people cut pills in half because they struggle to afford their prescriptions, Miall says. Under the terms of the Asheville Project, the medications are paid for if the person complies with the treatment regimen.

The pill-cutting problem goes away.

One employee told Miall he used to cut glucose testing strips in half to try to save money, but they often didn’t work properly. Once he was in the program, he never had to worry about the cost again.

“People shouldn’t have to choose between their medications and food,” Miall says.

The program reduces costs, but Lewis says what’s even more important is that it reduces suffering.

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WELLNESS CANCER PATIENTS DESIRED FOR FREE HEALING WORK (PD.) SA & SU (3/18 - 13/19) 9am-3pm both days. Cancer patients needed as clients for advanced hands-on healing students. Earth-based healing school. Free. Interested parties register at registrar@ wildernessFusion.com. Montreat, NC. (828) 785-4311, wildernessFusion.com.

LIVE JOYOUSLY IN THE LIGHT OF REIKI (PD.) • Reiki I Class: Sunday April 2, 9am3pm. • Reiki II Class: Sunday April 9. For information/registration, call Reiki Master Isis Mary: (843) 5769202.

OPENING THE ENERGY GATES • QUIGONG CLASS (PD.) Saturdays, 11am-12pm, Weaverville, NC. Foundational mind/body practices for creating whole health.

Instructor Frank Iborra has over 47 years experience in the internal and Taoist movement arts. 954-7217252. www.whitecranehealingarts. com

ASHEVILLE COMMUNITY YOGA CENTER 8 Brookdale Road, ashevillecommunityyoga.com • SU (3/12), 12:30-2:30pm - "Intro to Yin," yoga workshop. $20.

BUNCOMBE COUNTY PUBLIC LIBRARIES buncombecounty.org/governing/ depts/library • TH (3/16), 1-2pm - "Ageless Grace: A Music and Movement Exercise Program," with gentle stretching to maintain neuroplasticity. Free.

Held at Pack Memorial Library, 67 Haywood St. • TH (3/16), 6-8pm - "Long Term Health Care under a Trump Administration: Things to Consider," presentation by a certified long-term care specialist. Free. Held at North Asheville Library, 1030 Merrimon Ave. HAYWOOD REGIONAL HEALTH AND FITNESS CENTER 75 Leroy George Drive Clyde, 452-8080, haymed.org/ • Through WE (2/22) - Open registration for the American Heart Association "Hands-Only" CPR course that takes place Saturday,

Feb. 25 from 10am-12:30pm.

Registration: 828-452-8098. $25.

QIGONG/CHI KUNG COMMUNITY PRACTICE GROUP allen@ashevilleqigong.com • FRIDAYS, 9:30am - Qigong/Chi Kung class. All levels welcome. Free to attend. Held at The Alternative Clinic, 23 Broadway THE MEDITATION CENTER 894 E. Main St., Sylva, 356-1105, meditate-wnc.org • 2nd WEDNESDAYS, 6-8pm "Inner Guidance from an Open Heart," class with meditation and discussion. $10.

WNC BAPTIST RETIREMENT HOME 213 Richmond Hill Drive • Through FR (3/17) - Open registration for the "Mind Tune-Up with Dr. Elizabeth Pavka," class regarding nutrition for a healthy mind. Class date: Tuesday, March 21, 4pm. Free.

The

Sustainability

CELEBRATING EARTH DAY 2017

Every week in April

Series

FARM & GARDEN

BUILDING RESILIENCE

Regenerative farming offers keys to a sustainable future

BY PATRYK BATTLE Russell Hedrick started out farming 30 acres in Catawba County; six years later, he’s managing 1,000 acres. He’s reduced A NA LY S I S his herbicide and fertilizer use by 60-70 percent, relying instead on things like multispecies cover crops and the integration of animals such as cattle, hair sheep and pigs. Last year, Hedrick took first place in the dryland and notill divisions of the statewide corn yield contest with 318.15 bushels per acre.

He placed second in the state soybean contest with 86.5 bushels per acre.

“By implementing the principles of soil health, we have seen a steady increase in yield and profits as we’ve increased our soil’s organic carbon levels,” says Hedrick. “It doesn’t matter where you go: The principles of soil health and regenerative farming apply to all farms. They might have to adjust the way they implement it, but it can work in every operation.”

Hedrick’s mentor, Gabe Brown, is one of the nation’s leading regenerative farmers. The Bismarck, N.D., resident will be presenting a number of talks and workshops in Western North Carolina in the coming days (see box, “Live and Learn”). Regenerative farming dynamically integrates all or most of the best practices of permaculture as well as biodynamic, organic and sustainable agriculture, employing an ever-increasing understanding of the “soil food web” in ways that can actually reverse the soil degradation caused by high-tillage farming practices.

In her book Resilient Agriculture: Cultivating Food Systems for a Changing

‘IT’S ALL ABOUT THE SYNERGIES’: To increase soil fertility, Living Web Farms keeps cover crops growing in different sections of its greenhouse at all times. “We try to give each bed one season in cover crops. This greatly helps with disease issues, which are major problems when you keep growing the same crops repeatedly,” says Patryk Battle, director of the nonprofit educational and research farm. Inset, Battle tosses fall cover crop seeds into a stand of summer cover crop. Courtesy photos Climate, local author Laura Lengnick devotes several pages to Brown’s powerful story. As he was transitioning to a no-till regenerative system in the 1990s, four years of severe weather (three of hailstorms and one of drought) caused him to lose his crops and left him ineligible for bank financing. With no money for fertilizers and pesticides, Brown had no choice but to go for it.

Relying on as many as 70 cover crop species, using no-till practices and management-intensive grazing techniques, he’s tripled his soil’s organic matter content and increased the rainwater infiltration rate from a half-inch per hour to more than 8 inches. “I can

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easily go through a two-year drought, and it does not affect our operation to any great extent because our soil is so much more resilient,” Brown reports.

A FUNDAMENTAL SHIFT With the adoption of agriculture about 10,000 years ago, humans fundamentally changed their relationship to the rest of the natural world. As foragers, we had assisted in the cycling of nutrients, moved seeds around and, through predation, helped keep other life forms in balance just as they helped keep us in balance. But as we learned to manipulate our environment and overcome the

natural limits on our ability to populate the earth, we went from being a symbiotic member of the soil community to having an essentially parasitic relationship with it.

Today, the consequences of that fundamental shift include mineral-deficient food (with its significant impacts on our health) and, for the soil, an everdecreasing water-holding capacity and a reduced ability to sequester carbon. This last point has severe implications in a world beset by climate change.

In Western North Carolina, more and more farmers are acting creatively and

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FA RM & G A R D E N diligently to mitigate those negative consequences. Many local growers are learning to use intensive rotational grazing systems, no-till planting methods, permaculture and agroforestry systems to slow or halt the damage and actually start to heal the soil.

“Farmers bring me their soil samples to analyze under the microscope so we can predict their fertility, and many of them are simply barren: no bacteria, no fungi, no predators for these organisms,” notes Ashevillebased landscape and garden consultant Jane Weaver of Earth & Spirit Design. “Healthy soil not only hosts but actually is a living organism. The microbes are comparable to ourselves, and they do all the work of making soil nutrients available to plants. As they work, they also support the formation of proper soil structure, ensuring that levels of moisture and air fully support plant growth.”

But in America’s cheap food economy, making this shift work is tough financially. Even when they’re marketing directly to consumers and getting prices that the customers often think of as steep albeit worth it, growers typically operate on perilously thin margins. Meanwhile, many of the above-described prac-

tices don’t yield an immediate payoff.

In order to become established and productive, these innovative methods require extra time, infrastructure and, sometimes, inputs. The learning curve can be steep and, at times, costly. In the current paradigm, it can be tempting — and, sometimes, perhaps even absolutely necessary — for farmers to stick with extractive methods just to stay in business.

Even this significant compromise, though, isn’t always enough. Erratic weather, intense disease pressure, undercapitalization and excessive time demands for very modest or even nonexistent returns are among the many reasons farmers give for surrendering.

MAXIMIZING DIVERSITY The term “regenerative agriculture” was coined by Robert Rodale in 1990, and the Rodale Institute remains at the forefront of research in the field, says Lengnick, a local soil scientist who’s an expert on agricultural resilience. It’s “a relatively recent idea,” she continues, “that is now being widely promoted as a way that agriculture can become a solution to, rather than a major cause of, climate change. Proponents of regen-

The

Sustainability CELEBRATING EARTH DAY 2017

Series

erative agriculture are focused mostly on the goal of building soil quality in order to mitigate global warming, but there are many other resilience benefits associated with these practices.”

Some of those benefits stem from an expanded understanding of the role of cover crops. Besides providing crop residues and, in the case of legumes, up to 100 pounds of nitrogen per acre, they also pump exudates into the soil, feeding adjacent microbial communities that, in turn, can increase plants’ vigor, immunity and resilience, says Cooperative Extension agent Richard Boylan. And the greater the diversity of cover crops, the greater the diversity of exudates, resulting in ever more robust soil life — all of which, of course, is composed of carbon.

Using no-till practices leaves this structure undisturbed and enables it to build upon itself. Tilling, on the other hand, shatters this structure and incorporates large amounts of oxygen. This, in turn, triggers a microbial feeding frenzy that consumes organic matter/carbon, says Boylan. “While many growers in this region (and especially organic farmers) need to till at times to remove rocks, kill perennial weeds and/or incorporate slow-moving minerals such as phosphorus or lime into our soils, it becomes important to make ‘deposits’ of cover crops and other organic matter into the soil ‘bank account’ to balance and preferably outweigh the organic matter ‘withdrawals’ caused by tillage.”

Essentially, every new component added to the system increases both complexity and efficiency. The maximized canopy created by multiple species of cover crops results in more efficient photosynthesis and more food for grazing animals. The intensified grazing leads

to increased trampling of a portion of the cover crops which, along with the enzymes and microbes in the grazing animals’ saliva and manure, feeds and invigorates the soil food web.

Stocking these animals closely and rotating them frequently mimics the great herbivore herds of the world’s grasslands. The more we emulate natural systems, the more stable and productive our agriculture becomes, notes Meredith Leigh, who wrote The Ethical Meat Handbook. “Large herds of herbivores moving quickly are an integral part of the way grassland ecosystems evolved,” the local author explains.

“Integrating livestock animals into cropping systems using minimum tillage is the closest way to mirror nature in our agriculture.”

Including agroforestry and permaculture crops in such systems creates even more dynamic “edge productivity.” For instance, when leguminous trees such as black locust and honey locust are grazed down, they shed that portion of the root system that they no longer need to support the reduced canopy. Along with the roots themselves, all the nitrogen fixed by them is now left in the soil to feed other plants. Pick the right trees, and they’ll readily regrow; meanwhile, other permaculture plants provide food for both livestock and humans. Like multispecies cover crops, this strategy makes photosynthesis more efficient, increases the diversity of soil exudates and promotes robust soil life.

A permaculture-inspired system of swales and berms can boost water retention, further enhancing productivity and stability. Living Web Farms in Mills River is taking advantage of this dry winter to install such a system, which will guide any water that’s not

Live and learn Exploring the landscape of sustainability in WNC in all four April issues of Mountain Xpress

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In the coming days and weeks, WNC residents will have a number of opportunities to learn from influential figures in the regenerative farming movement.

Here are some key dates: Thursday, March 9 Free talk on nutrient-dense foods by Dan Kittredge of the Bionutrient Food Association, 6 p.m. at the French Broad Food Co-Op in Asheville.

Friday, March 10 “Treating the Farm as an Ecosystem,” all-day workshop with Gabe Brown and Russell Hedrick, 9:30

a.m. to 4:30 p.m. at Living Web Farms in Mills River.

Saturday and Sunday, March 11-12 Brown will lead several workshops at the Organic Growers School’s Spring Conference on the UNC Asheville campus. He’ll also give a keynote address on Saturday at 1:45 p.m.

Saturday and Sunday, April 8-9 “High Bionutrient Crop Production,” two-day workshop with Dan Kittredge at Living Web Farms.

To learn more about these and other upcoming events, visit livingwebfarms. org and organicgrowersschool.org. X

absorbed by the soil toward a complex of ponds. During normal rainfall years, the system should be able to capture all the overflow from the fields, which could amount to more than 2.25 million gallons. That’s precisely the kind of resilience farmers will need as global climate change causes ever more erratic weather patterns.

THE ROOT OF THE PROBLEM One major way that parasitic farming methods negatively impact the soil is mineral depletion. Erosion and runoff wash these precious nutrients into our waterways and, eventually, into the oceans, where they’re lost for good.

Many multispecies cover crops, on the other hand, are deep-rooted and can “mine” minerals in the soil that were previously unavailable to the crops. Allowing livestock to graze those crops and then work them into the soil

ECO 24TH ANNUAL SPRING CONFERENCE (PD.) March 10-12, 2017. Keynotes: Gabe Brown & Matthew and Althea Raiford. UNCA. 140+ practical, affordable, regionallyappropriate sessions on organic growing, homesteading, farming.

Trade show, seed exchange, kid’s program. Organicgrowersschool. org.

ASHEVILLE GREEN DRINKS ashevillegreendrinks.com • 3rd WEDNESDAYS, 7pm - Ecopresentations, discussions and community connection. Free.

Held at Lenoir Rhyne Center for Graduate Studies, 36 Montford Ave. ASHEVILLE SCIENCE TAVERN 404-272-4526, sciencecandance@gmail.com • SA (3/11), 6pm - Presentation and discussion led by Brian Kloeppel about long-term and large-scale ecological research.

Bring your own refreshments.

Free. Held at WCQS, 73 Broadway HENDERSONVILLE GREEN DRINKS 692-0385 ext. 1004, facebook.com/hvlgreendrinks • TH (3/9), 5:30pm - “The Ecusta Trail: Connecting Henderson to Brevard,” presentation by Friends of the Ecusta Trail. Free to attend.

Held at Black Bear Coffee Co., Rosdon Mall, 318 N Main St., #5, Hendersonville

FARM & GARDEN ASAP COMMUNITY SUPPORTED AGRICULTURE FAIR asapconnections.org/events/ csa-fair-2/

via trampling and manure can actually replace the lost minerals.

Of course, neither diverse cover crops nor animals can make minerals that aren’t there spontaneously appear. But these strategies do enable us to maximize what we have and ensure that whatever minerals are present will stay put and quickly become part of the robust soil community. This is one more area where regenerative farming shines.

To help get the word out, Living Web Farms is partnering with the Organic Growers School to bring Gabe Brown to its upcoming spring conference. On Friday, March 10, Brown will give an allday workshop at Living Web Farms. He’ll also present shorter sessions over the weekend at the conference and deliver a keynote address on Saturday afternoon.

Since switching to regenerative farming, Brown has cut his herbicide use by 75 percent and has completely stopped using synthetic fertilizer. He also says he’s increasingly finding ways to stack

• TH (3/16), 4-7pm - Community supported agriculture fair to meet farmers and learn about their CSA programs. Free to attend. Held at Jubilee Community Church, 46 Wall St.

meeting for interested and past vendors. Free. Held at Mountain Horticultural Crops Research and Extension Station, 74 Research Drive Mills River

BUNCOMBE COUNTY EXTENSION MASTER GARDENERS 255-5522, buncombemastergardener.org, BuncombeMasterGardeners@ gmail.com • TH (3/16), 11:30am - Gardening in the Mountains presents “Alternative to the Vegetable Stand: Growing Your Own Vegetables.” Registration required: 828-255-5522.. Free.

Held at Buncombe County Cooperative Extension Office, 49 Mount Carmel Road, Asheville

ORGANIC GROWERS SCHOOL 552-4979, organicgrowersschool.org • SA (3/11) & SU (3/12) - Volunteer to help with the Organic Growers School 24th Annual Spring Conference for Healthy Eaters, Home Growers, & Farmers. Work four hours in trade for eight hours of instruction at the conference.

Registration required.

CITY OF HENDERSONVILLE cityofhendersonville.org • THURSDAYS, FRIDAYS & SATURDAYS until (5/13) - Seasonal mulch and composted leaves giveaway. Thurs. & Fri.: 3:30-7pm.

Sat.: 8am-noon. Free. Held at the old Waste Water Treatment Plant, 80 Balfour Road, Hendersonville HAYWOOD COUNTY MASTER GARDENERS 456-3575, sarah_scott@ncsu.edu • Through FR (3/17) - Plant sale.

Order forms available by calling 828-456-3575 or by email at mgarticles@charter.net.

MEN’S GARDEN CLUB OF ASHEVILLE 683-1673, mensgardenclubofasheville.org • Through FR (3/17) - Open registration for a container garden contest for Buncombe County Kindergarten through fifth grade classes. Registration details: heideled@yahoo.com. Free.

MILLS RIVER FARMERS MARKET millsriverfarm@gmail.com • TH (3/9), 6:30pm - Vendor

profit centers in his operation: the more diversity, the more profit.

That Friday, Russell Hedrick will also speak at the Living Web Farms workshop, discussing the remarkable results he’s achieved using Brown’s methods.

Not surprisingly, both men have won awards for their innovative, inspiring work. And though neither of them has incorporated permaculture methods at this point, their creative efforts offer glimpses of a revitalized, sustainable agriculture for WNC and beyond.

Patryk Battle is the director of Living Web Farms, a nonprofit educational and research farm that donates the food it grows to the food-insecure.

He’s been active as a farmer, innovator, baker, chef, author, radio personality and activist in Western North Carolina’s local food movement for over 30 years. Battle served on the Organic Growers School’s steering committee from 1996 to 2000 and has been a presenter at the spring conference for many years. X

POLK COUNTY FRIENDS OF AGRICULTURE BREAKFAST polkcountyfarms.org • 3rd WEDNESDAYS, 7-8am - Monthly breakfast with presentations regarding agriculture.

Admission by donation. Held at the 4-H Center, Locust St, Columbus SOUTHERN APPALACHIAN HIGHLANDS CONSERVANCY’S COMMUNITY FARM 180 Mag Sluder Road, Alexander, 253-0095, appalachian.org • TH (3/9), 10am-4pm “Accessing Land to Farm: Strategies & Partners to Help You Succeed,” workshop hosted by the National Young Farmers Coalition. Registration required: goo.gl/5q8jmz. Free.

• TH (3/16), 2-6pm - “MultiSpecies Rotational Grazing: Fencing, Planning & Management,” workshop focusing on cattle, goats, sheep and pigs. Registration required: Chris@ appalachian.org or 828-490-2565. $20.

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MARCH 8 - 14, 2017

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FOOD

DINNER TABLE ACTIVISM

BY JONATHAN AMMONS jonathanammons@gmail.com When Meherwan Irani got wind of a nationwide strike protesting President Donald Trump’s immigration policies, the local restaurateur was all in. “We heard about the day of protest that José Andrés had spearheaded in Washington, and we said that if any of our employees wanted to protest, then obviously that is cool,” says Irani, who co-owns three Asheville eateries and two in the Atlanta area.

On Feb. 16, students across the country stayed home from school, factories ran at low capacity, and restaurants scrambled to adjust their staffing or closed outright. The goal of the Day Without Immigrants was simple: to show how many industries would be crippled without the immigrant labor they rely on.

The action came in response to Trump’s executive order banning travel by passport holders from seven predominantly Muslim countries and the president’s broader anti-immigrant agenda. Andrés — a celebrity chef whose restaurant empire has brought Spanish cuisine to diverse cities including Los Angeles, Las Vegas, Miami and Washington — was among the strike’s chief supporters.

Employees at all five of Irani’s restaurants, including Chai Pani, MG Road and Buxton Hall in Asheville, said, “We want to work, but how about we do something with the money so that it helps someone more than just us not showing up to work?” the restaurateur says. Accordingly, the restaurant group announced that it would donate all of that day’s profits to the American Civil Liberties Union to stand in solidarity with the protesters.

“This isn’t about politics: This is about people being able to hang onto their basic human dignity,” says Irani, who has a green card himself and whose staff, particularly in the Atlanta area, is largely Hispanic. “Due process,” he explains, “is quite often what the poorest among us cannot afford.

I look at this as a humanitarian crisis: People are being separated from their families. There are even members of my staff that are legitimate green card holders that are genuinely concerned and worried about being targeted or accidentally rounded up.”

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MARCH 8 - 14, 2017

HONORING WOMEN: Elizabeth Schultenover, chef de cuisine at Table, will join several other Asheville women chefs in crafting a six-course dinner on Thursday, March 16, that highlights the work of pioneering women in the culinary industry. Proceeds from the event will benefit Planned Parenthood. Future dinners at Table will support immigrants in America and the NAACP. Photo by Cindy Kunst SUPPORTING BASIC RIGHTS Other local restaurateurs are also finding ways to make a statement. On Sunday, March 12, James Beard Award-nominated chef Katie Button will host an already sold-out dinner at Nightbell with Brittanny Anderson of Metzger Bar & Butchery in Richmond, Va. Some of the proceeds from the meal will also benefit the ACLU, and in an ongoing effort, customers at both restaurants will now be given envelopes inviting them to donate to the ACLU, Human Rights Watch or the International Rescue Committee.

Button opened both Nightbell and the nationally celebrated Cúrate with her husband, Felix Meana, an immigrant from Spain who first came to the States to assist Andrés when he opened Minibar in Washington.

“We think diversity is the best part of our country: Ideas from people with different backgrounds inspire innovation,” says Button. She experienced that firsthand while working at the acclaimed El Bulli in Spain, which welcomed chefs from around the world to learn, become a part of a community and help create a legacy.

“Felix is a green card holder,” notes Button, clearly flustered by the subject matter. “We allow people of different backgrounds into our country because they

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Asheville restaurants raise money for national causes

make a difference when given the opportunity to contribute, and I think it has led to really wonderful things. I know it has for us. I think we need to be really careful about changing that system.”

Button took an even stronger stance in a statement sent to local media in late February: “I have heard stories upon stories of green card holders, DACA recipients and others with legal work permits either being told that they cannot enter the USA or being arrested and forced out. Refugee programs have halted, and those who have been waiting for resettlement in the United States are forced to make alternate plans. It makes me wonder when and why we decided that it is better to make blanket decisions affecting innocent people and violating their liberties, all in the name of protecting ourselves. This type of xenophobic attitude … certainly isn’t why I’ve been proud to call myself an American, and why I felt confident raising our daughter and growing my business in Asheville.”

The growing fear, she says, has prompted her husband to think seriously about applying for U.S. citizenship “just to secure him more rights here.”

Irani, meanwhile, sounds a similar note. “I’m absolutely concerned,” he says, adding, “My last name is Irani, and I’m brown! It’s terrible. … You should be inspired to get citizenship because you are proud of where you live, not out of fear that if you’re not a citizen you’ll get kicked out.”

each chef to pick whatever woman she feels connected to,” says Kelly Vormelker, Table’s general manager. “We all feel very connected to Planned Parenthood, and we all believe in giving women access to affordable health care.”

Future Table dinners will benefit immigrants in America and the NAACP. Asked if there’s been any fallout from the restaurant’s foray into politics, Vormelker says, “I don’t know if our audience is just very accepting or what, but we haven’t gotten any pushback yet. If that comes our way, we will deal with it. We’re pretty well-versed as to why we stand behind women, their health and their freedom, so I think that would be an easy stance to defend.”

These dinners will also enable chefs, whose profession is notoriously timeconsuming, to keep their knives to the cutting board while still feeling that they’re making a difference. For her part, Schultenover is looking to her grandmother for inspiration.

“When I was in ninth grade, I took my first cooking class, and my grandmother made me a book of all of the recipes we grew up with. She would always turn on Julia Child for me to watch as a kid, instead of ‘Sesame Street.’ So I feel like I should be making something from her cookbook.” Schultenover hasn’t decided on a recipe yet, but says her grandmother “taught me how to crack an egg, so I know it’s going to be an egg-based dish.” X

STANDING UP FOR WOMEN

Upcoming fundraising dinners at Table

Local restaurants aren’t focusing their charitable efforts solely on immigration.

Table and The Imperial Life are planning a monthly dinner series, each aimed at a different concern raised by the president’s proposed actions. A six-course meal benefiting Planned Parenthood is slated for Thursday, March 16. The Trump administration has threatened to defund the group, which provides reproductive health care to millions of women every year.

The dinner, titled “The Women Who Taught Us to Cook,” will feature Table’s chef de cuisine, Elizabeth Schultenover, as well as Ashley Capps and Sarah Cousler of Buxton Hall, Alyssa Mikus from Cucina 24 and Suzy Phillips of Gypsy Queen Cuisine. The menu will highlight the work of pioneering women chefs like Julia Child, Alice Waters and Edna Lewis, featuring a mix of their recipes and dishes inspired by their work. “We’re leaving it to

WOMEN WHO TAUGHT US TO COOK (BENEFIT FOR PLANNED PARENTHOOD) 6 p.m. Thursday, March 16 BENEFIT FOR COMPAÑEROS INMIGRANTES DE LAS MONTAÑAS EN ACCIÓN AT TABLE 6 p.m. Thursday, April 13 Events will be held at Table, 48 College St. Cost for each dinner is $70 per person.

For details, visit tableasheville.com. For reservations, email info@tableasheville. com or call 828-254-8980.

SMALL BITES

by Thomas Calder | tcalder@mountainx.com

The Remingtin Room opens at Buxton Hall Barbecue “We’ve done pop-ups to exercise a lot of creativity, but The Remingtin Room is a really good chance to have a regular thing, where everybody on staff can exercise their creativity,” says Michael Files, brand director of Buxton Hall Barbecue.

The Remingtin Room debuts as a consistent weekly concept Friday, March 10, in the mezzanine space at Buxton Hall. The Friday and Saturday night restaurant-within-a-restaurant will offer guests an ever-changing menu, with plates ranging from $5-$35.

“It’s going to be an opportunity that has no limits,” says Files. “We’ll be creating new things in a very elevated way.”

All hands will be on deck for the latest edition, including Buxton Hall’s James Beard Award-nominated chef Elliott Moss. Files praises Moss’ endless energy, creativity and progressive approach in the kitchen. Files also highlights the talent that surrounds Moss, noting the experience that sous chefs Dan Silo and Sarah Cousler bring to the restaurant. “They’re always looking outside of Asheville at the greater scene for inspiration,” Files says.

The menu will feature such items as smoked ribeye and table-side tartare, with chefs taking advantage of the smokers and other barbecue equipment in the Buxton Hall kitchen.

Excitement for the new venue stretches beyond Moss and his sous chefs. Files sees it as a wonderful opportunity for the up-and-coming cooks who work at Buxton Hall (and by extension, The Rimingtin Room). “I know [the young cooks] are all really excited to cut loose and get creative … and show what they’re capable of, outside of just barbecue.”

The Remingtin Room will be open 5:30-10 p.m. most Fridays and Saturdays in the mezzanine space at Buxton Hall Barbecue, 32 Banks Ave. For a dining schedule, visit avl.mx/3fy. Reservations are recommended and can be made at reservations@buxtonhall.com.

GAN SHAN STATION WEST North Asheville’s Gan Shan Station is expanding westward. The East

GREAT MINDS PROGRESS ALIKE: “Elliott [Moss] has become known as a very creative and progressive chef,” says Michael Files. “I think because of that and because of his reputation ... we attract a lot of people ... of that same mindset.” Photo courtesy of Buxton Hall Barbecue Asian-inspired restaurant announced it will open Gan Shan West at 285 Haywood Road on Beacham’s Curve this summer. The new spot will have a smaller footprint than the original Charlotte Street venture, with a seating capacity of 25 during meal service plus a takeout window. The restaurant will serve lunch and dinner 11:30 a.m.-10 p.m.

Monday-Saturday.

For updates on the project, follow Gan Shan West on Facebook and @ganshanwest Instagram as well as the website ganshanwest.com.

WHAT’S NEW AT HICKORY NUT GAP FARM On Saturday, March 11, Hickory Nut Gap Farm will hold its spring open house. At 1 p.m., Jamie Ager will offer a tour of the property, and free samples will be available throughout the day. The event’s Facebook page encourages guests to “bring any questions you might have about agriculture, history and anything else you can think of.” On Wednesday, March 15, chef Craig Deihl will host a class on charcuterie at the farm, offering instruction in curing, brining, cooking and smoking. Tickets are $55 and can be purchased at avl.mx/3g4.

Hickory Nut Gap Farm is at 57 Sugar Hollow Road, Fairview. For more information on either event, visit hickorynutgapfarm.com.

UPCOMING EVENTS AT LIVING WEB FARMS “Nutrient Dense Foods” is a free lecture to be offered by Dan Kittredge of the Bionutrient Food Association on Thursday, March 9, at the French Broad Food Co-op. The talk will focus on raising nutrition standards through collaboration, highlighting production that

benefits the soil and human health. Another class, “Capturing Wild Cultures in the Kitchen,” will take place Tuesday, March 14, at Living Web Farms in Mills River. The class will cover techniques for creating starter cultures for fermentation of vegetables, beverages, bread and cheeses. Suggested donation is $10.

“Nutrient Dense Foods” happens 6-7 p.m. Thursday, March 9, at French Broad Food Co-op, 90 Biltmore Ave. “Capturing Wild Cultures in the Kitchen” is 6-7:30 p.m.

Tuesday, March 14, at Living Web Farms, 176 Kimzey Road, Mills River. For details on both workshops, visit avl.mx/3fz.

COMMUNITY SUPPORTED AGRICULTURE FAIR RETURNS On Thursday, March 16, the Appalachian Sustainable Agriculture Project’s annual CSA Fair returns for its seventh year to welcome spring in Western North Carolina. The event offers guests

a chance to meet farmers and learn about local community supported agriculture programs and products. The event will also feature food tastings and children’s activities.

ASAP’s CSA Fair runs 3-6 p.m. Thursday, March 16, at Jubilee! 46 Wall St. Admission is free. For details, visit avl. mx/3g0, contact ASAP at 828-236-1282 or email robin@asapconnections.org.

ESCOFFIER WINE DINNER AT CHESTNUT Local trout, duck breast and rack of lamb will be among the items served at the Thursday, March 16, Escoffier Wine Dinner at Chestnut. Chef Joe Scully and local wine importer Steve Pigniatello are coordinating the event.

Wines served at the dinner will include a rose bubbly, a Premier Cru chablis, an exclusive Gevrey-Chambertin and a Chambolle-Musigny.

The dinner is at 6:30 p.m. Thursday, March 16, at Chestnut, 48 Biltmore Ave. Tickets are $105 per person.

Price includes food, wine, tax and 20 percent gratuity. For tickets and details, visit avl.mx/3g1.

SHIPT ARRIVES IN ASHEVILLE “The city of Asheville is a rare blend of old and new — historic Appalachia intertwined with a thriving modern art and culinary scene. We share this same mentality at Shipt, incorporating the use of new technology with traditional grocery shopping,” Shipt’s founder and CEO, Bill Smith, says in a recent press release. The online grocery delivery company recently began offering its services to Asheville residents who shop at Whole Foods. Annual membership is $99 and includes unlimited free delivery for orders over $35. Orders are placed through the company app.

Learn more at shipt.com/Asheville. X

ISA’S BISTRO IS GOING GLOBAL!

MAR. 12: NEW ZEALAND MAR. 19: CALIFORNIA, USA MAR. 26: SPAIN

Join us Sunday, March 12th for cuisine and drinks from New Zealand!

APPETIZERS CRAYFISH SALAD baby lettuces, avocado OYSTERS KILPATRICK bacon, parsley, lemon BROCCOLI SOUP paprika whipped cream ENTREES RACK OF VENISON roasted mushrooms, braised greens TONGARIRO TROUT ginger glazed carrots CREAMY LEEK PIE cauliflower, leeks DESSERT LAMPINGTONS raspberry sauce PAVLOVA kiwi, strawberry compote

1 Battery Park Ave. | Asheville NC 28801 | 828-575-9636 info@isasbistro.com | isasbistro.com Complimentary valet parking available at the Haywood Park Hotel MOUNTAINX.COM

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BEER SCOUT

FOOD

by Scott Douglas | jsdouglas22@gmail.com

Back to basics Few people in the Asheville beer community have the breadth of perspective that John Cochran can offer.

With over 20 years of brewery experience, Cochran has weathered both the zeniths and the nadirs the industry has undergone.

He started his first brewery, Athens, Ga.-based Terrapin Beer Co., in the middle of one of the worst downturns the craft segment has thus far endured. He opened his second, Asheville’s UpCountry Brewing, at the height of a wave of growth unseen since before Prohibition. The road to starting over with UpCountry was a circuitous one for Cochran, but that path has left him uniquely qualified to comment on the craft beer boom in Buncombe County and beyond.

Cochran co-founded Terrapin in 2002 along with Brian “Spike” Buckowski, and after nearly 15 years of success, the brewery was purchased in 2016 by Tenth and Blake, the craft division of multinational brewing conglomerate MillerCoors. It was then that Cochran decided to get back to his small-brewery roots. He bought Altamont Brewing from Gordon Kear, rechristening the West Asheville brewhouse and taproom UpCountry. Having already grown one brewery to national prominence, Co-

UpCountry Brewing owner John Cochran talks about his journey from Terrapin Beer Co. founder to Asheville craft brewer

chran was ready to start working on the ground level again, this time with the benefit of extensive experience in the business.

“I think everybody’s been shocked by the growth in the last few years,” says Cochran. “I don’t see a bubble for breweries making 2,000, 3,000, up to 10,000 barrels to supply their local market, although the market is getting tougher. The real competition for bigger craft breweries is from smaller ones, but the great thing is that they don’t look at it the same way a big corporation would — it’s more cooperative. Asheville’s a very close-knit community of brewers, and the large guys here really care about helping the smaller guys out.”

Cochran started his tenure at Altamont by assuring customers and employees alike that he has no intention of selling this time around. “The big goal that I’m working on here is building that culture of being a family — building trust. It takes time, but it’s exciting,” he says.

Like many beer lovers, Cochran started out drinking mass-produced adjunct lagers in college until a growing collection of bottles showcased on his wall necessitated experimentation.

After accumulating every conceivable iteration of macrobrew packaging, he

Rezaz Wine Bar Wine Flights & Local Draft Beer Come Grab a Bite to Eat Open at 4:30 Thursday – Saturday 28 Hendersonville Rd | 828.277.1510 28

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THE BUBBLE QUESTION: Although he acknowledges the Asheville beer market is getting tougher, UpCountry Brewing owner John Cochran believes there is still room for small brewers. “I don’t see a bubble for breweries making 2,000, 3,000, up to 10,000 barrels to supply their local markets,” says Cochran, who has clocked more than 20 years in the craft beer business. Photo by Scott Douglas started venturing out of his comfort zone. “I tried a Samuel Smith’s Oatmeal Stout, and I was blown away. It shocked me that the bottle was clear — I thought it was black. So once a week after work, I’d pick up my usual case of Hamm’s, but from then on I’d also pick up something new,” recalls Cochran.

Some homebrewing and a brief stint in Seattle after graduating from the University of Georgia in 1993 sparked his interest in the burgeoning American craft beer movement, and when he returned to Georgia, his course was clear. He took on an internship at Marthasville Brewing that led to a full-time brewer’s position.

But when that brewery closed in 1997 during the shake-up that claimed many such operations, he ended up at Atlanta Brewing (now Red Brick).

It was there that he met Buckowski, and together they set out to start their own operation.

While the idea of Terrapin was straightforward enough, the road that led to its eventual success was anything but. Banks were hesitant to loan the duo necessary startup capital, so they resorted to credit cards and borrowing from family. Cochran and Buckowski contract-brewed for years (“Now it’s called ‘gypsy brewing’; back then it was just called bad,” says Cochran) until a group of local

investors came on board in 2007, allowing Terrapin to start brewing in its own space.

An expansion facility followed in 2008, and the brewery’s national profile soared. But the investors had a divergent vision for the future of Terrapin, and Cochran and Buckowski couldn’t buy them out, so in 2011, they accepted assistance from Tenth and Blake.

Coming on the heels of a glut of speculative brewery buyouts on the part of MillerCoors and AB InBev, the Tenth and Blake deal drew suspicion from craft purists — suspicions that were confirmed in 2016, when Tenth and Blake became the majority shareholder in Terrapin. But things were not as dire as they might’ve appeared, according to Cochran.

“MillerCoors was actually less intrusive than the old investors were. It was a way to grow the company and take care of the people that work there. It solidified those people’s jobs, they’ve got better access to resources and materials to compete in a crowded marketplace, and the community has a major employer,” says Cochran. A company, he adds, is more than just shareholder profits. “It’s like a family.

There were 132 employees when I left, and they all had families that we provided for. I’ve always been motivated by employing people — it’s a combination of a making a product you love and using that to do something good.”

Cochran has witnessed the ups and downs of an industry struggling to accommodate its own rapid development, and his journey has led him to some prescient conclusions. “People take their beer very personally, and craft brewing started out as ‘us vs. them,’” he explains.

“But if the big guys are starting to pay attention to good beer, doesn’t that mean the consumer wins? I feel like we’re finally winning a 30year fight. Authenticity of the product, where it’s from — that means something. If the really big guys put out something good, I might drink that, too,” he says. “But my first beer will always be local.” X

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A R T S & E N T E R TA I N M E N T

EXSULTATE, JUBILATE

Asheville Symphony’s Amadeus festival returns

“For the first festival, I went around like a traveling salesman,” the symphony director says of his outreach to partner organizations for the inaugural Asheville Amadeus in 2015. The idea was that local companies could either mount a show that fit with their typical programming, or they could use the context of the festival to incubate and experiment. This year, says Whitehill, “I had many more presenters call me before I could even pick up the phone.”

KID ROCK

MAESTRO MADNESS: “Mozart loved art and he loved wine and he loved sopranos and he loved theater,” says David Whitehill, executive director of the Asheville Symphony Orchestra.

Asheville Amadeus touches on all of these areas, including a production by Igudesman & Joo, trained musicians whose shows combine classical music, comedy and pop culture. Photo by Julia Wesely

BY ALLI MARSHALL amarshall@mountainx.com “The point of the Mozart festival is not to celebrate Mozart,” says David Whitehill, executive director of the Asheville Symphony Orchestra. It sounds, at first, like a strange statement to make about Asheville Amadeus, which returns for its second year — and a longer run — Friday, March 10, to Sunday, March 19.

“Mozart is just an entry point,” Whitehill says. “It’s inspired by Mozart. Mozart loved art and he loved wine and he loved sopranos and he loved theater.” Fittingly, Asheville Amadeus incorporates all of these elements, from comedy and singalongs to theatrical productions (Souvenir: 30

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A Fantasia on the Life of Florence Foster Jenkins, performed at N.C. Stage Company, doesn’t nod to the Austrian composer at all — but it is the story of a socialite and coloratura soprano who couldn’t hold pitch). Santé Wine Bar & Tap Room hosts an Austrian wine flight night; chamber music organization Pan Harmonia leads “Walk with Wolfgang,” a progressive concert; and Diana Wortham Theatre stages (among other shows) The Other Mozart.

That production, staring Sylvia Milo as Maria Anna “Nannerl” Mozart — the sister of Wolfgang Amadeus — was featured in The New York Times and garnered innovative theater awards.

Milo performs from within a sculptural, 18-foot dress. “If music and theater are not your thing but fashion is, you should see this,” Whitehill says.

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The star of this year’s Asheville Amadeus is violinist Midori. Born in Osaka, Japan, she began studying music as a child and made her debut at a New Year’s Eve concert of the New York Philharmonic Orchestra when she was 11. “I started to play the violin because I used to listen to my mother playing her violin, and I wanted to play it myself,” she tells Xpress. Among a long list of accolades, Midori is a Grammy winner, a United Nations Messenger of Peace and a recipient of the World Economic Forum’s Crystal Award.

There are undeniable parallels between Midori’s trajectory and that of child prodigy Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, who was born in Salzburg in 1756. The pianist famously created his first musical compositions by age 5 and wrote his first symphony at 8. Concert tours of Europe followed before he was 10. But despite early fame (and early death — the musician expired from an unknown illness at 35) Mozart fared better than many of today’s child stars. His work — religious music, dances and operas — ranged from somber to playful and are still extolled more than 200 years later. As Whitehill notes, the composer was the rock star of his day and, thanks to the release of a box set in 2016, “Mozart even outsold Beyoncé last year.”

Along with her own recording work (recent releases include Bach’s complete solo sonatas and partitas and The Art of Midori, a 10-disc set) and performances, Midori’s foundation, Orchestra Residencies Program, sees her spending weeklong stints with U.S.-based youth music programs. “I have always been eager to work with the community regardless of being a musician or not,” she says, though this endeavor is decidedly music-related. The Asheville Symphony applied for a grant from that foundation and was selected from about 40 applicants..

INSTRUMENTAL: Violinist Midori is not only the festival’s featured performer but will visit schools, teach clinics, perform with young musicians and meet local legislators. Midori plays a 1734 Guarnerius del Gesù “ex-Huberman” violin. “Between a player and a violin exists a unique chemistry,” she says. “A violin can inspire as well as criticize its player, and a player grows with the instrument.” Photo by Timothy Greenfield-Sanders So, during her Asheville visit, Midori will spend significant time with the Asheville Symphony Youth Orchestra.

“I hope the young people will enjoy the residency and that they will take from it whatever they can take,” she says. “There are many activities being planned that bring young people together in the context of music and those that will attract attention to the important work being done by the youth orchestras.” The residency culminates in a public performance of Verdi’s “Overture to Nabucco,” “Pictures at an Exhibition” by Mussorgsky, Bruch’s Violin Concerto No. 1, Opus 26, and Bach’s Concerto for Two Violins (during which youth orchestra musicians will solo beside Midori).

There will be 200 student musician onstage — including members of MusicWorks!, an outreach program for school-age children in an underserved community of West Asheville — plus

30 or more adult symphony musicians.

The Girl Scouts of Asheville will host a milk-and-cookies reception following the concert. “This will be the largest youth orchestra this community has ever mounted, the largest audience that has ever come to a youth orchestra, and the largest cookie reception that Asheville has probably ever seen,” Whitehill says with a laugh.

who was mentored by Grammywinning classical pianist Emmanuel Ax (the inaugural Asheville Amadeus’ featured artist), performed Mozart’s “Turkish March.” That work is sampled and woven into the fist-pumping, dance-inducing “Mozartistic.”

Skidoo, who is already thinking about future classical and symphonic collaborations, will perform the Mozartistic songs during a Sunday, March 19, kids show at The Orange Peel. (See mountainx.com for more on Skidoo’s Grammy win, future projects and local performance details.)

OLD SCORE, NEW TRICKS Former Ashevillean Secret Agent 23 Skidoo tends to bring ice cream vendors rather than a cookie sales team to his shows. The now-California-based kid-hop artist, who just won a Grammy for his album, Infinity Plus One, knows plenty about producing the kind of music that appeals to young ears. He had approached Whitehill about collaborating with the Asheville Symphony “because just the sounds and the richness and the production possibilities are awesome from a producer’s standpoint,” Skidoo says. “The idea of an entire orchestra is about as good as it gets.”

His original idea was to score some of his existing material, but Whitehill came back with the proposal that Skidoo could create a theme song for Asheville Amadeus (think the 1985 song “Rock Me Amadeus” by Falco).

Skidoo agreed even though he wasn’t very familiar with the 18th-century composer. “But that’s how I work,” he jokes. “I bite off more that I can chew, then grow more teeth.”

Skidoo wanted to create something that combines the worlds of hip-hop and the symphony, and that idea first jelled when he realized he could use a string section to sound like record scratching. Skidoo brought Ashevillebased musician and DJ Marley Carroll in to do live scratching. “I decided to [approach] it as if we had all of Mozart’s works on record and we were chopping them up with beat machines to make a hip-hop beat out of it, like sampling,” he says.

The next piece was the “Mozartistic” idea, which became the first track on the resulting five-track EP of the same title. “What really clicked for me was when [Mozart] was 7, 8, 9 years old, he was on tour throughout Europe,” Skidoo says.

“Every place he would go, all the older piano players … would challenge him to a battle and [Mozart] just waxed everyone. …I was like, ‘OK, now this is a hip-hop song.”

The battle-rapper theme is paired with the idea that, prodigy or not, everyone can take inspiration from

A TRIUMPHANT RETURN

INSTRUMENTAL: Members of the Asheville Symphony Youth Orchestra will take part in Midori’s residency program, which culminates with a concert at the Thomas Wolfe Auditorium — complete with a milk-and-cookies reception. Photo by Michael Morel Mozart’s story. “You never know what you are capable of unless you try and are disciplined,” says Skidoo. “Not everyone is a prodigy, but if you were and you didn’t try, you’d never know.”

The track’s hook is a triumphant challenge: “Who is the Mozartistic? I am the Mozartistic!”

Local singer-songwriter Indigo DeSouza adds vocals, and Orion Weiss,

Asheville Amadeus provides opportunities for the symphony and partnering organizations to stretch imaginations and creative muscle. But it’s not a fringe endeavor. The inaugural festival was a huge success. “Almost three-fourths of [attendees] engaged in other activities while in Asheville for the festival,” says Whitehill. Those visitors dined in area restaurants, shopped, visited breweries and spas, and stayed overnight in hotels and B&Bs — so the event was a boon for the city as well as for the sym-

CONTINUES ON PAGE 32

Asheville Amadeus schedule • Festival kickoff and release of Wolfgang 1756 symphony lager, featuring music by Matt Townsend and The Wonder of the World — Highland Brewing, 12 Old Charlotte Hwy., Friday, March 10, 7 p.m. Free.

• Blue Ridge Orchestra performs A Wedding with Wolfgang (family concert) — UNC Asheville’s Lipinsky Auditorium, 300 Library Lane, Saturday, March 11, 11 a.m. and 3 p.m. $15 general/$10 Friends of the BRO/$5 students.

• Igudesman & Joo present And Now Mozart (music and comedy) — Diana Wortham Theatre, 2 S. Pack Square, Saturday, March 11, 3 and 8 p.m. $35 adults/$30 students/$20 children.

• NPR commentator and violinist Miles Hoffman presents Mozart & Miles; chef

John Fleer prepares a special lunch — Rhubarb, 7 S. Pack Square, Monday and Tuesday, March 13 and 14, 11 a.m. $50.

• Pan Harmonia leads a Walk with Wolfgang (progressive chamber music concert) — Drhumor Building, 48 Patton Ave., Monday, March 13, 6 p.m. $22 advance/$27 day of show/$11 students.

• Eine Kleine Kinder Music with Yvette and Asheville Symphony musicians (for newborns to kindergarteners) — Pack Memorial Library, Monday, March 13, 10:30 a.m.; North Asheville Library, Wednesday, March 15, 11 a.m.; West Asheville Library, Thursday, March 16, 11 a.m.; Skyland Library, Saturday, March 18, 10 a.m.

Free.

• Asheville Symphony Chorus leads the Mozart Requiem singalong — First

Presbyterian Church, 40 Church St., Tuesday, March 14 7:30 p.m. $15.

• The Other Mozart (theatrical production) — Diana Wortham Theatre on Wednesday and Thursday, March 15 and 16, 8 p.m. $35 adults/$30 students/$20 children.

• Souvenir: A Fantasia on the Life of Florence Foster Jenkins (play) — N.C. Stage Company, 15 Stage Lane, Wednesday, March 15-Sunday, April 2. $17$40.

• Austrian wine flight night with Chris Curtis of The Country Vintner — Santé Wine Bar & Tap Room, 1 Page Ave. No. 146, Thursday, March 16, 7 p.m. $16 (excludes tax and gratuity).

• Jerusalem Quartet — Diana Wortham Theatre, Friday, March 17, 8 p.m. $40 general/$5 youth.

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• Asheville Choral Society presents Mozart March Madness — Central United Methodist Church, 27 Church St., Friday, March 17, 7:30 p.m. $20 advance/$25 at the door/$10 youth.

• Midori with the Asheville Symphony Youth Orchestra and special gusts from Music Works! —Thomas Wolfe Auditorium, 87 Haywood St., Saturday, March 18, 2 p.m. $20 adults/$10 youth.

• Asheville Amadeus finale concert featuring Midori, Asheville Symphony Chorus and conductor Daniel Meyer — Thomas Wolfe Auditorium, Sunday, March 19, 3 p.m. $28$93 adults/$15-$35 youth.

Learn more and purchase tickets at 828-254-7046 or ashevillesymphony.org — A.M.

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A&E

phony. “On average, [attendees] spent $269 on Asheville Amadeus tickets and festival-related activities.”

Whitehill continues, “Given that those outside of Asheville Symphony’s patron base tend to be less familiar with classical music (and therefore less attracted by even big-name soloists), the overall design and positioning of the festival as a communitywide event with many access points ... ultimately led to the success of Asheville Amadeus not only for the symphony but all the partners involved.”

While this year’s event doesn’t strictly follow the model of its predecessor, some popular initiatives will return. The speciality beer is one idea that, according to Whitehill, other symphonies around the country are seeking to replicate.

And the 30-foot extension of the Thomas Wolfe Auditorium stage, which brings the musicians closer to the audience and allows for up to 124 seats onstage, is also being reprised for the finale concert.

This kind of out-of-the box thinking has benefited the symphony in a number of ways. First, says Whitehill, the audience for the classical concerts is diversifying. And after the symphony’s collaboration with local musicians for last year’s album, The Symphony Sessions, “I see more people from Echo Mountain

[Recording] — the staff and those who recorded there [for the album] coming to the symphony,” Whitehill says.

Plus, Asheville Amadeus is being shared by exploreasheville.com, the website of the local Convention and Visitor’s Bureau, leading to calls and bookings for the festival from visitors around the country. If the Asheville Symphony Orchestra used to be an island unto itself, as the executive director thought of it when he first came to town, now, “we’re not doing the same thing year after year. We’re learning, we’re doing something new,” he says.

The symphony’s budget has grown significantly — from just under $1 million four years ago to nearly $1.7 million this year, placing it in the top 12 or 13 percent of U.S. symphonies. The future looks bright. Pianist Inon Barnatan, the New York Philharmonic’s first artist-in-association, just performed with the local symphony for its “Music from Fantasia” program. Ax “chose us,” says Whitehill. “And Midori’s coming. You don’t have to go anywhere else.”

The possibilities do seem limitless.

In fact, Whitehill muses, “Would it be too far-fetched to think one day we could have a rock-theme to this festival?

Probably not.” X

! y a MX giveaw Find this MX Promo at mountainx.com and comment before NOON Thursday, Mar. 9th for a chance to win a pair of tickets to see Jon Stickley Trio at The Grey Eagle!

jon stickley trio

FRIDAY MAR. 10TH: DOORS- 7PM SHOW- 8PM THE GREY EAGLE

Go to avl.mx/3GQ to enter 32

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by Bill Kopp

bill@musoscribe.com

CLEAR, PRESENT AND SLIGHTLY DANGEROUS Jon Stickley Trio schedules a hometown pre-release album celebration Despite a solid foundation in bluegrass and old-time, the Jon Stickley Trio has never allowed itself to be boxed in by the confines of mountain music. On the group’s latest EP, Triangular, as well as on its upcoming album and especially live onstage, the Asheville-based trio uses bluegrass as a jumping-off point for lively musical excursions. The Jon Stickley Trio previews its forthcoming record Maybe Believe with a special hometown pre-release celebration at The Grey Eagle on Friday, March 10.

“I do come out of the bluegrass background,” admits the band’s namesake, flatpicking guitarist Jon Stickley. But he says that as he and bandmates Lyndsay Pruett and drummer Patrick Armitage began developing their own music, the trio’s musical personality emerged.

That character draws from musical traditions well outside Appalachia.

Armitage studied under Dave King of the avant-garde group The Bad Plus and has a strong background in hip-hop. And “Lyndsay is classically trained and also plays jazz,” Stickley notes.

But the trio displays a healthy respect for tradition, too. “One thing we really try to do is honor the fundamentals that are so important to old-time and bluegrass music: the timing, the tones, the hard-driving rhythms,” says Stickley. Despite the adventurousness of the trio’s arrangements, Stickley says that he still often feels he’s “playing music that could be done around the camp-

fire with a couple of other people who know the songs.”

Live onstage and in the studio, the trio aims to be “clear and present, like you would at a bluegrass jam,” Stickley says. If there’s a guiding principle to creating original music for the trio, Stickley suggests it might be something like this: “We try to stick to the parameters of what is right” from a music theory standpoint, “and then apply it to our own original songs.”

One of the characteristics that sets the Jon Stickley Trio apart from many of its contemporaries is the emphasis on instrumentals. “That was something that took shape over time,” Stickley says, noting that both he and Pruett do sing. “In the beginning, we [did] about 30 percent vocal material, but we were writing so much original instrumental material that we were gravitating toward that.” It wasn’t until the group started working with King on 2015’s Lost at Last that the musicians fully embraced an instrumental approach.

“We wanted to add a couple more vocal tunes to the three that we planned on recording,” recalls Stickley. “But Dave dropped a bomb on us.” King convinced Stickley and his bandmates that their instrumentals were a big part of what made them special.

“The vocal stuff was good,” Stickley says, “but it didn’t have the same power and integrity as the instrumental stuff we were writing.”

They took their producer’s advice and went on to play several festival sets without any vocals.

SMELLS LIKE BLUEGRASS SPIRIT: The Jon Stickley Trio will preview songs off its upcoming album Maybe Believe — set to drop on May 13 — with a pre-release celebration show at The Grey Eagle. Photo by Heather Hambor “It felt so natural that we just ran with it,” Stickley says.

The trio continues that approach on its newest album. Maybe Believe is scheduled for release on Saturday, May 13, though advance copies will be available at the Jon Stickley Trio’s Grey Eagle show this week.

Maybe Believe showcases uptempo numbers alongside what Stickley describes as “mellow, soundscape-y kind of chill tracks.”

And while the new album displays the trio’s skill at evoking a wide array of emotions through original material, the band often tosses a cheeky cover tune or two into its live set. Asked if the inclusion of Nirvana’s “Smells Like Teen Spirit” is some kind of musical statement about the irrelevance of genre classification, Stickley laughs. “It’s not to make any point at all, other than that you should have fun,” he says.

Whether it’s a left-field reinvention of a rock classic or an original composition, the Jon Stickley Trio excels at musical interplay;

the musicians’ live approach might be described as controlled innovation. “There’s a lot of improvisation,” Stickley says, “but within a very defined structure of a tune.” All three players always know what — in a general sense — is coming next.

“We’re very conscious of who’s following whom and who’s playing the melody,” Stickley says. “We’re always trying to figure out how to diversify and make [music] that’s as interesting as possible with just three people.” X

WHO The Jon Stickley Trio with Blair Crimmins and The Hookers and Shane Parish WHERE The Grey Eagle 185 Clingman Ave. thegreyeagle.com WHEN Friday, March 10, 8 p.m. $12 advance/$15 day of show

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A&E

by Thomas Calder

tcalder@mountainx.com

AVENUES OF INTERPRETATION Three-day festival celebrates Zelda Fitzgerald and mental health initiatives In a 1938 letter concerning his wife’s mental health, author (and occasional Asheville resident) F. Scott Fitzgerald wrote, “Supposing Zelda at best would be a lifelong eccentric, supposing that in two or three years there is certain to be a sinking[.] I am still haunted by the fact that if it were me, and Zelda were passing judgment, I would want her to give me a chance.”

The letter’s recipient, Dr. Robert Carroll, was the founder and director of Highland Hospital in Asheville.

Celebrated flapper Zelda Fitzgerald first arrived at the facility in April 1936, seeking treatment for schizophrenia.

She spent the final decade of her life in and out of the institution. On March 10, 1948, she and eight other patients perished in a fire at the hospital. In subsequent years, both her diagnosis and the treatments surrounding her illness have been scrutinized by biographers.

A writer, dancer and painter, Zelda found solace in many art forms while confronting her mental health issues.

In its second year, the local festival Celebrate Zelda! looks to highlight and honor these endeavors in conjunction with the anniversary of her untimely and tragic death. The threeday happening, held Friday through Sunday, March 10-12, will feature a series of local readings, performances and events.

The Asheville Art Museum will launch this year’s celebration with Art Break: The Art of Zelda Sayre Fitzgerald at noon Friday, March 10. It centers on an abstract floral painting by Zelda (circa 1945) titled “Japanese Magnolias.”

“The painting really stands the test of time, and it rewards deep looking,” says Pam Myers, director of the Asheville Art Museum. Art Break also includes a gallery talk and a reading by local writer and poet Melanie McGee Bianchi. Myers says both activities promote “alternative avenues of interpretation for viewers to find their way into the painting.”

Lori Greenberg, who co-organized Celebrate Zelda!, views the three-day series as a way to spotlight the benefits of the creative process for those struggling with mental health issues.

“Art really does help restore a person’s self-confidence and ability to feel better about themselves,” she says.

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BRINGING ART TO THE COMMUNITY: Trey Mourey is among the participants at Aurora Studio & Gallery’s free weekly art class. The organization works with individuals who have mental health and/or substance abuse issues. Photo courtesy of Lori Greenberg Greenberg is the founder of Aurora Studio & Gallery, a program that provides free weekly and monthly art workshops for individuals struggling with mental health and substance abuse issues. The volunteer-based program began in 2012. Both its art supplies and classroom spaces come through donations by a number of local artists and organizations. “I’ve had a few people struggling with their depression say to me, ‘This is the first time I got out of bed all week because I wanted to be here,’” Greenberg says. “They come to be with

the group and work on art and feel that strength through community.”

Many of those who participate in the workshops will have their pieces available for sale at the Outsider Art Sale. The event, which is part of Celebrate Zelda!, will take place Saturday, March 11, from 6 to 9 p.m. at The Academy at Terpsicorps.

Greenberg hopes the show will shine light on both the individuals and the organization. Proceeds from the sale will benefit both the artists and the program.

A dance recital will be performed that same evening by students from

Terpsicorps. Titled “Zelda’s Dance,” the piece is an abridged version of a full-length production that Terpsicorps’ artistic director, Heather Maloy, intends to bring to the stage in the future. The performance will focus on three periods of Zelda’s life: when she and Scott first met, their relationship during the peak of Scott’s literary success and the final years of her life spent in hospitalization.

The recital will also highlight Zelda’s affinity for dance. During the Fitzgeralds’ 1927 stay in Paris, she rediscovered her childhood passion for ballet. “I worked constantly and was terribly superstitious and moody about my work,” Zelda wrote in a 1932 autobiographical sketch. “I lived a quiet, ghostly, hypersensitized [sic] world of my own. Scott drank.”

Maloy notes one of the greatest challenges in producing “Zelda’s Dance” was finding a balanced account of the Scott and Zelda story.

“Each book that’s been written has had a different point of view,” she says. Some works cast Zelda in a negative light, suggesting her mental health issues led to Scott’s own turmoil and alcoholism. Others point to Scott’s alcoholism and possessiveness as the source of Zelda’s struggles. ““I think it’s probably somewhere in between the two,” says Maloy.

“That they loved each other, but were a difficult pairing.” X

Three days of Zelda Art Break: The Art of Zelda Fitzgerald WHAT Viewing, gallery talk and reading by local writer and poet Melanie McGee Bianchi WHERE Asheville Art Museum, 175 Biltmore Ave. WHEN Friday, March 10, noon. Free

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Celebrating the Birthdays of Dead Writers: the afterlife of the written word WHAT Monika Gross of At-A-Site Theater will offer individual readings of Zelda Fitzgerald’s writings WHERE Malaprop’s, 55 Haywood St. WHEN Friday, March 10, 6 p.m. Free

Events at The Academy at Terpsicorps

Readings at Firestorm

WHAT “Zelda’s Dance,” Outsider Art Sale,musical performances by Asher Leigh & Friends and Heather Taylor and Sean Jerome, readings of Zelda’s work by Monika Gross

WHAT Readings of and about Zelda

by Tom Downing and Melanie McGee Bianchi

WHERE The Academy at Terpsicorps, 1501 Patton Ave.

WHERE: Firestorm, 610

WHEN Saturday, March 11, 6-9 p.m.

Free

WHEN: Sunday, March 12,

Haywood Road

6:30 p.m. Free

A&E

by Coogan Brennan

coogan.brennan@gmail.com

‘A PLACE TO BE SAFE AND HAPPY’ The BLOCK off Biltmore hosts Latin Rhythms & Salsa Saturdays Walking down Eagle Street on a Saturday night, you might hear the syncopated rhythm of salsa blasting from outside speakers. Perhaps it’s the audacity of bumping music next to the police station, or the bustling crowd inside, but the Latin Rhythms & Salsa Saturday events at The BLOCK off Biltmore demand the attention of passersby.

Oskar Santana and Jamie Singh are responsible for organizing the event, which began in 2013. Strictly speaking, it’s a dance party meant to both teach and host salsa and other Latin dance forms. Beginning at 9 p.m., professional dance instructors from the local studio 2umbao teach salsa lessons to a relatively small, but eager, group of beginners. As of press time, instruction is free.

The amateur level of the lessons allows for an easy atmosphere.

Jennifer Stalnaker, owner of 2umbao Dance Academy, gauges the crowd for what people would like to learn, and dance partners change throughout the lesson at regular intervals. On the syllabus are basic salsa steps, hand positions and female and male turns. Stalnaker demonstrates with a colleague, and instructors are peppered throughout the class.

The exact roots of salsa dance are difficult to trace. The name itself, primarily translated as “sauce,” can also be understood to mean “mixed.”

This is possibly in reference to its multilayered lineage. Salsa music is understood by many to originate in New York City from son cubano, a genre that combines Spanish flamenco guitar with Afro-Cuban percussion from West African people who were enslaved in the Caribbean.

Salsa dance is seen as very similar to mambo (which any Dirty Dancing fan will appreciate). In fact, the name of Stalnaker’s company translates as “on the two” — a reference to mambo, which is sometimes called “salsa on the two.”

Stalnaker began studying salsa eight years ago and has come to love the “warm, family-oriented” community created around the dance. The Asheville salsa scene has diminished a bit over those years, though, due to some key members leaving. Now,

RHYTHM IS GONNA GET YOU: “We want to have a place for the community to dress up, have fun. A place to be safe and happy,” says Jamie Singh, one of the organizers of the Latin Rhythms & Salsa Saturday events at The BLOCK off Biltmore. The events also often serve as fundraisers for local and national causes. Photo by Jack Sorokin Stalnaker frequently attends salsa congresses in other cities, while teaching, hosting and helping with events in Asheville. She’s hoping her company and the Latin Rhythms nights will help reinvigorate the local scene.

After the lesson, the social begins and the more practiced dancers roll in. The room can get packed during the evening’s zenith. Santana (as DJ Malinalli) plays not only salsa music, but cumbia, merengue and rhumba as well.

Friends who have been dancing together for years hug; others sit at the tables, with drinks and food, right outside the venue. While the Latin Rhythm night is for dancing, the organizers also want the event

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to serve as a hub. “We want to have a place for the community to dress up, have fun. A place to be safe and happy,” Singh says.

This can be challenging in the current climate. While record deportation levels under Obama earned him the title “Deporter in Chief,” members of the Latin community are even more fearful of policy enacted under the current administration, says a representative from local immigrants-rights group Compañeros Inmigrantes de las Montañas en Accion. The Marshall Project, a national nonprofit examining criminal justice, has discussed a recent executive order by President Trump meant to further empower Immigration and Custom Enforcement’s program

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287(g) — an initiative that allows local law enforcement to alert federal agencies if they apprehend someone “without valid immigration status.”

Beyond being an entertaining space to possibly distract from these anxieties, Latin Rhythms also extends service out into the larger Latino populace. “The community is such a loving one,” says Singh, “it’s easy to do charity.” Often the dance night benefits a cause. Previous fundraisers ranged from the local (such as assisting the family of Jerry “Jai” Williams, who was killed by police) to the national (as when Latin Rhythms held a water drive for Flint, Mich.).

The blend of the social and political makes it a perfect fit for the venue. The BLOCK off Biltmore bills itself as “Asheville’s first Eco-Vegan, Social-Justice, Solidarity Bar” — and Latin Rhythms & Salsa Saturday embodies that mission. X

WHAT Latin Rhythms & Salsa Saturday with DJ Malinalli WHERE The BLOCK Off Biltmore 39 S. Market St. theblockoffbiltmore.com WHEN Saturdays. 9 p.m. dance lesson $5 cover after 11 p.m.

Lingerie & Accessories Locally Made Apparel & Jewelry

Body Safe [Non-Toxic] Toys Organic Lubricants & Massage Oils

800 Fairview Road Asheville (River Ridge Shopping Center)

299-1145 • www.mrksusedbooks.com

57 Broadway Downtown Asheville

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SMART BETS

A&E

by Emily Glaser | Send your arts news to ae@mountainx.com

The Nile Project The Nile Project brings together 10 languages, a dozen instruments and musicians from 11 countries. The unique music that emerges is representative of the Nile River and the various peoples who call its banks home. “The Nile Project is an excellent example of the ability of the arts to connect people across cultures, religions and languages,” says Denise Drury Homewood, executive director of Western Carolina University’s Bardo Arts Center. The Nile Project will visit the area on Monday, March 13, for a day of education, discourse and performance. The events begin with a discussion of the definitions of being African at 10 a.m. at Folkmoot, 112 Virginia Ave., Waynesville. Homewood will moderate a panel discussion on music, engagement and water resource management at 2:30 p.m. in Room 130 of the Bardo Arts Center. As the main event, The Nile Project performs at 7:30 p.m., also in the Bardo Arts Center. $8 students/$24 general/$20 WCU faculty and staff. bardoartscenter.wcu.edu. Photo by Habris Girgis

The Merchant of Venice The Merchant of Venice rides the enigmatic line between Shakespearean comedy and drama. Though defined as a comedy in the First Folio, the play also evokes the poignancy of Shakespeare’s more introspective plays through monologues by the controversial Jewish moneylender Shylock and the heroine Portia. Even 400 years after its first performance, the sentiments and entertainment of the drama still appeal to modern theatergoers. When the Montford Park Players last performed The Merchant of Venice in 2013, it proved to be one of the season’s most popular presentations. The 2017 rendition, featuring Steve Samuels as Shylock and Devyn Ray as Portia, will take place on Fridays and Saturdays at 7:30 p.m. and Sundays at 2:30 p.m., March 10-26, at The BeBe Theatre. Free. montfordparkplayers.org. Photo by Rodney Smith/Tempus Fugit Design

Stephen Evans and The True Grits SeepeopleS Indie-rockers SeepeopleS returns to Asheville with a new EP, HATE, a follow-up to last year’s LOVE. “HATE might be the most diverse album we have ever done,” says band leader Will Bradford. The album takes a punk turn with songs like “New American Dream,” a distinct departure from the cheerful pop of LOVE’s tunes like “Shangra La La.” The band will play a little bit of everything in Asheville, a town it called home for eight years. “Who wouldn’t want to come back to a city with such a vibrant and diverse music and arts scene?” Bradford says with a laugh. SeepeopleS opens for ‘80s rockers Dan Baird and Homemade Sin at The Grey Eagle on Sunday, March 12, at 8 p.m. $12/$15. thegreyeagle.com. Photo by Shannon Thibodeau

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Local singer-songwriter Stephen Evans is preparing to reunite with his band, The True Grits, for the first time since last fall. The folk-rock group will perform new songs from its forthcoming EP during a show at The Town Pump Tavern in Black Mountain.

You can expect Evans’ signature soulful guitar and roots-oriented accompaniment from the band. Evans is eager to share his new tunes but equally excited about the performance space. “So many great musicians have played there while passing through Western North Carolina. It will be a pleasure just to be on that stage,” he says.

He’ll take his turn on the Town Pump stage on Saturday, March 11, at 9 p.m. Free. avl.mx/3fk. The group will play an encore performance at French Broad Brewery on Saturday, March 18, at 6 p.m. Free. frenchbroadbrewery.com. Photo courtesy of Swap Shop Kid

A& E CA L E N DA R

by Abigail Griffin

‘PULSE’: Anam Cara Theatre Company presents Pulse, a personal and provocative ensemble performance response to the 2016 Orlando nightclub shooting, for the final weekend Friday and Saturday, March 10 and 11, at 8 p.m. The piece represents a community’s grief over the shooting through ritual, original song and movement, and by leading the audience into a journey confronting the grief, hysteria and confusion that this gut-wrenching crime caused. For more information, visit anamcaratheatre.org.

Photo courtesy of Anam Cara Theatre (p. 38) ART GALLERY OF THE MOUNTAINS Inside the Omni Grove Park Inn, 290 Macon Ave. • SA (3/11), 11am-3pm - Cindy Long demonstrates weaving on a traditional foot-powered loom. Free to attend.

APPALACHIAN PASTEL SOCIETY appalachianpastelsociety.org • SA (3/11), 10am-noon - “Painting Shiny Things,” presentation. Free.

Held at Grace Community Church, 495 Cardinal Road, Mills River ART AT WCU 227-2787, bardoartscenter.edu • TH (3/16), 6-8pm - “Creating an Animated Film,” learn about animating simple designs via Flash computer programming with animator and designer Miwa Matreyek.

Registration: hensley@wcu.edu. $20/ Free for students. Held in Room 150 of the Bardo Center ASHEVILLE ART MUSEUM 175 Biltmore Ave., 253-3227 • FR (3/10), noon-1:30pm - Art Break: "The Art of Zelda Sayre Fitzgerald," viewing and gallery talk with a reading by local writer and poet Melanie McGee Bianchi.

Admission fees apply.

CAROLINA’S NATURE PHOTOGRAPHERS ASSOCIATION asheville.cnpa-regions.org/ • SU (3/12), 5:30pm "Photographing the Wild & Wonderful Waterfalls of North Carolina," presentation by Kevin Adams and monthly meeting. Free.

Held in the UNC Asheville, Reuter Center TRYON ARTS AND CRAFTS SCHOOL 373 Harmon Field Road, Tryon, 859-8323 • SA (3/11), 10am-noon - Coffee & Crafts: Collage workshop with Debbie Harris. $40.

AUDITIONS & CALL TO ARTISTS ART COUNCIL OF HENDERSON COUNTY 693-8504, acofhc.org • Through (5/1) - Artist applications accepted for the 58th annual Art on Main fine art and fine craft festival in downtown Hendersonville. Visit website for full guidelines.

ASHEVILLE AREA ARTS COUNCIL 1 Page Ave., 258-0710, ashevillearts.com • Through MO (5/15) - Applications accepted for the 2017 Professional

Development Grant for Artists.

Contact for full guidelines.

• Through (4/15) - Proposals accepted for solo and group exhibitions at AAAC's galleries. Contact for full guidelines.

BLACK MOUNTAIN CENTER FOR THE ARTS 225 W. State St., Black Mountain, 669-0930, blackmountainarts.org • SU (3/12), 1-3pm & WE (3/15), 6-8pm - Open auditions for The Queen of Bingo. Contact for full guidelines.

COME TO LEICESTER STUDIO TOUR cometoleicester.org • Through WE (3/15) - Artist applications accepted for the 12th annual Come to Leicester Studio Tour. Registration: cometoleicester@ yahoo.com.

FOLKMOOT USA 452-2997, folkmootusa.org • Through TU (3/14) - Submissions accepted for vendors for the 2017 Folkmoot Festival and its Many Cultures Children’s Carnival and International Festival Day. Visit website for full guidelines.

SALUDA ARTS FESTIVAL 817-2876, saluda.com/ events_artfestival.html • Through FR (3/17) - Vendor and

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A &E CA LEN DA R

performer applications accepted for the Saluda Arts Festival scheduled for Saturday, May 20.

MUSIC ANDALYN • ACUSTA BREWERY • BREVARD (PD.)

Caleb Beissert & Aaron Price w/ Special Guests ● 3/13, 7:30p, $5 39 S. Market St.

●

theblockoffbiltmore.com

DFR Room at Acusta Brewery, 36 Main St, Brevard presents ANDALYN, 9pm, Saturday, March 11. A CMA artist, featuring Zach Haney guitar, Harry Lewis drums, returns with a power packed night of Rock, Blues, Cool Country, and unique originals. $10/door,$8/ advance: http://www.facebook.com/dfrroom ASHEVILLE SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA 254-7046, ashevillesymphony.org • SA (3/11), 3pm & 8pm Igudesman & Joo: "And Now Mozart," musical comedy as part of the Asheville Amadeus Festival. $35/$30 student/$20 children. Held at Diana Wortham Theatre, 2 S. Pack Square • TU (3/14), 7:30pm - "Mozart Requiem Sing-along." $15. Held at First Presbyterian Church of Asheville, 40 Church St. BLACK MOUNTAIN COLLEGE MUSEUM & ARTS CENTER 56 Broadway, 350-8484, blackmountaincollege.org • TH (3/9), 7pm - "Listening Sessions," forum to examine the evolving culture of listening. This session focuses on John Cage's Williams Mix. $5/Free for members.

BLUE RIDGE ORCHESTRA blueridgeorchestra.com • SA (3/11), 3-4pm - "A Wedding with Wolfgang," tribute to marriage and Mozart, as part of the 2017 Asheville Amadeus Festival. $15/$5 students. Held in Lipinsky Auditorium at UNC Asheville BUNCOMBE COUNTY PUBLIC LIBRARIES buncombecounty.org/governing/ depts/library • TU (3/14), 2pm - Legends of Jazz Film Series: Miles Electric - A Different Kind of Blue, documentary.

Free. Held at Pack Memorial Library, 67 Haywood St. CITY OF MORGANTON MUNICIPAL AUDITORIUM commaonline.org • TH (3/16), 7:30pm - The High Kings, Irish music concert. $18-$24.

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by Abigail Griffin

(3/8) until (3/18) - Classic Nashville Roadshow, country tribute concert.

Wed. & Thurs.: 7:30pm. Fri. & Sat.: 8pm. Wed., Thurs., Sat. & Sun.: 2pm. $15 and up.

FLAT ROCK PLAYHOUSE DOWNTOWN 125 S. Main St., Hendersonville, 693-0731, flatrockplayhouse.org • THURSDAY through SUNDAY (3/9) until (3/19) - Music on The Rock’s: The Music of the Rat Pack. Thurs.: 7:30pm. Fri. & Sat.: 8pm. Sat. & Sun.: 2pm. $35.

FOLKMOOT FRIENDSHIP CENTER 112 Virginia Ave., Waynesville, 452-2997 • MO (3/13), 11am - Music demonstration and disucssion with Nile Project musicians. $5.

J.E. BROYHILL CIVIC CENTER 1913 Hickory Blvd., SE Lenior, broyhillcenter.com • SA (3/11), 7:30pm - Caldwell Traditional Musicians Showcase.

Tickets: broyhillcenter.com. $11/$5.50 students & children.

MADISON COUNTY ARTS COUNCIL 90 S. Main St., Marshall NC, 6491301, madisoncountyarts.com • SA (3/11), 3pm - "The Fiddlers of Madison County," featuring Arvil Freeman, The Midnight Plowboys, Roger Howell, Ralph Lewis and Bobby Hicks. $20.

• SA (3/11), 7pm - "The Fiddlers of Madison County," featuring The Midnight Plowboys, Roger Howell, Ralph Lewis and Bobby Hicks. $20.

MUSIC AT WCU 227-2479, bardoartscenter.edu • MO (3/13), 2:30-4:30pm - "Music, Citizen Engagement, & Water Resource Management," panel discussion with Nile Project. Free.

Held in Room 130 of the Bardo Arts Center • MO (3/13), 7:30pm - The Nile Project, concert with artists from the 11 Nile countries. $24. Held at the Bardo Arts Center PAN HARMONIA 254-7123, panharmonia.org • MO (3/13), 6pm - "Walk with Wolfgang," a progressive, walking chamber music concert. Free.

Beginning at the Drhumor Building at 48 Patton Ave., and moving throughout downtown Asheville

DIANA WORTHAM THEATRE 2 S. Pack Square, 257-4530, dwtheatre.com • WE (3/8), 8pm - Los Lonely Boys, rock/blues. $37.45 and up.

PUBSING 254-1114 • 2nd SUNDAYS, 6-8pm - Gospel jam and sing-along. Optional snack time at 5:30pm. Free to attend.

Held at French Broad Brewery, 101 Fairview Road

FLAT ROCK PLAYHOUSE 2661 Highway 225, Flat Rock, 693-0731, flatrockplayhouse.org • WEDNESDAYS through SUNDAYS

THE BREVARD PHILHARMONIC • SU (3/12), 3pm - "Pops Blockbuster," concert. $35. Held at the Brevard College, Porter Center

THEATER 35BELOW 35 E. Walnut St., 254-1320, ashevilletheatre.org • FRIDAYS through SUNDAYS until (3/19) - Songs For a New World, musical. Fri. & Sat.: 7:30pm. Sun.: 2:30pm. $22.

ANAM CARA THEATRE 545-3861, anamcaratheatre.com • FRIDAYS & SATURDAYS until (3/11), 8pm - Pulse, musical. $20/$16 advance. Held at Toy Boat Community Art Space, 101 Fairview Road, Suite B DIANA WORTHAM THEATRE 2 S. Pack Square, 257-4530, dwtheatre.com • WE (3/15) & TH (3/16), 8pm The Other Mozart by Sylvia Milo. $35/$30 students/$20 children.

DIFFERENT STROKES PERFORMING ARTS COLLECTIVE 275-2093, differentstrokespac.org • THURSDAYS through SATURDAYS until (2/25), 7:30pm - The Submission. $21/18 advance. Held at BeBe Theatre, 20 Commerce St. MONTFORD PARK PLAYERS 254-5146, montfordparkplayers.org • FRIDAYS through SUNDAYS (3/10) until (3/26) - The Merchant of Venice.

Fri. & Sat.: 7:30pm. Sun.: 2:30pm.

Free. Held at BeBe Theatre, 20 Commerce St. NC STAGE COMPANY 15 Stage Lane, 239-0263 • WEDNESDAYS through SUNDAYS (3/15) until (4/2) - Souvenir: A Fantasia on the Life of Florence Foster Jenkins, comedy. Wed.-Sat.: 7:30pm. Sun.: 2pm. $18-$40.

NORTH BUNCOMBE HIGH SCHOOL 890 Clarks Chapel Road, Weaverville • THURSDAY through SUNDAY (3/9) until (3/12) - Footloose, musical performed by North Buncombe High School theater department.

Thurs.-Sat.: 7pm. Sun.: 2:30pm. $10/$8 advance.

TERPSICORPS STUDIOS 1501 Patton Ave. • SA (3/11), 6-7pm - Outsider art sale, "Zelda's Dance," performed

by The Muses of Terpsicorp and performances by Asher Leigh and friends. $5.

THE MAGNETIC THEATRE 375 Depot St., 279-4155 • THURSDAYS through SATURDAYS until (3/25), 7:30pm - Terry Tempest: The Final Interview. $24/$21 advance/Low-priced previews March 2 & 3: $19/$16 advance.

GALLERY DIRECTORY ART AT MARS HILL UNIVERSITY mhu.edu • Through FR (3/10) - Exhibition of textile art

by Laura Ball and clay art by Bill Dale. Held in Weizenblatt Gallery • Through TH (3/9) - Family Vacations I Have Never Taken, exhibition of altered photographs by Lydia See. Held in Weizenblatt Gallery • Through (7/28) - The Fight for Bluff: A Community's Effort to Preserve Its Mountain, student history exhibition. Held in the Ramsey Center.

ART AT UNCA art.unca.edu • Through FR (3/7) - Depiction of Material, sculpture by Aaron Gibbons. Held in Owen Hall second floor gallery • Through TU (3/28) - 50th Anniversary Juried Student Exhibition, curated by Dan Millspaugh. Held in Owen Hall's Tucker Cooke Gallery • Through TU (3/28) - Perseverance, works by Irene “Jenny” Pickens. Held in the Highsmith Union Intercultural Center

BUNCOMBE COUNTY PUBLIC LIBRARIES buncombecounty.org/governing/depts/library • Through FR (3/31) - Exhibition of the art of Peter Olevnik. Held at West Asheville Library, 942 Haywood Road HAEN GALLERY ASHEVILLE 52 Biltmore Ave., 254-8577, thehaengallery.com • Through FR (3/31) - Wintertide, group exhibition.

HARVEST RECORDS 415-B Haywood Road, 258-2999 • Through FR (3/31) - Exhibition of paintings

by Todd Wesley Emmert.

HICKORY MUSEUM OF ART 243 3rd Ave., NE Hickory, 327-8576 • Through (5/21) - Solitude & Mystery, exhibition featuring works by John Julius Wilnoty.

JACKSON COUNTY PUBLIC LIBRARY 310 Keener St., Sylva, 586-2016, fontanalib.org/sylva/ • Through FR (3/31) - Exhibition of the photography of Chris Aluka Berry sponsored by the Jackson County Arts Council.

ART AT WCU 227-2787, bardoartscenter.edu • Through FR (5/5) - Infinitely Yours, exhibtion by Miwa Matrayek. Reception: Thursday, March 16, 5-7pm. Held in the Bardo Arts Center.

ODYSSEY COOPERATIVE ART GALLERY 238 Clingman Ave., 285-9700, facebook.com/odysseycoopgallery • Through FR (3/31) - Ceramic art of Dyann Myers and Libba Tracy.

ARTS COUNCIL OF HENDERSON COUNTY 693-8504, acofhc.org • Through FR (3/10) - Art Teachers Create, exhibition of artwork of Henderson County’s art teachers. Held at First Citizens Bank, 539 N. Main St., Hendersonville

PUBLIC LECTURES AT UNCA unca.edu • Through FR (4/7) - Nazi Persecution of Homosexuals 1933-1945, exhibition produced by the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum.

Held in Ramsey Library

ASHEVILLE AREA ARTS COUNCIL 1 Page Ave., 258-0710, ashevillearts.com • Through FR (3/31) - Mountain Drawings, exhibition of work by Brad Qualls.

• Through FR (3/31) - TEXTILES: Traditional to modern, hand dyed to hand woven, exhibition.

SEVEN SISTERS GALLERY 117 Cherry St., Black Mountain, 669-5107, sevensistersgallery.com • FR (3/10) through SU (4/9) - Exhibition of paintings by Colleen Webster.

ASHEVILLE GALLERY OF ART 82 Patton Ave., 251-5796, ashevillegallery-of-art.com • Through FR (3/31) - ARTventure, group exhibition featuring the work of Sandi Anton and Anne McLaughlin.

• Through FR (3/31) - ARTventure, featuring the work of Sandi Anton and Anne McLaughlin.

BLACK MOUNTAIN CENTER FOR THE ARTS 225 W. State St., Black Mountain, 669-0930, blackmountainarts.org • SU (3/12) through FR (3/31) - Emerging Artists, group exhibition. Reception: Sunday, March 12, 3-4pm.

BLUE SPIRAL 1 38 Biltmore Ave., 251-0202, bluespiral1.com • TH (3/9) through FR (4/28) - Exhibition featuring works by Alex Gabriel Bernstein, Carrie McGee, Donald Penny, David Skinner, Scott Upton and Nicholas Joerling. Reception: Thursday, March 9, 5-8pm.

SWANNANOA VALLEY FINE ARTS LEAGUE 669-0351, svfalarts.org • Through SU (5/7) - Moonlight Becomes You, members exhibition. Held at Red House Studios and Gallery, 310 W. State St., Black Mountain TRANSYLVANIA COMMUNITY ARTS COUNCIL 349 S. Caldwell St., Brevard, 884-2787, tcarts.org • Through FR (3/31) - Photography exhibition with the Land of Waterfalls Camera Club.

imprinting sacred intention through transformational tattooing

TRANSYLVANIA HERITAGE MUSEUM 189 W Main St., Brevard, 884-2347, transylvaniaheritage.org • Through SA (5/13) - Wars of the 20th Century, exhibition.

WINDOW GALLERY 54 Broadway, windowcontemporary.org • Through TH (5/25) - The Archive of Scarcity, Leah Sandler.

Contact the galleries for admission hours and fees

www.mountaintempletattoo.com

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CLUBLAND JACK OF THE WOOD PUB Old-time session, 5:00PM LAZY DIAMOND Killer Karaoke w/ KJ Tim O, 10:00PM LOBSTER TRAP Ben Hovey (dub, jazz), 6:30PM NEW MOUNTAIN THEATER/ AMPHITHEATER Venus Rising w/ Living Light, Debrissa and the Bear King, Alice & G3MS, 9:00PM ODDITORIUM Synergy Story Slam, 7:30PM ONE STOP AT ASHEVILLE MUSIC HALL Evil Note Lab, 9:00PM ONE WORLD BREWING Stevie Lee Combs, 8:00PM PULP Pleasure to Burn, The Slumber Drones & The Vinyl Cinematic (hard rock, metal, punk), 9:00PM

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FRI. 3/10 DJ Moto

(dance hits, pop)

SAT. 3/11 The Groove Shakers (bluegrass, rock)

4 4136$& 45 r PACKSTAVERN.COM 40

MARCH 8 - 14, 2017

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 8 185 KING STREET Vinyl Night, 6:00PM 5 WALNUT WINE BAR Les Amis (African folk music), 8:00PM ASHEVILLE GUITAR BAR Brad Hodge & friends (singersongwriter), 7:00PM

BLUE MOUNTAIN PIZZA & BREW PUB Open mic w/ Mark Bumgarner, 7:00PM BONFIRE BARBECUE Trivia Funtime w/ Kelsey, 8:00PM BROADWAY'S Broadway HumpDay Variety w/ DJ NexMillen, 9:00PM BYWATER Billy Cardine's Winter Composition Series, 8:00PM

ASHEVILLE MUSIC HALL Big Sam's Funky Nation (funk), 9:00PM

CREEKSIDE TAPHOUSE Open mic jam w/ Riyen Roots & friends, 7:00PM

BARLEY'S TAPROOM & PIZZERIA Dr. Brown's Team Trivia, 8:30PM

CROW & QUILL Sparrow and her Wingmen (swing jazz, dance lessons), 9:00PM

BEN'S TUNE-UP Lenny Pettinelli & Friends, 7:00PM

DIANA WORTHAM THEATRE Los Lonely Boys (rock, blues, Tejano) , 8:00PM

MOUNTAINX.COM

DOUBLE CROWN Classic Country Vinyl w/ DJ David Wayne Gay, 10:00PM FUNKATORIUM John Hartford Jam w/ the Saylor Brothers (bluegrass), 6:30PM GOOD STUFF Jim Hampton & friends perform "Eclectic Country" (jam), 7:00PM GREY EAGLE MUSIC HALL & TAVERN An evening w/ Tim O'Brien (country, folk), 8:00PM HIGHLAND BREWING COMPANY Woody Wood Wednesdays (rock, soul, funk), 5:30PM ISIS RESTAURANT AND MUSIC HALL An evening w/ Steven Pelland & Sam Gleaves, 7:00PM Front Country w/ Fireside Collective, 8:30PM

BARLEY'S TAPROOM & PIZZERIA Alien Music Club (jazz), 9:00PM BLUE MOUNTAIN PIZZA & BREW PUB Patrick Fitzsimons, 7:00PM BONFIRE BARBECUE Social Function, 8:30PM CROW & QUILL Carolina Catskins (rowdy, ragtime jazz), 9:00PM DOUBLE CROWN Sonic Satan Stew w/ DJ Alien Brain, 10:00PM FOGGY MOUNTAIN BREWPUB Paper Crowns (folk, Americana), 9:00PM FRENCH BROAD BREWERY Andy Ferrell (folk, Americana), 6:00PM

SALVAGE STATION R&B Wednesday Jam Night w/ Ryan "RnB" Barber & friends, 9:00PM

GREY EAGLE MUSIC HALL & TAVERN Kelsey Waldon w/ Savannah Smith & Southern Soul (country), 8:00PM

THE BLOCK OFF BILTMORE DJ Marley Carroll (blues, funk, soul), 8:30PM

DAVID BROMBERG QUINTET:: American music icon, decorated singersongwriter and multi-instrumentalist David Bromberg brings the David Bromberg Quintet to Isis Music Hall on Saturday, March 11, at 9 p.m. The band brings songs from Bromberg’s album The Blues, the Whole Blues and Nothing But the Blues to the stage. The album features deep cuts from the blues genre with remakes of the songs of Robert Johnson, Bobby Charles, George “Little Hat� Jones, Ray Charles and Sonny Boy Williamson along with original compositions. For more information or tickets, visit isisasheville.com. Photo courtesy of the artist.

ASHEVILLE GUITAR BAR Will Ray & The Space Cooties, 7:00PM

PILLAR ROOFTOP BAR 3 Cool Cats (50s & 60s vintage rock, swing), 7:00PM

SANCTUARY BREWING COMPANY Karaoke w/ Cats, 6:00PM

TAVERN

ALTAMONT THEATRE An Evening With Joe McMurrian (acoustic blues), 8:00PM

ISIS RESTAURANT AND MUSIC HALL Cicada Rhythm, 7:00PM Gravy & Gaslight Street (jam, funk), 9:00PM

THE JOINT NEXT DOOR Laura Thurston, 7:00PM

JACK OF THE WOOD PUB Bluegrass Open Jam Session, 7:00PM

THE MOTHLIGHT Alex Cameron w/ Southern Racing Inferno (synth pop, indie, electronica), 9:30PM

LAZY DIAMOND Heavy Night w/ DJ Butch, 10:00PM

THE SOCIAL LOUNGE DJ Phantom Pantone (international soul, R&B), 8:00PM TOWN PUMP Open Mic w/ Billy Presnell, 9:00PM TRESSA'S DOWNTOWN JAZZ AND BLUES Blues & Soul Jam (blues, soul), 9:00PM TWIN LEAF BREWERY Open Mic Night, 6:00PM UPCOUNTRY BREWING COMPANY Wide Screen Wednesday's (live music stream), 7:00PM WHITE HORSE BLACK MOUNTAIN Berea College Bluegrass Ensemble, 7:30PM WILD WING CAFE Jeff Anders (acoustic), 7:00PM WILD WING CAFE SOUTH Jason Whittaker (acoustic), 6:30PM

THURSDAY, MARCH 9 5 WALNUT WINE BAR Pleasure Chest (blues, rock, soul), 8:00PM

LOBSTER TRAP Hank Bones ("The man of 1,000 songs"), 6:30PM NOBLE CIDER Noble Cider 12 ounce bottle Release Party , 3:30PM OLE SHAKEY'S Pizza Karaoke!, 10:00PM ONE STOP AT ASHEVILLE MUSIC HALL Mitch's Totally Rad Trivia Night, 6:30PM See Water (reggae), 10:00PM ONE WORLD BREWING Momma Molasses, 8:00PM ORANGE PEEL Local Metal Showcase w/ Lifecurse, 8 Vacant Graves, I, The Supplier & Sunseeker, 8:00PM OSKAR BLUES BREWERY Matt Walsh (blues), 6:00PM PISGAH BREWING COMPANY Dennis "Chalwa" Berndt & friends, 6:00PM PURPLE ONION CAFE Chuck Brodsky (folk), 7:30PM SALVAGE STATION Everyone Orchestra w/ Trongone Band, 8:00PM SANCTUARY BREWING COMPANY Noah Proudfoot, 7:00PM

SCANDALS NIGHTCLUB Blue Ridge Bashes Asheville Luau, 10:00PM THE JOINT NEXT DOOR Tricky Trivia w/ Sue, 8:00PM

185 KING STREET Nellie Pearl (alt, indie), 8:00PM

THE MOTHLIGHT Ben Sollee & Jordan Ellis w/ Utah Green (cello, bluegrass, jazz), 9:00PM

5 WALNUT WINE BAR Rogues Go East (old-fashioned originals), 9:00PM

TOWN PUMP DisFunktion (funk, rock), 9:00PM TRESSA'S DOWNTOWN JAZZ AND BLUES Jesse Barry & The Jam (live music, dance), 9:00PM UPCOUNTRY BREWING COMPANY Michael Jefry Stevens w/ Wendy Jones, 7:00PM

BLUE MOUNTAIN PIZZA & BREW PUB Acoustic Swing, 7:00PM

FRIDAY, MARCH 10

BYWATER Flannel Patch w/ The Moon & You, 9:00PM CATAWBA BREWING SOUTH SLOPE Carolina Bound (singer-songwriter), 7:00PM

550 TAVERN & GRILLE Stepp Mill Gang (classic rock), 9:00PM

CORK & KEG 3 Cool Cats (50's & 60's rock), 8:30PM

ALTAMONT THEATRE Reasonably Priced Babies (comedy), 8:00PM ASHEVILLE GUITAR BAR Typical Mountain Boys (bluegrass), 7:00PM

WILD WING CAFE Jordan Okrend (acoustic) , 8:00PM

BEN'S TUNE-UP Iggy Radio: One Man Band, 6:00PM Vinyl Night w/ DJ Kilby, 10:00PM

WILD WING CAFE SOUTH Darren Nicholson (acoustic), 6:00PM

BLACK BEAR COFFEE CO. Basic Printer w/Quail Turret (indie electronica, jazz), 7:00PM

CROW & QUILL Hot Point Trio (gypsy jazz), 9:00PM DOUBLE CROWN Garage & Soul Obscurities w/ DJ Greg Cartwright, 10:00PM FOGGY MOUNTAIN BREWPUB Free Mason and the Madmen (funk, jam), 10:00PM FRENCH BROAD BREWERY Letters to Abigail (country, bluegrass), 6:00PM

THIS WEEK ONLY 'SJEBZ q .BS

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4BUVSEBy q .BS

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'SJEBZ q .BS Dirty Badgers

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12 Old Charlotte Hwy. Suite 200 Asheville, NC 28803 828-299-3370

highlandbrewing.com

BIG SAM’S FUNKY NATION 3.8 9PM

AMH

3.9 10PM

ONE STOP

3.11 10PM

ONE STOP

w/ Trae Pierce & The T-Stones

SEE WATER WHISKEY DIXIE

(Funk) adv. $10

(Reggae) Ca$h Donations (Rock) Ca$h Donations

10PM Jive Mother Mary(Rock)3.16 Ca$h Donations ONE STOP

ST. PATTY’S DAY PARTY 3.17 9PM

AMH

w/ The Space Cowboys & The Cosmic Girls Ca$h Donations w/ Deja Fuze + Late Night DJ Set MOUNTAINX.COM

MARCH 8 - 14, 2017

41

CLU B LA N D

East Asheville’s Craft Beer Destination • 29 Taps

St. Patty’s Day Party • 3/17 Live music by Station Underground

THIS WEEK at THE CREEK MON Monday Burger + Trivia w/ Ian - 7pm TUE WED THU

THE MOTHLIGHT Crocodiles w/ AJ Davila & Missing Stares (noise pop, indie, post-punk), 9:30PM

GREY EAGLE MUSIC HALL & TAVERN Jon Stickley Trio w/ Blair Crimmins and the Hookers & Shane Parish (bluegrass), 8:00PM

THE SOCIAL LOUNGE Ultra Lounge w/ Phantom Pantone, 10:00PM

DOUBLE CROWN Pitter Platter w/ DJ Big Smidge (50's/60's R&B, rock 'n' roll), 10:00PM

THE SUMMIT AT NEW MOUNTAIN AVL Sol Vibes w/ Makak, Psynatra, Spokes & Murkury, 9:00PM

FOGGY MOUNTAIN BREWPUB Station Underground (reggae), 10:00PM

HICKORY TAVERN Stella Rising (rock, pop), 9:00PM HIGHLAND BREWING COMPANY Wolfgang 1756 Release Party w/ Matt Townsend music (folk, rock, pop), 7:00PM ISIS RESTAURANT AND MUSIC HALL Jon Shain (blues, folk), 7:00PM The Travelin' Kine w/ Atlas Road Crew (Southern rock, soul), 9:00PM JACK OF THE WOOD PUB West End String Band (bluegrass, Americana), 9:00PM K LOUNGE DJ Phantom Pantone (Korean pop, trap, dance), 10:00PM LAZY DIAMOND Rock 'n' Soul DJ, 10:00PM LOBSTER TRAP Calico Moon, 6:30PM

Tacos!

Wings + Open Mic Jam w/ Roots & Friends - 9pm Chefs Choice!

NEW MOUNTAIN THEATER/ AMPHITHEATER The Human Experience (live electronica), 9:00PM ODDITORIUM Tombstone Highway, Telic, Written In Gray & From The Fall (metal), 9:00PM OLE SHAKEY'S Acoustic Roots Music, 5:00PM

FRI

Fish n’ Chips + Billy Litz - 8pm

ONE STOP AT ASHEVILLE MUSIC HALL Free Dead Fridays w/ members of Phuncle Sam, 5:00PM

SAT

$6 Pulled Pork Sandwich/Plate + Jordan Okrend- 8pm

ONE WORLD BREWING Carpal Tuller, 9:00PM

SUN

Sunday Nachos

And

BREWS

$3.50 DAILY PINTS

We Cater On & Off Site!

Office Lunch • Birthdays Weddings • Rehersal Dinners

ORANGE PEEL Kim Roney for Asheville w/ Angel Olson, Greg Cartwright, DJ Malinalli & Devyn Marzuola, 8:00PM OSKAR BLUES BREWERY Circus No. 9 (bluegrass), 6:00PM PACK'S TAVERN DJ MoTo (dance hits, pop), 9:30PM PISGAH BREWING COMPANY Urban Soil , 8:00PM SANCTUARY BREWING COMPANY Vintage Vinyl, 8:00PM SCARLET'S COUNTRY DANCE CLUB Open Mic night w/ Sam Warner, 8:00PM SOUTHERN APPALACHIAN BREWERY Carver & Carmody (bluesy country), 8:00PM THE CLASSIC WINESELLER Joe Cruz (guitar covers), 7:15PM

Parties of 10+, please call ahead

THE DUGOUT FineLine, 9:00PM THE JOINT NEXT DOOR Bean tree Remedy, 8:00PM

42

MARCH 8 - 14, 2017

MOUNTAINX.COM

DIRTY SOUTH LOUNGE DJ Bowie & B Swann (boogie, bass, funk), 9:00PM

GOOD STUFF Noah Proudfoot & The Big Peace (acoustic roots, funk, reggae), 8:00PM

TIGER MOUNTAIN Friday Nite Mash Up w/ B-Boy Evan & Nex Millen, 10:00PM TOWN PUMP FinDog (bluegrass, Americana), 9:00PM TRESSA'S DOWNTOWN JAZZ AND BLUES Peggy Ratusz (live music), 7:00PM Jim Arrendell & The Cheap Suits (live music, dance), 10:00PM TWISTED LAUREL Request-powered dance party w/ Phantom Pantone, 10:30PM UPCOUNTRY BREWING COMPANY Dirty Dead , 9:30PM WHITE HORSE BLACK MOUNTAIN The Everydays w/ Ashley Heath, 8:00PM WILD WING CAFE Steven Poteat (acoustic), 9:00PM WILD WING CAFE SOUTH A Social Function (acoustic), 9:00PM

SATURDAY, MARCH 11 5 WALNUT WINE BAR Stevie Lee Combs (acoustic juke), 6:00PM Lazybirds (Americana roots), 9:00PM 550 TAVERN & GRILLE Moan Deep, 9:00PM ALTAMONT THEATRE Peter Asher (60's and beyond), 1:00PM An Evening w/ Eric Lindell (blues, rock), 8:00PM ASHEVILLE GUITAR BAR Shadowman, 7:30PM BEN'S TUNE-UP Gypsy Guitar Trio, 3:00PM Wildcard (funky dance party), 10:00PM BOILER ROOM Dance Party & Drag Show, 10:00PM BYWATER Noah Proudfoot Trio w/ LifeLikeWater, 9:00PM CATAWBA BREWING SOUTH SLOPE Grass to Mouth (bluegrass, folk, soul), 7:00PM CORK & KEG Zydeco Ya Ya, 8:30PM CROW & QUILL Mischief Managed Burlesque, 9:00PM DIANA WORTHAM THEATRE The Asheville Symphony: Igudesman & Joo: And Now Mozart, 3:00PM

FRENCH BROAD BREWERY Dave Desmelik (Americana), 6:00PM GOOD STUFF Liam McKay w/ J.C. Tokes (rock), 8:30PM GREY EAGLE MUSIC HALL & TAVERN Delicate Steve w/ Imaginary Tricks (alternative, indie), 9:00PM HIGHLAND BREWING COMPANY Phuncle Sam (Grateful Dead tribute), 7:00PM ISIS RESTAURANT AND MUSIC HALL Rob ickes & Trey Hensley (dobro, country), 7:00PM David Bromberg Quintet (blues, jazz), 9:00PM JACK OF THE WOOD PUB Cale Tyson w/ Cyndi Lou & The Want To (outlaw country), 9:00PM LAZY DIAMOND Sonic Satan Stew w/ DJ Alien Brain, 10:00PM LOBSTER TRAP Sean Mason Trio (jazz), 6:30PM MARS HILL RADIO THEATRE Bryan Osborne & The Ashe Mountain Boys (bluegrass), 6:30PM NEW MOUNTAIN THEATER/ AMPHITHEATER The Art of Techno w/ Andre Ramos, Klaws, Jenna Gilmore & Leo Vaan, 9:00PM ODDITORIUM Binding Isaac, Blitch (metal), 9:00PM OLE SHAKEY'S Saturday Night Fever, 10:00PM ONE STOP AT ASHEVILLE MUSIC HALL Whiskey Dixie (rock), 10:00PM ORANGE PEEL Condom Couture Asheville (fashion show, benefit), 7:30PM OSKAR BLUES BREWERY West End String Band (traditional), 6:00PM PACK'S TAVERN The Groove Shakers (R&B, soul, pop), 9:30PM PISGAH BREWING COMPANY Bobby Miller & friends (bluegrass), 8:00PM PURPLE ONION CAFE The Lonesome Road Band (bluegrass), 8:00PM SALVAGE STATION Departure (Journey tribute), 8:00PM SANCTUARY BREWING COMPANY Yoga w/ Cats with Blue Ridge Humane Society, 10:00AM Shiloh Music, 8:00PM

TERPSICORPS STUDIOS Asher Leigh & Friends, 7:00PM

LAZY DIAMOND Pabst Sabbath Vol. 3: Breanna Barbara w/ DJ Chubberbird (occult blues), 10:00PM Punk Night w/ DJ Chubberbird & Hard Mike, 11:00PM

THE BLOCK OFF BILTMORE Conscious Comedy Night, 7:00PM

LOBSTER TRAP Hunnilicious, 7:30PM

THE CLASSIC WINESELLER Russ Wilson Duo (jazz standards), 7:15PM

LUELLA'S BAR-B-QUE BILTMORE PARK Gypsy Jazz Brunch w/ Leo Johnson, 1:00PM

THE JOINT NEXT DOOR Laura blackley, 8:00PM

ODDITORIUM J20 Benefit Show for Legal Fees (punk, benefit), 9:00PM

SOUTHERN APPALACHIAN BREWERY Fin Dog (Americana, bluegrass), 8:00PM

THE MOTHLIGHT Axxa Abraxas w/ Acid Reign, Eric Slick & Shaken Nature (rock), 9:00PM THE RIDGE AT NEW MOUNTAIN AVL The Art of Techno w/ Andre Ramos, Klaws, Jenna Gilmore & Leo Vaan , 9:00PM

ONE STOP AT ASHEVILLE MUSIC HALL Bluegrass brunch w/ Aaron "Woody" Wood, 12:00PM ORANGE PEEL Waltz Night, 6:00PM

THE SOCIAL LOUNGE Ultra Lounge w/ Phantom Pantone, 10:00PM

PISGAH BREWING COMPANY Sunday Travers Jam, 7:00PM

THE SUMMIT AT NEW MOUNTAIN AVL 30 & Up w/ DJ Twan, 10:00PM

SALVAGE STATION Open Mic Night w/ The Wet Doorknobs, 8:00PM

TOWN PUMP Stephen Evans & the True Grits (acoustic rock), 9:00PM

SANCTUARY BREWING COMPANY Twelfth Fret, 2:00PM Javier Trio, 6:00PM

TRESSA'S DOWNTOWN JAZZ AND BLUES The King Zeros (delta blues), 7:30PM The Bobby Thompson Experience (blues), 10:00PM

SOUTHERN APPALACHIAN BREWERY Micah Thomas' Birthday Jazz Special, 5:00PM

TWISTED LAUREL Dance Party w/ Phantom Pantone, 10:30PM UPCOUNTRY BREWING COMPANY Hail Cassious Neptune w/ Rachel Waterhouse , 9:00PM WHITE HORSE BLACK MOUNTAIN The Asheville Jazz Ensemble, 8:00PM

THE IMPERIAL LIFE DJ Phantom Pantone (French pop, disco house), 10:30PM THE MOTHLIGHT Priests w/ Flasher & Odd Squad (lo-fi punk), 8:00PM THE OMNI GROVE PARK INN Bob Zullo (rock, jazz, pop), 8:00PM

SUNDAY, MARCH 12 185 KING STREET Sunday Sessions open jam, 1:00PM 5 WALNUT WINE BAR The Jane Kramer Trio (Appalachian folk), 7:00PM

3/08 wed

ALTAMONT THEATRE An Evening w/ Bob Sima (folk), 7:00PM

w/southern racing inferno

ASHEVILLE GUITAR BAR Guitar Bar Jam, 4:30PM BARLEY'S TAPROOM & PIZZERIA Keith Davis Trio (jazz), 7:30PM

BLUE MOUNTAIN PIZZA & BREW PUB Larry Dolamore, 7:00PM

3/11

CATAWBA BREWING SOUTH SLOPE Saylor Brothers (old time, bluegrass), 7:00PM

HABITAT TAVERN & COMMONS Acoustic Sundays, 5:00PM HIGHLAND BREWING COMPANY Reggae Sunday w/ Dennis "Chalwa" Berndt, 2:00PM ISIS RESTAURANT AND MUSIC HALL Lúnasa (Irish music), 7:30PM JACK OF THE WOOD PUB Traditional Celtic Jam Session, 4:00PM Irish session, 6:00PM

3/10

fri

ben sollee (+jordan ellis)

crocodiles w/ aj davila, missing stares

BYWATER Grateful Sunday (Grateful Dead covers), 9:00PM

GREY EAGLE MUSIC HALL & TAVERN Dan Baird & Homemade Sin w/ SeepeopleS, 8:00PM

3/09

thu �

w/ utah green

BEN'S TUNE-UP Reggae Night w/The Dub Kartel, 6:00PM

DOUBLE CROWN Killer Karaoke w/ KJ Tim O, 11:00PM

alex cameron

sat

axxa abraxas

(record release)

THU - 3/9 • 7PM WENDY JONES W/ MICHAEL JEFRY STEVENS (JAZZ)

SAT - 3/11 • 9PM DIRTY DEAD (GRATEFUL DEAD)

w/ acid reign (members of nest egg), eric slick (of dr. dog) shaken nature

SUN - 3/12 • 9PM HAIL! CASSIUS NEPTUNE

3/12

sun

priests

w/ flasher, odd squad

Woodpecker Pie

Expires 2-28-17

Savory and Sweet Hand Pies!

5pm to last call

Yoga at the Mothlight

Tues., Thurs., and Sat. 11:30am Details for all shows can be found at

themothlight.com

MOUNTAINX.COM

MARCH 8 - 14, 2017

43

C L UB L AND

Where The Blue Ridge Mountains Meet the Celtic Isles

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THE STRAND @ 38 MAIN April Verch (Americana, roots), 6:00PM

BEN'S TUNE-UP Soulful Tunes w/ Rhoda Wader, 7:00PM

TOWN PUMP David G. Smith (Americana, folk), 9:00PM

BLUE MOUNTAIN PIZZA & BREW PUB Ben Phan, 7:00PM

185 KING STREET Vinyl Night, 7:00PM

THE SOCIAL LOUNGE DJ Phantom Pantone (international soul, R&B), 9:00PM

WHITE HORSE BLACK MOUNTAIN Rupert Wates (folk), 8:30PM

BONFIRE BARBECUE Thunder karaoke w/ Jason Tarr, 9:00PM

5 WALNUT WINE BAR Les Amis (African folk music), 8:00PM

TOWN PUMP Open Mic w/ Billy Presnell, 10:00PM

BYWATER Spin Jam (local DJs and fire-spinning), 8:30PM

ASHEVILLE GUITAR BAR Brad Hodge & friends (singer-songwriter), 8:00PM

TRESSA'S DOWNTOWN JAZZ AND BLUES Blues & Soul Jam (blues, soul), 10:00PM

BARLEY'S TAPROOM & PIZZERIA Dr. Brown's Team Trivia, 9:30PM

TWIN LEAF BREWERY Open Mic Night , 7:00PM

BEN'S TUNE-UP Lenny Pettinelli & Friends, 7:00PM

UPCOUNTRY BREWING COMPANY Wide Screen Wednesdays (live music stream), 7:00PM

MONDAY, MARCH 13 185 KING STREET Open Mic Night w/ Chris Whitmire, 7:00PM

CROW & QUILL Boogie Woogie Burger Night (burgers & rock n' roll), 10:00PM

5 WALNUT WINE BAR Siamese Jazz Club, 8-10 (soul, R&B, jazz), 8:00PM

DOUBLE CROWN Honky-tonk, Western & Cajun night w/ DJ Brody Douglas Hunt, 11:00PM

ASHEVILLE GUITAR BAR AGB Classical Guitar Mondays, 8:00PM

GOOD STUFF Old time-y night, 7:30PM

BYWATER Open mic, 9:00PM

GREY EAGLE MUSIC HALL & TAVERN Son Volt w/ Johnny Iron (alt country), 8:00PM

CATAWBA BREWING SOUTH SLOPE Musicians in the Round Jam, 5:30PM CREEKSIDE TAPHOUSE Trivia night, 8:00PM

MARCH 8 - 14, 2017

HICKORY TAVERN 30 Rocks Music Trivia, 8:00PM

DOUBLE CROWN Country karaoke w/ KJ Tim O, 11:00PM

HIGHLAND BREWING COMPANY Dr. Brown's Team Trivia, 7:00PM

GOOD STUFF Songwriter's open mic, 8:30PM

ISIS RESTAURANT AND MUSIC HALL Bluegrass Session w/ Stig and Friends, 7:30PM

GREY EAGLE MUSIC HALL & TAVERN Open mic night (music & comedy), 7:00PM JACK OF THE WOOD PUB Quizzo, 8:00PM Open Mic Night, 10:00PM LOBSTER TRAP Bobby Miller & Friends (bluegrass), 7:30PM ODDITORIUM Risque Monday Burlesque hosted by Deb Au Nare (burlesque), 9:00PM OLE SHAKEY'S Honky Tonk Karaoke, 10:00PM OSKAR BLUES BREWERY Mountain Music Mondays (open jam), 7:00PM THE IMPERIAL LIFE Ghost Pipe Trio, 9:00PM THE JOINT NEXT DOOR Trivial trivia w/ Geoffrey & Brody, 9:00PM THE MOTHLIGHT Black Mountain Hunger, Veldtchasm & Pallor (metal), 9:00PM THE OMNI GROVE PARK INN Bob Zullo (rock, jazz, pop), 8:00PM THE SOCIAL LOUNGE Karaoke, 9:00PM THE WCU BARDO ARTS CENTER The Nile Project, 8:30PM UPCOUNTRY BREWING COMPANY Old Time Jam, 7:30PM

LAZY DIAMOND The Center For Participatory Change Benefit w/ Coconut Cake (rumba), 10:00PM

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 15

BLUE MOUNTAIN PIZZA & BREW PUB Open mic w/ Billy Owens, 7:00PM BONFIRE BARBECUE Trivia Funtime w/ Kelsey, 9:00PM BROADWAY'S Broadway HumpDay Variety w/ DJ NexMillen, 10:00PM CATAWBA BREWING SOUTH SLOPE Vanessa Silberman (singer-songwriter), 7:00PM CREEKSIDE TAPHOUSE Open mic jam w/ Riyen Roots & friends, 8:00PM CROW & QUILL Sparrow and her Wingmen (swing jazz, swing dance), 9:00PM DIANA WORTHAM THEATRE The Other Mozart by Sylvia Milo, 8:00PM

LOBSTER TRAP Jay Brown (folk, singer-songwriter), 7:30PM

DOUBLE CROWN Classic Country Vinyl w/ DJ David Wayne Gay, 11:00PM

NEW MOUNTAIN THEATER/ AMPHITHEATER Cash'd Out (Johnny Cash tribute), 8:00PM

FUNKATORIUM John Hartford Jam w/ the Saylor Brothers (bluegrass), 6:30PM

ODDITORIUM Open Mic Comedy Night hosted by Tom Peters, 9:00PM ONE STOP AT ASHEVILLE MUSIC HALL Turntable Tuesdays, 11:00PM ONE WORLD BREWING Trivia! w/ Ol' Gilly, 7:00PM Beats & Brews w/ DJ Whistleblower, 10:00PM PILLAR ROOFTOP BAR Tuesday blues dance w/ The Remedy (blues), 8:30PM SANCTUARY BREWING COMPANY Taco and Trivia Tuesday, 7:00PM THE JOINT NEXT DOOR Open jam w/ Rob Parks & Chuck Knott, 8:00PM TRESSA'S DOWNTOWN JAZZ AND BLUES Early Jazz & Funk Jam (funk, jazz), 10:00PM TWIN LEAF BREWERY Twin Leaf Trivia Tuesdays, 9:00PM

THE JOINT NEXT DOOR Laura Thurston, 8:00PM

WHITE HORSE BLACK MOUNTAIN Richard Shulman and Jacob Rodriguez (jazz), 7:30PM

THURSDAY, MARCH 16 185 KING STREET Vanessa Silberman w/ Asha Goodwin, Reed Mullin & Mikel Ross, 9:00PM 5 WALNUT WINE BAR Pleasure Chest (blues, rock, soul), 8:00PM ALTAMONT THEATRE An Evening w/ Dirty Dead (Grateful Dead tribute band), 8:30PM ASHEVILLE GUITAR BAR Will Ray & The Space Cooties, 8:00PM BARLEY'S TAPROOM & PIZZERIA Alien Music Club (jazz), 10:00PM BLUE MOUNTAIN PIZZA & BREW PUB Benjo Saylor, 7:00PM BONFIRE BARBECUE Social Function, 9:30PM

GOOD STUFF Jim Hampton & friends perform "Eclectic Country" (jam), 8:00PM

CITY OF MORGANTON MUNICIPAL AUDITORIUM The High Kings (Irish folk), 8:30PM

GREY EAGLE MUSIC HALL & TAVERN Freerunner w/ Birdie and the Mutts & Slugly, 8:00PM

CROW & QUILL Carolina Catskins (rowdy ragtime jazz), 9:00PM

HIGHLAND BREWING COMPANY Woody Wood Wednesdays (rock, soul, funk), 6:30PM ISIS RESTAURANT AND MUSIC HALL Mt. Spirit presents Dan Weber (folk), 7:00PM JACK OF THE WOOD PUB Old-time session, 6:00PM LAZY DIAMOND Killer Karaoke w/ KJ Tim O, 11:00PM LOBSTER TRAP Ben Hovey (dub, jazz), 7:30PM ODDITORIUM The Plague of Man Presents: Haggus, Fentanyl Suprise (punk), 9:00PM ONE WORLD BREWING Billy Litz, 8:00PM ORANGE PEEL Downtown After 5 Volunteer Kickoff Party, 6:00PM

DIANA WORTHAM THEATRE The Other Mozart by Sylvia Milo, 8:00PM DOUBLE CROWN Sonic Satan Stew w/ DJ Alien Brain, 11:00PM FOGGY MOUNTAIN BREWPUB Ashely Heath Duet (folk, Americana), 9:00PM GREY EAGLE MUSIC HALL & TAVERN CBDB & The Digs, 9:00PM HIGHLAND BREWING COMPANY East Side Social Ride, 6:00PM ISIS RESTAURANT AND MUSIC HALL Beth McKee’s Swamp Sistas Songwriter Circle, 7:00PM JACK OF THE WOOD PUB Bluegrass Open Jam Session, 8:00PM

5 WALNUT WINE BAR The John Henrys (hot jazz), 8:00PM

WHITE HORSE BLACK MOUNTAIN Irish sessions & open mic, 7:30PM

PILLAR ROOFTOP BAR 3 Cool Cats (50s & 60s vintage rock, swing), 8:00PM

LAZY DIAMOND Russ Wilson and His Mighty Mighty Men (jump blues, oldies, country), 10:00PM Heavy Night w/ DJ Butch, 11:00PM

ASHEVILLE GUITAR BAR AGB Gypsy Jazz Jam Tuesdays, 8:00PM

WILD WING CAFE Doghouse Band & the Green Valley Cloggers (bluegrass), 7:00PM

SALVAGE STATION Eleanor Underhill & Friends (Americana), 10:00PM

LOBSTER TRAP Hank Bones ("The man of 1,000 songs"), 7:30PM

TUESDAY, MARCH 14

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44

Send your listings to clubland@mountainx.com

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UPCOUNTRY BREWING COMPANY Open Mic w/ Chris O'Neill , 8:00PM

ODDITORIUM West Side Bazaar: Arts, Crafts and Bands, 9:00PM

BLUE MOUNTAIN PIZZA & BREW PUB Acoustic Swing, 7:00PM

PACK'S TAVERN DJ MoTo (dance hits, pop), 10:30PM

OLE SHAKEY'S Pizza Karaoke!, 11:00PM

BOILER ROOM St. Paddy's Day Rock Party (local original music series), 10:00PM

PISGAH BREWING COMPANY The Lazybirds, 9:00PM

ONE STOP AT ASHEVILLE MUSIC HALL Mitch's Totally Rad Trivia Night, 7:30PM Jive Mother Mary (rock), 10:00PM

BYRISH HAUS & PUB A St. Patricks All Day Party,

SANCTUARY BREWING COMPANY Emily Bodley, 4:30PM Fin Dog, 8:00PM

ONE WORLD BREWING Brother Bluebird, 8:00PM

CATAWBA BREWING SOUTH SLOPE Jacob Green One Man Band, 8:00PM

ORANGE PEEL FKJ w/ Dabeull & Cezaire, 9:00PM

CORK & KEG Red Hot Sugar Babies (jazz, blues, swing), 8:30PM

PISGAH BREWING COMPANY Dennis "Chalwa" Berndt & friends , 7:00PM

CROW & QUILL Ancient Warfare (indie rock), 9:00PM

PURPLE ONION CAFE Mare Wakefield & Nomad, 7:30PM

DIANA WORTHAM THEATRE Jerusalem String Quartet, 8:00PM

THE JOINT NEXT DOOR Searra Jade, 9:00PM

DOUBLE CROWN Garage & Soul Obscurities w/ DJ Greg Cartwright, 11:00PM

THE MOTHLIGHT Oathbreaker w/ King Woman & Jaye Jayle (post-metal), 9:00PM

FOGGY MOUNTAIN BREWPUB St. Paddy’s Day Party w/ Simon George and Friends (funk, jazz), 10:00PM

THE SOCIAL LOUNGE Ultra Lounge w/ Phantom Pantone, 11:00PM

SANCTUARY BREWING COMPANY Billy Litz, 7:00PM THE JOINT NEXT DOOR Tricky Trivia w/ Sue, 9:00PM THE MOTHLIGHT The Moth: True Stories Told Live, 7:00PM TOWN PUMP Heather Taylor & Sean Jerome w/ Narwhal Empire (folk, blues, Americana), 9:00PM TRESSA'S DOWNTOWN JAZZ AND BLUES Jesse Barry & The Jam (live music, dance), 10:00PM UPCOUNTRY BREWING COMPANY Anya Hinkle w/ John James Tourville, 7:00PM WHITE HORSE BLACK MOUNTAIN Jon Carroll, Don Dixon & Jimmy Landry, 7:30PM

FRIDAY, MARCH 17

FRENCH BROAD BREWERY Kevin Reid (blues rock), 7:00PM GOOD STUFF John Dickie IV & Breadfoot (country), 8:00PM GREY EAGLE MUSIC HALL & TAVERN Monsters of Japan w/ Twist of Fate (rock), 9:00PM HIGHLAND BREWING COMPANY The Dirty Badgers (rock), 7:00PM ISIS RESTAURANT AND MUSIC HALL An Evening w/ Quiles & Cloud (neo-folk), 7:00PM Friday Night Dance Party w/ Jim Arrendell, 9:00PM JACK OF THE WOOD PUB The Red Wellies (Irish), 9:00PM

185 KING STREET Celtic Conspiracy, 8:00PM

K LOUNGE DJ Phantom Pantone (Korean pop, trap, dance), 11:00PM

5 WALNUT WINE BAR Lyric (acoustic soul), 9:00PM

LAZY DIAMOND Rock 'n' Soul DJ, 11:00PM

550 TAVERN & GRILLE Fineline, 9:00PM

LOBSTER TRAP Asheville Gypsy Jazz Trio, 7:30PM

ALTAMONT THEATRE An Evening w/ Tellico (country), 8:00PM

NEW MOUNTAIN THEATER/ AMPHITHEATER Melvin Seals & JGB (rock, blues), 8:00PM

ASHEVILLE GUITAR BAR Joe McMurrian (acoustic, roots, blues), 7:30PM ASHEVILLE MASONIC TEMPLE Mothlight & Worthwhile Sounds present Waxahatchee & Kevin Morby w/ Mary Lattimore, 8:00PM ASHEVILLE MUSIC HALL St. Patty's Party w/ Space Cowboys & Cosmic Girls & Deja Fuze (groove, soul), 10:00PM BEN'S TUNE-UP Iggy Radio: One Man Band, 6:00PM BLUE GHOST BREWING COMPANY St. Patrick's Day Show w/ Carolina Ceili (Irish), 7:00PM

ODDITORIUM St. Pattys Day Punk & Metal Fest, 6:00PM OLE SHAKEY'S Acoustic Roots Music, 6:00PM ONE STOP AT ASHEVILLE MUSIC HALL Free Dead Fridays w/ members of Phuncle Sam, 6:00PM Astronautica w/ Panter God, Koresma & Hubble (electronica), 10:00PM ONE WORLD BREWING Berlyn Trio, 9:00PM ORANGE PEEL Donna The Buffalo w/ Locust Honey (zydeco, rock, folk), 9:00PM

SCARLET'S COUNTRY DANCE CLUB Open Mic night w/ Sam Warner, 9:00PM THE CLASSIC WINESELLER Bohemian Jean (blues, Irish, pop), 7:15PM THE DUGOUT Awake in the Dream, 10:00PM

THE SUMMIT AT NEW MOUNTAIN AVL Sol Vibes: NC DnB Showcase w/ Dave Owen, Jaybee & Random Movement, 9:00PM TIGER MOUNTAIN Friday Nite Mash Up w/ B-Boy Evan & Nex Millen, 11:00PM TOWN PUMP Jimmy & the Jawbones (rock), 9:00PM TRESSA'S DOWNTOWN JAZZ AND BLUES Rhoda Weaver & Ted Ledford (live music), 7:00PM Virginia & The Slims (blues, swing), 11:00PM TWISTED LAUREL Request-powered dance party w/ Phantom Pantone, 11:30PM

SATURDAY, MARCH 18 5 WALNUT WINE BAR Patrick Fitzsimons & Priscilla Hunt (folk, traditional), 6:00PM BEN'S TUNE-UP Gypsy Guitar Trio, 3:00PM BLUE MOUNTAIN PIZZA & BREW PUB Billy Litz, 7:00PM FRENCH BROAD BREWERY Stephen Evans & the True Grits (singer-songwriter), 7:00PM HIGHLAND BREWING COMPANY The Chuck Lichtenberger Collective (jazz, rock), 7:00PM JACK OF THE WOOD PUB Steel City Jug Slammers (folk, blues), 5:00PM LOBSTER TRAP Sean Mason Trio (jazz), 6:30PM SANCTUARY BREWING COMPANY Yoga w/ Cats with Blue Ridge Humane Society, 11:00AM THE CLASSIC WINESELLER Joe Cruz (piano & vocal covers), 7:15PM

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7:00PM–CICADA RHYTHM fri 3/10

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9:00PM–TRAVELIN’ KINE

WITH ATLAS ROAD CREW sat 3/11

7:00PM–ROB ICKES & TREY HENSLEY 9:00PM–DAVID BROMBERG QUINTET sun 3/12

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7:00PM–QUILES & CLOUD 9:00PM–FRIDAY NIGHT DANCE PARTY

WITH JIM ARRENDELL

sat 3/18 7:00PM–SARAH CLANTON 9:00PM–DAVID EARL & BLACK ROBIN

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45

MOVIES

REVIEWS & LISTINGS

BY SCOTT DOUGLAS & JUSTIN SOUTHER

★★★★★ = ★ PICK OF THE WEEK ★

Hugh Jackman bids a bloody farewell to Wolverine in James Mangold’s Logan

Logan

HHHHS DIRECTOR: James Mangold PLAYERS: Hugh Jackman, Patrick Stewart, Dafne Keen, Stephen Merchant, Lloyd Holbrook ULTRA-VIOLENT COMIC BOOK ROAD WESTERN RATED R

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MARCH 8 - 14, 2017

THE STORY: In 2029, a worse-forwear Wolverine is confronted with a 12-year-old daughter created from his genetic material, and must help her evade dangerous pursuers on her way to sanctuary in Canada.

THE LOWDOWN: Logan has always been the best there is at what he does,

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and now there’s finally a film that does him justice.

As a life-long fan of comic books in general, and X-Men comics in particular, I have been constantly disappointed in the misguided ministrations of 20th Century Fox and Bryan Singer when it comes to

M A X R AT I N G Marvel’s much-loved band of merry mutants. Prior to Deadpool, I didn’t think I’d live to see a good X-movie, much less one that did justice to the source material. Having now seen Logan, I can’t remember the last time I enjoyed being mistaken quite so much.

Less a superhero movie than an ultra-violent neo-western road story, Logan wears its influences on its sleeve. Director James Mangold (Walk the Line, 3:10 to Yuma) references Shane overtly on a number of occasions within the film, but his story also brings to mind the classic westerns of John Ford or Clint Eastwood. A consistently impressive visual stylist with a penchant for Western aesthetics both overt and implied, Mangold makes the most of his dystopian future setting and his hard-R rating, but never strays from his roots. The violence is more visceral than in any superhero movie to date, but its excesses are justified from a narrative logic and a solid grounding in character.

This Wolverine is far more brutal and less polished than in any prior screen incarnation, an evolution fans of the character have been clamoring for since Hugh Jackman first popped his claws 17 years ago.

Much has been said of dark, gritty takes on superhero properties in recent years, but unlike the strained self-seriousness of someone like Zack Snyder, Mangold actually makes the grit (and the gore) palpably believable in every frame. Yes, the f-bombs are as frequent as the dismemberments, but the grit here comes from the narrative. Set in the not-so-distant future, Logan finds our protagonist’s healing factor dulled by age, the Adamantium that rendered his bones unbreakable slowly killing him from the inside out. Logan’s world revolves around caring for a decrepit Professor Xavier (Patrick Stewart), now a threat to everyone around him as a result of an unspecified degenerative brain affliction.

Based very loosely on Mark Millar’s Old Man Logan storyline from the comics, in which Wolverine has

retired from heroism after a particularly egregious bout of massmurder, along the lines of Eastwood in Unforgiven. Mangold and cowriters Scott Frank and Michael Green creatively sidestep the rights dispute which make filming that story as it appears on the page legally impossible — and the results are, in some senses, better than the source material.

Principal among those changes is the incorporation of Laura, a young clone of Wolverine whose introduction to her “father” incites the protracted chase sequence that provides the film’s narrative momentum. Played with stellar savagery by newcomer Dafne Keen, Laura grounds the film’s emotional core in a story about surrogate families and the adoptive bonds that can keep even a loner like Logan from being able to truly turn his back on society. This is a film about relationships, and there are few things more entertaining than watching Stewart and Jackman bicker with a virtuosic level of profanity, uninhibited by studio obligations to appeal to kids. The only thing more impressive than Logan’s bodycount is the degree of emotional resonance a film about a guy with knives in his knuckles can attain in the right hands.

I was vehemently opposed to Hugh Jackman as Wolverine, as much for the liberties taken with the character’s depiction in the early franchise installments as for the casting of a 6’3” Australian with a background in musical theater to play a 5’3” Canadian with a background in brutality. Now, I’m sadly surprised to find myself saying that I’m sorry to see him go. Even when people were lauding Mangold’s last solo-Wolverine film for being closer to accuracy, I was firmly in the “too little, too late” camp. But with Logan, Jackman and Mangold have redeemed themselves in my eyes by delivering what amounts to not only the most accurate X-Men film to date, but also the best. Rated R for strong brutal violence and language throughout, and for brief nudity. Now Playing at Carmike 10, Carolina Cinemark, Regal Biltmore Grande, Epic of Hendersonville.

REVIEWED BY SCOTT DOUGLAS JSDOUGLAS22@GMAIL.COM

A United Kingdom HHHH

DIRECTOR: Amma Asante PLAYERS: David Oyelowo, Rosamund Pike, Jack Davenport, Tom Felton, Laura Carmichael, Terry Pheto, Jessica Oyelowo, Arnold Oceng, Anton Lesser, Anastasia Hille, Jack Lowden, Nicholas Lyndhurst, Vusi Kunene, Theo Landey, Abena Ayivor, Charlotte Hope, Donald Molosi.

HISTORICAL DRAMA RATED PG-13 THE STORY: An African prince marries an office worker in 1940s London, and their struggle to defend their marriage against overwhelming personal and political opposition has broad-reaching international ramifications.

THE LOWDOWN: A rousing story of defiance in the face of bigotry that boasts excellent performances and a moving message.

Director Amma Asante (Belle), with the prodigious support of stars David Oyelowo (Selma) and Rosamund Pike (Gone Girl), has created something rare with her adaptation of author Susan Williams’ book Colour Bar — namely, an uplifting film dealing with a true story of overcoming racism that doesn’t waste any time or energy condescending to its audience. Like Hidden Figures, Asante’s A United Kingdom doesn’t abandon the rosecolored glasses entirely, but it presents its characters as being slightly more nuanced and well-rounded than it might’ve and still manages to convey its message of hope and determination without digressing into excessive saccharinity. It’s a powerful story competently told, and while it’s not likely to be as successful as Figures, it does deserve a watch.

Based on a true story, Oyelowo plays Seretse Khama, an African studying in London who falls in love with typist Ruth Williams (Pike).

Their relationship would be problematic enough given the temporal setting of the late 1940s, but Khama is also heir apparent to the throne of Bechuanaland (which would become Botswana) — complicating matters significantly. Not only is Ruth dis-

owned by her father for marrying outside of her race, but the acting regent of Bechuanaland, and seemingly the entire English government, try to prevent the couple’s union. Things only get more complicated from there, as the advent of Apartheid in neighboring South Africa makes Khama’s impoverished nation strategically significant to the Brits, not to mention the untapped mineral wealth hiding beneath the sub-Saharan soil.

Oyelowo and Pike deliver rousing performances, imbuing the Khamas with a dignity and emotional depth that isn’t always given the room it needs to be fully explored. Oyelowo displays a range of relatability that humanizes his conflicted monarch while still maintaining a regal air, while Pike covers a great deal of ground between fish-out-of-water vulnerability when confronted a chilly reception from the people she’s expected to rule and the resiliency that defines the latter half of her character arc. The villainous British colonial governors are a bit too broad to be seen as anything other than bogeymen, but this does little to diminish the point the film’s trying to make.

Perhaps my only real complaint with A United Kingdom is that its script is efficiently paced to a fault, occasionally neglecting opportunities for psychological exploration in favor of hitting requisite historical events.

Courtesy of screenwriter Guy Hibbert (Eye in the Sky), A United Kingdom fits three hours worth of movie into 111 minutes, and while it never quite feels overstuffed, it does have a tendency to fly past important character beats without pausing long enough for them to fully resonate. This is a bit of a double-edged sword, as the film deftly avoids what could have been a problematic second-act slump in its current form, but would likely have dragged significantly had it been more self-indulgent.

As it stands, Asante et al. have delivered a very good film that falls just short of being great — but given the timeliness of the story’s message and the dexterity with which its complicated politics are navigated, it doesn’t have to be perfect to get the job done.

I find something reassuring about the emerging trend of films trying to address current racial tensions through an historical lens, especially when those films are as thoughtful and well-intentioned as A United Kingdom.

Those with only a passing familiarity with this chapter in the unfortunate annals of British colonialism will find a lot to ponder here, and those looking for little more than a rousing romance

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will be similarly rewarded. Rated PG-13 for some language including racial epithets and a scene of sensuality. Now Playing at Fine Arts Theatre.

REVIEWED BY SCOTT DOUGLAS JSDOUGLAS22@GMAIL.COM

Before I Fall HS DIRECTOR: Ry Russo-Young PLAYERS: Zoey Deutch, Halston Sage, Logan Miller, Kian Lawley, Elena Kampouris, Nicholas Lea, Jennifer Beals DRAMA RATED PG-13 THE STORY: A high school senior killed in a car accident after she leaves a party must repeat her last day until she presumably learns some sort of karmic lesson.

THE LOWDOWN: Combines Hollywood’s current affinity for rehashing old ideas and adapting young adult novels into one extraordinarily lazy,

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MARCH 8 - 14, 2017

47

M OVIES

by Scott Douglas

low-budget package that might appeal only to teens who don’t know any better yet.

What happens when you take the time-loop premise of Groundhog Day, strip out the heart and humor that made that film a classic, and drop it in a tween-lit narrative context that plays something like Heathers without the incisive social satire or bleak gallows humor? You get Before I Fall, a tepid adaptation of a book I’ll never read from an author I’ve never heard of.

The film follows a wealthy suburban high school student named Sam (Zoey Deutch, Everybody Wants Some!!) as she and her bitchy clique of vacuous reprobates bully their way through a fictitious holiday known as Cupid Day. Why not Valentine’s Day? Maybe Hallmark didn’t want their intellectual property associated with this junk, or maybe the writer was saving an actual holiday for the sequel. Regardless, the day culminates in a particularly boring teen kegger intended to provide the venue for Sam to lose her virginity to her teen-movie-cliché boyfriend, but instead ending with her unexpected demise in a car crash. Already asking yourself “So what?” I know I was at this point, and things don’t get any better from there.

Sam awakens to find herself reliving the same day until she learns some ambiguous message about her terrible conduct toward an emo classmate, but by the time she does, the movie has gone so far afield from its purported purpose that even its target demographic will probably have ceased to care. This is a film in which what passes for characterization is a line of dialogue wherein one of our principal characters literally defines herself and her friends by the genre-appropriate clichés they embody. It’s a film in which the obligatory, ostensibly dramatic third-act reveal is encapsulated in the line “She’s the one who peed!”

So, in my opinion, the audience should probably be forgiven for not being able to invest emotionally in the proceedings.

The film is utterly lacking in any distinctive visual style or aesthetic, the script is insipid and far too predictable, and while I can’t speak for entire demographic swaths of the populace, I suspect the pop score will be grating to the ears of most moviegoers old enough to drink legally I guess the nicest thing that I can say about this film is that Deutch isn’t completely god-awful, but that’s not much of a compliment.

To be fair, I have seen worse adaptations of YA novels — but not recently, and that bar wasn’t very high to begin

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with. Maybe they should include a companion piece in the special features on the DVD of Before I Fall — a short documentary entitled Before Scott Falls Asleep, which would detail the roughly 15 minutes I would have made it into this one without napping, had I not been propped up by my requisite (and professionally mandated) pre-show coffees. At least it would be shorter than what the filmmakers came up with, and in all likelihood, more entertaining. Rated PG-13 for mature thematic content involving drinking, sexuality, bullying, some violent images, and language-all involving teens. Now Playing at Carmike 10, Carolina Cinemark, Regal Biltmore Grande, Epic of Hendersonville.

REVIEWED BY SCOTT DOUGLAS JSDOUGLAS22@GMAIL.COM

Fanny’s Journey (Le Voyage de Fanny) HHHH

DIRECTOR: Lola Doillon PLAYERS: Léonie Souchaud, Fantine Harduin, Juliane Lepoureau, Ryan Brodie, Anaïs Meiringer, Lou Lambrecht, Igor Van Dessel, Malonn Levana, Lucien Khoury, Cécile de France, Stéphane de Groodt HISTORICAL DRAMA RATED NR THE STORY: A group of Jewish children hidden in Vichy France must outrun the encroaching Axis powers in the final days of World War II. THE LOWDOWN: A movingly sentimental portrait of a child’s experience of incomprehensible strife, and a great way to start a conversation with kids about the significance of a tragic chapter in world history.

I don’t know that I’ve ever come across a Holocaust movie for kids, but having seen Fanny’s Journey, it occurs to me that the failure to cover

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such a crucial chapter in world history from exactly that angle has been an oversight. This is not to say that the topic hasn’t been touched on in familyfriendly films prior to Fanny, but that no film that comes readily to mind has depicted the events of World War II in such an accessible way to children.

Director Lola Doillon, working from an autobiographical novel by Fanny Ben Ami, accomplishes this task by grounding the narrative in a child’s perspective, while keeping the horrors of war — and the more grievous implications of the story — sufficiently on the periphery to avoid traumatizing young viewers.

The story follows 12-year-old Fanny (newcomer Léonie Souchaud), tasked with looking after her two younger sisters after their father is arrested, forcing them into hiding in a French school. Along with the other Jewish children being illicitly sheltered, they are shuffled to another location just steps ahead of a German raid — and this security proves to be just as shortlived. After the arrest of Mussolini, the children’s caretaker (a fantastic Cecile de France) sees the writing on the wall, shuffling them off to the Swiss border on a series of trains. Along the way, the children lose their cowardly guardian (Fanny’s unrequited older crush), leaving them to fend for themselves as they make their way through enemy territory towards sanctuary in Switzerland.

The constant threats the children face are depicted in a way that is at once relatable and comprehensible to a child’s perspective, and Doillon takes great pains to convey her point without generating too much menace for younger audiences. The issue with this approach is that it simultaneously undermines and aggrandizes Fanny’s heroism as she becomes the de facto leader of the children, straining credulity at points with its oversimplification of the events portrayed. Souchaud is a promising child performer, although many of her castmates don’t fare as well, and adult actors, such as de France, are generally relegated to a few scenes at most, lending the film a slightly amateurish quality at times.

Doillon’s direction tends to favor a bright tonality, presumably intended to appear inviting to the film’s intended audience, but sweeping mountain vistas seem a bit too bucolic when they’re the backdrop for a 12-year-old girl being shot at by Nazis.

If most films dealing with the Jewish experience during World War II tend to be unbearablely harsh, like the Holocaust drama Son of Saul, Fanny’s Journey is on the absolute opposite

end of the spectrum. It’s a moving story that achieves an important aim by introducing young viewers to a very thorny topic in a way that they can comprehend, but that very virtue will limit its appeal to mass audiences.

Still, it’s a touching and significant movie that fills an underserved gap in the cinematic recounting of a pivotal moment in the history of mankind, and as such, more than merits a viewing. Not Rated. French and German dialogue with English subtitles. Opens Friday at Fine Arts Theatre.

REVIEWED BY SCOTT DOUGLAS JSDOUGLAS22@GMAIL.COM

Table 19 HH

DIRECTOR: Jeffrey Blitz (Spellbound) PLAYERS: Anna Kendrick, Craig Robinson, Lisa Kudrow, Tony Revolori, Stephen Merchant COMEDY RATED PG-13 THE STORY: A recently dumped ex ends up at a table of misfits and weirdos at a wedding.

THE LOWDOWN: A potentially interesting set-up soon dips into the world of cinematic clichés and flat, uninspired comedy.

Best described as The Breakfast Club (1985) meets Wedding Crashers (2005), and exactly as tonally uneven and cliché-riddled as one might expect from such a concoction, Jeffrey Blitz’s Table 19 is a generally likable and ultimately forgettable comedy. Likability, unfortunately, is no substitute for depth, while whatever Table 19 manages to get right, it quickly loses and fumbles as its numerous paper thin characters go nowhere. Even attempts to take its story in unexpected directions — while welcome — never veers the narrative far enough away to feel truly original, instead it wallows in its own tropes.

The conceit here is that a group of disparate people are seated at the least desirable table at a wedding reception, far removed from the rest of the guests.

They’ve essentially been banished, either for being unlikable relatives or plain weirdos. Included here is Eloise (Anna Kendrick) — the disgraced ex of the bride’s brother Teddy (Wyatt Russell, Everybody Wants Some!!) —

KIDS ISSUES who almost didn’t go, even setting her invitation on fire before deciding to put it out and send it in anyway.

The first chunk of the film takes place at the titular table, as the movie introduces the characters and we learn why, exactly, they’ve been stricken from the rest of the wedding guests.

This is interesting in a cringy sort of way — there’s a certain awkwardness in the way these disparate characters are both forced to interact and the way in which the film isolates them. The film, however, does get out and move around (it’s not quite high concept enough to chain itself solely to the table) and becomes slowly less curious as time goes on.

I say this with the sense that Table 19 never does much to surpass its monumental OK-ness. The oddity of the potential of being a slightly experimental comedy quickly passes as the movie becomes more and more normal. The characters sort of wander off, and the plot does too.

Nothing really happens once the settings shift and Table 19 slowly settles into convention. Most of this is the fault of the movie’s desire to turn into a pat rom-com cliché. What started off as a potential curio devolves into the usual.

Compacting things is how little work the film puts into creating fully formed characters. Early on, there is some strangeness to this hodgepodge collection of misfits, but Table 19 is disappointingly one-note. It wants to coast along on the likability of its performers (specifically Kendrick), but the material isn’t funny enough and the cast isn’t quite as good as Blitz and company believes. What it all makes for is a slow descent into mediocrity. Rated PG-13 for thematic elements, sexual content, drug use, language and some brief nudity. Now Playing at Carmike 10.

REVIEWED BY JUSTIN SOUTHER JSOUTHER@MOUNTAINX.COM

The Red Turtle HHHS DIRECTOR: Michael Dudok de Wit ANIMATED PARABLE RATED PG THE STORY: A man washes ashore on a deserted island, only to find his

plans for escape thwarted by a large, red turtle.

THE LOWDOWN: A gentle meditation on family, love and life that demands an appropriate emotional connection to get the most out of.

Michaël Dudok de Wit’s The Red Turtle is a movie I have no real qualms with. It’s sophisticated and elegant, and often gorgeous to look at. It’s also a movie that I just can’t get excited about, because there’s not a whole lot — from plot to depth — beneath that surface sheen of elegance. The film is more concerned about mood than anything else, and if you’re able to give yourself up to it, there’s a lot to be taken from The Red Turtle. The problem for me is that I was never able to make that connection, either on an emotional or aesthetic level, meaning that while I have no issues with Dudok de Wit’s film on paper, it’s not the type of movie I can wholeheartedly endorse for everyone. Connection is the key with any movie, but more so with The Red Turtle, since its aims aren’t simple entertainment.

The Red Turtle can best be described as a fable, a quiet and occasionally surreal (not to mention fabulist) view of life, love, family and aging. It could also be called a tone poem, which is one of those phony cinema descriptors that’s just a fancy way of saying nothing really happens. Much of the film is shaded in, both in mood and story, opening with an unnamed man washing up on a deserted island. Where he came from is never explained, though he’s ingenious enough to build a bamboo raft after inhabiting the island for a short time.

The problem is, every time he tries to head to sea, his raft is destroyed by an unknown sea creature. After numerous failed attempts — and mounting frustration — the man discovers that he’s been attacked by a bright red and seemingly benevolent sea turtle.

The film takes slightly more imaginative and dreamlike turns from here, but never moves in a direction that’s too jarring. The Red Turtle is far too languid for that, though for all its inherent strangeness and occasional fantasy sequences, the film is too gentle to be out-and-out weird. It is a distinction (and this is probably where my own aesthetic tastes come into play), since everything on display here is easily explainable as metaphor. When the film makes no sense, or just throws something in there because it looks neat (the hallucinatory string quartet on the beach one night will stick with me, I feel), The Red Turtle can be a bit more interesting.

These are really minor quibbles, since this is a decidedly mature animated film (it is a Studio Ghibli film after all), one with a gorgeous handdrawn (though obviously computer aided) look, with characters that hearken back to Hergé’s Tintin. It’s just not a film that connected with me on any real personal level, an important factor for a movie that is pure feeling and aura. Again, there’s nothing really wrong with The Red Turtle, it’s just that if you’re more in tune with Dudok de Wit’s quiet style (both cinematically and as a storytelling mode) than I am, there will likely be more reward for you. Rated PG for some thematic elements and peril. Now Playing at Grail Moviehouse.

Coming MARCH 15 & 22

REVIEWED BY JUSTIN SOUTHER JSOUTHER@MOUNTAINX.COM

The Salesman

Where Adult Dreams Come True

HHHH DIRECTOR: Asghar Farhadi PLAYERS: Shahab Hoseini, Taraneh Alidoosti, Baba Karimi, Farid Sajjadihosseini, Mina Sadaati, Maral Bani Adam, Mehdi Kooshki DRAMA RATED PG-13 THE STORY: A teacher’s wife is assaulted, leading him on a dark quest to find the culprit.

THE LOWDOWN: Asghar Farhadi continues to mine low-key, personal stories for incredible drama with

FILM FLOOD GALLERY FINE ART CENTER 2160 US Hwy 70, Swannanoa, 273-3332, floodgallery.org/ • FR (3/10), 8pm - Classic foreign films: Vanya on 42nd Street, by Louis Malle. Free to attend.

ISRAEL/PALESTINE FILM FESTIVAL • THURSDAYS through (5/18), 7pm - Israel/Palestine Film Festival. Jerusalem: The East Side Story, film screening and discussion. Free to attend. Held at Lenoir Rhyne Center for Graduate Studies, 36 Montford Ave.

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THE MAN: Miles Davis is this month’s featured artist in Pack Memorial Library’s Legends of Music film series. Photo courtesy of MilesDavis.com. Photo courtesy of MilesDavis.com • Just Peace for Israel/Palestine continues its six-part film series on Palestinians’ interactions with Jewish Israelis and the Occupation on Thursday, March 9, at 7 p.m. at Lenoir-Rhyne University’s Center for Graduate Studies of Asheville. The documentary Jerusalem: The East Side Story will be shown, followed by a facilitated discussion. Free and open to the public. mepeacewnc.com • On Saturday, March 11, from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., The Asheville Darkroom and Mechanical Eye Microcinema lead a workshop on chemigrams at the Refinery Creator Space, 207 Cox Ave. Charlotte Taylor and Jason Scott Furr will teach students how to craft abstract photographic imagery without the use of cameras. The instructors will also demonstrate the use of various resists, mark-making techniques and chemical variations to make unique images, then bring them to life with traditional film editing techniques. The workshop is open to teens and adults, and no photography or filmmaking experience is required. Registration is $50 and may be completed online. avl.mx/3fm • Grail Moviehouse’s and the Asheville Jewish Community Center’s monthly Israeli Film Series — designed to allow viewers to use film as their window into the minds and culture of Israel — continues Sunday, March 12,

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at 3 p.m. with A Borrowed Identity. The 2014 narrative feature revolves around a Palestinian Israeli boy given the chance to attend a prestigious Jewish boarding school in Jerusalem, where he befriends a classmate with muscular dystrophy and falls in love with a Jewish girl.

Tickets are $7 and available online or at the Grail box office. avl.mx/3fn • Pack Memorial Library’s monthly Legends of Music film series — curated by local jazz pianist Michael Jefry Stevens — continues on Tuesday, March 14, at 2 p.m. with Miles Electric: A Different Kind of Blue. The documentary chronicles legendary trumpeter Miles Davis’ transition from acoustic to electric instruments and includes his revered August 1970 show at the Isle of Wight Festival. Free and open to the public. avl.mx/ff • Registration is open for Asheville School of Film’s Introduction to Screenwriting course, taught by awardwinning screenwriter Andrew Shearer.

Starting March 20, the eight-week course meets Mondays, 6:30-9:30 p.m.

Students will learn the fundamentals of how to write a screenplay and explore such topics as creating compelling characters, techniques to write a successful short film and understanding the basic formatting of a script. The end project is a completed short script and the beginnings of a feature screenplay. Tuition is $525. Register online. avl.mx/3fo X

MO VIE S

by Scott Douglas

the help of two outstanding performances from Shahab Hosseini and Taraneh Alidoosti.

Writer-director Asghar Farhadi has garnered a well-deserved reputation as one of the preeminent filmmakers of his native Iran, but has also justifiably garnered significant accolades around the world. As such, taking home his second Best Foreign Language Film Academy Award for The Salesman was, in some corners, a foregone conclusion. With films like his last Oscarwinner, A Separation, Farhadi has established his capacity to make thought-provoking stories that are deeply personal while also elucidating profound cultural insights, and The Salesman is no exception.

The story follows 30-something teacher and stage actor Emad Etesami (Shahab Hosseini), who is starring alongside his wife Rana (Taraneh Alidoosti) in a production of Arthur Miller’s Death of a Salesman. But things get substantially more complex when the couple are forced out of their apartment building, structurally undermined by neighboring construction, and move into a recently vacated flat suggested by a friend.

It turns out that the previous tenant may have been a prostitute, and her clients didn’t necessarily get the memo about her relocation. This leads to a devastating assault on Rana, the extent of which is never fully revealed. Emad embarks on a quest for justice (or is it vengeance?) that drives the film’s narrative, and will leave the audience questioning what they’ve seen long after the credits roll.

Hosseini, who won the best actor prize at Cannes for his turn as Emad, is absolutely riveting, and Alidoosti is every inch his equal.

Their performances drive the film, grounding it in an emotional realism that is unrelenting in its intensity. Farhadi accomplishes something few western directors would even attempt by allowing the audience to draw their own conclusions as to the actions — and their consequences — of the characters on screen, using the strictures of Iranian production guidelines to enhance his film, rather than limit it, by contributing a discieting sense of ambiguity to the symbolism he employs. A shot of the open door slowly swinging wider prior to Rana’s assault evokes the opening scenes of Fritz Lang’s M, in which an absence can convey menace far more effectively than any definite presence. Farhadi’s sty-

listic acumen is only surpassed by his narrative subtlety, and both serve this story well.

In the annals of Oscar speeches delivered by proxy for the purpose of political protest, Farhadi’s decision to allow Iranian-American engineer, CEO and astronaut Anousheh Ansari to accept on his behalf may be the first to trump (pun wholly unintended) Marlon Brando’s refusal of his award for The Godfather via Sacheen Littlefeather in response to the Wounded Knee incident and the mistreatment of Native Americans in the film and television industry over 40 years ago. Much like that incident, the Academy Awards were used as a platform to make an important statement in defiance of ignorance and bigotry by Farhadi — but unlike Brando’s efforts, this time the poignant and surprisingly even-handed statement issued was met with overwhelming support from the audience. While I might’ve enjoyed Tony Erdmann just a bit more than The Salesman, Farhadi’s win was well-deserved — and furthermore, I’m glad that his film took this year’s award, if only for the fact that millions of people were able to see how notoriety can be used to speak truth to power. Rated PG-13 for mature thematic elements and a brief bloody image.

Persian dialogue with English subtitles.

Now Playing at Grail Moviehouse.

S PEC IAL S C REEN ING S

The Gold Rush HHHHH DIRECTOR: Charles Chaplin PLAYERS: Charlie Chaplin, Georgia Hale, Mack Swain, Tom Murray, Henry Bergman COMEDY Rated NR The Gold Rush marked Chaplin’s first Charlie Chaplin film to be released by his own company, United Artists, and was his most ambitious project to date (1925). And it remained one of his personal favorites. He went so far as to recut, score and narrate a reissue version in 1942. Today, it battles City Lights and Modern Times for the position of the best of all Chaplin comedies — and where it ranks among those is largely a matter of personal taste. This comedy of the frozen north is not without its sentimental or “important” side — traits of Chaplin not loved by everyone — but it’s certainly less sentimental than City Lights and less preachy than Modern Times. For that matter, it’s far less sentimental than his previous starring film, The Kid. The sentiment in Gold Rush is mostly confined to the Tramp’s seemingly hopeless love for dance hall girl Georgia (Georgia Hale) and is most pronounced in the scene where he stages a New Year’s Eve party for her — to which she doesn’t come. It’s hard to imagine anyone objecting to this scene, no matter how flint-hearted. The film is mostly a brilliantly executed comedy that places Charlie’s Tramp in the most unlikely of surroundings — as a prospector in the Klondike. The passage of 80 years has not dimmed its humor, or Chaplin’s creativity. A must-see for film lovers. This excerpt was taken from a review by Ken Hanke published on Sept. 28, 2005. The Asheville Film Society will screen The Gold Rush on Tuesday, March 7, at 7:30 p.m. at The Grail Moviehouse, hosted by Xpress movie critic Scott Douglas.

The Golem HHHHH DIRECTOR: Paul Wegener PLAYERS: Paul Wegener, Albert Steinruck, Lyda Salmonova, Ernst Deutsch, Hans Sturm, Otto Gebühr, Lothar Müthel HORROR Rated NR There’s a certain amount of confusion about The Golem made by Paul Wegener (who also plays the creature) and Carl Boese in Germany in 1920. It is neither Wegener’s 1915 version (considered lost), nor is it a remake of that film.

It is its own beast — a story detailing the creation of the Golem by Rabbi Low (Albert Steinruck) in the Jewish ghetto of Prague in the 16th century. While it’s technically more a film of Jewish folklore than an outright horror picture, it certainly qualifies as horror — and supernatural horror at that — and it’s pretty much the prototype for every artificial creature yarn that follows in its wake. Put simply, it works on the basis that any such creature will eventually run amok, create all manner of havoc and need to be destroyed. In essence, it’s the template for the Frankenstein Monster. The Golem, however, is not a product of mad science, but a clay statue brought to life through some kind of Cabbalistc black magic involving getting the secret word for life from a demon and using the word to animate the statue. This is a still pretty impressive sequence and Wegener’s Golem is an imposing figure. Much of the film, however, is devoted to the Rabbi using the creature to prevent the Emperor from persecuting the Jews. Still, the elements of horror are always present, and fans of classic horror will note parallels to both Fritz (Dwight Frye) and the Monster’s encounter with little Maria (Marilyn Harris) from James Whale’s Frankenstein (1931). Also, The Golem is an excellent example of German Expressionism, drawing from The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari (1919), but reaching a somewhat more realistic compromise in terms of design. This excerpt was taken from a review by Ken Hanke published on Oct. 29, 2010. The Thursday Horror Picture Show will screen The Golem on Thursday, March 9, at 9:15 p.m. at The Grail Moviehouse, hosted by Xpress movie critic Scott Douglas.

REVIEWED BY SCOTT DOUGLAS JSDOUGLAS22@GMAIL.COM

STARTIN G F R IDAY

Fanny’s Journey (Le Voyage de Fanny) See Scott Douglas’ review

Kong: Skull Island Big-budget reboot of the King Kong films from the producers of Godzilla, starring Tom Hiddleston, Samuel L. Jackson, Brie Larson, John Goodman and John C. Reilly.

According to the film’s website: “When a scientific expedition to an uncharted island awakens titanic forces of nature, a mission of discovery becomes an explosive war between monster and man.” Early reviews are generally positive.

The Manchurian Candidate HHHHS DIRECTOR: John Frankenheimer PLAYERS: Frank Sinatra, Laurence Harvey, Janet Leigh, Angela Lansbury, James Gregory POLITICAL INTRIGUE THRILLER Rated NR If it weren’t for some tepid and not very believable action scenes with Frank Sinatra, John Frankenheimer’s The Manchurian Candidate (1962) might just be the best political thriller ever made. Even with those reservations, this story about communist brainwashing of Korean War soldiers going hand-in-hand with homegrown U.S. perfidy is heady stuff. It must have been even more so in 1962. I can only wonder what audiences made of the film’s startling early sequence where the American prisoners envision their captors as a gathering of a ladies’ garden club. (I saw it back then, but I was too young to have understood much, other than the fact that my parents didn’t like it.) For that matter, did audiences realize that the ineffectual, drunken Sen. Iselin (James Gregory) was a thinly-veiled caricature of witch-hunting Sen. Joe McCarthy? It seems impossible to miss.

The really big question, though, was what contemporary audiences made of the charge that people like Iselin — and by extension, McCarthy — were really puppets of the very people they were pledged to destroy? Or that — thriller or not — the film is as much a satire as anything? See it now and see for yourself that this was probably the damndest movie of its time to come out of Hollywood. This excerpt was taken from a review by Ken Hanke published on March 29, 2011. The Hendersonville Film Society will show The Manchurian Candidate on Sunday, March 12 at 2 p.m. in the Smoky Mountain Theater at Lake Pointe Landing Retirement Community, 333 Thompson St., Hendersonville

Vanya on 42nd Street HHHHS DIRECTOR: Louis Malle PLAYERS: Andre Gregory, Julianne Moore, Wallace Shawn DRAMA Rated PG Director Louis Malle’s attention to performance is on full dispalay in this thoroughly ’90s update of Chekhov’s Uncle Vanya, retiming Malle with his My Dinner with Andre stars Wallace Shawn and Andre Gregory for the first time in ten years. It’s a remarkable deconstruction of one of Chekhov’s most frequently revisited works, with a gutted theatre on 42nd Street in New York providing a blank canvas against which the actors can pull the play away from its roots and decontextualize it with a modern tonality. A must see for theater lovers, fans of Chekhov or Malle devotees. Classic World Cinema by Courtyard Gallery will present Vanya on 42nd St. on Friday, March 10, at 8 p.m. at Flood Gallery Fine Art Center, 2160 Hwy 70, Swannanoa.

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MARKETPLACE

HU MOR

REAL ESTATE | RENTALS | ROOMMATES | SERVICES JOBS | ANNOUNCEMENTS | MIND, BODY, SPIRIT CLASSES & WORKSHOPS | MUSICIANS’ SERVICES PETS | A U TOMOTI VE | X C HANG E | ADULT Want to advertise in Marketplace? 828-251-1333 x111 tnavaille@mountainx.com • mountainx.com/classifieds If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is. Remember the Russian proverb: “Doveryai, no proveryai,” trust but verify. When answering classified ads, always err on the side of caution. Especially beware of any party asking you to give them financial or identification information. The Mountain Xpress cannot be responsible for ensuring that each advertising client is legitimate. Please report scams to ads@mountainx.com

REAL ESTATE LAND FOR SALE CORNER LOT - PRIVATE NEIGHBORHOOD. OWNER FINANCING Owner will finance.

Last Lot in desirable Kimberly Hills neighborhood. Underground Utilities, 4 BR Septic Approval. Beautiful views, amazing sunrises, level lot! Weaverville quiet just 20 minutes to Asheville! 828-398-8817

ASHEVILLE • SHORT TERM AVAILABLE South Asheville.

Shared housing. Vegetarian, no smoking/animals. On busline.

Sliding scale. Peace. Call (828) 348-9183.

EMPLOYMENT GENERAL

REAL ESTATE SERVICES HIRING FOR NEW HIGH ADVENTURE JOB! Seeking canyoneering guides for 2017 season.

Must have a great attitude and be comfortable at height. Preferred climbing/ropes experience. Apply at: frenchbroadrafting.com/jobs NEED A HOME APPRAISAL? We will appraise your home for Tax Appeal, Divorce, Sales Pricing, Litigation, and Estate purposes. • Covering Buncombe, Henderson, Haywood, Madison, Transylvania, Yancey, and Mitchell Counties.

Earnhardt and Associates Appraisers. Residential, Commercial, Consulting: (828) 253-1930. Reasonable Fees. EarnhardtApprais@ Bellsouth.net

RENTALS HOMES FOR RENT

2400 SQFT HILLTOP CABIN Built in 2003 on 6+ acres with view. Just 2 miles from downtown Mars Hill but Totally private. • 4 wheel drive necessary. 3BR/3BA with 1 per floor. Furnished inside and out with deep deck on two sides, carport, hot tub and all new appliances. New stone tops in all bathrooms and kitchen. Propane included. $1,750/month, lease term negotiable. Call 828-2061751.

ROOMMATES ROOMMATES ALL AREAS Free Roommate Service @ RentMates.com. Find the perfect roommate to complement your personality and lifestyle at RentMates.com! (AAN CAN)

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SKILLED LABOR/ TRADES

NOW ACCEPTING APPLICATIONS FOR ZIPLINE AND ARIAL PARK GUIDES AND KOLO BIKE PARK STAFF Multiple positions available, from office assistants to guiding. Check us out online at Adventureavl.com. Send applications and resumes to Manager@ adventurecenterofasheville.com (828)225-2921 TROLLEY TOUR GUIDES If you are a “people person,” love Asheville, have a valid Commercial Driver’s License (CDL) and clean driving record you could be a great TOUR GUIDE, FULL-TIME and seasonal parttime positions available. Training provided. Contact us today! www.GrayLineAsheville.com; Info@GrayLineAsheville.com; 828-251-8687.

TZEDEK SOCIAL JUSTICE FELLOWSHIP The Tzedek Fellowship is a transformational experience for emerging social justice leaders that builds the capacity of social justice organizations to effect change in Asheville and beyond.

Now accepting applications for eleven-month, paid, full-time positions at six nonprofit organizations. Visit tzedekfellowship.org to apply.

APPLIANCE INSTALLATION TECHNICIANS AND APPLIANCE SERVICE TECHNICIANS NEEDED Haywood Appliance, has immediate openings for experienced Appliance Service Technicians and also Installation Technicians. Service Technicians diagnose and repair kitchen and laundry appliances and Installation Technicians do the new installs. We offer great pay, bonus, and a comprehensive health insurance package. You would be working out of the Clyde Location. Stop by or send us an email. 828-627-0001 SKILLED LEAD CARPENTER Old Mill Stream is a state wide Licensed General Contractor, Licensed Landscape Contractor seeking a skilled carpenter in all phases of construction. From framing to custom trim, you will lead the crew through various construction and remolding projects.

You should have most of your own tools including circular saw, cordless drill, etc. Work in Asheville and surrounding areas. We provide a company truck and uniforms. Employment references required. $17/ hr.-$20/hr. Send resume to Jeff@OldMillStream.com

SALES/ MARKETING LOCAL COMMUNITY COORDINATORS NEEDED Hiring 3 Local Community Coordinators to assist the Xplore USA Asheville office with finding host families for our international students. Commission starting at $150 per family recruited.

Bonuses offered.

RESTAURANT/ FOOD APOLLO FLAME • WAITSTAFF Full-time. Fast, friendly, fun atmosphere. • Experience required. • Must be 18 years old. • Apply in person between 2pm-4pm, 485 Hendersonville Road. 274-3582.

WANT A FUN JOB IN THE OUTDOOR INDUSTRY? Our fast-growing, locally-owned outdoor adventure company is hiring raft guides, zipline guides, photographers and reservation staff for the upcoming season. Experience is preferred but we will train the right people. Apply online at www.FrenchBroadRafting.com/ jobs

KITCHEN COOK Red Oak Recovery, a cutting edge substance abuse treatment program for young adults, is seeking a part time Kitchen Assistant for our scenic Fletcher location.

This position will be responsible for preparing meals for approximately 20-30 people, assist in weekly menu creating, dish washing, packing food for adventure trips, receiving and storing food deliveries, and other duties

as assigned. • This position is a full-time position. • Qualified candidates will have prior kitchen experience, an interest in healthy and delicious foods, creative thinking, friendly, hardworking and reliable, and able to move about campus, including bending and lifting 40 lbs.

Salary is based on experience.

Very Competitive pay and benefits offered. Red Oak Recovery is a non-smoking and drug free work environment. Please visit redoakrecovery.com/ employment to apply.

DRIVERS/ DELIVERY DRIVERS WANTED Mature person for full-time. Serious inquiries only. Call today. 828713-4710. Area Wide Taxi, Inc. LOCAL DRIVERS WANTED! Be your own boss. Flexible hours. Unlimited earning potential. Must be 21 with valid U.S. driver’s license, insurance & reliable vehicle. 866-3292672 (AAN CAN)

*SHOP WITH SHIPT* MAKE YOUR OWN HOURS! Shipt is an on-demand grocery delivery service looking for reliable, independent people to shop for groceries and deliver to our member in Asheville! www. shipt.com/be-a-shopper

MEDICAL/ HEALTH CARE BILLING SPECIALIST Blue Ridge Pharmacy, an independent locally owned pharmacy, is seeking a Full-Time Billing Specialist to join our team.

Apply online at : https:// www.indeed.com/cmp/BlueRidge-Pharmacy/jobs/BillingSpecialist-847eb83449a823 61?q=blue+ridge+pharmacy or www.blueridgeltc.com LEAD PHARMACY TECHNICIAN Blue Ridge Pharmacy, an independent locally owned pharmacy, is seeking a Full Time Lead Pharmacy Technician to join our team.

Apply online at: https:// www.indeed.com/cmp/ Blue-Ridge-Pharmacy/jobs/ Lead-Pharmacy-Technician-78eac406feb4ac14? q=blue+ridge+pharmacy or www.blueridgeltc.com

HUMAN SERVICES THERAPEUTIC FOSTER PARENTS NEEDED Davidson Homes Inc. is seeking Foster Parents in Swannanoa and the surrounding areas.

• All training is free and daily rate is great! Call Debbie Smiley: 828-776-5228. www.davidsonhomes.org

PROFESSIONAL/ MANAGEMENT

and satellite West location. • Position details for all open positions can be seen at www.vernerearlylearning. org/jobs. Verner is an EEOE.

DIRECTOR OF INDUSTRY TRAINING • FOOD BEVERAGE AND NATURAL PRODUCTS A-B Tech is currently taking applications for a Director of Industry Training for Food, Beverage, and Natural Products position. For more details and to apply: www.abtech.edu/jobs

TEACHING/ EDUCATION EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATORS AND CENTER MANAGERS Verner Center for Early Learning is a state of the art learning environment providing the highest quality early care and education and so much more! Free nutritious lunches prepared on site, plenty of outside play on our natural learning environments, and continuing educational opportunities provided through staff development trainings and available educational funds are some of the many qualities that our faculty and staff enjoy! • Verner currently seeks teaching professionals for children ages 0-5 who are nurturing, skilled in supporting the development of young children, and can be an asset to our model, progressive program. • We are also seeking for two innovative leaders in the field of early care and education to lead the flagship East location

FULL TIME TEACHERS Licensed in Secondary Science/Math Education. Licensure required. This position is for a year-round school with small class sizes and a high school curriculum. Experience with alternative settings and/or learning disabilities a plus. Our beautiful 145-acre campus, minutes from Hendersonville, NC provides a safe setting for our students to transform their lives. Equinox is a residential treatment center for boys ages 14-18. Check out our websites for more information: www.equinoxrtc.com • Benefits are offered to full time employees and include health, dental, vision and life insurance as well as holiday pay, vacation and sick leave. • Please send a resume and cover letter to humanresources@solsticeeast. com • Equinox is an Equal Opportunity Employers. • No phone calls or walk-ins please.

INTERESTED IN WORKING AT A-B TECH? Full-Time, Part-Time and Adjunct Positions available. Come help people achieve their dreams!

Apply for open positions at abtcc.peopleadmin.com

SALON/ SPA

NOW HIRING VOICE TEACHERS- PRIVATE LESSONS, ENSEMBLES Asheville Music School is looking for an experienced voice teacher.

Familiarity with multiple styles a plus. Music degree required.

Contact Ryan Reardon ryan@ ashevillemusicschool.org, (828) 252-6244

STYLIST WANTED, EAST ASHEVILLE Beauty Bar is looking for a stylist. Booth rent salon but some walk-in traffic, potential to increase clientele. Rent $150/week. Back bar (AG Hair products) provided. Call Echo @ 545-1970

CAREER TRAINING AIRLINE CAREERS BEGIN HERE Get started by training as FAA certified Aviation Technician. Financial aid for qualified students. Job placement assistance. Call Aviation Institute of Maintenance 800725-1563 (AAN CAN)

SERVICES

included - for limited time 10% off session fees and a free 8x10 canvas print included abigailparkerphotography.net abigailparkerphotography@ gmail.com 252-339-4651

HOME IMPROVEMENT HANDY MAN HIRE A HUSBAND • HANDYMAN SERVICES Since 1993.

Multiple skill sets. Reliable, trustworthy, quality results. $1 million liability insurance. References and estimates available. Stephen Houpis, (828) 280-2254.

ANNOUNCEMENTS ANNOUNCEMENTS MAKE THE CALL TO START GETTING CLEAN TODAY Free 24/7 Helpline for alcohol & drug addiction treatment. Get help! It is time to take your life back! Call Now: 855-732-4139. (AAN CAN) PREGNANT? CONSIDERING ADOPTION? Call us first. Living expenses, housing, medical, and continued support afterwards.

Choose adoptive family of your choice. Call 24/7. 877-362-2401.

(AAN CAN) WORLD MUSIC A CAPPELLA CONCERT Thrilling 8-person harmony singing from around the world, including Corsica, Republic

of Georgia and America. March 14, 7:30pm Masonic Temple, 80 Broad St. $15 Facebook/ TheStarryMountainSingers.com

CLASSES & WORKSHOPS CLASSES & WORKSHOPS ATTENTION WNC MYSTERY WRITERS WNC Mysterians Critique Group. For serious mystery/ suspense/thriller writers. Now recruiting new members. Max 8. Meets biweekly. Info: 7125570 or WNCMysterians.org or michael@michaelhavelin.com

CLAY CLASSES AT ODYSSEY CLAYWORKS Independent Study, Finding Center: Beginner Wheel Throwing, Totem Poles, Ready, Set, Throw, K-12 Educator Workshop, Electric Kiln Repair Workshop, Young Potter's Wheel Workshop for kids ages 8-12. www.odysseyceramicarts.com, 828-285-0210, odysseyclayworks@gmail.com LEARN RADICAL SUSTAINABILITY AT SCHOOL OF INTEGRATED LIVING Gain whole-life skills for radical sustainability through SOIL’s Permaculture and Ecovillage Immersion at Earthaven Ecovillage, June 10–August 11. Program includes Permaculture Design Certification. Learn more and register at schoolofintegratedliving.org.

ART/WRITING

TRANS TECH OF ASHEVILLE OFFERS CDL CLASSES In just four weeks become a professional driver earning between 35,000-50,000 in your first year! Contact us today (828)483-6666 www.trans-tech.net

EDITING/LAYOUT SERVICES TO WRITERS Editing/Layout Services to Writers Author of novels & how-to books will edit your manuscript, design covers, prep for CreateSpace.

Contact to discuss project & for quote. Google me. michael@ michaelhavelin.com (828)7125570

EMPLOYMENT SERVICES

BUSINESS

CUSTOMER SUPPORT Great part-time opportunity for the individuals who are looking for extra cash!The position to provide remotely assistant tasks in a customer care, a PC basic skills and cell is necessary for the reports, with no special skills requirements.2000$ monthly. hrbeestcompany@ protonmail.com

PHOTOGRAPHER NOW BOOKING SESSIONS Photographer booking for newborn, maternity, family & engagement portraits Consultation

Adjunct Instructor Nursing Assistant Program A-B Tech is currently taking applications for an Adjunct Instructor, Nursing Assistant Program position.

For more details and to apply: www.abtech.edu/jobs

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Cocktail Waiter/Waitress Laundry Attendant 3PPN "UUFOEBOU Night Auditor (Part Time) -BVOESZ "UUFOEBOU Room Attendant 3PPN *OTQFDUPS 0WFSOJHIU 4FDVSJUZ Sales Coordinator

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FREEWILL ASTROLOGY ARIES (March 21-April 19): As soon as you can, sneak away to a private place where you can be alone — preferably to a comfy sanctuary where you can indulge in eccentric behavior without being seen or heard or judged. When you get there, launch into an extended session of moaning and complaining. I mean do it out loud. Wail and whine and whisper about everything that’s making you sad and puzzled and crazy. For best results, leap into the air and wave your arms. Whirl around in erratic figure-eights while drooling and messing up your hair. Breathe extra deeply. And all the while, let your pungent emotions and poignant fantasies flow freely through your wild heart. Keep on going until you find the relief that lies on the other side.

TAURUS (April 20-May 20): “I’ve always belonged to what isn’t where I am and to what I could never be,” wrote Portuguese writer Fernando Pessoa (1888-1935).

That was his prerogative, of course. Or maybe it was a fervent desire of his, and it came true. I bring his perspective to your attention, Taurus, because I believe your mandate is just the opposite, at least for the next few weeks: You must belong to what is where you are. You must belong to what you will always be.

GEMINI (May 21-June 20): Nothing is ever as simple as it may seem. The bad times always harbor opportunities. The good times inevitably have a caveat.

According to my astrological analysis, you’ll prove the latter truth in the coming weeks. On one hand, you will be closer than you’ve been in many moons to your ultimate sources of meaning and motivation.

On the other hand, you sure as hell had better take advantage of this good fortune. You can’t afford to be shy about claiming the rewards and accepting the responsibilities that come with the opportunities.

CANCER (June 21-July 22): Seek intimacy with experiences that are dewy and slippery and succulent.

Make sure you get more than your fair share of swirling feelings and flowing sensations, cascading streams and misty rain, arousing drinks and sumptuous sauces, warm baths and purifying saunas, skin moisturizers and lustrous massages, the milk of human kindness and the buttery release of deep sex — and maybe even a sensational do-it-yourself baptism that frees you from at least some of your regrets. Don’t stay thirsty, my undulating friend. Quench your need to be very, very wet. Gush and spill. Be gushed and spilled on.

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LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22): Let’s talk about a compassionate version of robbery. The thieves who practice this art don’t steal valuable things you love. Rather, they pilfer stuff you don’t actually need but are reluctant to let go of. For example, the spirit of a beloved ancestor may sweep into your nightmare and carry off a delicious poison that has been damaging you in ways you’ve become comfortable with. A bandit angel might sneak into your imagination and burglarize the debilitating beliefs and psychological crutches you cling to as if they were bars of gold. Are you interested in benefiting from this service? Ask and you shall receive.

SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21): Evolved Scorpios don’t fantasize about bad things happening to their competitors and adversaries. They don’t seethe with smoldering desires to torment anyone who fails to give them what they want. They may, however, experience urges to achieve TOTAL CUNNNG DAZZLING MERCILESS VICTORY over those who won’t acknowledge them as golden gods or golden goddesses. But even then, they don’t indulge in the deeply counterproductive emotion of hatred. Instead, they sublimate their ferocity into a drive to keep honing their talents. After all, that game plan is the best way to accomplish something even better than mere revenge: success in fulfilling their dreams. Please keep these thoughts close to your heart in the coming weeks.

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21): “The noble art of music is the greatest treasure in the world,” wrote Martin Luther (1483-1546), a revolutionary who helped break the stranglehold of the Catholic Church on the European imagination. I bring this up, Sagittarius, because you’re entering a phase when you need the kind of uprising that’s best incited by music. So I invite you to gather the tunes that have inspired you over the years, and also go hunting for a fresh batch. Then listen intently, curiously, and creatively as you feed your intention to initiate constructive mutation. Its time to overthrow anything about your status quo that is jaded, lazy, sterile or apathetic.

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19): “Either you learn to live with paradox and ambiguity or you’ll be six years old for the rest of your life,” says author Anne Lamott.

How are you doing with that lesson, Capricorn? Still learning? If you would like to get even more advanced teachings about paradox and ambiguity — as well as conundrums, incongruity, and anomalies — there will be plenty of chances in the coming weeks. Be glad!

Remember the words of Nobel Prize-winning physicist Niels Bohr: “How wonderful that we have met with a paradox. Now we have some hope of making progress.”

LEO (July 23-Aug. 22): Would you like to live to the age of 99? If so, experiences and realizations that arrive in the coming weeks could be important in that project.

A window to longevity will open, giving you a chance to gather clues about actions you can take and meditations you can do to remain vital for ten decades. I hope you’re not too much of a serious, know-it-all adult to benefit from this opportunity. If you’d like to be deeply receptive to the secrets of a long life, you must be able to see with innocent, curious eyes. Playfulness is not just a winsome quality in this quest; it’s an essential asset.

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18): Lichen is a hardy form of life that by some estimates covers six percent of the earth’s surface. It thrives in arctic tundra and rainforests, on tree bark and rock surfaces, on walls and toxic slag heaps, from sea level to alpine environments. The secret of its success is symbiosis.

Fungi and algae band together (or sometimes fungi and bacteria) to create a blended entity; two very dissimilar organisms forge an intricate relationship that comprises a third organism. I propose that you regard lichen as your spirit ally in the coming weeks, Aquarius. You’re primed for some sterling symbioses.

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22): You’re ripe. You’re delectable. Your intelligence is especially sexy. I think it’s time to unveil the premium version of your urge to merge. To prepare, let’s review a few flirtation strategies.

The eyebrow flash is a good place to start. A subtle, flicking lick of your lips is a fine follow-up. Try tilting your neck to the side ever-so-coyly. If there are signs of reciprocation from the other party, smooth your hair or pat your clothes. Fondle nearby objects like a wine glass or your keys. And this is very important: Listen raptly to the person you’re wooing. P.S.: If you already have a steady partner, use these techniques as part of a crafty plan to draw him or her into deeper levels of affection.

PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20): If you normally wear adornments and accessories and fine disguises, I invite you not to do so for the next two weeks. Instead, try out an unembellished, what-you-see-is-what-you-get approach to your appearance. If, on the other hand, you don’t normally wear adornments and accessories and fine disguises, I encourage you to embrace such possibilities in a spirit of fun and enthusiasm. Now you may inquire: How can these contradictory suggestions both apply to the Pisces tribe? The answer: There’s a more sweeping mandate behind it all, namely: to tinker and experiment with the ways you present yourself . . . to play around with strategies for translating your inner depths into outer expression.

MARCH 8 - 14, 2017

MOUNTAINX.COM

PU Z Z LE XP RE SS

BY ROB BREZSNY

by Sarah Boddy | participatorydemocrossy@gmail.com Local is our game here at the Mountain Xpress (in case you haven’t noticed), so we are proud to introduce a new locally driven crossword puzzle. Don’t fret, The New York Times puzzle isn’t going anywhere, we just want to add to the experience for our many happy puzzlers who turn to the back of the paper for fun. This new crossword is produced by local puzzler, Sarah Boddy (participatorydemocrossy. com). It will bring an eye for the people, places, things, buzzwords and concepts that drive the culture surrounding us (with room for global connections). The new feature will appear on a semi-regular basis, so check back soon for the next exciting installment. (Answers to this puzzle are on page 55)

LOOKING FOR BOO KS ACROSS 1 ___ Kartel, Asheville group founded after Haiti earthquake 4 “Basic” bones to study at Asheville School of Massage and Yoga 9 “____ me, give me liberty...”

14 Choice at The Gamekeeper in Boone (not flying off the menu) 15 Biltmore ceiling features 16 Feathered target of practicaljoke “hunts” 17 Purveyor of books to illerate obliteracy 19 Text at the Islamic Center of Asheville 20 Darkest part of phenomenon expected August 21 21 Bygone Russian ruler 23 Stinging nettle souvenir 24 What the masses do, when they’ve had enough 26 Cam Newton’s goals 28 Classic tourist wear (even on Patton) 32 Little guy 35 Not attend 36 Voiced displeasure with the Tourists 38 Bit of music at Asheville Lyric Opera 40 Like Pritchard Park in the rain 43 Stroller 44 City in southern Iraq with a famous librarian 46 Bad at Pack Memorial Library; good at the Orange Peel 48 Salutation for 17-across inspiration 49 Purveyor of books to re-charge your bubbly personality 53 Pie unit 54 Prenatal misery 58 Non-Blue Ridge mountains.

Fine, I guess.

60 Weird Cafe on Haywood?

63 Poke around 64 Avoids French Broad Chocolate Lounge, maybe 66 Opposite of 36-across 68 “I tried to get Dave Chappelle tickets, to no ___.”

69 Bygone dentistry helper 70 DiFranco boycotting North Carolina in protest of HB2 71 Local urgent care Sister-hood 72 Mammoth texture

73 Top Hat ingredient at 32-down DOWN 1 Politely object 2 “Brothy” fifth taste 3 Daffodils, crocus, and 10-downs 4 Local preschool very devoted to its Methods?

5 Isoprene in it makes the Blue Ridge Mountains blue 6 Blood concern 7 Meadows and McHenry, e.g.

8 Certain tests in UNCA’s Zeis Hall 9 Write to the Citizen-Times’ Answer Man 10 Late winter bloomer 11 Purveyor of books for the resistant reader 12 October stone 13 Good luck finding a low one in Asheville 18 Surroundings 22 McCormick Field noise, on a good night 25 Nudge in the 27-down 27 12 Bones unit 29 That guy 30 Present oneself to Warren Wilson 31 Steak-making step 32 Lexington Avenue Brewery, to friends 33 Resident of 44-across, maybe

34 Vanish, like affordable housing under gentrification pressures 37 Short private tweets 39. Characteristic of the River district?

41 Asheville’s spot on Lonely Planet’s “Best in the U.S” list 42 Chinese currency 45 Made Sunny Point line worth it 47 Pendulous piece of fabric 50 Common prefix in Green Scene 51 Created gerrymandered districts perhaps 52 One of 32 million living mostly in Iraq, Iran, Syria, and Turkey 55 To this point 56 Banjo fretboard wood 57 Mountaintop nest 58 Local chef and Cutthroat Kitchen winner Hayes, to friends 59 Like the Moth events at the Mothlight 61 “What did I ____ be so black and blue?”

62 Neighborhood in NYC/nail spa on New Leicester Hwy 65 Crafty (and not in the Purl’s way) 67 No. to call Israeli city?

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SPIRITUAL

ACROSS

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T H E N E W Y OR K TI M ES CR OSSWOR D PU ZZLE

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1 Exoskeleton, e.g.

6 One who’s slow to pick things up?

10 When repeated, zealous 13 “Likewise” 14 Leader of the Smurfs 15 Jam session highlight 16 Gym bag attachment 17 “You can say that again!”

18 Seneca Falls orator Lucretia 19 Friends who go to White Castle in a 2004 film 22 “Didn’t I tell you?”

23 Main squeeze, in modern lingo 24 Class teaching about DNA 25 Romans who protected the emperor 31 See 33-Across 32 Go to bed, informally 33 Follower of Hosea in the 31-Across 34 Cheese choice 36 Its diameter is roughly twice that of a basketball 40 No longer on one’s plate, say 42 Bedtime for a vampire

43 Countrymen who met in Philadelphia in 1787 48 Ambulance letters 49 ___-rock 50 Freshness 51 Shakespearean entreaty appropriate for 19-, 25- and 43-Across?

57 Nivea rival 58 Jacques who played Monsieur Hulot 59 Scout’s route 61 Campbell of “House of Cards” 62 Walked heavily 63 Lady of “My Fair Lady” 64 Where hogs go hogwild?

65 Sapphic works 66 Luxury brand with a crown logo

DOWN

1 Buffoon 2 Kind of I.R.A. 3 Rooney ___, 2016 Oscar nominee for “Carol” 4 Mosque of ___ (Jerusalem shrine) 5 Clever comeback 6 James who voiced Ultron in “Avengers: Age of Ultron”

The

Sustainability CELEBRATING EARTH DAY 2017

edited by Will Shortz

7 Prayer wheel turner 8 Places where spirits flow freely 9 Headwear for some rockers 10 Automated floor cleaner 11 Brightest star in the Eagle constellation 12 Vehicle in a drag race 15 Dallas sch.

20 Passionate, outgoing sort, astrologically 21 Beer blast purchases 25 Basic lunch sandwich, informally 26 Brazilian-themed Vegas hotel 27 Japanese P.M. Shinzo ___ 28 Page in a Hollywood film 29 Cake coating 30 “Ri-i-i-ight …”

34 Certain high heel 35 Hit a home run, in baseball lingo 37 Number of emails sent

by Warren Buffett in his entire life 38 Dickens’s “___ Mutual Friend” 39 And another thing, on a letter 41 Police dispatcher’s “A”

No. 0201

PUZZLE BY MATTHEW SEWELL AND JEFF CHEN

42 Noted gatekeeper 43 Mug shot subjects 44 “Western” or “Spanish” dish 45 “Not for self but for country” sloganeer 46 What doctors recommend that sick people get a lot of

47 It’s mostly nitrogen 52 Clairol product 53 Great Plains tribe 54 Janis’s partner in the comics 55 Billiards cushion 56 Carry-on concern 60 Not really enforcing the rules

ANSWER TO PUZZLE XPRESS

ANSWER TO PREVIOUS PUZZLE

KIDS ISSUES

0AUL #ARON

Series

Every week in April Furniture Magician • Cabinet Refacing • Furniture Repair

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MARCH 8 - 14, 2017

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