Asheville Community Theatre has welcomed locals to the stage for nearly eight decades.
Photo by Studio Misha
One of the oldest community theatres in the nation lives right here in the Land of the Sky. Asheville Community Theatre (ACT) began its journey with a 1946 ad in the Asheville Citizen, calling on members of the Asheville Little Theater, the Players Guild, and the Asheville Theater Guild to merge and create one community theatre.
The ACT recently celebrated its 79th anniversary, commemorating the day the theatre earned its very first member on July 17, 1946.
The theatre has grown leaps and bounds since 1946, and you can keep that momentum going by attending some stellar shows during its 2025-2026 Mainstage Season, beginning in mid-September with “Grease.”
Want to upgrade from audience to actor? Auditions for “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer” are coming up in late September. Here’s what you need to know to prep for your audition, straight from ACT’s Education Director, Zoe Zelonky.
Asheville Junction | 8:30-11:30 p.m. | Jack of the Wood | $10 | The band’s high-energy show will bring hot fiddlin’, rich harmonies, and plenty of toe-tappin’ fun.
Saturday, July 26
Local Cloth’s Anything Fiber Sale | 9 a.m.-2 p.m. | AB Tech Conference Center | Free | It’s a fiber artist’s dream with an abundance of yarns, fabrics, tools, and fabric treasures for sale.
“Love Heals” | 7 p.m. | Tina McGuire Theatre | $30 | Asheville Musical Theatre will give powerhouse performances and sing heartfelt songs to raise money for their 2026 season.
Wicked Weed Country Summer Series with Lock Stock and Teardrops | 6-8 p.m. | Wicked Weed Brewing | Free | Asheville’s premier two-steppin’ dance band takes the Wicked Weed honky tonk stage, with twangy tunes, steel guitar, and high-energy, boot-scootin’ rhythms.*
Sunday, July 27
Story/Arts Residency Night 3: Becomyth - We Begin In Chaos | 6:30-9:30 p.m. | Story Parlor | $10+ | Artists Adam J. N. Keene and Langston Kelly will finish their three-part artistic journey into myth, meaning, and the chaos of beginnings.
American Aquarium | 8 p.m. | The Orange Peel | $33 | The Raleigh-based rock and roll band’s revelatory sound is flecked with alt-country influences.
Monday, July 28
Meet & Greet: Urban Land Institute Advisory Services Panel | 5 p.m. | Harrah’s Cherokee Center Asheville | Free | Meet national experts in land use planning and sustainability to talk about your priorities in Asheville’s recovery journey.
Tuesday, July 29
Jules! | 11:30 a.m. | The Grey Eagle | $0+ | Fans of “Ms. Rachel” know that Jules is a big deal — the children’s music star will stop by to bring their imaginative tunes like “Caterpillar Butterfly Thing” to life.
Elegance and the outdoors come together at The Hominy. | Photos by AVLtoday
Finding a home that balances nature and modern convenience isn’t always easy. But what if your backyard came with plenty of amenities to unwind and enjoy the outdoors?
We recently toured The Hominy Apartments, a stunning new community just minutes from the Buncombe County Sports Complex.
Here’s what we discovered during our visit:
Disc golf galore
Residents have access to a private DGDG disc golf course featuring challenging elevation changes, beachy terrain, and technical gaps. The course is also open to paid members of the WNCDGA.
It’s outdoorsy
With direct access to Pole Creek and Hominy Creek, tubing, fishing, hiking, and swimming are easy. The property’s peaceful vibe, lush green spaces, and cozy country feel blend perfectly with all the perks of city living.
Prime location
The Hominy is just 15 minutes from downtown Asheville and close to I-40 and shopping.
Crusco, a new restaurant rooted in seasonal ingredients, will open in the former Vivian space on Depot Street in the coming weeks. Kat Kearney, the former partner of the late Brian Canipelli of Cucina 24, leads the restaurant alongside more former employees from the revered Italian restaurant. (Mountain Xpress)
Community
Open Hearts Art Center is hosting its first Pride Parade honoring Disability Pride Month next Thursday, July 31. Show support from the sidelines or join in a 15-minute loop around the South Slope, starting at the center’s studio at 12:45 p.m.
Listen
Asheville indie rocker Indigo de Souza is going pop in her latest album, “Precipice,” which debuts today, July 25. Take a peek behind the curtain and read about what it was like making the album in a new feature by The New York Times.
Arts
The Village Potters’ new location in the Westgate shopping center is coming along, with sinks and clay traps being installed. The clay center was an institution in the RAD before Helene’s destruction, but you can support it at its October fundraising event and grand opening celebration.
Eat
Dizzy’s Glizzies are back at Imperial, serving up hot dogs, garbage plates, and barbecue sandwiches late into the night, Thursdays-Saturdays. Looking for more late-night bites? We can cure your cravings.
Home
Looking to save money? The answer could be found in your appliances. Electrify Asheville-Buncombe is helping homeowners become more energy efficient by upgrading appliances and electrifying their homes. Sign up for a free consultation through the Energy Navigator Program to get started.*
Read
Tangle is a rare political newsletter that doesn’t take sides — it lays them out. Every day, it delivers balanced reporting on major political stories, minus the bias. Subscribe for free.*
Fact or Fiction
The color of your car impacts your car insurance rate. Fact or fiction? Luckily for Nicki Minaj, this is fiction. Still, rates can change for other reasons, so experts advise shopping around regularly. See if you could save with this quick questionnaire.*
Category
Trending
Did anyone else feel a chill?
A still from “As It Is in Heaven.” | Photo courtesy of film
It certainly wasn’t the July weather, so it can only mean one thing: it’s Summerween. Apparently, it’s been popular to look ahead to autumn and be tempted to prematurely put up your pumpkin decor, but instead, you can satisfy your need for scares with these thrillers + chillers filmed in Asheville.
“Hannibal”
This famous 2001 psychological horror was partially filmed in the Asheville area. Many of those scenes — in which Anthony Hopkins plays the iconic escaped killer and cannibal Hannibal Lecter — take place at The Biltmore House.
Where to stream: HBO Max
“As It Is In Heaven”
This eerie, suspenseful 2014 film follows a man who is called to lead a small religious sect after the death of the “Prophet.” Directed by Western Carolina University film professor Joshua Overbay, the film was lauded by The New York Times for cooking a “surprising amount of tension from the barest minimum of ingredients.”
This fall, a new piece of art will go up on the South side of Mountain Housing Opportunities’ Glen Rock Apartments. Artist Tommy Lee McGee (aka Sir Tom Foolery) will paint his “Black Boy Joy” mural on the building, which houses 22 affordable apartments and popular local businesses like Butterpunk — the building was recently restored after significant damage from Helene.
The mural complements his “Black Girl Magic” piece outside The Whale’s South Slope location, and is the second of three murals that will adorn Asheville’s Black Cultural Heritage Trail. The third piece will be unveiled on Eagle Street, on the Southern end of The Block in spring 2026.
Amazon’s deals are still rolling, and we’re here for it. Shop more picks while the sales last:
📱 Shop 15% off a MagSafe portable charger that’s sleek, slim, and comes in light pink and lavender.
🍚 If you cook rice, oatmeal, or quinoa almost daily, Cosori’s 4.8-star rated grains cooker is 10% off for a limited time.
💺 Upgrade your home office chair for a high-back leather version while it’s 38% off.
📹 Snag 44% off a like-new Ring stick-up camera that can be installed inside or out.
📚 Get a like-new version of Kindle’s latest model, the Paperwhite, for 26% off.
The fun doesn’t have to end here. After reading the newsletter, head over to our games page. Games refresh with new challenges every day at 6 a.m. from crossword puzzle to Sudoku to themed word search.
I’ll admit, horror movies are not my thing. But there’s good news for scaredy cats like me. We can still get in on the trendy “Summerween” fun tomorrow evening in a much less frightening setting — The Whale is hosting a Halloween-themed bash at its West Asheville location, with watermelon painting, s’mores, games and crafts, and plenty of tricks and treats.
}})
