4th of July Parade & Festival
2026-07-04 10:00 - 16:00 (America/Halifax) | Downtown Blowing Rock, 132 Park Avenue, Blowing Rock, NC, 28605, United States
The best small-town holiday parade around! Come early for the parade and enjoy the festive atmosphere in town for the afternoon with games and music in Memorial Park!
*note* Main Street will not have parking available on the morning of the parade, to allow more space and visibility for spectators! Parking will re-open just after the parade’s end.
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July 4th Fireworks Extravaganza!
2026-07-04 21:30 - 22:00 | Tweetsie Railroad, 300 Tweetsie Railroad Lane, Blowing Rock, NC, 28605, United States
On Saturday, July 4th, Tweetsie Railroad will be open extended hours, from 10:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. Fireworks begin at 9:30 p.m., in honor of the nation’s birthday, as well as the 69th anniversary of the opening of the Tweetsie Railroad theme park (established July 4, 1957).
Fireworks Viewing Information

The park is open with extended hours, from 10:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m., providing extra shows and opportunities to enjoy all the park has to offer.
Guests must exit the park by 9:00 p.m. to watch the fireworks from the parking lot.
There is no re-entry to the park after 9:00 p.m.
Fireworks viewing is free and does not require a park admission fee.
Guests are encouraged to bring lawn chairs and blankets.
Parking is free, just as all other days. Please note the parking lot is large but does fill up, so arriving early is recommended.

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Thurston Howell
2026-07-05 19:00 - 21:00 | Appalachian Theatre of the High Country, 559 West King Street, Boone, NC, 28607, United States
The historic Appalachian Theatre welcomes you aboard on a smooth voyage with Charlotte’s own Thurston Howell, Your Premier Yacht Rock Spectacular!
Picture this: a musical escapade that whisks you away on a nostalgic odyssey through the smooth sounds of the 70s and 80s, sprinkled with a dash of modern zest. The bridge crew of Captain J.P. “Silky” Lents on keys, alongside the dynamic duo of First Mate Cameron Love on guitar and Activities Director Leona Love on percussion, will have you feeling the wind in your hair with their soaring vocals! And the engine room rhythm section of Commodore Jasper Tenpenny on bass, Phineas Wigglesworth IX on drums, and Dr. Artemis Thatch on Sax, will have you dancing the night away on the deck! Thurston Howell crafts a symphony of classic hits all night long, from Toto and Michael McDonald, all the way to Hall and Oates and Steely Dan!
So, rally your crew, head to the edge of the dock, and climb aboard with the crew of the Thurston Howell. Because You Can’t Fake SMOOTH!
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Artists in Residence: Bernie Rosage Jr. & Gina Marrale
2026-07-06 10:00 - 2026-07-12 17:00 | Edgewood Cottage, 115 Ginny Stevens Ln., Blowing Rock, NC, 28605, United States
Come to Edgewood Cottage and see local artists work in person! Talk to them and learn more about their process. Purchase their art directly and support them and the Artists in Residence program!
Bernie Rosage Jr., Paint
Gina Marrale, Paint
Website

Monday Night Concert Series
2026-07-06 18:30 - 20:30 | Broyhill Park, 173 Lakeside Drive, Blowing Rock, NC, 28605
The first concert of the series is held on July 6, 2026 and runs through August 3, 2026. The concerts are located at 173 Lakeside Dr. Blowing Rock, NC 28605 and are set up in the gazebo at Broyhill Park. They begin at 6:30 pm, run approximately one to two hours, and are free and open to the public. Performances will cover a little bit of everything from jazz, to country, to show tunes. Attendees will want to bring lawn chairs or blankets for seating comfort.
2026 Concert Line Up!
July 6 – Scarlet Lemonade Band
July 13 – Steve Sensenig
July 20 – 3 Toe Possum
July 27 – Carmen Tate
Aug. 3 – Surefire

Please note that the lineup is subject to change.

Gladys Knight
2026-07-08 19:30 - 21:30 | Schaefer Center for the Performing Arts, 733 Rivers Street, Boone, NC, 28607, United States
The great ones endure, and Gladys Knight has long been one of the greatest. Very few singers over the last 60 years have matched her unassailable artistry. This seven-time GRAMMY Award winner has enjoyed #1 hits in Pop, Gospel, R&B, and Adult Contemporary, and has triumphed in film, television, and live performance.
All told, Knight has recorded more than 38 albums over the years, including four solo albums: Good Woman (1991); Just for You (1994); the inspirational Many Different Roads (1999); and At Last (2001).
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Grandfather Mountain Highland Games
2026-07-09 08:00 - 2026-07-12 16:00 | Grandfather Mountain, 2050 Blowing Rock Highway, Linville, NC, 28646
Blaring bagpipes, astounding athletes, delicate dancers, rocking Celtic music and a spectacular highland setting makes this colorful celebration of Scottish culture the best highland games in America. Admission charged.
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Use Your Brain - For a Change
2026-07-09 18:00 - 19:00 | Blowing Rock Art & History Museum, 159 Ginny Stevens Lane, Blowing Rock, NC, 28605, United States
We are constantly hearing how powerful our brain is. But we’re not being given the necessary knowledge about how to easily tap into our brain’s potential. In “Use Your Brain – For a Change” you’ll: Learn Intriguing information about how your brain actually works. And learn how art can help you “change your mind!”
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Cork & Canvas
2026-07-10 16:00 - 18:00 | Blowing Rock Art & History Museum, 159 Ginny Stevens Lane, Blowing Rock, NC, 28605, United States
Learn to paint in a relaxed atmosphere, inspired by Le Chemin a travers les champs by Jean Metzinger. Each participant goes home with a finished work of art. All materials, including canvases, acrylic paint, brushes, and aprons, are provided. A trained instructor will lead you step-by-step.
Wine, beer, and light snacks are complimentary.

Straight No Chaser Beach Bash
2026-07-10 19:30 - 21:30 | Schaefer Center for the Performing Arts, 733 Rivers Street, Boone, NC, 28607, United States
If the phrase “male a cappella group” conjures up an image of students in blue blazers, ties, and khakis singing traditional college songs on ivied campuses… think again. Straight No Chaser (SNC) are neither strait-laced nor straight-faced, but neither are they vaudeville-style kitsch. They have emerged as a phenomenon with a massive fanbase and a long list of accomplishments including 2 RIAA Gold Certified albums, over 1.5 million concert tickets sold, over 1 billion streams on Pandora, and over 2 million albums sold worldwide. Straight No Chaser is the real deal, the captivating sound of nine unadulterated human voices coming together to make extraordinary music that is moving people in a fundamental sense… and with a sense of humor.
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Sit & Stitch
2026-07-11 11:00 - 12:00 | Blowing Rock Art & History Museum, 159 Ginny Stevens Lane, Blowing Rock, NC, 28605, United States
Image Credit: This image is created with the assistance of DALL-E generative AI, 2024
Bring your own supplies and projects to work on and workshop with the group! Bring friends or make new ones.
Ready to start a new project? Sit and Stitch will meet the first Saturday of every month.
Admission is free for everyone.
Website

Lunch & Learn: A Slow Art Experience
2026-07-11 12:00 - 13:00 | Blowing Rock Art & History Museum, 159 Ginny Stevens Lane, Blowing Rock, NC, 28605, United States
Take time for yourself for a special series we are calling Lunch & Learn: A Slow Art Experience.
What is Slow Art?
Most of us stroll through an art gallery, pausing at a piece of art for a few moments before moving on to the next, like some form of visual buffet. Slow Art as a concept was created to encourage us all to stay with the art for a little longer, savor, and soak it in. The hope is that we not only see more, but also get to know the works in greater detail. Exploring artworks more slowly can help us to form more stories, feelings, and opinions about the works.
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The Embers Featuring Craig Woolard
2026-07-11 19:30 - 22:00 | Appalachian Theatre of the High Country, 559 West King Street, Boone, NC, 28607, United States
The Embers boast numerous albums and single releases that span decades and all the crazes continuing to exhibit top quality showmanship, musicianship and professionalism. Having been inducted into the South Carolina Rhythm and Blues Hall of Fame and the South Carolina Beach Music Hall of Fame, The Embers are honored to carry the moniker of North Carolina’s Official Ambassadors of Music.
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High Country Jazz Society: Michelle Amato Quartet
2026-07-12 17:00 - 19:00 | Appalachian Theatre of the High Country, 559 West King Street, Boone, NC, 28607, United States
Michelle Amato Quartet – Michelle Amato returns to the High Country to share more of her extensive repertoire from The Great American Songbook, as well as jazz and pop favorites from around the world. an American vocalist; she trained at the University of Miami School of Music. She has toured and/or recorded with numerous artists including Quincy Jones, Jon Secada, Liza Minnelli, Al Green, Sandi Patti, Jon Hendricks, Donna Summer, Michael McDonald, Celia Cruz, Rita Marley, and has been a featured soloist with the Memphis Symphony and the South Florida Pops.
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Artists in Residence: Miriam Esteve & Waitsel Smith
2026-07-13 10:00 - 2026-07-19 17:00 | Edgewood Cottage, 115 Ginny Stevens Ln., Blowing Rock, NC, 28605, United States
Come to Edgewood Cottage and see local artists work in person! Talk to them and learn more about their process. Purchase their art directly and support them and the Artists in Residence program!
Miriam Esteve, Painter
Waitsel Smith, Painter
Website

Protecting Our Horizon Lines with The Blue Ridge Conservancy
2026-07-16 11:00 - 12:00
In this program you’ll get a chance to meet a few of the Blue Ridge Conservancy team who are working to protect the places we love. We’ll get updates on some of their major projects like the Middle Fork Greenway, Northern Peaks State Trail, The Knob Boulders and Nature Preserve, and the BRC Conservation Campus.
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Complexions Contemporary Ballet
2026-07-16 19:30 - 21:30 | Schaefer Center for the Performing Arts, 733 Rivers Street, Boone, NC, 28607, United States
Complexions Contemporary Ballet explodes onto the stage with boundary-breaking artistry under visionaries Dwight Rhoden and Desmond Richardson. Raw athleticism meets sleek precision, where 16 powerful dancers command the stage with fierce grace and technical brilliance that’ll leave you breathless. The first act features a mixed repertory that spans Complexions’ 31 years as a company, followed by act two, LOVE ROCKS — set to the electric, guitar-driven anthems of Grammy legend Lenny Kravitz. Feel the energy in a vibrant celebration of love, diversity, and everything that makes us human.
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Doc & Rosa Lee Watson MusicFest
2026-07-17 19:00 - 22:00 | Appalachian Theatre of the High Country, 559 West King Street, Boone, NC, 28607, United States
Doc & Rosa Lee Watson MusicFest is proud to partner with the Appalachian Theatre in downtown Boone, NC once again to bring the legacy of Doc & Rosa Lee Watson to the High Country this summer! While they are still displaced from their festival grounds in Sugar Grove due to Hurricane Helene damage, they didn’t want that to stop this long-running summer music event.
Join App Theatre for the 24th year of MusicFest featuring The Kody Norris Show, The Kruger Brothers and Blue Highway! All proceeds will directly support Doc & Rosa Lee Watson MusicFest and its future festivals.
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Symphony
2026-07-17 19:00 - 22:00 | Appalachian Ski Mountain, 940 Ski Mountain Road, Blowing Rock, NC, 28605, United States
A night under the stars filled with pop and orchestral music. Firework Finale!
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Weaving our Heritage: Cherokee Baskets Exhibition Opening
2026-07-18 14:00 - 15:00 | Blowing Rock Art & History Museum, 159 Ginny Stevens Lane, Blowing Rock, NC, 28605, United States
Join BRAHM to celebrate the opening of our next exhibition, ᏔᎷᏥ ᏕᎬᏍᎬ ᎣᎩᎲᎢ Weaving our Heritage: Cherokee Baskets. The opening reception will begin in the BRAHM community meeting room for refreshments and a conversation with exhibition curator, Anna Fareillo. The framing conversation will discuss the traditions and innovations of Cherokee baskets. As well as how the artist’s work is a reflection of economic, environmental, and cultural influences.
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Contra Dance
2026-07-18 18:30 - 22:00 | American Legion, 333 Wallingford Rd, Blowing Rock, NC, 28605, United States
Dances held monthly
Location: Legion Hall in Blowing Rock
Time: 7:00 – 10:00 PM
New Dancers Workshop at 6:30 PM
$10 suggested donation. Please bring cash.
New Dancers, please come on time to the 6:30PM lesson. You will have more fun if you know some basic moves and what to expect. Take into consideration that Downtown Blowing Rock parking can be hard to find sometimes, so adjust your arrival accordingly.
Website

Darren Criss
2026-07-18 19:30 - 21:30 | Schaefer Center for the Performing Arts, 733 Rivers Street, Boone, NC, 28607, United States
Since bursting onto the pop-culture landscape over a decade ago in Fox’s hit TV show Glee, Emmy and Golden Globe winner Darren Criss has embodied the kind of kaleidoscopic artistry that’s entirely uninhibited by form or genre. For this concert, Darren will be performing well-known songs featured throughout his wildly eclectic career as both a songwriter and performer, including those from Glee, Starkid and the Broadway shows he’s starred in.
Criss is currently starring in the Tony Award-winning Broadway hit Maybe Happy Ending, directed by Michael Arden. Now playing at the Belasco Theatre, the production opened to rave reviews and earned him the Tony Award for Best Leading Actor.
Website

Alair Concert in the Park
2026-07-19 13:00 - 15:00 | Memorial Park, 1036 Main Street, Blowing Rock, NC, 28605, United States
Mark your calendars for the 2026 Alair Homes High Country Summer Concert Series! Hosted in Downtown Blowing Rock at Memorial Park, this year’s concert series benefits @HungerHealthCoalition’s A Simple Gesture Program.
From 1-3 PM, bring your family and friends to enjoy some great live music and to support the High Country community!
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Artists In Residence: David Nelson Collins & Dezi Beltran
2026-07-20 10:00 - 2026-07-26 17:00 | Edgewood Cottage, 115 Ginny Stevens Ln., Blowing Rock, NC, 28605, United States
Come to Edgewood Cottage and see local artists work in person! Talk to them and learn more about their process. Purchase their art directly and support them and the Artists in Residence program!
David Nelson Collins, Paint
Dezi Beltran, Photography
Website

Blowing Rock Charity Horse Show Hunter/Jumper I
2026-07-21 09:00 - 2026-07-26 18:00 | Broyhill Equestrian Preserve, 1500 Laurel Lane, Blowing Rock, NC, 28605
Competitors clear the course in several Classics and Jumper Divisions! Bring cash for entry and vendors.
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Rick Springfield
2026-07-23 19:30 - 21:30 | Schaefer Center for the Performing Arts, 733 Rivers Street, Boone, NC, 28607, United States
Over the past four decades, Rick Springfield has worn many hats as an entertainer and performer. The creator of some of the finest power-pop of the ’80s, a Grammy-winning singer-songwriter-musician who has sold 25 million albums and scored 17 U.S. Top 40 hits, including “Jessie’s Girl,” “Don’t Talk to Strangers,” “An Affair of the Heart,” “I’ve Done Everything for You,” “Love Somebody,” and “Human Touch.” He’s an accomplished actor who has starred opposite Meryl Streep in the feature film Ricki and the Flash, gave a chameleonic performance as the creepy Dr. Irving Pitlor in HBO’s prestige drama True Detective, earned great reviews for his portrayal of Lucifer on the CW hit Supernatural and most recently played the insane Pastor Charles on FX’s worldwide hit series American Horror Story. An author as well, both his candid 2010 memoir Late, Late at Night (which Rolling Stone named one of the 25 greatest rock memoirs of all time) and his 2014 comedic novel Magnificent Vibration earned rave reviews and spots on the New York Times Best Sellers’ list. In 2014, Springfield was honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, located around the corner from the first apartment he lived in when he first arrived in the U.S. from Australia in 1971. Springfield’s Sirius-XM radio show, Working Class DJ, is a huge hit and airs weekly on ’80s on 8. His new album, Automatic, is his first album of all new original material in five years.
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Blowing Rock Tour of Homes
2026-07-24 09:00 - 16:00 | St. Mary of the Hills Episcopal Church, 140 Chestnut Drive, Blowing Rock, NC, 28605
Save the Date! Tour Blowing Rock’s most notable homes and gardens! Details TBA.
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Live Gem Cutting Demonstration
2026-07-24 11:00 - 14:00 | McCoy Minerals, 537 Main St., Blowing Rock, NC, 28605, United States
Head over to McCoy Minerals and see a rough stone cut into a brilliant gem! The demonstration will be from 11am-2pm and the gemstone will be raffled off to a lucky winner!
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Broom Making Demonstration
2026-07-24 10:00 - 16:00 | Moses Cone Manor, Blowing Rock, NC, 28605, United States
Peter Werner will be demonstrating traditional Appalachian broom-tying, which is how he creates his whisks, cake testers, and large sweepers. This demonstration will be held on the front porch of the the Moses Cone Manor from 10am-4pm.
Visitors are encouraged to watch and ask questions while the demonstrators work and talk about their creative process!
Website

Sip & Shop for a Cause
2026-07-24 12:00 - 16:00 | J. McLaughlin, 1081 Main St, Blowing Rock, NC, 28605
JMcLaughlin and your hosts Donna Mason, Martha Jane Rhyne & Nancy Caldwell would like to invite you to enjoy summer shopping for a cause. 10% of the proceeds will benefit the Blowing Rock Art & History Museum. (BRAHM)
Join them Friday July 24 from 12-4pm for summer Sips and Shopping. If you would like to support and are unable to participate in the event please call JMcLaughlin, Blowing Rock anytime leading up to the event and they will order for you, ship your items with no shipping fee, and make sure your participation is added to this event.
Please do not order online yourself as they are unable to add the proceeds to benefit Casting Bread.
JMcLaughlin
BRAHM
