It’s the Berries
The North Carolina Blueberry Festival will take place in historic downtown Burgaw, and berries are just the beginning. Among the highlights: a whole-hog BBQ cookoff, a beer and wine garden, the Tour de Blueberry Bike ride, the Jones Sisters Band, a 5K run and 1K walk, car and truck and model train shows . . . and the list goes on. Blueberry lovers will find pies galore as well as fresh berries from local farms and a blueberry recipe contest. More than 30,000 people attended last year’s festival — plan to spend the day. Admission: Free. June 14 and 15. Friday, 6 a.m. – 10 p.m.; Saturday, 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. Downtown Burgaw, US 17 Business and Wilmington Street. For info: ncblueberryfestival.com.
Harp And Soul
The Wilmington Symphony Orchestra presents the Masterworks Concert “Strings & Harp,” an evening that features the talented harpists Christina Brier and Kathryn Sloat, otherwise known as Lilac 94. As the Star-News noted, these are not your grandmother’s harpists: “Brier and Sloat hit their soundboards, pound their harps with mallets, slap their strings, and generally make a ruckus.” Lilac 94 will perform Karl Jenkins’ Over the Stone and Rachmaninoff’s romantic work Symphony No. 2. Tickets: $17-$47. June 2, 5 p.m. Wilson Center, 703 N. Third St., Wilmington. For info: (910) 362-7999 or cfcc.edu.
Fins Up!
Come root for the home team as the Wilmington Sharks take on the Fayetteville Swamp Dogs. It’s a special Jaws-N-Paws night, so all dogs are welcome for a night of great baseball. Tickets: $7-$11. June 10, 7:05 p.m. Buck Hardie Field-Legion Sports Complex, 2149 Carolina Beach Road, Wilmington. For info: wilmingtonsharks.com.
The Blues Have It
The 24th annual Cape Fear Blues Festival features the region’s finest bluesmen and women jamming the day away. This year’s events include a blues workshop at Finkelstein’s downtown and an outdoor afternoon blues jam under the tent at the Rusty Nail. Food and drinks will be available. Bring your lawn chair! Featured acts include Scott Ellison Band, the Rhythm Bones, the Fat Bastard Blues Band and Catesby Jones. Evening performance by the Nashville-based Mike Hayes Band. June 21-23. Various locations. For tickets and info: (910) 350-8822 or capefearblues.org.
Port City Music Festival
The Port City Music Festival’s mission is to “provide great music that is accessible to all” — and the 11th annual edition fulfills this promise. This year’s offerings include orchestral works by Franz Schubert, Victor Herbert’s Three Pieces for Cello and Piano, and a performance of Gian Carlo Menotti’s The Telephone. On Saturday, June 8, there will be a Rising Stars Masterclass concert. Admission: Free. June 3-9. Various locations throughout Wilmington. See website for details. For info: (910) 239-9450 or portcitymusicfestival.org.
A Bird’s-Eye View
The Wrightsville Beach Bird Stewards will host an Audubon Bird Walk at the south end of Wrightsville Beach, where more than 200 black skinners, seven American oystercatchers, and 25 lease terns have visited recently to look for suitable nesting areas. Stewards will provide spotting scopes. Admission to the walk is free, but there is a parking fee. June 10, 9 a.m. Wrightsville Beach Public Access No. 43, Jack Parker Blvd., Wrightsville Beach.
A Walk Through Black History
Historian Imam Abdul Rahman Shareef will lead a 2-mile Black History Hike through downtown Wilmington. Departing from the MLK Center, the group will visit such important sites as the Gregory Congregational Church — an important meeting place for the Wilmington Ten — and the Williston Normal School on 10th Street. Admission: Free. Registration required. June 6, 10 a.m. MLK Jr Community Center, 401 S. 8th St., Wilmington. For info: (910) 254-0907 or tinyurl.com/y3lsnhps.
Shagadelic
The Pleasure Island Chamber of Commerce presents the 34th annual Carolina Beach Music Festival, one of the longest-running beachfront celebrations in the country. You can shag away the day to the music of three different beach music bands: Band of Oz, 11 a.m.-12:30 p.m.; the Black Water Rhythm & Blues Band, 1-2:30 p.m.; and Jim Quick and Coastline from 3 to 4:30 p.m. Tickets: $25-$30. June 1, 10 a.m. Carolina Beach Boardwalk, Cape Fear Blvd., Carolina Beach. For info: (910) 458-8434 or pleasureislandnc.org.
