Compiled by Carissa Joines

Spring is in full swing in Camel City, and our friends and neighbors have planned a full weekend of activities to help you get out and enjoy the warmer weather and longer nights. Whether you want to kick out to some local music or kick back and watch an independent film, we are sure there is something for everyone to do this weekend. CCD has compiled a list of some of the many events going on in town to make your planning a little easier. Don’t forget to check out Nathan’s weather forecast before you leave the house!

Twin City Stage presents The Great Gatsby, Friday and Saturday at 8pm and Sunday at 2pm. Twin City Stage is excited to be the first community or professional theatre in North Carolina to produce the only play adaptation authorized by the Fitzgerald Estate since 1926. Performed at the Arts Council Theater, 610 Coliseum Drive in Winston-Salem. Read CCD’s review of this amazing production HERE  and buy your tickets HERE.

RiverRun International Film Festival continues this weekend with a full slate of films, cartoons for the child in all of us, and meet & greets with filmmakers from around the world. Read about the films CCD has reviewed and recommended HERE, and check out which films you can still grab a ticket to HERE.

Arts & Craft Beer Special Event benefiting Sawtooth School for Visual Art, Friday from 5 to 8 PM.   “Arts & Craft Beer” is an innovative fundraiser that will blend the love of both together to support the Sawtooth Scholarship program.  Attendees will have the opportunity to sample a wide variety of craft beers while watching live studio demos. Several local brewers and retailers have donated beer for the event, including Small Batch.  Tickets will be available at the door for $15 per person, and the entry fee includes unlimited sampling as well as the live art demos and displays.  All proceeds will help fund need-based scholarships to attend classes and workshops at Sawtooth, which is located at 226 North Marshall Street in Winston-Salem. Learn more about Sawtooth HERE.

Phuzz Phest Hangover at the Garage featuring Oh Snap, Jews and Catholics, Desert Noises, and Roadkill Ghost Choir. Under the Big Ass Fan Friday night – Doors at 8, Show at 9. Tickets are $8 in advance or $10 at the door.  Get advance tickets HERE, and learn more about the bands HERE 

March for Babies – Winston-Salem – Support the March of Dimes on Saturday at Corpening Plaza in downtown Winston-Salem. Celebrate healthy babies as you enjoy a day of friendship, food and fun while you walk with companies, schools, and families from Forsyth, Davie, Davidson and Stokes counties. The walk begins at 9:30AM, registration opens at 8:30AM. Corpening Plaza is located at 231 West First Street. For more information, click HERE.

The Jammin Pig BBQ Music Festival is this weekend at the Dixie Classic Fairgrounds. Co-Sponsored by Bib’s Downtown, the Festival will feature acts across the musical spectrum from bluegrass to rock, and host a BBQ competition which will award $10,000 in prize money. True to festival form, the event will offer not only Bib’s well known barbequed meats, but also traditional fairground foods like hotdogs, turkey legs, funnel cakes, fried candy bars, candied apples, and cotton candy. Tickets are $10 at the gate and include parking, admission, rides and entertainment. For more info, click HERE.

Gun Buy Back – The Winston-Salem Police Department will host their second buy back event on Saturday at the First Waughtown Baptist Church from 9am to 1pm. The WSPD’s gun buy-back program is a public-private initiative to increase community safety through a voluntary program to take guns out of circulation. For more information, including most asked questions about the event, read CCD’s story HERE

Winston-Salem Nature Club will be meeting at Historic Bethabara Park Saturday for a spring walk in the woods. Meet at the Visitor’s Center at 10am, and hike along several trails to make a 2 mile loop. Trails are a relatively flat mix of sand, paved greenway and gravel, with several bridge and creek crossings. Not stroller appropriate. Feel free to bring a bucket if your child enjoys collecting nature objects. Boots and clothing that you don’t mind getting wet and dirty are highly recommended! The Winston-Salem Nature Club focuses on providing outdoor activities for pre-school and young grade school children and their families. Click HERE for a map.

SciWorks Planetarium and Forsyth Astronomical Society will offer a free astronomy observation in the SciWorks parking lot on Saturday from 8-10:30 pm. Participants will have the opportunity to view the night sky using professional-grade telescopes while they learn about the spring constellations, several deep-sky objects, and next week’s lunar eclipse. For more information, read CCD’s story HERE.

Reynolda House Museum of American Art is hosting Community Day on Saturday from 12:00pm – 3:00pm. See the American Moderns exhibit now on display with works from Georgia O’Keefe to Norman Rockwell, as well as the once-every-two-year return of the “Written with Water: American Watercolors from Homer to Close” exhibition that opens this Saturday. This free event will be an enjoyable afternoon of art, music, and dance featuring the Matt Kendrick Jazz Unit and selections from Martha Graham’s ballet Appalachian Spring, performed by the Winston-Salem Festival Ballet. Art activities, a scavenger hunt for children, henna artists, and food vendors on the lawn will make it a perfect spring outing for all families. See a full schedule of the day’s activities HERE

The Burke Street Food Truck Festival is back! Saturday from 4-8pm Burke Street will be lined with Food Trucks from around the state and many shops along the Street will be open extended hours to help you work off those extra calories by supporting local businesses. The line-up includes : Baguettaboutit – Durham; Bandito Burrito Truck – Greensboro; Camel City Grill – Winston-Salem; D’s Cakes In A Cup & More, LLC – Concord; The Great Escape Catering Co. – Greensboro; Hibachi Xpress – Cary; The Ice Queen – Greensboro; King Creole – Burlington; Mike & Mike’s Italian Ices – Winston-Salem; Taqueria El Azteca – Greensboro; Truckin’ with Tipsy’z – High Point; I Love Stameys Barbecue – Greensboro; Swirly’s Smoothies – Winston-Salem; Urban street grill – Reidsville; Wright Up Ur Galley – Greensboro.

SciWorks will present its annual SciFest from 1-5 pm on Sunday.  Visitors will enjoy a variety of activities including live animal programs, hands-on chemistry demonstrations, wildflower ID hikes, planetarium shows and more, including a sheep-shearing demonstration and the opportunity to meet some adorable baby chicks. All activities are included with museum admission. For more information, read CCD’s story on SciFest HERE

If you would like to have your event included in CCD’s weekend guide, send the details, including links to any event pages, to submissions AT CamelCityDispatch.com