Monday, Feb. 14
Valentine”s at the Library — Friends of the Columbus-Lowndes Public Library invite their members and the public to an annual appreciation at 7 p.m. in the library meeting room, 314 Seventh St. N. Enjoy refreshments, door prizes and entertainment by “Harmony and G.R.I.T.S.,” a female barbershop quartet. In addition, Debra Atkins, Cherry Dunn and Margaret Mary Henry, accompanied by Lisa Harpole Kropp, will present songs of the season for Valentine”s Day.
Wednesday, Feb. 16
Table Talk — Local historian Rufus Ward headlines the third Friends of the Library Table Talk with a presentation on the Tombigbee riverboat era and the tragic sinking of the “Eliza Battle” in 1858. Bring your lunch at 11:30 a.m.; iced tea provided. Or join friends from noon to 1 p.m. for the program in the library at 314 Seventh St. N. For more information, contact the library at 662-329-5300, or e-mail [email protected].
Friday, Feb. 18
Bryan Library program — Friends of Bryan Public Library in West Point present Dorothy Colom, senior judge for the 14th Chancery Court District of Mississippi, giving a review of Chris Myers Asch”s “Senator and the Sharecropper: The Freedom Struggles of James O. Eastland and Fanny Lou Hamer” at Luncheon with Books at noon. Lunch cost is a $6 donation to the Friends. The library is located at 338 Commerce St. For more information, contact the library at 662-494-4872.
Thursday through Saturday, Feb. 17-19
Magnolia Film Festival — The “Mag” will premier 32 selected independent films at Hollywood Premier Cinema, Starkville, at 7 p.m. nightly, plus 2 p.m. Saturday ($10 per session). The festival includes a free workshop with Canadian filmmaker Patricia Chica and a discussion and book signing with Amory native Sam Haskell, former Worldwide Head of Television for the William Morris Agency. For more information, visit www.magfilmfest.com.
Friday, Feb. 18
MSU Showcase — The Mississippi State University Department of Music will hold a student scholarship benefit at Bettersworth Auditorium in Lee Hall on the MSU campus from 7:30-10:30 p.m., featuring student soloists and ensembles. Tickets at the door are $10; or $5 for students and faculty. A reception follows the performance. For more information, contact Dr. Rebecca Wascoe at 662-325-8775.
Saturday, Feb. 19
Collegiate Exhibition reception — A public reception from 2-4 p.m. in the Eugenia Summer Gallery in the Mississippi University for Women Art and Design Building celebrates the Mississippi Collegiate Art Exhibition, being hosted for the first time at MUW. The exhibit of 200 pieces from students at Mississippi universities will be on display Feb. 16-March 17, Monday through Friday, from 10 a.m.-4 p.m.
Wednesday, Feb. 23
Table Talk — Nationally-known, critically-acclaimed Civil War historian Dr. John F. Marzalek concludes the Friends of the Library speaker series with “Ulysses S. Grant Returns to Mississippi,” a discussion of the Grant presidential papers housed at Mississippi State University. Bring lunch at 11:30 a.m.; iced tea provided. Or join friends for the program noon-1 p.m. at the library, 314 Seventh St. N. For information, call 662-329-5300, or e-mail [email protected].
Now through Feb. 24
Mississippi Women — The traveling exhibit, “Inspiring the Next Generation: Exceptional Mississippi Women,” is on display at the Columbus-Lowndes Public Library, 314 Seventh St. N. Produced by the Museum Division of the Mississippi Department of Archives and History, it highlights a former slave turned concert performer, a Pulitzer Prize-winning author, a five-time Olympian and many more outstanding women.
Thursday through Saturday, Feb. 24-26
“Quilters” — The Mississippi University for Women Department of Music and Theatre presents “Quilters,” a Tony-nominated musical tale of a frontier mother and her six daughters who patch their family history together through music, story and dance. Shows are at 7:30 p.m. nightly in the Cromwell Communications Building on the MUW campus. Tickets are $10. For more information, contact the department at 662-329-7341.
“The Diviners” — Theatre MSU at Mississippi State University presents this moving drama, written by Jim Leonard Jr. and set in the 1930s, on the McComas Hall Main Stage on campus at 7:30 p.m. each evening. Tickets are $10 general admission and $5 for students. For more information, contact Theatre MSU at 662-325-3320.
Now through Feb. 28
Winter Scenes exhibit — The Starkville Area Arts Council”s Winter Scenes exhibit in the Greater Starkville Development Partnership lobby at 200 Main St., Starkville, includes interpretations of the season by artists Betty Jane Chatham, Paul Buckley, Briar Jones, Zachry Ashmore, Barbara Walker and Linda Lee Lodato. View the exhibit between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. For more information, contact the SAAC at 662-324-3080.
Tuesday, March 1
The Second City — This renowned improv comedy troupe from Chicago comes to Trotter Convention Center with “Fair and Unbalanced,” a hilarious cutting-edge take on our economic woes, political hopes and what it means to be living in such extraordinary times. The Columbus Arts Council presentation begins at 7 p.m. Tickets are $25 general admission and $50 VIP. A workshop with Second City actors is offered March 2 at the Rosenzweig Arts Center. For more information, contact the arts council at 662-328-2787.
Thursday, March 3
Culinary Arts Luncheons — Mississippi University for Women”s Culinary Arts Institute will present international luncheons March 3 (Asian cuisine) and April 14 (Middle Eastern cuisine), prepared by students of the Institute. Space is limited. Meal cost is $21. For more information and reservations, contact the Institute at 662-241-7472.
Friday, March 4
Catfish in the Alley — Indulge in good food and great blues music at Catfish in the Alley from 5:30-8:30 p.m. on Fourth Street South, between Main and College Streets in downtown Columbus. Entertainment will be by blues artist and harmonica player Scott Albert Johinson. Catfish plates will be $7.50. For more information, contact the Columbus Cultural Heritage Foundation at 800-920-3533 or visit www.columbus-ms.org.
Thursday, March 10
Gordy Honors Series — “The First Steel Magnolia: Bette Davis and the Art of Belledom” will be Dr. Amy Pardo”s topic at the Gordy Honors College Forum Series at 6 p.m. in Nissan Auditorium in Parkinson Hall on the Mississippi University for Women campus. The program is free and open to the public. For more information, contact Dr. Thomas Velek at 662-241-6850, or e-mail [email protected].
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