COLUMN: Cherry Blossom Festival kicks off busy weekend in Macon

The “Pinkest Party on Earth” starts today with all the International Cherry Blossom Festival has to offer – from beautifully blooming Yoshino cherry trees along sunny streets to flamboyantly colorful hot-air-balloons and fireworks in the night sky, from evening concerts to pink breakfast pancakes, and from rides, food, shows and human cannonballs to just about everything else.

You can get a full rundown of the many ways to enjoy the festival at their website, cherryblossom.com.

There’s plenty to do in the days ahead, here are a few highlights. Some are connected to the festival and some not.

— The Ocmulgee Artist Guild’s “Red Tie Affair: Ides of March” exhibit is today from 6 p.m. to midnight at 392 2nd St. The art show and sale – and dress-up party – is the guild’s first in two years. Known for pop-ups in transformed, empty downtown spaces, previous event titles included “Euphoria” and “Dysphoria.” According to guild president Colin Penndorf, they all have a “phantasmagorical” bent with this one having a “modernist, post-modernist, Romanesque flavor as befitting this time of year.”

The guild’s shows offer traditional oil and acrylic paintings, photography, hand-made prints, multimedia works and collages plus a smattering of three-dimensional pieces. Penndorf said the group is known for unique and at times provocative work. All of it is by locals.

Greatly encouraged, but not required, is coming in formal-ish red tie attire with men in black, women in white and all adding a pop of red accent.

“We’re just so happy to be able to do the show now with the exact same theme that was canceled two years ago,” Penndorf said. “It’s great for the art, great as an evening to enjoy and really great to pull the artistic community together again for an event. And now that we’re getting going again, we have a lot of plans for the coming months and years.”

Admission is free but donations are welcomed. Penndorf said artwork prices are affordable and tiered so there’s something for everyone. Proceeds go to the guild, its artists, staff, volunteers and to fund future exhibits.

All ages are welcome with drinks available to those 21-plus. Penndorf said families with young children are welcome but they should probably visit earlier in the evening. Find more on the show and the guild at www.facebook.com/ocmulgeeartistguild.

— “Broadway Does the ’80s: A Cabaret” at the Grand Opera House, 651 Mulberry St., with shows at 6:30 p.m. and 8:30 p.m. today. Tickets are $10 at the Grand or www.thegrandmacon.com.

“This is a mix of Broadway tunes and pop music from the ‘80s, a good era for Andrew Lloyd Weber and Stephen Sondheim tunes and hits by Michael Jackson, Prince, Cyndi Lauper, Wham and others,” said the Grand and Mercer University’s Julia Rubens.

With COVID putting an end to Broadway-style and other shows coming to the Grand during the pandemic, the cabaret evenings were first performed outdoors on the theater’s fire escape by local talents as a way to entertain audiences seated in the west parking lot.

The shows were such a hit the Grand has kept them but moved them inside.

“And they’re a good way of letting people know that the doors at the Grand are open wide to everyone in our community,” Rubens said. “It’s a great way to feature local talent. People are surprised to see their neighbors up there performing and how talented they are.”

Rubens said a particularly relevant number is “Anthem” from the musical “Chess” which portrayed tensions of the Cold War during the 1980s. Written by Tim Rice, Benny Andersson and ABBA’s Björn Ulvaeus, the song is performed by the Grand’s own Chas Pridgen who heads up ticketing services.

“In light of current events, I think people will be quite touched by it,” Rubens said.

— Also at the Grand on March 24, and with a Macon-Japan-Cherry trees connection, is the Kenny Endo Taiko Ensemble. Endo is the first Westerner granted a license to perform traditional Japanese taiko drumming. The evening includes traditional taiko drumming and contemporary works featuring jazz vibraphone, electric violin, Hawaiian ukulele and traditional Japanese instruments all played with a rock and jazz energy. Tickets are $20-25.

— Lantern Light Tours at Ocmulgee Mounds National Historical Park, 1207 Emery Hwy. This is a popular family-favorite during the Cherry Blossom Festival. Hour-long lantern walking tours begin every 10 minutes starting at 7:30 p.m. today and Saturday with more walks set next weekend, March 25-26. Tickets are $6 and reservations must be made. Ticketing and information are at www.facebook.com/ocmulgeemoundsnps. Face masks are required while in the visitor center and Earth Lodge and social distancing is encouraged on the walk.

-Educational Nature Walk at the Wesleyan College Arboretum, 10 a.m. Saturday, presented by Ocmulgee Outfitters in conjunction with the Wesleyan Nature Club. Neighborhoods in the Wesleyan area are great spots for cherry blossoms and the walk is a great opportunity to see Wesleyan’s nature trails and learn about the flora and fauna of the arboretum. The event is free and doesn’t require registration. The walk begins at the Murphy entrance near Wesleyan’s parking lot “B.”

Contact writer Michael W. Pannell at mwpannell@gmail.com.