Chapel Hill
Jacob Lawrence and the Legend of John Brown and Felrath Hines, About Color

Ackland Museum of Art, UNC CampusJacob Lawrence gained recognition for his 1941 Great Migration series, which depicts African-Americans’ mass exodus from the South. (The migration held personal value for Lawrence, whose parents were among the first to migrate during the 1916–1919 wave.) His distinctive style of color-blocked planes and sharp points, which Lawrence called “dynamic cubism,” combined with vibrant colors, remains iconic today. The Legend of John Brown encompasses 22 gouache paintings of the 19th-century abolitionist and freedom fighter. Robert Hayden’s poem “John Brown” will accompany the series. Ackland’s exhibition pairs Lawrence with Felrath Hines, an abstract artist who deals in large-scale flat planes and simple geometric shapes. The event begins at 5:30 p.m. Tickets are $10 for the Friends of African and African American Art, $15 for North Carolina Museum of Art members and $20 for everyone else. For more information, visit www.ackland.org or call 966-5736. Sarah Ewald

Durham
An Evening of Entertainment

Durham Performing Arts CenterFor the 31st year, hundreds of students from the Durham Public School System will gather to celebrate the two “chors” of performance: chorus and choreography. And for the second year, it’ll have a big stageliterally and, because of the locale, figuratively, toowith the sponsorship of Duke Energy affording these students the opportunity to showcase their talents at the Durham Performing Arts Center. The music and moves will range wide, with the promise of tributes to both The Sound of Music‘s half-decade of existence and Michael Jackson’s Thriller (and its 26 years on MTV). As far as getting the young people ready for the stage, the names out front are conductor Dr. Rollo Dilworth from Temple University and choreographers Becky Bartlett from Texas and Annette Layman from Durham. Trust that there are countless more behind the scenes. The big show starts at 7 p.m., and tickets are $10–$25, with the proceeds supporting scholarships for Durham Public Schools seniors. See www.dpacnc.com. Rick Cornell