One of the perks of living close to a university like Duke is that you can attend its free public programming, like the screenings curated by the university’s Cinematic Arts department. Screen/Society programming specializes in “theatrical premieres of global and independent art films and repertory programs, including international classics, Hollywood genre works, and director retrospectives” and takes place most weekends during the school year—though be forewarned, seats fill up fast. On Thursday, catch Icelandic film The Love That Remains early into its international release. Critics are saying there is an “undertow of melancholy” and “surrealism” to filmmaker Hlynur Pálmason’s portrait of a marriage—which checks out, given that it’s set in the remote Icelandic countryside. Bonus: this screening takes place on Thursday, prior to predicted local snowfall. —Sarah Edwards
Three words: Renée f-ing Fleming. Stop by Memorial Hall to hear the famous soprano make her Carolina Performing Arts debut with “Voice of Nature: the Anthropocene,” a recital inspired by her 2021 Grammy-winning album. The program includes selections from the likes of 18th-century German Baroque composer Handel to, well, Björk. I have no idea what those two have in common, but if I know one thing about Fleming, it’s that she will sound excellent as she sings whatever the hell she’s singing. Separately, you can catch her on January 23 in conversation with UNC neuroscientists for a conversation on the intersection of medicine and the arts. —Chase Pellegrini de Paur
The Great Cover Up, hosted by Paul Siler and one of Raleigh’s oldest live music traditions, is a difficult event to blurb, as its billing is predicated on mystery: You go to it knowing you’ll see see local bands going all-out on cover sets of world-famous bands, though which local bands and which international acts are not revealed until you show up at Kings. So show up! If you can. (Snow?). Entry has a suggested donation of $10-$12, and all proceeds go to “various organizations in The Triangle and beyond who are working to help people who are struggling,” per the event website. To learn more about The Great Cover Up (which has been going strong since 1999!), you can seek out the documentary about it. —SE
Award-winning poet Diamond Forde, an assistant professor at NC State, will read from her new collection, The Book of Alice, and talk with fellow poet Tyree Daye at this release event. The Book of Alice, Forde’s second collection, is winner of the 2025 James Laughlin Award from The Academy of American Poets and has garnered plenty of buzz, ahead of its release this month.
For good reason: Both concept and execution are exceptional in this book, in which Forde uses the Bible she inherited from her grandmother, Alice, as a powerful framework through which to imagine the complicated life and legacy of her grandmother, a Black woman born in the Jim Crow South. Forde uses Biblical narratives, family recipes, and census reports to untangle family dynamics and give rich lyrical voice to the unsaid. Those who would like a reserved seat can buy a $22.44 ticket, which comes with a copy of the book. —SE
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