Thanks to our sponsor: The Nasher Museum is proud to present María Magdalena Campos-Pons: Behold, María Magdalena Campos-Pons: Behold. The exhibition spans nearly four decades of the artist’s work in photography, installation, video, painting and performance. Her practice embraces the eye of the artist as a tool for witnessing the world with beauty, care and empathy. Admission is free!
Hi! Happy weekend.
If you feel an electrical frequency in the air, this weekend, it might have something to do with State Fans preparing for a monumental NCAA weekend: the women’s team will face South Carolina on Friday and the men will square off with Purdue on Saturday. The New York Times declares Raleigh the “epicenter of college basketball.” Let it be so!
Or maybe that electricity is anticipation for Dreamville, where Reuben Vincent will be taking the stage at 1 p.m. tomorrow to kick off the two-day event with headliners SZA, Nicki Minaj, J. Cole, and 50 Cent (bye, Chris Brown!). Option three: Maybe it’s the magic of Full Frame Documentary Film Festival, back in-person after five years and where, last night, the crowd for opening night film Girls State wound around the block. (Festival magic testimonial: Standing in line, I made an offhand comment to my boyfriend about how I wanted to buy one of Full Frame’s extremely sturdy tote bags; in front of us, a stranger turned around, handed me one, said “I somehow have an extra,” and turned back around.)
Below the fold, find our picks for both festivals, as well as filmmaker interviews, album reviews, and more. Thank you for reading!
If you’re going to Dreamville tomorrow, this may be your view (though probably not from this angle). Photo courtesy of Dreamville.
elsewhere in the culture section
Glenn McDonald has a sampler of Full Frame’s feature-length films, with recommendations that include Red Whiteville and Blue (directed by former INDY photographer D.L. Anderson) and Union, a documentary that follows Amazon warehouse employee Chris Smalls on his journey to unionize the behemoth.
Lena Geller interviewed Girls State directors Jesse Moss and Amanda McBaine. I thought the film—which is about a government camp for teenage girls as they aspire toward public office, just weeks before Roe v. Wade was overturned—was exceptional. It also dovetailed (in an odd, sad way) with Knock Down the House, a documentary about junior congresswomen hopefuls like Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Cori Bush. It showed at the last in-person Full Frame, in 2019—a time when reproductive rights were not under the concerted attack they are now.
And Justin Laidlaw spoke with Jennifer MacArthur, director of Family Roots, a documentary that follows two Black families in North Carolina as they fight to protect their land. Laidlaw writes that the film is a “compelling balance between a call to action to protect our climate future and a reflection on the importance of human connection.” For more on Full Frame, I went on Due South’s Friday news round-up to chat about this weekend’s dual festivals. (Be kind – I’ve never been a radio guest before!).
Dreamville: Ryan Cocca is on the ground at the J. Cole extravaganza, this weekend; ahead of it, he wrote up a preview of North Carolina acts to see, and a few acts we hope are on the schedule next year. Cocca writes: “As the state continues to bubble as a rich but perennially slept-on hotbed for hip-hop talent, countless careers are ready to be kickstarted and cemented at the state’s marquee event if Dreamville is willing to take the chance on them.”
Finally, we have a review package of recent releases from local bands Cold Cream, Rosali, land is, and Magic Tuber Stringband. If you’re still mourning Pitchfork’s paywall and the ongoing gutting of music journalism, I’d ask (implore, even!) you to read and share these pieces that dig into that good, good local music stuff.
out and about in the triangle
Durham has a new farmer’s market: the North Durham Farmer’s Market, located in Bragtown, launches tomorrow, April 6, at 1016 Old Oxford Road’s Soul Sanctuary. There are many reasons to be excited about this market: According to organizer Helena Cragg, the market aims to center “BIPOC, LGBTQIA+, and Women-led” businesses and will have 25 vendors. It also runs from 12-4 pm, making it a nice Saturday afternoon errand stop. Learn more here.
What else? The Saturday’s in Saxapahaw summer concert series lineup is live. The Avett Brothers have a new song out. Local band No One Mind—which you may recognize from past INDY coverage—has a new music video out, as part of a dual release with Organos.
The Durham Food Hall is getting a new concept, Patty Boy, from the owners of Ex-Voto. Scott Crawford’s Crawford & Sons is a finalist in the James Beard Award’s “Outstanding Hospitality” category and the Ibarra brothers are bringing a rooftop restaurant called The Lenny to Durham. As a refresher, Crawford recently opened two new ventures: Croatian-Italian eatery Brodeto, at Raleigh Iron Works, and cocktail bar Sous Terre.
In Raleigh, popular plant shop Logan’s Garden Shop is relocating to the NC State Farmer’s Market in early 2025. Black-owned children’s bookshop the Liberation Station is closing on April 13 and leaving downtown Raleigh—due, business owners say, to threats. In an interview with the News & Observer, owner Victoria-Scott Miller expressed frustration, stating that there is a “disconnect, in the human experience, in particular, the experiences of Black business owners in the city.”
out and about in the world
Nothing today. Have a lovely weekend and thank you for reading our paper!
— Sarah Edwards —
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