9 essential Atlanta arts events this weekend
Each week, ArtsATL curates a selection of the most exciting arts and culture events happening in Atlanta this weekend, highlighting nine must-see experiences. Due to this weekend’s weather forecast, please check with the venues before heading out.
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Thursday
Atlanta Symphony Orchestra: America @ 250
A celebration of American music with a program that includes Barber’s Violin Concerto, featuring young violin virtuoso Randall Goosby, and Copland’s Symphony No. 3. Conductor Leonard Slatkin leads the concert that also features his own Schubertiade: An Orchestral Fantasy. Concerts are at 8 p.m. January 29 and January 31.
Carlyle Brown’s The African Company Presents Richard III
Shakespeare Tavern Playhouse will present a return engagement of this Suzi Award-winning play based on the true story of an all-Black theater troupe that fought to perform the Shakespeare tragedy 40 years before the end of slavery. The show runs from January 29 through February 1.
This Southeastern premiere explores what it is to be a queer Black woman in New York, as Octavia, Imani and June rally to “resurrect their fly” in a day full of humorous and painful attempts to be heard through the noise that surrounds them. Catch it at Out Front Theatre January 29 through February 14.
Conor McPherson daringly transforms the cherished songs of Bob Dylan, weaving them into a tale about a group of restless travelers in a modest boarding house during the Great Depression. It’s being presented by Actor’s Express in partnership with Oglethorpe University Theatre, beginning January 29 and continuing through March 8.
The Grammy-winning Icelandic pianist makes his Schwartz Center for Performing Arts debut with a program of Beethoven, Bach and Schubert centered around Beethoven’s Piano Sonata No. 30 in E Major, op. 109, at 8 p.m. January 29.
Friday
A Vietnam War-era stenographer captures the stories of soldiers returning from the front lines in this one-woman show starring beloved Suzi Award-winning Atlanta actress Carolyn Cook at Horizon Theatre. This encore engagement opens on January 30 and continues through February 15.
Atlanta Symphony Orchestra’s new Chamber Music Series
The first concert in the series features works by Mozart, Rossini, Bartók and Janáček. Members of the ASO cello and wind sections are represented with chamber pieces for wind quintet, cello quartet and more. See it on the renovated Goizueta Stage for Youth and Families at 8 p.m. January 30.
Saturday
Into The Burrow: A Peter Rabbit Tale
Hop into a heartwarming new chapter of Beatrix Potter’s timeless world. Perfect for children 12 and younger, this playful stage show is written and directed Mark Valdez and features original songs for a whole new generation. The show opens at the Alliance Theatre on January 31 and continues through June 27.
Sunday
The Atlanta Contemporary presents five new exhibitions beginning February 1 and continuing through May 17. Among them are Unbound Narratives: Embodied Language, which brings together Bethany Collins, February James, a’driane nieves and Gabi Madrid, artists who treat language as something lived, felt and carried within the body. They’ll also debut Georgia Women to Watch 2026: A Book Arts Revolution, which celebrates the book as an artistic medium, showcasing five innovative Georgia artists who are redefining what books can be.
More things to do this weekend
Created by Tony Award-winning director and choreographer Christopher Wheeldon and two-time Pulitzer Prize winner Lynn Nottage, MJ the Musical goes beyond the singular moves and signature sound of the star, offering a look at the creative mind and collaborative spirit that catapulted Michael Jackson into legendary status. It continues at the Fox Theatre through February 1 … Pianist Gloria Chien joins the Vega Quartet for Amy Beach’s Piano Quintet at the Emory Chamber Music Society’s next Emerson Series concert. She’ll be joined by William Ransom for Mozart’s Variations in G for Piano, 4 hands. The concert takes place at 8 p.m. on January 31 in the Emerson Concert Hall at the Schwartz Center for Performing Arts … Based on the award-winning book series by Kim and James Dean, the Center for Puppetry Arts’ Pete the Cat follows the adventures of the skateboarding, surfing, rocking blue cat in an adaptation by Jon Ludwig and Jason Hines. The show opened earlier this week and continues through March 15 … The accomplished stand-up comedian, actor and writer Ron Funches has a long list of memorable television roles, including The Goldbergs, Blackish, The New Girl and Bob’s Burgers. You can currently catch him on Loot on Apple TV+. You can also see him at the Helium Comedy Club at 7 p.m. and 9:15 p.m. January 30; 7 p.m. and 9:30 p.m. January 31; and 7 p.m. February 1 … Journey through millennia of traditional Chinese culture in Shen Yun’s spectacular two-hour performance at 2 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. on January 29 and 7:30 p.m. on January 30 at the Cobb Energy Performing Arts Centre … Atlanta playwright Steve Yockey returns to Theatrical Outfit with the world premiere of Bleeding Hearts, a pitch-black farce about the disappearing middle class and how people forget to put themselves in each other’s shoes. It opened January 28 and runs through February 22 … Gallery Anderson Smith postponed its planned debut in anticipation of last weekend’s icy weather. The opening has now been moved to January 31 from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m.
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