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.

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Thursday

The Atlanta Symphony Orchestra

The orchestra has a busy weekend, beginning with performances of Berlioz’s Symphonie fantastique with conductor Philippe Jordan, who will also lead the orchestra in Berlioz’s brass-and-percussion-heavy Roman Carnival Overture. Pianist Bertrand Chamayou joins them for Saint-Saëns’ Piano Concerto No. 5. Performances are at 8 p.m. on Thursday and Saturday. On Sunday at 6 p.m., the orchestra takes the show to Piedmont Park with conductor Finan Jones for a free concert featuring a selection of orchestral favorites specially selected to highlight our nation’s 250th anniversary with works by beloved American composers such as Leonard Bernstein and Florence Price, along with masterworks by Dvořák and Mozart.

Last Year at Marienbad and A Man Escaped

There’s a feast for French film lovers at the Tara this weekend. It begins at 7 p.m. on April 16 with a screening of Alain Resnais’ hypnotic 1961 film Last Year at Marienbad, set at a strange and isolated chateau where a man becomes acquainted with a woman and insists that they have met before. Behind the Slate presents A Man Escaped by Robert Bresson on April 18 as part of its Films Against Fascism series. It’s preceded by a live film history podcast diving into this under-seen gem about a captured French resistance fighter during World War II, directed by one of the great masters of cinema.

Friday

Sweetwater 420 Fest

The annual fest moves its jam-band focused lineup to Shirley Clarke Franklin Park this year. It happens on April 17 and April 18 with headlining sets from Umphrey’s McGee and Thievery Corporation, along with Chromeo, The Heavy Heavy, Watchhouse, Little Stranger, Cimafunk and more.

Atlanta Baroque Orchestra

The ensemble will be joined by tenor Thomas Cooley and the Glenn Memorial UMC Chancel Choir for three performances of Bach’s Ascension Oratorio, a celebration of joy, light and spiritual transformation. The first performance is at 7:30 p.m. on Friday, April 17, at Glenn Memorial United Methodist Church. On Saturday, April 18, at 3 p.m., they’ll be at Lassiter Concert Hall in Marietta. For those closer to the coast, they’ll bring Bach to the Lutheran Church of the Ascension in Savannah at 4 p.m. on Sunday, April 19.

Saturday

Chamblee Art Fest

Spring is in full bloom, and that means festivals are plentiful. In Chamblee, you’ll find this annual event, in the area adjacent to the Chamblee MARTA station on Saturday and Sunday, April 18 and April 19. They’ll have more than 120 artisans and makers there with paintings, metal work, ceramics, jewelry, fiber art, folk art and more.

Big Shanty Festival

Kennesaw’s signature festival is set to bring two days of entertainment, arts and crafts and family-friendly activities to downtown Kennesaw on Saturday, April 18, and Sunday, April 19. They’ll have more than 250 booths featuring arts and crafts, food vendors and specialty exhibits, along with live entertainment and a beer garden. The Big Shanty Festival begins with a parade, starting Saturday at 9:30 a.m. 

Sunday

Black Boy Art Show 

This national celebration of Black male brilliance in visual art was founded in 2020 by curator Joshua Love and has become the largest global celebration of Black male artists, showcasing the work of more than 1,000 creatives and boasting nearly 20,000 attendees across more than 12 U.S. cities. It comes to the Georgia International Convention Center in College Park on Sunday, April 19, from 3 p.m. to 9 p.m.

Raise the Roof: The Fiddler Jazz Sessions

Inspired by great versions of Fiddler on the Roof tunes by artists such as Cannonball Adderley, Louis Armstrong, Marlena Shaw and more, Joe Alterman will play every song from the soundtrack, rearranged and re-imagined for his piano trio at 5 p.m. on April 19 at the Breman. The show is preceded by a reception at 4 p.m.

Alexandre Kantorow

While the orchestra is at Piedmont Park, a highly acclaimed pianist will make his Atlanta debut. This award-winning musician has been dubbed “Liszt reincarnated” by Fanfare magazine, and the dazzling young player will bring a program of Liszt, Chopin, Beethoven and more to Symphony Hall at 3 p.m. on April 19.

More things to do this weekend and beyond

Beginning April 17, see John Cassavetes’ 1968 film Faces, an examination of a marriage coming apart that stars the luminous Gena Rowlands … An Evening With Yo-Yo Ma: Reflections in Words and Music combines performance with the famed cellist’s reflections on how music shaped his thinking about art, human nature and our search for meaning. He comes to the Fox Theatre at 8 p.m. on April 18 … The Georgia State University Opera Theater & Symphony Orchestra come together to perform Hansel and Gretel, Engelbert Humperdinck’s timeless opera based on the classic Brothers Grimm fairy tale, at 7 p.m. Saturday, April 18, and 3 p.m. Sunday, April 19, at the Rialto Center for the Arts in downtown Atlanta … Femme Gaze is a group show at Haugabrooks Gallery that explores the depth of our world through the stories and works of femme creators and their unique perspectives. It opens with a reception from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. April 16 … The Choral Guild of Atlanta’s season concludes on April 19 with Of Sea, Sky and Stars, a program featuring treasured classics, contemporary gems and a tribute to America’s 250th anniversary. The performance happens at Peachtree Presbyterian Church.