Weekend Event Picks: Museum District Garden Tour, BFD, Music in the Park, Friday Cheers, and more

Con Brio with Red Baraat at Friday Cheers

You better break out your most comfortable dancing shoes for this week’s Friday Cheers lineup. The soul and funk keeps coming with the duo of Con Brio and openers Red Baraat down on Brown’s Island. Expect everything from brass and electronic to funk and soul during the evening, and maybe even a few instruments on stage you’ve never seen before. As contributor Scott Castro says in this week’s show preview, that’s all part of the fun.

When: Friday, May 12th; 6:30 PM | Where: Brown’s Island on the Downtown riverfront | Cost: $5 | More info: Show preview

Mother’s Day Weekend at Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden

What better place to celebrate mom than one of the most beautiful outdoor venues in the city? Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden is hosting a long weekend of fun celebrating the most important women in our lives beginning Friday, May 12th with National Public Gardens Day. This day is designed to promote awareness of public gardens. Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden will have its historic Bloemendaal House open to the public from 11:00 AM – 3:00 PM with free drop-in tours by garden guides where you can learn more about the history of the property as the Lakeside Wheel Club built in the 1890s. The fun continues Saturday and Sunday with A Million Blooms and the smooth jazz sounds of Glennroy Bailey at a Mother’s Day concert from noon – 3:00 PM. Children’s activities will also be available.

When: Friday, May 12th – Sunday May 14th; times vary | Where: Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden, 1800 Lakeside Avenue in Northside | Cost: Admission $13 | More info: Event website

Big Field Day at the Classic Amphitheater

Weezer headlines this year’s Big Field Day music festival put on by local radio station XL102. The “Say It Ain’t So” singers join other acts such as PVRIS, Bob Moses, and Dreamers on stage at the Classic Amphitheater at Richmond International Raceway Saturday night. Doors open at 5:30; the first act takes the stage around 6:30.

When: Saturday, May 13th; 6:30 PM | Where: Classic Ampitheater, 600 E. Laburnum Avenue in Northside | Cost: Tickets start at $39.50 | More info: Event website

Strawberry Street Festival at William Fox Elementary

The 38th annual Strawberry Street Festival takes place at William Fox Elementary School in the heart of The Fan on May 13th. This fun-filled event needs the support of the entire school. The proceeds fund many curriculum enhancements not funded by Richmond Public Schools. Expect family-oriented games, rides, a silent auction, lots of food, vendors, and a strawberry sale.

When: Saturday, May 13th; noon – 4:30 PM | Where: William Fox Elementary School, 2300 Hanover Avenue in The Fan | Cost: FREE to enter; pay for activities as you go | More info: Event website

Museum District Garden Tour

Mother’s Day is always a treat in the Museum District, and a rare opportunity to tour some of the most beautiful homes in the neighborhood. Now in its 23rd year, the 2017 Museum District Mother’s Day House & Garden Tour provides an opportunity for guests to go inside some of the area’s most historic homes, gardens, and institutions. Each year, proceeds from this annual event are reinvested in the neighborhood association for maintenance, beautification, and enhanced safety and local nonprofits doing good works in the community. A trolley will run continuously between 1:00 and 6:00 PM, making stops near the homes on the tour and the Virginia Historical Society.

When: Sunday, May 14th; 1:00 – 6:00 PM | Where: See ticketing website for house sites | Cost: $20 | More info: Event article

Music in the Park at Forest Hill Park

Dust off the picnic basket and take mom out for a fun evening of live music at Forest Hill Park. The first event of the extremely popular, free, Music in the Park series kicks off with the Afro-Zen Allstars, and it’s sure to be a fun night. Check out the link below for information on the entire summer series at the park.

When: Sunday, May 14th; 6:00 – 8:00 PM | Where: Forest Hill Park, 4021 Forest Hill Avenue in Forest Hill | Cost: FREE | More info: Event article

Be sure to catch the RVAHub Weekend Update each and every Friday morning at 7:10 AM with Brady in the Morning on Classic Rock 96.5!