Community Calendar

https://aaes.uada.edu/venue-rental/pauline-whitaker-animal-science-center/

A family-friendly and interactive event featuring farm animals, educational displays, live demonstrations, and free food!

A Celebration of Choctaw Art and Culture is a partnership between ACHE and Choctaw Nation Public Arts. The reception opening will be held Thursday, April 9th, 5-7pm, with the exhibition on display through May 22nd. Celebrate the voices, stories and artistry of Choctaw nation of Oklahoma in a vibrant exhibition featuring both traditional and contemporary works. This showcase honors Choctaw culture through pieces that reflect ancestral knowledge, lived experiences and modern expression. Experience powerful artwork, support Native American artists, and connect with the rich and enduring artistic legacy of the Choctaw Nation. Free. Open to the public. ACHE RIHWC 1000 Fianna Way, Fort Smith.

Join the staff of World Services for the Blind for a unique and delicious dining experience at Mockingbird Kitchen on Thursday, April 23, 2026 from 6:00pm to 9:00pm. Award winning Chef Chrissy Sanderson will be serving a 5-course tasting menu designed to enhance your sense of smell and taste while wearing a blindfold. WSB CEO Eric Yarberry will be on hand to guide you on your culinary journey while explaining what life is like for the visually impaired. He will also describe some of the supremely helpful services available through World Services for the Blind, both on line and on their campus in Little Rock on Fair Park Boulevard next to UALR. Since 1947, WSB has been teaching people from all over the world to live a life of sustainable independence. If you cannot attend, but would like to support their mission, you can contribute directly at: wsblind.org

Join 21c for a screening of the film, Drowned Land, followed by a Q&A with Director Colleen Thurston.

Flowing through southeastern Oklahoma, the Kiamichi River is a cradle of biodiversity and cultural memory. Already twice dammed, it now faces another threat: a proposed hydropower project that could drain its watershed. For local residents and Indigenous culture-keepers of the Choctaw Nation, protecting the river is part of resisting a long history of land loss and forced displacement dating back to the Trail of Tears.

Told with the river as its central character, the story traces its seasonal vitality, the injury from dams, and efforts to reclaim ecological balance. Woven throughout is the filmmaker’s own family story - she reflects on her grandfather’s work on the Army Corps of Engineers dams and her tribe’s ongoing struggle against resource exploitation, seeking reconciliation between past and present.

The film’s ensemble are voices of advocates—residents, scientists, and cultural leaders—calling for rematriation and the rights of nature, working to break the cycle of disconnection and ensure the Kiamichi’s life-giving waters endure.

Quote from a review:

“Drowned Land is a powerful documentary…Colleen Thurston masterfully connects the dots between past injustices and present-day exploitation, reminding us that history doesn’t just repeat itself; it floods back with a vengeance…or worse, disappears."

— Film Threat

The Fort Smith Chorale presents its Spring 2026 Concert "America, Of Thee We Sing!", traditional and contemporary arrangements of class American songs, Selections for the evening include:

The Star-Spangled Banner

America the Beautiful (arr. by Mack Wilberg)

Beautiful Dreamer (Stephen Foster, arr. Shaw- Parker)

Battle Hymn of the Republic (poem by Julia Ward Howe, music by William Steffe, arr. by Roy Ringwald)

The Testament of Freedom (by Randall Thompson, a setting of four passages
from the writings of Thomas Jefferson)

God Bless America (Irving Berlin, arr. by Roy Ringwald)

Home on the Range (arr. Mark Hayes)

Fascinating Rhythm (words and music by George and Ira Gershwin, arr. Mark Hayes)

Zion's Walls (adapted by Aaron Copland, choral arrangement by Glenn Koponen)

Yesterday (John Lennon and Paul McCartney, arr. by Anita Kerr)

Who Are the Brave (J. Paul Williams, arr. Joseph Martin)

America (Samuel Francis Smith, tune from Thesaurus Musicus 1740, arr. Robert Hunter)

Electronic music artist Random Rab draws the audience into a hypnotic performance using custom lighting, uplifting ambiance, and psychedelic sounds. Producer and performer Lapa combines a classical violin upbringing with experimental EDM beats. See them perform b2b in their explosive duo, DOS, at this month’s COLLIDE.

Tickets are $25 ($20/members), reserve your ticket online or with the Box Office at (479) 657-2335 today.

This event is 18+

The Washington County Arkansas Library System is participating in Fine Forgiveness Week!

When you call or come by any Washington County Library, we can waive fines and remove lost items from your account prior to January 1st, 2023. Come use your local library services and get fines removed!

Participating Libraries: Elkins Public Library, Farmington Public Library, Lincoln Public Library, Prairie Grove Public Library, Springdale Public Library, West Fork Public Library

The Machine Behind the Art: Inside JR’s Printing Press is one of JR’s most extensive immersive and experiential works to date. After taking portraits in one of three individual photo booths, visitors enter the interior of an oversized, whirring printing press – turning their image into a tangible work of art while offering a glimpse into the creative process of JR. After the experience, visitors leave with their own, one-of-a-kind print.

Member Perk: Momentary members receive two free prints per visit. Just reserve your timed ticket online or with the Box Office, and your discount will be applied at checkout!

Timed portrait tickets are $20 (Free for members), reserve your timeslot online or with the Box Office at (479) 657-2335.
Timed portrait tickets include one oversized photo portrait and admission for up to three people. Digital copies of your photo will be available after your visit.
If you do not plan on taking a portrait during your visit, no purchase is required to attend The Machine Behind the Art: Inside JR’s Printing Press.

"Finding Our Way | February 5 - April 26, 2026
The moment of arrival—what we carry when we seek sanctuary, transitions, and the crossing into safety. Sandra Spotts, artist. Jay Lane, artist. Familiar images made from various materials and objects, found and recycled, placed in a format of controlled chaos, is at this point in my journey, the medium of choice for the
“Finding Our Way” exhibit at Gotahold Brewing. I see society as satirical subject matter that exists in a surrealistic landscape of twisted perspective that is filled to the fences with social ironies. And yet, I still have to maintain my sense of humor about what has been and what will be with the activities du jour based on fear, war, greed, and hate. With this sense also comes my interpretations, expressed visually based on my
experiences, feelings, and health, from finding my way as an artist. I hope these pieces give you a sense of curiosity that you continue to carry with you while you are finding your way through all of this we humans call life."

A Celebration of Choctaw Art and Culture is a partnership between ACHE and Choctaw Nation Public Arts. The reception opening will be held Thursday, April 9th, 5-7pm, with the exhibition on display through May 22nd. Celebrate the voices, stories and artistry of Choctaw nation of Oklahoma in a vibrant exhibition featuring both traditional and contemporary works. This showcase honors Choctaw culture through pieces that reflect ancestral knowledge, lived experiences and modern expression. Experience powerful artwork, support Native American artists, and connect with the rich and enduring artistic legacy of the Choctaw Nation. Free. Open to the public. ACHE RIHWC 1000 Fianna Way, Fort Smith.