photography courtesy phil dixon
Memphis Greek Festival
Annunciation Greek Orthodox Church
Friday-Saturday, May 9–10, 11 a.m.–9 p.m.
If you say, “It’s all Greek to me,” I will not laugh at your dad-joke at this weekend’s Memphis Greek Festival because this weekend is about the moms. (Mother’s Day is on Sunday, in case you forgot.) But while you keep your dad-jokes to yourself at the Memphis Greek Festival, you can enjoy authentic Greek food, traditional music and dance, shopping, church tours, a kids zone, and more. Admission is only $3, or you can bring three cans of nonperishable food (per person) for free admission. Kids 5 and under get in free.
photography courtesy memphis brooks museum of art
Memphis Art and Fashion Week
Memphis Brooks Museum of Art
Through Saturday, May 10
I don’t dress for anyone’s approval but my mother’s because her opinion matters to me — unless it’s my Bigfoot shirt, which I know she hates, but she will never pry it from my hands though she has threatened to. Point is, my style can be described as mom-approved. Now, if you’re looking for some bolder looks, I’d suggest you look to the Brooks’ Memphis Art and Fashion Week, which is highlighting the artistry of fashion.
On Friday at 6 p.m., you can catch the Runway at the Museum, where some 50 visionary designers from across the United States will show off their designs in a night of bold creativity and flair. Tickets are available for purchase here. The week’s events concludes with Cocktails with the Curator: Black Dandyism, where C. Rose Smith, assistant curator of photography, will delve into the history of Black dandyism in response to this year’s Met Gala theme. Tickets for the Saturday event at 3 p.m. can be purchased here.
photography courtesy Klondike Smokey City CDC
100 Year Anniversary of Tom Lee’s Heroic Act
1396 Jackson Avenue
Saturday, May 10, 11 a.m.–3 p.m.
Celebrate the 100-year anniversary of Tom Lee’s rescue of victims of a riverboat disaster as Klondike Smokey City CDC opens up a pop-up museum that will display a detailed history of the first community incorporated in the city of Memphis for Black people, where Tom Lee lived. The day will also have singers, Memphis Symphony, New Ballet Ensemble, and more. Read more about Tom Lee in this story by our very own Michael Finger.
photography courtesy art for all
Art for All Festival
Crosstown Arts
Saturday, May 10, 11 a.m.–3 p.m.
It’s time for Art for All — and that means all, even your mom. This year’s free Art for All Festival will have hands-on art-making, performances, photo booth, games, face painting, and more.
photography courtesy dixon gallery & gardens
Symphony in the Gardens
The Dixon Gallery and Gardens
Sunday, May 11, 5 p.m.
My mom doesn’t like it when I sing at her. How insulting, I know. I’m just a bit tone-deaf. So this year I’ll give her the gift of not singing, and I’ll let the Memphis Symphony Orchestra’s Big Band do the not-singing for me at the annual Symphony in the Garden. Bring a picnic or purchase items from food trucks, MemPops, TacoTitlan, Flipside Asia, and Memphis Dawgs. Get tickets here.
