Rock the Country 2-Day Music Festival Invades Ashland, Kentucky April 19 & 20

(Ashland, Kentucky) Rock The Country is making its second stop in Ashland, Kentucky, April 19 and 20 at Boyd County Fairgrounds. Artists featured at Rock The Country will include Kid Rock, Jason Aldean, Travis Tritt, Miranda Lambert, and Brantley Gilbert many more kicking off this summer’s most anticipated festival.  The picturesque Boyd County Fairgrounds is the perfect venue, providing attendees with an unforgettable experience filled with camping under the stars, indulging in sensational music, and weaving cherished memories with friends and family.

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Audience Spotlight: Wild Lights Lantern Festival – Louisville Zoo – March 23 – May 19, 2024

The Louisville Zoo is excited to re-create the magic of their popular lantern festival again this year promising to be bigger and brighter than ever! If you haven’t been to an “illumination” event, this is your chance to check out one of the best around.

Dive deep and celebrate the vibrant colors of the coral reefs, see nature come to life on the 1.4 mile journey of interactive moving displays and explore ancient Chinese myths and legends, including magnificent dragons and a breathtaking phoenix tunnel. The festival includes all-new illuminated archways and larger-than-life displays allowing you to become part of the magic.

The wonder of Wild Lights is sure to create glowing smiles and bright memories for all.

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Audience Event Outlook: Shakespeare in Love Gala & 2024 Season Announcement

The team at Kentucky Shakespeare is gearing up for a big night of fun for their annual Shakespeare in Love Gala that will surely be an evening you won’t want to miss. The gala will be held at 21c Museum and Hotel on Saturday, February 10th and will be the ninth gala Kentucky Shakespeare has hosted.

“We are excited for the gala as it serves as a fundraiser as well as a party!” Commented producing artistic director, Matt Wallace. “We will also announce our 2024 Shakespeare Festival in Central Park lineup, spend time with our amazing staff and raffle various gift baskets and have some great silent auction items including a Chef’s Table dinner experience for eight with Chef Todd Alexander and a Churchill Downs Finish Line Suite. There will be opportunities to donate to Kentucky Shakespeare at the event and people can also always support with tax-deductible donations online at kyshakespeare.com/donate and at Venmo @KYShakes. Funds raised go to support our many programs from free Shakespeare in the Parks to education tours and community outreach!”

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Zach Bryan, Tyler Childers and more to Headline Bourbon & Beyond – Sept. 19-22

Coming off the heels of a hugely successful 2024 festival headlined by the biggest names in the music industry, Bourbon & Beyond is back and ready for its biggest year ever at the Highland Festival Grounds September 19-22. The festival released another all-star line-up featuring Zach Bryan, Tyler Childers, Dave Matthews Bands and more.

The weekend will be another chance to hang out with 100,000 of your closest friends and enjoy music from iconic bands and musicians while enjoying refreshing cocktails and impeccable food.

“To have one of the most influential artists of all time, Neil Young, headline Bourbon & Beyond this year is so incredibly special. Not only do I love his music, but I think there is a real authenticity in his craft that has inspired generations of artists to find their true voice,” says Danny Wimmer of Danny Wimmer Presents. “To have such a timeless artist share the stage with some of today’s best storytellers and craftsmen is something truly exceptional. Plus, being able to celebrate hometown heroes, My Morning Jacket and Kentucky’s own, Tyler Childers, this year’s Bourbon & Beyond lineup is truly a career highlight for me. We can’t wait to see everyone this September to celebrate the pure magic of this festival and the great city of Louisville.”

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Exhibit Spotlight: The Bitter and the Sweet: Kentucky Sugar Chests, Enslavement and the Transatlantic World – 1790-1865

Cutting sugar cane in Louisiana. (1909-1913) From the collection of Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, Jean Blackwell Hutson Research and Reference Division, The New York Public Library.

The Speed Art Museum is excited to open a new exhibit to ring in the New year. The Bitter and the Sweet: Kentucky Sugar Chests, Enslavement, and the Transatlantic World 1790-1865 will run through April 7th and boldly reexamines the Kentucky sugar chest and related objects within the broader, intertwined contexts of the Atlantic economy, the vicious human toll of enslavement, and the complex transportation systems that brought sugar to Kentucky from the West Indies and sugar-growing regions of the Americas.

Skilled Kentucky cabinetmakers used local materials to create these highly specialized furniture pieces to store costly refined white and brown sugar that was grown and harvested by enslaved men, women and children. Taking a closer look, visitors learn that the backstory behind these beautiful pieces isn’t as gleaming as the polished silver or glimmering walnut and cherry items the museum has on display.

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11th Annual Tailspin Ale Fest Set for Saturday, March 2

Tailspin Ale Fest, the premier celebration of craft beer and community, is back for its 11th year on Saturday, March 2, 2024, at the iconic Bowman Field in Louisville, Kentucky. This year promises to be bigger and better than ever, with a lineup of exceptional features and activities for attendees to enjoy. The Tailspin Crew is ready to produce a “Knock Out” Experience benefiting Pints for Parkinson’s-TKO, serving people with Parkinson’s through regular exercise, a bit of boxing and community enrichment enabling them to fight against the progression of the disease while staying functionally active – giving hope for the future.

Tickets and info available at tailspinalefest.com/tickets

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