The Arts Council of Macon County

03/17/2026

Celebrate with us this Saturday! Live music from Ridgetop Dave, food truck from The Wood Fired Grill, free door prizes, plants and cookies! All are invited, details at windingstairgardens.com

03/06/2026

You can also follow on Instagram to see more.

08/14/2025

Local Music and Arts Events
I've been working on a new events calendar, sponsored by the Arts Council of Macon County NC. My goal is to make a Comprehensive calendar anyone can go to and find out what is happening locally. Music, art, crafts, theatre, dance, anything related to the Arts in Macon County!
I am needing to make contact with more venues and organizations who publish events-if you know anyone please let me know.
Here's the calendar
https://events.arts-maconcountync.org/
If you have any feedback on how I might improve this calendar please let me know.
You can hover your mouse over "tips for searching" to get a quick summary of how to use the filters.

10:00 am Toddler’s Rock July 28 @ 10:00 am Toddler’s Rock Toddlers Rock all Mondays 10:00 a.m., age 0-5, Macon County Public Library, www.fontanalib.org

03/07/2025

March 20, Thursday, is our next contra dance! 6:45-9:15p.
The venue will be Cowee School Arts & Heritage Center, 51 Cowee School Drive, off of hwy 28, just north of Franklin. (Our usual venue, the Macon County Library, is under repair.)
The band will be Toss the Possum, en route to the Sautee Nacoochee dance festival weekend, coming in all the way from VA & UT!
And we're excited to have Claire Takemori from Asheville returning to call again! She is super with beginners and has great enthusiasm!
Toss the Possum has been playing dance music as a family band for more than 20 years. For our dance we'll have Laura and Rob to share high energy, big sound, outstanding creativity and swing humor about the stage, too!
Come out and shake your possum!
A suggested donation of $10 goes to pay the band and caller; kids age 14 & under are free.
Details:
The dance is from 7-9. Beginners are encouraged to arrive by 6:30 for the instruction, and experienced dancers are keen to help those new to contra dance get started with the moves.The caller walks the dancers through the steps of the upcoming dance for a few minutes, and then continues to call the moves in time to the music so the dancers know what to do. As always, no partner is necessary and beginner dancers are welcome. Anyone curious about contra dancing or wanting to just listen to some fine live music may also attend… and you'll want to get up and shake your possum, too!

BRING SMOOTH-SOLED SHOES, if you have them! The floor at the Cowee School is grippy, so if you like to twirl, wear slick-soled shoes, bring dance socks, or purchase dance socks at the dance.

Our contra dances are generously sponsored by the The Arts Council of Macon County. Thank you!!

03/06/2025

Songfest!
March 13, 3:30-4:30 at the Macon County Public Library: A free sing-along session of rounds, folk songs, and more. Song leader Tom Tyre will conduct the session, which is designed for elementary to middle school-age youth and their families, but will be enjoyable for singers of all ages.

Tom Tyre, a lifelong musician, has performed with many bands as a singer and multi-instrumentalist. He is a member of the Natural Voice Network in the United Kingdom, received Ubuntu (World Music) training in British Columbia, and directs the Ubuntu Choir of the Great Smoky Mountains. Ubuntu Choir members will help lead the round-singing sections.

02/25/2025

Old Time Songfest coming up March 13 at 3:30 at the Macon County Public Library. Sing rounds, traditional folk songs and more with song leaderTom Tyre. Free. For the young — and young at heart!

Tom Tyre, a lifelong musician, has performed with many bands as a singer and multi-instrumentalist. He is a member of the Natural Voice Network in the United Kingdom, received Ubuntu (World Music) training in British Columbia, and directs the Ubuntu Choir of the Great Smoky Mountains. Ubuntu Choir members will help lead the round-singing sections.

02/24/2025

We're excited for the first contra dance of 2025 in Franklin! Celebrate the arrival of spring by dancing with us!

March 20, Thursday, is our next contra dance! 6:45-9:15p.

The venue will be Cowee School Arts & Heritage Center, 51 Cowee School Drive, off of hwy 28, just north of Franklin. (Our usual venue, the Macon County Library, is under repair.)

The band will be Toss the Possum, en route to the Sautee Nacoochee dance festival weekend, coming in all the way from VA & UT!

And we're excited to have Claire Takemori- from Asheville returning to call again! She is super with beginners and has great enthusiasm!

Toss the Possum has been playing dance music as a family band for more than 20 years. For our dance we'll have Laura and Rob to share high energy, big sound, outstanding creativity and swing humor about the stage, too!

Come out and shake your possum!

A suggested donation of $10 goes to pay the band and caller; kids age 14 & under are free.

Details:
The dance is from 7-9. Beginners are encouraged to arrive by 6:30 for the instruction, and experienced dancers are keen to help those new to contra dance get started with the moves.The caller walks the dancers through the steps of the upcoming dance for a few minutes, and then continues to call the moves in time to the music so the dancers know what to do. As always, no partner is necessary and beginner dancers are welcome. Anyone curious about contra dancing or wanting to just listen to some fine live music may also attend… and you'll want to get up and shake your possum, too!

The FLOOR at Cowee School is grippy, so SMOOTH-SOLED SHOES are highly recommended. Bring your dance socks if you have them, buy your own ( https://thedancesocks.com/ ), and we'll have some dance socks available for purchase ($5.50/pair), that slip onto any shoes to make twirling more twirly.

Our contra dances are generously sponsored by the The Arts Council of Macon County. Thank you!!

02/05/2025

Free Make & Take Valentine Cards — for children 13 & under. With artist-educator Carol Conti. Thursday, February 13, 3:30pm. Macon County Public Library, Franklin, NC.

02/05/2025

February 2025: : Music, Arts, Theater, Dance, Storytelling, and other cultural events in and around Macon County, NC.