Spirits in the Wild at the Chattanooga Zoo Saturday night is the weekend's headline event -- $45 gets you an open bar, animal meet and greets, live music from Peter Moon Band, and the run of the entire zoo after dark. The weather is cooperating across all three days: Friday is the cleanest of the bunch -- sunny, high of 82, essentially zero chance of rain. Saturday climbs to 88 with just a 7% shot at rain, and Sunday pushes 91 with nearly clear skies all day. Get outside.
Friday
"At Home and Abroad": The Art of Gay M. Arthur -- In-Town Gallery, $20, 5:00 PM ET
In-Town Gallery opens a retrospective of Gay M. Arthur's work Friday evening from 5-8 PM. This is the opening reception -- the first look at a full career's worth of painting that spans home and international subjects. Twenty dollars gets you in, and it's the kind of Friday night that beats most alternatives on the Southside.
Top Gun 40th Anniversary in IMAX -- Tennessee Aquarium, 6:15 PM ET
The 1986 original returns to the Aquarium's IMAX 3D screen for the 40th anniversary -- same Maverick, bigger format. Friday is the easiest if you're already going out, but the Aquarium also has 6:15 PM showings Sunday (5/17) and Tuesday (5/20) if you'd rather catch it later in the weekend.
Comedian Lace Larabee -- The Comedy Catch, 7:00 PM ET
Lace Larabee was a semi-finalist on America's Got Talent season 17 and got pulled back for the finale. She works the Southern-beauty-queen-turned-stand-up angle and is sharper than the bit suggests. Friday set at the Comedy Catch at the Choo Choo.
Saturday
Spirits in the Wild -- Chattanooga Zoo, $45, 12:00 AM ET
This is the one. The Chattanooga Zoo's 21+ signature event covers the full package -- open bar plus a signature cocktail, food tastings from local restaurants, animal meet and greets you won't get during regular zoo hours, live music from Peter Moon Band, a dance floor, live ceramics, and live painting. Animal art goes up for auction. It's a genuinely different evening from anything else on the schedule this weekend, and $45 for all of that is a reasonable deal.
PlantFest Expo - Chattanooga -- Chattanooga Convention Center, 12:00 AM ET
PlantFest is a traveling expo that draws serious plant people -- rare finds, vendor booths, workshops, and the kind of community where someone will actually know the answer to your propagation question. If your collection has a hole in it, Saturday at the Convention Center is a good place to fix that.
River Market -- Tennessee Aquarium, Free, 10:00 AM ET
The weekly River Market at Tennessee Aquarium Plaza is free to walk through -- live music, food, arts and crafts along the waterfront. Food and vendor purchases are separate, but admission is free. A mostly sunny Saturday at 88 degrees is exactly the right weather for spending a couple of hours here before the afternoon heats up.
Chattanooga Bass Association Tournament -- Chester Frost Park, $35.00, 7:00 AM ET
The Chattanooga Bass Association heads to Chester Frost Park in Hixson for a Saturday morning tournament. Entry is $35. Early start, calm winds, and a high pushing 88 -- it's a solid fishing day if you're registered and ready to go at 7.
5K Run Race - Reach for Scholarships - Cleveland, TN -- Greenway Park, $30.00, 8:00 AM ET
Terra Running Company is coordinating this 5K at Greenway Park in Cleveland as part of the Walk for Scholarships initiative -- a race with a direct community payoff. $30 to enter, 8 AM start. Get it done before the afternoon heat arrives.
Seniors Dance at The Harrison Center -- Harrison Center, 6:00 PM ET
The Country Connection Band plays every first and third Saturday at The Harrison Center out in Harrison -- classic country, waltz, cha-cha, line dance, and a dose of 50s/60s rock and roll. It's a real crowd that actually dances, and it runs like clockwork.
Sunday
Family Sundays at The Playlist | Kids Eat Free in Chattanooga! -- The Playlist, 5:00 PM ET
The Playlist does Family Sundays as a full interactive dinner experience -- the idea being that adults get a proper night out while kids eat free and everyone actually has a good time. Sunday evening at 5 PM, and it's a solid way to close the weekend without cooking.
The Full Lineup
Find all 37+ events this weekend at chattanoogalineup.com/events/.
Got a tip or event we should know about? Email [email protected]