May Events in Birmingham 2019

With Mother’s Day coming up, you’ve got plenty of opportunities to get the mother figure in your life a special gift or an event ticket to one of the many events happening in the Magic City this month!

Also, if you want to pick up a copy of our book or coloring book, we’ll be at Pepper Place on May 4th this month, so stop by and see us!

This Week & Weekend (May 1-5)

The Jersey Boys (May 1)
- Location: BJCC Concert Hall
- Time: 7:30 p.m.
- Cost: $50+
- Winner of the 2016 Tony Award for best musical, Jersey Boys tells the true story of Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons and how these 4 blue collar kids became one of the greatest successes in pop music history.
Oak Mountain State Spring Fair (May 1-5)
- Location: Oak Mountain Amphitheater
- Time:
  - Wednesday – Friday: 5:30pm until close
  - Saturday & Sunday: noon until close
- Cost:
  - Wednesday & Thursday – Admission is Free!
    - $25 unlimited rides
  - Friday: $5 admission & $25 unlimited rides
  - Saturday & Sunday: $8 admission & $30 unlimited rides
- Enjoy traditional fair food, games, rides, a petting zoo, music, and more!
Art Crawl (May 2)
- Location: The Pizitz
- Time: 5 – 9 p.m.
- Stroll the sidewalks outside of the Pizitz, view the art, and purchase the wares of local artists and makers.
MAKEbhm Spring Open House (May 2)
- Location: MAKEbhm (4000 3rd Ave. S.)
- Time: 6 – 9 p.m.
- Shop directly from the artists and makers that work out of MAKEbhm and see behind the scenes of Birmingham’s most dynamic workplace. There will also be live music, food, and a limited release of Birmingham shirts that you can purchase that night.
Hillsong United Concert (May 2)
- Location: BJCC Legacy Arena
- Time: 7:30 p.m.
- Cost: $19.50+
- Hear Hillsong United perform along with Amanda Cook and Mack Brock in this night of worship on their The People Tour.
Le Pop-Up (May 3-5)
- Location: Whistling Table (3916 Clairmont Ave.)
- Time:
  - Friday & Saturday: 10 a.m. – 6 p.m.
  - Sunday: 10 a.m. – 4 p.m.
- A weekend “pop-up” store housed in a modified shipping container, Le Pop-Up contains merchandise imported from France and Italy and includes goods such as table linens, wine glasses, beach bags, towels, chairs, Vallauris pottery, Tuscan olive oil, and more.
TEDxBirmingham (May 3-4)
- Location: Alys Stephens Center
- Time:
  - Friday: 6:30 – 8 p.m.
  - Saturday: 1:30 – 6 p.m.
- Cost:
  - 2-day ticket: $125
  - Friday admission: $50
  - Saturday admission: $100
- At this year’s TEDxBirmingham, 14+ speakers will explore ideas to help you find your sense of BALANCE
Carrie Underwood Concert (May 3)
- Location: BJCC Legacy Arena
- Time: 7 p.m.
- Cost: $82+
- Hear Carrie Underwood perform in her Cry Pretty Tour. If you haven’t seen Carrie in concert, she puts on quite the show, so it’s definitely worth going!
Tom Jones in Concert (May 3)
- Location: Iron City
- Time: 8 p.m.
- Cost: $75+
- Ranking among the top 10 biggest selling artists of all time, hear singing legend Tom Jones perform some of his greatest hits.
Spring Walking Tour around Avondale (May 4)
- Location: Avondale
- Time: 9:30 a.m. – noon
- Cost: $12
- Explore one of Birmingham’s hottest real estate markets, look back at Avondale’s early history as a company town, and learn about plans to redesign 41st Street. Dive into the rich history and culture of this neighborhood that is now a hub for innovative restaurants, burgeoning breweries, and entertaining cultural festivals.
Hikes for Tykes (May 4)
- Location: Kiwanis Vulcan Trail
- Time: 10 – 11 a.m.
- Fresh Air Family storyteller Verna Gates will lead this tour of Kiwanis Vulcan Trail. Children will look for legendary creatures, and, at the end of the hike, will build fairy houses/forts out of natural materials. This hands-on adventure for preschool children and their families is free with donations accepted.
Authors Book Fair (May 4)
- Location: Birmingham Civil Rights Institute
- Time: 9 a.m. – 5 p.m.
  - Community of Readers presentation at 10 a.m.
- The BCRI is highlighting local and national authors in this first annual Authors Book Fair. Individual authors will have designated times throughout the day for book signings and discussions, and Rita Collins, author of The Eensy Weensy Lizard will present as part of the Community of Readers program at 10 a.m.
Gumbo Gala (May 4)
- Location: Sloss Furnaces
- Time: 11 a.m. – 2 p.m.
- Cost:
  - $20 general admission
  - Free admission for kids 10 and under
- Watch over 40 teams compete for bragging rights to the “Birmingham’s Best Gumbo,” and better yet, taste-test their gumbo! You’ll also enjoy music by Margeaux and the Cat’s Meow, and there will also be a Kids Zone for the littles.
Crawfish Bowl (May 4)
- Location: Cajun Seafood House (2531 Rocky Ridge Rd.)
- Time: 1 – 8 p.m.
- Cost: $34
- Enjoy live music, drink specials, and activities for kids – along with all the crawfish, corn, and new potatoes you can eat! Plus, a portion of every ticket is donated to Children’s Hospital.
Arc Stories (May 4)
- Location: Avon Theater
- Time: 7:30 p.m.
- Cost:
  - $10 general admission
  - $25 VIP tickets (reserves your seats and supports Urban Avenues, a local non-profit)
- This month’s live storytelling event’s theme is “You’re Never Gonna Believe What Happened – Outrageous Stories.” Snacks, coffee, and adult beverages are available for purchase and are provided by Church Street Coffee.
- You can also check out their podcast to listen to stories told at past events. Click here for their podcast info.
We Love Homewood Day (May 4)
- Location: Homewood Park (1632 Oxmoor Rd.)
- Time: 7:30 a.m. – 9:30 p.m.
- Celebrate Homewood and enjoy a full day of fun for the entire family with events including the 5th Annual We Love Homewood Day 5K, a vendor expo, daytime entertainment in the park, a silent auction, The Rotary Club bake sale, The Rotary Club Sidewalk Chalk Art Contest, a parade, and the Edgewood Street Dance.
Heights Hangout (May 4)
- Location: Heights Village (3162 Heights Vlg.)
- Time: 2 – 7 p.m.
- Cost: $10
- Enjoy live music from Legal Limit and All in One. Purchase food and beverages from your fave local restaurants. Kiddos can enjoy the Kids Zone with inflatables, crafts, and more. And see what all the Cahaba Heights merchants have to offer. All proceeds benefit the ongoing Beautification of Cahaba Heights.

Other Dates & Events in May

Dave Matthews Band (May 7)
- Location: Oak Mountain Amphitheatre
- Time: 8 p.m.
- Cost: $80+
- After celebrating their 25th anniversary in 2016, the Dave Matthews Band decided to take a long-deserved hiatus, but now they’re returning with a new album and concert tour!
Regions Tradition (May 8-12)
- Location: Greystone Golf & Country Club
- Time: Click here to view the schedule for each day.
- Cost:
  - Tournament Ticket (for all 5 days): $100
  - Single Day Ticket: $25
  - Juniors 18 and under admit for free with a ticketed adult.
  - Military admitted free with a valid Military ID.
- Support 78 of the top PGA Tour Champion golfers and World Golf Hall of Fame members as they advance from practice rounds to the final round of the championship on Sunday.
- Also, this year’s celebrity putt for Children’s of Alabama includes Coach Nick Saban, Coach Gus Malzahn, Coach Kirby Smart, Condoleeza Rice, Bo Jackson, and Taylor Hicks. There will also be a concert with Black Jacket Symphony on Saturday, May 11, that is included with the cost of a single day or tournament ticket.
Mac Powell & Family Reunion Concert (May 9)
- Location: Lyric Theatre
- Time: 8 p.m.
- Cost: $17.50+
- Hear 4 time Grammy Award-winning singer Mac Powell of Third Day perform with his new band, Mac Powell and the Family Reunion.
Homestead Hollow Arts & Crafts Festival (May 10-12)
- Location: 1161 Murphrees Valley Rd., Springville
- Time: 9 a.m. – 5 p.m.
- Cost:
  - Adults $8
  - Kids (3-12) $4
  - Kids 2 and under are free
- If you like the one-of-a-kind handmade arts and crafts as well as demonstrations of wood carving, blacksmithing, soap making, and quilting, head to Homestead Hollow. They’ll also have tours available of their original cabins that were built by early settlers as well as great food and children’s activities such as wagon rides, moonwalk, and face painting.
1963 Children’s Crusade Reenactment (May 10)
- Location: St. Paul UMC (1500 6th Ave. N.)
- Time: 10 a.m. – noon
- Celebrate the 56th anniversary of the Children’s Crusade by joining with students and schools throughout the city to march alongside original Foot Soldiers in a recreation of this turning point in the Civil Rights Movement.
Beethoven’s Seventh Symphony (May 10-11)
- Location: Alys Stephens Center
- Time: 7 p.m.
- Cost: $24+
- Hear the Alabama Symphony Orchestra perform Beethoven’s Seventh Symphony along with Mendelssohn’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream Overture and Max Bruch’s Scottish Fantasy.
Birmingham Legion (May 11)
- Location: BBVA Compass Field
- Time: 7 p.m.
- Cost: $15+
- Birmingham’s professional soccer club kicks off its opening season this year! See them take on the Louisville City FC on the 11th.
Birmingham Rose Show (May 11-12)
- Location: Birmingham Botanical Gardens
- Time:
  - Saturday: 1 – 5 p.m.
  - Sunday: 1 – 4
- Come see, smell, photograph, and enjoy roses on Mother’s Day weekend at one of the largest exhibitions of roses in the southeast.
John Crist (May 12)
- Location: Lyric Theatre
- Time: 3 p.m. & 7 p.m.
- Cost: $35+
- Laugh and enjoy comedian John Crist’s performance in his Human Being comedy tour. He will also be filming this live performance.
An Evening with Gladys Knight (May 12)
- Location: Alys Stephens Center
- Time: 7 p.m.
- Cost: $67+
- Hear the Empress of Soul and the winner of 7 Grammy awards perform here in Birmingham.
India.Arie (May 14)
- Location: Alys Stephens Center
- Time: 7 p.m.
- Cost: $58+
- Hear this 4-time Grammy Award winning R&B singer perform songs from her fifth studio album in The Worthy Tour.
The Other Awards at Saturn (May 14)
- Location: Saturn
- Time: 8 p.m.
- Cost: $10
- This community awards show honors the unsung heroes in Birmingham with categories including: “Best Birmingham City School Teacher,” “Best Service Industry Worker,” “Best Activist,” “Most Passionate Neighborhood Association Attender,” and more. You can also vote for the winners of these awards at this site.
Regi Carpenter, Storyteller (May 15-16)
- Location: Reynolds-Kirschbaum Recital Hall
- Time: 7 p.m.
- Cost: $5+
- With her stories featured on The Moth, NPR, Sirius Radio, and Apple Seed Radio, Regi’s story Snap! is a winner of the Boston Story Slam, and it’s the true story of her severe mental illness as a teen and her journey back to reality. Come enjoy a night of storytelling with Regi.
Avondale Community Firejam (May 15)
- Location: Avondale Brewing Company
- Time: 7:30 p.m.
- This rain or shine event on the 3rd Wednesday of the month features local fire performers with their various props and talents as well as local music.
- Age 21+ unless accompanied by parent/guardian.
Brahms, Beethoven, & Schumann (May 17-18)
- Location: Alys Stephens Center
- Time: 7 p.m.
- Cost: $24+
- Hear the Alabama Symphony Orchestra perform Beethoven’s Symphony No. 8 along with Brahms’ Tragic Overture and Schumann’s Symphony No. 3.
ASC Sessions (May 17-18)
- Location: Alys Stephens Center
- Time: 8 p.m.
- Cost:
- Discover and get to know artists in the ASC original concert series SESSIONS. This series will showcase some of the best up-and-coming singer-songwriters.
Magic City Market Place (May 18)
- Location: Good People Brewing Company
- Time: 3 – 9 p.m.
- Shop from local vendors and enjoy food, music, and more.
John Paul White with The Prescriptions (May 18)
- Location: Lyric Theatre
- Time: 8 p.m.
- Cost: $20+
- Hear John Paul White of The Civil Wars perform music from his The Hurting Kind album in his solo tour.
Do Dah Day (May 18)
- Location: Rhodes Park
- Time:
  - Parade: 11 a.m. (along Highland Avenue)
  - Festivities: noon
- This annual animal-filled Saturday includes a parade at 11 a.m. where participants can win prizes in a number of categories, and candidates campaign to become this year’s Do Dah Day King and Queen. All proceeds benefit the Greater Birmingham Humane Society and the Friends of Cats and Dogs Foundation.
Apocalyptica – Plays Metallica By Four Cellos (May 20)
- Location: Lyric Theatre
- Time: 8 p.m.
- Cost: $24.50+
- To celebrate the 20th anniversary of their Plays Metallica by Four Cellos album, Apocalyptica has re-released it, remastered with 3 bonus tracks. In this album, this cello-driven band offered a new approach to one of the biggest metal bands the world has ever seen all while creating their very own genre of music.
Tyler Perry’s Madea’s Farewell Play (May 22)
- Location: BJCC Legacy Arena
- Time: 7 p.m.
- Cost: $64+
- See the stage play of Tyler Perry’s popular character, Medea, as she prepares to make her last appearance on the road.
Birmingham Legion (May 22)
- Location: BBVA Compass Field
- Time: 7 p.m.
- Cost: $15+
- Birmingham’s professional soccer club kicks off its opening season this year, so come cheer them on as they take on the Nashville SC!
Salsa Showdown (May 25)
- Location: Cahaba Brewing Co.
- Time: 2 – 6 p.m.
- Cost:
  - $15 early bird ticket
  - $20 at the door
  - Kids 5 and under are free
- This is an annual event that I look forward to each year because it’s endless chips and salsa! Local vendors and restaurants compete as to who has the best salsa, queso, guac, and specialty dip in Birmingham, and the verdict is decided by you! So go hungry and ready to eat your weight in chips and dip! There’s also a hot pepper eating contest as well as a kid zone and live entertainment. Proceeds benefit the Sidewalk Film Festival.
Funk Fest (May 25)
- Location: Legion Field
- Time: 5 – 11 p.m.
- Cost: $45+
- Enjoy music by the likes of Bell Biv Devoe, Bobby Brown, Jeezy, Monica, Jagged Edge, Da Brat, and Youngblood.
Free Foreign Film Series (May 28)
- Location: Rojo Birmingham (2921 Highland Ave. S.)
- Time: 7 p.m.
- Each month, the Alabama Multicultural Organization hosts a showing of an international film, and this month is the Japanese movie, Grave of the Fireflies.
Rickwood Classic (May 29)
- Location: Rickwood Field
- Time: 12:30 p.m.
- Cost: $10
  - Tickets are available by phone (205-988-3200) or at the Regions Field ticket office.
- Each year, the Birmingham Barons do a throwback game, and they do so sporting uniforms from a particular time period in Baron’s history. This year, the Barons and the Montgomery Biscuits will celebrate the first-ever game played at Rickwood Field, which was on August 18, 1910, between the Birmingham Coal Barons and the Montgomery Climbers.
Tails in the Trails (May 31)
- Location: Birmingham Zoo
- Time: 6:30 – 10 p.m.
- Cost:
  - $30 early bird tickets
  - $40 at the gate
- Enjoy a fun night at Birmingham Zoo’s signature Trails of Africa where guests will be treated by animal residents and treated to a tropical celebration. Enjoy live music from Nationwide Coverage, hors d’oeuvres from 12 area restaurants, a photo booth, and more. Plus, take part in the online auction benefitting the new interactive flamingo habitat at the Zoo.
- Tails in the Trails is a 21+ event.
Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony (May 31)
- Location: Alys Stephens Center
- Time: 7 p.m.
- Cost: $24+
- Hear the Alabama Symphony Orchestra present Beethoven’s Great Fugue and Symphony No. 9 along with Brahms’ Haydn Variations.

Monthlong Events

Birmingham Barons (May 1-5, 16-20, 28-31)
- Location: Region Field
- Game times vary. Click here for the schedule.
- Cost: $8+
- The Birmingham Barons will be competing against the Chattanooga Lookouts on May 1-5, the Mississippi Braves on May 16-20, and the Montgomery Biscuits on May 28-31.
Driving Miss Daisy (May 2-4, 9-11, 16-18)
- Location: Theatre Downtown (2410 5th Ave. S.)
- Time: 8 p.m.
  - Mother’s Day Matinee on May 12.
- Cost: $20
- See this Pulitzer Prize winning drama performed by local thespians at the Theatre Downtown.
Get Healthy on the Railroad (Monday-Friday)
- Location: Railroad Park
- Time: 6 p.m. Monday-Friday
- Railroad Park has kicked off its outdoor free weekly exercise classes at the park, sponsored by Blue Cross & Blue Shield of AL.
  - Monday: Hip Hop Cardio
  - Tuesday: Bootcamp
  - Wednesday: Zumba
  - Thursday: Yoga
  - Friday: Family Fun
Pepper Place (Saturdays)
- Location: Pepper Place
- Time: 7 a.m. – noon
- Come get your local produce and goods at Pepper Place’s weekly outdoor market. We’ll be set up there on Saturday, May 4, so stop by and say hello!
Lee Branch Farmers Market (Saturdays)
- Location: The Market Place at Lee Branch (611 Doug Baker Blvd.)
- Time: 7:30 a.m. – noon
- Shop from 15+ local farmers, ranchers, and beekeepers as well as from 35+ local artisans, bakers, and makers.There will also be a kids market play area with new “farm to table” activities for the little ones.
Steel City Swing (Mondays Nights)
- Location: Forma (1820 3rd Ave. N.)
- Time: 7 – 9 p.m.
  - There’s a lesson from 7-8 p.m. followed by social dancing from 8-9 p.m.
- Cost:
  - $10 general admission
  - $7 for students
- Learn how to Lindy Hop at Steel City Swing! No experience or partner is required since they rotate partners during the lesson to help you learn. I’ve been several times and always have a lot of fun!

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