Published: Saturday, Oct. 24, 2009 / Updated: Friday, Oct. 23, 2009 10:23 PM

Activities at Gantt center opening in Charlotte

Among the free activities for today's grand opening of the Harvey B. Gantt Center for African-American Arts + Culture at 551 S. Tryon St.:

OPENING CEREMONIES

9:45 a.m.: Stanley Graham, “Follow That Sound” trumpet call to drummers.

9:50 a.m.: Chuck Davis African-American Dance Ensemble.

10 a.m.: Ribbon cutting.

ACTIVITIES

Guided tours begin every hour on the half hour, 11:30, a.m. to 6:30 p.m.

11 a.m.-3 p.m.: Face painting, outdoor pavilion creativity tent.

1 p.m.: “The Women Who Raised Me” book signing with Victoria Rowell, second-floor multipurpose room.

1 p.m.: Going Green with Bearden and Denmark, outdoor pavilion creativity tent.

1 p.m.: Shade Family Puppeteers, second-floor classroom.

2 p.m.: “The Art of Collecting,” with Vivian Hewitt, second-floor gallery.

2 p.m.: Make Your Words Dance workshop, second-floor multipurpose room.

2 p.m.: Storybook corner with N.C. African American storytellers, second-floor classroom.

2:30 p.m.: Shade Family Puppeteers, second-floor classroom.

2-5 p.m.: Architecture of the quilt, outdoor pavilion creativity tent.

3 p.m.: “The Artist's Voice” with Radcliffe Bailey, third-floor west gallery.

3:30 p.m.: Storybook corner with N.C. African-American storytellers, second-floor classroom.

4 p.m.: Shade Family Puppeteers, second-floor classroom.

4:30 p.m.: BreathINK Gantt Center Youth spoken-word group, second-floor multipurpose room.

MUSIC AND DANCE

11 a.m.: African dance and drumming, outdoor pavilion.

Noon: Carolina Voices, second-floor multipurpose room.

12:15 p.m.: House of Prayer band, outdoor pavilion.

1:15 p.m.: A Sign of the Times, outdoor pavilion.

2:30 p.m.: Power House, outdoor pavilion.

3 p.m.: Charlotte Contemporary Ensemble, second-floor multipurpose room.

3:30 p.m.: Youth steel drums, outdoor pavilion.

4 p.m.: Gantt Center TeenMovement dance workshop, second-floor multipurpose room.

4 p.m.: Classical interludes, Damon Stintson, third-floor atrium.

4:15 p.m.: Luminares Collective and Maha's Dancers of India, outdoor pavilion.

5:15 p.m.: EAU Claire High School of Columbia Dance Ensemble, Chris Thompson Cultural Ensemble, outdoor pavilion.

6:15 p.m.: Latin rhythms with Tommy Lopez and Sendy Mendez, second-floor multipurpose room.

7:15 p.m.: Salsa Charlotte, second-floor multipurpose room.

8 p.m.: Sauda (jazz strings), fourth-floor rooftop terrace.

9:15 p.m.: Miles & Coltrane, second-floor multipurpose room.

10 p.m.: Sweet Dreams, second-floor multipurpose room.

10 p.m.: Mother Blues, fourth-floor rooftop terrace.

11 p.m.: After Touch, second-floor multipurpose room.

Midnight: Storytelling performance, second-floor multipurpose room.

1 a.m.: Porter House, second-floor multipurpose room.

2 a.m.: Jam session, second-floor multipurpose room.

The Charlotte Observer