We’re just going to go ahead and assume that it was on everyone’s list of New Year’s resolutions to experience Columbia SC to the fullest this year. We’re here to help with our roundup of all the fun happenings going on around town in the month of January. So don’t waste any time! Get out there and start living it up in the real Southern hot spot.

Dining Out

Kick the year off at Publico for their 4th Annual New Year’s Day Pajama Brunch Party. Show up in your PJ’s to earn a $10 gift certificate to put towards your huevos rancheros and s’more cold brew cocktail.

For a little pre-dinner fun, join Historic Columbia for Historic Happy Hour: Speakeasy at Seibels House.

Enjoy dinner with a little something extra this month. Check out Columbia Design League Presents Dinner by Design: Van Gogh and His Culinary Inspirations with eats prepared by Chef Kristina Niemi at the Columbia Museum of Art, learn how you can be a part of conservation efforts at Forks, Knives and Spoonbills at Spotted Salamander and everyone’s a suspect at Murder And All That Jazz: Murder Mystery Dinner Theater at The Joint.

Main Street Mainstays

Head to Main Street for some fun this month! Pop into the restaurants and shops for various specials during First Thursday on Main, come back every Saturday morning to shop the stalls at Soda City Market and mark your calendar for a glam evening at Columbia Museum of Art for The Contemporaries Annual Ball: Cirque du CMA.

Entertainment on Deck

Enjoy a night out (or 20) with an exciting lineup of productions and performances to keep you entertained all month long.

Snag the best seats in the house as Wicked makes its debut at Koger Center for the Arts, the Harlem Globetrotters do their thing at Colonial Life Arena, Akintunde and Joey I.L.O. – Comedy for All has you in stitches at Harbison Theatre at Midlands Technical College and We Are Proud to Present… takes center stage at Trustus Theatre.

Big ticket shows at Colonial Life Arena this month include Alan Jackson: The 2020 Tour and Jason Aldean: We Back Tour.

Steal away to The Senate to see Angry Chair – A Tribute to Alice in Chains, The Unlikely Candidates, Mother’s Finest and Hawthorne Heights and Emery all put on shows in the coming weeks.

Let the music lead the way during two performances of Beethoven & Blue Jeans at Koger Center, Carolina Shout – Ranky Tanky at Harbison Theatre at Midlands Technical College, Jazzing Up the Classics with Noel Freidline and MLK Celebration: Music & The Movement at the Columbia Museum of Art or the new Live in the Lobby series, Koger Center Jazz: Urban Groove.

Break a Sweat

Get a jumpstart on those fitness goals and participate in the Lexington Medical Center Heart & Sole Women’s 5 Miler at Finlay Park or Go Leo at Saluda Shoals Park.

Can’t-Miss Museums

Prepare to be in awe of science and nature at the South Carolina State Museum, currently featuring the Apollo 50: Journey to the Moon and Reflections on the River exhibits.

Make some time to pop by McKissick Museum on the UofSC Horseshoe to check out Piece by Piece: Quilts from the Permanent Collection.

Scope out some new art via The Shadow Line – Eileen Blyth Solo Exhibition at Stormwater Studios.

The Columbia Museum of Art is sure to keep you busy this month. Stop by for the final couple weeks of Van Gogh and His Inspirations or get in on some special programming like Art Class: Drawing 102 or Candle Making, Focal Points: An Artistic Epiphany, Stop-In Studios, Ikebana Display and Demonstration or Focal Points: The Art of Play, Vissi d’Arte an Operatic Experience or From Dynasties to Dictators.