February gave us an early taste of spring here in Columbia, SC, getting us all the more excited for the warmer temps and longer days that March brings. Extra hours of sunlight means more time to cram in all the festivals, concerts, sporting events and more that are happening all month long.
Spring Schedule
There’s much to celebrate this month, including everyone’s favorite green-hued holiday. Start the festivities early with the Official Kick-Off to St. Pat’s and St. Practice Day, then go all out for the real deal with the 40th Annual St. Pat’s in Five Points, the St. Pat’s Steel-nanigans 3-Day Celebration at Steel Hands and Saint Patrick’s Fest at Savage Craft.
The calendar isn’t the only thing that’s full this month – your cups and bellies will be, too. Your sipping and snacking dreams will come true with DOKO Ribfest, the March Harvest Dinner at City Roots, Picnic Pop Up at femme x COLUMBIA, River Rat’s Birthday Bash, and the return of the Columbia Food and Wine Festival.
We’ve got spring shopping fever and the only cure is a trip to The NoMa Flea, Meeting Street Artisan Market, Soda City Market and the Craftsmen’s Spring Classic at the South Carolina State Fairgrounds.
You’ve still got more hours to fill and we have the events to fill them. Check out First Thursday on Main, the 4th Annual Cottontown Art Crawl, Columbia Design League presents DesignHER Women’s Panel at femme x COLUMBIA, Drag Bingo at Columbia Museum of Art, Murders and Mysteries West Columbia Walking Tour presented by the Lexington County Museum and the 10th Annual Tartan Day South.
Drama Club
Snag the best seats in the house for the closing night of Cats at Koger Center for the Arts, then keep collecting playbills this month and see a production of “These Shining Lives” by Melanie March at Longstreet Theatre, The Lion King at Koger Center and “This is Our Youth” by Kenneth Lonergan at Lab Theatre.
Sound Check
It’s driving with the windows down and music blaring season once more, which also lends itself to a truly great lineup of live music options this month. Stay casual with a cup of joe in hand at Loveland Coffee Music Night. Keep coming back to Koger Center with Gotham Kings and Rachmaninoff’s Piano Concerto No. 2 taking the stage. Pack out Colonial Life Arena for Jojo Siwa D.R.E.A.M. The Tour or Maxwell – The Night Tour. Enjoy More Than Rhythm: A Black Music Series with Dr. Tony McNeill or Baker & Baker presents Artist and Muse at Columbia Museum of Art. Then take it over to Township Auditorium as Walker Hayes – The Fancy Like Tour, Joe Bonamassa Live, Koe Wetzel and Bob Dylan are all putting on a show.
Athletic Activities
Baseball is back and so is the Battle at BullStreet at Segra Park. You won’t want to miss UofSC and Clemson face off after an afternoon spent at the free Fan Fest featuring Tokyo Joe. Dust off your running shoes and hit the pavement for Spurs Up Sprint and Light the Fight 5K. Finally, wrestling returns to Colonial Life Arena with the debut of AEW Dynamite & Rampage.
Cultural Arts
If this time of year makes you feel inspired, stop by one of our local museums to see powerful exhibits or participate in some programming.
Face to Face: Portraits from the South Carolina State Museum Collection opened last month and highlights human connection captured in artwork.
There are a couple new exhibits at the Columbia Museum of Art, as well. Rodin: Contemplation and Dreams is paired alongside Anila Quayyum Agha: Let a Million Flowers Bloom for a powerful exploration of sculpture. If a self-guided tour isn’t your style, then you’ll be interested in joining Public Tour: Sculpture and Transformation in Rodin and Agha, Public Tour: Carolina in the Collection, Focal Points: International Women’s Day and Focal Points: Mythology at the Museum. A few more interactive events at the art museum this month include FAAAC presents 22 South Carolinians Salon Series featuring a special Women’s History Month conversation about the impact of women through the arts, Art Class: Introduction to Comics and Sequential Art and ArtBreak with Professor Caroline Nagel.
