The Boxtrolls will be the featured flick for Thursday night's Pizza and a Movie at the Halle Cultural Arts Center.

 

Science Thursday at the North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences features a special program on Ankylosaurs at 6pm and a Science Cafe of Lightning Talks on local groundbreaking research at 7pm.

 

Twilight $2 Thursdays at Marbles offers discount admission and extended hours every week.

 

The Follow Me 2 Fuquay-Varina Concert Series starts this Thursday evening with the band Hip Pocket. There will also be local craft breweries, vineyards and eateries at the concert site so you can take the night off and relax to the tunes.

 

Learn about Downtown Raleigh's geologic history on a Raleigh Rockin' Walkin' Tour Friday afternoon. Explore the rocks, minerals and fossils that make up the buildings of downtown Raleigh.

 

It is now spring craft festival season! Bond Park will host Cary's Annual Spring Daze Arts and Crafts Festival on Saturday. Featuring over 150 local artists, entertainment on four stages, a Children's Village, concessionaires with your favorite festival foods and Cary's Earth Day Celebration it promises to be a fun family event.

 

Bring your family to a free, daylong Songbird Celebration at Blue Jay Point County Park in recognition of International Migratory Bird Day. Enjoy bird-related activities throughout the park, including games and crafts, preschool story times, bird hikes for adults and kids, learning stations and more.

 

Celebrate spring at Carrboro's Local Roots Craft Festival Saturday. Vendors will be selling a variety of hand-crafted items including ceramics, jewelry, soaps, clothes, accessories, toys, and housewares and there will also be pottery demonstrations, a hands-on kid's art table, and food vendors.

 

Brewgaloo in Raleigh's City Plaza Saturday features craft breweries from North Carolina and local food trucks. Entertainment will be provided by local bands.

 

HerbFest 2014 continues this weekend in Wake Forest. Join them for free entertainment, animal petting, live bands, and the largest selection of herbs and local grown, adapted perennials.

 

Come visit Mordecai Historic Park Saturday to get your garden started this year. Heirloom varieties of produce, herbs, and flowers will be sold at their Annual Plant Sale.

 

The Holly Springs Police Department and Rotary Club are holding a Bike Rodeo for children this Saturday in Downtown Holly Springs.

 

In honor of Earth Day, Morrisville will host a Litter Sweep Saturday a part of their Green Day activities. There will also be Document Shredding, Electronics Recycling, Tree Sapling Giveaways, Seed Planting Activities, Environmental Products and Demonstrations, Storm water Demonstrations, Raffles for rain barrels, trees and more!

 

Saturday is Amphibian Awareness Day at the North Carolina Zoo. Enjoy educational activities, meet the keepers and learn about amphibian conservation efforts.

 

Come join the wildlife (and human) ambassadors of Piedmont Wildlife Center for an Earth Day celebration as they explore the Wonderful World of Wildlife at Leigh Farm Park.

The NC Science Festival comes to a close this week, but goes out with a State Wide Star Party both Friday and Saturday night. Star Parties are weather dependent, so call ahead if you have any questions and click through for the individual details. There will be Star Parties Friday on the American Tobacco Trail, at Prairie Ridge Ecostation, and Saturday at Jordan Lake, and Eno River.

 

Crowder by Night will explore who is Alive After Dark Friday. Come enjoy hikes, games and fun for the whole family in the park after dark. Bring the family back Sunday afternoon for a Family Pond Study on April Showers.

 

Durant Nature Park is hosting their annual Family Campout from Friday to Saturday. Enjoy a campout, a naturalist led night hike, s'mores for the kids, breakfast provided for you, and time for fishing and boating in the morning.

 

Come and learn about Occoneechee Mountain's Geologic Wonders Saturday as you explore the pyrophyllite quarry with a real geologist.

 

Falls Lake invites you to celebrate the 45th anniversary of Earth Day by participating in a Earth Day Cleanup Saturday.

 

Durham Central Park will also host a Volunteer Workday Saturday.

 

There are a whole bunch of concerts throughout the Triangle Friday! The Art of Cool Fest kicks off Friday afternoon in Durham Central Park with concerts by Zoocru, Rissi Palmer and Kidznotes.

 

The NC Museum of Art will kick off the weekend with Art in the Evening featuring the sounds of the Peter Lamb and the Wolves and a Sound Bite on Appetizing Forms.

 

The Live and Local Music & Arts Series in Downtown Chapel Hill will have you Dreaming Through The Evening with the music of Eric + Erica.

 

Fridays on the Front Porch of the Carolina Inn in Downtown Chapel Hill features the band Big Fat Gap and the food trucks Chickenque and Chirba Chirba.

 

There will be artists, food vendors, musicians and craftspeople set up on the sidewalks around the courthouse in downtown Hillsborough Friday night as part of the monthly Last Friday Art Walk.

 

Come on out to Hillsborough Saturday afternoon for a River Park Concert. There will be Food, Beer & Wine Garden, Community, Environmental, Art & Wellness Booths in addition to an afternoon of concerts featuring the Young Musicians Workshop, Mel Melton & the Wicked Mojos, John Dee Holman & Friends, Coleslaw and the Jeff Sipe Trio.

 

Saturday is the 3rd Annual Chickin Pickin' Event at Yates Mill Historic Park. They'll have pork and chicken barbecue, delicious sides, dessert, water or tea, and of course, Yates Mill cornbread. Tickets cost $25 and, because most of the food is donated, all proceeds will pay for repairs and maintenance at Yates Mill. Also Saturday, you can Paddle the Pond, have some Family Fishing Fun, take an Old Mill Tour Saturday or a Mill Heritage & Local History Tour Sunday.

 

Saturday is National History Day at the NC Museum of History. The public is welcome to attend and view presentations of exhibits, performances, documentaries, websites, and research papers that relate to the theme "Leadership and Legacy in History" and prepared by finalists in grades 6-12.

 

The North Carolina Museum of Art will host the ArtScene Teen Event: Work in Progress Saturday. Teens are invited to enjoy live performances, art making workshops and a pop up gallery, all centered around the theme of "works in progress." Meet local artists and participate in a variety of scenes celebrating the artistic process.

 

Shrek Forever After will be this Saturday's Movie at the Holly Springs Cultural Center. Their Monday Morning Movie will be Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory.

 

Sunday will mark the first of Six Sundays in Spring Concert Series at Carroll Joyner Park. This week's performance will feature the diverse and eclectic repertoire of rockabilly, reggae, blues, R&B, and rock & roll of MikeMickXer.

 

Bring chairs or blankets to enjoy a Pops in the Park Concert with the Durham Symphony Sunday afternoon at Cameron Park. Come early for the Instrument Petting Zoo.

 

The Cary Music & Arts Festival at Regency Park Sunday brings together the extraordinary talents from exceptional music and art programs in Western Wake County High Schools. Tap your feet to the stylings of the jazz ensembles from Cary, Green Hope, Panther Creek and Athens Drive high schools, relax to the soothing ambiance of the Athens Drive Strings Orchestra, and experience the power and beauty of the symphonic bands from Cary, Green Hope and Athens Drive! A special performance from Panther Creek High school's percussion ensemble will thrill and electrify you!

 

Celebrate poetry at the Nazim Hikmet Poetry Festival, an annual celebration of poets, scholars, and poetry lovers Sunday at the Page-Walker Arts & History Center.

 

Burwell School tour docent Steve Peck will lead you through the extraordinary life journey of Elizabeth Hobbs Keckly in an Historical Lecture Wednesday evening.

 

Come enjoy a festive atmosphere all weekend at the Southern Women's Show and relax with spa treatments and makeovers, value shop for clothes, jewelry and gifts, gourmet food & wine, travel ideas, beauty tips, health screenings, cooking classes and fashion shows.

 

You can even meet NC State Wolfpack Basketball players at Saturday's Triangle Multicultural Health Fair while you take advantage of free health services including eye exams, dental cleaning for children, blood pressure monitoring and medical analysis.

 

Join them for the Persian Festival Saturday, a celebration of Persian culture. The festival features Persian dances performances, live music, art, food, cultural exhibits and displays, handicrafts, silent auction and vendor exhibits for entire family to enjoy.

 

Sunday is the Fiestal del dia del Nino - Kids Festival Outreach Event. There will be family information, games and inflatables for kids as well as health and other professional services.

 

The Hunt Horse Complex will be hosting the Easter Bunny Quarter Horse Circuit Horse Show from Friday through Sunday.