Shaggie Maggie plays Sunday on the Davidson Green.

The last weekend of June in the Lake Norman area includes two “Celebrate America” outdoor symphony concerts that wind up with fireworks – in Kannapolis Friday and Bailey Park Cornelius on Saturday. A pair of theatrical productions can be seen on local stages: “Garden Party: The Adventures of Adam & Eve” at Warehouse PAC in Cornelius, a new comedy combining writings of Mark Twain, George Bernard Shaw, John Milton and nursery rhymes, and Davidson Community Players’ “Crazy for You” at Davidson College, a musical comedy by George and Ira Gershwin. Listen to live local music at Campania Cafe and Summit Coffee. There’s sailing, music and fireworks over the water Saturday and Sunday during the Independence Day Regatta at the Lake Norman Yacht Club. And the next Davidson Concert on the Green is coming up Sunday, as part of the town’s Independence Day celebration. It begins with a a small-town parade from McEver Fields to the Green, then the sounds of the variety band Shaggie Maggie.

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Javier Mendoza

Summit Coffee has a big week of live music ahead in downtown Davidson, beginning Wednesday with a guest appearance by Javier Mendoza, and including a stop on the one-week reunion tour of Cast Iron Filter, a band with Davidson College roots that toured nationally until 2004. Cast Iron Filter also has a gig this week at the Visulite in Charlotte, and the group’s mandolinist, Michael Orlando, also plays Wednesday at Flatiron Kitchen. The weekend also brings a Davidson Concert on the Green, with Lake Norman Big Band.

Summit Coffee is at 128 S. Main St., Davidson. Information: 704-895-9090 or visit www.summitcoffee.com. Here’s the schedule: Read the full story

Mooresville Downtown Commission announcement
MOORESVILLE – The Mooresville Downtown Commission is proud to kick off “Live in the 115,” a series of free open-air rock shows in John Franklin Moore Park on the corner of Main and Center streets. The live summer shows take place on five Friday evenings: June 8, July 13, Aug. 10, Sept. 14 and Oct. 12. Read the full story

Lake Norman Big Band plays in the Cornelius Concert Series Friday.

The unofficial first week of summer features plenty to do outside. Events include an outdoor movie at North Mecklenburg Park  in Huntersville Friday and a Davidson Concert on the Green Sunday with reggae band The Dickens. Ultra-marathoner and Davidson resident Jeff McGonnell will be running laps around the Village Green in Davidson for 24 hours in the 2nd annual “Loopy for a Cause,” to raise funds for Batten Disease research — he’s looking for runners to help in two-hour shifts. On Friday, Lake Norman Big Band plays at Mt. Zion United Methodist Church in Cornelius. And come celebrate the automobile with the comedy play festival “Car Craze” at Warehouse Performing Arts Center in Cornelius. Now in its second year, the festival opens Thursday and runs Thursdays through Saturdays through May 9.  And it’s graduation season:  Pine Lake Preparatory Upper School will have its ceremony in Mooresville Saturday.

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Start Memorial Day weekend with a visit back to the 19^th century at Historic Latta Plantation’s Living History Weekend Saturday and Sunday. Race fans can head to Charlotte for Speed Street festivities in advance of Sunday’s Coca Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway. Actor Mark Sutch will perform the one-man “Under the Lintel” at Warehouse PAC in Cornelius three nights. Meanwhile, there’s plenty of live music to be heard  around the area. “Men In Black 3” premieres this weekend, including a midnight show Thursday at Our Town Cinemas in Davidson. See the schedule at right.

And while area schools, government buildings and many businesses will be closed for Memorial Day on Monday, American Legion Post 86 will be hosting memorial ceremonies with high school color guards and a 21-gun salute. Read on for all the activities this long weekend.

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Outdoor concerts are on the schedule this weekend, with an ’80s Night in the Park at Bailey Road Park Saturday night and a Davidson Concert on the Green Sunday night. Indoors, the North Mecklenburg Community Chorus has “Bella Notte,” three nights of Italian-inspired music. Two days of grueling running – if you can call it that – are ahead during the Warrior Dash at Rural Hill Farm in Huntersville. The weekend also brings lots of other live music, Davidson College graduation events, and a day of sailing for special needs people Saturday at the NC Sailing & Rowing Center. The Davidson-Cornelius Child Development Center 5K and local food picnic is Saturday morning in downtown Davidson, when the Davidson Farmer’s Market also will be open nearby next to Town Hall. Read the full story