Black Creek, Blue Jeans, & BBQ - April 30th & May 1st

Black Creek Arts Council's 2nd Annual Black Creek, Blue Jeans, & BBQ Festival will be held on April 30th and May 1st in Burry Park and on Cargill Way in Downtown Hartsville. The festival will feature the best BBQ cookers in the southeast, as well as appetizers, entrees, and desserts from local restaurants and cook teams.

Nikki & DaBlooze will return to the stage and there will be new competitions. In addition to the cook-offs and blue jean contests, local waiters and waitresses will compete for bragging rights and prizes. We'll have artists from the region displaying and selling their work and even a painting pig. Click the links below to find out more about this exciting event in Downtown Hartsville.

Friday Night

Saturday

Event Sponsors

For more information or to inquire about participating or sponsoring in Black Creek, Blue Jeans, & BBQ, call the Black Creek Arts Center at 843.332.6234.

Friday Night Events for Black Creek, Blue Jeans, & BBQ

The 2nd Annual Black Creek, Blue Jeans & BBQ Festival will kickoff on Friday, April 30th with the Anything Butt Cook-Off, Mr. & Miss Blue Jeans Contests, and Nikki & DaBlooze. Friday's festivities begin at 7pm.

Anything Butt Contest

The Anything Butt Contest will feature local restaurants and cook teams, as well as several of the professional touring cook teams. The contest will feature appetizers, entrees, and desserts with any ingredient butt pork.

A panel of local celebrity judges will award a winner. A People's Choice Award will also be awarded by popular vote.

Nikki & DaBlooze

Back by popular demand will be Nikki & DaBlooze. Rock, country, blues...you name it; they play it. Nikki and her crew won't be the only ones making an appearance on the stage. The bad boys and lovely ladies of the Blue Jeans contest will make their presence known around 8:30.

Mr. & Miss Blue Jeans 2010

Will Lenora Lefew and Coker College Senior Ben Beetch be back to defend their titles? Come out and enjoy the fun of the Blue Jeans Contest. Last year, nearly 40 compeititors donned jeans of all sorts, shapes, and sizes. A panel of local experts will crown the champions and People's Choice Awards will be given to the crowd-pleasers.

Friday Night Tickets - $20 (food only)

Ages 6 to 12 - $5

Under 5 - free

Click the links below for more information about Black Creek, Blue Jeans & BBQ:

Saturday's Events

BBQ Home

Saturday Events for Black Creek, Blue Jeans & BBQ

The cook teams will be at work all night getting ready for Saturday's BBQ Contest. Taste samples for over 20 cook teams beginning at 11am. There's plenty going on before the tasting opens up though. Smithfield the Painting Pig, the Good Living Marketplace, and the Waiters' Race will all take place in Burry Park. (info below)

Above: BBQ Cook-Off Trophy made by local artist Patz Fowle

Enjoy the creations of Smithfield the Painting Pig prior to the BBQ Tasting. Smithfield will be demonstrating and his artwork will be for sale.

Above: The Legendary Smithfield

At 10:30, waiters and waitresses from local restaurants will take place in the Waiters' Race through Burry Park. The event's Olympic-style set-up will ensure that only the strong will survive.

The Good Living Marketplace

The Artisans of the South Carolina Cotton Trail will be featured in Burry Park as part of Hartsville Downtown Development's Good Living Marketplace. Over 50 vendors will be on hand selling everything from fresh produce to handmade toys. The Artisans of the South Carolina Cotton Trail are a group of juried artisans from the Pee Dee. The group consists of painters, photographers, potters, jewelry-makers, fabric artists, and glass artists.

Cathy Elliott will also be on hand signing copies of Chicken Soup for the Nascar Soul.

Above: The Oschips from Mentor, OH

Black Creek, Blue Jeans & BBQ is fun for the whole family.

BBQ Tasting tickets are $10 for adults, $5 for children ages 6 to 12. The tasting is free for those under 5.

Cook's BreakfastSaturday Morning - 8:15 to 9:00

Tommy's Chuckwagon will be offering the Cook's Breakfast for $7. Come enjoy breakfast with the professional and local cookers. Tickets for the Cook's Breakfast must be purchased in advance. Call the Black Creek Arts Center at 843.332.6234 for more information.

Friday Night's Events

BBQ Home

Bond, McLeod to Show at BCAC in March

New Toy by Heidi Bond

On Thursday, March 4th at 5:30, Black Creek Arts Council will unveil the latest work by acrylic painter Heidi Bond. The opening reception will take place from 5:30 to 7:00 at the Black Creek Arts Center. The opening is free and the public is invited.

"Heidi claims to leave as much out of the paintings as possible," says Bruce Douglas, Executive Director of BCAC. "It's true her lines and palette are minimal, but her work is full of expression and emotion. It is a pleasure to display her work."

Bond and Douglas have come to know each other well through the Artisans of the South Carolina Cotton Trail. Bond was one of the founding members of the guild and Douglas serves as the group's President. "This exhibit is a great example of how a guild can open up opportunities for artists," said Douglas. "It was during the Cotton Trail jury that I decided to push Heidi to apply for a show at Black Creek."

Bond's work will not be the only work on display at the Arts Center in March. Painter Ruth McLeod of McBee will have work on display in the Upstairs Gallery. McLeod is a long-time arts educator in the Pee Dee.

by Ruth McLeod

Both painters' work will remain on display through March 26th. The Black Creek Arts Center is open Tuesday through Thursday from 10-1 and 3-6 and on Fridays from 11-3.

The exhibits and opening reception for March are being sponsored by Mark A. Perry, DMD of Darlington Dental Care.

The mission of Black Creek Arts Council is to promote and foster the Arts in Darlington County. BCAC’s offices are housed in a state of the art 10,000 square foot facility at 116 West College Avenue in Hartsville, SC. BCAC offers a variety of programs including art classes of all styles, after-school activities, pre-school aged programs, private music lessons, and various types of gallery exhibits. BCAC also offers assistance with arts management, funding, education, and program coordination to arts and cultural organizations in Darlington County.

Dinner Theatre at Birds Of A Feather

The Hartsville Community Players will present Audition For Murder at Birds Of A Feather on February 27th. Cocktails at 6:30 and showtime is 7:00. Tickets are $30. Call Linda Howle at 843.616.2561 or stop by Birds Of A Feather, The Darlington Chamber, or the News & Press to get tickets.

The Community Players previously presented Audition For Murder at the Black Creek Arts Center. They did an amazing job of combining murder, mystery, food and fun. The showing at Birds Of A Feather will be the final performance, so get your tickets today.

Birds Of A Feather is located at 106 Siskron Street, just off the Square in Darlington.

Audition For Murder is sponsored by Black Creek Arts Council through a grant from the South Carolina Arts Commission, who recieves funding from the National Endowment for the Arts.