In 2010, Shindig on the Green, the free mountain music and dance shows, will return this year to its longtime home in the center of downtown Asheville, on Roger McGuire Green at Pack Square Park. This is the space previously known as City-County Plaza, in front of the Asheville City Hall.

The park has been under a long renovation and upgrade. During those years of construction, Shindig has been held at Martin Luther King Jr. Park, a few blocks away, as have several others downtown festivals.

The Shindig shows will now be performed on the Bascom Lamar Lunsford Stage, named in honor of the late folklorist.

This year’s Shindigs will be held July 3, 10, 17, 31; Aug. 14, 21, 28; and September 4. Shindig will take a break July 20 during the downtown Bele Chere festival. The Mountain Dance and Folk Festival will be presented August 5-7, with tickets going on sale in April.

Don't miss our favorite event of the year, and we thrilled to be a major sponsor. Locals and visitors alike gather “along about sundown,” or at seven o’clock for those who wear a watch. Musicians and dancers from across Western North Carolina gather on these Saturday nights to share the region's stirring Southern Appalachian mountain culture and traditions-with each other and visitors from around the world-at the Shindig on the Green.

Bring a lawn chair or blanket and stake out a spot on the "green." But don't sit in your chair the entire time. Performers go on stage for just two numbers each, so the real jewel is the clusters of musicians that get together for informal jam sessions under the trees and on the sidewalk. Anyone can join in! Learn some new moves at one of the street dances. Also, don't miss their Mountain Dance and Folk Festival.

For another authentic Asheville event, see the Drumming Circle on Friday nights.