North Carolina Museum of Art announces March events

Tours
Explore the Collection
Tuesdays through Fridays at 1:30 pm and Saturdays and Sundays at 11:30 a.m. and 1:30 p.m.
Free; no reservations necessary.
A daily docent-led tour of Museum highlights. Meet at West Building Information Desk. For individuals and groups smaller than 10.

Meet Your Museum tours
Fridays at 6 and 7 p.m.; Saturdays at 11 a.m., noon and 2 and 3 p.m.; and Sundays at 2 and 3 p.m.
Free; no reservations necessary.
Meet at East Building Information Desk. Guided tour introduces visitors to the Museum buildings, Plaza and related works of art.

Storytelling in the Galleries weekend family-friendly tours
Saturdays and Sundays at 10:30 a.m.
Free; sign up that day; first come, first served.
Meet at West Building Information Desk. Half-hour tours for kids age 5 to 10 and their adult companions. Join a Museum guide for a lively discussion and activities in the galleries.

Special events
Kids at the ncma: preschool playshop
What’s in the Box?: Parts of Art
Thursday, March 1, at 10:30, 11 and 11:30 a.m.
East Building, Education Studios 1 and 2
Free for members; $3 for nonmembers
Tickets required from Box Office; first come, first served.
Come to the museum to explore a part of art. What will be in the box this week? Lines, shapes, colors, textures or patterns? Preschoolers, ages 2 to 4, and their caregivers discover a new adventure in the box each time and experience fun and engaging ways of looking at art together in the museum and at home. Activities are designed to stretch the imagination while children explore materials and make personal connections with art and their world.

free tour: Friday night art encounters
Friday Night Art Encounters
Friday, March 2, at 6 and 7 pm
Free; no reservations necessary.
Meet at West Building Information Desk. Enjoy a lively introduction to the museum’s collection with 30-minute gallery conversations that take you through a variety of explorations.

Mad about Mad Men spring film series
Film: The Mollycoddle
Friday, March 2, at 8 p.m.
East Building | Museum Auditorium
$3.50 for museum members, students, Cinema Inc. and Galaxy Cinema members; $5 for all others.
An expatriate dandy must reclaim his red-blooded manhood to defeat a gang of diamond smugglers in the last of Fairbanks’s modern adventures before he became a full-time swashbuckler. Silent film with live music by David Drazin. Tickets are available online at www.ncartmuseum.org, through the Museum Box Office by phone at (919) 715-5923 and in person (East Building).

Kids at the ncma: childrens performance
American Dreams with Bright Star Touring Theatre
Saturday, March 3, at 11 a.m. and 1 p.m.
East Building, Museum Auditorium
$3 for members; $5 for nonmembers
Bright Star Touring Theatre welcomes audiences of all ages to this fast-paced introduction to America and the American Dream told through a variety of uniquely American stories. This production touches on patriotism, citizenship, diversity and civic pride. Tickets are available through the museum box office at (919) 715-5923. Children ages 5 and older ( children younger than 12 must be accompanied by an adult).

Kids at the ncma
Drop-In Studio
Saturday, March 3, from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.
East Building, North Carolina GlaxoSmithKline Foundation Gallery
Free, all ages welcome.

Free tour: Friday Night Art Encounters
Friday, March 9, at 6 and 7 p.m.
Free; no reservations necessary.
Meet at West Building Information Desk. Enjoy a lively introduction to the museum’s collection with 30-minute gallery conversations that take you through a variety of explorations.

Art in the evening
Invisible: The New Obsolete
Friday, March 9, from 5:30 to 8 p.m.
West Building Lobby
Free
Invisible is the brainchild of Greensboro-based musicians/artists/designers Bart Trotman and Mark Dixon. They’ve created the most amazing sound-and-music machine from old technology and six channels of video. The installation is as much fun to see as it is to hear. Their latest project, The New Obsolete, features their wildest invention yet, Selectric Piano, which allows a typist to become an experimental pianist. Invisible was a highlight of the Museum’s 2010 grand opening celebration; don’t miss this much-anticipated return! Performance art and music sponsored by SignalFest.

Mad about Mad Men spring film series
Film: Vitaphone Varieties
Friday, March 9, at 8 p.m.
East Building | Museum Auditorium
$3.50 for museum members, students, Cinema Inc. and Galaxy Cinema members; $5 for all others
In early talkie days, many vaudevillians stepped offstage to immortalize their acts on film. Journey back in time as Jay C. Flippen, Dora Maughan, Dick Rich, Al Lyons, Jack White and the Montrealers, Billie “Swede” Hall, and Jason Robards Sr. each have their one reel of immortality. Tickets are available online at www.ncartmuseum.org, through the museum box office by phone at (919) 715-5923 and in person (East Building).

Friends of the Judaic Art Gallery
Purim Madness: An Evening of Fun, Food, and Dancing
Saturday, March 10, at 7:30 p.m.
West Building
$54 General admission
Join the Friends of the Judaic Art Gallery for a colorful evening of food, music and entertainment to celebrate Purim. Designed for adults, this event features tapas-style hors d’oeuvres, beer, wine and a specialty cocktail. Masks and other festive attire are encouraged, but costumes are not required. Proceeds benefit the Judaic Art Fund. For information about sponsorships, call (919) 664-6807 or register online at www.ncartmuseum.org/ersvp. Space is limited; advance reservations are required.