With creative flair, Chapman Cultural Center will host Spartanburg Area Chamber of Commerce’s monthly Business After Hours meeting Thursday, Dec. 18, 5-7 p.m., during Spartanburg’s monthly ArtWalk night.
Adding cultural fun to the business meeting, such as ballroom dancing, live music, art exhibits, and lizards, members of the Chamber and their guests are invited to attend this free networking event that will feature food, adults beverages, and the opportunity to see, hear, and experience many of the cultural arts in Spartanburg. ArtWalk, a free public event that begins at 5 p.m. and ends at 9 p.m., allows patrons to casually visit local galleries that are open late while enjoying food, beverages, and fellowship.
“We certainly hope there will be some overlapping of people,” Marketing Director Steve Wong said. “We planned it that way. One of our goals is to have Spartanburg’s business community meet the arts community and vice versa. In addition, this mashup of Business After Hours and ArtWalk is just one week from Christmas, and Chapman is decked out in its holiday decor. Come on out for a cup of cheer and meet some new people this holiday season.”
Both the east and west wings of Chapman’s three-building facility will be open for BAH, and both will have refreshments, live music, and special programs. Ballet Spartanburg, for example, will have continuous ballroom dancing in the east wing building. The dancing will be coordinated by Marian Norman, the ballroom dance teacher. “We don’t want people to just watch, we want people to actually dance,” Wong said.
Other cultural programs are planned, with all of the museums and galleries open and free. Spartanburg Science Center will host a looping presentation every half hour on Lizards from Around the World, including the leopard gecko and bearded dragon. For those still shopping for Christmas presents, Carolina Foothills Artisan Center of Landrum and Chesnee will have an extensive inventory of locally handcrafted arts and crafts for direct sale to the public. Artists’ Guild of Spartanburg will host a reception for its December exhibition, which features the work of its Board of Trustees, and, in addition, local watercolorist Dwight Rose will be on hand painting a picture while the public watches. Spartanburg Art Museum will showcase its current exhibitions, Memory Ship. For those looking for a bit of Spartanburg Christmas nostalgia, Spartanburg Regional History Museum will display the much-loved Christmas dioramas that tell the “T’was the Night Before Christmas” story.
“And there will be live music throughout the evening,” Wong said. “Spartanburg Philharmonic Orchestra has engaged local guitarist Dr. Jhon Akers and harpist Emily Waggoner to perform, and both Jeremy Willis and Paul Bowman from the Sundays Unplugged program will provide even more music. It will be a great Christmas event and a great time to experience Chapman Cultural Center.”
For more information, please call Wong at (864) 278-9698.