14 things to do in Wilmington for the first weekend of fall: Good tunes, theater and more

This weekend marks the first full weekend of fall in the Wilmington area.

And while you'll have to wait a week or so for the big fall festivals to kick into high gear, this weekend offers a great assortment of stuff, from musical comedies and intriguing plays to music festivals and concerts by top local and touring artists.

If you want to look a bit further ahead, we just recently published our list of 25 Wilmington-area fall festivals for 2024 and 55 fall concerts you need to know about. To plan things out beyond this weekend, check the links below.

Top tunes: From rock and jam to jazz and classical, 55 great concerts to see in Wilmington this fall

Good times: Celebrate fall in Wilmington with these 25 can't-miss festivals

ALL WEEKEND

'Young Frankenstein'

Sept. 27-Oct. 6 at Thalian Hall: Thalian Association Community Theatre presents the musical based on Mel Brooks' classic 1974 comic horror comedy. Jack Larrabee plays Dr. Frederic Frankenstein, er uh, Frahn-ken-steen, with Nat Pressley as the ritz-putting-on Monster. 7:30 p.m. Sept. 27-28 and Oct. 4-5, 2 p.m. Sept. 29 and Oct. 6. 910-632-2285.

'Everybody'

Sept. 26-Oct. 6, Mainstage Theatre in UNCW's Cultural Arts Building: The University of North Carolina Wilmington's Department of Theatre presents this play by Branden Jacobs-Jenkins, a finalist for the 2018 Pulitzer Prize in Drama. It's a modern adaptation of "Everyman," a 15th-century British morality play that is one of the earliest plays recorded in English. The five-actor cast plays one of five roles, but the roles change by lottery with each performance, meaning no two shows will be quite alike. UNCW theater professor Elizabeth Wellman directs. 7:30 p.m. Sept. 26-28 and Oct. 3-5, 2 p.m. Sept. 29 and Oct. 6. Tickets are $15; $12 for seniors, UNCW employees and alumni; and $6 for students (sales tax included). 910-962-3500.

'Shakers Revised'

Sept. 27-29 at Thalian Hall (studio theater): New Wilmington theater company Harrington Repertory presents this original play by Rose-Mary Harrington, who also directs. The drama "Shakers Revised" is about the woman-founded religious sect known as The Shakers, which was founded in England and moved to colonial America around the time of the Revolutionary War. 7:30 p.m. Sept. 27-28, 2 p.m. Sept. 22 29. 910-632-2285.

Leah Rudick

Sept. 27-28at Dead Crow Comedy Room: If you've spent any time watching comics on reels on social media, you've almost certainly seen the work of this viral comedian. Rudick, who gets a lot of material from her time spent working with super-rich people, released her first one-hour special, "Spiraling," on Amazon and Apple TV earlier this year. 7 p.m. and 9:30 Sept. 27-28, tickets are $25 and $35.

FRIDAY

Creative Mornings

Sept. 27 at Thalian Hall (ballroom): Creative Mornings, a national organization that started in New York in 2008, holds its first event in Wilmington. Each month, in a different Wilmington location, local creatives will give inspiring talks about what they do. Friday's event features James Tritten of Wilmington's Fort Lowell Records talking about the label's "This Water Is Life" series of albums that pairs Wilmington indie rockers with local hip-hop artists to benefit area environmental groups. 8:30 a.m. Sept. 27 at Thalian Hall, tickets are free but reservations are required as seating is limited.

Fuzz Jaxx and Tercel

Sept. 27at Satellite Bar & Lounge: Release show for "This Water Is Life, Vol. IV," the album series from Wilmington's Fort Lowell Records that pairs Wilmington indie rockers with local hip-hop artists. Fuzz is a veteran Wilmington rapper who's arguably the greatest local freestyler of all time. Rockers Tercel, led by Robin and Savannah Wood, deliver visceral punk tunes laced with potent social and political themes. 8 p.m. Sept. 27, free.

Steep Canyon Rangers

Sept. 27 at Greenfield Lake Amphitheater: Grammy-winning North Carolina roots/bluegrass band known for playing with Steve Martin dropped their new album "Live at Greenfield Lake" in August. 7 p.m. Sept. 27, tickets start at $40.

Feather

Sept. 27at the Ocean Grill & Tiki Bar: Wilmington favs who play a variety of crowd-pleasing soft-rock covers aim to bring some good vibes to Carolina Beach, which got hammered by flooding earlier this month. Spirits lifting in 3, 2 ... 7 p.m. Sept. 27, free.

Michael Nicolella

Sept. 27 at Beckwith Recital Hall: Well-regarded classical guitarist plays everything from Bach to Jimi Hendrix. 7:30 p.m. Sept. 27, tickets are $14.

SATURDAY

Benji Hughes

Sept. 28 at Bourgie Nights: Charlotte rock crooner and songwriter Hughes will be joined by keyboardist Jon Lindsay in what's being billed as An Extreme Evening with Benji Hughes and Jon Lindsay, with songs from throughout Hughes' extensive catalog. With an opening solo set from Lindsey, and paintings by Hughes on display. 7 p.m. doors, 8 p.m. show Sept. 28, advance tickets start at $20.

N.C. Symphony

Sept. 28 at CFCC Wilson Center: State symphony comes to town to play Beethoven's famed Symphony No. 8, along with work by Strauss (Serenade in E-flat Major) and Farrenc (Symphony No. 3). 7:30 p.m. Sept. 28, 910-362-7999.

Pier Palooza

Sept. 28at the Pier at Port City Marina: Wilmington blues-rockers Blue Footed Boobies, Wilmington rock vets Machine Gun and Nashville Southern rock band The Vegabonds will headline this music festival just off the Riverwalk in downtown Wilmington. 4 p.m. Sept. 28, tickets are $35.

Travis Shallow

Sept. 28 at Live at Ted's: Shallow is a veteran of the Wilmington music scene and has been performing his deeply felt folk and Americana songs, like the moving "Hard Time with the Truth," locally for more than a decade now. 8 p.m. Sept. 28, tickets are $10.

SUNDAY

Daniel Donato's Cosmic Country

Sept. 29 at Greenfield Lake Amphitheater: Donato returns to Wilmington after an August show was postponed by Tropical Storm Debby. His driving, upbeat style blends honky-tonk country with funk, jam and other genres. 6 p.m. Sept. 29, tickets start at $31.

This article originally appeared on Wilmington StarNews: Things to do and what's going on in Wilmington, NC