UNC Asheville will host “Come Together and Create,” a two-day showcase and celebration of local performing artists, Friday-Saturday, January 20-21. These performances, part of the university’s Martin Luther King Jr. Week, will take place in the Carol Belk Theatre on the campus.

The performances will include spoken word and poetry, African dance and percussion, hip hop dance, theater, and traditional and contemporary gospel singing. In addition to providing two nights of entertainment, the event aims to strengthen campus connections with the broader Asheville community and also provide a platform for further civic engagement through the East Riverway Sustainable Communities Initiative.

On January 20, performances will begin at 6:30 p.m., featuring UNC Asheville’s Percussion Ensemble, La’Ney West African Dance Ensemble, DeWayne Barton aka BLove, Jonathan Santos, and Greg Lynch aka Alpha Lee. At 8 p.m., the Urban Arts Institute will present an original play, I Hope You Dance. These performances are free and open to the public.

January 21 will bring “Asheville’s Sunday Best,” the second round of a gospel singing competition. The performances, which begin at 6:30 p.m., will benefit A Bridge to Independence, Inc., a nonprofit dedicating to helping homeless youth. Tickets are $6 in advance, available at Venus Beauty Salon, 891D Patton Avenue in West Asheville, and $8 at the door.

For more information, visit UNC Asheville’s Martin Luther King Week page or contact Lise Kloeppel, UNC Asheville assistant professor of Drama, at 828.251.6940.