2008 Interns Present Jack Tales

Join the Blowing Rock Stage Company 2008 Interns when they stage their annual free performance of Jack Tales, the rich and orally derived tales spun for more than 200 years throughout the Appalachian Mountain region. A trio of playlets will be performed at the outdoor Annie Cannon Gardens, off Laurel Lane in downtown Blowing Rock, Wednesdays and Fridays from June 11-27 at 10 & 11:30am. Admission is free. The adventures performed by the BRSC Interns are: “How Jack Ended Up in This Neck of the Woods to Begin With,” “How Jack Appeased the Chipmunk of Doom” and “How Jack Hoodwinked Ol’ Raggedy Bones.” The repertory of Jack Tales finds its constant in a good-natured but clever young hero named Jack, known to many of us as the hero of “Jack and the Beanstalk” and “Jack the Giantkiller”, who goes out alone into the world, facee challenges his brothers fail and surmounts them by means of ordinary objects endowed with magical powers (i.e. a bullhorn, tablecloth, cowhide). These stories have been preserved and passed on orally by farm families in the North Carolina mountains, with their existence traced back as far as the 15th century and continuing today on Beech Mountain. Today, Jack Tales are more likely to be told at folk festivals, in classrooms or performed on stages than by an old woman sitting next to a fire, but the fact that we continue to perpetuate these stories is proof that Jack will live a long, promising life..Jack Tales will be performed June 11, 13, 18, 20, 25 & 27 at 10 & 11:30am at the Annie Cannon Gardens (off Laurel Lane) in downtown Blowing Rock. Admission is free. For more information, please call 828-295-9627.

Town And TDA Partner In Strategic Retail Evaluation Set for Blowing Rock Downtown

The Town of Blowing Rock Tourism Development Authority has hired HyettPalma, Inc., of Alexandria Virginia, to evaluate the existing retail market conditions in downtown Blowing Rock and make recommendations for long-term enhancements and improvements.
           
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East meets West In Early 20th-century Texas In The Play “The Immigrant”

The Immigrant, a gefilte fish out of water tale, is a true life-based story about two Eastern European Jews who immigrated to a small Texas town in 1909. Inspired by his grandmother’s photo album, playwright Mark Harelik (Hank Williams: Lost Highway) uniquely tells the tender tale of Haskell and Leah Harelik (rhymes with garlic) as they make a new life in tiny Hamilton, Texas, and their evolving relationship with local banker Milton and his wife Ima, a devout Baptist.

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Seventh Driest May Ever At Grandfather

A rainfall total of 2.93 inches, recorded at the official US Weather Service reporting station located next to Grandfather Mountain’s Mile High Swinging Bridge, makes this May the seventh driest ever at Grandfather Mountain.  The driest May ever recorded at Grandfather, 1.43 inches of rainfall, was recorded in 2007. 
   

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Blowing Rock Students Earn Academic Honors At University Of North Carolina At Asheville

Two Blowing Rock students have earned academic honors at the University of North Carolina Asheville, it was announced this week by highly rated school.

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About The Rocket
The Blowing Rocket was first published in June 1932, a tabloid publication that was printed each week during the months of June, July and August. After the final week in August it was to put to bed until the following June.

Local Links Around Blowing Rock
The Blowing Rocket staff has compiled some local links to help you make some choices when you visit.