This weekend, we’re embracing winter throughout Cincinnati with a variety of cozy events, from sampling hearty chili dishes and shopping while sipping hot cocoa to learning how maple sugar is made. If winter revelry isn’t for you, you can also kick up your heels and dance to live honky tonk music, appreciate a lineup of short plays, meditate among art and much more Jan. 9-11.
If you’re looking for even more to do every day of the week, visit the CityBeat events calendar, which is free to use if you have something planned that you’d like to advertise to CityBeat readers.
After Glow at the Cincinnati Zoo
Friday, Jan. 9 from 5-10 p.m.
You’ll have one more chance to enjoy the Cincinnati Zoo’s Festival of Lights display at this unique, 18+-only event. You can explore the zoo’s illuminated pathways in a child-free and relaxed environment, enjoy specialty drinks and snacks, capture memories at the photo-op stations and visit select animal habitats.
Monthly Honky Tonk Dance with Joe’s Truck Stop
Friday, Jan. 9 at 8 p.m. at Northside Tavern (4163 Hamilton Ave., Northside)
Boot-scoot boogie at this honky tonk dance with local band Joe’s Truck Stop, featuring live music, dance instructions and homemade food. Guests can also enjoy live embroidery and shop vintage wares.
Art of the Brick: An Exhibition of LEGO Art
Friday-Sunday, Jan. 9-11 from 9 a.m.-9 p.m. at 18 W. Fourth St., Downtown
LEGO fans can experience the ultimate art exhibit, featuring more than 100 sculptures crafted from over a million LEGO bricks by artist Nathan Sawaya. The collection includes original work by Sawaya, plus new versions of masterpieces like Michelangelo’s statue, David; Vincent van Gogh’s The Starry Night; and Leonardo da Vinci’s Mona Lisa, as well as a multimedia collection co-produced by award-winning photographer Dean West.
Home Brew Theatre
Friday, Jan. 9 from 7:30-10 p.m.; Saturday, Jan. 10 from 2-4:30 p.m. and 7:30-10 p.m.; and Sunday, Jan. 11 from 2-4:30 p.m. at The Glenmore Playhouse (3716 Glenmore Ave., Cheviot)
Enjoy a weekend of short plays by local playwrights. Each show features 10 plays, around 10 minutes each, with full productions. Each performance will be followed by a reception where you can meet the artists and enjoy beer from Braxton Brewing Company.
Meditate with Art
Saturday, Jan. 10 from 11 a.m. to noon at the Cincinnati Art Museum (953 Eden Park Drive, Mt. Adams)
Join the Dharma Center at the Cincinnati Art Museum for some artful meditation practice. You’ll meet on the yellow couches in the Schmidlapp Gallery and then be led by an instructor to a gallery where you can meditate and connect with your inner peace.
Harrison Hot Chocolate Walk
Saturday, Jan. 10 from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. in Harrison’s The District (near 100 Harrison Ave., Harrison)
Explore Harrison’s business district and warm up with some hot cocoa during the Hot Chocolate Walk. The Hot Chocolate Walk will feature several small businesses in The District, including bookstore Enchanted Novelties, coffee shop The Coffee Peddler, boutique Perfect Little Peach and comic book shop The Atomic Vault, among others. Each business will have their own specials, promotions or giveaways, as well as free hot chocolate.
Long Live – A Tribute to Taylor Swift
Saturday, Jan. 10 from 5-9 p.m. at Element Eatery (5350 Medpace Way, Madisonville)
Calling all Swifties! You can enjoy an evening of all things Taylor Swift as Element Eatery brings back its unofficial Taylor Swift Eras Tour experience, bigger and better than before. Test your lyrical knowledge during trivia, enjoy specials and sing your heart out during the T.S. sing-a-long. The event will also feature a massive video wall, friendship bracelet trading and new merch. Feel free to dress for your favorite era, as well.
World Oddities Expo
Saturday-Sunday, Jan. 10-11 from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. at the Sharonville Convention Center (11355 Chester Road, Sharonville)
Experience the bizarre, weird and wonderfully macabre at the World Oddities Expo, where art, history, science and entertainment collide. The expo will feature dozens of eclectic vendors and small businesses, plus the “Deformed Exhibit,” where you can see rare, preserved specimens that defy nature, and the WOE labs, which will host workshops like taxidermy, rat skeleton articulation and creating miniature diorama terrariums. The Main State will host live performances throughout the day and guest speakers.
Maple Fest
Saturday-Sunday, Jan. 10-11 from noon to 4 p.m. at Cincinnati Nature Center (4949 Tealtown Road, Milford)
Maple season is upon us and the Cincinnati Nature Center is kicking things off with a sweet behind-the-scenes tour of its maple operation. You’ll join organizers on a hike where you’ll learn all about the maple sugaring process, from tapping trees to checking pails for sap. There will also be bourbon tastings, maple beer and foods, games, activities and more.
Hot Wheels Monster Trucks Live Glow-N-Fire
Saturday, Jan. 10 at 12:30 and 7:30 p.m. and Sunday, Jan. 11 and 2:30 p.m. at BB&T Arena (500 Nunn Drive, Highland Heights)
This show will bring fan-favorite Hot Wheels monster trucks to life, including Mega Wrex, Tiger Shark, HW 5-Alarm, Bone Shaker, Bigfoot and Skelesaurus while FMX riders perform jaw-dropping stunts and a fire-breathing, car-crushing robot dinosaur roams the arena. Fans will also get to see the all-new Rhinomite, a Rhino-themed truck.
Findlay Market’s Chili Fest Weekend
Saturday, Jan. 10 from 3-5 p.m. at Findlay Market (1801 Race St., Over-the-Rhine)
Findlay Market’s annual Chili Fest will kick off Saturday with the Chili Cook-Off. Amateur chefs will duke it out to have their chili be named the best. Cook-Off participants can enter for $10, and judges will decide who walks away as the champion. The event is free to attend, and spectators can sample each chili and vote for the fan-favorite. Then on Sunday, you can take part in a tasting and sample chili dishes and cornbread from Findlay Market vendors.