17 Triangle events to check out this week

RALEIGH, N.C. — Our fun picks will help you get through the work week.

Try Carrboro's Bluegrass Jam at 5:45 p.m. in The ArtsCenter. You can bring your own instrument to play along or just come to listen.

See sought-after violinist Isabelle Faust and award-winning Alexander Melnikov on piano at 7:30 p.m. at the Memorial Hall at UNC. Tickets start at $20 for the 7:30 p.m. show.

A free Open Mic Night starts at 7:30 p.m. at Deep South.

There's an Election Night Viewing Party at Motorco in Durham tonight and several others in Raleigh, like Beer & Banjos at The Raleigh Times. Check our guide for more parties.

Or, spend the night with singer-songwriter Andrew W.K., who is bringing his speaking tour to Carrboro. His show will feature speech on "living the party life" and also include an open question and answer session with the audience.

Country star Vince Gill will be at DPAC at 7:30 p.m.

See one of the more unconventional stand-up comics on the national circuit, Demetri Martin, who is known for using one-liners and drawings on a large pad as well as accompanying his jokes with music, at 8 p.m. at the Carolina Theatre in Durham.

Try a Kipos Wine Dinner and enjoy a decadent four-course meal paired with four exquisite wines that will take you on a journey through the autumn vineyards of Greece. It starts at Kipos Greek Taverna at 6:30 p.m.

Today through Sunday, try an old barrel-aged ale at Raleigh Brewing Company at their annual Raleigh Wood Bottle Release. This year's beer was aged nine months in RUM barrels and contains notes of molasses, raisin, toffee and stone fruit.

In the spirit already? See A Charlie Brown Christmas at Raleigh Little Theatre at 7:30 tonight and all weekend. Tickets start at $9.

Take a step back to the 20s against the backdrop of the Rolling Sculpture exhibition at the NCMA at Classic Cars, Classic Cocktails while you enjoy drinks, hors d'oeuvres and vintage automobiles. $50 tickets include two cocktails, hors d'oeuvres and entrance to the exhibition.

To Me From the Earth is a new musical inspired by the exhibition White Gold by Thomas Sayre and Mi Historia, a poem by David Dominguez. See it spatially performed in the White Gold exhibition at CAM Raleigh for $25. The show features music from the North Carolina Symphony.

NC Comicon starts today and runs through Sunday at the Durham Convention Center.

See Steep Canyon Rangers, a bluegrass band that walks the line between festival favorite and sophisticated string orchestra, at Memorial Hall at UNC at 8 p.m.

A new Competition Dining Series starts tonight while champions from previous dinners battle it out to determine who is the best chef. This is a delicious six course dinner that lets you be the judge. Can't make Friday's battle? Dinners run all weekend.

Chapel Hill and Carrboro host their 2nd Friday Art Walk tonight from 6 to 9 p.m. Venues offer live music, food, activities, hands-on art demonstrations, discounts and more.

Get more picks for this month on our best bets calendar, and check back on Thursday for our official picks for the weekend.