Weekend best bets: SparkCon, Mac and Cheese Throwdown

This is a busy weekend in the Triangle!

Festivals

N.C. State Fair (State Fairgrounds) - The annual State Fair kicks wraps up this weekend.Check out our guide.

TerraVita Food and Drink Festival - This festival kicks off on Wednesday and runs through Saturday in Chapel Hill and Carborro.

TerraVita's Fall Fête on the Village Green (The Green at Southern Village, 400 Market St, Chapel Hill) - TerraVita Food & Drink Festival's ninth year wraps up on Saturday this event featuring lots of great food and drink plus bluegrass music.

TerraVita's Tribute Dinner to Edna Lewis (The Barn at Fearrington, 500 Fearrington Village Center, Pittsboro) - This dinner will celebrate Edna Lewis, who journeyed to professional kitchens in New York, Washington, Atlanta and Fearrington Village, where she introduced the chocolate souffle to the dessert menu. The dinner will also include a panel discussion featuring chef and author Carla Hall.

SparkCon 2.0 (Downtown Raleigh) - Rescheduled due to Hurricane Florence, this annual arts festival will take over downtown Raleigh Thursday through Sunday. There will be more than 2,000 artists performing in more than 200 events spanning music, art, film, fashion and more.

Triangle Oktoberfest (Booth Amphitheatre, 8003 Regency Parkway, Cary) - This authentic German festival will feature traditional Bavarian food and fare and plenty of local and authentic German beers from Munich, live music, inflatables, face painting, hammer striking competitions and Weiner Dog races at Booth Amphitheatre in Cary on Friday and Saturday. Proceeds will support The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society and other local and international charities.

BugFest (N.C. Museum of Natural Sciences, 11 West Jones Street, Raleigh) - Experience more than 100 exhibits, crafts, games and activities at the N.C. Museum of Natural Sciences on Saturday. Also make sure to visit the museum's Café Insecta, where the brave can sample buggy dishes prepared by local chefs. Admission to the festival is free. BugFest was originally scheduled for last month but got moved due to Hurricane Florence.

Don't Be Mean to People: A Festival for the ACLU of NC (Ponysaurus Brewing, 219 Hood Street, Durham) - This two-day festival will feature 20 acts including Wye Oak, Rafiq Bhatia, Superchunk (acoustic) and Kooley High. All of the proceeds from the festival benefit the American Civil Liberties Union of North Carolina.

The festival runs Friday and Saturday.

Beaglefest (Sunny Acres Pet Resort, 5908 US-70 BUS, Durham) - There will be vendors, games, contests, swag, raffles, food, beagles and fun at this Saturday festival. Friendly, leashed dogs (and their humans) are welcome. All money raised will go towards the care of rescue beagles.

Food and shopping

Trick or Eat Food Truck Rodeo (Main Street in Downtown Garner) - There will be 15 food trucks, three craft breweries, street music and local artisans on Sunday.

Mac and Cheese Throwdown (214 Martin St., Raleigh) - The fundraiser features vendors creating delicious mac and cheese and bartenders creating cocktails. All proceeds benefit The Hope Center at Pullen.

2018 Bull City Race Fest & Food Truck Rodeo (American Tobacco Campus, 318 Blackwell St, Durham) - This half-marathon and 5-miler is Sunday at the American Tobacco Campus in downtown Durham. There will be a food truck rodeo.

A Shopping Spree (Raleigh Convention Center, 500 S Salisbury St, Raleigh) - This four-day shopping fundraiser will feature regional and national exhibitors with the latest in fashion and home decor trends, unique gifts and holiday merchandise. Proceeds from this event help support the Junior League of Raleigh's Center for Community Leadership and community projects. The shopping event starts Thursday and runs through Sunday.

Halloween fun

Pumpkin Carving Party (TheeDesign, 7901 Strickland Road, Raleigh) - This family-friendly pumpkin carving party is Friday night. There will be a carving contest, costume contests, face painting, a video game truck and more fun.

Oktoberfest 4 Miler (Raleigh Beer Garden, 614 Glenwood Avenue, Raleigh) - The nOg Run Club, creator of the St. Paddy's 4 Miler, is holding this seventh annual Oktoberfest 4 Miler on Saturday. Don your lederhosen for a day of running and friendly fun in downtown Raleigh.

Midtown Pumpkin Palooza (Midtown Park at North Hills, 4011 Cardinal at North Hills St., Raleigh) - The Midtown Raleigh Alliance presents this fall festival on Sunday at Midtown Park. There will be a live band, KidZone, the famous Midtown Chili Cook-off, the all new "Terrence and Torry's Tailgate Zone," a canine costume contest, beer by Trophy Brewing and new Bubbly & Baubles by The Capital Grille and Kendra Scott. Tickets are on sale now.

Strange City of Edgar Allen Poe (Sonorous Road Theatre, 3801 Hillsborough St., Raleigh) - Sonorous Road Theatre & Film Studio presents this innovative twist on the classic haunted house experience that will immerse patrons in a dark and twisted story. This new concept, called Strange City of Edgar Allan Poe, is an original storyline based on the life, stories, and characters of the famous poet. The production runs through Halloween.

On stage

Aniz Ansari (DPAC, 123 Vivian St., Durham) - The comedian plays Friday and Saturday nights at Durham Performing Arts Center.

Carolina Ballet's Dracula (Fletcher Opera Theatre, 2 East South Street, Raleigh) - Lynne Taylor-Corbett’s Dracula returns to the stage just in time for Halloween. This program also includes Robert Weiss’ scary evocation of Edgar Allan Poe’s The Masque of the Red Death. The show runs through Oct. 28.

Good Charlotte (The Ritz, 2820 Industrial Drive, Raleigh) - See this band lead by brothers Joel Madden and Benji Madden on Friday night at The Ritz.

Kathleen Madigan (Carolina Theatre of Durham, 309 West Morgan St., Durham) - The comedian brings her "Boxed Wine and Bigfoot" tour to Durham Saturday night.

NC Theatre presents In the Heights (Raleigh Memorial Auditorium, 2 East South St., Raleigh) - From the creator of Hamilton, this show tells the universal story of a vibrant community in New York's Washington Heights neighborhood - a place where the coffee from the corner bodega is light and sweet, the windows are always open and the breeze carries the rhythm of three generations of music.

The show runs through Sunday.