1 Throw some mud.

You can see ceramics, purchase pottery, and even coat yourself in raw materials during the Silver City Clay Festival this weekend. “Clay is a great connector for all New Mexicans,” says Alexa Tubbs, the bash’s project coordinator. “Whether it’s the pottery we eat from, the homes we live in, or the cultures that preceded us, we’re bonded by clay.”    

The weekend includes opportunities to explore clay in all its guises. Acclaimed artist Margarita Paz Pedro hosts a mini mosaic-making course, while Yen Chu demonstrates surface carving techniques. Find your next delightful purchase at a makers’ market. A clay “rodeo” on Saturday is, in fact, a wheel-throwing contest. Watch ceramicists try to make the tallest cup or largest bowl, or just create while blindfolded. Light Art Space hosts Reflections in Clay, a juried exhibit of works by 42 artists from throughout the country, including Anna Bush Crews, a Taos-based artist who loved to make mud pies as a kid.

But that’s not all. There’s mud fun for the kids on Saturday and a guided visit to the Mimbres Culture Heritage Site on Sunday. See the full schedule on the website.

Some of the best mariachi bands around compete in the Mariachi Spectacular de Albuquerque this weekend. Photograph by Unsplash/Samuel Ramos.

2 Don your sombrero.

The weeklong Mariachi Spectacular de Albuquerque culminates this weekend with performances, classes, and competitions. At 6 p.m. on Friday, 16 groups compete to win a spot in the finale. During the Showcase competition, performers have only seven minutes and cannot play a song that has already been heard that night. One winner apiece will come from the elementary school, high school, college, and open categories. They’ll join masters from Mexico and the Southwest at the Spectacular concert on Saturday at 7 p.m. at Sandia Resort & Casino. (You might spy the performers praying away their concert jitters at the free Mariachi Mass on Saturday at 11 a.m.)

La Emi’s Summer Flamenco Series blends traditional flamenco with innovative and modern technique. Photograph courtesy of La Emi.

3 Snap to it.

La Emi’s Summer Flamenco Series on the Benitez Cabaret stage at the Lodge at Santa Fe is bigger than ever. It includes fabulous custom costumes, choreography created with dancers from Spain, and a newly designed set. The show blends traditional flamenco with innovative and modern technique. “This showcase is the first time we are doing anything of this scale and level of production,” La Emi says. “We’re proud to represent this art form in New Mexico and bring a whole new interpretation to our audience.” La Emi (aka Emmy Grimm) has been dancing since she was four. She recently attended a six-week intensive flamenco study in Spain, which inspired some of the choreography in this show.  

Don't be sheepish. The New Mexico Farm & Ranch Heritage Museum's Summertime on the Farm is a fun time for the entire family. Photograph courtesy of the New Mexico Farm & Ranch Heritage Museum.

4 Keep ’em down on the farm.

Take the family to the New Mexico Farm & Ranch Heritage Museum, in Las Cruces, on Saturday for Summertime on the Farm. The 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. hoedown starts with a children’s bike parade and moves on to trolly rides, a scavenger hunt, games, and demonstrations of wool spinning, blacksmithing, and colcha embroidery. Catch a yummy bite from local food trucks, including Green Chile Paddy Wagon and Kona Ice.

Land at Ashley Pond Park for plenty of hands-on fun during ScienceFest Discovery Day, in Los Alamos. Photograph courtesy of ScienceFest.

5 Get smart.

Hands-on science is the name of the game on Saturday during ScienceFest Discovery Day, in Los Alamos. The annual event gathers hundreds of scientists, engineers, and artists for interactive scientific demonstrations. Head to Ashley Pond Park from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. for an electric vehicle parade, a recycled fashion show, a solar-powered car race, drones flying over the park, live music, and a beer garden.