Riverfest

* The two-day festival kicks off tonight and continues Saturday. Advance tickets are available at Trustmark Bank’s downtown branch, Paper Plus and Toots’ Grocery until 4 p.m. today. They are $15 each night or $25 for a two-day pass. Tickets at the gate will be $20 nightly and $30 for the weekend. Gates open at 6 tonight and Saturday. Free events and entertainment will be downtown Saturday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Tonight’s performers:

* The Chill — 7 p.m.

* The Patrick Smith Band — 8:30 p.m.

* Andy Griggs — 10 p.m.

Saturday’s performers:

* GospelFest — Noon to 4 p.m. (free)

* C.L.O.S.E.R. — 7 p.m.

* Anthony Walls — 8:30 p.m.

* Aaron Tippin — 10 p.m.

Other weekend events:

* Rally on the River will take place Saturday, with an 8 a.m. registration on Walnut Street between South and Veto streets. A dice run for bikers will take place at area businesses, while a dice walk through downtown is available for those without wheels. Cost is $10 for bikers and $5 for walkers. A bike show atop the Walnut Street parking garage will be Saturday afternoon. The show is free for viewers and $10 per bike entry. Call Kathy Triplett at 601-415-6852.

* The 41st annual Vicksburg-Warren County Riverfest Arts & Crafts Show will begin at 8:30 a.m. Saturday along South, Walnut and Crawford streets and wrap up at 4:30 p.m.

* The Bluz Cruz Marathon will begin at 8 a.m. Saturday at the Madison Parish Port, with the 22-mile race concluding at Vicksburg’s City Front. The deadline to enter is this evening. Cost is $35 for members of the American Canoe Association and $45 for nonmembers. Register at www.bluzcruz.com or River Outfitters, 3409 Halls Ferry Road. Call 601-415-4615 for information.

* Separate, with all events free, the 29th annual Alcorn State University Jazz Festival will be Saturday at the Vicksburg Convention Center. Eleven high school and college bands will perform throughout the day, beginning at 9 a.m. An hourlong workshop with headlining musicians will be at 4 p.m., followed by a 7 p.m. show featuring musicians Dee Dee Bridgewater, Geri Allen, Terri Lyne Carrington, Esperanza Spalding and Grace Kelly.

* The ninth annual Vicksburg Chamber Music Festival, presented by Four Seasons of the Arts, begins tonight. At 7 p.m., the Mississippi Vocal Arts Ensemble and pianists Theresa Sanchez and David O’Steen will perform at the Southern Cultural Heritage Center. Admission is $15. Three other performances are scheduled through April 26.

Street closures

* China will be closed between Walnut and Washington. Also closed will be Mulberry at Clay, and Grove and Clay at Washington.

* Beginning at 4:30 a.m. Saturday, South, between Monroe and Walnut, will be closed. Also closed will be Walnut, between Veto and Crawford, and Crawford, between Walnut and Monroe. The top level of the Walnut parking ramp will also be closed.

* All closed roads and intersections will reopen by Monday morning.