Things to Do in Sandy Hills

A true polymath, Leonardo da Vinci was never content learning a single subject at a time. Leonardo’s expertise is renowned, as he honed his mind as an artist, scientist, inventor, and mutant ninja. In this same spirit, The Leonardo, his namesake museum, explores the ways that science, technology, art, and creativity connect. Each day, its exhibits bustle with activity as visitors examine thought-provoking installations, experiment with hands-on activities, and participate in ever-changing workshops.

The Dynamic Performance of Nature exhibit, for example, is a giant sine curve made of solar-powered LEDs that stretches the length of room. It flashes and changes its color in response to real-world factors such as solar radiation, humidity, and pollution. Artists, inventors, and other innovative thinkers work within the Lab@Leo, where they help museum guests make creative projects out of different materials. Some of the museum's other exhibits include I.D.: What Makes You, You?, which explores our genetic origins, and Render, where visitors can create their own short animated films.

Alliance Theatre has staged ghost stories, fairy tales, and beloved Broadway musicals for more than four decades, earning it a Regional Theatre Tony Award for its memorable productions. Haled by ArtsATL.com as “an incredibly engaging and tightly focused evening at the theater,” I Just Stopped By to See the Man casts a mysterious pall over audiences with its tale of three characters seeking redemption. Accomplished musician and actor “Mississippi” Charles Bevel pours himself into the leading role of Jesse “The Man” Davidson, a legendary bluesman playing possum from fame while living in a shotgun shack with his daughter Della. Like Robert Johnson, Jesse is fabled to have traded his soul to the devil for his musical talents, which now collect dust while his guitar gently weeps. When Karl, a British rock star, hunts down “The Man” in hopes of learning from the master and luring him back to the stage, conflicts unfold and secrets are revealed. Brimming with authentic Delta blues songs and a surplus of wry wisdom, the intimate character study works its mojo on music fans and theater buffs alike.

Arabian horses are known for the strong bonds they form with their caretakers. Lashay Arabians’ owner, Lisa Park, can attest to that fact. Throughout her 22 years of horse training and riding, she always has cared for loving arabian steeds, and her stables house a number of arabian and arabian-mixed mounts. Flower, Lisa's 24-year-old mare, has been with her since before she began her career leading lessons of riding and jumping, and to this day still takes kids for trots around the farm while neighing about her favorite episode of Cheers.

Along with fellow trainer Leslee Pugh, Lisa leads lessons for students of all ages and skill levels that teach the art of horsemanship, from recreational riding to national-level showing to jumping and dressage. The team also assists riders in need by coaching them during events, transporting horses to and from locations, and leasing horses to those who want to ride more but are not ready to buy their own mount.

Within a tranquil practice space, Yoga Central’s experienced instructors shepherd kids and adults working toward strong, relaxed physiques. Teachers draw on a variety of styles, including Hatha, Vinyasa, Ashtanga, and Kundalini, to build sessions of yoga-fusion routines for all skill levels. At night, instructors guide adults from one pose to the next by the light of softly glowing candles to melt away workday stress and kids' crayons lodged in nostrils and ears. Mommy & Me teachers help little ones purge excess energy while cultivating focus and an appreciation for fitness with basic poses and breathing exercises. Like sunsets, classes take place multiple times a day; seven days a week, helping busy yogis refine their practice without giving up their other pursuits.

The paranormal investigators at Grimm Ghost Tours get up close and personal with Salt Lake City’s most infamous specters during their bone-chilling ghost tours. On these tours—which helped them win the A-List Award for Best City Tour in 2012—they guide guests toward local haunts while sharing the city’s grisly past in true tales of murder, mystery, and violence. Groups may leave the city limits behind during the Outer Reaches tour, shuffling off to the unimaginably dark corners that were once Ted Bundy’s hunting grounds. Guides also tell the tainted history of other spooky local sites, sending chills down the spines of guests who explore old Fort Douglas, the Hancock mansion, and the haunted scotch bottles of the Premiere Gentile Gentlemen’s Club. All of Grimm’s paranormal jaunts combine aspects of a bus and walking tour, quickly shuttling those with a morbid curiosity from one site to the next.

For participants looking for a more intense paranormal experience, Grimm Ghost Tours offers ghost hunts at a haunted site, during which they teach guests the techniques and mortal perils of the ghost-hunting business. Once the sun sets, the brave guests join their tour guides as they use specialized equipment to scour their destination for clues and signs of life after death.

Studio owner Julie Branham and her team of registered yoga instructors at Lifted Life Yoga support students’ fitness goals by urging them toward a lifestyle driven by health and fitness, fostering an inclusive studio atmosphere where students of all abilities can develop their body awareness and hone yoga skills. Beginners can master the basics in patiently paced 60-minute classes where they follow instructors through muscle- and ligament-awakening stretches and breathing exercises to clear the mind. Once the knowledgeable teachers have successfully persuaded students over to the stretchy side, a plethora of specialty sessions geared to more experienced students addresses specific physical needs, such as runner's, prenatal, and hot yoga, whereas ongoing power Vinyasa classes pay constant homage to the solar system's temperamental fire ball with a series of sun salutations.