Founded in 2011, Gorilla Theater stresses the troupe’s efforts at comprehensive inclusion, and with Summer Shorts 2018, that quest includes UVA students. In this production, the theater’s core players work together with student performers and directors to put on shows ranging from the whimsical to the surreal to the intensely dramatic.
This week, 5/1
News that no one wants you to know about notoriously drops on Friday afternoons, when reporters and readers are already looking ahead to the weekend. Coincidentally or not, it was Friday afternoon when the City of Charlottesville sent its bizarre press release about the Civilian Review Board,
Climate changer: Youth activists are fighting for their own future
Flashback to March 15, when the Downtown Mall teemed with 200 miniature activists rallying as part of the national Youth Climate Strike. Among them was 11-year-old Gudrun Campbell, who fearlessly gripped a microphone attached by a curly black cord to the bullhorn held by her dad. Drawing the
A kitchen full of light: A big, bright cooking space blends beauty and functionality
For the interior redesign of a large house in a leafy Charlottesville neighborhood, architect Bethany Puopolo reassigned many of its spaces—a family room became the master suite, and the living and dining rooms switched places—in order to make them work better for her clients, a couple with
The plaintiffs: Who’s who in the fight to keep Confederate monuments
Before August 12, 2017, many people thought of America’s Confederate statues as harmless pieces of history—if they thought of them at all. Then the hate groups came to Charlottesville, ostensibly to protest the monuments’ removal. The violent clashes that led to the death of Heather Heyer and
Improve your #desklife: Thai yoga massage gives the modern worker a mind-body boost
Humans were not designed to sit for eight hours a day, much less be hunched over a computer. A potential cure for this modern malady? Thai yoga massage. Licensed massage therapist Brian Festa believes this type of healing art is “beautifully synonymous with the needs of everyday working
Sister Act: Afghan refugee siblings to prepare pop-up dinner at Kitchen
Charlottesville chef Gabe Garcia sits at a table in the dimly lit dining room of Kitchen Catering & Events, which he co-owns and operates with his wife, Morgan, also a chef. It’s early evening, cold and drizzly outside, but the air inside is warm and redolent with the smell of a simmering
This Week 2/6
February is Black History Month, a time when schools across the country dutifully trot out lessons about Martin Luther King, Jr. and Rosa Parks. In 2015, a minor firestorm ensued when Orange County High School students connected the civil rights movement of the 1960s and today’s Black Lives
This Week, 1/16
Nearly four weeks in, the federal government remains at a standstill over the president’s maniacal demand for $5.7 billion in American taxpayers’ dollars to erect a giant wall. But local government, at least, is raring to go. “Eighty percent of what we do is not a Republican or Democratic
ARTS Pick: Mitchell Tenpenny
Nashville native Mitchell Tenpenny writes stories about where he comes from as he navigates the musical landscape that established his love for creating personal connections onstage. The star football player turned country musician’s soulful, edgy vocals combined with his acoustic
Fighting fear: Local groups step up to help our community of undocumented immigrants
When Maria Chavalan-Sut talks about her life, she smiles. She laughs. Sometimes she cries. The Guatemalan refugee came to America in 2015 and passed a credible fear interview at the border, meaning ICE believed that she would face persecution or torture if she was sent back to her country. But
Arts Pick: Old School honors black educators everywhere
With Caruso Brown’s Old School, The Jefferson School African American Heritage Center gives a nod to Charlottesville’s black leaders, educators, and students. The play reflects Brown’s deep interest in Charlottesville’s black narrative and the lasting impact that these people, past
Reeling it in: The Virginia Film Festival announces its 2019 lineup
By Adriana Wells The Virginia Film Festival (VAFF) returns to Charlottesville this fall with a lengthy list of standout films and special guests for its 31st annual festival, to take place November 1 through 4. Highlights of the event will include a tribute to the late actor Orson Welles, led
Making magic: Jack Black and Cate Blanchett cast a spell
Halloween season is off to a solid start with the pleasant surprise of the kid-friendly horror/fantasy/comedy The House with a Clock in Its Walls. Everything about this movie should be working against it. The marketing makes it seem like another expository, self-contained “adventure” that uses
Vocal exercises: Singer Nay Nichelle promotes positivity
Nay Nichelle likes to write outside. There’s something inspirational about natural sunlight, she says, especially at sunrise and sunset, when the light changes quickly and just so. It’s hard to put the reason for the inspiration into words, she says, but those moments often lead to lyrics for
The Shenandoah Valley’s Lively Cultural Life
By Ken Wilson – There is peace in the valley if that’s what you want—and plenty to keep you occupied when you don’t. Just “over the mountain” from Albemarle County is the storied Shenandoah Valley with all that lush countryside, and all those country places. Once so richly farmed it was dubbed
ARTS Pick: Jazz concert seeks justice
John D’earth directs the UVA Jazz Ensemble in a three-way benefit for the Central Virginia Legal Aid Society, the Legal Aid Justice Center and the UVA jazz program. Jazz4Justice is a statewide, college-based series that raises funds and awareness about social justice issues through community
Movie review: The Insult imparts the complexities of conflict
A dialogue of national reconciliation takes the form of a courtroom drama in Ziad Doueiri’s The Insult, one of this year’s nominees for Best Foreign Language Film. It all begins as a minor conflict between a Lebanese Christian mechanic, Tony (Adel Karam), and a Palestinian engineer living in
LIVING Picks: Week of March 14-20
FAMILY James Madison’s birthday celebration Friday, March 16 Commemorate the 267th birthday of fourth president James Madison in an event featuring the U.S. Marine Corps Band, Honor Guard, Color Guard and the annual wreath–laying ceremony at the Madison Family Cemetery. Free, 1:30pm.
Arts Pick: MerleFest on the Road
Thursday 2/22 MerleFest on the Road gives added exposure to the players at (the late) Doc Watson’s popular Americana music festival in Wilkesboro, North Carolina. Chicago’s soulful five-piece The Way Down Wanderers, laidback Nashville bluegrass act The Barefoot Movement, and seasoned folk
Album reviews: Girlpool, Say Sue Me, Novella and Sloan Peterson
Girlpool Powerplant (Anti-) Philadelphia-by-way-of-California duo Girlpool released Powerplant in May, and it was probably a great summer heartbreak album, all intertwining guitars and fragile voices. Opener “123” comes in like a lamb and revs up to lion level at the chorus—but it’s a sweet,