Interview: Felipe Rose’s unexpected role in The Village People
Like Playskool figures come to life, The Village People emerged on the disco scene in 1977, and by the following year the entire country was singing and mimicking the vocal group’s famous “Y.M.C.A.” moves. An act derived from the gay culture of Greenwich Village, the group formed when Jacques Morali and Henri Belolo spotted a […]
Interview: Classic rocker Eddie Money is still makin’ it rain
Eddie Money whose songs “Baby Hold On,” “Two Tickets to Paradise,” “Shakin’” and “Take Me Home Tonight” dominated the airwaves throughout the ’80s, died Friday, September 13 at age 70. A statement provided by his family reads: “The Money Family regrets to announce that Eddie passed away peacefully early this morning. It is with heavy […]
Wake up call: Comic Bill Burr stands up for himself
With notable TV appearances on Comedy Central, three standup recordings, and several film roles under his belt, Burr is on track to become the next household name in comedy. Not to be overlooked is his work as a dramatic actor, like his role as Patrick Kuby on “Breaking Bad.”
Interview: China’s exuberant pianist Lang Lang sits on top of the classical world
Chinese pianist Lang Lang is one of the hottest performers in the world right now. Equally known for his energetic performances and his prodigious talent, the Shenyang native has wowed audiences since he became inspired to try piano after watching a Tom & Jerry cartoon entitled, “The Cat Concerto.” Thirty years on, Lang Lang has […]
Wynonna approaches Christmas with a new perspective
While most of us are keeping pace with the holiday bustle, country music superstar Wynonna is taking herself out of the madness this year. “I’m not doin’ it,” she said. “I’m just not. Not after what I’ve been through this past year.” In addition to the rigors of touring, recording, and reality TV appearances, she’s […]
A conversation with Hitchcock ingénue Tippi Hedren
Last year’s HBO film The Girl depicted the relationship between Alfred Hitchcock, the master of suspense, and his discovery of Tippi Hedren, who went under contract with Hitch in 1961 and starred in his films The Birds and Marnie. The movie revealed the director’s obsessive desire to control and seek favor from his “ice cool […]
Off the air and on the record with NPR’s Terry Gross
‘‘From WHYY in Philadelphia, I’m Terry Gross with ‘Fresh Air.’” Every NPR junkie knows this intro, and the anticipatory thrill as the warm, steady voice of Terry Gross floats through the radio speakers to set up the backstory of “Fresh Air’s” current interview guest. For almost 40 years, Gross has been conducting compelling, substantive interviews […]
Making connections: Lockn’ Music Festival co-founder Dave Frey is in it for the music
When Frey decided to organize his own festival earlier this year, along with co-founder and Relix magazine publisher Peter Shapiro, the basics came easy. “We decided that we wanted to book a show that we’d like to go and see,” Frey said. “It was that simple. And if we did that, hopefully there would be a lot of others like us that would go.”
Interlocken changes its name to Lockn’ Festival, loses Neil Young
The organizers of the Lockn’ Festival (formerly Interlocken Music Festival) scheduled for September 5-8 on the grounds of Oak Ridge Estate in Arrington, VA have confirmed that Neil Young & Crazy Horse, originally scheduled as the headline performance, has cancelled. According to a press statement, the appearance was cut from the line-up due to a […]
Jess Martin: Superfan
We all know that fan—the one who can rattle off concerts dates and set lists, detailing the lineup, the between-song banter, and even the attire of her favorite band or musician. Jess Martin is of that tribe. The 30-year-old Charlottesville resident has more concerts under her belt than some aging rock stars, and she’s just […]
Honky tonk girl: Loretta Lynn still rules country music
Loretta Lynn released her first record, Honky Tonk Girl, in 1960 and began a 53-year-and-counting career that has made her the most awarded woman in country music. A true-to-her-roots Kentucky girl, Lynn never let the bright lights of Nashville blind her, and she met the pitfalls of fame in public, working through addiction and marital disharmony […]
Summer stocked: The Heritage Theatre Festival returns with guns out
The construction is complete, and Robert Chapel is ready to dig in. As Heritage Theatre Festival’s Producing Artistic Director, Chapel is eager to launch the company’s first full season in two years following the opening of UVA Drama’s new Ruth Caplin Theatre. “I’ll be doing five shows: two in the Caplin, two in the Culbreth, […]
Interlocken announces Neil Young & Crazy Horse among other big names
Interlocken Music Festival announced part of its line-up today with a promise to confirm additional acts. Neil Young & Crazy Horse, Further, Zac Brown, The String Cheese Incident and The Black Crowes will anchor the new festival in Nelson County. Early bird tickets are scheduled to go on sale on Thursday, May 23. Check out […]
Birds in TREES: The annual LOOK3 Festival Of The Photograph begins
One of Charlottesville’s most anticipated springtime events began today with the hanging of the LOOK3 TREES exhibit. The installation has kicked off Charlottesville’s LOOK3 Festival of the Photograph since it began in 2007. “It’s really our coming out party,” said LOOK3’s managing director, Andrew Owen. LOOK3 attracts an estimated attendance of 25,000 artists and observers […]
Phishing for details: New Interlocken Music Festival spurs line-up rumors
Facebook postings and various message boards have announced that permits are in place and are fueling speculation about who will headline the Interlocken music festival’s two stages. Possible performances by Neil Young, Widespread Panic, Phish, and his purple highness, Prince have all been bandied about, but remain rumors.
ARTS Picks: The Institute
Street art, anonymous messages and cryptic interactions are all clues in the reality game documented in the indie pop-psych documentary The Institute.
ARTS Pick: Quidam
Sleight of head The story of a neglected child who seeks solace in a fantasy life, Quidam is the ninth Cirque du Soleil production to take to the road after its inception in 1996. Originally branded by the image of a headless man holding an umbrella, the show is filled with extraordinary characters whose tricks […]
Circus trained: UVA drama’s Steven Warner prepares students for the big time
The romantic’s notion of running away with the circus was Steven Warner’s real life for almost four years. He lived in a train car, learned everyone’s role, and immersed himself in every aspect of production, even handling the animals.
ARTS Pick: Joshua James
Higher plains Nebraska musician Joshua James strums his guitar and lets out the crushing ache in his voice, calling to mind long roads through the expansive Midwest beneath a boundless sky. His folksiness embraces the tradition of the genre, the familiar longing coupled with a unique taste of melancholy, and it is in these blends that James’ […]
ARTS Pick: Into the Woods
Broadway has a knack for re-telling classic children’s stories, and one of the early big ones was Into the Woods. Four County Players is mounting Stephen Sondheim and James Lapine’s multiple Tony Award-winning show in the continued celebration of its 40 seasons.
Live review: Yo La Tengo at The Jefferson Theater
Yo La Tengo has set the DIY standard for a subset of indie music listeners for more than 20 years, innovating, experimenting without compromise—with a unique ability to recognize its own art form—and the critics’ darlings can still deliver the goods.
ARTS Pick: Sally Rose Band
Led by the vivacious, talent-packed Miss Rose, and held tight by the high lonesome harmonies of her classically trained cellist momma, The Sally Rose Band is a band of versatile influences that comes to play.
Stand-up comedian Sheng Wang derives the oddball from the ordinary
Comedy in plain sight Approaching the ordinary as absurd, Sheng Wang tells relatable tales laced with oddball observations within his own striking distance. “There’s a restaurant near my house called Sheng Wang. It’s spelled exactly like my name,” his deadpan delivery begins. “All my friends tell me I have to go and eat there, and […]
ARTS Pick: Charlie and the Chocolate Factory
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory is the latest gem in a long line of family-pleasing productions from the Black Box Players and its founder/director MaryAnne Thornton.
ARTS Pick: The Other Side of the Ice
To travel from Newport, Rhode Island to Seattle, Washington with your family–who are all together for the first time since an emotionally wracking divorce a decade-and-a-half ago–most people of sound mind would tackle the 3000 miles in an airplane, or a car, or a train. Emmy award winning documentary film producer/book author/decorated journeyman Sprague Theobald […]
Boyd Tinsley’s film debut is a distinctly Charlottesville experience
When Boyd Tinsley set out to make Faces in the Mirror, it was more of a calling than a choice. After years of plotting out film projects in casual conversation, the ideas that formed his first feature came fast and furious. “Making a movie is something that I’ve thought about doing since the mid-’90s,” said […]
Years in the making: The silent thrill of being a luthier
The first thing I sensed after stepping inside Vacanti Violins on Fourth Street was a hush like I’d entered a shrine or a place of worship. The walls are lined with gleaming, caramel colored violins and the workshop area appointed with knives, planes, gouges, and scrapers of every shape and angle. Essence of varnish, wood, […]