The newly-founded Reckless Theatre Company—not to be confused with the New York-based group of the same name—is the project of a trio of UVA Drama majors, Ahmad Helmy, Anne Connelly, and Adam Santalla. The troupe was founded this year with the intention of bringing theatrical events to the wider community while sharpening their dramatic skills. Their […]
The Harrisonburg-based music festival MACRoCk celebrates its 16th year this weekend with yet another solid line-up of local, regional, and touring indie-rock bands. Initially founded as the “Mid-Atlantic College Radio Conference,” MACRoCk has now severed ties with JMU and local station WXJM, but remains committed to throwing a killer annual festival. This year’s roster includes […]
Uber achiever The richly talented Jessye Norman is not a standard singer. To clarify, she does sing standards, as well as opera and Broadway ballads, but she refuses to align herself with any stereotype. Her set list consists of classics by Gershwin, Rodgers & Hammerstein, and Bernstein, but Norman innovates through the sheer power of […]
“I love old photographs,” Jordan Grace Owens said, “partly for nostalgia and partly for aesthetics—the weirdly forced poses and the flattened shadows from years of degradation. Most of my full-color paintings do refer to specific vintage photos, but the line drawings are almost entirely made up characters.”
Victory laugh In 2007, when MTV’s sketch comedy and surprise hit “Human Giant” was just underway, Aziz Ansari seemed the likely breakout star among the trio at the show’s helm. His trajectory in the following two years would prove this—paying comedic dues in the Judd Apatow flick Funny People, cropping up on fan favorite “Scrubs,” […]
Press play Endtroducing… dropped all the way back in 1996, but DJ Shadow’s experiment in instrumental hip-hop brought the man unexpected acclaim, and a sound that is still influencing artists across genres. He’s retreated back to the underground in the years since his debut, but Shadow remains just as invested in perfecting and pushing the contemporary musical […]
Prison riot Even Shakespeare and John Fletcher knew that the rewrite of a Chaucer poem took some serious guts back in the early 17th century. Despite the potential for total demolishment of a poetic monument, the duo lets chaos run rampant in The Two Noble Kinsmen. What happens when two imprisoned cousins fall in love with […]
“We’ve seen phenomenal enthusiasm,” deNeveu said. “The amount of people coming in here has been really flattering. A lot of people get excited about art that’s not in the $1,000, or even the $100 price range. We definitely have the best dollar-to-square-inch ratio for art in town.”
Folk lure According to the bio section on Michael Clem’s official website, he doesn’t take himself terribly seriously. The self-conducted interview posted there provides plenty of wit, and plays off of the overt self-promotion that permeates the business side of music. He hardly touches on his vast musical accomplishments—a long career with the popular folk-rock […]
Slammer time In case the new Die Hard flick didn’t cut it and you still need your fix of action with little to no plot, World Wrestling Entertainment brings us RAW: Road to Wrestlemania a great one. All the big names, from the perpetually shirtless John Cena to the cleverly named The Miz and the mysterious Kaitlyn, are bringing […]