ARTS Pick: Pops at The Paramount

Experience the splendor of well-loved hits from film, theater and television with Pops at The Paramount, performed by the Charlottesville Symphony at the University of Virginia. The program, directed by Kate Tamarkin, includes John Lunn’s “Suite for Downton Abbey,” selections from John Williams’ score for Star Wars: The Force Awakens and Arnold Schoenberg’s “I Dreamed […]

Fire in the Belly masters the art of dance

Belly dancer Joy Rayman loves to improvise during a performance. During a recent gig at McGuffey Art Center, she was completely absorbed in the music, snaking her arms and undulating her hips, when she felt her coin belt loosen. Not wanting to pause and interrupt the flow of the dance, she kept moving. The belt […]

ARTS Pick: Double Faces Gogo Band

These days it’s rare to find a musical style that remains provincial, but the greater D.C. area’s grip on go-go is still the heart of the genre. Tight funk blended into hip-hop call and response sets the boogie in motion for the Double Faces Gogo Band, formed in C’ville as a tribute to the musical […]

ARTS Pick: Pale Blue Dot

After leaving Pale Blue Dot two years ago, Tony LaRocco returns from a stint of self-discovery to front the local quartet once again. The modern pop group reveals its soul through lyrics that reflect a sense of nature, space and Buddhist precepts, and its latest EP, Telescopes, produced by Daughtry guitarist Brian Craddock, fuses creative […]

ARTS Pick: Josh Ritter

Josh Ritter is on the road again after the release of his eighth studio album, Sermon on the Rocks, which has received a considerable amount of praise. It marks a transformation for Ritter, who, according to Rolling Stone, is “fully reimagining his own art while still holding close to what’s always made him special.” In […]

Living Picks: To-do this week

Family     Bike-In Movie Night Charlottesville Community Bikes concludes National Bike Month with a “bike-in” screening of Premium Rush, an action film about a bicycle messenger caught in a precarious situation in New York City. Wednesday, 5/25. Free, 8:30pm. Champion Brewing Company, 324 Sixth St. SE. cvillecommunitybikes.com. Nonprofit Memorial Sunday Tribute This tribute to local fallen […]

ARTS Pick: Hot Club and Ultrafaux

Made popular in the 1930s and ’40s, gypsy jazz is in the middle of a renaissance, and Baltimore’s Michael Joseph Harris (left) is bringing it to the stage in two formations. His traditional band, Hot Club, relies on the classic repertoire, while Ultrafaux is guided by modern inspirations and original compositions and brings in the […]

In brief: Another UVA coach out, unwelcome selfies and more

What’s under that robe? UVA’s enhanced, heavy-duty security for its 187th final exercises, which included the opening of the robes for grads and faculty before entering the Lawn, is considered a “best practice” common at other large, public research universities, according UVA spokesperson Anthony de Bruyn, who points out that at a UNESCO World Heritage […]

ARTS Picks: In the Shadow of Women

Philippe Garrel’s In the Shadow of Women, the Virginia Film Festival’s third installment of its year-round series, portrays work, home and love lives colliding. The veteran French new wave film director uses stark black-and-white cinematography to contrast a male versus female perspective on the dissolution of a marriage wrecked by mutual infidelity. Exploring the gray […]

Album reviews: Parquet Courts, Sonny and the Sunsets, Summer Flake

Parquet Courts Human Performance (Rough Trade) In a “Kids in the Hall” skit, a sarcastic- sounding partygoer struggles to explain that his vocal tone is just a tragic defect, haplessly sneering, “Oh, no, I really want to be your friend!” Parquet Courts’ Andrew Savage might know the feeling. His deadpan declamations are easily labeled ironic—and […]