Arts Culture Entertainment

VAFF 38 kicks it off with Boss biopic

Virginia Film Festival Executive Director Jody Kielbasa and Artistic Director Ilya Tovbis appeared on the Paramount stage on Tuesday evening to announce the 38th Annual Virginia Film Festival. The 2025 VAFF program features more than 120 films from Hollywood giants, Virginia and international filmmakers, plus topical documentaries, and a wide range of special guests across […]

Tami Keaveny | September 24, 2025

Arts Culture

Actor, director, and producer Matthew Modine appears at the 37th annual Virginia Film Festival

Birdy, November 1, The Paramount Theater I Hope This Helps!, November 2, Violet Crown 3 From his first film, Baby It’s You, directed by John Sayles, to his recent role as Dr. Martin “Papa” Brenner in Netflix’s “Stranger Things” and a star turn in Christopher Nolan’s Oppenheimer, Matthew Modine’s accomplishments in film, television, and on stage define the range […]

Tami Keaveny | October 30, 2024

Arts Culture

No blank pages

Shannon Spence awoke to her calling as a cartoon artist while pursuing a fine arts degree focused on printmaking at University of Virginia. In her fourth year, she took a course in sequential art–and she saw her future. “I realized what incredible potential comics were as an art form, and it just clicked for me,” […]

Tami Keaveny | June 12, 2024

Arts Culture

Poetic unity

Rita Dove was on sabbatical from the University of Virginia English department when Richard Danielpour emailed the U.S. Poet Laureate and Pulitzer Prize winner. The Grammy Award-winning composer wanted to discuss collaborating on A Standing Witness, a cycle of songs that covers 50 years of American history, with original music set to poems as lyrics. […]

Tami Keaveny | March 20, 2024

Culture Food & Drink News

Dining adventures

Small and unassuming, the original Harry’s Bar in Venice, Italy, has served classic cocktails to celebrities and locals since 1931. The Alley Light restaurant owners, Chris Dunbar and Robin McDaniel, say it inspired Charlottesville restaurateur Wilson Richey when developing their intimate spot on Second Street SW. “Will went to Europe a lot, and … Harry’s […]

Tami Keaveny | March 6, 2024

Arts Culture

Connecting points

It wasn’t creating the artwork that challenged fiber artist Phượng-Duyên Hải Nguyễn as she prepared for New City Arts’ January 2024 SOUP competition. It was the audience. “I’m terrified of public speaking,” she says. “I’m terrified of being perceived by others in general, and ideally I’d like to stay in a corner and make things […]

Tami Keaveny | January 24, 2024

2023 Best of C-VILLE Staff Picks

Relics to relish

Ever been torn between the purchase of an official, vintage mug fromThe Lion King and a seven-piece Victorian cruet set? Or maybe it’s that Cypress driftwood sculpture, which would fit your decor perfectly. Heyday Antiques & Vintage is a charming, well-curated indoor marketplace with plenty to offer. The store is a collective of 18 vendors […]

Tami Keaveny | August 23, 2023

Culture Food & Drink

Michael Ketola

Michael Ketola Chef and general managerMas Tapas, mastapas.com A steak in the biz Without formal training, I entered the world of professional cooking in 1996, when some college friends from JMU mentioned that the steakhouse they worked at was looking for a cook. So, eager to try something new (and not move back home) I […]

Tami Keaveny | April 26, 2023

Culture Food & Drink

Rachel Pennington

Rachel Pennington Owner: The Pie Chest, thepiechestcville.com A spirit of togetherness “I cook because I have to. I have no other choice. Deep within me resides the desire to please others through a soul-level-comforting pleasing of the palate.  “Therein is the secret to a good life. Eating, drinking, and being merry. Through this we commune […]

Tami Keaveny | March 8, 2023