Black Mac puts a contemporary look on Macbeth

Ti Ames loves William Shakespeare. Or rather, Ames loves the plays of William Shakespeare. It’s a love that started when Ames played a fairy in The Tempest at Live Arts at age 9, and it grew when, at 16, Ames became the first black actor to win the English-Speaking Union National Shakespeare Competition in 2012. […]

Living Picks: Week of July 18-24

Food & Drink Ol’ Fashioned Peach Festival Saturday, July 21, and Sunday, July 22 Carter Mountain Orchard is hosting its eighth annual Peach Festival, complete with games, hayrides, food and a pie-eating contest for all ages. Free, 9am-7pm Saturday, and 9am-6pm Sunday. Carter Mountain Orchard, 1435 Carters Mountain Trail. 977-1833. Family Night at the Museum […]

ARTS Pick: Vibe Fest at IX

Vibe Riot’s frontman Jaewar has a desire to be the “Bob Marley of hip-hop.” And as the head of a local collective whose music is alternately politically relevant and shamelessly feel-good, he’s well on his way. Vibe Fest seems like the next logical step for a group that seeks to “give context and color to […]

Sahara Clemons steps out in SSG’s Backroom

Like most teenagers, Sahara Clemons is figuring out who she is. She describes herself as “quirky” and “introverted,” a bit shy and quiet. She wears bright lipstick and expresses herself via clothing. She likes to read, travel and look at art. And she’s a Charlottesville High School rising senior who only recently started thinking of […]

Movie review: The First Purge offers catharsis through crisis

Credit to those responsible for the Purge series for recognizing its potential for redemption. What began as yet another movie with a promising premise but disappointing execution has become the ultimate vessel for social and political commentary in our age of stratification. The First Purge is, fittingly, the first one in the series to be […]

Maupintown Film Festival shines through the eyes of others

When Lorenzo Dickerson was in fifth grade at Murray Elementary school, he had to write a book report. He went down to the school library and came across Extraordinary Black Americans, a book full of dozens of profiles on inventors, politicians, activists, artists, writers and more. It was a sizable read for the fifth-grader, who […]

ARTS Pick: Camp Howard shows its range

In a glut of similar indie-rock groups, Camp Howard is most memorable for its range. The four-piece from Richmond doesn’t stick to one sound as many comparable bands tend to do, instead it jumps from inoffensive, beachy jams to harder-edged, punk-influenced tracks in the style of Wavves and Cloud Nothings. Stray Fossa, Sweet Tooth and Films […]

ARTS Pick: Eilen Jewell easily shifts from jazz to folk

Eilen Jewell’s music wouldn’t be out of place in a smoky nightclub, but it would sound just as natural in a barn full of slow-dancing Southerners. Her tunes have an interesting dichotomy that’s equal parts Billie Holiday and Loretta Lynn, shifting effortlessly from jazz to folk, often within the same track, and surprising listeners with […]

ARTS Pick: Cry-Baby: The Musical

Imagine Romeo and Juliet in an urban, 1950s setting. You’re probably thinking of West Side Story—now replace that play’s tragic elements with absurdist comedy the way only John Waters could write it, and you get Cry-Baby: The Musical, a stage adaptation of the Waters rom-com. Featuring the classic star-crossed lovers plot with some subversive twists, […]

LADAMA learns, educates and transforms

Hailing from parts of Brazil, Colombia, Venezuela, and the United States, the Latinas who make up LADAMA are passionate about music and its ability to transform lives across the globe. The four women in the group have had their own lives transformed by music after meeting through OneBeat, a musical exchange program that connects musicians […]