Fifty years after Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated, and several days before the first anniversary of last summer’s white supremacist rally in Charlottesville, UVA’s Heritage Theatre Festival unveiled its production of The Mountaintop, a play that reimagines the final hours of King’s life and celebrates the humanity of its hero. Written by Katori Hall […]
Fifty years after Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated, and several days before the first anniversary of last summer’s white supremacist rally in Charlottesville, UVA’s Heritage Theatre Festival unveiled its production of The Mountaintop, a play that reimagines the final hours of King’s life and celebrates the humanity of its hero. Written by Katori Hall […]
Rob Cheatham is an ideal modern country artist—his twang echoes the sounds that currently dominate the genre, while his lyrics harken to the storytelling abilities of forebears like Willie Nelson or Merle Haggard and cover topics such as love, be it unrequited or shared, and hard drinking as a remedy for life’s ills. He shares […]
Ever since he was a kid, Tony LaRocco has been enamored with cosmos—both the Carl Sagan show and the concept powering it, seeing the universe as a “well-ordered whole.” It’s an obsession that permeates his musical life, from lyrics to sound choices to the name of his band, Pale Blue Dot, a reference to a […]
For a series where every installment feels more like a product of inevitability than inspiration, credit is due to the Mission: Impossible series for its commitment to one-upping itself. If the cost of entry is an insane Tom Cruise stunt show every few years that’s punctuated with some spy silliness and a couple of laughs, […]
In stressful times, as the current American climate could be labeled, many people seek out comedy as a means of release. David Cross might seem like he fits that bill, but only if you can handle some seriously jarring jokes. Known for his “Arrested Development” role as the bumbling Tobias Fünke, his standup routine is […]
Alternately imagined as a musical, Disney film and an opera, Into the Woods is itself a reimagining of classic Brothers Grimm stories and other fairy tales. Charlottesville Opera pulls together performers from Broadway, the Metropolitan Opera and the New York Philharmonic to play characters like Cinderella, the Wolf and the Witch. The lives and problems […]
In many ways, you could say that indie rock trio The Lone Bellow’s third album title is biographical. Before recording Walk Into A Storm, released in fall of 2017, members of the group had to make a tough decision—wait for one of their own to check in and out of rehab before recording, or proceed […]
What if Dr. Frankenstein’s kid didn’t want to continue the family business? That’s the question posed in Young Frankenstein, the stage adaptation of the campy Mel Brooks classic film of the same name. Join Frederick “Fronk-en-steen” and his trusty assistant “Eye-gore,” who convinces the scientist to go a little mad and create the famed monster. […]
You may not know Claire Lynch by name, but if you’ve ever listened to Dolly Parton, Emmylou Harris or Linda Ronstadt, you likely know her voice. Lynch has provided backing vocals for musical greats while working on her solo career, penning innovative tunes that push the boundaries of what bluegrass is and can be. In […]
If you’ve been on the Downtown Mall this summer, you’ve likely seen four young musicians set up in front of Kilwin’s, beside a white board that reads “Help Us Pay For College” propped in a guitar case with a shallow sea of coins and crumpled bills pooling at its base. The Rainey Day Quartet formed […]