Tune up: A new generation of concert bookers finds its niche

“A valence bond is when atoms are held together by the electrons they share. It seemed really fitting for how music events can bring community members together through the things they share,” says Katie Wood, describing her new endeavor, Valence Shows. Under this moniker, Wood is one of the newest live music bookers in town. Wood’s […]

ARTS Pick: Sarah Burton

After exploring forms ranging from acoustic folk to electric bluesy rock, Toronto-based singer-songwriter Sarah Burton revisited her original muse, the piano, on her latest indie-pop album. Burton’s fourth release, Make Your Own Bed, features clever wordplay and powerful, balanced instrumentals while reflecting her inimitable style—equal parts soulful and sassy. Saturday 11/21. Free, 9pm. Tin Whistle Irish […]

Now Try This: Victory Hall Opera lets singers choose their role

When Victory Hall Opera, Charlottesville’s newest opera company, raises the curtain on its first show, it will also unveil a world premiere inside the industry itself. “We are developing a process that doesn’t exist yet—anywhere,” says Miriam Gordon- Stewart, artistic director, soprano and one of the company’s three co-founders. “We’re interested to hear what the […]

ARTS Pick: Dave Rawlings Machine

Rousing Americana-folk duo Dave Rawlings Machine fuses elements of traditional bluegrass with modern R&B, jazz and rock ‘n’ roll flavor. Rawlings and his longtime musical partner, Gillian Welch (who performed on and helped to produce the Grammy Award-winning soundtrack of O Brother, Where Art Thou?), compel audiences with simple arrangements combined with innovative and hypnotic […]

Film review: Cinematic retelling of Chilean mine rescue leans on truth

On August 5, 2010, a catastrophic collapse occurred deep within the heart of a mine in the Atacama Desert near Copiapó, Chile, with 33 miners still inside. Concern and hope for their safety spread in equal measure, first from the miners’ families, then to the Chilean government and presidency, then to Spanish-language media, until finally […]

Party of three: The stirring transformation of David Wax Museum

On Sunday, November 22, smack dab in the middle of a grueling East Coast stint on a national tour, David Wax Museum will return home to play the Southern. Fronted by husband and wife duo David Wax (guitar/vocals) and Suz Slezak (violin/vocals), the band will play songs from its new album, Guest House. As a […]

ARTS Pick: Our Town

With a sly twist on casting, director Robert Chapel makes the most of Our Town’s minimalist appeal by putting UVA drama grad student Carolyn Demanelis in the lead role of stage manager (played notably by Paul Newman on Broadway). Thornton Wilder’s Pulitzer Prize-winning play pulls back the curtain on the citizens of a close-knit, idyllic […]

Guiding the conflict: Shakey Graves chooses his battles

For many musicians, entering the music industry is like going to war. It’s a do or die field that’s filled with unpredictable circumstances and survival rates. Creativity requires constant combat and prosperity that comes through popularity, with legions of fans dictating the victories. It’s not far-fetched to say that Austin, Texas-based Shakey Graves is triumphing […]

PCA executive director exits after less than a year

On Tuesday, November 10, Piedmont Council for the Arts announced that executive director Gram Slaton will leave his current position effective November 15. The PCA Board of Directors hired Slaton in January. In May, Slaton was quoted in C-VILLE Weekly, saying that he hoped to avoid “constantly losing all institutional knowledge” through staff turnover at PCA. He also proposed a […]