Gaining access: Tosha Grantham reaches out at Second Street Gallery

Curator Tosha Grantham’s biggest single show to date took over 10 years to develop. Featuring 112 objects by 18 artists occupying 4,500 square feet, “Darkroom” was a collection of photography and new media from South Africa’s period of apartheid. But it wasn’t size and scope that gave Grantham satisfaction. “I was talking to someone outside […]

Film review: Despite talented cast The Judge falters

You know you’re in for something when every actor in a movie’s press release gets an individual citation for the role that got them either an Academy Award or a nomination—Robert Downey, Jr. (Chaplin, Tropic Thunder), Robert Duvall (Tender Mercies), Vera Farmiga (Up in the Air)—while the director must suffer the indignity of admitting to […]

ARTS Pick: Eric Church

Guitar slinging country crooner Eric Church has traded Jimmy Buffett covers in the back of dingy dive bars for 15,000-seat arenas where he belts out original, cheeky Southern anthems to packed houses. Currently touring in support of his second No. 1 album, The Outsiders, he continues on the themes of cold beers, hot women, good […]

ARTS Pick: The Secret Sisters

With the recent release of Put Your Needle Down, produced by T Bone Burnett, The Secret Sisters prove they’ve come a long way from their Alabama youth. The sweet-voiced siblings have managed to retain their innocence and charm following projects with big shots like She & Him, Ray Lamontagne, Paul Simon, and Elvis Costello, as […]

ARTS Pick: Star Wars Reads Day

Jedi warriors, dust off your lightsabers, and don your robes, for the annual Star Wars Reads Day is coming. It’s time once again to travel to a galaxy far, far away for an afternoon of force-inspired activities. Prove your prowess by pinning a saber on Yoda, or demonstrate your might in the Wookie yell contest. […]

Rising Star Awards allow students to shine

Take a moment to remember what you were like at age 16—whether it was learning to drive, passing a chemistry test, or finding a date to the prom, you probably felt like you had your hands full with the basic American rites of passage. Well, 24 high school juniors and seniors are about to make you […]

Salter speaks: A literary great in residence at UVA

Last year, UVA creative writing department director Chris Tilghman was trying to convince a prospective MFA graduate student to enter his program when he dropped a quiet bomb. “I said we were hoping to welcome James Salter as a writer-in-residence,” Tilghman recalled. “There was this long pause on the phone, and then there was this […]

ARTS Pick: Last Comic Standing

Cold and flu season is nigh, so grab yourself a dose of the best medicine with the finalists of NBC’s “Last Comic Standing.” VIP pass holders can rub elbows with professional side splitters Nikki Carr, Rocky Laporte, Joe Machi, Rod Man, and Lachlan Patterson at a pre-show meet and greet. The popular comedy reality show […]