Musician Diane Cluck finds her muse in Charlottesville

Though her name might still be unfamiliar to many locals, Diane Cluck has a well-established career as a writer and performer, and a network of fans around the world. She’s the rare female singer-songwriter whose music cannot easily be compared to other artists. Cluck’s music seems to come not so much from a dialogue with […]

ARTS Pick: Fourth Wall

Four County Players kicks off its 41st season with Fourth Wall, a clever comedy about the blurred lines between stage and life. When a woman redecorates her living room to face a blank wall, her husband must contend with visitors and family who behave as if they are on stage. Through 11/3. $12, 8pm, 2:30pm Sundays. […]

ARTS Pick: Macbeth NTLive

Get a front row seat to a live streaming performance of Manchester International Festival’s production of the powerful Shakespeare tragedy, Macbeth. Kenneth Branagh and Alex Kingston star in this story of a Scottish general whose prophesied kingship leads to tyranny, paranoia, and bloodshed. Sunday 10/20. 7pm, $10.50-14.50. The Paramount Theater, 215 E. Main St. Downtown Mall. 979-1333.

Album reviews: Amos Lee, Blind Boys of Alabama, Dale Earnhardt Jr. Jr.

Amos Lee Mountains of Sorrow, Rivers of Song/Blue Note Records Amos Lee knows what an Americana record ought to sound like and Mountains of Sorrow, Rivers of Song is it. This exploration of the simultaneously universal and individual nature of life is put together in dazzling fashion. The track “Johnson Blvd” details the hard times […]

Interview: SOJA brings a distinctly American voice to reggae tradition

The success story of SOJA sounds improbable: An all-white reggae band from the Washington, D.C. suburbs of Northern Virginia gains global acclaim. But after more than a decade of hard touring and developing a catalog of roots reggae tunes, the band (formerly known as Soldiers of Jah Army) has headlined shows in 20 different countries […]

Film review: Machete Kills makes little sense and is a lot of fun

The early reviews for Machete Kills have largely been unkind, and the big gripe appears to be that Machete Kills is too long, too repetitive, and too super violent. How many of these critics have seen a Robert Rodriguez movie before? I think that if you choose to see a Rodriguez film—whether your editor directs […]

Installation artist Patrick Dougherty twists twigs and tames volunteers

If you’ve been in the vicinity of the Ruth Caplin Theatre and the Arts Commons at UVA, you’ve no doubt noticed some unusual activity in the bowl-shaped area between the buildings. Renowned installation artist Patrick Dougherty, together with a group of community and UVA volunteers, is hard at work weaving a sculpture made from locally harvested […]

ARTS Pick: Gary Clark Jr.

With over 15 years of acclaim under his belt, it’s hard to believe Gary Clark Jr. is just releasing his debut album, Blak and Blu. His natural prowess on guitar first surfaced during his childhood in Austin, Texas, a city that declared an official Gary Clark Jr. Day while he was still in his teens. Prodigy […]