In 2018, over 50 authors living and working in the Charlottesville area published new books. They built fictional worlds populated by talking animals, anti-terrorist teenage space fighters, and ordinary humans trying to find the truth. They documented last year’s violent white supremacist rally in our city and dug into our history of racism. They redefined […]
As much as we love words, it’s the photographs–and our incredibly talented team of freelance photographers–that really make our stories sing. Here is just a handful of the images that were captured this year.
By Tami Keaveny and Erin O’Hare In May, before her opening of “Megan Elizabeth Read: Recent Works in Oil,” at McGuffey’s Sarah B. Smith Gallery, Read told us: “You know, if you stare long enough at anyone, you can fall in love with them.” But it was the viewer who became smitten with Read’s hyperrealistic […]
Best new creations When it comes to Charlottesville food and drink, there is no such thing as a bad year. In 2018, MarieBette Café & Bakery unleashed its prezzant, a sorcerous pretzel and croissant hybrid, where buttery, delicate pastry gets an addictive umami boost from a dip in lye. Not to be outdone, Albemarle Baking […]
Shakespeare’s tragedies are mercilessly disastrous, but Antony and Cleopatra elevates callousness with political intrigue and brutal battles for power. Caught between two war-torn empires, a Roman general (Ralph Fiennes), and the Queen of Egypt (Sophie Okonedo) find love against the odds—then face heavy consequences. Adopting a creative take on history, the classic play takes a new form […]
It’s time for us to take up the sticks and beat this drum again. Here’s our never-complete (but still pretty comprehensive) look at what Charlottesville-area artists released this year. We’ve focused mainly on albums and EPs, but there are dozens of other bands and artists releasing single after single, or playing songs that haven’t been […]
It’s time to wrap up the year with a little glamour in honor of local ladies who pushed the boundaries on music. Year of the Woman is a concert featuring two stand-out performers from 2018: Erin Lunsford leads Erin & The Wildfire with bold, rock-soul blends from the album Thirst, and ADAR is led by […]
The brutal country-rock quartet Sarah Shook & the Disarmers plays with a display of defiance that embodies the outlaw era—and such a biting reputation is not undeserved, but it pays off. The group’s spiteful LP, Years, is full of raw undertones inspired by Shook’s personal life. It received high marks from Rolling Stone as “a […]
In the spirit of tipping the cap to 2018, Love Canon kicks off the new year with a retro-bluegrass bang. Since 2010, the band has pumped out ’80s tunes in the style of Americana and traditional roots music. The group aims to begin 2019 with a touch of nostalgia, and create a musical rewind revolution […]
After four disasters and one triumph, the DC Extended Universe offers the middling, non-event Aquaman, directed by James Wan (Saw, The Conjuring, Fast 7). This one is intended for folks seeking a visual experience who don’t care much about remembering what actually happens or why. It’s the sort of movie we might hate had it […]