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 […]
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 […]
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 […]
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 […]
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 […]
Charlottesville native Lincoln Michel knows a thing or two about literature. A familiar face in the New York literary community, he received his MFA in fiction from Columbia University and is currently the editor-in-chief of electricliterature.com as well as a co-founder of Gigantic, a magazine dedicated to flash fiction. Michel has also been publishing short […]
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 […]
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 […]
Few musicians have been as profound in touching the lives of multiple generations and cultures in the way that Stevie Wonder has. Signed to Motown at age 11, Wonder has been prolific in penning masterful tunes by way of the piano for more than 50 years, and holds multiple credits for harmonica playing on his […]
Wild Child Fools/Dualtone Records Fools is a damn near-perfect album. From the way singers Kelsey Wilson and Alexander Beggins marry their vocals throughout, to the album’s ebullient yet thoughtful tonal scope, the experience can’t be beat. The rock-stomper “Meadows” is layered with a slightly unhinged piano that gives the track a delightfully off-kilter vibe; “The […]