Bertolt Brecht’s The Caucasian Chalk Circle is a full-circle moment for Sara Holdren. “I grew up in the Greenwood/Crozet area outside of Charlottesville, and Live Arts was definitely a huge part of my artistic coming of age,” Holdren says. She was part of the Live Arts Theater Training Ensemble—“the acronym was LATTE,” Holdren says—and recalls […]
Best of C-VILLE expands the celebration of Charlottesville’s excellence with Bestival 2026. This brand-new community festival offers opportunities to engage with local businesses while enjoying amazing food and entertainment. Stop by an “ask-the-expert” table for some sage advice on a variety of topics. Get down to the sounds of tracks on wax spun by WTJU […]
Set your alarms and break out your pajamas for SlumberCLAW. This sleepover-themed event pulls together public acts of foolishness, comedic chaos, and high-octane arm-wrestling to raise funds for Out and About, one of Charlottesville’s premier LGBTQ+ empowerment organizations. General admission tickets get you standing-room entry to this popular event, while VIP packages offer a selection […]
Australian-born, Charlottesville-raised Mariana Bell brings throwback vibes to the album release party for her latest record, Give It a Go!. Channeling the big hair and big feelings of the late ’80s and early ’90s, Bell offers a sonic time capsule of poppy sounds and cinematic influences to induce nostalgia. Carrying relatable narratives couched in expressive […]
Sean Simmons digs into his lunch, the same oat bowl he’s been making for more than a decade. The bowl that inspired RVPBar, his line of plant-based energy bars. If his Instagram videos of flipping tractor tires aren’t proof enough, Simmons takes his fitness seriously. He’s cut like an ultrarunner or pro boxer, two sports […]
Framed by one woman’s story of self-discovery amidst geopolitical tensions between the U.S. and Italy in the 1970s, The Half Life is the latest historical fiction novel by Richmond-based author Rachel Beanland. Beanland is also the author of The House Is on Fire and Florence Adler Swims Forever, which won the National Jewish Book Award […]
University of Virginia football enters this season with college football playoff hopes. The Cavaliers took a historic step forward in 2025, their fourth season under Head Coach Tony Elliott, by tying a program record with 10 wins on their way to the Atlantic Coast Conference championship game. A win over Duke in the conference title […]
It’s difficult to say if Dominic Fike’s output is the inevitable result of our multicultural musical monoculture (an oxymoronic irony for sure) or if he and his team’s creative choices are attempting to contribute to its continued dominance. While he could very well be from Los Angeles, New York, or maybe even Atlanta, Fike, a […]
Timbre is an elusive sonic attribute. UVA professor Leah Reid has devoted her career to pinning it down. Reid, who’ll host a meet-the-composer event at the Staunton Music Festival, says timbre is “the combination of how sounds are built up … and how they evolve and interact over time.” But as she notes in a […]
Oxford, Mississippi’s Happy Landing fell into the scene in 2020, quickly earning festival appearances at Bonnaroo, Lollapalooza, and Summerfest. Working to spread a new wave of Americana music rooted in Southern rock, punk, and folk peppered with poppy inflections, the five-piece outfit’s smooth sound is anchored by solid instrumentation and superb vocals. The ability to […]