Spirit Lab Distilling puts Virginia wilderness in your glass

“I ’ll be honest,” says distiller Ivar Aass without a hint of irony. “Forage Amaro is my least favorite thing to make.” It’s not that he dislikes the result. Quite the opposite is true. But as a one-man operation, the process of foraging is both time-consuming and labor-intensive: walking fields and forests, pulling his car […]

A.D. Carson on his new book Being Dope

Dr. A.D. Carson is a musician, performance artist, and writer, in addition to being an associate professor of hip hop and a Shannon Center Fellow for Advanced Studies at the University of Virginia. His album, i used to love to dream, was the first peer-reviewed rap album and received UVA’s 2021 Research Award for Excellence […]

Everything at The Guild at Vault Virginia 11/15

Known for the ’90s anthem “Hooch” and a history of engaging live performances, Everything is back in Virginia for an intimate evening celebrating the release of its album Motion Emotion. Formed in 1989 by students at James Madison University, the group performs an eclectic blend of pop, funk, rock, Americana, and soul. This small-crowd seated […]

‘Strings, Winds, Birds, Electronics and More!’ at The Front Porch 11/16

A one-of-a-kind performance from Stephen Nachmanovitch and David Rothenberg blending improvisation, nature, and sound in unexpected harmony comes together in Strings, Winds, Birds, Electronics and More!, with guest singer Ashlynn Manning Teng. Rothenberg has written and performed on the relationship between humanity and nature for many years. Nachmanovitch performs as an improvisational violinist at the […]

‘We R DCO’ at The Paramount Theater 11/16

Founded in 1980 by local dance studio owner Juanita Wilson, The Virginia Dance Company began as the Virginia Dance Club at UVA. Now known around Grounds as DCO, the company mounts performances each semester that feature 10–12 student-choreographed pieces. The latest, “We R DCO,” offers a high-energy showcase featuring 50 UVA student dancers performing in […]

Poet MaKshya Tolbert discusses ‘Shade is a place’

MaKshya Tolbert practices poetry and placemaking in Virginia, where her grandmother raised her. She is the 2025 Art in Library Spaces artist-in-residence at the University of Virginia and co-stewards Fernland Studios, an open-ended studio insistent on rest, rejuvenation, and reciprocity as a core compositional practice. Tolbert was the 2024 New City Arts Fellowship guest curator, […]

Jane Colony Mills in the HotSeat

Charlottesville’s Loaves & Fishes Food Pantry provides free groceries to an average of 12,000 people every month. “Our goal for each visiting household is to provide a week’s worth of food, based on household size, that accommodates dietary restrictions and cultural preferences,” says Jane Colony Mills, the nonprofit’s executive director. C-VILLE recently caught up with […]