Staunton’s African-American festival displays cultural traditions

Getting to the Waynesboro Choral Society’s rehearsal room takes a bit of mountain climbing experience.

Things to do this week

From Thursday through Sunday, members of ShenanArts will be performing the Molly Newsman and Barbara Damashek production of “Quilters,” based on the book, The Quilters: Women and Domestic Art, an oral history by Patricia Cooper and Norma Bradley Allen.

Things to do this week

Athletes continue to be huge role models for children and youth. Don’t believe it?

Sweet, raucous, fun loving and pensive, LeRoi Moore’s personality and music were one and the same, friends say.

Thousands of Dave Matthews Band fans expressed their sorrow online this morning over the death of saxophonist LeRoi Moore.

Weekly events to do listing

There’s a reason for that wonderful, smoky fragrance hanging over town. Waynesboro has become a barbecue hot spot, with grillmasters dispensing the south’s favorite sandwich from Main Street to the city limits.

With little time to catch its breath after the Summer Music Festival, Wintergreen Performing Arts presents its Third Annual Blue Ridge Mountain Music Fest on Saturday at the Evans Center.

Staunton Music Festival schedule of events

Weekly calendar of things to do

For lovers of gospel music, there’s still time to get tickets to the Fourth Annual Gospel Fest on Sept. 5 at R.E. Lee High School.

Nothing dark about Batman’s first night at the box office.

“The Dark Knight” lit up cash registers during its midnight debut, stealing away with a record $18.5 million from 3,040 theaters, distributor Warner Bros. said Friday.

Basic cable TV looked more like a pop-culture bargain Thursday as AMC’s “Mad Men” and FX’s “Damages” snared historic best-series Emmy nominations, while stars from cable’s less glamorous channels also made a splash in major acting categories.

Jack Nicholson’s Joker was a blast. Heath Ledger’s Joker is as dark and anarchic a figure as Randle McMurphy in “One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest,” the role that brought Nicholson his first Academy Award.

Staunton’s America’s Birthday Celebration is back again this year and bigger than ever, featuring the annual parade, music, a car show, crafts and, of course, fireworks.

George Carlin, who had a history of heart trouble, went into St. John’s Health Center in Santa Monica on Sunday afternoon complaining of chest pain and died later that evening, said his publicist, Jeff Abraham. He had performed as recently as last weekend at the Orleans Casino and Hotel in Las Vegas. He was 71.

Welcome to the Weekend Get Out, where I highlight the best bets for local entertainment on Friday, Saturday and Sunday. This weekend’s events include the return of the River City Radio Hour, an appearance by local favorite Nathan Moore and a free writer’s workshop. Take a look!

At “Bluegrass, Blue Jeans and Barbecue,” the music festival taking place at a local farm on Saturday, the up-and-coming local band High Ground will perform the same mix of traditional bluegrass and original songs that has endeared the band to audiences around the Southeast. However, the music will have a special meaning for the group this weekend.

To develop their roles for ShenanArts’ upcoming musical, “Oliver!,” the musical’s young actors used the power of their imaginations to put themselves in a world much different than their own.

Welcome to the Weekend Get Out, where I highlight the best bets for local entertainment on Friday, Saturday and Sunday. This weekend, we’ve got a new art exhibit going up and, of course, plenty of music. Take a look!

When her exhibition of paintings was hung at Shenandoah Valley Art Center earlier this month, Dabney Mahanes’ perspective of the world had changed just a bit since she had last been in the building at 125 S. Wayne Ave.

What do you get when you take a seasoned director and area celebrity, some of the area’s best theater talent, a musical director visiting from Texas, a script by Stephen Sondheim and just three weeks of preparation?
You get “Company,” opening this Friday and running through Monday at the Kate Collins Middle School auditorium.

Arts and entertainment news in brief for this week.

Staunton Jams will bring music back to the Queen City this Saturday at noon. A free event, Staunton Jams began as a chance for families to visit and enjoy downtown.

This Saturday, three of the River City’s most popular spring events — XtremeFest of the Blue Ridge, Public Works Day and the Main Street Muscle car show — will come together under one banner for a day of community celebration, billed as Wild Weekend in Waynesboro.

Welcome to the Weekend Get Out, where Sage highlights the best bets for local entertainment on Friday, Saturday and Sunday. This weekend, we’ve got three different plays, plenty of music and a couple chances to get a peek at local history. Take a look!

Arts and entertainment news in brief for this week.