by Jeff Maisey | Oct 15, 2025 | News, News & Views
(Porter Hardy outside the Smartmouth Pilot House in 2017) By Jeff Maisey On the eve of its 13th anniversary weekend, founding owner/president Porter Hardy IV announced Smartmouth Brewing Company would be closing its original location in Norfolk by the end of this...
by Jeff Maisey | Oct 15, 2025 | Art, Art News, Art Previews, Current Exhibits
Susan Watkins (American, 1875–1913), Le Five O’Clock (Tea), ca. 1903, Oil on canvas, Mr. and Mrs. Edward T. Miles By Jeff Maisey Chances are you’ve never heard of American artist Susan Watkins. You likely had no idea she lived on Duke Street in Norfolk, died at age...
by Jeff Maisey | Oct 8, 2025 | Concert Previews, Music, Music News
By Jerome Langston “I’ve been a fan of this music since I was a kid,” says Robert Cross, Executive Director and artistic director of the Virginia Arts Festival, referring to gospel music — which he became immersed in through the local scene of gospel choirs here in...
by Jeff Maisey | Sep 15, 2025 | News, News & Views, Robotham
By Tom Robotham Seven years ago, I wrote an essay reflecting on a sudden anxiety attack I’d had while driving over the Delaware Memorial Bridge. The attack was wholly unexpected. I’d driven over that bridge countless times, without a thought. This time, I felt as if...
by Jeff Maisey | Sep 15, 2025 | Beer News, Drink
By Jeff Maisey If beer has a national — make that multi-national — holiday then surely it is Oktoberfest. Celebrations abound, including right here in Hampton Roads. So how did it all begin? Way back on October 12, 1810, King Ludwig I married Princess Terese of...
