The Virginia Arts Festival Honors a Norfolk Jewel: Elbert Watson
Elbert Watson (center) in a photo by Jack Mitchell. “Three Black Kings”: Dudley Williams as Martin Luther King, Jr., Elbert Watson as Balthazar and Clive Thompson as King Solomon dance in Alvin Ailey’s paean to the three historic figures. The work was set to the last...
ESSAY: Distorting History
By Tom Robotham Last month, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis signed a bill banning public-college courses that “distort” historical events. When I read this news, I couldn’t help noting the irony. The American South, after all, has a very long track record of distorting...
GRC and TWBW Offer Lessons in How Non-Profits Can Help Each Other
By Joel Rubin A canoe and a Bevin’s Skiff look remarkably alike, but you row a skiff, you paddle a canoe. So says Tom Brandl, US Naval Academy grad, retired Marine Colonel, eight consecutive year summer student at a renowned boatbuilding school in Brooklin, Maine and...
A-List Jazz Vocal Summit at The Z
(Jane Monheit will teach and perform over 3-day event focused on jazz vocalists) By Jerome Langston It is quite early in my highly enjoyable, recent phone chat with Jane Monheit, when the acclaimed jazz singer pays me a particularly flattering compliment. “You have a...
The Story of The Dome Is a Must-See
By Jeff Maisey With “That Was Our Room: The Life & Times of the Dome,” Norfolk-based documentarian Paul Unger hones-in his skills as a storyteller. Unger, whose credits include “Hardcore Norfolk: The Movie,” is keen to set the stage with archival television...
Festevents to Commemorate The Boathouse During Harborfest
By Jeff Maisey “We were backstage and there was a buffet spread out with chicken, roast beef and all kinds of good stuff,” recalled singer David Middleton, whose local band, the Waxing Poetics, opened for numerous nationally touring acts, including the Ramones, at the...
Ghent Pride & More
On Tuesday, June 20, Ghent Pride will return in style thanks to the perseverance of event organizer Robert Roman. Together with his husband, Claus Ihlemann, Roman has been one of the most active people in Hampton Roads lobbying politicians, businesses, and ordinary...
Desplaines Departs Norfolk Botanical Garden
By Kelly Welsh Norfolk Botanical Garden (NBG) announces President & CEO Michael P. Desplaines will step down in late June to accept the CEO position at The Los Angeles County Arboretum in Arcadia, California this July. Mr. Desplaines has been with the Garden since...
Blues Dancing in Norfolk
(Mentor artist Joshua Purnell, center, and Noah Stovall, left, dance with partners. Tidewater Blues meets every Monday at the Fred Huette Center in Norfolk for blues dance instruction and a social dance.) Words & Photo By Pat Jarrett Nationally, the Tidewater...
In Search of Excellence
By Tom Robotham One of my favorite moments in the history of television is the opening scene of Newsroom, a short-lived HBO series about a jaded TV anchor, Will McAvoy, played by Jeff Daniels. In the scene, McAvoy is asked at a college forum why America is the...
THEATER: Escape to Margaritaville
(The cast from Little Theatre of Virginia Beach’s “Margaritaville.” Photo by Joshua Stubbs. By Jim Roberts Jimmy Buffett’s not touring this summer, but Hampton Roads’ “Parrotheads” can experience the next best thing when the Little Theater of Virginia Beach presents...
ART: A Curatorial Gem
(Matt Lively, “Orbit”) By Betsy DiJulio I go to art museums to be inspired, transported, challenged, and even provoked, but not perplexed. Feeling baffled in an art exhibition is deeply unsatisfying and, frankly, irks me because it generally means someone hasn’t...
Benoit & Rosano Team-Up for Album and Tour
By Jim Morrison Tab Benoit may be best known as one of Louisiana's finest blues guitarists and vocalists with a three-decade career releasing solo records and working with legends like Anders Osborne, George Porter, Jr., and Cyril Neville. But Benoit has also been a...
The Icon & Iconic Album Cover
By Jeff Maisey One of the most recognizable, iconic record album covers in pop culture almost never saw the light of day. “If it was up to me I would have rejected the cover,” said legendary trumpet player Herb Alpert, who released “Whipped Cream & Other...
SWING TIME: New Releases from Jae Sinnett & Eddie Williams
By Tom Robotham Hampton Roads has long been home to some first-rate jazz musicians, and I can think of no better evidence of this fact than the superb quality of two recently released albums by musicians who live here: Commitment, featuring drummer-composer Jae...
Focus on Modern Jazz Composers
Trumpeter Taylor Barnett will perform with local jazz musicians for “The Modernists” By Jerome Langston “I broke my finger 3 weeks ago while on vacation,” bassist Jimmy Masters says to me earlier this week, before we even start chatting about the latest show in...
Beaching It with Alana Springsteen
By Jeff Maisey Coastal Country is a thing, just ask rising music star Alana Springsteen, who was born and raised in Virginia Beach. “I’m a Beach girl through and through,” said Springsteen. “It made me who I am. It comes out in so many ways in the music that I write....
Top 40 Concerts of Summer
(Neo-soul crooner Anthony Hamilton headlines the opening night of Hampton Jazz Festival By Staff Nine-time Grammy nominated smooth jazz saxophonist Dave Koz recently told Veer Magazine the summer of 2023 will mark the true, post-pandemic return to form for the concert...
ART REVIEW: Heart Pulsates with Fantastical Intrigue
(Claudia Bueno’s fantastical art exhibition extends to the exterior of the Hermitage Museum. Photo by Lindsay Collette.) By Betsy DiJulio Born of shattering heartbreak and a deeply integrated process of healing, Echoes of the Heart embodies artist Claudia Bueno’s...
Reliving the Music of Luther Vandross
By Jerome Langston “If you’ve never been to a Luther Vandross show, the real thing—we’re gonna be as close as you’re gonna get,” says singer William “Smooth” Wardlaw, during our recent phone chat about his upcoming tribute show honoring soul music icon, Luther...
Veteran-Owned Chesapeake Bay Pedal Club is Back on the Water for 2023
(A fun day on the Inlet. Photo courtesy of Chesapeake Bay Pedal Club) By Dana Nichols It’s hard to miss the lively turquoise and lime green paddle boat cruising Rudee Inlet: the vibe is energetic, music is playing, passengers are smiling or dancing — sometimes in...
Run For The Roads
(Blackened yellowfin tuna over cauliflower rice risotto, spinach, citrus gremolata and orange hoisin served up at The Roads Bistro. Courtesy photo.) By Marisa Marsey Michael Baldwin, who recently opened The Roads Bistro, radiates joy. Even over the phone, you sense...
REVIEW: Vegan Planet Café Sent Me into Orbit
By Betsy DiJulio A few years back, I visited Vegan Planet Café with the intention of reviewing it, but the casual, eclectic storefront didn’t seem quite ready for its close-up, so I ordered some food, which was just fine, and went elsewhere for my review. But...
Studly Brewing Opens with Home Run
Blake Edmunds has Studly Brewing Company on an early season winning streak By Jeff Maisey Drinker up. If you’re a baseball fan, chances are as good as the Astros winning another World Series you’re gonna love Chesapeake’s newest craft beer maker, Studly...
VEGAN DINING: In Session
By Betsy DiJulio For vegans and those following a plant-based diet, breakfast out often means a couple of choices: avocado toast or an almond milk smoothie, as most mainstream establishments worth their salt at least offer a nut milk alternative. Venturing...
Alewerks Wins 2022 Golden Tap Award
By Jeff Maisey Alewerks Brewing Company was crowned the best brewery in the 757 this year when Veer Magazine presented its 2022 Golden Tap Awards at Elation Brewing in Norfolk. Alewerks, which was founded in 2006 by Chuck Haines, has a vast portfolio of...
“Why Would We Say No?” Newlyweds take over Starving Artist Café
By Jim Roberts Shanna Myers and Jamie Windemiller went on their first date at Starving Artist Café in November of 2021. Less than a year later, they were married … and running the Norfolk-based restaurant. What transpired in between has all the elements of a Lifetime...
These (Pink) Boots Are Made for Brewing (and more) – The Pink Boots Society
By Diane Catanzaro and Chris Jones Women have been involved with the craft beer movement from the beginning, although their contributions were frequently overlooked. In 1977 Suzy Stern co-founded and brewed at New Albion, America’s first craft brewery since...
757 Battle of the Beers Celebrates 10 Years in September
By Jeff Maisey Over the last decade, craft beer festivals have come and gone in the Hampton Roads. Today the 757 Battle of the Beers, celebrating its 10th anniversary on September 24, is the longest running beer event in the region. The 757 Battle concept was...
RESTAURANT REVIEW: Quemar’s Vegan Menu is on Fire
By Betsy DiJulio An open kitchen with a wood fired grill is not all that smolders at Quemar. The namesake smokiness is this restaurant’s signature, lending distinction and a nuanced layer of flavor to the cuisine while wrapping diners in a subtle...
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