Month: July 2006

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Try This Now is a rotating listing of classes, workshops and ongoing events to help you broaden your horizons

Try This Now is a rotating listing of classes, workshops and ongoing events to help you broaden your horizons—take a hike, learn how to blow glass, or sign up your kid to act in a play. The schedule of topics goes as follows: First Tues-day of the month: Wellness; Second Tuesday: Kids; Third Tuesday: Arts and Fine Arts; Fourth Tuesday: Outdoors; Fifth Tuesday: Grab Bag. To get your event or organization listed, contact Susan Rosen at trythisnow@c-ville.com.

Acting for Film classes 1144 E. Market St. 977-1371. Offers weekly workshops on acting for film with Emmy-winning director. Call for days and times. $150 per month.

Actors’ Lab 123 E. Water St. 977-4177. www.livearts.org. Live Arts holds weekly intense acting workshop. Meets Saturdays through August 26, 10-11am. $15 drop-in fee.

Biscuit Run Studios potluck 981 Old Lynchburg Rd. 977-5411. www.biscuitrun.com. Hosts an open house and potluck supper every Wednesday, 6pm. Free.

Blue Ridge Beads & Glass 1724 Allied St. 293-2876. www.blueridgebeads-glass.com. Stained Glass Seminar is back. Every Saturday, 3-4:30pm. Free.

Charlottesville Camera Club 250 Pantops Mountain Rd. 973-4856. www.avenue.org/ccc. Visitors welcome, meets at Westminster Canterbury the second Tuesday of the month, 6:30pm. Free.

Charlottesville Salsa Club at Outback Lodge, 917 Preston Plaza. 979-7211. sunday

salsa@cvillesalsaclub.com. Sponsors Salsa and a beginning dance lesson every Sunday, 8pm. $5.

Charlottesville Writing Center offers several evening writing workshops for adults,

including a poetry workshop July 24-27 and creative non-fiction workshops July 24-27 and August 14-17. All workshops: 6:30-8:30pm, $185. For more info: call 293-3702 or visit http://cvillewrites.org.

DanceFit Movement Center 609 E. Market

St., Studio 110. 295-4774. www.njira.com/

dancefit. Holds “DanceFit” every Tuesday and Thursday, 6:30pm. $10-13.

Film Series at Greene County Library 222 Main St., Stanardsville. 985-5227. Shows award-winning independent and foreign films (not rated, so assume mature content). Next meeting on July 19 reviews Familia, a Canadian film directed by Louise Archambault. Every third Wednesday. Free, 7pm.

Glass Palette classes 110 Fifth St. NE. 977-9009. Offers classes beginning the first week of every month. Classes run on four weeknights or two Saturdays. $200-250. Pre-registration required. Call or visit website for schedule. www.theglasspalette.net.

Kluge-Ruhe Collection tours 400 Worrell Dr. 244-0234. Offers 45-minute guided tours every Saturday, 10:30am. Free, no reservations necessary.

La Tertulia: Spanish Conversation Group at Central Library, 201 E. Market St. 979-7151. All levels welcome. Brush up on your Spanish the first Thursday of each month, 7pm.

Live Arts Summer Theater Institute 123

E. Water St. 977-4177. www.livearts.org. Session III: Laugh Out Loud: Comedy. July 24-August. 4. Sessions run Monday-Friday 9:30-3:30pm. $400-425.

Live glassblowing demonstrations at Sunspots-Charlottesville, 2039 Barracks Rd, Meadowbrook Shopping Center, corner of Emmet Street and Barracks Road. 977-5531. www.sunspots.com. Watch red-hot molten glass being formed into beautiful art objects.  Demonstrations offered Monday-Saturday, 10am-6pm.

The Live Poets Society at Gordon Avenue Library, 1500 Gordon Ave. 296-5544. Share original poetry or listen, the first Wednesday of the month, 7pm. Free.

Children’s Summer Writing Sessions Ruffner Hall, 405 Emmet St. The Charlottes-ville Writing Center offers two more July sessions: “Focus on Journal-Making/Family Scrapbooking,” July 24-28, and “Focus on the Writer,” July 31 through August 8. Classes held 10am-12pm for rising seventh, eigth and ninth graders and 1-3pm for rising fourth, fifth and sixth graders. $200. To register call: 293-3702.

Main Street Art Space Summer Art Program 328 Main St., Stanardsville. 985-6500. Offered by Noon Whistle Pottery. Classes on drawing, beading, clayworks and more for children and adults. Call or visit website for schedule. www.noonwhistlepottery.com.

McGuffey Art Center Summer Classes and Art Camps 201 Second St. NW. 295-7973. Offers numerous adult and teen workshops in

the visual arts, theater and dance and art camps for kids. Call or visit website for schedule and registration information. www.mcguffey

artcenter.com.

Play Reading Series at Live Arts 123

E. Water St. 977-4177. www.livearts.org. Meets the second Sunday of the month,

3-6pm. Free.

Poem Site: Songs in the Landscape 2331 Highland Ave., Fry’s Spring. 295-5057. Features poetry by Laurance Wieder painted on a salvaged window, painting by Andrea Wieder and a take-it-with-you poem. New poem through September 15: “The Last Century” and new take-it-with you poem:

“My Glasses Flew Off”.

Shergold Dance Studio 652 W. Rio Rd. 975-4611. www.berkmarballroom.com. Offers a variety of evening dance classes, from tango to hip-hop. $32 for four lessons or $10 drop-in. See website for current schedule.

Smocking Arts Guild of America meeting 420 Shoppers World Ct. 295-1481. The Monticello Chapter meets the third Thursday of the month at Les Fabriques to discuss service projects, 7pm. $10 per year.

Studio Baboo workshops 321 E. Main St. 244-2905. www.studiobaboo.com. Holds several summer workshops, including: “Dew Drops Bracelet,” July 20, 5:30-7pm, $25; “Sumptuous Swirl Brooch or Pendant,” July 26, 10am-2pm, $35; and “Peyote Bracelet from a Charted Pattern,” July 29, 10am-4pm, $40. See website for full schedule.

Terry Dean’s Dance Studio 1309A Seminole Trail. 977-3327. www.terrydeansdancestu

dio.com. Terry offers weekly classes in partner styles from two-step to cha-cha. Partners are provided for singles. See website for current schedule. $10.

West African Drum Classes 1104 Forest St. 977-1499. Kevin Munro holds lessons at the Charlottesville Quaker Meeting House every Wednesday, 6-7pm. $70.

Zabor Dance 609 E. Market St. 804-303-2614. Offers half-hour classes in Argentine tango and nightclub salsa for beginners and intermediates, every Saturday. $6. For more info: call or email zabordance@yahoo.com.

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Othee News We Heard Last Week

Tuesday, July 11
Daughtry gets a deal
Come forth and shine, fellow bald men. “American Idol” finalist and one-time Fluvanna County resident Chris Daughtry has cut his own record deal. Daughtry, who, inexplicably, was voted off the hit show “American Idol” at fourth place, signed a joint deal with 19 Recordings Unlimited and big-time producer Clive Davis for a record slated to be released later this year.

Wednesday, July 12
Scottsville makes it big
Eat your heart out, Charlottesville. A travelogue in today’s Washington Post featured the tiny hamlet off Route 20S as “a destination for scholarly and sporty sets.” The article relates the importance of the James River to the town, listing things to do and wonders to see in the place that 560 people call home. High on the list was tubing and other river-centric forms of recreation, but good eats and fine wines got their share of attention too.

Thursday, July 13
Media General bigwig settles fraud charge
Mario Gabelli, a major shareholder in The Daily Progress’ parent company Media General, settled civil fraud allegations to the tune of $130 million, the government announced today. The feds accused “Super Mario” Gabelli of creating fake companies—using friends and families—to buy wireless spectrum from the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), taking advantage of the discount for minority and small businesses. He then allegedly flipped the licenses for a profit. The government says supposed CEOs included Gabelli’s vacation-home caretaker, a former pro basketball player and a relative of Gabelli who didn’t know what “FCC” stood for, according to www.forbes.com.

Friday, July 14
New pro baller Ahmad Brooks headed to Cincinnati
Forgiving Wahoos cheer today for former UVA linebacker Ahmad Brooks, who was the only player selected yesterday in the National Football League supplemental draft. The Cincinnati Bengals forfeit their third-round draft choice in 2007 in order to claim the mercurial Brooks, a 2004 finalist for the Butkus Award, given to the nation’s best linebacker. Unfortunately for the Cavaliers, that was Brooks’ high water mark: His college career deteriorated after a knee injury in 2005 and ended when he was booted from the team this spring for undisclosed discipline issues. ‘Hoo fans posting to thesaber.com debate whether Brooks’ fortune should be celebrated. Says jamez009, “I mean, it would have been different if he transferred to Tech or something.”

Saturday, July 15
UVA puts Rick Turner on leave in relation to “known drug dealer”
UVA has placed M. Rick Turner, the controversial, sharp-tongued dean of the Office of African-American Affairs, on paid administrative leave after Turner entered an agreement with federal attorneys that places him on 12 months of federal probation, according to today’s Daily Progress. The details remain murky, but Turner’s pretrial diversion agreement filed in U.S. District Court alleges that he “misrepresented his knowledge of the activities of a known drug dealer” a year ago, according to the report. In order to avoid prosecution himself, Turner has agreed to testify in any court proceedings and must follow conditions set by a probation officer. The University is conducting its own investigation, after learning late Friday about the agreement.

Sunday, July 16
Lucky us
The e-mail boxes of C-VILLE staff were graced thoughout the weekend with the latest update from the fabulousness-radiating Lucky Supremo, our favorite female illusionist who, she informs us, has been busy getting her book published and ending her reign as Miss Gay Charlottesville, 2005. Ms. Supremo’s book, Lucky Loses It: A Drag Queen’s Weight Loss Story is being published by American Book publishing, although the release date is still vague. (Girl, sign us up for that party!) The new Miss Gay Charlottesville will be crowned on August 11 at “A Night of Glamour” at Club 216. Contestants will compete in an on-stage interview, as well as swim suit, evening wear and talent competitions. Whoever the new winner is, she’ll have big stilettos to fill.

Monday, July 17
Couric’s “Listening Tour” earns murmurs of discontent
UVA alum and world-famous perky broadcaster Katie Couric is crossing the country on a “Listening Tour” aimed at stirring the masses before her September 5 debut as anchor of “The CBS Evening News.” In today’s New York Times, business columnist David Carr reports on the mixed response generated by her no-media-allowed stop in Minneapolis. “Many of the younger people I asked about Ms. Couric or the evening news responded as if I were an archaeologist inquiring about a quaint custom dating back centuries,” Carr writes. “Unless Ms. Couric was planning on setting herself on fire every night, few people thought they could find a way to be home at 5:30 in the evening (Central Standard Time) to gather around the television set.”

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News

Office of the Architect goes “sustainable”

The Office of the Architect at UVA wants to make it a more environmentally friendly and sustainable institution. David Neuman’s office recently developed “Guidelines for Sustainable Buildings and Environmental Design,” a strategy modeled after similar environmental policies at other universities, including Duke and the University of North Carolina.
    The guidelines’ purpose is to provide a tool for approaching building and design decisions in a way that balances three key elements: equity (the impact on the surrounding community), economy (the financial benefits), and the environment (consideration of natural systems). The “Three E” approach is UVA’s typically dignified rephrasing (like substituting “first year” for “freshmen”) of a cost-benefit analysis.
    The guidelines are already being distributed to UVA’s building and design contractors. They cover everything from energy conservation and reduced use of nonrenewable resources to room acoustics and noise levels. But these guides are just a first step in developing an entire “Environmental Management System” for all University decisions and operations. According to the guidelines, the goal of EMS is to “help UVA manage its environmental impacts, ensure compliance with all applicable environmental regulations and encourage sustainability.” In other words, EMS would give as much consideration to recycling practices at “first year” dorms as to whether or not to build a 15,000-seat arena.
    The Office of the Architect is also spearheading an assessment of current unsustainable practices throughout the University. First stop on the green tour was Parking and Transportation. That evaluation led to the decision to switch all University buses from regular diesel to biodiesel fuel. To view the guidelines, visit www.virginia.edu/architectoffice/sustainable.html.

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News

Riverbend cuts prices for “workforce”

A potential signal of a cooling Charlottesville condo market came last week as Riverbend Condominium developers Dupont Fabros slashed prices 10 percent and began rolling out a “Workforce Housing initiative,” which provides a price break for anyone employed in “key public service sectors.”
    Police officers, teachers and nurses, among others, are eligible for a $5,000 discount on a two-bedroom unit ($2,500 for a one bedroom unit). Prices for Riverbend now range from $150,000 to $220,000.
    Developers say the reduction will be much appreciated. “We think it will help significantly with the down payment, in combination with 10 percent price slashing,” says Hamid Afsharieh, vice president of residential for Dupont Fabros.
    “Combined with 100 percent financing options that are out there, someone can come into a home with no money down and almost have the same payments as if they were renting, helping the workforce on the way to wealth creation,” says Jeff Gaffney, chairman of Real Estate III, the firm assisting with sales. “The community is much better served if we can come up with a way that police officers, firefighters, nurses and teachers can afford to live in the community they serve.”
    Riverbend units haven’t been exactly flying off the market. Since September, only a third of the 125 units have been sold or reserved. In contrast, the 184 units in Hessian Hills Condominiums near Barracks Road sold within about a year of becoming available.
    Dupont Fabros, a Washington, D.C.-based company, bought Riverbend (along with Walker Square Condominiums) in September from an LLC that included Coran Capshaw as a partner.

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News

Planners deny, defer two Fifeville projects

Revitalization or gentrification? Whatever you want to call it, the Charlottesville Planning Commission wasn’t approving it at their July 11 meeting, putting the brakes on two projects that would increase density in the Fifeville neighborhood around Cherry Avenue.
    In an uncharacteristically divided decision, the commission voted 4-2 to deny a rezoning request by Mark Saunders and V.G. Sullivan, developers looking to turn 1000 and 1002 Grove St. into six homes.
    Developers brought a plan that earned general approval from the commission and City staff, a plan designed by the Boston-based urban architecture firm Utile (which is also working on Habitat for Humanity’s Sunrise Court project). But the location proved to be the issue, and neighborhood opposition helped lead the commission to deny the rezoning request. City Planner Brian Haluska recommended rejecting the preliminary plan, based on the City’s comprehensive plan to keep the area a single-family residential neighborhood.
    “It would be nice, if it were elsewhere in the city,” said Cheri Lewis, a commissioner who voted against the proposal. “It’s a tough call.”
    After the vote, both Sullivan and Saunders say they will take the current proposal to City Council, which has the final say. “We feel that we had a deeply flawed review process on the City’s side, and we hope that City Council recognizes the substance behind the split vote and is able to see the bigger picture,” says Saunders in an e-mail. Only one resident appeared at the meeting to speak against the plan.
    On another Fifeville project, the commission deferred a vote on a development at 850 Estes St. that would create 27 residential units on the site of three dilapidated houses near Walker Square Condominiums. Commissioners decided unanimously that they needed more information about canopy cover, current site tree count and the dumpster design for the proposed “mixed-use building.”
    The Estes property is an old ghost for City government. Last fall, developers applied for a special use permit that City Council effectively quashed. But the developers created a similar plan that exploits a zoning loophole: By designating a mere 1.9 percent of the building “office space,” developers may rezone the property at a higher density by-right—which means once the developers address current concerns, the commission is legally obligated to approve the plan though it seems intent right now on putting off that inevitability. Demolition permits are already outstanding on the site.

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A magic cabinet of curiosities

The Oxford English Dictionary defines “magic” as follows:

1. the power of apparently influencing events by using mysterious or supernatural forces
2. conjuring tricks performed to entertain
3. mysterious and enchanting quality
4. (informal) exceptional skill or talent.

    Well, if you’re looking to see this definition in the flesh, here’s your chance. From July 20 through August 6, in the rambling old Frank Ix Building, a dream team of Charlottesville performance and visual artists will conjure a cabinet of wonders (which is what a “Wunderkammer” actually is, if you didn’t know), presenting a mix of art installations and music, along with some wildly varied and talented performing acts, from drama to carnival to burlesque.
    Since the dawn of time (or at least the mid-‘90s), mysterious and supernatural forces have conspired to bring about the Wunderkammer—a sideshow melange that seeks to amplify and expand on such scintillating and original Charlottesville performing companies as Foolery, Zen Monkey Project, the Performers Exchange Project and the Lunatic Carnival.
    The project was born when longtime Fool Martha Mendenhall (currently known as Baroness Wunderkammer), visited the 2004 Edinburgh Festival Fringe in Scotland, where she experienced the comfortably freaky atmosphere of the “Famous Speigeltent” venue, complete with cabaret acts, bizarre bands, and beer garden. And thus, the seed for the Wunderkammer was sown.
    An air of inevitability, in fact, attends this particular confluence of artistic minds assembled by Mendenhall and Zap McConnell (a Zen Monkey, now Schotze Wunderkammer); as McConnell pointed out about the groups united here, “we had always been admiring each other from afar.”
    Together at last, the Wunderkammer Family convinced the Ix Partners to grant them access to, as McConnell put it, “one of the last few urban relics remaining in Charlottesville,” the Ix Building. Soon, planned development will transform it into something perhaps more useful, but less flexible and gorgeously weird. Her job as Wunderkammer’s artistic director involves creating a throughline for the evening, carefully organizing the motley assortment of lunatics, fire dancers, burlesque ladies, aerial acts and musicians. For help in managing the chaos, McConnell looked to the space itself for inspiration. “It was telling me what needed to happen,” she says. “It’s extraordinary.”
    “But what will happen?” you ask in an agony of curiosity. Well, here’s what the average mature audience member can expect: They will arrive on the scene and spend some time relaxing in the beer garden before Maestro Wunderkammer (Christian Breeden) begins the evening, regaling the crowd with music and charming, carnival-barker commentary. Some performances, such as “Zelda and Lucy’s Loony Bin Tragedy” (Mendenhall’s take on the story of Agamemnon) will be peformed to a seated assembly. Other times, attendees will be free to wander through the space, witnessing (and perhaps being accosted by) an array of performers wielding fire, ropes, stilts, guitars, garters and unicorns. (Yes, you heard that right: unicorns.) As Mendenhall says, “you know it’s not going to be real but you just don’t care. Good magic is like that.”

A Charlottesville Wunderkammer
The Old Frank Ix Building
July 20-August 6,
Thursday-Sunday, 8pm
Tickets $15 adv/$20 door,
Thursday-Saturday. Sundays Pay What You Can at the door.
Mature Audiences Only

Call 804-977-4177×108 or visit www.livearts.musictoday.com

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Arts

Galleries and exhibitions this week 7/18/2006 – 7/24/2006


Forget about traffic noise and air pollution. In her work “Sunset After Midnight,” New York City-based artist Sue Sencer makes an imposing Manhatten appear serene by the light of the silvery moon. Sencer plays with light and shadows in her exhibition “Night Lights,” showing how even man-made structures can appear ethereal against the backdrop of nature. Through July 31 at La Galeria, 218 W. Market St. Monday-Friday, 11am-5:30pm; Saturday 11am-3pm. 293-7003.

Gallery listing is at editorial discretion. To have your show considered for inclusion, please provide the names of artists and shows, media used, contact information and show’s beginning and end dates.

Abundant Life 201 E. Main St., Suite Q (Above Zocalo). Monday, Tuesday and Thursday, 9-11am; Monday and Thursday, 1-5pm; Tuesday and Wednesday, 1-6pm. 979-5433. Through July 31: Paintings and sculpture by Jason Roberson.

Albemarle County Courthouse 501 E. Jefferson Court Sq. Monday-Friday, 9am-5pm. 804-362-3792. Through July 31: Central Virginia Watercolor Guild Members Awards Show.

Anderson and Strudwick 414 E. Market St., second floor. Monday-Friday, 9am-5pm. 293-8181. Through July 31: “Wanderings,” photography by Scott Keith.

Angelo 220 E. Main St., Downtown Mall. Monday-Saturday, 11am-6pm. 971-9256. Through August 31: “Lightness and Weight,” paintings and works on paper by Laura J. Snyder.

Art Upstairs 316 E. Main St., Downtown Mall. Wednesday-Saturday, noon-5pm. 923-3900. Through July 31: “Contrast by Design: Highlights and Shadows in Watercolor to Create Realism,” by Richard Gross.

Blue Ridge Beads and Glass 1724 Allied St. Monday-Saturday, 10:30am-5:30pm. 293-2876. Through July 31: New glass pieces, paintings and stained glass instruments by Jerry O’Dell.

Boutique Boutique 411 E. Main St., Downtown Mall. Monday-Saturday, 10am-5pm. 293-8400. Through July 31: “Married Life,” paintings by Baldwin North and Mindy North.

BozArt Gallery 211 W. Main St., Downtown Mall. Wednesday-Thursday, noon-6pm; Friday-Saturday, noon-9pm; Sunday 1-4pm. 296-3919.  Through July 30: “Ame-Technique,” a show in oils, spray paint, latex, trash and treasures by Kris Bowmaster.

Café Cubano 112 W. Main St., York Place, Downtown Mall. Monday-Tuesday, 6:30am-5pm; Wednesday-Saturday, 6:30am-10pm; Sunday 8am-5pm. 971-8743. Through July 31: Photography exhibition on Cuba by Tori Abrazo.

C & O 515 E. Water St. Monday-Friday, 9am-5pm by chance or appointment. Through July 26: “Figures,” a new show by John Hetzel

Charles L. Brown Science and Engineering Library Clark Hall, McCormick Road. Monday-Thursday, 8am-2am; Friday, 8am-9pm; Saturday 10am-6pm; Sunday 10am-2am. 924-7200. Through January 2007: “Exquisite History: The Land of Wandering,” prints by the Printmakers Left, artists and poets from UVA’s printmaking programs.

Charlottesville Community Design Center 101 E. Main St. Monday-Friday, 10am-4pm. 984-2232. Through August 25: “Working to Rebuild Pearlington, Mississippi after Katrina,” an exhibit from the Building Goodness Foundation.

County Office Building Second Floor Lobby 401 McIntire Rd. Monday-Friday, 8:30am-4:30pm. 295-2486. Through August 31: Charlottesville-Albemarle Art Association presents photographs by Charles Battig and paintings by Coy Roy.

Eppie’s Restaurant 412 E. Main St., Downtown Mall. Monday-Saturday, 11am-9pm. Through July 31: Mixed-media works by Julie Garcia.

Fifth Floor Gallery at Keller Williams 300 Preston Ave., Suite 500, Commonwealth Building. Monday-Friday, 8:30am-5:30pm. 220-2200. Through July: Oil paintings by Heliardo Aragao.

Fellini’s # 9 200 W. Market St. Tuesday-Sunday, 5-10pm. 979-4279. Through July 31: “Summertime Watercolors,” by Sunny Leng.

The Gallery at Fifth and Water Henderson & Everett, P.C. and Stoneking/von Storch Architects, 107 Fifth St. SE. Monday-Friday, 9am-5pm. 979-9825. Through July 31: “Diving Into Color,” oil paintings by Randy Sights Baskerville and “Xcalacoco,” photographs by Sarah Hormel Everett.

Glo 225 E. Main St. Monday-Saturday, 10am-6pm; Sunday 1-5pm. 295-7432. Through July 31: New oil paintings on canvas by Christian Peri.

Kluge-Ruhe Aboriginal Art Collection 400 Worrell Dr., Peter Jefferson Place. Tuesday-Saturday, 9am-3pm. 244-0234. Through August 19: “Mysterious Beauty: Edward L. Ruhe’s Vision of Australian Aboriginal Art;” through August 23: “Manta Wiru (Beautiful Land): Paintings from Amata.”

La Galeria 218 W. Market St. Monday-Friday, 11am-5:30pm; Saturday 11am-3pm. 293-7003. Through July 31: “Night Lights,” by Sue Sencer.

Lee Alter Studios 109 E. Jefferson St. 760-9658. Call for viewing.

Les Yeux du Monde 115 S. First St. Tuesday-Saturday, 11am-5pm. 973-5566. Through August 25: Gloria and David Lee.

McGuffey Art Center 201 Second St. NW. Tuesday-Saturday, 10am-5pm; Sunday 1-5pm. 295-7973. Through August 13: “Jean’s Gutsy Abstract Art Show,” oil paintings by Jean Sampson and “Summer Group Show” of members’ works.

Migration: A Gallery 119 Fifth St. SE. Tuesday-Saturday, 11am-6pm; First Fridays, 11am-8:30pm; Sunday and Monday by appointment. 293-2200. Through August 31: “Elemental Harmonies,” paintings by Suzanne Howes-Stevens and metal work by Jim Martin and “Inside/Out,” paintings by Lynn Boggess and clay vessels and plates by Tom Clarkson.

Mono Loco 200 W. Water St. Monday-Friday, 11:30am-10pm; Saturday 5:30-10pm; Sunday 11:30am-9pm. 979-0688. Through July 31: “Sand in the Eyes,” by George Andrews.

Mudhouse 213 W. Main St. Tuesday-Saturday, 7am-11pm; Sunday 8am-8pm; Monday 7am-8pm. 984-6833. Through July 31: New work by Sean Samoheyl.

New Dominion Bookshop 404 E. Main St. Monday-Wednesday and Saturday, 9:30am-5:30pm; Thursday-Friday, 9:30am-8pm; Sunday noon-5pm. 295-2552. Through July 31: “Chimeras and Dreamers,” recent oil paintings by Lisi Stoessel.

Sage Moon Gallery 420 E. Main St., Downtown Mall. Tuesday-Thursday, 12-8pm; Friday-Saturday, 10am-10pm; Sunday, 11am-7pm. 977-9997. Through July 31: A new exhibition by oil painter Raymond Chow.

Second Street Gallery City Center for Contemporary Arts, Second Street SE and Water Street. Tuesday-Saturday, 11am-6pm. 977-7284. Through August 12: “Love Letter Invitational,” a multimedia installation with works on the theme of love by local writers and artists in the May Dove Gallery. Includes contributions from Gregory Orr, John Casey, Paul Curreri, Rita Dove and the Printmakers Left.

Sidetracks 218 W. Water St. Monday-Saturday, 10am-6pm; Sunday, 1-5pm. 295-3080. Through July 31: “Drawn from Music,” music-inspired drawings by Laura Lee Gulledge.

Spruce Creek Gallery 1368 Rockfish Valley Hwy., Nellysford. 361-1859. Through August 7: “Party Animals,” paintings by Cynthia Burke.

Starr Hill Restaurant and Brewery 709 W. Main St., Tuesday–Sunday from 5pm. 977-0017. Through July: Photography by Sean Thomas.

Thomas Jefferson Memorial Church 717 Rugby Rd. Sunday-Friday, 9am-2pm. 293-8179. Through July: “Pants, Puppets and Web Comics,” by Skyler Breeden.

Transient Crafters 118 E. Main St., Downtown Mall. Monday-Thursday and Saturday, 10am-6pm; Friday 10am-9pm; Sunday noon-6pm. 972-9500. Through July 31: “Body of Work,” stained glass panels by Lynn Windsor.

UVA Art Museum 155 Rugby Rd. Tuesday-Sunday, 1-5pm. 924-3592. Through August 20: “Humanism and Enigma,” oil paintings by Honoré Sharrer in the main gallery. Through August 6: “Art/Not Art,” oceanic art and artifacts. Free to students and museum members, all others $3.

UVA Small Special Collections Library, McCormick Road. adjacent to Alderman Library. Main exhibit gallery hours: Monday-Saturday, 9am-1pm. Check library hours at www.lib.virginia.edu/hours. Through September: “The Style of Power: Building a New Nation,” with works drawn from the Library’s Special Collections, the UVA Art Museum, Monticello and Mount Vernon. Free.

UVA Main Hospital Lobby 1300 Jefferson Park Ave. Monday-Sunday, 7am-11pm. 924-5527. Through July 17: “Observation in Paint,” oils by Joan Ranzini.

White Orchid 420 W. Main St. Monday-Sunday, 11:30am-2pm, 5-10pm. 297-4400. Through August 31: “Photographs of Vietnam” by Georgia Barbour.

Categories
Arts

Highlights from this weeks events

Try This Now is a rotating listing of classes, workshops and ongoing events to help you broaden your horizons—take a hike, learn how to blow glass, or sign up your kid to act in a play. The schedule of topics goes as follows: First Tuesday of the month: Wellness; Second Tuesday: Kids; Third Tuesday: Arts and Fine Arts; Fourth Tuesday: Outdoors; Fifth Tuesday: Grab Bag. To get your event or organization listed, contact Susan Rosen at trythisnow@c-ville.com.

Acting for Film classes 1144 E. Market St. 977-1371. Offers weekly workshops on acting for film with Emmy-winning director. Call for days and times. $150 per month.

Actors’ Lab 123 E. Water St. 977-4177. www.livearts.org. Live Arts holds weekly intense acting workshop. Meets Saturdays through August 26, 10-11am. $15 drop-in fee.

Biscuit Run Studios potluck 981 Old Lynchburg Rd. 977-5411. www.biscuitrun.com. Hosts an open house and potluck supper every Wednesday, 6pm. Free.

Blue Ridge Beads & Glass 1724 Allied St. 293-2876. www.blueridgebeads-glass.com. Stained Glass Seminar is back. Every Saturday, 3-4:30pm. Free.

Charlottesville Camera Club 250 Pantops Mountain Rd. 973-4856. www.avenue.org/ccc. Visitors welcome, meets at Westminster Canterbury the second Tuesday of the month, 6:30pm. Free.

Charlottesville Salsa Club at Outback Lodge, 917 Preston Plaza. 979-7211. sunday

salsa@cvillesalsaclub.com. Sponsors Salsa and a beginning dance lesson every Sunday, 8pm. $5.

Charlottesville Writing Center offers several evening writing workshops for adults, including a poetry workshop July 24-27 and creative non-fiction workshops July 24-27 and August 14-17. All workshops: 6:30-8:30pm, $185. For more info: call 293-3702 or visit http://cvillewrites.org.

DanceFit Movement Center 609 E. Market St., Studio 110. 295-4774. www.njira.com/dancefit. Holds “DanceFit” every Tuesday and Thursday, 6:30pm. $10-13.

Film Series at Greene County Library 222 Main St., Stanardsville. 985-5227. Shows award-winning independent and foreign films (not rated, so assume mature content). Next meeting on July 19 reviews Familia, a Canadian film directed by Louise Archambault. Every third Wednesday. Free, 7pm.

Glass Palette classes 110 Fifth St. NE. 977-9009. Offers classes beginning the first week of every month. Classes run on four weeknights or two Saturdays. $200-250. Pre-registration required. Call or visit website for schedule. www.theglasspalette.net.

Kluge-Ruhe Collection tours 400 Worrell Dr. 244-0234. Offers 45-minute guided tours every Saturday, 10:30am. Free, no reservations necessary.

La Tertulia: Spanish Conversation Group at Central Library, 201 E. Market St. 979-7151. All levels welcome. Brush up on your Spanish the first Thursday of each month, 7pm.

Live Arts Summer Theater Institute 123 E. Water St. 977-4177. www.livearts.org. Session III: Laugh Out Loud: Comedy. July 24-August. 4. Sessions run Monday-Friday 9:30-3:30pm. $400-425.

Live glassblowing demonstrations at Sunspots-Charlottesville, 2039 Barracks Rd, Meadowbrook Shopping Center, corner of Emmet Street and Barracks Road. 977-5531. www.sunspots.com. Watch red-hot molten glass being formed into beautiful art objects.  Demonstrations offered Monday-Saturday, 10am-6pm.

The Live Poets Society at Gordon Avenue Library, 1500 Gordon Ave. 296-5544. Share original poetry or listen, the first Wednesday of the month, 7pm. Free.

Children’s Summer Writing Sessions Ruffner Hall, 405 Emmet St. The Charlottes-ville Writing Center offers two more July sessions: “Focus on Journal-Making/Family Scrapbooking,” July 24-28, and “Focus on the Writer,” July 31 through August 8. Classes held 10am-12pm for rising seventh, eigth and ninth graders and 1-3pm for rising fourth, fifth and sixth graders. $200. To register call: 293-3702.

Main Street Art Space Summer Art Program 328 Main St., Stanardsville. 985-6500. Offered by Noon Whistle Pottery. Classes on drawing, beading, clayworks and more for children and adults. Call or visit website for schedule. www.noonwhistlepottery.com.

McGuffey Art Center Summer Classes and Art Camps 201 Second St. NW. 295-7973. Offers numerous adult and teen workshops in the visual arts, theater and dance and art camps for kids. Call or visit website for schedule and registration information. www.mcguffeyartcenter.com.

Play Reading Series at Live Arts 123 E. Water St. 977-4177. www.livearts.org. Meets the second Sunday of the month, 3-6pm. Free.

Poem Site: Songs in the Landscape 2331 Highland Ave., Fry’s Spring. 295-5057. Features poetry by Laurance Wieder painted on a salvaged window, painting by Andrea Wieder and a take-it-with-you poem. New poem through September 15: “The Last Century” and new take-it-with you poem:

Shergold Dance Studio 652 W. Rio Rd. 975-4611. www.berkmarballroom.com. Offers a variety of evening dance classes, from tango to hip-hop. $32 for four lessons or $10 drop-in. See website for current schedule.

Smocking Arts Guild of America meeting 420 Shoppers World Ct. 295-1481. The Monticello Chapter meets the third Thursday of the month at Les Fabriques to discuss service projects, 7pm. $10 per year.

Studio Baboo workshops 321 E. Main St. 244-2905. www.studiobaboo.com. Holds several summer workshops, including: “Dew Drops Bracelet,” July 20, 5:30-7pm, $25; “Sumptuous Swirl Brooch or Pendant,” July 26, 10am-2pm, $35; and “Peyote Bracelet from a Charted Pattern,” July 29, 10am-4pm, $40. See website for full schedule.

Terry Dean’s Dance Studio 1309A Seminole Trail. 977-3327. www.terrydeansdancestudio.com. Terry offers weekly classes in partner styles from two-step to cha-cha. Partners are provided for singles. See website for current schedule. $10.

West African Drum Classes 1104 Forest St. 977-1499. Kevin Munro holds lessons at the Charlottesville Quaker Meeting House every Wednesday, 6-7pm. $70.

Zabor Dance 609 E. Market St. 804-303-2614. Offers half-hour classes in Argentine tango and nightclub salsa for beginners and intermediates, every Saturday. $6. For more info: call or email zabordance@yahoo.com.

Categories
The Editor's Desk

Letters to the editor

And I hate that Patsy Cline song, too!

On the cover of the July 11 issue of
C-VILLE, “Drive yourself crazy” is an unfortunate and dehumanizing choice of words. They are an affront to people who struggle to cope with symptoms of mental illness. Labels like “crazy,” “loony bin,“ funny farm,” etc., are dehumanizing to victims of mental illness. The stigma can deter people from seeking medical help.

Easter Mary Martin, RN
Charlottesville

Parkway politics
Your portrayal of McIntire Park as one of the “Places we’ll lose” [“A good walk, spoiled,” June 13] is inaccurate.
    The Meadowcreek Parkway, far from being a done deal, is about done in. Your article ignores Charlottesville’s recent election, the parkway’s legal troubles, and the fact that the City’s conditions for approval (even as espoused by the previous council) have not been met. That’s right—Charlottesville has not approved the parkway, and it cannot be built unless that happens.
    Perhaps you assumed otherwise because you’ve been taken in by the steering committee formed to study the interchange, which was selected and charged by the pro-parkway council when “build it now” guys Blake Caravati and Rob Shilling were still members. The rest of council back then said “no way” to a Parkway without a workable interchange (as they all do now) because traffic studies demonstrated its intersection with the 250 Bypass would otherwise immediately fail.
    And so the interchange became one of several explicit conditions for the City’s consent to the Parkway, along with adequate replacement park land (nope) and more roads in the county (most notably an eastern connector to carry traffic between north and east of Charlottesville, which would likely cut though Pen Park and is already being protested), which were supposed to lessen the increased traffic burden downtown would experience when the Parkway turned it into a short-cut.
    Two weeks ago I attended the steering committee’s “Citizen Informational Meeting.” Though there’s no mention of the parkway in the official title or purpose of the project, every version of the interchange shown to the public thus far includes a parkway. The “No build” pictures displayed, which supposedly show existing conditions of the site, have a Meadowcreek Parkway drawn in as if it were already there.
    When I asked one of the consultants about this, I was told the parkway had been approved. This fantasy is necessary because the money Senator John Warner porked over for the interchange comes with federal parkland protection laws which will apply to the parkway if its construction is contingent upon the interchange—hence, the parkway already exists.
Instead of exposing this creepy contortion of logic, you passed it off as truth.
Now is the time for Charlottesville’s Council to keep its word and vote a conservation easement along the path of this lingering nightmare and take the millions left over and build us a transit system to be proud of.

Stratton Salidis
Charlottesville

Call us, we’ll talk
In a recent story headlined “Restructuring arrives July 1” [UVA News, June 27] you called the Higher Education Financial and Administrative Operations Act “as complicated as its name suggests.” Yet, you allotted just 315 words to the topic and relied on only one source, an individual with no connection to the University. I continue to be concerned that your publication relies so heavily on one person’s feelings—not facts—about how the University operates.
     Your source says that she is “worried” that a new system might not be as good as the current State system.
    For those who have been paying attention, University leaders have been saying all along that the intention is to create a better HR system—one designed to meet the specific needs of higher education institutions. This process, expected to take place over the next two years, will be done with input from our employees.
    Sara Wilson, the State’s director of HR, here recently to meet with University employees on this topic, said she believes that restructuring is a good thing for higher ed, and that she will work closely with the University administration as it begins to think through another system that she expects will become the new model.
    I should note that no one is encouraging employees “to jump” to a new system once in place. Former Governor Warner, in his wisdom, was intending to create choices for employees by letting them decide whether to remain State classified employees or to become university employees.
    The challenge will be ours to create a system so outstanding that the new UVA HR system will become the first choice.

Carol Wood, assistant vice president for university relations
Charlottesville

The editor replies: The article’s author, John Borgmeyer, called UVA for comment while reporting this story. As noted in the original article, the call went unreturned.

Categories
News

Second quarter a boon for buyers

If you’re looking to buy a home, you can thank your lucky stars that you’re shopping now rather than a year ago. According to the second-quarter market report from the Charlottesville Area Association of Realtors (CAAR), the real estate market now officially belongs to buyers, after several years of sellers holding the reins.
    One factor in this change is a big increase in inventory. As of early July, there were nearly twice as many properties for sale (2,681) as there were at the same time last year (1,368). CAAR CEO Dave Phillips, who authored the report, says that the greater supply actually means a “return to normalcy.” So if you’re a seller, don’t expect to watch gleefully as buyers wage a bidding war for your overpriced fixer-upper.
    Conversely, if you’re a buyer, you can be choosier than you would have been in 2005, and you can spend longer considering your options. The average property this quarter stayed on the market for 69 days, compared to 59 in the same period last year. Because the days-on-market average is under 100, though, the market is still officially “hot.”
    Additionally, the median sales price went up $20,000 compared to second quarter last year, the smallest increase in several years. Overall, the market’s on its way down from the lofty peaks that have awed observers for several years, but Phillips still predicts 2006 will be the second best year on record for real estate sales in Central Virginia.