Screens: Netflix spotlights psychedelics’ benefits.

Tailgate Thursdays with Robert Jospé.

Enjoy a laid-back evening in the vineyard with live music, wine, oysters from Salty Bottom Blue Oysters, and BYO lawn games, picnic blankets, and food to grill. Free, 6pm. Stinson Vineyards, 4744 Sugar Hollow Rd., Crozet. stinsonvineyards.com Thursday Evening Sunset Series. Live music, food trucks, Carter Mountain Wine, Bold Rock Hard Cider, and a beautiful view of the sunset. $10, 6pm. Carter Mountain Orchard, 1435 Carters Mountain Trl. chiles familyorchards.com

etc.

Albemarle County Fair. Featuring livestock, agriculture products, craft exhibits, live music, historic demonstrations, food trucks, and much more. Free, all day. James Monroe’s Highland, 2050 James Monroe Pkwy. albemarle countyfair.com Arts From Underground. Artmaking, drinks, and karaoke inside The Looking Glass. Free, 7pm. Ix Art Park, 522 Second St. SE. ixartpark.org

Friday 8/5

music

Fridays After Five: Mama Tried. With Silas Frayser Band. Free, 5:30pm. Ting Pavilion, 700 E. Main St., Downtown Mall. ting pavilion.com The Legwarmers. Relive the ‘80s with this tribute band. $20, 9pm. The Jefferson Theater, 110 E. Main St., Downtown Mall. jeffersontheater.com Tre Charles. Acoustic soul. Free, 7pm. The Garage, 250 N. First St. thegaragecville.com

stage

No Fear and Blues Long Gone: Nina Simone.

See listing for Wednesday, August 3. $15-50, 7:30pm. Culbreth Theatre, 109 Culbreth Rd. virginiatheatrefestival.com

words

Friday Night Writes: A Reading Series for

Emerging Writers. Performing short stories, poetry, and music. Free, 7pm. New Dominion Bookshop, 404 E. Main St., Downtown Mall. ndbookshop.com

outside

Summer Sundowns. Watch the summer sun descend behind the Blue Ridge Mountains with acoustic music from local performers. Free, 5pm. Chiswell Farm & Winery, 430 Greenwood Rd., Greenwood. chiles familyorchards.com

etc.

Ix Flix Summer Film Series: Men in Black.

Artmaking, family-friendly activities, food trucks, cold drinks, and a sunset movie screening. Free, 6pm. Ix Art Park, 522 Second St. SE. ixartpark.org Kizomba Fridays. An open community social to gather and learn about kizomba dance and music. Free, 8pm. Ashtanga Yoga of Charlottesville, 906 Monticello Rd. @core4kizomba Magic: The Gathering. A casual format with multiple formats, including draft, modern, legacy, and pioneer, and prizes for participants. $5, 6pm. The End Games, 374 Hillsdale Dr. theendgames.co

Paramount at the Movies Presents: Pitch

Perfect. In honor of its 10-year anniversary, the Paramount will screen the musical comedy that features UVA’s acapella group, Hullabahoos. $5-8, 7:30pm. The Paramount Theater, 215 E. Main St., Downtown Mall. theparamount.net

Trip itinerary

‘How to Change Your Mind’ explores psychedelics as treatment

NETFLIX

Author Michael Pollan (right) researches psychedelics though assisted drug trips in the Netflix docuseries “How to Change Your Mind.”

By Justin Humphreys

arts@c-ville.com

Michael Pollan’s 2018 bestseller How to Change Your Mind expounded on psychedelic drugs’ medical benefits and, in Pollan’s view, their unfair stigmatization. Now, Netflix has adapted his book into a four-part docuseries, hosted by Pollan, that is at times gripping and wholly convincing, and, at others, plays like a lame infomercial.

Each episode focuses on a separate psychedelic, beginning with LSD. Aside from discussing the drug’s possible medicinal uses, the first episode delves into the lives of key figures in the popularization of psychedelics, including LSD’s inventor Albert Hoffman, Aldous Huxley, and Timothy Leary, among others. There’s a lot of common knowledge here, with some notable exceptions—for instance: Bill Wilson, the founder of Alcoholics Anonymous, had his miraculous epiphany to start AA while experiencing a primitive deliriant treatment, the belladonna cure.

The series gets progressively better with each episode, but the first is arguably the weakest. Pollan and his interviewees have a slightly creepy fanaticism about LSD and the perceived benefits of microdosing it. It’s a potent, unregulated, and illegal drug that has different effects on those who take it, but Pollan elides over its potential drawbacks in the same way a sunny, upbeat TV commercial for psychoactive medication will end with a speed-read laundry list of intense, harmful side effects. There’s a certain naiveté at points throughout the series, like when proselytizing for psychedelics turns into envisioning them as the solution to all of the world’s problems.

The second episode, about the hallucinogen psilocybin, is much more successful, not least of all because psilocybin is a relatively benign drug compared to LSD. Pollan speaks with experts on the subject, and people who have experienced relief from various disorders by ingesting psilocybin under clinical supervision. Pollan cogently explores points about its judicious use, and it seems to be enormously beneficial in the right circumstances with the right people. This episode lags when an interviewee describes his drug-induced trip at length, dragging on exhaustively. Further undercutting it is a sloppy, indifferent animated version of this trip. (For truly imaginative psychedelic animation, look to something like Yellow Submarine.)

Of the first three episodes, the third, about the medical benefits of MDMA (ecstasy), is the strongest. Pollan and his interviewees make a case for using MDMA in controlled, clinical settings to help defuse extreme cases of PTSD. Once the favored drug of ’90s ravers, MDMA appears to have life-changing potential. Wholly unlike the previous episode’s rambling digression, listening to trauma victims describe their experiences here is riveting, and testimonials about how the closely observed use of MDMA helped relieve their pain is touching and fascinating. “How to Change Your Mind” makes many thought-provoking and intriguing points; the

“How to Change Your Mind”

TV-MA, four episodes Netflix

series is only middling because Pollan and his cadre of zealous experts oversell their case. They avoid discussing how wildly different individuals’ body chemistries are and how negatively many people react to even mild substances, let alone something as strong as LSD. Psychedelics are not one-size-fits-all, chemically speaking, and if Pollan had taken a more even-handed approach, “How to Change Your Mind” might have changed far more minds on these issues.

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 23

Saturday 8/6

music

Berto & Vincent. Enjoy brunch with live Latin guitar. Free, 11am. Tavern & Grocery, 333 W. Main St. tavernandgrocery.com Films on Song. The post punk band performs dreamy pop songs. Free, 8pm. The Stage at WTJU, 2244 Ivy Rd. wtju.net

The Days Between with Sisters And

Brothers. With Dan & The Fam. $10, 8:30pm. The Southern Café & Music Hall, 103 S. First St. thesoutherncville.com The Pollocks. Performing on the outside stage. $15, 5pm. The Batesville Market, 6624 Plank Rd. batesvillemarket.com

stage

No Fear and Blues Long Gone: Nina Simone.

See listing for Wednesday, August 3. $15-50, 7:30pm. Culbreth Theatre, 109 Culbreth Rd. virginiatheatrefestival.org

outside

Charlottesville City Market. Fresh produce, handmade gifts, homemade baked goods, and more. Free, 8am. Charlottesville City Market, 100 Water St. E. charlottesville.gov Farmers Market at Ix. Over 60 local vendors with produce, prepared foods, artisan goods, and more. Free, 8am. Ix Art Park, 522 Second St. SE. ixartpark.org

etc.

Virginia Writers Club 2022 Symposium.

Featuring 16 workshops led by published authors and publishing professionals. $5575, 8am-4pm. Piedmont Virginia Community College, 501 College Dr. virginiawriters club.org

Sunday 8/7

music

Batesville Sessions: Willie DE Jazz Duo

with Jason Lyman. A smooth Sunday jazz session on the outdoor stage. Free, 1pm. The Batesville Market, 6624 Plank Rd. batesvillemarket.com Bomar and Ritter. The folk duo performs originals and covers. Free, 2:30pm. Albemarle CiderWorks, 2545 Rural Ridge Ln., North Garden. albemarleciderworks.com Vincent Zorn. Enjoy brunch with live music. Free, 11am. South and Central Latin Grill, Dairy Market. southandcentralgrill.com

dance

Salsa Class. Learn to salsa and strut your stuff. $6-8, 7pm. Ix Art Park, 522 Second St. SE. ixartpark.org

stage

No Fear and Blues Long Gone: Nina Sim-

one. See listing for Wednesday, August 3. $15-50, 2pm. Culbreth Theatre, 109 Culbreth Rd. virginiatheatrefestival.org

etc.

Paramount at the Movies Presents:

Moana. This CG-animated film follows an adventurous teenager who is inspired to leave the safety and security of her island on a daring journey to save her people. $5-8, 2pm. The Paramount Theater, 215 E. Main St., Downtown Mall. theparamount.net

Monday 8/8

music

Baby Jo’s. Tunes from the seven-piece New Orleans-inspired boogie and blues band. Free, 6:30pm. The Whiskey Jar, 227 W. Main St., Downtown Mall. thewhiskey jarcville.com Berto & Vincent. Rumba rumba. Free, 7pm. South and Central Latin Grill, Dairy Market. southandcentralgrill.com Gin & Jazz. Brian Caputo Trio performs in the hotel lobby bar. Free, 5:30pm. Oakhurst Hall, 122 Oakhurst Cir. oakhurstinn.com

outside

Summer Celebration Series: Music Mon-

days. Live music from Matt Johnson, and complimentary access to the one-acre putting course. Free, 6pm. Birdwood Bar & Grill, 410 Golf Course Dr. boarsheadresort.com

Tuesday 8/9

music

Josh Mayo and The House Sauce. Featuring a rotating lineup of local musicians. Free, 9pm. Rapture, 303 E. Main St., Downtown Mall. rapturerestaurant.com Madeline Holly-Sales. An evening of bossa nova, samba, and soul. Free, 7pm. South and Central Latin Grill, Dairy Market. south andcentralgrill.com Vincent Zorn. Rumba night. Free, 7pm. The Bebedero, 225 W. Main St., Downtown Mall. thebebedero.com Willie Nelson & Family. With Aaron Raitiere. $49-125, 7pm. Ting Pavilion, 700 E. Main St., Downtown Mall. ting pavilion.com

etc.

Geeks Who Drink Trivia Night. Useless knowledge means everything at this authentic homegrown trivia quiz. Free, 8pm. Firefly, 1304 E. Market St. fireflycville.com

Films on Song

SUPPLIED PHOTO