C-VILLE Weekly | September 2 - 8, 2026

CHARLOTTESVILLE’S FREE NEWS AND ARTS WEEKLY

SEPTEMBER 2 – 8, 2026

Sara Holdren comes home to direct Brecht at the theater where she got her start

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A decade of decay later, Piedmont Housing Bronwyn shows off a the city demands a plan Alliance bets on the future triple threat on Rattlin’ from Dewberry P.9 of 501 Cherry Ave. P.15 Bones P.35

TRISTAN WILLIAMS

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September 2 – 8, 2026

C-VILLE.COM

VISIT THE ART MUSEUMS at the University of Virginia

View our dynamic exhibitions.

Participate in our exciting programing.

Admission is free.

KLUGE-RUHE ABORIGINAL ART COLLECTION NOW ON VIEW: Color is Life: Women’s Work Today Cammeerangan Ngalin-ngur Gining | From Our Ancestors’ Hands – Story Bags: Sonja Carmichael EVENTS: Jilarti (Brolga) Thursday, September 3 | 5:30 pm | The Rotunda, UVA Welcome Reception: Sonja Carmichael Thursday, September 17 | 5 pm | Kluge-Ruhe

400 Worrell Drive 434-243-8500 kluge-ruhe.org

THE FRALIN MUSEUM OF ART NOW ON VIEW: Collection and Translation: Thomas Jefferson in Southern France Georges Adéagbo and the Legacies of Independence Sky Hopinka: Mnemonics of Shape and Reason Collection In Focus: Narcissa Chisholm Owen What Was Built, What Was Born: Labor, Land, & the Body in 20th-Century American Art 155 Rugby Road 434-924-3592 uvafralinartmuseum. virginia.edu

Top image: Detail SONJA CARMICHAEL (b. 1958, Brisbane, Australia), Yalingbila (Humpback Whales) Dungu (Tears), 2026, ghost net and shells. Courtesy of the artist and Onespace. Bottom image: Detail of ERNEST FIENE (1894-1966, United States), Haying Before an Approaching Storm, n.d. Oil on canvas, 24 x 28-1/8 in. Gift of The Ernest Fiene Foundation, © Estate of Ernest Fiene. 1989.16

C-VILLE.COM

August 26 – September 1, 2026

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9.2.26

Hello, Charlottesville.

Thank you for reading C-VILLE Weekly.

Last week I wrote to Jenny Wales, who recently announced she was stepping down after nine years at the helm of the Virginia Theatre Festival, to tell her that I still had “What’s it gonna take to stop the scabbers? Can we do it? Yes!” on a running loop in my head, thanks to my 6-year-old, who’s been listening to the Newsies soundtrack over and over since we saw it in July. I wanted her to know that I count the festival among the many privileges of living in a city with so much incredible art.

There are performances here that have stuck with me for years: Cabaret at Four County Players, In the Next Room (or The Vibrator Play) at Live Arts, and plenty more. This week’s cover story (p.20) looks at what could be another: Live Arts opens its 2026-27 season with The Caucasian Chalk Circle, directed

by Charlottesville native Sara Holdren, now a theater critic for New York magazine’s Vulture.

I love that Holdren grew up doing theater here and has come home to make it—and that my daughter is growing up in the same kind of place. If the price I pay is having to listen to “Seize the Day” 700 more times, I’ll take it.

Be afraid, be very afraid

When we featured local author Alix E. Harrow on our August 19 cover, we never thought it would follow her to her kids’ bus stop. On August 25, Harrow posted on Bluesky: “one thing i didn’t anticipate about being on the cover of my local paper is that a 5th grader might show up at the bus stop and start loudly, mercilessly reading excerpts to the neighborhood kids. we should, collectively, be more frightened of children.” “i told them i’d do the same thing to them when they were in the paper,” Harrow continued, “and they looked me dead in the eye and said ‘no you won’t.’” With permission from their parents, we interviewed Riley Goodall, 10, about what they dubbed their “master plan.”—Nathan Alderman How long have you known Alix Harrow? Wait, that’s her name?

Yep. Well, one of her kids is in fourth grade. One of her kids is my friend, and they’re my neighbors. They live down the street.

When you saw Ms. Harrow on the cover of C-VILLE, what did you think? My dad actually pointed it out when we were walking through Wegmans. He said. “Oh, is that our neighbor?” And then I said, “Oh yeah.” And he said, “Let’s get one.” And then we got one.

And then we came up with our master plan to—oh yeah, this was all on Friday—to come and show off the paper and be like, “Oh, just reading the paper.”

We waited Sunday and Saturday. On Monday, she didn’t come, and we’re like, “I think she’s dodging us.” And then on Tuesday, we have our paper in [our] hands. It’s like, “Let’s go,” and then we walk in, and then we’re like, “Oh, just reading the paper, papery, papery, paper,” with the cover. Show it to the rest of the bus stop. Then we flip it over, and then I’m like, “Oh! Oh! Oh! Oh!” pointing the cover in her face.

And then she laughs, and then she says, “I’m gonna do this when you get in the paper.”

Have you read any of her books? Nope.

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September 2 – 8, 2026

What are some of your favorite books and authors?

I just go on the recommendations from the library. I like books about Pride. And romcom series. I just finished Meet Me at Sunset, and that’s really good. And I’m about to get the other one by that same author [Lee Heart], called Playing for Keeps.

If we were doing a two-person book club like I did with Ms. Harrow, what book would you pick for me to read and discuss? Oh, good question.

Okay, I’d have you read Cinder [by Marissa Meyer]. It’s like Cinderella, but with cyborgs, and it’s based in the future. It’s so cool.

That sounds like an awesome book. Who wrote it? I don’t know.

On Bluesky, Ms. Harrow said that “we should, collectively, be more frightened of children.” Do you think she’s right? Why? 100 percent. This generation is getting way better test scores. I’m just saying. I think we’re improving.

Ms. Harrow told you she’d do the same thing if you were in the paper, and you looked her dead in the eye and said, “No you won’t.” Well, you’re going to be in the paper now. Do you think she’ll do it? How would you react if she did? Planning to laugh. Comically.

C-VILLE.COM

I wrote that article you teased Ms. Harrow about, so I’m giving you a free shot here—hit me with your sickest burn. Okay. Let me think. Okay. The FBI dressed up as you—wait, no. The FBI hired their first ugly person dressed up as you, and nobody noticed. Ohh! My best one.

EZE AMOS

C-VILLE.COM

August 26 – September 1, 2026

5

IN THIS ISSUE

V.38, No. 35

FEATURE 20

Saturday SEPT 5

THE CURRYS THEOCLES & THE MUSES DOUBLE-HEADLINER CO-BILL Doors 5:30 PM - Music 6:30 PM

Don’t create an unnecessary hazard.

Inner circle

Sara Holdren returns to Live Arts to direct season opener.

NEWS 9

FOR FUN 40

9

40 Sudoku 41 Crossword 43 Free Will Astrology

John Dewberry has 60 days to formulate hotel plan.

13 Foxfield Racing sues for property ownership.

15 Real Estate: PHA buys two Cherry Avenue lots.

CULTURE 31 32 Critical Condition: Singersongwriter Sierra Ferrell at the Pavilion.

35 Feedback: Bronwyn proves you can go home again.

36 Galleries: What’s on view this month.

ADVERTISING advertising@c-ville.com

ART DIRECTOR Max March max@c-ville.com

NEWS CONTRIBUTOR Sean Tubbs ASSOCIATE CULTURE EDITOR CM Turner arts@c-ville.com COPY EDITOR Susan Sorensen

4576 Dick Woods Road, Charlottesville, VA

DIRECTOR OF SALES Bianca Johnson bianca@c-ville.com REAL ESTATE & CLASSIFIED ACCOUNT MANAGER Brian Hrozencik brian@c-ville.com DIGITAL SALES MANAGER Rob Davis rob@c-ville.com

NEWS REPORTER Catie Ratliff reporter@c-ville.com

Ivy Solid Waste & Recycling Center

Correction: In this year’s Best of C-VILLE magazine, we used incorrect pronouns in the story about Sally Rose’s Fight Like a Grrrl Club. Sally Rose uses they/them.

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Caite Hamilton editor@c-ville.com

SENIOR NEWS REPORTER Nathan Alderman news@c-ville.com

disposal of lithium batteries at the

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EDI TOR I A L

CULTURE EDITOR Tami Keaveny tami@c-ville.com

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ACCOUNT EXECUTIVES Stephanie Vogtman-Say stephanie@c-ville.com GRAPHIC DESIGNER Tracy Federico designer@c-ville.com PRODUCTION COORDINATOR Faith Gibson ads@c-ville.com

BUSINESS PUBLISHER Anna Harrison anna@c-ville.com

DIGITAL EDITOR Tristan Williams

CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER Debbie Miller debbie@c-ville.com

INTERNS Claire Dodson, Nicolas Ratliff

A/R SPECIALIST Nanci Winter accounting@c-ville.com

CONTRIBUTORS Rob Brezsny, Dave Cantor, Carol Diggs, Shea Gibbs, Andrew Hollins, Sarah Lawson, Sarah Sargent, Kristie Smeltzer, Jen Sorensen, Julia Stumbaugh, Paul Ting, Eric Williamson

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C-VILLE Weekly is Charlottesville, Virginia's award-winning alternative newspaper.

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©2026 C-VILLE Weekly. No part of this publication may be reproduced without the written permission of the publisher.

ON THE DOWNTOWN MALL

38TH SEASON

On the Stage

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09-08| GOLDFORD - SPACE OF THE HEART TOUR

HOSTED BY DARLING NIKKI & JACKIE OF ALL TRADES

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09-02| BRONWYN/JOHNNY MULLENAX 09-04| FOXTIDE WITH SHAKIIRA AND THE

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09-12| CAN'T FEEL MY FACE: BRAYMORES 2010s DANCE PARTY 18+ 09-05| WXTJ & U REC SHOWCASE: LOOSE 09-18| BEN HARPER & THE INNOCENT CHAMPAGNE, THE REMEDIES, CRIMINALS LOW TICKET WARNING! NO COMPOSURE, RANGER 09-19| MADISON CUNNINGHAM 09-06| THE LOCAL HONEYS WITH JULIA CUMMING PRESENTED BY WNRN 09-09| OLD MERVS WITH FUDGE 09-21| CYRILLE NEVILLE PLAYS THE DEAD 09-11| DAVID WAX MUSEUM & 09-24| ALEX "BIG RED" DOUGHERTY 18+ LOWLAND HUM PRESENT: 09-25| THE STEEL WHEELS THE GOLDEN HOURS WITH C. BURROWS WITH ERIN LUNSFORD 09-12| TWO RUNNER WITH SPARROW SMITH AND 09-30| INFINITY SONG THE RESONANT ROGUES 10-02| THE CALIFORNIA HONEYDROPS 09-13| PARLOR GREENS WITH SPECIAL GUEST JONTAVIOUS WILLIS

WITH CHARLES OWEN TRIO

10-03| NOAH RINKER 10-07| FRED ARMISEN LOW TICKET WARNING! 10-09| MO LOWDA & THE HUMBLE:

09-16| HORSE FEATHERS WITH THE HACKLES 09-17| JAMMY BUFFET 09-18| BOOT SCOOTIN' BOOGIE NIGHTS 09-19| MILITARIE GUN WITH SPECIAL GUESTS

10-10| MORGAN WADE

09-21| MDOU MOCTAR (SOLO) WITH GULL 09-22| RIVER SHOOK FORMERLY SARAH SHOOK & THE DISARMERS PRESENTED BY WNRN 09-23| DAMIEN JURADO WITH ST. YUMA

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C-VILLE.COM

August 26 – September 1, 2026

7

CHARACTER AND CONTINGENCY IN THE WAR FOR INDEPENDENCE:

A Revolutionary Conversation

Discover all types of art, everyday antiques, and lots of furniture—all in one place!

Explore new treasures at your local/regional online auction house: Central VA Auctions!

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Featuring Scholars of the Revolutionary era, Drs. Andrew J. O’Shaughnessy and James R. Sofka

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Through engaging conversation explore the leaders, choices, and circumstances that shaped the outcome of the American Revolution and the lessons that remain relevant today.

Main Stage Theatre | V. Earl Dickinson Building 501 College Drive

Take a look at our online auctions!

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8

September 2 – 8, 2026

C-VILLE.COM

NEWS UVA | POLITICS | REAL ESTATE | CRIME

Write of way Charlottesville gives Dewberry 60 days to submit a written plan for half-finished hotel BY CATIE RATLIFF

TRISTAN WILLIAMS

C-VILLE.COM

September 2 – 8, 2026

9

cvillechambermusic.org (434) 295-5395

cvillechambermusic 10

September 2 – 8, 2026

C-VILLE.COM

September 8–19, 2026 FREE student rush tickets available for concerts on Sept. 8, 11, 13, 17, and 19! See website for more info.

LEGAL NEWS T

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 9

he City of Charlottesville finally seems to have had enough of the half-built Dewberry, née Landmark, hotel at 201 E. Water St. In an August 19 letter, City Attorney John Maddux gave John Dewberry, Dewberry Capital, and Deerfield Square Associates II, LLC 60 days to submit a written plan for the building that’s sat in disrepair for more than 15 years.

Construction of the structure, now covered with a vinyl wrap, began in 2008 and stopped in 2009. Dewberry acquired the property at auction in 2012 for $6.25 million.

No construction has occurred since Dewberry purchased the shell.

“You told this community … you would turn your attention to Charlottesville once your Charleston project was complete. The Dewberry Charleston opened in 2016,” reads an excerpt from the letter. “The building on Water Street remains a concrete and steel frame, without windows, elevators, or basic building services, in the center of Charlottesville’s Downtown Mall.”

Dewberry Capital’s COO confirmed receipt of the letter via a phone call, says Charlottesville Director of Communications and Public Engagement Afton Schneider.

The city has requested a written plan be submitted with the following information, at minimum: whether the building will be completed, sold, or removed; specific target dates for any planned course of action, including permit and site plan applications; interim actions to secure and maintain the site, including the vinyl wrap; and the name and contact information for the representative and/or legal counsel authorized to speak on behalf of ownership.

At press time, the city had “not received a substantive response.”

As early as September 2013, Charlottesville’s director of Neighborhood Development Services requested a written plan for the building from the developer. In 2017, Dewberry worked with the city on an incentives plan for the site, which City Council ultimately rejected. The letter alleges Dew-

TRISTAN WILLIAMS

The skeleton structure at 201 E. Water St. has sat, exposed to the elements, since construction stopped in 2009.

berry has submitted nothing to the city for the property since.

While there was an attempt to sell the site in December 2024, it is unclear if there was any interest in the property at that time, or if Dewberry still plans to sell. At press time, neither Dewberry nor a representative had responded to C-VILLE’s request for comment. Schneider says the city was “not a party to marketing or any sale for this privately owned property.”

The Charlottesville shell is not the only long-stalled site in Dewberry’s portfolio.

The Midtowne building (formerly The Campanile) in Atlanta recently made headlines

for safety issues and debt dismissals (the developer’s LLC recently came into full ownership of the site via a quitclaim deed).

In recent coverage, Bisnow and Urbanize Atlanta both called the building “Midtown’s biggest eyesore.”

Parallels between the Charlottesville and Atlanta properties don’t end there. Dewberry acquired the Georgia property in 2010, proposed a new redevelopment plan in 2017, and eventually rebranded from The Campanile to The Midtowne in 2022. The Charlottesville shell was acquired around two years after the Atlanta site, similarly saw a renewed proposal in 2017, and has

C-VILLE.COM

undergone numerous renames since Dewberry purchased it.

Both buildings continue to sit vacant; both cities are still trying to compel Dewberry to act or sell.

“There was not a single event that prompted the August 19 letter,” says Schneider. “The City’s decision was based on the circumstances surrounding 201 E. Water St. and its history in Charlottesville, not developments involving Mr. Dewberry’s property in Atlanta.”

Based on the August 19 letter, Charlottesville may be taking a new legal strategy.

The city would not directly comment on its potential approach, and the letter clearly states that it is not “a notice of violation” or announcing “any particular enforcement action.” But the letter also indicates a willingness to utilize any tools available through the Virginia Uniform Statewide Building Code and the Code of Virginia—specifically referencing regulations around “derelict, blighted, and nuisance structures.”

Schneider further confirms the city is taking action now given the improved “stability and capacity within the city attorney’s office to better address longstanding issues of this nature.”

“The property is approaching two decades of vacancy, fourteen years of it under your ownership, and the City is no longer willing to treat the current condition as a temporary situation that will resolve itself,” reads an excerpt from Maddux’s letter. “The City’s posture toward this property is changing, and you should not plan on the coming years resembling the last fourteen. The condition of 201 East Water Street is a matter of legitimate public concern, and the City intends to treat it as one.”

An inspection of the property will be completed with or without Dewberry’s cooperation, per the letter. Nothing has been scheduled yet according to Schneider, but “the city is currently evaluating options for conducting an updated inspection and structural evaluation of the property.” It has not been inspected since March 2017.

The 60-day window for Dewberry to subC mit a written plan ends October 18.

September 2 – 8, 2026

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September 2 – 8, 2026

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FINALIST

BEST PILATES STUDIO

LEGAL NEWS Game on The University of Virginia football team trounced North Carolina State 34-8 in its August 29 season opener in front of a sold-out crowd at Scott Stadium.

Hopes were already high for the Hoos ahead of Saturday’s game, the first sell out since 2008, with UVA coming off the 2025-26 season with the most wins in program history and much success in the transfer portal. The Cavs’ decisive win against the Wolfpack reinforced fans’ excitement, but Head Coach Tony Elliott, who has led the Hoos for five seasons, says there’s more to be done.

“Several years ago when we showed up as a staff, this is what we envisioned that it felt like pregame,” he said at a press conference after the game. “You know it when you feel it. … It hopefully proves to everybody what we’re capable of here.”

“My hope is that every time we show up to Scott Stadium, that’s the energy that we create,” Elliott added, “because, truly, you can see now the guys feed off of it and they play to that energy.”

Virginia’s next football game is September 11, when UVA faces Norfolk State at Scott Stadium after a bye week. Kickoff is scheduled for 7pm.—Catie Ratliff

Learning legacy Efforts to revive the local chapter of the Dolly Parton Imagination Library are in full swing following the death of the music icon, with Martin Horn Helps the new affiliate, according to an August 28 announcement. As of August 31, more than $2,500 has been donated through MHH. Thousands of kids statewide have joined the free monthly book program since Parton’s death, per Quick Start Children of Virginia, bringing enrollment up to 97,600 in the Commonwealth.—CR To learn more about or support the local chapter of Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library, visit martinhornhelps.org/ dolly-parton-imagination-library.

Not horsin’ around Group that runs races at Foxfield sues property’s land owners to compel sale BY SEAN TUBBS

T

he next running of the Foxfield Races on Garth Road in Albemarle County is scheduled for October 4 and will take place under the veil of a lawsuit filed by the operator against the land owner.

On August 13, Foxfield Racing LLC filed a lawsuit against Foxfield Land Preservation LLC and two other named defendants including Zachary Miller, a co-founder of the latter.

“Certain Defendants have wrongfully made false and derogatory statements about the Foxfield Plaintiff and have done so as part of their effort to force a hostile takeover of the Foxfield Tract and running of the Foxfield races,” reads a portion of the complaint.

This suit comes nearly 10 years after another was filed against a previous ownership group that sought to develop the land in the mid 2010s. The issue in that case was whether the last will and testament of the late Mariann S. de Tejada was sufficient to keep the land used for equestrian activities in perpetuity.

Tejada bought the property in 1973 and the first races were held in 1978. Her will enshrined a desire that it be preserved for “equestrian sports, competition and related activities.”

After Tejada died in 1983, the property transferred to Foxfield Racing Association Inc. a few years later. In late 2016, a group of neighboring property owners sued to prevent some of the land from being sold. The case was resolved after an agreement was made in late 2019 that a conservation easement would be put on the property and held

by Albemarle County.

Another agreement established that the land would eventually be transferred to a foundation named in Tejada’s name.

Foxfield Racing LLC began running the events in the fall of 2020 with a five-year

The Foxfield Racing LLC suit against Foxfield Land Preservation LLC alleges breach of contract.

lease. The complaint states that the National Steeplechase Association has never issued a citation. The complaint also states that Miller served as a member of its Board of Directors from 2022 until August 2024.

“One key topic of the June 2023 meeting was how to make sure that the Foxfield Plaintiff would continue to have access to the Foxfield Tract for running the Foxfield Races after the expiration of the 2020 lease,” the complaint continues.

The foundation was never formed and the complaint states Miller formed the Foxfield Land Preservation LLC in August 2023 and acquired the 145.4-acre parcel in February 2024 for $3.25 million. Miller resigned from the Foxfield Racing LLC in August 2024 with the complaint alleging the land would not be transferred to the foundation.

In June 2025, Foxfield Racing asked to purchase the property and were denied. The

complaint goes on to describe alleged harassment against the plaintiffs including what they say are false claims about safety issues. The suit alleges breach of contract and seeks to place the land under the ownership of a trust as well as retain the ability to extend the lease past 2035. The plaintiffs want a jury trial.

On August 21, Miller sent a message to supporters stating that Foxfield Racing LLC pays a lease of $1 a year to run the events.

“Under the terms of that lease, Foxfield Racing is responsible for maintaining the property and holding the races each fall and spring,” Miller wrote. “Over the past several months, we have become increasingly concerned that the race railing, observation tower, and other infrastructure have fallen into a dangerously degraded state.”

Miller said his family’s Cassiopeia Foundation would be willing to spend millions to cover the cost in upgrading the site for the future. He said this proposal was rejected.

Miller claims the suit seeks to compel the sale of the property to Foxfield Racing. He said his organization will respond and seek a guarantee that investments will be made.

“Our primary goal will be to ask the court to compel Foxfield Racing to meet its obligation to run safe races,” Miller said.

Marian Fife, executive director of Foxfield Races, said in an August 24 statement that the legal action was filed to protect the future of the events.

“Our commitment to our supporters, volunteers, participants, sponsors, the Virginia racing community and the broader community remains unchanged,” Fife said. “The scheduled races on October 4 of this year will also continue as planned, in accordance C with our lease agreement.”

IN BRIEF

All the news you missed last week (in one sentence or less) 287(g) law 86’d The same 85-year-old federal judge who previously blocked Virginia’s law prohibiting masks on ICE agents issues a temporary injunction against another law that would place limits on state law enforcement agencies’ 287(g) agreements with ICE. Goodbye Dolly Gov. Abigail Spanberger orders Virginia’s flags flown at half mast following the August 25 death of singer, songwriter, actor, philanthropist, and all-around awesome human Dolly Parton. Bullet-in barred Albemarle County police arrest a woman allegedly caught trying to carry a gun into Monticello High School in her purse, though they say she posed no threat to the school. Partial recall A “bipartisan coalition” of concerned individuals (led by Phil Riese, chairman of the Albemarle County Republican Party) pushes for a recall effort to oust Albemarle County School Board member Kate Acuff. Letter rip Charlottesville declines 5th District Rep. John McGuire’s written request to delay its plan to open an emergency shelter for unhoused residents of the Rivanna encampment on September 1.

Everlasting love Local author Alix E. Harrow wins the prestigious 2026 Hugo Award for best novel for The Everlasting. Evasive maneuvers Republican Rep. McGuire has thus far refused all invitations to debate his Democratic challenger, former Rep. Tom Perriello.

EZE AMOS

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September 2 – 8, 2026

13

Annie Gould Gallery

Whoever you are, and wherever you are on your faith journey, you are welcome here.

Join us on Sundays to pray, eat, learn and love.

8:15 a.m. | Traditional Worship A time to encounter God through 9:15 a.m. | learning, service, and fellowship.

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September 2 – 8, 2026

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A unique art gallery located in the heart of historic Gordonsville.

109 S. Main Street, Gordonsville, VA • (540) 832-6352 anniegouldgallery

REAL ESTATE NEWS Changing hands Piedmont Housing Alliance buys 501 Cherry Ave. ahead of groundbreaking

BY SEAN TUBBS

The nonprofit paid $3.5 million for the Fifeville property, more than 24 percent higher than its 2026 assessment.

T

he Piedmont Housing Alliance has purchased two lots on Cherry Avenue, where it plans to build 71 affordable apartments as well as space to be held for a future community grocery store on one of Charlottesville’s busiest streets.

“The goal is to start construction in October,” says Sunshine Mathon, PHA’s executive director.

On August 18, the nonprofit paid a total of $3.5 million to a subsidiary of Woodard Properties for 1.39 acres and the vacant building that formerly served as an IGA franchise. Woodard Properties had paid the same amount for that property in August 2022 and will no longer be directly involved.

Charlottesville City Council approved a rezoning and special use permit in September 2023 for the project. As part of the agreement, space for a grocery store is to be included as well as space for the Music Resource Center. In July, a group that had been selected to operate the grocery as a food co-op backed out due to concerns the site was unworkable. PHA is looking for a new entity to manage the 6,700 square-foot space.

“With leadership from the Fifeville Neighborhood Association, we have been engaging with other potential operators to hear their feedback and assess potential interest,” Mathon says. “We’ve had three separate meetings in August.”

The purchase price is more than 24 percent higher than the 2026 assessment of nearly $2.8 million and more than 335 percent above the 2024 assessment of $803,800.

SUPPLIED IMAGE

This past April, the project had a $1.7 million funding gap. To help fill it, City Council amended the terms of a $3.825 million loan to PHA to allow the group to use that money to help acquire the property.

Council also agreed to amend the terms of a performance agreement with the Economic Development Authority to let PHA to collect 100 percent of the incremental tax revenue for 30 years. The previous amount had been half and Mathon says the additional money goes to the grocery space.

“This increase will allow construction to start because there will not be significant debt on the commercial space,” Mathon says. “It will also allow us to offer the space at below market rent to help achieve the goal of lower-cost food access.”

On May 12, a subdivision of the property into two lots was recorded in Charlottesville Circuit Court. A separate building will be constructed on each.

In order to facilitate a complex web of finances, PHA created new corporations for each property with 501-A Cherry LLC owning the eastern half and 501-B Cherry LLC owning the western side.

According to a 2025 application for lowincome housing tax credits, 501-A Cherry will have 40 units with 14 of them studio apartments, 23 one-bedroom units, and three twobedroom units. 501-B Cherry will comprise a total 31 units in a four-story building with four one-bedroom units, 23 three-bedroom units, and four three-bedroom units.

A request for a permit to demolish the former Estes IGA store is still under review. C C-VILLE.COM

September 2 – 8, 2026

15

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C-VILLE.COM

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C-VILLE.COM

September 2 – 8, 2026

19

By James Sanford

NRUTER ENGAGEMENT Sara Holdren comes home to direct Brecht

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September 2 – 8, 2026

C-VILLE.COM

TRISTAN WILLIAMS

C-VILLE.COM

September 2 – 8, 2026

21

DIRECTING

Bertolt Brecht’s The Caucasian Chalk Circle is a full-circle moment for Sara Holdren. “I grew up in the Greenwood/Crozet area outside of Charlottesville, and Live Arts was definitely a huge part of my artistic coming of age,” Holdren says.

She was part of the Live Arts Theater Training Ensemble—“the acronym was LATTE,” Holdren says—and recalls acting in Romeo and Juliet at the old Live Arts Lab Space on East Market Street.

She helped christen the current theater on Water Street in 2003 when she appeared in the opening play Rosencrantz & Guildenstern are Dead. These productions were “really formative experiences,” which inspired her to major in theater with a focus on directing.

For Holdren, Live Arts was a family thing: Her mother, Tricia Emlet, is a costume designer for Live Arts and her father, John Holdren, has acted, directed, and done technical work on numerous Live Arts shows. (Both are working on Caucasian Chalk Circle: Emlet is creating the wardrobe, and John Holdren is playing the Grand Duke.)

After getting her bachelor’s degree in theater from Yale University, Holdren returned to Live Arts to perform in Gypsy and to stage her adaptation of Shakespeare’s Henry IV, Parts 1 and 2. “A lot of my peers went straight to New York after being in school, and I kind of had this suspicion that somehow that wasn’t the thing that I needed to do,” Holdren says. “I had this feeling that if I went to New York, I would kind of end up working in a restaurant and getting to do very small things. What I wanted to do was big, hard plays.”

Holdren has done much more than that in the past 10 or so years. After returning to Yale, where she now teaches directing classes, to get her MFA in directing, Holdren became the theater critic for New York magazine’s entertainment news site, Vulture.

“Her work in New York magazine is the only reason that I have a subscription,” says John Gibson, Live Arts’ first artistic director. “They do a fine job with a lot of things, but I tune in just so I can read what she’s thinking, because to step inside her mind is to join in the process of a passionate and rigorous view of the form by someone who is both a gifted practitioner and a deeply astute observer.”

Holdren was a 2025 Pulitzer Prize finalist for criticism. Her reviews don’t pull any punches. “In a moment when so much theater puts on kid gloves to handle its material and its audience, it can be bracing to have a play walk right up and slap you across the face,” she wrote about Becky Shaw earlier this year. “It’s a play of barbed wire and paper cuts, with salt ready for every nick and slice.”

After seeing the destined-to-flop musical The Queen of Versailles, Holdren dished out some salt of her own: “There is a two-hour-and-40-minute luxury-car crash happening at the St. James Theatre. … If you’re morbidly curious about the experience, you could try for tickets to the new musical by

Stephen Schwartz and Lindsey Ferrentino, with Kristin Chenoweth glittering relentlessly at its center. Or you could save the money and have someone slap you back and forth with a large salmon.”

But long before she wrote about shows, Holdren helped create them. She says the foundation for her career came from spending three years at Live Arts in a variety of roles. Gibson vividly recalls Holdren’s early time there.

“She began working at Live Arts as a teenager, first as an actress—and a really good one,” Gibson says. “Then she became more deeply

Live Arts opens its 2026-2027 season on September 4 with Bertolt Brecht’s The Caucasian Chalk Circle. Directed by Sara Holdren (pictured on page 21), the play also features an original score

by Vampire Weekend’s Colin Killalea.

interested in how theater’s made. And so, she became a director, and a fine one. But she also worked on our staff as our marketing director, designed graphics and posters, and did an impeccable job. … I’ve been working with Sara for over 20 years in just about every capacity, in every type of collaboration, and she never fails to astonish.”

Gibson and Holdren got a chance to work together again in 2024 when he directed his adaptation of The Wizard of Oz, and Holdren served as dramaturg.

“Frankly, I don’t understand why there isn’t more Brecht happening in the world right now. It feels so vital and so funny, and prescient, and sad. He’s writing in this moment of fascism, writing in the world of Nazi Germany, writing in the world of World War II, and having to escape Europe, and he has such a deep and satirical understanding of these sorts of currents of corruption and cruelty in the world. But he also maintains a big heart, right?” SARA HOLDREN

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September 2 – 8, 2026

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BEAU GAMBOLD

Now it’s Holdren who is in the director’s chair.

She credits Liz Diamond, chair of directing at Yale’s David Geffen School of Drama, for her adoration of Brecht. “I don’t think I had a real sort of deep connection to his work and an embrace of the ethos until Liz really had us dive into it.

And, ever since then, I’ve been really hungry to do a Brecht play.”

The Live Arts production will mark the first time Holdren has directed a Brecht work outside of the classroom.

“Frankly, I don’t understand why there isn’t more Brecht happening in the world right now,” Holdren says. “It feels so vital and so funny, and prescient, and sad. He’s writing in this moment of fascism, writing in the world of Nazi Germany, writing in the world of World War II, and having to escape Europe, and he has such a deep and satirical understanding of these sorts of currents of corruption and cruelty in the world. But he also maintains a big heart, right?”

Written in 1944 and first performed in 1948, the play is drawn from a 14th-century Chinese play (The Chalk Circle), mixed with the Biblical story of Solomon. The Live Arts script was translated by English-American scholar/critic/ playwright Eric Bentley and features an original score by University of Virginia saxophone instructor Colin Killalea, who is also a member of Vampire Weekend.

During an overthrow of the government, Natella (Haydn Haring), the wealthy wife of the city governor, flees the violence, accidentally abandoning her baby along the way. Grusha (Bella Hersman), a servant, saves the child. Two years later, Grusha gets an unpleasant surprise when Natella resurfaces and demands the return of the baby.

The matter goes to court where the judge, Azdak (Andrew Akre), devises a clever test to decide who is the real mother.

The material strikes a very personal chord for Holdren, who became a mother 14 months ago.

“My partner and I are on our parenthood journey, you know, and it also was really appealing to do this,” Holdren says. “To think about motherhood and to do this story that has this child at the middle of it.”

She’s particularly touched by the scene in which Grusha rescues the baby while her fellow servants warn her against it. “She’s sort of standing there in the middle of all this violence, being like, ‘What do I do?’ And these other servants are like, ‘Don’t!,’ ‘Put it down!,’ ‘Leave it!’ ‘He’s not your responsibility!,’ ‘Get out of here!’ And one of them says, ‘I’m telling you, if he had the plague, he couldn’t be more dangerous.’ And she’s like, ‘He doesn’t have the plague. He looks at me. He’s human.’

“And I just love that little line—‘He’s human’— because in a way, that’s so much of what’s happening in the play. … This is a human being. And really, that’s sort of like a microcosm for what I think Brecht is trying to do overall.”

Holdren thinks Brecht is reminding us that the vicious acts we commit stem from depersonalization: “We’re only able to do these things by convincing ourselves, in some part of our souls, that the people that we’re doing them to aren’t human, right?...

“One of the really beautiful things that exists at the middle of Brecht is this sort of really collectivist kind of belief in, if we could all just slow down and see each other’s humanity. You know, maybe there would be much less cruelty in the world.”

TRISTAN WILLIAMS

N O I S S I M ON A

ADRIENNE

Live Arts veteran Adrienne Oliver takes over as executive artistic director

Jacobson Oliver grew up on the Live Arts stage, first as an actress, then as a director, producer, and teaching artist. Now, she’ll lead the 37-year-old organization as its first executive artistic director.

Oliver’s family moved to the Charlottesville area in 1998, and she attended her first Live Arts play soon afterward.

“I was very bound and determined at the time to spend my life on stage, which has evolved for me,” Oliver says.

She acted in her first Live Arts show at the age of 14, then went on to train at the American Academy of Dramatic Arts, study film and media at the University of Virginia, and earn an MFA in studio art from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago.

She also worked as an instructional specialist with Albemarle County Public Schools for eight years.

In 2022 Oliver was named Live Arts’ director of new works, overseeing three seasons of Waterworks, an annual festival that produces dozens of plays from around the world. Currently, Oliver is producing the musical Come from Away, which opens October 23 at Live Arts.

Oliver’s appointment “comes at a critical time for the organization, as it rallies to meet the challenging post-pandemic demands of creating theater with diminishing resources and a need to rebuild audiences,” said Live Arts Board President Miller Murray Susen in a press statement. “The Board has total faith that Adrienne is the leader to meet this moment.”

Although Oliver admits theater faces plenty of challenges in the post-pandemic landscape, she says the situation is not a new one. “The arts, theater, and nonprofit sectors are experiencing shared struggles, challenges, barriers across the nation—probably globally,” Oliver says. “We can point to the past six years as a part of that. But we can also say that these are industries that have always experienced struggles and have been fraught in some kind of ways: under-supported and these sorts of things. … Our problems may be common, but I believe that solutions are local.”

One of Oliver’s priorities in her new role is community outreach and increased inclusivity.

“I’m very excited about building and stoking even more community partnerships, both downtown and across the community. We’re working together to serve our people.”

C-VILLE.COM

It’s important to her that Live Arts is seen as a welcoming place.

“The work of building that community: It’s our mission,” she says. “… If you are someone who feels connected to Live Arts, or someone who has been connected to Live Arts, if you’re a person who’s returning again, or you have this fond memory, you carry that energy of forging theater and community with you. …This is a theater. This is a space. This is a community that we make together.”

Oliver will also spearhead programming the remainder of Live Arts’ 2026-2027 season. The Caucasian Chalk Circle by Bertolt Brecht opens September 4, followed by Come from Away, and an original adaptation of Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol by Daniel Kunkle and Susen on December 10. The second half of the schedule has yet to be announced.

Live Arts’ seasons traditionally have an overarching theme, and Oliver intends to maintain that concept.

“A sort of driving question, in my view, has always been regarding anything that we program: But why?”

Oliver says. “Why here and why right now?”

The goal is finding “a larger conversation happening between titles,” says Oliver. “My approach is going to be to come in and really think about the shared question or inquiry that the three shows already programmed are asking and to extend from there.”—JS Adrienne Oliver, who studied at the American Academy of Dramatic Arts, acted in her first Live Arts show when she was 14 years old.

September 2 – 8, 2026

23

OTHER BOOKS BY JAMES ARE:

Local Author

William A. James, Sr. has done it again.

HIS NEWEST BOOK IS...

In, A MURDER ON FIFTH AND DICE AND THE RUIN OF FIFEVILLE,

IN THE STREETS OF VINEGAR HILL, James reveals how fear and misunderstandings caused The Charlottesville City Council to condemn and Demolish a 20 Acre Tract (30 Black businesses and 600 residents) from the Downtown area from 1958-1964.

James shows how drugdealing and gang violence led to the condemnation, demolition, and gentrification of Fifeville. It is a Sequel to his IN THE STREETS OF VINEGAR HILL, 2007. (He is writing a play based upon this latest Book)

Local Author William A. James, Sr.

In, HARD TIMES AND SURVIVAL: THE AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF AN AFRICANAMERICAN SON,

Call or Write, William A. James, Sr. 434-985-8987 PO Box 6991, Charlottesville, VA 22906 Wjpublications@aol.com

James relates His Story and the Reader learns what He means when He Says: “Do not GiveIn to Adversity, but overcome it by Steady and Constant Perserverance.”

BOOKS SOLD AT: Lucy Cat in a Teachers’ Edition combines both Lucy Cat in a Cat Book and Lucy Cat in a Coloring Book for use in a classroom by Teachers, or at home instructors. It is part of a Lucy Cat Series that teaches children that we should all treat one another with courtesy, consideration, and respect despite what appears to be differences between us. For Ages 5-8.

24

September 2 – 8, 2026

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The University of Virginia Bookstore 400 Emmet Street, Charlottesville, VA 22904 (on UVA Grounds).

Patsy Goolsby, Manager, 434-924-1075 | bookshop@virginia.edu 2nd Act Books 214 East Main Street, Charlottesville, VA 22902 Daphne Spain, Owner, 434-202-0754 | daphnespain@gmail.com Amazon.com

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September 2 – 8, 2026

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THE

53RD WINERY AND VINEYARD

DUCARD VINEYARDS

A note from Winegrower and Owner, Dave Drillock

2024 Popham Run Red This lively and bright Bordeaux blend showcases aromas of fresh cherries and uplifting herbal notes.

The mouthfeel is harmonious, vibrant, and fresh – pairing perfectly with your Sunday brunch and light fare. Cheers!

WINE

DOWN WHAT’S DELISH AT LOCAL WINERIES?

Happy Harvest to All! We have released our 2024 Shannon Hill Red. A blend of 50% Cabernet Franc and 50% Petit Verdot. Notes of black raspberry, cherry and fresh violet with a soft mineral finish. It will go well with barbecued beef and red-sauced Italian dishes! Medium bodied with supple tannins.

We are working through our vineyards, and most varieties have recovered well from the April freeze which makes us hopeful for this year’s harvest, even though it will be lower than expected. And as always in farming, we look forward to next year!

We hope to see you at the winery.

Our wines are not from a recipe.

But in cooperation with nature, our wines are built on elegance and nuance through our winemaker’s knowledge and intuition. We are a winery that just wants to be a winery. And if that is not enough, you’ll meet our friendly and wine enthusiastic, tasting room staff!

What’s happening at FiftyThird Winery and Vineyard in September Saturday, September 5 – 5K and 10K Benefiting Hooves & Paws Animal Rescue (7:45 – 10 am) with Live Music by David Kulund from 1-4 pm Saturday, September 12 – 2025 Viognier Pre-Release party! Enjoy live music by Pat Anderson from 1-4 pm with Catchin’ Fish&Chips food truck

WINERY Guide Map

DUCARD VINEYARDS REVALATION VINEYARDS MADISON

Sunday, September 13“Uncorking and Exploring Petit Verdot” at 1:30 pm (advanced ticket purchase required on Tock!)

CULPEPER

PRINCE MICHEL VINEYARD AND WINERY

Thursday, September 17Louisa Business Expo hosted by the Louisa County Chamber of Commerce

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EARLY MOUNTAIN VINEYARDS

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HORTON VINEYARDS

Saturday, September 19- Live music by Bomar&Ritter (1-4 pm) and the Blue ridge Pizza Co. food truck

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GORDONSVILLE

KESWICK VINEYARDS WAYNESBORO

CROZET

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CHARLOTTESVILLE

MERRIE MILL FARM AND VINEYARD

LOUISA

ZION CROSSROADS

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EASTWOOD FARM AND WINERY

53RD VINEYARD & WINERY

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LOVINGSTON

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Saturday, September 26- “The Harvest Table at 53rd” at 1:30 pm with live music by Paulo Franco from 1-4 pm (advanced ticket purchase required on Tock!)

Cheers!

Open 7 days a week, 11 am – 5 pm Sat/Sun. 12-6 pm 13372 Shannon Hill Rd Louisa, VA 23093 (540) 894-5474 • 53rdwinery.com.

September 2 – 8, 2026

C-VILLE.COM

We are open 7 days a week throughout the month of September with live music every weekend. Visit our website and our social media pages for the most up to date listings of our upcoming live music and events!

Fall Seafood Saturday at DuCard Oh yeah! Our Fall Seafood Saturday at DuCard Vineyards is back! Nomini Bay Oyster Ranch will be providing the freshest and most delicious oysters from the Northern Neck: raw, steamed, grilled, and grilled with toppings. They will also be offering steamed shrimp and non-seafood items! Throw in the music of South Canal Street and add the beautiful mountain and vineyard views, and you have a day made in heaven! So, grab a bottle of wine, some fine oysters, find a seat, and enjoy a great afternoon at DuCard. Admission tickets are $12 in advance and $20 at the gate. Ticket includes a souvenir logo wine glass to take home! Wine Club members should email Beth@ducardvineyards. com for reservations. Purchase your tickets here: https:// ducardvineyards.com/event/fallseafood-saturday-at-ducard-withoysters-more-oysters-and-livemusic-2/ Saturdays & Sundays- Live music every Saturday and Sunday through the month! Come to DuCard for the afternoon with family and friends and enjoy a variety of live music (no cover).

Bring a picnic or select some local fare from our lite noshing menu to pair with our awardwinning wine for a fun afternoon in our amazing mountain setting.

Open Daily Mon-Thurs 12-5 Fri 12-9 Sat/Sun 12-6 Second Sat each month 12-9 40 Gibson Hollow Ln Etlan, VA 22719 (540) 923-4206 www.ducardvineyards.com

SPECIAL ADVERTORIAL SECTION

EARLY MOUNTAIN VINEYARDS At Early Mountain, harvest brings a new energy to the table. Our worldclass wines meet the incredible bounty of the season, with justpicked produce from nearby farms shaping menus that change as autumn unfolds. Reserve your table indoors or out and experience our latest releases alongside an à la carte menu or seasonal wine-paired prix fixe.

Tasting Room Hours Thursday–Monday: 11:00 AM–5:30 PM Fridays: 11:00 AM–8:00PM Closed Tuesday and Wednesday Upcoming Events & Experiences An Evening with Chef Patrick O’Connell - Sunday, September 13, 2026 | 4:00 PM Enjoy a rare in-depth fireside interview with Chef O’Connell, just days before the official release of his memoir. Following the conversation, guests are invited to the terrace for a reception with Eun Yang and Chef O’Connell, featuring Early Mountain wines and passed hors d’oeuvres. Each guest will receive a signed copy of his new memoir - Main, Middle & Gay. Taste of Virginia: Wine & Food Grand Tasting - Sunday, October 4 | 1:00–4:00 PM Celebrate the evolution of Virginia wine and food with a walk-around tasting featuring leading and emerging wineries from across the Commonwealth, alongside bites from some of the region’s most SPECIAL ADVERTORIAL SECTION

celebrated kitchens. $95 | $75 Members Insider tip: secure your tickets ASAP! Friday Dinner Hours & Chef’s Table - Fridays | 5:30–8:00 PM Enjoy dinner at Early Mountain every Friday! Later evenings invite you to enjoy seasonal dishes on the patio or in the Tasting Room as the sun sets.

The Chef’s Table experience offers an intimate, seven-course menu paired with select wines.

Scan to plan your visit.

6109 Wolftown-Hood Rd, Madison, VA 22727 (540) 948-9005 www.earlymountain.com

EASTWOOD FARM AND WINERY

Enjoy our Virginia Oyster & Wine Celebration every Friday night this Spring! The oysters are prepared by Salty Bottom Blue. Enjoy them in a relaxed, fun atmosphere with live music from 5-8pm on the stage in our tasting room.

experienced artist or a first-time painter, the talented instructors of Blue Ridge Brushes will walk you through the painting process as you create your own masterpiece.

Ticketed Event - Reserve Your Spot On Our Website

Porch Nights | Every Thursday (NEW!) There’s something about a porch at golden hour that makes the world slow down in the best possible way.

At Eastwood Farm and Winery, we’re leaning into that feeling all season long with Porch Nights — our weekly Thursday gathering featuring outdoor live music and an easygoing atmosphere. Grab a seat on our covered veranda or at one of our many picnic tables, relax with the sparkly lights overhead, fireflies in the fields, and a glass of porch-sipping wine in hand - join us for your new favorite Thursday tradition. Bring the family, the dog, a few friends, or just yourself. No reservations, no cover — just good music, good company, and spring evenings done right.

Labor Day Weekend | Thursday, Sept. 3 through Monday, Sept. 7 Summer’s not over yet! Celebrate the long weekend with oysters, wine, live music and the first weekend of the Oktoberfest Food Truck!

Thursday 9/3 Porch Nights: Meisha Herron Friday 9/4 Oysters and Live Music: Salty Bottom Blue Oysters and Far Away 5-8PM Saturday, 9/5 Live Music All Day: Drew LeBlanc 12:30 to 3:30 PM and Transatlantic Invasion 5-8PM. Sunday 9/6 Live Music: John Benjamin 1-4PM Monday 9/7: Open 12-5PM

Wine Slushies!

Cheers to the beautiful weather with a refreshing wine slushie:) Music Bingo | Sunday, September 20th and October 4th and 25th| 2-4PM (open 12-5PM) Everyone loves singing along with their favorite songs and who doesn’t love a competitive game of Bingo? Music Bingo brings together the best of both worlds for a high energy game that is fun for everyone. Simply listen to the music, match the songs to the titles on your music bingo cards, and win great prizes!

Paint & Sip | Sunday, September 20th and October 25th from 122PM (open 12-5PM) Grab a glass of wine (or your favorite drink!) and let your creativity flow in our relaxed and fun Paint & Sip classes. Whether you’re an

Oktoberfest Market & Family Day| Sunday, Sept. 13 (12-5PM) Join us for face painting (benefitting Camp Holiday Trails), live music, an artisan market and the Oktoberfest Food Truck.

Oktoberfest (every Saturday and Sunday September 5 - October 31) Every Saturday and Sunday this Fall, Eastwood is bringing you all the cozy, festive vibes with a lineup of flavor, fun, and celebration featuring delicious food truck specials, raffles, live music and traditional Oktoberfest beer. And the fun doesn’t stop after the weekend.

You can enjoy a special Oktoberfest menu in the tasting room every day of the week featuring Germaninspired delights, including our Flammkuchen, Bacon Maple Pecan Brie and loaded potato soup seven days a week. Check out our website for full food truck and tasting room menus.

Chamber Music Festival| September 16th at 7:30 (doors

Summer and Fall at the Winery From Oyster Fridays to Eastwood After Dark, there are a lot of ways to kick back and enjoy the last days of Summer at Eastwood. In September we are bringing back two favorite events – Oktoberfest food truck and the Oktoberfest Market & Family day.

Eastwood has a large indoor air-conditioned space and, other than Thursday night porch nights, all music will be indoors.

Upcoming at the Winery: Virginia Oyster & Wine Celebration | Every Friday C-VILLE.COM

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open at 6:00 PM for food and beverage purchases) Presented in partnership with Charlottesville Chamber Music Festival. As evening settles over the winery, this concert offers an inviting journey through the sound world of American composers. With light fare and beverages available for purchase beforehand beginning at 6:00pm, the experience combines conviviality and contemplation— beautiful music unfolding in a cozy space designed for listening and lingering. Ticketed Event - Reserve Your Spot On Website Musicians: Raphael Bell, Jennifer Frautschi, Judith Gordon, Simone Porter, Raman Ramakrishnan, Dov Scheindlin, Tim Summers MUSIC AT EASTWOOD! Join us for the popular Porch Nights every Thursday with live music on the veranda and Eastwood After Dark on Saturdays featuring upbeat, danceable music from 5-8pm (in addition to our more mellow Saturday afternoon music program). Eastwood also hosts a range of live performances by talented local and regional musicians every Friday night and Sunday afternoons. See the Winery Calendar on our website for details.

Every Thursday (open 12-8PM): Porch Nights Live Music on the Veranda 5-8PM

Pet friendly and large groups are welcome. Ample indoor and outdoor seating.

Grab a glass of wine and settle in for a fun-filled afternoon at the vineyard!

Choose the wines you want and enjoy all the perks of being part of the Keswick family.

Rt 20 near the intersection with Avon Extended (5 mi from Downtown Mall) Charlottesville, VA 22902 (434) 264-6727 www.eastwoodfarmandwinery.com

Open 7 Days a Week Join us all week long! Enjoy extended hours every Wednesday evening during Wine Down Wednesday from 5:30–8:30 PM, featuring live music, delicious food, and your favorite Keswick wines.

We can’t wait to welcome you to the vineyard this September!

KESWICK VINEYARDS September at Keswick Vineyards!

September brings the best of late summer and early fall to Keswick Vineyards! Enjoy beautiful vineyard views, cooler evenings, live music, delicious food, and plenty of reasons to gather with friends and family.

Labor Day at Keswick Vineyards | Monday, September 7 | 12–4 PM Celebrate Labor Day with an afternoon of live music, delicious food, and family fun!

• Live bluegrass from StillWater Humm • Mini Petting Farm • Face painting, temporary tattoos & fairy hair with Lady Val & friends • CubaMex Food Truck, Popitos Pizza & Gee’s Street Eats • Barrel & Board serving shareable plates, sandwiches & more

Every Friday (open 12-8 PM): Live Music and Virginia Oyster & Wine Celebration, every Friday 5-8PM Every Saturday (open 12-8 PM): Live Music 12:30-3:30PM + Eastwood After Dark with Live Music 5-8PM Every Sunday (open 12-5 PM): Live Music or Music Bingo (See the Winery Calendar on our website for details.)

Live Music Every Saturday | 12–4 PM Spend your Saturdays enjoying great wine, live local music, and beautiful vineyard views.

Barrel & Board Food Truck | Wednesday–Sunday | 12 PM– Close Enjoy handcrafted bites perfectly paired with your favorite wines.

Last food orders taken 30 minutes before closing.

Make the Most of September As summer winds down and fall approaches, September is the perfect time to gather with friends, enjoy the vineyard, and savor a glass of your favorite Keswick wine.

Virginia’s Most Rewarding Wine Club Exclusive benefits. Incredible discounts. Special events. Our wine club is now fully customizable while still offering all the benefits you love!

Hours: Open 7 Days a Week Sunday–Tuesday & Thursday | 10 AM–5 PM Wednesday | 10 AM–8:30 PM Friday–Saturday | 10 AM–6 PM Food, flights, and open bottle service end 30 minutes prior to closing daily 1575 Keswick Winery Drive Keswick, Virginia 22947 Tasting Room: (434) 244-3341 ext 105 tastingroom@keswickvineyards.com www.keswickvineyards.com

MERRIE MILL FARM AND VINEYARD 2024 Reserve Petit Verdot We’re thrilled to present our 2024 Petit Verdot — a bold red that thrives in Virginia’s unique climate and soils. This exceptional vintage received special treatment: over a year of French oak barrel aging followed by additional bottle rest to marry the flavors. On the nose and palate, it opens with concentrated dark stewed fruits — black cherry and plum — that segue into an earthy, savory midpalate. Gentle waves of toasted French oak lend soft vanilla and a whisper of baking spice, while fine-grained tannins and a lingering blackpepper finish give structure and length. Rich and complex now, this Petit Verdot will continue to develop gracefully over the next decade.

9/5: Labor Day weekend music 1-4:00pm- Disco Risque solo 9/6: Sunday Jazz and Blues 1-4:00pm- Paulien

Also Open Monday through Wednesday 12-5 PM and Thursday 12-8PM

9/11: Sundowners Music Series: 5:30-8:30pm- Bailey Hayes

What about the kids?

Kids can share in the experience with their own juice tasting flights and cheese boards!

OPEN 7 DAYS A WEEK!

9/13: Classic British Car Show 12:00-5:00pm- Live music from 1:00-4:00pm featuring The invasion band

Winery Hours: Sunday-Wednesday (125 PM); Thursday-Saturday (12-8 PM)

9/18: Sundowners Music Series 5:30-8:30pm- Mercy Creek

We look forward to welcoming you to our tasting room, seven days a week. Join us for award-winning wines, beer, and cider, as well as a delicious lunch/dinner menu.

Escape to Virginia Wine Country, only five miles from Downtown Charlottesville. Open year-round, seven days a week.

9/19: Blooms4Good Bouquet workshop 12:00-1:00pm 9/20: Sunday Jazz and Blues 1:004:00pm- Wavelength 9/25: Friday Sundowners Music Series 5:30-8:30pm- Johnathan Paige Brown 9/27: Sunday Jazz and Blues 1:00-

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SPECIAL ADVERTORIAL SECTION

for Wine Club members, or 35% off when you purchase 3 or more bottles of Rapidan River Semi-Dry Riesling. Discounts do not combine.

Upcoming Events & Weekly Specials Live Music every Friday–Sunday (lineup available on our website) Trivia every Monday, 6:00–7:30 p.m.

Tuesday Beer & Wings Specials Happy Hour every Thursday, 3:00– 5:00 p.m.

Open 7 days a week starting at 11:00 a.m.

154 Winery Lane, Leon, VA 22725 (540) 547-3707 www.princemichel.com A Woman-Owned Business

VIRGINIA WINE COLLECTIVE Expanded Hours, Wine, Beer and Pizza Join us at Eastwood Farm and Winery’s new production facility and downtown bar and lounge featuring a pizza shop menu, beer on tap, and winemaker wine flights.

The Collective is now open every Wednesday, Thursday and Friday from 5-10PM with revamped loft and shuffleboard.

4:00pm- John D’earth Hours: Friday 10:30 – 9 pm; Sat – Monday & Thursday 10:30 – 5:30 pm 594 Merrie Mill Farm Keswick, VA 22947 (434) 365-3006 www.merriemillfarm.com

PRINCE MICHEL VINEYARDS September is a beautiful time to slow down, welcome the changing season, and enjoy the flavors of Virginia Wine Country—and Prince Michel Vineyard & Winery is the perfect place to do just that.

Nestled in the heart of Virginia Wine Country and proudly womanowned, Prince Michel combines rich winemaking tradition with a warm, welcoming atmosphere that invites you to relax, reconnect, and savor every sip.

This month, we’re featuring our Rapidan River Semi-Dry Riesling, a crisp and lively wine that is perfectly suited for the transition from summer into fall. Made from 100% Riesling and aged in stainless steel, it opens with inviting aromas of green apple, lime zest, and white peach, accented by subtle floral notes. On the palate, vibrant SPECIAL ADVERTORIAL SECTION

Upcoming at the Collective: citrus and orchard fruit flavors are complemented by just a touch of residual sweetness, leading to a clean, refreshing finish with a precise, mineral-driven edge.

Versatile and food-friendly, Rapidan River Semi-Dry Riesling pairs beautifully with a variety of dishes. Enjoy it alongside oysters or shrimp with a squeeze of lime, where its bright acidity sharpens and refreshes the palate. Its offdry style also makes it an excellent companion for Indian cuisine, roasted vegetables, and a variety of seafood dishes. Whether you’re planning an early fall dinner, gathering with friends, or simply enjoying a glass on the patio, this Riesling offers the perfect balance of freshness, fruit, and subtle sweetness.

Beyond the bottle, Prince Michel offers more than just exceptional wine. From guided tastings and scenic vineyard views to delicious dining options and craft beer at Tap 29 Brew Pub, every visit is designed to create memorable experiences.

September Wine of the Month Special: Enjoy 15% off single-bottle purchases, 20% off

Winemaker Pop-Ups | Select Fridays 6-8PM (Open 5-10PM) Enjoy free samples and tour the facility with some of our independent winemakers on Fridays! Check out events on our website: (https:// eastwoodfarmandwinery.com/ virginia-wine-collective/) and Facebook page as we will be adding more dates.

September 4th: Harvest Nights September 11th: Harvest Nights September 18th: Harvest Nights September 25th: Harvest Nights Winemaker Karaoke | Every Other Wednesday, September 2nd, 16th & 30th from 7-9PM (karaoke is only upstairs; downstairs bar and dining room still open as usual 5-10PM) Join us up in the loft at the Collective every other Wednesday evening. No cover required.

a first-time painter, the talented instructors of Blue Ridge Brushes will walk you through the painting process as you create your own masterpiece. Ticketed Events Reserve Your Spot On the Virginia Wine Collective Facebook Page or the Eastwood Website.

Mahjong with Mountain Mahj: Open Play | Thursday, September 17th 6-8:30PM (open 5-10PM) Details to be announced On the Virginia Wine Collective Facebook Page and the Eastwood Website or contact gabrielle@ eastwoodfarmandwinery.com Production Tours and Guided Tastings We look forward to welcoming guests to the Virginia Wine Collective for tours and guided tastings. Please email our Wine Collective Coordinator, Gabrielle Thomas, if you would like to schedule a tour or guided tasting.

She may be reached at gabrielle@ eastwoodfarmandwinery.com Large Party Reservations Interested in making a large party reservation for your group? Reach out to mary@eastwoodfarmandwinery. com to book.

About the Collective Eastwood designed the Virginia Wine Collective to include nine winemaker suites and an incubator alongside the main production area. The suites provide a space where independent winemakers can anchor a license and make their wines. The Collective has been designed to reduce the costs associated with independent winemaking, and thereby support further innovation and talent in the Monticello AVA. Over 21 Policy You must be over 21 to visit the bar, lounge and dining room at the Collective.

Current Winery Hours Wednesdays, Thursdays, Fridays 5-10PM 1585 Avon Street Extended Charlottesville, VA 22902 (434) 264-6727 https://eastwoodfarmandwinery.com/ virginia-wine-collective/

Paint & Sip | Thursday September 24th (6-8PM) (Open 5-10PM) Grab a glass of wine (or your favorite drink!) and let your creativity flow in this relaxed and fun class. Whether you’re an experienced artist or C-VILLE.COM

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CULTURE MUSIC | ART | BOOKS | FOOD | DRINK

THROUGH SATURDAY 9/19

BY THE LETTER Dear Evan Hansen follows a high school senior with social anxiety and depression who falls into a complicated coverup after a simple mistake leads to tragedy. Fabricated friendships, fraught family dynamics, and young love all factor into this celebrated contemporary musical, produced by Venture State Company in coordination with DMR Adventures. The play contains mature themes—including mental health challenges and self-harm—in a plot exploring isolation, honesty, and community impact. $25–40, times vary. Belmont Arts Collaborative, 221 Carlton Rd. Ste. 3. venturestagecompany.org FILE PHOTO

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CULTURE CRITICAL CONDITION Wednesday 9/2

Bob Russell Quintet at Offbeat Roadhouse. An assortment of jazz tunes ranging from Tin Pan Alley to Pat Metheny. Free, 8pm. The Stage at WTJU, 2244 Ivy Rd. wtju.net

music Johnny Mullenax x Bronwyn. A night of bluegrass and positive energy. $25, 8pm. The Southern Café & Music Hall, 103 S. First St. thesoutherncville.com

Boomerangs. Friday sunset soirée featuring acoustic and electric classic rock and pop hits from past generations. Free, 6pm. Chisholm Vineyards at Adventure Farm, 1135 Clan Chisholm Ln., Earlysville. chisholmvineyards.com

The Inclinators. A mix of rock, neo-soul, and Americana tunes. Free, 5:30pm. King Family Vineyard, 6550 Roseland Farm, Crozet. kingfamily vineyards.com

Chickenhead Blues Band. Charlottesville’s premier boogie-woogie, upbeat, rhythm and blues dance band.

Free, 9pm. Holly’s Diner, 1221 E. Market St.

The Wavelength. Full band performance with harmonica virtuoso Gary Green. Vintage rock, blues, and original tunes. Free, 6:30pm. The Whiskey Jar, 227 W. Main St., Downtown Mall. thewhiskey jarcville.com

Foxtide. SoCal three-piece formed around garage jam sessions earned its following through the intense vitality of its live shows. $25, 8pm.

The Southern Café & Music Hall, 103 S. First St. thesoutherncville.com

stage

Fridays After Five: Pressing Strings. Powerhouse trio from Annapolis, Maryland, plays toetapping blues, rock, and folk. With Tin Can Fish Band.

Free, 5:30pm. Ting Pavilion, 700 E. Main St., Downtown Mall. tingpavilion.com

Holly’s Open Mic Night. Mic check to all musicians, poets, and everyone in between. Free, 9pm.

Holly’s Diner, 1221 E. Market St.

etc.

Otra Vez. Expanding the horizons of traditional Argentine tango music through innovative approaches and stylistic re-imaginings. Free, 5pm.

DuCard Vineyards, 40 Gibson Hollow Ln., Etlan. ducardvineyards.com

Dürty Karaoke. Belt out your favorites. Free, 8:30pm. Dürty Nelly’s, 2200 Jefferson Park Ave. durtynellyscharlottesville.com Firefly Bingo Night. Family-friendly fun. Four rounds with prizes after each round. Free, 6pm.

Firefly, 1304 E. Market St. fireflycville.com

Rob Martin & Wave Milor. Classic covers and new original tunes. Free, 5pm. Bottle House, 608 W. Main St. bottlehouse.net

Rapture Karaoke. Hosted by Thunder Music.

Free, 9pm. Rapture, 303 E. Main St., Downtown Mall. rapturerestaurant.com

The Currys. A musical smorgasbord of rock, Americana, folk, and country. Free, 6pm. Glass House Winery, 5898 Free Union Rd., Free Union. glasshousewinery.com

Thursday 9/3

The Inclinators. Bringing our mix of rock, neo-soul, and Americana tunes. Free, 7pm. The Batesville Market, 6624 Plank Rd., Batesville. batesvillemarket.com

music Berto Sales & Vincent Zorn. Lively flamenco rumba. Free, 7pm. The Bebedero, 201 W. Main St., Downtown Mall. thebebedero.com

stage

Derek Anderson. Live music series that supports local charities. Free, 7pm. Maya Restaurant, 633 W. Main St. maya-restaurant.com Koda and Marie of Chamomile and Whiskey.

A special end-of-summer show of songs, and a few of the stories behind them. $17, 6pm. Potter’s Craft Cider, 1350 Arrowhead Valley Rd. potterscraft cider.com Meisha Herron. Blues and danceable music on the veranda. Free, 5pm. Eastwood Farm and Winery, 2531 Scottsville Rd. eastwoodfarmandwinery.com Travis Elliott. A C’ville institution plays originals and covers. Free, 9:30pm. Rapture, 303 E. Main St., Downtown Mall. rapturerestaurant.com

dance Argentine Tango Lessons. Community-run class with a relaxed atmosphere and a welcoming vibe. $15, 7:30pm. McGuffey Art Center, 201 Second St. NW. charlottesvilletango.com

stage The Tempest. Embark on a brave new world and discover Shakespeare’s story where magic fills the air, power shifts hands, and by the end, love and forgiveness take center stage. $41–75, 7:30pm.

American Shakespeare Center, 10 S. Market St., Staunton. americanshakespearecenter.com

etc.

Vision’s Trivia. Test your knowledge with themed trivia from tellAplay Entertainment. Free, 7pm.

Vision BBQ & Catering, 247 Ridge McIntire Rd. visionbbqcville.com

Friday 9/4 music Bob Bennetta Trio. Live jazz. Free, 6:30pm. Afghan Kabob House, 200 Market St.

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Sierra Ferrell

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xecuted well, songwriting is a skill type of classics that permeated 1930s and that stands up to just about any 1940s Warner Bros. musicals. Numbers like “The Sea” or “Why’d Ya Do It,” from Long style. That is to say, even if the dressing up of a track is not to your liking, Time Coming (2021) could have been written if you’re discerning, you won’t be able to 100 years ago—and believe me—that’s a comdeny the reassuring solidity of what’s buried pliment of the highest order. under scrunched-up bundles of tulle and Seems that Ferrell’s rise has come with organza. Such is my experience taking in the appropriate recognition, as she’s amassed a discography of Sierra Ferrell. handful of Grammy Awards from her 2024 A wayward West Virginian freight-jumping breakthrough, Trail of Flowers (Best Ameristreet busker who found her way from hard cana Album), and its poignant reflection on life to the Nashville A-list, Ferrell’s output touring life, “American Dreaming,” which walks a funny path. While the overarching topped categories in Best American Roots effect is shorthand for roots music, her oeuSong and Americana Performance. There’s also a steady string of non-album singles vre emerges delicately, flaunting a long train that include the cute f-you duet “A Lesson of genre fluency that brings along elements of gypsy jazz, tango, and other more traditionin Leavin’” with Nikki Lane, plus stepping ally associated Americana-related sounds. So in as a featured artist on others’ tracks, inwhile someone like me would be happy to cluding a Top 40 single “Holy Roller” by never have to hear a banjo again, her songs mainstream country star Zach Bryan and are so well-crafted that I can look past the “Ready or Not” with Shakey Graves. instrument’s somewhat regular appearance.

For a brief career, Ferrell’s already packed in very high-quality work, the bulk of which Though her voice is neither deep nor winis costumed in a fetching collection of fabrics dow-rattling in strength, its tunefulness and flexibility in carrying melodies and colors, upcycled with an arrives in an unusually anach- Ting Pavilion unexpectedly glamorous thrift ronistic delivery that recalls the September 8 store ingenuity.—CM Gorey CAUTION: The writer’s unrestrained cynicism and unresolved issues shape the writing of this opinion column. Results may vary.

C-VILLE.COM

Dear Evan Hansen. A deeply personal and profoundly contemporary musical for anyone who’s ever felt alone in a crowded room. $25–40, 7:30pm.

Belmont Arts Collaborative, 221 Carlton Rd. Ste. 3. venturestagecompany.org The Tempest. See listing for Thursday, September 3. $41–75, 7:30pm. American Shakespeare Center, 10 S. Market St., Staunton. americanshakespearecenter.com

words Friday Night Writes. An open mic for emerging musicians and writers to perform their unpublished works. Free, 7pm. New Dominion Bookshop, 404 E. Main St., Downtown Mall. newdominionbookshop.com

classes Paint a Mini Birdhouse. A tranquil activity painting on ceramic in a guided session. Ages 12+. $15, 4pm. The Scrappy Elephant, 1745 Allied St. scrappyelephant.com Slow Stitch Sanctuary. A welcoming, open stitch circle for slow stitchers and hand sewers/stitchers of all types and levels. Free, noon. The Scrappy Elephant, 1745 Allied St. scrappyelephant.com

Saturday 9/5 music Buzzard Hollow Boys. A musical landscape somewhere between the Dust Bowl and the Mississippi Delta. $10, 7pm. The Batesville Market, 6624 Plank Rd., Batesville. batesvillemarket.com Charley Crockett: Age of the Ram Tour. Blending blues, country, Americana, and soul into a unique sound. With Nat Myers. $51–74, 7:30pm.

Ting Pavilion, 700 E. Main St., Downtown Mall. tingpavilion.com Drew LeBlanc. Classic rock, folk, country, and a few newer tunes. Free, 12:30pm. Eastwood Farm and Winery, 2531 Scottsville Rd. eastwood farmandwinery.com BOBBI RICH

TO-DO LIST CULTURE Farmhouse Blues. Soulful grooves blending blues and Southern rock. Free, 6pm. Chisholm Vineyards at Adventure Farm, 1135 Clan Chisholm Ln., Earlysville. chisholmvineyards.com Field Day and Labor Dave Weekend. Field Day is back with live music by The Norms. Free, 11am. Blenheim Vineyards, 31 Blenheim Farm. blenheimvineyards.com Goth Takeover. DJs and Goth bands bring spookiness galore. Free, 9pm. Holly’s Diner, 1221 E. Market St. Josh Mayo. One of Charlottesville’s favorite multitalented musician and songwriters. Free, 9pm. Vision BBQ & Catering, 247 Ridge McIntire Rd. visionbbqcville.com Rivanna Roots: Theocles & The Muses x The Currys. Local bands team up for a double-headliner bill on the river. $17–20, 6:30pm. Rivanna River Company, 1520 E. High St. frontporchcville.org The Pollocks. A rocking good time with the trio of Jason Pollock, Thomas Gunn, and Maryline MeyerPollock. Free, 5pm. Glass House Winery, 5898 Free Union Rd., Free Union. glasshousewinery.com The Wavelength. A consortium of Charlottesville’s finest musicians brings vintage rock and jazzy, bluesy vibrations. Free, 2pm. DuCard Vineyards, 40 Gibson Hollow Ln., Etlan. ducardvineyards.com Transatlantic Invasion. Live music for dancing.

Free, 5pm. Eastwood Farm and Winery, 2531 Scottsville Rd. eastwoodfarmandwinery.com Ty Burkhardt. Accomplished finger-style guitarist. Free, 2:30pm. Fallen Tree Vineyard and Farm, 4593 Clark Rd., Crozet. fallentreevineyard.com

stage Dear Evan Hansen. See listing for Friday, September 4. $25–40, 3pm and 7:30pm. Belmont

Subscribe & Save - Five Concerts at One Great Price!

Arts Collaborative, 221 Carlton Rd. Ste. 3. venturestagecompany.org The Tempest. See listing for Thursday, September 3. $41–75, 2pm and 7:30pm. American Shakespeare Center, 10 S. Market St., Staunton. americanshakespearecenter.com

words New Dominion Storytime. Readings from recent storybooks and the classics kids know and love.

Rain or shine. All ages welcome. Free, 11am. New Dominion Bookshop, 404 E. Main St., Downtown Mall. newdominionbookshop.com

classes Creative Arts: An Inclusive Art Class. An inclusive art class for individuals with disabilities and the people who love them. Create beautiful art together in a fun and supportive environment.

Ages 16+. $15–30, 1pm. Mountainside Arts, 2413 Old Lynchburg Rd. mountainsideartscville.com Printmaking Workshop. Learn the art of lino block printing. No experience necessary, all materials provided. Ages 15+. $35, 9:30am. The Scrappy Elephant, 1745 Allied St. scrappyelephant.com Slow Stitch Sampler. Learn 10+ stitches (blanket stitch, feather stitch, French knots, etc.) and variations to create unique looks and expand your stitch library. Ages 16 +. $20, 1pm. The Scrappy Elephant, 1745 Allied St. scrappyelephant.com

etc.

Charlottesville City Market. Explore fresh produce, local foods, and handmade goods from 100+ area vendors. Free, 9am. Charlottesville City Market, 100 Water St. E. charlottesville.gov CONTINUED ON PAGE 34

Benjamin Rous, Music Director

Douglas Hargrave, Music Director Laureate Kate Tamarkin, Music Director Laureate

2026-27 Season The Firebird Friday, September 25* Sunday, September 27

David Sariti, violin RAVEL “Five O’clock Foxtrot” from L’enfant et les sortilèges LIGETI Atmosphères VAUGHAN WILLIAMS Violin Concerto STRAVINSKY The Firebird Suite

Bach Violin Concerto Saturday, November 7 Sunday, November 8

Benjamin Rous, violin BACH Violin Concerto in D minor HANDEL Music for the Royal Fireworks BRITTEN Four Sea Interludes ENESCU Romanian Rhapsody No. 1

Love, Beethoven Saturday, February 13 Sunday, February 14*

Ken-David Masur, guest conductor Melinda Lee Masur, piano BEETHOVEN Fidelio Overture BEETHOVEN Piano Concerto No. 4 BEETHOVEN Symphony No. 6, Pastoral

Daphnis et Chloé Saturday, March 20 Sunday, March 21

UVA University Singers MOZART Overture to The Magic Flute UVA CONCERTO COMPETITION WINNER DELIUS “Pale amber sunlight falls across” SCHUMANN Nachtlied GJEILO “The Spheres (Kyrie)” from Sunrise Mass RAVEL Daphnis et Chloé, Suite No. 2

Brahms Symphony No. 1 Saturday, April 10 Sunday, April 11

Clara Rottsolk, soprano SCHUMANN arr. Rous Fantasie in C SAARIAHO Quatre Instants BRAHMS Symphony No. 1

Family Holiday Concerts (non-subscription)

Saturday, December 5 Sunday, December 6

Michael Slon, conductor UVA University Singers Both Holiday Concerts are held at Old Cabell Hall.

WINNER

LOCATIONS AND TIMES

Saturdays,7:30pm, Old Cabell Hall, Sundays, 3:30pm, Martin Luther King, Jr. Performing Arts Center at Charlottesville High School. *Friday, September 25, 7:30pm, Old Cabell Hall *Sunday, February 14, 3:30pm, The Paramount Theater

FRIDAY 9/4

Programs, artists and venues are subject to change.

GROOVIN’ IN G’VILLE

TICKETS

Steve Lanza Jr. and Friendz and Butterfly Vendetta (pictured) come together for a double-bill acoustic show full of rocking energy.

Lanza Jr. and crew bring a soulful sound steeped in blues, bluegrass, and rock ’n’ roll, infusing modern sensibilities into traditional Americana fare.

Butterfly Vendetta plays a searing brand of alt-rock that blends indie sincerity with a raucous pop-punk approach. With special guest singer-songwriter Erin O’Connor. Free, 6:30pm. Patch Brewing Co., 10271 Gordon Ave., Gordonsville. patchbrewingco.com

SUPPLIED PHOTO

SUBSCRIPTIONS: Symphony Office 434-924-3139 SINGLE TICKETS: UVA Arts Box Office artsboxoffice@virginia.edu 434-924-3376

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\

Scan for more info

Special Thanks to

September 2 – 8, 2026

33

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September 2 – 8, 2026

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The 27th Annual Charlottesville Chamber Music Festival welcomes acclaimed musicians from around the world for a series of classical music concerts. This year’s theme, The Concert of Europe and the Sounds of America, unites seemingly disparate shows through a search for spaces and voices we can all call our own. Combining creative excellence, emotional connection, and intellectual curiosity, individual concerts explore themes of resistance, natural beauty, visual art, and Romanticism. Celebrated works by Ludwig van Beethoven are featured throughout the two-week festival, alongside arrangements from various accomplished composers across history. Prices, times, and locations vary. cvillechambermusic.org CONTINUED FROM PAGE 33

Sunday 9/6 music A Tribute to Jimmy Buffet. Tropical Attitudes performs in remembrance of the Margaritaville legend. Free, 2pm. DuCard Vineyards, 40 Gibson Hollow Ln., Etlan. ducardvineyards.com Paxton Henderson. Modern bluegrass and singer-songwriter stylings. Free, 1pm. Fallen Tree Vineyard and Farm, 4593 Clark Rd., Crozet. fallentreevineyard.com Rusty Speidel and Tom Goodrich. Rock and Americana tunes. Free, 2pm. Glass House Winery, 5898 Free Union Rd., Free Union. glasshouse winery.com The Local Honeys. Blending traditional Kentucky music with modern soundscapes and original songwriting. $25, 8pm. The Southern Café & Music Hall, 103 S. First St. thesouthern cville.com Ty Burkhardt. Solo guitarist from Chesterfield plays a unique fingerstyle where he creates the sound of a whole band by hitting, tapping, and slapping the guitar while playing multiple parts at once. Free, 1pm. Chisholm Vineyards at Adventure Farm, 1135 Clan Chisholm Ln., Earlysville. chisholmvineyards.com

stage Bent Theatre Improv. Off-the-cuff comedy.

Free, 6pm. Decipher Brewing, 1740 Broadway St. decipherbrewingco.com The Tempest. See listing for Thursday, September 3. $41–75, 2pm. American Shakespeare

Center, 10 S. Market St., Staunton. american shakespearecenter.com

classes Badge Workshop. Making rosette-style badges with donated materials. Ages 13+. $15, 3:30pm. The Scrappy Elephant, 1745 Allied St. scrappyelephant.com Kid-Friendly Mosaic Class. Beginner art class for kids and adults. $10, 1pm. The Scrappy Elephant, 1745 Allied St. scrappyelephant.com Spark: A Ceremony and Workshop for Your Creative Spirit. Ignite your imagination and unlock your artistic potential in this unique experience blending ceremonial practices with hands-on activities. $35, 11am. The Scrappy Elephant, 1745 Allied St. scrappyelephant.com

etc.

Silent Book Club. Read in quiet camaraderie.

No assigned reading, no obligations. Bring your own book of choice. Free, noon. Albemarle CiderWorks, 2545 Rural Ridge Ln., North Garden. albemarleciderworks.com WTJU Vinyl Takeover + Prints, Platters, Pints, and PRIDE Vendor Market. A day of art, music, and Pride. Featuring Lady Taij. Free, 1pm.

Potter’s Craft Cider, 1350 Arrowhead Valley Rd. potterscraftcider.com

Monday 9/7 music Ramona Martinez. Local favorite serenades with her signature mix of country western and mariachi.

Free, 5:30pm. The Fitzroy, 120 E. Main St., Downtown Mall. thefitzroycville.com SUPPLIED PHOTO

FEEDBACK CULTURE

Smokin’ Trout. Lively Celtic music for Labor Day. Free, 2pm. DuCard Vineyards, 40 Gibson Hollow Ln., Etlan. ducardvineyards.com Vision’s Open Mic Mondays. Bring your chops and get down. Free, 7pm. Vision BBQ & Catering, 247 Ridge McIntire Rd. visionbbqcville.com

classes Construction Paper Portraits. Make a portrait out of construction paper. No drawing skills necessary. Ages 9+. $12, 4:30pm. The Scrappy Elephant, 1745 Allied St. scrappyelephant.com Crafter Hours. Bring a work in progress from home or be surprised by a supplied beginner-friendly craft.

Ages 16+. $5, 6pm. The Scrappy Elephant, 1745 Allied St. scrappyelephant.com

etc.

Astronomy on Tap. UVA astronomers offer talks, trivia, prizes, and telescope observing for general audiences. Free, 7pm. Firefly, 1304 E. Market St. fireflycville.com Trivia on Tap. General knowledge trivia with special themed days on the third Monday of the month. Hosted by Olivia. Free, 7pm. Three Notch’d Craft Kitchen & Brewery, 520 Second St. SE. threenotchdbrewing.com

Tuesday 9/8 music Charlottesville Chamber Music Festival Series Concert I: Public/Private. The festival kicks off with a chamber music version of Beethoven’s 7th Symphony—an example of how large musical and political ideas were shared at small gatherings during a repressive time in Europe. $7–36, 7:30pm. The Paramount Theater, 215 E. Main St., Downtown Mall. theparamount.net GoldFord: Space of the Heart Tour. Blending soul and both classic and modern pop styles to create an emotive live show. $39, 8pm. The Jefferson Theater, 110 E. Main St., Downtown Mall. jeffersontheater.com Rapture Open Mic Night. Hosted by The Open Mic Music Exchange and Nicole Giordano. Free, 9:30pm. Rapture, 303 E. Main St., Downtown Mall. rapturerestaurant.com Sierra Ferrell: Heavy Petal Tour. A WNRN 30th anniversary show featuring one of the brightest young luminaries in roots music today. $95, 7:30pm.

Ting Pavilion, 700 E. Main St., Downtown Mall.

Tuesday Jazz with Jeff Massanari. A cast of great players joins the guitar virtuoso. Free, 6:30pm. Rapture, 303 E. Main St., Downtown Mall. rapturerestaurant.com

stage Vision’s Comedy Open Mic Tuesdays. Sharpen your set, or just hang out for the laughs. Free, 7:30pm. Vision BBQ & Catering, 247 Ridge McIntire Rd. visionbbqcville.com

classes Fiber Arts Fan Club. For crocheters, knitters, felters, embroiderers, needleworkers, tatters, and quilters. Bring your current work in progress and get crafty. Free, 6:30pm. The Scrappy Elephant, 1745 Allied St. scrappyelephant.com

etc.

Geeks Who Drink Trivia. Good trivia, good times.

Teams of two to six people compete to win prizes like gift certificates and pint glasses, plus bragging rights.

Free, 7pm. Firefly, 1304 E. Market St. fireflycville.com School’s Out Hangout. For teens ages 11–18 who want something to do when city or county schools are closed. Drop in to the Teen Space for games, crafts, and activities. Free, all day. Central Library, 201 E. Market St. jmrl.org PUBLICITY PHOTO

From busking to bluegrass

Bronwyn goes for a trifecta of musicianship on her third solo album BY DELIA MURIEL

I

t’s been just over a year since Molly Tuttle dissolved her Grammy Awardwinning bluegrass quintet Golden Highway, but the band’s virtuosic fiddle player Bronwyn wasted no time getting back on the road with her third solo album, Rattlin’ Bones.

The two-time IBMA Fiddle Player of the Year earned her own Grammy nom in the Best Bluegrass Album category for 2024’s I Built A World.

Local roots have shaped the musician’s blossoming career. “Charlottesville was a super influential place for me musically,” Bronwyn says. “My family moved there when I was 10 and that’s around the age I started getting serious about the fiddle.“ With Rattlin’ Bones, she’s become a triple threat of musical craft, using her fiddle, voice, and now, penning her own songs.

“It’s an all-consuming process,” she says of her first experience writing an album, “but it’s extremely satisfying.” The result finds Bronwyn with nothing left to prove, just something to say—and that’s not without a little flex.

Bronwyn kicks off the record by reminding us of the fiddle chops that got her here, alongside a Rattlin’ Bones earmark: melodic writing that strongly mimics the ornamentation signature of her instrument, the bluegrass fiddle. The vocal blends of opening track “Sticks and Bones” lead up to each true note, a technique akin to a slide on a stringed instrument.

Paired with these grace notes, the parallel between her fiddle and vocals comes in the form of sung double stops. These strong two-part harmonies are largely utilized in classic fiddle-like fifths on both the big choruses of “Johnny Ray” and softer moments of the record’s second track, “The Ride” (the heavily accented line “rumble of the rumble strips” is infectious). It’s these elements that keep the album cohesively rooted in bluegrass, while allowing for exploration elsewhere.

The lyricism throughout Rattlin’ Bones attests to this investigation. “Gallatin Road” depicts the lonely nature of life on the road, while showcasing a vulnerability not found in more traditional bluegrass songwriting. Here, there’s an understanding of the kind of catchy country verbiage that gives warnings and tells dramatic tales in the vein of an old nursery rhyme—and

Bronwyn performs on a co-bill with guitarist Johnny Mullenax at The Southern Café and Music Hall on September 2.

you believe it when she sings “anything goes on Gallatin Road.”

On “Virginia Gal,” she pays tribute to her youth. “I would busk multiple times a week on the Downtown Mall,” Bronwyn says. “It ended up giving me a lot of early performance experience and confidence. …That song is deeply connected to my time in Charlottesville.”

Her vocals hold strong on the album, supporting her newfound pursuit of songcraft.

The singer-songwriter packs an emotional C-VILLE.COM

punch that feels both instinctive and confident, tender and sure. Her vocal gift is particularly evident on “Chasing Storms,” the story of a toxic relationship, and a narrator who is figuring out how to live with it.

“I wouldn’t say it came naturally,” Bronwyn says. “It’s been an all-consuming process learning how to write songs and then trying to write an album’s worth, but it’s been extremely satisfying and I know when I walk out on stage I have something original to say that nobody’s heard before.”

September 2 – 8, 2026

35

CULTURE GALLERIES

Throughout the month of August, Second Street Gallery Executive Director and Chief Curator Kristen Chiacchia worked to lay out the expansive Teeny Tiny Trifecta 9 exhibition, organizing works into an immersive display of creative excellence.

September Exhibitions

Crozet Artisan Depot 5791 Three Notch’d Rd., Crozet. “Painting in Pieces,” highly textured and boldly hued scenic works and abstracts by Ellyn Wenzler. “By Hand, From Nature,” handcrafted sterling silver and copper jewelry by Barbara Paul. Both shows run through September 30. Reception with the artists September 12, from 11am–1pm.

C’ville Arts Cooperative Gallery 118 E. Main St., Downtown Mall. “From Mud to Magic,” functional pottery by Jann Ross.

September 4–27. First Fridays opening reception with the artist 5–8pm.

Eastwood Farm and Winery 2529 Scottsville Rd. “Expressions of Summer,” paintings in oil and acrylic by artists Julia Kindred and Matalie Deane. Through September 29.

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September 2 – 8, 2026

The Edgar Shannon Library at UVA 160 McCormick Rd. “The Way We See It,” centering the perspectives of children living in container camps after the 2023 earthquakes in southeastern Türkiye and northern Syria,

by Lucy Bassett. Through December 31.

The Fralin Museum of Art at UVA 155 Rugby Rd. “Legacies of Independence,” a slate of five exhibitions exploring varied themes and perspectives around the legacies of Thomas Jefferson and the signing of the Declaration of Independence in 1776. Featuring “Georges Adéagbo and the Legacies of Independence,” “Collection and Translation: Thomas Jefferson in Southern France,” “Independent Ideas: Narcissa Chisholm Owen,” “Sky Hopinka: Mnemonics of Shape and Reason,” and “What Was Built, What Was Born: Labor, Land, and the Body in 20th-Century American Art.” All shows run through January 3, 2027 except “What Was Built, What Was Born,” which runs through May 30, 2027.

C-VILLE.COM

The Gallery at Studio IX 969 Second St. SE. “Home Values,” an exhibition of visually striking and intellectually provocative quilts

by Katie Chester, calls into question the orthodox standards of passive feminine domesticity. September 4–November 1. Opening reception September 11, 5–7pm. Artist Talk September 24, 5–6pm.

IX Art Park 522 Second St. SE. “The Looking Glass,” an immersive art space featuring a whimsical enchanted forest and kaleidoscopic cave. Ongoing. First Fridays free admission 6–11pm.

Jefferson School African American Heritage Center 233 Fourth St. NW. In the Contemporary Gallery, “Life Moments, A Circular Mile,” autobiographical mixed media works reflecting on community, place, and everyday life in Charlottesville,

by Theresa Woodfolk. September 12–December 12. Opening reception September 12, 6–8pm. Permanent exhibition, “Pride

Overcomes Prejudice,” exploring the history of peoples of African descent in Charlottesville. Ongoing.

Kluge-Ruhe Aboriginal Art Collection of UVA 400 Worrell Dr. “Color is Life: Women’s Work Today,” a group show of women artists featuring fiberwork, painting, printmaking, film, and sculpture.

Through March 14, 2027. “Cammeerangan Ngalin-ngur Gining | From Our Ancestors’ Hands – Story Bags,” Fiber art and installation by Sonja Carmichael.

Through January 10, 2027. In the Upper West Oval Room of the Rotunda at the University of Virginia, “Nginingawula Jilamara Ngirramini kapi Jurra | Our Art Stories on Paper: Printmaking at Jilamara Arts and Crafts Association,” a group show of printed works. Through January 24, 2027. Jilarti (Brolga), an award-winning live performance by Pedro Wonaeamirri, September 3, 5:30pm.

GALLERIES CULTURE

Friday 9/4 – Friday 9/25

Les Yeux du Monde 841 Wolf Trap Rd. “HOME: Eleven Artists on Heritage, Belonging, and Place,” a group show featuring painting, sculpture, work on paper, and textiles by Heather Beardsley, Pam Black, Barbara Campbell Thomas, Michelle Gagliano, Meg Hitchcock, Sanda Iliescu, Megan Marlatt, Ana Rendich, Dorothy Robinson, LaRissa Rogers, and Millicent Young. Through September 13. “BIRD ROOM,” a solo show of large-scale narrative works that synthesize photography, painting, sculpture, installation, and drawing by the late Todd Murphy. Friday, September 18–November 1. Opening reception September 18, 5–7pm.

McGuffey Art Center 201 Second St. NW. In the Sarah B. Smith and First Floor Galleries, “Botanical Garden of the Piedmont Art Festival,” featuring works reflecting natural wonder.

In the Second Floor North Gallery, “The Hieroglyphics of Trees,” prints and sculptures by Maryanna Williams. In the Second Floor South Gallery, “Wanderous,” photographic works by PHOTOS BY EZE AMOS

Second Street Gallery’s biggest exhibition of small-scale works returns to the Main Gallery. Teeny Tiny Trifecta 9 features 203 artists and 609 artworks in a variety of media, with each piece measuring 8 x 8-inches square or 8 inches in diameter. A ticketed Collector’s VIP Preview Party & First Look for early acquisitions takes place on September 3 from 5–8pm. In the Dové Gallery, Vildvuxen: In Praise of the Untended celebrates last year’s Teeny Tiny Trifecta Curator’s Choice winner in a show of textile and book works engaging botanical elements by Swedish-born, Charlottesville-based artist Lotta Helleberg. Both shows run September 4–25, with First Fridays opening receptions on September 4 from 5–7:30pm. Second Street Gallery, 115 Second St. SE. secondstreetgallery.org

Scott F. Smith. All shows run September 4–26.

First Fridays opening reception 5–7:30pm.

New City Arts 114 Third St. NE. In the Welcome Gallery, “Keepers of Wonder,” a solo exhibition of sculptural worlds and portals to places that exist just outside reality by ceramicist Emma Terry. Through September 16. Pop-up ceramic market of handmade works by Terry and Milkweed Clay Studio artists September 4, 5–7:30pm and September 5, from 10am–5pm.

The PVCC Gallery V. Earl Dickinson Building, 501 College Dr. In the South Gallery, the Annual Faculty Art Exhibition features works in a wide variety of media from the diverse and talented team of teaching artists at PVCC. September 18–November 7. Opening reception September 18, 5–7pm. In the North Gallery, “Gaby Messina: Raíces de una Argentina Afro (Roots of an Afro Argentine)” explores Afro-Argentine histories, identities, and experiences through phoC-VILLE.COM

tography, audiovisual work, and installation.

September 18–October 24. Reception with the artist October 8, 5–7pm.

Ruffin Gallery UVA Grounds, Ruffin Hall, 179 Culbreth Rd. “Lemniscata,” an installation of ceramic works exploring aquatic systems of energy exchange, by Sasha Fishman. Through October 9.

SCAN—Gallery on Valley 460 Valley St., Scottsville. In the Main Gallery, “The Beauty of Pollinators,” photographic works exploring insects and lepidoptera

by Glenn Nash. “September 4–27. “Autumn Colors,” a group show celebrating the fall season. September 4–November 1. First Fridays event, 4–7pm.

Visible Records 1740 Broadway St. “Search Engine,” a sculptural installation exploring how virtual belief systems interweave with the physical, material world, by Kayla Jones Pulido. September 18–October 24. Opening reception September 18, 6–8pm.

September 2 – 8, 2026

37

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September 2 – 8, 2026

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ART is is LIFE BRETT DENNEN BRETT DENNEN

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September 2 – 8, 2026

39

FOR FUN PUZZLES SUDOKU

#1

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#5

#1 solution

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September 2 – 8, 2026

#2 solution

C-VILLE.COM

#3 solution

#4 solution

PUZZLES FOR FUN CROSSWORD BY MATT JONES

Gimme an E ACROSS 1. Letter between Juliet and Lima?

5. Forfeit voluntarily 10. Bryan Cranston’s “Malcolm in the Middle” role 13. Cynthia of “Wicked” 15. “This ___ a drill!”

16. Pub quaff 17. Food served in an Olympicsized swimming pool?

19. Animated image 20. “Stormy” seabird 21. Simon Cowell NBC show, for short 22. Play group?

23. Character in a Copenhagen production of “Sherlock Holmes”?

26. Like a melody in F# while the harmony is in C, e.g.

29. Fitting 30. Shakespeare’s river 31. Speech therapy issues 34. Three Gorges project 37. Furry animal feature, if it were only missing a stripe down the back?

41. Indeterminate number 42. Comedian Chieng 43. Clay-like soil 44. Comedian Mayall of “The Young Ones” 45. “I Love Lucy” surname 48. Offerings at a “The Dark Knight Rises”-themed taqueria?

53. Splitting it releases energy 54. Recognize 55. “The English Patient” setting

#3

59. Obtained 60. Outerwear items for Tarzan’s companion?

62. N.Y.-to-Boston dir.

63. Young child, informally 64. “___ to you!”

65. Took charge of 66. Sibilant summons 67. Classics IV lead singer Dennis

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Seaweed type “Dies ___” (“Day of Wrath”) Dryer trap collection Cooked too long Gaming console with a fitness component Black tea from India “The Princess Bride” swordsman Montoya “The Sound of Music” family name French summer “Horrible” Viking, in the comics Top-name celebs Southpaw Arctic, e.g.

Radius counterpart Bill in “Bloom County,” e.g.

Actress Pompeo ___ facto (therefore) “Roll Tide” school, for short Novelist Turgenev Bourdain biopic of 2026 Particle in a cloud chamber “Heidi” creator Johanna New Look designer Christian

/ $ 5 9 $ / $ & 7 2 7 $ & $ 9 2 , ' , 5 / 2 5 ( 2 6 ' 0 $ : , 1 ' 3 2 : ( 5 ( ' & ( 2 ' < $ 1 6 ( ( . ( 5 $ & , ' $ 1 7 ( , 1 * 7 2 5 ( 7 ( 1 1 , 6 < $ 0 1 2 1 7 2 ; , & 8 6 $ $ 0 , 6 6 0 2 ' ( 7 5 2 3 ( 7 + ( 2 ' 2 5 ( 2 0 , 7 : 5 $ 3 ( 1 ' 6 9 ( / 7 ( $ 5 ( 6 $ / 5 ( $ ' < / $ & < , 0 $ / $ $ / $ $ 6 3 $ 1 , 6 + 0 $ , 1 $ 6 $ 3 $ , 1 7 ( % 2 1 ' $ , 5 0 & ' $ / / ( < 1 $ 6 7 <

#6 solution

© 2026 MATT JONES

#5 solution

Magazine covers

#6

ANSWERS 8/26/26

Barely at all “I must have missed the ___” Chicago paper nickname All “Thirty-six Views of Mount Fuji” pieces, technically (if you can pluralize Picassos and Monets ...)

40. It shares space with the question mark 44. “Automatic for the People” group 46. Words repeated before “sin” in a Pet Shop Boys lyric 47. Alternative to first class 48. Schmear spot 49. Right wrongs 50. “I heard you” 51. Tears to bits 52. Oboes and saxes, e.g.

56. Prefix with space 57. Waze offerings, for short 58. Helper, in brief 60. Monogram of the 11th U.S. president

DOWN

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September 2 – 8, 2026

41

Built Around the Way You Live.

T H O U G H T F U L LY D E S I G N E D C U S T O M H O M E S

w w w. c v i l l e b u i l d e r s . c o m hello@cvillebuilders.com

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September 2 – 8, 2026

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FREE WILL ASTROLOGY FOR FUN

By Rob Brezsny

Libra

(Sept. 23-Oct. 22): I am asking you to give yourself slack in situations where you sometimes treat yourself carelessly or unkindly.

Instead of tightening, loosen. Instead of cornering yourself, offer an escape hatch.

Ask: “What if I give myself 20 percent more mercy, 20 percent more time, or 20 percent less pressure?” Maybe you’ll get an extension on a deadline or allow yourself to be a learner instead of an expert. Rather than calling yourself a failure because you’re less than perfect, you’ll decide, “It’s good enough for now.” As you slip away from the traps you set for yourself, you’ll teach your nervous system a fresh truth: You can be gentle with yourself but still be responsible.

Scorpio

(Oct. 23-Nov. 21): Scorpio, you rarely need to be lighter and breezier. Your assignment is almost always to delve deeper and explore further. This is true now even more than usual. Other people might shiver and cower in the face of your intensity, but I celebrate it because it drives you to excavate the rich, messy truths and complicated feelings that really shouldn’t stay hidden. Regard this horoscope as your authorization to wield your emotional X-ray vision with precision, and to trust that the treasures you seek are often buried in places that scare others away.

Sagittarius

(Nov. 22-Dec. 21): In classical music, composers often develop a simple motif into a complex symphony. A short sequence of notes becomes the foundation for an entire composition. A key passage gets rearranged and elaborated in multiple ways. You will have a comparable opportunity in the coming weeks, Sagittarius: a seed of potential that seems modest at first could expand into more substantial riches if you cultivate it patiently. Your visionary aplomb and optimism can transform a core cell into a full orchestration.

Capricorn

(Dec. 22-Jan. 19): You seem to be wandering in a frontier for which there are no maps.

You’re hovering in liminal zones, between worlds. So for now, I guess you will have to steer without your usual guidance. That’s a good thing! What I can do is name the gifts that are likely to come your way as you explore the unknown: 1) turbo-charged intuitions about your best possible future; 2) a talent for spotting surprising connections you didn’t even know you were looking for; and 3) a provocative unpredictability that magnetizes allies who can help tease out and illuminate your hidden and buried desires.

Aquarius

(Jan. 20-Feb. 18): The placebo effect has a lesser-known counterpart called the nocebo effect: Negative expectations can create neg-

(Aug. 23-Sept.22): You’ve been extra reasonable lately. How do you manage to be so responsible, measured, and composed? I’m not complaining. I admire your integrity. But now the cosmic omens are clear that’s it’s time to address VIRGO your soul’s needs for more wonder and awe and reverence. So I will slip you a tantalizing prod: What’s the best, most healing trouble you could provoke right now? I’m not referring to recklessness and chaos, of course. I mean twists and tweaks that stir up inspiration and liberate creativity. Are you bold enough to follow the truth and beauty that thrills and intrigues you? ative outcomes. If you’re told a harmless pill might cause headaches, you’re more likely to develop them. Your belief in harm creates actual harm. I bring this up, Aquarius, because I’m worried you may be nocebo-ing yourself right now. Your conviction that certain outcomes are inevitable is encouraging them to manifest. So here’s my counsel: Which negative expectations or predictions are you treating as facts? Consider the possibility that the problems you’re so skilled at identifying are being called into existence by your identification of them. And if you find that’s happening, stop! Formulate some healing alternatives.

Pisces

(Feb. 19-March 20): “Dear Rob: Your horoscopes delight me in a spooky way. They make me feel as if you’re watching me from afar, not like a stalker, but like an eccentric guardian angel who gives me a heads-up before I do something foolish, tells me about opportunities I haven’t noticed, and shakes awake the part of me that’s inclined to quit. Thanks a million times! —Deep Pisces.” Dear Deep: You have exquisite timing, because now is an ideal moment to pour out gratitude for the people who’ve lifted you up and helped you.

Offering appreciation now will function as a potent prayer that will be far more effective than pleading for what you don’t have. It will set in motion an irresistible magic that draws even more blessings in your direction.

Aries

(March 21-April 19): Most of us are surprisingly clueless about the inner workings of our own bodies. Do you know where your gallbladder and spleen actually live or what jobs they perform on your behalf? Can you

trace the journey your breath takes after it slips into your lungs? Have you ever experimented to discover in detail which foods best suit your one‑of‑a‑kind system?

Do you know, from experience rather than guesswork, how much sleep you require to stay vividly awake and emotionally balanced? The current astrological climate favors you becoming a curious apprentice of your body’s gorgeous mysteries.

Taurus

(April 20-May 20): The English idiom “cut to the chase” comes from the silent films of the early 20th century. When the plot dragged, directors would literally switch to a chase scene to restore audience interest.

Various languages have other ways to say “get to the point” or “skip to the crux.” Spanish: ir al grano. French: aller droit au but.

Italian: venire al dunque. Japanese: hondai ni hairu. In accordance with astrological omens, Taurus, I suggest you do that in the coming days. Skip the boring parts. Jump to the action scenes. You can return later and fill in the story details, but for now you’re best served by moving toward the exciting essence or the crucial core of things.

Gemini

(May 21-June 21): This is one of those unusual times when laziness and apathy work in your favor. Life is organizing a relaxing renewal on your behalf, and your main job is to not interfere. So I advise you to skip the hustle and enjoy the thrill of being still.

Put a pause on doing and indulge in the fine art of simply being. Please, Gemini? Set aside your ambitions for now. Hide your to-do list.

Inform your chattering monkey mind that C-VILLE.COM

it’s on temporary leave from its usual jumping and squawking. Feel guilt-free as you immerse yourself in the most relaxed versions of feeling good and welcome whatever fresh vitality wants to flow in.

Cancer

(June 21-July 22): In the 17th century, Dutch inventor Christiaan Huygens discovered that two pendulum clocks hanging on the same wall gradually synchronized their swings. Why? He eventually realized that tiny vibrations traveled through the wall and made the clocks influence each other.

Scientists call this “entrainment.” Now is prime time for you to capitalize on this phenomenon, Cancerian. I urge you to be extra alert for how your moods, rhythms, and intentions subtly affect the people around you, and vice versa. If you cultivate qualities you’d like to predominate in your relationships, you will find others unconsciously aligning with your rhythm.

Leo

(July 23-Aug.22): Now is an ideal time to have fun cultivating the art of receptivity. Have fun being as open to influence as you can imagine.

Be innocent! Be amenable! Be willing and eager to be surprised! It doesn’t mean surrendering your drive or drifting aimlessly while life happens around you. I’m talking about an active, alert sensitivity that invites wonder and transformation. You think boldly, act with purpose, and radiate what’s uniquely yours, and yet you also remain humbly aware that learning never ends and that wisdom can arrive from unpreC dictable directions.

Expanded weekly audio horoscopes and daily text message horoscopes: RealAstrology.com, (877) 873-4888

September 2 – 8, 2026

43

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Legals

ESTATE OF JAMES HARRISON BUCK, JR.

NOTICE OF TAKING OF DEBTS AND DEMANDS At the request of the Administrators, I appoint Tuesday, September 15, 2026, at 11:00 a.m. as the time and my office at 420 Park Street, Charlottesville, Virginia, as the place for receiving proof of debts and demands against the decedent or his estate.

Edward H. Bain, Jr. Commissioner of Accounts Circuit Court for the City of Charlottesville, Virginia

VIRGINIA: IN THE CIRCUTI COURT FOR THE CITY OF CHARLOTTESVILLE IN RE: ESTATE OF MICHAEL GIANNINI, DECEASED Probate File No.: CWF24-0149 SHOW CAUSE ORDER It appearing that a report of the accounts of Joan Harlow, Administrator, Executor of the Estate of Michael Giannini, deceased, and of the debts and demands against the estate have been filed in the Clerk’s Office, and that six months have elapsed since the qualification, on motion of Joan Harlow, Executor of the Estate of Michael Giannini, deceased, by counsel; IT IS ORDERED that the creditors of, and all others interested in, the estate do show cause, if any they can, on the 19th day of October, 2026 at 2:00 p.m. before this Court at its courtroom, against the payment and delivery of the Estate of Michael Giannini, deceased, to the distributees without requiring refunding bonds.

It is further, ORDERED that a duly certified copy hereof be published once a week for two successive weeks in C’ville, a newspaper of general circulation in the City of Charlottesville, Virginia.

Entered: Cheryl V. Higgins Judge Date: 8/10/2026

PEARL ISLAND FOODS LLC TRADING AS: PEARL ISLAND CATERING

221 Carlton RD #1 Suites 11 & 12, Charlottesville, VA 22902 The above establishment is applying to the VIRGINIA ALCOHOLIC BEVERAGE CONTROL (ABC) AUTHORITY for a Retail Caterer Application - Caterer, Wine, Beer, Mixed Beverages, Consumed On Premises license to sell or manufacture alcoholic beverages.

Sober Pierre, Owner NOTE: Objections to the issuance of this license must be Submitted to ABC no later than 30 days from the publishing date of the first of two required newspaper legal notices. Objections should be registered at www.abc.virginia.gov or 800-552-3200.

PUBLIC HEARING NOTICE On Monday, October 19, 2026, at 6:30 p.m., the City Council of the City of Charlottesville, Virginia, will hold a Public Hearing in the Council Chambers, City Hall, 605 East Main Street, Charlottesville, Virginia 22902, as legally required

by Virginia Code § 15.2-1800(B), to consider adopting an Ordinance vacating a portion of a public City street, known as Swift Lane.

I ASK FOR THIS:

This Notice is given pursuant to Virginia Code § 15.2-1813.

Karen R. Carnegie, Esq. (VSB #77251) 300 George Washington Highway N. Chesapeake, Virginia 23323 757-967-8782

The proposed Ordinance regarding this matter is available for examination in the Office of the Clerk of Council, 2nd Floor, City Hall, 605 East Main Street, Charlottesville, Virginia 22902. Any person may appear at the Public Hearing to express their views on the proposed Ordinance. Individuals with disabilities who require assistance or special arrangements to participate in the Public Meeting may call (434) 987-1267 or submit a request via email to ada@charlottesville.gov.

The City requests that you provide forty-eight (48) hours’ notice, so that proper arrangements may be made.

kcamegie@krcplc.com Counsel for Petitioner

44

September 2 - 8, 2026

C-VILLE.COM

Notice of Local Sales Tax Referendum Election VIRGINIA:

VIRGINIA: IN THE CIRCUIT COURT FOR THE COUNTY OF ALBEMARLE THOMAS B. SCOTT, III, ET AL V.

IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF THE CITY OF CHARLOTTESVILLE IN RE: PETITION OF THE CITY OF CHARLOTIESILLE, VIRGINIA, FOR AN ORDERCALLING A REFERENDUM ELECTION ON AN ADDITIONAL LOCAL GENERAL RETAIL SALES TAX Case No. CL26-438 ORDER CALLING REFERENDUM ELECTION There having been presented to the Court a Petition and certified copy of a resolution adopted by the Council of the City of Charlottesville, Virginia, on July 20, 2026, requesting ·that this Court order a referendum election in the City on the question of levying an additional local general retail sales tax, the revenues of which would be used solely for capital projects for the construction or renovation of public schools serving the City; and It appearing to the Court that the resolution has been duly adopted, that the request is in proper order, that the proposed ballot question is stated in plain English, and that the requested election date conforms to Virginia Code § 24.2-682; It is hereby ADJUDGED, ORDERED, AND DECREED as follows: l. The resolution is approved and shall be filed in this proceeding.

2. The regular election officers ofthe·City shall, on November 3, 2026, that being a Tuesday, the date of a general election, and a date not less than 81 days from the entry of this Order, hold a referendum election in accordance with Virginia Code§§ 24.2-681, 24.2-682, 24.2- 684, and 58.1-605.l(A), and take the sense of the qualified voters of the City on the question of whether the City may levy an additional local general retail sales tax to fund capital projects for the construction or renovation of public schools serving the City.

Case No. CL26-l 106

GWENDOLYN WARD PUBLICATION ORDER The object of this lawsuit is to partition Gwendolyn Ward’s latent, fractional ownership interest in the real estate known as Albemarle County Tax Map No. 12000-00-00-032A0 and 6806 Porters Road, Esmont, Virginia 22937. By October 1, 2026, Gwendolyn Ward must make an appearance in this case by notifying the Court that she intends to protect her interest in the real estate before said interest becomes forfeited. This Order shall be published in the C-Ville Weekly for four consecutive weeks.

ENTERED this 12 day of August, 2026

Judge: Cheryl V. Higgins

I ASK FOR THIS: J. Addison Barnhardt VSB#83132 GRISHAM & BARNHARDT PLLC 240 West Main Street, Suite 100 Charlottesville, Virginia 22902 Telephone: (434) 293-2939 Email: jab@grisham-bamhardt.com

Services

3. The General Registrar shall prepare and distribute ballots posing the following question in substantially the following form: SPECIAL REFERENDUM ELECTION ADDITIONAL LOCAL SALES TAX FOR SCHOOL CAPITAL PROJECTS November 3, 2026 Shall the City of Charlottesville, Virginia be authorized to levy a local general retail sales tax at a rate not to exceed one percent (1 % ), the revenues of which shall be used solely for capital projects for the construction or renovation of public schools serving the City of Charlottesville, and which shall expire on June 30, 2046? [ ] Yes

[

] No

4. The election shall be conducted, the ballots printed, marked, and counted, and the returns made and canvassed as in other elections. The Secretary of the City of Charlottesville Electoral Board shall certify the results to the State Board of Elections, to this Court, and to the Council of the City of Charlottesville.

5. A certified copy of this Order shall serve as the Writ of Election. The Sheriff of the City of Charlottesville shall forthwith serve a certified copy ofjthis Order upon the Secretary of the City of Charlottesville Electoral Board and shall make return to this Court that the writ has been executed.

6. The Clerk of this Court shall cause a certified copy of this Order, preceded by the caption “Notice of Local Sales Tax Referendum Election,” to be published in a newspaper having general circulation in the City once a week for three consecutive weeks prior to the election, as required by Virginia Code § 58.1-605.1 (A)(2)(b).

7. The Clerk of this Court shall immediately send a certified copy of this Order to the State Board of Elections and shall also provide certified copies to the General Registrar and the Secretary of the City of Charlottesville Electoral Board. The Clerk shall provide copies to the Charlottesville Clerk of Council and the Charlottesville City Attorney.

ENTERED this 22nd day of July, 2026

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45

P.S. TRENDING The good, the bad, and the Charlottesville Submit your own at c-vile.com.

C-VILE

Chandler’s Bakery announces closure after 31 years in business.

UVA football player Solomon Beebe arrested after witness alleges he punched a dog. Former Woodbrook Elementary teacher pleads guilty to five felony counts of child pornography possession. The Dewberry. John McGuire. Storms knock out power for thousands of city and county residents, and cause deadly structure fire in Albemarle. Blue, a Charlottesville K-9 Unit dog, dies at his handler’s Greene County home. Despite above-average August rainfall, Rivanna River level remains low.

Effects of late-spring freeze still being felt by peach and apple growers. Back-to-school shopping costs rise almost 11 percent. Late-night loiterer smashes through front window at Camellias Bar & Roastery. School resource officers back in city schools for first time in six years.

C-VILLE

Kate Douglass breaks 50m free world record twice in one day.

UVA football team trounces NC State 34-8 in season opener at sold-out Scott Stadium. Dolly Parton cakes at MarieBette.

John Dewberry gets slap on wrist in the form of 60 days to present a plan on the future of the Downtown Mall’s Dewberry Hotel. Crozet’s Peachtree 11U All-Stars Little League team is runner-up at 2026 11-Year-Old/70 Cal Ripken World Series. Downtown Mall custodial crew switches to allelectric leaf-blowers. Michelle Moshier trains to climb Mt. Kilimanjaro while battling stage 4 cancer. Time magazine names UVA the No. 2 public college in the nation. New rail to connect Southwood neighborhood with Biscuit Run Park gets $1.48 million from the state. Virginia will receive $364 million as part of the nationwide settlement with Meta.

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September 2 – 8, 2026

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`MATT RILEY / UVA COMMUNICATIONS (LEFT), TRISTAN WILLIAMS (RIGHT)

JUVIES Indie short Film Series - INSTALLMENT Presents the Documentary Film

DIR. LESLIE NEAL - EXEC. PRODUCER MARK WAHLBERG

FRIDAY, SEPT 25, 7PM

WHAT DO YOU THINK HAPPENS TO CHILDREN CHARGED AS ADULTS TO SPEND OVER A DECADE IN AN ADULT PRISON?

FILM SCREENING W/ PANEL DISCUSSION

TICKETS: $20 AVAIL ONLINE: HTTPS://ISFFJUVIES.EVENTIVE.ORG

VINEGAR HILL T H E A T R E 220 W. MARKET ST, Charlottesville, VA C-VILLE.COM

September 2 – 8, 2026

47

SEPTEMBER 21

OCTOBER 29

Judy Woodruff and Jamelle Bouie on Freedom of the Press

Dr. Danielle Allen on Radical Duke

NOVEMBER 12

DECEMBER 8

Storytelling and American Democracy with Dr. Jane Kamensky, Edward F. O’Keefe, Tina Tchen, and Janet Tran

Dr. Richard Bell on The American Revolution and the Fate of the World

Get tickets at monticello.org/pursuits Special pricing for Monticello Members

48

September 2 – 8, 2026

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