MUSICALLY INCLINED

The Richmond Folk Festival
Here’s something that Richmond has done right: transforming the slopes of Gambles Hill and the grassy expanses near the canal into a rich, grand, musical and cultural experience. This year is the first localized festival, since the National Folk Festival concluded its three-year run in Richmond last fall. You can expect more of the same from Oct. 10 to 12, with varied acts like the Dan Tyminski Band (Tyminski’s also part of Alison Krauss’ Union Station); BeauSoleil, with Michael Doucet, the leading ambassador of Cajun music; the all-female Liaden from Ireland; soul singer Howard Tate; and country-music great Dale Watson. 788-6466 or richmondfolkfestival.org

Paint It Black
A collective of crows is by tradition called a murder, perhaps, as the Oxford English Dictionary suggests, because of their “harsh and raucous cry.” Well, in Richmond, anyway, on Oct. 7 a plurality of The Black Crowes will be called a band, and they, with a raucous cry, will appear at The National. They’ll come with music from Warpaint, their first album in seven years. The Black Crowes sound familiar, like maybe you heard this playing in long-format FM circa 1978 — except what they’re doing is new — but their desire is old as the primal urge to get up and, as the band members say it themselves, shake your moneymaker. 612-1900, thenationalva.com or ticketmaster.com

The Real Piano Man
The renowned jazz/folk/pop pianist George Winston, whose styles include New Orleans R & B and stride, comes to the Cultural Center at Glen Allen on March 7, performing some songs in those genres, but also those from his most recent recording, Gulf Coast Blues and Impressions — A Hurricane Relief Benefit.

In addition, he’ll present selections from his seasonal favorites Autumn, December, Winter Into Spring and Summer, and Forest and Plains, plus, of course, the Peanuts tunes from his Linus and Lucy album — you’ll want to dance like Snoopy. 261-2787 or artsglenallen.com

Galactic Block Party
This straight-outta-New Orleans group offers an appropriate mix of funk, jam, hip-hop and electronica for a unique and danceable concert experience. Galactic will bring its genre-blending sound back to Richmond at Toad’s Place on Oct. 10.

Their current CD, From the Corner to the Block, features one track, “Hustle Up,” that Rolling Stone reviewer David Fricke nominated as “the anthem for next Mardi Gras — a call to get down when you've had it up to here with everything else.” 648-8623 or toadsplacerva.com

If you like Tomb Raider for the music…
When you go see the Richmond Symphony on April 25, you just might end up in the middle of a game of Tron. The Richmond Symphony and Richmond Symphony Chorus perform Video Games Live,an international traveling “immersive concert event” featuring music from the most popular video games of all time, including Halo, Tomb Raider, Guitar Hero, Myst — even Pac-Man.

Even if you aren’t a video-game aficionado, this is a spectacle. The experience includes synchronized performances of the music — including those crazy motorcycles from Tron zipping around onstage, video and specially commissioned sound and light sequences showcasing more than 50 different video games in a wide variety of styles. The show is at 8 p.m. at the Landmark Theater. 262-8003 or richmondsymphony.com

ART LOVER

10 Years and Change
Art 180 celebrates a decade of taking creative imagination into the city’s schools and streets on Oct. 10. At Virginia Commonwealth University’s Brandcenter, an exhibition of 1,000 “dollars” — not-quite-legal tender restyled by artists, kids and Art 180 supporters — will attest to the organization’s impact. Some of these bills will be reproduced and displayed in storefronts, including Quirk Gallery and Mongrel.

One example is by VCU art education major Gary Perez, who in 2007 led an Art 180 program at Broad Rock Elementary. His antic, cartoony “Mental Reserve Note” packs into the rectangle fanciful creatures like a flying unicorn hippo, a dragon and a stalk-eyed space alien piloting a flying saucer. The message running across the top: “Don’t Let Others Dream for You.” 233-4180, art180.org or changeforaten.blogspot.com

Sleight of Hand
When is a vase an aesthetic object and not a way to hold flowers? Well, in fact, the vase can be both. This sort of debate has endured for ages and can’t be settled here; however, you can see the conversation continued in three dimensions at the National Juried Contemporary Craft Show at Gallery5, Dec. 5 through Jan. 15, judged by Quirk Gallery’s Kathy Emerson and Steven Glass of the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts. Kevin Orlosky, Gallery5’s assistant director, explains that there’s a wide range of things you can get from these kind of shows, [from] jewelry to the more utilitarian, and also more fine-art pieces that are decorative.” 644-0005 or gallery5arts.com

Warhol’s 15 Minutes at UR
What if Andy Warhol’s scrapbooks blew up?  You’ll see something like that at the Joel and Lila Harnett Museum of Art of the University of Richmond Museums, from March 20 through May 22. The show is “Warhol’s Photographs and Pictures.” The UR Museums this past year became a part of the Andy Warhol Photographic Legacy Program, which is distributing works by the artist to colleges and universities throughout the nation. The Harnett Museum received 153 original Andy Warhol photographs, including 102 Polaroids and 51 black-and-white silver-gelatin prints made by Warhol from 1970 to 1987.  Most of the black-and-whites are candid shots and provide a personal glimpse into Warhol’s social circle and artistic milieu. You’ll see skater Dorothy Hamill and artist Roy Lichtenstein, among many others. 287-8276 or museums.richmond.edu

Rain or Shine Group Show
The 1708 Gallery, Richmond’s 30-year-old home for new art, will host a mixed-media exhibition of painting, drawing and photography by national artists March 6 through April 11. One of its participants, Ryan Mulligan, went to VCU and now heads the arts-foundation program at the University of Cincinnati. “This is about what we do going to our studio every day, like the postman, rain or shine,” he explains. For three years, Kate Bingaman-Burt has drawn the everyday items she buys, and re-created her credit-card statement. Her installation will include a DIY T-shirt shop. Sarah Hollis scans the pages of blank journals, then, in sequence, draws and makes notation on the reproduced pages. Mulligan’s epic choose-your-own-adventure wall drawing is derived from events in his life. 643-1708 or 1708gallery.org

As the Crow Flies
He’s worked big and abstract, small and in delicate paper collage, and with enlarged photographs. Come see what Don Crow, a lifelong Richmonder and winner of a Theresa Pollak Prize for Excellence in the Arts, has up his sleeve now at Main Art Gallery, which will host an exhibit April 3 to 28. Crow teaches at VCU’s art school both here and at the Qatar campus, where he began photographing the interior of abandoned structures prior to demolition. “It may be painting. It may be digital. It may be both painting and digital,” Crow says of the exhibit. “It’ll be about the nuances." 355-6151 or mainartsupply.com

FAMILY GUY

It’s Puzzling
Hey, you puzzle freaks: Step out of the seclusion of your Sudoku-papered living room and challenge your brain at the Science Museum of Virginia’s “Mindbender Mansion” exhibit, running from Jan. 31 to Sept. 7. The traveling collection of brain-teasers features a “mansion” with puzzles in each room — 40 for individuals and five group activities. For example, in the Map Room, up to four players work together to manipulate a tilt table and guide a ball into several holes. Use your mad skills to complete the activities, discover hidden clues to solve the ultimate challenge and you could see your mug up on the Mindbender Society Wall of Fame. 864-1400 or smv.org

The Butterfly Effect
What kid doesn’t love butterflies and birthdays? In honor of its 25th anniversary, Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden is bringing back “Butterflies Live!” from May 22 through Oct. 11. With an emphasis on tropical species, this exhibit in the conservatory will include special plantings, up-close viewing of butterfly activities and themed programs. You’ll also find fact sheets to help identify such winged wonders as Florida’s state butterfly: The Zebra Longwing has a healthy lifespan in butterfly terms, and it’s avoided by most predators because of its foul taste. Don’t miss the garden outside the conservatory, which will be designed to attract wild butterflies. 262-9887 or lewisginter.org

Birds of Prey
Sure, Maymont’s got cute fuzzy ducklings and hopping bunnies, but new this year is a not-so-innocent look at Mother Nature — the Robert M. Freeman Bald Eagle Habitat & Raptor Valley exhibit. You’ll see hawks, owls, falcons, vultures and our nation’s bird-of-prey-in-chief, the majestic bald eagle. Speaking of that well-known bird (recently removed from the endangered-species list), did you know bald eagles’ nests can weigh several tons? The exhibit opens on Sept. 13, but don’t miss other related events throughout the fall. 358-7166, ext. 310, or maymont.org

High School Musical 2
Like it or not, if you have teens or tweens in your household, chances are you know the tunes from High School Musical by heart. Don’t fight it — sing along June 6 through 8 when the sequel, High School Musical 2, hits Fort Lee Playhouse’s Kid Kapers series. With tickets selling for only $4 each, you have no excuse not to. And while Zac Efron and Vanessa Anne Hudgens aren’t on the playbill for this production, we’re sure some heartthrobs will be on hand. 734-6629 or leemwr.com/din/din_playhouse.htm

Dan Zanes and Friends
There’s now an industry devoted to producing kids’ music that won’t drive hipster parents up the wall, a movement so developed that the backlash is already here, with one of the most frequent targets being Grammy winner Dan Zanes, the former power popper who’s now a leading light of children’s music. Our advice? Plunk down $12, head over to the Modlin Center’s Camp Concert Hall to see Dan Zanes and Friends on March 7 (shows at 11 a.m. or 2 p.m.), and have the time of your life. Touring to support his first Spanish-language album, ¡Nueva York!, Zanes actively encourages dancing, singalongs and the kind of family fun that will never go out of style. 289-8980 or modlin.richmond.edu/office.

STAGE HAND

Tony Blair
Former British prime minister Tony Blair, now the Middle East Quartet representative, is jumping the pond on Nov. 1 to speak at the Richmond Forum at the Landmark Theater. The Middle East Quartet, composed of the United States, Russia, the European Union and the United Nations, is charged with mediating the peace process between Israel and Palestine. Blair’s had some success with this sort of thing: After all, he’s credited with negotiating the Good Friday Agreement in 1998 that paved the way for peace in Northern Ireland. Word to the wise: If you don’t already have tickets, call with your fingers crossed and see if any subscribers have relinquished their seats ($27 to $55). 330-3993 or richmondforum.org

Spamalot
As if grown men don’t have enough immaturity in their lives, Broadway Across America brings to Richmond another reason for their significant others to roll their eyes — Spamalot. This Tony-winning production, which hits the Landmark Nov. 18 through 23, offers a musical take on Monty Python and the Holy Grail, the 1975 film that spawned a nation of dialogue-spouting fans. Unfortunately, Broadway cast members Stephen Collins and John O’Hurley aren’t part of the touring crew, but if you’re the kind of woman who actually enjoys British humor — killer rabbits and all — you won’t mind a bit. Tickets are $25 to $55. 262-8100 or ticketmaster.com

Sarah Ruhl Festival
Playwright Sarah Ruhl’s kind of a big deal in the theater world, and Richmond’s taking note. From Sept. 26 through Nov. 2, Barksdale Theatre will host Ruhl’s The Clean House, a melancholy comedy about a Brazilian maid who’s too depressed to clean, while Firehouse Theatre Project is producing Ruhl’s Eurydice, a fresh spin on a love affair from Greek mythology, from Sept. 18 through Oct. 11. An $8 discount is available to folks who want to see both shows (regularly $25 at Firehouse and $38 at Barksdale), and plans are in the works to bring Ruhl to town. 282-2620 or barksdalerichmond.org; 355-2001 or firehousetheatre.org

The Shangri-La Chinese Acrobats
With the price of airline tickets these days, who can afford to travel to Las Vegas to see Cirque du Soleil? Instead, trek just a few miles to the Cultural Arts Center at Glen Allen on Oct. 30 and take in The Shangri-La Chinese Acrobats. The show, which features 14 to 16 performers directed by the famed Hai family, consists of everything from acrobatics and martial arts to comedy and brilliantly colored costumes. With two shows — 10 a.m. and 7 p.m. — there’s plenty of fun to go around. Tickets are $35 for the evening show, $10 for the matinee. 261-ARTS or artsglenallen.com

Garrison Keillor
Expect serious, respectful readings of Edgar Allan Poe’s poetry on Jan. 18, when Garrison Keillor, along with Virginia natives Robin and Linda Williams, comes to the Landmark. The show will also commemorate the 200th anniversary of Poe’s birth. And if you’ve ever heard Keillor read “The Raven” in his quirky baritone, you know you’re in for a treat. Tickets are $28 to $38. 289-8980, 262-8100, modlin.richmond.edu or ticketmaster.com

HISTORY BUFF

All Poe, All The Time
Edgar Allan Poe, dead since 1849, still lives, and his 200th birthday is coming in 2009. The Edgar Allan Poe Museum is gearing up for a proper commemoration throughout the fall and into the anniversary year. Some highlights: Death Day — like his stories, the details of Poe’s death in Baltimore are a mystery — Oct. 5, 1 to 5 p.m.; “The Masque of the Red Death” Halloween party, Oct. 30, 6 to 9 p.m.; “24 Hours of Poe,” live readings ’round the clock on his birthday, Jan. 19.

At the Library of Virginia, the exhibit “Poe: Man, Myth or Monster?” runs July 20 through Oct. 31, featuring rare manuscripts and a masked Halloween party. Keep track of these developments and more beginning in January. 648-5523 or poe200th.com

Capacity for Beauty and Cruelty
Genocide became an instrument of political policy during the 20th century in Germany, and sadly it has continued in modern days. The Virginia Holocaust Museum memorializes the life and death of those caught up in the Nazi terror but also reminds us that mass killings didn’t stop in 1945. The museum’s free film series continues this fall with Hiding & Seeking: Faith and Tolerance After the Holocaust (2004) on Sept. 14, a documentary about how the father of an orthodox Jewish family tries to demonstrate to his sons how non-Jews helped their family during the Nazi pogroms. On Nov. 16, the museum will show S21: The Khmer Rouge Killing Machine, (2003), about the infamous detention and torture center in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, which held 17,000 prisoners during the 1970s reign of Pol Pot.

A film directed by Sudanese “Lost Boy” Awer Bul, now an art student at VCU, will premiere on Feb. 1. A fourth film, to be determined, will be shown on April 5. 257-5400 or va-holocaust.com

History Out Of The Closet
In conjunction with the release of Beth Marschak and Alex Lorch’s illustrated Lesbian and Gay Richmond, the Valentine Richmond History Center will conduct a tour of places shaped by the city’s gay community on Nov. 1 from 1 to 4 p.m. The book claims that some of Richmond’s most prominent cultural leaders were gay, including Lewis Ginter, a tycoon who built the Jefferson, and Mary Wingfield Scott, an architectural preservationist. 649-0711 or richmondhistorycenter.com

“Soul Soldiers: African-Americans and the Vietnam Era”
This award-winning exhibition, which started at Pittsburgh’s Senator John Heinz History Center in 2006, comes to the Virginia Historical Society from June 6 to Aug. 30, with more than 160 artifacts, photographs, audio recordings and an original documentary. Items on display include soldiers’ diaries, letters, rucksacks, dog tags and uniforms, plus armed-forces recruitment posters and a punji stake that went through the foot of Marine Sgt. John Clark. The exhibit examines how events extending from the civil-rights movement frame African-American political and social perspectives. The roles of Martin Luther King Jr., Colin Powell and Jimi Hendrix are shown, as well as the 9,000 African-American women who served as nurses and clerks during the Vietnam War. 355-4901 or vahistorical.org

Abraham Lincoln and the South
We’ve recently commemorated the birthdays of Robert E. Lee and Jefferson Davis — now it’s the bicentennial of Lincoln’s birth. The American Civil War Center, along with the University of Richmond Jepson School of Leadership Studies at the University of Richmond, will sponsor a conference March 12 to 14 on the legacy and memory of Lincoln in the South.

On March 12 at 7:30 p.m., historian James M. McPherson (Battle Cry of Freedom) will speak about the themes of power and leadership in the Lincoln presidency. Lincoln, who had no military training or experience, became the man who held the nation together during its Civil War.

Historians Emory Thomas (Robert E. Lee) and Charles Dew (Apostles of Disunion) will chair various discussion sessions. This is a ticketed event (cost to be announced), so be sure to make a reservation. 780-1865 or education@tredegar.org