Arts & Entertainment
April 13th, 2011 · 1 Comment
By Jason Coleman
With the arrival of spring, people are making vacation plans. New River Vally residents may be thinking about the beach or some far off oasis, but they could be overlooking a paradise in their own backyards.
Every year in July, thousands of people from around the country flock to Floyd County to share a festival experience like no other.
This year marks the tenth anniversary of FloydFest—now coined FloydFest X, The Experience.
Ten years ago, Kris Hodges and Erica Johnson, owners of Oddfellas restaurant in Floyd and Across the Way Productions, wanted to bring world class entertainment to the New River Valley. What began in 2001 as a gathering of 1,500 like-minded souls has grown to house 12,000 patrons and entertainment from around the world.
“Our vision was to produce a world music festival for the entire family and that’s not just a catch phrase, we mean it,” said Linda DeVito, Operations and Development Director for Across the Way Productions. “We pride ourselves in the fact that most of us have kids, we wanted to provide a festival where a patron, even us, would feel comfortable in bringing our kids to.”
“My first FloydFest experience came when [Across the Way Productions] came to me to do the mapping for the event,” said Andrew Foy, instructor of Geospatial Science at Radford University. “I’ve been to five or six FloydFests since then because it is a festival like no other.”
Don’t compare FloydFest to other festivals such as Bonnaroo or All Good. FloydFest provides an atmosphere for the entire family, not just a field where kids get their heads spun. It is important that FloydFest be a place where all are comfortable to bring their children.
FloydFest X provides a Children’s Universe where children can create costumes and parade them around the grounds, music classes and performers aimed at kids, and even an open mic where children can stand on stage and share in the experience. Babysitting services are also provided by the festival for a small fee. FloydFest creates a family friendly environment where parents feel comfortable and kids are safe.
But FloydFest—featuring nine stages and more than 60 bands—is not just for kids. Bluegrass legends such as The Del McCoury Band, Australia’s own Xavier Rudd, and the Affrilachian sounds of the Carolina Chocolate Drops serve as a small example to the wide array of musical tastes that FloydFest will be offering to diverse palates.
“We have worked hard to bring in an eclectic mix of genres that will appeal to a mix of people,” DeVito said. “People call it the vibe … the vibe we have is people coming together to experience camaraderie and hear great music and want to come for a weekend to have a great time.”
Off-site parking is new this year for FloydFest allowing for more camping and play space, accompanied by shuttle service to and from the parking lot. Heated stall showers, food vendors, and a beer tent will also be available to all who need soap or a little help relaxing. New to FloydFest is a community-supported Coffee Barn Project where attendees can enjoy artisan roasted coffee in an on-site coffee house.
“It’s a journey and a growth and we are lucky to do what we love,” DeVito said. “There is a love that spreads out and in return we are loved. You can see in the amount of people attending this year that if you do it for the right reasons people recognize it and want to be a part of it.”
Day passes will be limited this year due to the high number of tickets already sold. FloydFest organizers encourage people to buy passes if you plan on coming to the event.
“We are building a community,” Devito said. “We are lucky to share in these milestones and moments in people’s lives and we want to honor that trust. It’s what keeps us true.”
The city of Radford is gearing up for the annual Vulture Fest, being held Saturday Feb. 19, 2011.
Among activities are an early morning bird walk (starting at the Rec Center), educational talks at 2 p.m., 3 p.m. and 4 p.m. (at the library) and a photo contest (deadline Feb. 18).
All ages are encouraged to enter the photo contest….
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Radford, by Scott L. Gardner
Scott L. Gardner and the Radford Public Library put together a book that looks at Radford today and from the past. The book was released this month and Gardner will be signing copies of the book at the Radford Public Library Wednesday, Jan. 26, from 1 to 3 p.m.
As part of Arcadia Publishing’s Then & Now series, Radford offers historical images side by side with contemporary photographs to chronicle the area’s past. In 96 pages, the book uses dozens of photographs to show a thriving town from the past and contrasts that to the City of Radford that we now know. (more…)
By Mike Andrews
The new year will bring in some new faces at Radford University’s Art Museum at the Covington Center, as RU announced an exhibit of a painting by legendary artist Vincent Van Gogh.
Starting Friday and going until March 4, 2011, students, faculty, staff and guests will be able to see “The Wheat Field behind St. Paul’s Hospital”, an oil on canvas painting by Van Gogh.
The university worked with the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts to bring the painting, as well as 27 other works of art from many periods and cultures to RU as a part of VMFA’s 75th anniversary celebration.
Steve Arbury, Director of the RU Art Museum, worked with Dr. Richard Bay and Kim Cochran, RU Art Museum Registrar, to make the exhibition possible.
Renovations to the museum, including an improved climate control system, new lighting, and new flooring had to be made to prepare for the extensive exhibit. In addition to this, extensive security measures had to be taken to ensure the safety of the painting.
The museum upgraded the security system, adding new alarms, security cameras, and human monitors in the gallery when it is open to the public. Steve Arbury has complete confidence that the security features will be successful in keeping the paintings safe.
“There are contact alarms on the doors as well as motion detector alarms which means if you beamed in from outer space you would still set off the alarm.”
On a campus where it is often hard to get students to come out for various events, the RU Art department has already done nearly everything to reach out to not only the RU community, but the New River Valley community as well.
“An electronic invitation has already gone out to…approximately 10,000 people, and more announcements will be sent out to others through the Public Relations Office, the RU Foundation and Alumni Affairs,” said Arbury.
In addition to this, most of RU’s art classes will visit the exhibition and discuss it in class. RU currently has nearly 1000 students enrolled in art classes this semester.
Vincent Van Gogh is best known as an Expressionist painter and is considered one of history’s greatest artists. He also suffered from mental illness, and cut part of his own ear off. One of his most popular paintings, “The Starry Night” is in the permanent collection of the Museum of Modern Art in New York City.
RU Art Museum hours are Monday thru Friday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., and Saturday and Sunday from noon to 4 p.m.
If you didn’t catch True Grit over the holiday season, you may be wondering how it compares to the original. And while you’re at it, you may rediscover a whole genre of film, once one of the most popular in the United States.
Westerns and their rugged landscapes are great vehicles for exploring the thin veil of civilization that covers up violence and they turn on the problems of how (and when) we act. If this list seems a little old, it is. It came from a course I had in college, updated and revised a little since then. Absent are Tombstone, 3:10 to Yuma, and The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada, which I either haven’t seen or can’t remember where they would fit on this list. But here goes, with thanks to John Simons, an English Professor who did a great John Wayne imitation. (more…)
Well, here we are recovering from all the scurrying about, perhaps resting and reading. This week in between Christmas and New Year’s can be a quiet time to regroup. Many of us like to take a look back at 2010. To that end, let’s look back at the top 10 books in Radford. These books checked out the most times in the Radford Public Library last year. (more…)
By Jason Coleman
