FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

DCC PLANS 26th ANNUAL CELEBRATION OF THE ARTS

DANVILLE, VA, March 18, 2008 — Dance, drama, art, music and literature will be the focus of Danville Community College’s 26th Annual Celebration of the Arts, March 31 – April 3.  

“We have an exciting line up this year,” says Dr. Mark Wallace, Assistant Professor of History and Chair of the Celebration of the Arts Committee. “We invite the community to come join us for these events.”

The schedule is as follows:   

Monday, March 31:
“Spy,” the story of Civil War Spy and Richmond native Elizabeth Van Lew, who was passionately against slavery and began spying for the Union Army as told by Storyteller Lynn Ruehlmann, who makes a return engagement to DCC. Ruehlmann says she was bitten by the storytelling bug after having spent years in the theater where she was named “Best Actress in a Comedy” by Folio. Since 1990 she has made storytelling her professional focus. She taught storytelling for Old Dominion University’s Early Childhood Education Department and for CORE Knowledge Conventions in Anaheim, CA, and in Boston, MA. She has been a guest on numerous National Public Radio programs. Her recording of “Spy! The Story of Civil War Spy Elizabeth Van Lew” won a “Storytelling World” and a Parents’ Choice Award.

 Times: 9:30 a.m. and 12:30 p.m. Location: Temple Building, Room 110. 

Tuesday, April 1:

 “It Happened In the White House” features true stories about the lives of eight U.S. Presidents from Virginia and their wives as told by Storyteller Lynn Ruehlmann. Don’t miss this election year treat. Time: 9:30 a.m. Location: Temple Building, Room 110.

Bob Cage: The Art of Auctioneering, featuring the Halifax County resident. Bob Cage is known as the premier tobacco auctioneer. He is also a local artist, internationally recognized sculptor, champion tennis player, preservationist, and community activist. Time: 11 a.m. Location: Temple Building, Room 110. 

“Jackie Frost Ensemble”, a Blues and Bluegrass band from Richmond with two nominations – Album of the Year and Song of the Year - at the 2006 Independent Music Awards. Frost formed her ensemble in the mid 90's and for over 10 years the band has performed at coffee houses, private parties, and local concert halls in the Richmond, VA area as well as TV, radio, and with the Richmond Symphony.  The band recorded several self produced recording projects over the years and has developed a local fan base. Songs nearly lost to time have been revived by the Jackie Frost Ensemble - like “Black and Blue” by 1930’s Blues legend - Fats Waller, and “I’ll Go Steppin’ Too” popularized in the early 50’s by Bluegrass artists Lester Flat and Earl Scruggs.  Other more recognizable tunes still traverse time – like the 20’s classic “Summertime” by George Gershwin, the ‘70’s hits “Dreamboat Annie” by the band Heart, and “Give it Up” and “Love Me Like A Man” by Bonnie Rait. Times: 6:30 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. Location: Temple Building, Room 110.

Wednesday, April 2:

“Marge Pierce: Readings and Lecture” presented by Piercy,  the author of 17 novels, including The New York Times’ bestseller Gone To Soldiers; the National Bestseller’s Braided Lives and The Longings of Women and the classic Woman on the Edge of Time. She also has 17 volumes of poetry, and a critically-acclaimed memoir, Sleeping with Cats. Time: 11 a.m. Location: Temple Building, Room 110. 

Thursday, April 3:

Celtibillies are energetic performers from Shawsville, VA, who explore the deeply-rooted musical connections between Celtic and “Old-Time” Appalachian traditions. They spotlight a mixture of arrangements for voice and spirited jigs, reels, waltzes, and break-downs; and whose instrumental renderings feature the hammered dulcimer, keyboard, bodhran, guitar, fiddle, banjo, bouzouki, and bass. Time: 7:30 p.m. Location: Temple 110.

Annual Writers Workshop – Thursday, April 3

Led by Wilton Barnhardt and Mike Chitwood, this session features readings by the authors and critiques of works by citizens and students. Barnhardt is a novelist and journalist, and the director of the Master of Fine Arts program at North Carolina State University. Barnhardt, a native of Winston-Salem, NC, attended Michigan State University, and worked at a number of magazines, including serving as the motor sports and NASCAR reporter at Sports Illustrated. He has a master’s degree from Oxford University, where each summer he leads a study abroad group of North Carolina State University students. Barnhardt is the author of three novels: Emma Who Saved My Life, Gospel, and Show World, and one in progress about a Southern family saga set in North Carolina.  

Chitwood, the author of six poetry collections, including The Weave Room, Salt Works, and Whet, and the essay collections Hitting Below the Bible Belt and Finishing Touches. He is a visiting lecturer at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and a regular commentator for WUNC-FM. He received a B.A. degree in English from Emory and Henry College and his Master of Fine Arts Degree from the University of Virginia.

The schedule is as follows:

• Informal Discussion with Barnhardt and Chitwood, 11 a.m.
• Poetry and Prose Workshops Barnhardt and Chitwood, 1:00 p.m.

Locations: Temple Building, Rooms 108 and 01

All events are offered free of charge and open to the public. For more information about Celebration of the Arts contact Dr. Mark Wallace at 434.797.8471; toll-free: 800.560.4291, ext 8471; or click here.