Girl talk

Angie Flynn-McIver discovered Atlanta-based trio Girlyman when a childhood friend contacted her through Facebook and said something like, "If you're not listening to Girlyman, then I don't even know who you are." Effective, if dramatic; of course Flynn-McIver, producing director of North Carolina Stage Company, is in the drama business. All the real girls: Atlanta's […]

Paths of destiny

From the colonial period to the modern era, America's history tells an evolving narrative of human migration. Inspired by this history, Asheville Contemporary Dance Theatre/White Dog ProjectX International explores the dynamic topic of immigration in the upcoming modern dance concert Travelogue: Stories of our Migration. Where did we come from? ACDT dancers create a portrait […]

Reinterpre­ting mythology

The pale industrial walls of the Flood Gallery never looked better than they do backing Virginia Derryberry's Eide/Eidola, a collection of large paintings with a sun-bleached palette, a monumental style and a subject matter of idiosyncratically reinterpreted mythology. "Seven Deadly Sins," oil on canvas, 2009. The title derives from both Plato and Alchemy, the Idea […]

You’re not broken

Singer-songwriter Jack Herranen's music is an inspiring exploration of working-class struggles from Tennessee's southern Appalachia to Bolivia's Andes Mountains. A native of Knoxville, Herranen now lives and works with his wife (a Bolivian native), and their two children in Tortokawa, Bolivia, a rural farming village at the outskirts of Cochabamba. On Friday, Downtown Books and […]

Shopping with meaning

With all the talk about every day being black Friday, it's easy to fall prey to coupon crazes and power-hour frenzies. But there is a way to shop for meaningful, one-of-a-kind gifts without the hassle of mall parking or mounting credit card debt: Craft fairs. Craft-matic: Selling handmade wares at the twice-yearly Big Crafty, which […]

Winter warm ups

As the last of the leaves fall and our mountains turn gray, the animals are preparing their winter burrows for a little down time. Some humans too — or at least those in sync with the seasons — may also be getting ready for hibernations of sorts: dusting off movie collections, re-padding their recliners, stocking […]

Midwinter revels and holidays of light

"Go Christmas, go Hanukkah, go Kwanzaa, go Solstice!" So shout the brightly clad young models of a current TV commercial, as they leap about the screen like cheerleaders in their stripy sweaters and knitted gloves. Yet another seasonal advertisement by a multinational garment-selling conglomerate. But wait. What are the holidays mentioned in the ad again? […]