"Beauty and The Beast" Rolls Four Shows in One Weekend
You can't keep a good man down, nor a good beast.
HART in the Park heads into its second week of summer theater with a forecast only a catfish would love. Raindrops or not, "Beauty and the Beast" is set to run Friday through Sunday in the magical setting of Ritter Park.
Cost is $15, $12 Children and Seniors and group rates available. Tickets can be purchased now at www.GHPRD.org or at the gate the night of the show. Call 304-696-5954 or visit www.GHPRD.org for tickets or
more info.
HART in the Park's production stars Megan Creasy as Belle and Levi Kelley as The Beast as well as Bethany Himes as Madame De La Grande Bouche, Tamara Meadows as Mrs. Potts, Michael Board as Cogsworth, Rileigh Smirl as Babette, Christian Garnes as Chip, Owen Reynolds as Lumiere, Eric Wilson as Gaston, and Cyndi Wilson, Laura Melvin and Ashley Plybon as The Silly Girls.
FestivALL Charleston
Now in its 13th year, FestivALL Charleston kicked off last Friday and rolls daily through Sunday, June 25 with hundreds of artists at more than 30 indoor and outdoor venues around the city celebrating music, theater, dance, visual art, and public art projects.
My picks for the weekend include a stop by the Charleston Town Center Mall to see Dizzy Doc’s Amazing Balloon Sculpture, a stop by Elk City Records, to see a record album art exhibit, a New Orleans-themed Mayor's Concert on Thursday, a blues cruise with music by Chris Sutton on the River Queen on Friday, the Capitol Street Art Fair on Saturday and Sunday,
For more information and the full schedule of events, visit festivallcharleston.com. Tickets at festivallcharleston.com/tickets.
RudyFest - A Whole Lot of Grass In Grayson
This year's 17th Annual Rudy Fest Bluegrass Festival, which is hosted by The Lonesome River Band, is set for Wednesday June 21 through Saturday, June 24 with non-stop tunes from a who's who in bluegrass including The Del McCoury Band, The SteelDrivers, Russell Moore And IIIrd Tyme Out,Doyle Lawson & Quick Silver, Flatt Lonesome, The Rudy Fest All Stars,The Grascals, The Wooks, Turning Ground, Rhonda Vincent And The Rage, Larry Cordle And Lonesome Standard Time and many many more.
. Admission is $100 for the four-day fest at the gates or $40 daily for the last three main nights. Until June 1, four-day passes are $90 with teen four-day passes $45 for teenagers. Kids 12 and under get in free.
There is electric and primitive camping on site as well as vendors and shower houses. Go online at http://www.rudyfest.com/
Serving Up Some 'Sordid Lives'
To celebrate the LGBT community in Huntington, First Congregational UCC will be hosting a viewing of the original cult
classic "Sordid Lives'" at Heritage Station at 8 p.m. Friday, June 23.
Tickets are a donation of $5 to see Del Shores' 2000 classic starring Olivia Newton-John, Beau Bridges, Delta Burke who star in the rollicking comedy set in a small Texas town. As an eccentric cast of characters come together with their intertwining lives preparing for the funeral of the family matriarch, we learn the hilarious, sad, trashy truth and this all-star cast puts a comedic twist on a story of unconditional love,acceptance and "coming out" in a Texas family.
For sale Friday, will also be tickets to a WV Exclusive screening for Del Shores' newest film "A Very Sordid Wedding" on July 14 at 4th Avenue Arts Theater.
Tickets for the 'A Very Sordid Evening' event will be for sale on site for $15 each. (https://www.facebook.com/events/304712303315587/)
Pop-Up Art Show at Epicenter
One of the go-to tattoo shops in Huntington, Epicenter Studios, 836 6th Ave., showcases some of the region's contemporary artists with a Pop-Up Shop and Art Show with art by Charlie Haggard, who was featured a couple weeks ago during Create Huntington's #WeBAM block party, as well as Chawgue, SGP Cult and others.
Head over to the studio at 8 p.m. Saturday, June 24 for the one-night-only art party with original music by Repomancer.
The show is free and open to the public. Go online at https://www.facebook.com/Epicenter-Studios-116902501657215/ for more information about Epicenter Studios, which has been business for 13 years in Huntington.
Head to Ritter for Fifth Annual Summer Tsubasacon Picnic
For fans of cosplay and anime, head over to Ritter Park from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sunday, June 25, to join in the fun during the annual Natsu No Tsubasacon picnic.
This marks the fifth year the park has hosted the picnic, the name of which translates to "Summer of Tsubasacon" that features a cosplay contest, lawn games, kickball, role playing games and suikawari, a watermelon-smashing game similar to a piñata.
At the gathering, organized by the staff and fans of Tsubasacon, find out more about that anime convention set for Oct. 13-15 at the Big Sandy Superstore Arena.
This year's picnic will feature a potluck lunch. Guests can sign up for the potluck online at http://www.perfectpotluck.com/meals.php?t=ZSEX9968 and register what items they plan to bring.
For more information on the Natsu No Tsubasacon Picnic, visit Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/events/1332265256819197/. To register for this year's Tsubasacon and other coming events visit http://www.tsubasacon.org/.
My Road-Trip Pick This Weekend .. My roadtrip pick this weekend is to hitch a ride on the riverboat in Parkersburg and head over across the mighty Ohio River to Blennerhasset Island where you can party like its 1789 at Rendezvous on the River, a mountain men encampment that runs Friday through Sunday on the historic island. Check out Authentic campsites, demonstrations of camplife and period dress will be featured throughout the event. Event occurs during regular island hours.
Boat tickets are sold at the Blennerhassett Museum which is located at 137 Juliana Street in downtown Parkersburg. The sternwheeler ride is $10; Youth 3-12, $8. Contact: 304-420-4800 or go online at http://blennerhassettislandstatepark.com/
Dave Lavender is the author of "Dave Trippin: A Daytripper's Guide to the Appalachian Galaxy of Ohio, Kentucky and West Virginia" and his new travel book, "Mo' Dave Trippin" now for sale on Amazon.com and through CreateSpace.
Check out the new book at the Red Caboose, Empire Books and News, and now at Camden Park. Lavender covers regional travel. Follow The Herald-Dispatch reporter on Facebook and Twitter @DaveLavenderHD.