Studio Virginia

Studio Virginia airs Thursdays at 7:30 pm

DECEMBER

12.30.04 - A William & Mary professor talks about his new book, "Israel on the Appomattox," the story of freed slaves living in pre-civil war Virginia. A former jazz studies director at Virginia Tech returns with a new group - and a new CD. Plus the celebration of Kwanzaa explained.

12.23.04 - Essayist Dan Smith ponders on the origin of the Christmas tree...plus "The Night Before Christmas" as you've never heard it before and a U-V-A professor's new book about why successful people seem to self-destruct from time to time.

12.16.04 - On the next Studio Virginia, Steven Spielberg, Tom Cruise, the film crew for "War of the Worlds" and hundreds of extras converge on Rockbridge County; and a Roanoke-born poet with Turkish roots writes a new book that describes every day life in Istanbul.

12.9.04 - The director of Olin Hall Galleries at Roanoke College talks about her mission when it comes to showcasing art; Dan Smith weighs in with his "best of 2004" book list; and things that go bump in the night at southern colleges.

12.2.04 - A TV political reporter offers his take on how the media handled the recent Presidential election and he talks about broadcast writing classes he teaches. Plus a new play at Mill Mountain Theatre blends comedy and drama when a Catholic son brings his Jewish atheist girlfriend home for the holidays.

NOVEMBER

11.25.04 - On the next Studio Virginia, encores of two notable interviews from the past year--well-known Hollywood actor Perry King talks about his involvement with the Virginia Museum of Transportation in Roanoke and our exclusive discussion with folk music legend Joan Baez.

11.18.04 - Singer Rene Marie came home to Roanoke for a concert recently and spoke to WVTF's Cara Modisett after the show. She talks about personal and creative risks. Plus an indepth look at the prospect for arts funding in the Roanoke Valley.

11.11.04 - On the next Studio Virginia, a young classical guitarist originally from Mongolia demonstrates his rapidly improving skills at Radford University; there's salsa music with the group "Latin Heat" in Roanoke; and the Buchanan Theatre celebrates its second anniversary after being reborn.

11.4.04 - On the next Studio Virginia, the All-American music known as barbershop harmony is a specialty of "The Virginia Gentlemen;" an exclusive interview with actor and folksinger Theodore Bikel; plus the University of Virginia's new marching band.

OCTOBER

10.28.04 - On the next Studio Virginia, a song from the "Graveyard of Rock n' Roll" and a Hollywood-style party at Roanoke's Grandin Theatre mark the Halloween weekend; plus "A Lion in Winter" at Radford University with a TV star from the 60's; author David Sedaris in Charlottesville; and the Virginia Film Festival.

10.21.04 - A Celtic group from Southwestern Virginia releases a second album; the Lyric Theatre in Blacksburg is back with some impressive music shows this season; the Paramount Theater in Charlottesville prepares for its grand opening; plus a book fair designed to fight crime and improve literacy in Waynesboro.

10.14.04 - A brand new entertainment magazine is ready to hit the streets every Thursday along with The Roanoke Times. Bedford's Book Festival welcomes a well-regarded southern writer and his most recent novel; and a piece of downtown "neon art" is set to make a comeback in Roanoke.

10.7.04 - The latest Webster's Dictionary features some new words. We'll meet the book's Bedford editor; the Lenfest Center for the Performing Arts offers a wide variety of entertainment choices; the ultimate reality TV show hits Charlottesville for a taping; and a Latino Festival in Roanoke.

SEPTEMBER

9.30.04 - Roanoke Mayor Nelson Harris talks about public funding for the arts -- and four books he has written on the history of Southwestern Virginia; cultural organization executives also talk about the struggle to stay afloat; and the Dumas Hotel once hosted performances by jazz greats like Louis Armstrong and Duke Ellington, now a planned renovation will bring the landmark back to life.

9.23.04 - On the next Studio Virginia, Rigoletto kicks off the Opera Roanoke season; a bass baritone wanders the City Market in search of new fans; and the Henry Street Heritage Festival is bigger and more important than ever.

9.16.04 - On the next Studio Virginia, a Taste of the Blue Ridge Blues and Jazz Festival preview; a business magazine is cited for its support of the arts; a tattoo artist plies his trade; and the Rocky Horror Picture Show becomes a Showtimers stage production.

9.9.04 - Roanoke's Jefferson Center gets ready for a new season of diverse music and other programming. The Blue Ridge Potters Guild shows us how the Koreans do it better; plus "The Passion of the Christ" is revisited with the new DVD and video release.

9.2.04 - On the next Studio Virginia, the Roanoke Symphony Orchestra has a new concertmaster. We'll hear from her and find out more about the upcoming season; plus the Roanoke Symphony Chorus gears up to do their part as well.

AUGUST

8.26.04 - On the next Studio Virginia - Roanoke's Downtown Music Lab gets ready to grow while students release a new CD at the same time...plus painted tiles as art and more from a Floyd folk artist.

8.19.04 - On the next Studio Virginia, a folk singer-songwriter from Floyd and a country-flavored crooner from Lynchburg talk about their attempts to make it big as independent musicians.

8.12.04 - On the next Studio Virginia, a historical novel about hard times in coal mining towns rings true; an audio postcard from Virginia's Explore Park in Roanoke County; and a high school teacher turns poet as he praises the soul of the South.

8.5.04 - Floyd Fest returns for a third time to the mountains of southwest Virginia; wooden snakes invade the Discovery Museum in Charlottesville; and Lt. Gov. Tim Kaine weighs in on the importance of arts and culture to a community.

JULY

7.29.04 - Mill Mountain Theatre celebrates 40 years of musicals with "Starlight and Showbiz." Also, a new book about the sacrifices made in Bedford during World War II is published; and the debut of a play that uses Appalachian folklore to tell the story of life on a Nelson County farm in the 1800s.

7.22.04 - The sights and sounds of baseball in Lynchburg through the eyes of a photographer; a recent high school graduate is featured in a local art gallery; commentator Dan Smith has stroller rage.

7.15.04 - On the next Studio Virginia, a Lynchburg photographer records the sights and sounds of baseball in the Hill City; a high school student-artist holds her first gallery event; and commentator Dan Smith finds that a sidewalk art show can be a dangerous thing when baby strollers are involved.

7.8.04 - On the next Studio Virginia, as the music industry celebrates the birth of Rock and Roll, we look back at the man who helped get it all started--Elvis Presley--with an Elvis "tribute artist" from Roanoke. Plus, Elvis 101 at the University of Virginia; and the Garth Newel Music Center's new season is underway in Bath County.

7.1.04 - On the next Studio Virginia, a high school teacher writes novels in black and white; and Music for Americans plans a big change for this year's July 4th show.

JUNE

6.24.04 - On the next Studio Virginia, poet Adrian Blevins prepares to leave Roanoke for Maine. Also, the fine art of making goat cheese; an online literary magazine hope to shatter stereotypes about Appalachia and a new book states that urban renewal wasn't a good thing for cities like Roanoke.

6.17.04 - Students at the Studio School in Roanoke mount their annual art exhibit; a North Carolina man who traded the clothing business for novel writing talks bout his first book and about taking the plunge; a Virginia-based screenwriter talks about the art of having a screenplay picked up by a studio; Luke Church reports on a new children's book from a Charlottesville-based author.

6.10.04 - Veteran news reporter Sam Donaldson talks to Cara Modisett about the state of journalism on a trip to Roanoke...straight from the bible "The Story of Job" comes to life...and the controversial play "Angels in America" comes to Charlottesville.

6.3.04 - Cellist Zuill Bailey spends some time with Cara Modisett; WVTF classical music host Steve Brown talks about conducting, composing - and pulp fiction. Plus the group eastmountainsouth, which features an ex-Roanoker on vocals.

MAY

5.27.04 - A North Carolina author finds that learning to swim in middle age teaches some valuable life lessons she's now sharing in a new book. Festival in the Park returns to Roanoke with an impressive line-up of musical acts.

5.20.04 - The Virginia Museum of Transportation executive director Bob Dills and actor Perry King team up to raise funds and awareness for the facility; a coalition for the arts joins forces for "May Days;" and Dan Smith offers a list of suggested reading for those summer outings to the beach or the back porch.

5.13.04 - On the next Studio Virginia, expanded Local Colors returns to Roanoke with arts and culture from around the world. Also a Blacksburg museum keeps working towards finding a permanent home.

5.6.04 - On the next Studio Virginia, film students at Hollins University show off their works in progress. The Museum of Natural History in Martinsville has a new director, and a baseball Hall of Fame in Salem is close to becoming a reality.

APRIL

4.29.04 - This week on Studio Virginia, a play about bandleader Glenn Miller makes its American debut at Emory & Henry College. A former Virginia Tech football player talks about life in Hollywood. The Highlands Jazz Festival is back for a fourth year. NPR's Bob Edwards comes to Roanoke with his new book.

4.22.04 - On the next Studio Virginia - God's Man in Texas examines big-time religion; part two of Cara Modisett's interview with singer-songwriter Darrell Scott. And our salute to National Poetry Month continues with prison poetry from the Botetourt Correctional Facility.

4.15.04 - On the next Studio Virginia, hosted by Cara Modisett, VMI students return to Vietnam 30 years after the war ended and are the subject of a television documentary; plus a talk with singer/songwriter Darrell Scott recently in Blacksburg.

4.8.04 - Screen legend Mickey Rooney takes a star turn at the Blue Ridge Film Festival. Donated ladders become art in Floyd. And a Roanoke County middle schooler wins a national poetry contest.

MARCH

3.27.04 - On the next Studio Virginia: The Blue Ridge - Southwest Virginia "Vision" Film Festival is back for an encore and the Tallis Scholars return to Roanoke with its other-worldly music.

3.20.04 - Photographers from The Roanoke Times get to show off some of their best work. Lexington's Theater at Lime Kiln has a new indoor home-away-from-home. The Lynchburg Academy of Fine Arts is working on one of their own and a gospel vocalist comes to Washington and Lee University for a concert.

3.13.04 - On the next Studio Virginia, the Appalachian Women's Alliance tells its stories of hope and oppression through music, the written word and art. Plus, he plays a murderous musician on "Oz." Now acclaimed cellist Zuill Bailey is returning to Roanoke for a concert.

3.6.04 - Studio Virginia co-producer Cara Modisett hosts. Gene Marrano reports on the best of No Shame Theatre in Roanoke. Cara Modisett talks with banjo and bass legends Bela Fleck and Edgar Meyer prior to their recent performance at the Jefferson Center. Craig Wright reviews Mel Gibson's film "The Passion of the Christ."

FEBRUARY

2.28.04 - Opera Roanoke returns with a "Postcard from Vienna." A bluegrass band from Charlottesville is making its mark, and a mural livens things up at the Roanoke Rescue Mission.

2.21.04 - On the next Studio Virginia senior sleuth Rose McNess returns in a new novel by Roanoke author Barbara Dickinson. Also, pottery classes at the Rescue Mission in Roanoke bring art to the less fortunate; and "Futureman" drums at the Jefferson Center in Roanoke.

2.14.04 - On this week's Studio Virginia - a new literary magazine in Charlottesville looks for contributors; a popular chamber music quartet returns to Blacksburg; and "Living Roanoke" examines the Star City's economic history as a play.

2.7.04 - On this week's program: two Blacksburg residents talk about their journey to Nepal and the award-winning television documentary about the trip now being aired. Plus, Virginia Tech poet and professor Nikki Giovanni is nominated for a Grammy award.

JANUARY

1.24.04 - This week's program features the executive director of the Art Museum of Western Virginia discussing future expansion plans. Also, a Grammy-winning Latin jazz legend returns to southwestern Virginia.

1.17.04 - This week's show features a long-time Lynchburg musician who may finally get her big break in Nashville - or in Hollywood - plus more from the opening of Roanoke's O. Winston Link Museum.

1.10.04 - This week's program features the Norfolk Southern Festival of New Works, which is back for a 14th run at Roanoke's Mill Mountain Theatre. Plus, photographer O. Winston Link in his own words as the museum that will exhibit his work prepares to open its doors.

1.3.04 - This week's program features the art of sportswriting with Virginia Tech media instructor and author Roland Lazenby. Plus, Shenandoah Shakespeare's Commonwealth Performance Festival returns to Staunton for its second run.