Today would have been the 95th birthday of Martin Luther King Jr., and the commonwealth is honoring the civil rights leader with events that carry on his legacy. Also celebrating a birthday this week is Richmond’s favorite master of the macabre, Edgar Allan Poe, the Weinstein JCC hosts its 15th annual Israeli & Jewish Film Festival, and the funk is strong at The National. Enjoy!
MLK Day Your Way
The University of Richmond is staging events and activities beginning today that will enable you to make the most of the National Day of Service associated with Martin Luther King Jr. Day. The university is offering a full slate of free, community-focused, participatory experiences, including Community Conversations sessions on topics such as exploring a living wage and equitable education. You can help create blankets for the Elk Hill Group Homes or community support bags for Peter Paul RVA. The culminating event is a community gathering at Cannon Memorial Chapel on Jan. 23 featuring a keynote address from Roger L. Gregory (pictured above), the first Black judge to serve on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit.
—Tharon Giddens, Copy Editor-at-large
Voices in Cinema
For the 15th year, the Weinstein JCC is presenting the Israeli & Jewish Film Festival Jan. 18-28 at the JCC and other local venues. The selected films were chosen to cultivate more understanding of Israeli and Jewish culture, a theme made even more relevant by recent headlines. The festival opens Jan. 18 at 7 p.m. with the 2021 French film “Farewell Mister Haffmann,” which portrays a jeweler seeking his assistant’s aid to flee German-occupied Paris in the early days of World War II, creating a high-risk situation for all involved. The film lineup also includes “Remembering Gene Wilder,” hosted at the Virginia Museum of History & Culture on Jan. 21; “Matchmaking” (pictured above), shown at the JCC on Jan. 23; and “Exodus 91,” screening at the University of Richmond Jan. 28. Tickets to individual films are $12 to $15, and a festival pass for all six is $60 to $75.
—Nicole Cohen, Arts & Entertainment Editor
Funky Fowl
Jam bands have a special home in Richmond, thanks to our love of long nights of live music and dancing. We have another chance to jam out when funk purveyors Pigeons Playing Ping Pong take the stage at The National on Friday, Jan. 19, and Saturday, Jan. 20. The band, originally from Baltimore, most recently released “Perspective,” their sixth studio album. Their two nights at The National will be supported by jammy, funky contemporaries Yam Yam on the 20th, and Saxsquatch, who, as the name implies, is a saxophone-playing Bigfoot and is best seen to be believed. Doors open at 7 p.m. for both shows; tickets are $30 for Friday night and $35 for Saturday.
—Kevin Johnson, Lifestyle Editor
A Poe-fectly Good Time
Guess who’s turning 215 years old and has a streaming series on Netflix? It’s Edgar Allan Poe, and The Poe Museum is throwing a Birthday Bash for him from 4 to 10 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 20, under a big heated tent in the Enchanted Garden. You’ll see his early life performed in song and story by the amazing Coldharts, move to the zombie surf rock of The Embalmers, experience a talk by author Scott Peeples about Poe as a denizen of cities, and groove to the mysterious jazz stylings of the Charles Owens Trio. If you’ve never been, there’s the museum itself, which is like a Poe story that is full of clues about his life — and unsolved death. This event will send the tintinnabulations right through you. Tickets are $15.
—Harry Kollatz Jr., Senior Writer
Other Suggestions
- Randolph-Macon College hosts an MLK Community Choir Performance on Jan. 15.
- Petersburg’s Tabernacle Baptist Church hosts an MLK Day of Service on Jan. 15.
- Music, poetry and art combine for a National Day of Racial Healing Concert at the Virginia Museum of History & Culture on Jan. 16.
- Broadway in Richmond presents “Annie” at the Altria Theater, Jan. 16-21.
- Hanover Tavern hosts ParaCon, a fun weekend of paranormal investigation benefiting the tavern, Jan. 19-20.
- Learn about “Poe in the Time of Cholera” at the Parsons Community Center at Meadow Farm, Jan. 20.
River City Roundup is Richmond magazine’s weekly compilation of the best things to see, do and experience in the region, compiled by our editors. Get each week’s installment directly in your inbox every Monday by subscribing to our e-newsletter.
