Summer fun may look different this year, but there are still opportunities to kick back and unplug from the relentless news cycle of 2020. This week you can get help with your garden, enjoy some classical music, visit the drive-in to revisit ’80s classics or take a walking tour of Richmond haunts.
Garden Help
It’s never been easier to consult a master gardener about your gardening issues. Join Hanover County Extension Agent Laura Maxey Nay and Hanover Master Gardener volunteers for their Virtual Home Gardening workshop, an interactive webinar via Zoom, on Thursday, July 9, at 3 p.m. A virtual version of the Hanover Cooperative and Hanover Master Gardeners’ weekly Home Gardening Series, the weekly webinars have covered topics such as vegetable gardening, vertical arched trellis gardening, boxwood blight and more. If you can’t make the live class, the session will be recorded and posted online.
—Susan Morgan, R•Home Managing Editor
RSO Summer Series
Richmond Symphony will kick off Comfort & Joy, its six-week online Beethoven Summer Recital Series, on Thursday, July 9. The series, hosted in collaboration with the University of Richmond Department of Music and VCU Arts’ Department of Music, will commemorate Beethoven’s 250th birthday. The concerts will feature six one-hour duets of a single instrument paired with piano. These intimate performances will be livestreamed on a private, secure channel, and concerts will remain available online to ticket holders for an additional six days after the live performance. Tickets are $12 each or $60 for a subscription to all six.
—Jessica Ronky Haddad, Editorial Director
Virtual French Film Fest
With the French Film Festival postponed to 2021 and its venue, the Byrd Theatre, still closed to moviegoers, the Byrd’s Virtual French Film Series may be the closest we’re going to get to such experiences for a while. Originally set to run from May 27 through June 9, it’s been extended, and its selection of 10 films, available to rent online at prices from $4.99 to $18, presents worthy alternatives to your usual streaming diet. Highlights include 1955’s classic heist noir “Rififi”; the 2019 South by Southwest Grand Jury winner, “Alice,” the tale of a mother who turns to high-priced sex work after her husband blows all their money on escorts; “The Perfect Nanny,” a thriller about a (surprise!) less-than-perfect nanny that adapts Leïla Slimani’s prizewinning novel of the same name; and “Deerskin,” which stars Oscar winner Jean Dujardin as a man whose love for his deerskin jacket leads him to some odd — and occasionally homicidal — places.
—Chad Anderson, Copy Editor-at-Large
Goochland Drive-in
Director Tim Burton is a master of managing onscreen anarchy, exemplified in two of his best (and earliest) films, “Beetlejuice” (1988) and “Pee-wee’s Big Adventure” (1985), the double feature screening Thursday, July 9, at the Goochland Drive-in Theater. Burton’s quirks and gift for dark whimsy are evident in each, from the afterlife waiting room in “Beetlejuice” to Pee-wee’s paranormal encounter with Large Marge. Pandemic guidelines are in place and include advance ticket sales online at $20, which is for a carload of up to seven. They’re selling snacks, too.
—Tharon Giddens, Lifestyle Editor
The Ghosts Come Out
For those looking to get out of the house not quite ready to visit an indoor attraction, a walking tour may be a good option. Learn about the city’s haunted history when Haunts of Richmond resumes walking tours this month. Experience the popular “Shadows of Shockoe Ghost Tour” on July 8, 10, 11 and 12; and the “Haunted Capitol Hill Ghost Tour” on July 11. Hear paranormal reports from your “ghost host” as you visit spots such as the Old Stone House, the site of the Church Hill tunnel collapse and the Virginia State Capitol. Due to COVID-19, tours are limited to eight people (though this number is being reevaluated as the commonwealth enters phase three of the governor’s reopening plan). Guides and participants must wear masks and maintain social distancing, and tour hosts will use microphones if needed. Tickets must be purchased in advance.
—Nicole Cohen, Special Projects Editor
Other Suggestions
- The Library of Virginia reopens its reading rooms to researchers by appointment beginning Tuesday, July 7.
- Science Shorts Every Tuesday at 10 a.m., the Science Museum of Virginia offers a new short video explaining a science topic via a demonstration or activity.
- RVA Baroque at the Branch On July 11, the Branch Museum of Architecture & Design partners with RVA Baroque for socially distanced music in the garden and Long Gallery.
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.