The week ahead offers a plethora of events that will please a variety of interests. Lovers of design and architecture can tour the Richmond Symphony League Designer House, cinema buffs can get their fill during the four-day Afrikana Independent Film Festival, foodies can head out to Powhatan State Park for the inaugural Pawpaw Festival, and much more. Enjoy!
Open House
It’s opening day: After a year of restoration and the recent creative endeavors of 23 Richmond decorators and designers, the Richmond Symphony League Designer House at the Taylor Estate, 2325 Monument Ave., is now open for daily tours through Oct. 9. If you’re looking for decorating ideas or just love great interior design, the 20-plus reimagined spaces in the elegant Italian Renaissance Revival-style mansion designed by W. Duncan Lee are sure to inspire. Must-see details include exquisite architectural plaster and woodwork on the walls and ceilings, the sweeping grand staircase, a trellised garden room, original bath fixtures, and the newly updated kitchen wing. Tours are $40 per person. Lunch is offered in the Designer House cafe located in the original garage. Proceeds benefit the Richmond Symphony.
—Susan Morgan, R•Home Managing Editor
Chiller on the River
Originally from Richmond, Clay McLeod Chapman is a New York-based author of shocker-chiller-horror stories as well as a multihyphenate purveyor of the weird and wonderful; Esquire magazine recently named him one of the next generation of leading writers in the genre. His latest terrifying tale, “What Kind of Mother,” is launching at Fountain Bookstore Tuesday, Sept. 12, with an author discussion led by the poet Ryan Kent. The story is set in a small town along the Piankatank River, where Madi Price has spun in after 17 years away to bring her daughter closer to her father. She ekes out the rent on a grotty motel room by reading palms and giving spiritual advice. Those circumstances alone could make for a fine novel, but Chapman has other eldritch ideas. Advisory: not a book to read after eating seafood. Admission is free, but registration is required.
—Harry Kollatz Jr., Senior Writer
A Celebration of Cinema
The eighth annual Afrikana Independent Film Festival, Sept. 14-17, is packed with events and film screenings that support and elevate Black creatives and culture. The festival opens with the Diasporic Fork Tasting Event at Buna Kurs Ethiopian Cafe on Sept. 14 and continues the following day with the Taste of Liberation Dinner sit-down meal and film screening at The Valentine with special guest Tarriona “Tank” Ball of the New Orleans-based band Tank and the Bangas. Film screenings on Sept. 16 include Jalen Adams’ “Leviathan,” an exploration of African American identity, at Ada Gallery; Nancy Mac Granaky-Quaye’s “Homeshoppers’ Paradise,” an examination of capitalist society, at Common House Richmond; and the premiere of Afrikana’s first Script-to-Screen Residency film, “Ninki Nanka” by Chester native Revel, which will close out the “Sawubona: A Tale of Two Souths” program at the Institute for Contemporary Art at Virginia Commonwealth University.
—Nicole Cohen, Arts & Entertainment Editor
Stray CAT Strut
Chamberlayne Actors Theatre kicks off its Stray CAT season — so called because the company will be roaming to various venues — with “Meteor Shower,” a comedy by Steve Martin. Set during “a crazy, starlit dinner party” outside Los Angeles, “the wildly unexpected occurs … and insanity reigns” during a show intended for mature audiences. It runs Sept. 16-29 at Brightpoint Community College in Midlothian. Tickets are $22 to $24.
—Mindy Kinsey, Editorial Director
Hello, Pawpaw
As soon as the oblong pawpaw is spotted in our local woods, social media threads drive a foraging frenzy for this northernmost tropical fruit. Late-summer to early fall delicacies that can be found along the banks of the James River, pawpaws are back for their very brief annual appearance. A custardy native fruit with hints of banana, mango and soursop, it’s one of the most coveted culinary bites and, for those who haven’t had it, one of the most intriguing. Whether you’d like to know more or you’re an avid pawpaw enthusiast in favor of any reason to celebrate the fruit, Powhatan State Park is hosting its inaugural Pawpaw Festival on Sept. 16. The day promises live music, guided tours from park rangers and the chance to purchase pawpaw fruit, in tree form and even in a beer. There’s a park entry fee of $5, and festival tickets are $5.
—Eileen Mellon, Food Editor
Other Suggestions
- Commemorating the 22nd anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks, the Virginia War Memorial is hosting The Commonwealth of Virginia’s Patriot Day Ceremony on Sept. 11.
- Russ Ford and Todd C. Peppers discuss their book, “Crossing the River Styx: The Memoir of a Death Row Chaplain,” at the Library of Virginia on Sept. 14.
- The Cultural Arts Center at Glen Allen hosts an opening reception for four new exhibitions (“Adventures of Misfits,” Environment at Risk,” “A Wrinkle in Time” and “Clotho’s Handspinners”) on Sept. 14.
- Originally from Richmond, rapper McKinley Dixon returns home Sept. 15 for a performance at Gallery5, fresh off the release of his “Beloved! Paradise! Jazz!?” album.
- Indie folk musician Eli Lev performs at Garden Grove Brewing and Urban Winery on Sept. 15.
- The Town of Ashland, Ashland Museum and Hanover County Black Heritage Society present the Ashland Train Centennial Celebration Sept. 14 and 16.
- The holidays may still be months away, but it’s time to register for your visit with Soul Santa at the Black History Museum & Cultural Center of Virginia. Appointments are available for Dec. 2, 9 and 16 and will sell out quickly.
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.
