Here are some of the top events around Southwest and Southside for the coming week. Check out our new events calendar. Got an event? You can add it there for free. Want to keep up with what’s happening? Sign up here for our free weekly events newsletter.
Dec. 7 and beyond: Danville holiday light show
Danville Parks and Recreation kicks off its 10th annual Community Holiday Light Show on Thursday.
The event, which runs through Dec. 23, will include photos with Santa, activities and refreshments. Several nights will offer special activities inside Children’s Village; check Danville Parks and Recreation on Facebook for more details.
The show at Historic Ballou Park runs each night from 6 to 9 p.m., and admission is $10 per car or $20 per mini-bus or 15-passenger van.
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Dec. 8: ‘From China to Appalachia’ and beyond at UVA Wise
Grammy Award-winning American roots artists Cathy Fink and Marcy Marxer will join Chinese classical hammered dulcimer player Chao Tian for a lecture and show at the University of Virginia’s College at Wise on Friday.
The trio will give a lecture and demonstration at 1 p.m. in Cantrell Hall, with a performance that combines music “From China to Appalachia” and beyond to follow at 7 p.m.
Both events are free and open to the public. For more information and to make reservations
please visit proartva.org.
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Dec. 8: Holiday Brass in Roanoke
The Roanoke Symphony Brass will play a holiday concert at 7 p.m. Friday at Cave Spring United Methodist Church.
Under the direction of Jay Crone, Holiday Brass will feature a wide range of holiday favorites.
Tickets start at $34 and are available online.
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Dec. 8: Tickets for the Oak Ridge Boys’ farewell tour in Rocky Mount
The Harvester Performance Center will welcome the Grammy Award-winning Oak Ridge Boys to the stage Aug. 16, as part of the ensemble’s farewell tour. Tickets go on sale Friday.
Group members Duane Allen, Joe Bonsall, William Lee Golden and Richard Sterban are celebrating their 50th anniversary this year and announced the tour in September.
Tickets start at $127 and will go on sale at 10 a.m. at harvester-music.com.
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Dec. 9: Mountain Blessings and Nobody’s Business at New River Community College
The music of Mountain Blessings and Nobody’s Business will be featured during New River Community College’s Concert Series event on Saturday.
Music will begin at 6 p.m. in 117 Edwards Hall on the college’s campus in Dublin.
Mountain Blessings is a bluegrass and bluegrass gospel band from around Mount Airy, North Carolina. The band plays mostly classic bluegrass, while including a couple of newer artists such as LRB and Balsam Range.
Nobody’s Business is an old-time band from the Grayson Highlands. All of the members have spent their lives playing, performing and teaching traditional mountain music.
The doors open at 5 p.m. for the show. Admission is free, but donations will be accepted to help offset travel expenses for the musicians. For more information about the concert series, visit www.nr.edu/concerts.
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Dec. 9: The Isaacs Christmas concert at the Lincoln Theatre in Marion
“Christmas with The Isaacs,” featuring the multi-award-winning family group, will take the stage at 7 p.m. Saturday at the Lincoln Theatre in Marion.
The Isaacs, who toured this year with Reba McIntire, bring a unique blend of bluegrass, Southern gospel and country influences.
Tickets start at $30. For tickets or more information, visit www.thelincoln.org or call the box office at 276-783-6092.
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Dec. 9: ‘A Celtic Christmas’ in Daleville
“A Celtic Christmas,” featuring Irish music group Kinnfolk and special guests Appalachian Piping Academy, will be held at 7 p.m. Saturday at St. Mark’s United Methodist Church in Daleville.
Tickets are $20 and free for children under 5. All proceeds from the concert will support the Agape Center in their efforts to aid families in need in the Roanoke area and the ministry
programs at St. Mark’s.
For more details and ticket information, visit the ticketing page at https://www.eventbrite.com/e/736884440197 or the event page on Facebook.
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Dec. 10: Old Pros Big Band Orchestra in Christiansburg
The Old Pros Big Band Orchestra of New River Community College will present holiday music from 1 to 3 p.m. Sunday at Uptown Christiansburg Mall.
Admission is free, and donations will be accepted to the NRCC Educational Foundation to
support the band.
The band, under the direction of Dean Chiapetto, plays music from the Big Band Era as well as more modern sounds. The Old Pros are celebrating their 50th year.
For more information about the Old Pros and to view their concert schedule, visit
www.nr.edu/oldpros/.
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Dec. 10: One-man ‘Christmas Carol’ at the Lincoln Theatre in Marion
John Hardy brings his one-man rendition of “A Christmas Carol” to Marion’s Lincoln Theatre at 3 p.m. Sunday.
In this intimate production, Hardy embodies all the characters from Ebenezer Scrooge to Tiny Tim. Tickets are $7 to $10. For tickets or more information, visit www.thelincoln.org or call the box office at 276-783-6092.
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Dec. 12: Handel’s ‘Messiah’ in Roanoke
The Roanoke Symphony Chorus and Baroque Virtuosi, led by David Stewart Wiley, present Handel’s “Messiah: Part One,” “Christmas” and “Hallelujah” at 7 p.m. Dec. 12 at Shaftman Performance Hall.
Tickets start at $28 and are available online.
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Dec. 14: Bobby Rush headlines ‘Farm and Fun Time’
Two-time Grammy winner and Blues Hall of Famer Bobby Rush headlines WBCM Radio Bristol’s Farm and Fun Time at 7 p.m. Dec. 14 at the Birthplace of Country Music Museum in Bristol.
Country rock outfit Cole Ritter & The Night Owls will also perform.
At age 90, Bobby Rush continues to be an electrifying performer, songwriter and composer with a pedigree that took him from the juke joints of the deep South to blues clubs of Chicago.
Tickets are on sale now for $40 to be part of the live studio audience; to purchase and for more information visit the Events page at BirthplaceOfCountryMusic.org.
Farm and Fun Time broadcasts live on WBCM Radio Bristol at 100.1 FM in the Bristol area with streaming available on the station’s Facebook page, at ListenRadioBristol.org and through the station’s free mobile app. The program will record live for later broadcast on Blue Ridge PBS, East Tennessee PBS and PBS North Carolina.
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Dec. 14: ‘Soultown to Motown’ in Lynchburg
The Academy Center of the Arts in Lynchburg has added a second performance of “Soultown to Motown” on Dec. 14.
“Soultown to Motown” focuses on iconic classic soul and Motown music from the period generally from the birth of Motown in 1960 to the release of Michael Jackson’s “Thriller” album in 1983.
The show features 11 performers including a horn section, a keyboardist, four vocalists and a rhythm section.
Tickets are $19 to $63 and are on sale now. For more information or to buy tickets, call the ticketing office at 434-846-8499 or visit AcademyCenter.Org.