Illumination of the Jewish experience through story is what CJFF is all about. Read my preview of  season 9 here at Charlotte Viewpoint.

Check out my road trip take on Charleston, SC here at Charlotte Viewpoint.

Very few new ideas or fresh thinking came from the five former Charlotte mayors who gathered to address the city’s future. IMHO at Charlotte Viewpoint.

Read my interview with the iconic American actress and comedienne here.

The DNC 2012 took Charlotte by storm .. some observations here at Charlotte Viewpoint.

Read my interview and  profile on legendary Broadway Diva, Jennifer Holliday here at Charlotte ViewPoint.

Charlotte knows Andreas Bechtler as a collector, philanthropist and for the museum of contemporary art that bears his family name. I speak with him about his own creations, here at Charlotte Viewpoint.

Rick Lyon has  worked on Sesame Street and on television and film projects for Columbia Pictures, New Line Cinema, ABC, CBS, The Disney Channel, Nickelodeon, Comedy Central, VH1, and Fox. In addition to performing, Lyon also designs and builds custom puppets, including the puppets for the Tony Award-winning musical Avenue Q on Broadway, where he was also a member of the original cast.

Read my interview with him here at Charlotte ViewPoint.

Two legitimate questions regarding the 2012 DNC Convention. Read the answers here at Charlotte Viewpoint.

Read my review of MOMIX Botanica here.

5000 years ancient Chinese culture art, dance all in one evening. Here at Charlotte Viewpoint.

Charlotte news anchor, reporter and filmmaker Steve Crump shares his thoughts on documentary film making, storytelling and his latest work, Sojourn of the Strings.

The film explores the journey of the banjo from slave cabins on the plantation, through the minstrel era, into Appalachia and eventually into the hands of folk legend Pete Seeger, North Carolina’s Joe Thompson, and the Carolina Chocolate Drops.

Profiled here at Charlotte ViewPoint.

2004 Nobel Prize winner for Chemistry, Dr Aaron Ciechanover, entertained several hundred area high school children in a dialogue sponsored by the Echo Foundation. read what he had to say here at Charlotte ViewPoint.

Violins of Hope is a compelling story of perseverance and one man’s desire to restore voice to musical instruments who saw unimaginable horrors. Read my story here at Charlotte Viewpoint.

UNCC Dance faulty member Kim Jones recreates the lost Martha Graham Masterwork- Imperial Gesture. Here at Charlotte Viewpoint.

Marcus Hamilton, the illustrator of “Dennis the Menace” daily panels since 1994 when he took over from Hank Ketcham, sat down with me to discuss his career from a by-mail illustration school to the iconic strip he still loves today. Even crotchety old Mr. Wilson may crack a smile at this one.

Read about his incredible journey here.

The Classic International Black Cinema Series at the Gantt Center for African American Art & Culture shows the depth and breadth of Black film. Read my profile here.

The Charlotte Jewish Film Festival has matured significantly after eight years, read my preview here at Charlotte Viewpoint.

Tina Fabrique brings the First Lady Of Song, Ella Fitzgerald, alive in her performance of Ella.  Read my profile/preview here.

Why not enjoy your own city on its own terms? My opinion on comparing apples and oranges, here at Charlotte Viewpoint.

Read my interview with Olympic Medalist, Paul Wylie here.

Charlotte based Susie Films explores the national debt in this revealing documentary - here at Charlotte Viewpoint.

Long before Snooki or ‘the Situation,’  Another type of youthful cool swept the Jersey shore. Read my preview of Jersey Boys here in Charlotte Viewpoint.

It has been more than forty-five years since Alvin Ailey, a product of itinerant, working class Texan parents, founded his eponymous company and introduced the world to an innovative dance troupe that celebrated the African-American experience in a time in America when there was little for the black audience to celebrate.

Read my preview of their celebration tour here.

What happens when I get turned loose during the Democratic National Convention with my pal, videographer Donald Devet? Watch here at Charlotte Viewpoint.

Standing as a vibrant cultural crossroads in the Charlotte community for the past 22 years, Shalom Park is a unique contributor to the texture and fabric of urban life in the Queen City. Heralded through-out the city as a signpost of interfaith relations and a cornerstone to the community’s diverse religious and cultural heritage, this cooperative effort provides the Charlotte metro area with an array of educational, religious, recreational, entertainment, cultural, and community service offerings.

Read more of my piece here.

Charlotte Jazz bassist Ron Brendle eschews categorization. Check out this profile at Charlotte Viewpoint.

Illuminating the global Jewish experience through film is no small task, yet it’s an ambitious mark the organizers of Charlotte’s Jewish Film Festival have hit again with their seventh season in the Queen City.

Read my preview here.

Read my interview with Tom Murray here at Charlotte Viewpoint.

She stands by her man.. even though he has a split personality. Here at Charlotte Viewpoint.

“The lesson in the story is so much more than just to follow your dream; it’s really to work to change the world around you.” I interview Billy Elliot writer Lee Hall and discusses Radio Theatre, the autobiographical elements of Billy Elliot, and Hall’s thoughts on working with Sir Elton John. Here at Charlotte ViewPoint.

For more than 16 years, Terri Bennett provided nightly weather forecasts to the Charlotte, NC, television market as a meteorologist and station scientist. From 2004 to 2007, she also penned a daily newspaper column, “Earth, Stars and Skies,” in the Charlotte Observer newspaper where she answered readers’ questions about all things science. After leaving the television business in 2007, Terri’s passion for the environment created the Do Your Part® idea and its core mission. Terri wanted the world to know that going green is easy, economical, and important. In 2010, DoYourPart.com was launched due to a growing demand for consumer-friendly eco-content.

I interview Terri here.

Fighting the caustic erosion of the ordinary – this one suburbanite strikes back in my fictional short, Express Train Uptown. Published at Charlotte Viewpoint here.

Manoj P. Kesavan & Faron Franks have started it now. Read my piece at Charlotte Viewpoint on their latest collaborative project here.

Thriving in the new economy means new ways of approaching patrons, donors. Some examples from the National Arts Marketing Project conference held in Charlotte.

Read my interview with LIT front-man Ari Picker here at Charlotte ViewPoint.

Growing up on North Carolina’s Crystal Coast, Linda Midgett did not envision her father’s job as a harbor pilot playing a pivotal role in launching her career as a documentary filmmaker and television producer. Filming and interviewing her father and other family members working the port at Morehead City turned out to be precisely the initial production experience that eventually led to her Emmy-winning role work as the co-executive producer of the acclaimed daytime television series, “Starting Over.”

Read my profile here.

Entrepreneurial juggernaut Manoj Govindian is at the heart of several purpose driven capital initiatives in Charlotte. Read my interview with him here at Charlotte Viewpoint.

Like the junction of several challenging words in the Sunday Times puzzle, the intertwined pursuits of Charlotte musical artist Claire Ritter require careful sequencing in order to occupy just the right space on her busy palate. Possessing more talent than can be confined to a singular label, Ritter’s artistic travels involve composing, teaching, performing, and recording her music. These are but a few of the journeys Ritter undertakes, often simultaneously.

Her profile is here.

Read my review of this gripping one man show here in Charlotte ViewPoint.

Read my preview of Harry Connick Jr.’s recent Charlotte performance here.

Watching Vic Mignogna address a packed ballroom of screaming anime fans, I couldn’t help but be impressed at how he connected with each of the 400 or so mostly-teenage girls in a personal and almost visceral way.

Mignogna was in Charlotte  as a headliner appearing at Ichibancon, Charlotte’s  anime and manga convention.

Read my profile here.

Valaida Fullwood and Charles W. Thomas’ new book, Giving Back; A Tribute to Generations of African American Philanthropists is a remarkable achievement. Read my preview here at Charlotte Viewpoint.

Local filmmaker Bev Penninger produces an outstanding documentary – a must see with your kids. Read my preview here in Charlotte ViewPoint.

Engage Charlotte is a vehicle for young professionals to connect to the QC. Check out my piece in Charlotte Viewpoint here.

Read my interview with WTVI president, Elsie Garner here at Charlotte Viewpoint.

My opinion piece on a very real and critically important public health issue is here at Charlotte Viewpoint.

Few conversations in Charlotte envision the theater as community. Charlotte is not a string of suburbs in search of a city like many American burghs of comparable size. We are a grouping of eclectic and diverse neighborhoods from NoDa, to Chantilly, First and Fourth Wards, Elizabeth, and beyond. Performance art that represents the diverse cultures and fabric of the growing region isn’t often found in touring Broadway productions or at Uptown’s larger venues.

I explore Machine Theater, a small experimental company here.

There is perhaps no other American song in history that has played a more iconic role in modern popular culture than “White Christmas.” Penned by a Russian/Jewish immigrant Irving Berlin, “White Christmas” had a starring role in at least three celebrated Hollywood films. Making its debut in Holiday Inn, the tune also received airtime in Blue Skies as well as in the Technicolor film White Christmas, which was released nearly twelve years after the creation of the wildly successful  song.

Read my preview of White Christmas, The Musical which includes a chat with veteran stage actress Ruth Williamson  here.

P. Scott Cunningham is a cool cat who has his way with words. Read how The McColl Center for Visual Art showcases this literary artist in Charlotte. Here in  my piece at Charlotte Viewpoint.

While the likelihood of Charlotte overtaking Cannes as a premier Film Festival destination is remote, area movie buffs are licking their chops nonetheless for ten days of fine films come March; that is when the Charlotte Jewish Film Festival kicks off with a compact but eclectic and inviting selection of cinema in a format that offers one huge advantage the big festivals typically don’t have: accessibility.

See my entire preview here.

Dreamgirls is nothing if not a spectacle on a very grand scale. It is rare to see a Broadway performance rely so heavily on lighting and special effects provided by thousands of overworked high definition pixels framing and defining every scene. The ceiling to stage panels dazzle at every turn, initially creating the smoky and soft glow of New York’s Apollo and carrying the performance through brilliantly vibrant multi-colored backdrops.

Read the entire review here.

Charlotte Actor’s Theatre delivers fun syrupy pop with a few missteps in this performance of The Marvelous Wonderettes. My review at Charlotte Viewpoint here.

As CV turns 10 years old, this piece reflects on its origins.

Read my preview of the return of iconic British Pop star – Elvis Costello. Here at Charlotte Viewpoint.

All things Romare Bearden roar into high gear in the QC. Read my homage to our native son here at Charlotte Viewpoint.

My homage to the passing of Any Griffith. Here at Charlotte Viewpoint.

Charlotte is making the national map because of our science museum. Really. Check out my piece at Charlotte Viewpoint on Discovery Place here.

Read my preview of the North American touring show of CATS. Here at Charlotte ViewPoint.

What’s the real cost of Reality TV? I sound off at Charlotte ViewPoint here.

Theater for very young targets tots from six months to three years. There is plenty for the kid in all of us As I recently discovered at PlayPlay! Charlotte’s answer to the European Baby Theater craze. My piece at Charlotte ViewPoint is here.

Since its opening in 1933, the annual Radio City Music Hall Christmas Spectacular has become the gold-standard in holiday entertainment and a quintessential New York City Christmastime experience. With over 200 performances during its eight-week run from November through December, and as many as six performances per day, the show is seen by more than one million people – more than all other Broadway shows combined for the entire year.

Read my review of this fabulous show here.