River City Roundup: Jan. 30, 2023

It’s the first week of February, a month for lovers, including African American history lovers. In the coming days, A Soldier’s Play continues at the Swift Creek Mill Theater, the Firehouse Theater hosts a tribute to jazz pioneer Charles Mingus, and a local comic artist talks about his new book. Enjoy!

Set in an army camp in Louisiana in the 1940s, A Soldier’s Play focuses on themes that are still relevant today. The show, which premiered in 1981 and was filmed in 1984, recently ran on Broadway and is set to become a limited TV series. The story reveals the complex relationships between African American soldiers in the shadow of white supremacy and segregation. The play runs at the Swift Creek Mill Theater through March 4. Tickets cost $30.

– Craig Belcher, Arts and Entertainment Editor

Randall Monroe, author of the “xkcd” webcomic and a graduate of Clover Hill High School in Midlothian, will be speaking online with the Chesterfield County Public Library Tuesday, January 31 at 2:00 p.m. about his new book, What If? 2: Additional serious scientific answers to absurd hypothetical questions.” In it, Munroe attempts to answer bizarre questions like “What would happen if you rode a rod of fire from the moon to Earth?” Online registration for the hour-long free discussion is required.

—Mark Newton, News Editor

Cairo-based music multihyphenate Nadah el Shazly is bringing her stylings to VCU’s Institute for Contemporary Art on Friday, February 3 at 7 p.m. Combining the traditional with the innovative, el Shazly describes a soundscape that invites exploration of time and space. In their magical blend lies an open invitation to the unusual. hearing is believing. Grooving is free.

—Harry Kollatz Jr., senior author

Say goodbye pork pie hat and welcome an evening of jazz for a good cause at the Mingus Awareness Project ALS Benefit Concert at 7:30pm on Sunday 5th February at the Firehouse Theatre. Performers include Schoolwork by Adam Hopkins, the Doug Richards Orchestra and Michael Hawkins and the Brotherhood. The performance commemorates the great jazz star Charles Mingus, who battled Lou Gehrig’s disease (also known as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, or ALS) and died in 1979. The progressive disease impairs muscle control and robs people of their bodily functions; it is always fatal and there is no cure. Admission is $20-$30 and benefits the ALS Association, which helps people with ALS and their families.

—Tharon Giddens, general editor

Other suggestions

River City Roundup is Richmond Magazine’s weekly roundup of the best things to see, do and experience in the area, curated by our editors. Get each week’s rate straight to your inbox every Monday by subscribing to our e-newsletter.

by Richmond Magazine staff

January 30, 2023

8:30 AM