MAGAZINES & BOOKS




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Review | ‘As You Like It’ is Just How I like It

If you’ve been reading these reviews for a while, you’ll notice I love me some context. Especially surrounding William Shakespeare’s plays. One of my favorite things about the existence of Richmond Shakespeare is that they’ve forced me to go back to the English Lit...

IllumiNATION Tells America’s Story on a Monumental Scale

Editor’s Note: RVA Magazine is partnering with the Virginia Museum of History & Culture on coverage related to America’s 250th anniversary, including Richmond SailFest and IllumiNation. It's hard to impress people with just a building. Yet standing in front of the...

Blöthar: “GWAR Didn’t Change. The World Freakin Changed.”

Richmond metal band GWAR says the Secret Service contacted the group following a recent performance at the Vans Warped Tour in Washington, D.C., that featured the mock execution of a Donald Trump effigy. Video of the performance, which showed band members...

Review | ‘Come From Away’ is the Best We’ve Ever Been

Do you remember the rollerblading guy with the American flag kit on September 12th? We will never forget the 11th for the horrors, but do you remember the 12th? The 13th? If you do, I don’t even have to say which year. If you don’t, let me tell you a little bit about...

Before Richmond Was an Arts City, There Was Best Products

Imagine pulling into a suburban shopping center to buy a toaster and finding a department store that appeared to be falling apart with corners breaking away, walls peeling open like a giant cardboard box, or facades seemingly collapsing under their own weight. For...

Review | ‘I Love You Because’ Is Pure Joy 🏳️‍🌈

It could be said that Shakespeare invented the rom-com. It could also be said that Jane Austen improved it a couple of centuries later. Between the two of them, meet-cutes, notices of love or rejection arriving at exactly the wrong time, and breathless affirmations of...

Stay Hungry pt. 1 | Band on the Road

Editor's Note: Writer's Block is a space for Virginia writers to share personal essays, fiction, memoir, and works that fall somewhere in between. In Stay Hungry, Richmond local Eric Kalata looks back on a cross-country tour and the restless optimism of...

Local, Latino and A New Richmond Cosmos

Tucked into the alley behind 2512 West Main Street, a fever dream of the cosmos has taken shape across a brick wall. The mural is the collaborative work of four Latino artists working in and around Richmond: Visibly Hidden, Monolith, Mars, and Sol. A distant Earth...

It’s Still Our City | Ep. 16 Mickael Broth aka The Night Owl

"Mickael Broth is an artist, muralist, sculptor, writer, father, husband, skateboarder, and climber, quite the talented bloke. He’s created hundreds of public works of art across the country and around the world. A recipient of the VMFA Professional Fellowship, his work has been commissioned by hundreds of clients. The man stays busy, and I know...

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From The Village Cafe to Literary Fame: Tom Robbins Dies at 92

Tom Robbins, the celebrated author known for his whimsical storytelling and philosophical wit, passed away on February 9, 2025, at the age of 92 in La Conner, Washington. Though he became a literary icon in the Pacific Northwest, Robbins' formative years in Richmond, Virginia, played a significant role in shaping his worldview and creative voice....

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Interview with Sailor Moon! Terri Hawkes Came to Richmond

If you were a child growing up in the mid to late nineties and loved anime, it is without question you would recognize Terri Hawkes’ iconic voice. Most well known as one of the original three voice actresses of Sailor Moon in the English language dub (Tracey Moore would be the first, leaving for creative differences, followed by Hawkes, and then...

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Killer Mike to Speak on Free Expression at University of Richmond

Three-time Grammy-winning rapper and activist Michael Santiago Render, better known as Killer Mike, will be a featured panelist in an upcoming discussion on the future of free expression, hosted by the University of Richmond. Co-moderated by UR liberal arts professor Erik Nielson, Mad Skillz and journalist Bonnie Newman Davis, the panel will...

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Milk River Arts: A Sanctuary of Creativity for Disabled Artists

After the death of his father and his retirement from the military, Aly Costanzo felt lost. That changed when his sister found Milk River Arts. “It gave me a purpose,” Costanzo said. “I really had no purpose. My sister found (founder Sally Kemp) for me, and Sally started Milk River Arts from scratch.” Photo courtesy of Milk River Arts Milk River...

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