The second half of the evening will be an improv challenge between the two with audience participation. Comedy Night begins at 8 p.m. at 329 West Main in Downtown Waynesboro.

The College For Bears is composed of comedians Steve Howze and Josh Blubaugh. Their two-man improv performance is an opportunity for the comics to give full rein to their imaginations. Reviewers have called their improv performances, “Like fire eating but in reverse.”

Broken Monocle trio has over 25 years of experience among them. Together Johnny Mac, Eve Privman and Jim Zarling are the very definition of an improv supergroup. Not content with just being funny, they up the ante by challenging themselves with serious subject matter or placing time constraints on their scene work. Whatever they do, you can believe it will be something you’ve never seen before.

Tickets are $10 for Comedy Night and are available online at www.wtagateway.com or by calling 540-943-9999. Remaining tickets will be available at the box office on the night of performances.

Shenandoah Valley Art Center offers a Summer Art Camp for Kids. Week one will be held at the art center, July 16 – 20, 10:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m. for kids ages 6 – 11, and will focus on several different projects ranging from sculpture to painting.  Week two will be held at the Lyndhurst ceramic studio of Lynn Hilton Conyers.  The class will be held July 23, 24, 26 and 27, 9:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. or 1:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m. All materials are provided as part of a handbuilding and wheel throwing clay experience for kids ages 6 and older. Art Camp is perfect for imaginative young artists who love art! Contact the art center for specific information and pre-registration.  Open studio opportunities in the Virginia Ross Education Studio are available to printmakers and ceramic artists.  Apply online at www.SVACart.com.

The Fall Foliage Festival Art Show application for the show to be held on October 13 and 14 is online and available to professional artists.  Recently the show was voted one of the top three art events in Virginia by “Virginia Living” readers.

The Shenandoah Valley Art Center is located in downtown Waynesboro at 126 S. Wayne Avenue.  Galleries are open to the public 10am to 4pm Tuesday through Saturday.  For more information, call (540) 949-7662 or visit www.svacart.com

Lip Service to Literature (L2L) -  A reading discussion group for ages 13 and up.  The book selection is the New York Times bestseller Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs.  Copies of the book will be provided by the library for just $3.00 while supplies last.  Receive a goodie bag for each L2L discussion attended.  Please sign up.

Book-A-Trip – Read Unruly Americans & the Origins of the Constitution by Woody Holton. Books are available for purchase at the library. Bus trip to Montpellier, Madison’s beautiful home in September.

Tuesday June 5, 3:00 p.m. – Scrabble Club. For ages 13 and up but all skill levels are welcome. More seasoned players should bring their own board. Please sign up.

Saturday, June 9, 2:00 p.m. – David M. Goetz speaks on the Civil War and about his new book, “Hell is Being a Republican in Virginia”: The Postwar Relationship Between John Singleton Mosby and Ulysses S. Grant. Book sales and signings following his presentation.

Monday, June 11, 9:00 a.m.–5:00 p.m. – Open House to showcase the library renovations and feature a ribbon cutting ceremony, donor recognition, and “Giving Tree” unveiling. Tours, refreshments, children’s activities and performances held throughout the day.

Tuesday, June 12, 12:00 p.m. – Music at the Library. The Frog Pond Pickers perform bluegrass and country. Free pizza provided.

Saturday, June 16, 11:00 a.m., 12:00 p.m., or 1:00 p.m. -  Cosmic Adventures. Kick off the Summer Reading Program by entering our astronomy dome for a panoramic tour of the universe.  Visit stars, planets, and tour deep space before returning to earth.  Free but tickets required.

Wednesday, June 20, 2:00 p.m. – Book Club. Fascinating and far ranging discussion with other book lovers. The book is provided, participants vote on selections, and a staff member leads the discussion. Call the library for this month’s selection.

Wednesday, June 20, 12:30 – Blanket Blockbuster. Enjoy family friendly mid-week matinee movie in the lower level of the library.  Bring your own blankets to camp out on the floor and enjoy the show!

Wednesday, June 20, 7:00 p.m. –Book Club. Fascinating and far ranging discussion with other book lovers. The book is provided, participants vote on selections, and a staff member leads the discussion. This month’s selection is Confederates in the Attic by Tony Horowitz.

Tuesday, June 19, 6:00 p.m. – Wii “Just Dance”. Nurture your inner dancer. Ages 13 and up.

Thursday, June 21, 6:30 p.m. – Kids’ Concert. An evening of music and fun with children’s singer and songwriter Chris Campbell.

Monday, June 25–Friday, June 29, 10:00 a.m.–7:00 p.m. – Scholastic Book Fair. If you love the summer reading program support youth services by making a purchase at the book fair.  Titles for all ages.

Tuesday, June 26, 6:30 p.m. – L2L. Young adult book discussion of Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs.

Weekly

Tuesday
9:30-11:30 a.m. Chat-N-Play provides interactive play for your little one and conversation for you. Open to children ages 0-3 and their caregivers.

Wednesday
9:30 a.m.  Mother Goose Time is an interactive program featuring songs, finger-plays, books, movements, and nursery rhymes for children from birth through age two and their caregivers.
10:30 a.m.  Story Time features books, stories, songs, puppets, flannel board activities, and crafts for children ages two through five accompanied by an adult.

Thursday
9:30 a.m.  Mamá Ganso, mother Goose in Spanish, features stories, songs, finger-plays, and movements for children from birth through age two and their caregivers.
10:30 a.m.  Story Time
1:00 p.m.  Story Time
2:00 p.m.  Mother Goose

“I think they often think that the things that we do today and the foods we eat and even the games we play … they think it’s new. A lot of it has been around for a long time, and we want the kids to learn that,” said Karen Church, who with Ellen Abernathy is organizing a living-history camp at the Plumb House Museum in Waynesboro that will take kids back in time.

The June 12-14 camp, “Along the Path of Lee and Jackson,” is being presented by the Waynesboro Heritage Foundation.

In addition to learning the basics of everyday life in the 1860s, children will role-play after researching the identities of participants in the War Between the States and be treated to a special event on day three of the camp.

Registration is $50 per child. Pre-registration is required.

The camp is open to children ages 7-12.

More information: Call 540.942.6754 or 540.943.3943.

This time the would-be private eye takes on a homicide at the local amusement part. Cora the owner of Cors’ Big Cups Restaurant is to be married to her childhood sweetheart. Before the big day, a killer strikes.  Night Hawk and  Murder at the Wedding was written by Bob Crawford and stars Bob Lunger as Night Hawk with Richards Anderson, Clair Myers, Boomie Pedersen, and Llyn Walker.  The shows are at 6:30 and 8:00 pm at 329 West Main in Downtown Waynesboro.

The May 18th performances include The Boogie Kings under the direction of the multi-talented Richard Adams, William Hayes with his amazing keyboard skills and J. T. Fauber. Sitting in with the Boogie Kings is Mr. Mojo Saturday Night, Kevin Chisnell.

Also at the May Radio Hours will be Marsha Howard, Waynesboro’s First Lady of Laughter.  She has been out and about seeking new material. Although she appreciates all the jokes given to her by her fans,  her jokes are GP or at most GP13 and are chosen to make her audience laugh not blush.

The guest of the month will be Gary Kirby, voted the best sound man in the Valley by musicians throughout Central Virginia.

Reserved tickets for the River City Radio Hour are $10 and are available online at www.wtagateway.com or by calling 540-943-9999.  Remaining tickets will be available at the box office on the night of performances.

Besides a full list of musicians, Richard will hold his first “You Can Sound Like a Cat” competition.  Like his “You Can Sound Like a Dog” competition,  contestants will mount the WTA’s Gateway stage and mew, purr, or howl to the scrutiny of the audience.  The winner will take home a valuable prize.

Also appearing on the Variety Show will be a solo turn by the keyboard wonder William Hayes.  Rhythm Road will perform songs from their repertory and the Bame Duo will bring their joint talents to the event.

William Hayes is a member of The Boogie Kings and has appeared with that group on the River City Radio Hour.  William is also the accompanist for the Virginia Dreams syndicated tv show.  His appearance on the Richard Adams Variety Show is an opportunity to see his amazing skills as a soloist.

The Bame Duo is a father-and-son musical treat.  The father Orville Bame  is a pianist of note while his son Eric is one of the top high school trombonist in the region since his a freshman year in high school. Last year Eric was 2nd Chair All State on Trombone.  Together they demonstrate the unique sounds of the two instruments in duets.

Rhythm Road’s quartet is composed of veteran musicians of several Shenandoah Valley bands. Their sound is described as “a musical journey through Celtic lands, to the American heartland, with an Afro-Latin pulse.” With Jim Harrington on the accordion, Joe Dockery on percussion, Kevin Walsh on bass and Buddy Thomas on acoustic guitar, the group lends its unique style to everything from Irish jigs and reels to Bob Wills’ Texas swing to Paul Simon’s world beat sound.

Hosting the evening will be Richard Adams with his side-kick Bill Martin who is running for President on the Coffee Tickets.  They will reveal more plans for the one-day-only, Presidential Campaign Event in Dooms, Virginia.

Reserved tickets for the Richard Adams Variety Show are $9.99 and are available online at www.wtagateway.com or by calling 540-943-9999.  Remaining tickets will be available at the box office on the night of performances.

Leake who has performed at the Smithsonian, the Kennedy Center and Wolftrap will add the Gateway to his list of venues.  The Saurday, May 12 performance will be at 8 p.m. at WTA’s Gateway, 329 West Main in Downtown Waynesboro.

Leake worked as a standup comic from 1983 until 1997 when he began working as a sit-down standup comic. In 1998, he started to work also as a motivational speaker adding to his standup act, personal stories and what have been called ‘philosophic lecturettes’, that address using humor as a problem-solving device, and as a means to get more out of life. Kennedy Center, and Wolftrap. Corporate clients include IBM, Toyota, and Ford.

Leake has facioscapulohumeral muscular dystrophy. In 1991, he became the first comedian with a physical disability to appear on NBC’s “The Tonight Show,” about which Jay Leno said, “He broke up the whole room. People realized here’s a man with a disability and he’s not gonna’ let it bother him.”

Other television appearances include “Entertainment Tonight” and the “American Comedy Awards.”

In 2003, public broadcasting stations around the country began running his hour-long comedy special “Laughing Matters with Brett Leake.”

Tickets for the May 12th  performance are $10. They are available online at www.wtagateway.com or by calling 540-943-9999. Tickets are also available at the door on the evening of performance.

The festival is open to all free of charge.

At 1 p.m. the short films will be screened at The Gateway located at 329 W. Main Street in Downtown Waynesboro. The festival features the finalist films from the Waynesboro Short Film Competition, organized by Lorie Strother of the Waynesboro Cultural Commission. Finalists come from throughout the state including films from Richmond, Millboro, Henrico, Springfield, Charlottesville, Fairfax, Christiansburg, Virginia Beach, Crozet, and Harrisonburg.

At the end of the screening, Erica Arvold of Erica Arvold Casting will select and announce the winners of the competition. Strother, will present cash prizes to the top films in the Adult and Youth categories. There will also be an Audience Choice cash prize award which will allow audience members the opportunity to vote for their favorite short film.

The Waynesboro Short Film Competition is open to filmmakers throughout Virginia. The entries were limited to a maximum of 16 minutes. A review panel screened the films and selected the finalists.

Screening Schedule

Attack of the Trailer 4 min 45 sec Category: Adult Synopsis: Beware you have been warned. Director: Abe Costanza, Marco Duran. Producer: Brian Wimer, John Johnson. Screenwriter: Brian Wimer. Editor: John Johnson, Marco Duran, Abe Costanza.

The Bard 13 min 20 sec Category: Adult Synopsis: After witnessing the drowning of his daughter an old fisherman turns away from the sea and toward music, seeking solace from the guilt that plagues him. Director: Adam Carboni. Producer: Avital Epstein. Screenwriter: Adam Carboni and Matt Clegg. Editor: Matt Clegg.

Caffeine 6 min 36 sec Category: Youth Synopsis: After a police detective’s partner is murdered he pumps himself full of caffeine in order to avoid becoming the next victim. Director, Producer, Screenwriter, Editor: Harry Barnes, Peter Rylander, Will Jones.

The Deed 12 min 36 sec Category: Adult Synopsis: Charles Pinkerton is a wealthy land developer in a small town. When a couple who refuses to give up their family’s land for his new development gets in his way, things turn ugly. Unfortunately for him, he finds out that extreme measures can be haunting. Director: Darren Van Dyke. Producer: Bo Keister. Screenwriter: Darren Van Dyke. Editor: Jack Bennett.

Discovering Archaeology: The Curles Neck Project 11 min Category: Adult Synopsis: Archaeological excavation of Curles Neck Plantation, home of Nathaniel Bacon and the Randolph family. Director, Producer, Screenwriter, Editor: Robert Mark.

Dreamt 16 min Category: Youth Synopsis: Brian struggles with the consequences of a second chance. Director, Producer, Screenwriter, Editor: Paul Hairston.

I Want You 3 min 14 sec Category: Youth Synopsis: Music Video for local band, the DOWNbeat Project. Depicts a man following the girl of his dreams. Director, Producer, Screenwriter, Editor: Jake Ferrell, Mitz Germershausen, Will Jones.

It Takes More Than Love 4 min 16 sec Category: Adult Synopsis: Two star‐crossed lovers learn that it takes more than love to build a bridge. Director, Producer, Editor: KT! Eaton. Screenwriter: Julie Markowitz.

Karla Evans 14 min 42 sec Category: Adult Synopsis: A young woman living off of her friend, tries to find a job. Director, Editor: Krystian Ramlogan. Producer, Screenwriter: Kerry King.

King of Roosts 6 min Category: Adult Synopsis: A wandering poet tries to win the heart of a farm girl but his efforts are thwarted by a pesky gold rooster in this modernized silent film. Director, Editor: Zach Keifer. Producer: Patrick Walsh, Kirsten Fuoti. Screenwriter: Mark Parlette, Zach Keifer.

The Last Paperboy 4 min 30 sec Category: Adult Synopsis: It’s the last day in the career of the last paperboy! Drama Director, Editor: Rich West. Producer: Sheri Ratick Stroud. Screenwriter: Burt Kempner.

Let It Begin Here 12 min Category: Adult Synopsis: The events of April 18th and 19th 1775 and “the shot heard around the world.” Director, Editor: Kevin R. Hershberger. Producer, Screenwriter: Kevin R. Hershberger, Christopher C. Belland.

Once Upon a Park Bench 10 min 30 sec Category: Adult Synopsis: A schoolboy meets an old war veteran on a park bench and listens as the ancient spins a tale of lost love and heartbreak, but when the story takes an unexpected turn, the cliché comes to life and the youngster comes of age. Director: Joseph Baum. Producer: T.K. Cibene, Lauren Leak. Screenwriter: Joseph Baum, Ross Koschmeder. Editor: Daniel Ostrem.