ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Friday, December 6, 1996 TAG: 9612060062
SECTION: EXTRA PAGE: 1 EDITION: METRO
COLUMN: the tipoff
SOURCE: ALMENA HUGHES
THE DICKENS YOU SAY: Dickens of a Christmas, the annual Victorian holiday tradition in and around downtown Roanoke, will be held 6-10 tonight, Dec. 13 and Dec. 20. The gathering will include strolling carolers, storytellers, free hot chocolate, cider, roasted chestnuts and other treats, carriage rides at $3 per person for ages 4 and up, and, of course, a jolly Victorian Santa. Tonight's opening events will include the lighting of the Roanoke Christmas tree at 7 p.m. in the First Union/Tower Plaza and a fireworks display at 9:30 p.m. in Elmwood Park. Call 342-2028.
STITCHES IN TIME: Tonight through Dec. 12, two panels from the AIDS Memorial Quilt that was exhibited in Washington, D.C., in October, will be on display in the art gallery of Virginia Western Community College's humanities building. A reception from 6:30 to 8:30 tonight will include trimming an AIDS Memorial tree. AIDS awareness workshops will be offered Saturday 9 a.m.-noon and 1 p.m.-4 p.m. in the college's Student Center, Room 101. All admissions are free. Call 776-1152.
FLOYD FEST: WinterFest '96 promises to keep Floyd aflutter with activities all weekend via a variety of holiday craftspeople and vendors at the Jacksonville Center Saturday and Sunday; a fine-arts auction starting at noon Saturday at the Pine Tavern Restaurant; a Christmas parade at 3 p.m. Sunday and a Christmas concert at 7:30 p.m. at the Bank of Floyd. Call 745-2784.
SANTA CLOGS: The Roanoke Fiddle and Banjo Club's Christmas and Crafts Show at the Roanoke Civic Center auditorium Saturday will feature 20 bands performing bluegrass, gospel and country music, and clogging by the Old Dominion Cloggers, the Patrick Henry Travelers and the High Mountain Steppers. The crafts show is noon-7 p.m.; performances will run 7 p.m.-11 p.m. There is no admission charge, but donations will be appreciated. Call 345-5977.
SHOP STOPS: The Harrison Museum of African American Culture's annual Holiday Shopping Bazaar, today, Saturday and Sunday, will feature a variety of black-inspired merchandise including apparel, jewelry, books, cards and wood-carvings, plus lots of lively entertainment and friendly mingling. Santa will be on the scene Saturday 3 p.m.-6 p.m. Call 345-4818.
The International Bazaar at Virginia Tech's Cranwell International Center in Blacksburg will run today and Saturday and will include crafts and items from around the world. Proceeds benefit self-help and world-service projects. Call 231-6962.
MUSICA Y MAS: Choirs, soloists and instrumentalists will perform traditional carols of Latin America and Spain in Spanish and English at 6 p.m. Sunday at First Presbyterian Church, Roanoke. There is no admission charge. Call 344-3204.
Calvary Baptist Church will present its 28th annual Singing Christmas Tree Saturday and Sunday at 5 p.m. at the church at Sixth Street and Campbell Avenue, Roanoke. There is no admission fee and a nursery will be provided. Call 342-4224.
Violinist Nai-Yuan Hu and pianist Nelson Padgett will perform works by Mozart, Faure, Sheng, Bennett and others Saturday at 8 p.m. in Roanoke College's Olin Theater in Salem. Alan Weinstein of the Kandinsky Trio will present a concert preview at 7:30 p.m. and a meet-the artists reception will follow the performance. Tickets cost $15 for adults, $7.50 for people under 21. Call 375-2333.
HOMES FOR THE HOLIDAYS: The Salem Museum's popular self-guided tour of five historic Salem homes and churches, plus live music and a tea party will take place Sunday 2 p.m.-5 p.m. Tickets cost $8 in advance, $10 Sunday. Call 389-6760.
FOLK SINGERS Michael Jonathon, Bill Hudson and Michael Mulvaney will bring their Troubadour Tour to the South Main Cafe in Blacksburg on Saturday, and to the Ghost of Hollywood in Roanoke on Sunday, with part of Sunday's proceeds benefiting the newly formed regional heritage conservation group, the Western Virginia Land Trust. Families and children are encouraged to attend the shows, which support the trust's goals of preserving, with private rather than government funds, mountain ridge lines, scenic views, greenway right-of-ways and critical wildlife habitats and historical sites on private land. Call 345-1029.
PATIO PLAY: Bring lunch, if you'd like, and be prepared to laugh at the coquettish conversational courtship between a bridesmaid and best man in Mill Mountain Theatre's one-act Centerpiece, "On The Patio," at 12:15 p.m. Wednesday. Admission is free to the performance on the theatre's main stage in downtown Roanoke. Call 342-5740.
GIBSON GUY: The Friends of the Roanoke Symphony will bring Sam Gibson and his jazz trio to Fitzpatrick Hall at the Jefferson Center in Roanoke at 8 p.m. on Dec. 13, with proceeds benefiting the Marionette Sprauve Memorial Music Scholarship Fund. Gibson, who has been favorably compared to Johnny Mathis, Nat King Cole, Johnny Hartman and Al Jarreau, most recently starred in the Duke Ellington tribute, "Sophisticated Ellington." Tickets are $20 per person and are available from Friends members or by calling 343-9127.
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