For most of the last two weeks of June we have posted at least once a day with details on what you could experience at home during this pandemic year for Charleston’s annual festival of all arts. For 2020, FestivALL is when The Internet Becomes A Work Of Art. Every day we tried to bring you up to date on this year’s VirtuALL FestivALL, plus we flashed back to some of our video coverage from previous years, and I dug into the archives for one post in the Monday Morning Art Exhibit, collecting some of my favorite pieces from the nearly fifteen years that I’ve been posting my original work here in PopCult. Today is the final day for VirtuALL FestivALL, except for the CAMC “Run for Your Life” event, which continues until Tuesday.

Today’s big events include:

At 2 PM today you can see A Wrinkle in Time–The Alban plans to stream this live theatre version of A Wrinkle in Time. A play about one of literature’s most enduring young heroines, Meg Murry. Once again, she’s joining forces with Mrs. Whatsit, Charles Wallace, Calvin O’Keefe and more to battle the forces of evil so she can rescue her father, save humanity and find herself. Tickets are available at albanartscenter.com and on their Facebook page. When you buy a “ticket” you will get a digital link the day of the show that will allow you to watch the final product that day only. So make sure you buy a ticket for a day that you will be able to watch the performance as the link for each day will expire at midnight.

At 4 PM, you can take part in A Q&A with the artists of Air Play Join the world-cavorting artists (Seth Bloom and Christina Gelsone, temporarily at home in New York City) in a live Q&A session on Sunday, June 28th. It will live stream on YouTube  at 4PM where the audience can enter questions in the comments box for Seth & Christina to answer. Miss the premiere of their short film on Thursday, June 25th? Not to worry! You can find the video on the FestivALL YouTube Channel and watch it at your convenience prior to the live Q&A. There is be a public performance of Air Play scheduled for June 2021.

From 7 PM to 8 PM you can enjoy the online video program, “There’s a Stream… virtual performances presented by Mountain Stage.”–Mountain Stage is compiling songs from artists all around the country to present during this web-exclusive offering on Sunday June 28. Stay tuned for the line-up!Keep an eye on the Mountain Stage Facebook page for show announcements! You can Watch at MountainStage.org or LiveSessions.NPR.org

Other FestivALL events, most of which wrap up today, include being able to vote on The Artbus, check out the Art-for-ALL Kids’ Juried Art Exhibition look into the “Faces of First Responders” Tribute Mural and teens can participate in Life: Unedited. FestivALL is off to a strong VirtuALL start.  You can also participate in the CAMC “Run For Your Life” virtual run/walk. The Virtual Art Fair will open on June 14th on the FestivALL website – check it regularly for the gallery and links to shop your favorite WV artisans this summer. Also, still going on until 5 PM is Poems While You Wait–Poet Laureate, Marc Harshman, was joined by one or two other colleagues in poetry and then, on old-fashioned, that is, real typewriters, produced on demand a poem for festival goers.  This year for virtual simplicity poems will be produced for our poetry-hungry, virtual readers will be on offer in real time.  And for free — really! Simply follow the rules at the website they’ll see that an original poem by either Marc Harshman or Ron Houchin finds its way to you within forty-eight hours of your request.

The FestivALL Flashback

This is an RFC MINI SHOW starring Todd Burge, recorded in June, 2014, on the stage in front of Taylor Books on Capitol Street. Todd performs his original tunes, “Our New Day” and “Change (For Clean Water).” It’s always a treat to feature Todd on any of the Radio Free Charleston programs, video or audio, and fans of Todd should check out his website for information on how you can buy Todd’s music.

Enjoy…

The Monday Morning Art Exhibit

We wrap out two-week retrospective of Monday Morning Art with “The Loop.” Back in October, 2019 I decided to start the week with a high-detail digital painting based on a composite of several photos I took out of the hotel window on a trip to Chicago in July, 2019. This is a view looking East down the Northern part of The Loop, the famed “L” platform train that encircles and gives its name to the downtown area.

Click the image to see it bigger.

This excercise of choosing 14 examples of Monday Morning Art made me realize how daunting the idea of compiling it into a book is. I’m still toying with the idea of having a reasonably-priced softcover or magazine collection ready in late August, but I’m probably going to be limited to fifty pages to keep it affordable, and I have over 700 pieces from which to choose, so it’s probably going to be “volume one.”