Lynchburg Performing Arts!
Dim the Lights, Raise the curtain.
It's Opening Night.

When it comes to Lynchburg performing arts, you can't beat the theatre. The logical place to start is the beginning and that would be the Academy of Fine Arts. Follow me to the theatre.

The Academy of Fine Arts has traversed a long and winding road to arrive at where it is now. Way back in Lynchburg's history was the Academy of Music Theatre.

Going back to 1905, it was Lynchburg's first fully electrified public building and hosted such performers as George M. Cohan, Will Rogers, Paderewski, and Ethyl Barrymore.

There was also a Lynchburg Fine Arts Center dedicated to fostering and nurturing community talent in the visual arts, dance and theater.

In 2003 something momentous happened...the two merged into what is now the Academy of Fine Arts. The combination of the these two historic institutions was driven partly by financial considerations and to combine the best of both while establishing a stronger financial and operating base for the fine arts in Lynchburg, Virginia.

The Academy's mission statement says it all:

"The Academy of Fine Arts is a nonprofit organization committed to promoting and presenting the visual and performing arts, while creating opportunities for arts education. These functions will be centered in the Academy of Fine Arts complex, anchored by the historic Academy of Music Theatre."

The Academy's location at 600 Main Street with the box office at Commerce and Fifth Street makes the it hard to miss especially since a major renovation project has been underway for the last couple of years. Well, actually the renovations go back to 2004 with the project being done in phases.

You can visit the the Academy's website for a calendar of events, photo achieves, classes and many other features about this great institution.

How about something a little more intimate? Yes? Then theatre in the round is just the ticket and that would be Lynchburg's Renaissance Theatre.

Lynchburg's Renaissance Theatre is the place for you if you like theatre in the round and virtually share the stage with the performers. This is small theatre at its best and very unique to Lynchburg performing arts.

The audience is limited to 100 people arranged in seating around the stage. The front row of the audience actually shares floor space with the actors.

After four years of work to configure the theater company's quarters and several false starts, it finally opened it's doors on April 7, 2000. The site of the production company at 1022 Commerce Street is known to long time Lynchburg residents as the Bailey Spencer Hardware Store.

Bringing the 100 year old structure up to modern safety standards and converting the old warehouse to facilitate a theater production was a miracle in itself.

The Theatre has the distinction of being the first of the Lynchburg performing arts organizations to open its doors to the public during the initial revitalization of Lynchburg's historic downtown district.

Remarkably, the Renaissance Theatre is a non-profit organization and run on a totally volunteer basis. It has become very successful and continues to bring high quality performances to the city.

It's first productions after opening were Neil Simon's comedy, "Barefoot in the Park" and "Lend Me a Tenor". Their 2009 season included "As You Like It", "The Kitchen Witches", "The Love List", "Forever Plaid" and "Rent".

Check the Renaissance Theatre website for the current and coming productions, reservations and other pertinent information.

Anyone up for the Opera? Lynchburg performing arts includes the opera.

The opera part of Lynchburg performing arts is "Opera on the James". This is a group of music lovers in Central Virginia who strive to promote the "appreciation and enjoyment of opera through community education, promotion of the art form, and support of opera singers and musicians".

Opera on the James was formed in January 2005, when a dozen or so people in Lynchburg began meeting each month to discuss how opera could be more actively promoted and performed in Central Virginia.

Volunteer board members and advisors do much of the work; the only ongoing paid staff members are the artistic director and administrator, both of whom are part-time.

If the Opera on the James is successful in it's vision and mission, audiences will understand and appreciate the powerful capacity of opera to engage our senses and emotions, and to transform our lives as well as bringing the intensely emotional experience of world class live opera to Lynchburg performing arts.

Through performance and education, the Opera strives to deliver the full power of this rich, collaborative art form to inspire and connect it's patrons.

The Opera company has five major goals, which if met, will greatly enrich the community and further the art of opera.

They are shown below as enumerated on their website:

The 2009-2010 season features Hansel and Gretel, Three Tenors Encore and The Merry Widow.

Visit the Opera on the James website for dates and locations of performances, ticket information, past performance and much more.

Next let's visit the musical side of the Lynchburg performing arts. The symphony is tuning up so let's go listen. Follow the link to tickle your ears with Lynchburg's musical performing arts.

Another famous and eagerly awaited seasonal events of Lynchburg performing arts is the annual Christmas Spectacular at Thomas Road Baptist Church. The production quality is pure Broadway and every year performances are sold out. That says a lot since the TRBC auditorium is huge.

The 2009 production is heralded as "Jingle in the City" and is set around 1945 in New York. It follows the expoits of a band of "lovable and mischievous" young pickpockets in the days just before Christmas.

For the full story, you will just have to buy a ticket.

Photo right: TRBC 2008 Christmas Spectacular

The production features a cast and crew of 350, the 240 voice choir, the 37 foot tall living Christmas tree with its 120,000 lights and 120 live, singing "ornaments".

The 2009 schedule has four performances on December 11th (7:00pm), December 12th (2:00 pm and 7:00 pm) and December 13th at 4:00 pm. Thomas Road Baptist Church is located at 1 Mountain Road in Lynchburg, VA.

You can go directly to the TRBC website for online ticket purchases and complete information on all activities of the church.

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