The-Burg.com - Central Virgina's Arts, Culture and Entertainment Weekly

Isn’t it hard to believe that at this time last year, we’d never heard of Phil Dunphy?

Or Alicia Florrick?

Or the awesome game that is Penny Can?

The Lynchburg Beer & Wine Festival is scheduled to run from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sept. 18 in the Riverfront Festival Park in downtown Lynchburg.

Jenny Reynolds likes to tell people she’s a banker by day and a rock star by night.

Now, she says, she’s changed the second part to Lynchburg Star.

Joseph Cashore saw his first marionette hanging in a gift shop when he was 10 or 11 and on vacation with his family.

“I asked the lady if I could try it out,” he said in a phone interview last week. “She wouldn’t let me, so I went home and made my first marionette.”

Even he can admit that first effort — made from clothespins, wood, string and a tin can — was a bit crude, but it fascinated him.

“Every once in a while, by accident, it would move,” he said. “Just for a second, it looked like it was alive, and that’s what I remember.”

Stacy Sumpman has always been fascinated with movement.

Take, for instance, a piece the former dancer choreographed for Dance Theatre of Lynchburg’s Repertory Ensemble.

“Intersect” — which will be performed during Dance Theatre’s First Fridays reception this week — starts with a large group of dancers who then break off into smaller groups.

There’s nothing quite like laughing your way to a career milestone at the ripe old age of 30.

Just ask Lynchburg native Ryan Case, who has won an Emmy for Outstanding Editing for a Comedy Series for her work on the pilot episode of ABC’s “Modern Family.”

Before departing for Floyd, the last day trip in our monthlong series, I had no idea what to expect from the small mountain town.

I’d heard about the annual FloydFest and The Floyd Country Store’s Friday Night Jamboree — more on that later — and that was about it.

What I found was one cool, little town full of friendly faces and talented musicians.

It all started with a serious case of menopause.

The temperature dropped a good five degrees as we crossed the Blue Ridge over the mist-shrouded Rockfish Gap and coasted down into the verdant Shenandoah Valley.

As another summer winds down, we here at The Burg wanted to take advantage of these final days with a series of day trips that readers could easily duplicate.

So we started with Winston-Salem, a city rich in art and history (and don’t worry if that’s not your thing; we’ve included a box below that lists other activities the city has to offer for sports fans, families and more).