WASHINGTON POST – By Roger Catlin   Wynton Marsalis is a superstar in the jazz world: He has won nine Grammys, was the first jazz composer to win a Pulitzer Prize and has even graced the cover of Time magazine. Like many superstars, he’s also divisive. Some critics contend that he’s more entertainer, or populist, than… Read More »

The Washington Post – by Charles T. Downey The Castleton Festival struggles on in Rappahannock County, a year after the death of its founder, Lorin Maazel. The programming is sharply reduced, with jazz taking over from classical music for the final two weeks, and all performances open with pleas for donations. A smaller, less-assured orchestra,… Read More »

MSNBC – The new production “Scalia/Ginsburg” brings the friendship of Supreme Court Justices Antonin Scalia and Ruth Bader Ginsburg to the stage. MSNBC’s Irin Carmon reports.

RappNews – by Roger Piantadosi Gates open at 1 p.m. Saturday for the Sperryville Volunteer Fire Department’s ninth annual Rappahannock County 4th of July Celebration at Thornton Hill Hounds Racecourse. Admission is $25 per carload and includes fabulous fireworks at dusk high above one of the region’s loveliest meadows (at 4137 Sperryville Pike, three miles… Read More »

NEW YORK TIMES – By Vivien Schweitzer Since the death of Lorin Maazel last year, Dietlinde Turban Maazel, his wife, has taken on the role of artistic director of this festival, which showcases rising stars and takes place mainly on the couple’s 600-acre property. Ruth Bader Ginsburg is to attend the PREMIERE OF “SCALIA/GINSBURG,” a comic opera… Read More »

DC Metro Theatre Arts – by David Siegel It’s never too early to begin thinking about summer entertainment plans, both venues and entertainment. Early this summer, the Hylton Center for the Performing Arts, entering its sixth season on George Mason University’s Prince William Campus, is presenting a late June weekend with a special, wide-range of… Read More »

Manassas Local The Castleton Festival and the Hylton Performing Arts Center pair up this season to present an enchanting afternoon of romantic music that will touch the hearts of classical music lovers and Francophiles throughout the greater Washington, D.C. area. Under the direction of the Castleton Festival’s Principal Conductor Rafael Payare, Metropolitan Opera stars Robynne Redmon and Richard Troxell partner with the… Read More »

Culpeper Star Exponent – by Allison Brophy Champion Arts education will expand its reach in the Piedmont this summer due to a $20,000 gift from The Jack Kent Cooke Foundation. Named for the late Canadian sports owner, the Virginia-based foundation recently awarded the grant to The Castleton Festival in support of its 2015 summer outreach… Read More »