SKYLINE (Rated PG-13) 3 Stars

Todd and Amy hated it. Shane loved it. You know what? I found Skyline (92 minutes) utterly delightful. It was easily the best B-movie I’ve seen since The Mist (the first movie I ever reviewed, for those of you keeping a file). Ok, the film had its flaws. The acting was ludicrous. The characters were next to unlikable. The dialogue was sexist, outdated, and uninteresting. The “aliens” resembled rubber leftovers from a bad Godzilla costume. Nevertheless, for a cheaply made independent science fiction movie it was absolute perfection!

Jarrod (Eric Balfour, AKA toe sucker from Six Feet Under) and Elaine (Scottie Thompson) are awakened under mysterious circumstances. This teaser leads into a flashback that provides some backstory on the couple. The first important thing we find out is that Jarrod is a real square-jawed hero type. He is a polite and well-bred young artist, sensitive to the needs of others and aware of the myriad obligations that friendship entails. Other than that he is kind of an immature jerk, but take the bad with the good. Elaine is a bit of a cardboard cutout, but she is super pretty and reminds me of Milla Jovovich, so she can stay.

The couple has flown into Los Angeles to celebrate best friend Terry’s (Donald Faison, AKA Murray from Clueless) birthday. They enjoy the party despite some awkward moments between Terry’s girlfriend Candice (Brittany Daniel, AKA Jessica Wakefield from Sweet Valley High) and Terry’s “confidential secretary” (Crystal Reed).

Finally, we get back to the scene that started it all, and we find out that an invasive light is compelling people to do stupid things while creating a totally gnarly black vine tattoo thing on whatever part of their bodies it touches. The men-folk head out to investigate (naturally), where they get to scream and run and bear witness to all the messed up alien stuff that the FX boys could put together on short notice.

Eventually they smarten up and retreat to their penthouse sanctuary. Of course, they immediately retreat to an inner room, fill up the bathtub and sinks with water, and ration supplies while developing a brilliant plan to evade and escape. HAHAHA. That so didn’t happen, because the characters are way dumber than the average bear! The twits decide to leave the relative safety of the condo and drive to the nearby marina, which works out as well as you imagine, considering the brain trust behind the plan.

On their way back into sanctuary they hook up with random concierge Oliver (David Zayas AKA Batista from Dexter). Oliver tries to bring the machismo, but his clearly superior skills are sucked into the massive black hole of idiocy created by two incompetents trying to out-stupid each other. That’s when the smoking, drinking, and fighting starts. Enter the Air Force! Surely they will save the day!

Nope. It’s just not that kind of movie. Instead of the Air Force saving the day, they up the ante by causing even more destruction, which is as awesome as it sounds. It is clear that the body count is going to mount up since there are way too many characters for the audience to develop a real emotional connection. In short order, alien pods, tankers, floaters, and matrix-style technosquids start sucking up delicious brains and coating captured humans with some righteous oily black slime.

So, overall I was laughing hysterically through most of the movie. There are a ton of plot holes, the narrative timeline is all screwed up, and the movie is filled with B-list “actors” elevated to relevancy by the presence of one David Zayas, who has some pretty good work under his belt. In other words, you need to see this immediately.

Take the timeless enchantment of your favorite Disney characters, combine it with awe-inspiring acts of professional illusionists, and you’ve entered the delightful realm of Disney Live! presents Mickey’s Magic Show. Young and old are invited to “Come be part of the magic!” on Friday, Dec.10, for two shows at 3:30 and 6:30 p.m. at the Crown Coliseum.

“Mickey’s Magic Show is what I like to consider an adventure into a world where anything is possible,” said Brad Ross, illusionist and host of the show. Ross recently received the International Magicians Society Merlin Award for Best International Family Entertainer 2010, considered the Oscar for the magic industry. He shares the stage with Master Magician Mickey Mouse.

“It’s an opportunity for folks to come out and experience the Disney Magic in a whole new way. This is the fi rst time that Disney has ever created a Disney magic show. It combines the classic magic from the movies that kids and their parents will recognize. We have the dancing brooms from Fantasia, the Mad Hatter from Alice in Wonderland and movies like that, but the unique thing about the show is that it will bond real magic tricks and illusions with those scenes from those movies, and that’s coupled with the world-class illusions that I’ll be presenting, and again, it’s going to give folks a whole new way to experience the Disney Magic.”

First launched in 2006, the show involved tremendous time and preparation, bringing together key elements like lighting designers, choreographers, directors, illusion consultants and more for rehearsals.

“The preparation involved many, many months ahead of that in terms of the production team getting together to create the show, cast the show, design the costumes and sets, the magic, of course, so it is quite a lengthy process to create a show like this,” Ross said. “But the show is now in its fi fth consecutive year. We’ve been privileged to take this show all over the world, and it’s just been a wonderful experience.”

Ross’s primary role is the master illusionist, and through that role, he hosts the show, portraying the “big brother” to all the kids in the audience.

“I am the tour guide, let’s say, to guide everyone on this journey into magic. Throughout that process, I’m constantly interacting with the audience. I run dialogue with them throughout the entire show, and I also bring kids up on stage to participate in the magic and help me out with some of these illusions. And of course I’m performing the magic alongside Mickey and Goofy and all the Disney characters because everyone is actually doing magic in this show, which creates a unique experience.”

Audience members can expect to see many familiar Disney characters on stage, including Donald Duck and Alice, as well as the re-creation of favorite movie scenes, like the transformation of Cinderella’s rags into a beautiful ball gown by her Fairy Godmother, right before their very eyes. Ross, who became intrigued by magic at a very young age when his mother hired a magician for his fi fth birthday party, notes a particularly special illusion in Mickey’s Magic Show.

“One of my favorite illusions in the show is when I levitate Princess Jasmine from the movie Aladdin. It’s a beautiful illusion. It’s just breathtaking, and it’s defi nitely a crowd pleaser wherever we travel with the show, no matter what country we’re in, no matter what language we’re performing the show in. Everyone needs to come out to the show to experience the magic.”

Great seats for Disney Live! presents Mickey’s Magic Show are still available, according to Rik Knopp, director of Marketing and Sales at the Crown Center. Tickets range from $17 to $37, plus fees. For information or to purchase tickets, call (910) 438-4100 or visit www.crowncoliseum.com.

If you haven’t made it to this year’s rendition of The Nutcracker Ballet, there is still time. The North Carolina State Ballet is performing at the Crown Coliseum Complex on Dec. 11 and 12. It’s the 33rd consecutive year of The Nutcracker performing in Fayetteville and will feature a cast of more than 60 dancers and actors.

The story is the same beloved tale of Clara and the enchanted Nutcracker that she receives from her godfather, Her Drosslemeyer. Clara experiences the horrible Mouse King, and travels with the romantic Nutcracker Prince to the Land of Snow and Kingdom of Sweets.

International guest artists Gabor Kapin and Alicia Fabry will perform. Kapin dances Cavalier to Fabry’s Sugar Plum Fairies.

Kapin also performs as the Nutcracker Prince with Anne Talkington and April Glasper as Clara. Little Clara is danced by Brooke Bielecki, Victoria Spence and Charlie Holly.

Glasper also dances the Jewel in ‘Waltz of the Flowers’ and alternates the “Snow Queen” with Destiny Johnson. Daniel Moore plays “Drosslemeyer,” the Magician.

“We have an outstanding cast and wonderful, international guest performers,” said Charlotte Blume, the president of the North Carolina State Ballet and director of the two act, three scene production. “Most of the dancers in our production are not new to the performance, many of them have been dancing in it for years and have grown up into their parts — they may start out as a mouse and move up from there as the years pass.”

A lot of hard work has gone into this production. In fact, Blume says that it seems that as soon as the production ends, it feels like they start right into working on next year’s performance.

Auditions are held around labor day and from early fall until the performance, the dancers are working to learn their parts so they can bring joy to the audience when the holidays roll around.

The scenery has been updated for a few of the acts, adding freshness and new fl avor to the production. North Carolina School of the Arts graduate Jennifer O’Kelly of O’Kelly Design Studios designed the backdrop for Act I.

Local artist Cindy Slappey and her former art student Caroline Geiger designed and painted a backdrop for Act II. It shows the entrance to the Land of Sweets and the Castle of the Sugar Plum Fairy.

“There are so many reasons that people come to see The Nutcracker,” said Blume. “It may be that it is a family tradition, or that they know people in the cast, or that they are looking for an opportunity to see a high quality performance of The Nutcracker at a reasonable price. Regardless of the reason, this is an outstanding production that the entire family will enjoy.”

Purchase tickets at the Crown Center box offi ce and at www.ticketmaster.com. General seating costs $16. Military personnel receive a discounted price of $12 at the Crown Center Box Offi ce with a military ID.

The curtain rises at 3 p.m. for all shows, Visit www. ncstateballet.com for more information.

Photo: Daniel Moore as Drosslemeyer.

Every year my son and I bundle up, fill our thermoses with hot chocolate and head down to the Christmas parade that runs through the center of our city. It is as much a part of our holiday tradition as tree trimming or getting together with family. Just the sight of the large colorful floats, marching bands and of course, Santa Claus, lets you know that the holiday season is upon us.

However, this will be our first year attending a parade in Fayetteville, and we are excited to see what is in store for us. The grand marshall of this year’s parade is Boomerang Cartoon Networks Scooby Doo, who is appearing courtesy of Channel 14 Carolina News. Scooby won’t be joined by the rest of his gang, but he will be joined by 10 Cumberland County bands, homemade and commercial floats and more than 90 entries. Oganizers believe this year’s parade is sure to be stellar.

For more than 20 years the parade has been put together by the members of the Fayetteville Rotary Club, a group of men that was formed to bring together business and professional leaders to provide humanitarian service, encourage high ethical standards and help promote goodwill and peace in the world. In 1999, once they discovered there was to be no Christmas procession that year, they decided to band together with two other local Rotary Clubs to take on this excellent community service project. The members organized every detail of the parade themselves, proving that they live by their motto, “Service before self.” With the first year’s parade planner called away, Johnson Chestnut and Matthew Smith stepped up agreeing to cochair, and have been in charge ever since.

Smith says this year’s parade is “A parade for the children of Cumberland County to not only observe and enjoy, but also participate in. We have invited one child from each of the Cumberland County schools to ride in one of the Rotary floats in the Christmas parade. It gives them an opportunity that they may never have again in a lifetime.”

Many local businesses are pitching in and lending their support to make this parade a spectacular one as well, including Taco Bell, Long John Silvers and Time Warner Cable.

“This will be the 11th year that we have put this parade on, and we have been both overwhelmed and touched by the response from our sponsors,” said Smith.

The procession will begin at 11 a.m and will start at Person Street, go to the Market House, then Hay Street and end at the Amtrak Station. If by chance you cannot make it downtown to see the parade in person, don’t fret, it will be televised on Channel 14 (although it will be time delayed and won’t be aired until 6 p.m. Saturday) and will be available On Demand the following week.

Come out and and catch the holiday spirit at this year’s 2010 Rotary Parade — and don’t forget your hot chocolate!

Don't miss the Christmas Parade on Dec. 11.

The Fayetteville Symphony Orchestra (FSO) Holiday Spectacular Concert promises to be a “spectacular” event. With music, dancing, food and Santa Claus, the concert will have something for the whole family. The program will be held Saturday, Dec. 11 at 7:30 p.m. at Reeves Auditorium on the campus of Methodist University. Conducting the program is FSO Music Director Fouad Fakhouri.

The concert will feature all holiday music including songs from “The Nutcracker,” “Greensleeves,” “Sleigh Ride,” “Christmas Festival,” and “I Want a Hippopotamus for Christmas” which is the favorite of FSO Executive Director Mark Savage.

Soprano Erin Matson will perform a solo. Matson teaches at Fayetteville Academy. In addition, Savage and Dr. Don Parker of Fayetteville State University will perform “The Typewriter” written by Leroy Anderson using an actual typewriter.

“It’s a LC Smith Manual Typewriter” says Savage “I bought it at an antique store in Memphis, Tenn.”

Savage has performed the song several times and you can catch a few of his performances on YouTube.

And what is a holiday concert without Santa Claus? Savage says Santa will greet guests as they arrive at the auditorium and sit next to people in the audience. Santa may even conduct a song if the audience agrees to it.

There will be dancing at the concert as well. Denise Strother and Roland Bersh III will dance to “Skaters Waltz.” Strother and Bersh, along with dancers from Roland’s Dance Studio, will dance to “Blue Danube.”

With a packed performance schedule, Savage says planning for the concert began in December 2009.

“It’s a big project” he said. “We wanted to have a lot of fun this year”

Tickets for the Holiday Spectacular Concertcan be purchased from the FSO office, at www.fayettevillesymphony.org, or at Reeves Auditorium the evening of the concert. Ticket prices start at $8 for students, $20 for military and seniors, and $25 for adults. Call the symphony offi ce at 433-4690 for more information.

Photo: Fayetteville FSO.

Sometimes it is hard to know how to thank a veteran — someone who has served on your behalf, and quite possibly faced and endured things that some would prefer not to acknowledge or even consider. What about the fallen and their families? How can we honor them and the sacrifi ces that they have made?

So maybe this isn’t the easiest of topics to be reading during the holiday season. It’s relevant though. At noon, on Dec. 11, the Dogwood Chapter of Gold Star Mothers along with the local HOG chapter, the 82nd Airborne Foundation, the Combat Veterans Motorcycle Association, Rolling Thunder and Patriot Guard Riders are gathering to take part in the Wreaths Across America Campaign at Sandhills State Veterans Cemetery in Spring Lake.

Wreaths Across America started in 1992 when Morrill Worcester of Worcester Wreath sponsored the Arlington Wreath Project by donating 5,000 Christmas wreaths to Arlington Cemetery. Since then, the project has grown as thousands of requests poured in from around the country from people wanting to emulate the project.

The second Saturday in December, at noon each year, Wreaths Across America places a wreath on the graves of veterans in cemeteries large and small across the nation. This year there are more than 400 ceremonies that will take place simulataneously with approximately 500 wreaths to be placed locally.

“What we are trying to do here is to show these families that the sacrifi ces that they and their loved ones made have not been forgotten,” said Steve Adam, Cape Fear HOG spokesman. “It is a way to honor those who gave the last full measure of devotion and to show that we are grateful for their sacrifice.”

There will be a short ceremony, with Brig. Gen. Edward M. Reeder Jr., Commanding General, U.S. Army Special Forces Command, speaking.

Seven wreaths, representing each of the armed services and the veterans who have served in them will be placed at the base of the fl ag. Gold Star mothers and perhaps a few Gold Star wives will be among the fi rst to lay wreaths on the graves.

Musical tributes will be a part of the ceremony as well with a bugler playing “Taps” and a rendition of “Amazing Grace” on the bagpipes.

“It’s a very sobering and moving experience. Have you ever heard “Amazing Grace” on the bagpipes?” said Adam. “It’ll bring the toughest of men to tears.”

While the time for fundraising and accepting wreath donations has past for this particular event, the public is welcomed and encouraged to attend. There are plenty of wreaths to be placed and this is also an opportunity to show respect and gratitude to the fallen, Adam said.

“This is not a fundraiser,” said Adam. “People need to know that there is no money being made here. This is a group of grateful citizens, honoring our fallen soldiers.”

To find out more or to make a contribution to Wreaths Across America, visit www.wreathsacrossamerica.org.

For questions about the Sandhills State Veteran’s Cemetery, call 207-483-2039 or e-mail lorietex@aol.com.

Twenty years ago when Holden Hansen came up with the idea to stage The Best Christmas Pageant Ever, he had no idea it would become a Fayetteville holiday tradition. But, in keeping with the enduring story that is told in the play, the annual production of The Best Christmas Pageant Ever (BCPE) has made its way into the hearts of the literally hundreds of area children who have performed in the show, and it has helped to form who they have become today.

On Dec. 9, the show will open for its 20th season, and Up & Coming Weekly thought there could be no better time to celebrate the show, its casts and the warmth it brings to our holiday season.

“I often joke with Bo (Thorp) that if I had known the play would have ran this long I would have made her sign a contract so I would get residuals,” said Hansen during a recent telephone interview.

Hansen, a professor of theater at the University of North Carolina at Pembroke, was very involved in children’s theater in the late ‘80s. When Thorp approached him about doing a Christmas performance, he immediately thought about the BCPE.

“I had directed the play in Waterloo, Iowa, for a children’s theater back in 1983,” he said. “It’s just a brilliant play for anybody who has a program that involves kids on stage. In fact, I think the reason it is brilliant is that art imitates life — it’s a play about putting on a play with children. All the kids don’t have to act — they just have to be themselves. It’s very truthful in that sense.

Hansen said that children involved in theater learn a lot of the social skills they need in life.

“They learn deadlines, organization, how to work together. I think they learn things about themselves, and they learn how to communicate,” he said. “These are the kinds of things that any human being needs to learn to succeed. I find the same thing to be true of college students. Quite a number of my students have explained to me that they have this confidence to function in the world that they didn’t have before they were involved in the theater.”

As to why the play has become interwoven in Fayetteville’s holiday fabric, Hansen noted, “The Best Christmas Pageant Ever is a great story. It touches a chord in people. We often look at the less fortunate as a pariah in our society, so we love to watch these Herdmans succeed. We see their humanity when Imojean sort of becomes enrapt in the beauty of the Christmas story. It just resonates through the theatre. It coincides with the spirit of Christmas — it’s all about love isn’t it?”

Jenny Beaver was just 12-years-old when she fi rst performed in The Best Christmas Pageant Ever. She was cast as the first “Beth” in the play, and kept that role for the following four years.

“We rehearsed in some old building downtown that didn’t have any heat,” Beaver recalled. “I remember thinking I was really big time, because I was rehearsing for this play in that old building.”

That was just one of many shows Beaver would perform in at the CFRT, but looking back, it still holds a very special place in her heart.

“Since I’ve moved back home, I’ve seen it about three times. My sister, Laura, who was also in the show, has never seen it since she stopped being in the play. I hold “Beth” close to my heart, and she holds Gladys close to hers. We talked and she said she just couldn’t watch anyone else being Gladys because she loved it so much,” said Beaver.

For Beaver, seeing the show brings back the memories of lessons learned on the stage and friendships made. “Growing up in the theatre taught me that not everybody in the world is like me. Because we grow up in the same neighborhoods and go to the same schools, we form our cliques. Theater opened a door to a whole new group of people for me — people I probably wouldn’t have been friends with.”

She noted that while each director and each cast tries to make its mark on the show, it actually changes little. “The Best Christmas Pageant Ever is just perfect.

The story is so straight to the point. I don’t think you have to add any updates; they just distract from the story.” The story she’s referencing, for those who have not seen the show yet, is that of the Herdmans. They are the meanest kids in town. When they get a chance to takeover the church Christmas play, they do it with a vengeance. While many sat back and waited for the play to fl op, it actually turned out to be... well, you know.

“Beth’s final speech always makes me cry, and I love when Imojean looks at the baby and she actually understands ‘Unto you a child is born,’” continued Beaver. “I love it when Beth talks about how the Herdmans changed because of the play. Because it gives you a chance to see that people are good — you just have to give them a chance to be good.”

Broadway performer Grady Bowman, who was in the first two BCPEs, looks back at the show fondly.

“I played Claude Herdman my first year and Charlie the second year,” said Bowman, who is currently performing in Billy Elliot on Broadway. “As a kid, getting up with the other kids to do something we all loved was great.”

Then, it was just something to do around the holidays, but after seeing the play a couple of years ago, Bowman has a different perspective on it.

“I really didn’t get the impact of the show until a couple of years ago when I was home and I went to see it,” he said. “I looked at it as an outsider and was just overwhelmed by the meaning and the story.”

He recalled that the excitement that Hansen brought to the production resonated through the cast. “Because he was so excited to do the play, it made us as excited and made us want to do what he wanted us to do,” he said. “Really the CFRT, and plays like the BCPE, are the basis for what I am doing today.”

Tommy Walsh, 17, and currently playing Ralph in the production, has been in the BCPE for eight years. The show helped launch his CFRT career, where he has performed in more than 10 shows and participates in the Performance Troop.

“I love being on stage, being goofy and wacky, expressing my thoughts on stage and watching the audience react to it,” said Walsh. “Being in the theater has taught me to express myself better and be myself — there’s no judging, you can just be who you are.”

Laurel Flom, 15, who is playing Beth in the current production, concurs with Walsh. “This is my sixth year doing BCPE. Each year is different, the people are who make the show. It’s really fun going to rehearsals. It’s a very open atmosphere. Everybody accepts everybody else. Being in theater has made me a more wellrounded person. It opens you up to a lot of situations and people.

“You make a lot of different kinds of friendships with a lot of different people. They are the people you have fun with. They accept you. You don’t have to worry about holding back, you can dance like a fool and everybody will join you.”

For John Burton, now 10, his first exposure to the BCPE was when he was just 4-years-old. The normally active toddler sat silent and still throughout the play. As he exited the theater with his mom and dad, he said, “I want to be a Herdman.”

“I just loved that play,” he said. “I thought it looked like so much fun, and the people who were in it looked like they were having fun. So every year after we would see it, I would ask to try out. Last year, I was a shepherd and it was everything I thought it would be. This year, I’m Claude Herdman. I want to be in the play as long as they will let me.”

The BCPE opens on Thursday, Dec. 9 and runs through Sunday, Dec. 19. Tickets are $12 for adults and $10 for children. For tickets and more information, visit www.cfrt.org.

It’s the most wonderful time of the year, and one of the most enchanting, too, as homes and entire neighborhoods deck the halls with holiday decorations and light displays. And who doesn’t like to ooh and ah at the magical twinkling exhibits while driving by? This year, take a greener, more healthful and family-friendly approach to viewing the sights and sounds of the Christmas season. Attend Christmas in the Park, December 8-22 from 6-9 p.m. at Arnette Park, 2165 Wilmington Highway, Exit 100 off Highway 87 in Fayetteville. Admission is $2 per person.

“This is the first year that Christmas in the Park, sponsored by the Fayetteville-Cumberland Parks and Recreation, is being held,” said Erica J. Brady, special events coordinator. “Fayetteville-Cumberland Parks and Recreation has considered doing this event for many years and this year decided to move forward with it to give the citizens of Fayetteville and Cumberland County an opportunity to view Christmas lights without having to travel to neighboring counties.”

But this special holiday event is not your usual pack-the-car-full-of-folksand- slowly-snake-through-displays-of-pretty-lights affair. Christmas in the Park is filled with activities for everyone in the family.

“We’ll open up that Wednesday night,” said Brady. “The $2 fee will be collected as you enter the park, and then you’ll just spread out to one of our parking lots and go over to the half-mile paved walking trail, which is a new addition at Arnette Park, and at your own leisurely pace, just walk around. Out in the center of the trail we will have our main attraction piece of the display, a 30- foot, three-color Christmas tree. It will be lit with green, white and red lights. We’re still in the planning stages, but our plan right now is to put six, 16-foot trees around that tree, and then 12, six-foot trees around those. Those trees will be programmed. We’ll have a cycle of songs playing, and these lights will be dancing to that music. In addition to that main focal point, we’ll of course have lights all around the trail.”

No family fun Christmas activity is complete without a visit from jolly old St. Nick, and he’s booked a special engagementat the park.

“We’ll have Santa with us each night, and for $5, you’ll be able to take a photo with Santa, which will be put in a commemorative frame and given to you right there on-site. We’ll also have arts and crafts, a couple of food vendors, and we’ll be showing a variety of short cartoon movies by the picnic shelter each night as well. We will have a fire pit for roasting marhsmallows on-site too. Our plan right now is to have live entertainment on the weekends. Participants are encouraged to bring a blanket to sit on to enjoy the entertainment.”

Although the program begins on Wednesday, Dec. 8, the grand opening is on Friday, Dec. 10 beginning at 6 p.m., and will include a welcome from local dignitaries, special entertainment from Voices of the Heart, a grand entrance by Santa in some outlandish way and the lighting of the central Christmas display.

In addition to pictures with Santa, visitors may also buy a commemorative ornament.

Only cash is accepted for all purchases, and animals other than service animals are not permitted.

This year, start a new holiday tradition to observe the beauty of the season –– slow down and take a walk in the park. For more information on Christmas in the Park, visit www.fcpr.us or call 910.433.1547. For inclement weather, call 910.306.7325.

Being fit and staying healthy is not always as convenient as we’d like it to be — Dr. Janine Lowe knows how important it is though and that is why she has organized the Hip Hop, Holiness, Hope and Preventive Health Fair. It’s an event that will not only provide free screening for various medical conditions, it is also going to be a day of great fun.

“I’ve been blessed enough to have people in my life with generous hearts who enjoy helping others, so it was not too hard to put this together,” said Lowe. “We are going to have several different kinds of screening available for the people who attend the fair,” which is on Dec. 6 at the John D. Fuller, SR. Recreational Center at 6627 Old Bunce Rd. There will be screenings and information about blood pressure, cholesterol, diabetes, mammography, information on pap smears, colon cancer, breast cancer, prostate cancer, childhood safety and immunizations.

Lowe is certain that the entertainment and free concert will make everyone’s trip worth while.

Long time fitness and aerobics instructor and author of Fit for the King: God’s Plan for Weight Loss and Total Health, Lt. Col. Thomas Hundley will be making a presentation as will Dr. Rani G. Whitfield — Tha Hip Hop Doc.

Whitfield is a family physician and an author known for his appearances on CNN, BET’s 106th and Park series, iVillage and other national talk and news shows. In 2008, Dr. Whitfi eld released Tha’ Hip Hop Doc Presents: State of Emergency, a health/education music CD, and the comic book series Tha Hip Hop Doc Presents: The Legion of Health, as vehicles to encourage young people to adopt good health habits. He is also the founder of the nonprofit Hip Hop Healthy Coalition that promotes healthy living platforms to youth groups throughout the world.

The event will run from 4-8 p.m. Come ready to move, be entertained and to learn a few things too! To find out more about the fair visit www. allthingsencouraging.com

While Hope Mills has been growing like nobody’s business, they’ve still got small town charm. On Saturday, Dec. 4, an entire day of activities has been planned for the community.

The fun starts with breakfast with Santa from 8:30 - 11 a.m. He’ll be at the Hope Mills Recreation Center at 5766 Rockfi sh Rd. ready to share his morning with all the good little boys and girls out there.

“We’ll be serving pancakes and the kids will have a choice between sausage or bacon and we’ll also have orange juice,” said Kenny Bullock event coordinator. “And the kids will have a chance to talk with Santa and spend some time with him.”

Limited space means that preregistration is required, but the $5 fee is payable at the door. Be sure to register by Nov. 29, by calling 424- 4500 In the spirit of the season the recreation center is requesting donations of canned and nonperishable foods to benefi t the Lam’s House in Hope Mills.

Later in the day, at 3 p.m. is the Hope Mills Christmas parade. It starts at the Hope Mills Recreation Center and will end at Hope Mills Middle School.

“We’ve got the traditional beauty queens who will be riding in the parade, and several school bands including Southview and Jack Britt among some other — we are hoping to include E.E. Smith High School too,” said Bullock. “One of our most interesting parade entries so far is First Baptist Church. They are going to bring shopping carts and walk with them in the parade to collect canned goods which will be given to the Alms House. We are encouraging anyone who comes to the parade to bring a canned good or nonperishable food item. It is the season of giving after all and like I was taught when I was a young boy, it really is better to give than to receive.”

Items collected will be distributed to families in need and used to feed the local homeless population.

Rounding out the day of festivities and good will is the 35th Annual Festival of Lights at Hope Mills Lake Park on Main Street. It starts at 5:30 p.m. and promises to be a fun evening of Christmas music, fellowship and memory making. There will be hay rides, the lighting of the town Christmas Tree, the town star and the yule log.

“We’ll be handing out cookies and hot chocolate while supplies last,” said Bullock. “And Santa and Mrs. Clause will be coming to make their rounds and they’ll be handing out cookies to the children. The little ones will have a chance to make their Christmas wishes known to Santa that evening too. It will be a really enjoyable event.”

For more information about any of these events please call 424-4500 or 426-4107.

While Hope Mills has been growing like nobody’s business, they’ve still got small town charm. On Saturday, Dec. 4, an entire day of activities has been planned for the community.

The fun starts with breakfast with Santa from 8:30 - 11 a.m. He’ll be at the Hope Mills Recreation Center at 5766 Rockfi sh Rd. ready to share his morning with all the good little boys and girls out there.

“We’ll be serving pancakes and the kids will have a choice between sausage or bacon and we’ll also have orange juice,” said Kenny Bullock event coordinator. “And the kids will have a chance to talk with Santa and spend some time with him.”

Limited space means that preregistration is required, but the $5 fee is payable at the door. Be sure to register by Nov. 29, by calling 424- 4500 In the spirit of the season the recreation center is requesting donations of canned and nonperishable foods to benefi t the Lam’s House in Hope Mills.

Later in the day, at 3 p.m. is the Hope Mills Christmas parade. It starts at the Hope Mills Recreation Center and will end at Hope Mills Middle School.

“We’ve got the traditional beauty queens who will be riding in the parade, and several school bands including Southview and Jack Britt among some other — we are hoping to include E.E. Smith High School too,” said Bullock. “One of our most interesting parade entries so far is First Baptist Church. They are going to bring shopping carts and walk with them in the parade to collect canned goods which will be given to the Alms House. We are encouraging anyone who comes to the parade to bring a canned good or nonperishable food item. It is the season of giving after all and like I was taught when I was a young boy, it really is better to give than to receive.”

Items collected will be distributed to families in need and used to feed the local homeless population.

Rounding out the day of festivities and good will is the 35th Annual Festival of Lights at Hope Mills Lake Park on Main Street. It starts at 5:30 p.m. and promises to be a fun evening of Christmas music, fellowship and memory making. There will be hay rides, the lighting of the town Christmas Tree, the town star and the yule log.

“We’ll be handing out cookies and hot chocolate while supplies last,” said Bullock. “And Santa and Mrs. Clause will be coming to make their rounds and they’ll be handing out cookies to the children. The little ones will have a chance to make their Christmas wishes known to Santa that evening too. It will be a really enjoyable event.”

For more information about any of these events please call 424-4500 or 426-4107.

The Sanford Pottery Festival draws thousands of people to its annual event in May. This festival has come to be known as not only the largest, but one of the fi nest exhibits of North Carolina pottery and will celebrate its 10th anniversary in 2011. This year, organizers have expanded to hold another festival at the most wonderful time of the year — now! The First Annual Christmas Show and Wine Tasting Event is slated for Saturday, Dec. 4, and Sunday Dec. 5 at the Dennis A. Wicker Civic Center in Sanford. This new winter event will give shoppers the opportunity to buy pottery pieces to dress up the holiday table, and the show is designed to provide thousands of gift ideas in the $10-$20 range, and all are unique North Carolina products.

North Carolinians take great pride in the rich pottery tradition of our state. The show will include an excellent selection of “art pottery” pieces, such as Raku, but the majority of pottery featured will be pieces that are made to be used.

“The First Annual Christmas Show is a scaled down version of the Sanford Pottery Festival and will feature 45 oversized booths for potters. Booths will also include a small number of other traditional arts and crafts, but most will be potters,” according to organizer Don Hudson. “A wide range of price points will be offered, and there will be a large selection of less expensive pottery suitable for Christmas gifts.”

The First Annual Christmas Show will also have a wine-tasting event, featuring eight North Carolina wineries offering samples and wines available for purchase by the glass, bottle or case. For an additional $5, shoppers (age 21 and over) can take a break from pottery and enjoy the wine tasting, which will include European varieties of wines made right here in North Carolina. There will also be a large selection of wines made from Muscadine and Scuppernong grapes.

“These wines offer a different experience. Some will hate the difference. Many will love it,” explained Hudson. “What I know is that such wines have 10 times the antioxidants of regular wine, which is itself very heart healthy!”

For newcomers to the area that may not be familiar with Sanford, don’t let that hold you back. Sanford is an easy 34-mile drive from Fayetteville, right up Highway 87. The Wicker Center is located at 1801 Nash St. and features plenty of free parking. There’s really no excuse not to venture up to Sanford and partake in the First Annual Christmas Show. Anyone who shows a military ID, retired or active duty, will get into the festival for free, with one adult guest. Children under 16 are free anyway, so this is a very family friendly event.

The Sanford Pottery Festival’s First Annual Christmas Show will be held Saturday, Dec. 4 from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. and on Sunday, Dec. 5, from noon to 5 p.m. Admission to the pottery festival is $5, or $10 for both the pottery festival and wine-tasting event. For more information, visit www.sanfordpottery.org.

As November begins to unwind, the sanctuary of Green Springs Baptist Church is transformed by the construction of a Christmas tree that spans more than 20 feet into the air. Soaring to the ceiling, the tree is lovingly adorned with greenery, lights and ribbons by the church members, and for one weekend only, it will come to life as the Green Springs Music Ministry presents A Baby Changes Everything during its annual singing Christmas tree.

The church has been hosting the event for almost 15 years, and Charles Stevens, who along with his wife Laura, serve as the music ministers, doesn’t see it stopping any time soon.

“It really has become a Christmas tradition for us,” said Stevens. “We spend about four days putting the tree up, and we spend about four months rehearsing for the event.”

Stevens said the music for this year’s event is very moving.

“The basis of the performance is the song ‘A Baby Changes Everything.’ Just like that baby changes the life of his mother, he also changes the lives of men and women throughout the world,” said Stevens.

The choir will be joined by the children’s choir, the Joy Singers, the Green Springs Trio and a men’s ensemble.

“This event truly brings all of the church together,” he said.

While there is no admission fee, the church asks those who are able to bring a canned food item for donation to the Gray’s Creek Christian Center.

“We know there are so many in need at this time of year, and this is a way to help them,” continued Stevens. “But if you can’t bring anything, come anyway.”

Refreshments will be served after each peformance and the public is invited to attend.

Shows are Friday, Dec. 3, Saturday, Dec. 4 and Sunday, Dec. 5 at 7 p.m.

Green Springs Baptist Church is located at 1095 E. Green Springs Rd., just off Highway 301 South. For more information, call 425-8602 or visit the website at www.greenspringsbaptistchurch.com.

If you’ve never had the pleasure of visiting a downtown loft, the candlelight loft tour is a can’t miss event. Not only are the homes quirky and interesting, they are decorated in Christmas splendor and ready to impress. Have you ever wondered what the space is like above the Cameo Theatre, or what about that space above McDuff’s Tea Room? Who spends their evenings looking down from the balcony over Bob & Sheree’s Beer & Wine shop? Well, now is your chance to find out.

This year, as in years past, several of downtown’s residents are throwing open their doors and inviting the public into their homes to share their way of life and give us a peek at the historical abodes above the shops.

Make your way downtown on Dec. 12 for this once-a-year peek into the downtown lofts.

“The tour will have 10 or so homes and is self guided so you can set your own pace,” said Chris Villa, Downtown Alliance spokesperson.

“There is always something new and different to see — and then we have some regular properties on the tour that everyone looks forward to seeing. This year we hope to have a few lofts that have not been on the the tour in a while.”

Villa didn’t mention any names but, the spaces are so varied and individualized, that every year is a treat — and a bit of a surprise.

Buy a ticket, ($10 in advance through the Downtown Alliance, Rude Awakening and City Center Gallery and Books and $13 on the day of the event) grab a map and wristband and begin your downtown adventure.

Tours will run from 5-8 p.m. For tickets and more info., call 222-3382. Be sure to stop at the Downtown Alliance office on Hay Street before you start out. Tour volunteers won’t let you into the buildings without a wristband and the Downtown Alliance is the only place to get one.

The Cumberland Oratorio Singers will perform George Frideric Handel’s Messiah during a free concert scheduled Dec. 4 beginning at 4 p.m. at Holy Trinity Episcopal Church.

Michael Martin, director of Choral Activities and Music Education at Methodist University and COS artistic director, leads and conducts the 18-year-old group of approximately 60 singers.

This holiday tradition is scheduled a little earlier than it has been in past years, but the format is still the same. It’s called a Christmas concert, but the group is really trying to represents more of a holiday theme. There is a spiritual, a Hanukkah piece and we have some seasonal pieces associated with the holidays.

“It is the opening for us, of the Christmas season,” said Cumberland Oratorio Singers President Mary Potter. “In fact, this year we are doing it a week earlier than we normally do. We’ll be right ups there at the beginning of the season to sing.”

If you are new in town or if this will be your first time to view the walk-in Messiah here in Fayetteville, this is how it works. Walk-in means that the Cumberland Oratorio Singers are performing the piece, but they welcome anyone to join them — for that song.

“We have a few traditional Christmas and Hanakkuh songs to sing before we sing the Messiah. The songs we do in the beginning celebrate everyone’s holidays,” said Potter. “But when it comes time to sing the Messiah we welcome anyone to come join us up front — or to sing in their own seats, should they bring their own scores as we dont’ have any score to give them.”

There will be a practice at 10 a.m. on Dec. 4, if you are planning to participate and want to practice with the- COS for that part of it.

Adding some holiday splendor to an already impressive performance, the Fayetteville Symphony Orchestra is providing the instrumental music.

“It really is a community effort to put this on,” said Potter. “The church and the Fayetteville Symphony Orchestra and the singers who com to join us — it is fun and it kicks off the season. It stars things off right the holidays and boosts everyone’s morale.”

This long-standing tradition usually packs the house, so Potter suggests coming early to get a good seat (or any seat really). While there are usually extra chairs in the back, the modest space is usually standing-room only.

“My favorite thing about this is that it is for the community,” said Potter. “Anyone can come and join us — it is an open call. Come sing with us — that to me is more of a community feeling that we are offering to our Fayetteville brothers and sisters, that we are asking them to come join us for this yearly performance. That, to me, is what community is about.

Whether you are joining the walk-in or enjoying the performance from the pew, you can find out more at www.cumberlandoratoriosingers. org

Music is an integral part of Snyder Memorial Baptist Church. The music academy provides group and private music lessons, Kindermusik programs, music therapy and more. With Christmas right around the corner, the church’s adult music program is reaching out to the community again with its annual Singing Christmas Tree.

A tradition that goes back 32 years, the Snyder Singing Christmas Tree is a tradition that the community loves and looks forward to every year.

“It has really become one of the fi xtures in the Fayetteville community, like two or three other things that happen every year,” said Snyder Memorial Baptist Church Minister of Music Larry Dickens.

“We really look forward to it. We enjoy sharing with the people who come and the time that we get to share with almost 6,000 people who attend during that weekend.”

The event involves 350 people in the actual production with another 100 people who have signifi cant roles as ushers, canned-food collectors, hospitality, custodial, food service, construction workers and set builders. Although there is a lot of work and planning that goes into the Singing Christmas Tree, the performers only have two full rehearsals to pull it off, Dickens noted. They meet once for a pre-dress rehearsal, then the dress rehearsal and then on to the stage.

This years performance is titled Voices of Christmas/Legacies of Faith and it looks to be outstanding, as usual. The general gist of the performance is an attempt to contrast the contemporary voices of Christmas with the traditional legacies of faith that we think of with the Christmas story like Mary, Joseph and the shepherds.

“We are really contrasting what are the contemporary voices that we hear at Christmas? What do they say? And what were those legacies of faith voices? What do we hear from them about the Christmas story? As we look at it we realize that they had many of the same challenges that we have as contemporary people,” said Dickens.

“For example, there is a teen that has a short monologue talking about needing acceptance. There is an elderly woman who talks about loneliness, a middle-aged person who talks about how to pay the bills at Christmas and we contrast those with things like what was it like for Mary?” continued Dickens. “Did she faces challenges? Did Joseph? Did the shepherds? What were their choices? Their choice was to be faithful, to trust God.

“The lyrics from one of the 2010 Singing Christmas Tree ring especially true for many people: ‘I need a silent night, a midnight clear, a little peace right here,’” said Dickens. “But where do we fi nd these things? We fi nd these things when we return to the manger. When we look closely, listen carefully, worship fully, and follow faithfully! That’s where we’ll fi nd the hopeful Voices of Christmas. That’s where our own legacy of faith begins.”

Performance dates and times are as follows: Thursday and Friday, Dec. 2-3 from 7:30 - 9 p.m.. On Saturday and Sunday, Dec. 4-5, from 4:30 - 6 p.m. and 7:30 - 9 p.m.. Please note that it is the policy not to “hold” or “reserve” tickets. (All performances are now full. You may go to the church offi ce at 701 Westmont Dr. in Fayetteville to check if tickets have been returned). Visit www. snydermbc.com for more info.

Unless you are a movie buff or a comedy buff, you might not recognize the name Mike Epps. But when you see his face and hear his voice, you will instantly recognize Epps as one of the most popular comedians of the past few years. On Friday, Nov. 26, Epps will bring his comedy to the Crown stage.

Epps was born in 1970 in Indianapolis, Indiana, into a large family. His family encourage his comedic side and he began performing while still a teenage. Following a move to Atlanta, Ga., where he worked at the Comedy Act Theater. In 1995, he moved to New York City where he found a home on the Def Comedy Jam. During that time he also made his first big screen appearance in Van Diesel’s Strays, a film that explored relationships and drugs.

Strays was just the first of many big-screen roles Epps has tackled. He became a fan favorite from the Friday series of films, where he brought the role of Day-Day to life in Ice Cube’s Next Friday.

In 2001, Epps stepped out of the spotlight and behind the mic to bring the voice of Sonny the Bear to life in Eddie Murphy’s Dr. Dolittle 2. He also has voiced the role of Boog in Open Season 2 and Open Season 3.

2004 and 2005 were busy years for Epps, who starred in Resident Evil Apocalypse and Guess Who? with Ashton Kutcher and Bernie Mack, and the remake of The Honeymooners. In 2006, Epps hit the big screen again with a cast of stars in the fi lm The Fighting Temptations, which featured Cuba Gooding Jr. and Beyonce. In 2007, he reprised his Resident Evil role in Resident Evil: Extinction, followed up by Welcome Home Roscoe Jenkins and Hancock in 2008. He also played Black Doug in The Hangover in 2009.

When Epps isn’t filming, he is touring the country and performing his comedy act, The Mike Epps On the Edge Tour to sold-out theaters and arenas across the country.

While Epps has played some diverse roles, he is quick to point out that they are merely roles and do not define who he is. When fans mistake Epps for one of his characters, he frequently makes it part of his comedy routine.

“I learned that you don’t have to be all over the place, that you can be subtle and you can say what you say,” said Epps. “The words that you put together can be just as hilarious as falling all over the place or doing something.”

Epps looks to old movies and television comedy to help develop his craft. A key inspiration was the role of Ed Norton in The Honeymooners.

“I can remember when I was a baby and my mother was there watching the show (The Honeymooners).I went and bought 100 episodes and watched them,” he said during an interview before his remake of the movie was released. “I respect it so much that the sitcom itself and Ed Norton; I’m not playing Ed Norton but my version of it, cause I’m a black man.”

“I watch old school fi lm so that I can learn so much that I just sort of miss all the new stuff,” he continued.

Epps takes his success in stride, noting, “I’m a survivor of life. I try to give the glory to God and appreciate what’s happening to me. I’m gonna have to develop myself. I’m just going to do the best that I can do, but I’m humble enough to wait and just chill. I’m having fun just working with these good people.”

Epps will be joined on stage by comedienne Sheryl Underwood. Underwood, a former member of the armed forces and has two master’s degrees frequently makes jokes about “all the creative places you can get busy on a military base.”

Underwood refers to herself as “a sexually progressive, God-fearing, black Republican,” and is best known for her stand-up, but has had some time on the big screen.

The show starts at 8 p.m., and tickets for the event range in price from $46 to $55. Tickets may be purchased at the Crown Box Office and all Ticketmaster outlets. For more information, visit www.atthecrown.com.

Once the turkey has been eaten, a few rounds of left overs have been reheated and savored and the pie plates hold nothing but crumbs, there still looms a long weekend ahead. Early on Friday morning, you might head out to the stores to partake in the great American pasttime known as Black Friday shopping, but you will want to save some of your energy for the afternoon when one of Fayetteville’s favorite holiday traditions — A Dickens Holiday returns to downtown Fayetteville.

From 1-9 p.m., Fayetteville is turned into a picture from the past, a Victorian scene full of good cheer, good times and good fun. Forget the standard 4th Friday events that usually happen this time each month, this celebration lasts through the afternoon and into the evening with events that only come once a year.

“Dickens Holiday is a Victorian-style holiday celebration that kicks off the holiday season. It is based around A Christmas Carol and the whole point that Charles Dickens was making with A Christmas Carol is that this is the time of year when you feel kindly towards your fellow man, you are warmed by your generosity to you fellow man and your good will. That is what turned Scrooge around, that spirit of a Dickens Holiday is absolutely palpable on the street during these celebrations,” explained Hank Parfitt, A Dickens Holiday spokesperson.

“It is probably one of a lot of people’s favorite holidays because you just have a wonderful sense of community and you feel good about yourself, your community and your fellow man. It really is magical. There is no other festival like it,” he continued.

Hot cider and gingerbread vendors line Hay Street offering yummy treats for just .50 cents as professional chefs assemble gingerbread masterpieces at the Rainbow Room. The competition is stiff and everyone is bringing their best decorating tricks as they compete for the $1,000 prize — and don’t forget to cast your vote for the People’s Choice Award, too.

Check out the Market House display to see the holidays portrayed Victorian style. Vintage coins, ceramics and other commemoritive pieces honoring Queen Victoria will be on display.

There will be carriage rides available from 1-9 p.m. Don’t miss the chance to savor downtown decked out in finery for the holidays. Take a ride with a group or make reservations and have the carriage all to yourself. Tickets are $15 per person, and can be purchased by calling 678-8899.

Capture the memories with a momento from Fascinate-U Children’s Museum. Kids are invited to create an original Victorian ornament from 1-7 p.m. There is always room to share with the city and hang the decoration on the community tree if your child chooses not to take his treasure home.

Photos will be available for purchase at the Arts Council. Gather the family around Father Christmas or pile into the Victorian sleigh to create a picture that you’ll cherish for years. While you are there, enjoy holiday entertainment that is sure to put you in the Christmas spirit!

If you’ve already got that spirit, why not join in the costume contest — it’s only $10 to enter and there will be cash prizes in men’s, women’s and children’s categories.

“It is important to let people know it is a fun event to watch. These costumes are very authentic. They match the time period when Dickens wrote, which is around 1830-1860. It is a quite entertaining to see what these people have designed and sewn together or assembled,” said ParfItt. “We encourage people not only to watch but to take part in the contest. There are $500 in cash prizes that we will be giving away.”

It is not too late to sign up. Just go to the Arts Council website at www. theartscouncil.com for the application and rules.

The costume contest begins with a Picadilly Promenade and a fi reside chat with Charles Dickens. The promenade is where anyone in costume can come across the stage at the beginning of the contest.

There is no judging or announcing names, it’s just a chance to show off your cool Victorian get up and to walk across the stage.

The contest starts at 6:30 p.m. and will be preceded by an appearance by Charles Dickens who will give a little back story about how he came to write A Christmas Carol and some of his other works.

“This year we’ve got a wonderful Charles Dickens,” Parfitt added. With so many events throughout the day it was hard to get Parfi tt to name just one favorite.

“There are fi ve things that make a Dickens Holiday — the carriage rides, the costumed characters from A Christmas Carol and the musicians and performers and roving carolers, the hot cider and ginger bread — without those you don’t have a Dickens Holiday,” Parfitt noted.

The other component is the procession. At 5 p.m. people gather at the Arts Council for the candlelight walk to the Market House. Queen Victoria in her carriage will be leading the procession and anyone in costume gets to go behind the carriage and everyone else behind that.

Then comes the tree lighting.

“All of the lights come on at one time — and when the lights come on the Market House bell will ring and the fireworks will burst into the night sky,” said Parfitt. “That is not the end of the event though. That is the beginning of the holiday season.”

There will be activities and entertainment well into the night with the last of the events finishing up at 9 p.m.

Find out more at www. theartscouncil.com.

The Museum of the Cape Fear Historical Complex will usher in another joyous holiday season with its 10th annual Holiday Jubilee on Sunday, Dec. 5 from 1-5 p.m. The event is a well-loved tradition of music, food and festivities that North Carolina residents look forward to all year.

Visitors will be awed at the beautiful and lush decorations as they tour the historic Poe House. The Poe House kitchen staff will prepare a meal on an authentic stove dating back to the 1800s, bringing delicious seasonal treats for children and adults.

Children will also enjoy taking part in the wintertime scavenger hunt or join their parents in making and taking home a traditional Victorian present.

Heidi Bleazy, education coordinator for the Cape Fear Historical Complex said, “This is such a fun time for families, scout groups, anyone welcoming the holiday season. I cannot wait to hear the wonderful music and the cooking demonstration on the 1897 wood burning stove.”

The seasonal sounds will be brought by musical guest Charles Pettee, who will delight the audience with a tasty blend of original and traditional American Folk, Bluegrass and Celtic music. Multi-talented as a singer and musically adept at banjo, harmonica, guitar and mandolin, Pettee will provide the perfect holiday sounds, while the Poe House will provide the perfect visual backdrop. Pettee will perform at 1:30, 2:30 and 3:30 p.m.

Bleazy thinks that this year will be as successful and enjoyable as in past years. “This is our 10th anniversary of having the Holiday Jubilee at the museum, and I hope to see a lot of folks come out and be a part of this great time.”

Share this event with those you cherish. There will be so much for the whole family to hear, see and do. Make this years Holiday Jubilee a part of your seasonal celebrations. The Holiday Jubilee is a free, family-friendly event for all to enjoy.

The Musuem of the Cape Fear Complex is located on Arsenal Avenue, just off Haymount Hill in Fayetteville. The historical complex is open to the public Tuesday through Saturday from 10 a.m. -5 p.m. and Sunday from 1-5 p.m., and admission is free.

For more information, visit www.musuemofthecapefear.ncdcr.gov or call Heidi Bleazy at 910 486 1330 from 1-5 p.m.

For hockey fans, this time of the year is filled with excitement. And for FireAntz hockey fans, the action might be happening on the ice, but it keeps getting hotter as they go out to support their home team.

Over the years the Fayetteville FireAntz have made a mark on the community, and their fans keep coming back year after year for good times and great hockey. This year promises to be no exception.

The Fayetteville FireAntz are hitting the ice for the 2010 season with a relatively inexperienced team; however, the community can still expect great things from its home team, according to Kevin McNaught, the president/ general manager of the organization.

“We lost some veteran players last year, so we had to make more changes than we normally would,” said McNaught. “We only have three veterans returning. We are not rebuilding, we are reloading.”

The FireAntz are currently seventh in the league with three wins and seven losses.

Jason Fleming, public relations director for the team, added, “We’ve had a lot of games on the road and that takes a toll.”

Kevin “We’ve only had two home games because of the events at the Crown forcing us to play on the road. Sunday’s win was pretty big.

New to the FireAntz this year are 10 players, seven of whom have just finished their college careers. BeefIng up the goal is Adam Avramenko, from Strathmore, Alberta.

Fleming said Avramenko is coming on strong in the goal and shows a lot of promise.

He will be joined on the ice by six new forwards: Jeff Borrows, Ryan Salvis, Kyle Warneke, NathanielBrooks, Cody Zubko and Anthony Pototschnik.

“We’ve had a lot of talented young forwards,” said Fleming. “Salvis and Zubko have really stepped up early.”

Strengthening the defensive line are: Myles Gomes, Jordan Behler and Joe DeBello. Debello, Zubko and Salvis have some pro hockey experience under their belts.

The FireAntz will look for leadership from their returning bench to whip their young team into shape.

Leading the team this year will be Craig Geerlinks, a defensive player, who was named player/assistant coach and captain for the 2010-2011 season. He is joined by forward Bobby Reed who is the alternate captain and also an assistant coach.

Fan favorite Rob Sich will also return to the lineup. Sich, whose return to the ice was in question when contract negotiations stalled this summer, is in his fourth season with the FireAntz, and has played his heart out on the ice. Named the 2009-2010 and the 2006-2007 Southern Professional Hockey League MVP, he set the SPHL record with 63 goals in a season.

Sich is in good company with teammate Chris Leveille who is returning for his second season with the team. Last year, Leveille, a forward, played in 56 games, scored 19 goals and had 65 assists. He was named to the All SPHL team.

The organization has become a member of the Fayetteville community. The action might take place on the ice, but their hearts are fi rmly in the community. Community support of the team is a partnership that has grown over the years.

“What we do is quality of life,” said McNaught. “We rely on the community to support us so much, so it is easy for us to give back with appearances and having the players in the schools where they can be role models.”

Over the past several years the FireAntz have formed lasting partnerships with community agencies like the Women’s Center and the Cape Fear Valley Blood Donor Center. The organization is also a huge supporter of the military. This week, two of those partnerships will take center ice as the FireAntz host a special military appreciation night and a Blood Donor Center night.

On Friday, Nov. 19, military groups will have the opportunity to purchase tickets for just $5 at the FireAntz offi ce as the FireAntz take on the Louisiana IceGators. On Dec. 4, the team will host military appreciation night.

On Saturday, Nov. 20, the FireAntz will play a second match against the IceGators but the spotlight will turn to the Blood Donor Center. This is the fi rst specialty jersey night of the season. The team will sport jerseys specially designed to support the Blood Donor Center. After the game you are going to want to stick around for an auction of the jerseys, with all proceeds going to the Blood Donor Center.

The following week, the FireAntz are looking forward to hosting what has become an annual event — Thanksgiving Night Hockey!

“This is only the beginning of our season,” said Fleming. “We’ve had two home games and there are 26 games left between now and March. We are really excited about the season. We have the best fan support in the league and we are really going to turn it on for our fans.”

For more information, visit www.fireantzhockey.com.

What if I told you that just outside of Fayetteville sits a beautiful, lush paradise; a place where you can escape it all for a few hours and still be home for dinner? Well, it’s true, such a place exists in the Lu-Mil Vineyard.

Starting as a tobacco mill, the Lu Mil Vineyard (a combination of the owners first names Lucille and Miller Taylor), sits on the family farm site on Suggs-Taylor Road, in Dublin, N.C., just 25 miles south of Fayetteville.

Already successful as a thriving tobacco farm, the Taylor’s decided to go in a different direction, and in the early 2000s the owners decided to test their ideas for new machinery for the growing viticulture industry. Their Muscadine vineyard was born!

With the Muscadine grapes producing well, the fi rst estate wines were produced from Lu Mil Vineyard’s 2005 Muscadine grape harvest, and in December 2005 the vineyard’s Gift Shop and Tasting Room offi cially opened to the public.

Proving popular and successful, Lu-Mil Vineyard has expanded over the years, and now also possesses several different sized venues that have provided families in and around Dublin with beautiful setting for their weddings, receptions, family reunions and more.

Also available is a large winetasting room with a gift shop and windows overlooking the 35-acre vineyard. With fishing ponds, horseshoe pits and walking trails, there is a little something for everyone to enjoy, and now that the Christmas season is almost here, Lu-Mil is pleased to bring back its holiday light show. Patrons will be able to climb aboard the plush double decker bus, take a tour of the vineyard and partake in the wonderful light show all at once.

Ron Taylor, owner of Lu-Mil Vineyard called the presentation, “An exciting holiday experience consisting of hundreds of thousands of choreographed and synchronized lights put to sound, and made to dance for several different shows.”

Surely the thought of colorful Christmas lights dancing to the sounds of the season is enough to put anyone in a joyous holiday mood. Come for just the show or stay for a while, their beautifully decorated rooms are available for rent by the day or weekend.

The holiday light show will begin Nov. 27 and will run Thursdays through Sundays at 6 p.m. Tickets are $5 or for an additional $5 you are able to partake in the Country Dinner buffet as well.

For more information, call 910- 862-1000 or visit their web page at www.lumilvineyard.com.

The Fayetteville Symphony Orchestra has been bringing culture and great music to Fayetteville for more than 50 years. Not only do they perform at several venues around town, including local schools, churches, colleges and outdoor parks, they also partner with local arts and cultural venues to perform free concerts and educational events several times a year in addition to a rigorous concert season.

The 2010-2011 season is underway and on Nov. 20, the symphony is in tune to perform its second concert of the Season of Masterworks. “

The reason we chose the pieces for this program is that its theme is legends and riddles,” said Dr. Fouad Fakhouri, conductor of the Fayetteville Symphony Orchestra.

“The first two pieces of the program really are legendary pieces.” The first one is the “Overture to the Flying Dutchman” by Richard Wagner. Fakhouri compares this piece to a recent film that was quite popular. “It is a great overture that deals with the legend of love — the story is very similar to Pirates of the Caribbean.”

Fakhouri explained the legend behind the piece: There is a sailor who is cursed and his only way to salvation is to fi nd a woman on shore who will love him unconditionally and forever. Every seven years he comes to shore for that one chance — to try and find his love.

Next in the line up is Felix Mendelssohn’s “Violin Concerto in E Minor” which will be performed by Juliana Athayde. Athayde is currently a professor of violin at the Eastman School of Music and has an impressive list of professional accomplishments including an appointment as concertmaster of the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra in 2005 at the age of 24. Prior to that, Athayde was concertmaster of the Canton and Plymouth Symphonies. She has also performed as guest concertmaster with the Houston Symphony and National Arts Center Orchestra, and has performed both nationally and internationally with the Cleveland Orchestra.

The finale of the evening is Sir Edward Elgar’s “Enigma Variations — the Riddle.”

“The reason it is labeled as such is the composer wrote this tune and he told everybody that there is something more to that tune than what is there on paper and nobody to date has been able to figure out what the riddle is behind the piece,” said Fakhouri. “It is a beautiful piece because it is a portrait of all of his friends and loved ones.”

Elgar took one theme and he has 14 variations of this theme, each one representing a person in his life. He has initials on every one of those movements and those initials are of his friends and relatives.

“One is of his wife, it is just a beautiful theme and the way he transforms this idea to every person’s character is really fascinating,” Fakhouri added “The last movement of that work is his variation — a musical self portrait — and it is such a great movement. He brings back his wife’s theme in a very delicate moment, as if to say that ‘All of the things that happened earlier in my life were great but the one constant in my life has been my wife’ and he brings that one theme to the very end in a emotional way.”

Before each performance, the maestro has an informal chat with the audience about what they will hear during the concert, what to listen for and what is significant in the pieces that will be performed. This pre-performance discussion will include Athayde.

So, while the concert starts at 7:30 p.m. at FSU’s Seabrook Auditorium, if you get there around 6:45 p.m. you’ll have a chance to learn a bit about the music and the performers.

“I think it is definitely going to be exciting and really imaginative in many ways and very diverse.” said Fakhouri. “The beauty of it is there are three different pieces, but certainly two of them have a very profound meaning behind the music.”

To find out what else the Fayetteville Symphony Orchestra has in store for the rest of the year, and to purchase tickets, visit www.fayettevillesymphony.org

Most of us are familiar with Charles Dickens’ classic tale, A Christmas Carol. It’s the story of Ebenezer Scrooge, a rich, yet stingy businessman who dislikes festivities and celebrations. Scrooge is well-known for his hatred for the poor as well as for the harsh way in which he treats them. In the story, Scrooge is visited by spirits who test his beliefs and eventually, Scrooge realizes that he has erred and resolves to become a compassionate, charitable man. The story has become synonymous with Christmas and has maintained its status of being a holiday staple around the globe.

The stage version of A Christmas Carol has become a local tradition as well, courtesy of the performers at the Gilbert Theater. For the fifth straight year, the Gilbert Theater has been entertaining the community with its own take on one of Dickens’ most famous works. According to founder and artistic director at Gilbert, Lynn Pryer, despite the fact that the story was published more than 150 years ago, it still resonates with readers and audiences today.

“Human nature does not change. Greed is still with us,” Pryer said, going on to say that the reason he loves theater is that, “Great stories can change people. Brilliant stories like this one have lasting power. It was on stage one month after its publication in 1843. Redemption is a tenant of all great religions.”

It is his love for the performing arts that led Pryer to open up the Gilbert Theater in the basement of his home back in 1994. Now in its location at the corner of Green and Bow streets in downtown Fayetteville, the theater is well known for both its classical and contemporary productions. Gilbert prides itself on providing performances that are both entertaining as well as socially relevant.

When asked about the challenge of keeping an annual production like A Christmas Carol fresh, Pryer noted, “Doing a play year after year requires us to improve this and that: sets, costumes, props, music, etc.”

His ultimate goal is for his audience to “sit breathless in their seat and leave changed. We ask audiences to willingly suspend their disbeliefs.”

“In a familiar story like A Christmas Carol,” he said, “our task is to use Charles Dickens’ words and breathe life into them.”

It is no wonder, then, how the motto of the Gilbert, “where story telling takes center stage” came to be.

Those who were fortunate to have caught last year’s version will be happy to learn that John Doerner will be returning in his role as the selfish businessman, Scrooge. Also returning this year are Paul Wolverton as Bob Cratchit, Cleve Davis as Jacob Marley’s ghost and Joyce Lipe as the narrator. Carrie Carroll, Crystal Abbott and Efrain Colon will portray the three spirits.

The production will run Nov. 26 - Dec. 12. Thursday and Friday shows are at 8 p.m. Saturday shows are at 2 and 8 p.m. and Sunday shows are at 2 p.m. only. (There will not be a show on Dec. 9). Tickets are $12 and can be purchased at the website www.gilberttheater.com or at the box office beginning Nov. 17.

The box office is open on Tuesday 5-7 p.m., Wednesdays and Saturdays from 11 a.m.-1 p.m. Walk-ups are welcome but seating can’t be guaranteed. For more information, visit the website or call 910- 678-7186. The Gilbert is located on the second floor of the Fascinate U Children’s Museum and it is wheelchair accessible

A recent walk-through of the Fayetteville Museum of Art revealed empty walls with no exhibits on display. Instead, walls and floors were lined with stacks and stacks of items for sale. These artifacts, treasures and office supplies that were once used daily at the Fayetteville Museum of Art are grouped, priced and ready to make themselves useful at a different home — possibly yours.

On Saturday, Nov. 20, from 9 a.m. - 3 p.m. the doors of the Fayetteville Museum of Art will be open once again. Only this time it’s not for a new exhibit, but for a tag sale. They are looking to sell most everything in the building. There will be art, art supplies, appliances, offIce supplies, office furniture, computers, electronics, tools, paint, kitchen supplies, books, cultural artifacts, educational toys and plenty of unique odds and ends.

“We really have some treasures here,” said Meredith Player Stiehl, of the Fayetteville Museum of Art Board of Trustees. “Everyone from the small business owner looking for offIce equipment and supplies to homeschoolers looking for resources, to teachers, parents, art collectors — you name it, they can find something here.”

Items are priced to sell. The museum store has Andy Warhol items that normally sell for $15 marked down to $2. Art desks that have been well used and well loved but that still have plenty of useful life left in them are going for $25. Grab a chair to go with it, they are $3 - $5.

Don’t come expecting to haggle over the price of office supplies, although there will be some wiggle room in price when it comes to the pieces of art that are being sold.

“We’ll have our curator here for the tag sale,” said Stiehl. “She will be able to answer any questions that people have about the art work we are selling.”

The offerings range in scope, size and tastes. There are a few pieces by a Disney illustrator, works by students who attended art classes at the museum and pieces that were donated over the years for safe keeping.

Although it is difficult to watch so much of their inventory go out the door, Stiehl realizes that it is for all the right reasons. The board of directors is keeping the museum’s private collection, library materials and a few other resources and plans to use them again when the museum opens its doors at some point in the future, and hopefully that will be sooner rather than later.

“We are currently waiting to hear back from a consultant about plans for the future of the museum,” Stiehl said. “We are going to store the few things we aren’t selling at the tag sale, and hopefully we will find a space that we can use to reestablish the museum and make these resources available to the public once again.”

If you are coming to the tag sale at 839 Stamper Rd., to take advantage of the great bargains, bring cash, as checks and credit cards will not be accepted. Visit www. fayettevillemuseumart.org for more information.

There is a distinct joyfulness in the watercolors and oil paintings of Joanna McKethan. Brilliant colors and highly detailed subjects exude states of grace, sensation and sentiment.

Visitors to Gallery 208 on Rowan Street, Thursday, November 18, will be able to get a preview of the exhibition Works by Joanna McKethan and meet the artist between 5:30 and 7:00 p.m. The artist will be speaking at 6:00 p.m. to give visitors to the reception insight into her journey as an artist.

McKethan resides in Dunn, North Carolina, and has a studio and business in Dunn where she has taught painting for many years. A regular visitor to Fayetteville, some of her local activities include being a juror for the Fayetteville Art Guild, studying printmaking with Silvana Foti at Methodist University and winning two Regional Artist Grants at the Arts Council of Fayetteville and Cumberland County.

I met the artist recently during her gallery talk after she had juried a competition for the Fayetteville Arts Guild. Seeing an exhibition of her work only affi rmed what I already knew of the artist from that initial meeting, she was highly trained and able to verbally discuss works of art in a critical manner.

In addition, what I see in her exhibition is a body of work that refl ects a personality that was communicated during her gallery talk — exuberance and competence.

No matter what the subject she is painting, still lifes or landscapes, there are several underlying themes in her work — one is the unfolding of beauty. McKethan calls her style “playful realism,” but I sensed much deeper meaning when I viewed her body of work. For me there is something always unfolding for us to discover among her subjects of feathers, leaves, bubbles or old letters.

In talking to McKethan, she affi rmed her intuitive approach to painting; response overrules planning. In many of her works the placement of objects unifi es the composition, all the pieces fit to make a whole that results in a type of truth for the viewer.

The abundance of beauty in McKethan’s paintings invites contemplation. We are immediately drawn to the color and the subject; the signifi cance of play, balance and harmony are spring boards to the essence of meaning in her work.

The inner harmony of McKethan’s paintings is subtle; the truth in her work is revealed by the way she has come to terms with her environment with selected interest and is presenting that discovery to us. In the process of painting, the artist has attained equilibrium with her environment, one that brings new and fresh adjustments for the viewer.

For example, a magnolia leaf in McKethan’s painting is not simply green or brown, but for McKethan is “layers of bronzed metallic colors.” McKethan stated, “I see the depth of the color, not just color in terms of brightness.”

The artist shows us a new environment from the familiar. Her objective study of the objects in her still lifes becomes an experience that moves away from the descriptive and aligns itself with interpretation — equilibrium is always present.

A well trained artist, McKethan’s experience in art spans thirty years. She studied art at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, but left the university with a BS in Philosophy. While living in Germany, McKethan undertook three years of Old Masters training in oils by a German master, Bergheim and watercolor training at the University of Munich Extension by a Polish master, Leon Jonczyk.

Some of her awards include the Salis International Award from the 59th Juried Exhibition in Boone, NC, the Silver Brush Award for the 25th Southern Watercolor Society Anniversary Exhibition in Baton Rouge, LA, two Regional Artists Grants from the Fayetteville and Cumberland County Arts Council and the Purchase Award from the Watercolor Society of North Carolina in Cary.

When not being exhibited in galleries and competitions around the country, McKethan’s paintings hang at two of her galleries, j’Originals’ Art Studio at 126 East Broad Street in Dunn and at Art on Broad Atelier at 217 East Broad in Dunn.

In the McLeod Gallery at Up & Coming Weekly, local artist A. Jones Rogers will also be having a reception of a solo exhibition of his watercolors.

A. Jones Rogers has been exhibiting his large format watercolors in Fayetteville galleries for many years, so I welcome a body of his work to be viewed at one time. Rogers is known for his close attention to detail, panoramic views of local sites and historical moments in time.

Rogers’s watercolors seem to be more about the details of a moment. In all of his work I feel as if I am in the moment of his experience. Seeing details through the eyes of the artist, I scan his watercolor surfaces as he creates form and story with particulars, information and fi ne points of color and light.

Like McKethan, Rogers has received many awards for his watercolors; one of his recent awards was a fi rst place award last year for Cargill Plant in the Fayetteville Arts Council’s Cultural Expressions competition and a first place award in this years competition at the Cape Fear Studios on Maxwell Street.

People attending the reception will be able to meet this enigmatic artist. I have seen his large scale watercolor for years in exhibitions, yet only recently met the artist. So for people familiar with the work, it is their chance to hear the artist talk about his work and his journey as an artist. For those unfamiliar with his work, it will be a perfect time to meet an accomplished local, realist artist.

The two exhibitions compliment each other. Both artists are a testimony to the types of knowledge we can experience as an artist translates and manipulates a similar medium.

The public is invited to Gallery 208 in the offi ces of Up & Coming Weekly at 208 Rowan Street, Nov. 18 at 5:30 p.m. to attend the opening of these two exhibits. Both artists will be present to talk about their work; exhibitions will remain up throughout the month of December.