Upcoming events: Jackson impersonator to ‘thrill’ crowd

Dance Theatre of Lynchburg’s annual Thriller Night Costume Party will have a special guest this year.

A local aspiring Michael Jackson impersonator will be performing several Jackson routines, set to songs like “Billie Jean” and “Want to Be Startin’ Somethin’,” during the party, scheduled from 6 to 9 p.m. Oct. 30.

Ben Leeming, 16, says he became obsessed with Jackson and his moves when he came across a YouTube video of the legendary musician doing the Moonwalk.

“I hadn’t watched him dance in a while,” Leeming says, adding that after watching the video, “I said, ‘I want to learn that.’”

He quickly started watching and imitating Jackson’s steps.

The Moonwalk came first.

“It took me a year to get where I am,” he says. “I think the Moonwalk is just one of those moves where there’s always room for improvement.”

About two months ago, he approached Artistic Director Keith Lee about performing with Dance Theatre.

Lee was impressed and recruited Leeming to perform with the troupe at a dance festival in Staunton and, later, at their annual Inside Out performance in September.

“His moves are authentic,” Lee says. “It’s just something natural in him. He takes the floor, and all of a sudden, he is Michael Jackson. You can see it in his spirit.”

In addition to Leeming’s performance, the costume party will give local kids, ages 9 to 13, the chance to learn the steps to “Thriller.”

Admission is $5 per person. For more information, call (434) 846-6272 or visit http://www.dancelynchburg.org.

Cooking for the recession

Magnolia Foods is gearing up to host two cooking classes.

“Recession Gourmet” is up first, from 7:30 to 9:30 p.m. Thursday.

In it, Jata Brown will share recession-inspired dinners that can be made, for the most part, from items on hand — think ravioli and manicotti, red beans and rice, savory bread pudding and homemade cake with caramel icing.

The $40 cost includes the demonstration, dinner, soft drinks and/or wine during the class and printed recipes.

“Freezer Friendly” is scheduled from 7:30 to 9:30 p.m. Tuesday and costs $149.

During the two hours, attendees will cook six dinners that they can take home and store in the freezer. The cost also includes printed recipes and snacks, soft drinks and/or wine served during the class.

The format is informal, with plenty of time to ask questions and learn about new techniques and ingredients.

Payment is due when you register. For more information, call (434) 528-5442 or visit http://www.magnoliafoods.com.

Apple tasting at Point of Honor

Apple historian Tom Burford, internationally known for is work with historic orchards, will lead an apple tasting event at 2 p.m. Saturday at Point of Honor.

Since 1996, Burford has been helping recreate the kitchen orchard — once common in Virginia and usually planted behind the main house — at Point of Honor, and there are now 12 different varieties there, from the familiar Winesap to the more exotic Golden Pearmain and Summer Rambo.

Virginia wines and cheese also will be served at the reception that follows.

Tickets are $40 each, $25 of which is a tax-deductible gift that supports Point of Honor. Seating is limited.

For more information or to buy tickets, call (434) 455-6226 or visit http://www.pointofhonor.org.

E.C. Glass plans alumni reunion

E.C. Glass High School’s drama department is organizing an alumni reunion to coincide with its celebration of 100 years of drama activities at the school and the 30th anniversary of E.C. Glass Theatre, the school’s drama club.

A variety of events are scheduled for Feb. 19-21, and former students who participated in drama, technical theater and orchestra pit over the years are encouraged to attend.

For more information, contact the drama department at (434) 522-3712 or .

Local grad to perform at The White Hart
Randolph College graduate Amy Andrews is returning to Lynchburg to perform with her band, Amy & Me, at 7:30 p.m. Saturday at The White Hart.

The Baltimore-based band is a folk-rock trio comprised of classically trained musicians.

The show is free.

Amazement Square goes global
 
The downtown children’s museum is hosting its Ninth annual Ugly Bug Ball from 6 p.m. to midnight Oct. 30.

The event, which costs $100 per person, will feature food, music, live and silent auctions and celebrity waiters like Shannon Valentine, Scott Garrett and George Dawson, CEO of Centra Health.

Each celebrity waiter will decorate a table based on a country of their choice to go along with Amazement Square’s 2009 programming theme, “Growing Up Global.”

Raleigh-based band Bull City Syndicate will play a mix of jazz, funk, rock and Top 40, and auction items include a trip to Barbados, Hillcats tickets, furniture and other accessories.

For more information, call (434) 845-1888 or visit http://www.amazementsquare.org.

Race to raise awareness of human trafficking

Run For Their Lives — a 5K run/walk, 10K race and one-mile children’s race that will spotlight sexual slavery across the world, particularly in Southeast Asia — is scheduled for 9 a.m. Saturday, starting from Heritage High School (the children’s race is scheduled for 8:30 a.m. and will remain on campus).

Runners’ $24 entry fees will go to Freedom 4/24, a local ministry that targets human trafficking in Thailand and seeks to free the women and girls enslaved by it.

The ministry was founded by Lynchburg resident Christine Pettit and gets its name from a startling fact: to purchase a girl for a night in Thailand, the customer has to pay a bar fee of $24.

Right now, all the money raised for Freedom 4/24 will go directly to the House of New Beginnings, a Thailand-based ministry that goes into the bars there and tries to reach out to the prostitutes.

For more information, call (434) 426-3115 or visit http://www.runfortheirlives.net.

Iranian author to read from works

Farnoosh Moshiri, Iranian-born, award-winning author of novels and short-story collections, will read from her works at 7:30 p.m. Oct. 28 in Hopwood Hall Auditorium at Lynchburg College. The reading is open to the public at no charge.

In 1983, Moshiri fled her country and lived in refugee camps in Afghanistan and India for four years before emigrating to the U.S. in 1987. She holds degrees from the College of Dramatic Arts of Tehran, University of Iowa and University of Houston.  Her novels and story collections include “At the Wall of Almighty,” “The Bathhouse,” “The Crazy Dervish and the Pomegranate Tree,” and “Against Gravity,” which was chosen by Barnes and Noble for the “Discover New Writers” Series and by Borders Books as an “Original Voices” selection.

Historical foundation holds ghost tour

The “Ghosts of Historic Lynchburg” walking tours are scheduled for Oct. 22, 23 and 24 in the Garland Hill Historic District.

Tours start at the Gilliam House, 405 Madison St., at 6:30 p.m., running every 15 to 20 minutes until 8:30 p.m.

Tickets are $10 for adults and $5 for children. They will be sold onsite, starting at 6 p.m. each night on a first-come, first-served basis. Group reservations for 15 or more can be made in advance by calling (434) 528-5353.

All proceeds go to the Garland Hill Historical Society and the Lynchburg Historical Foundation.

Hamner series hosts night of gypsy jazz

The Olivarez Trio will headline the Hamner Theater’s next Cabaret series event, set for 7:30 p.m. Oct. 24.

Formed in the summer of 2007, the Charlottesville-based trio’s sound echoes that of modern-day Parisian gypsy jazz while still maintaining a solid footing in the tradition that began with Django Reinhardt in the late 1930s. They released a CD, “Adieu, Bienville,” last year.

The Cabaret Perfor-mance Series offers entertainment in a dinner club setting with wine, beer and food. Doors open at 6:30 p.m., and the show begins at 7:30 p.m. Tickets, which include heavy hors d’oeuvres, are $20 per person or $35 for two. Reservations must be made in advance.

For more information, call (434) 361-1999 or visit http://www.hamnertheater.com.