Heads up: 65 or so events this weekend, and Saturday is carrying most of them. Three Roads' birthday festival, the Academy's first-ever Ink Fest, and a veteran expo with its own music festival all land on the same day, with an obstacle 5K through Poplar Forest at sunrise and River Ridge opening its new outdoor park in the afternoon. The other headline is downtown: the old 1914 bank building soft-opens as The Vault this weekend, with live music all three nights. Friday also brings ghost tours, live theater and a touring rock bill, and Sunday winds down with an open jam at Riverfront Park. If I'm missing something, or you've got an event you're hosting or want to share, let me know.

Times and details can change after this is sent. For the latest, view this post on the web (the "view in browser" link up top). I post corrections there.

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With Gratitude to our Sponsor: Super Rad Arcade Bar

Super Rad is the largest classic arcade in Virginia, on 9th St downtown. Pac-Man, Street Fighter, X-Men, pinball, plus live music most weeks. Check it out!

🟢 free · 🟠 paid · 🎤 karaoke

Fri Aug 14

🟢 Sunrise Senior Walking Group · 7:00-8:00am · Awareness Garden · drop-in group walk · ages 50+
🟢 Snake Snacks · 12:00pm · Library Hub at the Miller Center · watch the library's snake get fed
🟠 Sit and Stitch · 4:00pm · Needle Ninja · $10 · two-hour needle-arts hangout, bring your project
🟢 The Vault soft opening: live music from Bryan Fitz · 5:00pm-1:00am · the 1914 bank building downtown, reopened as coffee, cocktails and dining across three rooms with The Mezzanine and Raven Branch · nightly specials, $3 beers and half-price cocktails 5:00-9:00pm
🟢 Live Music: Dan Glen Snyder · 5:30pm · Charley's Restaurant
🟢 Forest Friday Cheers: Copacetic · 6:00pm, Copacetic on 7:00-10:00 · Apocalypse Ale Works, Forest · the family-friendly Friday series, with food and a play zone · FOREST
🟠 Royale Lynn + Pretty Pity + Her Majesty · doors 6:00pm, music 7:00 · Super Rad Arcade Bar · $15 advance / $20 day of · touring rock bill
🟢 Live Music: Old Town Connector · 6:30-9:30pm · The Trailhead · Dalton Huskin's band
🟠 Star Wars Unlimited league · 7:00pm, with FNM Booster Draft 7:00-10:00pm ($26.99, drafting Marvel Super Heroes) and Digimon locals 7:00pm ($8.99) · Dragon Fire Games · at their downtown Federal St shop
🟠 Haunted Pub Crawl · 7:30-9:30pm · meets at the Historic Bragassa Toy Store · $35 · history on tap between haunted stops
🟠 Tartuffe · 7:30pm · Commerce Street Theater · $22.66 all-in · Molière's comedy staged live (stage play) · some mature content, 16+ recommended · runs through next Sunday
🟠 Elianna Lael: Written Through My Lens · 8:00-10:00pm · The Music Hall, 722 Commerce St · $10-$15
🟠 Ghosts of Gallows Hill · 8:00-9:30pm · meets at the Old Court House steps · $25
🟠 Public Investigation at Miller-Claytor House · 8:00pm-midnight · Miller-Claytor House · $35-$65 · bring your own equipment or use theirs
🎤 Karaoke: Scoreboards 8:00pm-12:30am (DJ Cameron Wheeler)

With Gratitude to our Sponsor: Living Line Studio

Living Line Studio is a place to make, learn, and grow alongside other creative people. This Monday's Make & Take is the Reclaimed Book Journal: bring a book cover you love and turn it into a journal you'll actually use. It takes about an hour, all tools and materials are provided, it's $22, and you're welcome to stay for the last hour of Open Studio after. Grab your seat

Sat Aug 15

🟠 Face the Forest 5K · waves 7:30am · Poplar Forest · $60 · the 15th annual obstacle course run through the grounds, race-day signup opens 6:30am
🟢 Saturday Market · 8:00am-1:00pm · Lynchburg Community Market · produce, baked goods and makers downtown
🟢 Cars & Coffee Lynchburg · 8:00-10:00am · Tree of Life Ministries · monthly car and bike meet, free coffee and donuts · bring a new toy for Toys for Tots and get a raffle ticket
🟢 Ink Fest · 10:00am-2:00pm · Joy & Lynch Christian Warehouse Theatre · the Academy's first-ever tattoo-art festival, all ages
🟠 Odyssey Fest · 10:00am-8:00pm · American Legion Post 16 · $20 donation, veterans free · veteran and first-responder mental-health festival alongside the expo, with Old Town Connector 6:00-7:30pm plus 501 Coyotes and The Pete Turpin Band
🟠 Start with Art: Craft Stick School Bus · 10:00am-12:00pm, then Stop Motion Animation Play 1:00-3:00pm and Squishy Circuits 3:00-4:00pm · Amazement Square · with admission, $15 adults / $10 kids
🟢 Veteran Appreciation Expo · 10:00am-3:00pm · American Legion Post 16 · free resource fair with Hill City Warriors, The Blood Connection on site
🟠 Wheel Throwing for Beginners · 10:00am-12:00pm · Firebrick Pottery · $66.63
🟢 Back to School Annual Explosion · 12:00pm until supplies run out · Miller Park · Y.E.S. Ministries' backpack and school-supply giveaway, with games, gift cards and scholarship giveaways before the first day of school
🟢 50th Birthday Bash · 12:00-5:00pm · Givens Books & Little Dickens · the bookstore celebrates 50 years on Lakeside Dr
🟢 Summer Jam 2026 · 12:00-10:00pm · Three Roads Brewing · the brewery's birthday festival: LoveLYH market vendors from noon, food trucks, The Chapstix 1:00-4:00pm, Tommy Bryant 4:30-6:30pm, and Bigfoot County from 7:00pm
🟢 Table Top Games · 12:00pm · Miller Center, Rm 306 · free drop-in board games
🟢 Artist Talk: Purnell Pettyjohn & Sally Goodrich · 1:00-2:00pm · Ann White Academy Gallery · both artists on their current shows
🟠 Experimental Watercolor and Zentangle · 1:00-3:00pm · Scrappy Elephant · $30
🟢 Fletcher Davis Annual Memorial Fish Fry · 1:00pm · 106 Maple Hills Dr · a neighborhood tradition in its fourth year, honoring Fletcher Davis
🟠 Pokemon Casual League · 1:30-3:30pm, then Yu-Gi-Oh locals 2:30-5:00pm ($4.99) and Riftbound Nexus Nights 6:00-9:00pm ($8.99) · Dragon Fire Games · at their downtown Federal St shop
🟠 Sewing Circle · 2:00pm, with Sit and Stitch alongside · Needle Ninja · $25 · Sit and Stitch $10
🟢 The Park grand opening at River Ridge · 4:00-8:00pm · River Ridge Mall · opening celebration for the mall's new open-air event space on the West End side
🟢 The Vault soft opening: Ken Matthews' Jazz Jam · 5:00pm-1:00am · night two at the reopened 1914 bank building downtown · nightly specials, $3 beers and half-price cocktails 5:00-9:00pm
🟠 Hi Ho Six Shooter + Her Majesty + Born With A Tail · doors 7:00pm · Super Rad Arcade Bar · $12
🟠 NO POLITICS, NO RELIGION…JUST COMEDY · 7:00-8:30pm · The Music Hall, 722 Commerce St · $25-$28 · touring stand-up showcase
🟢 Live Music: Sophomore434 · 7:30pm · The Trailhead · multi-genre set
🟠 Tartuffe · 7:30pm · Commerce Street Theater · $22.66 all-in · Molière's comedy staged live (stage play) · some mature content, 16+ recommended
🟠 Ghosts of Gallows Hill · 8:00-9:30pm · meets at the Old Court House steps · $25
🟠 Echoes on the Avenue · 8:00-9:30pm · Miller-Claytor House · $25 · $45 with the extended investigation
🎤 Karaoke: Lola's 7:00pm (Mogu Entertainment) · Shining Star Karaoke at Apocalypse Ale Works, Forest 7:00-10:00pm (Robert Pennix)

Sun Aug 16

🟢 Andrew Bev: Sunday Sessions · 1:00-4:00pm · The Water Dog
🟠 Tartuffe, Sunday matinee · 2:30pm · Commerce Street Theater · $22.66 all-in · Molière's comedy staged live (stage play) · some mature content, 16+ recommended
🟢 PostUp in the Park · 4:00-7:00pm · Riverfront Park · open jam session and open mic with Selah Vie & Friends, all voices welcome, food and coffee for sale
🟢 Live Music: Tim Rowlett · 4:00-6:00pm · The Trailhead
🟢 The Vault soft opening: Singer-Songwriter Competition · 5:00-10:00pm · closing night of the soft-opening weekend at the reopened 1914 bank building downtown · drink specials 5:00-9:00pm
🟠 Bananaslama + Xasthur + Decay + 2toaroom + Arda Burns + F-Certified · doors 7:00pm · Super Rad Arcade Bar · $15 · touring slam-metal bill's final stop
🎤 Karaoke: Stadium Inn 8:00-11:00pm (Rhodey Entertainment)

All weekend

🟢 Riverside Park Sprayground · 10:00am-7:00pm daily · Riverside Park · through Labor Day
🟢 Riverfront Park Fountains · 10:00am-7:00pm daily · Riverfront Park · zero-depth splash fountains off the Riverwalk
🟠 Canoe & Kayak Rentals at Ivy Creek Park · Sat + Sun 10:00am-5:00pm · canoes $10/hour, kayaks $8/hour · weekends through Aug 30 · Parks&Rec
🟢 How Will Our Ancestors Find Us? and Interwoven · 12:00-4:00pm Fri-Sun · Riverviews Artspace · the final weekend for both shows, closing Sunday
🟢 Being There: Marjorie Portnow and guests · Thu-Sat 11:30am-5:30pm · Steven Francis Fine Art, Tradewynd gallery · landscape painting group show
🟢 Robert Sulkin · Fri 11:30am-5:30pm, Sat 9:30am-5:00pm · Steven Francis Fine Art, Main Street gallery · solo show

🚗 Worth the Drive

🟠 The Toxic Avenger (the Musical) · Fri + Sat 8:00pm · Wolfbane Performing Arts Center, Appomattox · $44-$69 · the final two performances of the run · pick the Toxic Waste Zone seats and you get soaked on purpose
🟠 Staunton Music Festival · all weekend · venues across Staunton · $16-$38 per concert, plus two free noon shows · the annual chamber-music festival, from Friday's Bachanalia to Sunday's Magical Creatures program
🟠 Fridays in the Park: Southpaw · Fri, gates 6:00pm, music 6:30-9:30 · Glen Maury Park, Buena Vista · $5 · under 16 free · outdoor concert with food vendors, cash only
🟢 Stars Under the Stars: 1776 · Fri 8:00pm · Crute Stage, downtown Farmville · the volunteer-run outdoor classic-film night, going since 1998
🟠 Hull's Drive-In double feature · Fri + Sat, gates 7:00pm, movies at dark · Hull's Drive-In, Lexington · $12 · kids 5-11 $6 · Paw Patrol: The Dino Movie, then the new Spider-Man
🟢 No Excuse Night at the D-Day Memorial · Sat 5:00-8:00pm · National D-Day Memorial, Bedford · the annual free-admission evening for anyone who's never made it out
🟠 Flea Market at The Expo · Sat 8:00am-2:00pm · Augusta Expo, Fishersville · $1 · kids 12 and under free
🟠 Natural Bridge Speedway races · Sat, gates 4:00pm, racing 6:00pm · Natural Bridge Speedway · $15 grandstand · kids 10 and under free · Late Models, sprints and stock classes on the dirt track
🟢 Honey Daze at Glass Hollow Gallery · Fri + Sat 11:00am-5:00pm · Glass Hollow Studio and Gallery, Afton · the Rt 151 corridor's honey-week finale: bee-themed glass, ceramics and farm goods, with a paint night at WildManDan Brewery Fri 6:00-8:00pm, $43.20 with honey-beer tastings
🟢 Car, Truck, Jeep & Bike Show · Sat 12:00-4:00pm · Wood Ridge Farm Brewery, Lovingston · with food, music, face painting and a train ride for the kids
🟢 Bark in the Park · Sat 4:00-8:00pm · Falling Creek Park, Bedford · dog agility, pet vendors, food trucks, a kids zone and adoptable dogs with sponsored adoption fees · rescheduled from July 25
🟢 Hurricane Camille Impact Discussion · Sat 11:00am-3:00pm · Oakland Museum, Arrington · Massies Mill residents share firsthand accounts of the 1969 storm, 57 years on
🟢 Interwoven: Unearthed Stories of Slavery · Sat + Sun 1:00-4:00pm · Brownsburg Museum, near Lexington · the museum's three-year exhibit pairing enslaved ancestors' documented history with their descendants' words, open first and third weekends

🗓️ Coming up next week

Five worth putting in the calendar now, and the full list lands in Tuesday's email.

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