Gem City Living spotlights arts and entertainment in the Dayton region

From fairs, festivals, film and food to theater, art exhibitions, music and more, this newsletter will be an informative source for you and your calendars, especially as numerous arts organizations are launching their 2024-2025 seasons, which includes Dayton Live’s return engagement of “Hamilton” in October at the Schuster Center.

Here’s to the promising start of an exciting new journey spotlighting diverse activities throughout the Gem City.

Let us know what you think. If you have thoughts, feedback or news tips, please email me at Russell.Florence@coxinc.com.

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😊10 things to do this weekend:

Popcorn lovers rejoice! Enjoy all varieties this weekend at the annual Beavercreek Popcorn Festival, which is among this weekend’s top events. The festivities will also include crafts, vendors, children’s games, food, live entertainment, 5k, and a car show.

You’ll also find yummy options around town thanks to the Dayton Greek Festival and Italian Fall Festa, and if you’re in the mood to dust off your “Star Wars” gear consider the adults-only, space-themed “After Dark: Cosmic Camp” at the National Museum of the United States Air Force.

🎤Comedy: Wiley’s to host final show Saturday

It’s the end of an era for Wiley’s after 42 years of laughs. Dayton’s first and Ohio’s oldest comedy club will host its final show Saturday, Sept. 7 at 7:30 p.m.

“Please join us for our last show to celebrate 42 years of laughter and help us say goodbye to a Dayton Icon,” an email from the comedy club stated. “Thank you for your generosity and support over the years, we could not have done it without our amazing customers!”

🎭 Stage Notes: Tony-nominated Dayton native receives undergraduate degree

2024 has been an exciting year for Dayton native Dorian Harewood.

In May the esteemed actor received his first Tony Award nomination for his outstanding leading performance in composer Ingrid Michaelson and librettist Bekah Brunstetter’s heartwarming, tear-jerking musical adaptation of “The Notebook.” And on Aug. 8, two days after his 74th birthday, he received his undergraduate degree from the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music (CCM) in a special ceremony held at New York’s Bond 45.

“The Notebook,” co-directed by Dayton native Schele Williams and co-produced by three-time Tony Award-winning Wright State University graduate Joey Monda of Sing Out, Louise! Productions, opened March 14 at New York’s Gerald Schoenfeld Theatre. In a daring, refreshing twist distinguishing the musical from the popular 2004 film version of Nicholas Sparks’ 1996 novel, the casting unapologetically blends races. As the charming love story of Noah and Allie is told from their late teens to their 70s, three pairs of actors embody the roles.

The musical is scheduled to end its Broadway run Dec. 15 having played 35 previews and 317 performances. However its North American tour will launch in Cleveland in September 2025.

🎨In the gallery: The Co opens new exhibitions

The Contemporary Dayton (The Co), located in the Dayton Arcade, will open its 2024-2025 season with three new exhibitions: “Curtis Mann: Precious Blood,” (Sept. 6-Dec. 21), “Sean Wilkinson: Flora” (Sept. 6-21) and “John Lauer: Demon Heads” (Oct. 26-Dec. 21).

Created by Dayton native and University of Dayton graduate Curtis Mann as an introspective look at faith and art, “Precious Blood” is inspired by “reflections on his childhood attending Parochial schools, his mother’s Catholic funeral services this past May, and the challenges he faced hiding and then embracing his atheism,” according to The Co. Mann’s work has also been exhibited at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York and the Museum of Contemporary Art in Chicago.

The Co says Wilkinson’s ongoing series of photographs, “Flora” (2020-2024), are the artist’s response to the “exuberant vitality of plants, their thrusting and thriving, their boundless energy and raw power, their elegance and grace, their constant changing, and their utter disregard for anything to do with the human world.” Wilkinson is a Distinguished Service Professor and Professor Emeritus at the University of Dayton.

John Lauer’s work draws on fantasy, queer culture and architecture. Lauer, who creates demon heads out of paper, is an artist and architectural/exhibit designer who lives in a treehouse on the edge of Appalachia.

🍽️Food & Dining: August Restaurant Roundup

August headlines around the local dining scene included 11 openings, six closings and eight restaurants coming soon.

If you’re looking for something new, try Centerville’s Thai Village, a Thai, sushi and American-Thai fusion that features a full bar. It’s also located in a Designated Outdoor Refreshment Area (DORA). Centerville is also in the news thanks to its newest coffee shop, House Blend Café, and first Chipotle.

Read here for more details, including Dublin Pub opening a second location in Huber Heights and the upcoming closing of longtime watering hole Clancy’s Tavern in Riverside.

🎵Behind the Music: Jam sessions at Trail Town Brewing in Yellow Springs

Trail Town Brewing in Yellow Springs has become a fixture for musicians on Thursday nights.

Hosted for the past two years by pianist Sharon Lane and saxophonist Danny Sauers, well known blues musicians in the Dayton scene, this weekly, free event is also referred to as “Another Thursday.” The duo opens and closes each session which includes a featured act.

Depending on the weather, performances are either held indoors or on the outdoors stage. The outdoors stage particularly offers a laidback vibe with “fencing adorned with Day-Glo and pop-art designs, like a bohemian Austin, Texas oasis in the middle of Yellow Springs.”

📚Literati: 2024 Dayton Literary Peace Prize finalists announced

The Dayton Literary Peace Prize Foundation has announced six finalists in both the fiction and nonfiction categories for its 2024 Book Awards, which will take place the weekend of Nov. 9-10.

The 2024 fiction finalists are:

• “A History of Burning” by Janika Oza (Grand Central Publishing)

• “Dust Child” by Nguyễn Phan Quế Mai (Algonquin Books)

• “Prophet Song” by Paul Lynch (Grove Atlantic)

• “River Sing Me Home” by Eleanor Shearer (Berkley)

• “The Postcard” by Anne Berest (Europa Editions)

• “We Meant Well” by Erum Shazia Hasan (ECW Press)

The 2024 nonfiction finalists are:

• “An Inconvenient Cop” by Edwin Raymond with Jon Sternfeld (Viking)

• “Built From the Fire” by Victor Luckerson (Random House)

• “All Else Failed” by Dana Sachs (Bellevue Literary Press)

• “Red Memory” by Tania Branigan (W.W. Norton)

• “The Talk” by Darrin Bell (Henry Holt)

• “Who Gets Believed?” by Dina Nayeri (Catapult)

🌽Fall fun: Corn mazes in Dayton: Where to get lost this fall

Corn mazes are always a fun addition to fall activities. Check out our guide to various locations across the region waiting for you to explore.

⭐Community spotlight: 102-year-old Dayton woman: ‘I read every day and try to exercise when I can’

Verdell Dawson of Dayton felt good about turning 102 on Aug. 30. The 1942 Dunbar High School graduate who operated Colonial Flowers and Gifts on Siebenthaler Avenue for many years attributes her long life to faith, family, community, reading, and exercise. Read her inspiring story here.

🍿Movie of the week: “Sing Sing”

Oscar buzz! Awards season is here and powerful prison drama “Sing Sing” is a must-see.

Academy Award nominee and Emmy Award winner Colman Domingo (”Rustin,” “Euphoria”) stars as Divine G, imprisoned for a crime he didn’t commit, who finds purpose, leadership, creativity and a support system acting in a theater group with other incarcerated men. The cast includes real-life, formerly incarcerated alumni of the prison’s theater group, adding fascinating authenticity to the performances. Compelling and uplifting, “Sing Sing” deeply resonates as an inspiring celebration of brotherhood and the transformative power of art.

“The response to this film has been terrific,” said Jonathan McNeal, manager of The Neon in downtown Dayton. For more information, visit neonmovies.com.

📷Photos around town:

Our roving photographer captured memories across the city. Were you spotted at one of these events?

🎃ICYMI: Hauntfest tickets on sale

Tickets for a downtown Dayton Halloween tradition are on sale. The annual Hauntfest in the Oregon District will take place from 7 p.m. to 1 a.m. Saturday, Oct. 26.

The Oregon District Business Association recommends purchasing tickets online in advance to avoid potential wait times at the entrance gates. Online pre-sale tickets are $10. Tickets the day of the event will be $15.

TELL US

Thanks for taking the time to read this newsletter. I encourage you to keep in touch. Share story tips or feedback about this newsletter by emailing me at Russell.Florence@coxinc.com.