Up & Coming Weekly

Snyder Memorial Gives the Gift of Music to the Community/Dogwood Festival Snyder Memorial Baptist Church has been a long time participant/contributor to the Dogwood Festival. Each year the church’s music program brings in great entertainment for the festival. This year is no different. “Our Sunday concert during the Dogwood Festival is really our gift to the community,” said Joy Cogswell, of the Snyder Music Academy. “Each year we bring in some great musical performers during the festival.” Cogswell couldn’t be happier about the entertainment this year. Randall Atcheson, a phenomenal musician, will return to the community for a homecoming of sorts. “Randy has been known around this area for 25 to 30 years,” explained Cogswell. “He used to be one of my guest artists at music camp at Methodist University when I was directing it.” Atcheson, a pianist and organist, worked with local children for a number of years, and developed quite a following. “He hasn’t been here for a number of years, but I’m sure people in the community will remember him because he is so talented,” she said. Atcheson is one of the only people to gain simultaneously degrees from Juillard in organ and piano. “He is just phenomenal,” said Cogswell. “He has played all over the world, but has managed to stay very down to earth. Raised in Clinton, Ala., the son of a Baptist minister, Atcheson grew up in the church. That was, in fact, how Cogswell fi rst met him. Atcheson, along with several other performers, was traveling with the Albert Long ministry. At the time, the ministry would put on “happenings” at churches across the United States. The happenings would bring talented young adults into local community to work with children and youth. “They brought a variety of people who were committed Christians to do whole weekend sessions in churches. About 30 years ago, Randy was one of those people, and that was my fi rst introduction to him. When I started working with the music camp, his was the fi rst name that came to my mind. I thought that I would absolutely love to have my students involved and exposed to someone of his talent and committment,” explained Cogswell. Her friendship with Atcheson has developed over the years, and his loyalty to Cogswell — and the community — has never faltered. “He always goes out of his way to make sure he can come when we need him,” she said. The Greenwich, Conn.-based artist, will do more than play music when he comes to the Snyder stage. “He is very personable,” said Cogswell. “He is just a hoot. The last time he was here, he had people falling out in the aisles laughing.” She noted that Atcheson doesn’t just play, he interacts with the audience, telling stories between numbers. “He just makes the event fun. He has all these wild socks he wears with his fancy organ shoes, and in between numbers he will change them out. It’s always funny to see what he will have on,” she continued. Of course, that’s if you can catch a glimpse of his feet. “I have never seen any person’s feet fl y on the organ pedals like his do. It’s so fast. Of course, Randy has a hard time playing anything slow.” Atcheson will perform everything from classical to Broadway to patriotic numbers throughout the evening. “I hope we have a packed house,” said Cogswell. “This is a really special event.” The concert starts at 6:30 p.m., and is free to the public. The Fayetteville Museum of Art Returns to Festival with Alice’s Adventures In Wonderland Last year the Fayetteville Museum of Art brought art downtown for the Dogwood Festival with a special Andy Warhol exhibit. This year, they hope to follow up on the success of that exhibit with Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland as illustrated by Salvador Dali. The exhibit was made possible by the loan of a personal collection of illustrations by an art patron who attended the museum’s last exhibit of Dali work centered around Dante’s works. “The new exhibit is a rare suite of Dali’s works,” said Tom Grubb, director of the museum. “It came about because the collector was involved in the Dante exhibit and wanted to lend us the works for another exhibition. We knew we had to fi nd a unique way of displaying the art.” After much discussion by the museum’s board, the decision was made to head back to the Festival Plaza Building, just in time for the Dogwood Festival. Last year’s Warhol exhibit brought in tons of festival goers and the board is hoping that the interest in Alice In Wonderland, resulting from the recent movie, will bring people in to see this exhibition as well. The art is in portfolio format, with text from Lewis Caroll’s famous work on one side 12 DOGWOOD FESTIVAL APRIL 23-25, 2010 and the illustrations by Dali on the other side. Each image is 22 x 28”, and is enclosed under a glass case. “These are very three-dimensional works,” said Grubb. To augment the works, there will be panels associated with each work that will explain the symbolism used in the narrative. “These panels will really help the visitor get a very real experience, not only in the literary world, but in the fi ne art world as well,” said Grubb. The eventwill kick off on Thursday, April 22 with a premier party at the Festival Plaza Building. Tickets to the event are $25 per person, and include hors d’oeuvres, live music and the opportunity to view the works. The evening starts at 7 p.m. On Friday, the exhibition will open at noon and will remain open until 9 p.m. Patrons who visit the exhibit after 5 p.m., will also have the opportunity to sample wine and cheese with paid admission. On Saturday, April 24, the exhibit will be open from 12-9 p.m., and on Sunday from 1-4 p.m. On April 28, the exhibit will re-open to the general public and will run through May 23. School tours are available upon request. Admission to the exhibition is $10 for adults and $6 for children. School tour tickets are $3 per student. Grubb added that in addition to the collection, there will also be other works by Dali on display, which are on loan to the museum by area collectors. “This is really a quite wonderful opportunity for the community,” said Grubb. WWW.UPANDCOMINGWEEKLY.COM

• Cover