From Sept. 10-13, visitors to the living history farm can meet Russell — otherwise known as “the chair guy” — and see him demonstrate the art of creating strong chair seats from the shucks of corn cobs.

Corn shuck seat weaving stemmed from the necessity of having to use what was on hand to make an item of function.

Several corn shuck chairs are part of Island Farm’s collection, indicative of the period. On Roanoke Island in the mid-19th century, corn was produced in high volumes. Today, original corn-husk woven chair seats are as rare as the people that know the trade.

Admission to Island Farm at 1140 North U.S. Highway 64, north of Manteo on Roanoke Island, is $10, with children under 3 free. See obcinc.org/island-farm for more information.

Monday, the Hampton History Museum will have a talk and tour of the exhibit “Chris Kraft: Hampton’s Unlikely Space Hero.” Allen Hoilman, the museum’s deputy director and curator, will discuss Kraft’s accomplishments and Hampton’s integral role in the Space Race of the 1950s and ’60s.

Kraft was born in Phoebus and attended Hampton High School and Virginia Polytechnic Institute (now Virginia Tech) before working at Langley Memorial Aeronautical Laboratory (now NASA Langley Research Center) in 1945. In 1958, he was assigned to a group to develop manned space flight – putting a man in space and bringing him home safely. Kraft was a central figure in projects Mercury, Gemini and Apollo.

He led the development of the operations control system, Mission Control. He became the flight director, responsible for the flight components of the missions near Earth and in space. He was named director of the Johnson Space Center in Houston in 1972 and retired in 1982. After Kraft died in 2019, his family donated to the museum a collection of personal memorabilia that he’d saved from growing up in Hampton and his career at NASA.

The exhibit will be open through March 2.

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If you go

When: 7 to 8 p.m. Monday
Where: Hampton History Museum, 120 Old Hampton Lane
Tickets: Free for museum members; others, $5
Details: hamptonhistorymuseum.org

According to a timeline of the studio’s 2025 films, the film will come to theaters on May 9. The musical will be directed by Michel Gondry and produced by Williams. Gondry won the Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay in 2005 as a writer for “Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind,” which he also directed.

“Atlantis” is written by Martin Hynes, one of the writers of “Toy Story 4,” and Steven Levenson, who co-wrote “tick, tick… BOOM!” and “Dear Evan Hansen.”

Multiple music industry headliners have signed onto the project, according to IMDB. The site lists R&B superstar Mary J. Blige, Rock & Roll Hall of Fame inductee and Portsmouth native Missy Elliott and rapper André 3000 as castr members.

Da’Vine Joy Randolph, winner of the 2024 Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for “The Holdovers,” will star along with actor Kelvin Harrison Jr., who will play the lead role.

“Atlantis” has begun filming in the resort city. In June, the Virginia Beach Fishing Pier was taken over by a crew shooting a scene. The movie is set in 1977, prompting classic cars and vintage-clad extras to settle at the Oceanfront.

The musical will join another upcoming movie under the Virginia Beach native’s repertoire.

“Piece by Piece,” the story of Williams’ development as an artist using animated Lego pieces, is scheduled for theatrical release in October. The animated film will also feature Timbaland, Kendrick Lamar, Snoop Dogg, Jay-Z and Busta Rhymes.

Eliza Noe, eliza.noe@virginiamedia.com

“The Pajama Game” presented by Williamsburg Players. 8 p.m. Friday with dates/times through Sept. 22 at James-York Playhouse, 200 Hubbard Lane. Tickets start at $22; discounts for children. To buy online, visit williamsburgplayers.org.

Bobby BlackHat Music Series, featuring performances by Matt Thomas, Lana Puckett and Kim Person, others. 6 p.m. Saturday at Ferguson Center for the Arts, Peebles Theatre, 1 Avenue of the Arts, Newport News. Tickets start at $25. To buy online or to view the series lineup, visit fergusoncenter.org.

ZZ Top and Lynyrd Skynyrd bring their “Sharp Dressed Simple Man” tour to Virginia Beach. The Outlaws will open. 6:30 p.m. Saturday at Veterans United Home Loans Amphitheater, 3550 Cellar Door Way. For ticket availability, visit livenation.com.

Mushroom Festival, featuring mycologist and keynote speaker Tradd Cotter. 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday at Norfolk Botanical Garden, 6700 Azalea Garden Road. Free with garden admission. For more information, visit tinyurl.com/NBGmushroom.

Broadway in Norfolk presents “Les Misérables.” 7:30 p.m. Sept. 10-12 with more dates, times through Sept. 15 at Chrysler Hall, 215 St. Paul’s Blvd. For ticket availability, visit ticketmaster.com. For discounts, visit sevenvenues.com.

Relive the ’70s when Stayin’ Alive: One Night of the Bee Gees makes a stop in Newport News. 7:30 p.m. Sept. 12 at Ferguson Center for the Arts, Diamonstein Concert Hall, 1 Avenue of the Arts. Tickets start at $38. To buy online, visit fergusoncenter.org.

Events may change. Check before attending.

Patty Jenkins, patty.jenkins@pilotonline.com

“It was the first time I had ever been rewarded or made money for something I created,” Miller said. “It was probably the first time I really started to consider the fact that artists get to make art for a living. I thought maybe it could be a career path for me.”

Now, Miller, an art teacher at First Colonial High School, will be showcasing her art skills again at the iconic Neptune Festival in Virginia Beach.

“It’s a full circle moment for me,” she said.

Miller just painted a large-scale mural at 405 30th St. She was chosen by the Neptune Festival organization to paint her interpretation of “Celebrating the Beach Life” for the festival’s 50th anniversary. Her mural design will also be used for the Neptune Festival poster.

She said the design is a mashup of a few different things that come to mind when thinking about the Neptune Festival. She represented the International Sandsculpting Championship with a large sand castle and featured clinking wine glasses for the event’s wine festival.

The art and craft show is shown through the painting hands and collage/craft-inspired cloud placement, and music notes throughout the skyline give a nod to live music from the Boardwalk Weekend and Symphony by the Sea Concert Series.

Miller added that she wanted to take the design beyond just the “beach” theme. Her composition includes hands that represent the people that bring the festival together such as the volunteers, artists, attendees and musicians.

“I am so thrilled to have been selected for this opportunity,” Miller said. “ I hadn’t imagined ever getting to create the poster for the festival, let alone a mural.”

Miller is a mixed media artist who mostly works in acrylic, watercolor and graphite. She had a full-time career in graphic design before becoming an art teacher and has painted six murals in Virginia Beach.

The 50th annual Neptune Festival Boardwalk Weekend will be held Sept. 27-29, on Second to 33rd streets on the Boardwalk. Posters of Devon Miller’s Neptune Festival design can be purchased on the Boardwalk or online at neptunefestival.com.

The family-friendly weekend will include the arts and crafts show, International Sandsculpting Championship, a parade, fitness classes, Atlantic Regatta, dock dogs, a family fun zone and free concerts.

Lee Belote jlbelote@verizon.net

The source of a letter — written in 1945 by a serviceman stationed in Hampton Roads and found last month in Florida — has been identified.

Mike Meyer, 65, lives in Safety Harbor, Florida, and said he put the letter in the bottle and sent it out to sea earlier this year.

Meyer’s father was born in 1929 and was too young to join the military until the end of World War II but often wrote and received letters from older friends who’d left their Illinois hometown to enlist. One buddy, Jim Peters, wrote to Meyer’s father, Leroy, on March 4, 1945. The message was jotted in cursive underneath the letterhead “United States Navy, Amphibious Training Base, Little Creek, Virginia.”

That letter and bottle were found on the side of a Safety Harbor road last month by Suzanne Flament-Smith amid storm debris after Hurricane Debby. It had been washed back ashore not far from where it was let go.

The bottle also contained some sand, a bullet casing and a circular hunk of metal that Flament-Smith described as “about the size of a Whopper candy.” She quickly took to social media to share her discovery and a question: Where had it come from?

The Virginian-Pilot and Daily Press, The New York Times, The Washington Post and dozens of other news outlets wrote or carried stories about the curiosity.

“I didn’t think it was that big a deal,” Meyer told The Pilot about the fuss over his dad’s old letter.

“I guess the first thing is …” he said, and then he unraveled the mystery. Leroy Meyer stored many of his wartime correspondences in a box that was passed down to his children after he died in 2001. The letters were stored at his daughter’s home until Mike got them several years ago.

Mike Meyer read and reread his father’s letters. Some had been sent from soldiers overseas. One was from a girlfriend working in a factory that made Lockheed P-38 Lightning airplanes. He came to consider them historical documents and a friend’s recent retirement sparked an idea of how to share them with the world.

“She had sold her business and was throwing away some rare inventory,” he said. “She had all these Message-in-a-Bottle kits.”

Keeping his 10 favorites, he put 40 of his dad’s letters into the kits — one letter per bottle — and this spring began launching them, a few at a time, several times a week, watching through a pair of binoculars as they floated out on the tide.

“I usually put something shiny in there so they were more likely to be seen.”

He put a shell casing and a ball bearing in a bottle on April 16 along with the March 4, 1945 letter.

“I just turned it loose.”

Colin Warren-Hicks, 919-818-8138, colin.warrenhicks@virginiamedia.com

Virginia Symphony Orchestra presents “Once Upon a Symphony,” various dates and locations. Friday at Lake Matoaka Amphitheater, Williamsburg; Saturday at Riverwalk Landing, Yorktown; Sunday at Chesapeake City Park; Tuesday at 31st Street Park, Virginia Beach; and Sept. 7 at First Flight High School, Kill Devil Hills, North Carolina. All shows start at 7:30 p.m. For ticket info, including wristband options, visit virginiasymphony.org.

Two Candlelight shows, presented by Fever, Friday: 6:30 p.m., Neo-Soul Favorites featuring songs by Prince, Childish Gambino, others; and 8:45 p.m., A Tribute to Coldplay on Strings. Both at Zeiders American Dream Theater, 4509 Commerce St., Virginia Beach. Tickets start at $36. To buy online, visit feverup.com.

Labor Day weekend to feature free live music and more. 7 p.m. Friday, Saturday; and 5 p.m. Sunday at 17th, 24th and 31th Street stages on the sand, Virginia Beach Oceanfront. For the complete weekend lineup, including times, and before you go info, visit beacheventsvb.com.

Hip-hop veteran Juvenile brings his 25th anniversary tour to Norfolk. Mannie Fresh will open the show at 7:30 p.m. Sunday at The NorVa, 317 Monticello Ave. For ticket availability, visit thenorva.com.

Los Angeles rock band Jane’s Addiction with Love and Rockets will make a tour stop in Portsmouth Sept. 5. Crawlers will open the 7 p.m. show at Atlantic Union Bank Pavilion, 16 Crawford Circle. Tickets start at $39.50. To buy online, visit ticketmaster.com.

Capitol Fools make a return to Hampton for an evening of political comedy. 7:30 p.m. Sept. 5 at The American Theatre, 125 E. Mellen St. Tickets start at $25. To buy online, visit hamptonarts.org.

Events may change. Check before attending.

Patty Jenkins, patty.jenkins@pilotonline.com

Not to mention the skeletal jaw remains of a green monkey and a baboon native to West Africa, possibly “ship pets” during the British colonization period or exotic pets kept by wealthy residents.

Those are just a handful of the imported items in The Colonial Williamsburg Foundation’s collection of more than 60 million artifacts. Together, they paint 18th-century Williamsburg as a surprisingly international city.

“People might think of Williamsburg as a really sleepy Colonial town, a place on the periphery of what was going on in the world,” said Sean Devlin, Colonial Williamsburg’s senior curator of archaeological collections. “That’s not at all the case. It really was a central hub.”

On Sept. 7, Colonial Williamsburg will open an exhibition of 225 artifacts, “Worlds Collide: Archaeology and Global Trade in Williamsburg.” The collection will remain on display through Jan. 2, 2027, in the DeWitt Wallace Decorative Arts Museum.

The exhibit will showcase tangible items that reflect daily life in Williamsburg for a diverse population of men, women and children; African, European and Indigenous Americans; rich, middling and poor families; and free residents and the enslaved.

Some artifacts are evidence of cultural blending, such as locally produced ceramics called colonoware unearthed at nearly every 18th-century Williamsburg site. The clay bowls, pans and other vessels are European in form but were fired at low temperatures in open pits — a Native American technique — rather than in a pottery kiln, and were pressed into shape, not thrown on a wheel.

“These aren’t abstract ideas, but materials that we can all look at together and that can spark discussions about our shared past,” said Jack Gary, CW’s executive director of archaeology. “Guests will likely see themselves and the modern world in many of these items.”

Take a thin copper dog tag, likely once sewn onto a collar, with the letters “JASPE” clearly visible. Archaeologists believe they spell out part of the dog owner’s name, following a community directive for animals to have identification if they roamed outdoors.

“People had pet dogs in their households for personal enjoyment, in addition to guard dogs and hunting dogs,” Devlin said. “That’s so relatable for us.”

So is Pyrmont bottled water, a predecessor to the likes of Poland Spring and Dasani. In 1725, King George I of England visited the spring of Pyrmont in modern-day Germany and gave a “celebrity” endorsement of sorts to its water. Branded bottles then became popular among British consumers, setting off a health craze that crossed the Atlantic Ocean.

Many objects in “World Collide” traveled great distances, such as a fragment of a Chinese porcelain platter owned by John Murray, Earl of Dunmore, the last royal governor of Virginia, and porcelain tea vessels from China. Many colonists developed a taste for tea, largely imported from China, along with European wines, particularly from Spain and Portugal.

Some items also reflect influences from multiple countries and time periods. A fashionable white-on-blue Persian urn, made in England, imitated tin-glazed wares produced in 17th-century France that were inspired by Persian styles of earlier centuries.

“Worldwide commerce is nothing new and touched most parts of the North Atlantic world in the 18th century, even in a place as small as Williamsburg, Virginia,” said Ron Hurst, The Colonial Williamsburg Foundation’s chief mission officer.

As for the export side, tobacco became such a lucrative crop in Virginia and the Colonies that Britain began producing and shipping tens of thousands of broad hoes such as the one discovered at Carter’s Grove Plantation, a style originally designed by Colonists.

The majority of Williamsburg’s early Black population was enslaved. One type of artifact that reflects the traumatic journeys and resilience of slaves is cowrie shells, external casings for sea snails native to the Indian and Pacific oceans that were used as money throughout the Indo-Pacific and sub-Saharan Africa for centuries.

While slave traders frequently used the shells as currency, archaeological evidence indicates that enslaved residents also saved them as keepsakes and turned them into jewelry, hair ornaments and decorations for clothing.

For young CW visitors, “Worlds Collide” includes a gold ring for a child engraved with the name Mary Brodnax, likely crafted by her father, local goldsmith John Brodnax. There’s also a small wooden spinning top, a common toy for boys in particular, found in a well during a 1960s dig.

“It’s amazing to think the last person to touch it before that probably was a child in the 1700s,” Devlin said. “An object can be a powerful bridge between past and present, and if the past feels more relevant, we hope people will want to learn more — find more connections.”

Alison Johnson, ajohnsondp@yahoo.com

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If you go

Where: DeWitt Wallace Decorative Arts Museum, 201 S. Nassau St., Williamsburg

When: Sept. 7 through Jan. 2, 2027

Prices: Single-day admission to the Art Museums of Colonial Williamsburg is $14.99 for adults (13 and older) and $8.99 for youths (ages 6 to 12)

Details: 855-296-6627; colonialwilliamsburg.org

Visitors can expect several musical genres including country, rhythms and blues, jazz, Motown and even a little swing.

The first concert features the band Brasswind performing covers of hit from Motown to Michael Jackson.

Other series performers include the Top Hats Orchestra, the Michael Clark Band and Good Shot Judy.

Guests are encouraged to bring blankets or lawn chairs for seating. Coolers and alcohol are permitted in designated areas at Riverwalk Landing. Rotating food trucks will be on-site, providing snacks and dinner offerings during the show.

For more information, see visityorktown.org.

The area will occupy the space that was previously Fossil.

The 757 Creative ReUse Center first opened in 2019 on Granby Street before relocating to the Norfolk mall in 2023.

“We are thrilled to be growing our creative community in downtown Norfolk,” executive director Beth Dryer said.

The 757 Creative ReUse Center is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization dedicated to reducing waste and increasing creativity.

It operates under a donations-based arts and crafts supply thrift store. Individuals or businesses donate their unwanted craft supplies such as fabric, stickers, paints, stationery, beads, crayons and other art treasures. Most items in the store range from 50 cents to $5.

Large items such as spinning wheels, looms, sewing machines and die-cutting machines are priced competitively.

The center used to have a small classroom that offered space for 20 people. The new art room can accommodate 40 people for a class or up to 75 for a social event.

There will also be a part-time education coordinator.

“Our education coordinator will take our programming to the next level,” Dryer said. “We’ll be building a kid’s curriculum focusing on STEAM topics and adhering to current Virginia SOL standards.”

The room will also host birthday parties, field trips, adult crafting parties and movie nights.

When the art room isn’t being used for classes, open studio time is available for $5 a day. Studio time includes the use of specialty tools such as sewing machines, die-cutting and embossing machines, laminators, a screen printing press and embroidery machines. Other supplies available include stamps, inks, paints, tools, beads, papers, adhesives and markers. Classes range from $15-$25 and memberships are offered for free open studio time.

A grand opening will be held on Sept. 7 from noon to 4 p.m. Activities will include adult and kids crafts and demos with the Lego Letterpress, sewing machines and rock painting.

Lee Belote jlbelote@verizon.net