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A superb vocalist and guitarist, Lightnin' James performs many of the classic Blues tunes you know so well, plus a few of his own. James has performed extensively throughout the Triangle region and was a contestant in the 2012 Cape Fear Blues Challenge.

Thursday, May 30
in the MC Erny Gallery at WHQR
254 N. Front Street, Downtown

Doors at 6:30
Show at 7:30

Set on the French Riviera in the summer of 1915, Gilles Bourdos' lushly atmospheric drama tells the story of celebrated Impressionist painter Pierre-Auguste Renoir, in declining health at age 74, and his son Jean, who returns home after being wounded in World War I. The elder Renoir is filled with a new, wholly unexpected energy when a young girl miraculously enters his world. Blazing with life, radiantly beautiful, Andrée will become his last model, and the wellspring of a remarkable rejuvenation. At the same time, Jean also falls under the spell of the free-spirited young Andrée.

I’ve spent some time this week looking over some the comments made by listeners when they pledge at whqr.org. Here’s a sample:

Eldon of Myrtle Beach wrote:

I enjoy the music offerings and the educated radio personalities I encounter, no matter the time or day. Even 'Car Talk' is a welcome change from the idiotic chatter that clutters most every other option on the air.

Christopher of Leland wrote:

City Stage presents Brooklyn: The Musical.  My guests were director Anthony David Lawson, and actor/singers Olivia James and LaRaisha Burnette.  The show opens tonight at 8, and runs at 8 every night through Sunday.  It then runs for two more weekends, Friday through Sunday May 31-June 2 and June 7-9), all shows at 8.  City Stage is at 21 North Front Street.  Tickets are available online.

Commentator Nan Graham is more than familiar with the needle-in-the-hay-stack method of finding southerners, so she wasn’t nervous when Louisa May Alcott seemed to be resisting the mold. Here, she makes her case for Louisa May Alcott as an accidental southerner.  In the process, she takes a trip to Georgetown before it was a fashi0nable corner in the District of Columbia, and remembers one of her favorite quotes about Washington D.C.: "Washington has all the efficiency of the South and the manners of the North."

Commentaries here on WHQR.org do not necessarily reflect the views of WHQR Public Radio, its editorial staff, or its members.

Wilmington residents living next door to Wave Transit’s industrial bus garage will not have to endure the sounds and smells for much longer. Ground breaks this afternoon for Wave’s new operations and maintenance center in New Hanover County, on Castle Hayne Road near Martin Luther King Jr Parkway. WHQR’s Sara Wood reports it will replace the current facility at the corner of 11th and Castle Streets.

The Chief Executive Officer of the Cape Fear Public Utility Authority could soon be leaving his post.  Matthew Jordan has accepted a position in Tampa Bay, Florida. 

Every upgrade is not necessarily an improvement. Commentator Shane Fernando opts for the tried and true (and the legendary) as he designs this year’s Cape Fear Shakespeare on the Green.

Commentaries here on WHQR.org do not necessarily reflect the views of WHQR Public Radio, its editorial staff, or its members.

Brian Berger is no longer a New Hanover County Commissioner. The board voted 3-to-2 to remove Berger during an amotion hearing yesterday, with Berger and Commissioner Jonathan Barfield dissenting.

Starting Tuesday, residents of Southeast North Carolina will be able to give their input into the future of transportation. The Wilmington Metropolitan Planning Organization, or MPO, will launch a public survey to consider a regional transportation plan for the year 2040.