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MidMountain, an arts collective and nonprofit in Arnolds Valley, is partnering with Rockbridge Regional Library System and Shenandoah Literary Magazine to present a free panel discussion, “Murder Ballads, Southern Gothic Horror, and Reclaiming Haunted Regional History,” at 1 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 5, at the Glasgow Library.
The arts group will also launch a gallery show themed around murder ballads titled “Regeneration: Grief in Story and Song Gallery” with a free potluck reception and a zine creation workshop at 5 p.m. on Sunday, Oct. 6, at MidMountain Retreat.
The events will feature members of Mid-Mountain’s Fall 2024 Fellowship Cohort and preview the first MidMountain Fest on Oct. 12, when the nonprofit will host a ticketed day of revelatory music, art, and storytelling using marginalized voices to reclaim the Appalachian Murder Ballad Genre at MidMountain retreat.
The retreat is located at 338 Arnolds Valley Road.
Sunday’s panel at the Glasgow Library will feature journalist, MidMountain curator, and creator of the Fatal Femme Agency musical history show Andy “River” Peterson; University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill doctoral candidate focused on gothic horror and colonization narratives Anna Blackburn; musician and creator of “The Ballad of Dena & Andrea” podcast Becky Poole; regional balladeer Elsa Howell; multimedia artist Marie Anderson; and writer Sarah Gill. The event will be moderated by Penny Dudley. Poole, Howell, Anderson, and Gill will be joining as members of a Fall Fellowship Cohort in residence at Mid-Mountain Retreat in preparation for Mid-Mountain Fest.
The “Regeneration: Grief in Story and Song Gallery” show will be on display at MidMountain Retreat from Oct. 6 through Nov. 30. It will feature artwork from Katherine Fahey of Baltimore, Md.; Sybil Mahone of Washington, D.C.; Raven Mack of Schuyler; Allison Spence of Tallahassee, Fla.; Cary Oliva of Lexington; Miriam Julianna of Washington, D.C.; Renée K. Wieneck of Tazewell; and Dan Van Allen of Baltimore. The show is curated by Ana-Marie King, Christine Sajecki, and Andy “River” Peterson.
The MidMountain Fest on Oct. 12 will feature more than a dozen musical acts across two stages. The event will also feature workshops, including a print-making station and gourd banjo creation with Dr. Dena Jennings, who will be crafting an instrument on-site that will be added to MidMountain’s permanent collection and played at the end of the festival.
For more information and to buy tickets, visit www.midmountain.org/fest.
