Happenings

Bright Lights, Our City: Get Plugged In to Holiday Spirit

November 13, 2019

City sidewalks, busy sidewalks, dressed in holiday style. … The Wheeling Arts and Cultural Commission wants downtown businesses to dress their buildings in holiday style — in time for the city’s Winter on the ...

Worby Scholarship Winner Nails Gig With Wheeling Symphony

October 8, 2019

"Whenever a group of classical guitarists congregate, you can be sure you will see them filing away and comparing their nails.” For John Marcel Williams, this is a not too uncommon sight. Williams is the classi...

BEFORE YOU GO: ‘Beautiful’ Will Make Monday ‘One Fine Day’

Stacey Miller Sacco

October 5, 2019

The Tony and Grammy award-winning musical "Beautiful," about the life and music of Carole King has been gracing the stage of Broadway for five years. While the show will be closing this month in the Big Apple, ...

Little Local Entrepreneurs Following in Famous Footsteps

October 4, 2019

What do Mark Zuckerberg, Matthew Mullenweg, David Karp, Blake Ross and Jo Malone have in common? They were all entrepreneurs at a young age. Now, they are millionaires. Of course, we know Zuckerberg found...

Artists Bring Vision to ‘Celebrate Wheeling Invitational’

October 1, 2019

Will we see Suspension Bridges? Park landscapes? Businesses that are no more? The Ohio River or Wheeling Creek? Sculptures of historic mile markers? That remains to be seen when visions of Wheeling will dance r...

Cultural Food Tour Offers Tasty View of History

September 20, 2019

The waves of immigration that fueled Wheeling’s industrial era didn’t disappear with the factory jobs. Kibbeh. Pierogi. Schnitzel. Marinara. They’re all still here. Sometimes in restaurants and at festivals,...

Aretha’s Songs ‘Never Grow Old’

Stacey Miller Sacco

September 19, 2019

Committed to bringing some of the greatest American music to the stage in Wheeling, Music Director John Devlin opens the 90th season of the Wheeling Symphony with a tribute to the Queen of Soul on Friday, Sept....

The Time Is Now for Moundsville’s First Arts and Culture Committee

Kelly Strautmann

September 10, 2019

This year, the city of Moundsville is doing things a little differently — they can proudly say they have their first Arts and Culture Committee. It’s been a long time coming, but the general feeling among me...

Stifel to Open Season With ‘Collective Works’ of Pittsburgh Society of Illustrators

August 31, 2019

Oglebay Institute’s Stifel Fine Arts Center will opens its 2019-20 season of changing art exhibits with “The Collective Works” of the Pittsburgh Society of Illustrators. “The Collective Works” exhibit featur...

Celebrating the Musical Women of Coal Country: Karen Collins, Elaine Purkey Remember Hazel Dickens

August 26, 2019

The Ohio County Public Library and the WALS Foundation will celebrate Reuther-Pollack Labor Heritage Week through the music of two legendary West Virginia singer-songwriters whose work has brought attention to ...

Regional Science & Engineering Fair Continues to Strengthen STEM Education

February 28, 2019

On Saturday, March 9, the College of Science at West Liberty University will welcome hundreds of young students to the Regional Science & Engineering Fair, an academic competition that inspires and encourag...

Wheeling Makes History at 12th Night Costume Ball

January 7, 2019

Ebenezer Zane posed for a photo with sister Betty, and her son-in-law Ebenezer Martin stopped by to say hello before she went for a brief gunpowder run around Oglebay’s Glessner Auditorium, all while Elvis danc...

Farm to Fork Takes Leap Through History

Stacey Miller Sacco

August 7, 2018

A property with nearly 250 years of Wheeling history hosted the Wheeling Symphony Auxiliary’s annual Farm to Fork dinner this past weekend. The McColloch Farm, named for Major Samuel McColloch who plunged his h...

Dancing Down Memory Lane (Part 3): Park Dances — the ’80s

Katherine Marsh

July 6, 2018

If you’re from the Upper Ohio Valley, you may already be aware that the Wheeling Park Commission held summer dances for local teens during five decades of the 20th century — from the 1950s to the 1990s. The dan...

Dancing Down Memory Lane (Part 1): Park Dances — the ’60s

July 4, 2018

I just heard that they are having a recreation of the teen dances held at the White Palace at Wheeling Park on July 6. It is in honor of the dances from the ’70s, ’80s and ’90s. Unfortunately, they missed my d...

Hop On Over to Zoo Brew

Laura Jackson Roberts

June 20, 2018

For one night each June at the Oglebay Good Zoo, the kids go home. The strollers roll away, the little red wagons head out, and the calls for popcorn and train rides fade into the evening sunset. After regular ...

Get Some Culture … and Arts

June 14, 2018

WHERE ART THOU? Visual arts, theater, dance, literature, culinary demos, historical arts, and lots and lots of musical entertainment will liven up the Wheeling Heritage Port when the 2018 Wheeling Arts &...

Festival Focus Is Arts, Culture, Music and More

June 13, 2018

Art, music, poetry, games, classes, dance, artisans and much more await those who venture to Wheeling Heritage Port Friday, June 15, and Saturday, June 16, for the Wheeling Arts & Culture Fest. The f...

Calling All Chess Masters: The Game of Kings Seeks Knights in the Ohio Valley

June 13, 2018

The Game of Kings The board is set. Protect your king. Match wits with your opponent. Make sacrifices. Utilize your strongest pieces to their fullest potential. Strategize and anticipate your opponent’s move...

Stride Pianist to Bring Chaplin’s ‘Silent’ Films to Life at Towngate

June 9, 2018

Stride piano player Tom Roberts, joined by Mary Beth Malek on clarinet, brings his celebrated “Charlie Chaplin Silent Picture Show” to Oglebay Institute’s Towngate Theatre at 8 p.m. Saturday, June 16. Robert...

Challenge Wheeling Scavenger Race to Start With a Bang

June 4, 2018

If you are in downtown Wheeling on the morning of Saturday, June 16, you may hear what you think is a cannon blast. And you'd be right. On June 16, Challenge Wheeling racing teams will take off to find Wheel...

Black Diamond Wrestling: A Hidden Gem for Wrestling Fans

June 1, 2018

Showtime It’s showtime. Music blares over the speakers, lights dance off the billowing fog, audience members rise to their feet and cheer as their heroes make their way to the ring. The champion holds his go...

Conference to Shed Light on Mental Illness

Christina Fisanick

May 30, 2018

In the late 1970s, two Wisconsin mothers, Harriet Shetler and Beverly Young, had grown weary of community backlash against their sons who struggled with schizophrenia. As they worked to find care for their s...

Weather Balloon Launch: ‘Truly a Five-Sense Experience’

Laura Jackson Roberts

May 23, 2018

Fifth grade at Wheeling Country Day School is a special year. The most senior class serves as leaders and sets examples for other students. They get to visit the Stone Lab in Lake Erie and the capitol buildin...

No Need to Keep Quiet About Good Times at the Library

Christina Fisanick

May 21, 2018

Saturday, I went to a party at the Ohio County Public Library (OCPL). Most of you are probably thinking (with a fair amount of sarcasm), “I bet that was a good time.” Let me tell you, it was! Libraries are not ...

Much Well-Deserved Ado About Mom

May 10, 2018

It’s Mother’s Day weekend, and there are plenty of events that cater to mom and kids! You can kick up your heels at a mother/son dance or run your toes off at a 5K. If neither of those is your cup of tea, well,...

Escape to a New Activity to Benefit YSS

May 9, 2018

Adventure awaits The waves roar as the deck heaves and rocks underfoot, and you struggle to concentrate on the puzzle before you. Your captain, the great Blackbeard, has been captured. He and his crew face t...

‘August: Osage County’ on Towngate Stage

May 9, 2018

Oglebay Institute’s Towngate Theatre closes its 2017-18 season with the Pulitzer Prize and Tony Award-winning “August: Osage County” by Tracy Letts. It will be staged for two weekends — May 11, 12 and 13 and...

Six Students Selected for Honors Music Recital

May 4, 2018

West Liberty University’s Division of Music will hold its annual Honors Recital, at 3 p.m., Sunday, May 6, in Elbin Auditorium, College Hall. The concert is free and open to the public. “The annual Honors Re...

Do Your Bidding; Drink Some Chocolate; Check Out Some Tin

May 3, 2018

MMM ... CHOCOLATE Do you like freshly baked, cooked, grilled and melted chocolate? How about chocolate beer? If so, then you will LOVE the 29th annual Chocolate Extravaganza, 1-3:30 p.m. Sunday, May 6, at Te...

Cinco de Derby! Multi-Themed Weekend on Tap

May 3, 2018

From sombreros to starships to derby hats, those looking for unique opportunities for fun in Wheeling have a wealth of options to choose from in the first weekend of May … or they can do it all! May 5 this y...

WSO Music Director Raphel Honored With Conductor Laureate Title

May 3, 2018

Wheeling Symphony Orchestra announces Music Director André Raphel has received the honorary title of conductor laureate of the Wheeling Symphony Orchestra. The recognition ceremony and reception celebrating the...

Dance, Dance Dance to the Second Chance

May 2, 2018

Let’s try again Second chances in life are all too rare. How often is a person given the chance to revisit a certain period of their life and try again? What could be done differently? How could the experien...

Park Players ‘On the Town’

April 30, 2018

Experience a classic Broadway production when the Park Players of Wheeling Park High School present the spring musical, On the Town, Friday, May 4, through Sunday, May 6, at the J.B. Chambers Performing Arts Ce...

Summer FEST to Benefit Homeless Teens

April 29, 2018

One in 30 adolescents, aged 13-17, experiences one form of homelessness unaccompanied by a parent or guardian over a course of a year. That fact, from a new study from Chapin Hall, a research center at the U...

Woodsdale Turns Lemons Into Lemonade Into Cash

April 27, 2018

It was a sunny Saturday in April when Woodsdale Elementary School parents, students and staff raised $4,300 in an age-old method: the lemonade stand. That's a lot of lemons. On April 21, 20 stands stretch...

Soul Music Comes to Pat’s Down on Main Street

April 27, 2018

Pat’s Down on Main Street is continuing its Sundae series with ezra & the reletivs along with special guests Poetic Peth and Buffalo Rose. This free show runs from 6-9 p.m. Sunday, April 29. ezra & t...

Adventures Run the Gamut From Pickleball to Studio Tour to Mindfulness

April 26, 2018

We’ve got our usual great selection of music and theater around the area, but why not try your hand at pickleball, learn the art of mindful meditation, swap some records or take a peek inside some artists’ stud...

Two Chances to Enjoy WLU Choirs

April 26, 2018

Springtime brings two chances to enjoy beautiful music as West Liberty University’s College of Arts and Communications presents choral concerts for the public to enjoy. The first concert, Let Music Fill the ...

‘Adventures in Mindfulness’ May Lead to Peace, Happiness

April 24, 2018

What is happiness? The question itself brings a pause and a chuckle from Cory Muscara, a mindfulness expert who will lead the keynote workshop at Oglebay Park’s “Adventures in Mindfulness” retreat this weeke...

Cartwright to Star In Unique Show

April 23, 2018

It was the very first time he saw glow sticks, and Lionel Cartwright will never forget the moment. For good reason. “It was that first night when I was hired to be a member of the staff band for Jamboree ...

Got Wanderlust?

April 20, 2018

"Wanderlust" — a strong desire to explore. Wanderlust Snowshoe offers the means to explore ourselves. It’s “life changing,” said Joelle Connors. It gave Lindsay Schooler, a yoga instructor, “so many tools to...

National Speakers Announced for Wetzel County ‘Hope Through Recovery’ Event

April 19, 2018

In an effort to address the many issues currently plaguing our state and local communities, the Wetzel County Board of Education will be hosting a public event from 6:30-8:30 p.m. Thursday, April 26, at the Mag...

Celebrate Earth Day Weekend With Oglebay Institute

April 17, 2018

Celebrate Earth Day weekend with naturalists from Oglebay Institute’s Schrader Environmental Education Center, by participating in a series of events set for Saturday, April 21, and Sunday, April 22, (Earth Day...

50th Anniversary Screening Set for Kubrick’s Masterpiece ‘2001: A Space Odyssey’

April 17, 2018

This year marks the 50th anniversary of the film release of Stanley Kubrick’s sci-fi masterpiece “2001: A Space Odyssey.” The visionary work changed the way the world thought about science, science fictio...

Who Will Be the Next Wheeling Symphony Music Director?

April 14, 2018

Who will be the next music director of the Wheeling Symphony Orchestra? Patrons will have the opportunity to experience four candidates in action during the 2018-19 WSO season. The season will feature the...

Gracie Curran at BluesDays

April 13, 2018

Gracie Curran will bring her “jaw-dropping” blues and soul to River City Restaurant at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, April 17. “One of the hardest working blues artists on the circuit, Gracie’s bare feet should have ca...

In Response to the Rumor … James Wright Poetry Festival Is Back!

April 13, 2018

If there’s anything you want to know about Pulitzer Prize-winning Martins Ferry poet James Wright, just ask Jonathan Blunk. Blunk, Wright’s authorized biographer, has spent decades studying Wright — the last...

Enter Weelunk’s Haiku Contest

April 13, 2018

Try your hand at writing a haiku inspired by Wheeling’s waterfront, and one winner will join West Virginia’s poet laureate, Marc Harshman, for lunch! A haiku is a Japanese poem of 17 syllables, in three phra...

Lounge Lizards Duel in New Mystery Theatre Show

April 11, 2018

Dueling lounge lizards, a love-conflicted exotic dancer, a down-and-out club owner and a strange Austrian body-builder populate Mystery Theatre Unlimited’s all-new murder mystery, “Murder at the Kit Kat Klub,” ...