Opera on the James

The Virginia Center for the Creative Arts opened in 1971 and operated for five years in the Charlottesville area, first at Wavertree Farm and then at the Prospect Hill estate. Begun by writers Elizabeth Coles Langhorne and Nancy Hale, it counted among its original board members the novelist Peter Taylor and the former director of the MacDowell Colony, George Kendall. In the summers of 1976 and 1977, the VCCA held limited sessions on the campus of Sweet Briar College, a vibrant liberal arts women's college founded in 1901. In the fall of 1977, Sweet Briar agreed to lease the buildings and the adjacent grounds of Mt. San Angelo to the VCCA. The original 25-year lease has now been extended to an automatically renewing 15-year lease. As the only artist community in the nation directly associated with an institution of higher learning, the VCCA benefits tremendously from this unique relationship. The College generously allows Fellows to use many of its facilities and services, including the libraries, computer labs, pool, exercise rooms and walking trails. Fellows may also attend campus events such as lectures, plays and concerts. In return, VCCA Fellows periodically visit with students on campus, giving lectures or informal talks, and faculty members bring students to Mt. San Angelo for studio tours. The two institutions also formally collaborate on several mutually beneficial programs that bring writers, visual artists and composers to the VCCA and Sweet Briar and also offer opportunities to faculty and students. Virginia Center for the Creative Arts 154 San Angelo Drive, VA 24521 Amherst P. 434-946-7236 vcca@vcca.com