The Clayton State University Accounting Club’s Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) program will be providing free volunteer tax preparation assistance on Saturday, Mar. 29. The session will run from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. in the Clayton State University School of Business’ Conference Room in the University’sAdministration Building.

Sandy Creek High School Chorus and Drama will present the Broadway musical, “Ragtime School Edition,” on March 15 and 16 in Patriot Hall Auditorium at Sandy Creek High School, 360 Jenkins Road, Tyrone, Ga.

Members of the Senoia Optimist Club will be on site at the opening day for the Senoia Area Little League on Saturday, March 15 to provide a free fingerprinting service to the youth and their parents or guardians.

SummerGrove is known for being one of the best-selling communities in the Atlanta area. The Dream Home Tour, sponsored by The Home Source Realtors, will give visitors a sneak peak into the exceptional homes and lifestyle behind this master-planned community’s success.

McDonald’s Chief Happiness Officer, Ronald McDonald, will serve as grand marshall of the McDonald’s Family Fun Day Parade on Saturday, March 29 in Senoia. A portion of Ga. Highway 16, between Broad Street and Ga. Highway 85, will be temporarily closed between 1 and 1:30 p.m. in observance of the parade.

Previously set for April, the Southern Writers Conference has been rescheduled for July 5 and 6, when a small army of writers will converge on Newnan, Ga. for the first annual Southern Writers Conference.

Spring flowers are blooming, birds are returning to their spring and summer haunts and, as always, this time of year brings plenty of entertainment for the community.

First let me say that there are quite a few aspects of “The Bank Job” that make it difficult for me to recommend it to the general population. For example, the film begins with a menage a trois (which fades to a blur as it gets going) and proceeds throughout the film to include more bare flesh than I’d like to recall. Toward the end, this flick gets pretty violent, although most – but not all – of the violence cuts away or pans wide before it gets too gruesome.

Roland Emmerich’s film about an ancient warrior out to save his lady love and the rest of his friends and neighbors who have been captured is nowhere near as bad as some critics would have you believe. If you go in expecting a laughably bad film full of near grunting cavemen battling prehistoric birds, mammoths and sabre-toothed tigers (which I kind of did), you will be disappointed (which I surprisingly wasn’t).

On Friday, March 7 Offshoot Productions’ Gallery Players will be back in action at the Fayette Art Center and Gallery.

This weekend families will have the opportunity to spend quality time together, have some fun and learn a little all the while.

Penelope (played by Christina Ricci) is a girl with a pig snout for a nose. Many years before she was born, a witch put a curse on her family: the next newborn girl would have the face of a pig. The curse would only be broken when “one of her own kind” would come to love her for who she is.

Will Ferrell is a comedy all-star, the equivalent of a Larry Bird in my opinion. He’s a go-to guy when you need a comedic hit, but even Bird missed once in a while and he didn’t win an NBA title every time he laced them up either. Ferrell has a string of hits under his belt, but for every “Anchorman,” or “Blades of Glory,” there is a “Kicking and Screaming” and, now, a “Semi-Pro.”

On April 5 and 6, a small army of writers will converge on Newnan as eTreasures Publishing and West Central Technical College present the first annual Southern Writers Conference.

I first saw a preview for “Charlie Bartlett” before seeing “Once” – one of my favorite movies of 2007. The film’s trailer indicated that it would be a smart comedy with depth and heart and a solid cast. Instead the film veers off course before it even gets its start and struggles for an hour and a half to gain some momentum and credibility.

Jared Grace (Freddie Highmore) has had a rough new change in his life. He went from living in New York City to the mysterious Spiderwick Mansion, where the original owner, Arthur Spiderwick, disappeared 80 years ago. His mother and siblings, Mallory and twin brother Simon (also played by Freddie Highmore), are fine with their new home, but Jared wants to go back to live with his dad. At this point, Jared has no clue that his mother and father have separated.

I suppose all movie reviews are at least a little biased, but this review is very biased. U2 is my favorite band. I think they are the greatest rock band in the world and are certainly in the top three bands of all time.

On Valentine’s Day, one of the most heart-stirring stories of all time opened to sold-out audiences and standing ovations at Southside Theatre Guild in Fairburn. It’s not about star-crossed lovers but about finding the heart within each of us to stand up for what is right.

Fayette Coweta Family Theatre’s professional touring troupe, A Company of Friends Educational Productions, has been busy touring the musical “School House Rock Live Jr.” to schools and venues across Georgia and now they will be performing locally for the community.

The Holliday-Dorsey-Fife Museum will offer two docent training classes on March 8 and March 15 from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. This training is for anyone interested in becoming a part of history. Not only will you receive exhibit training, but you will hear entertaining stories about the people and places in Fayetteville.

Fayette County’s annual spring fund-raiser benefiting the Fayette CARE Clinic will be held Saturday, March 1.

Held at and sponsored by Glendalough Manor in Tyrone, the evening kicks off at 7 p.m. with a reception, adult beverages and dance music by Harold Seay and the Boogie Shoes. The dinner buffet begins at 8 p.m. and segues into a live auction at 9 p.m. The music will pause as bidding begins and resume when the auction closes.

“Essential Graham: Classics from the Martha Graham Dance Company” will be performed at the Centre for Performing and Visual Arts in Newnan, Ga. next Tuesday evening.

Newnan Theatre Company will be launching its 2008 season with their annual gala tonight at 7 p.m. This year's gala includes a silent auction, entertainment from local talent and hot and cold refreshments. Season tickets for the company will also be available for purchase – those who have already purchased season tickets will be admitted free to the gala event.

On Saturday, Feb. 23 the National Archives, Southeast Region, will present a free workshop on locating family history information for African Americans whose ancestors were slaves.

Off-Broadway hit returns to the 14th Street Playhouse

After 635 performances, from April 2005 to February 2007, made it the longest-running musical in Atlanta history, “Menopause The Musical” is coming back to Atlanta for a limited-time engagement at the 14th Street Playhouse on Feb. 22. This musical rendition of “the change” has been entertaining and educating women from coast-to-coast for more than five years. From the work of writer Jeanie Linders, “Menopause The Musical” is a 90-minute production, which includes re-lyricized tunes from the ’60s and ’70s.

The Fayette County Public Library will host two free, public screenings of the documentary “Chisholm ’72 – Unbought & Unbossed,” examining Shirley Chisholm’s historic 1972 presidential campaign. The dual screenings kick off the library’s 2008 Spring Film Festival, a collaboration with P.O.V., PBS’s award-winning non-fiction film series. “Chisholm ’72 – Unbought & Unbossed” will be shown at the library on Tuesday, Feb. 26 at 6:30 p.m., and on Thursday, Feb. 28 at 1 p.m., with support provided by the Friends of the Fayette County Public Library.

David Rice (Hayden Christensen) discovers at a young age that he has the ability to teleport himself anywhere in the world. Made possible through a genetic anomaly, his power allows him to escape his current life – one of being bullied at school by classmates and at home by an abusive/alcoholic father. His mother left when David was just five, and he hasn’t seen her since. David uses his power to flee his home life, becoming a bank robber to fund a life he never could have dreamed of before. (Robbing banks is pretty easy, it turns out, if you never have to open a door!)

Actually, I’ve never read the book, but I bet it’s good. The movie isn’t bad, per se, but after setting up a really good story, it is pretty bare bones. It’s basically filled with CGI goblins and creepies running around shouting “Get the book!” When the gross fantastical elements take a bit of a back seat, there are some nice moments about the importance of family, but I can’t help but feel that the film was a bit empty.

Elaine Layton has been named Newnan-Coweta Art Association’s Artist of the Month for February. A sampling of her work is on display at city hall in Newnan.

Main Street Newnan’s popular Market Day on the Square will be held the the first Saturday of each month from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. from April to December. The first event for the year is planned for Saturday, April 5. Vendors showcase homemade, homegrown and handmade items.