Few people can argue that clowns are creepy and, for most people, right below clowns are ventriloquist dummies. The creators of “Saw” decided to make a horror movie/ghost story about an female ventriloquist, Mary Shaw, and her hundreds of freaky looking dummies. For the most part, it works. It gives the audience the heebie-jeebies and produces a few good scares.

Never let it be said that the youthful residents of Fayette County are not a talented bunch! The proof can be found in the tremendous quality and record number of outstanding entries submitted for judging in the 22nd annual Art and Talent Showcase sponsored by the Kiwanis Club of Peachtree City. Fayette County 1st-12th graders submitted over 170 pieces of art and auditioned over 50 separate acts for this annual competition. The judges had a most difficult time selecting the finalists. Over $4,000 in cash prizes will be awarded to the winners in each age group. However, as stated by Kiwanis Youth Services Chairman, Cliff Schmidt, "Every participating student is a winner. The talent and artistic ability displayed was unbelievable." 

Pianist Thomas Rosenkranz will perform a concert for his home town at St. Andrew’ in the Pines Episcopal Church on April 15.

Molly Ringwald sings and dances her way through Atlanta

Beginning Tuesday, metro-Atlanta residents will get the chance to see ‘80s film princess Molly Ringwald take stage in the Tony Award-nominated Broadway musical, “Sweet Charity” for a one week engagement.

Inaugural St. Patty’s Day Festival this Sat.

This Saturday Tyrone will be blanketed by a sea of green as residents and visitors don the color of the Irish in celebration of St. Patrick’s Day.

After the success of “Sin City,” “300,” another graphic novel by Frank Miller, got the cinematic royal treatment and has recently been released in theaters. Reviews have been generally favorable ( I really liked it, too) and it has translated to box office success. If you like movies about war, especially wars fought with swords, shields, arrows and brute force, “300” is right up your alley.

From the new Christian films marketing division of Fox, Fox Faith, comes a film about the important parts of life, based on the book by Jim Stovall. “The Ultimate Gift” stars Drew Fuller, Brian Dennehy, Ali Hillis and Academy Award nominated actors Abigail Breslin and James Garner.

Sandy Creek High School drama and chorus departments will take stage March 22-25 for four performances of the beloved Broadway classic, “West Side Story.”

Motorcycle admirers and riders will converge on Coweta Custom Cycles for Northgate Viking Band Booster’s second annual benefit ride,“Bringing rhythm to an off beat world,” on Saturday, April 14.

Two years ago, when reports began to circulate of the devastation that followed the tsunami on the coast of Asia, opera vocalist and former resident of Newnan, Courtenay Budd, was concerned. "I talked with some people in my neighborhood, and a lot of them wanted to give a yard sale," she remembered.

J. C. Booth Middle School proudly presents the play, “Aladdin Jr.,” March 22 and 23 at McIntosh High School. The new MHS Fine Arts Auditorium will be transformed into Agraba, the city of enchantment where every beggar has a story and every camel has a tale.

Students and teachers alike have no doubt begun the official countdown to summer. With state tests quickly approaching and weather finally beginning to warm up, everyone knows summer is just around the corner. Now Fayette County students and teachers have a new reason to be excited in 2007 – a chance to win academic prizes worth more than $5,000 from their local Club Z! In-Home Tutoring Services. “Students and teachers have their hands full with all of the testing coming up next month. We just wanted to give back and encourage them to finish the semester strong, and help get their summer off to the right start,” said local Club Z! owner Peggy Thomas of Fayetteville.

Sharpsburg Sharpies Drama Team of Sharpsburg Baptist Church recently added a showing of their annual dinner theatre, “A Wedding And A Funeral,” due to the high demand for tickets. This two-act comedy, which premiered March 15, will continue March 16 and 17 at 7 p.m. and March 18 in a Sunday Dessert Matinee at 2 p.m.

Award winning play touches hearts

This weekend is the final opportunity for area residents to catch Fayette Players and Community Theater’s production of Margaret Edson’s powerful one-act play “W;t.”

“W;t” is the winner of the 1999 Atlanta Pulitzer Prize for Drama. The show opened at the newly renovated YMCA Lodge on March 2 and a special performance benefitting the Georgia Ovarian Cancer Alliance was held March 3. The benefit performance included a speaking engagement with author Edson after the show. Of the March 3 benefit, show director Jeff Allen said, “It went very well. The author seemed really pleased with it.” Allen stated that, while there weren’t as many people in attendance as he would have hoped for, “the ones that were there enjoyed it.”

Southern Crescent Chorale performs at Spivey Hall

The Southern Crescent Chorale’s 2006-2007 season continues this weekend when the Chorale will perform “Magnificent Oratorio and Opera” in two acts. Spivey Hall, one of the world’s premier recital halls, will serve as the venue for the Chorale with accompaniment by soloists Keena Redding Hunt and Christopher Deraney. The event will take place March 10 at 8:15 p.m.

At the Q&A session after the March 3 performance of “W;t,” Pulitzer prize winning author Margaret Edson commented that she could see the Fayette Players’ hearts were completely given to the play. Edson particularly commended Caroline Carr “for the surge of her humanness and for allowing her whole self to come forth as a gift to the audience.” Edson went on to say that she appreciated the direction of Jeff Allen in the “very adept use of motion on and off stage.”

The Zodiac killer terrorized the San Francisco area and other parts of California for a number of years in the late 1960s and early 1970s, and he keeps a number of people in David Fincher’s new film “Zodiac” up at night as well. “Zodiac” is a serial killer movie about the people who investigate and report about him. The killer is a specter, someone who shows up in a few intense scenes of the movie, re-creations of the actual events, but looms even larger as a man who forces people into an obsession of finding the killer’s identity and capturing him.

After seeing Paramount’s new film “Black Snake Moan” recently, I walked out of the theater in a bit of a daze attempting to gather my thoughts without much luck initially. That’s what this film will do to you; it will take you on wild ride of emotions and drop you off before you’ve had time to regain your senses.

I am not a NASCAR fan. I have been to Atlanta Motor Speedway on media day and have seen the cars do test laps and, while I was moved by the power of the machines and their drivers, I have never been able to fathom watching a race from start to finish.

Offshoot Productions’ participation play, “The Fairy Tale Project,” enjoys its debut performances at Tyrone’s Roger Spencer Community Center, 145 Commerce Drive, at 11 a.m. and 3 p.m. on Saturday, March 10; and 3 p.m. on Sunday, March 11. Tickets are $7, $6 for children 12 and under, and are available at the Peachtree City Library, 201 Willowbend Road, 770-631-2520; the Roger Spencer Community Center; and online at www.offshoot.org. Special rates are available for groups of 15 or more.

Dr. Tim Hynes, University of West Georgia’s acting president, spoke to the Newnan Kiwanis on Tuesday, March 6 about the university, its growth and future. He credited the local community’s enduring support for helping to achieve the university’s success and thanked the Newnan Kiwanis club for being an integral part of it.

“At our university, we strive to provide quality education, one student at a time, ‘Educational Excellence in a Personal Environment,’ as we say,” Hynes stated. “The Kiwanis have contributed about $40,000 in student scholarships in support of our students, allowing them to pursue the American dream.”

Listen to the sound of the tom-toms and hear the wise words of Mother Earth as you are taken on a journey of mystery, adventure, humor and music in Fayette-Coweta Family Theatre’s Professional Company’s presentations of the 60 minute musical production of “The Legend of Pocahontas.” Staged during weekday mornings, this show is perfect for school groups, homeschoolers and preschool audiences. Seats are still available for the March 15 and 16 performances to be staged at 9:30 a.m. and 11:00 a.m. each day at the Fayette YMCA Lodge Theatre at 215 Huiet Road in Fayetteville.

The Fayette County High School Band Boosters will sponsor their annual benefit event, the Miss Pride of Fayette County Pageant, on March 9 and 10 at F.A. Sams Auditorium in Fayetteville. This is the 39th year that the pageant has been held to raise money for the FCHS Band. The pageant will give young women from the age of 3 to seniors in high school the opportunity to prove why they are the pride of Fayette County.

This Saturday Offshoot Productions will begin celebrating St. Patrick’s Day early with their Stars on the Southern Crescent coffee house.

The new film “Amazing Grace” bears the tag-line, “Every song has its story. Every generation has its hero.” And that is what this movie is all about: the story behind one of the most well known hymnals of all time and the story of one man’s quest to change the course of history with persistence and passion.

“Reno 911” has been a staple on Comedy Central for several years now. The parody of “Cops” features several actors from the sketch comedy troupe The State and is consistently absurdly bizarre and funny. “Reno 911: Miami” relocates the crew of the Reno Sheriff’s Department to the streets of Miami, giving them some fresh perps to deal with and a brand new setting. For me, a former big fan of the show, the film really reinvigorated the set-up and made for a very funny movie.

Fayette Players and Community Theatre will present Margaret Edson’s Pulitzer Prize winning play “W;t,” March 2-3 and 8-11. Show times are at 8 p.m. with a special 2:30 p.m. matinee on Sunday, March 11. The performance on March 3 will be a benefit for performance for the Georgia Ovarian Cancer Alliance. Tickets for that performance will be $20 and will include refreshments and a speaking engagement with Edson after the show. Tickets for all other performances are $10.

McIntosh High School PTSO will present the inaugural parents’ forum entitled “Parents' Tips For College Planning: Practical Action You Can Take Now!” which will be held on Monday, March 5, at 7 p.m., in the McIntosh media center. This event will be preceded by a brief PTSO business meeting at 6:30 p.m. for interested parents. The PTSO plans to hold annual forums on various subjects of interest to parents.

Annual bridal show set for March 4

Spring is just around the corner and with it comes the season of new beginnings. Flora and fauna burst to life around us, and people head outdoors to enjoy the warming temperatures. Spring also brings another season around: wedding season. Blushing brides and mothers-in-law-to-be will begin the final stretch into preparations for summer nuptials and newly engaged couples will begin the journey of planning for the big day.

Next weekend, residents in the wedding-planning process, whether just getting started or counting down the days, will be attending the Southern Charm Bridal Network’s ninth annual bridal show.

On Sunday, March 4, SCBN’s annual bridal extravaganza will take over the Wyndham Peachtree Conference Center from 2 to 5 p.m.

This Saturday the Peachtree City Library will play host to an After Hours Author Event featuring nationally known author Steve Eubanks. The event will be held downstairs at the library at 7 p.m. on Feb. 24 and is open to the public.

Eubanks is the author of 25 non-fiction sports books and boasts by-lines in such prominent magazines as Sports Illustrated, Golf Digest, PGA Tour Insider, and newspapers such as USA Today and the Los Angeles Times.