ROANOKE TIMES 
                      Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times

DATE: Friday, February 2, 1996               TAG: 9602020050
SECTION: EXTRA                    PAGE: 1    EDITION: METRO 
COLUMN: The Tipoff 
SOURCE: ALMENA HUGHES

THE TIPOFF

MAIN EVENT: Fifteen bouts - 45 rounds - featuring top amateur boxers from the U.S. Navy, the U.S. Marine Corps, Roanoke, Blacksburg, North Carolina, West Virginia and elsewhere will take place Saturday in the Star City Ballroom on the top floor of the Market Building in Downtown Roanoke. Music by The Thrillbillyz. Doors open at 5:30 p.m. People 17 or younger must be accompanied by an adult. Tickets cost $12.50 at the door; $10 in advance. Call 366-5788.

BIG LICK BOURSE: Roanoke's Big Lick Stamp Club will be represented Saturday as nine dealers from three states present for sale a selection of U.S. and foreign stamps, covers, picture postcards and philatelic supplies. Hours for the expo at the Days Inn on Plantation Road are 10 a.m. - 6 p.m. Admission and parking are free. Call 273-5908.

ATTIRE AND ENTERTAINMENT: Virginia Western Community College's Black Student Organization and the school's choral ensemble will join forces to present a free fashion/talent extravaganza Saturday at 6 p.m. in Virginia Western's Whitman Auditorium. Vendors and exhibitors will display wares beginning at 4 p.m. Call 857-7583.

COLLEGE CHORALE: Choirs from Radford, Washington & Lee and Hampton universities, Virginia Tech and Christopher Newport College on Saturday will perform three selections each plus a combined finale of Handel's "Come Mighty Father, Mighty Lord" and "Bogorodiste Devo," by Sergei Rachmaninoff. The free performance begins at 8 p.m. in Radford's Preston Hall. Call 831-5177.

SWING THING: Beginners through veterans are invited to do or learn to do the lindy, jitterbug, shag and other dances in a smoke- and alcohol-free environment at the Southwest Virginia Swing Dance Society's first anniversary dance Saturday in the Blacksburg Community Center. North Carolina's King Bees will provide the requisite blues, rock 'n' roll and R&B. The beginners' swing class is at 7 p.m.; dancing in earnest starts at 8. The $9 admission charge covers both. Call 381-5028.

ASPIRING ACTORS are invited to Sunday's Roanoke Valley Shakespeare Festival auditions from 1-5 p.m. in Virginia Western Community College's Whitman Auditorium. All ages of actors, singers and dancers are needed for the several plays under consideration for production during the summer. Observers are welcome, but VWCC technical director Bob McCleary warns that last year one spectator who brought his kid to try out for "A Christmas Carol" ended up playing Marley's Ghost himself. Call 857-7327 or 384-6946.

FOOD FOR THOUGHT: During her 15-year battle with anorexia and bulimia, veteran actress Mimi Wyche's weight ranged from 80 to 190 pounds. On Monday at 7 p.m. in the Randolph-Macon Woman's College Student Center, Lynchburg, Wyche will tell her story in her 50-minute play, "Eaten Alive." The free performance will be followed by a panel discussion of professionals talking about eating disorders. Call Shannon Brennan at (804) 947-8142.

STRING THING: Classical guitarist Manuel Barrueco will be featured during the performance of England's acclaimed Guildhall String Orchestra on Monday at 8 p.m. in Radford University's Preston Auditorium. It will cost $10 for adults; $5 for children to hear the 14-year-old ensemble. Call 831-5420.

DANCE AND CHANTS: The DaCosta-Graham African American Dance Troupe will perform "Dancescape," a program of music, dance, chants and storytelling for young children, Tuesday at 10 a.m. in the main branch of the Roanoke City Library. Pre-registration is requested for the free event. Call 981-2955.

AUTHOR ON AUTHORS: Award-winning novelist Gloria Naylor, whose "The Women of Brewster Place" won the American Book Award and was made into an all-star TV miniseries, will discuss "The Importance of Black Women In Afro-American History" on Wednesday at 7:30 p.m. in the Hollins College Theatre. A reception and book-signing in the Green Drawing Room will follow the free lecture. Call 362-6452.

DEAD SET: A Thursday tribute to Jerry Garcia, late leader of the Grateful Dead, will feature speaker/filmmaker Peter Shapiro, who directed one Deadhead documentary and produced another, presenting personal memories and rare film footage of Dead experts and fans. The free presentation of "The Music Never Stops: A Celebration of the Music of Jerry Garcia" will be at 11:20 a.m. in the Sutton Student Center Ballroom at Roanoke College. Call 375-2282. At 9 p.m. the same day, there will be a musical "Tribute to Jerry Garcia with After Dark" in the student center's Cavern. Admission will be $5. Call 375-2306.

CUPID CUER: Spirit FM radio and the Roanoke Valley Baptist Singles Association will present a Valentine Candlelight Dinner for Singles - complete with linen-dressed tables, background piano music, a special music program and get-acquainted ice breakers to help folks mingle - Feb. 10 at 6 p.m. at Bethel Baptist Church, Salem. Reservations at $10 per person are required. Call 774-9798 or (800) 774-9798.

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