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COLUMBIA — South Carolina residents can peruse the Columbia Museum of Art for free all summer long for the second year in a row thanks to a grant aimed at making museums accessible.

"Free Summer at the CMA" lasts through Aug. 31 and includes access to two exhibits and kid-friendly activities, according to the Main Street museum's website.

All S.C. residents have to do for no-cost entry is show proof of residency at the front desk.

The grant comes from Art Bridges' Foundation's Access for All program, which eliminates admission cost (CMA's is $15 for adults) at dozens of museums across the country.

An exhibit of Sam Gilliam, a post-war printmaker and painter who was regarded as "dean" of Washington, D.C.'s arts scene during the mid-20th century, will be on display through Aug. 31.

A second exhibit features works by Black abstract artists from the CMA's own collection. "Let's Have a Talk" is also on display through Aug. 31.

The rest of the museum's gallery spaces are undergoing a $3 million renovation to update the exhibit spaces' lighting and address the building's aging infrastructure for hanging and displaying artwork.

The exhibit on Gilliam is in the newly renovated first-floor gallery space, which was phase one of the nearly yearlong construction project. An exhibit on the iconic New York City artist Keith Haring will follow Gilliam's exhibit this fall.

COLUMBIA — Often in local theater, a talented young performer appears from seemingly out of nowhere, turns in an impressive performance and leaves audiences to exclaim, “Wow. Where did this kid come from?”

Most often, the answer is: children’s theater. Many Midlands-area high schools, middle schools and even a few elementary schools have active drama programs; nonprofit theaters similarly offer outreach programs to youngsters through classes, performance opportunities or internships and apprentice programs. Summer has become the time when young performers take to the stage in droves, with large scale, family-friendly plays everywhere. Here’s just a few happening over the next couple of months:

Workshop Theatre traditionally kicks off the summer season with a “junior” production — i.e. a popular Broadway smash condensed down to a run time of c. one hour, and adapted for a cast of child performers. This year it’s “Beetlejuice Jr.” based on the 1988 Tim Burton film, meaning that “It’s SHOWTIME!” The original musical adaptation ran for over 600 performances in New York, and was nominated for eight Tony awards. Workshop’s production is led by director Julian DeLeon and musical director Taylor Diveley, with choreography from Roxanne Livingston Rich. The tale of a quirky teen who embraces the spooky residents of her parents’ haunted home runs in Columbia College’s Cottingham Theatre June 19-22. More info here.

“Disney’s The Little Mermaid” was based on a Hans Christian Anderson fairy tale that had been around since 1837, but the 1989 animated film gave her the name Ariel, and lifted the lovelorn redhead into the ranks of Disney princesses, accompanied by Broadway-style songs and musical numbers. Expect all the familiar tunes including “Part of Your World” and the Oscar-winning “Under the Sea” from composers Alan Menken and Howard Ashman, plus colorful maritime characters like the calypso-singing crab Sebastian and the evil Sea Witch Ursula in this full-length production (i.e. adult actors will portray the grownup characters) that runs at Town Theatre July 11 - 24. Shannon Scruggs directs and choreographs, with Lou Boeschen as musical director. More info here.

Columbia Children’s Theatre revives a summer tradition of spoofing something, dare we say, popular, with "Wicked of Oz: A Comic Fable,” the latest original work from playwright/director/CCT co-founder Jerry Stevenson. Professional actors including Lilly Thompson, Toby O' Connor and Anna Swearingen will perform this mash-up of Munchkinland and the Emerald City July 12-13 at the Richland Library — Sandhills. Children will love the zany antics of the cast, while adults in attendance may chuckle at winking, “Fractured Fairy Tale”-style references that only grown-ups will get. More info here.

CCT students and their peers have their turn next, as youngsters from rising first graders to graduating seniors perform “Roald Dahl's Willy Wonka,” a stage version of the chocolate-covered classic featuring songs from composers Leslie Bricusse and Anthony Newley that were featured in the 1971 Gene Wilder movie, including the famous “Candy Man.” Innocent Charlie Bucket, Grandpa Joe and some less-than-innocent children tour Wonka’s fabled candy factory, with startling results. Directed by Sadie Carr, with musical direction from Anna Swearingen and choreography by Erica Cooper, this show runs July 25 - August 3 in the auditorium at C.A. Johnson High School. More info here.

"The Princess and the Pea" may not have the same notoriety as, say, "Cinderella," but the Hans Christian Anderson-penned tale inspired the musical “Once Upon a Mattress," which ran for over a year on Broadway and starred a young Carol Burnett. Chapin Theatre Company pulls out all the stops with a full-scale revival, running July 17- 27 in the Harbison Theatre at Midlands Technical College. Mary Jo Johnson directs Chapin mainstays including Debra Kiser, JimDeFelice, Frank Thompson and Maggie Baker, with musical direction by McCall Bethurem and choreography by Meredith Boehme. More info here.

The Broadway Bound Vista Theatre Project turns to comedy with “Cheaper by the Dozen,” running July 17-20 in the Cardinal Newman School Performing Arts Center. Directed by Dedra Daniels Mount, this true story of the Gilbreth family follows the misadventures of a gaggle of children whose efficiency expert parents, played by Nic Stratton and Amy Thomasson, experiment with running their household like a factory. Local connection: the book’s co-author, Frank B. Gilbreth Jr., used the pen-name Ashley Cooper for his long-running column in The Post and Courier, where he worked and wrote for over 40 years, rising to assistant publisher and vice president. More info here.

Excitement is high and anticipation mounts as veteran local actor and youth director David LaTorre takes the reins as the new artistic director of Village Square Theatre in Lexington. Collaborating with musical director Jessica Thrift and choreographer Christy Shealy Mills, the artist’s first Junior Arts production is “Disney’s Alice in Wonderland Jr.,” running July 20-27. Expect the classic Cheshire Cat grin, the White Rabbit’s tardiness, the madness of the Hatter and the temper of the Queen of Hearts, but look for some influences from the more recent Tim Burton/Johnny Depp film incarnation, too. More info here.

Debra Leopard has been a brand name in the Midlands for decades, as a prolific actor, director, playwright and youth theater educator. Now the Lexington County-based artist has struck out on her own, forming the Soda City Theatre Company. Their first production will be “Disney’s Moana, Jr.,” running July 23-27 at the Lexington 2 Performing Arts Center. Young performers ages 5-20 will recount the tale of a Polynesian princess on a quest to save her people, as musical director John Norris and choreographer Christie Burgess guide them through songs by Lin-Manuel Miranda and others. More info here.

COLUMBIA, S.C. — A weather complex along the Florida coast and another in the mid-section of the U.S. are forecasted to move close to or over South Carolina, providing multi-day opportunities for widespread rainfall during a seven day period.

The National Hurricane Center has been tracking a slow moving and slow developing area of low pressure emanating between the Bahamas and the east coast of Florida.

Tropical development probabilities from NHC have not been higher than 10 percent for each of the 6 hour forecast updates since Sunday evening. By late Monday night, there was a 10 percent chance of development within the next 48 hours and a 10 percent chance over the next 10 days, based on NHC's data.

Credit: WLTX

Although the probabilities are slim for tropical cyclonic development, the sub-tropical low is forecasted to track along Florida's east coast Wednesday, then along the Georgia, South and North Carolina coastlines during the day Thursday.

This will provide a good chance for widespread rainfall during the two day stretch in the Carolinas.

The Weather Prediction Center has a marginal risk for heavy rainfall through most of South Carolina for Wednesday.

Thursday, the marginal risk covers South Carolina's PeeDee to Lowcountry areas and points east, whereas North Carolina area of interest stretches from the Outer Banks, to the Port City, the Piedmont to Research Triangle.

Credit: WLTX

A second weather complex Monday evening, extending from Illinois to Texas, produced severe weather in multiple states. Numerous weather watches and warnings had been issued by several National Weather Service Offices during the Monday event.

The weather complex will have a cold front move from the Ozarks, through the southern Appalachians and eventually through the Carolinas.

This will provide the second wave of showers and storms for South Carolina and North Carolina for the weekend and potential through Tuesday of next week.

Although it may be too early to project impacts, there will be a higher and more chances for rainfall in the bordering states during the projected four day period.

BLYTHEWOOD — The S.C. Department of Motor Vehicles is closing its branch office in Blythewood next month.

The customer service office, located at 10311 Wilson Blvd., is shutting down because of reduced parking availability after the recent sale of several of the buildings on the Wilson Boulevard campus, according to a news release from the DMV.

DMV's headquarters and the S.C. Department of Public Safety will remain open on the campus.

The last day of customer service at the Blythewood branch office will be July 3. Customers in northeast Richland County are asked to visit DMV offices at 228 O'Neil Court in Columbia or 1161 Kincaid Bridge Road in Winnsboro.

The Columbia office on O'Neil Court will offer expanded services to accommodate the increased demand, the release stated.

Blythewood, with a population of around 6,200, is among the fastest-growing communities in the Palmetto State, according to U.S. Census data released in May. By 2024, the town's population had nearly tripled since 2010, and its 2023-24 gain was the sixth-fastest in the state.

The town is expected to continue to grow as the new Scout Motors plant takes shape. Scout plans to employ 4,000 workers and ramp up to building 200,000 vehicles annually after production begins in late 2027.

COLUMBIA — Popular grocery store chain Trader Joe's has submitted an application with the city for permits for a new location along a busy thoroughfare in Columbia.

The chain is looking to build a new store at 275 Harbison Blvd., near the Columbiana Center, according to a permit application, city spokesperson Justin Stevens confirmed to The Post and Courier.

The application is under review by city staff, Stevens said.

A spokesperson for Trader Joe’s did not confirm the chain's plans to build a new location in the capital city.

“We are actively looking at hundreds of neighborhoods across the country as we hope to open more new neighborhood stores each year,” Trader Joe’s spokesperson Nakia Rohde said in a statement. “At this time, we do not have a location confirmed in Columbia, SC.”

It would be the second location in the Midlands. The existing store at 4516 Forest Drive is popular with shoppers and notorious for its crowded parking lot and subsequent lines of traffic onto Forest Drive.

The proposed store would also be on a busy thoroughfare, as that stretch of Harbison Boulevard is similarly a magnet for congestion during peak hours.

That stretch of Harbison saw an average of 19,600 cars pass through each day in 2024, according to data from the S.C. Department of Transportation. That’s compared to 27,300 on average in the area of Forest Drive near the existing store.

The town of Lexington circulated an online petition in March asking the chain to build a new location there. The petition garnered over 10,000 signatures.