SARATOGA SPRINGS — Northshire Bookstore has announced it is accepting pre-orders in advance of the Nov. 17 anticipated release of Barack Obama’s “A Promised Land.” 

The 768-page book signals the first volume of Obama’s presidential memoirs and covers a journey from his earliest political aspirations to the pivotal Iowa caucus victory and the watershed night of Nov. 4, 2008, when he was elected 44th president of the United States, becoming the first African American to hold the nation’s highest office.

Reflecting on the presidency, Obama offers a unique and thoughtful exploration of both the awesome reach and the limits of presidential power, as well as singular insights into the dynamics of U.S. partisan politics and international diplomacy, and brings readers inside the Oval Office and the White House Situation Room, and to Moscow, Cairo, Beijing, and points beyond. 

The book is $45 and may be pre-ordered by visiting Northshire Bookstore Saratoga, located at 424 Broadway – the sore is open 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. daily, or by visiting: northshire.com.

CHATHAM, NY — On Saturday, Sept. 26, Equine Advocates will present Willie Nelson with the 2020 Safe Home Equine Protection Award for his work and dedication to end the slaughter of America’s horses during a special online event to be broadcast on YouTube, Facebook and Equine Advocates website. Nelson will be the 19th recipient of this award, which was first given out in 2002. 

Nine-time Grammy Award-winning singer/song writer Sheryl Crow will be making an appearance during the broadcast with a special message for her good friend and fellow horse lover, Willie Nelson. They recently recorded the song, “Lonely, Alone” together. The music video for the song includes footage of Nelson with some of his rescued horses. 

Actress Ali MacGraw, who appeared in such iconic films as “Love Story,” “The Getaway” and “Goodbye Columbus,” will be presenting Andrea Eastman with the 2020 Equine Savior Award for her decades of work and activism on behalf of America’s wild and domestic equines.  Eastman, who had an illustrious 27-year career as a high-powered agent for ICM, was personally responsible for Robert Redford’s signing of the Voter Card in California in 1998 in support of the first state initiative in the nation to ban the slaughter of horses for human consumption. That initiative, “Prop 6” passed by more than 60% of the vote. 

 The program will be hosted by two-time Emmy and Tony Award-winning actress, Bebe Neuwirth, who was the recipient of the Safe Home Equine Protection Award in 2009. 

Artists also performing during this celebration and telethon include: Tom Chapin, The Gibson Brothers, Cathy Grier, Brooke Moriber, and Livingston Taylor. 

The broadcast will begin at 6 p.m. Eastern Standard Time. For more information, visit Equine Advocates website: www.equineadvocates.org and official Facebook page, www.facebook.com/equineadvocates.org/ for more details and updates. 

Equine Advocates, a national, non-profit equine protection organization based in Chatham, will be celebrating its 25th birthday on Feb. 27, 2021. Its mission is to rescue, protect and prevent the abuse of equines through education, investigation, rescue operations, the dissemination of information to the public and through the operation of a horse sanctuary for slaughter-bound, abused and neglected equines.

SARATOGA SPRINGS — Providing spins to navigate through a COVID world, Spa City resident Chuck Vosganian, AKA Rochmon announces the newest episode of the Rochmon Record Club Pandemonium is up and running on the Rochmon Facebook page. 

Rochmon is joined by Syracuse singer songwriter Colleen Kattau and Guitarist Jane Zell of Dos XX and Jane Zell and the Zelltones for an hour of original bi-lingual music and conversation about the plight of immigrants and issues regarding the Latinx community. Kattau, a Professor of Spanish at SUNY Cortland and Vosganian discuss the realities of the invisible people who live among us. 

Rochmon Record Club Pandemonium is a one hour, live to tape, deep dive into a regional artist. The hour is filled with music, trivia, some unexpected laughs, and fun for the entire family.

SCHUYLERVILLE — The Salvation Army and The Washington County Fairgrounds are hosting movies in the Pumpkin Patch: three nights of drive-up family fun movies projected onto four of the world’s largest inflatable movie screens. All the fun will take place at the Washington County Fairgrounds parking area located at 392 Old Schuylerville Rd., Greenwich.

The movies will begin Columbus Day weekend starting at 7 p.m. each night. The fairground gates will open at 4:30 for interested parties. The showings include Jurassic Park on Friday, Oct. 9, Hotel Transylvania on Saturday, Oct. 10 and Ghostbusters on Sunday, Oct. 11.

Tickets are $20 per vehicle for general admission. Premium vehicle parking passes for first two rows from the screen along with discounts for multiple night parking passes are available at app.mobilecause.com/e/HlEh2A?vid=bc536 or on the Facebook page of The Salvation Army of Glens Falls or the Washington County Fair Grounds 

Face masks will be required by all participants when not in vehicle or assigned vehicle space. The fairground parking area contains acres of open space and we have four enormous screens to show movies to allow ample room for safe distancing. 

Vehicles will be parked more than six-feet from each other in each row, while each row separated by more than 14 feet. Movie-goers will be allowed the space to the driver’s side of their vehicle only for outdoor viewing. Every other row will be staggered so each vehicle will have unobstructed view of screen. 

The event is the first one of its kind organized by the Salvation Army’s newly formed Doing the Most Good Events team.  Event sponsors have the unique opportunity to partner with the Salvation Army to bring the community together in an event designed to offer a message of hope and unity during an unprecedented time. To help sponsor event please go to app.mobilecause.com/e/HlEh2A?vid=bc536 or contact leo.lloyd@use.salvationarmy.org.

SARATOGA — Saratoga Bridges has been meeting the unprecedented challenges surrounding the COVID-19 crisis.  Due to the mandates on social distancing and limited numbers of people who can gather, Saratoga Bridges will not have their annual White Party ‘in person’ at Saratoga National Golf Club. 

They have re-envisioned their largest fundraiser to assist with the unanticipated expenses incurred by the COVID-19 pandemic as well as generating support for their non-funded or underfunded programs.  The community is invited to join the transformed Facebook Live online event, which includes: an online Silent Auction from Sept. 17-24 featuring: A beautiful new deck; One week stay at Sanibel Island, Florida; Saratoga National Golf Club foursome with cart; Saratoga Mirror Lake package; 2021 Travers Day at the Races table. 

A Live Virtual Celebration will take place 5-7 p.m. on Friday, Sept. 25. For more details, visit: saratogabridges.ejoinme.org/whiteparty. To support the event, contact Kelly Armer at karmer@saratogabridges.org.

QUEENSBURY — Pop country artist and Albany native Ryan Clark announced his virtual concert is set to take place on Sept. 27, 2020, from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. benefiting area organization Prospect Center, an affiliate of the Center for Disability Services. 

Pop country artist and Albany native Ryan Clark announced his virtual concert is set to take place on Sept. 27, 2020, from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. benefiting area organization Prospect Center.

The show, which will also include performances by Lance and Lea, Lizzie Cates, Marie-Claire and Oferle, will stream via streaming platform Sessions, with tickets available for purchase online. Viewers will also be able to purchase VIP tickets, which includes a merchandise bundle from the acts performing. 

The event marks the sixth year Clark has held a concert to benefit Prospect Center. The center is an organization that provides advocacy, education, services, and support to those with disabilities and their families. 

Clark recently released his latest single “Trust Me With Your Love” via country news hotspot The Boot. The video for the “pop-rock” (The Boot) single released Friday, premiering Thursday with Sounds Like Nashville.

Take one listen to pop-country up-and-comer Clark, and the upstate New York native’s easy-going, earworm melodies – paired with effortless, smooth vocals – make it clear he’s found his sonic sweet spot. Though the first in his family to display any kind of instrumental or vocal prowess, Clark’s music – inspired by artists like Dan + Shay, John Mayer, Sam Hunt, and Jack Johnson – quickly found its place in his hometown of Lake George (Albany) and has since migrated south to Music City itself. After years honing his craft, the singer-songwriter made the move to Nashville in 2019 – and has since celebrated a series of successful releases, including his most recent song “Nothing But Everything.” Clark’s upcoming single “So Real” is due out in early fall. Tickets can be purchased at sessionslive.com/ConcertForACause.

SARATOGA SPRINGS — Molly Smith Metzler’s “Cry It Out,” will be presented by Home Made Theater and Charles Schwab of Saratoga Springs in a special fundraising production of to benefit HMT. 

The four-person play will be presented outdoors in Saratoga Spa State Park, immediately adjacent to the Spa Little Theater on Sept. 26 and 27 and Oct. 3 and 4. All performances are at 3 p.m. and rain dates are available.

Tickets to the fundraising live event are $75/person and must be purchased in advance. There will also be an online live-stream of the Oct. 4 performance available for $20/person.

Synopsis: The lives of four new parents collide in this candid contemporary comedy about who gets to make which choices in the tinderbox of parenthood and class in America. 

The production features cast members Talyah Chaires, Daniel M. Perez, Elizabeth Pietrangelo and Siobhan Shea and is directed by Patrick White.

Safety protocols include:
• The audience will be limited to 40 persons per performance and be a minimum of 12 feet from the playing space.
• Each party of 2 will be assigned a 10-foot square.
• Facial coverings of the mouth and nose will be required while moving about the space but may be removed if you wish once seated in your square.
• Each party is asked to bring their own chairs or blankets. Assistance is available if necessary.
• There will be NO tickets available at the door. All tickets must be purchased in advance.
• Other safety protocols will also be in place. For a complete list of rules and to purchase tickets please visit  homemadetheater.org/cryitout.

For more information, go to www.homemadetheater.org or call 518-587-4427.

BALLSTON SPA — The Saratoga County History Center hosts a virtual town hall-style forum: “Does the Past Have a Future? Historic Preservation in Saratoga County.” 

The event will take place 7 p.m. on Tuesday, Sept. 22 via Zoom and Facebook Live, and is free and open to the public.  Audience participation is encouraged.

Panelists include: Samantha Bosshart, Executive Director of the Saratoga Springs Preservation Foundation; Assemblywoman Carrie Woerner; Teddy Foster, Director of Universal Preservation Hall, and John Scherer, Senior Historian Emeritus at the New York State Museum and Historian for the Town of Clifton Park.  The event will be moderated by historian Field Horne.

Should a village’s century-old town hall be preserved or replaced?  Should low-income housing be razed for upscale shopping?  What happens when an historic fairground grandstand becomes unsafe?  Who should pay for these changes?  Who gets to decide?  How do we create a community culture that values local history?  These are the kinds of heart-wrenching questions that confront historic preservation professionals.  Choices about which buildings and grounds get preserved, demolished, or transformed affect entire communities.  Emotions, history, politics, and money are all part of the equation, and often decisions are made that change the very character of a location and make bold statements about wealth and power in that area. 

The panelists of “Does the Past Have a Future? Historic Preservation in Saratoga County” are leading experts in the historic preservation process with many years of experience making tough choices and navigating troubled waters.

For more information about the event, go to: brooksidemuseum.org.

SARATOGA SPRINGS — Singer-songwriter and yogi Cassandra Kubinski’s new single “Stardust” has been given the remix treatment by acclaimed yoga world producers, DJ Taz Rashid. 

A music video for the remix featuring submitted clips from yogis nationwide flowing to the song is currently in production and will celebrate the yoga community coming together despite the COVID distancing measures still in place.

Regarding the collaboration, Kubinski says:  “I work at uniting individual spirit with universal spirit through my daily yoga practice, and music is the food that feeds my soul…I’ve always dreamt of incorporating more of my yoga lifestyle into my music, whether through breath, rhythms, approaches or community.”

Since its Aug. 21 release, the song has been spun thousands of times on Spotify, and added to more than 100 playlists.  Kubinski’s recently released EP, “Dreams,” featured singles and music videos “You Get Me,” which helped raise over $25,000 for animal rescue charities.

For more information about Kubinski, as well as the track go to: www.cassandrakubinski.com.

A Socially Distanced, Interactive, Outdoor Experience Co-Commissioned by SPAC 

SARATOGA SPRINGS — On Monday, Sept. 21 Saratoga Performing Arts Center will present Ellen Reid SOUNDWALK, a GPS-enabled work of public art in the Saratoga Spa State Park that uses music to illuminate the natural environment. 

Created by Pulitzer Prize-winning composer Ellen Reid and co-commissioned by Saratoga Performing Arts Center as part of its SPAC REIMAGINED 2020 season, Ellen Reid SOUNDWALK is an immersive audio experience tailor-made for the Saratoga Spa State Park featuring its famous natural springs, wooded areas, a geyser, a waterfall and more. The New York Philharmonic, also a co-commissioner of this work, is presented the World Premiere of Ellen Reid SOUNDWALK on Sept. 10 in New York City’s Central Park. 

The exhibit is free to the public and can be experienced while following social
distancing guidelines.   

“Bringing this project to our park is part of our vision to connect the unique beauty of our natural surroundings… the lush pines, woodland walks, geysers and natural springs…with art and music. We’re excited that Saratoga is only the second place, after NYC, to present the installation – and excited to be offering this unique art/nature experience to visitors to the Saratoga Spa State Park,” says Elizabeth Sobol, President and CEO of SPAC. 

Ellen Reid SOUNDWALK features a newly-written score, performed by SOUNDWALK Ensemble, as well as special musical “Easter eggs” hidden around the park for participants to discover. 

After downloading the free app and putting on headphones, participants embark on a mile-long route around the Saratoga Spa State Park, featuring the Vale and Geyser Springs. Movement around the park triggers Ellen Reid’s soundscape — musical cells which she carefully crafted to harmonize with the park’s landscape and attractions. The experience is guided by the listener: the path the participant chooses dictates the music they hear, ensuring that no two visits will be exactly the same. The installation will remain accessible in the park until Nov. 1. 

Composer and sound artist Ellen Reid was awarded the 2019 Pulitzer Prize in Music for her opera, p r i s m. Along with composer Missy Mazzoli, Ellen co-founded the Luna Composition Lab. Luna Lab is a mentorship program for young, female-identifying, non-binary, and gender non-conforming composers. Since 2019, she has served as Creative Advisor and Composer-in-Residence for Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra. Her music is released on Decca Gold. 

For more information, go to: spac.org.