SARATOGA SPRINGS — Annual summertime Spa City favorites, The Dave Matthews Band, will be kept off the road this year as a result of the global pandemic. 

As such, a pair of DMB’s previously scheduled dates this July have been postponed and have been rescheduled to take place one year later, July 9 and July 10, 2021. 

The band issued the following statement this week: We are disappointed to announce, that in light of the global COVID-19 pandemic, we will be moving all of our 2020 summer dates to the summer of 2021. We make this decision with the health, safety, and well-being of our fans, touring crew, and venue staff as our priority.

Your previously purchased tickets will be honored for these rescheduled performances, and we’re happy to announce that the 2021 tour includes a few additional stops that were not included on the 2020 tour. We are also providing fans with the option to refund your tickets at the point of purchase. We are incredibly grateful for all of our fans who come out to see us every summer and will miss seeing you all. For now, we will keep everyone in our hearts and minds until we can be together again.

On sale information for the new 2021 dates will be available at a later date.

SARATOGA SPRINGS — The 2020 Freihofer’s Saratoga Jazz Festival has been canceled due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

Saratoga Performing Arts Center announced the cancellation May 4. The two-day event, originally scheduled for June 27-28, was to present a rich roster of artists including Nile Rodgers & CHIC, Kool & the Gang, Cassandra Wilson and Taj Mahal. 

“After 42 consecutive years presenting one of the most exceptional jazz festivals in North America, to have to cancel the 2020 Festival is both heartbreaking and devastating.  The loss of this event as an exuberant gathering of jazz-lovers is deeply painful – and the economic impact to SPAC, the community, and the many artists who were to perform is incalculable,” Elizabeth Sobol, President and CEO of Saratoga Performing Arts Center said in a statement. 

The festival began in 1978 and has been the longest continuously running jazz festival in the northeastern part of North America.

A series of live streamed performances over the festival weekend will be presented by SPAC and Caffé Lena. Titled “Freihofer’s Jazz Fest Stay Home Sessions,” the artist line-up will be announced at a later date and will include local musicians. 

SPAC also announced an initiative to donate two tickets to first responders and local health care workers for performances during its 2021 season for every ticketholder of the 2020 festival who chooses to convert all or a minimum of $25 of their ticket purchase into a tax deductible donation. SPAC depends on ticket sales and the generosity of individuals for 66% of its annual budget, therefore ticket donations will help to ensure the vitality of SPAC during these unprecedented times. Visit spac.org for options to exchange, donate or request a refund.

SARATOGA SPRINGS — Journey – led by founding member and guitarist Neal Schon, keyboardist Jonathan Cain and vocalist Arnel Pineda, have canceled their 2020 tour as a result of the global COVID-19 pandemic and the resulting restrictions regarding large gatherings. 

Journey and the Pretenders were slated to perform at Saratoga Performing Arts Center Aug. 1. 

The band released a joint statement this week which reads: “Having seen what the world has endured during the last 45 days, and not knowing what the rest of this year or 2021 will bring, we knew the right thing to do was to make sure our fans’ health was not put in jeopardy and to provide immediate access to refund options given the unexpected events caused by this terrible virus. We would like to thank all doctors, nurses, police, other first responders and essential workers for their heroic efforts; as well as our fans for doing everything possible to stay safe.” 

Journey’s tour partners at Live Nation will ensure ticket holders will be emailed directly with their refund options including a full refund, or you can request a 150% credit + Live Nation will donate the number of tickets you originally purchased to healthcare workers on the front lines. For more details, visit livenation.com/refund. 

BALLSTON SPA – In light of the spread of COVID-19, the Board of Directors of the Saratoga County Fair has announced the cancellation of the 179th Saratoga County Fair. The event was scheduled to take place July 21 – 26.  Since its inception in 1841, the only other cancellation was during the Civil War. The Fair anticipates returning in July 2021.

LAKE GEORGE — In light of current CDC social distancing guidelines, Adirondack Festivals LLC announced it has rescheduled the 6th Annual Adirondack Wine & Food Festival to Sept. 26 and 27, 2020.

The festival is normally held the last weekend in June and is a highly anticipated kickoff to the summer tourism season in Lake George. The decision to reschedule was made to help protect the health and safety of festival attendees and vendors, while providing an alternative date in 2020 with favorable weather, said Sasha Pardy, owner of Adirondack Festivals LLC.

“Nothing is more important than the well-being of our attendees and vendors,” said Pardy, “but we remain hopeful that come September, we are able to host our festival barring any federal, state or local regulations that would prohibit it. We are treating this pandemic very seriously and we will do everything we can to make our event as safe as possible for everyone in attendance.”

The festival’s new dates in September provide an opportunity to add a fall wine and food festival to the already exciting slate of events in Lake George. 

Moving the Adirondack Wine & Food Festival to September also allows the event to continue its support of Big Brothers Big Sisters of the Southern Adirondacks. This is the third consecutive year BBBS is the beneficiary of the festival. Last year, the festival raised $15,000 for this amazing organization. BBBS will receive a portion of every ticket sold and proceeds from water sold at the event. 

The impact of COVID-19 has hundreds of BBBS children and families in need of support now more than ever, and a successful festival fundraiser would be a tremendous step toward that goal, said Bill Moon, executive director of Big Brothers Big Sisters of the Southern Adirondacks. 

“Funding to support our community is being jeopardized as we all experience these economic uncertainties,” Moon said. “It is only through our partnerships with those like the Adirondack Wine & Food Festival that we are able to continue to support the youth of our community.” 

Adirondack Festivals LLC will continue to monitor COVID-19 guidelines and do everything they can to provide a safe, enjoyable experience for all guests in attendance. The Adirondack Wine & Food Festival features 120 of New York’s best wineries, breweries, distilleries, cideries, artisan food vendors, food trucks and more. Held in a gorgeous setting, with beautiful Lake George as its backdrop, the festival is a try-before-you-buy farmers’ market style event that also generates a tremendous economic impact on the surrounding Lake George region. Last year’s festival generated a $3.5 million economic impact, with over 4,000 hotel room nights generated in the area – and this year’s festival attendance was expected to surpass 7,250. 

SARATOGA SPRINGS — The Frances Young Tang Teaching Museum and Art Gallery, out of concern for the health and safety of the staff and community, and in accordance with guidelines from Skidmore College, is extending its temporary closure through the summer months. 

This difficult but necessary decision comes after considering current projections about the outbreak, and means the cancelation of beloved Tang summer traditions such as the annual community open house, Frances Day, and the popular Upbeat on the Roof concert series. These traditions will be back in 2021. The summer closure also means changes — but no cancelations — to the Tang’s previously announced exhibition schedule.

 “Summer at the Tang is a time of coming together for music, art, art-making, and community, but these extraordinary times require us to do our part to slow the spread by practicing social distancing,” said Dayton Director Ian Berry, in a statement. 

The Museum launched Tang at Home, an online hub for art-making activities and projects for all ages that bring the Tang experience into people’s homes at tang.skidmore.edu/education/tang-at-home. The Tang is adding new projects each week. The newest community project is Tang Extra Credit, in which everyone is invited to re-create works of art from the Tang collection with what they have around them. Email your re-creation to tang@skidmore.edu and include your name, email address, and the name of the artwork that inspired you. Discover people’s re-creations at the Tang Extra Credit page.

New Dates for Exhibitions

• Energy in All Directions, originally set for a July opening is now scheduled to open Oct. 10 and will stay on view through May 17, 2021.

• Never Done: 100 Years of Women in Politics and Beyond, originally scheduled for Aug. 26 is now scheduled to open Sept. 17 and stay on view through June 6, 2021. 

• Lover Earth: Art and Ecosexuality will open as scheduled on May 30 as an online exhibition. 

For more information go to: tang.skidmore.edu/exhibitions. 

SARATOGA SPRINGS —  NY Gov. Andrew Cuomo this week announced the possibility of some regions of the state gradually “reopening” after May 15, although he warned that potential phased-approach would not include attractions that would cause a large number of visitors flooding in from other areas. “You can’t do anything in one region that would increase the visitors to that (reopened) region,” he said. As such, the waiting game is in full swing in the Spa City –   just wishing and hoping and planning and dreaming, to paraphrase a Dusty Springfield song –  regarding the anticipated waves of the COVID-19 virus and its effect on everything from the competition of thoroughbreds at the racecourse to the staging of concerts at Saratoga Performing Arts Center. 

In a letter posted on SPAC’s website, organization President and CEO Elizabeth Sobol writes: “We understand that your own future planning may be affected by public concerns around the spread of COVID-19. The health and safety of everyone in our SPAC family and the Community are of critical importance to us, and we are adhering to guidelines set by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), as well as consulting continuously with local and state health authorities about the safest path forward for the coming months.” 

The New York City Ballet, scheduled to stage their residency at SPAC mid-July, have cancelled their Spring Season 2020 performances at Lincoln Center, which was slated to run through May 29. 

The Philadelphia Orchestra, whose homestand at SPAC is set to stage in August, have cancelled all their rehearsals, performances, and events through June. 

The SPAC Jazz festival June 27-28, headlined by Nile Rodgers & Chic, and Kool & The Gang, is still on at this point, as are the majority of summer pop concerts presented by Live Nation, with few outright cancellations – June 7: Celtic Woman; June 13: Zac Brown Band, and Aug. 3: Dead & Company, among them. 

Cancellations may come at any time. As it stands at this moment, the schedule of summer pop concerts at Saratoga Performing Arts is as follows: 

June 6: The Lumineers – III: The World Tour
June 24: KIDZ BOP Live 2020 Tour
June 30: Steely Dan with Special Guest Steve Winwood
July 2: Tedeschi Trucks Band – Wheels Of Soul 2020
July 3: Lindsey Stirling 
July 8:  Alanis Morissette with Special Guest Garbage and also appearing Liz Phair
July 9: Bob Dylan, Nathaniel Rateliff & the Night Sweats, The Hot Club Of Cowtown
July 10, 11: Dave Matthews Band
July 12: Countryfest 2020 with Brantley Gilbert & More
July 21: Chicago with Rick Springfield
July 22: Nickelback: All The Right Reasons Tour
July 24: Matchbox Twenty 2020
July 25: The Black Crowes Present: Shake Your Money Maker
July 26: The Doobie Brothers – 50th Anniversary Tour
July 29: Rod Stewart
Aug. 1: Journey with Pretenders
Aug. 4: Disturbed: The Sickness 20th Anniversary Tour with Staind & Bad Wolves
Aug. 9: Foreigner: Juke Box Hero Tour 2020
Aug. 11: Incubus with 311
Aug. 18: Sammy Hagar & The Circle and Whitesnake with Special Guest Night Ranger
Aug. 23: Goo Goo Dolls: The Miracle Pill Summer Tour
Aug. 31: Daryl Hall & John Oates
Sept. 6: Maroon 5
Sept. 6:  Meghan Trainor
Sept. 11: Backstreet Boys: DNA World Tour
Sept. 12: The Australian Pink Floyd Show – All That You Feel World Tour 2020

Visit spac.org for more details.

SARATOGA SPRINGS — Caffe Lena’s Stay Home Sessions, which take place every night at 8 at caffelena.org, continues with Friday with The Suitcase Junket, captured in this image on stage at Caffe Lena 55th anniversary concert at The Zankel in 2015.  The Stay Home Sessions feature Jontavious Willis on Saturday, April 25, and Sloan Wainwright and Cosy Sheridan on Sunday, April 26. 

SARATOGA SPRINGS — Opera Saratoga has announced the cancellation of the 2020 Summer Festival, originally scheduled to run from May 18- July 5, due to COVID-19.

For almost 60 years, Opera Saratoga has brought together some of the world’s most exciting operatic artists to appear alongside extraordinary emerging singers, creating an exceptional Festival every summer, showcasing operatic classics, contemporary American works, and concerts featuring art song, opera, and musical theater. 

“As we have been monitoring the spread of COVID-19, it has become clear to us that proceeding with the Festival is no longer possible,” said Artistic and General Director Lawrence Edelson in a statement. “From a practical perspective, with Saratoga and much of the country essentially shut down, it has become impossible for us to continue building the sets and costumes for the opera productions that were to premiere at Opera Saratoga this summer. Our first responsibility must be the safety and well-being of our community, our audiences, our artists, and our staff. The entire Opera Saratoga family looks forward to sharing the joy and exhilaration of live opera and classical vocal music with our community when we know it is safe to do so again.” 

Cancellation of the Summer Festival creates significant financial challenges for Opera Saratoga. Revenue during the spring and summer historically has totaled almost 70% of the company’s annual income. As the company works to raise the additional funds needed to bridge this difficult time, Edelson and the Board of Directors are committed to providing assistance to the over 100 artists, artisans, and technicians that were depending on the company for their livelihood this summer.

 “COVID-19 has not only endangered the health and lives of millions around the world, it has hit the arts sector particularly hard. Those who work passionately on stage and behind the scenes are not only losing income – in many cases, they are losing health care, and have been out of work from the earliest public venue closings in early March,” Edelson said. ‘The degree to which we have the ability to pay our seasonal artists and staff this summer is currently being determined, but we owe it to them to provide whatever support we can.” 

To that end, Opera Saratoga is asking everyone who has already purchased tickets to the 2020 Festival to consider donating these tickets to be used to support the artists and seasonal staff most directly impacted by the cancellation of the Festival. 

Opera Saratoga will be contacting everyone who has already purchased tickets to the 2020 Festival to provide them with details about how they can convert their purchase into a tax-deductible donation; or, a full credit to their Opera Saratoga account for use on any future Festival ticket purchases – a value which will never expire. Ticket holders may also elect to receive a full refund. Please note that Opera Saratoga staff is currently operating remotely, so the company requests that patrons please not call the office at this time. Every ticket holder will be contacted personally over the next week, but the company asks for the public’s patience as there may be slight delays in response time while company staff responds to everyone personally.

Opera Saratoga, formerly known as Lake George Opera, began with a production of Die Fledermaus at the Diamond Point Theatre on July 5, 1962, playing to an audience of 230. The Company now calls Saratoga Springs home and performs for more than 25,000 people annually.

ALBANY — The Egg has announced that the following concerts have been rescheduled: Garth Fagan Dance: From March 27 to May 29; SFJAZZ Collective: From April 2 to July 7; The Fab Faux: From April 18 to August 8; DeVotchKa: From April 10 to Sept. 25; Mutts Gone Nuts: From April 5 to Oct. 4; Shawn Colvin: From May 12 to April 1, 2021.

Additionally, the venue announced singer/songwriter Todd Snider will perform on Friday, July 24  as part of the 2020 American Roots & Branches concert series. 

Tickets are $29.50 and are on sale at The Egg Box Office on line at www.theegg.org.