SARATOGA SPRINGS —Local author Roger Goldsmith has announced the release of his second children’s book: “Good Friends Are Great.” 

This book follows his earlier publication “Paint The Town” and contains 24 pages of colorful illustrations and text that tell the story of Zain and Jester’s afternoon of fun and rescue. 

The self-published book, written in rhyme with a focused interest level for children 2–7 years old, is available for purchase directly from the author via email at: rogerg12866@gmail.com, and Facebook Market Place at $6.95 each or $12.00 for both books, plus tax and shipping. 

SARATOGA SPRINGS —The Yaddo Artist Medal this year will be presented to four stellar contemporary artists, with a posthumous award to Yaddo alum Chester Himes. The other honorees are Lisa Cortés, Young Jean Lee, Tarik O’Regan, and Amy Sillman, Yaddo announced. 

“It’s a great pleasure for us to continue a tradition that began with the inaugural recipient, Philip Roth, and continues with Laurie Anderson, David del Tredici, Amy Hempel, Martin Puryear and Alfre Leslie,” Yaddo President Elaina Richardson said, in a statement.

The honorees reflect the five artistic disciplines represented at Yaddo and renew the line of Medalists which was interrupted by the pandemic.

Lisa Cortés is a Grammy-nominated and Emmy-winning director and producer. She is known for generating bold, explosive art that shines light on important stories hidden from view.

Chester Himes (1909 – 1984) was an internationally acclaimed author, known for his Harlem detective novels, which explored the complexities of race, injustice, and urban life.

Young Jean Lee is a playwright, director, and filmmaker. She is the first AsianAmerican female playwright to have had a play produced on Broadway, and she has written and directed 10 shows in New York with Young Jean Lee’s Theater Company. 

Tarik O’Regan is a London-born composer based in San Francisco. In recent years, much of his work has investigated and been influenced by his dual Arab and Irish heritages. In 2023 he was commissioned by His Majesty King Charles III to compose the Agnus Dei for the Coronation Service at Westminster Abbey.

Amy Sillman is an acclaimed visual artist, best known for her rigorous formal engagement with painting and iterative drawings, and an excavation of form lying between abstraction and figuration. Her current solo exhibition To Be Other Wise is currently on view at Gladstone Gallery in New York.

The medal recognizes individuals who exemplify a level of achievement and commitment to their art that reflects the tradition of excellence that has always been a hallmark of the Yaddo residency program, as well as celebrating those who have been supportive and understand the sense of community that it has long promoted among artists. 

“It’s long been our custom to award a medal for achievement and service to two graduating seniors at Saratoga High, and we’d wanted for some time to expand on that tradition in a way that reflected our core history, and century-long commitment, to encouraging, supporting, and inspiring the work of artists and writers,” Richardson said. “One of the many sadnesses of the shut down for us was the interruption in this story, and we were especially eager to play catch up, knowing the additional burdens our artists have faced in recent years. We wanted to celebrate each of the five individually and to raise a glass to all our artists more generally for what they give to our lives.” 

The medals, designed for Yaddo by James Siena, will be presented at an intimate dinner and awards ceremony hosted by Allan Cumming at Gotham restaurant in Manhattan on Nov. 21. 

Tables and individual tickets are available now and can be purchased at www.yaddo.org or by calling 518-584-0746.

Yaddo’s mission is to provide artists with time and space to explore and define ideas and create new work. Founded in 1900 by the financier Spencer Trask and his wife Katrina, this artists’ community is located on a 400-acre estate in Saratoga Springs. Yaddo hosts around 300 residents annually for two to eight weeks, at no cost to the artist. Over 6,500 individuals have created work at Yaddo—literature (fiction, non-fiction, and poetry), paintings, photography, sculpture, music, dance, film, and performance pieces—that have helped shape the contemporary cultural landscape and touched millions of lives.

SARATOGA SPRINGS – Once, there was a thing called rock and roll, a phrase either derived from 17^th century mariners atop a shaky ship, or early 20^th century actors engaged in acts of carnality – depending upon whom you believe.

The music, and the lifestyle ushered in with it, inspired the kids to dance with abandon and smile with glee, and caused some of the elder statesmen of the time to claim it an art sent to humanity by none other than the devil himself. 

Before the bean-counters and the money-hoarders got a hold of it some decades later, effectively causing its demise, there were some who believed the amplified output streaming from its electrified guitars and rhythmic drums could change the world. John Fogerty, lead singer, lead guitarist, and principal songwriter of the band Creedence Clearwater Revival, was of the generation that believed it could be so.

On June 12, Fogerty came to the Saratoga Performing Arts Center where he performed a slew of tunes he created during an especially prolific burst of songwriting, mostly in the 1960’s. 

He kicked off his 18-song or-so set with the lyrically ominous “Bad Moon Rising,” and continued the CCR re-imaginings with “Lookin’ Out My Back Door,” “Down On The Corner” and “Up Around the Bend,” “Who’ll Stop The Rain” and “Have You Ever Seen the Rain?”, “Fortunate Son,” “Born on the Bayou,” and “Proud Mary” – the latter invoking his cajunistic dialectical inventions (“Big wheel keep on toy-nin,” he sang, “Proud Mary keep on boy-nin).”

From more recent work (the 1980’s at least) the double-denim draped songwriter led his six-piece ensemble in performances of “Centerfield” (written about centerfield at Yankee Stadium, don ’t cha know), and “The Old Man Down The Road.”

Fogerty was amiably assisted (in the dance-til-you-drop part) by George Thorogood & the Destroyers, who provided opening support.

Dressed in basic black – shirt, shoes, pants with dripped-sequined sides, and sporting dark shades to shield his eyes, Thorogood led his five-piece band through a 60-minute set that explored the Bo Diddley-infused rock ‘n’ roll-isms of “Who Do You Love?” as well as Destroyer staples “Bad to the Bone,” the wildly popular “I Drink Alone” (which inspired a bevy of lager consumers to stand tall and raise their brewski’s high above their heads) and of course, “One Bourbon, One Scotch, One Beer.”

Overall, for this night, Fogerty and Thorogood combined to deliver a thoughtful reminder of a music that once had inspired the kids to dance with abandon and smile with glee, sometimes think about the conditions of the world-at-large and figuring out ways to make it all a better place.

SARATOGA SPRINGS — Launching its 12th season, the Saratoga Jewish Cultural Festival will offer a series of programs open to the public to run from June through September.

“We are very excited to bring you a new season of our popular summer programming,” said festival coordinator Phyllis Wang. “This season’s 14 programs have an even more diverse array of topics and experiences both live and on Zoom. We look forward to sharing these experiences with those near and far.” 

Offerings include concerts, plays, lectures, films, discussions, and outdoor family events. 

The summer schedule includes the Annual Jewish Women’s Gala, Clifton Park Chabad, Malta, at 10:30 a.m. now through June 16 featuring a kosher brunch, raffle auction, prayers for Israel, and singer Amalia Rubin.

Rubin currently lives in Nepal, and specializes in Jewish and Tibetan folk music as well as Jewish musical parodies. RSVP and purchase raffle tickets at www.cliftonparkchabad.com. $25 per person. 

For a complete list of summer programs and events, go to: www.saratogajewishculturalfestival.org or contact sjca.sjcf@gmail.