SARATOGA SPRINGS — Saratoga Springs Public Library has announced the community has chosen by popular vote the New York Times bestseller, “The Soul of America: The Battle for Our Better Angels,” by John Meacham as the SaratogaREADS! selection for 2023. 

In this 2018 book, Meacham helps explain the present moment in American politics and life by looking back at critical times in history when hope overcame division and fear. 

“As an institution dedicated to inclusion at a time of particular partisanship, we look forward to a season of programs and discussions inspired by this exploration of our national penchant for persevering through periods of great divisiveness,” said library director Issac Pulver, in a statement. 

“The Soul of America” is available from the Saratoga Springs Public Library in multiple formats: paperback, large print, and CD. 

The 2023 SaratogaREADS! Jr. companion selection will be announced in the upcoming weeks. A slate of programs and events inspired by next year’s selections will be announced in the coming months and will be available online at www.saratogareads.org and on Saratoga Springs Public Library’s Events Calendar at www.sspl.org. 

SCHUYLERVILLE – Saratoga Clay Arts Center’s Schacht Gallery presents CLAYFEST, a national invitational exhibition celebrating the holiday season with a compilation of functional pots and decorative works by nineteen established clay artists from across the country. 

The exhibition opens on Saturday, Nov. 19 with a public opening from 5-7 p.m. and runs through Dec. 31. 

The exhibition features a diverse exhibition of functional and decorative pottery – cups, mugs, bowls, teapots, pitchers, vases – as well as ceramic jewelry and holiday ornaments. Participating artists include Ian Bassett, Lakyn Bowman, Brian Chen, Lyndee Deal, Amy Halko, Carla Hughes, Bri Larson, Heidi McKay Casto, Lisa Orr, Brent Pafford, Naomi Peterson, Nadia Rosales, Dwayne Sackey, Masa Sasaki, Alec Smith, Mark Tarabula and Jenna Vanden Brink.

Founded in 2011 by clay artist and educator Jill Kovachick, Saratoga Clay Arts Center is a ceramic art center located at 167 Hayes Rd, Schuylerville. The Schacht Gallery is open Monday-Saturday from 11 a.m. -4 p.m. and by appointment.

Visit www.saratogaclayarts.org  call 518-581-2529 or email info@saratogaclayarts.org for more information. 

SARATOGA SPRINGS — Nacre Dance Group presents two dance classics this holiday season that unites dancers from various Capital Region dance studios with visiting artists. 

Dance festivities begin at the Universal Preservation Hall on Sunday, Dec. 11 – at 4 and 7 p.m. – with Christmas Oratorio. Nacre Dance Group’s production is based on modern dance pioneer Charles Weidman’s later version of “Christmas Oratorio,” which opened in 1961 to wide critical acclaim and has remained a much-loved classic work of modern dance.  

Weidman’s masterful choreography combined with Bach’s passionate music brings a moving portrayal of the Nativity this holiday season. 

The ensemble’s Nutcracker will also be performed at The Egg in Albany at 2 and 7:30 p.m. on Saturday, Dec. 17.

For tickets and more information, visit www.nacredance.org.  

David, 

I remember you for the man you were. Simple yet elegant. 

Years ago, you reached out to me as I welcomed you into my life. 

It took two soulmates to find each other in a crazy world and we did. 

You will forever and always remain my best friend and lover. 

My funny Valentine. 

Memories etched in my mind forever and missing you more than ever. 

Love, Shelley Murphy

SARATOGA SPRINGS — Skidmore College announces the installation of the first permanent work of art for a college building. “Entanglement” is a monumental, site-specific sculpture by acclaimed artist Alyson Shotz in the new Billie Tisch Center for Integrated Sciences. 

To mark the occasion, Shotz will speak about her work with two Skidmore College faculty members at 6 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 17. 

Entanglement soars above the Glotzbach Atrium in the new Billie Tisch Center for Integrated Sciences (BTCIS). The 750-pound sculpture turns and twists impossibly in midair, like a giant open knot or a mobius strip that leads the eye in endless movement around its sinewy curves. As a viewer moves beneath the sculpture, its painted steel shimmers and its colors transform from gold to green to blue. 

“It’s a magnificent rendering of creative and analytical thought brought together into a powerful and thought-provoking display of motion and feeling,” Skidmore President Marc C. Conner said, in a statement. “It’s wonderful to know that for years to come, our campus community and visitors will get to be in the presence of this sculpture and all the reflection and emotion it suggests.”

Shotz is an interdisciplinary artist known for breaking down boundaries between media, working across sculpture, photography, and video. Shotz was selected to create a new work of art for BTCIS by a committee of faculty and administrators, along with Tang Teaching Museum Director Ian Berry. The commission is a return for the artist almost 20 years after her 2003 Tang Teaching Museum exhibition Opener 5: Alyson Shotz — A Slight Magnification of Altered Things, which presented her sculpture, video, photography, and painting — an interdisciplinary survey that explored art and science connections.

The Nov. 17 Dunkerley Dialogue at the Billie Tisch Center for Integrated Sciences is free and open to the public. For more information, contact the Tang Teaching Museum at Skidmore College at 518-580-8080 or tang@skidmore.edu, or visit tang.skidmore.edu.

SARATOGA SPRINGS — Inspired by the long-running “Beatlemore” Skidmania concerts at Skidmore College, SKIDMANIA ‘72 is a reboot that will celebrate the music of 50 years ago, fueled by more than 70 Skidmore student musicians. The event takes place 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday, Nov. 18-19 at the Zankel Music Center, on the campus of Skidmore College. 

SKIDMANIA ‘72 features popular songs from 1972 – what organizers describe as a” unique look-back at the 70’s that includes music of Stevie Wonder, Carly Simon, Led Zeppelin, Betty Wright and many others.”

Not that anyone asked, but we would like to also point out that seminal year for music also saw the release of David Bowie’s “The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust,” Mott The Hoople’s “All The Young Dudes,” Alice Cooper’s “School’s Out,” “Exile On Main St., from the Rolling Stones, “Transformer” from Lou Reed, the self-titled debut from Roxy Music, and Curtis Mayfield’s “Superfly.” Phew!

Tickets are $15 General Public, $8 Students (Non-Skidmore) & Seniors, and $5 Skidmore Community (Students, Faculty, Staff, & Retirees). Box office is open for in-person sales Tuesday-Friday from 1 – 5 p.m. and one hour before showtime. Seating is first come, first served and doors open 30 minutes prior to the start of the event.

All proceeds from SKIDMANIA ‘72 will benefit Skidmore Cares, a Skidmore College initiative that supports agencies in our communities. 

While recording his album “Harvest” during a nine-month period in 1971, Neil Young was accompanied by a camera capturing moving images and some of the sounds. 

Celebrating the 50th anniversary of the album’s release, captured footage from Northern California, London, and Nashville are being turned into an exclusive cinema event on Dec. 1.  

“We’re just making a film about, I don’t know, just the things we want to film,” a 20-something Neil Young explains in a preview trailer, while walking along a path at Broken Arrow Ranch in California in 1971. 

“Neil Young: Harvest Time” will be presented in movie theaters worldwide on Thursday, Dec. 1 with select encores on Sunday, Dec. 4.

The film depicts the “Harvest Barn” sessions, as well as an iconic performance with the London Symphony Orchestra, and sessions in Nashville.  Performance and rehearsal content is intertwined into the storytelling and includes most of the tracks from the 1972 album ‘Harvest,’ including “Heart of Gold,” “A Man Needs A Maid,” “Alabama,” and “Old Man.”

“This is a big album for me. 50 years ago. I was 24, maybe 23 and this album made a big difference in my life,” Young said in a statement. “I played with some great friends and it’s really cool that that this album has lasted so long. I had a great time and now when I listen to it, I think I was really just lucky to be there. I hope you enjoy this story, which is ‘Harvest Time,’ and which talks about everything that happened. And now people all around the world can see it at the movies.” 

A 50th Anniversary Edition Harvest Box Set will also be issued on Vinyl and CD which includes the original album, three studio outtakes on CD/7” vinyl, an unreleased live 1971 BBC solo performance on CD/LP and DVD, and a hardbound book and fold-out poster. 

Visit NeilYoungHarvestTime.com for ticketing and the most up-to-date information about participating theaters.

SARATOGA SPRINGS — Marking the 60th anniversary of the James Bond film franchise, the Saratoga Automobile Museum will celebrate with a major new exhibition called BOND IN MOTION featuring 25 official vehicles from the past six decades of the longest-running film franchise in movie history. The multimedia exhibit also features movie memorabilia, images, and video to create a totally unique Bond experience for museum visitors. The exhibition opens Nov. 18.

Visitors to the exhibition will experience all the excitement and drama of the world of Bond with a collection of automobiles including the iconic and most famous Bond car: the 1964 Aston Martin DB5. Other vehicles on display include the white 1977 Lotus Esprit from The Spy Who Loved Me (1977) that sensationally transforms from a high-performance sports car into a submarine; the 2007 Aston Martin DBS that made movie history with a record-breaking seven full rotation roll in Casino Royale (2006), and the one-of-ten 2015 Aston Martin DB10, built specifically for 2015’s Spectre.

The Saratoga Automobile Museum is located on Avenue of the Pines. Phone: 518-587-1935. Visit: saratogaautomuseum.org.