SARATOGA SPRINGS — Saratoga Performing Arts Center (SPAC) has announced a new year-round residency with the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center (CMS) beginning in the fall of 2022.
In celebration of the residency’s upcoming 10th anniversary in 2023, the announcement affirms SPAC’s commitment to the Chamber Music Society and is also part of SPAC’s mission to present year-round programming that extends beyond the traditional summer months.
“Bringing our beloved Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center to SPAC for a year-round residency is truly a historic moment for our continuing expansion of year-round programming,” Elizabeth Sobol, President and CEO of SPAC said in a prepared statement.
Returning to its home in the Spa Little Theatre for the first time since 2019, CMS is slated to perform on Oct. 15, March 18, and May 13. The 2023 summer performances will be announced at a later date. Visit spac.org for details and tickets.
Subscriptions to all three programs are available to purchase at spac.org
SARATOGA SPRINGS — Saratoga Performing Arts Center announces that its WAMC@SPAC series will continue with “BAM! And Then It Hit Me with Karen Brooks Hopkins” at 6 p.m. on Thursday, Sept. 29 at The Pines@SPAC facility.
WAMC’s Joe Donahue will lead the conversation with author and President Emerita of the Brooklyn Academy of Music (BAM) Karen Brooks Hopkins about her new memoir, “BAM! And Then It Hit Me,” a behind-the-scenes look at Hopkins’ 36 years at the iconic cultural institution, America’s oldest performing arts center.
The discussion will explore leadership, innovation, urban revitalization and stories about artists and icons who inspired Hopkins throughout her career. A book signing will follow the conversation.
Karen Brooks Hopkins is the president emerita of the Brooklyn Academy of Music, where she worked for 36 years, serving 16 as its president. As president, Hopkins oversaw the institution’s 230 full-time employees and its multiple theatres and cinemas. Hopkins has served as the chair of the Cultural Institutions Group, has been a member of the mayor’s Cultural Affairs Advisory Commission, the New York State Board of Regents, and sat on the Boards of the NYC & Company, the Downtown Brooklyn Partnership, and currently serves on the Trust of Governors Island.
“BAM! And Then It Hit Me with Karen Brooks Hopkins” is free to attend; however, seating is limited. Visit spac.org.
SCHENECTADY — An all-star celebration of The Band’s historic 1976 farewell concert kicks off a multi-city tour in November. Night Three of the tour will be staged at Proctors Theatre in Schenectady on Nov. 5.
The Last Waltz Tour 2022 features a lineup led by Warren Haynes and Don Was with Jamey Johnson, Kathleen Edwards, Anders Osborne, Dave Malone, John Medeski, Cyril Neville, Terrence Higgins, Bob Margolin, Mark Mullins & The Levee Horns (featuring the original horn arrangements of Allen Toussaint).
For more information and tickets, go online to: TheLastWaltzTour.live.
SARATOGA SPRINGS — Proctors Collaborative has announced a series of upcoming shows at UPH in Saratoga Springs.
Caffe Lena Presents Darlingside – 7:30 p.m. on Friday, Sept. 30. If Darlingside’s first album, Birds Say (2015), focused on the past through nostalgia, and their second, Extralife (2018), contemplated uncertain futures, Fish Pond Fish stands firmly in the present, looking at what’s here, now. Dave Senft (bass), Don Mitchell (guitar, banjo), Auyon Mukharji (violin, mandolin), and Harris Paseltiner (cello, guitar) have created a natural history in song—taking us into gardens, almond groves, orchard rows, down to the ocean floor and under stars.
Kronos Quartet – 7 p.m. on Sunday, January 29, 2023. For more than 45 years, San Francisco’s Kronos Quartet – David Harrington (violin), John Sherba (violin), Hank Dutt (viola), and Sunny Yang (cello) – has combined a spirit of fearless exploration with a commitment to continually reimagine the string quartet experience. In the process, Kronos has become one of the world’s most celebrated and influential ensembles, performing thousands of concerts, releasing more than 60 recordings, collaborating with many of the world’s most accomplished composers and performers, and commissioning over 1,000 works and arrangements for string quartet.
Jessica Vosk – 7:30 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 18. Jessica Vosk is a celebrated singer and actress known for stirring roles on the musical theater and concert stage. Vosk made her sold-out Carnegie Hall debut in November 2021 in a solo show titled “My Golden Age” and her debut at London’s Cadogan Hall in 2022.
Jazz at Lincoln Center PRESENTS: Songs We Love – 5 p.m. on Sunday, Feb. 26. The Jazz At Lincoln Center Presents touring initiative provides an affordable opportunity to present great jazz programming, featuring up-and-coming musicians who have been identified as rising stars by JALC. Songs We Love is a journey through the first 50 years of jazz song. Iconic singers to be explored include Ma Rainey, Billie Holiday, Ella Fitzgerald, Frank Sinatra and Judy Garland.
Additionally in 2023: JazzReach Presents ‘She Said / She Says’ Featuring Metta Quintet – 8 p.m. on Friday, March 10; Irish Hooley with the Screaming Orphans 7:30 p.m. on Saturday, March 11; Salsa Night with Tiempo Libre – 8 p.m. on Friday, March 24; Bobby Collins – 7:30 p.m. on Saturday, March 25; Monterey Jazz Festival – 8 p.m. on Saturday, April 15; Isaac Mizrahi – RESCHEDULED – 7:30 p.m. on Friday, April 21; Mystic Bowies Talking Dreads – 7:30 p.m. on Saturday, April 22; Eric Carle: From Head To Toe – 6 p.m. on Wednesday, April 26; God is a Scottish Drag Queen – 7:30 p.m. on Friday, April 28; Misty Blues – 8 p.m. on Saturday, April 29; Connie Han – 7:30 p.m. on Saturday, May 6.
Tickets are available through the Box Office at Proctors, in person or via phone at 518-346-6204 Monday-Friday 10 a.m. – 6 p.m. or online at either Proctors.org, UniversalPreservationHall.org, or CapitalRep.org. Groups of 10 or more can get their tickets by calling 518-382-3884, ext. 139.
Saratoga Springs will be a host city for a New Year’s Eve festival this year.
SARATOGA SPRINGS — For the first time since 2019, downtown Saratoga Springs will play host to a multi-genre arts festival on New Year’s Eve.
This year’s showcase – Saratoga New Year’s Fest – will showcase events spread throughout the weekend.
Festivities are anticipated to kick off with a pre-party Friday night, Dec. 30, and begin in earnest on Saturday, Dec. 31 when an afternoon of family-friendly activities will lead to an early evening fireworks show.
Live music will rule New Year’s Eve night. Multiple venues across town will be themed by sonic genre and stage shows by national headliners and regional musical combos alike. The lineup is slated to include Cowboy Junkies, Delvon Lamarr Organ Trio (or DLO3, specializing in the lost art of feel good music), Jeffrey Gaines (with more than a quarter-century of recording and performing under his belt), as well as The Samples and Daniela Cotton.
Cowboy Junkies were formed in Toronto in 1985 with siblings Michael Timmins on guitar, Margo Timmins on vocals, Peter Timmins on drums, and Michael’s lifelong friend Alan Anton on bass. The band has released 25 albums, a sequencing initiated with their 1988 debut LP “The Trinity Session,” featuring their hauntingly seductive rendition of the Velvet Underground’s “Sweet Jane,” – reportedly cited by song creator Lou Reed as “the best and most authentic version I have ever heard.”
“Early Bird” badges will provide access to all venues on New Year’s Eve and are on sale for $20. Reserved seating and VIP packages are also available.
The weekend schedule is also anticipated to include a Dance Flurry Takeover, Jam Bands galore, DJ dance party, and sporting tournaments.
The 5k Road Run will this year take place on Sunday, New Year’s Day. R4egistration information will be forthcoming.
For more information about the festival and to purchase admission badges, go to: www.SaratogaNewYearsFest.com.
Christine Geraci as Claudia, Eric Shovah as Guido. Photo: Dawn Oesch.
SARATOGA SPRINGS — For two weekends, starting on Friday, October 7, Home Made Theater will present the musical Nine; music and lyrics by Maury Yeston, book by Arthur Kopit, and adapted from the Italian by Mario Fratti.
Based loosely on Federico Fellini’s movie 8 1/2, Nine features one man and the myriad of women in his life. Celebrated but impetuous film director Guido Contini, succumbing to the pressures of filming his latest film epic, suffers a midlife crisis. One by one, women from his past and present – including his mother, his wife, his mistress, and his leading lady – haunt, instruct, scold, seduce, and encourage him until he finally learns to grow up.
The Director of Nine is Michael McDermott, whose previous Home Made Theater directing credits include Almost, Maine, Barefoot in the Park, and The Game’s Afoot. The artistic team includes Musical Director Richard Cherry, Choreographer Heather D’Arcy, Scenic Designer Jennie Sinnott, Lighting Designer Matthew Kopans, Sound Designer Anne-Marie Baker, Costume Designer Sharon Greene, Properties Designer Maura Pickett, and Stage Manager Christine MacLellan.
The cast of Nine includes several performers new to the Home Made Theater stage, including Helen Annely, Caleb Blackler, Abby Countermine, Heather D’Arcy, Debra Mead, Amanda Robie, Eric Shovah, and Ellya Winchester. Veterans of previous Home Made Theater productions include Andrea Burger, Christine Geraci, Melissa Mason Lacijan, Joelle Malinowski, Deborah Otto-Jones, Sonya Sidhu-Izzo, Arlette St. Romain, and Isabella Varno
Performances are Fridays and Saturdays, Oct. 7-8, and 14-15 at 7:30 p.m.; and Saturdays and Sundays, Oct. 8, 9, 15 & 16 at 2 p.m. All performances are at the Dee Sarno Theater, inside Saratoga Arts, 320 Broadway in Saratoga Springs. Tickets are available at Home Made Theater’s website, www.HomeMadeTheater.org, or by calling 518-587-4427 during business hours.
Vivir en la Habana. The regional premiere of the Blondie documentary, and a Q&A with the film’s director will take place during the opening reception of the Adirondack Film Festival on Oct. 13
GLENS FALLS — For the seventh year, Adirondack Theatre Festival (ATF) will produce the Adirondack Film Festival, which again this year will be presented in a hybrid model, both in-person and online. The screenings will take place at the Charles R. Wood Theater and Crandall Library in downtown Glens Falls.
An opening night reception Thursday, Oct. 13 at the Queensbury Hotel will feature an evening of music videos capped by “Blondie: Vivir en la Habana,” a short documentary about a path-breaking concert in Cuba by the band Blondie, and a Q&A with director Rob Roth.
The band’s 2019 concert was part of an official cultural exchange between Havana and New York City. Blondie lead singer Debbie Harry pointed out that Havana’s resemblance to pre-gentrified New York made her feel like she’d been there before.
“There’s so much beautiful architecture which has deteriorated due to the fact it’s a Caribbean island and salt air is disastrous to the edifices,” Harry told the NME last year, as the documentary had its North American premiere at the Tribeca Film Festival. “They’re in a period of renewal and it made me think back fondly to the ‘70s and the crumbling decay of the Lower East Side.”
Blondie burst out of the Max’s Kansas City and CBGB’s scene in downtown Manhattan in the mid-70s with their self-titled debut (most notably featuring the songs “X Offender,” and “Rip Her To Shreds”), and its follow-up LP ‘Plastic Letters.’ It was their third release, ‘Parallel Lines,’ that gained them national attention with the hit “Heart of Glass” in 1979 – and it is from this period and on into the ‘80s with the subsequent hit songs “Rapture” and “The Tide Is High” that the 18-minute documentary focuses its soundtrack. The film includes guitarist Chris Stein – who wasn’t able to go to the shows due to health reasons – and drummer Clem Burke, pounding away on his skins draped in – what else – a CBGB’s T-shirt.
The opening night reception will feature a Q&A between ATF Producing Artistic Director Miriam Weisfeld and the film’s director Rob Roth. Roth – a longtime collaborator with Blondie, has also worked on projects with David Bowie, Lady Gaga, and Rihanna, among others.
“Adirondack Film Festival is thrilled to host the regional premiere of Blondie: Vivir en la Habana and to introduce our community to its iconoclastic creator,” Weisfeld said. “Hearing firsthand from Rob Roth about the experience planning this trip to Cuba with Debbie Harry and Chris Stein and the unexpected twists and turns adds so much to the experience of seeing this innovative short film. Rob’s work spans film and theatre – just like the Adirondack Film Festival, which is the only film festival operated by a professional theatre company. I’m excited to be in conversation with Rob and ATF audiences about art, music, and storytelling across these different platforms. It’s what makes the Adirondack Film Festival unique.”
The Adirondack Film Festival runs Oct. 13 – 15 and includes screenings of various features, documentaries, shorts, comedies, thrillers, and “Homegrown” Adirondack Region Films. There are a variety of ways that people may attend.
“Last year we introduced an innovative range of options for audiences to participate in-person, online, or both. By far the most popular option was the ‘All-Access Pass,’ which grants entry to all the screenings in downtown Glens Falls, all the screenings online, plus panels, popcorn bars, parties, and the awards presentation. This year we’re excited to offer our patrons the same flexibility and the same great value,” ATF Managing Director Tracey Sullivan said in a statement.
All-Access, In-Person, Virtual, and Day Passes are available at adkfilmfestival.org. With a few exceptions, the full lineup will be available both in-person and online.
SARATOGA SPRINGS — In partnership with Caffè Lena, Saratoga Performing Arts Center announces that its popular “Caffè Lena @ SPAC” Concert Series will return for a free two-day festival from noon to 4 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 1 and Sunday, Oct. 2.
Slated to take place on SPAC’s Charles R. Wood Stage, the festival will feature six bands that explore global and American folk music including Dreamers’ Circus, Oshima Brothers, Crys Matthews, Cocek! Brass Band, Hold on Honeys and Resonant Rogues. The “Caffe Lena @ SPAC” festival highlights a unique, ongoing collaboration between the arts center and the folk music venue.
The collaboration between SPAC and Caffè Lena first launched in 2017, encompassing jointly curated and presented programs at both venues. Guests are welcome to bring in food, drink, blankets and lawn chairs for the concerts. Food concessions will also be available. The concerts will take place rain or shine. Visit spac.org and caffelena.org for details.
Saturday’s Lineup
Dreamers’ Circus: The Scandinavian musicians have toured across Europe, Japan, Australia, and North America with their inventive reimagining’s of Nordic folk and traditional tunes.
Cocek! Brass Band: Dance music for those seeking something new and unique, contemplative Old World melodies that hark to a lost era and catchy riffs that will have you singing along.
Resonant Rogues: Asheville, North Carolina’s genre hopping songwriters following their musical inspirations from the Appalachian mountains to the Balkans, through Paris by way of New Orleans.
Sunday’s Lineup
Oshima Brothers: Raised in a musical family in rural Maine. On stage, they create a surprisingly full sound with dynamic vocals, electric and acoustic guitars, octave bass, loops, and percussion.
Crys Matthews: Among the brightest stars of the new generation of social justice music-makers; A powerful lyricist whose songs of compassionate dissent reflect her lived experience as what she lightheartedly calls “the poster-child for intersectionality.”
Hold on Honeys: Indie folk minimalist vocal trio offering tight knit harmonies to nourish the soul and invigorate the senses.
TSO, coming to the Capital Region in November. Photo by Bob Carey, 2021
ALBANY — Multi-platinum, progressive rock group Trans-Siberian Orchestra (TSO) – this week announced the dates for its 2022 winter tour, “The Ghosts of Christmas Eve – the Best of TSO & More.”
The ensemble will perform in Albany at the MVP Arena on Nov. 30.
TSO made a triumphant return to touring in 2021 with a 25th anniversary celebration of Christmas Eve and Other Stories. For 2022, TSO brings a completely updated presentation of the unforgettable, multi-generational holiday tradition, “The Ghosts of Christmas Eve,” to 60 cities across the nation. This year’s tour kicks off on Wed., Nov. 16 with performances in Green Bay and Council Bluffs, and will conclude after 101 shows on Fri., Dec. 30.
Tickets go on sale Friday, Sept. 16 at 10 a.m. local time. Beginning with the public on sale date, special $29 tickets (plus applicable taxes and fees) will be available for one week or while supplies last. For more details on tour dates and ticket sales, visit www.trans-siberian.com.
So Percussion. A free performance in Saratoga Springs. Photo provided.
SARATOGA SPRINGS — A special performance by Pulitzer Prize winner Caroline Shaw and Grammy Award winning Sō Percussion – featuring their acclaimed collaboration “Let the Soil Play Its Simple Part,” will be staged at 7:30 p.m. Friday, Sept. 23 at the Frances Young Tang Teaching Museum and Art Gallery at Skidmore College.
The event is free and open to the public and is part of an on-going series of collaborations between Saratoga Performing Arts Center and Skidmore College.
“Let the Soil Play Its Simple Part,” released in 2021 by Nonesuch Records, features the Pulitzer Prize-winning composer, violinist, and singer making her debut as a solo vocal artist with the acclaimed experimental percussion quartet Sō Percussion.
Watch Caroline Shaw & Sō Percussion perform ABBA’s “Lay All Your Love on Me,” from the album at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m0BI0NyUiNU.
For more information, contact the Tang Visitor Services Desk at 518-580-8080 or tang@skidmore.edu, or visit the Tang website at https://tang.skidmore.edu.
