ALBANY — Donny Osmond will stage a show at The Palace Theatre on July 3.
Osmond has sold over 100 million records, received 33 gold records and has performed for millions of fans around the globe during his six-decade long music career.
Currently, he headlines his award-winning solo residency at Harrah’s Las Vegas where he performs his hit songs, shares stories of his greatest showstopping memories and introduces brand new music in a new and completely reimagined song and dance celebration.
Tickets range from $49.50 – $124.50 and are available via Ticketmaster at ticketmaster.com, and at the Palace Theatre Box Office (located at 19 Clinton Ave., Albany).
SARATOGA SPRINGS —The internationally acclaimed Jazz Ambassadors of Washington, D.C. will continue its long tradition of presenting free public performances when they appear at Universal Preservation Hall at 7:30 p.m. on Saturday, April 20. The Jazz Ambassadors’ concert in Saratoga Springs is presented by Proctors Collaborative.
The Jazz Ambassadors, a 19-member ensemble formed in 1969, is the official touring big band of the United States Army.
The band’s repertoire includes big band swing, bebop, Latin, contemporary jazz, standards, popular tunes, traditional New Orleans jazz, vocals and patriotic selections, many of which are written or arranged by members of the Jazz Ambassadors.
The Jazz Ambassadors have appeared in all 50 states, Canada, Mexico, Japan, India and throughout Europe.
Matt Schultz on stage at SPAC with Cage The Elephant on Aug. 12, 2019. Saratoga TODAY file photo.
SARATOGA SPRINGS —Cage The Elephant last appeared onstage at SPAC in 2019, performing a memorable set on a memorable summer night while on a co-headlining tour with Beck. Five years later, Cage the Elephant, or CTE as they are known in some circles, return Aug. 18 to headline their own gig at Saratoga Performing Arts Center.
Scribbles from this reporter’s notebook that night:
Singer Matt Shultz, blessed with a seemingly unlimited amount of boundless energy, led Cage The Elephant through an entertaining hourlong set – crawling, taunting and exhibiting Jagger-esque dance moves in a mashed-up fury of dayglo mesh cloths. Accompanied by a strip of eternal flames and a rotisserie of flashing lights turning stage spectacle to the spectacular – yellow smoke here, green laser beams and strobes-a-plenty there – and showcasing the band at their post-Pixies singalong best, bringing the crowd to a standing cheer.
Schultz concluded the set by crowd-surfing to the outer reaches of the amphitheater while Queen’s “We Are The Champions” played over the house PA, emerging 15 minutes later as the house lights burned bright for the intermission changeover, stripped down to a pair of red gym shorts, strips of black Velcro across his upper torso, and wearing a nude bodysuit…
Cage The Elephant last week announced the band’s 45-date North American U.S. tour with its Aug. 18 Saratoga Springs stopover that will include Young The Giant & Bakar as special guests. The band’s sixth studio album, titled “Neon Pill,” will drop via RCA Records on May 17.
This week, Shultz made a public revelation via an Instagram post that he has been suffering through a mental health crisis during the past few years and spent two months in a hospital followed by months of outpatient treatment. He thanked those close to him for their support in helping him get to a better place.
“It’s a miracle that I’m here today,” he wrote. “Over the last three years, I was unknowingly fighting my way through an utter mental health crisis. In a short time, I had slipped into psychosis due to an iatrogenic response to a medication I was prescribed. It took the love and support of my brothers in the band, my community, and, most of all, my wife Eva to get me through it. Eva stayed by my side, and she saved my life countless times. To say she is a warrior and a queen is an understatement,” Schultz wrote.
“Her unwavering love coupled with professional treatment helped me to regain my grip on reality and fully recover. Along the way, I learned a lot of hard lessons, and I thank God I was able to come out on the other side. I’m humbled and grateful for the opportunity to write this message. I owe my life to God and the support system of friends, family, and Cage The Elephant. I’ll just say it now once again, because it needs to be said, ‘Thank you.’”
The new album finds the Kentucky-bred six-member CTE forging new musical ground, while maintaining their uncompromising creativity and wildly cathartic performances, according to advance press for “Neon Pill.”
“Everything is undoubtedly expressed through having settled into finding our own voice,” Schultz said, in a statement. “With this album, having gone through so much, life had almost forced us into becoming more and more comfortable with ourselves. We weren’t reaching for much outside of the pure experience of self-expression, and simultaneously not necessarily settling either. We just found a uniqueness in simply existing.”
LAKE GEORGE — Lake George Winter’s Dream will conclude its inaugural season with a Community Evening on Saturday, March 9, when attendees will have the exclusive opportunity to experience this magical attraction at the lowest rates of the season.
As a gesture of gratitude for the support received during its inaugural year, the community is invited to attend Lake George Winter’s Dream at the following special ticket prices: $14.90 for adults, $9.90 for seniors and children ages 4-12, and complimentary admission for children 3 and younger.
Following the final showing, ticket holders are invited to gather at the Lakeside Restaurant for a complimentary champagne toast at 9 p.m.
Though weather conditions characterized by warm temperatures and rain posed significant challenges, Lake George Winter’s Dream remained open, offering a distinctive and enjoyable experience for visitors. The attraction, unreliant solely on ice and snow, ensured continued patronage, with companies and tour groups still able to partake regardless of the weather.
During the season, Lake George Winter’s Dream hosted a Military Appreciation Evening on Jan. 25, which drew participation from a significant number of individuals. Additionally, Tri-County United Way organized a fundraising event on Feb 13.
SARATOGA SPRINGS — Universal Preservation Hall in Saratoga Springs has announced three new shows that will stage in the Great Hall later this year:
Billed as a paranormal expert, Dustin Pari of “Ghost Hunters” hosts a live show – “Ghosts: Do You Believe?” – at 7:30 p.m. on Friday, May 3.
Preacher Lawson, who is best known for his appearance on season 12 of NBC’s hit series “America’s Got Talent” (2017) where he made it to the final round, will be at UPH 7:30 p.m. Friday, May 10. He recently completed his residency hosting AGT Live in Las Vegas and continues to perform at sold-out venues around the world.
“The Magicians Guild Presents Glitches in Reality” features World Champion of Close-up Magic and FISM Grand Prix winner, Simon Coronel, in a show that blends theater and magic into a one-of-a-kind, once-in-a-lifetime experience not for children 7:30 p.m. July 25-27.
Tickets on sale now through the Box Office at Proctors in-person, via phone at 518-346-6204 Monday-Saturday 10 a.m. – 6 p.m. or online visit atuph.org.
SARATOGA SPRINGS — Two special events highlight this spring’s CulinaryArts@SPAC initiative at The Pines at Saratoga Performing Arts Center.
“On the heels of January’s completely sold-out Win Son: A Taste of Taiwan event, we are excited to bring these unique experiences to our community,” Elizabeth Sobol, President and CEO of Saratoga Performing Arts Center, said in a statement. “From the rich culinary tradition of the ‘pintxo’ in San Sebastián, Spain — to creating farm-fresh produce in our own backyard with Upstate NY native Emma Hearst — we hope to create connection through great food, drink and conversation.”
The CulinaryArts@SPAC initiative, founded in 2020, combines culinary excellence and education with exquisite meals that emphasize socially conscious cultivation and consumption, local procurement, and fair wages.
Kicking off the series on April 11 is Pintxos: A Taste of Spain’s Basque Country featuring Spanish wines and an array of these small bites from 6-9 p.m., alongside conversation with author and chef Marti Buckley and WAMC’s Sarah LaDuke. Tickets to attend are $95. Attendees can also purchase a copy of The Book of Pintxos for the special event pricing of $25 onsite (retail: $30). Seating is on a first-come basis. Visit spac.org for details.
On May 8 the program features Flavors from the Farm with Emma Hearst featuring cocktails and mocktails, tastings inspired by the book, and conversation with Hearst, founder of Forts Ferry Farm, alongside WAMC’s Joe Donahue, from 6 – 9 p.m.
Tickets for Flavors from the Farm with Emma Hearst are $95 and will go on sale on March 21. Visit spac.org for details.
WILTON — On Saturday, March 9, Home Made Theater will hold an open house for both potential and existing volunteers. The open house will be held from 10 a.m. – 12 p.m. at HMT’s Wilton Mall headquarters, which is located in the wing nearest the Saratoga Hospital offices.
Most of the work of producing live theater at Home Made Theater is done by volunteers who work in almost every aspect of production and work side by side with theater professionals. No experience is necessary, just a willingness to learn.
Areas of volunteerism one may learn about include “Front of House” (interacting directly with patrons in positions like ushering), “Behind the Scenes” (backstage work such as running crew, lighting assistant, costumes assistant, props assistant, scenic assistant, and stage management, to name a few), and “Administrative” (box office, mailing assistant, and general office work).
Attendees at the open house will have the opportunity to mix with members of the staff, Board of Directors, and veteran volunteers to learn more about the ins and outs of volunteering at Home Made Theater.
Tedeschi Trucks will stage two shows at SPAC in late summer.
SARATOGA SPRINGS — Tedeschi Trucks Band ‘Deuces Wild’ Tour – with dates that run from late Spring to Fall 2024 in North America – will include two shows at Saratoga Performing Arts Center this summer.
The shows, on Friday, Aug. 30 and Saturday, Aug. 31, will feature special guests Greensky Bluegrass and Margo Price on Aug. 30; and Little Feat and Margo Price on Aug. 31.
To purchase tickets and for more information, please visit tedeschitrucksband.com/tour.
The Albany Symphony has announced its 2024-2025 season. Photo provided.
ALBANY — The Albany Symphony 2024-2025 season will feature masterworks that include Beethoven’s Pastoral, Mozart’s Symphony No. 35, Dvorak’s New World Symphony, and Tchaikovsky’s Piano Concerto No.1, as well as new works by a wide array of current-day composers.
The programming for this season has been curated by conductor David Alan Miller. Concerts will take place in a wide variety of the most exciting Capital Region concert venues, including the Troy Savings Bank Music Hall, the Palace Theater, Proctors, and EMPAC.
The season opens in October with Tchaikovsky’s First Concerto, famed for the sequence of pounding chords with which the soloist’s part launches the first movement. The concert will also feature a world premiere by famed Cuban-American composer, Tania León, who won the 2021 Pulitzer Prize in Music for her orchestral work, Stride. Her Pregón is dedicated to Jesse Rosen and is inspired by the pregoneros, known as town criers in English, of her childhood memories, where she grew up, on the streets of Havana.
The year’s classics include Carl Nielsen’s Symphony No. 4, “The Inextinguishable,” Antonín Dvořák’s Symphony No 9, “From the New World,” Antonio Vivaldi’s Concerto for Two Oboes, Sergei Rachmaninoff’s Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini, and more.
Many of the country’s most exciting composers will be featured and celebrated throughout the season. Joan Tower’s Cello Concerto, A New Day, will debut in November and was written in memory of her husband, who passed away last year. The season brings first-time and returning composers to the Albany Symphony stage, including old friends like Loren Loiacono, Reena Esmail, and Daniel Bernard Roumain. Bobby Ge’s orchestral tone-poem, Water Music, will be given its world premiere at the American Music Festival. Ge is a Chinese American composer who explores the vivid beauty of the ephemeral. His work, often collaborative in nature, focuses on themes of home and communication. Additional high notes at the end of the season include Clarice Assad’s Percussion Quartet Concerto, with the amazing members of Third Coast Percussion, Sophia Jani’s What do Flowers do at Night?, and Christopher Theofanidis’ Clarinet Concerto.
Albany Symphony oboists Karen Hosmer and Grace Shyrock will perform at the Holiday Mozart and Vivaldi concert. Harmony Zhu, a teenage prodigy who made her debut with the Albany Symphony in 2020, will perform Rachmaninoff’s Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini. Kala Ramnath, a seventh-generation violinist specializing in Hindustani (Indian) classical music, will perform.
Guitarist Bokyung Kim will premiere a new concerto written for her by Nicky Sohn. Amaryn Olmeda will perform Samuel Barber’s Violin Concerto under the baton of guest conductor, Lidiya Yankovskaya, Music Director of Chicago Opera Theater, who grew up in Guilderland.
The 2024-2025 season runs from October through the American Music Festival in June. Subscriptions offer patrons the opportunity to purchase their favorite seats before tickets go on sale to the general public. Season subscriptions offer flexibility and convenience. The deadline to renew is April 14. Through the Nielsen Associates’ Student Access Program, students can purchase discount subscriptions and enjoy the full benefits of being a subscriber for as little as $45. To purchase a subscription online and see a full schedule, visit http://www.albanysymphony.com or call the Albany Symphony Box Office at 518-694-3300.
GALWAY — The Slocan Ramblers – recent recipients of the Canadian Folk Music Awards’ Ensemble of the Year, and 2020’s International Bluegrass Music Association’s Momentum Band of the Year, will perform at The Cock ‘n Bull in Galway on Thursday, March 7.
In October, the group made their debut performance on the Grand Ole Opry stage; The Slocan Ramblers have performed in front of audiences from Merlefest to RockyGrass and everywhere in between.
Seating is from 5:30-6:30 for the 7 p.m. show. $15 cover
The Cock ‘n Bull is located at 5342 Parkis Mills Road, Galway. For more information, go to: thecocknbull.com.
