Visual arts
• Photo exhibit looks at small town life: Marlboro College and the Vermont Folklife Center will present A Deep Look at a Small Town: Marlboro, VT, a photography and oral history exhibit by Forrest Holzapfel in the Drury Gallery, Oct. 1-22.
From 1999-2002, photographer and oral historian Forrest Holzapfel photographed the people of Marlboro, outside their homes and - with the support of the Vermont Folklife Center - conducted 18 interviews with residents of the town.
Holzapfel is a native of Marlboro. An artist talk will take place at 4 p.m, on Thursday, Oct. 14 in Ragle Hall, Serkin Center for the Performing Arts, with a reception immediately following. The Drury Gallery is open from 1 to 5 p.m., Sunday through Friday while the college is in session. For more information, call 802-257-4333.
• Gay and bisexual men's art show: The Men's Program of the AIDS Project of Southern Vermont will host a gay and bisexual men's art show on Friday, Oct. 1, during Gallery Walk in downtown Brattleboro.
The show will be at the AIDS Project offices at 15 Grove St., and will feature photography, watercolors, oils, mixed media, and stained glass. Local members of the men's community will display their work from 5:30–8:30 p.m. This one-night show is free and open to the public. Light refreshments will be served, and a number of the artists will be present throughout the evening.
Artists displaying include Anthony Anguiano, Rob Diercks, Wayne Gelineau, Len Gerwick, Michael Gigante, Joey LaValle-Mackay, Steve Lloyd, Don McIntyre, Howie Peterson, Alexander Potter, and Jeff Sak. The artists cover a wide variety of styles and subject matter, and represent Vermont, New Hampshire, and Massachusetts.
The Men's Program is an HIV prevention program for gay and bisexual men, providing prevention services in the context of a strong, healthy gay community. For more information on the Art Show, the Men's Program, or the AIDS Project of Southern Vermont, contact Alex Potter at 802-254-4444.
Theater
• Community Cabaret at NEYT: New England Youth Theatre opens the doors to its green room to artists from all over the Brattleboro community. Various performing artists from around town will be joining the NEYT mentors to put on a wildly collaged performance of music, dance, comedy, drama, and mayhem on the evening of October's Gallery Walk on Friday, Oct. 1, at 7:30 p.m.
The Mentors, a group of dedicated youth volunteers at NEYT, are producing this event, hoping to raise funds for the “Angels in the Wings” scholarship fund, which helps students who have special financial needs participate in the theater's programming.
Joining the mentors on stage will be members of Luminz Studio, Brattleboro School of Dance, Brattleboro Music Center, New England Center for Circus Arts, and a few NEYT Alumni. Tickets are $10 at the door. For more information about New England Youth Theatre, go to www.neyt.org.
• Marlboro College hosts Queen City Radio Hour on Oct. 9: Kingdom County Presents will stage the all-original Queen City Radio Hour on Saturday, Oct. 9 at 7:30 p.m. at the Whittemore Theater at Marlboro College.
The Queen City Radio Hour promises an evening of sly comedy and world-class music while giving audiences of all ages a peek behind the scenes of an actual radio variety show being recorded for later broadcast. Every Queen City Radio show is different, with an emphasis on comic sketches that jump from the headlines and life in the North Country.
The Oct. 9 edition will include actors Abby Paige and Lucien Dodge, storyteller Willem Lange, and Marlboro's own Heather Reed ('11) and Amber Schaefer ('10), with Gahlord Dewald ('98) on sound effects. Music headliner is jazz singer Samirah Evans, performing with a special jazz ensemble, Charlie Schneeweis and Friends.
All-new Queen City sketches will include the Slender Pickens Rural Dating and Mating Service, In-Laws Holiday Travel Bureau, State Legislator Rivets' Fireside Apologies, and The Only Vermont Gubernatorial Debate to Include the Word “Giblet.” Lange will also lead listeners on an unforgettable 100th anniversary hike along the Long Trail, where everything that could possibly go wrong - does.
The Queen City Radio Hour is presented by Kingdom County Productions, working in association with Marlboro College. Admission to the show is free and all are welcome.
Music
• VSO returns to Bellows Falls: On Friday, Oct. 1, the Vermont Symphony Orchestra will return to the Bellows Falls Opera House for the third year in a row with a Made In Vermont Music Festival concert.
The program includes Handel's Concerto for Harp in Bb Major, Op. 4 No. 6, Rachmaninoff's Vocalise, CPE Bach's Flute Concerto in D minor, the world premiere of Don Jamison's It Is Time, and Mozart's Symphony No. 29 in A Major, K. 201.
In addition to Jamison's premiere, the featured VSO artists include include Albert Brouwer in a virtuosic flute concerto by CPE Bach, and principal French horn Shelagh Abate soloing in Rachmaninoff's luscious Vocalise. In a Made in Vermont “first,” we feature harpist Heidi Soons playing Handel's spirited Concerto. Once again, Walpole N.H.'s Anthony Princiotti will conduct.
Doors open at 7 p.m., and the concert begins at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are $24 for adults; $20 for seniors (60 and over) and juniors (18 and under) and are available at Village Square Booksellers and Fat Franks in Bellows Falls, Misty Valley Books in Chester, and Brattleboro Books, or online at www.brattleborotix.com.
• Mike and Ruthy, Round Mountain at Hooker-Dunham: Twilight Music presents an evening of classic and original folk, roots and pop music by Mike and Ruthy (Michael Merenda and Ruth Ungar Merenda) and Round Mountain at Hooker-Dunham Theater & Gallery on Friday, Oct. 1 at 8 p.m.
Mike and Ruthy, the husband-and-wife songwriting duo formerly of the folk/rock string band The Mammals, sing old-timey twang, topical folk and just plain love songs, accompanying themselves on guitar, fiddle, banjo and ukulele, and the occasional harmonica or glockenspiel. They are touring in support of their new CD, Million to One, their third album together.
Round Mountain's Char and Robby Rothschild's background ranges from Balkan and West African styles to traditional Appalachian music, from classical to funk. Expect many extremes - beautiful acoustic numbers, wild bagpipes, trumpet and accordion played by one person at the same time, Bulgarian zydeco, klezmer and Malian rhythms, to name a few.
Hooker-Dunham Theater & Gallery is located at 139 Main Street in downtown Brattleboro. Tickets for the show are $15 general/$13 students and seniors. For ticket reservations and information, call 802-254-9276. For more information, visit www.mikeandruthy.com, www.roundmountain.com and www.hookerdunham.org.
• Teddy Bear Picnic in Townshend: Leland & Gray's Global Travelers will host a Teddy Bear's Picnic with Bill Shontz on Saturday, Oct. 2 on the Leland & Gray soccer field. The event begins at 11:30 a.m. with games and activities, lunch, snacks and fun. A costume parade is slated for 1:30 p.m. and the concert with Shontz and his bears begins at 2 p.m.
Shontz and his Teddy Bear Band sing songs from his award-winning release, Teddy Bear's Greatest Hits. Picnickers will hear original songs such as Miranda the Panda and Teddy Rockin', as well as classic RosenShontz hits such as Rock 'n' Roll Teddy Bear, One Shoe Bear, Christopher Robin, Bare Necessities and the ever-popular Teddy Bear's Picnic.
Audiences can also look forward to dancing Teddy Bears plus the famous Teddy Bear Toss, when all the picnickers throw their teddy bears in the air at the same time. Come early and B.Y.O. Bears and B.Y.O. Picnic. Teddy bears, dolls and other stuffed animals always get in free.
Admission to the event is $5; concessions and games are modestly priced. In case of rain, the event will be in the activity room and main gym of Leland & Gray Union Middle and High School on Route 30 in Townshend. All proceeds benefit Leland & Gray's February trip to London, Stonehenge, Bath and Paris. For more information, e-mail [email protected].
• Foliage concert in Grafton: On Sunday, Oct. 3 at 2:30 p.m., the Grafton Cornet Band hosts its annual Foliage Concert on the Common on Main Street (Route 121) in Grafton (or in the White Church in case rain).
The concert features an hour-long mix of familiar and upbeat music for the whole family in beautiful surroundings. The concert is free, but donations are welcome. Bring chairs or a blanket and maybe a picnic. More information: www.graftonband.org or 802-387-4145.
• Artist residencies at the Yellow Barn: Yellow Barn launches its 2010-2011 artist residencies with the birth of a new ensemble, Checkpoint KBK.
Checkpoint KBK brings together the unique talents of world-renowned clarinetist David Krakauer, visionary violinist/vocalist Iva Bittova, and acclaimed concert accordionist Merima Kljuco. For eight days, these three groundbreaking artists experiment with new repertoire, uniting their remarkable range of musical styles and backgrounds in bringing a new musical entity to life. Influences from the cultural heritage of each of these performers come into play with improvisation and original compositions to create a provacative statement about a shared central European identity.
The first-ever public performance of this trio takes place at the Vermont Jazz Center in Brattleboro on Sept. 30, with wine and light fare at 8 p.m., and music at 9 p.m. Following the performance, audience members are invited to meet the artists and ask questions. Admission is this groundbreaking event is $75. All proceeds benefit Yellow Barn's fully-subsidized Artist Residencies. To reserve tickets, contact Willow Cohen, Development and Marketing Manager at 802-387-6637 or [email protected].
Upcoming residencies include The Fadoul/Lawler Duo in October 2010, Eight Songs for a Mad King in November 2010, and the Jupiter Quartet in April and May 2011. For a full schedule of residency events for 2010-2011, visit www.yellowbarn.org.
• 19th Century Pipe Organs in Vermont: Edgar A. Boadway of Claremont, N.H., will present a talk with slides entitled “Before Estey - Vermont's Nineteenth-Century Pipe Organs” for the annual Estey Day celebration at the Estey Organ Museum in Brattleboro on Saturday, Oct. 2, at 2:30 p.m.
Boadway will provide a slide tour of extant old Vermont organs, including photos of a few that have been destroyed, some early 20th century instruments, and a few Esteys. Ed notes that “a little sound might be added.”
Estey Day 2010 marks the 196th anniversary of Jacob Estey's birth on September 30, 1814, in Hinsdale, N.H. The Estey Organ Museum holds an annual celebration to pay tribute to one of Brattleboro's most famous industries and to encourage visitors to explore the museum and factory buildings. There is a $10 suggested donation for the program that will benefit the museum's ongoing work.
A church organist for 62 years, Boadway is currently music director at the United Church in Ludlow. He is a founder and past-president of the Organ Historical Society and has extensively researched Vermont's organ history for 55 years. There will be refreshments after the program, and this will be followed by the EOM annual membership business meeting. Find out more about the museum at www.esteyorganmuseum.org.