Ghent Playhouse announces upcoming season
Ghent, N.Y.– The Ghent Playhouse has announced its lineup for the 2022-2023 season. Kicking off the 48th year is the one-man comedic play “Buyer & Cellar,” starring Sam Reilly. November 13 is a one-show-only benefit performance of “Aged to Perfection,” with Alaina Warren Zachary and Lisa Carman. Up next is “The Annual Panto – Beauty and the Beast: Ugly is as Ugly Does.” The romantic comedy “Invitation to a March” brings in the new year, and is followed by “Ruthless! The Musical,” an uproarious spoof of iconic Broadway classics. Closing out the season is “The Nether,” a twisting crime drama and haunting sci-fi thriller. The Ghent Playhouse is located at 6 Town Hall Place in Ghent, NY.
Each production will run three consecutive weeks: Friday and Saturday at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday matinee at 2 p.m. Tickets are available online only: $23 for members, $28 for nonmembers, and $12 for students. Tickets and memberships can be purchased at GhentPlayhouse.org.
“We’re thrilled to be back with a full theater season that promises to be exciting, fun and thought-provoking. There’s something for everyone,” said Artistic Director Cathy Lee-Visscher. “While we will no longer require proof of vaccination, in our efforts to ensure the safety and enjoyment of our audience members, we will continue to require that masks be worn throughout all performances this season.”
Ghent Playhouse 2022-23 Theater Season
Buyer and Cellar: October 7-9, 14-16, 21-23, 2022
This outrageously funny and irresistible one-man play from the most peculiar of fictitious premises—a struggling L.A. actor takes a job working in Barbra Streisand’s Malibu, California basement—makes for some delicious wit and insight on the solitude of celebrity, the love-hate attraction between gay men and divas, and the melancholy that lurks beneath the narcissism. Sam Reilly stars in this endearing, one-man comedy in which he portrays all of the characters, including Barbra Streisand. Written by Jonathan Tolins. Directed by Cathy-Lee Visscher.
Aged to Perfection: One show only: November 13, 2022
This funny musical revue includes surprise guests, audience participation, giveaways, and major comic mayhem. Written and performed by multi-award winners Alaina Warren Zachary and Lisa Carman. This is a pay what you can event to benefit The Ghent Playhouse. Seating will be limited, so order tickets early. (Suggested donation $28. More if you can, less if you can’t.)
The Annual Panto – Beauty and the Beast: Ugly is as Ugly Does: November 25-27, December 2-4, 9-11, 2022
Join the hilarious “Loons,” as they tell their version of the famous fairytale about a not-so-nice prince who is doomed to an “ugly” life alone, unless he can find someone to love him for what he is. Written and directed by Cathy Lee-Visscher
Invitation to a March: February 3-5, 10-12, 17-19, 2023
While brimming with expectations of married life, the approaching reality puts a young bride-to-be to sleep whenever she’s around her rich, responsible fiancé. With overtones of a famous fairytale, it is when kissed passionately by an unshackled, unambitious plumber that she awakens to the possibility of adventure, igniting a battle between the two families and two of the permanent residents who become entangled in their lives. Written by Arthur Laurents. Directed by J. Peter Bergman.
Ruthless! The Musical: April 14-16, 21-23, 28-30, 2023
Talented 8-year-old Tina Denmark has always dreamed of being on the stage. She can do it all! But just how far will she have to go to get the lead in her school play? This uproarious musical spoofs iconic Broadway classics from “Gypsy” to “Mame,” and films from “The Bad Seed” to “All About Eve.” Book and lyrics by Joel Paley. Music by Marvin Laird. Directed by Michael C. Mensching and Michael McDermott. Musical Direction by Joanne Mensching.
The Nether: June 2-4, 9-11, 16-18, 2023
In this Sci-Fi crime drama, a detective investigates a virtual reality site where taboo acts of secret desires are blurring moral boundaries. She soon finds herself in a battle of wills with a charismatic suspect and wrestles with the question, “Is there a crime if bodies are virtual and blood is just bits of computer code?” Written by Jennifer Haley. Directed by Patrick White. Please note: This play contains adult subject matter.
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Kids Need Music benefit concerts at Spencertown Academy
Spencertown, N.Y.– Spencertown Academy Arts Center will host benefit concerts for Kids Need Music on Saturday and Sunday, September 24 and 25 at 3 p.m. “Tacones y Manos Calientes” (“Hot Heels and Hands”) will feature Maria Zemantauski playing Spanish guitar, flamenco dancer La Nina, and Brian Melick on drums. Tickets ($30 general admission; $15 students) may be purchased in advance via www.spencertownacademy.org and will be available at the door pending availability. All proceeds will be used to purchase instruments so that more children can participate in the Hudson City School District music program.
Zemantauski is a nylon-string guitarist and composer whose style is influenced by a variety of musical genres, most notably, Spanish classical, flamenco, and American fingerstyle. She has performed to great acclaim in Spain, Italy, and across the continental United States.
La Nina, a native of Colombia, South America, has taught and performed flamenco for many years. She studied flamenco dance in NYC and in Granada, Spain, and teaches flamenco and tap dance at the Elite Dance Academy in Oneonta, New York.
Melick has been professionally involved in music for more than four decades. As a recording artist, he has been featured on over 400 releases both for independent as well as major labels. His own music has been licensed extensively by major television networks and motion picture organizations.
The Academy has installed multiple Blueair HealthProtect 7470 air purifiers and limited seating in its auditorium. Academy leadership is closely monitoring the COVID-19 situation in Columbia County, as well as recommendations from health authorities, and will adjust protocols as necessary.
This year marks the 50th anniversary of the Spencertown Academy arts organization, and the 175th year since the Academy was built as a school in 1847. Housed in a landmark 1847 Greek Revival schoolhouse, the Academy is located at 790 State Route 203 in Spencertown, New York. For more information, please see www.spencertownacademy.org.
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Portia Munson: Flood closing party supporting reproductive rights
Ghent, N.Y.— On September 24 from 2 – 5 p.m., Art Omi will host a special closing party for their current exhibition, Portia Munson: Flood. The event will feature an outlandish edible creation by Bad Taste; beverages for sale by Frankie’s including beer, wine, cocktails, coffee, and kombucha; and music by DJ Scotia. All proceeds from the evening will benefit the Abortion Within Reach Coalition.
Art Omi will provide fabric spray paints, markers, and stencils to refresh worn-out garments (or to decorate plain t-shirts & totes available for purchase). Shirts and tote bags from Thank God For Abortion and a limited edition silk scarf by Portia Munson will also be for sale.
Bad Taste is Jen Monroe’s project committed to exploring new ways of thinking about food and consumption, approaching food as fantasy and as a transportive medium. Past work has included a dinner dedicated to drawing attention to the honey bee health crisis, food installations for fashion week presentations, experimental cotton candy, concept pop-up dinners, a rendering of a futuristic menu in response to climate change, and a series of immersive, monochromatic ten course “color meals.”
Frankie’s is a mobile bar by Lex that aims to foster community. Frankie’s serves beverages (coffee, kombucha, beer, and wine) alongside New York’s best baklava.
Thank God for Abortion is committed to eliminating the criminalizing stigma around abortion one t-shirt, one installation, one party, one rally, one conversation, one soul at a time. Thank God for Abortion is a design and strategy conceived in 2015 by artist Viva Ruiz, born as a response to the catastrophic closing of abortion clinics throughout the US.
Scotia is a DJ from Albany, NY, where she runs the monthly party series PLAY-MATES. She’s been tearing up the dance music scene in the Hudson Valley with her unique blend of house, techno, and EBM, all precisely mixed and sure to keep heads turning and bodies moving.
Abortion Within Reach Coalition is an organization dedicated to helping people access the abortions they need. Donations are distributed to the following organizations:
- 45% to Abortion Care Network’s Keep Our Clinics Fund, helping Independent Abortion Providers that perform 3/5 abortions in the US to keep their doors open.
- 45% to the National Network of Abortion Funds’ Crisis Relief Fund, fortifying abortion funds working within their communities to ensure all people have the financial and practical support they need to access abortion.
- 5% to NOISE FOR NOW, a national initiative that enables artists and entertainers to connect with and financially support grassroots organizations that work in the field of Reproductive Justice, including abortion access.
- 5% to Seeding Sovereignty, an Indigenous-led collective, works to radicalize and disrupt colonized spaces through land, body, and food sovereignty work, community building, and cultural preservation.
The event will be held at at the Benenson Center, which is fully accessible for wheelchair users, and has no steps. There is a stone path from the gravel parking lot to the building, and ADA-compliant restrooms available in the building, open to any gender expression. Spray painting will take place in a grassy field beside a paved patio at the Benenson Center.
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Clark Art Institute hosts foraging walk
Williamstown—On Monday, September 26, the Clark Art Institute will host its final foraging walk of the season with naturalist and wild edibles enthusiast Arianna Alexsandra Collins. Collins will guide visitors across the Clark’s 140-acre campus in a one-hour talk, identifying wild edibles and medicinals found on the grounds. The walkabout will begin at 5:30 p.m. on the Fernández Terrace by the Clark’s Reflecting Pool.
Collins, who serves as executive director of the Hoosic River Watershed Association, will discuss characteristics for proper identification of flora and fungi, as well as meal and medicinal preparation. Trailside nibbling throughout the walkabout is encouraged.
Collins is an environmental education professional with twenty years of experience in teaching, curriculum design, program development, project administration, daily operations, public relations, and community engagement.
The event is free, and registration is required. Capacity is limited to sixteen participants. For more information and to register, visit clarkart.edu/events.
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18th and 19th Century gravestone making in western Massachusetts
Monterey— The Bidwell House Museum will present a three-part lecture and walk series about gravestone making in 18th and 19th century western Massachusetts. First, on September 24, former Director of the New Haven Museum and Connecticut Landmarks, William Hosley, will present “Reflections on the Marble Corridor” about the stone cutting industry along the Taconic Ridge (today’s Rte 7) that was a hive of activity in the 18th and 19th century.
Then on October 1, local author John Hanson will present his talk “A Field Guide to New England Gravestones” where he will show you how to read and interpret the iconography of early gravestones. His talk will be followed by a walk at the Old Center Cemetery in New Marlborough.
Finally, on October 8, historical archaeologist, Bob Drinkwater, will present his talk “That the Dead be not Forgotten” where he will share material from his book, In Memory of Susan Freedom: Searching for Gravestones of African Americans in Western Massachusetts. His talk will also be followed by a cemetery walk in Monterey.
All three talks will be held at 1 p.m. the Bidwell House Museum and live streamed via Zoom. For the last two talks, attendees have the option to purchase a ticket for just the talk or the talk and cemetery walk together. Due to limited seating, tickets must be purchased in advance on the Museum website, https://www.bidwellhousemuseum.org/events/. All Zoom participants will receive a link to access the lecture a couple of days in advance.
