Whose Who? Who's Next

On Sunday, August 24 the final British Invasion themed concert celebrating Guilford's 375th anniversary will take place on the Guilford Green at 6:30pm.  The concert is free. Bring blankets and chairs!

Who's Next is the ultimate tribute to one of rocks greatest bands, The Who! Who's Next has been mesmerizing fans since 1999 performing nationally to be recognized as the best Who tribute band in the world.  With exact relicas of guitars, drums, amps and clothing, Who's Next is able to recreate and give the audience the full experience of being at a Who concert.  Not only does Who's Next capture the pure poser and energy of The Who, each member has an uncanny resemblance to each member of The Who.

Bill Cannell as Pete Townsend
His background in Classic Rock, Punk makes him the perfect "Pete." With tasty guitar licks, and exact replica guitars, windmills, and stagecraft, you will be Fooled Again and again...

Dave McDonald as Roger Daltrey
Stunning looks and uncanny resemblance, Dave's voice and stage presence makes him the perfect "Rock God" for the 21st century as Daltrey himself was. Dave is a talented singer and artist.

Mike Conte as John Entwistle
With his classic rock background and his "dead on" Entwistle playing style and looks, Mike was the odd one growing up during the Heavy Metal craze but now his thunder fingers shine as "The Quiet One" in Who's Next.

Rich Savarese as Keith Moon
Strength and endurance and attention to "Manic" detail, Rich brings us into the madcap world of Keith Moon. He keeps the beat together with mad fills and cymbal splashes. He's also a "Dead Ringer" mixed with experience and talent.

La Cage Aux Folles Now Performing at The Ivoryton Playhouse

It’s the dog days of summer but in Ivoryton, August is kicking its way through the heat in feathers, glitter and six inch heels! LA CAGE AUX FOLLES, the smash hit Broadway musical opened at Ivoryton Playhouse on August 6th and runs through August 31st. Written by Harvey Fierstein, Jean Poiret and Jerry Herman, the original 1983 Broadway production received nine nominations for Tony Awards and won six, including Best Musical, Best Score and Best Book. LA CAGE was later turned into a popular movie, The Birdcage, starring Nathan Lane and Robin Williams.

After twenty years of un-wedded bliss Georges and Albin, two men partnered for better-or-worse get a bit of both when Georges’ son announces his impending marriage to the daughter of a bigoted, narrow-minded politician. Albin tries to help by making a perfect family with hilarious results. Further complicating the situation, Albin and Georges run a drag nightclub in St. Tropez, where Albin is the star performer ‘Zaza.’ Georges reluctantly agrees to masquerade as "normal" when he meets the family of the bride-to-be. But Albin has other plans, with hilarious results.

The show features some beautiful songs by Jerry Herman including I Am What I Am and Song on the Sand, and some hilarious situations. But, more than anything else, LA CAGE is an old fashioned love story wrapped in feathers, sprinkled with glitter and tied with a bow. This wild and warmhearted farce about the importance of nonconformity and being true to oneself will appeal to audiences of all ages.

Directed by Lawrence Thelen, choreographed by Todd Underwood and musical directed by Michael Morris, the show features David Edwards* as Albin and James Van Treuren* as Georges. Edwards has appeared on Broadway in BY JEEVES and THE ROTHSCHILDS and Van Treuren was in THE SCARLET PIMPERNEL. Both actors have performed these roles before and are good friends on and off stage. Zach Trimmer* is reviving the role of Jean Michel for his third time; marTina Vidmar* is Jacqueline; Frank Calamaro* of Chester is Ms. Dindon and Samantha Talmadge of Groton is Mme. Dindon

The set is designed by Cully Long, lighting by Doug Harry, wigs by Liz Cipollina and costumes by Njaye Olds.

LA CAGE AUX FOLLES  in Ivoryton  runs through August 31st. Performance times are Wednesday and Sunday matinees at 2pm. Evening performances are Wednesday and Thursday at 7:30pm, Friday and Saturday at 8pm. There will be an extra matinee for this show on Saturday August 23rd  at 2pm. Tickets are $42 for adults, $37 for seniors, $20 for students and $15 for children and are available by calling the Playhouse box office at 860-767-7318 or by visiting our website at www.ivorytonplayhouse.org.  (Group rates are available by calling the box office for information.) The Playhouse is located at 103 Main Street in Ivoryton.

Generously sponsored by:  Sennheiser and Webster Bank

Members of the press are welcome at any performance.  Please call ahead for tickets.

*member of Actors Equity

 

Guitartown CT Presents Dale Ann Bradley

GuitartownCT is very excited to present, in a special Sunday matinee concert, the Dale Ann Bradley Band. Sunday, August 24, at 2:30 PM, at the Spaceland Ballroom, 295 Treadwell Street, Hamden.

Kentucky native Dale Ann Bradley is blessed with one of the most natural and expressive voices in bluegrass history. She's in the highest echelon of bluegrass singers, along with Alison Krauss, Claire Lynch and Rhonda Vincent. A former member of the illustrious Coon Creek Girls, she is a five time International Bluegrass Music Association "Female Vocalist of the Year". She's renowned for her covers of non bluegrass tunes by artists like U2 and Tom Petty. 

She's also a noted songwriter and, like many bluegrass singers, a fine guitar player. Her talented band features some hot young pickers, and includes noted Nashville singer/songwriter Steve Gulley. Tickets for this concert, at Hamden's Spaceland Ballroom, are $25 general admission and $35 for reserved table seats, and are available at www.guitartownct.com, or by calling Chris Wuerth at 203-430-6020.

She grew up in southeastern Kentucky and has lived in the bluegrass state for most of her life; her father was a coal miner and Baptist minister. Bradley auditioned unsuccessfully for the New Coon Creek Girls in 1988 and then spent the next couple of years working as a solo artist in Renfro Valley. She finally joined New Coon Creek in 1991 and performed on the group's 1994 Pinecastle Records debut, The L&N Don't Stop Here Anymore. Bradley's first solo album, East Kentucky Morning, came out in 1997 and largely consisted of compositions by Dale Ann Bradley and New Coon Creek ally Vickie Simmons. The project also featured a celebrated take on U2's "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For," which helped the album go Top Ten on both the Gavin Americana and Bluegrass Unlimited charts and earn high critical praise.

When the final New Coon Creek Girls album appeared in 1998, "featuring Dale Ann Bradley" was added to the group's name. Shortly after, the outfit would become Dale Ann Bradley and Coon Creek. Bradley's sophomore release, 1999's Old Southern Porches, featured a cover of Stealer's Wheel's 1973 hit "Stuck in the Middle With You." Members of Coon Creek, who by this time featured male players, performed on the album. Bradley put out the solo effort Songs of Praise and Glory in 2001; that same year, signing to Doobie Shea Records, Dale Ann Bradley and Coon Creek released Cumberland River Dreams.

The Ballroom now features a delicious menu of hot food, a wide selection of craft beer, and fine wines too. Comfortable, intimate, plenty of free parking.

What better way to relax on a Sunday afternoon....burgers, beer and bluegrass!

George Flynn Classical Concerts

On Sunday, August 17th, The George Flynn Classical Concerts series is proud to present the Emily Bear Quartet, performing jazz standards and original works by pianist and composer, Emily Bear. Only 12 years old, Emily Bear is one of the most astonishing musical talents of our time – composing, orchestrating, and performing in a diverse collection of styles. Some of this huge talent is on display on her latest CD Diversity, produced by Quincy Jones. “With the ability to seamlessly move from classical to jazz and bebop, she shows as much musical prowess as pianists/composers twice her age, and I am thrilled to be working with her,” Quincy says.

Emily plays all of her music from memory – even 45 page classical concertos. George Gershwin and Debussy are currently her favorite classical composers. Jazz heroes include Miles Davis, Duke Ellington and Oscar Peterson. She performed at the White House at age 6 and by age 8 she was playing concerts in Italy and China. At age 9 Emily made her Carnegie Hall debut and in 2011 she played the Hollywood Bowl. That summer, Emily performed at the Montreux Jazz Festival in Switzerland. Quincy Jones says, “She is the complete 360-degree package, and there are no limits to the musical heights she can reach.”
The Sunday, August 17th concert will be held at the Andrews Memorial Town Hall in Clinton, well known for its excellent acoustics. Tickets can be obtained by sending a self addressed stamped envelope to George Flynn Classical Concerts, PO Box 473, Clinton, CT 06413 or calling 860-669-1208. For further information visit: www.georgeflynnclassicalconcerts.com

Event Webpage: http://www.georgeflynnclassicalconcerts.com

Jazz 'N' Blue Festival

The 2014 Jazz ‘n’ Blue Festival is presented by Blue Plate Radio and Blue Plate Radio Productions at the Simsbury Meadows Performing Arts Center in Simsbury, CT features the internationally renowned jazz band Down to the Bone along with New Haven jazz legends Airborne and West Hartford, CT's own Doug Jones. Gates open at 2pm for this day-long event and the festival kicks off with Doug Jones and his band at 4pm!  A portion of the proceeds will benefit Autism Speaks.

Tickets are just $39 for the event that includes all three bands!  Tickets can be purchased at http://jazznblue2014.eventbrite.com. Parking is FREE and kids 16 and under with an adult are FREE!  Blankets, chairs, and coolers are welcome and attendees are encouraged to bring their favorite beverages!  Gate price day of the show is $45 cash.

Headlining the inaugural 2014 Jazz 'n' Blue Festival is the world-renowned jazz, funk, and fusion band Down to the Bone.  Down to the Bone is embarking on its first American tour in quite some time and their appearance at the Jazz 'n' Blue Festival marks the first time in seven years that they will appear in Connecticut and the only time in 2014 that the band will perform in the state! Down to the Bone is the brain-child of producer and writer Stuart Wade who started out with an idea in 1995 and now, with the release of their 10th CD "Dig It," Wade's original idea has become an international sensation!
Airborne is a multi-cultural Contemporary Jazz group based in New Haven, CT. Formed in the 1980’s these veterans of jazz celebrate years of recordings, jazz festivals, concerts, and clubs. The members have toured across the World. Airborne has many award winning and chart topping CD’s and has received worldwide airplay and international acclaim.

Airborne’s musical recipe infuses straight ahead jazz with Caribbean and Latino influences, spiced up with its own brand of jazz fusion and urban street funk.  It's no wonder that they opened for the likes of Jeff Lorber, Tower of Power, Acoustic Alchemy, and many more.  Airborne is celebrating 25 years of recording with their 8th CD, "Silver."

Opening the 2014 Jazz 'n' Blue Festival is West Hartford, CT's Doug Jones! Doug Jones expresses his passion for music through his compositions and performances. His career spans many years performing in different venues in the Northeast from the Hartford Jazz Festival to clubs in Newport, Manhattan and Boston as well as South America. His saxophone influences are David Sanborn, Grover Washington, Tom Scott, Bobby Keys and Edgar Winter. In addition to his own contemporary jazz group, Doug’s unique style of playing can also be heard with New England bands as well as blues recording artist Mark Nomad.

Doug Jones' third and latest release, “Top Down,” is getting positive reviews. Ronald Jackson from the Smooth Jazz Ride calls "Top Down" “A solid gold star effort.”  Downbeat Magazine says “Tenor man Doug Jones has a fresh voice…”  “Top Down” also features Doug playing flute and harmonica - two instruments that he has been playing for many years but has never included on his previous releases “Shades Of Gray” and “Heart And Soul.”  “One Last Dance” is the first single to be released from "Top Down."

Chestnut Hill Concerts - Third in the Series

Mihae Lee

Hyunah Yu

Chestnut Hill Concerts, under the artistic direction of Ronald Thomas, will present a concert of instrumental and vocal chamber music by Franz Schubert (1797-1828) and Robert Schumann (1810-1856) on Friday, August 22 at 8 p.m. at the Katharine Hepburn Cultural Arts Center in Old Saybrook. With soprano, French horn, violin, cello, and piano, the program offers a colorful variety of music by these two giants of the Romantic era. Cellist Ronald Thomas, artistic director of Chestnut Hill Concerts, is highly regarded for his artistry as a cellist and for the quality of the programming he has brought to Chestnut Hill Concerts and other chamber music organizations. Former principal cellist of the St. Paul Chamber Orchestra, he performs internationally and is currently an Artistic Partner of the Mainly Mozart Festival in San Diego. Joining him for the program on August 15 the stage at The Kate will be violinist Jennifer Koh, making her CHC debut, and who, after winning the Tchaikovsky International Violin Competition twenty years ago, has since established a dazzling international career. Returning to the series are soprano Hyunah Yu, who has an impressive and busy international career in recital, oratorio, and opera; hornist William Purvis, a member of the New York Woodwind Quintet, the Orchestra of St. Luke's, Yale Brass Trio, and Triton Horn Trio among his many credits; and pianist Mihae Lee, who in addition to performing regularly on the CHC series and serving as artistic director of Essex Winter Series, has an international career as soloist and chamber musician.

The program begins with Robert Schumann's Adagio and Allegro, Op. 70, for horn and piano, performed by William Purvis and Mihae Lee. Hyunah Yu will then perform a set of five of Schumann's most beloved songs with Mihae Lee, and William Purvis will join them for Schubert's famous work, "Auf dem Strom" (By the River).

All Chestnut Hill Concerts programs take place on Friday nights at 8:00 pm at the Katharine Hepburn Cultural Arts Center (The Kate), 300 Main Street in Old Saybrook, Connecticut. Single tickets are $35 for orchestra seats and $30 for the balcony. Kids and Teens come free, when accompanied by an adult. To purchase tickets, contact The Kate box office at 860-510-0453, or visit www.thekate.org.

More about the artists

Ronald Thomas, cellist, has been Artistic Director of Chestnut Hill Concerts since 1989. He sustains one of the most active and varied careers in today's music world as performer, teacher, and artistic administrator. Former principal cellist of the St. Paul Chamber Orchestra, he is the newly-appointed Artistic Partner of the Mainly Mozart Festival in San Diego. His solo appearances include performing with the Philadelphia Orchestra, the St. Louis, Baltimore and Seattle Symphony Orchestras, the Hong Kong Philharmonic, the Handel and Haydn Society and Pro Arte Chamber Orchestras of Boston and the Blossom Festival Orchestra, among many others. Mr. Thomas has played recitals in virtually every state in the United States as well as New York City, Washington, D.C., Boston and Los Angeles, and numerous concerts in Europe and Asia. In great demand as a chamber music collaborator, Mr. Thomas is also co-founder and artistic director emeritus of the Boston Chamber Music Society and has appeared with the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center both at Alice Tully Hall and on tour. Other chamber music appearances include the Seattle, Bravo! Colorado and Portland Chamber Music Festivals, and the Spoleto, Blossom and Yale at Norfolk Festivals, as well as the festivals of Dubrovnik, Edinburgh and Amsterdam. Mr. Thomas was a member of the Players in Residence committee and the Board of Overseers at Bargemusic in New York. While he was member of the Boston Musica Viva and the Aeolian Chamber Players he premiered countless new works, including compositions by Gunther Schuller, Michael Colgrass, Ellen Zwillich, Donald Erb, William Bolcom and William Thomas McKinley. Before winning the Young Concert Artists auditions at nineteen, Mr. Thomas attended the New England Conservatory and the Curtis Institute. His principal teachers were Lorne Munroe, David Soyer, and Mary Canberg

Violinist Jennifer Koh is recognized for her intense, commanding performances, delivered with dazzling virtuosity and technical assurance. She is dedicated to performing the violin repertoire of all eras from traditional to contemporary, believing that the past and present form a continuum. Since the 1994-95 season when she won the International Tchaikovsky Competition in Moscow, the Concert Artists Guild Competition, and the Avery Fisher Career Grant, she has been heard with leading orchestras worldwide. Also a prolific recitalist, she appears frequently at major music centers and festivals. The exploration of Bach's music and its influence in today's musical landscape has played an important role in her artistic journey. Her "Bach and Beyond" recital series explores the history of the solo violin repertoire from Bach's Sonatas and Partitas to works by modern day composers including commissions; she frequently performs all six Sonatas and Partitas in a single concert; and her "Two x Four" project, with her former teacher from the Curtis Institute of Music violinist Jaime Laredo, pairs Bach's Double Violin Concerto with newly commissioned double concerti. She recently launched a video series "Off Stage On Record" that gives a behind-the-scenes look at the life of a concert artist on her YouTube channel, www.youtube.com/jenniferkohviolin. Ms. Koh regularly records for the Cedille label. Her recording featuring works from her first "Bach and Beyond" recital was chosen as one of the best recordings of 2012 by the New York Times. Her most recent album "Two x Four" was released in April 2014.

Praised by Boston Globe as "simply dazzling," Korean-born pianist Mihae Lee has captivated audiences throughout North America, Europe, and Asia in solo recitals and chamber music concerts, in such venues as Lincoln Center, the Kennedy Center, Jordan Hall, Berlin Philharmonie, Academia Nationale de Santa Cecilia in Rome, Warsaw National Philharmonic Hall, and Taipei National Hall. She is an artist member of the Boston Chamber Music Society and a founding member of the Triton Horn Trio with violinist Ani Kavafian and hornist William Purvis. Ms. Lee has appeared frequently at numerous international chamber music festivals including Dubrovnik, Amsterdam, Groningen, Festicamara (Colombia), Seattle, OK Mozart, Mainly Mozart, Music from Angel Fire, Chamber Music Northwest, Arizona Friends of Chamber Music, Rockport, Bard, Norfolk, Music Mountain, and Monadnock Music. She has been a guest artist with the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center, St. Paul Chamber Orchestra, Bargemusic, and Speculum Musicae; has collaborated with the Tokyo, Muir, Cassatt, and Manhattan string quartets; and has premiered and recorded works by such composers as Gunther Schuller, Ned Rorem, Paul Lansky, Henri Lazarof, Michael Daugherty, and Ezra Laderman. A graduate of The Juilliard School and the New England Conservatory, she has released compact discs on the Bridge, Etcetera, EDI, Northeastern, and BCMS labels. Ms. Lee is the Artistic Director of the Essex Winter Series and has performed at Chestnut Hill Concerts since 1989.

A native of Western Pennsylvania, William Purvis pursues a multifaceted career both in the U.S. and abroad as horn soloist, chamber musician, conductor, and educator. A passionate advocate of new music, Mr. Purvis has participated in numerous premieres as hornist and conductor, including horn concerti by Peter Lieberson, Bayan Northcott and Penderecki (New York Premiere), horn trios by Poul Ruders and Paul Lansky, and Sonate en Forme de Préludes by Steven Stucky with Emanuel Ax in Carnegie Hall. Recent world premieres include Paul Lansky's Day Trips for Horn and Wind Ensemble in Carnegie Hall, and Elliott Carter's Retracing II for solo horn and Nine for Five with the New York Woodwind Quintet.

Mr. Purvis is a member of the New York Woodwind Quintet, the Orchestra of St. Luke's, Yale Brass Trio and Triton Horn Trio, and is an emeritus member of Orpheus Chamber Orchestra. A frequent guest artist with the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center and the Boston Chamber Music Society, he has also collaborated with the Tokyo, Juilliard, Orion, Brentano, Mendelssohn, Sibelius, Daedalus and Fine Arts string quartets, as well as appearing at numerous international festivals. Mr. Purvis has recorded extensively on many labels including Deutsche Grammophon, Sony Classical, and Bridge, with a broad collection spanning from original instrument performance to standard solo and chamber music repertoire to contemporary solo and chamber music works, as well as numerous recordings of contemporary music as conductor. Among many critically acclaimed recordings are Mozart Horn Concerti with Orpheus Chamber Orchestra, Peter Lieberson Horn Concerto, Richard Wernick Horn Quintet with the Juilliard Quartet, and works of Robert and Clara Schumann and Paul Lansky. A Deep River resident, Mr. Purvis is Professor of Horn at The Yale School of Music, where he is also Coordinator of Winds and Brasses and Director of the Yale Collection of Musical Instruments.

Hyunah Yu's star has risen quickly since 1999, when she appeared as a soloist in St. Matthew Passion with the New England Bach Festival, was a prizewinner at the Walter Naumburg International Competition, and was a finalist in both the Dutch International Vocal and Concert Artist Guild International competitions. Her promise was confirmed just a few years later as she received the coveted Borletti-Buitoni Trust Award, followed closely by her acclaimed Carnegie Hall debut. She has enjoyed collaborations with many major orchestras, including the Bournemouth, Seattle, Baltimore, and Milwaukee Symphony orchestras, Rotterdam and Seoul Philharmonic orchestras, Concerto Koln, Salzburg Camerata, Boston Baroque, Sejong Soloists, and the Yale Cellos, to name a few. She has appeared at the Marlboro, Great Mountain, and Chamber Music Northwest festivals and performed Beethoven's Ninth Symphony with acclaimed conductors Myung Whun Chung, David Zinman, and Jaime Laredo. Ms. Yu also performed Mahler's Symphony No. 8 with the Rotterdam Philharmonic and of Valery Gergiev, and the Bach B minor Mass in Cologne with the Westdeutscher Rundfunk under Semyon Bychkov. In chamber music and recitals, Ms. Yu has enjoyed re-engagements with the Philadelphia Chamber Music Society, Baltimore's Shriver Hall Concert Series, at Lincoln Center's Alice Tully Hall, the Phillips Collection in Washington, D.C., and at the Bemberg Foundation in Toulouse, France. Ms. Yu has premiered many pieces specifically written for her. Most recently, she premiered the Symphony of Meditations by Aaron Jay Kernis with the Seattle Symphony under Gerard Schwarz. A highlight of her impressive opera career was the title role in Mozart's Zaide in New York, London, and Vienna directed by Peter Sellars and conducted by Louis Langrée. She has recorded Bach and Mozart arias for EMI and two solo recitals broadcast for the BBC. Ms. Yu also holds a degree in Molecular Biology from the University of Texas at Austin.

 

Elm Shakespeare Company Brings Blockbuster Hit to Edgerton Park

Paul Pryce, Pericles

Prema Cruz, Marina

The Elm Shakespeare Company is bringing William Shakespeare's most popular play to Edgerton Park in New Haven this week.  Wrapping up an amazing summer outdoor theater season in Connecticut Elm Shakespeare will present 'this blockbuster hit during Shakespeare's lifetime' - Pericles. The 19th season of FREE Shakespeare in the Park will open on Thursday, August 14 at 8pm.  Performances will continue nightly (no performances on Mondays and Tuesdays) through August 31.

Set against the tumultuous unrest of the Colonial West Indies and infused with the dark magic of Vodoun and Kanaval, Artistic Director James Andreassi transports this tale of Pericles to a Caribbean setting, rife with evil leaders and pirates, fisherman and foul weather, where a man finds and loses love, and then finds it again; battling the forces Fate, Fortune and Nature.

Over 30,000 from New Haven county and beyond will attend this professional, Equity production.  The Elm Shakespeare Company is the largest outdoor theatre dedicated to the work of William Shakespeare in performance and education in Connecticut.  Major support of the Elm Shakespeare Company's 19th season provided by Whitney Center and Webster Bank.

The professional cast includes Paul Pryce, a Trinidad native who was memorable as Mark Antony in ESC's last summer's production of Julius Caesar, playing the role of Pericles; Associate Artistic Director Raphael Massie as Simonides; Yale School of Drama graduate students Prema Cruz as Marina and Sean Patrick Higgins as Lysimachus; and New Haven actress Gracie Brown-Keirstead as Gower.

Award-winning designers for this production include set designer Vladimir Shpitalnik; sound designer Nathan Robers, costume designer Elizabeth Bolster, and lighting designer Jamie Burnett.  Twelbe outstanding high school students from the New Haven region have joined the Company both on stage and behind the scenes as Elm Scholar Apprentices - the Elm Shakespeare Company's premier pre-professional training program.

Press release from Elm Shakespeare Company

FREE Performance for Children & Families: The Reluctant Dragon

There will be a special free performance of The Reluctant Dragon for children and families on Friday, August 8 at 10am in the auditorium at the Blackstone Library, 758 Main Street, Branford.

Kenneth Grahame's 1898 timeless children's story is brought to life in this captivating adaptation by Shakesperience Productions Inc. While enjoying the commanding and powerful delivery of this age-old story, the audience can reflect upon the advantages of nonviolent problem-solving as they also reassess the benefits of friendship. This production offers a connection that is both exciting and appealing.

In this Shakesperience Productions adaptation a shepherd girl races against time and popular opinion to protect and defend her dragon friend for other villagers, dragon-slayer St. George, and certain destruction.  A giant set of Cuisenaire® rods forms the backdrop for costumes inspired by the art of René Magritte as this production highlights themes of stereotype and prejudice encapsulated in environmental sustainability. Students of all ages seem to really grasp the lessons and concepts.  The cast effectively help the audience to understand through language, music, sign interpretation and pre and post show discussions.

Shakesperience educates and inspires students, families, and theater professionals through the arts in order to explore social constructs and foster mutual respect for all people. Shakesperience creates innovative, interactive, thought-provoking live theatre programs rooted in classical literature by focusing on the dynamic relationship between the artist and the audience. 

The performance is free and open to the public and is a collaborative program of Shoreline Arts Alliance, Shakesperience Productions Inc. and the Blackstone Library.

Shakespeare on the Shoreline presents King Lear: August 6 -10

It is the stars, The stars above us, govern our conditions. King Lear, Act 4, Scene 3

Join Shoreline Arts Alliance for ‘theatre under the stars’ as we welcome back Shakesperience Productions, Inc. for this summer’s Shakespeare on theShoreline production of King Lear.  Bring blankets, chairs and picnic dinners and come out for a family-friendly evening on the historic Guilford Green.  Showtime is 7:30pm nightly.  On Wednesday, August 6, Friday, August 8 and Saturday, August 9 there will be a pre-show and post-show talks with the Artistic Director and members of the cast and crew.  Pre-show talks begin at 6:30pm and post-show talks will be immediately following the performance.  Join in and uncover some of the mysteries of Shakespeare’s language as well as some of the nuances of the story and how relevant the themes are to us today.  Also, learn from the Artistic Director and members of the cast about this particular adaptation and interpretation.  The talk backs as well as the main stage performance are all FREE to attend!

In this feature performance of King Lear, Dr. David Richman, who has been blind since birth, plays Lear, a man who is blind to the love of Cordelia, his youngest daughter. This metaphysical blindness mirrors the subplot of Gloucester, who is blind to the treachery of his illegitimate son and is literally blinded in the course of the play. Only by experiencing blindness can these characters learn to see the errors of their ways. And this mirrors the human experience. As we watch, the characters in the play realize the beauty of love, collaboration, hope, and silence all around them...they are freed from the cage of ignorance in which they reside. 

Come early, stay late and meet the cast of Shakesperience Productions, Inc. and join the Shoreline Arts Alliance for the 13th annual Shakespeare on the Shoreline program.  Special accessibility services will also be provided at this year’s performance. On August 6 American Sign Language Interpreter; Assisted Listening Devices at all performances; Braille & large print programs at all performances; increased exit lighting on the Green every night; volunteer escorts every night for those needing assistance entering or exiting the Green.

Thank you to our program sponsors for this year’s Shakespeare on the Shoreline program: CT Humanities, Guilford  Savings Bank, Maximilian E. & Marion O. Hoffman Foundation, Community Foundation for Greater New Haven, National Roofing Company/Mary & Jeff Beeman, George A. & Grace L. Long Foundation, Alcoa Howmet, MFund, Guilford Interact Club & Guilford Foundation, Chubb, Branford Community Foundation, First Niagara Foundation, Puffin Foundation, The Gustave & Carol L. Sirot Fund, Shore Publishing, LLC (Media Sponsor), and to our season sponsors Sennheiser Electronic Corporation, NewAlliance Foundation, CT Office of the Arts and the National Endowment for the Arts.

Opening Tonight! La Boheme

Opera Theater of Connecticut presents Puccini's La Bohème on Tuesday, August 5, Thursday, August 7 and Saturday, August 9 at 7:30pm and Sunday, August 10 at 6pm at the air-conditioned Andrews Memorial Theater, 54 East Main Street, Clinton. The production is fully-staged, sung in Italian with English supertitles for enhanced audience appreciation and accompanied by orchestra.

La Bohème is Puccini's most famous and popular opera, as well as one of the most performed operas in the repertoire. This operatic masterpiece, captures the joy of youth—with laughter, zeal and flowering love affairs—only to have it fade away into tragedy, all accompanied by some of the most moving and memorable music of all time; its passion and emotion heightened in the Andrews Memorial Theater’s intimate space. This production is supported, in part, by The Community Foundation for Greater New Haven, Essex Savings Bank, and the Connecticut Office of the Arts.

Under the leadership of General Director Kate Ford, Opera Theater of Connecticut’s artistic team of Production Director Alan Mann and Music Director Kyle Swann will work with one of the finest ensembles brought together in the state for this spectacular presentation. 

The cast features Shannon Kessler Dooley as Mimì, the opera’s tragic heroine and Lisa Williamson as the flirtatious Musetta, with Joshua Kohl as the Parisian poet Rodolfo and Maksìm Ivanov as the mercurial Marcello. Aaron Sorensen and Ryan Burns debut with Opera Theater as the sardonic and cynical Colline and the wily young Schaunard. Laurentiu Rotaru does double duty in the comic roles of Benoît and Alcindoro and Spencer Hamlin livens the stage as the children’s favorite character, Parpignol, all accompanied by Opera Theater of Connecticut’s wonderful orchestra, chorus and children’s chorus.

Tickets, which are $45.00 for adult admission, $40.00 for seniors 65 and over, and $35.00 for under 18, can be reserved by contacting Opera Theater of Connecticut at 860-669-8999 or can be ordered through the web at www.operatheaterofct.org. Boxed suppers, prepared by Chips’ Pub III and served on the theater lawn next to the scenic Indian River an hour before the show, are $15 and are reserved through Opera Theater of Connecticut.

Relax for a half hour and learn a bit more about the opera and its composer from Artistic Director Alan Mann by attending Opera Talk—an informal discussion about the show which starts an hour and 30 minutes before curtain time. Tickets are $5 and may be purchased on the day of performance.

For more information, visit us on the web.