performs at Norwell’s James Library on October 29, courtesy image
McGRATHPR.com – Cooler weather and autumnal foliage ushers in the fall season in Metro Boston, the South Shore and Cape Cod regions, accompanied by ample opportunities to enjoy the arts, entertainment and culture of the region. Here’s so much of what’s in store ahead in arts, culture, and entertainment:
FALL ENTERTAINMENT:
Metro Boston, South Shore
and Cape Cod
courtesy image
The James Library & Center for the Arts
Gallery Exhibit: Massachusetts South Shore Woodturners
Opening Day Open House: Friday, September 16, 1 to 6 pm
Exhibition Dates: Friday, September 16 through Saturday, October 22
Admission is free, open for viewing during business hours
Massachusetts South Shore Woodturners make a reprise appearance at The James with an exhibition featuring beautifully crafted works from wood created among its current membership of 80 artisans. This creative group was founded with just 11 members in 1996. Over the years, Massachusetts South Shore Woodturners’ mission has remained consistent – to foster awareness and appreciation of the skill and artistry of woodturning through continued education for its members and the public.
Norwell Historic House Tour and Shopping Boutique
Saturday, October 1, 10 am to 2 pm
The James Library & Center for the Arts, 24 West Street, Norwell
Tickets: $40 in advance, $50 at the door, available at jameslibrary.org
A limited number of complimentary tickets are available to seniors 65+ if reserved online in advance, courtesy of the Cordelia Family Foundation
Step into history as Norwell’s antique homeowners invite the public inside for a tour. From wide-planked floorboards to one-of-a-kind craftsmanship, Norwell’s historic homes showcase alluring architecture. Within the walls of these homes are the stories that shaped the community. The tour includes seven gorgeous historic homes, as well as The James Library and First Parish of Norwell. The tour begins at the Shopping Boutique at the First Parish of Norwell at 24 River Street. Ticket holders receive a tour booklet and map and may enjoy refreshments from food trucks while shopping. Proceeds benefit The James Library & Center for the Arts’ mission to inspire creativity, learning and an appreciation for the arts through music, visual and literary programs in a historic and welcoming space for the community. Co-sponsored by Norwell Historical Society.
Mama Steph: Music, Movement and More!
Friday, October 8, 10:30 am
The James Library & Center for the Arts, 24 West Street, Norwell
Admission is free, limited to capacity, advance registration recommended
Bring your little ones and join Stephanie Chase for traditional music, puppets, sing-a-longs, smiles and lots of laughs. This show is best for children up to seven years of age. “Mama Steph” is an accomplished musician, singer, songwriter, entertainer, and craftsperson. She has a vast and loyal audience throughout the South Shore, with well attended and appreciated performances. She has published three albums of her original music, with thousands of copies sold. Space is limited to capacity; please register in advance at jameslibrary.org. Sponsored by First Parish Preschool of Norwell.
Author Talk – Rebels At Sea: Privateering in the American Revolution
Thursday, October 20, 7 pm
The James Library & Center for the Arts, 24 West Street, Norwell
Admission: $20 Adults, $10 Seniors
The heroic story of the founding of the U.S. Navy during the Revolution has been told before yet missing from most maritime histories of America’s first war is the ragtag fleet of private vessels, from 20-foot whaleboats to 40-cannon men-of-war, that truly revealed the new nation’s character ― above all, its ambition and entrepreneurial ethos.
In “Rebels at Sea”, best-selling author and historian Eric Jay Dolin corrects that significant omission, and contends that privateers, though often seen as profiteers at best and pirates at worst, were in fact critical to the Revolution’s outcome. Armed with cannons, swivel guns, muskets, and pikes ― as well as government documents granting them the right to seize enemy ships ― thousands of privateers tormented the British on the broad Atlantic and in bays and harbors on both sides of the ocean. Abounding with tales of daring maneuvers and deadly encounters, “Rebels at Sea” presents the American Revolution as we have rarely seen it before.
Presenter Eric Jay Dolin is best-selling author of “Black Flags, Blue Waters: The Epic History of America’s Most Notorious Pirates,” which reclaims the daring freelance sailors who proved essential to the winning of the Revolutionary War.
image by Kevin W. Condon
Weekend Classics: The Balourdet Quartet
Saturday, October 29, 3 pm
The James Library & Center for the Arts, 24 West Street, Norwell
Admission: $35 Adults, $30 Seniors, $20 Students
Based in Boston, The Balourdet Quartet is currently ensemble-in-residence at New England Conservatory’s Professional String Quartet Program. The quartet received the Grand Prize at the 2021 Concert Artists Guild Victor Elmaleh Competition as well as the top prize awarded in the 2021 Premio Paolo Borciani in Reggio Emilia, Italy. The group also received the Gold Medal in the 2020 Fischoff National Chamber Music Competition, the Gold Medal and Audience Award at the 2021 Chamber Music Yellow Springs Competition, and the Second Prize in the 2019 Carl Nielsen International Chamber Music Competition.
The Balourdet has shared the stage with renowned artists including Cho-Liang Lin, as well as members of the Dover Quartet. It has studied and performed at many renowned festivals. The Balourdet Quartet works primarily with Paul Katz at the New England Conservatory, as well as members of the Cleveland and Borromeo Quartets. Formed in 2018 at Rice University in Houston, The Balourdet Quartet’s name is derived from Antoine Balourdet, chef extraordinaire at the Hotel St. Bernard and beloved member of the Taos School of Music community.
The Only Woman to Leave Picasso: A tribute talk in honor of Françoise Gilot’s 100th Birthday
Tuesday, November 1, 12 noon
The James Library & Center for the Arts, 24 West Street, Norwell
Admission is free
Osher Lifelong Learning Institute (OLLI) presenter Mary-Anne Morrison explores the decades during which legendary Spanish artist Pablo Picasso engaged in seven significant long-term relationships with women, of which two he married, five were mistresses. Six of these relationships ended badly – including two suicides. Only one woman said “enough!” – the artist Françoise Gilot, who became a centenarian on November 26, 2021. She was his muse and mistress for ten years, being forty years his junior and mother of two of his children – Claude and Paloma. She left him in 1953. Years later she had a successful 25-year marriage to Dr. Jonas Salk. She works in multiple mediums and her artistic output is both masterful and extensive. Morrison’s OLLI talk pays tribute to this remarkable woman and artist.
Presenter Mary-Anne Morrison has facilitated various art history classes, including “Picasso’s Wives and Lovers” and “How New York Supplanted Paris as the Center of Modern Art in the Mid-20th Century,” and has delivered various OLLI talks, including “The Art of Marriage.” She is also a late-in-life abstract artist and a past co-chair of OLLI’s Curriculum Committee.
20/21/22: The James Library & Center for the Arts’ Juried Art Exhibition
Opening Day Open House: Friday, November 4,1 to 6 pm
Exhibition Dates: Friday, November 4 through Saturday, December 17
The James Library & Center for the Arts, 24 West Street, Norwell
Admission is free, open for viewing during business hours
The James Library’s juried exhibition, titled “20/21/22,” showcases and honors works of art created during the unprecedented era spanning the pandemic (Note: Covid-19 is not the exhibit’s theme, rather a showcase of work that artists have created during the pandemic’s timespan). The exhibit is juried by Sarah Hutt. For full prospectus and information, visit jameslibrary.org. Sponsored by Napier Financial and The Cordelia Family Foundation.
For more information about programs and events, visit The James Library at 24 West Street, Norwell, call 781-659-7100, visit online at jameslibrary.org or follow The James Library on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.
Massachusetts Cranberries
Rhapsody in Red: 200 Years of Massachusetts Cranberries Traveling Exhibit
Tour Schedule, Fall 2022, dates TBA
Tentatively scheduled to appear at Hingham Public Library, Plymouth Public Library, Wareham Public Library, Duxbury Public Library, Milton Public Library and more.
In celebration of Massachusetts’ official state fruit, the cranberry, Cape Cod Cranberry Growers’ Association, Michelle McGrath PR and public historian/curator Hilary Goodnow created the traveling exhibit retrospective “Rhapsody in Red: 200 Years of Massachusetts Cranberries,” a one-of-a-kind exhibit. The project was generously supported by the Cranberry Educational Foundation in its mission to introduce the American cranberry, cranberry farming and its heritage to the public. The timeless exhibit explores commercial cranberry growing in Massachusetts, focusing on key themes of the cranberry industry’s rich history, commitment to environmental stewardship, technological innovations, and its growing diversity.
Cranberries and cranberry bogs are an iconic element of Massachusetts’ historical, cultural, and natural landscapes. As one of only four commercially grown berries still native to New England, the cranberry draws strong historical ties to the earliest inhabitants of the Commonwealth, including the first English settlers. Today, in the 21st century, growers strive to keep the tradition alive as part of our common cultural landscape by combining sustainable agricultural practices with environmental stewardship. The industry protects essential upland and wetland habitats, harnesses renewable energy such as wind and solar power, and adopts new technologies to reduce water use on bogs.
To continue to communicate the prominent role that cranberries have played in Massachusetts’ history, “Rhapsody in Red” continues its tour of public, municipal, festival and organizational venues across the Commonwealth, depicted in seven freestanding retractable panels featuring curated text, engaging photographs and the story of Massachusetts’ top agricultural crop.
To book “Rhapsody in Red” or a cranberry-themed lecture for your organization, contact Kimberly Miot, Massachusetts Cranberries’ Tour and Event Manager, at kmiot@cranberries.org, or by calling 508-866-7878 ext. 13.
The Conjuring House
International Realty / Blueflash Photography
Halloween Spooktacular 2022
Friday, October 28 through Sunday, October 30
The Conjuring House, 1677 Round Top Road, Burrillville, RI
Admission: TBA, children’s activities are free
The world-famous Conjuring House is hosting a three-day inaugural celebration “Halloween Spooktacular 2022” on its property – one of the most paranormally active locations in the world. The Conjuring House provides unique opportunities for paranormal enthusiasts and investigators, research scientists, mediums, psychics and media influencers to capture authentic encounters through ghost hunting devices, voice recorders, video equipment and other measurement instruments.
“Halloween Spooktacular 2022” tentative schedule of events includes guided tours, storytelling, movie and watch party presentations, a psychic fair, pumpkin carving contest, haunted forest tour, costume party, witching hour ghost hunts, vendors, food trucks, and free kids’ activities. Several activities are available by advance reservation, costumes are welcome. The official complete schedule is TBA.
This mystical, magical farmhouse offers visitors a thoroughly engaging experience. The house is most famous for its association with “The Conjuring,” the infamous 2013 horror film – the movie sparked that a torrent of interest in this supernatural stronghold. It is likely the most haunted house in America, revealed in detail by the Perron family who once dwelled for a decade within its walls during the 1970s.
For more information about “Halloween Spooktacular 2022,” or the Conjuring House’s history, events or programs, visit theconjuringhouse.com.
Jon and Juli Finn
julifinn.com/jon-and-juli-jazzy-bluesy
Sunset Picnic featuring Jon and Juli Finn
Thursday, September 8, 5 pm until sunset (around 7:15 pm)
Weir River Farm, 140 Turkey Hill Lane, Hingham
Admission: Adults: $9 Trustees member, $15 nonmember; Children ages 2-12: $6 Trustees member, $12 nonmember; Children under 2 are free
Available at thetrustees.org/program/weir-river-farm-sunset-picnics
Performing artists Jon and Juli Finn perform live at Weir River Farm’s popular Sunset Picnic series, offering the best view on the South Shore. Pack your picnic blanket and chairs and relax with friends while watching the sun set over the Boston skyline. Greet the farm’s iconic Belted Galloway cows as they graze in their pasture. Shop Weir River’s farm store filled with delicious locally sourced picnic supplies as well as Trustees-grown meat, dairy and beautiful produce. Local brewery Widowmaker Beer and Cruisin’ Cabby Shack food truck will be on site with refreshments and food for purchase.
Jon and Juli Guitar Workshop
Saturday, September 10, 9 am to 9 pm
The Finn’s Barn, Whitman
Fee: $600, limited to 6 students, includes meals
Guitar legend and Grammy Award nominee Jon Finn together with superstar songwriter and guitar/ukulele expert Juli Finn – both Berklee College of Music educators – host a debut one-day Rock Guitar Workshop at their own home studio barn! The program admits just six intermediate to advanced skill students for extra-personalized instruction.
Hone in on technique with specialized session on warm up, tone, fretboard navigations, scales organization, licks and an unforgettable master class where everyone performs and improvises. Get in on the fast track, experience exclusive hands-on, all-day programs, including meals, topped off with their legendary jam session complete with professional rhythm section, featuring you in the rock band – the very best of all worlds, rock music style!
Amps and sound system are available on site for students. Video of sessions and performances are available for an additional fee. Email Jon@Jonfinn.com to register or more information.
Chick Singer Night Boston: Featuring Juli Finn, songwriter/guitar
Saturday, November 12, time TBA
The Burren, 247 Elm Street, Somerville
The next Chick Singer Night Boston, a celebration of women in music, delivered as a benefit concert supporting performing artists and community, features songwriter Juli Finn, guitar. Performer lineup and more info to be announced at chicksingernight.com/chapters/boston/index.php
Composer Rachel Burckardt
Premiere: Mount Auburn, Requiem in D Minor and Other Works
Saturday, October 22, 8 pm
Saint Cecelia Parish, 18 Belvidere Street, Boston
Tickets: General Admission $25, Students and Seniors $8.50, Preferred Seating $50. Sponsor donation options range from $100-$1000.
Longtime Cambridge-based sacred musician and composer Rachel Burckardt, together with Wood Harbor Orchestra, conducted by Elijah Langille, and Mount Auburn Choir, premiere the new sacred work “Mount Auburn, a Requiem in d minor,” on Saturday, October 22, 8 pm, at Saint Cecelia Parish, 18 Belvidere Street, Boston. The concert program also features several of Burckardt’s other orchestral and vocal works, with solo performing artists, including Ciarán Nagle, tenor vocalist, Diana Fischer, piano, Lily Marie Antonini, mezzo soprano, Alex Meisner, alto saxophone, and Rachel Burckardt, piano and guitar.
“Mount Auburn, Requiem in d minor,” the concert’s title work, reflects Burckardt’s vision of a requiem, traditionally composed and performed as a mass for the repose of souls who have passed. Her inspiration for this composition to take this form stems partly from the scene in the movie “Amadeus,” when Mozart is dictating his mass for the dead, and partly from her experience that requiems feel a bit unsatisfactory, as though they miss the point.
“In my mind, the setting should deeply reflect the life experience of loss and separation, with all its wild range of deep, unrelenting emotions – deep sadness, unexpected uncertainty about the future, anger, unexplained tears, resolving to the sense of acceptance, resignation, and quiet peace,” shares Burckardt. “Overlaying these emotions is the mysticism of mortality and eternity, relevant to this work.”
Each fall, around All Souls Day (el Día de los Muertos), Burckardt strolls the beautiful landscape of Mount Auburn Cemetery in Cambridge, which inspired the title of the featured work. Experiencing autumn’s beauty while contemplating mortality and eternity, she recollects her favorite verses from Psalm 90, “teach us to number our days that we may learn your wisdom” and “for a thousand years to you … is like the passing of a single day.” In essence, contemplating this final moment intersects the diverse emotions that accompany death. “Mount Auburn” begins and ends with stark instrumentation, straining at tonality to encompass loss, sorrow, and the spirituality of mortality. “Between both ends, the listener is drawn into an emotional journey expressed in the dynamics, rhythm, lyrics, and texture woven into the work’s eight movements,” says Burckardt.
Other works on the “Mount Auburn” program include “Heal Me,” “Ascendance,” and “Ave Maria,” all compositions by Burckardt, performed by the orchestra, ornamented by featured soloists, including Diana Fischer, piano, Lily Marie Antonini, mezzo soprano, Alex Meisner, alto saxophone, and Burckardt herself, guitar and piano.
Rachel Burckardt is a prolific composer whose works explore sacred and liturgical music, jazz, electronic music, and orchestral works. She has served as a church musician for more than 45 years and currently serves on the Saint Cecilia Parish music ministry and the American Guild of Organists. A longtime instrumentalist, chorister, composer, and director, she also previously served as co-director of the parish’s contemporary ensemble. As a performing artist, she sings with the Boston Archdiocesan Festival Choir. Burckardt has released six albums featuring her original compositions and improvisations. The studio recording of “Mount Auburn” will be her next album release.
The newly formed Wood Harbor Orchestra makes their first public performance at this concert, under the direction of Elijah Langille, conductor. The ensemble includes professional musicians along with students from local music schools. Wood Harbor Orchestra is dedicated to the performance of works by local composers, focused on underrepresented groups in classical music, including women, people of color, and those in the LGBTQIA+ community.
Tickets to “Mount Auburn, Requiem in d minor” are general admission $25, students and seniors $8.50, preferred seating $50, available on EventBrite, or at the door. Sponsor donation options range from $100 – $1000. Reduced-rate parking for $14 is available at The Hynes Auditorium Garage (located at 50 Dalton Street between Bukowski Tavern and Summer Shack). To obtain the discount, ask a concert greeter for a chaser ticket which can be used at the garage’s exit gate machine. Alternate paid parking is available at the Prudential garage. The church building is fully accessible by elevator at both the street level entrance on Belvidere Street, and at the entrance on the corner of St. Cecilia and Scotia Streets.
For more information about Rachel Burckardt, visit woodharbormusic.net.
Choral Art Society
Fall Open Rehearsals
Tuesdays, September 12 and 20, 7 to 9 pm
First Trinitarian Congregational Church, 381 Country Way, Scituate
Admission to Open Rehearsals is free, membership details are available on site
Choral Art Society of the South Shore (CAS), a welcoming, non-auditioned community chorus, invites new singers to attend the first rehearsals of the fall season. Artistic Director and Conductor Danica A. Buckley welcomes returning members and newcomers of all skill levels to sing and learn about the winter concert program.
Choral Art Society’s Open Rehearsals welcome singers in all voice parts. While the chorus is a non-auditioned ensemble, singers will be assisted with voice part placement. Members are expected to match pitch, learn and consistently sing their voice part, and balance their voice with other singers. Rehearsals throughout the fall season are in preparation for a winter concert of energetic and peaceful seasonal music, along with excerpts from Vivaldi’s “Gloria” and Handel’s “Messiah,” plus a few familiar singalong tunes, to be held on Sunday, December 4, 4 pm, at a local venue TBA. The performance is accompanied by Ellyses Kuan, piano, Julie Reimann, cello, and trumpet.
Make your conducting dreams come true! Beginning in September, CAS hosts an online auction for bids to conduct the chorus and audience in “Hallelujah” from Handel’s “Messiah”, details TBA. This always popular “pop-up” part of the concert allows audience members to join the chorus on stage to sing along, if they wish. CAS provides scores to borrow.
CAS’s Covid policy will be updated before the fall rehearsal season begins, check the website or Facebook page for further information. To join Choral Art Society, or for more information, email Membership Director Mihoko at mihokodesu@gmail.com, visit choralartsociety.org, or follow Choral Art Society of the South Shore on Facebook.
Cape Cod Chamber Orchestra
CCCO on Main: Quiet City
Sunday, September 11, 3 pm
Pilgrim Congregational Church, 533 MA-28, Harwich Port
Tickets: $35 general admission, students and children are free
Join the CCCO strings and Founding Artistic Director and Conductor Matthew Scinto for the orchestra’s Season Five opening concert. “Quiet City” features a diverse program commemorating 9/11, with a nod to pandemic life. The concert highlights Kyle Spraker, principal trumpet of the Cape Symphony, and its very own Mary O’Keefe on English horn performing a program of works by Aaron Copland, Jessie Montgomery and Edward Elgar.
The concert’s title work, Copland’s “Quiet City”, began as music for the 1939 Irwin Shaw play by the same name. After a few unsuccessful performances, the work has lived on in the orchestral realm, set for trumpet, English horn, and strings. “It is music filled with nostalgia and an eagerness to return to a past life,” shares Scinto. “The main character of Shaw’s play is haunted by his abandoned aspirations to become an artist; it is easy to see the parallels for us to return to a sense of normalcy in our world today.”
Also on the program, Composer Jessie Montgomery’s first sketches of “Source Code” began as transcriptions of imagery from African American artists prominent during the peak of the Civil Rights era in the United States. Montgomery’s re-interpretation of gestures, sentences, and musical syntax are a nod to choreographer Alvin Ailey, poets Langston Hughes and Rita Dove and jazz songstress Ella Fitzgerald, resulting in a black spiritual that crosses the landscape.
Sandbar Chamber Series: Schubert’s Quintet
Sunday, November 20, 3 pm
Yarmouth New Church’s Thacher Hall, 266 Main St., Yarmouth Port
Tickets: $30 general admission, students and children are free
Cape Cod Chamber Orchestra kicks off its new chamber series with music for strings, conducted by Founding Artistic Director Matthew Scinto, featuring Franz Schubert’s masterful “Cello Quintet”, and music of Antonin Dvorak. Program details and tickets will be available September 1.
For the full Season Five schedule of seven performances, concert programs and tickets, visit capecodchamberorchestra.org, or call 508-432-1668. Tickets are also available at each venue door by cash or credit card. For more information, email info@capecodchamberorchestra.org, or follow Cape Cod Chamber Orchestra on Facebook and Instagram.
Pilgrim Festival Chorus
Open Rehearsals and Auditions
Mondays, September 12 and 19, 6:30 pm
Faith Community Church, 29 Carver Road, Plymouth
Attendance at auditions is free, membership information is available at rehearsal of on the PFC website
Pilgrim Festival Chorus (PFC), the region’s volunteer not-for-profit community choral ensemble, invites singers to “Open Rehearsals and Auditions” on Mondays, September 12 and 19, 6:30 pm, at Faith Community Church 29 Carver Road, Plymouth. Artistic Directors William B. Richter and Elizabeth Chapman Reilly welcome newcomers of all skill levels to learn about PFC and audition for vocal placement, if they wish. Rehearsals for the fall season from 7 to 9 pm immediately follow and continue weekly throughout the season. “Open Rehearsals and Auditions” are welcoming, casual and free to attend. Attendees enjoy singing with PFC the first two weeks without commitment. Membership information is available at rehearsal and at pilgrimfestivalchorus.org.
PFC’s rehearsal season prepares the ensemble for its holiday season concert “Joyeux Noël”, performing Saturday, December 3, 7:30 pm, and Sunday, December 4, 4 pm, at St. Bonaventure Parish, 803 State Road, Plymouth. The concert program features French music composed for Christmas, including Saint-Saens’ “Christmas Oratorio” and Charpentier’s “Messe de Minuit pour Noël” – a charming work incorporating ten traditional French noels (Christmas carols) that capture the joy and anticipation of Christmas Eve. Also on the program are French Christmas carols, including “Noël Nouvelet”, “Bring a Torch, Jeanette Isabella,” and “Angels We Have Heard on High”. The concert concludes with John Rutter’s moving setting of the classic carol, “O Holy Night”.
Since 1999, PFC has provided South Shore audiences with classical choral music concerts. More than 80 vocalists of all adult ages fill out the ensemble. In addition to the winter concert, PFC presents an annual Messiah Sing in December, a larger choral work in spring, and summer concerts featuring pops-style programming. PFC members are drawn from diverse skillsets and backgrounds – from hobby and choir singers to music educators and choir directors.
For more information about membership and auditions, call William Richter at 781-789-3343 or email director@pilgrimfestivalchorus.org. For more information about this season’s rehearsal schedule and repertoire, visit pilgrimfestivalchorus.org, email info@pilgrimfestivalchorus.org, or follow Pilgrim Festival Chorus on Facebook.
South Shore Ballet Theatre
Studio Open Houses
Monday, August 29 and Tuesday, August 30, 3 to 6 pm
South Shore Ballet Theatre, 45 Industrial Park Road, Hingham
Admission is free
South Shore Ballet Theatre (SSBT), the region’s pre-professional ballet school, hosts two “Open Houses” to explore fall auditions and programs. The events are open to the public and admission is free, welcoming both prospective and returning students and their families.
SSBT’s “Open House” offers something of interest to everyone who loves dance! Special events include auditions for several roles in SSBT’s annual treasured production of “The Nutcracker” and auditions for the Boys’ Ballet Scholarship program. Open ballet classes are offered for all dancers ages seven and up. Meet SSBT’s Artistic Director Marthavan McKeon and the school’s world class faculty while touring the beautiful facility’s studios and enjoying refreshments. Photographer Brooke Trisolini will be on site offering dancer photo mini sessions.
Open House Schedule of Events
Monday, August 29 and Tuesday, August 30
Faculty Meet and Greet, 3 to 6 pm (Studio 2)
Meet SSBT’s artistic director and faculty while enjoying refreshments
Boys’ Scholarship Auditions and Open Ballet Class, 4 to 5 pm (Studio 1)
Dancers arrive dressed for class: Girls – leotard, tights, ballet shoes; Boys – fitted shorts, plain t-shirt, ballet shoes or jazz shoes
Boys’ scholarships are merit based and are offered for the full year, no prior experience necessary
Nutcracker Community Dancers’ Auditions for SSBT’s The Nutcracker, 5 to 6 pm
All dancers ages 11 to 14 are welcome to audition
Open Ballet Classes, 4 to 5 pm (Studio 3)
Dancers of all skill levels ages 7 and up welcome
Photoshoot Mini Sessions, 4 to 5:30 pm
Book 15-minute photo sessions for your dancer with Photographer Brooke Trisolini
15-minute mini sessions deliver 5 fully edited images, $85 per dancer
20-minute mini sessions deliver 10 fully edited images, $100 per dancer
Dancers arrive in one outfit, (school uniform preferred), posed photos taken outdoors
To register for any of the Open House programs or auditions in advance, email ballet@southshoreballettheatre.com. For more information about South Shore Ballet Theatre, its programs, tuition, scholarships, and performances, visit SouthShoreBalletTheatre.com, call 781-312-7224, or follow South Shore Ballet Theatre on social media.
South Shore Ballet Theatre’s 2022-23 Programs
image by Abbey Knoll Photography
South Shore Ballet Theatre (SSBT), the region’s pre-professional ballet school, announces that registration is now open for its 2022-23 programs, welcoming both prospective and returning students. All SSBT programs begin the week of September 6. To learn more or register, visit southshoreballettheatre.com/programs.
Young Dancers Program, for ages 5 to 7
Levels: Pre-Ballet and Primary A
Structure: Classes are held in two 11-week sessions
SSBT’s Young Dancers Program introduces its youngest students to ballet training, establishing a lifelong love of dance. Curriculum is designed to aid in the development of coordination, musical and spatial awareness, and listening skills.
Classical Ballet Program, for ages 7 to 18
Levels: Elementary to Advanced 1
Structure: Class enrollment from September through June
The Classical Ballet Program is designed to offer strong ballet training for SSBT’s recreational students, using the same ABT National Training Curriculum as its Intensive Ballet Program. The program welcomes all students, regardless of prior experience, offering flexible schedules and the opportunity to participate in all SSBT enrichment classes as well as Winter and Spring Performing Groups. Students who demonstrate promise and choose to seek a more rigorous training experience may audition for the Intensive Ballet Program at the discretion of faculty.
Intensive Ballet Program, ages 7 to 18
Levels: Level 1i – Level 4i
Structure: Class enrollment from September through June
The Intensive Ballet Program is specifically designed to prepare students to advance to SSBT’s Pre-Professional Program. Participation is by invitation only. Pointe work is generally introduced at Level 4i at the discretion of SSBT faculty. Intensive Ballet Program students have the opportunity to enhance their ballet training with classical variations and repertoire, as well as enrichment classes in jazz, modern, Broadway repertoire, and conditioning. Students in the Intensive Ballet Program develop their performance skills at an advanced level by participating in both winter and spring Performing Group
Pre-Professional Program, ages 12 to 19
Levels: Level 5i-A through Pre-Professional 1
Structure: Class enrollment from September through June
SSBT is proud to offer the South Shore’s only pre-professional training program in classical ballet, a rigorous program designed to meet the needs of highly dedicated students who intend to pursue college-level conservatory training and/or careers in professional ballet. Participation is by invitation only. Classes include classical ballet, variations and repertoire supplemented with modern, choreography and conditioning. Individualized coaching and mentoring are important elements of this program, used to prepare the student for the prestigious Youth America Grand Prix (YAGP) competition. SSBT Pre-Professional students work with choreographers from all over the United States.
Boys/Men’s Program, ages 7 and up
This specialized training option provides SSBT’s male students with the opportunity to develop their technique with an emphasis on the requirements for male dancers. Boys/Men’s Program students receive instruction by male members of SSBT’s faculty. Classes are uniquely designed to meet the physical demands of men’s roles in the classical ballet repertoire.
For more information about South Shore Ballet Theatre’s programs, tuition, scholarships, auditions or performances email ballet@southshoreballettheatre.com, visit SouthShoreBalletTheatre.com, call 781-312-7224, or follow South Shore Ballet Theatre on social media.
Americana Theatre Company’s Studio Americana
Americana Theatre Company’s Studio Americana fall programs
Studio Americana offers 8-week performing arts classes beginning the week of September 12, held at Spire Center for Performing Arts, 25 ½ Court Street, Plymouth.
Emperor’s New Clothes – elementary students ages 5 to 12
Mondays and Wednesdays, 6 to 7 pm, $300 fee, Instructor Erin Friday
Acting 1 – students ages 10 to 13
Tuesdays, 6 to 7 pm, $200 fee, Instructor: TBD
Playwrighting Class – middle/high school students
Mondays and Wednesdays, 7 to 8 pm, $250 fee, Instructor Jesse Winton
Stage Combat – high school students
Thursdays, 6 to 7 pm, $200 fee, Instructor Derek Martin
College Prep and Audition Coaching – high school students
Tuesdays and Thursdays, 7 to 8 pm, $250 fee, Instructor Derek Martin
Private Performing Arts Lessons
All ages, fee: $40/30 min; $60/45 min; $70/60 min
Lessons in voice, dance, acting, piano, ukulele, recorder, flute, percussion, beginner violin, and music composition
Registration is available at americanatheatre.org/studio. Upon registration, families receive a detailed email with payment schedules, etc. For more information, contact Studio Americana’s Director of Education Erin Friday at erin@americanatheatre.org. Studio Americana’s fall program performance/production dates are TBA. For more Studio Americana information or to purchase tickets for Studio Americana or Americana Theatre Company productions, visit americanatheatre.org, or call 508-591-0282.
Hear My Song: A Cabaret Fundraiser
Sunday, October 2, 7 pm
Spire Center for Performing Arts, 25 ½ Court Street, Plymouth
Tickets: $15
“Hear My Song” features twelve Studio Americana students performing cabaret-style acts to support Studio Americana’s mission to develop talent, inspire creativity, and prepare students to activate their dreams through premiere training in theatre and musical theatre. For more Studio Americana information or to purchase tickets, visit americanatheatre.org/tickets.
The Music of Rodgers and Hammerstein Benefit Concert
Thursday, October 6, 7 pm, Saturday, October 8, 7 pm and Sunday October 9, 2 pm and 7 pm
Plymouth Center for the Arts, 11 North Street, Plymouth
Tickets: $35 for adults, $30 for students and seniors
Directed by Jesse M. Sullivan and Derek Grant Martin, with music direction by Sarah Troxler
“The Music of Rodgers and Hammerstein” musical theatre revue features ATC members and guest performing artists showcasing this spectacular musical duo’s most beloved works in one concert. The cast performs works from beloved shows including “The Sound of Music,” Oklahoma!,” “South Pacific,” and “Carousel”. Enjoy a classic “evening at the theatre,” inspiring the audience with a magically spun, professional-quality night of entertainment for all ages.
The performance features ATC company members and guests Derek Grant Martin, Jesse M. Sullivan, David Friday, Erin Friday, Kelly Ann Dunn, Kayla Johnston, Connor Northcutt and Jesse Winton.
Proceeds from the performance support ATC’s mission to raise funds for its expanding performance season and to fulfill its commitment to feature high-caliber, professional theatre artists in its acclaimed productions.
Tickets for “The Music of Rodgers and Hammerstein” are $35 for adults, $30 for students and seniors, available in advance at americanatheatre.org/tickets, or at the door, limited to capacity. Advance purchase is recommended. The box office opens one hour prior to performances. Plymouth Center for the Arts is fully accessible, free parking is available streetside and in nearby public parking lots. For more information, visit americanatheatre.org, email info@americanatheatre.org, call 508-591-0282, or follow Americana Theatre Company on Facebook and Instagram.
Concord Women’s Chorus
New Singer Auditions
Tuesday, September 6, 8:45 am, and Tuesday, October 25, 8:45 am
Trinity Episcopal Church, 81 Elm Street, Concord
Admission to audition is free, membership information is available on site
Concord Women’s Chorus (CWC), fostering the power of women’s voices in song, invites new singers to join its ensemble this fall. Artistic Director and Conductor Jane Ring Frank welcomes newcomers to audition, join rehearsal and learn more. Rehearsals continue Tuesday mornings, 9:30 to 12:00 noon, also at Trinity Episcopal Church throughout the 2022-23 season.
CWC welcomes singers with prior choral experience including good sight-reading skills, solid intonation and vocal quality, responsiveness to direction and the ability to blend within an ensemble. For auditions, prospective members may be asked to sight-read a short passage and/or sing a familiar tune, arriving with a prepared solo is not necessary. An information form is available to be printed in advance and brought to the audition at concordwomenschorus.org/wp/sing-with-us. Chorus members are expected to attend rehearsals and to participate in performing scheduled concerts. Since CWC values opportunities to collaborate and perform with other musical and cultural groups, additional commitments may become available during the season.
The ensemble rehearses in preparation for upcoming concerts, including “Grown Wild: A Special Commission Concert,” performing Sunday, October 23, 4 pm. The performance features a commissioned work by composer Melissa Dunphy based on the poem by CWC member singer and poet Melissa Apperson, and soloist Beth Welty, violin. Scored for women’s voices, violin and piano, the new work is written specifically for CWC’s distinctive sound. The program also features works of women composers from the nineteenth century to today.
The season continues with “Songs of Peace and Promise,” performing Saturday, December 17, 4 pm, offering a celebration of the wintry season of light in song, through familiar holiday tunes, poignant Chanukah pieces and a mash-up of mass movements. For the spring, the ensemble rehearses for the concert “Come Day, Come Night,” performing on Saturday, May 13, 2023, 4 pm, featuring a program of love songs to boat songs, exploring the joys of a life well-lived.
CWC is committed to the safety of all and requires that all singers present proof of full Covid-19 vaccination, leadership will request a copy of vaccination cards upon arrival. All participants are required to wear masks during rehearsals.
Grown Wild: A Special Commission Performance
Sunday, October 23, 4 pm
Trinity Episcopal Church, 81 Elm Street, Concord
Concord Women’s Chorus (CWC), fostering the power of women’s voices in song, premieres a special commission in “Grown Wild,” a choral concert, on Sunday, October 23, 4 pm at Trinity Episcopal Church, 81 Elm Street, Concord. The performance is conducted by Artistic Director Jane Ring Frank, with accompaniment by Alexander Lane, piano, featuring soloist Beth Welty, violin. A preconcert talk featuring Melissa Dunphy, composer and Melissa Apperson, poet and singer, precedes the performance at 3 pm, moderated by Jane Ring Frank.
“After a long and challenging road, it is joyful and exciting to bring the new commission ‘Grown Wild’ into musical being. Melissa Dunphy and Melissa Apperson have given the chorus a gift, and it is our privilege to rehearse and premiere this beautiful work,” shares Ring Frank.
“Grown Wild” features a commissioned work by composer Melissa Dunphy based on the poem of the same title by CWC member singer and poet Melissa Apperson. Scored for women’s voices, violin and piano, the new work is written specifically for CWC’s distinctive sound. This gorgeous and lush piece sits at the heart of a program featuring women composers, with works from the nineteenth century to today. Included on the program is music by Pauline Viardot, Cecile Chaminade, Rebecca Luengen, Cynthia Folio, Erna Woll, Emma Lou Diemer and more.
“It’s always a wonderful privilege to collaborate with a contemporary poet when creating music, and the opportunity to set Melissa Apperson’s poem was no exception. I was drawn to the poignant sense of both nostalgia and life-affirming anticipation in this piece and can’t wait to hear it sung live for the first time by the voices of Concord Women’s Chorus,” shares Dunphy.
Composer Melissa Dunphy specializes in political, vocal, and theatrical music. She first came to national attention when her large-scale work the Gonzales Cantata was featured in The Wall Street Journal, The Atlantic, National Review, Fox News, and on The Rachel Maddow Show, and was staged by American Opera Theater in a sold-out run. Other notable works include the song cycle “Tesla’s Pigeon,” which won first place in the NATS Art Song Composition Award, and choral work “What do you think I fought for at Omaha Beach?” which won the Simon Carrington Chamber Singers Competition and has been performed by ensembles including Chanticleer and Cantus. Dunphy is the recipient of a 2020 Opera America Discovery Grant for Alice Tierney, a new opera commission by Oberlin Conservatory set to premiere in 2023. She has been composer-in-residence for the Immaculata Symphony Orchestra, Volti, and the St. Louis Chamber Chorus. In addition to her concert and choral music, she is a Barrymore Award-nominated theater composer and sound designer and is Director of Music Composition for the O’Neill National Puppetry Conference. Dunphy has a Ph.D. in composition from the University of Pennsylvania and a B.M. from West Chester University.
CWC member/poet Melissa Apperson writes spare, lyrical poetry. Her work has been published in numerous literary journals. Apperson’s poems typically examine interiority and longing, bringing subjects such as human relationships, a sense of place, a sense of oneself, a specific object, or a moment at dusk into high relief. She particularly values emotion, mystery, and imagery in poetry. Many of her poems contain references to literature, and, on occasion, to societal and political concerns. Apperson has been a member of Concord Women’s Chorus for over 20 years and was involved in developing the texts for the chorus’s previous commissions. (Concord Fragments contains another of her poems.) She holds a B.A. in Music from Wellesley College and an Ed.M. from Harvard University. She studied poetry at Lesley University.
Audience members are required to provide ID and proof of full COVID-19 vaccination (including booster) and to wear a mask at all times.
Tickets to “Grown Wild” are $25 adults, $20 seniors and students, $5 children ages 12 and under, available at concordwomenschorus.org/wp/purchase-tickets and at the door. Trinity Episcopal Church is handicap accessible. For more information, performance details or to join Concord Women’s Chorus, email Chorus Manager Patsy Eickelberg at manager@concordwomenschorus.org, visit concordwomenschorus.org, or follow Concord Women’s Chorus on Facebook and Instagram.
Michelle McGrath PR | Media Relations has provided visibility for the arts and culture, non-profit, and small business sectors across the traditional, digital and social media landscape since 2010. mcgrathpr.com
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