MARK AUERBACH
Leaving Our Mark: In Celebration of the Pencil
From the Stone Age through present times, drawing with graphite has been fundamental to an artist’s training. The smooth, erasable material allows for multiple attempts at sketching, permitting artists the opportunity to improve their skills. Painters often begin a new work by drawing, working out compositions and values before committing them to canvas. For these reasons, many experts believe that illustrations represent the majority of artwork in existence today.
The versatility of this ancient medium will be explored in Leaving Our Mark: In Celebration of the Pencil, on display through March 27, 2016 at the Michele and Donald D’Amour Museum of Fine Arts in Springfield.
Hanging Heart by Dalton Ghetti in graphite & wood at the Springfield Museums. (Photo: Sloan Howard, STHPhotography)
The exhibit features a diverse body of contemporary work that includes abstract and representational drawings by East Coast artists, including many based in western Massachusetts.
Two complementary exhibits in the D’Amour Museum of Fine Arts will also be on display. It’s Sketchy: Secrets from the Artist’s Notebook (through March 20) features artist sketchbooks and drawings from the permanent collection, and Leave Your Mark: Community Drawing Wall (through March 27) presents visitors with the rare opportunity to create and leave their own artwork on museum walls.
For details: 413-263-6800 or www.springfieldmuseums.org.
Matthew Wilkas in TheaterWorks Christmas on the Rocks
Christmas on The Rocks
Christmas on the Rocks is Hartford’s TheaterWorks new holiday tradition, an off-beat collection of twisted holiday tales (November 27-December 23). It’s Christmas Eve in a rundown local bar. Expecting a silent night, the bartender finds himself mixing drinks for a parade of surprising guests – children from your favorite Christmas specials and movies – now all grown up! Tiny Tim, Charlie Brown, Cindy Lou Who and a host of others pour out their Christmas woes in this delightful parody.
The contributing playwrights include: John Cariani (author of Almost Maine, currently starring on Broadway in Something Rotten), Jeffrey Hatcher, Jacques Lamarre, Matthew Lombardo, Theresa Rebeck, Edwin Sanchez and Jonathan Tolins (author of the hilarious Buyer and Cellar, which plays TheaterWorks in the New Year.). The cast includes: Jenn Harris, Ronn Carroll, and Matt Wilkas. Wilkas and Harris recently co-starred in this hit indie film Gayby. The show is conceived and directed by Rob Ruggiero, TheaterWorks Artistic Director who staged the Goodspeed Musicals production of La Cage Aux Folles last summer.. For details: 860.527.7838 or http://theaterworkshartford.org/
Cherish The Ladies
Opportunities
The UMass Amherst Arts Extension Service (AES) will be presenting two of their acclaimed Artist-in-Business Trainings in the Pioneer Valley, in Greenfield on January 9-10 and in Easthampton on March 19-20. Early-bird registration deadline is December 18 for the Greenfield program and March 1 for the Easthampton program. Artist-in-Business Trainings are open to artists of all disciplines – visual artists, artisans, film makers, writers, composers, musicians, and performers – whether their businesses are new or already established. In the Artist-in-Business Trainings, artists learn to apply best business and marketing practices to their own businesses. For details: 413-545-2360 or www.umass.edu/aes.
New England Public Radio is accepting nominations for the 2016 New England Public Radio Arts & Humanities Awards. Now in its ninth year, the award recognizes those who have made a positive impact on the arts and humanities and brings awareness to the critical role played by musicians, artists, dancers, writers, teachers and cultural institutions in western New England. Awards are divided into three nomination categories: Outstanding Organization, Outstanding Individual and Emerging Talent. All nominations must be received by January 12, 2016. For steails. www.nepr.net.
Keep in Mind…
A Christmas Carol, Hartford Stage’s lavish production of Charles Dickens’ classic adapted and directed by former Artistic Director Michael Wilson, and staged by Maxwell Williams (to December 27) is the “must see” of any holiday season. It has lots of special effects, and a large cast, and the end result is spectacle. (For my Westfield News review of last year’s production: https://thewestfieldnews.com/christmas-carol-ghost-story-christmas-brings-holiday-spirits-hartford-stage) For details: Hartford Stage: www.hartfordstage.org
The Hartford Gay Men’s Chorus will perform its annual holiday concert, Home for the Holidays, on December 4-5, 2015 at the Aetna Theater at The Wadsworth Atheneum Museum of Art in Hartford. The concert features yuletide classics such as “We Need a Little Christmas,” “Rocking Around the Christmas Tree,” “Please Come Home for Christmas,” “Feliz Navidad,” and “Home for the Holidays.” The concert marks the debut of Artistic Director Michael Winslow. Tickets are aailable through Hartford Stage at 860- 527-5151 or https://tickets.hartfordstage.org/public/.
Cherish The Ladies brings their Celtic Christmas concert to the UMass Fine Arts Center Concert Hall on December 10. Their program features arrangements of “O Come All Ye Faithful” and “Silent Night” featuring the group’s unique Celtic instrumentation and beautiful harmonies. The program is complete with traditional Irish step dancers.For details: 413-545-2511, 800-999-UMASS, or www.www.fineartscenter.com
Passing Strange, the musical by Stew and Heidi Rodewald, the story of an African American musician’s journey through Amsterdam, Berlin, and beyond, gets an area premiere at Playhouse on Park in West Hartford through December 20. Stew picked up a Tony Award for his script. Sean Harris directs. Carlene Zoller choreographs. For details: 860-523-5900 x10 or www.playhouseonpark.org
Mark G. Auerbach studied theatre at American University and the Yale School of Drama. He’s worked for arts organizations and reported on theatre for newspapers and radio.
