November is here, and Jack Frost is nipping around. But these local events are sure to warm you up.
Video Artist Charles Atlas Visits Vassar | November 11
Charles Atlas has been a pioneering figure in film and video for over four decades. Atlas has extended the limits of his medium, forging new territory in a far-reaching range of genres, stylistic approaches, and techniques. Throughout his production, the artist has consistently fostered collaborative relationships, working intimately with such artists and performers as Leigh Bowery, Michael Clark, Douglas Dunn, Marina Abramovic, Yvonne Rainer, Mika Tajima/New Humans, Antony and the Johnsons, and, most notably Merce Cunningham, for whom he served as in-house videographer for a decade from the early 1970s through 1983. Atlas will speak about his storied career on November 11 at 6pm in room 203 of Vassar College’s Taylor Hall in Poughkeepsie. See website for more information.
Pilobolus 50th Anniversary Show at the Egg | November 13
It’s enough to make any modern dance fan jump for joy. In the wake of the waning lockdown, famed and influential dance company Pilobolus is celebrating its 50th year with the Big Five-Oh! tour, a jaunt that brings the troupe to the Egg this month. Founded in 1971 and based in Connecticut’s Litchfield County, Pilobolus has performed more than 100 choreographed works in venues around the world and appeared at the 79th Academy Awards ceremony as well as network TV. The group is well known for its dazzling and innovative shadow performances, which are the high point of the anniversary tour program. The Pilobolus Big Five-Oh! tour will be at the Egg in Albany on November 12 at 8pm. Tickets are $36.
“Sound Mirror” Art Exhibit in Newburgh |
November 13
Artist Audra Wolowiec has given herself an impossible task: to describe sound in visual terms. All of her work attempts to make the invisible visible. Her show “Sound Mirror” will be at Visitor Center gallery in Newburgh until November 26. Wolowiec’s “waveform” images are loosely based on photographs taken by Berenice Abbott for science textbooks from 1958 to 1960, using a ripple tank to demonstrate principles of waves: refraction, reflection, interference, etc. Wolowiec makes her own paper and reproduces wave patterns by creating images with paper pulp. “It’s almost like painting with paper,” she explains. All the “waveform” works are black and white, but some of the paper is made with abaca, a species of banana plant that gives a warmer, slightly yellower tint. See website for hours and information.
Flaming Lips Ready to Light Up Albany | November 13
If you were a follower of the Oklahoman musical psychonauts during their early tours, in the latter half of the 1980s, when they were eating dirt, sleeping on floors, and grinding away at the road from the back of a dust-caked van, their rise to the hit-making big time might still be a little mind blowing to you. But here they are, regularly appearing on TV, winning Grammys, placing songs in “SpongeBob SquarePants: The Broadway Musical,” collaborating with Miley Cyrus, and headlining huge halls—like the Palace Theater in Albany, to which they pay a visit on November 13 at 7:30pm for the US wing of their current American Head tour. Particle Kid will open.
Paola Barri Art in Montgomery | through January 2
Paola Bari is showing a series of her painted porcelain works at the Wallkill River School of Art in Montgomery now through January 2. Paola learned to love ceramics as a young girl in Italy and traveled all over the world to learn different techniques. Paola’s work is exquisite. Each piece is lush in detail, color, and texture. They are small precious worlds unto themselves. About her own work, Bari comments, “My paintings are whimsical, and my inspiration comes from what is surrounding us in everyday life.” See website for gallery hours and details.
Gil Shaham and Julia Perry Concert at Bard College | November 13-14
This two-night stand at Bard College’s Fisher Center in Annandale-on-Hudson has celebrated violinist and Bard Conservatory of Music faculty member Gil Shaham joining The Orchestra Now for the world premiere of “Birds of America,” a bespoke new piece composed by the award-winning Scott Wheeler. Also set to be performed are Julia Perry’s arresting “Stabat Mater” for solo contralto and string orchestra, which contains moments of dissonance but remains within the tonal-music tradition, and George Bristow’s rarely played Arcadian Symphony No. 4. (“Songs from the Real World: The French Cabaret” is served November 6; Thomas Wilkins conducts the Bard Conservatory Orchestra December 4.) The concerts take place on November 13 at 8pm and November 14 at 2pm. Tickets are $25-$40.
“Long Day’s Journey into Night” in Catskill |
through November 21
Eugene O’Neill’s masterpiece “Long Day’s Journey into Night” has come to Catskill’s Bridge Street Theatre for eight performances through November 21, Thursdays through Sundays, in the theater’s intimate, 84-seat main-stage space. For the production, says director John Sowle, “We’ve hired local sculptor Marc Swanson, who has a major exhibition coming to MASS MoCA early next year, to create our sets. We’ve commissioned an original piano score from renowned jazz and orchestral composer Justin Morell. And we’ve assembled an absolutely phenomenal cast who are giving their all to do justice to this amazing mountain of a script.” For tickets, show times, health protocols, and more, visit the theater’s website.
Ian Hendrickson-Smith at the Falcon | November 13
With his flat cap and sharp suit, saxophonist and flutist Ian Hendrickson-Smith, a long-time member of funk ensemble the Roots, is a familiar sight to viewers of “The Tonight Show starring Jimmy Fallon.” But outside of that gig, the New York-based musician has long been a steady force on the jazz, soul, and rock scenes, working with Sharon Jones and the Dap-Kings, Amy Winehouse, Bob Dylan, Al Green, Phish, Celine Dion, Lady Gaga, St. Vincent, and others, as well as leading and recording with his own bands. His 2020 album The Lowdown even rose to number 7 on the national jazz charts. Hendrickson-Smith hits the Falcon in Marlboro on November 13 at 7pm. Donation requested. Reservations are recommended.
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This article appears in November 2021.
