“Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber
of Fleet Street”
October 10-26 at the Center for Performing Arts at Rhinebeck
Stephen Sondheim’s shockingly hilarious, multiple-Tony Award-winning musical about a 19th-century London barber and his pie-baking accomplice’s plan to exact revenge on the corrupt judge who destroyed his family and his life.
“Proof”
October 10-26 at Shadowland Stages in Ellenville
Written by David Auburn and directed here by Shadowland’s Brendan Burke, “Proof” is a Pulitzer Prize- and Tony Award-winning dark thriller of a play with comedic touches. Its story concerns a woman, Catherine, in the tangled aftermath of her mathematician father’s passing.
Hudson Valley Dance Festival
October 11 at Historic Catskill Point
The Hudson Valley Dance Festival returns October 11 to blend athleticism and artistry. From Jon Lehrer’s fusion of modern and jazz to Reed Luplau’s personal “A Single Man,” this 12th edition foregrounds choreographic intimacy—while raising funds for HIV/AIDS services through Broadway Cares.
Grapes of Laughs
October 11 at the Stissing Center in Pine Plains
“Pairing wine with comedians” is the tagline for this flavorsome, curated evening that has host Ophira Eisenberg (NPR, “The Moth”) bringing together comicsMichael Ian Black (Wet Hot American Summer, “The State,” “Stella”) and local favorites Rachel Lenihan and Jenny J Rubin.
A Woolen Affair
October 16-17 at Hutton Brickyard in Kingston
A fiber-and-music festival? How very Hudson Valley! “Expect fiber finds, live music, tasty food, and laid-back hangs with the best kind of crowd,” reads the description. The roots-acoustic acts include Bees in the Barn, Anna Egge, Pulso de Barro, Morgan O’Kane, and the Lucky 5.
FilmColumbia
October 17-26 at the Crandell Theatre in Chatham
Launched at the historic 1926 Crandell Theatre in 2000, this two-week festival of new film premieres has seen several of its past features go on to win or get nominated for Academy Awards. In addition to dozens of debuts, there are panels, workshops, and other components.
“The Thanksgiving Play”
October 17-26 at the Ghent Playhouse
Larissa FastHorse’s biting satire skewers well-meaning attempts at “woke” theater as four white educators try to devise a politically correct Thanksgiving pageant. With no Indigenous collaborators in sight, their brainstorm sessions spiral into absurdity, exposing the hypocrisies and blind spots of cultural representation. “The Thanksgiving Play” balances humor with sharp critique, making it both laugh-out-loud funny and deeply unsettling.
New York State Sheep and Wool Festival
October 18-19 at the Dutchess County Fairgrounds in Rhinebeck
A forever favorite, this acclaimed outdoor gathering of fiber-arts enthusiasts draws approximately 30,000 visitors and more than 300 vendors and has taken place since 1980. The fest features fiber-bearing livestock, demonstrations, tool and materials merchants, and more.
The Catskills Comedy Festival
October 18-20 at locations in Catskill
The weekend includes stand-up, alt-comedy, improv, vaudeville, panels, and comedy shorts—plus an art exhibit and family events. Featured acts include “SNL” alum Colin Quinn as well as comedy vets Dave Hill, Erin Jackson, and Eddie Brill. Youth-focused moments include a Kids Comedy Open Mic (ages 7–14) and On the Fly Story Slam showcasing young storytellers.
Ashley Gavin: “Hype Man”
October 24 at Assembly in Kingston
Comedian and social media star Ashley Gavin has appeared on Comedy Central and Netflix and at the prestigious Just for Laughs comedy festival in Montreal and hosts the uproarious hit podcast “We’re Having Gay Sex.” This month she brings her bawdy new show to the region.
“Swan Lake”
October 24 at the Bardavon in Poughkeepsie
Tchaikovsky’s immortal ballet pirouettes into Poughkeepsie for this production by the International Ballet Stars company. Dancers from Italy, France, Georgia, Great Britain, Ukraine, Japan, Moldova, Armenia, and Kyrgyzstan will dazzle amid the stage’s grand scenery pieces.
Spellbound in the Hudson Valley
October 24-25 at the MJN Center in Poughkeepsie
A gathering of the ghoulish and the gothic, Spellbound in the Valley convenes more than 100 authors, vendors, and tattooists steeped in horror, dark fantasy, and paranormal romance—a book fair where literary chills mingle with occult thrills and every page turn promises a little extra gooseflesh.
Woodstock Story Festival
October 24-26 at Mountain View Studio in Woodstock
Spanning three days and featuring 15 guest artists, this tale-packed international storytelling summit includes David Gonzalez, Maria Gillen, Dr. Lewis Mehl-Madrona, Laura Simms, Denise Manning Keyes Page, Matoaka Little Eagle, Sparrow, Doug O’Brien, and other orators.
Newburgh Fringe Festival
October 24-26 in Newburgh
Presented by housing and arts nonprofit Safe Harbors of the Hudson, this multi-venue performing arts festival encompasses live original theater featuring new plays and new takes on existing plays, short sketches, standup comedians, puppetry, musicians, dancers, clowns, and much more.
Rennie Harris Puremovement: “Nuttin’ but a Word”
October 25 at the Orpheum Performing Arts Center in Tannersville
Founded in 1992 by its namesake artistic director and choreographer, Rennie Harris Puremovement hip-hop troupe is one of America’s leading street dance theater companies. The group brings its suite of new urban works to the Catskill Mountains for this top-flight night.
Borscht Belt Film Fest
October 31-November 2 in Ellenville
Sponsored by the Borscht Belt Museum, this festival mirrors that of the museum: to honor “the legacy of the Catskills resort era, and celebrate its history as a refuge from bigotry, the cradle of stand-up comedy and a cultural catalyst that changed America.” See website for film schedule.
Beacon Bonfire
November 5-9 in Beacon
Here’s a festival that carries the torches of art, music, and performance across 14 cool venues in the highly cultured small city that bears its name. More than 50 artists will perform at the four-day happening, which includes food, beverages, family fun, vendors, and extended shop hours.
“Follies”
November 7-23 at Phillipstown Depot Theater in Garrison
Past and present collide in “Follies,” Stephen Sondheim’s elegiac portrait of fading glamour and fractured dreams. Directed by John Christian Plummer and starring Lisa Sabin and Maia Guest, the musical follows former showgirls confronting lost loves and choices made—memory rendered in wit, melancholy, and glittering, ghostly song.
Jimmy Carr: “Laughs Funny”
November 8 at Tarrytown Music Hall in Tarrytown
British comedian Jimmy Carr is the host of BBC Channel 4’s “8 Out of 10 Cats,” “8 Out of 10 Cats Does Countdown,” “Big Fat Quiz of the Year,” and “I Literally Just Told You.” True to the title of his newest tour, Carr will bring hearty guffaws to the area for this side-splitting night.
“On Golden Pond”
November 13-23 at the Bridge Street Theater in Catskill
Just in time for the Thanksgiving season this stage adaptation of writer Ernest Tompson’s beloved, heartwarming 1981 film starring Henry Fonda, Katherine Hepburn, and Jane Fonda comes to the intrepid Greene County theater. A good one to bring Mom and Dad to see.
Jurassic Park with The Orchestra Now
November 15-16 at the Richard B. Fisher Center for the Performing Arts in Annandale-on-Hudson
For this HD presentation of Steven Spielberg’s 1993 science fiction classic to benefit Bard College’s The Orchestra Now, the orchestra, conducted by James Bagwell, will perform John Williams’s iconic score live alongside the visually stunning film in the facility’s Sosnoff Theater.
This article appears in October 2025.
