Josh Gondelman and Alison Leiby | April 1 at Colony in Woodstock
Two New York City stand-ups take up the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune (and possible hecklers) in Woodstock this month. Josh Gondelman is the executive producer of Showtime’s late-night comedy series “Desus & Mero” and is a frequent guest on NPR’s “Wait Wait Don’t Tell Me.” He’s also bagged four Emmys and two Peabodys for his work on “Last Week Tonight with John Oliver.” Alison Leiby executive produced and appeared in Ilana Glazer’s Comedy Central show, “Comedy on Earth.” Previously, Leiby wrote for “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel.” She is currently developing her critically acclaimed solo show “Oh God, An Hour About Abortion.” around New York City. Colonywoodstock.com
Club D’Elf featuring John Medeski | April 1
The Boston-based musical collective known as Club D’Elf conjures up a bubbling cauldron that churns with jazz, dub, Moroccan trance music, hip hop, electronica, avant-garde, Afrobeat, and prog rock. Led by bass and sinter (Moroccan three-string oud) player Mike Rivard and augmented by oud player Brahim Fribgane and a changeable cast of other deep musicians, the group will set the atmosphere at Levon Helm Studios alight with this date to promote their new album, You Never Know. Sitting in with them will be local keyboard king John Medeski of Medeski, Martin & Wood. (Moly Tuttle and Golden Highway drive in April 7; Puss N Boots pop by April 21.) 7:30pm. $30, $45. Woodstock. Levonhelm.com
“Let It Shine: A Tribute to Martin Luther King, Jr.” | April 2 at the Rosendale Theater
On April 4, 1968, Dr. King was felled by an assassin’s bullet. His timeless message, “if I can help somebody along the way, then my living will not be in vain,” continues to resonate today. “Let it Shine!” pays tribute to King’s legacy with an all-star lineup: Oliver King as MLK; interpretive dancers Keely Wright with the Hudson Valley Conservatory Dancers; vocalists Miss Rene Bailey, Franklyn Gillis, the Gold Hope Duo featuring Lara Hope, and Marlene Merritt. Special guests include drummer/storyteller Ubaka Hill, bassist Robert Kopec, Rev. Nick (Tecumseh Red Cloud) Miles, Kitt Potter, and Redwing Blackbird Theater. The event will conclude with a screening of John Lewis: Good Trouble. Rosendaletheatre.org
“Into the Breeches” | April 2-10 at the Center for Performing Arts at Rhinebeck
Christine Crawfis directs this production of George Brant’s comedy at Center for Performing Arts. It’s 1942 in Rhinebeck, and all of the men are at war. But with an ambitious season of Shakespeare’s “Henry IV, Parts 1 and 2,” and “Henry V” on the horizon, how could the show possibly go on? Enter a group of wildly determined and passionate—albeit inexperienced—women who are determined to make sure the plays go on.
Shovels & Rope | April 4
South Carolina Americana duo Shovels & Rope (husband and wife Michael Trent and Cary Ann Hearst) had composed the music on Manticore, their sixth and newest album of original songs, before the coming of the COVID lockdown. Perhaps unsurprisingly, during the process of recording it, the quarantine ended up shaping the sound of the new record dramatically; Manticore is a moodier and more minimal affair than its 2019 predecessor, the comparatively louder and bigger By Blood. Currently on the road to get their newer—and older—songs out into the world, the twosome does this overdue date at the Egg. Jeremie Albino will open. (The Milk Carton Kids pick and sing April 8; Amos Lee ambles in April 18.) 7:30pm. $34. Albany. Theegg.org
Big Read Hudson Valley: The House on Mango Street | April 6-30
This focal point of this year’s community group read is Sandra Cisneros’s landmark story collection The House on Mango Street, which relates the coming-of-age of Esperanza Cordero, who finds her own voice and overcomes the impediments of poverty, gender, and her Chicana-American heritage. The Big Read kick-off event at Bard College’s Fisher Center on April 6 features Cisneros in conversation with Mariel Fiori and Dinaw Mengestu. Dozens of related events are planned across the region.
Hasan Minhaj | April 8 at UPAC in Kingston
Hasan Minhaj exploded onto the comedy scene with his work on “The Daily Show” in 2014. His first solo show, “Patriot Act with Hasan Minhaj,” premiered on Netflix in October 2018, exploring the modern cultural and political landscape with depth and sincerity through his distinctive comedic voice. The show received a 2019 Peabody Award, a 2019 Primetime Emmy Award for “Outstanding Motion Design,” and was recognized for a 2020 Television Academy Honor. Minhaj returns to his stand-up roots with “The King’s Jester” tour. Bardavon.org
Bettye LaVette | April 9
How could you pass up a night with a soul and R&B legend? The Detroit diva debuted at age 16 with the 1962 single “My Man—He’s a Lovin’ Man,” which became a Top 10 hit on the R&B charts. Tours with Otis Redding, Ben E. King, Clyde McPhatter, and others followed, as well as a stint on Motown; a six-year run alongside Cab Calloway in Broadway’s “Bubbling Brown Sugar”; and a string of career-renaissance albums that includes 2005’s I’ve Got My Own Hell to Raise, 2007’s The Scene of the Crime (with Drive-By Truckers), and 2010’s Interpretations: The British Rock Songbook. Here, she pays a not-to-be-missed visit to the Bearsville Theater. (The Greyboy Allstars funk out April 6; Melvin Seals & JBG jam April 28.) 8pm. $29-$54. Bearsville. Bearsvilletheater.comMamadou Diabate | April 9
Malian master musician Mamadou Diabate is one of the foremost exponents of the West African balafon, as well as the cousin of another well-known virtuoso, kora player Toumani Diabate. Mamadou, who settled in the US in 1996, has toured and recorded extensively and performed with jazz and blues greats like Donald Byrd, Randy Weston, and Guy Davis. For this engagement at Mass MoCA, the griot and bandleader arrives with his Percussion Mania ensemble, which crosses traditional West African storytelling rhythms and elements of Western rock for a truly torrid live experience. (Lucius gets luscious April 28; Supaman soars April 30.) 8pm. $16, $22. North Adams, Massachusetts. Massmoca.org
“TRACES/fades” | April 10 at the Stissing Center in Pine Plains
Writer and performer Lenora Champagne brings her intergenerational play about a middle-aged woman caught between caring for her daughter and her aging mother to the Stissing Center, part of the center’s Local Produce Readers’ Theater, which features plays written and performed by community members. Thestissingcenter.org
Ballister/Joe McPhee | April 13
Like the medieval weapon for which they’re named, the free jazz trio Ballister—saxophonist Dave Rempis, local cellist Fred Lonberg-Holm, and Norwegian drummer PNL—packs a wallop. On Znachki Stilyag, their 2020 debut album, the three bring their “big ears” and draw on their collective musical experience to create probing and explosive sounds imbued with barely bearable tension, telekinetic communication, and cathartic release. Starting this evening at Tubby’s with a solo set is the Hudson Valley’s one and only Joe McPhee, an international out-jazz legend who turns 83 this year (we’re hoping he’ll join Ballister on stage for an unhinged blowout). (Container, Pop. 1280, and BloodX get dark April 19; Enablers merge music and spoken word April 26.) 7pm. $10. Kingston. Tubbyskingston.com
Yonder Mountain String Band | April 28
Jam-grassers Yonder Mountain String Band make their way back to the region for a performance at the Bardavon. The hard-touring Colorado quintet combines bluegrass with rock, jazz, and progressive improvisational sounds and topped the bluegrass charts with their eponymously titled fourth studio album in 2006. As their series of live Mountain Tracks albums shows, it’s on stage where YMSB shines brightest, so lovers of dazzling fretwork, keening high harmonies, and exploratory instrumental flights should line up for this one. (The Hudson Valley Philharmonic’s 49th String Competition streams April 10; guest conductor Kelly Corcoran leads the Hudson Valley Philharmonic April 23.) 8pm. $39-$49. Poughkeepsie. Bardavon.org
The Chancellor’s Sheep & Wool Showcase 2022 | April 30 at Clermont State Historic Site in Germantown
The Chancellor’s Sheep & Wool Showcase is a family festival that celebrates historic fiber arts, culture, and craft. There’s a shopping concourse featuring over 30 skilled artisans and local craftspeople and over two dozen local vendors, selling brilliantly colored yarns, roving, and hand-woven scarves. Craft guilds will demonstrate spinning and weaving throughout the day. Herding and sheep shearing—using three different historic techniques—form the centerpiece of the action. 11am-4pm Friendsofclermont.org
Findings: Rare Plants and Garden Antiquities | April 30 and May 1 at Stone Ridge Orchard
The 2nd annual spring Findings is a market of specialized growers, boutique nurseries, antique dealers, and local makers from the Catskills, Hudson Valley, and beyond offering plants, garden antiquities, and handcrafted and farm fresh goods for sale. Stone Ridge Orchard is a 200-year-old historic working farm on 115 acres in the heart of the Rondout Valley. Stoneridgeorchard.com
