This Friday, April 5, John A. Coleman Catholic High School will open their production of Matilda, a musical based on the novel by Roald Dahl. The production is directed by Lisë Hopson, the longtime Coleman theater director and choreographer who came out of retirement to tackle the musical.
Sunday, Apr. 7: Back in 1954, when Reginald Rose wrote this classic courtroom drama, the title was meant to be taken literally: Women were not allowed to serve on juries in many US states. From April 5 to 8 this year, schools, community centers, universities and regional theaters all across America are going to be staging all-female performances of the play with the aim of increasing voter registration and empowering women as participants in local, state and national politics.
Julianne Moore (shown above with SUNY-New Paltz graduate John Turturro) found herself blown away by Chilean director Sebastián Lelio’s much-awarded 2013 film Gloria, and in particular by Paulina García’s terrific performance in the title role of a long-divorced woman putting a toe back in the dating waters. It was a part that Moore wished she could have played herself. So she did something audacious: called Lelio up and asked him to do an English-language remake of the movie, set in the US, with Moore herself playing Gloria.
Saturday, Apr. 6: Described by The New York Times as “a kind of miracle,” Taylor 2 is the small dance ensemble founded by the legendary American choreographer Paul Taylor, who died in 2018 after a historic career at the center of modern dance.
Friday, Apr. 5: Inspired by “Benshi,” the Japanese performers who provided live narration and cultural translation for audiences in the silent film era, Neo-Benshi artists take scenes from popular film or television and replace the sound with their own live spoken works. The result is a new kind of multimedia happening that has taken the experimental performance art world by storm.
Saturday, Apr. 6: Performers include the Ellen Sinopoli Dance Company, Energy Dance Company, Nai-Ni Chen Dance Company, Neville Dance Theater, Silver Screen Ballroom Ballet Hartford, Ulster Ballet Company and Justin Valentine & Jillian Schubert.
Friday, Apr. 5: When the dust clears from the still-raging oral history/memoir/spoken-word renaissance, David Sedaris may well stand as the one to credit or to blame for the whole damn thing.
The cast of Us does a terrific job with the challenge of bringing to life both the core characters and the doubles who threaten them.
In the 1985 film, Back to the Future, Michael J. Fox’s character, Marty McFly, travelled through time back to the ‘50s in a souped-up DeLorean converted into a time machine. But no such device will be necessary for modern-day Hudson Valley-ites who wish to go back to the ‘80s for a night: all one needs is a ticket to the 90 Miles Theatre Company’s next themed cabaret, “Back to the ‘80s,” on Saturday, March 30 at Boughton Place, 150 Kisor Road in Highland.
Saturday, May 4: Best friends since the first grade, Rhett & Link are a comedic duo known for hosting the most-watched daily show on the Internet, Good Mythical Morning. Their narrative series Rhett & Link’s Buddy System and the award-winning weekly podcast Ear Biscuits, as well as their wildly popular comedic songs, sketches and low-budget local commercials, have established the pair as viral superstars of the new model.