Archive: Arts & Entertainment

On May 23, 2020, the Hangar Theatre Company, in partnership with its Partner In The Arts, Ithaca College, successfully executed their first virtual Mainstage production, The Skin of Our Teeth by Thornton Wilder. New to the Hangar Theatre Company team, Assistant Professor Chrissy Guest and alumna Griffin Schultz of Ithaca College served as video producers to make this project and the summer season a success.

The Hangar began exploring virtual alternatives in March, when in-person gatherings seemed less likely due to safety precautions surrounding COVID-19. Hangar Production Manager Adam Zonder is celebrating his 25th summer season with the Hangar, but virtual productions were new to him. Zonder reached out to Chrissy Guest for advice on running an entirely virtual production, and a collaborative partnership quickly formed. Chrissy brought on Griffin Schultz to assist her with livestream implementation and planning in this exciting virtual transition of live theatre.

The Hangar Theatre Company announced Wednesday its summer theatre series for young audiences. KIDDSTUFF will be presented from June 13 to July 25, 2020. All will be presented live and virtually. Each show will be directed by Hangar Drama League Directing Fellow alumni, and performed by the 2020 Virtual Lab Company, a troupe of rising artists from across the nation. Each show will be streamed via YouTube, but will be recorded for later viewings and are free to anyone!

Shirley Serotsky, Hangar Associate Artistic Director and Education Director, states. "While we, like most theatre-makers, cherish the experience of creating together in a shared space, the health and safety of our community (and beyond) is our highest priority." The Hangar Theatre made the decision to create these free productions to further its education mission and make the arts accessible to all.

WCNY, Central New York’s public broadcaster, in partnership with Oasis and Geddes Federal Savings, will host a Virtual Screening and Discussion of the new “American Masters” documentary, “Toni Morrison: The Pieces I Am,” from 4–5:30 p.m. Tuesday, June 16 online.

“Toni Morrison: The Pieces I Am” is an artful and intimate portrait of the legendary storyteller and Nobel Laurette. The film examines Morrison’s life, the powerful themes that inspired her literary career, and her impact on American culture and society.

Evergreen, the third single in kurt.riley+praxis' futuristic Chrome Empire phase, connects Riley's sci-fi vision of the decades to come with the present day in a way the artist could not have predicted.

Written in July 2018, Evergreen was slated for release in the spring of 2020. As production was underway, the COVID-19 pandemic changed the world overnight - and gave new relevance to the song's content, which describes a dystopian world where food is scarce on store shelves, and individuals must don face masks while outdoors for their safety. Riley shot the music video in isolation, working remotely with his bandmates and New Vine Records to complete the audio from his home studio.

From May through August, the Hangar Theatre Company will offer five unique artistic virtual experiences as its 2020 Mainstage season. These new virtual productions, chosen for these times of change and transformation, include The Skin of Our Teeth, by Pulitzer Prize-winner and Our Town playwright Thornton Wilder; Uncommon Excerpts and Others, an evening of scenes and essays by Wendy Wasserstein; and a sneak peek at Queens Girl In The World (slated for the 2021 season).

This week the hangar announced the remaining two titles: Honk Your Horn: Celebrate! Musical! Theatre!; and Sense and Sensibility.

A very special Bob Dylan Birthday Salute Celebration concert will be livestreamd by The State Theatre of Ithaca and DSP Shows. The free, online event will feature performances by over a dozen different artists and will stream at 8:00 PM on Sunday, May 24th, simultaneously on The State Theatre of Ithaca's Facebook page as well as their YouTube channel.

Born May 24th 1941, Bob Dylan signed his first recording contract in 1961, and emerged as one of the most original and influential voices in the history of American popular music. The legendary singer-songwriter has received Grammy, Academy and Golden Globe awards, as well as the Presidential Medal of Freedom and the Nobel Prize for Literature. Since the late 1980s, Bob Dylan has toured consistently, playing over 3000 concerts during the last 20 years. His influence on contemporary culture is profound, and he is the object of a steady stream of literary and musical analysis.

The Hangar Theatre Company opens its 46th summer season (and first ever virtual season), with a reading of The Skin of Our Teeth by Thornton Wilder on Saturday, May 23rd. The cast consists of over 20 artists who live in the Ithaca area, or who have appeared in a Hangar Mainstage production. The Skin of Our Teeth is a one-time, live virtual performance that viewers can enjoy from their homes.

Thornton Wilder's 1942 play The Skin of Our Teeth is a wildly theatrical piece about the history of mankind told through the story of one family, the Antrobuses. While living a seemingly normal life in early-20th century New Jersey, the Antrobuses narrowly escape the catastrophic events of an Ice Age, a Great Flood, and finally, a devastating war. Meet George and Maggie Antrobus (married only 5,000 years); their two children, Gladys and Henry (perfect in every way!); and their maid, Sabina (the ageless vamp) as they overcome ice, flood, and war — by the skin of their teeth. The cast also includes dinosaurs, a fortune teller, Moses, Plato, and a corp of volunteer ushers.

WCNY-TV, in partnership with Symphoria, will broadcast a two-hour concert, performed live from the TV Studios at the Robert J. Daino Broadcast and Education Center, from 8 to 10 p.m., May 9.  The concert will provide viewers and listeners with an evening of comfort, hope, and joy in these challenging times. Diane Jones and Bruce Paulsen of Classic FM will host the concert, which will feature solos, duets, and a special ensemble piece, 'Living Room Music'.

"We are excited to present this two-hour live Symphoria concert to our viewers, listeners, and communities across Central New York's 19 counties and beyond," said Mitch Gelman, WCNY President & CEO. "We hope the evening featuring soloists and duets will provide those at home with comfort, hope, and joy."

After careful consideration of the continued impact of COVID-19, the Hangar Theatre has made the decision to replace all of our live artistic programming this summer with new, virtual experiences. Theatre officials say they believe that this is the only responsible decision because of the safety issues we are all facing as a community and nation. They look forward to seeing how this crisis will lead to innovation, and how we will be able to continue serving the community and carrying out their mission.

From May through August, the Hangar will offer five unique artistic virtual experiences as our 2020 Mainstage season. These new, virtual experiences, chosen for these times of change, include: a reading of The Skin of Our Teeth, by Pulitzer Prize winner and Our Town playwright Thornton Wilder; Uncommon Excerpts and Others, an evening of scenes and essays by Wendy Wasserstein; a sneak peek at Queens Girl In The World by Caleen Sinnette Jennings (which they hope to bring to the stage in 2021), and two other exciting events to be announced

Festival 24, the semiannual student-run theatre festival from the Cornell University Department of Performing and Media Arts, is launching online under a new title, Festival 24.0. The Festival, which is normally held at the beginning of each semester, will happen on Saturday, May 9, at 8:00 p.m. ET via Zoom to provide a performance opportunity for students while in-person theatre events are suspended.

Festival 24.0 takes place over the course of twenty-four hours from the initial company meeting to the performance on Saturday, May 9. For twelve hours overnight, playwrights will compose three short plays to be rehearsed and performed the following day. From Saturday morning until the performance that evening, directors are in charge of leading rehearsals with actors to get these new plays performance-ready.

The Fine Arts Booster Group (FABG), an affiliate of IPEI, has awarded $2,000 in support of a new district distance learning initiative in the arts during this time of COVID 19 extended school closures.

The Director of Fine and Performing Arts Daphne Shululu notes, "Through a digital time capsule, music work will be captured and shared during the district's distance learning 2.0, enabling virtual musical ensemble performances."



In response to the cancellation of all our live seasons, the Cherry Artists' Collective announces a brand-new work of international streaming theater: FELT SAD, POSTED A FROG (and other streams of global quarantine). This new work has been created specifically for live-streamed performance in a collaboration with six theater writers from around the world. With humor, pathos and poetry, FELT SAD, POSTED A FROG explores interactions and relationships as they play out on global screens in a time of danger.

Within the greatest isolation many of us have ever known, it is strange to reflect that the world is in some ways more unified than it has ever been, with people in vastly different places living versions of the same circumstance. FELT SAD, POSTED A FROG reflects the shared and differing experiences of this strange isolation.