DANCE - FINE ARTS - MUSIC - THEATER - WRITING

ARTBITS by Richard B. Harper


VOLUME 14 * * All Arts News On the Web * * June 10, 2010

STUFF YOU SHOULDN'T MISS

      ArtBits always features a calendar of the goings on of Franklin County artists. Check out these events around Franklin County. Each issue includes the entire text of our weekly newspaper column.


      Stop in for live music and more at the Fairfax Music Sessions at the Foothills Bakery in Fairfax most Saturday afternoons at 1 p.m., at various restaurants around Franklin County throughout the week, at the Bayside in St Albans Town most Sunday afternoons, and the Cambridge CoffeeHouses at 7 p.m. on the first and third Wednesday of every month.
     These gatherings bring new opportunities, gossip, "show-and-tell" and occasional workshops. The booked performances and acoustic Open Mike Nights feature music, readings, and more from the best new artists in Vermont.

      Find links to these events and more in our Spotlight!

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RIDE 'EM COWBOY

      Cedar Ridge Stables presents a Rodeo Weekend Extravaganza at the Franklin County Field Days site this weekend. The Keeghan Nolan Band opens for Jamie Lee Thurston beginning at 8:45 p.m. Friday evening.
      Jamie Lee Thurston grew up immersed in Franklin County music. As a teenager he worked as a roadie for Jimmy T’s band then joined the band as a guitar player. He paid his dues and made a name for himself in bars and clubs across the Northeast and Canada. He has opened for the Dixie Chicks, Sara Evans, Charlie Daniels, Mark Chesnut and Colin Raye and then moved to Nashville. He has an EMI songwriting contract and has had songs recorded by Trace Adkins, Montgomery Gentry, and Rodney Atkins. Mr. Atkins has his song 15 Minutes on the Billboard charts now. His own current album, I Just Wanna Do My Thing, is available online.
      At 18, Keeghan Nolan has the powerful voice of Patsy Cline, a style of her own, and a backup band that makes the show. The Fairfield resident has been around Country Music her whole life. She travels between Vermont, Nashville, and Florida to perform in Indoor and Outdoor Festivals, County Fairs, and mainstream Concerts. She has opened for David Allan Coe, Jimmy Wayne, and Dusty Drake and sang a duet of Somebody"s Falling with Jeff Bates in Bronson, Florida. She won the Colgate Country Showdown twice and won the CMA Music City Rising Star Vocal Competition in Nashville.
      Concert only admission is $15 at the gate after 8:30 p.m. Friday. The weekend also includes a Painted Pony Championship Rodeo and a "full blown" professional rodeo. Two day advance-sale tickets are $45 for adults and $25 for children or $50 and $30 at the gate. One day advance-sale tickets cost $25 for adults and $12.50 for children or $30 and $15 at the gate. Call 802.527.7171 for tickets.


ART ON THE WALLS

JEFFERSONVILLE--The 2010 NVAA June Juried Show opens in the "Sugarhouse" at Jane and Terry Shaw's Visions of Vermont Gallery with a reception on Sunday at 3 p.m. This 80th annual exhibit includes more than 110 works and features a number of Franklin County artists in all media.
      Click here for more info.


ON STAGE LIVE

ON STAGE LIVE

ALBURGH--Jim Branca begins the Second Sunday Sing-a-long Suppers in the Alburgh Library this Sunday at 5 p.m. The event is an old fashioned pot-luck dinner, followed by an old fashioned sing-a-long featuring the old time tunes and classics on the second Sunday of each month through October.
      Mr. Branca came from a "big loud family and my Dad's love of Barbershop tunes from the 1890's through the Tin-Pan Alley Era and a whole bunch of old folks croonin' 'round a piano are some of my first happy musical memories."
      Call 802.796.6077 or email for more info.


BURLINGTON--The Burlington Discover Jazz Festival continues its 27th year with the sounds of jazz, blues, funk and Latin music in concerts, on the streets, on the Lake, social events with the artists, and more. The lineup includes Summer Sounds favorites Mark Legrand, Mango Jam, Jeff Wheel, and many more as well as the Vermont All State Jazz Ensemble and the best area school jazz bands on the City Hall/Marketplace stage.
      Call 802.863.7992 or click here for more info. Tickets to indoor events are available at the Flynn box office; click here or call 802.86FLYNN for tickets.


JOHNSON--The Northeast Heritage Music Camp begins Sunday and continues through June 19 at Johnson State College. A week of instruction is provided by world class players of traditional music from Cape Breton, Quebec, Ireland, New England and the American South. The camp includes music study, concerts, contra dances and nightly jams every evening.
      Look for Alice Berube, Seamus Connolly, Tim Cummings, Eric Favreau, Kimberley Fraser, Sarah Hotchkiss, Alan Jabbour, Cindy Kallet, David Kaynor, Peter Langston, Grey Larsen, Jeremiah McLane, Ken Perlman, David Surette, and Pete Sutherland.
      Click here for more info


JEFFERSONVILLE--The Village Tavern hosts Open Mic at 8 p.m. on Thursdays.


WATERVILLE--Cambridge Arts Council presents community dances on Saturdays at 7 p.m. in the Waterville Town Hall. The evening will feature contras, squares, circles, play parties and singing games and all dances will be taught. Bring a partner, the entire family, or come alone. Caller Mark Sustic offers dance instruction. Frank Heyburn and Michele Lajoie play. Guest musicians with acoustic instruments are welcome. Admission is $5 per person and $10 for families at the door.


ST. ALBANS--Chow Bella offers Music to Dine By with John Cassel on the piano on Wednesdays at 6:30 and the jazz and improv of Vern Colburn on the Piano on Fridays at 5:30. Call 524.1405 or click here for more info.


CREATIVE CALL

MALLETT'S BAY–Karen McFeeters will hold a songwriting/creativity workshop at The Living Room this evening from 7 - 8:30 p.m.       "I'll be sharing information about my creative process, songwriting basics and helpful tools," she said. "I will also lead participants through some exercises to get their own creative juices flowing!"
      Run by Carol and Mark Abair, the Living Room offers a stage for area musicians, poets, and artists to share their work and knowledge. They host regular events to showcase musicians from across Vermont and have guitar lessons, guitar repair, music recording, and songwriter workshops.
      The cost is $20 per person. No advance registration needed. Click here for more info.


CLICK HERE: ART SITE OF THE WEEK

     YES! Theater of Greensboro Bend is a husband and wife duo who perform and teach a curriculum of circus elements, improv, clowning, physical theater, and story. Their site includes their mission, info about the actors, a workshops and residencies list, assemblies, and contact info.


FRANKLIN COUNTY BOOKSHELF

      ArtBits features a quick weekly peek at the bookshelf or night stand of the folks you know in and around Franklin County. That popular feature has a page of its own at the Franklin County Bookshelf here on the AAC site.


SUPPORT LIVE ARTS IN YOUR TOWN!


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      This article was originally published in the St Albans Messenger and other traditional print media. It is Copyright © 2010 by Richard B. Harper. All rights reserved. Archival material is provided as-is. Links are not necessarily maintained (if a link in this article fails, try Google.com or your favorite search engine).
      Thanks to recent misuse of copyright material on the Internet by individuals and archival firms alike, we emphasize that your rights to this article are limited to viewing it and printing it for personal use only. You must receive explicit permission from the All Arts Council and the author before reprinting or redistributing this article in any medium.