The Beat

Schenectady, N.Y. -- The Schenectady County Historical Socity has announced Registration for this year's Candlelight Tours is now open. Consider it your own personal meet-and-greet with the Stockade's witches, spirits, and ghouls; we know our undead neighbors will be happy to see you.

Thursday and Friday evenings in October, join us for spooky tales of Schenectady's haunting past!  We'll explore the historic Stockade after dark, and discover the neighborhood’s most blood-curdling ghost stories.

Soprano Lindsay Kesselman and Sandbox Percussion perform composition by Kenneth Frazelle

Video of world premiere performance a Tang, SPAC collaboration

Saratoga Springs, N.Y. — The Frances Young Tang Teaching Museum and Art Gallery at Skidmore College and Saratoga Performing Arts Center present the world premiere of Energy in All Directions, composed by Kenneth Frazelle and performed by soprano Lindsay Kesselman and New York City-based ensemble Sandbox Percussion. 

Recorded in the exhibition of the same name that inspired Frazelle’s composition, the performance can be viewed on the Tang Teaching Museum’s website beginning Wednesday, September 8, at https://tang.skidmore.edu/exhibitions/276-energy-in-all-directions#performance.

Latham, NY (August 23, 2021) –The Friends of Pruyn House will celebrate our 37th anniversary this year!  Come join us for our annual “Old Fashioned Sunday” at the Pruyn House, 207 Old Niskayuna Rd., Latham NY, on Sunday September 12^th from 12 noon to 4pm. The public is invited to this FREE event which will be held rain or shine.

Old Fashioned Sunday is a festive fun day in a lovely setting at this 5 1/2 acre site.  The historic house built between 1825 and 1830 will be open for touring. The day will feature music throughout the afternoon provided by bands from the Town of Colonie.

New exhibition explores the humanity of those living with HIV/AIDS

Saratoga Springs, NY (August 4, 2021) — The Frances Young Tang Teaching Museum and Art Gallery at Skidmore College announces the online opening on Saturday, August 7, of Look After Each Other: Intimacy and Community. The student-curated exhibition features work by artists, activists, and documentarians who show the human side of life with HIV/AIDS beyond a medical diagnosis, revealing moments of intimacy, care, friendship, and more.

Organized by Nathan Bloom ’21, the 2020–21 Eleanor Linder Winter ’45 Endowed Intern, the exhibition presents the work — posters, magazine covers, drawings, video, fiber art, sculpture, and photography, most coming from the Tang’s growing collection — in five distinct, yet interrelated, sections: Performance, Livelihood, Memory, Outreach, and Joy.

Schenectady, N.Y. (August 3, 2021) – The US Tennis Association’s Eastern Section is returning to Schenectady’s Central park with their Adult League Sectional Championships over 3 weekends in August and 2 weekends in September.

Beginning this weekend, Schenectady will welcome hundreds of amateur tennis players from throughout New York State, Northern & Central New Jersey and Southern Connecticut. Men & women players will compete in age brackets of 18 & over, 40 & over, 55 & over and 65 & over. This marks a return to the area after the 2020 event was cancelled due to the pandemic. This year’s event will operate at 50% capacity, due to the ongoing concerns of the pandemic, with the balance of the tournament being held at a facility downstate. 

Saratoga Springs, NY (July 27, 2021) — The Frances Young Tang Teaching Museum and Art Gallery at Skidmore College presents the critically acclaimed Americana and blues musician Thomasina Winslow as part of the Upbeat on the Roof concert series on Thursday, Aug. 5, at 6 p.m.

 Winslow is a staple of the Capital Region music community, performing regularly at the Clearwater Great Hudson River Revival for over a decade. She has performed since age 4, first with her father, Tom Winslow, a regular collaborator of folk icon Pete Seeger. A virtuosic performer, Winslow also works as a music educator and producer. Delta blues and folk stand out as the most prominent influences on Winslow's music, though she takes inspiration from across the musical world: funk, Afropop, and even Eric Clapton all find their way on her long list of influences.

Special Film Screening of “Secretariat” with free Stewart’s Shops Ice Cream and a Fireworks Finale, JULY 23

 Complimentary Tickets to The Philadelphia Orchestra on AUGUST 12, featuring the SPAC premiere of Seven O’Clock Shout, composed as a tribute to frontline workers during the pandemic

 Saratoga Springs, NY (July 22, 2021) – Saratoga Performing Arts Center announces that it will celebrate healthcare workers and first responders with two special events. On Friday, July 23, SPAC will welcome more than 2,000 healthcare workers and first responders to its grounds for a complimentary film screening of “Secretariat,” along with free ice cream from Stewart’s Shops and a fireworks display to close out the evening. Participating organizations include Glens Falls Hospital, Saratoga Hospital, The Wesley Community, Ellis Medicine, St. Peter’s Health Partners, AIM Services, Saratoga Bridges, and Center for Disability Services, among others.

In Collaboration with New York City Ballet, National Dance Institute and Double H Ranch

New York City Ballet brings three workshops to SPAC on July 13 & 17

National Dance Institute leads virtual workshops for Double H Ranch campers on July 9 & 30

Saratoga Springs, NY (July 8, 2021) – Saratoga Performing Arts Center announces that it will offer a series of dance workshops for children of all abilities in partnership with New York City Ballet (NYCB), National Dance Institute (NDI) and Double H Ranch. Offered for free and as part of SPAC’s commitment to arts education, the workshops will be specifically tailored for young children, ballet students, and dancers with disabilities.

Saratoga Springs, N.Y. — The National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame will offer a variety of tours, programming, and special events this summer, as well as eight daily showings of the Museum’s new signature film, What It Takes: Journey to the Hall of Fame. Here are some of the highlights at the Museum this summer:  

Tom Durkin Museum Tours
Take a guided tour of the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame with legendary track announcer Tom Durkin from July 15 through Sept. 6. Tours are Wednesday through Sunday and begin at 11 a.m. and are limited to 12 people. There are no tours on Mondays or Tuesdays. Reservations are required, and payment is required at the time of booking. The cost is $35 for the general public and $30 for Museum members. …

Saratoga Springs, N.Y. - The Tang reopens to the public on Saturday, July 10 (nearly 16 months after being open only to the Skidmore campus). Here are the major exhibitions opening starting Saturday through spring 2022.

Ellsworth Kelly: Postcards, July 10 to November 28, 2021

Ellsworth Kelly: Postcards is the first survey of collaged postcards created by Ellsworth Kelly (1923–2015), one of the most important American artists of the 20^th century. From 1949 to 2005, Kelly made hundreds of postcard works that show a playful, unbounded space of creative freedom. The exhibition presents 150 of these works, many of them on loan from the Ellsworth Kelly Studio in Spencertown, New York. The exhibition is part of All Together Now, a regional collections sharing project organized by the Tang Teaching Museum with support from the Henry Luce Foundation.