As spring cracks open our winter stillness, the natural world appears to speak one unified, coherent command: Dance!
This summer season on the Vineyard, dance will break off the stage, with performances in the field at the Farm Institute, at Polly Hill Arboretum, and even on Main street, Vineyard Haven. The season will feature fusions of dance with video projections, puppetry and elements of circus in an exploration of dance’s natural affiliation with other fields of visual arts.
The Vineyard Sinfonietta presents a spring concert Tuesday, May 26, from 3 to 4:30 p.m. at the Oak Bluffs Library.
Soloists Nan White (flute), Jan Hyer (cello) and Matt Pelikan (block flute) will perform in selections by Baroque composers such as Handel, Purcell and Bach all the way up in time through Mozart and Casals.
Encore selections will feature baritone Howie Marlin (and, in one piece. his daughter, Hannah) in three pop songs by Cole Porter, Jimmy VanHeusen and Matt Dennis, plus other songs made famous by Frank Sinatra.
Arts Extravaganza
On Wednesday, May 20, the performing and visual arts students at Martha’s Vineyard Regional High School will present Evening of the Arts, an evening of art, music and drama. Doors open at 6 p.m. Admission is free.
The halls will be filled with student art work ranging from sculpture to photography to painting to architecture and more; meanwhile, the Performing Arts Center will be filled with song, dance and drama.
Vineyard residents are invited to attend a free Berklee College of Music workshop demonstrating the Power of Music for Health and Education on Thursday, May 14, from 2:30 to 4 p.m. in the large dining room at Windemere Nursing and Rehabilitation Center.
The workshop will be presented by Karen Wacks and Wendy Krueger, music therapy professors at Berklee.
The Martha’s Vineyard Regional High School was founded in 1955, making 1959 graduation year for the inaugural class. Half a century and countless diplomas later, the Class of 2009 readies itself to be the 50th class to fling their mortarboards in the air. In recognition of this, the Minnesingers annual spring show will be titled The Beat Goes On, and will feature a medley of tunes from the last five decades.
The Martha’s Vineyard All Island Band Program presents its Spring Concert on Wednesday, May 6 at 7:30 p.m. at the performing arts center at the high school. Admission is free.
This concert is a culmination of a year’s hard work and talents for over 200 children ranging from grades four to eight.
The performing groups include the beginner band, the fifth and sixth grade band, the seventh and eighth grade band and the junior high jazz band.