FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Great Barrington, Mass.—The Mahaiwe Performing Arts Center has added three new live shows to its year-round schedule this December. The hit touring radio show Selected Shorts returns to the Mahaiwe on December 14; Children’s author/songwriter Sandra Boynton will celebrate the release of her new Christmas album and songbook on December 19; and in holiday tradition Mahaiwe perennial performer John Pizzarelli will return on December 21 with his big band.
“These shows, coupled with the Mahaiwe’s holiday film tradition, will spell comfort this December, while exemplifying the high quality the Mahaiwe is known for. They are guaranteed to delight, from the certain surprises that come with a Selected Shorts reading to Boynton’s gentle wit and feel-good compositions and Pizzarelli’s cool musical mastery – covering Sinatra, no less,” says Mahaiwe Executive Director Janis Martinson.
Selected Shorts – Holiday Tales with Jane Curtin and Joanna Gleason
Selected Shorts returns to the Mahaiwe with an all-new holiday show, Saturday, December 14 at 1 p.m. Emmy winner Jane Curtin, Tony winner Joanna Gleason, and others cozy up with an afternoon of hilarious, poignant, and moving short stories filled with love, laughter, and holiday cheer. More cast members are to be announced.
It’s story time — for adults! Spellbinding short stories by both established and emerging writers take on new life when they are performed by stars of stage and screen. Experience the hit public radio series and podcast live for an evening of funny, moving, and unforgettable performances. Selected Shorts was conceived at Symphony Space in New York City in 1985 with one simple premise — great short stories performed by great actors. Flash-forward nearly 40 years, and Selected Shorts is broadcast on over 150 radio stations around the country, with more than 100,000 downloads every week. The live performances at Symphony Space and on the road enjoy sold-out performances to this day. Each Selected Shorts is a completely original and unique evening of literature brought to life.
Jane Curtin has appeared on Broadway in Noises Off, Candida, and Our Town. Her off-Broadway work includes Love Letters and the musical revue Pretzels, which she co-wrote. She starred in the television series 3rd Rock from the Sun and won back-to-back Emmy Awards for her role on Kate & Allie. She is an original cast member of Saturday Night Live and also starred in the television film series The Librarian and its spin-off, The Librarians. Her film credits include Coneheads; Antz; I Love You, Man; I Don’t Know How She Does It; The Heat; The Spy Who Dumped Me; Can You Ever Forgive Me?; Ode to Joy; Godmothered; Queen Bees; and Jules, opposite Sir Ben Kingsley. She starred on the television series Unforgettable and has had guest appearances on The Good Wife, 48 Hours ’til Monday, The Good Fight, Broad City, United We Fall, and Bupkis. Upcoming projects include the mini-series The Residence.
Joanna Gleason won a Tony for her portrayal of the Baker’s Wife in Stephen Sondheim and James Lapine’s Into The Woods. Her other Broadway and off-Broadway credits include The Normal Heart; Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, for which she received a Tony nomination; I Love My Wife; Happiness; Joe Egg, for which she received a Tony nomination; Sons of the Prophet; and The Real Thing; to name only a few. Her television credits include The West Wing, The Newsroom, Love and War, Bette, and many more. Films include Hannah and Her Sisters, Boogie Nights, Crimes and Misdemeanors, The Skeleton Twins, and many more. She has written and directed two films: a short, Morning Into Night, which debuted at the Los Angeles International Short Film Festival and was selected for the Cambridge Film Festival; and a feature, The Grotto, which won the Best Narrative Feature premiere at the Heartland International Film Festival in 2022and is now playing in select cities. She has been reading stories for Selected Shorts for 35 years.
Tickets are $35 to $45 with discounts for Mahaiwe Members and individuals ages 30 and under.
Cows and Holly: Sandra Boynton tries to explain her wild new Christmas album
Cartoonist, writer, and songwriter Sandra Boynton will commemorate the release of her new Christmas album/songbook, Cows and Holly, on stage at the Mahaiwe on Thursday, December 19 at 7 p.m. Created alongside her long-time music collaborator, Michael Ford, the album’s songs — performed by Zooey Deschanel, Lyle Lovett, Yo-Yo Ma, Patti LuPone, Raúl Esparza, Linda Eder, and many others — are all new, yet have a Christmas Classics feel to them, ranging from 60s Surf Rock to A Cappella Motet to Celtic Jig to Rat Pack Crooner to Doo-wop to Broadway to Folk-Country and beyond.
Boynton will talk with WAMC’s terrific Joe Donahue about the evolution of the project, and their conversation will be punctuated now and then by the screening of some of the music videos that Boynton and Ford have created for the album’s launch.
Grammy-nominated for her Platinum-certified Philadelphia Chickens, Boynton’s six previous albums have two Gold records and one Platinum, and have sold over three million copies. She’s worked with B.B. King, Meryl Streep, Brian Wilson, Five For Fighting, Kacey Musgraves, Neil Sedaka, Dwight Yoakam, Mark Lanegan, Stanley Tucci, Blues Traveler, Laura Linney, Samuel L. Jackson, Brad Paisley, Kristen Bell, and “Weird Al” Yankovic in a duet with Kate Winslet. Sales of Boynton’s beloved songbooks and children’s and humor books are nearing 90 million copies.
Tickets are $10 or $25 for admission plus a signed copy of Cows and Holly.
John Pizzarelli Big Band – Dear Mr. Sinatra
Jazz singer, guitarist, and host of NPR’s “Radio Deluxe,” John Pizzarelli returns to the Mahaiwe for his annual holiday appearance on Saturday, December 21 at 8 p.m. In this new show, “Dear Mr. Sinatra,” Pizzarelli salutes the Chairman of the Board, Frank Sinatra, performing with an excellent 17-piece big band that kicks with a brawling, Count Basie-like exuberance. He will play songs written for Sinatra including “Witchcraft,” “Wee Small Hours” and “Ring a Ding Ding,” salute his collaboration with Antonio Carlos Jobim, and play a number of his signature Sinatra at the Sands arrangements. Pizzarelli will also recall his opening for Sinatra in 1993.
Tickets are $49 to $109 with discounts for Mahaiwe Members and individuals ages 30 and under.
Tickets
Tickets go on sale to Mahaiwe Members on Thursday, September 12 at noon, and to the public on Saturday, September 14 at noon. Tickets can be purchased online at mahaiwe.org, or by calling or visiting the Box Office, 413-528-0100, on Wednesday through Saturday from noon to 4 p.m.
To learn more about Mahaiwe Membership, contact Brenna Hull at 413-644-9040 x107 or brenna@mahaiwe.org, or visit mahaiwe.org/membership.
Individuals ages 30 and under are eligible for $15 youth tickets. Visit the Box Office or call 413-528-0100 Wednesday through Saturday, from noon to 4 p.m.
About the Mahaiwe
Located in downtown Great Barrington, Mass., the Mahaiwe Performing Arts Center is the year-round presenter of world-class music, dance, theater, classic films, Live in HD broadcasts, and arts education programs for the southern Berkshires and neighboring regions. The intimate jewel box of a theater opened in 1905. Since 2005, the performing arts center has hosted over 1,500 events and welcomed over half a million people through its doors. More than 26,000 students from 75 different schools have benefited from the Mahaiwe’s school-time performances and residencies. For more information, see mahaiwe.org.
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