Thursday, April 25, 2013

Meetings + Ellen's Picks - Week of April 22, 2013


MEETINGS + ELLEN’S PICKS – WEEK OF APRIL 22, 2013

 All phone numbers are in area code 518 unless otherwise indicated.
All addresses are in Hudson unless otherwise indicated.

Calling All Foodies
Its hard not to become food crazed if you live in the middle of a food destination. Here in the Hudson Valley we have such easy access to incredible locally-grown and produced food, and organizations often use food to entice supporters to their good causes.  No wonder our taste buds are so refined.

Just this week alone in Hudson:
Thursday – Dining out for Life – Eight restaurants/bars in Hudson feed you and contribute part of the tab to the AIDS Council of Northeastern NY
Friday – A cookbook sale in support of the Friends of the Hudson Area Library
Saturday – The Hudson Opera House annual Movable Feast (Eat well and make new friends!)
Saturday – Christ Church holds a Brownie Bake-off.
Next Monday – Hudson and Philmont chefs travel to the Berkshires as part of the Chef-X exchange project

Hudson boasts two local food blogsSusan Simon Says and Hungry in Hudson, in case you need more enticement.

Even rock bands take their names from food.  A band called Pony in the Pancake and another called Schmear will be playing at the Spotty Dog this week, while Acoustic Rye is appearing at Wunderbar.

Next week:  The third annual Ramp Festival will be at the Basilica, the Hudson Farmers’ Market and
Holmquest farm stand both have grand openings, and Blue Food will be playing at Helsinki. 
 
Yum!


MEETINGS

Tuesday, April 23
Columbia County Board of Supervisors County Government Committee Meeting – 3:30 pm – 401 State Street

Hudson City School District Board of Directors Special Meeting re BOCES Budget and Board Vote – 7 pm – Hudson High School Library, 215 Harry Howard Avenue

Wednesday, April 24
Hudson Development Corporation Board Meeting –12 noon – 1 North Front Street

Hudson Common Council Public Works Committee Meeting – 5:30 pm – City Hall

Columbia County Board of Supervisors Public Works Committee Meeting – 6 pm – 401 State Street

Hudson Common Council Legal Committee Meeting – 6:15 pm – City Hall

Thursday, April 25
Columbia County Board of Supervisors Financial Review Committee Meeting – 1 pm – 401 State Street

Columbia County Board of Supervisors Budget & Salary Committee Meeting followed by Salary Review Committee Meeting – 2:30 pm – 401 State Street

Hudson Community Development & Planning Agency Board Meeting – 6:30 pm – City Hall

Friday, April 26
Hudson Historic Preservation Commission Meeting – 10 am – City Hall


ELLEN’S PICKS

Tuesday, April 23
Helsinki Open Mic – Try out new material on the big Helsinki stage – Hosted by Cameron Melville and Ryder Cooley – Information at 828-4800 or www.helsinkihudson.comm – Sign-up begins at 7 pm – Performance from 8 to11 pm – Club Helsinki, 405 Columbia Street

Trixie Starr hosts Match Game, the Hudson version of the 60s/70s television show – Trixie says: “…the most fun you are going to have in Hudson, below 3rd, legally, on a Tuesday night.”  – Information at 301-4398 – 8 to 10 pm – (pm) Wine Bar, 119 Warren Street

Wednesday, April 24
Administrative Professionals’ Day

Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey clowns Sir Arthur Adventure and Dragon Seeker will preview the show Dragons, playing at the Times Union Center in May – The show is centered on the themes of heart, wisdom, courage, and strength – Information at  828-0017 or 828-3015 – 4:30 pm – Hudson Youth Center, 18 South Third Street

Eric KrasnoSuper Funk – with world-wide touring, notable recordings, and “…a resume that includes opening spots for the Rolling Stones and the Dave Matthews Band, its little wonder that KRAZ has developed a reputation as one of the most celebrated soul-funk artists in the world.” – Information at www.helsinkihudson.com or 828-4800 – 8 pm – Club Helsinki, 405 Columbia Street

Thursday, April 25
Tenth Annual Dining Out For Life, a benefit for the AIDS Council of Northeastern New York – Eight Hudson restaurants--Baba Louie’s Sourdough Pizza Company, Ca’Mea Ristorante, Club Helsinki, Mexican Radio, (pm) Wine Bar, Red Dot Restaurant and Bar, and Relish Hudson, plus Crossroads Brewing Company in Athens--will donate a percentage of the price of your meal to the AIDS Council to help people in the region who are living with HIV/AIDS – The donation applies to both lunch and dinner, for those restaurants that are open for lunch – Local ambassadors will  greet you at the restaurant and give you a chance to enter a drawing for a trip to the Bahamas – Information on participating restaurants at www.aidscouncil.org  – Reservations are necessary

Hudson Pride Foundation and Mexican Radio team up to add a Pre-dinner Happy Hour to the Dining Out for Life fundraising event, with rainbow margaritas and bocas at the bar, and music by DJ Lisa – Information at 828-7770 – 5 to 7 pm – Mexican Radio, 537 Warren Street

Diabetic Support Group Meeting – To discuss diabetic strategies and issues, and to share fellowship – Meetings generally last one hour – Questions by e-mail to peter.pehrson@yahoo.com or call 478-3660 – 6 pm – Hudson Chautauqua, 49A Eighth Street (between Columbia & Warren Streets)

Professor Louie & The Crowmatix – This Woodstock quintet originally was formed by…Professor Louie for his co-productions for the Rock ‘n’ Roll Hall of Fame group, The Band.”   Enjoy a night of rompin’ stompin’ roots rock, sweet ballads and roadhouse blues…” – Information at 828-4800 or www.helsinkihudson.com or 828-4800 - 8 pm - Club Helsinki, 405 Columbia Street                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                  www.helsinkihudson.com

Cardboard and Schmear – Cardboard is “an energetic, melodic garage-rock band based in Brooklyn.” – For information on Schmear, go to http://schmear.bandcamp.com/  – Information at 671-6006 or www.thespottydog.com – 8 pm – Spotty Dog Books & Ale, 440 Warren Street

 Caprice Rouge – Yes, there is room for dancing! – Information at 828-1562 or  www.TheHalfmoonHudson.com – 9 pm  – The Half Moon, 44-48 South Front Street

Thursday-Sunday, April 25-28
Films at TSL:
>A Place at the Table – This documentary “shows us how hunger poses serious economic, social and cultural implications for our nation, and that it could be solved once and for all…”
>Herman’s House – “What kind of house does a man who has lived in a six-foot-by-nine-foot cell for over 30 years dream of?”
>Bert Stern: Original Mad Man – “…a revealing look at the career of original ‘bad-boy’ photographer and cultural icon Bert Stern”
>Schedule at 822-8100 or www.timeandspace.org – Time & Space Limited, 434 Columbia Street

Friday, April 26
Exposition Auction – English, Continental, and American furniture, decorations and art – On line catalogue at www.stairgalleries.com – Information at 751-1000 – Previews Monday through Thursday from 10 am to 5 pm, Friday from 10 am, Auction starts at 6 pm – Stair Galleries, 549 Warren Street

Friday Night Tastings ––Eminence Road Farm Winery, a new winery in Long Eddy, NY in the Catskills, sources organic grapes from the Finger Lakes, and makes wine in a natural style, using only indigenous yeasts and low intervention – Jennifer and Andrew, the owners/winemakers, will be on hand to introduce the wine – Information at 828-6411 – 5 to 7 pm, Hudson Wine Merchants, 341 Warren Street  

Spencer Day’s CD Release Party for The Mystery of You – “Filled with stylistic nuances that range from smoky noir to Latin jazz to surf guitar to Middle Eastern and Asian melodies.” This singer-songwriter’s long line of credits includes appearances at the San Francisco Jazz Festival, Town Hall and Joe’s Pub in NYC, the Kennedy Center in DC, the Monterey Jazz Festival, the Hollywood Bowl, and the Tanglewood Jazz Festival – Visit www.spencerday.com – Information at www.helsinkihudson.com or 828-4800 – 9 pm – Club Helsinki, 405 Columbia Street

Friday-Saturday, April 26-27
Colossal Cookbook Sale – sponsored by the Friends of the Hudson Area Library – A large, eclectic collection of vintage, new and used cookbooks will be offered at discounted prices – Special guest Susan Simon, cookbook author, columnist, blogger, and professional caterer, will be on hand to answer questions about cooking, recipes and ingredients – The Book Room’s usual assortment of used books for sale will also be available – Information at 828-1792 or www.hudsonarealibrary – Friday from 1 to 4 pm, Saturday from 10 am to 2 pm – Side door, Hudson Area Library, 400 State Street

Friday-Sunday, April 26-28
Upstage Productions takes the musical comedy Nunsense on the road for the weekend – Call for reservations and times – Friday at The Vanderbilt Restaurant at 7 pm (672-9993), Saturday at Blue Store Restaurant at 6:30 pm (537-6658), and a 1:30 pm matinee on Sunday at Pegasus Restaurant (731-9200)

Saturday, April 27
Recruit NY – The City of Hudson Fire Department, along with many other fire companies in the region, holds an open house and recruitment drive as part of National Volunteer Week – Visitors can take a tour of the central station and apparatus, try on firefighter gear, see demonstrations of equipment. and learn the requirements and obligations of being a volunteer – Information at www.hudsonfire.com – 8 am to 12 noon – Central Fire Station, 77 North Seventh Street

HD screening of the Metropolitan Opera production of George Frederic Handel’s Giulio Cesare – Reservations at 822-8448 or www.timeandspace.org – 12 noon  –Time & Space Limited, 434 Columbia Street

Slow Art Day – Part of a global effort to focus on art and the art of seeing by looking at art slowly and sharing your experience with others – Participants will visit five sculptures in The Fields and enjoy a special Slow Food menu at CafĂ© Omi – Information at www.artomi.org – 12 noon – Visitors Center, Omi International Arts Center, 1405 Route 22, Ghent

In observance of National Poetry Month, Peter Bergman, Executive Director of the Edna St. Vincent Millay Society in Austerlitz, will read Edna St. Vincent Millay’s poetry in the library’s History Room, which houses a number of her books in its collection – To learn more about Millay’s life, her poems and plays, visit www.millaysociety.org – Information at 828-1792 or www.hudsonarealibrary.org – 1 pm – History Room, Hudson Area Library, 400 State Street

Poetry Reading/Book Signing – John Fitzpatrick, author of Moving to Completion, will speak on communing with animals and “an energy of oneness between nature’s spirit and the creative human spirit.”  Fitzpatrick lives in the Hudson Valley.  His work has been published in many journals in the U.S. – Information  at 697-0909 – 3 pm – TK Home and Garden, 441 Warren Street

Author’s Lecture – Margaret Roach, first gardening editor of Martha Stewart Living magazine, and author of the blog, A Way to Garden, blends personal stories with nuts-and-bolts gardening smarts that make her Hudson Valley garden a visual treat all year round. – Ms. Roach will discuss her new book, The Backyard Parables, focusing on “Non-stop Plants: A Garden for 365 Days.”  Part of the Distinguished Authors’ Lecture Series presented by the Columbia County Historical Society – Information and reservations at  758-9265 or by e-mail to cchs@cchsny.org – 3 pm Lecture at Kinderhook Reformed Church, 21 Broad Street, Kinderhook, followed by a reception at the Nathan Wild House, Valatie

Community Conversation – Neighbor to Neighbor: Victor Navasky in conversation with Peter Biskind about Navasky’s new book, The Art of Controversy: Political Cartoons and their Enduring Power – Reception and book signing to follow – Information and reservations at 392-3693 – 4 pm – Spencertown Academy Arts Center, 790 Route 203, Spencertown

Brownie Bake-off – If you have a favorite brownie recipe or start with a mix, join one of two contests—“From Scratch” or “Mix with Mojo”—to compete for city-wide bragging rights – Contestants must bring two pans (9 x 13) of un-cut brownies to the church by 4 pm – The public then tastes and chooses the winners – “Brownies” may be chocolate, butterscotch or blondies – Ice cream, coffee, milk, and water will also be available for the tasters – Proceeds will benefit Christ Church outreach programs – Information at 828-1329 – 4 to 6 pm – Christ Church Episcopal, Parish Hall, 431 Union Street (corner of East Court Street)

Exhibition Opening Jake Berthot: Works on Paper and The Enamel Drawings  – Berthot says: “With a spackling knife I laid down a sheet of enamel on paper.  Then, like a blind man, the painter could by touch feel his way through a familiar yet unknown terrain.  In feeling I gain sight, marking and scraping into the surface until the work arrives at a found phenomenological oneness that is a wholeness, an expressive merger of mark and material….” – On display through May 19 – Information at 828-5907 or www.johndavisgallery.com – 6 to 8 pm – John Davis Gallery, 362 ½ Warren Street

19th Annual Movable Feast to benefit the ongoing programs and restoration of the Hudson Opera House – Cocktails and hors d’oeuvres at the Opera House, dinner at private homes, dessert back at the Opera House – Raffle:  one winner gets 15 gift certificates for meals at area restaurants – Raffle tickets available at the Feast or in advance at the Opera House – Information and reservations at 822-1438 or www.hudsonoperahouse.org –6:30 pm – Hudson Opera House, 327 Warren Street

Pony in the Pancake, Christina Abbott, and Bear Grass – Pony is a “five-piece psychedelic surf rock band from Albany”– Abbott “has been making music under various monikers and projects over the years, but her roots and strengths remain steeped in songwriting and unique vocals.” Bear Grass, also from Albany, is “an amalgam of awesome” and “has been rocking faces and soothing wounds since mid 2012.” – Information at 671-6006 or www.thespottydog.com – 8 pm – Spotty Dog Books & Ale, 440 Warren Street

Bindlestiff Family Cirkus Winter Cabaret – The Bindlestiffs provide a  stage for the world’s best circus, sideshow, vaudeville, burlesque and boyesque, and physical comedy performers    The lineup includes Ringmistress Philomena, your skillful guide to the entertainment journey; Mr. Pennygraff, gentleman, prop manipulator, and swallower of dangerous objects; Amy G, international Variete star and physical comedienne; Jan Damm, world traveling acrobalance artist and clown; Rose Bonjo, contortionist and aerialist; and Robert Cowie, musical maestro who provides live original musical accompaniment – Attendees  in costume or circus makeup get a discount at the door –This show is for mature audiences only! – Information at 828-4800 or www.helsinkihudson.com – 9 pm – Club Helsinki, 405 Columbia Street

Live Music at the WunderbarAcoustic Rye performs – Information at 828-0555 – 10 pm – Wunderbar & Bistro, 744 Warren Street

Saturday-Sunday, April 27-28
Sean’s Run Weekend – This annual event is in its twelfth year and has expanded to two days – Saturday:  Zumbathon, Super Saturday Run for Special Needs Kids, and Sean’s Run Bike Rides – Sunday: Prevention Education Expo, Battle of the Belts, Meghan’s Mile Youth Race/ Community Walk, and the 5K run – Schedule, locations and entry form at www.seansrun.com – Information at 672-4757 – Chatham Elementary School and Chatham High School, and other locations, Chatham

Sunday, April 28
Hudson Wedding Showcase – Presented by Columbia County Chamber of Commerce and Destination Bride – Engagement photos, hair and makeup trials, virtual venue tour of Columbia County sites, wedding planning seminar, demonstrations on fashion, hair and makeup styling; stationery design, and floral design; fashion show produced by Angela’s Bridal – Information at 828-4417 – 9 am to 4 pm – Basilica Industria, 110 South Front Street

Exhibition Preview of Albert Bierstadt in New York & New England – Exhibition on view from May 1 to November 3 – Information at www.thomascole.org or 943-7465 – Curator’s talk by Annette Blaugrund at 2 pm, reception and open house from 3 to 4 pm – Thomas Cole National Historic Site, 218 Spring Street, Catskill

Film Screening – Filmmaker John Feldman will screen his film, The Little Plant that Could IS BACK – Screening will be followed by a discussion – The 25-minute long documentary is the story of the Stuyvesant Falls hydro-electric plant, a renewable energy resource built in 1900 which was brought back on line thanks to the efforts of the community and engineer Jim Besha – Information at 766-3211 – 3 pm – North Chatham Library, 4287 Route 203, North Chatham

Troy Children’s Chorus performs – Part of the Adventures in Music series – Information at 325-4101 or www.roejanlibrary.org – 3 pm – Roeliff-Jansen Community Library, 9091 Route 22, Copake (1 mile south of intersection of Routes 22 and 23)

The Persephone Project – Director Carol Rusoff will hold an Orientation Session for an improvised performance based on the Greek myth, to be produced by http: hudson teen theatre project – Teens and young adults interested in all aspects of theatre production are invited to learn about preparation for this production –Will include discussion about auditioning, casting, rehearsal schedule, contracts, rehearsal methods, and family volunteerism – The Project will start rehearsals in May for June performances – No previous theatre experience required – Information at 822-1438 or www.hudsonoperahouse.org –4 pm – Hudson Opera House, 327 Warren Street

Monday, April 29
Song Circle Jam – All welcome – Information at 828-2210 or contact Marilyn at liveoriginalmusic@hotmail.com  Every Monday night – 7 to 9 pm – Red Dot, 319 Warren Street

WKZE 98.1 presents The Monday Showcase -- Blue Food with special guest Neil Alexander – The band started in 1989 to focus on the music of Pee Wee Ellis, musical director for James Brown and Van Morrison – No cover! – Information at www.helsinkihudson.com or 828-4800 – 8 pm – Club Helsinki, 405 Columbia Street

 
For more information on Columbia County events, visit www.columbiacountytourism.org

All content herein copyright © 2013