IN REVIEW by Tim Rowland

Depot Theatre’s What the Constitution Means to Me

Looking back, 2019 was a simpler time, when all that human-rights advocates had to worry about were sexists, racists, homophobes and domestic abusers. So much historical water has flowed beneath our constitutional bridges since then that the list of socio-political threats we need to concern ourselves with has grown almost as lengthy as the Constitution itself.

If anything, that adds a wallop to Heidi Schreck’s What the Constitution Means to Me, which opened this weekend at Depot Theatre, featuring Kayla Ryan Walsh as Heidi—the real-world actor who starred in her own production, which opened on Broadway just four short years ago.

Heidi takes the stage as her 15-year-old self, who is fattening her college fund as something of a ringer on the American Legion high-school competitive speaking circuit.

The teenage girl speaks of the Constitution not as a dusty relic, but as a panting, pulsating “hot and steamy” cauldron of ideas which has brewed our unique form of government. We assume she means this in a good way — certainly the affirming Legionnaire judges must have thought so.

Walsh delivers an emphatic, spring-loaded performance of this stage in the girl’s life, bursting at the seams with youthful exuberance in her canary yellow blazer, symbolic of a dutiful legislative pageboy, er, person.

Continued … Read the full review HERE.

Depot Theatre, 6705 Main Street, Westport

Transitions

Exhibit of paintings by Sandra Hildreth at Adirondack Artists Guild

Friday, July 7 thru August 1

Opening reception: Friday, July 7, 5-8 pm. Refreshments will be available and the public is welcome.

Artist talk: Tuesday, July 11, 5 pm

Sandra Hildreth has been recording her time spent in the Adirondack environment with brushes and paint ever since the day in 1996 when she took watercolors on a hike up St. Regis Mountain and became hooked on plein air painting.

Often returning to favorite scenic locations to paint, Hildreth has said “they are always different—it may be the same trees and rocks, but the weather, the seasons, the time of day will be different. Or I might go to the same location but stand in a different spot to paint.” She believes there is significance in developing an intimate relationship with a place and understanding the topography. “It’s like becoming best friends—you spend enough time together that you start to become aware of all the unique qualities.”

The natural world, with the exception of things like hurricanes, does not change dramatically; it transitions. This exhibit of paintings will be entirely about the transitions from one season to another, from day to night, from clear and sunny to overcast, transitions in the artist’s style or technique, and even the passage of a decade of time.

Learn more about the Adirondack Artist Guild HERE.

The Adirondack Artists Guild Gallery, 52 Main St, Saranac Lake

Wilmington Historical Society Presents

Get Outside at The Wild Center

Reconnect with the unexpected wonders of nature right out your front door.

Saturday, July 1, 10-5

Get Outside at The Wild Center this summer to explore these wonders hiding in plain sight. Spend your day in nature as we celebrate outdoor play and recreation at The Wild Center. Climb, build and play while enjoying the fresh air and natural landscapes of the Adirondacks. The day will feature family activities ranging from a rock climbing wall, fly fishing and nature scavenger hunts to stick fort building, insect races or just laying back and watching the clouds as they pass.

Lean more HERE.

The Wild Center, 45 Museum Drive, Tupper Lake

’22 Akwesasne Art Market & Juried Show

Sunday, July 2, 10-6

The Akwesasne Art Market & Juried Show showcases and celebrates award-winning works crafted and created by Akwesasne artisans. See brilliantly designed work in basketry, beading, wovens, drawings, paintings, pottery & more!

Enjoy performances and live demonstrations and special Smoke Dance Sculpture unveiling, with presentation to local artisans that participated in its creation.

Craft & food vendors will be on hand to satisfy your shop local needs, explore one-of-a-kind finds by visiting our many Art Market vendors. Enjoy cultural demonstrations and live performances throughout the day.

The Akwesasne Art Market is a place to visit, explore, shop and support Akwesasne artisans & crafters. All are welcome to attend!

More info HERE.

Generations Park, 559 NY-37, Akwesasne

Shaken Ice Cream Sundaes

Wednesday, July 5 at 4pm

July is National Ice Cream Month and we want to celebrate! For this program, participants will shake up their own bag of homemade ice cream using ice, salt, and some muscle power – the reward at the end is worth it!

To register, please call (518)793-2826. Parental participation is encouraged and supervision is required. This program is open to all ages.

Chapman Museum, 348 Glen Street, Glens Falls

Southern Comforts by Kathleen Clark

Romantic comedy on tour:

The Arts Center, Blue Mountain Lake: Friday, July 7 at 7 p.m.
Tannery Pond Center, North Creek: Saturday, July 8 at 7 p.m.
View Arts, Old Forge: Sunday, July 9 at 3 p.m.
Tupper Lake Middle/High School Auditorium: Tuesday, July 11 at 7 p.m.

Kathleen Clark’s romantic comedy Southern Comforts tells a story of unexpected love between a taciturn Yankee widower and a vivacious grandmother from Tennessee. This production, directed by Beth Glover and starring Jordan Hornstein and Natalie Luxford, opens at the Arts Center on Friday, July 7 at 7 p.m. Don’t miss this charming show and reserve your tickets today!

The Adirondack Lakes Theatre Festival is made possible by funding from the New York State Council on the Arts, the Charles R. Wood Foundation, David Myers in memory of Anne Vaccaro and Jayson Grigsby, and Pine’s Country Store.

Purchase tickets HERE.