Arts Briefs: ‘Aladdin’ ballet, choral works by teenagers, and more
Pioneer Valley Ballet’s adaptation of “Aladdin and His Magic Lamp” will play at the Academy of Music on Saturday, May 10, at 1 and 4:30 p.m.
The show’s basic plot will be familiar to guests who know the Disney story — there’s a poor street urchin named Aladdin who falls in love with a woman named Jasmine, and he uses a magic lamp to get three wishes. In this version, though, Jasmine is a circus performer, and Aladdin must defeat the evil ringleader, “Great Alberto.”
The show features a cast of about 100 dancers from western Massachusetts.
Tickets are $23 to $45, not including fees, at aomtheatre.com, at the box office, or by phone at 413-584-9032. Card to Culture tickets are also available.
Da Camera Singers, a local choral group, will perform a concert dedicated to works by teenagers on Friday, May 9, at 7:30 p.m. at Wesley United Methodist Church in Hadley; and Saturday, May 10, at 7:30 p.m. at The Episcopal Church of Sts. James and Andrew in Greenfield.
It will includes works by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Franz Schubert, Fanny Hensel Mendelssohn,
Lili Boulanger, Juan Crisóstomo de Arriaga in their teenage years, plus those by three female teenage Renaissance composers, Vittoria Aleotti, Francesca Caccini, and Maddalena Casulana. According to a news release, "These early-in-life musical explorations capture an infusion of raw talent and the intensity of teenaged emotions."
The show also will feature the premiere of "Whispering to the Waves," based on an Edmund Spenser sonnet, a composition created by 17-year-old Lillian Pope, who lives in Amherst.
Admission is free and no tickets are required, but donations are accepted at the door.
Valley Light Opera will hold auditions for Gilbert & Sullivan’s “H.M.S. Pinafore” at Wesley United Methodist Church in Hadley on Thursday, May 15, from 7 to 9:30 p.m.; Friday, May 16, from 7 to 9:30 p.m.; and Sunday, May 17, from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.
Starting Wednesday, Sep. 3, rehearsals will run Sundays from 5 to 9 p.m., Mondays from 7 to 9:30 p.m., and Wednesdays from 7 to 9:30 p.m.
The show will run Thursday, Nov. 6, through Sunday, Nov. 9, at the Academy of Music in Northampton.
For more information, including audition materials and a sign-up link, visit vlo.org/current-show.
Artists 18 years and up who live within 50 miles of the University of Massachusetts Amherst are invited to submit works for the Hampden Gallery’s inaugural triennial exhibition, “Reflecting on the Past/Dreaming the Future.”
The juried exhibition will be on display from Friday, Sept. 12, through Wednesday, Dec. 3, in the Hampden Gallery, which is in the Fine Arts Center at UMass.
Work can be in any visual medium, including video (under five minutes) but must have been created in the past four years. The exhibition aims to “showcase relevant and impactful work” and “provide the student body and community with exposure to thought-provoking and meaningful artistic expressions,” according to the artist call.
Two selected artists will get solo exhibitions for the spring 2027 semester. Four selected artists will be invited to take part in a panel discussion and will receive a $200 stipend for their participation.
All work must be submitted by Saturday, June 7. Artists will be notified by Thursday, July 3. To submit work or for more information, visit umassfineartscenter.org.
Local pottery studio Easthampton Clay will hold its fifth annual Spring Pottery Sale on Saturday, May 10, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at 50 Payson Avenue (the Easthampton City Municipal Building lot). More than 30 local artists will sell their work.
Food vendors Myers Catering, Crooked Stick Pops and Vegan Pizza Land will also be on site.
If it rains, the event will be rescheduled to Saturday, May 17.
For more information about Easthampton Clay, visit easthamptonclay.com.
Cellists Jeremy Harman and Dave Haughey will perform “Cello & Chocolate,” a show at Bombyx on Sunday, May 11, at 7 p.m. that, true to its name, will combine cello music and chocolate from Ana Bandeira Chocolates.
The event listing describes the show as a “lovely multi-sensory experience” that is “part soundbath and part concert.” Guests should bring cushions, yoga mats and blankets to sit on, though folding chairs will also be available for those who don’t want to sit on the floor.
Besides being a cellist, Haughey is the owner of Ana Bandeira Chocolates; Harman is the artistic director of the New Directions Cello Festival and is a cello professor at Berklee College of Music.
Tickets are $25 in advance via bombyx.live/events/cello-chocolate-5-11-25 or $30 at the door.
First Night Northampton, the town’s New Year’s Eve celebration, is looking for performers, including musicians, dancers, puppeteers, comedians, circus performers, theater troupes, storytellers, multimedia artists and more.
All types of performers are welcome to audition, but all performances must be family-friendly. Acts are 30-60 minutes, and selected participants will receive an honorarium for their performance.
To apply, visit firstnightnorthampton.org/apply-to-perform. Submissions are due by Sunday, Aug. 31, at 11:59 p.m. Selected performers will be notified on Monday, Dec. 1.
Daily Hampshire Gazette
