The North East Community Center (NECC) will present the Family Arts Festival on Saturday, July 16th, from 11 a.m. until 3 p.m. It will be held on the grounds of the Community Center, facing the Millerton Rail Trail (rain location is the Millerton Firehouse on Century Boulevard), and features a number of well-known regional performers who appeal to audiences of all ages.
Food booths and children's activities will be at the Festival as well. The Family Arts Festival is an all day event, thanks to sponsorship by First Niagara Bank, Dutchess County Arts Council and The Community Foundation of Dutchess-Ann & Abe Effron Fund.
The roster of performers for NECC's Family Arts Festival includes Helen Avakian and Terry Champlin along with Flamenco dancers; Motoko a Japanese storyteller, Mystic Paper Beasts; Karl Saliter, a one man circus;7 Mile Isle, a steel drum band; and Sacred Highway-a group of Webutuck High School students. There will also be a second stage with open mic, where people can "freestyle" and rap, and a drum circle that all can participate in.
While entrances, as always, is free, there is a suggested donation of $10/family, $5 for individuals.
"This year's Festival has some of the most interesting acts we've ever presented," said NECC Executive Director Jenny Hansell. "I think people will love the opportunity to see Flamenco, and hear Motoko's unusual stories. The steel drum band will have everyone up on their feet, and the Webutuck Band, Sacred Highway, will impress everyone with their songwriting and playing. Plus, this year the added attraction of participation on the open mic will be something really special," added Hansell.
Helen Avakian is a local Dutchess County resident, attended Hunter College and was offered a full scholarship for a Master's Degree in classical guitar performance. Her songs have been described as "quite literate without being pretentious, interesting without being inaccessible" (Poughkeepsie Journal,) and reviewers comment on her "lovely voice and guitar playing." (Free Time) As a performer Helen has been favorably compared to Tori Amos, Jewel, and Natalie Merchant. 'In my CD changer for review are discs by Patti Smith, Joni Mitchell, Lou Reed and Van Morrison' says Avakian. Appearing in an array of situations from coffeehouses to concert halls, she has opened for Mary Chapin Carpenter, Marshall Crenshaw, and the New York Philharmonic among others.
Motoko was born and raised in Osaka, Japan, and first came to the U. S. as an exchange student to University of Massachusetts. Her earlier career included working as a Japanese language instructor at UMass for ten years. She has been trained in mime with Tony Montanaro, Kiyoshi Shimizu, and Robert Rivest, and in storytelling with Eshu Bumpus. Motoko has performed professionally since 1993, going to hundreds of schools, libraries, and festivals up and down the East Coast. She has also appeared on "Mr. Rogers' Neighborhood" and an educational video by Harcourt, and also has been awarded numerous grants from the Massachusetts Cultural Council and New York State BOCES. Her debut CD, "The Promise of Chrysanthemums" was released in June 2002.
Mystic Paper Beasts is a collaboration between two performing artists, Daniel Potter and Marya Ursin, each of whom has been independently involved in theatre since childhood. The Company has performed variously as a family circus, a duet, a solo with audience participation, a quartet, a quintet, a large group of roving friends.
Marya (artistic director) and Dan (producer) engage local dancers and performers to expand their core troupe of two, often performing with four, sometimes with forty. Most frequently seen performers include Doug Moffat, Lissa van Dyke, Rosemary Gentile, George Clark, Jean and Gary Williams, Robin Rice. The tales told by the Beasts are original and re-told dream myths of transformation and humor which are danced in the witty and whimsical masks for which the troupe has gained international renown. These performances are appropriate for, and have delighted, audiences of all ages.
Karl Saliter has been an international performing artist for 20 years. His one-man circus comedy show has been seen in the Metropolitan Opera, the Boston Garden (for a Celtics intermission), on cruise ships and at resorts, and at bunches and bunches of schools. He's been to more festivals than a ferris wheel, and loves performing to this day. The show is a whirlwind of one-liners, and captivates family audiences with its clever use of tension and skill, and its mix of interactive participation routines.
7-Mile Isle Steel Drum Band is an ensemble that is entering its third year of providing the sounds of Caribbean steel drums to New England and New York. The band's membership comes from Connecticut and Massachusetts. Their signature musical styles are Calypso and Soca from the Caribbean Island of Trinidad, the birthplace of the steel drum. However, they also play many other styles including Reggae, Latin, Pop and Jazz.
Sacred Highway
Sacred Highway is a band of six Webutuck High School students that came together playing at Teen Music Night at NECC over the past year. They write all their own music and lyrics. Stephen Bradley is the drummer and back up singer. Charles Porteus plays the guitar. John Midwood plays bass guitar. Eliyah Afzal plays lead guitar. Chris Porteus, Jr. is lead singer and songwriter. Chris Farrar plays guitar and sings back up. Sacred Highway has played at Open Mic night at Irving Farm and at other local events in Millerton.
North East Community Center, located on South Center Street in Millerton, NY, offers a wide variety of community programs and services. These include the Red Cross Care Car and Transportation for Amenia Program for senior citizens. Programs for families with young children and for school-aged children and teens, including a summer day camp, an after school program for middle school children and an internship program for high school students.
For information about the Family Arts Festival on July 16th, or NECC programs please call 518-789-4259 or go to www.neccmillerton.org.
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Former Harry's Supermarket Under Construction for Restaurant
Late last month, the Conservation Commission greenlit some tree pruning on the property. New windows and a new door can be seen in the front of the building.
"It's a substantial renovation that's currently underway here," Brent White of White Engineering said, speaking on behalf of the applicant and owner, Huajie Zhu.
A fire gutted the longtime Wahconah Street supermarket in 2023, and the following year, Zhu purchased the property for $460,000 two years ago to build a restaurant with hibachi in the existing footprint of the more than 100-year-old building.
White explained that the project has been ongoing for over a year, and the Community Development Board granted the property a waiver to reduce the minimum required number of parking spaces so that additional spaces aren't needed.
He noted that, looking at the site plan, there is very little room to do so. A mirror will be installed near the sharp turn on Bel Air Avenue to alleviate traffic concerns.
Pruning will be done on trees in the southeast corner of the existing paved parking lot, as a number of branches are hanging over. The new owners also intend to patch, sealcoat, and re-stripe the parking lot.
A fire tore through the building less than an hour after the supermarket closed for the day three years ago. An automatic sprinkler system is required for the new use.
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