PreciousClareece “Precious” Jones is only a teenager, yet she's about to give birth to her second child. Unable to read or write, Clareece shows little prospect for the future until discovering that she has been accepted into an alternative school. There, with a little help from a sympathetic teacher (Paula Patton) and a kindly nurse (Lenny Kravitiz), the young girl receives something that most teens never get -- a chance to start over, a journey that will lead her from darkness, pain and powerlessness to light, love and self-determination.
“A great American film.” ~ Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times.
“Qualifies as the most painful, poetic and improbably beautiful film of the year.” ~ Ann Hornaday, Washington Post.
“It’s a potent and moving experience, because by the end you feel you’ve witnessed nothing less than the birth of a soul.” ~ Owen Gleiberman.
Rated R for child abuse including sexual assault, and pervasive language, 109 mins.
Sherlock HolmesIn a dynamic new portrayal of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s most famous characters, Sherlock Holmes sends Holmes (Robert Downey, Jr.) and his stalwart partner Watson (Jude Law) on their latest challenge. Revealing fighting skills as lethal as his legendary intellect, Holmes will battle as never before to bring down a new nemesis, the mysterious Blackwood (Mark Strong), and unravel a deadly plot that could destroy the country.
“Rip-roaring action-adventure of high order, a sometimes dizzying and ultimately thrilling display of showmanship on the part of the actors, director and screenwriters.” ~ Joy Tipping, Dallas Morning News.
“Just sit back and enjoy Downey and Law plays Holmes and Watson as Victorian versions of Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid.” ~ Peter Howell, Toronto Star.
Rated PG-13 for intense sequences of violence and action, some startling images and a scene of suggestive material, 134 mins.
Up in the AirRyan Bingham (George Clooney) has long been content with his unencumbered lifestyle lived out across America in airports, hotels and rental cars. He can carry all he needs in one suitcase; he’s an elite member of every travel loyalty program in existence; and he’s close to attaining his lifetime goal of 10 million frequent flier miles - and yet Ryan has nothing real to hold onto. Just as he falls for a fellow traveler (Vera Farmiga), Ryan’s boss threatens to permanently call him in from the road, and he begins to contemplate what it might actually mean to have a home.
“A smart, alert, supremely entertaining movie.” ~ Ann Hornaday, Washington Post.
“Light and dark, hilarious and tragic, romantic and real. It’s everything that Hollywood has forgotten how to do; we’re blessed that director Jason Reitman has remembered.” ~ Owen Gleiberman, Entertainment Weekly.
Rated R or language and some sexual content, 109 mins.
With the Clann Na Cara Irish Dancers
General Admission $15
($13 Opera House Members)
Folk in Fredonia Music Series
Opera House favorites The Dady Brothers return just in time for St. Patrick's Day with an evening of superb harmonies on traditional Irish and folk music.
The Dady Brothers have been a major driving force at the forefront of the western New York music scene for nearly 30 years. They have taken their musical talents from their home base in Rohester to diverse venues all over the world, including Canada and Ireland.
John and Joe take roots music and bring it to their audience in an authentic and enjoyable way. The brothers are at home with many styles of music including bluegrass, folk, Celtic and even country blues. The impressive list of musical instuments on which they perform reads like a dictionary of traditional folk instuments: mandolin, fiddle, guitar, penny whistle, bodhran, harmonica, banjo and uilleann pipes. Musical enthusiasts and professional musicians alike are continuously singing the praises of the brothers and their level of professionalism.
The Dadys have recorded music in their own studio, called "The Garage," as well as performed on many other artists' recordings. Their 1979 "Mind to Move" brought them national recognition. And their CD, "Soul Lilt" was used as a soundtrack in a documentary about Irish history.
Joining The Dady Brothers will be dancers from the Clann Na Cara School of Irish Dance. Clann Na Cara is the newest Irish dance school in western New York, established in 2006 by four National and World Champion medalists. Prior to receiving their dance teacher certifications, all four founders were regular performers at the Opera House during St. Patrick's Day events. In addition, each has led dancers in performances with such notable artists as The Chieftains, Cherish the Ladies and Natalie MacMaster. The students at Clann Na Cara range in age from 4 to 21 and include numerous Preliminary and Championship dancers.
Attending from out of town? Consider staying at one of the area's beautiful inns or bed & breakfasts as part of an overnight performance package.
Sponsored by Arkwright Printing
General Admission $22
($20 Opera House Members)
DFT Communications Spotlight Series
Take a dollop of Grease, mix in some Pump Boys and Dinettes and add a generous dose of Forever Plaid and you've got the pedal-to-the-metal, high octane fun of Roger Bean's Route 66. This sure-fire crowd-pleasing musical revue features many hit songs from the late 50s and early 60s including: Dead Man's Curve, King of the Road, Little Old Lady from Pasadena, Six Days on the Road, GTO, Fun, Fun, Fun, I Get Around and of course, Route 66.
Route 66 begins in Chicago and travels along the famed "Main Street of America" to the coast of California. A large car radio delivers us to each new destination along the journey, with DJs and actual vintage radio ads building excitement along the way.
Produced by Springer Theatricals, the professional touring wing of the Springer Opera House, Georgia's historic state theatre, Route 66 is chock full of hilarious characters, wild antics and good old-fashioned schtick!
"Route 66 is revved up good entertainment that redefines the term 'road show.'" -- Tucson Weekly
"The audience was singing along and cooing audibly when old memories were awakened by a song. A fun, lighthearted trip!" -- Arizona Daily Star
Attending from out of town? Consider staying at one of the area's beautiful inns or bed & breakfasts as part of an overnight performance package.
Sponsored by Lake Shore Savings
General Admission $15
($13 Opera House members)
Folk in Fredonia Music Series
On a July evening in 2004, at their campsite at the Falcon Ridge Folk Festival, Laurie MacAllister, Abbie Gardner and Carolann Solebello harmonized for the very first time. As they sang their campmates off to sleep, they knew they had stumbled onto something extraordinary.
Audiences seem to agree. Since that summer night, Red Molly has garnered a devoted national fan base. These ladies have a lot of fun on stage, and it's contagious. Red Molly consistently brings concert-goers to their feet with stunning three-part harmonies, crisp musicianship and a warm, engaging stage presence.
The magic of Red Molly stems partly from the richness and diversity of each member's "pre-Molly" experiences. Laurie (vocals, guitar, banjo) left a career in psychology to pursue her love of singing. She worked for several years as a backup singer, and also released two solo albums, These Old Clothes and The Things I Choose to Do.
Abbie (vocals, guitar, Dobro) has a background in jazz, bluegrass, classical and a cappella music. She released two solo albums, My Craziest Dream, a collection of swing standards featuring her father Herb Gardner on piano, and Honey on My Grave, a collection of acoustic originals. In May 2008, she released a duo album, Bad Nights/Better Days, with Anthony da Costa.
Carolann (vocals, guitar, bass, mandolin) spent several years as a professional theatre actor before releasing her solo album, Just Across the Water. She later released two albums with power folk quartet CC Railroad, Smile Whenever and Black Horse Motel.
As a trio, the group released its first CD in 2006, Never Been to Vegas. It climbed to the Top 30 on the Radio & Records Americana chart, a rare accomplishment for an independent album. And listeners of WUMB Radio Boston voted the CD one of the Top 10 CDs of 2006. Red Molly's newest release, Love and Other Tragedies, is the group's first full-length studio album. It was released in spring 2008.
"Everything Red Molly sings is delivered with tick-tight arrangements, crystalline vocals and caramel harmonies. But what is most striking is the ardor they bring to eveything they do, whether snuggling into the sweet parochialism of an old spiritual, or the gritty pathos of a Gillian Welch tune." -- The Boston Globe
Attending from out of town? Consider staying at one of the area's beautiful inns or bed & breakfasts as part of an overnight performance package.
General Admission $8
($7 Seniors, $5 Students/Children)
Six of the area's high schools - Chautauqua Lake, Dunkirk, Forestville, Fredonia, Jamestown and Pine Valley - present highlights of their spring musicals in this special cavalcade aimed at showcasing our County's rising stars.
The evening includes selections from Beauty and the Beast, Cinderella, Little Shop of Horrors, Oklahoma, Peter Pan and The Pirates of Penzance. Don't miss this great evening of home-grown entertainment. It's fun for the whole family!
Attending from out of town? Consider staying at one of the area's beautiful inns or bed & breakfasts as part of an overnight performance package.
General Admission $15
($13 Opera House Members)
Folk in Fredonia Music Series "Extra"
A unique two-part program of music and dance... In one part, well-known folk singer/songwriter Davy Sturtevant joins with SoMar Dance Works to present DIS-EASE: A COMING OUT, an original 13-movement autobiographical work about the challenges of coming to terms and living with Bi-Polar Disorder. In the program's other part, Sturtevant takes the stage solo to present the traditional folk music for which he's most known.
Sturtevant learned singing and fiddle from his father, who was born in the Appalachian foothills of north central Pennsylvania and performed traditional ballads, camp songs and Lutheran hymns. He studied voice and trumpet in high school and college, and taught himself to play guitar. A graduate of SUNY Fredonia with a degree in sound recording technology, Sturtevant was a finalist in the Kerrville New Folk Songwriting Contest. His songs have been recorded and performed by nationally touring folk musicians including Joe Stead, Dan Duggan, John Kirk, Neal and Leandra, and Sue Trainor. He also performs with the James Madden Quartet.
SoMar Dance Works began in 1999 as a duet company debuting at the Missouri Fine Arts Academy. Now with nine dancers, the company is the company-in-residence at Mercyhurst College in Erie, Pa. Serving as co-directors, choreographers and dancers, the company's founders, Solveig and Mark Santillano, are seasoned performers who have danced all over the world.
Solveig Santillano spent her early years in the performing arts and theatre programs of Circle in the Square (NYC), Northwestern University and with a variety of modern dance companies including Anna Sokolow's Player's Project, Ruby Shang and Dancers and the Prometheus Dance Co. She toured internationally with MOMIX Dance Co., where she was a soloist and choreographic collaborator.
Mark Santillano worked with Indianapolis' Dance Kaleidoscope and the internationally acclaimed Pilobolus Dance Theatre. With Pilobolus, he toured the world as soloist, dance captain, choreographic collaborator and master class teacher. Mark has performed in the national tours of The King and I, West Side Story and A Chorus Line. He currently serves as assistant professor of dance at Mercyhurst College.
Don't miss this wonderfully unique program that takes us "beyond folk."
Artie Shaw Under Music Director Rich Chiaraluce
Reserved Seating $25
($23 Opera House Members)
Great Performers Concert Series
On the eve of America's entry into World War II, TIME magazine reported that to the German masses, the United States meant "sky skrapers, Clark Gable and Artie Shaw." Some 42 years after that, in December 1983, Artie Shaw made a brief return to the bandstand after 30 years away from music, not to play his world-famous clarinet but to launch his latest (and still touring) orchestra.
It all clicked when Shaw reworked one little show tune with his own signature sound. "Begin the Beguine," which Shaw jokingly referred to as "a nice little tune from one of Cole Porter's very few flops," was that song. Shaw's break-through recording became the hit that catapulted him into the ranks of top bandleaders; and he was immediately dubbed the "new King of Swing." Every year, the Artie Shaw Orchestra recording of "Begin the Beguine" sells in the thousands, making it one of the best-selling records in history.
Artie Shaw OrchestraIn 1954 Shaw made his last public appearance as an instrumentalist, giving his blessing in 1983 to the current rendition of the Artie Shaw Orchestra, now led by Rich Chiaraluce.
An accomplished musician originally from New Haven, CT, Chiaraluce is no stranger to the Big Band sound. He has toured for years as the lead alto sax player for the Tommy Dorsey Orchestra with Buddy Morrow and as the featured clarinetist with the Artie Shaw Orchestra. When asked recently to step in for the ailing Dick Johnson, who led the Artie Shaw Orchestra since 1983, Chiaraluce didn't hesitate. And he hasn't missed a step since!
Artie Shaw put the "swing" in Swing; and his Big Band, now under Chiaraluce's leadership, still remains one of the swingingest outfits around.
With Mike Randall
General Admission $15
($13 Opera House Members)
Victorian Dazzle Festival
Opera House favorite Mike Randall returns with his latest version of Mark Twain Live! In this one-man show, America's greatest author and humorist is brought to life with all the wit and wisdom that was the trademark of the "Great Man Himself." From the moment Randall walks on stage, there is no doubt that the celebrated humorist Mark Twain was, and continues to be, one of America's greatest natural resources!
Samuel L. Clemens hit the stage with his first lecture even before his pen name, Mark Twain, had become a household word. Eventually he grew into one of the funniest and most sought-after speakers of his day. Several lecture tours and hundreds of speaking engagements helped the humorist refine his storytelling skills into a fine art. To see Mark Twain in person was a rare treat indeed!
Mike Randall began impersonating Twain at the age of 17. Two years later he was performing professionally as Twain at the Buffalo Showboat. At age 20, he performed for the State Department in Washington, D.C., in the same theatre that John F. Kennedy used to give his State of the Union addresses. One year later, Randall brought his rendition to New York City's Little Hippodrome.
Randall is the only Mark Twain impersonator to be formally acknowledged by the Daughters of the American Revolution for his authenticity and the only Mark Twain actor to be a member of the prestigious National Speakers Association. Mark Twain Live! is endorsed by the Mark Twain Museum of Buffalo; and Randall is the "official Mark Twain" of the Huck Finn Jubilee in Victorville, Calif., and the Annual Mark Twain Birthday Bash & Symposium, in Buffalo.
In more than 30 years of "being" Twain, Randall has given more than 2,000 performances. To transform himself into the 70-year-old Twain, Randall spends more than three hours at the make-up table. When "Twain" walks onstage, the audience is in for a rare treat - two hours of folksy, wise-cracking wit and wisdom in Twain's own words. Mike Randall as Mark Twain points his irreverent finger of humor at everything from politics to religion, making it clear why some have called Twain "America's original stand-up comic."
Sponsored by ECR International
