While checking items off of their holiday gift lists, shoppers can also take in some of the colorful art that adorns Westchester’s local shopping centers. Developers are more and more frequently enlivening their streetscapes by bringing public art to community spaces for local visitors to enjoy. These projects are becoming a priority during significant site renovations.
Access to art and means of artistic expression may sometimes seem like a given but, to many, the idea of participating in an activity like an instructional dance class can be a daunting task. The majority of dance classes are not suited to accommodate a student in a wheelchair or people with developmental and intellectual differences. However, there are increasingly more institutions that are dedicating time and resources to supporting inclusive spaces and programs. One prime example is Steffi Nossen School of Dance, which is supported by a grant from ArtsWestchester.
Creative shoppers can save Amazon and the department stores for another day. Instead, gift shops that are housed by Westchester’s local museums and arts organizations present opportunities for holiday shopping that results in one-of-a-kind memorable gifts. For arts lovers, it will be money well spent when proceeds support exhibitions, educational programs, and also artists. Here are some of ArtsWestchester’s picks…
There are only a handful of venues in the New York Metropolitan area that have featured jazz for forty years. Even the earliest incarnation of Jazz at Lincoln Center as a summer program did not debut until 1987. Yet in 1980, Reverend Clinton C. Glenn, Jr. hatched the idea for a Jazz Vespers service in the First Presbyterian Church in Mount Vernon, which eventually moved into the parish hall and formed PJS Jazz Society (PJS). Celebrating its 40th anniversary in 2020, PJS has been presenting about eight concerts per year ever since. Better yet, it has become a jazz institution in the Westchester community.
When The Nutcracker premiered in Russia in 1892, it was arguably a flop. Mixed reviews picked apart the casting, scene transitions, choreography and even Tchaikovsky’s score. By the 1960s, it gained popularity in the United States, largely due to New York City Ballet (NYCB)’s iteration of the ballet, choreographed by George Balanchine. Today, The Nutcracker is often viewed as the quintessential story of wonderment and holiday cheer. Film house screenings, live dance productions, a marionette show and family-friendly adaptations throughout the County are all on the calendar for December.
