Poetry Celebration at Scarsdale Library
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The Scarsdale Public Library will host a reading in celebration of National Poetry Month, on Wednesday April 24, 2013, 7:30 to 9:00 P.M. The event will feature readings of recently published work by five Poetry Caravan members followed by a Q & A session, opportunity to meet and chat with the poets, and a book signing.
All of the poets are residents of Westchester. Their work reflects historical and cultural events as well as personal reflections. Titles and authors are:
-The I in India and US by Llyn Clague (Hastings) addressing cultural connections
-A Sea Change by Lisa Fleck Dondiego ( Ossining) about waking up to a new life
-Tugboat Warrior by Ruth D. Handel (Scarsdale) a little-known episode in U.S. history
-Traveling Between Storms by Charlotte Walsh (North White Plains) a meditative journey
-Waking at Night by Amelia Winkler (Mamaroneck) personal reflections on life, love and art.
The Poetry Caravan, now in its tenth year, is a volunteer organization of 35 Westchester poets who take the written word into local venues such as hospitals, senior centers, assisted living facilities, shelters, jails and similar sites. The poets read from their original work as well as standard masters. "The Caravan's mission is to bring poetry to the community and foster the creativity of all participants," said Scarsdale resident Ruth D. Handel, manager of the Poetry Caravan.
"We are excited to work with such a talented group of local artists who do such important work in our community and beyond," commented Scarsdale Public Library Executive Director, Elizabeth Bermel. "The library is proud to co-sponsor these local writers. We hope that this will be the first of many events we will have the pleasure of working on together."
To join the Poetry Caravan, or for more information, contact [email protected]. The Scarsdale Public Library is located at 54 Olmsted Road, Scarsdale, NY, 10583. Phone: (914) 722- 1300.
SHS Art Students Explore the Dark and the Light Side
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The annual AT art class installation is now on view at the Scarsdale High School Gallery. Inspired by the Queen song "The Show Must Go On," the installation was created to emphasize the natural progression of emotions, portraying happy, fairy-tale like sentiments to depression and hopelessness. In their interpretation of the lyrics, the AT art students split the gallery into two extreme spaces: one "light" and one "dark." The juxtaposition of these two contrasting emotional and visual groups sheds light on the way that people choose to view the world. Installation art, for those who aren't familiar, is a genre of three-dimensional works that are site-specific and are used to transform the space they occupy. The opportunity the AT art students have to put up an installation is one unique to Scarsdale High.
During the early stages of the installation, AT art students brainstormed ideas on how to break psychological and 
emotional spaces. The dark side chose to cover the walls with spikes, and created a dungeon-like setting with a black, draping ceiling. The dark side really "engulfs you in darkness" said AT student Aaron Cheng. The light side filled the room with bubbles and bright butterflies to evoke a fairy-tale like feeling. The light side was meant to evoke "nostalgia of the lightness and playfulness of childhood," explained another art student Miwa Sakulrat.
Over 160 students from all grades came to walk through the installation on its opening day. At the entrance to the exhibit, viewers choose to first go through the light, bubbly pathway to their right or the dark abyss to their left. Depending on their choice, they will either go from the pastel, bright, happy side to the spike-filled, low ceilinged, dark side or vice-versa. While students from the light side guided students through the space, the artists from the dark side became a part of the art themselves by wearing all black and putting themselves into the darkness, even playfully scaring the students who walked through the dark side!
Text by Sunny Feinstein, Photos by Lindsay Leboyer
A Cappella for All
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Mark these two upcoming events on your calendar and hear some talented A Cappella groups from Scarsdale and Yale: For Good Measure, Scarsdale High School's co-ed a cappella group group will host an A Cappella Extravaganza on Sunday, April 14th from 2 PM - 4 PM in the Scarsdale High School auditorium. The concert is sponsored by Gilda's Club Westchester (a cancer support organization) and all proceeds go to that organization. Scarsdale will be joined by a cappella groups from Bronxville, The Masters School, John Jay, Rye Country Day, and Horace Greeley. Tickets are $5 per student and $10 per adult.
On Saturday April 27, the Yale Westchester Alumni Association (YWAA) will host A Cappella Song Fest at The Center @ 862, 862 
Scarsdale Avenue, Scarsdale, New York. The concert which begins at 2:30 p.m. will feature For Good Measure, Scarsdale High School's group and the Spizzwinks(?) of Yale University. Following the concert, there will be an opportunity to meet the singers and purchase their CDs.
Tickets for the performance are $20 for adults and $10 for students/seniors and can be purchased online at www.yalewestchester.org. Tickets purchased at the door will be $25/$15. For further information, please contact Regina Possavino at 914-977-3532 or [email protected].
For Good Measure
As the only co-ed a cappella troupe in Scarsdale High School, For Good Measure fills all of Scarsdale with music! The group was started by Jessica Chayes during the 2001-2002 school year, and has existed in either co-ed or all-girl incarnations since then. Currently comprised of both male and female voices, the troupe has left its mark on the Scarsdale community through performances at sports games, a cappella competitions, shows, Valentine's Day Sing-a-Grams, and during the holidays. In addition, For Good Measure has performed in concerts with groups from Yale University, Binghamton University, and Kenyan College. For Good Measure's repertoire includes a variety of song types, including oldies as well as contemporary pop songs. The group is not only talented, but always makes their performances fun to watch for all types of audiences.
The Spizzwinks(?)
The Yale Spizzwinks(?) are America's first underclassman a cappella group. Since 1914, they have been entertaining audiences around the world with their unique blend of sweet harmony and tongue-in-cheek humor. Since their historic beginning at Mory's, the Spizzwinks(?) have proudly carried on a tradition of musical excellence and camaraderie as one of America's oldest male choirs. With one eye towards their ninety-nine year history and the other towards the future, they seamlessly fuse tradition and innovation to bring audiences a unique and unforgettable concert experience.
Three times each year, the Spizzwinks(?) pack their bags and head off to explore the world. When traveling internationally, the Spizzwinks(?) act as cultural ambassadors for the United States, often performing on television and radio, and at large public events. They also promote cultural exchange, singing joint concerts with choirs from universities and other organizations. This year, the Spizzwinks(?) will travel to the Pacific Northwest in the winter, Florida and South America in the spring, and China and Singapore in the summer.
Designer Showhouse Coming to Cooper Road in Scarsdale
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Residents will now have a chance to go inside one of Scarsdale's premiere homes when the third annual Designer Showhouse benefiting Cerebral Palsy of Westchester takes place from Thursday, May 2nd to Sunday, June 9th at 2 Cooper Road in Scarsdale.
The Designer Showhouse of Westchester will feature over 25 of America's top designers and decorative artists who will transform the magnificent 1915 mansion into a decorating masterpiece.
The Showhouse will open with a Gala Preview Cocktail Party on Wednesday, May 1st, 2013 at 6:00 p.m. All proceeds will benefit Cerebral Palsy of Westchester, Rye Brook, New York. New York Cottages & Gardens is the Media Sponsor and Houlihan Lawrence is the Real Estate Sponsor.
The Designer Showhouse will run from Wednesday, May 1st, 2013 through Sunday, June 9th, 2013. Admission to the Showhouse is $30 and includes a Showhouse Journal. Gala tickets are $125 each. Showhouse hours will be: Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Thursdays and Fridays 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., Saturdays 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., Sundays 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., closed on Mondays. Children under six, infants, strollers, and pets will not be admitted. For more information contact Kristen Harris at (914) 937-3800 ext. 353 or ext. 209 or visit their website here.
About Cerebral Palsy of Westchester
Since 1949, Cerebral Palsy of Westchester has been a leading nonprofit organization in Westchester and Fairfield County. The organization's mission is to advance the independence, productivity, and full citizenship of people with Cerebral Palsy and other developmental disabilities. They are a non-profit organization that provides essential educational services, vocational training, recreation, rehabilitation and advocacy to thousands of children and adults.
Why Do Jewish Writers Dominate the American Songbook?
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The 2013 Westchester Jewish Film Festival is on from April 3 – 25 at the Jacob Burns Film Center in Pleasantville. This year the festival will feature 35 films from around the world, and the focus is on the arts, including films about music, dance, theatre and literature. You can check out the entire line-up and buy tickets here:
On the final night of the festival, April 25, Edgemont resident and filmmaker Michael Kantor's film, Broadway Musicals: A Jewish Legacy, will be shown and Kantor will do a Q&A with Brian Ackerman followed by a live performance of Broadway tunes by the Kol Rinah Choir.
Kantor's film explores how Jewish-American songwriters created the vast majority of the Great American 
Songbook—from Irving Berlin to Stephen Sondheim, and Fanny Brice to Barbra Streisand. It includes interviews and performance footage from Broadway Musicals and is narrated by Joel Grey.
We interviewed Michael Kantor to learn more about him and to find out why Jews are so prominent in musical theatre. Here is what he shared:
1) How do you explain the success of Jews in writing the American songbook? How were a group of writers from a minority group able to dominate the Broadway musical? Our film explores the phenomenon that almost all of the songwriters on Broadway during its formative years were Jewish. There were plenty of non-Jewish singers, producers, directors and so on, but the songwriters were almost all Jewish. Why? It is not easy to explain why one minority created something we think of as an American art form. Part of the explanation is that in the early part of the 20th century Jews were outsiders, and a part of the Jewish tradition is to be able to "smile through the tears", to laugh at one's troubles to survive, coupled with some Jewish musical traditions and the influence of the Yiddish theatre, and you can see how the musical comedy emerged.
2) Are Jewish composers and lyricists continuing to thrive in the theatre? Who are some of your favorites? It was never an exclusive club – the Jewish songwriters created a form of musical theatre, and now there are lots of major songwriters on Broadway who are not Jewish, including Elton John and Lin Manuel Miranda. But the Jewish tradition continues with talents such as Andrew Lippa, Amanda Green, and of course Marc Shaiman who not only created Hairspray but is also the force behind the television show, "Smash."
3) How did you get your start in the business? I earned an M.F.A. as a theatre director and worked in the theatre before joining the world of documentary films. My friend Steve Ives was working on a documentary on the aviator Charles Lindbergh for the American Experience series, and Ken Burns was the executive producer. So I ended up working with Steve and Ken on that project, and then ona history of the West – so I learned about historical documentary filmmaking from the them for about seven years before I founded my own company, Ghost Light Films.
4) Can you share any anecdotes with our readers about the interviews you did while making your film on Broadway Musicals? In my opinion, there is nothing greater than hearing a songwriter sing his/her own songs, and on this project I had the great pleasure of enjoying John Kander performing songs from Cabaret, Stephen Schwartz singing songs from Pippin, and Maury Yeston playing "Be Italian" from Nine. I'm really thrilled that our DVD, which comes out at the beginning of May, will included an entire additional disc of extras, including a number of these performances, such as Amanda Green singing the song "If You Hadn't, But You Did" written by her father Adolph Green with Betty Comden and Jules Styne.
Also, working with our narrator Joel Grey was a great treat. He is a major talent, and extremely funny, and every time I think of him I smile. Most people don't know that his father, Mickey Katz, was a comedian and singer who specialized in Jewish humor, so Joel has a deep understanding of the importance of this history.
5) What's the last great show you saw on Broadway? I just saw "Old Hats" with Bill Irwin and David Shiner at the Signature Theater. It's full of dance, vaudevillean comedy, and music (performed live by Nellie McKay and her band) and this new theater center, designed by Frank Gehry, is wonderful. I'm also looking forward to seeing the revival of Pippin, and the new production of Rodgers and Hammerstein's Cinderella.
6) What are you currently working on? I am currently creating a three hour series for PBS that will air this fall entitled Superheroes: A Never-Ending Battle." It traces the history of how these characters started out in disposable ten-cent comic books and have now taken over the world!
7) Why did you choose to live in Edgemont and what do you like about the community? We moved to Edgemont from New York City in 2006 because we wanted our three children to attend the same schools and find a sense of community. Edgemont has offered just that, a diverse and welcoming community with an amazing school system. We're also big fans of Kirari on Garth Road -- you can find us there enjoying the sushi pretty much every week!
