Author: Janet

The Mattatuck Museum is pleased to celebrate the holiday season with a concert featuring renowned tenor Michéal Castaldo and guest soprano Marissa Famiglietti on Sunday, December 20, 2015 at 3:00 p.m.

Michéal Castaldo, a classical crossover tenor and light Italian opera singer, songwriter and composer, is an Italian-born Canadian who currently resides in New York. Castaldo studied voice with Maestro Pisapia, a protégé of the great Italian operatic tenor, Enrico Caruso. He also studied at Oakwood Collegiate Institute in Toronto and Berklee College of Music in Boston. Opening and performing with Castaldo is Waterbury native Marissa Famiglietti. Ms. Famiglietti has been featured as a guest artist with the Concert Pops of Long Island and has been heard on tour throughout the East Coast as duet partner to renowned tenor and recording artist Michael Amante. She is a graduate of the Bachelor of Music and Master of Music programs at the esteemed Manhattan School of Music in New York City, where she was featured in numerous leading operatic roles.

A limited number of tickets will be available at the door so purchase your tickets early. Before December 18, tickets are $15 for Members, $20 for Non-Members. On or after December 18, tickets are $25 for Members and $30 for Non-Members. VIP (1st or 2nd rows) are $35 each. Cash bar. Light food and one drink are included in admission. Full payment must be received by December 18 for the discounted price. To register contact (203) 753-0381 x 130 or email informationdesk@mattatuckmuseum.org.

Located in the heart of downtown Waterbury’s architectural district, the Mattatuck Museum is a vibrant destination known locally and regionally as a community-centered institution of American art and history. The Mattatuck Museum hosts numerous changing exhibitions each year as well as a permanent collection, which features 300 years of work by American artists. Explore the region’s history through interactive displays in the history exhibit and examine the intriguing Button Gallery featuring 10,000 buttons from all over the world.

For more information on all of the museum’s programs, events, and exhibits visit the website at mattatuckmuseum.org or call (203) 753-0381. The Mattatuck Museum is operated with support from the Connecticut Department of Economic & Community Development/CT Office of the Arts, which also receives support from the National Endowment for the Arts, a federal agency, and is a member of the Connecticut Art Trail, a group of 18 world-class museums and historic sites (arttrail.org). Located on the green in Waterbury, CT at 144 West Main Street, the museum is open Tuesday through Saturday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., and Sunday, noon to 5 p.m. Convenient, free parking is located behind the museum in the lots on Park Place.

For more area information www.litchfieldhills.com

The Mattatuck Museum is pleased to host renowned photographer Jeannette Montgomery Barron on Tuesday, December 15, 2015 at 6:00 p.m. for an insider’s look at the exhibition Love, Andy: Highlights from the Andy Warhol Museum followed by a presentation about a selection of iconic portrait photographs Montgomery Barron took in the early 1980s of New York artists, gallerists, art dealers and critics, and other personalities. This program is free with admission.

The presentation also includes an introduction to some of the major photography projects she has been involved with in recent years. Immediately following the talk, Jeannette will be available for a signing of her recent book, Scene, a compilation of her iconic photographs of New York artists, including Jean Michel-Basquiat, Keith Haring, and Andy Warhol. For more information about Jeannette please visit www.jeannettemontgomerybarron.com.

Jeannette Montgomery Barron was born in 1956 in Atlanta, Georgia and studied at the International Center of Photography in New York. She is known for her portraits of the New York art world in the 1980s, which were published in 1989 by Edition Bischofberger, Zurich in Jeannette Montgomery Barron. A collection of her still life photographs entitled Photographs and Poems, a collaboration with Pulitzer Prize winning poet Jorie Graham was published by Scalo in 1998. In 2004, Mirrors was published by Holzwarth Editions and includes a text by the celebrated author Edmund White. In 2006, Holzwarth Editions also published her book, Session with Keith Haring, twenty photographs taken by Montgomery Barron in Haring’s studio one afternoon in 1985.

In My Mother’s Clothes, Montgomery Barron created a poignant and enduring portrait of her late mother through still life images of her cherished clothing, shoes, and personal possessions. As her mother’s struggle with Alzheimer’s progressed, robbing her of any remembered past, Montgomery Barron began this unique visual album as a way of both sparking her mother’s memories, and coping with her own sense of loss. Her works are in numerous public and corporate collections, including The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, The High Museum of Art, Atlanta, Kunsthaus, Zurich and The Andy Warhol Museum, Pittsburgh. She has shown internationally at Galerie Bruno Bischofberger, Zurich, Scalo, New York and Zurich, Jackson Fine Art, Atlanta, ClampArt, New York and Magazzino D’Arte Moderna, Rome.

Located in the heart of downtown Waterbury’s architectural district, the Mattatuck Museum is a vibrant destination known locally and regionally as a community-centered institution of American art and history. The Mattatuck Museum hosts numerous changing exhibitions each year as well as a permanent collection, which features 300 years of work by American artists. Explore the region’s history through interactive displays in the history exhibit and examine the intriguing Button Gallery featuring 10,000 buttons from all over the world.

For more information on all of the museum’s programs, events, and exhibits visit the website at mattatuckmuseum.org or call (203) 753-0381. The Mattatuck Museum is operated with support from the Connecticut Department of Economic & Community Development/CT Office of the Arts, which also receives support from the National Endowment for the Arts, a federal agency, and is a member of the Connecticut Art Trail, a group of 18 world-class museums and historic sites (arttrail.org). Located on the green in Waterbury, CT at 144 West Main Street, the museum is open Tuesday through Saturday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., and Sunday, noon to 5 p.m. Convenient, free parking is located behind the museum in the lots on Park Place.

For more area information on Litchfield Hills www.litchfieldhills.com

The Institute for American Indian Studies located on 38 Curtis Road in Washington, is holding a very special story telling event on Saturday, December 12 beginning at 12:30 p.m. featuring Janis Us of Mohawk/Shinnecock descent.

It has been said that one can better understand a culture through its literature whether it is written or unwritten. Storytelling was, and still, is an integral part of the Native American tradition. It is what breathes life into the culture. As the days grow shorter and the winds blow colder gather with IAIS to listen to delightful and heartwarming traditional Native American stories as told by Janis Us. Please call for reservations. $8 Adults; $10 Children.

For more information about what to see and do in Litchfield Hills visit www.litchfieldhills.com

On December 13 from 3 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. the Westport Historical Society is presenting a special program for kids and their families where they can express their oneness with people everywhere at this interactive Family Holiday Concert.

The sing-along, presented by Mary Ann Hall’s Music for Children & Beyond™ program, will feature Christmas, Hanukkah and other songs of the season accompanied by faculty from MFC on guitar, harp, keyboard and flute. The intimate setting of the WHS’s Sheffer Gallery will allow guest families and performers to enjoy an up-close and beautiful sharing of holiday songs.

This year’s tenth edition of MFC’s holiday concerts at the Westport Historical Society will celebrate the themes of peace, gratitude and kindness. The mission of this event is to develop musicianship and a life long enjoyment of music by “connecting the ART of the music with the HEART of the child.

Tickets are $15 for families, $5 per person, free for kids 2 and under, reservations are strongly suggested, call 203-222-1424.

Kent will once again be the scene for one of the largest Gingerbread Festivals in Connecticut! Dozens of gingerbread creations will be revealed in participating shops in Kent starting November 27th. Sponsored by the Kent Chamber of Commerce, Kent Village Barns and SoDelicious Bakery.

Lots of places feature colorful gingerbread houses for the holidays, but Kent, CT goes a step further. The whole town will take place in this sugary sweet celebration. Everyone is invited to follow the Gingerbread Walk through town to view imaginative and ingenious gingerbread delights. Visitors can enjoy the displays as they navigate the gingerbread map and solve the mysterious riddle the Ginger Girls have cooked up this year. At the end, we need you to vote for your favorite creations. Displays are guaranteed to delight all ages!

In addition to gingerbread displays, Kent will have special holiday events every weekend, from cookie decorating classes to Pancakes with Santa to an old time horse-drawn carriage ride through town and a Messiah sing-along. Please visit the calendar for more details. http://kentct.com/events/ or call 860.592.0061.

For more holiday event information on the Litchfield Hills visit www.litchfieldhills.com

Frosty the Snowman was a popular song written in 1950 and became an overnight classic by being adapted to a popular television special. The song of Frosty recounts the fictional tale of a snowman that is magically brought to life through a black top hat that a group of children place atop his head. Although Frosty enjoys frolicking and romping throughout town with the children who constructed him, the sun becomes too much for him to bear and Frosty is forced to leave town, promising his friends that he will return.

On December 5 & 6, 12 & 13, 19 & 20: The Beardsley Zoo is getting into the holiday spirit by offering a special “Breakfast with Frosty & Friends” that will take place from, 9 a.m. – 10 am. Families are invited to join Frosty and his friends for breakfast at Connecticut’s only Zoo. Reservations are required and can be made by calling Amanda Bolanos at (203) 394-6574. The cost of this special event that includes Zoo admission and breakfast is $10 per person for Zoo members and $15 per person for non-members.

ZOO GIFT GIVING IDEAS:
As the holidays are approaching fast if you are looking for something unique you might consider picking up an unusual and thoughtful gift from the Beardsley Zoo for everyone on your list!
Membership to Connecticut’s Beardsley Zoo for example can be enjoyed year-round. Your loved one gets free admission to the Zoo and free or discounted admission to over 150 zoos and aquariums nationwide. Membership also includes ZooBucks, carousel rides & guest passes! Contact Amanda Bolanos at 203-394-6574 for more information.

If you are looking for a more permanent gift, consider purchasing and engraving a Zoo Brick for someone special. Bricks will be displayed at the Zoo’s Front Gate for all to see! Contact Emily Bobowick at 203-394-6569 for more information.

If you have a real animal lover on your list, consider a gift of Animal Sponsorship. With this gift, you will receive a Sponsorship Certificate, Fact Sheet & Photograph of your sponsored animal that you can visit at the Zoo.
If you are seeking something different, don’t forget to check out the gift shop at the Zoo. The Beardsley Zoo’s fabulous gift shop offers everything from children’s games and handmade jewelry to clothing and animal-themed Christmas ornaments. You’ll be amazed at the wide selection of gifts for him and her and for the little ones, too!

Give a Zoo Birthday Party — Party like an animal and make your loved one’s wishes come true by gifting a party at the Zoo! Connecticut’s only zoo is available on Saturdays and Sundays year round for birthday parties. Make a lasting impression with a Zoo animal guest, a critter craft, and a ride on our colorful carousel! Connecticut’s Beardsley Zoo is a fun and exciting place for any child’s birthday party. To learn more, call (203) 332 4243 or email lisner@beardsleyzoo.org for more information!

For more holiday event information www.visitfairfieldcountyct.com

About Connecticut’s Beardsley Zoo
Connecticut’s Beardsley Zoo celebrates its 90th birthday in 2012 and is closer than you think! Connecticut’s only zoo features 300 animals representing primarily North and South American species. Visitors won’t want to miss our Amur (Siberian) tigers, Brazilian ocelot, Red wolves, and Golden Lion tamarins. Other highlights include our South American rainforest with free-flight aviary, the prairie dog exhibit with “pop-up” viewing areas, the New England Farmyard with goats, cows, pigs, sheep, and other barnyard critters, plus the Grasslands trail featuring bison, pronghorn, deer, and more. Visitors can grab a bite at the Peacock Café, eat in the Picnic Grove, and enjoy a ride on our colorful carousel. For more information, visit beardsleyzoo.org