Tag: CT Travel

A Valentines Song from the Heart

Westport singer-actress Leslie Orofino will perform some of the best-loved works from the American songbook in her one-woman Valentine’s show, “Affairs of the Heart, at the Westport Historical Society on February 8, 2015 from 4 p.m. to 5 p.m.

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Blues and cabaret lovers can look forward to hearing a selection of Orofino’s favorite songs from the likes of Peggy Lee and Alberta Hunter. “I love to tell a story when I sing,” said Orofino, and one story she loves to tell is that of Hunter, who grew up in poverty in the American South and became a popular blues artist here and in Europe before leaving the stage to become a nurse and take care of her ailing mother. After the death of her mother, and while Hunter was in her early 80s, she returned to singing and became a sensation once again. Orofino’s show will include Hunter’s gritty blues riff, “Handy Man.”

The singer describes her Valentine’s show as “a celebration of all things that make your heart beat a little faster, through the songs of Rodgers and Hammerstein, Cole Porter, Alberta Hunter, Harry Warren and many others.”
After seeing Orofino perform her act “Red Hot and Blues” at New York’s Laurie Beechman Theatre, cabaret icon Julie Wilson said, “Leslie has a certain elegance mixed with sex appeal that sells each and every song. She’s also a great comedian.”
Ms. Orofino has also performed at such New York cabaret haunts as the Algonquin’s Oak Room, Danny’s Skylight Room, the Waldorf and the Plaza. She has appeared locally at Fairfield University’s Quick Center and the Fairfield Theater Company and as Kay Goodman in the musical “Nite Club Confidential” at the Westport Country Playhouse. In 2002, Orofino released the CD “Moonlight Cocktails,” a collection of moonlight standards of the ’30s and ’40s.

Among her treasured memories are the times she sang with her father, a businessman who also sang professionally, at the Oak Room. “I have always loved the music of the ’30s and ’40s mainly because my dad filled our home with his gorgeous tenor voice singing those songs. … I love performing and for a few years had the honor of having my darling dad as my special guest singer at the Algonquin.” The song they sang together was Dorothy Field’s “Just the Way You Look Tonight.”

For her WHS concert Orofino will be accompanied by award-winning musician Daryl Kojak on piano. The show is directed by Louis D. Pietig. In addition to performing, Orofino gives private voice and piano lessons. To learn more about her career, go to her website, www.leslieorofino.com.

“Affairs of the Heart,” Sunday, Feb. 8, 4 p.m. $25 for Members, $30 for Non-Members and reservations are suggested: (203) 222-1424. A Valentine Reception with champagne and chocolate will follow. Westport Historical Society, 25 Avery Place, across from Town Hall. For more information about the WHS, go to http://westporthistory.org. For area information www.visitfairfieldcountyct.com

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Mardi Gras 2015 at The New England Carousel Museum

Madri Gras also known as Fat Tuesday, refers to events of the Carnival celebrations beginning on or after Epiphany or King’s Day culminating on the day before ash Wednesday. Traditionally, this celebration reflects the practice of eating rich foods before the ritual fasting of the Lenten season, but today, there are many related popular events associated with this including parades, wearing masks and costumes.

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The New England Carousel Museum on 95 Riverside Ave. in Bristol Connecticut is hosting a Louisiana-style evening on February 7, 2015 from 7 pm – 11 pm. This festive evening promises to chase away the winter doldrums and features music and dancing in the magnificent Museum ballroom. Along with a 50/50 raffle and live entertainment, there will be wine and bourbon tastings, BYOB and food a plenty! The evening festivities will culminate in the crowning of a king and queen of the ball.

Tickets are on sale at the Carousel Museum or you may order them by mail or phone. RSVP by February 1, 2015 by calling (860) 585-5411. The cost is $50 per person and pre-paid tables of 8 may be reserved. For more information or to purchase tickets, please contact The New England Carousel Museum at (860) 585-5411 or email info@thecarouselmuseum.org.

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The Millionaires’ Unit Documentary Film Screening

On January 29, the Greenwich Historical Society is hosting the screening of The Millionaires’ Unit Documentary from 3 pm to 5 pm. at the Vanderbilt Education Center on the grounds of the Society. The tickets are Members: $10; nonmembers: $15 and can be purchased at http://greenwichhistory.org or by calling 203-869-6899, Ext. 10.

Millionaires-Unit

The Millionaires’ Unit is the story of an elite group of college students from Yale who formed a private air militia in preparation for America’s entry into World War One. Known as the First Yale Unit and dubbed “the millionaires’ unit” by the New York press, they became the founding squadron of the U.S. Naval Air Reserve and were among the first to fight for the United States in the Great War. Using the squadron members’ letters and diaries, the documentary chronicles the coming of age of these young pioneers against the backdrop of an event that signaled America’s emergence as a world power.

The film focuses on their service and sacrifice and chronicles a great, untold story of early aviation in America. The documentary was inspired by the book The Millionaires’ Unit by Marc Wortman. After seven years in development and production by co-producers Ron King and Darroch Greer, the film is being presented to the public to commemorate the centennial of World War I.

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Bee Gee’s Legacy stays alive at the Palace Theatre

A celebration of one of the most influential and famous musical groups of all time, the new Australian Bee Gees Show keeps the legendary music of the Gibb brothers “Stayin’ Alive” with a special one night only performance at the Palace Theater in Waterbury on Tuesday, February 3, at 7:30pm. Tickets for the multimedia stage show are $55, $45, and $35 and can be purchased by phone at 203-346-2000, online at www.palacetheaterct.org, or in person at the box office, 100 East Main Street in Waterbury.

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From the producers that brought the world RAIN: A Tribute to The Beatles, London’s West End production of Let It Be, and PFX: The Pink Floyd Experience, Annerin Productions and co-producer SPI Entertainment present The Australian Bee Gees Show, a multimedia theatrical concert experience that takes a nostalgic trip through the legacy the Bee Gees left behind while celebrating over 40 years of infectious music written by the Gibb brothers.

Together for more than 17 years, The Australian Bee Gees Show has mastered the look, sound and personality of the adored trio, while cementing their reputation as the world’s leading Bee Gees show. The band’s record breaking music is captivated live on stage with mesmerizing resemblance in sound and mannerisms and features live camera images, vivid graphics and state-of-the-art sound that will get audience members dancin’ on their feet. From early hits (“Massachusetts,” “New York Mining Disaster 1941,” “To Love Somebody”) to later classics (“Stayin’ Alive” and “You Should Be Dancin'”) this show will have music fans reliving all of their favorite Bee Gees moments.

The Bee Gees are one of the top five of the most successful recording artists of all time alongside the Beatles, McCartney, Elvis and Michael Jackson. Having sold more than 220 million records worldwide, the group is still proving that their music is Stayin’ Alive and have had at least 2,500 artists record their songs.

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The Witches are back in Kent Connecticut!

Not many people know that Connecticut was New England’s most determined witch prosecutor – even fiercer than Salem. The record is terrible: The first person hanged for witchcraft in New England came from Windsor, and for a time every Connecticut woman indicted for witchcraft was convicted and hanged.

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In another of its continuing “Sunday Series” presentations, the Kent Historical Society will host Walt Woodward, the Connecticut state historian, giving a presentation on witch hunts that happened in Connecticut.

The lecture will be held Sunday, January 18, 2015 at 2 p.m. at the Kent Town Hall.
Walt Woodward animates this extraordinary, but neglected episode in a lecture that begins with the Protestant Reformation and continues through the Hartford Witch hunt of the 1660’s – a nightmare of trials and executions that preceded Salem by a generation. The story improves, too. Woodward documents how Connecticut’s Governor John Winthrop, Jr. played a role in ending executions for witchcraft 30 years before they even began at Salem.

Kent’s own Seger family was caught up in the madness. Elizabeth Moody Seger was accused of witchcraft three times. It is documented on the family’s web site http://www.onsegermountain.org/witchcraft.html

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

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MOMIX: The 35th Anniversary A Celebration of Company Favorites at the Warner Theatre

On Saturday, January 17, 2015 and Sunday, January 18, 2015 the Warner Theatre will once again welcome the irrepressible Moses Pendelton and the internationally acclaimed dancer-illusionists troupe, MOMIX, as they celebrate 35 years of presenting works of exceptional inventiveness and physical beauty.

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In this performance, the MOMIX 35th Anniversary Celebration features a collection of company and audience favorites, creating a show that breaks the bounds of the conventional and enters an aesthetic orbit all its own.
MOMIX is a company of dancer-illusionists based out of Washington, CT and under the direction of Moses Pendelton. Known internationally, MOMIX performs on stage world-wide and recently appears in nationally-televised commercials. With nothing more than light, shadow, props and the human body, MOMIX has astonished audiences on five continents for over 30 years.

Warner Theater
Warner Theater

Performances are Saturday, January 17 at 8 pm and Sunday, January 18 at 2 pm. Tickets start at $43 and are available by calling the Warner Theatre Box Office at (860) 489-7180 or online at www.warnertheatre.org

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