The latest from NH’s theater, arts and literary communities
Multi-artist show:Positive Street Art and Opportunity Network will be hosting their “United Through Color” exhibition on Thursday, May 30, from 6 to 8 p.m. at Positive Street Art (48 Bridge St., Nashua), showcasing the solo and collaborative work of 14 artists whose breadth of mark-making and material manipulation is sure to astound and inspire, according to a press release. Fifty-five percent of sales will directly go to the artist, 35 percent back into this program and 10 percent to benefit Positive Street Art, according to the same release. The organizations hosting the exhibit thank New Hampshire Council on Developmental Disabilities, and the artists featured in this exhibition will be Liz Morin, Darren Roberts, Sue Long, Teddy Theos, Ed Davis, Duncan MacLennan, Sara Coffill, Amanda Pare, Hannah Gould, Alyssa Sawicki, Meghan Costello, Lisa Beauchamp, Yasamin Safarzadeh, Amara Phelps, Roger Balcom and Randall Neilson, according to the release. Visit positivestreetart.org
• Choral festival: Be the Change is a collaborative choral festival that will be held Saturday, June 1, at 4 p.m. at Concord’s South Congregational Church (27 Pleasant St., Concord) and will feature these Concord Community Music School ensembles: Canterbury Singers, Northern Lights Women’s Vocal Ensemble, Purple Finches Youth Chorus, Songweavers Women’s Chorus, Songweaver Drummers and Sunset Singers, according to their website, which suggests ordering tickets in advance. Prices range from $10 to $30. Visit ccmusicschool.org/events.
NEW HAMPSHIRE ART
Two Villages Art Society in the Hopkinton village of Contoocook (846 Main St.) will showcase more than 30 New Hampshire artists and sell their work in the annual summer member show, “Communities Gather,” which runs until Saturday, June 22, according to a press release. Admission to the gallery is free, as well as the opening reception, and the gallery is open Thursday through Sunday from noon to 4 p.m. All exhibitors in the show are members of Two Villages Art Society (TVAS), a nonprofit organization that offers exhibits, workshops and other events. Work in this exhibit will include paintings and drawings, fiber arts, jewelry, pottery, and prints from painter Pamela R. Tarbell, ceramic artist Karen Sobin-Jonash, photographer Jeff Schapira, knitter Martha Johnson, fiber artist Jules Robinson, and other artists from Hopkinton, Concord, Warner, Meredith and nearby towns. The summer members exhibit is juried by a prominent member of the New Hampshire art community with a “Best in Show” and “Artist Merit” award to be presented during the opening reception.
• Spring concert: The Portsmouth Symphony Orchestra will perform its spring concert at The Music Hall (28 Chestnut St., Portsmouth, 436-2400, themusichall.org) Sunday, June 2, at 3 p.m. Tickets start at $23.50.
• Handbells: The Granite State Ringers, New Hampshire’s only elite handbell choir, will perform at the Spotlight Room (96 Hanover St., Manchester, 668-5588, palacetheatre.org) on Sunday, June 2, at 3 p.m. Tickets are $50.
• On stage: Manchester Community Theatre Players (MCTP) will present the musical comedy The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee at the MCTP Theatre at the North End Montessori School (698 Beech St., Manchester) on Friday, May 31, and Saturday, June 1, at 7:30 p.m. as well as on Sunday, June 2, at 2 p.m. The show focuses on six misfit kids in a spelling bee and the three adults in charge, resulting in hilarious and touching stories from the tweens’ home lives, according to a press release. The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee is appropriate for ages 14 and older due to adult themes. Tickets are $20 for adults, $18 for those 65 or older, and $10 for students and those 18 and under. Visitmcpt.info.
• Book art: “Building Books 2” is a traveling exhibition at Twiggs Gallery ( 254 King St., Boscawen) of unique artist books organized by members of the New England Book Artists (NEBA). It starts with a free zine-making workshop from noon to 1 p.m. on Saturday, June 1, followed by an artists’ reception from 1 to 3 p.m. The exhibit at Twiggs runs through July 14, according to a press release. “Building Books 2” presents a range of interpretations on the themes of structure, architecture, public and private spaces, reality and fantasy, libraries, engineering, drafting, bookbinding, the handmade, the maker, connections, conceptualizations, personal narratives, home and much more, according to the same release. Visit twiggsgallery.org.
THE SHOW GOES ON
Into the Breeches! by George Brant, produced by Lend Me a Theater (lendmeatheater.org), runs Friday, May 31, through Sunday, June 9, at the Rochester Performing Arts Center (32 N. Main St., Rochester) with shows Fridays and Saturdays at 7:30 p.m. and Sundays at 2 p.m. Tickets cost $25 for adults, $22 for students, seniors and members, $19 for senior members. Into The Breeches! is a 2018 warm-hearted comedy set in 1942: Concord’s Oberon Play House’s director and leading men are off in World War II, so the director’s wife becomes determined to produce an all-female version of Shakespeare’s Henriad (Richard II, Henry IV Part 1 and 2, and Henry V) to deliver a celebration of collaboration and persistence when the show must go on, according to the website.
—Zachary Lewis
