Hopalong Andrew Wows Westport Families with a Thrilling Summer Show
On Wednesday July 19th Westport families enjoyed a real treat when New York City’s famous singing cowboy Hopalong Andrew returned to the Levitt Pavilion with a six-piece band.
Singing clever and whimsical cowboy songs about city life performed in the great tradition of the American West, Hopalong Andrew pays homage to the singing cowboys and folk singers of yesteryear. It is high-spirited music meant for the all ages to enjoy, and enjoy they did, on a beautiful summer’s night.
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Hopalong Andrew punctuated his performance with dazzling hijinks. He twirled a lasso, while virtuosically playing the “William Tell” Overture on harmonica, and closed the show by lassoing a plush taxi cab.
Best of all, those in attendance were regaled by the best picking east of the Hudson River, as Hopalong Andrew brought some of the best musicians of the genre, including Terrell King, the young pedal steel guitar prodigy; Ray Rizzo, who has played drums with Bob Weir; Hilary Hawke, bass player and renowned banjoist for Oklahoma! On Broadway; Melody Berger, award-winning fiddler who recently played in a production at the Westport Country Playhouse; and Cesar Moreno, up-and-coming mandolinist from The Bronx, NY who recently performed with GRAMMY-winning bluegrass artist Michael Daves.
Hopalong Andrew also performed a few songs off his upcoming album, which honors the incredible-but-true diverse and multicultural heritage of the American West.
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Hopalong Andrew performs regularly in his home base of New York City, where he was born and raised. In May 2023, New York Magazine featured Hopalong Andrew in June 2023, declaring him the "The countryfied king of our children’s entertainment circuit."
Mark your calendar for his appearance at this fall’s Brooklyn Folk Festival, where he’ll be appearing in celebration of the 75th Anniversary of Smithsonian Folkways records.
Stream his award-winning music online. More information at hopalongandrew.com
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Westport Democrats seek Replacement on Board of Finance
Press Release
The Westport DTC is seeking a candidate to fill a vacancy on the Board of Finance to replace Nancie Dupier, who is stepping down. Nancie has served the town with great distinction, and we very much appreciate her service!
Registered Democrats may apply by submitting a statement of interest and bio/resume to Michael Gordon at mgordon906<at>gmail.com
The deadline for submissions is Friday, July 21, at 5:00pm.
Candidate interviews with the Nominating Committee will likely be held on Monday, July 24th.
Interested candidates should be prepared to serve the remaining few months of Nancie’s current term and campaign this fall for a four-year term on the BoF and stand for election in November.
Contact:
Michael Gordon
203 255 2244
Booked For The Evening Presented Laura Linney To Record Crowd
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The Westport Library's Booked For The Evening series has had numerous very high profile honorees and Thursday's event with acclaimed star of stage, film and television Laura Linney helped the Library to it's most successful "Booked" fundraiser yet.
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Before taking the stage to be interviewed by Lynne Meadow, the director of the Manhattan Theatre Club, Linney was front row for the presentation film in which she received glowing tributes on her abilities as and actor and as a exceptional person by the long line of Hollywood and Broadway "A" listers from Clint Eastwood to Jason Bateman to Liam Neeson. One speaker took a comic note of the extensive accolades afforded Linney from all over the entertainment industry saying he was happy that Linney was able to hear her eulogy in person while alive to enjoy it, bringing a smile to the honeree's face.
Photos and Story By J.C. Martin For WestportLocalPress.com Click on an image to enlarge and open gallery.
Photos By J.C. Martin For WestportLocalPress.com Click on an image to enlarge and open gallery.
Linney’s film, television and stage credits are extensive with roles in Love, Actually, Mystic River and The Truman Show. Television viewers will remember her from shows such as Frasier and more recently, Ozark as well as the acclaimed mini-series John Adams. Her true loves always been the stage and she has appeared on Broadway in The Crucible, Sight Unseen, and other roles.
She has been recognized for her acting excellence with two Golden Globes, a SAG Award and four Emmys.
The pre-main event gathering for cocktails and hors d'oeuvres was at capacity at nearly 500 guests, as was the on stage interview of Linney with many notable Westporters in attendance.
As always, dedicated library volunteers and staff helped the evening go smoothly. Music was provided by a string trio of recent staples grads.
A Very NICE Saturday In Norwalk
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On Saturday July 8th, Norwalk's Oyster Shell park, a beautiful hilltop overlooking the Norwalk River and SoNo held their annual NICE festival. NICE was created by the Norwalk International Cultural Exchange, is a volunteer-led 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization whose goal is to promote and increase awareness of the diversity of people from around the world through arts and culture.
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The event, first held in 2016 has grown to draw up to 5,000 visitors throughout the nearly 12 hour event. This seventh staging of the NICE festival, which was not held in 2020 due to the pandemic offers visitors a taste of the flavors of multiple world cultures in not only delicious ethnic foods from multiple vendor food truck, but in their native dances and traditional music.
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As their website states, "NICE specifically emphasizes celebrating folk and traditional arts from multiple cultures and ethnic groups across varied art forms and genres…"
One of the more spectacular performances was by Cebuanos in Engaging in Building Unity Inc's Tribu Cebuano which presented Sinulog. Performed at the Sinulog Festival which originated in Cebu City in the Philippines, it is held on the third Sunday of January. It commemorates the conversion of the Cebuanos to Roman Catholicism and pays tribute to the Santo Niño de Cebú, also known as the Holy Child Jesus.
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The word “Sinulog” means “graceful dance”, wherein it all started in 1980 with a simple dance that represents the “sulog” (or current) of a river in Cebu. With the celebration's evolution, the Sinulog Festival has become a month long tradition in Cebu.
The mission of NICE is to encourage the various groups that make up our society to learn about each other’s traditions and customs in order to foster a deeper understanding and appreciation of what each group brings to our community.
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The festival receives high praise from the office of Norwalk's Mayor, Harry Rilling on the NICE website which says "In Norwalk, we make it a point to celebrate the uniqueness of our community and all the diverse cultures our city represents. No other event exemplifies the beautiful melting pot that Norwalk exhibits as well as the NICE Festival."
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The performers listed on their website included the Mike Camacho Quintet which performed a Jazz Tribute to Norwalk's own Horace Silver, Mariachi Mexico Antiguo featuring Tere Luna a Traditional Mexican Folkloric Ensemble, NYTAK, the Akwaaba Ensemble from Ghana, Rick Reyes who brought Latin American Fusion with more music provided by DJ Kebi who has spun at Aspen and the events worldwide.
Photos and Story By J.C. Martin For WestportLocalPress.com Click on an image to enlarge and open gallery.
