New Hampshire Magazine
Experience great talent and performances in picturesque Prescott Park
May 17, 2021
A photo from a past performance at the Prescott Park Arts Festival. This year’s musical is “You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown.”
Following a one-year break due to coronavirus-related precautions, the Prescott Park Arts Festival is back and ready for an outstanding season.
As usual, the festival will feature a musical, film series and concert series. In addition to the performing arts, there will be community collaborations and showcases as well as the return of their theater education camp “Camp Encore!”
However, the similarities to past years mostly end there. The festival has been reimagined to be COVID-safe. Instead of the typical crowds of people in front of the stage, there will be assigned socially distanced “pods,” spread either three or six feet apart, depending on guidance at the time. Mask-wearing will be required when walking around, but can be remo
ALL TOGETHER NOW Benefit Concert Series Kicks Off With The Lone Bellow s Zachary Williams, May 14
The second act, Rachael & Vilray, is already sold out for the May 22 date.by BWW News Desk
The Music Hall, Prescott Park Arts Festival, and 3S Artspace launch their collaborative series in May, the first time these organizations have worked together in this way. The first of three dates for the All Together Now benefit concert series is right around the corner with The Lone Bellow s Zachary Williams performing two shows on Friday, May 14. The second act, Rachael & Vilray, is already sold out for the May 22 date. Son Little will end the series on a high note on Friday, June 11. This collaboration aims to welcome the community back to live music.
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Ginnie Lupi, director of the New Hampshire State Council on the Arts, said Covid assistance funding is needed by performance and other venues across the state.
The initial stay-at-home order issued by Gov. Chris Sununu in March 2020 required The Music Hall in Portsmouth to shutter completely. The 142-year-old theatre in downtown Portsmouth hosts concerts and performances, literary events and other entertainment. But due to the pandemic, the gathering people in large or even smaller crowds was impossible.
In 2020, The Music Hall lost about 90% of its earned revenue, said Monte Bohanan, director of communications and community engagement.
Carol Feingold/Correspondent
Live musical theater is back with the Firehouse Center for the Arts production of the rock musical “RENT,” opening at Spencer-Peirce-Little Farm on Friday, May 14, and running through Sunday, May 23.
“RENT” is a rock musical with music, lyrics, and book by Jonathan Larson, loosely based on Giacomo Puccini’s 1896 opera “La Bohème.” It tells the story of a group of impoverished young artists struggling to survive and create a life in Lower Manhattan s East Village in the thriving days of bohemian Alphabet City, under the shadow of HIV/AIDS.
“It’s the 25th anniversary of the show opening on Broadway,” said John Moynihan, Firehouse Center for the Arts Executive Director. “It’s a show that touches upon so many relevant factors today. The struggles of the artist have never been more relevant than right now. There’s still the feeling of isolation and the reunifying factor of friends a family.”
PORTSMOUTH Fresh off her announcement the Prescott Park Arts Festival will return in 2021 and produce “You’re A Good Man, Charlie Brown” as its summer musical, Courtney Perkins talked about her first season leading one of the Seacoast’s most beloved arts traditions.
“I’m excited for our board and and our staff to finally announce the musical, and really happy to be in Portsmouth to bolster the community. The arts are a real shot in the arm for the community, one we need now more than ever,” said Perkins, the festival s executive director. “This is going to make us all feel great, and I’m especially grateful to be here for my first year.”