click to enlarge SUNY New Paltz alum Frank Cardella has long dreamt of opening an eatery in his college town. This dream finally came to fruition in an unlikely moment, amid a global pandemic. Last summer, word reached Cardella that music store Jack’s Rhythms was relocating after 27 years at 56 Main Street. “Once I found out about the available space, it felt like an opportunity I couldn’t miss… so I signed,” says Cardella. “I’m the type of person to go all in and take a chance.” Cardella’s culinary interest started at a young age, watching his grandmother prepare big holiday meals for the entire extended family. In a household of Sicilian and Spanish heritage, homemade food was paramount.
click to enlarge For bibliophiles and history geeks, literary types and plain old nerds, there are few places more comforting than the stacks of a local bookstore. These brick-and-mortar shops, run by passionate individuals who champion the books they love, are meeting places for the community. They cast spotlights on local writers, put new wind in B-list authors’s sails, host book clubs and writing clubs, foster relationships, and stock our home libraries. The nearly two dozen independent bookstores scattered throughout the Hudson Valley are part of the cultural fabric of the area, as much for the events they host as for the minds they cultivate.
click to enlarge Lori Iribarren is crying as she hands rat-terrier mix Minnie’s leash to her new owner. “It never gets any easier,” says Iribarren, an animal-rescue director who fostered Minnie for several weeks before finding the adopter. “I wish I could keep them all.” In the animal rescue world, which seems to attract people who love animals but relate poorly to humans, Iribarren is a rare breed – a rescue director who gets along with people as well as she does with dogs. As people spend more time at home because of the pandemic and animal shelters have banned walk-ins, Iribarren has been building her following and placing scores of dogs, most of whom have adoptive homes lined up before they arrive at her house in New Hampton. She often fosters the dogs herself so she can get a sense of their personality and match them with the right family. Her skill at matching dogs with
Having dug yourself out after last week’s massive snowstorm, here are some excellent area activities to dig without going far.
Annie Lennox, Carly Simon Headline Bardavon’s Carole King Tribute | February 10
For “Albums Revisited,” Poughkeepsie theater the Bardavon’s ongoing all-star tributes to classic albums to classic albums, the spotlight will shine on Carole King’s 1971 bestseller,
Tapestry. The YouTube series returns on February 10 at 8pm with musical appearances by Annie Lennox, Carly Simon, Kate Pierson with the Restless Age, Kat Quinn, Jill Sobule, Dar Williams, Cindy Cashdollar, Jonatha Brooke, Patti Rothberg, Laura Stevenson, Lara Hope and the Ark-Tones, and others. The livestream is free, with a suggested donation for the artists.
Last Updated: 02/04/2021 3:22 pm Three Pan Goddesses, a painting by Jennifer Coates, will be exhibited at LABspace in Hillsdale as part of the group show The Magic Garden, which runs February 20- April 11. Welcome once again to Chronogram s ongoing overview of area arts-related news during these politically wrought and pandemically plagued times. This month, as we anticipate brighter, safer days, we can take solace in the fact that creativity in the Hudson Valley region is non-stop, always finding new ways to survive and thrive. Peter Aaron
Prepare to Step Aside After 48 years of managing beloved independent movie theater Upstate Films, the business s founders, Steve and DeDe Leiber, who established the enterprise with board president Susan Goldman, have chosen to cede control of the operation to someone else. It was just one of those moments in the making, says Steve about the decision. We ve been ru