SOPAC Education: ArtWorks

In July 2008, SOPAC Education launched ArtWorks.  Designed as a student leadership program for middle and high school students, ArtWorks hosted twenty students from Columbia, Millburn and Cicely Tyson High Schools who participated in workshops on leadership, acting, stage design, budgeting, development, fundraising and marketing.  Their final project was to create and produce a performance. On July 25, 2008, the inaugural students of ArtWorks presented BEAT, an original musical.

Read ArtWorks article in The New York Times 
Read ArtWorks article in NJ Star Ledger

ARTWORKS, 2008-2009 School Year

ArtWorks is a teen leadership program developed by SOPAC for middle and high school students, aged 12 - 18. The year-long program consists of an intensive summer session, followed by after-school workshops and seminars in the fall and winter, and eventually culminating into a final production at SOPAC in the spring.  The final production will be an original performance created by the students.  

Students will work with SOPAC throughout the entire year in order to learn what it takes to create and refine their performance, work collaboratively to set and achieve goals, learn the business of the performing arts, sustain commitment to an organization and a product, and to take their work to the next level of success. In addition to working as the creators and performers of an original musical, students will serve as apprentices to learn about the work ‘behind the scenes’ at SOPAC.

ArtWorks offers students a unique experience in the performing arts:

• Students are taught leadership, conflict resolution, and professional communication skills, so they can successfully manage productions, work effectively within a group, present their initiatives to the larger community, and proactively create opportunities for their ensemble.
• ArtWorks students learn about the business, administrative, and production side of a performing arts center through internships with SOPAC department, including Marketing and Communications, Graphic Arts and Media, Development (Money and Business), Box Office/House Management/Customer Relations, Event Planning, Arts Administration, and Stagecraft/Technical Theater.
• ArtWorks students are encouraged to exercise their various talents and interests during their time at SOPAC. During one of our student-led productions a single student might work in multiple areas of the arts. ArtWorks is perfect for the student with a large and varied skill set or for the student with a focused area of interest.
• The students of ArtWorks create and produce original work evolving around current social issues that are of concern to the students. The goal of the Artworks students is to act as leaders to promote positive changes in society through the use of student talent, creativity, and passion.

Students interested in applying for the fall 2008 term of ArtWorks should contact Jennifer Isaacs, Education Coordinator, at jenny@sopacnow.org or 973.275.1114 x401.  

SOPAC’s Spring Gala Was Social Event of the Year

SOPAC’s Spring Gala, Co-Chaired by Sam Joseph of ReMax /HGTV  and Angela Burt-Murray of Essence, Was Social Event of the Year

* * *

Hosted By April Woodard of TV’s Inside Edition, The All-Night Affair on June 7 Featured Grammy Artists Angie Stone, Phoebe Snow and Ryan Shaw

For its annual spring fundraiser gala, SOPAC (South Orange Performing Arts Center) hosted the social event of the year in South Orange, New Jersey, on Saturday, June 7. The sold-out, all-night affair featured an outdoor pre-reception held on the grand plaza, electrifying concert performances from three Grammy Award-recognized artists and a post-performance dance party in The Loft at SOPAC with DJ Alchemy and catering by Restaurant MC of Millburn.

Some of the guests included:

• Sam Joseph – Gala chair; ReMax realtor, star of HGTV’s “Bought and Sold” TV program; and former artistic director for Macy’s;
• Angela Burt-Murray – Gala co-chair; Editor-in-chief of Essence Magazine; frequent guest on NBC’s Today Show; and SOPAC board member;
• April Woodard – Gala host; senior correspondent of “Inside Edition”;
• Suzzanne Douglas – actress/singer;
• Derek M. Murphy – SOPAC board member; gala committee member; executive with Time Warner; and
• Andrea Fant-Hobbs – gala committee member; Vice President of Segmentation, New Product Research & Development, Verizon.

The spectacular summer evening kicked off as guests left their vehicles with valet attendants provided by Advanced Parking Concepts.  Cameras flashed and pedestrians stopped to watch as the fashionable gala attendees made their way past the luxurious Audi A8, on display courtesy of DCH Millburn Audi, to walk down the red carpet into the tropical-themed pre-show reception.  Held under white canopies, the space was decorated with beautiful floral arrangements and lush, potted trees.  Guests sampled delicious hors d’ouevres and quenched their thirst with palate-pleasing red and white wines provided by Beringer Wines and specialty cocktails from sponsor Rain Vodka including the red Cosmic Rain (a new take on the Cosmopolitan) and the blue Tropical Rain, which seemed to be everyone’s favorite considering the tropical heat wave!

Next was an amazing concert in SOPAC’s intimate theater hosted by “Inside Edition’s” April Woodard.  This year’s gala, “A Night of Vintage Soul,” saluted American soul and R&B singers Angie Stone, Phoebe Snow and Ryan Shaw, all Grammy Award-recognized artists.  Shaw, who recently performed at 2008 Grammy Awards and is currently opening for Van Halen, had the crowd on its feet immediately with his infectious energy and electric songs including his hit “Do the 45” and a cover of “Try A Little Tenderness.”  Snow, whom after almost 20 years off the circuit, is touring again reminded the appreciative audience just why she is so beloved by musicians and music-lovers alike, particularly when she sang “Two-Fisted Love” and her iconic hit single, “Poetry Man.”.  Stone closed the night in commanding fashion with her recent hits “Baby” and “Sometimes” and her gem, “Wish I Didn’t Miss You.”  To close, she invited the crowd to join her in a surprising, fun, sing-a-long finale of Frankie Beverly & Maze’s “Joy and Pain.”

After the concert, revelers headed upstairs to the spacious Loft at SOPAC, which was outfitted like one of the area’s hottest dance clubs.  DJ Alchemy fired the crowd up and kept them grooving on the dance floor, even playing a special requested tribute to Prince to mark his 50th birthday. Guests enjoyed tempting desserts from David Burke and Marc Cooperman’s hip Restaurant MC of Millburn, including their famous cheesecake lollipops with raspberry whipped cream, and Rain Vodka cocktails and Beringer Wines.  Around 1 a.m., guests, who had arrived as early as 6:30pm, began leaving SOPAC with summer-themed gifts, complimentary coffee from Starbucks and memories of a great night.

SOPAC Executive Director Ondine Landa Abramson, who conceived of the concert line-up, was thrilled. “The evening could not have gone better for our patrons and SOPAC. It was a beautiful night with delicious food and drink and an incredible concert experience. We’re just so delighted that all of these patrons came out to show their support for SOPAC and to celebrate the achievements of Season 2. This was the biggest event for SOPAC so far, but we have much more in store for Season 3!” Season 3 begins in September.

WaMu and The Wilshire Grand Hotel were additional SOPAC gala sponsors.

SOPAC STARS SPRING GALA

BUY TICKETS NOW

Join the SOPAC Board of Governors and the Spring Gala Committee for The SOPAC Stars Spring Gala Featuring

Angie Stone

Singer/songwriter/actress Angie Stone is much in demand for her modern old-soul meets the new groove sound. Just nominated for a Grammy for Best R&B Performance for her new Stax Records CD, The Art of Love & War, she has one of the most powerful voices in R&B and a playful personality that always moves the crowd.

Phoebe Snow

Phoebe Snow’s debut CD in 1974 featured the now iconic “Poetry Man” and landed her on the cover of Rolling Stone. She was a star out of the gate and has remained one of the most distinctive voices in popular music with her rare, perfect blend of folk, blues, rock and soul. Her rare engagements sell out quickly.

Ryan Shaw

Featured at SOPAC last October before his Grammy nomination for Best Traditional R&B Vocal, Ryan Shaw is someone we couldn’t wait to bring back. In Sam Cooke-meets-Ray Charles style, this 27-year-old singer/songwriter is reviving vintage American music and stirring up a soul revival.

Order of the Evening

Saturday, June 7, 2008

6:30pm pre-performance reception Grand Lobby | Sponsored by WaMu

8pm Gala Concert | SOPAC Theater

After-show Dance Party The Loft at SOPAC | Sponsored by restaurant mc of Millburn

Get Moving @ SOPAC with Lydia Johnson Dance!

This spring Lydia Johnson Dance, SOPAC's dance company in residence, will be hosting a full schedule of classes in the SOPAC Loft. Offering a variety of classes for all ages, ability levels and interests, these classes are a fun way to get moving at SOPAC.

 CLASSES BEGIN FEBRUARY 11
SIGN UP TODAY @ lydiajohnsondance.org

Class Fees:

Each class meets 12x during the semester plus a 13th day for an evening of students work.

$350 per class for the semester*

$600 for 2 classes*

*Sibling discounts are 10%

Lydia Johnson Dance

MONDAYS AT SOPAC

12:30-1:15 PM: Pre Ballet and Dance for Pre-K (4 and 5 yr olds)
1:30 –2:15 PM: Pre-Ballet and Dance for Kindergarteners (5 and 6 yr olds)
Young children will experience the incredible, joyous physicality of ballet without the usual focus on a recital. Focus is on basic body placement and the creative urge to dance as children explore their own response to music and dance freely for a portion of the class.
Teacher: Rayna Pomper

4:00- 5:00 PM: Intro to Ballet and Choreography (Grades K-2)
This class focuses on the basic structures of early ballet technique while allowing children to experience a joyous exploration of movement. The choreography portion of the class encourages a growing awareness of the use of dance technique as a creative tool. Children will show short pieces of choreography at the end of the semester.
Teachers: Ferrell Alexander, Lydia Johnson

 5:00- 6:00 PM: Ballet and Choreography I (Grades 2-4)
This class is broken into two segments with LJD Company member Ferrell Alexander (formerly with Aspen/Santa Fe Ballet) teaching a Royal Academy-based ballet class followed by Lydia Johnson teaching beginning Choreography. Choreographic tools, such as: levels, theme and variation, canons, movement dynamics and spatial design are explored. The class culminates in a student showing of works in progress.
Teachers: Ferrell Alexander, Lydia Johnson

6:00-7:00 PM Ballet and Choreography II (Grades 4-9 including beginners)This class is broken into two segments with LJD Company member Ferrell Alexander (formerly with Aspen/Santa Fe Ballet) teaching a Royal Academy-based ballet class followed by Lydia Johnson teaching beginning choreography.  Level II classes incorporate additional skills as students grow in their abilities to compose dances. Partnering and group partnering are introduced. Students begin to use music as a part of their creative process. The class culminates in a student showing of works in progress.
Teachers: Ferrell Alexander, Lydia Johnson  

7:30 –8:30 PM:  Ballet for Teens and Adults (Including Athletes, Actors, Musicians & CEOs)
This is the perfect ballet class for adult or teen beginners, or for students with some prior training, who wish to experience the joyous physicality of ballet. Finding classes for teens is difficult and this class will allow athletes, actors and others to add a dance class to their week. Ballet alleviates stress and encourages grace and efficiency of movement, which can help in other areas of creative expression.
Teacher: Ferrell Alexander.

For more details or to Register:
visit www.lydiajohnsondance.org
or Call 973.763.6971

Seasoned rocker in South Orange

John Waite.
Where: South Orange Performing Arts Center, 1 SOPAC Way, South Orange. When: 8 p.m. Saturday. How much: $38-$48.

John Waite, a rock singer-songwriter who was born in England, made an unlikely appearance on the country charts this year, after re-recording his signature song, "Missing You," as a tender duet with pop-bluegrass star Alison Krauss.

Waite, who is 52 and now lives in Santa Monica, Calif., recorded the song for his latest album, "Downtown ... Journey of a Heart," which includes new versions of songs from throughout his approximately 30-year career, including material from his days with the bands the Babys ("Isn't It Time") and Bad English ("When I See You Smile"). He'll perform with guitarist Jimmy Leahey and bassist Tim Hogan -- he describes the format as "a fuller version of 'Unplugged'" -- Saturday night at the South Orange Performing Arts Center.

Q. Have you done a lot of semi-unplugged performing?

A. Yeah, I've been doing a lot of that for about five years. We initially went out to promote an album called "The Hard Way," a few years ago, and toured a lot of small clubs and did a lot of Borders book shops. In the end, it became such a great thing that half the dates turn out to be unplugged, and then half the dates are electric. There's this part of me that just loves it more.

Q. Do you do songs very differently from how you do them with a band?

A. Well, you're not trying to get above the volume. But you're still singing flat out. It's fun, because if somebody in the audience screams something, you can always move toward that song. It's pretty liquid.

Q. Or if you have a new musical idea in the middle of a song, you can try it out.

A. Yeah. It's a great form. It's how we all started.

Q. Did you play in coffeehouses or things like that before you were in rock bands?

A. No. But when you start out, you really can only afford the acoustic (guitar). Then if you get serious about it, you get the electric. But all of the great songs were written on acoustic guitars, and obviously it has a strong harkening back to the blues and country, and English folk. A lot of rock 'n' roll singers have electric roots, and that's all they are. But I come from a whole different place, 'cause I have those acoustic roots.

Q. Do you do a lot of blues or folk songs, or other covers, in shows like these?

A. No. Not unless we feel like that. We're probably more likely to do that with a band, because we do some Dylan stuff. But there's no real plan to any of it.

Doing the unplugged thing so consistently, any stage fright you might have had goes out the window, because when you're playing in broad daylight in a book shop, you've really got to be on your game, and have the thing flying. There's nowhere else for anyone to look, and the P.A. is generally like barely passable.

Q. And you can't just use volume ...

A. Well, I've never been about that. I've never been one of those guys that relied on that kind of energy. I adore volume, but I don't write songs using that kind of volume. I write the song first, then I step it up.

Q. How did the "Missing You" duet with Alison Krauss come about?

A. I called her up.

Q. Did you just think she would be good on it?

A. She was my favorite female singer. Still is. I listen to a lot of women singers, 'cause I kind of know how guys do it. It's been a long time since I've learned anything from another male singer. I kind of learned what I learned by the time I was about 14, though there were odd flashes of somebody else having a great record (later). I'd go like, "How did he do that?" But I kind of knew how he did that, because I was listening to the same stuff: Otis Redding, Aretha Franklin, Robert Johnson, Hank Williams. There are just people who are like the pillars of music, and everyone has access to those artists.

Q. What was it about Krauss' singing that you liked?

A. It was honest. It was totally real -- much as she is. She's exactly what her voice says she is. So it was kind of an entrancing experience, really. I met her, and we clicked. It was a great 48 hours.

I had just finished up the album when she said she would do it. I went back to Nashville, because I made the album in Nashville, and we just met up, and did it. Then I looked at the record, and decided it needed some fresh blood. She kind of raised the bar on the record. So I had to throw a few other things on it as well, that were kind of fresh. So I went into a Manhattan studio with a New York band, and cut three more things.

It's a strange album. It was supposed to be a greatest-hits collection. But I got so bored in the middle that I started to make it a psychedelic greatest-hits, and I did an unplugged version of "When I See You Smile," which led me to the duet with "Missing You." It's sort of like, it's not one thing or the other. It was meant to be a crash course in John Waite, for Europe, and midstream, it became my latest release, worldwide.

Jay Lustig may be reached at jlustig@starledger.com or (973) 392-5850

Warwick's world

The Star-Ledger
Thursday, October 18, 2007
BY JAY LUSTIG
Star-Ledger Staff

When Dionne Warwick goes on a world tour, she really goes on a world tour. She will perform in four continents before 2007 ends, with stops everywhere from Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, to Riga, Latvia.

But next week, the 66-year-old singer, who was responsible for some of the most timeless pop hits of the '60s and '70s, will stay close to her South Orange home. On Oct. 25 and 26, she will present evenings of music and conversation titled "My Music and Me" at the South Orange Performing Arts Center. She will also be at the B.B. King Blues Club & Grill in New York on Wednesday, for a more conventional concert.

Her only previous "My Music and Me" shows took place last year, with a 12-show run at London's Shaw Theatre. The London daily The Independent called it "an informal, up-close-and-personal autobiography and greatest-hits show." Another paper, The Guardian, after citing a withering comment Warwick made about her one-time rival Cilla Black, called the show "brilliantly bitchy, knowingly diva-ish and, occasionally, profoundly touching."

Warwick, who will be backed by a six-piece band during the shows, says the idea is simply "to tell my life story, through my music, as opposed to writing an autobiography that's only for publication. Hopefully it's something that could go to Broadway someday."

If it did, it would mark her Broadway debut -- one of the few firsts she has yet to accomplish in her nearly 50-year career.

The show stays more or less the same from night to night, with Warwick looking over her life, chronologically, between songs. "Basically, it's scripted," she says. "But the words are my words."

The supporting cast includes Warwick's sister Dee Dee -- a veteran singer herself -- on backing vocals. Dionne says she can't remember the last time the two worked together.

She says the London run "was absolutely wonderful. The response was really overwhelming -- much more than I ever expected it to be. It really gave me hope."

Hope for what? "That it had the possibility of going to Broadway."

For now, though, it can only be seen at the 415-seat SOPAC. And Ondine Landa Abramson, acting executive director of SOPAC (which opened last year), couldn't be happier.

"It's a big deal, first of all, because it's Dionne Warwick," says Abramson. "She's a household name, a celebrity -- really an iconic person who fortunately for us is also a local townsperson. In addition, it's all the more a big deal for us because she reached out to us, through her agency, to play this room, and we in essence have the privilege of doing the North American premiere of this one-woman show. I think the intimacy of our house, and certainly the location of our house -- being that it's so close to home for her -- all played heavily in our favor."

Abramson says that in the future, "we hope she'll start thinking of SOPAC as the place she likes to work out her new material. That would be quite the honor."

Warwick, who was born into a musical family -- her aunt is Cissy Houston, making Whitney Houston her cousin -- started singing with the gospel groups the Drinkard Singers and the Gospelaires as a teenager. Session work in New York led to her association with composer Burt Bacharach and lyricist Hal David, and her precise, elegant phrasing made her the perfect singer for them. Their songs were complex, with melodies that flowed in unexpected directions and time signatures that are rarely used in pop songs. But Warwick made whatever they threw at her sound completely natural.

From 1963 to 1970, the three worked together steadily and produced a stream of hits that included "Don't Make Me Over," "Anyone Who Had a Heart," "Walk On By," "Alfie," "I Say a Little Prayer," "Do You Know the Way To San José" and "I'll Never Fall In Love Again."

Warwick was never able to match that level of success, though she continued to have occasional Top 40 hits through the late '80s. Most notably, she had No. 1 hits in both 1974 ("Then Came You," which teamed her with the Spinners) and 1985 (her "That's What Friends Are For" AIDS charity single, with Elton John, Gladys Knight and Stevie Wonder).

Recent albums have included 2004's "My Favorite Time of the Year," devoted to Christmas standards, and last year's "My Friends and Me," featuring collaborations with artists such as Knight (on "I'll Never Love This Way Again"), Gloria Estefan (on "Walk On By"), the late Celia Cruz, Wynonna Judd and Reba McEntire.

Warwick was born and raised in East Orange -- where the Dionne Warwick Institute, an elementary school, is named after her -- and has also lived in Maplewood. She moved to South Orange five years ago.

She also maintains a home in Brazil. "I call it my stress-free country," she says. "When I go there, everything drops away."

She has not yet seen a show at SOPAC, but has visited it "to take a look," and says she feels it's important for the town to have a theater of its own.

"South Orange deserves it," she says.

Small, intimate setting helps SOPAC attract some big names

Homey entertainment

STAGE

Dionne Warwick, Madeleine Peyroux and Sweet Honey in the Rock will keep the music playing during the 2007-2008 season announced for the South Orange Performing Arts Center.

The center, chummily named SOPAC, has 31 attractions booked for its second season. Acting executive director Ondine Landa Abramson said yesterday that the center expects to eventually surpass the 54 attractions of the inaugural season.

"We're finding that a number of big names are interested in the in timacy of smaller venues," she said of the 415-seat facility. "Peyroux sold out 2,400 seats in New York just recently, but she wants the experience of playing to an intimate audience."

Warwick's show, "My Music & Me," is a pre-Broadway tryout. If all goes well, it will play New York the following season.

"We like getting artists on the way up," said Landa Abramson, "which prompted the Juilliard at SOPAC series. The school's best talents will be here on Wednesday nights, and at less expensive prices, too."

The South Orange Performing Arts Center is at 1 SOPAC Way, South Orange. Subscription and flexible ticket packages are available. Call (973) 313-2787 or visit www.sopacnow.org.

SOPAC named July Villager of the Month

The South Orange Performing Arts Center

The Village Community Relations Committee is pleased to name the South Orange Performing Arts Center as its July Villager of the Month in recognition of its significant positive impact on the Village and its residents.

In only seven months, SOPAC forged a memorable first year through unique programming, important partnerships and cultural leadership. It won praise from the media and important politicians, including former governor Richard Codey and Essex County Executive Joseph DiVincenzo.

It welcomed national and international stars including Olympia Dukakis, Nancy Wilson, Yo-Yo Ma, Paula Poundstone, Richie Havens, Dan Zanes, Anoushka Shankar, Paquito D’Rivera, John Pizzarelli and the Kalichstein-Laredo-Robinson Trio.

In collaboration with the community, it sponsored the Double-V cultural awareness program and “Squonk,” the musical tribute to our two towns.

What most impresses the Community Relations Committee is the important role SOPAC plays in bringing Villagers together downtown, creating a vital new Village center. Downtown restaurants and retail stores cite improved customer traffic since the arts center opened.

SOPAC’s partnership with Seton Hall University also engages the student and university community in the life of South Orange. SHU has moved its concert series from campus to SOPAC and its new theater-arts program uses the SOPAC auditorium and facilities.

In a relationship with Cablevision (owner of Clearview Cinemas, which operates the five cinemas inside the arts center), SOPAC brings entertainment close to home and provides jobs for high school and college students.

In addition, a new collaboration has emerged between SOPAC, the Seton Hall Arts Council and The Baird. Together they are developing a cultural plan for the future of our Village. “South Orange: An Arts Destination” is a project funded through a grant frown the New Jersey State Council on the Arts.

SOPAC is governed by and independent 22-person board of governors, chaired by local resident Barbara Stoller. Day to day, the arts center is run by a full-time executive director and professional staff.

“We are so grateful for the support we continue to receive from the community and remain grateful to the Village for its efforts to make SOPAC a reality,” said Stoller.

“This recognition as Villager of the Month is such an honor to us, because it reaffirms that we have become a cornerstone of this community.”