With Thanksgiving still around the corner, it’s hard to fast-forward to New Year’s Eve. But First Night Morris County has lined up such a diverse array of talent that you might want to start plotting your strategy now, to avoid any last-minute quandaries about which acts to see.
It’s even a puzzler for organizers of the Morristown entertainment extravaganza, which is celebrating its 19th year.
“I’m excited about all of this, but I will have a very hard time figuring out what I will check out that night,” said Dr. Lynn Siebert of the Arts Council of the Morris Area.
The program includes a magician. But the real magic may start with Lynn, who booked some 40 acts despite a leaner budget than last year. If anything, the roster appears more eclectic than ever.
Where else can you enjoy a “master of the erhu”? Or pet a live skink? Or hear folk songs in Klingon? (Wang Guowei of Music from China; Rizzo’s Reptiles and Carla Ulbrich, respectively.)
Music lovers can sample blues and brass, baroque and the British Invasion–and that’s just the letter B. There will be choral and classical, and more drums than you can shake a stick at. (Richard Reiter’s African Drumming Circle, Taikoza, Hip Pickles Drum Band.)
Circus acts, magicians, Native American dancers, the list is dizzying. The Harlem Wizards Duo is back by popular demand for some basketball fun. Also returning are perennial favorites Frank Vignola on jazz guitar and pianist Rio Clemente, a Morristown native better known as the Bishop of Jazz.
There will be storytellers and Mark Twain readings and a chance to “meet” composer George Gershwin (actor Dennis Kobray).
Newcomers include singer Christine DeLeon, who impressed everyone at our Festival Earth celebration this spring.
Giraffe-sized puppets, poetry slams, symphonies . . . you get the picture.
Venues are within easy walking distances–Morristown’ majestic churches have great acoustics– and there will be free shuttle buses and two fireworks displays over the Morristown Green, as in the past.
A few familiar places will be sitting out this year’s festivities, notably, Assumption Church, the Bickford Theatre, the Community Theatre’s art gallery (undergoing renovations) and the Morristown & Township Library (closed for repairs since an explosion in May).
Lynn begins booking acts in the summer, but her quest for talent never stops.
“I keep files when I come across something that intrigues me,” she said. Performers who don’t quite fit one year sometimes get called the next. “I’m most concerned with providing high-caliber talent and the proper mix.”
Because of First Night’s reputation as a quality production, artists are willing to work with her on pricing, she said. She tries not to push it.
“I work hard to make sure artists are paid as well as we possibly can afford to. I am a performing artist, too,” said Lynn, an accomplished violinist who also teaches music theory at the College of Saint Elizabeth. “This is not a frill. This is their livelihood.”
First Night tickets go on sale Dec. 1 exclusively through the Community Theatre box office. The price is $20 ($25 on show night), four tickets for $70. Kids under four are free. A ticket gets you into everything–theoretically. Attending more than four or five events is a challenge because everything overlaps.
So start planning!
THE FIRST NIGHT ROSTER:
The Alacorde Piano Trio; Argentinian tango fused with classical chamber music
Andes Fusion; South American traditional and contemporary music
Arm of the Sea – Turtle Island Medicine Show; mask and puppet theater
Atrium Art Exhibit; 260 artworks by 25 artists
Children’s Fun Festival; jugglers, stilt walkers and face painting
Rio Clemente: “The Bishop of Jazz” and Friends
The Cobra Brothers Band; Delta (country) blues, Chicago blues, funk, R&B, rock, country, jazz
Mike Cohen’s Global Road Ensemble; Balkan, Klezmer/Eastern European music and the highly distinctive music from the orthodox Jewish village of Pitti, Uganda (in East Africa).
The Joe Cohn/Aaron Weinstein Duo; jazz guitar and violin
Crazy Rhythm, Fancy Feet; Music and Dance Entertainment
Christine DeLeon, Folk Singer/Songwriter
Dog On Fleas – 10 years old and still growing up; intelligent, gutsy music for kids and adults
Dr. Dubious and the Agnostics: Hot Jazz of the 1920s, 30s
Dugan’s Hooligans: Celtic Eclectic Ensemble
The Early Music Players: A Birthday for the Bard – Music of Shakespeare’s England
Illusionist David Garrity: Magic & Beyond
Pat Kane, Storyteller
Laryssa Krupa (pianist) and Friends
The Mayhem Poets: Poetry Slam
Meet the Musicians: Dennis Kobray as Gershwin
Music From China Duo: Wang Guowei (on erhu) and Sun Li (on pipa)
The Robert Murdock Band/British Invasion Tribute and more
The New Philharmonic of New Jersey
Out of Many, One: The Story of Immigration
The Redhawk Native American Arts Council/ Dance Troupe
Richard Reiter’s (Participatory) African Drumming Circle
Rizzo’s Educational Reptile and Wildlife Presentation
The Spirit Ensemble: Pan-African music
Straight Drive: Bluegrass at its best
Taikoza, Japanese drums
Carla Ulbrich – Folksinger/Songwriter/Comedian
The Frank Vignola Trio: Jazz Masters Unbound
ViRAGO, female guitar/percussion duo
The Wingland/Rosenblum Duo; classical music at its best.
I am wondering when we are going to acknowledge title this celebration correctly – this is the LAST night of the year, not the first night; i applaud the motivation to provide family-friendly events for what is stereotypically (although probably inaccurately) an evening of excessive liquor consumption…while i understand it is a party to “ring in the New Year”, given the evening’s events (ending at midnight), it truly is the last party of the concluding year