Burlington Discover Jazz Festival, summer theater heat up Vermont arts scene in June
Brent HallenbeckSummer is here, or at least the month that welcomes summer is here. You’ll have to wait three weeks from the start of June for summer to begin officially, but let’s ignore all that official folderol and welcome that glorious season and its arrival in Vermont.
Summer’s start means summer arts. Music and plays head outdoors, and indoor events provide a cool refuge for those fairly infrequent Vermont days when the hot seasonal air becomes too much to bear.
Bear witness to some of these events that help Vermonters celebrate what it means to be alive and in Vermont at this darned-close-to-perfect time of year.
Lost Nation Theater premieres Vermont play
Through June 11, the world premiere production of Vermont playwright/actor/director Erin Galligan Baldwin’s play “My Mother’s Three Mothers,” which involves a woman’s search for her birth mother, continues its run that began May 25 by Lost Nation Theater, Montpelier City Hall Arts Center. $10-$30. www.lostnationtheater.org
Shelburne art gallery continues exhibit
Through July 15, the exhibition “Instinctive Paths: Summer Group Exhibit,” which opened May 26, remains on display, Furchgott Sourdiffe Gallery, Shelburne. Free. www.fsgallery.com
Shelburne Vineyard parties down
6 p.m. Thursday, June 1, the 25th-anniversary celebration at Shelburne Vineyard gets rolling with a performance by Troy Millette and through the weekend includes music (free unless otherwise indicated) at 6 p.m. Friday, June 2 by Marcie Hernandez and NIIKA; 7 p.m. Saturday, June 3 by High Summer ($12); and 6:30 p.m. Sunday, June 4 with two sets by Mark Daly of Madaila. www.shelburnevineyard.com
Randy Feltface gets funny
7:30 p.m. Thursday, June 1-Saturday, June 3, 9:30 p.m. Friday, June 2-Saturday, June 3, Randy Feltface and his purple puppet head will perform five shows at the Vermont Comedy Club, Burlington. $25. www.vermontcomedyclub.com
Gun-violence exhibit in Montpelier
11 a.m. Friday, June 2, “Cocked and Gagged,” a mixed-media installation inspired by rising numbers of mass shootings in the U.S., opens its run through July 23, The Susan Calza Gallery, Montpelier. Free. www.susancalza.com
Stowe hosts film, music festival
6:15 p.m. Friday, June 2, Stowe Story Labs presents the second Vermont Film and Music Festival, starting with a screening of the feature film “Our Father the Devil” and continuing at 8 p.m. with a concert by the soulful Burlington duo Dwight & Nicole, with films and concerts continuing through Sunday, June 4, Stowe Cinema (films), Stowe Cider (concerts). $10-$49 for films, $10-$28 for music. www.stowestorylabs.org
Burlington City Arts begins music series
7:30 p.m. Friday, June 2, Burlington City Arts begins its Twilight Series of concerts with a prelude to the Burlington Discover Jazz Festival by Green Mountain Swing, City Hall Park, Burlington. Free. www.burlingtoncityarts.org
Two concerts by Vermont Choral Union
7:30 p.m. Friday, June 2, the Vermont Choral Union presents a concert of music by Bach, Brahms and Britten, First Congregational Church, St. Albans, and repeats the program at 4 p.m. Sunday, June 4, Cathedral Church of St. Paul, Burlington. $15-$25. www.vtchoralunion.org
Opera comes to Middlebury
7:30 p.m. Friday, June 2 and Thursday, June 8; 2 p.m. Sunday, June 4 and Saturday, June 10, the Opera Company of Middlebury stages Beethoven’s only opera, “Fidelio,” Town Hall Theater, Middlebury. $57-$87. www.ocmvermont.org
ANIMAL Dance offers ‘Tender Hearts’
8 p.m. Friday, June 2-Saturday, June 3, 2 p.m. Sunday, June 4, Vermont-based ANIMAL Dance, directed by Hanna Satterlee, presents the contemporary dance piece “Tender Hearts,” Main Street Landing Performing Arts Center, Burlington. $20-$30. www.vermontdance.org
A Field Day in southern Vermont
Noon Saturday, June 3, 10 hours of music unfolds with the inaugural Field Day festival featuring music from indie-rock acts including Inner Wave, Lady Lamb, Sunflower Bean, Thus Love, Gift, Robber Robber, Dari Bay, Greg Freeman, Carinae and Lily Seabird, Guilford Fairgrounds. $29.99. www.fielddayvt.com
Small town, big band
4 p.m. Saturday, June 3, the Joe Levesque Big Band, aka Joe’s Big Band, is a 17-piece ensemble that will play a benefit for the Cabot Fire Department, Catamount Airfield, Lower Cabot. $20 in advance, $25 day of show. www.cabotarts.org
Blues veteran in Essex
7 p.m. Saturday, June 3, Boston-based blues pianist Anthony Geraci joins central Vermont guitarist Dave Keller for a concert, Double E Performance Center, Essex Experience. $20. www.essexexperience.com
Aphasia Choir delivers concert
2 p.m. Sunday, June 4, the Aphasia Choir of Vermont presents its eighth annual concert in honor of National Aphasia Awareness Month, which calls attention to people with stroke and traumatic-brain injury who have difficulty talking or using language, Colchester High School auditorium. Free. www.aphasiachoirvt.org
New York pop music in Vermont
8 p.m. Monday, June 5, New York pop musician Sarah Kinsley follows FIG in a performance in the Higher Ground Showcase Lounge, South Burlington. $16 in advance, $20 day of show. www.highergroundmusic.com
Musical matinee in Burlington
12:30 p.m. Wednesday, June 7, the lunchtime Summer Concert Series presented by Burlington City Arts rolls out with the jazz-hip-hop fusion of Burlington act The Most Wanted, City Hall Park, Burlington. Free. www.burlingtoncityarts.org
Grammy winner starts jazz festival
7 p.m. Wednesday, June 7, vocalist Samara Joy, winner of this year’s Grammy Award for Best New Artist, kicks off the 40th-anniversary celebration of the Burlington Discover Jazz Festival with help from pianist/composer Samora Pinderhughes and festival curator Lakecia Benjamin and Phoenix, the Flynn, Burlington. $49-$79. www.flynnvt.org
Ryan Montbleau takes up residency
7 p.m. Wednesday, June 7-Saturday, June 10, he tours the country playing larger stages, but for these four nights Burlington resident Ryan Montbleau will take up residence in the cozy confines of Radio Bean, Burlington. $18 in advance, $25 day of show. www.radiobean.com
That’s yazz, not jazz
7:30 p.m. Wednesday, June 7, a noise-music alternative to the Burlington Discover Jazz Festival known as the BTV Yazz Fest features Adam Arritola, the Adam Ploof Ensemble and Jo Bled, Main Street Landing, Burlington. Free; donations accepted. www.facebook.com/events/156327053903868
Deer Tick alights in South Burlington
8:30 p.m. Wednesday, June 7, folk-rockers Deer Tick join Rafay Rashid for a show in the Higher Ground Ballroom, South Burlington. $29.50. www.highergroundmusic.com
Gallery reopens in Burlington
5-9 p.m. Thursday, June 8, the HAVOC Gallery, featuring the stainless-steel light sculptures of Bruce R. MacDonald, reopens for public gatherings for the first time in years, 27 Sears Lane, Burlington. Free. www.havocgallery.com
Free music on Church Street
5 p.m. Thursday, June 8, the day’s big show at the Burlington Discover Jazz Festival features the Sun Ra Arkestra, Meshell Ndegeocello, Georgia Anne Muldrow and the Saturn People’s Sound Collective, Church Street Marketplace, Burlington. Free. www.flynnvt.org
‘Celestial jazz’ in Burlington
6 p.m. Thursday, June 8, the sounds of Vermont group Astral Underground, self-described as “celestial jazz from the dark side of the Enosphere,” can be heard at the Venetian Soda Lounge, Burlington. Free. www.venetiansodalounge.com
Death Valley Girls in the Winooski valley
8 p.m. Thursday, June 8, Los Angeles-based rockers Death Valley Girls follow Abraxas and The Wet Ones at The Monkey House, Winooski. $12 in advance, $14 day of show. www.monkeyhousevt.com
Free party at Waterfront Park
5 p.m. Friday, June 9, the Burlington Discover Jazz Festival settles in for the evening with Sampa the Great, Dee Dee Bridgewater and the Memphis Soulphony, Fattie B. presenting his project “Gumbo” and the Kennedy Center’s Betty Carter’s Jazz Ahead program featuring Melissa Aldana, Waterfront Park, Burlington. Free. www.flynnvt.org
Music at Barre art gallery
7 p.m. Friday, June 9, Vermont folk musician Dana Robinson puts on a show at Studio Place Arts, Barre. $10-$20 suggested donation. www.studioplacearts.com
Nectar’s gets Eggy with it
10 p.m. Friday, June 9, Connecticut jam-rockers Eggy get cooking at Nectar’s, Burlington. $15. www.liveatnectars.com
Noontime jazz at Radio Bean
Noon Saturday, June 10, a full slate of music that’s not a part of the official Burlington Discover Jazz Festival lineup but helps support that schedule includes the Alternate Take Jazz Quartet, Radio Bean, Burlington. $5-$10. www.radiobean.com
‘The Undiscovered Jazz Festival’
2 p.m.-midnight Saturday, June 10, more offshoot jazz-fest sounds happen in the New North End with “The Undiscovered Jazz Festival,” featuring The Full Metal Revolutionary Jazz Collective presenting an all-day jazz marathon of six separate sets every two hours, Off Center for the Dramatic Arts, Burlington. $20. www.offcentervt.com
Kamasi Washington leads outdoor show
4 p.m. Saturday, June 10, the Burlington Discover Jazz Festival continues its run of outdoor shows with Kamasi Washington headlining a day of music that includes WITCH (We Intend to Cause Havoc), Cory Henry, Snacktime and Guagua, Waterfront Park, Burlington. Free. www.flynnvt.org
Music in East Fairfield
5 p.m. Saturday, June 10, the Meeting House on the Green continues its concert series with singer-songwriters Ben Patton and Tim McKenzie, 53 School St., East Fairfield. $10. www.meetinghouseonthegreen.org
Vermont jazz at Light Club Lamp Shop
8:30 p.m. Saturday, June 10, homegrown jazz musicians Nick Cassarino, Joe Davidian and Conor Elmes play as the Cassarino/Davidian/Elmes Organ Trio, Light Club Lamp Shop, Burlington. $15. www.radiobean.com
Arc Iris returns to Vermont
11 p.m. Saturday, June 10, 9 p.m. Sunday, June 11, the adventurous trio Arc Iris, regulars in Vermont before their recent relocation to Los Angeles, head back east for two shows, Radio Bean, Burlington. $20 in advance, $25 day of show Saturday (also featuring Acquamossa), $15 Sunday. www.radiobean.com
Myra Flynn roars at the Flynn
2 p.m. Sunday, June 11, a Burlington Discover Jazz Festival matinee features Vermont native and singer-songwriter Myra Flynn, whose show dubbed “Roar of the Queen” includes guests Mike Gordon (of Phish), Dave Grippo, Joe Moore, Sage Horsey, Nick Cassarino and the Lake Champlain Mass Choir, the Flynn, Burlington. $25-$50. www.flynnvt.org
The great Vermont bake-off
7:30 p.m. Wednesday, June 14, Vermont Stage returns through Sunday, June 18 with “The Bake Off,” in which three directors slice up a play – in this case, “True West” by Sam Shepard – to show viewers the myriad ways a production can be approached, Main Street Landing Performing Arts Center, Burlington. $31.05-$38.50. www.vermontstage.org
Northern Stage has ‘Sense and Sensibility’
7:30 p.m. Wednesday, June 14, Northern Stage starts its run (through July 9) of Kate Hamill’s adaptation of Jane Austen’s “Sense and Sensibility,” Courtyard Theater, Barrette Center for the Arts, White River Junction. $19-$55; “pay what you can” for first two preview performances June 14-15. www.northernstage.org
Jazz duo flies into Stowe
6:30 p.m. Thursday, June 15, the Vermont jazz group Birdcode, featuring vocalist Amber deLaurentis and pianist Tom Cleary, takes part in the Jazz at the Lantern series, The Brass Lantern Inn, Stowe. $35-$45. www.gostowe.com/event/jazz-lantern-birdcode/
Souls of Mischief visit Higher Ground
8:30 p.m. Thursday, June 15, vintage hip-hop group Souls of Mischief join Breakbeat Lou, The Architect and Mister Burns, Higher Ground Ballroom, South Burlington. $30 in advance, $35 day of show. www.highergroundmusic.com
Tina Friml leads comedy night
7:30 p.m. Friday, June 16, New York comic Tina Friml leads a night of comedy in her hometown that also features Charlie Bardey, Kathe Farris and Usama Siddiquee, Town Hall Theater, Middlebury. Free; registration required. www.townhalltheater.org
Higher Ground goes country
7:30 p.m. Friday, June 16, country performer Morgan Myles follows Brayden Lape, Higher Ground Showcase Lounge, South Burlington. $25 in advance, $29 day of show. www.highergroundmusic.com
Sending up comedy at comedy club
7:30 and 9:30 p.m. Friday, June 16-Saturday, June 17, comic Sara Schaefer shares the (satirical) secrets of a successful comedy career in her show “Going Up,” Vermont Comedy Club, Burlington. $20. www.vermontcomedyclub.com
Outdoor sculpture in southern Vermont
4-8 p.m. Saturday, June 17, the opening party is set for the latest exhibition of the North Bennington Outdoor Sculpture Show, which runs through Nov. 11, Vermont Arts Exchange, North Bennington. Free. www.nbossvt.com
Joseph sings in South Burlington
8 p.m. Sunday, June 18, the indie-pop trio Joseph performs following Sawyer, Higher Ground Ballroom, South Burlington. $30 in advance, $35 day of show. www.highergroundmusic.com
Rob Mermin play ‘Act 39’
7 p.m. Thursday, June 22, the world premiere of “Act 39,” a play about end-of-life matters written by Circus Smirkus founder Rob Mermin, begins its run through July 2, Haybarn Theater, Goddard College, Plainfield. $20 suggested donation. www.facebook.com/events/s/act-39/770555744700024/?mibextid=RQdjqZ
The Felice Brothers turn two
8:30 p.m. Thursday, June 22-Friday, June 23, folk-rockers The Felice Brothers play a pair of shows at The Monkey House, Winooski. $25. www.monkeyhousevt.com
Bookstock comes to Woodstock
Friday, June 23-Sunday, June 25, the annual Bookstock festival welcomes authors including political humorist Andy Borowitz, Pulitzer Prize-winning historian Joseph J. Ellis, USA Today journalist/biographer Susan Page, Vermont authors Megan Mayhew Bergman and Emily Bernard and more, village green, Woodstock. Free. www.bookstockvt.org
‘Misery’ comes to Dorset
7:30 p.m. Friday, June 23, the Dorset Theatre Festival begins its 2023 season with William Goldman’s adaptation of Stephen King’s “Misery,” starring Dan Butler of “Frasier,” Dorset Playhouse. $51. www.dorsettheatrefestival.org
Dead Set sets summer shows
9 p.m. Friday, June 23, the Vermont-based Grateful Dead tribute Dead Set, led by guitarist Zach Nugent, continues a monthly residency that includes shows at 9 p.m. Friday, July 28 and Friday, Aug. 26, Higher Ground Showcase Lounge, South Burlington. $17 in advance, $20 day of show. www.highergroundmusic.com
Back to the future with Vermont Renaissance Faire
10 a.m.-6 p.m. Saturday, June 24-Sunday, June 25, the Vermont Renaissance Faire offers two days of Medieval merriment, Mayo Events Field, Stowe. $20 per day, $30 both days, $5 for ages 6-12, free under age 6. www.vtgatherings.com
Puerto Rican musician at sculpture park
2 p.m. Saturday, June 24, the monthly series “Perspectives 2023: Amazing Makers” welcomes Fabiola Mendez, a Puerto Rican musician who plays the stringed instrument known as the cuatro, Cold Hollow Sculpture Park, Enosburg. Free; registration suggested. www.coldhollowsculpturepark.com
Indie-folk shines in Northeast Kingdom
7 p.m. Saturday, June 24, a night billed as Green Mountain Indie Folk showcases Vermont musicians Fern Maddie, Troy Millette, Jesse Taylor, Ian Steinberg and David Karl Roberts, Highland Center for the Arts, Greensboro. $10-$18. www.highlandartsvt.org
Champlain Trio in concert
7:30 p.m. Saturday, June 24, violinist Letitia Quante, cellist Emily Taubl and pianist Hiromi Fukuda make up the Champlain Trio, which performs at the Frank Suchomel Memorial Arts Center, Adamant. Free. www.fsmac-quarryworks.org
Grace at Higher Ground
8:30 p.m. Tuesday, June 27, vocalist Laura Jane Grace steps out of her position leading the rock band Against Me! (who are on hiatus) for a solo show with Portland, Maine-based opening act Weakened Friends, Higher Ground Showcase Lounge, South Burlington. $25 in advance, $30 day of show. www.highergroundmusic.com
‘Buddy Holly Story’ rocks Weston season
7:30 p.m. Wednesday, June 28, the Weston Theater Company rolls into its 87th season with “Buddy: The Buddy Holly Story” through July 16, Weston Playhouse. $25-$79. www.westontheater.org
Natasha Bedingfield plays Stowe concert series
6 p.m. Thursday, June 29, British pop musician Natasha Bedingfield joins Sidney Bird to start the Spruce Peak Summer Concert Series, Spruce Peak village green, Stowe. $5-$50. www.sprucepeakarts.org
Valley Players meet Willy Wonka
7:30 p.m. Thursday, June 29, The Valley Players delve into the family-friendly musical “Roald Dahl’s Willy Wonka” through July 16, The Valley Players Theater, Waitsfield. $18-$22. www.valleyplayers.com
Sarah King starts ‘Women in Music’
6 p.m. Friday, June 30, Vermont folk-blues-rocker Sarah King opens the “Women in Music” series presented by the Town Hall Theater at Lincoln Peak Vineyard, New Haven. Free; registration required. www.townhalltheater.org
Metal headliners head to Higher Ground
7:30 p.m. Friday, June 30, the Burlington metal band Voices in Vain shares a bill with Long Island thrashers Extinction AD, who’ll be joined by acts including Edict, Cooked and Void Bringer, Higher Ground Showcase Lounge, South Burlington. $15 in advance, $20 day of show. www.highergroundmusic.com
Essex hosts Jamie Lee Thurston
7 p.m. Friday, June 30, Vermont-raised country musician Jamie Lee Thurston joins the Old Stage Summer Series at the Essex Experience. Free. www.essexexperience.com
Contact Brent Hallenbeck at bhallenbeck@freepressmedia.com.