SOPAC Returns To Main Stage Shows

(SOUTH ORANGE, NJ) -- The South Orange Performing Arts Center is thrilled to once again be hosting events in The Jennifer & Tony Leitner Performance Hall. In 2022, SOPAC is offering more than 40 mainstage shows across various genres. Experience harmonious Singer-Songwriters, hilarious comedians, rollicking Rhythm & Blues artists, foot-tapping Jazz musicians and passionate genre-defying groups. 

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New Jersey Symphony presents Casablanca in Concert on Valentine’s Day weekend

(NEWARK, NJ) -- The New Jersey Symphony presents the classic film Casablanca with live orchestral accompaniment February 11–13 in Morristown, Newark and New Brunswick. Critics and audiences consider the iconic 1942 romantic film Casablanca—starring Humphrey Bogart, Ingrid Bergman and Paul Henried—one of the greatest films of all time. Roger Ebert wrote that Casablanca’s climax “combines suspense, romance and comedy as they have rarely been brought together on the screen.”

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RVCC to Present a Variety of Events in Celebration of Black History Month

(BRANCHBURG, NJ) -- Raritan Valley Community College (RVCC) will celebrate Black History Month with several virtual and in-person events at the College’s Branchburg campus. All events are open to the public, and virtual events will be held via Zoom. Face masks are required in all RVCC facilities.

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Studio Montclair Presents "Windows Into Black History"

(MONTCLAIR, NJ) -- Studio Montclair presents “Windows into Black History,” on exhibit during February 2022 in honor of Black History Month, at Studio Montclair Gallery in Montclair. The exhibit, featuring the artwork of four artists, spans four large windows which can be viewed from the street and is sponsored by the Montclair Center BID as part of Fresh Air Montclair Exhibitions. 

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State Theatre presents An Evening with Itzhak Perlman on February 5th

(NEW BRUNSWICK, NJ) -- The fully renovated State Theatre New Jersey presents An Evening with Itzhak Perlman on Saturday, February 5, 2022 at 8:00pm. For this program, violinist Itzhak Perlman—joined by pianist Rohan De Silva—shares the story of his life and career through anecdotes, musical pieces, and personal photos from his archives. Tickets range from $49-$99. 

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Our Favorite Stories In Dance: The Night of Broken Glass

New Jersey Stage published its 25,000th story in December 2021. As the site approached the milestone, we posed the question on social media as how we should celebrate.  One response was to highlight our favorite stories from over the years.  We liked this idea, but could not narrow things down to just 25 favorites so we will present a favorite each day from different genres.  January 27 is Holocaust Memorial Day - the day for everyone to remember the millions of people murdered in the Holocaust, under Nazi Persecution, and in the genocides which followed in Cambodia, Rwanda, Bosnia, and Darfur. So we thought it was a good time to look at a dance feature on the Carolyn Dorfman Dance Company called The Night of Broken Glass.

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Newark Mayor Ras Baraka Reinvents The Political Memoir In His Audible Original

(NEWARK, NJ) -- Audible, Inc., the leading creator and provider of premium audio storytelling,will release Ras Baraka’s Audible Original, The Book of Baraka, exclusively on Audible on February 24, 2022. Baraka, the 40th Mayor of Newark, the largest city in New Jersey, is also a devoted activist, poet, and agent for change. In this audio memoir, Baraka, the son of a famous poet and public revolutionary, recounts his upbringing in a home filled with poetry and politics and explores how his unusual early life informed his future.

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Chris Pinnella Brings His 12-Piece Orchestra to Tim McLoone's Supper Club For Two Nights In February

(ASBURY PARK, NJ) -- This February join acclaimed vocalist Chris Pinnella (formerly of Trans-Siberian Orchestra) along with his 12-Piece Orchestra, as they take the stage at Tim McLoone's Supper Club, on the boardwalk in Asbury Park, for a special 2 night engagement (February 11-12) as they reimagine some of the most classic and iconic songs ever written.

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Rock On! This Week's Sound Bites...1/27/22

“The hours and the money,” jokes Pennington, NJ resident and funny lady Anita Wise as she explained why she got into comedy; “It’s fun, it’s very fun, it’s really fun. Nobody who knew me growing up expected this to happen.”

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Arts Ed Newark to receive $150,000 Grant from the National Endowment for the Arts as part of the American Rescue Plan

(NEWARK, NJ) -- Arts Ed Newark has been approved to receive an American Rescue Plan grant from the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) to help the arts and cultural sector recover from the pandemic. Arts Ed Newark is recommended to receive $150,000, and may use this funding to save jobs and to fund operations and facilities, health and safety supplies, and marketing and promotional efforts to encourage attendance and participation.

SOPAC Returns To Main Stage Shows

(SOUTH ORANGE, NJ) -- The South Orange Performing Arts Center is thrilled to once again be hosting events in The Jennifer & Tony Leitner Performance Hall. In 2022, SOPAC is offering more than 40 mainstage shows across various genres. Experience harmonious Singer-Songwriters, hilarious comedians, rollicking Rhythm & Blues artists, foot-tapping Jazz musicians and passionate genre-defying groups. 

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"Angela Davis – Seize the Time" On View Now at Zimmerli Art Museum

Located on the New Brunswick campus of Rutgers University, the Zimmerli Art Museum offers world-class, rotating exhibitions and a robust permanent collection of more than 60,000 objects. On view now, the Angela Davis—Seize the Time exhibit documents the image, influence, and activism of Angela Y. Davis.

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The Call of Water screens at the Spring 2022 New Jersey Film Festival on January 30!

Kaya Tone proves herself to be a capable director with a clear vision in her short film The Call of Water (2021), giving audiences a well-developed story for having a runtime just under 20-minutes. The Call of Water is a condensed coming of age story following Nadia, played by Trinity Simpson, as she tries to accept and understand her responsibilities to not only her immediate family, but to her ancestors as well. Spending the night in her childhood home before it is sold, Nadia finds herself stuck in the astral-plane face to face with an ancient keeper of the land and water, The Horned One. Nadia must face her fears and deal with her responsibilities rather than run away from them in order to return to her body. Set in the Rocky Mountains of Colorado and starring the young talent of Trinity Simpson, Emily Bollman, Sawyer Wright, Eric Palmer, Haiden Davis, Rebecca Hamner, and Tamara Jakos, The Call of Water is a unique fantasy with a familiar lesson dealing with themes of family, nature, and responsibility. 

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Waiting For Deading screens at the Spring 2022 New Jersey Film Festival on Sunday, January 30

Paul Sestakov’s Waiting For Deading, which is being shown at the Spring 2022 New Jersey Film Festival on Sunday, January 30th, is a comedic short film following two novice grim reapers on their first assignment. They’ve been sent to retrieve the body of a man who is supposed to die of a heart attack and bring him to hell. However, their plan becomes derailed when they stray from protocol, and everything starts to spiral out of control.

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New Jersey Film Festival Spring 2022 Filmmaker Video Q+A with Pottero Director Lindsey Martin

Here is the New Jersey Film Festival Spring 2022 Filmmaker Q+A with Pottero Director Lindsey Martin, Festival Juror Emily Ranieri and Festival Director Al Nigrin.

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The Shakespeare Theatre of New Jersey, Troubled by COVID in 2021, Hopes to Roar Back In 2022

The Shakespeare Theatre of New Jersey was hammered by COVID at the end of the 2021 season and forced to cancel the last few performances of its holiday hit, A Child’s Christmas in Wales. Bloodied but not beaten, the regional theater will roar back in 2022 with a full schedule of indoor and outdoor productions, starting June 8 with Enchanted April.

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Ruth Stone’s Vast Library of the Female Mind screens at the Spring 2022 New Jersey Film Festival on January 29!

In Ruth Stone’s Vast Library of the Female Mind, filmmaker Nora Jacobson transports us into the world of Ruth, a poet whose life and work were marked by womanhood, poverty, and tragedy. But don’t let that description fool you - Stone’s candid demeanor and sense of humor made even the darkest topics not only approachable, but an utter joy to behold. The film will be available for streaming worldwide on Saturday, January 29 through the New Jersey Film Festival.

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Experimental Animation Mise En Abyme plays at the Spring 2022 New Jersey Film Festival on January 28!

Mise En Abyme is a short experimental animation film by Charly Santagado that will be playing at the New Jersey Film Festival on Friday, January 28, 2022. The entire film is set in one room where two women interact with each other in a very specific way. One of the women is an artist that appears to be using the other as her muse, [although we cannot be entirely sure of that dynamic] while the other woman [the muse] is only visible to the audience by way of reflection; there is a mirror placed next to the artist that acts as a window into what the woman across from her is doing.

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PODCAST: Jersey's own Javon King Talks RENT Farewell Tour

The musical RENT changed theatre — taking home four Tony Awards and creating generations of super-fans. Believe it or not, it’s been 25 years since the show hit Broadway, and Jersey's own Javon King plays Angel in RENT’s 25th Anniversary Farewell Tour. A Paper Mill Playhouse Rising Star Award-winner and Rider University alum, Javon is happy to be back in the Garden State performing at Mayo Performing Arts Center January 21-23.

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Home in the Air screens at the Spring 2022 New Jersey Film Festival on January 28

Home in the Air is a film by Spanish filmmaker Elena Vilallonga that will be playing at the New Jersey Film Festival on Friday, January 28th, 2022. Usually when something is referred to as being “in the air” it is something that is nostalgic or contagious in some way. In the case of this film, it actually refers to a home that is suspended in midair; Hogar Al Aire. It is a film that follows the lives of two turtledoves who work together to start a family. The images presented are juxtaposed with the sound of a narrator describing a typical life cycle. What’s interesting about this film is that the narrator could simply be narrating the day-to-day happenings of these birds, or their words could be interpreted as revealing a deeper truth about the universality of the experience of life on Earth.

Our Favorite Stories In Dance: The Night of Broken Glass

New Jersey Stage published its 25,000th story in December 2021. As the site approached the milestone, we posed the question on social media as how we should celebrate.  One response was to highlight our favorite stories from over the years.  We liked this idea, but could not narrow things down to just 25 favorites so we will present a favorite each day from different genres.  January 27 is Holocaust Memorial Day - the day for everyone to remember the millions of people murdered in the Holocaust, under Nazi Persecution, and in the genocides which followed in Cambodia, Rwanda, Bosnia, and Darfur. So we thought it was a good time to look at a dance feature on the Carolyn Dorfman Dance Company called The Night of Broken Glass.

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Rock On! This Week's Sound Bites...1/27/22

“The hours and the money,” jokes Pennington, NJ resident and funny lady Anita Wise as she explained why she got into comedy; “It’s fun, it’s very fun, it’s really fun. Nobody who knew me growing up expected this to happen.”

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Our Favorite Stories In Film - Dovere For Camden

New Jersey Stage published its 25,000th story in December 2021. As the site approached the milestone, we posed the question on social media as how we should celebrate.  One response was to highlight our favorite stories from over the years.  We liked this idea, but could not narrow things down to just 25 favorites so we will present a favorite each day from different genres.  Every Wednesday will feature a story about film.  This week's choice is our feature on Dovere For Camden, a film by Douglas Clayton that screened at the New Jersey Film Festival in 2018.

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Our Favorite Stories In Theatre - Las Cruces

New Jersey Stage published its 25,000th story in December 2021. As the site approached the milestone, we posed the question on social media as how we should celebrate.  One response was to highlight our favorite stories from over the years.  We liked this idea, but could not narrow things down to just 25 favorites so we will present a favorite each day from different genres.  Every Tuesday we feature one of our favorite stories in theatre.  We've been fortunate to see a lot of wonderful theatre in the Garden State. This week's choice is an interview with Vincent Delaney, the playwright behind Las Cruces - one of the most interesting plays we've seen over the years.

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Our Favorite Stories In Music: Makin Waves with The Smithereens: 'Nothing More Precious than Friendship and Family'

New Jersey Stage published its 25,000th story in December 2021. As the site approached the milestone, we posed the question on social media as how we should celebrate.  One response was to highlight our favorite stories from over the years.  We liked this idea, but could not narrow things down to just 25 favorites so we will present a favorite each day from different genres. Every Monday we feature one of our favorite stories in music. This week's choice is Bob Makin's deep dive interview with The Smithereens in 2019.