Category: Arts & Leisure - Page 152

Sunday, October 18, 2026

News-12 Connecticut: A Bit Less Local

UPDATE Cablevision’s News-12 Connecticut, whose slogan is “as local as local news gets,” is a bit less local now.

Ton Appleby, veteran news director of News-12 Connecticut, lamented the rise of social media as the primary source of news for Americans at a Westport Chamber of Commerce dinner last year. (CLICK TO ENLARGE) Helen Klisser During for WestportNow.com

As announced last October, new owner European telecom company Altice effective this week has moved production work from its Norwalk Cross Street facility to Edison, N.J.

While the news assignment desk, reporters, and videographers remain, familiar anchor faces, including almost 34-year veteran Tom Appleby, are gone.

Westporter Appleby, 72, has been with Cablevision since 1984, serving as vice president, general manager, and news director.

Granger at the Movies: ‘Life,’ ‘The Red Turtle,’ ‘Wilson’

By Susan Granger

Special to WestportNow

Seeing “Life” reminded me that renowned British scientist Stephen Hawking has cautioned that contact with alien life could spell disaster for the human race: “If aliens ever visit us, I think the outcome would be much as when Christopher Columbus first landed in America, which didn’t turn out very well for the American Indians.”

But Hawking’s grim warning has not deterred cosmic exploration.

After Mission Specialist Rory Adams’ (Ryan Reynolds) risky retrieval of a damaged capsule containing valuable soil samples from Mars, the crew of the International Space Station’s Pilgrim 7 has reason to celebrate.

Along with Adams, astronauts Miranda North (Rebecca Ferguson), David Jordan (Jake Gyllenhaal), Sho Murakami (Hiroyuki Sanada), Ekaterina Golovinka (Olga Dihovichnaya), and Hugh Derry (Ariyon Bakare) are concluding their eight-month exploratory mission.

Tuesday, March 28th, 2017

Coleytown Company Readies ‘Cinderella’

Scenes from today’s dress rehearsal by Coleytown Middle School’s Coleytown Company of its production of Rodgers and Hammerstein’s “Cinderella,” which runs Thursday through Saturday. Phyllis Groner for WestportNow.com

The Coleytown Company’s “Cinderella,” running Thursday through Saturday under Artistic Director Benjamin Frimmer, is bringing a modern day vision to the production.

In this version Cinderella, or Ella as she is known, is reimagined as a strong, independent young woman who wants to make the world a better place.

Returning are choreographer and Broadway veteran Michelle Berti and set designer Peter Barbiere. Joanna Pan is overseeing costume design. Brett Boles is musical director.

In all, 85 eager and talented students have been rehearsing and working hard to make this one of the school’s best productions ever.

Bedford Sixth Graders Present ‘The Witches’

Bedford Middle School sixth graders prepare for “The Witches.” Contributed photos

Bedford Middle School sixth grade students present “The Witches,” the Roald Dahl classic tale on Friday at 7 p.m., Saturday at 2 p.m. and 7 p.m., and Sunday at 2 p.m.

“The Witches” is a tale of a boy and his grandmother who use their wits to defeat the Grand High Witch’s plan to squelch all the children of England by turning them into mice.

“This Roald Dahl story is both stupendously scary and gleefully giddy and will appeal to young kids, adolescents and adults alike,” an announcement said.

Tickets are available online at: http://www.bedfordactinggroup.com — $10 for children and $12 for adults. Children 2 and under are free. Seats are also available at the door.

Monday, March 27th, 2017

Spring Pop Up Art Show Set for April 6

The Westport Arts Center will host a spring pop up art show by the Westport Artists Collective on Thursday, April 6 from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m.

Free and open to the public, the entries will be on view through Saturday, April 8 until 1 p.m.

All 150 members of the Collective have been invited to showcase a work of art with entries ranging from mixed media to sculpture to paintings, an announcement said.

For more information on the pop up show or the Westport Artists Collective, contact the Westport Arts Center at (203)222-7070 or visit the Arts Center website at http://www.westportartscenter.org.

Winners Announced in PTA Reflections Arts Program

The Westport schools today announced student winners of the 2016-2017 PTA Reflections Art Program, a nationwide arts contest sponsored by the PTA that provides students with the opportunity for artistic creative expression and positive recognition for their efforts.

This year’s winners from Staples High School included: Literature “We Will Break Through” by Natasha Johnson; Film: “Moments” by Antonia Sousa; Photography: “Growing - An Upward Spiral” by Sarah Barnett; Dance: “Close to the Sun” by Colin McKechnie, and Visual Arts: “Sophie Elizabeth” by Sophie Driscoll.

Coleytown and Bedford Middle School winners include :Visual Arts: “My Piece” by CMS student Sophie Alcyone, and Dance: “Ballerino” by BMS student Jamie Mann. These students and their work will now move on to the national level for judging.

Additional Westport Public School students receiving recognition include:

Westport Music Students to Perform in Hartford

Westport music students are going to Hartford to participate in the 71st Annual Connecticut Music Educators Association (CMEA) All-State Conference on March 31, the school system announced today.

They include three ensembles comprised of 45 students from the Long Lots Elementary School Pan Island Express Steel Drum Band, the Westport Middle School Percussion Ensemble, and the Bedford Middle School Jazz Ensemble.

Each school year, CMEA hosts regional concerts that highlight students’ advanced achievement in music performance.

In March, CMEA hosts a statewide in-service conference for music educators and concludes with the All-State ensemble performances by high school students.

Sunday, March 26th, 2017

Family Art Day Crowd at Arts Center

Families got creative together today at the Westport Arts Center’s bi-annual Family Art Day, designing family crests, personalized planters, and other hands-on projects. The Family Art Day: Create Your Family’s Modern Crest projects introduced artistic processes and techniques, helped youngsters explore their imaginations, and provided context for the Arts Center’s current exhibition. The backdrop for the event was the Arts Center’s “As We Are!” exhibition, on view through April 1. (CLICK TO ENLARGE) Xenia Gross for WestportNow.com

Westport Students Perform in Boston

Westport’s Staples High School and Bedford Middle School Chamber Music students performed at Symphony Hall in Boston on Friday. They also had a master class with the Boston Symphony Orchestra members. It was the same day that Superintendent Colleen Palmer&#8#8217;s latest budget message mentioned the possible elimination of individual music lessons in grades 4 to 8. The subject will be discussed at Monday’s Board of Education meeting. (CLICK TO ENLARGE) Contributed photo

Saturday, March 25th, 2017

Remembering ‘2001: A Space Odyssey’ 49 Years Later

Actor Keir Dullea chats today with WestportNow film critic Susan Granger following the Westport Cinema Initiative screening of “2001: A Space Odyssey” at Westport Town Hall. Dullea, 80, a Fairfield resident, is best known for the character of astronaut David Bowman, whom he portrayed in the 1968 Stanley Kubrick-directed film. He delighted the audience by reciting from memory a complicated dialogue from the film that was full of numbers and obscure words. (CLICK TO ENLARGE) WestportNow.com photo