The Riverdale Choral Society will present its spring concert titled Music Of Spain And The Americas. It features Mario Castelnuovo-Tedesco’s exciting Romancero Gitano, a setting of the poetry of Spain’s Federico Garcia-Lorca. Under the direction of John Lettieri, the chorus will perform the Romancero accompanied by well-known guitarist Oren Fader. They will also perform works in Latin and Spanish by Argentine, Mexican and United States composers, both acappella and accompanied by pianists Mavis Pan and Indah Hertanto.
The concert will take place at Christ Church Riverdale on Sat., May 9, at 8 pm. Christ Church is located at W. 252nd Street and Henry Hudson Parkway East where parking is available.
Admission is $15. With the Bronx Cultural Card, admission is $13.
For further information call (718) 543-2219.
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Acting Bronx Borough President Earl Brown and the Hebrew Institute of Riverdale will host the Sixth Annual Bronx Israel Independence Day (Yom Ha-Atzmaut) Festival, which this year theme is Operation Ami Israel, on Wed., Apr. 29, 4:30 to 8 pm at Independence Avenue, between 232nd and 235th streets, in front of Seton Park.
This event continues a tradition of successful and memorable Bronx Independence Day Festivals that have brought fun and celebration to our Jewish residents. Each year, more than one thousand Jewish families come out to participate in dozens of kid-friendly activities that teaches them about Israel and its culture.
As a highlight of the festival, flying in directly from Israel, Brother to Brother, a dynamic five singer’s National Army Band, will perform.
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The Riverdale-Yonkers Society for Ethical Culture will show The Counterfeiters on Sat., Apr. 18, at 7 pm at the Meeting House, located at 4450 Fieldston Road, corner of Manhattan College Parkway.
In the Nazi death camps “the worst, that is, the fittest, survived. The Counterfeiters, a brisk, tough new movie from the Austrian director Stefan Rowitzky, is in some ways an illustration of this axiom. Like most films about the Holocaust, it is a survivor’s tail, and its protagonist, a least at first, seems long on guile and short on scruple. He is Saloman Sorowitsch, a master forger and a fixture of the Berlin underworld, and his yellow star is overlaid with a green triangle marking his status as a habitual criminal.
Movies begin with an introduction and are followed by discussion. A donation towards the Film Club of $3 to $5 per person will be accepted at the door. The society reserves the right to provide an alternative film if a video is unavailable.
For further information call (718) 548-4445.
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Author and journalist Eve Pell will read from her new book, We Used to Own the Bronx, and discuss The Making of a Patrician Family: How the Pells Married Fact, Fiction, and Rich Wives from 1635 to the Present on Tues., May 5, 6:30 pm, at historic Bartow-Pell Mansion Museum in Pelham Bay Park. The museum’s site is land first owned by Pell family patriarch and Lord of the Manor Thomas Pell in the 1600s.
We Used to Own the Bronx (SUNY Press, 2009) tells Eve Pell’s story. Born into an East Coast dynasty, she left her world of privilege for a career as an investigative reporter. Recounting her upbringing, she offers a fascinating inside look at the sometimes bizarre values and customs of the American aristocracy.
Pell moved beyond the narrow world she was expected to inhabit, en-countering people and ideas that brought her into conflict with her up-bringing and her past. As she traces her journey from debutante to working mother, from the upper crust of the East Coast to 60s radical activist of the West, from a life of wealth and privilege to one of trying to make ends meet, she provides uniquely personal insight into the prickly and complex issues of social class in America.
Pell will read from her new book and discuss with Pelham town historian Blake Bell the disparity between Pell family history and legend—a family whose name has been interwoven with the Bartow-Pell Mansion Museum site, the Bronx, and Westchester since 1654. Books will be available for sale and signing.
For more information call (718) 885-1461.
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Center Stage Playhouse will present A New Brain by award-winning composer and lyricist William Finn. It is a musical loosely based on the playwright’s own near-death experience following brain surgery. The whimsical story explores the role of music and family in the lead character’s life and recovery. The play will feature Jonathan Bauchman, Donna Bellone, Jordan Bragg, Alexis Bronkovic, Christine Cataldo, Albert Dobyns, Debra Thais Evans, Matthew Helton, John Megalhaes and Glenn Wells. The performances will be held at Foster, 2743 Westchester Avenue (near St. Peter’s Church on Apr. 17, 18, 19, 24, 25, 26, 30, May 1 and May 2. Thursday, Friday and Saturday shows are at 8 pm and Sunday matinee is at 2 pm. Tickets are $20 for general admission and $17 for seniors and students. Two dollars off with Bronx Cultural Card. Discounted preview on April 16 at 8 pm is $12.
Call (718) 823-6434 for reservations.
