NEGS, “Ebenezer” on Tap for Four Sundays in December
The Stratford Library will present a series of free, holiday concerts and a special theatre performance on consecutive Sunday afternoons in the Library’s Lovell Room. Seasonal favorites are on the menu for the series, which will be held on Sundays, December 1, 8, 15, and 22 at 2 pm. The afternoons are all free and open to the public.
The Bob Kolb Trio will kick off the series on December 1. The trio will play jazz interpretations of well-known holiday songs from “Home for the Holidays” to “Jingle Bells.” Long-time members of the Trio include David Childs on piano and Steve Roane on bass. Individually, they have played for or with Frank Sinatra, Ella Fitzgerald, Nelson Riddle, Lionel Hampton, Diane Schurr, and many more.
Connecticut recording artist Joe Newman will follow at the Library on December 8. The singer/songwriter will play guitar with a synthesizer and a drum machine. He will also have a trumpet and saxophone player accompany him on some songs. Traditional Christmas tunes like “I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus” and “Silver Bells,” along with 50’s & 60’s songs including “Somewhere Over the Rainbow,” “Let It Be Me,” and “Autumn Leaves,” will also be performed.
The series continues on December 15 with The New England Guitar Society. NEGS was established to create a nurturing environment for classical guitarists to meet, share ideas, perform, compose, teach, and grow as musicians. The NEGS goal is to increase public interest in classical guitar, ultimately creating future players and audiences. The Society was conceived in 2004 by guitarists James Baird, president, and Cem Duruöz, artistic director.
Concluding the holiday entertainment will be a special theatre event, “Elegy for Ebenezer” on December 22. Adapted by Douglas Moser of Northford, the tale returns to its Dickensian roots: a ghost story. An old, dying Ebenezer Scrooge, a stingy man, has never found redemption. As death nears, his faithful, disgruntled servant, Bee, plans on taking what she’s earned over years of caring for this miser before she is thrown out like the trash. As she’s looting his apartment, he asks her to tell him a story. Bee then spins a ghost story for the old man, reminding him of just what he’s come from. “Elegy for Ebenezer,” a tour de force for two actors, will feature Ted van Griethuysen of Stratford and Sarah Nuland (Hamden). Sad and uplifting, “Elegy for Ebenezer” finds the heart inside the pain, and the wonder in storytelling.
All events will be performed live in the Library Lovell Room. Seating is limited and seating is on a first-come, first-serve basis. Seating begins 30 minutes prior to start time. For further information, call the Library: 203.385.4162 or visit: www.stratfordlibrary.org.