Hello Everyone,
Welcome to the beautiful “golden” month of October. Our grounds at 231 North Main Street are beautiful every month, but that beauty has been enhanced recently by the planting of a Kwauzan Cherry Tree, the gift of Dennis Hawrylko as a memorial to his wife, Ginny McCullough, who was a founding member of the Marlborough Arts Center. Ginny was one of that core group of artists and art lovers who believed Marlborough could be, and should be, a regional center for the arts and then went about making it happen. Volunteers all. Everyone who knew Ginny loved her and now her life will be remembered even by those who did not have that privilege. We are honored to have this memorial on our grounds and thank Dennis and family for their great generosity.
We have a beautiful building too, again thanks to those original volunteers. We also have great acoustics in the Charles W. Hall Gallery, as you know, and as our visiting artists and musicians all have learned. Our next “4th Friday @ the Arts Cafe” stars classical jazz pianist Steve Donovan, who is literally back by popular demand. He will be accompanied by Barbara Lewis, a teacher at Hartt School and a finalist in the Sarah Vaughn Voice Contest. Her lush voice will add so much to this evening, so do plan to attend: Friday, October 24, 7:30-9:00 p.m., with doors open at 7.
And, because of our beauty and accessibility, more and more individuals and groups are choosing to come to the Arts Center, such as the Marlborough Business Association holding their “Meet The Candidates” evening on October 16, open to the public beginning at 5:30 p.m. (at 5:00 p.m. for Marlborough residents and the candidates). Do think about contacting us for your parties or receptions too. Call (860) 295-9389, leave a message, and the appropriate Board Member will return your call with all the details about renting space at the Arts Center.
For those planning home Halloween parties, creating artistic costumes, or preparing with bags of sweets for the trick or treaters, it’s fun to think of the origins of this holiday evolving from centuries of religious observances. There have been millennia of harvest festivals, and some say Halloween began as a Celtic harvest fest. Perhaps. But we do know that November 1 has long been celebrated in the Catholic calendar as “All Saints Day” or “All Hallows Day”. That makes the last day of October 31st “All Hallows Eve”, eventually “Halloween”, with cultural observances including sweets and lights. Then again, do we really need an historic reason to raise our endorphins with fun and extra chocolates?!
But however you see the end of October, I hope you take time to ENJOY… Joan