Learn New Photo Skills at the MAC

(Marion, MA) – The Marion Art Center welcomes photographer John Wiliszowski, who will give an educational lecture, Photography’s Path to Digital Expression, on Saturday, October 15 at 10:30am in the MAC’s Anne Braitmayer Webb Theater. Registration cost: $15 for MAC members and $20 for nonmembers. The presentation is an introduction to a series created for artists interested in digital art. Wiliszowski details the creation of digital images as the canvas. He will decode the tools and techniques of digital artistry used to enhance and share the emotion, the spectacle, and the dynamics of the moment, as digital art. Learn how digital images can be rendered as giclées on canvas, watercolor paper, metal, or glass. There will be time for a Q&A during the event. Space is limited, and advance registration is strongly recommended. Purchase tickets at marionartcenter.org/events.

Coming to the MAC Stage

(Marion, MA) – The Marion Art Center announces its upcoming production of Church & State written by Jason Odell Williams and directed by Donn Tyler, on stage at the Anne Braitmayer Webb (MAC) Theater. The cast includes Garrett Olson, Jennie Williamson, Susan Sullivan, Oliver Asker, and Pippa Asker, with Maura Van Voris as assistant director and Steven McManus as sound and lighting technician.

Three days before his bid for reelection, in the wake of a school shooting in his hometown of Raleigh, North Carolina, a Republican U.S. senator makes an off-the-cuff comment to a blogger that gets leaked on “the Twitter,” calling into question the senator’s stance on guns and God. As his devoutly Christian wife and his liberal campaign manager try to contain the damage, this look at how religion influences politics and how politics has become a religion is simultaneously funny, heartbreaking, and uplifting.

Performances are scheduled November 4, 5, 6, 11, 12, and 13. Friday and Saturday shows will begin at 7:30pm and Sunday matinees will begin at 2:00pm. Tickets are on sale now to MAC members ($18) and go on sale to nonmembers ($20) on October 7 at marionartcenter.org/events.  Contact the MAC with questions at [email protected] or 508-748-1266.

Jazz Concert at the MAC in November
(Marion, MA) – The Marion Art Center welcomes the Jim Robitaille Three to the MAC stage on Friday, November 18 at 7:30pm. The trio includes Jim Robitaille on guitar, Erik van Dam on saxophone, and John Dalton on drums. Tickets, $20 for MAC members and $25 for nonmembers, can be purchased online at marionartcenter.org/events. This event is sponsored by a grant from the Mass Cultural Council.

Guitarist and award winning composer Jim Robitaille has performed and or recorded and shared the bill with Dave Liebman, Karl Berger, Bob Moses, Joe Beck, Gerry Gibbs, Santi Debriano, Julian Lage, Esperanza Spalding, Oscar Stagnaro, Kate McGarry, pop singer Billy Gilman and the Dizzy Gillespie Alumni All-Stars, and many more. John Dalton is a Boston-based musician, composer, and educator. He has performed various venues and performed or shared the bill with artists such as Dino Govoni, Amanda Monaco, John Sullivan, Barry Altschul, Dennis Montgomery, Jerome Harris, Stefano Battaglia, Kaya Meller, Kamil Piotrowicz, Anastassiya Petrova, and Royal Hartigan. Erik van Dam plays flute, bari, tenor, alto, and soprano saxophones. Having studied with the highly acclaimed Joe Lovano and later Hal Crook, Erik has gone on to draw inspiration from many influences including Lovano, Sam Rivers, and Eric Dolphy, crafting a sound of his own. He has worked and performed with Bob Moses, Bill Lowe, Stan Strickland, and Fred Ho’s Monkey Orchestra, to name a few.

MAC Dance Academy starting in October

(Marion, MA) – MAC Dance Academy is a classically taught dance studio that fosters individuality and fun for all dancers. This low-key, low-cost program provides extraordinary dance instruction in ballet, tap, and jazz, and also touches on contemporary, hip-hop, and gymnastics, all in a safe, fun learning environment. MAC Dance is for girls and boys ages 3-10, with half our sessions on Monday afternoons between 4:00-5:30pm. The cost for 8 classes is $140 for MAC members and $155 for nonmembers. Interested in trying out the Dance Academy, but not sure if your child will enjoy it? The MAC offers a FREE trial on the first day of classes. Come see what it’s all about! The fall session starting date has been postponed and will now begin on Monday, October 17. See the full schedule and register online at marionartcenter.org/mac-dance-academy.