Arts and Culture Archives - The Inside Press

Founded in 2017, the Chappaqua Performing Arts Center (ChappPAC) was established to provide diverse arts and cultural programming for residents of New Castle and communities throughout the region. Located in the heart of Chappaqua at Chappaqua Crossing (the former Reader’s Digest campus), this amazing 425-seat venue was saved from demolition and brought back to life through a unique consortium of municipal and private support.

ChappPAC’s programming presents a diverse, imaginative and exceptionally entertaining mix of arts and cultural opportunities such as art exhibits, theater, comedy, author talks and perennial favorites such as “The Rocky Horror Picture Show” and an interactive “Elf” experience. Artists such as Tim Kubart and the Space Cadets have had children dancing in the aisles, while the sweet sounds of Vanessa Williams and the rocking music of the Allman Brothers have delighted adults. ChappPAC also is the home of the Chappaqua Orchestra, and has hosted master acting classes with current Broadway stars. ChappPAC offers a full slate of children’s and senior programming and also aims to provide programs and opportunities for under-served communities and people with special needs.

The Town’s Arts and Culture Committee oversees the facility and is the liaison between the Town and the needs of ChappPAC. The Friends of ChappPAC, a 501(c)(3) non-profit corporation, is the entity sanctioned to work with the Town to provide financial support to ChappPAC for capital projects and programming at the theater. For information about ChappPAC and future programming, visit chappaquapac.org. For information about the Friends of ChappPAC, contact friendsofchapppac@gmail.com.

Courtesy of the Town of New Castle Arts and Culture Committee

The Chappaqua-Millwood Arts & Culture Committee Brings First Time Summer Outdoor Theater to Town

The Town of New Castle along with the Arts & Culture Committee present LawnChair Theater company’s version of Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night, at the Rec Field on Friday, August 5 at 6 p.m. Twelfth Night is Shakespeare’s RomCom of gender confusion and mistaken identity, where the Good People are sometimes indistinguishable from the bullies.

Standing in for Illyria is San Francisco in 1967, the Summer of Love. Shorthairs and longhairs, mods,freaks and hippies. Yes, and rock and roll. This abridged version of the play is approximately two hours long. Bring a blanket or a chair and have a picnic dinner while watching the play. Food will be made available for purchase.

LawnChair Theater is a summer theater program that has brought outdoor performances to the parks of Westchester since 2005. They have had great fun producing nine summers of Shakespeare. Their casts are multi-generational, blending both professional and amateur performers. Their goal is to contemporize Shakespeare without rewriting him, and to create community through their work and play.

New Castle Town Board member Lisa Katz, who is chair of the Arts & Culture Committee, stated “The New Castle Arts & Culture Committee is dedicated to the advancement of the arts in the New Castle community. I am thrilled that LawnChair Theater will bring a summer theater program to Chappaqua. I am looking forward to the first of hopefully many more productions as we work to enhance culture and the arts in and around New Castle”.

The mission of the New Castle Arts & Culture Committee is to develop, propose and raise awareness of events and programs on art, music, dance, theatre, film and all other cultural art forms taking place in and around the Town of New Castle. Events and programs of interest shall include arts series, art auctions, concerts and shows, art exhibits, children’s art programs and community creative festivals.

This announcement was courtesy of News from the Town of New Castle.