Culture, Etc

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Groove Is In the Heart

It’s been decades since the B-52s’ first trip to the “Love Shack” and even longer since they showed us how to “Rock Lobster.” The group’s newest album, Funplex, released just last month, features plenty more of what guitarist Keith Strickland calls “shameless dance-floor party music.” Ready to hit the dance floor? DJ Jimmy Fink of 107.1 the Peak hosts the B-52s at the Performing Arts Center in Purchase on April 11. The best part? Proceeds go to benefit the Open Door Family Medical Centers, the largest community health center in Westchester County.

Conquering Hero

Singer/songwriter Josh Ritter is a man of ambition. Here’s a surefire way you can tell: he’s named his most recent album The Historical Conquests of Josh Ritter. (That’s Conquests, plural.) Luckily, Ritter may have the talent to back up his boasting. Amazon.com wrote that Conquests “may be the best album of 2007” and called Ritter “the most under-accorded American musical genius,” while Entertainment Weekly called the album “a sprawling diorama of down-home rhythms and thoughtful lyrics.” Now that he’s won over the critics, Ritter wants to conquer the rest of the country, embarking on what he calls the “Small Town, USA” tour. The tour rolls through Peekskill on April 25, when he’ll perform at the Paramount Center for the Arts. Check it out to see what might become a historical moment—or just some good music.

The Soprano

It’s rare that opera legend Jessye Norman takes the stage these days, but for her most recent outing, she’s decided to perform at the Paramount Center for the Arts on April 26. (That’s before she heads to Carnegie Hall in May.) The Croton resident and 2006 Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award winner will present a concert titled “The American Songbook and the French Melodie,” featuring songs by Duke Ellington, George Gershwin, Francis Poulenc, and George Bizet. When compared to Carnegie Hall, the Paramount is closer, more intimate, and has fewer corny practice-related punch lines associated with it, so the April recital is certain to be your best bet.

Sneak Peek Alert!

Soon, the Atlantic Theater Company’s new play, Port Authority, will see its New York City premiere. Produced by the team behind Spring Awakening and written by The Seafarer’s Conor McPherson, the play is sure to be buzzed about by theater aficionados. Yet we have a leg up on our city-dwelling brethren: the Insights & Revelations series is hosting a preview of the show, followed by a discussion and reception, at the Rosenthal JCC in Pleasantville on April 12. The play, which is about three generations of Irishmen and their tales of failure, loss, and love, is sure to give you plenty to talk about.

This American Guy

If you’re a fan of public radio, you probably recognize the brilliantly cool radio persona of This American Life host Ira Glass. After all, he’s been working in public radio since he was 19 years old. Yet only lucky Showtime subscribers get to see Glass’s television chops, as the program made the leap to the small screen last year. (Believe me, ladies, the phrase “a face for radio” does not apply here, especially if you’re into the cute librarian thing.) The radio and TV versions of This American Life are united by one thing: the ability to find amazing stories among everyday people and to present them in a thought-provoking way. Naturally, this means that Glass has accrued a solid stockpile of entertaining tales to tell. Hear his “Radio Stories and Other Stories” at the Stamford Center for the Arts on April 27.