Spring 2015 Events

Monday, March 2
4 to 6:30 pm

High School Actors/Dancers only

Tuesday, March 3
4 to 6:30 pm

Elementary/Middle School dancers and those called back from Monday

Auditions for Cinderella

Auditions will be held for Cinderella, a non-musical, full-length play for high school actors/dancers, elementary and middle school dancers. It is a bewitching dramatization of this ageless story, made pictorially beautiful by the introduction of frequent dancing and music. Learn more about this WLYT workshop presented by Kalon Arts & Yoga Company in conjunction with the Theatre Education program of the Howmet Playhouse.

Saturday, March 7
7:00 pm

Tickets:
$10 adults
$5 students

Music for Meals Presents A Night at the 'Met

Join the Educkators and guests for a special evening of entertainment to help raise money for the White Lake Food Pantry. Tickets will be available at the City of Whitehall and will be available at the door. Checks should be made payable to Lebanon Lutheran Church.

Saturday, March 14

7:30 pm

Tickets:
$10 adults
$5 students

Nessa, Celtic Band

Come celebrate St. Patrick's Day with us! Nessa is a Detroit area ensemble led by flutist/vocalist Kelly McDermott. Ms. McDermott’s musical journey started with three degrees in flute performance, two of them advanced degrees from Temple University in Philadelphia. She later worked for more than a decade around the east coast as an orchestral and chamber musician.

This brand new group combines classical, jazz, and Celtic influences with accents of world music and soul. The music reflects Ms. McDermott’s deep passion for rediscovering, and rearranging old Celtic and European folk songs, along with clever, soulful arrangements of Classical themes. Nessa is a fun, funky ensemble with depth and color that includes some of Southeastern Michigan’s finest players.

Saturday, March 28

7:30 pm

Tickets:
$10 adults
$5 students

The MSU Accafellas Sing!

The MSU Accafellas have been entertaining audiences since 1996 with a capella tunes ranging from classic rock to the most current pop hits. Made up of all male MSU students, their harmonies will make you swoon and their antics will have you laughing! These goofy fellas have won multiple awards at the International Championship of Collegiate A Capella and are traveling from Lansing to give us a great night of music!!

Sunday, March 29

6:00pm

Tickets:
$8 adults
$6 students

Tickets available at Studio France, The Vintage Salon, or at the door

Studio France School of Dance Spring 2015 Recital

The Spring 2015 Studio France School of Dance Showcase and Recital will feature selections of music that represent different countries. The evening includes a special performance from Dancing with the Local Stars professional dancer Sean France with local star, Andrea Riegler, who will perform their award-winning routine.

Monday, March 30
Tuesday, March 31

6 to 8 pm

Garden Room of City Hall

You need only attend on audition time

Auditions for Not a Baby Anymore

Auditions will be held for Not a Baby Anymore, a musical by Alice Gambel and Ellen Carmichael. This is an Arts Council of White Lake Nuveen Theatre Workshop presented in conjunction with the Theatre Education program of the Howmet Playhouse. Read More …

Tuesday, March 31

Warmups,
7:30 to 8:00 pm

Elementary/Middle auditions,
8:00 to 8:30 pm

High School auditions,
8:30 to 9:00 pm

Dance Auditions for Cinderella

Dance auditions will be held for Cinderella, a non-musical, full-length play for high school actors/dancers, elementary and middle school dancers. It is a bewitching dramatization of this ageless story, made pictorially beautiful by the introduction of frequent dancing and music.

Learn more about this WLYT workshop presented by Kalon Arts & Yoga Company in conjunction with the Theatre Education program of the Howmet Playhouse.

Saturday, April 4

7:00 pm

Tickets: $15

Tickets may be purchased at the door or online.

Gold Coast Entertainment Presents

An Evening With The phoffman Trio with Anders Beck and Mike Devol

Last year, phoffman performed solo on acoustic guitar to a crowded house of music lovers at the Howmet Playhouse. This year, fellow Greensky band mates Anders Beck (dobro) and Mike Devol (bass) are set to accompany Paul on what is sure to be an acoustic adventure. If you are a fan of stripped down, hard driving, pure performance, precision stringsmanship, and next level bluegrass … this show is for you! For more information, please visit Gold Coast Entertainment's Facebook Page and hit the like button.

The proceeds from refreshment sales benefit capital improvement plans at the Howmet Playhouse

April 6-11

10 am to Noon (Grades 6-8)

1 pm to 3 pm (Grades 3-5)

$50 Class Fee Call the Nuveen Center at 231.894.2787 to Register

Spring Break Workshop: Theatre Survival Skills

An Arts Council of White Lake Nuveen Theatre Workshop presented in conjunction with the Theatre Education program of the Howmet Playhouse

This Theatre Survival Skills course combines the instruction of playwriting, monologue performance, stage manager skills, creating deep emotions on stage, basic makeup skills (for guys and girls,) improvisation, a variety of accents, and projecting your stage voice with volume and articulation all into one week. These are just a few of the skills that instructor Anesa Beilfuss recommends learning to be able to be a blessing and an asset to a theatrical team rather than just a talented actor playing a part, then sitting in the wings. The more well-rounded you are as a performer, the more likely it is that you will be needed. If you can show that you are needed, the more likely it is that you will be cast in theatrical productions in some fashion or another.

Anesa Beilfuss is the Improvika Acting Company owner and artistic director. She is a skilled and passionate actress, director, musician, writer and a trained visual artist. She studied Musical-Theatre at Evangel University where she performed in many lead roles. Improvika Acting Company has continued to grow and has now taught theatre and music to just under 200 students. In her free time, she paints, cooks, draws, writes her own dramas, and studies French, Spanish, and other languages and linguistics.

Friday, April 17

7:30 pm

Tickets:
$10 adults
$5 students

The Mosaic Singers of the Mosaic Youth Theatre of Detroit

Presented by the In Our Backyard Series

The Mosaic Youth Theatre of Detroit is one of Southeast Michigan’s most highly regarded cultural treasures. Their critically acclaimed student-driven performances and national and international tours have brought worldwide attention to Detroit as a center for arts and culture while shining a spotlight on the area’s talented young people and creating new and diverse audiences for the performing arts.

Founded by Rick Sperling in 1992 to address gaps in Metro Detroit arts education, Mosaic served 25 young artists in its inaugural year. Today, over 1000 students from schools throughout Metro Detroit participate in Mosaic’s Youth Ensemble, Intermediate Training Programs and First Stage programs every year. These innovative programs provide expert training, mentoring and opportunity to the area’s young actors, singers, and stage technicians, while fostering a culture of high expectations, active participation and acceptance that serves them beyond the stage.

This event was made possible with the support of MCACA and the Michigan Humanities Council

Saturday, April 25

7:30 pm

Tickets:
$10 adults
$5 students

Westside Soul Surfers

Made up of some of the finest musicians the Muskegon area has to offer, the Westside Soul Surfers are a smokin’ 10-piece R & B, funk and soul powerhouse. When the rhythm section gets things rockin’, the Westside Horns kick things up another notch. Add sweet vocal harmonies and masterful instrumentalists and you get the Westside Soul Surfers.

Saturday, May 2

7:30 pm

Doors Open at 6:30 pm

Tickets: $20

Available at Harborlight Credit Union, Whitehall City Hall, or at the door

8^th Annual White Lake Blues Fest

Join KillerBlues for the 8^th Annual White Lake Blues Festival!

This year's LIVE SHOW features Nick Moss and Sugar Ray Norcia and Hank & the Hawktones.

This event is sponsored by Wheeler Creative Studios.

Libations provided by Founders Brewing Co.

Fundraiser for the Killer Blues Headstone Project which exists to provide headstones for blues musicians lying in unmarked graves

Friday, May 8

7:30 pm

Tickets:
$10/adults
$5/students

In Our Backyard Series: Life to Lyrics
An Evening with Singer-Songwriters

Michigan is a hotbed of musical talent with so many professional musicians calling the Mitten State home. It is always a treat to sit back and listen to these wonderful musicians as they share their life experiences through song. During our special evening with Ralston Bowles, Karisa Wilson, Ruth Bloomquist, and Tommy Foster, these West Michigan musicians will share their songwriting processes and perform some of their favorite songs. Don't miss this unique evening of entertainment.

Sponsored in part by the Michigan Council for Arts and Cultural Affairs

Thursday, Friday, Saturday
May 14-16
7:30 pm

Sunday Matinee May 17
2 pm

Tickets:
$8/adults
$6/students (12 and under)

Cinderella

A production of Kalon Arts and Yoga

A bewitching dramatization of this ageless story, made pictorially beautiful by the introduction of frequent dancing and music. High school, middle school, and elementary school actors and dancers have been cast as a result of their participation in this educational workshop.

Saturday, May 23

7:30 pm

Tickets:
$10/adults
$5/students

Checkers Morton

If you come to hear Checkers Morton you may be a different person when you leave. What you will hear is a band of friends who have played together under this moniker for 40 years. You will hear music from the heart and soul—inspired by the flow of energy that originates from original compositions by all of the members of the band, ranging from Dan's light hearted Padge to Gus' deeply inspiring Little Raga. You will hear this amazing music performed on wood, reeds, brass, ivory, and primal drums. Checkers Morton is Dave Collee on bass, Gus VanStee on keys; Jim Beegle on trumpet, flueglehorn, congas, and flute; Dan Giacobassi on saxes, flute, and shakuhachi; and Tim Froncek on the drums.

Saturday, May 30

7:30 pm

Tickets: $15

Three Men and a Tenor

Great pop vocal music, quick witted humor and overall likeability give Three Men and a Tenor a unique style of engaging performance that cannot be matched. The group has performed on stages with The Beach Boys, Lee Greenwood, Chuck Berry, and Dionne Warwick, and were featured in a national PBS-TV special, Three Men and a Tenor-In Concert in cities like Minneapolis, Boston, Miami, Las Vegas and Nashville. 3MT twice toured Germany to entertain the troops and their families at over 15 different U.S. Military Bases, and sang at the bedsides at Landstuhl hospital for the wounded soldiers who had just arrived off the front lines of battle from Iraq and Afghanistan for medical treatments. The 3MT visit was the perfect medicine to put a smile on the faces of our soldiers and helped heal through music and humor. With over 2,500 performances in the group's 22-year history and twice voted "The Best Entertainment in Michigan" by the Michigan Meetings and Event Planners, Three Men and a Tenor is a polished group of showmen, with a flair for fun and family that brings audiences to their feet!

Thursday, Friday, Saturday
June 11-13

7:30 pm

Tickets:
$6.00 pre-sale at ACWL
$8.00 at the door

An Arts Council of White Lake Nuveen Theatre Workshop

A Sneak Preview of a musical in writing, FLETCHER’S FRIENDS, will also be presented.

Not a Baby Anymore

A musical by Alice Gambel and Ellen Carmichael

Sarah Lockhart will turn thirteen at 6:32 in the morning on May 11th. Sarah, believing that something magical happens when you become a teenager, looks forward to immediate freedom from parental restrictions and rules. No longer a baby, she makes plans to do things that have been previously discouraged by her mother and father. She begins her school day with great anticipation, but when things don't go her way, and the day appears to be no different than any other day, she makes an immature choice that lands her in a questionable position. Having to rely on her Mother to rescue her from potential danger, she realizes that growing up is best taken in small steps, not giant leaps.

A perfect show to open up dialogue with a pre-teen in your life. This is a show for the entire family.

Friday, June 26

7:30 pm

Tickets: $15

In Our Backyard Series:
An Evening with Bob Milne

Bob Milne is considered to be the best ragtime/boogie-woogie pianist in the world. He was filmed and documented for future generations in 2004 during three days of interviews at the Library of Congress, and was declared a "National Treasure" at the conclusion. Mr. Milne, an active "Musical Ambassador" for the United States, has performed numerous times in Japan, including the Okinawan Islands and Hokkaido. He has also performed in this capacity for members of the Swiss Parliament at the U.S. Embassy in Berne.

Mr. Milne's natural ability to hear and play music goes back to his early childhood. He makes the statement, "I knew how to play a piano long before I ever started. Just push down the notes you hear and the instrument will play itself. Can't everyone do this?" He considers either looking at music or practicing to be "cheating." A French horn player in High School, he went to the prestigious Eastman School of Music at the age of 17, and then became assistant First Horn in the Rochester Philharmonic at age 19. After symphony concerts the students all went and hung out in local places. When the piano player didn't show up at a sing-a-long saloon one night, Mr. Milne "filled in." They hired him on the spot. He continued playing the horn until age 21, then became a full time piano player in the Detroit area, playing seven nights a week for twenty five years. A comment often heard following one of his performances is, "unbelievable."

Bob Milne teaches music history at various universities around the country, and is also the founder and director of the Frankenmuth Ragtime Festival in Michigan. His courses in the Lifelong Learning program at Florida/Atlantic University every winter are among the most popular in the curriculum. Mr. Milne has been averaging somewhere in the area of 250 performances per year. He is highly sought after for both his incredible piano playing and easy going, modest presentations. He claims, "If I have been given any ability at all, it is my duty to honor it by trying to improve that ability every time I perform." The list of music festivals he's appeared at is extensive. They include the Scott Joplin Ragtime Festival (Sedalia, Missouri), the Montreal Jazz Festival, the Eau Claire Ragtime Festival, Sacramento Ragtime Festive, plus many others.

Sponsored in part by the Michigan Council for Arts and Cultural Affairs