Were you art-full this past weekend?

Did the long weekend provide you with extra chances to immerse yourself in Broome County’s lively arts scene? Then please tell us what you did.

In one-woman show, Weeks makes every character come alive

Reviewed by Ralph Hall

The question is:  How many characters can one actor successfully create and portray in one 90-minute monologue?  In Slut, produced this week (Feb. 28 and 29) at the Schorr Family Firehouse Stage in Johnson City, Heidi Weeks established a persona for numerous characters in such depth that she revealed much of the heart and soul of each. In this one-woman show, her creations were so complete that the audience was always able to understand their history, emotions and desires.

‘Assassins’ kills at the Firehouse Stage

Reviewed by Sarah Roche

I attended S.R.O. Productions III’s  April 9 opening night performance of “Assassins.” It was my first time at the Firehouse Stage of the Goodwill Theatre  in Johnson City. The venue goes above and beyond to make patrons comfortable with a police officer assisting in parking and well-cushioned chairs.

‘Alto on the Loose’ heats up Firehouse Stage

 Reviewed by David L. Schriber

What do you call an alto who can sing (not just “hit” but really sing) a high C, yet also can visit notes in the baritone range? Answer:  Hilerie Klein-Rensi. She is well known as a local classical soloist but is equally at home with musical theater, as her cabaret routine “Alto on the Loose” proved convincingly Sunday (Dec. 5) at the Schorr Family Firehouse Stage in Johnson City.

Big Apple-style cabaret charms at Firehouse

Reviewed by Leo Cotnoir

Last night (Oct.23),  the Schorr Family Firehouse Stage in Johnson City launched its Two by Two Series by magically transporting itself to Manhattan — except for the prices! NYC-based artists Rick Jensen and Susan Winter treated the near-capacity audience to some of the best of Big Apple cabaret. While “cabaret” can refer to any small-group club performance, its classic incarnation — for me, anyway — is in solo performances from The Great American Songbook as the repertoire of 20^th century Broadway and Hollywood musicals has come to be known.

John Covelli & Friends: Fantasia with too little sax

Reviewed by Leo Cotnoir

There is no question that John Covelli is a talented pianist, and it is clear that mid-19^th Century Romanticism is his métier. After a somewhat overlong but informative introduction Sunday (Oct. 3) at The Schorr Family Firehouse Stage in Johnson City, Covelli launched into Robert Schumann’s “Fantasia in C Major, Opus 17” with the energy and gusto of a much younger man performing for a jury who would decide his fate. One could not help but hear the connection Covelli feels with the composer through his teacher, who studied with Schumann’s wife, piano virtuosa Clara Schumann. When he ventured into other periods, however, although still technically impressive, Covelli seemed on shakier musical grounds. For my taste his performance of a transcription of Bach’s “Prelude in B minor” had far too much tempo variation as did his reading of Mozart’s “Fantasy in D minor” that at times sounded more like Brahms than Mozart. His performance of Debussy’s “La Cathédrale Engloutie” (“The Sunken Cathedral”) began with the ethereal quality we associate with French Impressionist composers but soon seemed to be grow a bit bombastic. A second piece by Debussy, “Ce qu’a vu le vent d’ouest” (“What the West Wind Saw”), since it calls for a heavy hand to depict the storm wind, was more successful.

‘Mark Twain’ appearance encourages reading

Reviewed by David L. Schriber

Friday, Feb. 26, at the Schorr Family Firehouse Stage in Johnson City, entertainer Kurt H. Sutton portrayed Samuel L. Clemens in the family parlor, sharing the wit and wisdom of Mark Twain. Audience members at the Goodwill Theatre received free copies of The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, courtesy of “The Big Read” program, an initiative of the National Endowment for the Arts.