NJArts.net

Axelrod Performing Arts Center to launch Sondheim Centennial Project as part of 2023 season

The Axelrod Performing Arts Center’s Sondheim Centennial Project will begin with “Sunday in the Park With George.” The Axelrod Performing Arts Center will produce the 1984 Stephen Sondheim musical, “Sunday in the Park With George,” next year, as the first part of its Sondheim Centennial Project. This undertaking will feature eight Sondheim musicals over the course of eight years, ending in 2030, the year that marks the 100th anniversary of the late Sondheim’s birth. According to a press release, the series, curated by Axelrod’s artistic director Andrew DePrisco, also will include “concerts and...

Bouncing Souls added to Frantic City fest in Atlantic City, and set times announced

THE BOUNCING SOULS The Bouncing Souls have been added to the lineup of the Frantic City music festival in Atlantic City, Sept. 24, and set times have been announced. The event takes place outdoors at the Orange Loop Amphitheater, with Fred Armisen of “Saturday Night Live” and “Portlandia” fame hosting, and other attractions including vendors (selling records, art, clothing and more), “food options for all diets” and axe throwing. Gates will open at 11 a.m. and this will be the schedule: **STAGE ONENoon:** Control Top1:15 p.m.: Protomartyr2:35 p.m.: Superchunk4:15 p.m.: Shannon & the Clams6:05 ...

NJ PBS resumes 'American Songbook' series with Debbie Gravitte, Jim Dale, more

Debbie Gravitte, performing on the “American Songbook” series. NJ PBS’s “American Songbook” series returned this week, with a special starring Debbie Gravitte,” and will continue with a show featuring Jim Dale, Sept. 13 at 9:30 p.m. The performances were taped at NJPAC in Newark in April, with Ted Chapin, the former president of the Rodgers and Hammerstein Organization, hosting and interviewing the singers as part of the shows. The next two episodes in the NJ PBS series will compile moments from past “American Songbook” shows, with “Showstoppers,” featuring Michael Feinstein, Maureen McGovern,...

NJ lawyer who represented John Lennon in '70s writes book about experience

BOB GRUEN From left, lawyer Howard Roy, John Lennon, lawyer Harold Seider, Yoko Ono and lawyer Jay Bergen share a meal at Sloppy Louie’s in New York in January 1976. In 1975, in his mid-30s, John Lennon put his career on hold, concentrating on raising his son Sean, who was born in October of that year. He released an album of ’50s and early ’60s covers, Rock ‘n’ Roll, in February 1975, but his next one, his Double Fantasy collaboration with Yoko Ono, didn’t come out until more than five and a half years later, in November 1980. That’s an eternity for a major rock artist in an era when most of ...

Springsteen, Jon Stewart, The Lumineers and others will perform at Stand Up for Heroes benefit

BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN The annual Stand Up for Heroes benefit concert usually includes Bruce Springsteen among its cast, and this year’s 16th edition — taking place at David Geffen Hall at Lincoln Center in New York, Nov. 7 — is no exception. Presented by the Bob Woodruff Foundation and the New York Comedy Festival, this year’s show will include Springsteen (who usually tells a few jokes in addition to playing a few acoustic songs) along with Jon Stewart; The Lumineers; comedians Iliza Shlesinger, Hasan Minhaj and Jeff Ross; and Broadway actress Amber Iman. Tickets range from $175 to $1,000 (with m...

Top 12 NJ Arts Events of Week: Montclair Jazz Festival, Central Jersey Jazz Festival, more

The 2022 edition of the Montclair Jazz Festival will feature a star-studded lineup. Here is a roundup of arts events taking place around the state, through Sept. 15. MUSIC • Singer Danielle Ponder, bassist Christian McBride, keyboardist Matthew Whitaker and the all-star group Artemis will be among the performers at the Montclair Jazz Festival’s free, outdoor Downtown Jamboree, produced by the Montclair-based educational organization Jazz House Kids and taking place Sept. 10. Here is the schedule: DANIELLE PONDER Downtown Jamboree at BDP Holdings Lackawanna Stage1:30 p.m.: Jazz House Collective...

Ringo Starr will display art in Atlantic City for three days before concert

RINGO STARR Prior to his Sept. 24 concert at the Hard Rock Live at Etess Arena at the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in Atlantic City, Ringo Starr will display more than 40 works of his art at an exhibition at the resort, Sept. 21-23. Signed copies of his 2020 book, “Painting is My Madness Too: The Art of Ringo Starr,” will be available as well. Proceeds will benefit the Los Angeles-based Lotus Foundation, which supports a variety of causes related to health issues, substance abuse, domestic violence, homelessness and animals in need. Starr, 82, will be supported at his Atlantic City concert by hi...

Guests in Princeton's Atelier@Large series will range from Tom Stoppard to DMC

TOM STOPPARD Princeton University will kick off its “Atelier@Large: Conversations on Art-making in a Vexed Era” series with an open-to-the-public discussion, Sept. 13 at 7:30 p.m. at its Richardson Auditorium, featuring novelist Jennifer Egan and tap dance artist Michael J. Love. Poet and Princeton professor Paul Muldoon will serve as the moderator. According to the university’s website, the series “brings guest artists to campus to discuss the challenges they face in making art in the modern world.” The talk is free though advance tickets are required. Visit arts.princeton.edu. The Princeton ...

XPoNential Music Festival in Camden announces '22 schedule

DANNY CLINCH Nathaniel Rateliff & the Night Sweats perform at the XPoNential Music Festival in Camden, Sept. 17. The XPoNential Music Festival in Camden — one of New Jersey’s largest annual music events since it began in 1994 — has announced its schedule for 2022, which you can see below. The fest — which took place in July for many years, went virtual in 2020 because of the pandemic, and returned in September 2021 — is staying in September for this year, at least, with The War on Drugs, Patti Smith, Nathaniel Rateliff & the Night Sweats, The Revivalists, Taj Mahal, Jenny Lewis and many others...

Kids learn to love music in Karyn Kuhl's Little RocknRollers program

PHOTOS BY JULIE HARARI Karyn Kuhl teaches children music in her Little RocknRollers program. Fronting her own Karyn Kuhl Band, Kuhl captivates fans with her guitar prowess and lyrics that resonate with evocative tales of longing, passion and connection. She has been an impactful part of the Hoboken rock scene since the ’80s, performing in Sexpod, Gut Bank and other bands. She also captures the hearts and attention of youngsters through her music program, Little RocknRollers; she has been teaching music to children for more than 20 years. Her fall 2022 semester, for children 6 months to 4 years...