It is the moment before Turtle Heart and Melena strap the toddler into a harness. Elphaba is mesmerized by the glass disk created by the Quadling visitor.

 She’s moving to touch it………

This December I am lucky to have 2 gigs at my favorite venue, The Java Room in Chelmsford.  Candy, the owner and manager is loyal patron of the arts and runs an excellent cafe/bar at the Gingerale Plaza.  Delicious treats, unique drinks and european style coffee served in a classy, comfortable space, I highly recommed her establishment.  The party starts at 6pm thru 9pm.

On Friday the 16th, I will be swaping songs with John Ferullo and Jon Swenson from 8pm -10pm.  It’s always a fun night, lots of laughs as both John and Jon are comically gifted.  And it’s free!

On Thursday the 22nd, I will be singing Christmas Carols again with the piano man, Tag Vennard and this year a special treat, we will have Trude Witham on Sax!! I’m excited to hear her myself!! Again, no cover at the Java Room and there will be enough Christmas spirit for everyone!

Finally my tree is finished and assembled at the Concord museum.  Have a look, bring a child and get into the Christmas spirit early.   concordmuseum.org for details…Merry Merry!

It’s that time of year again, I’m sculpting like  crazy to recreate the magical world penned by Lewis Carroll for Alice, in “Alice Through the Looking -Glass.” 

 The  illustrations are fantastic, so compelling to me, thank you, Helen Oxenbury..I’m excited to re-create in clay your wonderful  versions of Alice, the White Queen, Tweedle-dum etc..so fun to play in that world for awhile.  If you are interested in the finished product, please visit the Concord Museum from November 21st-January 3d, Cambridge Turnpike, Concord, MA.  There you will find a colorful world of children’s books, re-created on the canvas of Christmas trees.  It’s a wonderful activity to enjoy with your children, grandchildren or niece and nephew.  My tree will be in the lobby..I hope you enjoy it..here is a preview of Tweedledum, Alice and the White Queen..they still need to be painted

Finally a CD release party!! June 12th, 2011.

 I will celebrate with all the wonderful musicians who contributed their talent to my CD.  The list includes, Seth Connelly, John Ferullo, Jon Swenson, Kathleen Larkin, Tracy O’Connell, Tag Vennard and Bob Morse.   There will even be a few tunes by Dasiy Flowerchild and her Leftovers, please join us for a fun nite.

Parish Center for the Arts, 10 Lincoln street, Westford, MA , 7:30pm

It’s also an open mike night, so bring your instruments!

Do you want to make a dragonfly with me?

Sign up for my class at Dabblers, 119 Commonwealth Ave, Concord, MA    dabblersconcord.com February 19th and 26th.  Or come to the demo January 29th 1230pm, here is a photo of the handsome little guy we’ll be sculpting!!

And so this is Christmas…

 This year I had the pleasure of attending my nieces’ 6^th grade choir concert.  The children, dressed in the own versions of  black and white, marched, as practiced, in single file to assemble on a three tiered bench on stage.  Although the group seemed to be mostly young girls, there were a few young boys and one special needs child, Henry.  Henry stood with the biggest smile at the end of the second row.

 When the children’s sweet voices filled the auditorium all eyes were on Henry.  He drew his deepest breath, puffed up his chest and bellowed out his lyrics, out of time and out of tune.  But his performance was overflowing with joy and enthusiasm, and I wondered yet again, when I would remember to stock my purse with Kleenex.

 As the show progressed Henry was distracted now and then.  He pulled out his tucked shirt, loosened his tie, turned round to observe his choir mates in the row behind him.  Eventually he would settle back into the song and again, in full voice, sing his heart out.

 In the middle of the same row stood Joe, a boy born of snips and snails and puppy dogs tails, just like the old rhyme.  Joe stood angled with his back to Henry, shoulders lifted, suppressing his giggles, trying to contain his laughter as Henry did what Joe knew he could never get away with.  And all the while the girls, true to their nature, reined in both boys, by carefully singing their parts, seamlessly, with all the peace, love and understanding we have come to expect from the greatest fans of this season.

 It was an early Christmas present for me!  Merry Christmas everyone!

“All art is quite useless” Oscar Wilde

I have always loved this quote, puts everything in prespective for me I guess.  And how I love to create the “useless”!  I find freedom in his definition of art,  and permission to create art just for the fun of it   Without the pragmatic boundaries of “usefulness” the artistic possibilities are endless.  Time to shake off the burdens of “have to’s” and “should do’s” to work comfortably in uselessness!!    

I continue my latest artistic journey into the world of Gregory Maguire’s vivid imagination and illustrator Chris L. Demarest’s line drawings.  I find myself in a marsh, where frogs rule and hornets can ruin a good party.  My pallet is a Christmas tree, my medium, paper clay.

 To see the fascinating world Gregory created in his book “Leaping Beauty”, stop by the Concord Museum in December 3, 2010- January 2^nd, 2011 and visit the exhibit of “Family Trees” a celebration of children’s literature.  There are 36 trees decorated in the themes of children’s books.  It’s an excellent holiday activity for families, especially children who love to read!!  concordmuseum.org

here is my tree, I set it up Dec 1st!  There are some really cool trees this year, I hope you get a chance to check them out!