Celtic & gospel music at Baptist Church; Chorale & orchestra present Bach; Whiting book discussion; Weston Playhouse sets gala

The Sky Family will present Celtic and gospel music at the Chester Baptist Church.

Celtic/gospel performers The Sky Family will perform their high energy Celtic dance and Gospel production “Celtic Revival” 7 p.m. Friday, April 26, downstairs at the Chester Baptist Church, 162 Main St. as part of the church’s ground4LIFE program.

The Skys, eastern Canada’s 
premiere Irish dance artists, are known for fast-paced fiddle music and high-energy Irish dance combined with humor and spiritual 
inspiration.

Admission for the family friendly performance is a suggested donation of $10 for adults, $5 for children.

For more information on the program, contact the church by e-mail at fbcc@chesterbaptist.org or by calling 875-2638. For more on the Skys or to sample some of their music, visit http://www.theskys.org.

Bach’s “Mass In B-Minor” is no minor work

The Blanche Moyse Chorale, with four young soloists, and the Strathmere Festival Orchestra will present Bach’s “Mass in B-minor” 7:30 p.m., Friday, April 26 at the Bellows Falls Opera House, 7 The Square in Bellows Falls and 7:30 p.m., Saturday, April 27 at the First Baptist Church, 190 Main St. in Brattleboro. Prior to the Brattleboro concert, Peter Subers, of Music from Salem in Cambridge, N.Y., will deliver a lecture at 5:30 p.m., in the Brattleboro Music Center’s recital hall, at 38 Walnut St., in Brattleboro, a short walk from the concert hall. The lecture is free, but donations are welcome.

Advance tickets available. General admission $20 ($22 at door); preferred seating $40 ($45 at door); students $12. Tickets can be purchased at the Brattleboro Music Center, online at brattleborotix.com/boxoffice or by calling 802-257-4523. Bellows Falls concert tickets are also for sale at Village Square Booksellers, 32 The Square in Bellows Falls. Both venues are handicapped accessible and special seating is available. For more info visit www.bmcvt.org.

Next Whiting book discussion centers on intense memoir

Whiting Library, located on Main Street in Chester, offers a monthly book discussion. Everyone is welcome at 3 p.m. on the second Wednesday of each month. Several copies of the selection are available for check-out. Group discussions are informal with plenty of time to chat about the reading. Refreshments are offered. The book for May 8th is Wild: From lost and found on the Pacific Crest Trail by Cheryl Strayed. This is a memoir of a young woman’s 1,100-mile solo hike as she believes she has lost everything. Call the library at 875-2277 for details. Library is open Monday, Wednesday, Friday 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. and and Saturday 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

 Weston set Spring Gala

Weston Playhouse Theatre Company’s 2013 Spring Gala will be held at 6 p.m. Sunday, May 26 at the Stratton Mountain Club, 74 Founders Hill Road, Stratton Mountain. “A Celebration of Dreamers” honors the Weston tradition of presenting world-class theater in a Vermont setting. The evening will feature a Vermont farmhouse dinner, entertainment highlighting the 2013 season and silent and live auctions. Proceeds from this evening will help support the theater’s programs and services. Additionally, the event will support Weston’s education and outreach initiatives and New Works programs. Tickets are $175 and seating is limited. For tickets and more information about Weston’s Spring Gala, contact Lindsey Carlson at 802-824-8167, ext. 108 or lcarlson@westonplayhouse.org.

— Compiled by Susan Lampe-Wilson