Westchester Chinese-American Community Welcomes the Year of the Dragon [VIDEO]

Approximately 500 people gathered to welcome the year of the dragon at the Westchester Association of Chinese Americans' 23nd annual Chinese New Year program at New Rochelle High School on Saturday, Feb. 4.

Hui Huang of Croton-on-Hudson and Erqian Na of Yonkers hand-rolled, filled and steamed dumplings for an eager crowd of children in the cafeteria at New Rochelle High School on Saturday. "You like them, yes?" Huang asked Brian Chin, 5, of Mamaroneck as he and his brother Ethan, 8, took turns crimping the doughy edges of the dumplings. "Be careful, it's hot," she warned Katie Yacoub, 11, of Eastchester. Nearby, Eileen Wang of Valhalla played a modified game of peekaboo with her 3-year-old daughter Emma who was trying on an elaborate, child-sized lion mask at the dance workshop. Although the Westchester Association of Chinese Americans hosts the event, the gathering is a combined effort bringing together sponsors TD Bank and PepsiCo as well …

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Enchanted and Enchanting: Opera from the MET [Video]

The latest Live-in-HD-Met-Opera is a tempestuous dream (Shakes.).

Catch the encore of this delightful Opera in HD on Feb. 8 at 6:30 PM at City Center 15 in White Plains and NewRoc 18 in New Rochelle.  A delightfully entertaining surprise: the Movie World-Premiere of The Enchanted Island, the newest opera in the Live-at-the-Met-in-HD series that took place on Jan. 21 locally and in more than 1,600 movie houses around the globe.  Surprising also in that there was quite a huge audience despite the debilitating snowstorm raging at matinee time. It proves again that we have a vast number of truly dedicated opera lovers in Westchester.  The Enchanted Island is a pastiche of arias by Handel, Vivaldi, Rameau and several lesser-known Baroque composers. All are offered to us (in English,) via a clever libretto …

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Local Arts Organizations and Artists to Be Awarded Grants

ArtsWestchester is to award 39 Arts Alive and Arts Partners Challenge Grants to Westchester-based arts organizations and artists.

The arts are alive and well in Westchester and, thanks to the Arts Alive awards, it’ll stay that way. According to a press release , on Friday, Feb. 3 members of the New York State Legislative delegation will gather with ArtsWestchester’s Board of Trustees to award more than $39,000 in ArtsWestchester’s Arts Alive Grants and $11,100 in Arts Partners Challenge Grants to more than 39 local arts organizations, artists and special projects. The variety of Arts Alive projects that will receive funding this year range from outdoor heritage festivals and concerts in parks, to painting workshops, to community theater productions and fully-staged operas, to a presentation of Gospel Choirs. For a complete list of the organizations and artists …

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Brilliance of Nature Informs Mamaroneck Artist's Work

Diana Durantel's paintings are currently on display at the Mamaroneck Public Library.

Although there are many analogies that can accurately describe the rigors of surviving life in a Communist society, Mamaroneck resident and local artist Diana Durantel states it more simply: colorless. Growing up under Communist rule in Romania, Durantel was struck by the absence of color in the buildings, stores and clothing that surrounded her, the drab, grey facades echoing the constraints and lack of freedom offered by society.  As a child, she nurtured an interest in painting, but the art available for viewing in her country often mirrored the darkness of the society at the time. “Very early, painting was my way to express my desire for life and something better,” she said, continuing, “Nature and its color was the only sign of life …

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Joseph and His Technicolor Dreamcoat to Dazzle Audiences at Hommocks Middle School

The Hommocks Players will present the famous Andrew Lloyd Webber musical this week.

The Biblical story of a father gifting his favorite son a multi-hued, dynamically colored coat, setting off a chain of malicious actions spurred on by envious siblings, is the theme of one of the longest running musicals on Broadway: Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat. As the story goes, Joseph is the adored son of Jacob; Joseph's gift of a beautiful coat makes his 11 other brothers so envious that they sell him into slavery and stage his death.  However, Joseph prospers despite his brothers’ attempt to banish him by interpreting dreams and goes to work for the Pharaoh.  Eventually he is reunited with his brothers. On the cusp of the Andrew Lloyd Webber musical’s 30th anniversary, the afterschool club the Hommocks Players will …

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Ice Sculptures Awe at Rockland Lake State Park

Knickerbocker Ice Festival draws large crowds despite warmer temperatures.

Several large ice sculptures began to show the effects of the unseasonably mild temperatures Saturday afternoon at the annual Knickerbocker Ice Festival at Rockland Lake State Park. Still, people were amazed as they walked past the incredible works of art carved from blocks of ice which included a wolf, an octopus and a horse-drawn wagon.   Many people took to hiking around the lake while learning some of the park's history from signs posted along the trail. Nearby, children climbed on large piles of snow in the event's Igloo Village while others formed blocks out of the snow and built their own. There were sponsor tents shaped like an ice cave, an art show and many games available for families during the event which also runs tomorrow …

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New Year, New Mamaroneck Library Director

Susan Riley recently stepped down from her position as director at Mount Kisco Library to run the Mamaroneck Library.

Although she’s only five days into her new job, Mamaroneck Public Library Director Susan Riley is already brainstorming ideas about how to extend the library’s reach to the community as well as how to help make the process of downloading e-books a little less daunting for those who haven’t yet figured out the process. Riley—who replaced Susan Benton, the director since 2005, after she retired—could not be called a novice, having spent over a decade as the director of the Mount Kisco Library.  And, as it turns out, Mamaroneck was not the only village to have a library with an aging infrastructure in need of a facelift.  Riley oversaw the two-year demolition and renovation of the Mount Kisco Library, which was completed in 2009. “My goal was…

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What's That Sound?

Reelin' And A Rockin' Celtic Rockers Play Westchester Saturday

Celtic rockers Black 47 play Emelin Theatre

"I don't know if we've ever played The Emelin Theatre before. Which would make it unique. There aren't many places we haven't played. But, in any case, I'm delighted about it." If you can imagine those words– enthusiastic, philosophical, a little bit punch-drunk– delivered with the faintest trace of an Irish accent, you'll understand the pleasure of talking to Larry Kirwan, leader of those mad Celtic rockers Black 47. The New York-based band will be at The Emelin Theatre in Mamaroneck, NY on Saturday at 8 p.m. And this writer can actually testify, that as pleasing as it is to talk to Kirwan, hearing him sing is even more of a rush. After all, most folks don't speak with bass, drums and uilleann pipes accompanying them.  Still, Kirwan is a …

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The Mountaintop Celebrates MLK's Dream of Equality

Broadway play- The Mountaintop -is a fitting way to celebrate Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s goals and dreams for equality. People from all over the United States have visited New York City to see the critically acclaimed production.

On January 16th, we recognize of one of the greatest men who led our nation.  Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was a man of peace; a man who had dreams of equality. King has been celebrated through monuments, books, and plays and now in a Broadway production. People waited in line as early as 7 a.m. this past Saturday to purchase tickets.  They shared their interest in the production and reflected on what Dr. King’s leadership meant to them. Khrehaan Ebah of Philadelphia said, “I heard really good reviews about it.  He was someone who was willing to beat the odds.” “He was definitely one of my heroic figures and the more I learn about Dr. King the more I really appreciate him,” said Chicagoan Edward Rule. Katori Hall’s critcally …

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White Plains to Host Preview of Harlem Fine Arts Show to Benefit Local Youth

The Harlem Fine Arts Show Westchester Preview will take place from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. on Jan. 12 at the Reckson Building, 360 Hamilton Ave. Tickets are $50 and can be purchased by calling (914) 422-1378 or visiting www.whiteplainsyouthbureau.org.