Calendar

Saturday, April 5, 2025 @ 8:00 pm / VBI Theatre – 12 Vassar Street / Ticket Prices: $10-20 sliding scale admission / Ticket Information: Elysium Furnace Works

Two dynamic duos descend upon an unsuspecting Poughkeepsie when the improvised guitar duo of James Keepnews and Billy Stein is joined by drummer/percussionist Dean Sharp and Nico Soffiato performing an opening set.

James Keepnews and Billy Stein

Dean Sharp and Nico Soffiato

James Keepnews is a musician, writer and multimedia artist. He received a degree in English from Hamilton College and an MFA from the iEAR program at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. As a musician and composer, he has performed and/or recorded with such artists as Joe McPhee, George Lewis, William Parker, Karl Berger, Daniel Carter, Charles Gayle, Kidd Jordan, Roy Campbell, Tony Malaby, Hamid Drake, Jason Kao Hwang’s Spontaneous River, Ras Moshe, Matt Lavelle, Holland Hopson, The New York Chapter of Crafty Guitarists, Chapter Two, The New York Guitar Project, Blown Woofer, Brown Cuts Neighbors and Lick the President. He has developed and performed with improvised computer-interactive audio and video systems at The Kitchen, Bard College, The Stone and many other venues. He is a co-founder and curator for the Hudson Valley experimental arts series Elysium Furnace Works and is a past co-director of the Red Hook Jazz Festival in Brooklyn. His writing has appeared in Chronogram, Pacific Life Magazine, New Haven Advocate, Bass Guitar, Fairfield Weekly, Metroland, Story Screen, The Squid’s Ear and Reign of Toads. He lives in Hyde Park, NY.

Billy Stein is a guitarist born in Brooklyn, New York. While attending Hunter College, where he would earn a BA in Music Composition & Theory, he received a National Endowment for the Arts grant to study classical guitar with Leonid Bolotine. Billy then became involved in multiple music scenes in and around NYC including R&B, funk, blues, rock, salsa, as well as both mainsteam and free- jazz. Over the years he has performed and recorded with an eclectic group of musicians including Milt Hinton, Sahib Shihab, Joe Blanco, The Coasters, Rashid Bakr, and many other artists. Recordings as a leader include “HYBRIDS” THE BILLY STEIN TRIO, 2006 (Barking Hoop) and “INTERVALS”, (with Michael Moss), 2013 (4th Stream Records). Current projects include collaborations with Joe Giardullo.

Nico Soffiato, guitar, and Dean Sharp, drums, have been playing together for the last couple of years and are working on a record together. Their music has deep roots in jazz, rock, and improvised music. Their spontaneous compositions are fueled by driving rhythms and particular attention is paid to sound design and strong melodic statements.

Nico Soffiato is an Italian guitarist, composer and educator. After graduating from Berklee College of Music in 2007, he made his home in Brooklyn and moved to the Hudson Valley in 2021. A versatile player, Nico finds himself playing in various jazz and experimental groups such as his duo with Grammy-winning trumpet player Josh Deutsch, Paradigm Refrain with Anti Label recording artist Marco Buccelli, and Dogwood. As a member of the New York music scene for over fifteen years, Nico has been part of the collective Out Of your Head Brooklyn, whose members included Gerald Cleaver, Michael Attias, Tony Malaby, Kirk Knuffke, and many others. He also plays in Innocent When You Dream, Aaron Schragge’s ensemble that reimagines the music of Tom Waits. He had played nationally and internationally, presenting his music at renowned festivals like Dave Douglas’s FONT Festival, Sile Jazz Festival, Padova Jazz Festival and more. Nico is also music for media composer and producer. He’s a staff composer for the international music house Overcoast and has worked on movies and commercials.  

Dean Sharp is a prolific creative percussionist, composer, producer and remixer. He has played and/or recorded with a strikingly diverse array of creative artists including Moby, Brad Mehldau, the Red Hot Chili Peppers, Elliott Sharp, Michael Bisio, Joe Lovano, Marc Ribot, John Stubblefield, Jazz Criminals, Hugh Brodie, Tony Levin, Steve Swallow, Carter Burwell, Todd Sickafoose’s Blood Orange , Kris Davis, and Ani Defranco. Sharp has written and recorded with notorious loop-miester David Torn (SPLaTTeRCeLL project), co-lead the ensembles earmight (w/ Dean Jones, David Hofstra, Russ Johnson and Ken Mcgloin) and trio loCo (w/ Marc Dzuiba and StudioStu) and is the creative catalyst behind SONic 150 (with bassist michael bisio and trumpet notebender russ johnson), scribbleScrabbLe (with videographer Thomas Moore), sharpEND (with Ken Mcgloin and John Menegan) and Word Was (w/ russ johnson and mario pavone). He has played a vital role in the recordings and live performances of such innovative singer/ songwriters as Rachael Sage, Greg Brown, Donna Lewis, MIMI, Noe Veneble, Louise Taylor, Jill Sobule and Jane Siberry. 

Saturday, April 12, 2024 / 4:00 pm – 7:00 pm / 9 Vassar Street / $85 per person / Click HERE To Purchase Online Tickets through Eventbrite / Click HERE to Make A Donation / To Pay by Check, call the Cunneen-Hackett Arts Center Administrative Office at 845-486-4571 / NOTE: Limited Capacity and No Door Sales / Ticket Price includes entry in Door Prize Raffle Drawings

Saturday, April 26, 2025 and Sunday, April 27, 2025 / VBI Theatre – 12 Vassar Street / Performance Times and Ticket Information: From Stage To Screen Acting Studio

It’s Junie B.’s first day of first grade, and a lot of things have changed for her: Junie’s friend, Lucille, doesn’t want to be her best pal anymore and, on the bus, Junie B. makes friends with Herb, the new kid at school. Also, Junie has trouble reading the blackboard and her teacher, Mr. Scary, thinks she may need glasses. Throw in a friendly cafeteria lady, a kickball tournament and a “Top-Secret Personal Beeswax Journal,” and first grade has never been more exciting.

Saturday, May 3, 2025 @ 8:00 pm / VBI Theatre – 12 Vassar Street / Ticket Information: Elysium Furnace Works

ROVA Saxophone Quartet co-founder Larry Ochs makes his Hudson Valley debut in an incendiary trio with bassist Joe Morris and drummer/percussionist Michael Wimberly.

Friday, May 9, 2025 from 5:00 pm to 7:00 pm / Free Admission / Refreshments will be served

• Victorian Gallery @ 9 Vassar Street – Jim Smith, Photography
• Reception Gallery @ 12 Vassar Street – CIRCLE24collective featuring Kate Masters, Sylvia Mueller, and Jacqueline Oster
• Hancock Gallery @ 12 Vassar Street – Mari Keeler Cornwell, Acrylic Paintings  

Saturday, June 7, 2025 and Sunday, June 8, 2025 / VBI Theatre – 12 Vassar Street / Performance Times and Ticket Information: From Stage To Screen Acting Studio

Four eccentric Broadway stars are in desperate need of a new stage. So, when they hear that trouble is brewing around a small-town prom, they know that it’s time to put a spotlight on the issue…and themselves. The town’s parents want to keep the high school dance on the straight and narrow—but when one student just wants to bring her girlfriend to prom, the entire town has a date with destiny. On a mission to transform lives, Broadway’s brassiest join forces with a courageous girl and the town’s citizens and the result is love that brings them all together. Winner of the Drama Desk Award for Best Musical, The Prom expertly captures all the humor and heart of a classic musical comedy with a message that resonates with audiences now more than ever.

Saturday, June 14, 2025 and Sunday, June 15, 2025 / VBI Theatre – 12 Vassar Street / Performance Times and Ticket Information: From Stage To Screen Acting Studio

When James is sent by his conniving aunts to chop down their old fruit tree, he discovers a magic potion that results in a tremendous peach… and launches a journey of enormous proportions. Suddenly, James finds himself in the center of the gigantic peach, among human-sized insects with equally oversized personalities, but after it falls from the tree and rolls into the ocean, the group faces hunger, sharks and plenty of disagreements. Thanks to James’ quick wit and creative thinking, the residents learn to live and work together as a family. The dangerous voyage is a success, but the adventure takes a whole new twist once they land on the Empire State Building.

Saturday, June 21, 2025 @ 8:00 pm / VBI Theatre – 12 Vassar Street / Ticket Information: Elysium Furnace Works

A supercharged trio of innovators! Bassist Brandon Lopez (William Parker, Tyshawn Sorey) joins longtime collaborators and multi-instrumentalists Ikue Mori (DNA, John Zorn) and Zeena Parkins (Björk, Yoko Ono, Zorn) for unparalleled electro-acoustic sonic adventures.

Friday, July 11, 2025 from 5:00 pm to 7:00 pm / Free Admission / Refreshments will be served

• Victorian Gallery @ 9 Vassar Street – Jenny Sweeney, Painter
• Reception Gallery & Hancock Gallery @ 12 Vassar Street – Group Exhibition featuring Fatma Kadir, Ilhan Sayin and Semine Hazar  

Saturday, July 19, 2025 @ 8:00 pm / VBI Theatre – 12 Vassar Street / Ticket Information: Elysium Furnace Works

This “glowingly new—2024 vintage” trio, Squanderers, features guitarists Wendy Eisenberg (Allison Miller, John Zorn) and David Grubbs (Gastr del Sol, Bastro, Squirrel Bait) alongside multi-instrumentalist and legendary producer Kramer (Shimmy-Disc, Shockabilly, Bongwater, New York Gong) promises to be “divining urges not dirges.”

Friday, September 5, 2025 from 5:00 pm to 7:00 pm / Free Admission / Refreshments will be served

• Victorian Gallery @ 9 Vassar Street – Valerie Berner, Acrylic Paintings
• Reception Gallery @ 12 Vassar Street – Inna Ivanovskaya, Photographer/Documentarian & Tatiana Rhinevault, Painter
• Hancock Gallery @ 12 Vassar Street – Lisa Weinblatt, Painter (School Lunch Series)  

Live Music @ 12 Vassar Street provided by Leonid & Sofia Poleeschuck

Saturday, September 20, 2025 @ 8:00 pm / VBI Theatre – 12 Vassar Street / Ticket Information: Elysium Furnace Works

Darius Jones, one of the most acclaimed alto saxophonists of his generation, performs his remarkable compositions accompanied by one of the world’s most talented, commanding rhythm sections that include bassist Chris Lightcap and drummer Gerald Cleaver.

Saturday, October 18, 2025 @ 8:00 pm / VBI Theatre – 12 Vassar Street / Ticket Information: Elysium Furnace Works

Bobby Previte, the illustrious drummer, percussionist, composer, bandleader and Downtown NYC luminary, presents an ensemble performance with musicians yet to be announced.

Friday, November 7, 2025 from 5:00 pm to 7:00 pm / Free Admission / Refreshments will be served

• Victorian Gallery @ 9 Vassar Street – Arianne Wack, Acrylic Paintings
• Reception Gallery @ 12 Vassar Street – Alfons Rodriguez, Photographer & Jim Richards, Photographer
• Hancock Gallery @ 12 Vassar Street – Elise Pittelman, Painter 

Saturday, December 13, 2025 @ 8:00 pm / VBI Theatre – 12 Vassar Street / Ticket Information: Elysium Furnace Works

Elysium Furnace Works (EFW) closes out its 2025 season with this explosive project featuring two legendary DJs, Rob Swift and Mista Sinista, renowned turntablists and founding members of the celebrated X-Ecutioners crew, who have worked with everyone from Kool G Rap and Cypress Hill to Mike Patton and Mike Shinoda. They have even made a famous (“some say infamous”) appearance at NYC’s Vision Festival many years back. EFW is honored and thrilled to present these artists’ incomparable skills across four turntables.