12-12-16 Jive

Good evening, it's December 12th. This is the Jive at Five, our daily community calendar and rundown of nighttime programming here on 88.1 FM WESU Middletown. By day, WESU offers talk radio from NPR and Pacifica, as well as independent and local public affairs sources. Weeknights and weekends our student and community volunteers bring you the best in free-form programming.

I’m Ben Michael. Thanks so much to the WESU friends, family, and listeners who came together to raise the $20,000 needed to balance to books this season and keep WESU on air.  If you didnt get a chance to contribute yet, never fear, donations beyond our goal for the Fall drive will help to keep our Spring Pledge drive as short as possible. 

Now, here's a rundown of what's happening in our area this week:

Tonight, The Buttonwood Tree in Middletown presents their weekly Anything Goes Open Mic + Moments of Gratitude at 7:00 pm. On Tuesday they’ve got Intentional & Empowering Yoga at 1 pm. On Thursday at 7 pm there’s Shaking the Tree Gong & Sound Meditation with Andrew.  Friday’s double bill includes R & B artist Jim Shepley, appearing with Brian May. Saturday morning it’s Annaita Gandhy’s Aligned With Source workshop at 10:30 am, with this week’s theme of “Your Gifts.” At 1 pm there’s a Holiday Ornament Decorating event sponsored by Middletown’s Park & Rec Dept. At 8 pm it’s An Allen Family Christmas with jazz renditions of your holiday favorites. There are two performances Sunday, at 3 and 7 pm, of Dylan Thomas’ classic “A Christmas in Wales,” brought to you by Connecticut Heritage Productions and featuring Peter Loffredo. The Hearing Voices Network meets Monday mornings at 10:30. Details at http://buttonwood.org

Tonight, down in New Haven at Café Nine, they bring you Plumrose, Pangalactic, the TL Band, and Eugene Gallagher. On Tuesday it’s Crunk Witch, Ceschi, and The Forest Room. There’s a Comedy Open Mic hosted by Dan Rice on Wednesday. Thursday’s bill includes Witch Hair, Dead Painters, and JFK. Friday’s Happy Hour features Tommy Doomsday, followed later by a Xmas Extravaganza featuring Shellye Valauskas, Experience, The Linemen, and Abbie Barrett. Saturday’s Jazz Jam Session is with Tony Dioguardi & Friends, and the late show headlines Space Cadets, appearing with Todd Lewis Kramer. On Sunday at noon they’ve got A Country Christmas featuring The Hickups, followed by the Sunday Buzz Matinee at 4, Café Nine’s holiday party with The Cobalt Rhythm Kings and their 20th Anniversary Jam. www.cafenine.com

Up in Hartford at Black-Eyed Sally’s, tonight’s Jazz Mondays series is a College Showcase featuring the Jackie McLean all-stars and Wesconn. On Tuesday nights, Michael Palin’s Other Orchestra works out new material on Sally’s stage. On Wednesdays they present their long-running Community Blues Jam hosted by Gene Donaldson.  On Thursday it’s Sally’s house band The Po’ Boys, with blues, rock, and boogie-woogie. On Friday, they bring you the Ras Spectiv Band, celebrating the music of Bob Marley and more. On Saturday, there’s reggae funk with The Spiritual Rez. www.blackeyedsallys.com

At Toad’s Place in New Haven, tonight it’s the Night of Smooth Jazz with Rohn Lawrence & Friends in Lilly’s Pad. On Thursday it’s Grammy Award-winning Morgan Heritage and their “Back To Basics” Promo Tour. On Friday they sponsor the Marion Meadows Holiday Show, benefitting Project Music. On Saturday they headline Deadphish Orchestra, and Talking Dreads. www.toadsplace.com

Wesleyan’s Center for the Arts sponsors the Ensemble Pamplemousse presenting New Music from Wesleyan Tuesday at 8 pm at Crowell Concert Hall. The Ensemble is a composer/performer collective, and works by graduate music students will be presented. www.wesleyan.edu/cfa/

At the Russell Library in Middletown, on Tuesday at 6:30 WESU’s own Dr. Helen Evrard presents a workshop, “Brain Health and the Work Search: The Powerful Medicine of Words.” On Thursday at 6 bring your kids in to a Candy Sushi workshop. The Veterans Writing Group also meets on Thursday. Middletown’s Poet Laureate Susan Allison holds a Poet’s Corner on Friday at 1 pm. On Sunday there’s a Historic Sewing Circle at 1 pm for sewers, tailors, costumers, and designers. Find details of these events and more at www.russelllibrary.org

Mindfulness After Work happens every Wednesday at the Hartford Mindfulness Center starting at 6:15. Register at www.hartfordmindfulnesscenter.org

Middletown Scottish country dancers offer classes for beginners & experienced dancers at First Church on Court Street in Middletown, Every Wednesday from 7 - 9:30p.   Partners not necessary but soft-soled shoes are! For information, call Lucile Blanchard at 860-347-0278.

Artists for World Peace brings vibraphonist Jay Hoggard to The Hubbard House in Middletown this Wednesday at 7:30 pm. Proceeds benefit the Children of Peace Project and the Amazing Grace Food Pantry. Contact Robert at rnastamail@aol.com for details, or visit http://www.artistsforworldpeace.org/one-child-one-concert/

Manic Productions brings Thievery Corporation, The Reminders, and DJ Norrin to the College Street Music Hall on Wednesday. Or you can catch Caveman and Telegram Scam at Bar in New Haven. www.manicproductions.org

At Infinity Hall in Hartford, it’s Christmas with the Celts this Thursday at 8 pm. Enjoy the jazz and rock offerings of Blood Sweat and Tears on Friday. On Saturday, it’s Kashmir, the Ultimate Led Zeppelin Tribute Band.  www.infinityhall.com

The Hartt School Community Division’s annual production of The Nutcracker happens this Friday through Sunday at the Millard Auditorium at the University of Hartford. Full details at www.hartord.edu/nutcracker

The Artists Collective in Hartford presents its annual pre-Kwanzaa and Christmas celebration on Saturday from 2-5 pm with ensemble performances, vendors, and presentations. Info at www.artistscollective.org

Connecticut Landmarks presents Victorian Christmas tours this Saturday and Sunday at the Butler-McCook House in Hartford. www.ctlandmarks.org

There’s a Jazz Brunch with the Gwenath Douglas Trio this Sunday at 10:30 am at the Wadsworth Atheneum in Hartford. www.thewadsworth.org

You can enjoy the Holiday Light Fantasia in Goodwin Park in Hartford throughout the season. Proceeds benefit Channel 3 Kids Camp. Details at www.holidaylightfantasia.org

The City of Hartford’s seventh annual Winterfest continues through the month. Enjoy free ice skating at Bushnell Park, or visit Santa’s workshop and get your photo taken on Saturday from noon to 3 pm. Go to www.winterfesthartford.com for details of these activities and more.

Now here's a rundown of cinema off the beaten track in Central Connecticut: 

Through Thursday, Hartford’s Real Art Ways continues its run of “Deconstructing the Beatles: The White Album,” a multimedia look at the creation of this iconic music. They also continue “Little Sister,” a dark comedy about a young nun who revisits her childhood home. On Wednesday they screen “Girl Asleep,” an Australian film that explores the teenage mind, and “Pickle,” an award-winning short about rescue animals. Visit the website for information on weekend screenings. www.realartways.org.  

Though Thursday, Trinity College’s Cinestudio continues the run of “Elevator To The Gallows,” a 4K ultra high def restoration of Louis Malle’s debut film about a woman planning the murder of her gangster husband. On Thursday and Saturday, they’ve got matinees of National Theatre Live’s performance of Harold Pinter’s “No Man’s Land.”  Friday and Saturday’s evening movie is “Baraka,” an exploration of spiritual expression from 24 countries. They’re screening the Bolshoi Ballet’s performance of “The Nutcraker” for a Sunday matinee, and continue traditional holiday offerings Sunday afternoon with “It’s a Wonderful Life.” www.cinestudio.org   

Now here’s what’s on the air tonight on WESU Middletown:

Right after the jive, we’ve got Afternoon Jazz with Charles Henry, a well-rounded show for true jazz heads.

From 6-6:30 pm it’s Building Bridges, a weekly labor report from Pacifica.

At 6:30 until 8 pm 75% Folk with Michael Benson offers Contemporary folk along with a mix of blues, jazz, world music, and movie soundtracks and more.

From 8-9:30 pm it’s Chip Austin’s Unfocused Folk, with Americana from Nashville and more performed by both emerging and veteran artists.

Cruiser’s Radio Program with Jack Sullivan is next from 9:30 to 10:30 pm, taking you back to the Doo-Wop and Rock ‘n’ Roll of the ‘50’s and ‘60’s.

From 10:30-11:30 pm it’s Meet Music with DJ Rami, introducing you to a new artist with each show.

At 11:30 stay tuned for Something Old, Something New with Aurora and DJ Dazzle, with a musical time machine that helps you connect current songs to the past.

At 12:30 am Green Tea Time with DJ Ari G presents coffeehouse-style music paired with "green" environmental news tidbits.

From 1:30 to 3 am it’s Connections with DJ EKL & McSteamz, exploring the complexity of music and the music production process.

Maximum Rock and Roll is next from 3 to 4 am, with the best in DIY punk garage rock, and hardcore.

BBC World News airs from 4 to 5 am, and we get the day started at 5 with NPR’s Morning Edition.

That’s all for today’s Jive at Five. If you missed anything, you can find the written version online at wesufm.org/jive. And tune in each and every weekday at 4:55 p.m. to hear about what’s going on in the community, and on the air right here at WESU 88.1 FM, a community service of Wesleyan University since 1939.