Community Calendar

ON TUESDAY'S HARLEM SWINGS and HOPS!

FREE Beginner/Intermediate Lindy Hop Dance Class -1 hour. 7pm - 8pm

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A GREAT Taste and Experience of Harlem Culture! Harlem's signature cultural dance is the world famous Lindy Hop. While nearly a 100 year old dance it is still enjoyed enormously today worldwide - as far as China, Spain and even parts of Africa!

Come on and join us on Tuesday eves so you can experience and learn this exciting cultural dance art form. You'll hear some swinging jazz classics and how to do this swinging dance to some music of today too. No partner necessary, wear comfy shoes. All ages welcome!

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Schedule subject to change; donations accepted. Please check our Facebook page day of for last minute updates The Harlem Swing Dance Society | Facebook

Join Museum Educators weekly, June - August 2026, for artmaking activities for all ages inspired by the American Stories: Revolution to Rockwell exhibition. Explore the galleries and then get creative. Everyone is welcome.

For more information, visit https://www.nrm.org/events/list/?tribe_eventcategory%5B0%5D=795&hide_subsequent_recurrences=1

Circus & the Bard: The Next Chapter bounces back July 16–26 at 11:30 am and 2:30 pm at the Tina Packer Playhouse!

Co-created by Allyn Burrows, Robin Eldridge, and Pedro Reis, Co-directed by Allyn Burrows and Pedro Reis

Shakespeare & Company and Spirit of the Circus reunite for a playful mash-up of jaw-dropping circus acts paired with Shakespeare’s beloved characters. When high-flying feats meet the Bard’s words, sparks fly, laughs abound, and something truly magical happens.

Tickets are $35 for adults, $22 for ages 13-22, and $15 for ages 3-12. Tickets are on sale now at shakespeare.org, or by calling the Box Office at (413) 637-3353

Join us on Wednesday, July 22, and Thursday, July 23, for relaxed, sensory-friendly performances.

What is a Sensory-Friendly Performance?
Sensory-friendly performances are adapted to be less overwhelming and to welcome individuals with a range of sensory needs, including people who are neurodivergent; those with cognitive, social, or physical challenges; first-time theatergoers, and others. These performances offer pre-show materials such as story synopses and “what to expect” guides, along with reduced-intensity lighting and sound, dimmed house lights, and clear theater maps. Performances are relaxed; audience members are free to come and go, and total quiet is not expected. These shows are open to all patrons.

Deep Sandwich Trivia at Emack & Bolio’s

Wednesday’s from 630pm to 830pm
Beginning October 1st

Deep Sandwich Trivia delivers a fresh take on the classic pub quiz, mixing original question sets, quirky bonus rounds, and plenty of laughs. At Emack & Bolio’s, the all-ages game pairs perfectly with ice cream, making it a fun, welcoming event for families, friends, and anyone looking for a challenge.

About the Host

Samantha Mabee, a Navy veteran and STEM educator, created Deep Sandwich Trivia to bring people together through curiosity and play. With her mix of structure, creativity, and humor, she turns every trivia night into a shared experience that’s as memorable as it is competitive.

Please visit www.DeepSandwich.xyz for more information about other DeepSandwich trivia events in Albany.

Join Museum Educators weekly, June - August 2026, for artmaking activities for all ages inspired by the American Stories: Revolution to Rockwell exhibition. Explore the galleries and then get creative. Everyone is welcome.

For more information, visit https://www.nrm.org/events/list/?tribe_eventcategory%5B0%5D=795&hide_subsequent_recurrences=1

Move with mindfulness and find balance in nature with Katherine Henderson. Offered on alternating Thursdays from May to September, Tai Chi is a gentle practice that promotes relaxation, reduces stress, and improves strength and stability. Set against the serene backdrop of LongHouse, this class welcomes all ages and experience levels to slow down, breathe deeply, and connect with the beauty around you. Also offered on Saturdays.

Circus & the Bard: The Next Chapter bounces back July 16–26 at 11:30 am and 2:30 pm at the Tina Packer Playhouse!

Co-created by Allyn Burrows, Robin Eldridge, and Pedro Reis, Co-directed by Allyn Burrows and Pedro Reis

Shakespeare & Company and Spirit of the Circus reunite for a playful mash-up of jaw-dropping circus acts paired with Shakespeare’s beloved characters. When high-flying feats meet the Bard’s words, sparks fly, laughs abound, and something truly magical happens.

Tickets are $35 for adults, $22 for ages 13-22, and $15 for ages 3-12. Tickets are on sale now at shakespeare.org, or by calling the Box Office at (413) 637-3353

Join us on Wednesday, July 22, and Thursday, July 23, for relaxed, sensory-friendly performances.

What is a Sensory-Friendly Performance?
Sensory-friendly performances are adapted to be less overwhelming and to welcome individuals with a range of sensory needs, including people who are neurodivergent; those with cognitive, social, or physical challenges; first-time theatergoers, and others. These performances offer pre-show materials such as story synopses and “what to expect” guides, along with reduced-intensity lighting and sound, dimmed house lights, and clear theater maps. Performances are relaxed; audience members are free to come and go, and total quiet is not expected. These shows are open to all patrons.

I propose to exhibit a selection of works from my recent series Apart. This is an ongoing body of work that reflects the tension between us as individuals and the systems that define our world. I constantly wonder how I as an artist can effectively respond to the daily injustices people experience. Growing up surrounded by the propaganda of a dictatorial regime, I resist the urge to follow that path, instead focusing on a more nuanced response.

As an immigrant from communist Czechoslovakia raised by Holocaust survivors, my personal history was shaped me to inhabit a particular vantage point—an observer of society, neither fully belonging to the world I live in nor to the one I came from. This dual perspective fuels my perception of global events, particularly the alarming resurgence of totalitarianism and its implications for us all.

The notion of civilizations collapsing, strikes a passionate chord within me, especially now, as we are powerlessly watching the awful human consequences and devastation of the middle east by cruel imperial whims.

I hope that my work, driven by a conviction that we can and must learn from the past, trying to prevent the repetition of its darkest chapters reminds the viewer of how art and joy can form meaningful modes of resistance.

I find comfort in direct interaction with materials - painting, drawing, and collage—through which I express my observations and emotions. Each mark is a contemplative act, a quest to transform feelings of helplessness into a resonant expression that speaks to me. My creative process unfolds organically, driven by intuition and a desire to uncover the unseen and the unexpected. I explore both the accumulation and subtraction, reflecting the fluidity and subjectivity of my personal experiences and insights.

In my art I’m dedicated to forging these new pathways, blending the poignant realities of our global challenges with the enduring beauty and potential for renewal that each new day brings.

In “Pretend till it Hurts”, Matthew Gilbert presents a series of sculptures and textile drawings that depict fatal stories with a dark sense of humor.

Blending cartoon logic with gothic imagery, Gilbert projects themes of abandonment onto crumbling architecture. The plush materials and whimsical details soften the otherwise catastrophic subject matter, adding theatrical melodrama that is both sincere and deprecating.

Gather Thursday nights for an engaging scientific lecture series following a communal, pot-luck meal. Bring a dish to pass or a suggested donation of $5.