Laura Zarougian
In The Grace Note
Laura Zarougian and the Little Tree band present an evening of music in the Folk/Americana genre interwoven with stories of her songwriting journey and life as an Armenian cowgirl in the Hudson Valley.
Darrah Carr Dance
In Banning Hall
Celebrate St. Patrick’s Day with the championship Irish dancers of Darrah Carr Dance! Featuring live music on the fiddle and accordion, this spirited performance of Irish traditions features high-energy selections that are enjoyed by a broad audience! The exuberant energy of the performers is quickly picked up by the audience. Lucky volunteers get a chance to join the excitement onstage!
In the Deep Heart's Core: A Mystic Cabaret - from the Works of W. B. Yeats
In The Grace Note
“In the Deep Heart’s Core” is at once a poet’s autobiography and a deeply moving journey through the romantic imagination and the national soul of Ireland. It follows the life of the Celtic visionary poet and activist William Butler Yeats, moving through dreams and heartbreaks toward ultimate spiritual triumph.
Out of The Mist...A Dragon
In Banning Hall
A proud samurai seeks a husband for his daughter at the shrine of Benten, goddess of good fortune. When a humble fisherman is chosen instead, love follows—and conflict soon turns him into a dragon. Using beautifully crafted Bunraku-style puppets and folk traditions from around the world, this poetic tale unfolds as a journey of love, courage, and self-discovery.
Hundreds of Beavers
In Banning Hall
In this 19th-century supernatural winter epic, a drunken applejack salesman must go from zero to hero and become North America's greatest fur trapper by defeating hundreds of beavers. “It’s that rare thing in the current film landscape: a genuine cult classic.”
- Time Out
Beauty Lou and the Country Beast
In Banning Hall
Beauty Lou and the Country Beast is an original country-western adaptation of the classic Beauty and the Beast fairy tale, created by the Missoula Children's Theatre. The cast will feature area children, who will learn and perform the show -- all in one week!
Set in the American West, the musical follows Beauty Lou, the daughter of a bronc-bustin' balladeer named Buck. To save the family farm, Beauty Lou must befriend a miner from her past whom she calls Beast.
Beauty Lou and the Country Beast
In Banning Hall
Beauty Lou and the Country Beast is an original country-western adaptation of the classic Beauty and the Beast fairy tale, created by the Missoula Children's Theatre. The cast will feature area children, who will learn and perform the show -- all in one week!
Set in the American West, the musical follows Beauty Lou, the daughter of a bronc-bustin' balladeer named Buck. To save the family farm, Beauty Lou must befriend a miner from her past whom she calls Beast.
Pasquale Grasso Trio
In Banning Hall
Italian-born jazz guitarist Pasquale Grasso is a rising star known for his virtuosic, piano-like approach to the guitar. Winner of the inaugural Wes Montgomery International Jazz Guitar Competition, he records for Sony Masterworks and frequently collaborates with Grammy-winning vocalist Samara Joy. Grasso performs worldwide and is touring in support of his 2025 release Fervency.
Leslie Mendelson
In The Grace Note
Leslie Mendelson brings her soulful voice and deeply personal songwriting to Stissing Center for an intimate evening of music and connection. Blending folk, pop, and Americana, her songs feel timeless yet grounded in the present—warm, honest, and quietly powerful. It’s a chance to hear a remarkable artist up close, sharing stories and songs that linger long after the night ends.
Selected Shorts
In Banning Hall
Selected Shorts returns to the Stissing Center for an afternoon of funny and poignant tales about the people who live just beyond the next door. Acclaimed actors including Jane Curtin (Saturday Night Live, 3rd Rock From the Sun), Michael Emerson (Lost, Person of Interest), Deborah S. Craig (And Just Like That… , Elsbeth, Funny or Die) and host Michael Ian Black (Wet Hot American Summer, Have I Got News for You), who will also serve as host, bring to life short fiction that celebrates the unexpected bonds, everyday tensions, and quiet acts of connection that shape our communities.
Our greatest actors transport us through the magic of fiction, one short story at a time. Sometimes funny. Always moving. Selected Shorts connects you to the world with a rich diversity of voices from literature, film, theater, and comedy.
The Tom Duffy Band
In The Grace Note
The Tom Duffy Band is a local band that hits the sweet spot where Classic Rock meets high-energy performance. They seamlessly weave through rock history, delivering hard-hitting classics that read like the soundtrack of your life.
Bees in the Barn
In Banning Hall
Bees in the Barn fires up the stage with high-energy acoustic playing and a musical interplay that’s downright contagious. Their inventive, genre-bending compositions keep audiences on their toes and hungry for more. Anchored in bluegrass but pushing far past its boundaries, they craft a “beyond grass” sound—an exhilarating mix of colors, rhythms, and heart-pounding joy.
The Grace Note Open Mic Night
In The Grace Note
Join us for Stissing Center’s very first Open Mic Night, a welcoming evening for music, spoken word, comedy, and every kind of self-expression. Artists of all ages and experience levels are invited to share. Come perform, listen, and cheer on friends and neighbors as creativity, courage, and community meet on one stage together here tonight.
Hudson Valley Puppet Slam
In Banning Hall
The 2nd Annual Hudson Valley Puppet Slam returns to Stissing Center for a night of bold, playful, and wildly inventive puppetry. Enjoy a fast-paced mix of short acts bursting with humor, surprise, and imagination. From strange to beautiful to laugh-out-loud funny, expect the unexpected in this anything-goes celebration of puppetry.
Jody Redhage Ferber Trio
In The Grace Note
The Jody Redhage Ferber Trio performs music from their new album EcoTones: Beings of the Air, inspired by the flying beings of the Hudson River Valley. Developed during her ongoing performance project EcoTones Concerts, Jody’s compositions and arrangements live in a transition zone between chamber music and jazz improvisation, and are inspired by the tremendous biodiversity found in natural ecotones.
The Artist
In Banning Hall
In the 1920s, actor George Valentin (Jean Dujardin) is a bona fide matinee idol with many adoring fans. While working on his latest film, George finds himself falling in love with an ingenue named Peppy Miller (Bérénice Bejo) and, what's more, it seems Peppy feels the same way. But George is reluctant to cheat on his wife with the beautiful young actress. The growing popularity of sound in movies further separates the potential lovers, as George's career begins to fade while Peppy's star rises.
Peter Wiley & Anna Polonsky
In Banning Hall
Stissing Center opens its 2026 Classical Music season with cellist Peter Wiley and pianist Anna Polonsky, two towering chamber musicians. Wiley, former cellist of the Beaux Arts and Guarneri Quartets, joins Polonsky, a sought-after soloist and Lincoln Center favorite, for an evening of intimate, masterful music-making that brings depth, warmth, and experience to the stage.
Rachael Kilgour
In The Grace Note
Rachael Kilgour brings heartfelt indie folk to The Grace Note stage, pairing warm melodies with lyrics that are honest, brave, and deeply human. Praised for her “unapologetic lyrics” and “master crafted indie folk,” Kilgour invites listeners into songs that feel personal, generous, and quietly powerful.
Tablao Flamenco
In Banning Hall
Tablao Flamenco brings the spirit of southern Spain to Stissing Center in an intimate, up-close performance. Master singers, dancers, guitarists, and percussionists share flamenco in its raw, emotional form—full of rhythm, storytelling, and feeling. Expect an evening that’s fiery, human, and deeply moving.
Amanda Forsyth
In The Grace Note
Experience world-renowned cellist Amanda Forsyth as you’ve never heard her before. Step beyond classical tradition into a one woman extravaganza of hilarious stories, lush melodies, and irresistible musical surprises, directed by Doug Fitch and joined by pianist Danny Zelibor. With this new program, Amanda brings passion and playfulness to every note for a performance that will thrill, charm, and captivate.
Taylor Ashton
In Banning Hall
Taylor Ashton makes his Stissing Center debut with a live show that’s thoughtful, funny, and quietly moving. A shape-shifting songwriter with a warm baritone and playful wit, Ashton blends folk-rock intimacy with surprising twists, drawing listeners into songs that feel like short stories—honest, generous, and easy to love.
High Horse
In The Grace Note
Join us for a raucous night of music, weaving together Celtic and Bluegrass threads with the energy of alternative rock! High Horse, the Boston/Colorado based quartet with guitar, bass, cello, and fiddle, will take us all on a wild ride that will have you hooting just as loud as you holler!
The Bang Group
In Banning Hall
We are delighted to welcome The Bang Group back to Stissing Center for an evening of innovative, surprising, humor-ridden, rhythm driven, dramatically anarchic choreography.
Willy Porter
In The Grace Note
For more than 30 years, singer, songwriter and master guitarist Willy Porter's songs have traced the fragile, funny, luminous edges of being human. Drawing from 13 albums, Porter invites listeners into a living, breathing ritual where stories shimmer, grooves settle deep, and songs feel like home. A solo show with Porter is part concert, part conversation, part gentle reckoning — music as ritual, humor as grace, and connection as the point.
RoundTop Burlesque Revue
In Banning Hall
Behold a bevy of beauties, bananas, back hair, burlesque, & more! The RoundTop Burlesque Revue returns to Stissing Center for its second year, celebrating the timeless tradition of burlesque with humor, glamour, and surprise. Enjoy a playfully entertaining evening of comedy, striptease, and theatrical flair from a bold cast of performers. Adults only.
Helpful Neighbors by Robert Lyons
In The Grace Note
A reading of a new play by Robert Lyons. Gloria is getting on in years. She lives alone and needs some help. Her long-time neighbor helps manage her money. Her brand-new neighbor helps in her tomato garden. Suddenly Gloria finds herself in a cosmic clash of good vs. evil. But who is which?
Art Effect Children's Art Workshop
In The Grace Note
Stissing Center's Summer Children's Series launches with a free Children's Art Workshop led by teachers from The Art Effect in Poughkeepsie. This pay-what-you-can event coincides with Pine Plains' Community Day celebration, offering young artists hands-on creative exploration. Join us for an inspiring afternoon of art-making that kicks off a summer of programming designed to engage and delight children in our community.
Stissing Center 2nd Annual Art Auction
In Banning Hall
Stissing Center's 2nd Annual Art Auction features exceptional pieces donated by collectors and celebrated artists from around the world and around the corner. This is your opportunity to acquire extraordinary art while directly supporting the arts in Pine Plains. All proceeds benefit Stissing Center's vital arts and cultural programming, ensuring creativity continues to thrive in our community. Bid on remarkable works and invest in Pine Plains' artistic future.
Gail Ann Dorsey
In The Grace Note
Singer-songwriter Gail Ann Dorsey brings her powerful voice and soul-deep songs to The Grace Note on Juneteenth. Best known for her long collaboration with David Bowie, Dorsey offers a rare chance to experience a legendary artist up close, sharing music shaped by decades of brilliance, heart, and history.
Sophia Zhou plays Gershwin
In Banning Hall
An evening of Gershwin comes to Stissing Center with celebrated pianist Sophia Zhou, celebrating music that feels both classic and fresh. From sweeping melodies to jazzy rhythms, Gershwin’s songs capture the spirit of America, brought to life here with warmth, elegance, and a deep love for storytelling at the piano by our former Director of Chamber Music, Sophia Zhou.
Susan Werner
In The Grace Note
Over her 25-year career, Susan Werner has earned acclaim as “one of the most innovative songwriters working today” (Chicago Tribune). A virtuoso of guitar, piano, and voice, her performances are one-woman master classes. Spanning folk, jazz, gospel, Latin, and musical theater, her wide-ranging songwriting showcases fearless creativity and dazzling musicianship.
The Dances of Chihuahua
In The Grace Note
The Dances of Chihuahua invites children into an interactive workshop exploring the vibrant cultural dances of this dynamic Mexican region. Led by Karina Powers of Red Hook's Dance and Theater Arts Center, young participants will experience authentic movement while learning about Mexican culture and geography. Part of Stissing Center's Summer Children's Series, this engaging program combines physical activity with cultural education through dance.
Bar None: Cannabis Redemption
In Banning Hall
The documentary Bar None: Cannabis Redemption explores how outdated marijuana laws impact formerly incarcerated individuals. Though cannabis is now legal in much of the U.S., hundreds of thousands still carry past convictions—tens of thousands remain imprisoned. This documentary follows 13 people who've transformed their lives by entering the legal cannabis industry as advocates, business owners, and community leaders. It's about second chances, equity, and what justice truly means.
Makin' Cake
In Banning Hall
"Makin' Cake" is more than a performance-- it's an experience! Through powerful storytelling, Dasha Kelly Hamilton takes the stage to slice into history, unpacking race, class, and culture in a way that's as thought-provoking as it is engaging.
For most of human history, baking required patience, resources ... and luck. Ingredients were scarce and expensive; chemistry was fickle; and the chain of procedures required days. When our nation began experiencing abundance for the first time, most Americans couldn’t afford basic cake ingredients.
This one-night-only event includes delicious conversation after the show and cake for all.
RiverBlue
In the Grace Note
RiverBlue combines the musical talents of Ron Minkoff (vocals/rhythm guitar/percussion) and Dan Blum (lead guitar/vocals), both long-time veterans of the Hudson Valley music scene. Ron and Dan will play original and cover songs from their two CDs, combining rock, folk, bluegrass and country into something entirely new and exciting.
Clarion Concerts: Amir ElSaffar New Quartet
In Banning Hall
New Quartet Live features trumpeter Amir ElSaffar, drummer Tomas Fujiwara, tenor saxophonistOle Mathisen, and pianist Tania Giannouli. The ensemble blends jazz instrumentation and Middle Eastern sounds guiding the new ensemble into unexplored musical territories. The music ranges from intensely quiet and nearly silent to ecstatic and declamatory, with the microtonal piano ringing ear-opening and beautifully unconventional harmonies throughout.
Isle of Klezbos
In Banning Hall
Isle of Klezbos is a powerhouse all-gal klezmer ensemble infused with genre-defying artistry, performing internationally together for over two soulful, fun-loving decades. Celebrating Yiddish musical traditions with equal parts chutzpah and heart, the group blends neo-folkloric tunes, re-imagined classics, and a sophisticated sound all their own. “Rapturous and rollicking” (L.A. Blade), “intoxicating” (The New York Times). Don’t miss this fabulous band!
Galen Pittman Jazz Quartet
In The Grace Note
Please join the Galen Pittman Quartet for an evening of jazz standards, freshly reimagined with original melodies and inventive lines by some of our favorite composers. Rooted in tradition but alive with spontaneity, this performance blends familiar tunes with creative twists, inviting listeners into a warm, expressive night of jazz at its most engaging.
Charlie Chaplin's 'The Kid' featuring organist Peter Krasinski with the New York Theater Organ Society
In Banning Hall
Charlie Chaplin’s beloved silent classic The Kid is a heartwarming blend of comedy and tenderness that delights audiences of all ages. This family-friendly gem follows Chaplin and an irrepressible child through laughter, mischief, and deep affection. Enjoy the film accompanied live by organ virtuoso Peter Krasinski, courtesy of the New York Theatre Organ Society.
'The Maker and The Muse' new musical play reading written by Schuyler Press
In The Grace Note
A staged reading of the new original musical, The Maker and the Muse, follows a young, disillusioned writer who feels untethered from the present and longs for a time and place that felt more authentic, gritty, and alive. Let’s reimagine the past, rediscover the present and celebrate the timeless power of art together.
Deadgrass
In Banning Hall
Matt Turk and C Lanzbom joined forces to form Deadgrass, a string band jamgrass adventure through Jerry Garcia’s musical world. Bassist Dave Richards, banjo player Kris Bauman and fiddler Kensuke Shoji complete this fine group of seasoned pros exploring the life works of Jerry Garcia on the instruments that first inspired him. Deadgrass celebrates and interprets the music of Jerry Garcia, drawing from Old & in the Way, JGB, Jerry’s Jug Band days and Grateful Dead.
Duo Al Rouh
In The Grace Note
Join Palestinian master musician Zafer Tawil and Rabbi Zachi Asher for a magical evening of old and new Arabic sounds, transportive trances and prayers and Sufi melodies to whirl us into enchantment.
Valentine's Day Dance - Jungle Love
In Banning Hall
Jungle Love - five-time Best of the Hudson Valley winners (2021–2025) - returns to Stissing Center for our Valentine’s Day Community Dance. More than a band, they’re an experience: six lifelong musicians delivering a high-energy journey through Classic Soul, R&B, Motown, Disco, and Funk from the ’60s, ’70s, and ’80s. For this special Valentine’s Day Community Dance, we remove all seating from the center of the auditorium so you can dance with your sweetheart, and your friends and neighbors, all night long.
Natalia Zukerman
In The Grace Note
Natalia Zukerman brings intimate storytelling and masterful musicianship to the stage, blending folk, blues, and Americana with wry humor and emotional clarity. Her warm voice and fluid guitar work create a space that feels both personal and expansive. A Zukerman concert is equal parts porch-side conversation and poetic journey — inviting, soulful, and deeply resonant.
Stand-Up Comedy
In Banning Hall
Stand-up comedy has become a hilarious Stissing Center tradition, and this night delivers. Headliner Ophira Eisenberg (NPR, The Moth, Comedy Central) brings her sharp, fast, relatable wit, joined by Jenny Rubin, Shawn Hollenbach, and Will Purpura. Expect big laughs, punchlines that sneak up on you when you least expect them, and the kind of comedy night that reminds you why laughing together matters.
Spark! Season Launch Event feat. Rosanne Cash
In Banning Hall
THIS EVENT IS SOLD OUT
Stissing Center’s Season Launch Event, Spark!, offers a preview of our exciting 2026 season, and we are delighted to welcome our very special guest artist Rosanne Cash. A celebrated composer and singer-songwriter, Cash has earned four Grammy Awards and fourteen nominations. She is also the author of the acclaimed memoir Composed, a New York Times bestseller. A respected voice in American music history, she became the first female composer to receive the MacDowell Medal in 2021.
Apologies Necessary
In 1983, comedian Richard Lewis and Nurit Koppel met in a bodega on Eighth Avenue — and they became instant best friends. Apologies Necessary is the story of that friendship, the love affair that blossomed from it and all the growing up they both had to do to reconnect decades later.
WINDBORNE PRESENTS: MUSIC OF MIDWINTER
Windborne’s album “To Warm the Winter Hearth” smashed records and became the 5th most-backed album crowdfunder of all time! Now Windborne is bringing a full show of their favorite songs of the season to Stissing Center!
A joyful and heartfelt celebration of song, Windborne’s lush vocals and unique arrangements bring light to a dark time, as they draw on midwinter music from traditional, classical, and folk from the US, British isles and beyond. Unique from their typical show, the holiday spirit is accentuated with added instrumentation, from banjos and guitars, to Lithuanian Kanklės, and Irish bodhran.
DOODLE AUCTION & COCKTAIL PARTY
Get in the holiday doodle spirit!
Join us for a merry evening of music, munchies, and one-of-a-kind art by local legends and celebrity creators. Bid on festive doodles that make perfect gifts, all to support The Stissing Center’s arts and community programs. Let’s draw together for a great cause!
Holiday Trivia Night
Get ready to sleigh the season at Holiday Trivia Night at Stissing Center! Hosted by the always-entertaining Alec Sisco, this festive evening will test your knowledge of holiday pop culture, from classic TV specials and iconic movies to quirky holiday traditions.
The Kingston Trio
Join us for a memorable night of folk music with the legendary Kingston Trio! Get ready to tap your feet and sing along to their iconic hits like "Tom Dooley" and "Where Have All the Flowers Gone?” Folk legends reborn—keeping the timeless sound alive for a new generation.
IS THE FOOD GOOD? By Heather Dell'Amore
Pine Plains’ own--Heather Dell’Amore--returns to The Stissing Center with her newest work IS THE FOOD GOOD?
Featuring stories about identity, aerobics, fad diets and incensed chefs, the play follows a woman desperate to break her habits with disordered eating, desperate to finally feed her soul. Performed as a Play in Development, with author Q&A to follow.
Coming Home: The Guggenheim Grotto Back in Ireland
Join us for an evening of film and music as Director Will Chase premieres his award winning film Coming Home: The Guggenheim Grotto Back in Ireland to our Upstate friends and neighbors.
The forty-five minute film will be followed by an acoustic set of some of the band’s fan favorites.
Director and self proclaimed super-fan Will Chase goes to Ireland to film the Irish duo The Guggenheim Grotto (Mick Lynch and Kevin May) as they perform for the first time in a decade, and possibly last time ever. A love letter to a brotherhood that has spanned decades through many ups and downs, the film becomes an homage to the duo’s body of work and to the nostalgia that holds for so many, especially each other.
Sugar Skull: A Día de los Muertos Musical
SUGAR SKULL! A Día de Muertos Musical Adventure is a vibrant bilingual show for young audiences and families that celebrates the rich music, dance, and traditions of Mexico.
Twelve-year-old Vita Flores can’t understand why her family plans a big party for the dead—until a lively candy skeleton named Sugar Skull springs to life and whisks her on a magical journey through the heart of Día de Muertos.
Along the way, Vita dances with ancestors, sings with a mysterious sorceress, escapes playful tricksters, and meets the elegant Catrina Calavera. This colorful, high-energy production blends authentic regional music and dance with an uplifting story about family, memory, and the joy of honoring those who came before us.
Perfect for audiences of all ages, SUGAR SKULL! is an unforgettable adventure into the sights, sounds, and spirit of Mexican folklore.
Latin Jazz Meets Opera featuring Christopher Sanchez
Wall Street Opera’s Christopher Sánchez, a Dominican operatic baritone, collaborates with Award-winning Cuban pianist and composer Dayramir Gonzales in an evening of musical fusion.
In the Wake of Yes: Dance, Poetry & Piano
An evening of dance, poetry, and piano featuring choreographer Catherine Tharin’s In the Wake of Yes—a multimedia performance with film, music, and spoken word. Poet Alison Granucci explores themes of the natural world, joined by pianist Igor Ferreira, who also performs a solo piece. A rich collaboration of local talent.
Pine Plains Festival of Short Films - Night Two
Join us for the Pine Plains Festival of Short Films—two nights, two unique programs, filmmaker Q&As, and more. It’s a showcase, a celebration, and a fundraiser to upgrade film screening equipment at Stissing Center and revive the tradition of showing movies in Pine Plains.
Pine Plains Festival of Short Films - Night One
Join us for the Pine Plains Festival of Short Films—two nights, two unique programs, filmmaker Q&As, and more. It’s a showcase, a celebration, and a fundraiser to upgrade film screening equipment at Stissing Center and revive the tradition of showing movies in Pine Plains.
Clarion Concerts presents Tommy Mesa & JP Jofre
Clarion Concerts proudly presents an extraordinary evening with Cuban-American cellist Dr. Tommy Mesa and Argentine bandoneón master JP Jofre, two world-class artists whose collaboration brings together the soulful resonance of the cello with the fiery elegance of the bandoneón.
Theatre On the Road presents: Dracula
Step into the shadows with Dracula, Theatre on the Road’s flagship production, adapted from the iconic 1927 Broadway script by Hamilton Deane and John L. Balderston. Revived with chilling elegance and thrilling drama, this haunting tale follows the mysterious illness of young Lucy Seward and the dark forces believed to be behind it—Count Dracula himself.
The Grapes of Laughs SOLD OUT
SOLD OUT!! Pairing Wine with Comedians
Sip, swirl, and giggle at The Grapes of Laughs—a comedy and wine pairing show hosted by Ophira Eisenberg (NPR, The Moth), and featuring Michael Ian Black (Wet Hot American Summer, The State, Stella), hometown favorite Rachel Lenihan, plus Jenny J Rubin (NYC, Egremont Barn). A fantastic lineup of laughs!
Each comic’s set is matched with the perfect wine, blending bold reds, crisp whites, and big laughs for a night that’s part stand-up, part sommelier, all fun. 4 comics, 4 wines, all perfectly paired.
Presented with wine partner Fulton & Forbes Wine & Spirits, Ancram.
Martha Spencer & The Wonderland Country Band
Martha Spencer is a singer-songwriter, mountain musician and dancer from the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia. She grew up in the musical Spencer family and learned to play several instruments (guitar, fiddle, banjo, bass, dulcimer, mandolin) and flatfoot/clog at a young age.
NPR’s Selected Shorts
Stissing Center welcomes back NPR’s Selected Shorts, presented by Symphony Space. It’s a live celebration of storytelling, where acclaimed actors bring unforgettable fiction to life on stage and on air. We are delighted to feature Jessica Hecht, Santino Fontana and Cindy Cheung for this exciting afternoon of stories.