New Haven magazine December 2015

Made ByHand

ART IS LIFE SAYS ARTIST RABINOWITZ PAGE 32

FEASTING ON A MILFORD VICTORIAN PAGE 22 newhavenmagazine.com

$3.95 | DECEMBER 2015

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Norwich In the GILDED AGE The Rose City’s Millionaire’s Triangle Page 30

Local Hoop Star Scott Burrell Takes The Court At Southern d? a he en A ar Hav e t Y ew n re y N e f Dif M

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EDITOR’S L E TTER

p FROM PRISONER TO PROFESSOR

IN TE L HOW YOU DOIN CT?

T

he 2015 DataHaven Community Wellbeing Survey, which heard from 17,000 residents in every city and town across the state and some in New York adjacent sections, has recently revealed findings. It consisted of in-depth interviews on the quality of life, health and happiness in neighborhood-level communities.

BI BL I OF I L E S

LETT E R S

WOR DS of MOU TH

The survey concluded that four out of five adults in Connecticut reported feeling overall happy and satisfied with where they live, 66% reported doing alright or living comfortably, however one-third of adults reported either just getting by or having trouble. Overall, the survey demonstrated that disparities are still great, with a sizeable share of residents continuing to face significant barriers to economic success, safety, health, and other critical aspects of well-being.

F ÊTES I

In a departure from most statewide and national surveys, the DataHaven program brings together existing grassroots efforts across the state – effectively unifying more than a dozen pre-existing regional or local surveys into a single, high-quality effort that now covers every city and town in Connecticut. The power of the survey results was greatly enhanced both by the number of respondents, as well as by having the same questions being asked of respondents in many different areas. More to come on the importance of these findings, we’re sure.

ATHO M E

n his new book, “Hook: A Memoir,” Random Horton coins the term, “prisoner turned professor.”

Get immersed in Horton’s story, from an international cocaine smuggler, drug addict off the street, and convicted felon, to current English associate professor at University of New Haven. The book hit shelves on Nov. 30.

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earning chemistry and math now has a new twist to it; with some ninjas.

Children ages eight and above can now play a new card game, Valence developed by University of New Haven professors.

Due to the success of the game on KickStarter, the game will be available at Amazon and select boutique stores around the country in early 2016.

The game is also currently available for purchase at playvalence.com, estimated delivery as of late January 2016.

I NS TY L E

So let the kids fight those chemistry problems— ninja style.

HAMDEN HALL HOOPSTER OUTDOOR S CENTER STAGE? TAKES

Happy 275th Birthday, Lyman Orchards

O F N O TTE S

PUTTING NINJAS TO WORK FOR CHEMISTRY KIDS

he family farm celebrates its 275th birthday next year, now looking at its 9th generation of family members for future leadership. The farm was founded in 1741, starting at 32-acres and growing to what is today 1,100 acres, including a 450 acre golf course. In addition to the golf course, Lyman consists of a wholesale pie business, a store selling pies, cider, fruit and other goods, and also features a corn maze.

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amden Hall Country Day School basketball star the 6’6” senior Naomi Van Nes of Hamden is headed to a Division I berth at the University of North Carolina. The women Tar Heels are among the best women’s teams in the country. ESPN ranked Van Nes as 16th in her position [center] nationally. Van Nes said, “I know that Carolina is going to push me to be the best student and basketball player that I can be”.

BODY & S OUL ONS CR EEN

Saving Lives and Saving Time

B

y using the new Red Cross RapidPass online health history system, American Red Cross blood and platelet donors can now help save lives while saving some time— up to 15 minutes at a blood drive.

RapidPass allows donors to complete predonation health history and reading questions online prior to arrival.

“When people come to donate, they are giving 4 December 2015

more than blood or platelets – they are also generously giving their time,” said Beth Toll, Red Cross national external communications manager. “RapidPass is a simple, convenient way for Red Cross donors to make the most of their time while helping save lives.”

Donors should visit redcrossblood.org/ rapidpass to get a RapidPass on the day of a blood donation, answer all of the questions provided and print out their RapidPass or show it on a mobile device at the donation visit.

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FEASTING ON A MIFORD VICTORIAN PAGE 22 newhavenmagaz ine.com

DREAMERS & DOERS

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Norwich In the GILDED AGE The Rose City’s Millionaire’s Triangle Page 30

Local Hoop Star Scott Burrell Takes The Court At Southern

? ad he n r A ve ea Ha tY w en Ne fer y Dif M

December 2015 Editor & Publisher: Mitchell Young Design Consultant Terry Wells Editorial Assistant Rachel Bergman Publisher’s Assistant Amy Kulikowski Graphics Manager Matthew Ford Contributing Writers Rachel Bergman Bruce Ditman Amy Kulikowski Emili Lanno Lesley Roy Derek Torrellas Photographers Steve Blazo Lesley Roy Derek Torrellas Chris Volpe Publisher’s Representative Robin Kroopnick New Haven is published 8 times annually by Second Wind Media Ltd., which also publishes Business New Haven, with offices at 458 Grand Avenue, New Haven, CT 06513. 203-781-3480 (voice), 203-781-3482 (fax). Subscriptions $24.95/year, $39.95/two years.

Send name, address & zip code with payment. Second Wind Media Ltd. d/b/a New Haven shall not be held liable for failure to publish an advertisement or for typographical errors or errors in publication.

For more information NewHaven@Conntact.com.

Please send CALENDAR information to CALENDAR@conntact.com no later than six weeks preceding calendar month of event. Please include date, time, location, event description, cost and contact information.

Photographs must be at least 300 dpi resolution and are published at discretion of NEW HAVEN magazine.

6 December 2015

Patricia Clark of What Were We Thinking Films brought the 48 Hour Film Project competition to New Haven. She found out the project was considering starting a Connecticut competition—in Hartford—and wrote to tell them no, you mean New Haven, and they agreed. In its fifth year, Clark runs it. Before returning to her NHV roots, she was a producer on the Rosie O’Donnell show in NYC where she won two Emmys.

Emmy award winning residents!

Maurice Watson, NHV born chef and mastermind behind the slider food truck on Broadway in front of the Apple Store, Lunch Box 23, he also does catering, weddings and parties these days. The rotating slider menu is based on what’s in season, what’s fresh, and what he picks up while farmer’s market shopping— like a recent slow beer braised rabbit slider. He likes the slider form because he can make anything to put between two pieces of bread, like his favorite: fish.

3 S

Children’s Museums

Katie Beechem, green skills manager at the Urban Resources Initiative, manages a fall and spring tree planting and job training program for high school students and adult exoffenders. URI goals are to plant more trees and service the basic needs of the city: re-entry for ex-offenders. She teaches basic job skills like what to wear, timeliness, teamwork, and practical skills in landscaping and construction.

American Ninja Warrior 4th place recordholder Drew Drechsel has created the ultimate Ninja training facility in Hamden—he built an obstacle course that is constantly evolving and includes any obstacle he’s seen in courses from his experiences as a 5 time Ninja Warrior Competitor, 4 time Mount Midoriyama Veteran, 3 time Sasuke Competitor, and Sasuke Malaysia Gold Medalist. He runs training classes for children, about 18 a week, teaching them obstacle course skills and athleticism.

this New Haven-based museum. inspired by psychologist Howard Gardner’s Theory of Multiple Intelligences.

p

Made

By Hand u ART IS LIFE SAYS ARTIST RABINOWITZ PAGE 32

NEWBIE WANTS TO

KNOW

Anne Frank Believes in You

S

ometime between 2010-2011, the anonymous artist known as BiP (Believe in People), created the mural on the back wall of Partners Café on Crown Street.

Initially, some controversy brewed up from administrators at Yale in regards to the act of vandalism on their property.

However, the owners of the cafe wanted to keep it and it remains to this day.

To some it can be an act of vandalism, but to others it can be a sign of hope. A reminder to the New Haven community and beyond to believe in others.

Stepping Stones Museum for Children 303 West Ave, Norwalk steppingstonesmuseum.org

taying entertained during the cold, winter months can be a challenge with arctic freezes and temperatures too low for outdoor activities. If you and your kids grow bored take them to one of the excellent children’s museums in the region. These top choices will surely catch the children’s attention.

Connecticut Children’s Museum 22 Wall Street, New Haven childrensbuilding.org Let the children experience the magic and wonder of learning and creating at

Discovery Museum and Planetarium 4450 Park Ave, Bridgeport discoverymuseum.org If you’re looking to get into the science side of the world, the Discovery Museum in Bridgeport offers just that. This hot spot serves as a science and space tourist attraction giving visitors a chance to participate in science workshops—like how rockets work

This Norwalk museum gives children the chance to experience and explore the grounds of learning “unlike anything anywhere.” Activities range from the “Energy Lab,” encouraging children to work through various activities of solar energy, or enhance their design skills in “Build It!” or you can even bring toddlers to a fun, interactive play in “Tot Town.”

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Photos: Steve Blazo

Telling It Like It Is S

cott David Burrell, 45, is a former Hamden High baseball and basketball star, was appointed head coach of The Owls, the Southern Connecticut Men’s basketball team this past July. Burrell was a star at UCONN and played professional basketball, drafted [20th in the draft] to the Charlotte Hornets in 1993. He would eventually win a national championship with the Chicago Bulls playing alongside Michael Jordan.

Burrell was drafted by the Seattle Mariners baseball team during his senior year in high

8 December 2015

school and offered a pitching job by the Toronto Blue Jays after his college freshman year.

Burrell did play minor league baseball during the summers, but stuck to basketball at UCONN where he was a national standout with more than 1,500 points, 750 rebounds, 275 assists and 300 steals. Prior to joining the Owls, Burrell was assistant coach for the Quinnipiac Bobcats.

New Haven magazine’s Mitchell Young interviewed Burrell for One to One.

You’ve played college, professional in the U.S. and internationally, and been part of an NBA championship team with Michael Jordan. Is there a philosophy that you’ve picked up that you are trying to use as a coach?

It’s adapting to the kids and finding the right kids you want to coach and to mold into the style that you like. You learn from so many different coaches so many different styles; you bring different philosophies from everything.

But you want to find that kid that fits the mold that you want to build your team into.

NEWHAVENMAGAZINE.COM

You want a guy that will battle everyday.You want a skilled player, you can’t have every player be skilled, but you need some skilled players, you need some hard working kids, some kids that can shoot, some kids that can create for other people.

When you were coming out of high school, was that a time when kids weren’t coddled at that point?

There is a lot of controversy in college sports about academics among student athletes?

What’s the mold?

Number one, you have to find competitive kids. Not every kid is competitive anymore. A lot of competition is taken away from kids because everyone is given things and a lot of kids feel entitled.

A lot of people coddled them at a young age, entitled them.You want a kid that fights through that. Even if he was entitled and coddled, he goes above and beyond that.

Kids have it harder now, there are a lot more drugs, things for kids to be involved in, more peer pressure from their friends, girlfriends, family.

You were in a position at UCONN as a young person where everyone on that team was a star even before winning, in terms of the campus, how did that affect you?

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[Recruiting] It is the key and it is really in depth.You have to do a background check on the kid, who he hangs around with, his social media patterns, if he’s a good student.

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You want to find a kid that you know can do college work—that is number one. Obviously there are great athletes out there that might not be able to do college work.

You want a kid that has a balance of being a good player, a hard working kid and will work hard in the classroom.

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Former Hamden High, UCONN and NBA star Scott Burrell is the new coach of Men’s Basketball for the SCSU Owls

FRITZ & HAWLEY

D

I think so, there weren’t All American teams. I never played AAU [American Athletic Union].

AAU is great for recruiting because you get to see a thousand kids in one day. Parents today want their kids to get exposure and to be the best player on their team. If the kid is not playing on one AAU team, then the parents will take him off and have him play for a team that is not as good. He can be the superstar and it doesn’t teach the kid anything, it’s just lowering his standards.

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There was only one real star, Chris Smith, he was the only All American we had.

Was he a diva, can you tolerate a diva?

No, no, Smitty was…, maybe a little [laughs].

[Diva] That’s a great question, great question, [sighs], it depends if he knows how to turn it on and turn it off. You can be a pretty boy all you want, but when he steps on the court, does he not want to dive for that loose ball? Not want to take a charge? If it comes down to that, I couldn’t deal with it.

Obviously there are great athletes out there that might not be able to do college work. You want a kid that has a balance of being a good player, a hard working kid and will work hard in the classroom.

Some coaches can, I was never that type of player.

How is it differnt today as a player and a coach?

You have to teach more now. We had camps where they taught us the skills. Now kids grow up just playing without going to camps. We used to be in the playground and when you lost you had to sit out five games before you got back on the court. Kids don’t go to parks anymore.

You also played baseball in high school and were drafted as first round choices in both baseball and basketball by the major leagues and no one had done that before.

How did you make the decision to choose basketball?

I felt basketball was more competitive, more excitement. As a starting pitcher, you get to pitch every five days. When you’re young, you’re hyper, I can’t wait till my next start in five days [sitting] in the bullpen, bored out of your mind.

As I got older I said [maybe] I should have stayed with pitching [laughs].

I was very happy with my decision, and I got to play with some of the best players that ever played basketball.

What is the magic sauce that a coach like Calhoun or Auriemma have - is there an ingredient that winning coaches have?

You have to be a psychologist; when to coddle, when to teach, and when to be an enforcer. It is a mixture of all those things that makes a good coach. Understanding people, understanding your alumni, the community you work for, you have to be able to relate to a lot of people.

If you talk to a group of business people, you don’t have to teach, a team you have to teach.

With business people, you have to motivate, you have to motivate your team, but you also have to teach. Motivation is a key in business, to get people to follow behind with what your beliefs are.

10 December 2015

You’re starting a new season, are you thinking “what’s going to be in my way this season?”

In China it is getting bigger, great teams in China, and Yao Ming [retired NBA player] made it bigger. It is an international game.

Number one, when you’re dealing with eighteen to twenty-two year olds, anything can happen.

That’s number one when I put my head on the pillow [for them], don’t get yourself in trouble.

You want to teach them the rights and wrongs on the court, but four years later, I want you to be a successful person after you graduate.

When I was growing up, stars mattered, but the team was really what everyone connected to. You were a Knicks fan or a Celtics fan. Now it seems like in most sports you’re a “Jeter” fan or “LeBron” fan?

I want them to be ready going into the working field, all the students, professors, alumni—I want them to be able to call them up and they’ll know you [the player] well enough and will think fondly of you enough to help them.

You came back to the place you grew up, why did you come back?

Family, I love my mom and dad, brother and sister, I loved coming back to Hamden. I think it’s a great place, it offers a lot. Here in New Haven, it’s an international community.

You played international ball too, where?

The Philippines, China, Spain and Japan. [Japan] You have two Americans on each team and the rest are Japanese. We worked for the companies, my team was Hitachi.

You must have gotten a good stereo?

I thought I was going to get one, but Hitachi was a little stingy with their stuff [laughs]. It was a great experience, playing in Tokyo.The city of Tokyo is awesome.

In the Philippines, they love, love basketball. If you drive down the street, every corner, every building will have a hoop on the side of it.

I loved Dwight Gooden, so I was a Mets fan growing up. I loved Daryl Strawberry and Dwight Gooden, that’s why when I was playing, I was 16 in baseball, I tried to pitch just like him.

In Basketball, I just loved watching Magic, Larry and Michael. Growing up in that era, it wasn’t on TNT, you only had one great game a weekend.

Those were awesome games, they competed, they were friends after the game, but they weren’t smiling during the game.

Who was the most competitive player you played with?

Michael Jordan wanted to destroy you every time, every practice, every game. Playing cards, half court shots, one and one, not only did he want to win, he wanted to destroy you to let you know you’re not as good as him and will never be as good as him.

Was Jordan good as a team player?

He comes at you everyday to make you better mentally and physically. He wasn’t going to be easy on you, but he came at you to see if you’re going to quit or whether you’re going to be a better player to help him win championships. If you’re going to quit, he doesn’t need you.

NEWHAVENMAGAZINE.COM

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We didn’t have to worry about the cell phone, who I’m going to call or who is going to send me a text. You have to simplify life for your kids today.

Do your players relate to you differently because you played with Michael Jordan and won a championship?

Half of them don’t even know I ever played [laughs], until their parents or their coaches tell them. They only know what’s going on now, they don’t know anything about the history.

It does help having a championship ring and playing with the best in the world, it gives you more credibility.

It almost seems like it’s too hard for some kids today?

It is.There are so many things that spread them out. Life was hard when it was simple, but it was easier. When we got up, we knew you go to school, when you got home, you play with your friends. We didn’t have to worry about the cell

phone, who I’m going to call or who is going to send me a text.You have to simplify life for your kids today. an the players bring their cell phones in to practice?

Every practice they have to bring them here [office] and drop them off so they can talk to me and coach Papale and to each other. If we let them take the cell phones down to the locker room, they’ll be sitting [heads down into the phone].

You’re a big guy, why didn’t you play football? Didn’t want to get beat up?

That’s exactly why [laughs], but also you play twelve, fourteen games a year and you practice a hundred thirty times. The numbers don’t add up.

When you were growing up, where were your parents on sports?

They were teachers, they were educators. My sister went to Yale, my brother to UCONN. I did let them down a lot. I did flunk off of my high school baseball team my freshman year.

I learned my lesson and it embarrassed my parents. I wasn’t paying attention, just worrying

about sports too much and not focused on school work.

Do your parents like the fact that you’re a coach now?

They love it, they love coming to games still. My brother coaches football at Brown. If they’re not going up to Brown to watch my brother’s game then they’re coming here, when I was at Quinnipiac and now here.

How do you think the team will do this year?

We’ll be very good, we’ll be tough, we’ll compete with every team we play and if we do that, we have a chance to win.

When you tell your players today that you expect more competitiveness, considering that many young people are a little more “mouth” today, what do you get back?

It’s a fine line of them thinking you’re mean or them thinking you’re bringing them to the next level.That’s when you go behind closed doors and talk to them,“why did you blow up at that situation?”

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Are you allowed today to lose your temper as a coach?

You could, but you can never get personal with a kid. You can get loud with a kid, loud with the team, but you should never get personal.

You were a good kid, two parent educators, but you were a star, did you give your coaches a difficult time?

Sometimes I tried to do too much, but I was in line with what the team was supposed to do. I think every coach appreciated how competitive I was.

When you first got drafted it was to Charlotte, how good was that team?

It was very good, but we had a lot of injuries. We had Alonzo Mourning, Larry Johnson, Muggsy Bogues, Dell Curry.

You came in as a rookie and now you’re playing with some real pros – what were you thinking?

I wanted to fit in, didn’t want to make myself an outsider and then to get comfortable with them.You want to play hard, if they know you’re playing hard and you’re not too cool and you’re on the same page, they’re going to accept you.

Just do your part and get better every day.

How much is it about what’s good for me as the player?

A lot of them are like that, you have a lot of teams with a lot of free agency. They’re [players] looking for the next contract, you’re looking for the next contract. They know if they score they’ll get a new contract. They know if I score more than you, they don’t get a contract and they’ll keep me here. The teams that are most successful are the teams that play together for a long time and all the contracts are done.

Now you’re just worrying about winning.

Everyone knows the more points you score, the more money you make. I’ve been on some teams where all the guys are young, and their contracts are coming up and they’re worrying about that, which is rightly so.That’s your job.

That was before fantasy sports, are the players watching that?

No, but they know paydays are better now. Back in the day, if you averaged ten points a game you were making a couple million, now you’re making twenty million.

Michael made $1.6 million for about twelve or fourteen years, the last two years he got big contracts.

Nowadays, guys are worried about their production, their image, and their brand.

12 December 2015

You were single when you were a player, you’re a good-looking guy, did you find a lot of women interested?

No [laughs] I had better players with me. They didn’t want to talk to me, they wanted to talk to the better players.

You were part of one of the most famous UCONN men’s plays in 1990 with a win in the East Region semifinals in the last few seconds, what exactly happened there? The daily news described it this way “Connecticut’s Tate George caught a perfect 94-foot pass from pitcher, forward Scott Burrell,” referring to your other sports skills. How did that happen?

We blew an eighteen point lead against Clemson. We lost the intensity that got us the lead, and little by little they got confident, the lead evaporated, and the next thing you know we’re down by one. I took it out, we call the play, I just knew we had to get it down.Tate did a really good job walling off his guy. I threw it to the corner where only he could get it he caught and turned and knocked down the jumper.

I always wonder what it’s like for the guy who goes back to the locker room after a victory where they are instrumental, what was that like for you, personally?

It was awesome for thirty minutes, an hour after the game, but now we gotta play Duke.You never really think about it, you think about it more now, than we did then. We knew the next task was Duke, and Duke was the pinnacle. We were never on that plateau before with UCONN, Duke – so it was awesome.

Can UCONN get there in football?

You have to get a different conference and it’s a tougher sport to build something. The hardest thing is not having the stadium on campus.

College kids want to tailgate, drink, go to the football game. Not wake up, drive a bus an hour away, and have to walk to tailgate. Basketball is different because you can’t tailgate. College football is about tailgating, cooking out.

When you stepped into a place like Madison Square Garden, was that intimidating?

It just energizes you, you go around, see the stars all around the court watching the game.

That’s the best part about playing professional sports, you go into these historical arenas where you know so many great players have played in and you’re a part of it and you’re having fun.

Has the concern for academics changed things?

It’s harder for kids to become eligible, but now you know the ground rules. Kids don’t take high school seriously until the junior year, until they get recruited, then they’re like damn I messed up my freshman and sophomore year with those Ds and Fs.Then they realize how much they have to make up.

There is this big issue in the major college programs about whether the schools are taking advantage of the athletes. You were one of those players?

People ask “should the [student] athletes be paid?” I don’t think they should be paid. If you’re going to pay student athletes, football makes a lot of money for the school, basketball makes money for the school. But say it’s a woman tennis player, she’s not going to make money for the school, but she’s still going to practice twenty hours a week, just like the football player does.Then you need to pay her just as much, and if you don’t, I think that’s wrong. She practices and has to do homework just like he does.

If you’re going to pay the football player four thousand a semester, then you should pay the women’s swimmers, men’s swimmers, tennis, men’s golf, all those people should get four thousand.

When I was growing up women didn’t play many sports, especially not team sports, and there was no issue of competing.

We see in UCONN women’s basketball a competitiveness that many other women’s teams don’t have, is that why they are so successful?

I think the tradition they built speaks for itself.

If you go to UCONN [women’s team], you’re expected to win a national championship.Three out of your four years, not just one [laughs], that’s what is amazing.

Does Geno have a secret sauce?

Geno is a great coach, he teaches girls the Xs and Os, and he’s just as hard on his best player.

He does a great job with them. I love watching them practice.

We all used to hang out, I still talk to a lot of the girls that went to UCONN that were around the same time. We all cheered each other on, it was awesome camaraderie between both teams.

It wasn’t the same with the two coaches?

I think it might have been different [nervous laugh]. They were competitive, and I think it made them get to the highest level, and they both did, they’re both Hall of Famers. They

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pushed each other, if one team wins ten national championships, that means “I need to get something done here” and coach did, [Calhoun] he won three national championships, which is awesome in itself.

How important is it to have a home field?

You want your home court that is intimidating, loud, energetic and full every night. Winning does it. It starts with kids.They have to be in the community, good with the students, good people and win.Then people want to come and support you.

So in those early days at UCONN, how was that built?

All the guys were really great guys, nobody really got in trouble when I was there. Plus, there were some Connecticut kids that people got to know, Chris Smith, Steve Pikiell, me, Murray Williams.There were like six kids from Connecticut that helped get Connecticut to where it was and to start getting the best players in Connecticut to stay home.

We will do more [community outreach]. I have to make sure this ships gets sailing first. We’re doing a shop with a cop thing for a charity event, all our guys are doing that.

What’s your view of the athletes in professional sports and the “kind” of people they are?

There are two kinds, some people that love the limelight, and some that will do things without the limelight. Some people do things to get attention and some who do things because they think it’s the right thing.

We need more role models. I’m not a tattoo guy.

If you make a hundred million dollars you’re set for life, but for the average kid, if your job is to work at IBM… They say you shouldn’t be judged by your image, but everyone is judged by their image and appearance. When you’re going for that job, you can’t have tattoos all over your neck.That’s someone’s choice and it’s on them.

Where are your players coming from? Most Southern students are from Connecticut?

We recruited four kids this year, two kids from Connecticut, one from Denmark, one from Chicago. As long as I have a connection with a kid, I’ll go anywhere.

Why does a student come from Chicago or Denmark here?

[Laughs] I hope it’s because of me, that’s part of it. The kid from Denmark, his coach sold me having been a professional playing for the Bulls, winning a championship. He believed in me.

Coach Donnelly [Michael Donnelly resigned last May for a coaching job at Florida Southern, after two successive years reaching the Sweet Sixteen in the NCAA Finals] did a great job building this program to be a sweet sixteen and final eight team.

All those things are part of the puzzle. I have to keep it going on what Coach Donnelly built and take it to the next level.

What made you want to switch from Quinnipiac?

Wanting to be head coach, put what you learned to the test, to see if you can do it on your own. I felt I was ready. If I’m going to fail, at least I used my philosophies.

We were concerned that you wouldn’t want to do the interview because you keep a pretty low profile, what is the role for community involvement?

So you know who’s from Hamden, Wayne Johnson,The Rock, he left when he was in the sixth grade.

But I feel like you’re getting judged right off the bat. Now you’re fighting that battle while you’re still trying to get that job and you need that job.

When LeBron James announced he was going to pay for college for kids in Akron, it didn’t get much play.

The media wants controversy, nice things aren’t controversy. Controversy sells. When LeBron made the decision and the way he did [leaving Cleveland], that was controversy, but now he did something good,“that’s a great thing but it won’t sell.”

Does anyone have higher expectations than your mom, and do they like that you’re here? Home at Southern?

No, no, no. Me, my mom and my dad have the highest expectations.They love it [being at Southern]. I think they know how much pressure there is for me to be successful.They think I’m ready for it. NH.

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13

Photo: Mitch Young

New Haven Gets A Tailor Vincent Ferrucci, Master Tailor

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oday the TV blares ‘buy two men’s suits – get one free,’ and that is a “fit” for some of us. Not those, however, that find themselves on Elm Street in New Haven in the hands of Bespoke tailor Vincent Ferrucci.

Artisan bread, cheese and beer may be on everyone’s holiday list but the artistic work of custom tailoring can’t be learned in a college dorm or after a few months of culinary school.

From pattern making to lining up the seam on a pant cuff, the art of the made to order men’s suit takes years to master – and New Haven has one of those.

The war in Europe was at a close, southern Italy was a devastated war zone.The Americans, British, the Canadians and other allied armies all had passed through or around a town of three thousand, Gioia Sannitica, in the Province of Caserta, north of Naples. A small young boy of thirteen, however, was lifting his head and dreaming toward the future the war’s end had created.

His “Italian mother” would have nothing of just “playing ball in the street,” it was a time for new beginnings and it was a time for choices,“do you want to be a master tailor, a shoemaker, a carpenter, a barber,” she asked her Vincent.

Ferrucci said tailor and he would soon be learning his trade with the town’s “maestro,” a master tailor who had “five, six, seven apprentices,” from teenagers, to early twenties.

Made By Hand Artisans: More Than Beer, Bread and Cheese We Visit a Custom Tailor, Jewlery and Furniture Makers

14 December 2015

Each apprentice worked one operation at a time until they got it perfectly.

“I remember learning to make a button hole, it was torture,” says Ferrucci. “He counted the stitches in the button hole, everything had to be done in precision,” he explained of the master’s demands.

At sixteen, Ferrucci’s mom decided he was ready to move on, for more advanced learning, packing him up to Rome to take his next steps.

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At twenty, Ferrucci was ready to make his own way – he left Rome and took his journey to Venezuela. Well not quite his own way, he would settle in where his mother’s brother had set up a custom shoe shop.

Ferrucci’s skills helped him land a tailoring job, but he got itchy again for more and after a few years, opened his own shop next to his uncle’s, making clothing “completely from scratch” – by himself.

Ferrucci’s mother moved on herself, joining siblings already established in New Haven. After five years in Venezuela, mother and son hadn’t seen each other, so Ferrucci took a vacation trip to see her.

Quickly momma made it clear, “you’re here now, you’re not going back” [to Venezuela].

Mother and aunt went to work on their plan, and within three months, Ferrucci was courting a young woman and his “vacation” led to marriage after seven months in the US. There was work for a skilled tailor in New Haven, but by 1963 after a few years of laying down roots, the fleet footed tailor [who can still be seen on the tennis courts at New Haven’s Lawn Club] would feel the pull to go out again on his own, opening a small 350 square foot shop in the “Westville Village.”

Ferrucci poured his energy into his enterprise, but even more so into the garments he was creating.

But family ties are at the heart of the Ferrucci tale, and son Vincent Ferrucci, Jr. decided that his UCONN business degree and corporate prospects were nothing compared to the opportunity to “work with and help” his father, joining him a few years after the New Haven shop opened in ’86.

“My father needed to have someone younger with him in the business,” Ferrucci explains.“He had a couple of people who were very good working on the floor, but they were part-timers.

It’s hard to get someone younger involved in retail in general, but especially in a specialty business.”

For those that can afford to look their best, custom jackets and suits are still in demand, as even the best ready to wear suits can’t account for the numerous and often difficult to fit body shapes, postures and styles men have today.

The goal, however, was to be downtown, to be New Haven’s “bespoke tailor” and the move to his present location downtown on Elm Street in 1986 sealed it.

“It was a big move, by myself, no architect, no interior designer,” waving an arm around the well-appointed shop, that itself speaks to design and custom work.

After all, how many people today are willing to work for months learning just how to make a button hole right?

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The maestro’s lessons of precision were paying off for Mr. Ferrucci.

After three years in Westville, the word was out and the young tailor had a high-end clientele and moved to a larger shop on Whalley Avenue, in a building owned by another uncle.

But while the demand remains for a select group of clients worldwide, and more beautiful and durable fabrics make the finished products more desirable, the craftsmen that can create them are disappearing. Whether in New Haven, London or Hong Kong, the number of custom tailors has been dwindling and their average age increasing to more than sixty.

F I N E C AT E R I N G

He explained his passion,“when I was delivering a [finished] garment, I didn’t want to let go, I had put everything into it, my soul, I didn’t want to give it up,” he says, flashing his trademark smile as he reminisced.

“I was making garments from scratch and before you know it, I had a tremendous clientele. I took the measurements, put the coat on the table, I cut it, finished it and delivered it – one person, me.”

Adding fuel to a steady demand is the variety and quality of fabrics available for a custom suit, far exceeding what any ready to wear store could inventory.

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Crafting The Precious: A Collection of Stones Susan Roberts Jewlery

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usan Roberts of Susan Roberts Jewelry in Branford has been making hand-crafted pieces for over 15 years. Roberts mostly workscut with hand cut semi-precious beads. Much of her work is one of a kind smaller collections because stones vary in size,, shape and color and she is limited to how many she can make of any one thing.

Her pieces are sold in small boutiques around the state including at Idiom, Lulu’s, Taken For Granite, Khaki & Black, and Jewels by Jilly, as well as online retailers like terrain.com.

She doesn’t work with a lot of volume, so she is constantly designing based on what she has to work with. Most of the stones come from India, like most hand cut gems and beads.

Sometimes she goes and picks out her stones from a dealer she works with in NY, but sometimes they send her things they know she’ll like. She might hang onto a stone or collection for years before she is inspired to design something around it.

Roberts crafts jewelry exclusively for women, while she may occasionally make pieces for children, that price point is higher, so it’s mostly specialty pieces for adults. She’s been making jewelry since she was a little girl. As a buyer for a retail store for many years, her boss asked her to make jewelry for the store and it snowballed from there until she became an independent artisan working out of a backyard workshop.

Roberts never pursued formal training, although she did do a metalworking apprenticeship. She’s completely self-inspired and self-taught and that inspiration is drawn from nature. She has been working on a collection for a few years about the elements – all of her stones come out of the earth and she considers herself a nature nut. As someone who loves to be out in the woods, that inspires her, so this new collection is inspired by nature and the elements. It will include metal, fabric and stones. Stay tuned for those beauties.

16 December 2015

She names all of her collections, and often they’re named after different varieties of butterflies because she likes to look at color patterns in butterfly wings for inspiration. Like the Mourning Cloak collection, statement necklaces which are 3 strands of different layering stones in different colors.The Waterfall Collection is a series of heart-shaped beads that cascade down a long strand of bead and chain, the Raindrop Collection is a Y necklace, and the Full Moon collection has big baroque pearls.

Production in any given week can be quite substantial. She’s always designing based on what stones she has, but it fluctuates, and at any time, she could need to make up to 200 pieces in one week for a big order. She handles 95% of production herself, but may occasionally call in some help.That’s not the hard part, she says, the hardest thing for any artist is putting yourself out there and seeing if people will respond.

With the highs and lows of being successful, that’s the hardest thing, wondering if something is going to work and if people are going to like it and how they’ll respond to it. She concedes, “I’ve been lucky, it’s been very positive.”

u

“Wondering if something is going to work and if people are going to like it”

Many of her earrings, bracelets, and necklaces are flexible in design and can be worn in longer or shorter styles, bracelets can be used to lengthen matching necklaces.

Roberts doesn’t follow trends. She’s had people stop her and say “I bought this necklace from you 10 years ago, it’s still my favorite and people still stop me and compliment.” She aims for sophisticated and classic. Her goal is that you could wear it to the office or out to a formal function, explaining “you have to follow what feels true and for me it’s always been this kind of evolving look that I’ve created, it’s just what I do.” www.susanrobertsjewelry.com

By Rachel Bergman

NEWHAVENMAGAZINE.COM

Bringing A Woman’s Touch to Woodwork

something like a table made to client specifications. A gallery or craft show piece is different, it is typically a new design for a different purpose and she may spend 3-4 months on that work.

Park tries to participate in 2-3 craft shows or gallery shows per year.

“It’s always a mystery how clients find me,” she says,“I am often the highest bidder on a project, but people choose me anyway and I ask how did you find me and they shrug and say ‘the internet’ or something.”

Upholstery is limited to chair seats and she tends to do smaller pieces like tables, shelving units, desks and chairs, cabinets and chests of drawers. Most pieces are a limited production, but commission works are often a piece she has already produced that a customer likes, but wants a different size to accommodate their space.

Commission work is fun, she says, it’s about creating something special and specific for someone’s home.

Katherine Park Furniture

A

ccording to Katherine Park, it’s unusual for a woman to be into woodworking—or at least it was when she started almost 18 years ago after finishing her MFA in woodworking and furniture design at The Rochester Institute of Technology’s School of American Craft. She long suspected that she wasn’t taken seriously as a female in the industry and those suspicions were confirmed when one former boss admitted a few months after hiring her that he thought she was joking when Park first applied and interviewed for the position of furniture maker at the shop.

Although she works independently now, taking commissions and designing and creating pieces for craft shows and galleries, Park spent many years working for custom furniture shops—always with the agreement that she would be allowed to use the equipment and the space at night and on weekends for her own creations.

Park creates tables, chairs, shelving units, desks, and whimsical sculptures that almost always serve a functional purpose. She came from Korea to study as an undergraduate at the Rhode Island School of Art and Design, something her parents were surprisingly supportive of, she

admits. According to Park, it’s not common for an Asian family to support a child’s interest in arts and crafts, but her parents always did.

Now that she works independently, she is no longer borrowing equipment. Her home-based workshop has everything she needs—except for the occasional bit of metal work. She sources material based on design, an idea in the drawing stage will often incorporate a specific type of wood for color, style and function. An idea for a bookshelf or table may require that she hand select the perfect piece of maple or cherry, and that hand-selection process typically takes place at Downes & Reader Hardwood in Milford.“They have everything,” Park says,“I used to have to travel all over to find the right wood, up to Gaylordsville, White Plains, or further.”

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“Designs range from the whimsical, like a set of bookshelves with feet in shoes”

She says her work is difficult to explain,“people ask me what I do and I laugh and say I am a furniture maker and then they ask what style and I don’t know, something like sculptural furniture that is still functional.”

Park has no worry that the handmade furniture market is in danger, culturally, she believes people still value a quality piece with a unique design that is handcrafted. Business is good.

Depending on the piece, a commission in particular, she may spend 3-4 weeks on

Park’s designs range from the whimsical, like a set of bookshelves with feet in shoes that tilt slightly toward each other—as if they are dancing, to a traditional and sleek symmetrical glass-doored cabinet for books that sits in Park’s living room. It’s pure function, she says, and made of scrap wood because she just needed bookshelves.

Gallery pieces are always a bit different, playing on themes or suiting requirements of the show— like a chair she made recently for a group show, although it was more of a low stool, long and with contrasting wood for the legs and the seat, made to look like a gathering of stools put together to seat more than one. Her family in Seoul is supportive, but due to shipping issues, only her sister was able to take Katherine Park’s special pieces home to Korea.The things she makes for her parents stay in her house and are enjoyed when they visit. www.katherineparkfurniture.com

By Rachel Bergman new haven

17

“We’re going to the river,” her daughter says to Sut. “You going cross-lots?” he asks.

“What’s that mean,” her son asks.

“You call your yard and your pasture your lot. So instead of taking the road, you go across lots.”

“Yeah,” her son nods. “We’re going cross-lots.”

“Yeah?”

“Yes.” She smiles at Sut’s propriety. Would he blanche at her pride in merely keeping her children from repeating the word “Shit” that they hear their father say on a daily basis? Sut is from another world, or another time really. He is a force from another realm, a font. Her husband is just a man.

What if she gave her children to Old Friend Sut? She imagines it often, her kids growing into straight-backed adults. Her son quiet and strong, worried about his reputation and his mechanical acumen. Her daughter a gentle yet hardy caretaker of animals and her own babies. Both would be full of old words and concepts like cross-lots, levies against the evolution of speech, little whirlpools of American oral tradition ignorant of the changing tide. They would raise children and grow old, occupied almost solely with their own issue being able to repeat the process.

Cross-Lots

By Michael A. Dobos

Inspired by the poetry of Maria Williams-Russell

S

he wakes to the sound of the closet door closing. Through sleep-gummed eyes she glances at Stan drawing the door across the carpet, sounding like a comb through hair, trying to be as quiet as he can so as not to wake her. But it is his habit, inexorable, to close it all the way, a loud click, so that the house remains neat. He doesn’t want to wake her by turning the doorknob, but he can’t help himself.

Her eyes closed again, Stan pads through the kitchen downstairs in his socks, taking out the lunch she made for him. She can’t wait to hear him shut the front door so she can really go back to sleep instead of perching on wakefulness, 18 December 2015

braced against his sounds jarring her eyes fully open. She must balance between sleeping and waking from when he rises until he is gone.

It is summer and she is home with the children.

More than the prolonged sunlight, their presence makes the days last longer. After breakfast she announces they will go down to the river. Her son and daughter shoot across the yard before she has finished tying her boots. She follows them to the neighbor’s yard. It is the farm of Friend Sutcliffe. Old Friend Sut is what everyone calls him. Sut is sitting on a tree stump outside of his white barn.

They move on, threading through Sut’s fields.

They venture between the slats of the wooden fence, making their way around the horses.

She follows her children, slithering through the grass, a coherent sentence in her thoughts thanking them for reminding her what it is to walk through a grass field, to greet the Earth by petting its hair. They need only hunch over to be totally obscured. There are mice here, hard to catch, but they would make a good meal. They could move from backyard to field, her children, and never be seen. They could collect an egg or two from a chicken coop unnoticed, maybe even take a whole chicken once in a while. Its owner would attribute the theft to a fox. She thinks of a pie on a window sill missing. They could live on the periphery of other’s lives. Sleeping in a hay loft, always rising and slipping away before being seen. A wild pack of dogs numbering just two, they would be caught stealing by the cops, lazily handcuffed to a table at the station, awaiting inevitable and quick release, their crimes so minor. The town would know them as vagrants or vagabonds, weird characters everyone in the town knows and doesn’t fear. Malnutrition would make them die young in hospital beds paid for by the state. The obituaries would be embarrassingly short, the newspaperman writing them perplexed while trying to give some sort of solemnity to the blurbs.

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They get to the woods, now very green, choked by mountain laurel, a latticework she has a hard time following her children through. They are like elves, Shakespearean characters, leading her down non-existent trails. Sometimes they try to lose her and she wonders if they really mean it. If they mean to leave her alone in the woods, a selfless gift to her. How much do they know?

They are never happier than when they’re in the woods, the deeper the better, and they never want to go back home. How can so much joy be wrong? They prance, thin limbed, pointy joints. What would happen if she left them there, if they split up? How long would they survive?

Wouldn’t it be better if they chased each other around, ecstatic with the exploration, or played hide and seek, amused with their own cleverness sliding between two stone slabs, a little closet?

Wouldn’t it be better to have that much fun until they starved, dropped dead, were picked clean and turned into skeletons after a week? If she could will herself into a mist, fogging out into the trees, dissipating outward, would she do it?

Her children would walk in among the forest.

Their lives would be hard, trying to survive while searching for her. They would die before they found her, but at least they would have lived with innocent purity and happiness. • Would you like to contribute to Writer in the Community.

Contact Rachel Bergman, rbergman@conntact.com

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Feasting In A Workaday Victorian EDITOR’S L E T T E R I NTEL

BI BL I OF ILE S L ETTER S

W O R D S o f MOU T H FÊ T E S INSTYLE

ATHOM E

By Rachel Bergman Photos by Derek Torellas

O F NOTES

O U T DO O RS BO D Y & S OU L

Photos Anthony DeCarlo

The dining nook off of the open kitchen stays bright with a vaulted ceiling and plenty of windows. The space is a new addition to the original 1880 construction.

The formal dining room is set and ready for feasters. Separated from the living room with a wooden pocket door, original, the floors, trim and fireplace are also original.

T

he downtown Milford historic district is ‘open to the public’ this holiday season with holiday home tours on December 12 to benefit the Milford Preservation Trust.Tours will start from the John Downs House and the First Congregational Church and take walkers through a few of the historic homes encircling the duck pond, sharing rich features like bee hive ovens, milk glass windows, pocket doors and traditional hearths.The goal of the Milford Preservation Trust is not to preach to the choir, but to raise awareness about the area’s historical properties, raise interest levels so that they don’t lose any more properties to demolition, and to encourage people to want to live in historic homes.The ringleader?

Michele Kramer, President of the Milford Preservation Trust and owner of a 4-bedroom “Workaday”Victorian home, built in 1880, across from the pond and a couple of doors down from the First Congregational Church. Victorian architecture is a broad term used to describe homes built anywhere from 1830 to 1910 and incorporates a variety of styles. Most envision a “dollhouse” type structure. A Workaday Victorian is typically 22 December 2015

less ornate, and Kramer says it’s perfect for her family because they are “workaday people.”

The downtown Milford historic district was designated in 1976 and is also designated as a National River Park Historic District.

Kramer and her husband, Dr. Clifford Kramer, bought their house 25 years ago. Kramer knew she wanted an older house because she loves the “bones and the soul” of older homes.

Originally from West Haven, Kramer left to study Art History in Italy, finishing her degree both between the University of Bologna and Vassar. She admits she always thought she’d go back when the kids left,“find some old ruin to work on and

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The cozy living room is the first room visitors enter in the house, just before the formal dining room. spend half my time there.Three kids going to college killed that dream,” she joked.

Contrary to the myths around historic homes, Kramer did add space, both to the kitchen in the back and the second floor. With historic preservation, there are some rules, but they aren’t impossible.The house should look authentic from the street, but typically adding to the back is acceptable. Originally a very small and dark area, the kitchen was expanded out into the deep backyard to create an open floor plan and a window-lined dining nook with vaulted ceiling. Another big no no on a historic home? Vinyl siding. No vinyl siding.

A camera-shy Michele Kramer agrees to pose with puppy Cruz (named after Giants player Victor Cruz) outside the home, which maintains its original architecture from the street view, in spite of interior renovations.

26 December 2015

The Kramers worked with an architect in Milford, Jim Denno Design, who also managed the Rainbow Gardens restaurant project, to make their space accommodate their family.

Kramer says you can tell they raised a family in the house, there are still scuff marks on the wood floor from the kids coming off of the frozen duck pond in the winter—they would walk into the house still wearing their ice skates.

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New Haven- Attention investors, the numbers work! 3 family home with 2 bedrooms on the first, second and third floors along with a fully finished two bedroom unit with slate floors and exposed brick in the lower level. Located in the historic district of Fair Haven with views of the Quinnipiac River in your back yard. All units are rented. 312,500. Diana x 208

New Haven- Wooster Villa’s is a 9 unit complex redone in 2006. Convenience of townhouse style living in the heart of Historic Wooster Street. 2 bedroom 1.1 bath condo with Stainless steel appliances, hardwood and carpet flooring, washer and dryer in unit, slider to stone patio, and off street parking. Updated marble bathroom and newly painted. Walk to train, pizza, coffee, Yale and downtown. Historic Wooster Street offers culture, restaurants, farmers market and Wooster Square just steps away. 184,900. Gena x 203

East Haven- Morgan Point, direct waterfront, Sandy beach, own one of the few beach lots available to build your dream home. This is your opportunity to make every day a vacation and live on the water. 233,900. Neile x 212

New Haven - Wooster Square, two family home directly on a Wooster Square, updated and remodeled and currently being used as a 1 family home. Brand new French Country kitchen with granite counters, stainless steel appliance, recess lighting, exposed beams, 3 full baths, laundry on second level with master bedroom suite, fantastic back yard with patio and grape arbor, hardwood floors, central air and more.

499,900. Gena x203

Hamden- Spring Glen Colonial with fantastic 20x20 family room and master bedroom addition, 4 bedrooms, 4.5 baths, updated kitchen with 2 sinks, living room with fireplace, dining room, enclosed sun porch, sliders to deck, w/d on second level, finished lower level, new central air, detached garage, fenced in yard.

Walk to Spring Glen elementary school, the Farmington Canal, shops, restaurants, minutes to Yale. 349,900. Gena x203

Hamden- Beautiful light filled open floor plan condominium in North Lake! 3 bedrooms, 2 full baths, tons of closets and extra storage in basement. Covered carport. Amenities include a private balcony, lake views and an in ground pool. Desirable location in lovely North Lake off Whitney Avenue. 185,000. Courtney x 204

North Haven- Newly remodeled Raised Ranch with in law with private entrance, gleaming hardwood floors, new kitchen with SS appliances, new baths, family room addition, wrap around deck, new central air, nice private rear lot with long driveway. Peaceful setting.

Wallingford electric! Priced to dell! 335,000.

Gena x 203

New Haven- Rivercrest, Wonderful open design contemporary unit overlooking the Quinnipiac River and waterfront park, only minutes to downtown New Haven, Yale, the train, hospitals, and all amenities, spacious LR/DR space with fire place and lots of glass, hard wood floors, kitchen with lots of counters and cabinets, large master bedroom with master bath with jacuzzi and tons of closet space, sliders to patio with water views. 159,900 Jeff x 210

New Haven- Westville, adorable bungalow on idyllic wooded lot, living room with fire place, formal dining room, kitchen with breakfast nook, first floor bedroom, 2 more bedrooms on second level,1.1 baths. 122,000. Jeff x210

New Haven- Ninth Square, great 4 story brick building of long time family business now ready for development, open space with business on first floor and storage above. Lots of development options for creative buyers, close to all downtown amenities. Walking distance to trains, hospitals and Yale. 1,750,000. Jeff x210

New Haven- City Point area, spacious home on 3 levels, living room with fire place opens to formal dining room, den on first floor, large eat in kitchen, master bedroom on 3rd flooor with cathedral ceilings, walk to parks and water, in Yale home buyers program. 105,000. Jeff x210

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The Kramer’s bedroom is an add-on space with a high ceiling and large windows overlooking their many gardens.

A Room with a View!

Now Accepting Applications for our Spacious Apartments!

Call NOW for a tour!

(203) 772-1816 An Active Senior Living Community— Fostering Independence for Life

Tower One/Tower East 18 Tower Lane New Haven, CT 06519 www.towerone.org

28 December 2015

Affordable options available

The hardwood floors are original throughout the home, as are the pocket doors separating the main dining room from the living room.

master bedroom.The second floor suite is an add-on, completed during Kramer’s third and final pregnancy, to overlook the backyard.

With all of the homes on the holiday tour, the Milford Preservation Trust wants visitors to know that a historic home can live in a very modern way. Visitors may imagine small drafty rooms and low ceilings, but many homes were modified to incorporate wide open floor plans, larger bedrooms, additions to the back—or whatever else a family ultimately decided was needed.

When a homeowner purchases a historic home in the area, the Trust provides a list of resources— experienced and knowledgeable contractors and architects who are familiar with the needs of an older building, and any restrictions that may apply.

What makes people open their homes to strangers? Kramer admits she did a lot of begging. She made tarts, brought wine, anything it took to put together the first holiday home tour the organization has done in 20 years. A historian will be on hand for the tours and five homes are participating, all with holiday-themed decorations.

Kramer’s home was decorated for Thanksgiving during New Haven magazine’s visit, but that’s just a teaser for what’s to come.The tour is Sunday, December 12 (snow date December 13), tickets are $15, or $25 for two, and the tour begins at The John Downs House at 139 North Street or First Congregational Church at 34 West Main Street.

For more information, go to www.milfordpreservationtrust.org

Denno’s architecture firm also helped the Kramers build their

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SEABURY-HILL REALTORS Serving the real estate needs of Greater New Haven, Yale & Shoreline since 1926

seaburyhill.com • 203.562.1220 • seaburyhillrentals.com

548 ORANGE ST #306, EAST ROCK, NH – Charming 3rd flcondo w/open floor plan, high ceilings & exposed wood beams. Large master BR w/great light & French doors. Large 2nd BR w/HW flrs & good closet space. Beautiful 1920s tile BTH w/modern updates. Laundry & storage in basement. 1 open parking space. $229,900. Call Jack Hill 203-675-3942.

128 HILLSIDE AVE. MORRIS COVE NH Special c. 1900 home w/3 season front porch, LR w/FP & pellet stove, formal DR, spacious KIT leading to fenced yard. 2 BRs on 2nd floor w/ extra room. New gas furnace & water heater, laundry in basement, screened porch w/electric & new roof & screens.

Great location! $134,900.

Call Jennifer D’Amato 203-605-7865.”

999 WHALLEY AVE #3E, WESTVILLE, NH – Great 2 BR, 2.5 BTH condo. 1st fl has open dining/living area & KIT w/sliders to private deck & half BTH. 2nd fl has 2 BRs & 2 BTHs w/ great closet space & laundry. HW flrs on 1st fl and storage. Gas heat & HW, central air w/a newer compressor. $94,900.

Call Cheryl Szczarba 203-996-8328.

196 CROWN ST #209, DOWNTOWN, NEW HAVEN - Spacious renovated loft style condo w/huge LR w/laminate wood floors, exposed brick walls, high ceilings & nice natural light.

Renovated KIT w/new appliances, countertops & stylish backsplash. 3 spacious BRs w/good closet space. Great for investment or owner occupied. $199,900.

Call Jack Hill 203-675-3942.

200 RIVER ROAD, HAMDEN - Location, location! Along Sleeping Giant and the Mill River you’ll enjoy the privacy this home has to offer. Mature gardens, 3 car garage, barn w/ loft and more! Add your own upgrades to make this home your private oasis! Additional lot included. $429,000.

Call Cheryl Szczarba 203-996-8328.

95 AUDUBON STREET #221, NH - In the heart of New Haven, this NYC style 2 bedroom/2 bath offers one level living. Elevator access to garage. 24 hour security. HW flrs.

Gourmet kitchen. Updated baths w/walk in showers. You’ll love living in New Haven! $539,900. Call Cheryl Szczarba 203-996-8328.

7A HUGHES PLACE, WOOSTER SQ, NH Nicely maintained 2 BR townhouse condo on quiet street in Wooster Square. Hardwood flrs. Laundry. Parking. Central air. You’ll love the convenience to everything New Haven!

Offered at $299,500. Call Cheryl Szczarba 203-996-8328

556 CHAPEL ST #1, WOOSTER SQ, NH – Overlook Wooster Square park in this 2 level fabulously renovated 1400 sq. ft. condo. Terra cotta and HW floors, 1.5 BTHs. A gardener’s delight w/beautiful rosebushes, patio & paths in your private yard. Offered at $349,900. Call Cheryl Szczarba 203-996-8328.

319 SAINT JOHN ST, WOOSTER SQ, NH – Charming multifamily on beautiful tree-lined street. 2 story top flrs have remodeled KIT, formal LR&DR, huge MBR suite, 2nd BR & remodeled full BTH w/marble. 1st fl apt has great 4 room layout. Storage in basement.

Landscaped back yard w/huge deck. $374,500.

Call Jack Hill 203-675-3942.

1204 WHITNEY AVE #114, HAMDEN – First flr, 1 BR condo at Whitney Commons, near NH line. Set back from street affording privacy and a quiet setting. LR/DR w/pergo wood flrs. A/C. W/D in unit. Patio w/rear private entrance.

On bus line. Cash only transaction. $89,000.

Call Barbara Hill 203-675-3216.

Happy Holidays!

5 PAWSON TRAIL, PAWSON PARK, BRANFORD -Completely gutted waterfront house with 180 degree views awaiting new owner to rehab or tear down and build their dream home! Zoning & CAM approval. Zoning approval allows 80 percent lot coverage for rebuild. Beach and mooring rights with low yearly association fee. $425,000.

Call Jack Hill 203-675-3942.

The dining room, tucked into a hexagonal space, provides a 89 BEACON AVE, MORRIS COVE, NH – 143 ESSEX ST, DEEP RIVER - Lovely 2.05 acre 832 QUINNIPIAC AVE, NH –view Completely commanding of renoFabulous open floor plan, exposed brick FP & lot overlooking Pratt Cove w/stunning views of vated 2392 sq ft Colonial w/sweeping views of renovated KIT in this 2 BR, 1.5 BTH Morris Cove the marsh & tidal wetlands. Part of an approved the Quinnipiac River.the Openoutdoors. floor plan includes Cape! Spacious rooms, fantastic slate patio, newer roof, 1 car garage, located just minutes from downtown New Haven, parks and local beaches! $184,900. Call Jennifer D’Amato 203-605-7865.

5 lot subdivision w/over 30 acres of non-buildable conservation land & access to the CT River.

The perfect quiet, secluded setting to build your dream home and watch the egrets and ospreys fly to and from their nests. $250,000. Call Sara Schlachter 860-514-0147.

gourmet KIT w/new SS appls, custom cabinets & FP & formal LR w/FP. Den w/sliders out to deck. Huge MBR suite w/ amazing bath & loft. $309,000. Call Jack Hill 203-675-3942.

124 COURT ST #1210, DOWNTOWN, NH Renovated 12th fl penthouse condo w/glorious light & views. KIT w/granite countertops & new cabinets. 2nd level w/MBR & 2nd BR w/good closet space. Remodeled tile BTH. Condo fees include heat & hot water. Building has gym, laundry facilities & storage. $164,400. Call Jack Hill 203-675-3942.

324 SAINT JOHN ST #4, WOOSTER SQ, NH - Updated 2 BR condo w/HW fls, private outdoor deck, gas FP & parking. Newer appliances, W/D, wireless alarm system, furnace & hot water heater ensure you can move right in and enjoy –urban living. $310,000. Call Cheryl Szczarba 203-996-8328.

86 AUTUMN ST, NH – Custom built in 2000, the home has cherry wood floors, high ceilings, exposed wood beams & natural light. Spectacular Kit. w/ vaulted ceilings, 6 top gas burner & Sub Zero fridge. MBR suite w/open BTH w/huge marble & glass enclosed shower & sep. soaking tub. The 2nd fl has 2 more BRs w/1 remodeled BTH. Spacious flat backyard w/lge. patio perfect for entertaining. 2 car garage w/breezeway. $1,095,000. Call Jack Hill 203-675-3942.

81 CHURCH ST #2S, DOWNTOWN, NH – Fantastic loft w/open living concept. Original HW flrs, 12 ft high ceilings, huge windows, amazing light. Modern kitchen, large BR area w/divider, renovated tile BTH w/Jacuzzi, extra room for home office. Private elevator to unit. $349,000. Call Jack Hill 203-675-3942.

149 NICOLL ST, NH – East Rock legal 3 family w/bonus storefront & 3rd floorrenovated owners unit. Large MBR w WIC & newtileBTHw/ Jacuzzitub. The 2nd fl has 5 rooms, 2 BRs & 1 BTH w/ original HW flrs & great light. The 2nd fl has a 4 room apt w/large EIK. The home has newer vinyl siding & replacement windows.

All separate furnaces and electrical. $459,900.

Call Jack Hill 203-675-3942.

RESIDENTIAL SALES

15 PAWSON RD, BRANFORD - Linden Shores. 5 BR/2 BTH wood shingle 1920’s Cape w/access to 3 private beaches. Charming LR w/stone FP. Screened in porch leads to deck, hot tub & yard. $498,000. Call Cheryl Szczarba 203-996-8328.

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RESIDENTIAL SALES RESIDENTIAL SALES INVESTMENT PROPERTIES INVESTMENT PROPERTIES INVESTMENT PROPERTIES BARBARA HILL, BROKER 203-675-3216 JENNIFER D’AMATO 203-605-7865 SARAH BETH LUCE-DEL PRETE 203-887-2295 BUYER REPRESENTATION BUYER REPRESENTATION BUYER ROSEANN REPRESENTATION JACK HILL 203-675-3942 DAVID ROSSI 203-314-7905 IUVONE 203-710-3135 CATHY HILL CONLIN 203-843-1561 JASON FREDRICKSEN 203-215-8735 RENTALS SARA SCHLACHTER 860-514-0147 RENTALS RENTALS CHERYL SZCZARBA 203-996-8328

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BIBL IO F I LES W ORDS o f MOUTH

the Tiffany family of Tiffany and Co., as well as the whole of the millionaire’s network of Norwich. Juicy tidbits were everywhere.

In the mid-1800s, Norwich was the place to live for many. It wasn’t a big city, but more like a little Newport, there’s a harbor and the

F Ê TES IN STYL E O U TDOO RS B O DY & S OU L O NSCREE N

Norwich stalwart John Slater

Norwich In The Gilded Age The Rose City’s Millionaires’ Triangle

BY RACHEL BERGMAN

W

30 December 2015

hen Patricia Staley of Norwich retired, she was looking for a project to sink her teeth into and turned to the J.F. Slater Memorial Museum, part of the Norwich Free Academy, to see what she could do.The director of the museum asked Staley to research the history of Ellen Slater, maiden name Ellen Peck around 1880. Staley began looking for Ellen, who lived at 11 Lincoln Avenue, Staley’s home. She began cross-referencing census data with maps, finding connections between Slater and

confluence of 3 rivers. Water power ran the factories, transportation was accessible, and Norwich was halfway between New York City and Boston. A train from Boston to a steamboat in Norwich, and a traveler could be in New York overnight, the fastest trip possible, and so anybody who was anybody came through Norwich. 32 mansions still exist as a testament to the Rose City’s importance during that era.

For context, Staley describes the city by saying “it would be as if the Vice President of the United States, the Governor of Connecticut, the Federal Reserve chair, and corporate heads of Pfizer, Nike, Amtrak and then a whole bunch of regional corporations all lived in the same place – and that was Norwich in the second half of the 19th century. Presidents came through and visited residents, these guys made the papers regularly nationwide.”

Staley researched a cast of characters, their private settings around town, and the dramatic

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twists and turns of their lives for her book Norwich In The Guilded Age. One salacious tale involved James Detrafford Blackstone (1846-1848),Traff, who defied his family after going off to New York and came home with a bride—an actress, no less.The couple had a child, but the relationship didn’t last and they were divorced. On a visitBlue, to her son, the Judge settling Newex-Mrs. Haven’s past Blackstone kidnapped the baby and it was almost six months before the the original once, after he finished Blackstone baby was recovered and the book. brought back to Norwich.

To Judge Blue, the book is largely It helped that Traff’s ex-wife moved about judging. Sitting judges are on with someone new, an attractive not allowed to talk about cases, wealthy cotton broker named but these are well over 400 years Sondheim, for whom she converted old, everyone involved is dead— to Judaism. Content with her new and the Judge admits to that he’sto husband, she headed Paris seen enough on the bench study, but shortly thereafter to left

be shocked by little, but the title case was a bit shocking, as well as the treatment of children of that era.There was no slavery in Connecticut, but cases involving child apprentices and servants were fairly close.

Sondheim as well—but not before In JudgeinBlue’s view, thereheare two cashing on some jewels had important things for the modern gifted her. reader to absorb: 1) There are a Fifteen years later,Traff’s ex-wife tremendously wide variety of cases was still making the tabloids as that judges must undertake— her son, the once-kidnapped then, and now. 2) Put away any Blackstone baby was grown and lifeclever in thelad aromantic student atview Yale.of The American colonies.

Life hard, brokered a reconciliation was between those without power were brutally his parents, but this time headlines treated and it best in described theHobbes story assaid a “fairytale” Leviathan that “Life in the State of ending.

Natures if nasty, poor, brutish and Staley’s second book details the short.”

Civil War soldiers of the region, and Theoften-forgotten Case of the Piglet’s Paternity the contributions towas thepublished war effortsbyofWesleyan the town’s University andher is available women.

YouPress can find talking in bookstores now.and Nothe new projects about the books history ofare Norwich on one offor the manyBlue, on the horizon Judge walking tours of thebusy city’swith historic who remains very his homes.

She knows all the secrets! “day” job.

new haven symphony orchestra

yale institute of sacred music presents

Brothers in Arts william boughton, music director

Maurice Duruflé: The Complete Organ Works Eric Wm. Suter, organ

sunday, january 31 · 7:30 pm Woolsey Hall 500 College St., New Haven Great Organ Music at Yale

Thursday, November 12 7:30pm Shubert Theater Eliza Griswold, poet and journalist

BRUBECK/ Author of The Tenth Parallel, the Beggar NHSO 2015I Am Artist-in-Residence SAINT-JAMES Brothers in ArtsandChris of the World moreBrubeck returns for Brothers COPLAND Quiet City thursday, february 4 · 5:30 pm musical in Arts, a WWII-inspired journey featuring jazz, classical, Whitney Humanities Center William Boughton, conductor cabaret vocals, and more. This 53 Wall St., New Haven Chris Brubeck, trombone event will celebrate Yale Literature & special Spirituality Series; Elliott Forrest, visuals Veterans Day with music honoring Poynter Fellow in Journalism

the accomplishments and bravery of the uniformed services.

Both events are free; no tickets required. ism.yale.edu

203.562.5666 | NewHavenSymphony.org

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Visiting Opportunities

rs Admissions Cof fee and Campus Tou Thursday, Dec. 10 / 9-10:30 a.m. . School 14 / 9-10:30 a.m Jan. Country Hamden Hall Day Thursday, Educating students in PreSchool through Grade 12.

Educating students in PreSchool through Grade 12 1108 Whitney Ave. Hamden, Ct. 203.752.2610 www.hamdenhall.org 1108 Whitney Ave. Hamden, CT 203.752.2610 hamdenhall.org Transportation available.

Transportation available new haven 31 new haven

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In Abbie’s series, “My Parents”, the oil painting, “Gaze” celebrates and captures Kiki and Howard’s lightness, humor and spirit alongside something ephemeral, indescribable and deeply moving—the sense of two human souls entwined eternally

Abbie Rabinowitz: Art is Life Photos and Story By Lesley Roy

A

bbie Rabinowitz was born in New Haven and grew up in a rambling stone house in the Bethany, Connecticut woods; surrounded by water supply reservoirs, pine forests, endless nature trails, wildlife, and perhaps most importantly…art.

Fine art painting is more than a way of life for this spiritual artist, deeply rooted in family, relationship, place and story telling—art is life.

Abbie Rabinowitz, the 59 year old middle child, fondly remembers every room in the home filled to the brim with children learning art,“the first Creative Arts Workshop classes were taught in this house,” modestly explaining,“there were classes in every room and I’ve been surrounded by art and creative structure since my earliest memories—Mom had a pinch class and ceramics and sculpture —we even had a potter’s wheel in the house. I just remember a lot of kids in some manner of artmaking activity every weekend.”

32 December 2015

The labyrinthine Bethany home, built and modified extensively by her parents, Kiki and Harold Rabinowitz, served as one giant artist studio, the eclectic structure grew organically with the family, expanded room by room, studio by studio to accommodate their six children and their growing passion for the arts.

As the founders of Creative Arts Workshop in New Haven, Kiki and Harold Rabinowitz immersed themselves, their children and countless others in various forms of artistic

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expression; sculpting, painting, collaging, and all around…creating.

relationships that are the most important to me— and the art that comes out of it.”

Abbie eagerly participated as a young student at home and then later when her parents taught classes in the basement of the John Slade Ely House; years before Creative Arts Workshop moved to their current location on Audubon Street. Recalling that her first nude figure was drawn in her father’s figure drawing class at Slade Ely House,“it was interesting — I got to listen to his instruction to others, as well as to myself…he was a very good art teacher and I always respected his opinion and his valuable critiques.” Fondly remembering her recently deceased father,“even at the age of 90, he had very wise and insightful critiques, comments and suggestions, even on the series I was painting of my parents.”

Reconnecting to her childhood home, Abbey discovered “it’s about grounding, but ultimately it’s about giving back to my parents. For the last several years, life has been about living at home with my parents again, after 30 years away— but this return to live and care for my elderly parents was really coming home.”

During this precious transformative time, Abbie attended Western Connecticut State University and received her MFA in fine art. That’s where the thesis series,“My Parents” was started— when she began taking pictures of her parents and then painting her mom and dad from the photographs. “It wasn’t until the second year that it really developed,”Abbie laughs,“I came in as a landscape painter and thought I’d be working on that.”

After graduating high school, Abbie received a BFA from SUNY Purchase College, graduating in 1979— moved to San Francisco in 1981, and from there, traveled back and forth to Europe to see art and experience the world. The young budding artist lived in Cassis, France for a year, and traveled extensively, painting and selling her works of art,“I made a great living for that year doing cafe scenes and caricatures all around the South of France, but I missed California, so I went back.”

Abbie smiles warmly,“I was drawn to the Bay Area—I was going to go for a year, but I stayed for 30.”

Visiting back home often and staying connected to her family was always important. At one point, she thought about moving back east, but it wasn’t until her aging parents needed her help that she made the journey back to her Bethany roots several years ago and began painting the series,“My Parents.”

It’s with one lasting nod and a deep fondness of memory that Abby recalls her wildly freespirited past while living in San Francisco and pursuing her art: “I had a great career in computer graphics, waitressing, I joined a hippie commune in the Haight Ashbury, lived on a houseboat in Sausalito, spent 3 years as a resident artist at “The Tannery” in Santa Cruz, in 1984, attended SF State in a new class: conceptual and computer graphics design, in 1995 took classes and became a massage therapist in shiatsu all the while painting. I did wood carvings, tantric-based images, and erotic art. I think it’s been a thread running throughout my life—human intimacy and sensuality.”

For Abbie Rabinowitz, life is and art is undoubtedly about relationships,“it can be about travel or location, but it’s really

Abbie truly loves painting and teaching art classes in her light filled studio, after returning to her childhood home nestled in the tranquil woods of Bethany.

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moments of embrace and passion, service and devotion, as her parents are looked after by caregivers and family 24/7.

The simple act of shaving is now a task for another to attend to and the extraordinary care, in painting this act, is stroke by stroke, applied with equal care and attendance to the canvas. Tubes of oil paint are the pigment and linseed oil the medium, but love is the true binder.

To portray her beloved parents and celebrate the final chapter of life in this way is a brave endeavor. To cherish lives, with such joy, honor and devotion to manifest the “My Parents” series, pays great homage to their profound creative legacy.

Abbie is ready for life’s next chapters to unfold, “I want to teach more art classes out of my home studio in Bethany and enjoy traveling to teach in private studio locations. I’m also excited to start to work with children and inspire young minds through art.”

Taking commissions for murals and other custom painting projects is equally thrilling, but Abbie beams with wonder at the possibility of organizing “Eco-friendly Painting Trips.”

Dear friends in Brazil purchased a nature reserve and are dedicating their lives to re-growing the forest habitat. Abbie lights up as she talks about planning a 2016 trip next summer— in which those who sign up to join her will have the opportunity to capture on canvas the harmony being recreated through the connection with nature and the practice of sustainable, organic agriculture at Reserva do Sauá.

Ironwood Tree on Puna Coast (Hawaii) Having traveled extensively Abbie expresses, “building communication bridges through art…as I draw and paint an area, is a way of understanding a place. Its a way to connect with that place and the people.”

“My Parents”, is a series of paintings still in progress. Resonating alongside Kiki and Howard’s lightness, humor and spirit is something else…something ephemeral, indescribable and deeply moving—the sense of two human souls entwined eternally.

34 December 2015

The timeless intimacy of touch captured in the “My Parents” series is tangible, and alive with color and vibrancy. Abbie smiles warmly,“My dad was on his death bed and my mom was talking to him in his dream state and that’s the final painting in the series.”

Perhaps more paintings of Kiki will spark another series, but in

the meantime, Abbie is filled with kindness, compassion and wisdom as she declares,“I think art should be closely related to what your life bridges is about—I really do believe that.”

Abbie Rabinowitz calls on her abundant life-time of painterly experience to capture the intimate

Abbie explains,“building communication bridges through art…as I draw and paint an area, is a way of understanding a place. It’s a way to connect with that place and the people.”

For Abbie, Art Is Life — she studies and paints as a way of understanding her own nature and the deeper connection to the world around her. www.abbiesart.com NEWHAVENMAGAZINE.COM

Taking commissions for murals and other custom painting projects is thrilling, but Abbie beams with wonder at the possibility of organizing “Eco-friendly Painting Trips”, where those who sign up to join her, will have the opportunity to capture on canvas the harmony being created through reforesting and the connection with nature through the practice of sustainable, organic agriculture at Reserva do Sauá in Brazil.

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CALENDAR Belles Lettres

Family Events

Norman Weissman, “The Prodigy” A young runaway violinist whose sojourn across America pits youthful innocence against the vagaries of people, regions, and beliefs in a bygone era before the second World War. This is an allegory, a secular Pilgrim’s Progress that pays subtle homage to Mark Twain and John Steinbeck and reveals unexpected truths from encounters with improbable characters and events that will keep you guessing about who is being parodied. 7p.m Dec.8 at R.J. Julia Booksellers, 768 Boston Post Rd., Madison. Free. 203-245-3959, rjjulia.com

Family Fun Day holiday themed arts & crafts, face painting, holiday film shorts, snacks and refreshments and be sure to bring your camera for a picture with Santa Claus. 10a.m.-2p.m. Dec.12 at the Shubert Theatre, 247 College St., New Haven. Free. 203624-1825, Shubert.com.

Winter Wonderland Family Fun Day A variety of holiday-themed activities throughout the afternoon including framed photos with Santa and Mrs. Claus, ice skating, cupcake decorating, holiday craft stations, hot chocolate and sweet treats and access to our Macy’s Mailbox, where children can write a letter to Santa to benefit the Make-A-Wish Foundation. 11:30a.m.-4:30p.m. Dec.12 at the Palace Theater, 100 East Main St., Waterbury. $12. 203-3462000, palacetheaterct.org.

Cinemas Beware of Mr. Baker This documentary about Ginger Baker, drummer for Cream and Blind Faith, includes interviews with Eric Clapton, Steve Winwood, Carlos Santana and more. 7p.m. Dec.16 at the Bijou Theatre, 275 Fairfield Ave., Bridgeport. $15.

203-332-3228, thebijoutheatre.com.

Reel Law: In Cold Blood In this adaptation of Truman Capote’s seminal true-crime novel, exconvicts Perry Smith (Robert Blake) and Richard “Dick” Hickock (Scott Wilson) hatch a plan to rob a wealthy Kansas family, the Clutters. The men enter the Clutter home expecting to find a safe filled with cash, but in fact find no money at all. Enraged, they kill the entire family and flee. While on the run, they face not only the realities of their terrible crime but also their own earthly impermanence. 7p.m. Jan.14 at the Bijou Theatre, 275 Fairfield Ave., Bridgeport. $12.

203-332-3228, thebijoutheatre.com.

Met Encore: Magic Flute The groundbreaking broadcast that launched the Met’s award-winning Live in HD series to movie theaters in 2006, The Magic Flute enchanted opera lovers from around the world with the whimsical humor and breathtaking puppetry of Julie Taymor’s hit production, presented in a shortened English-language version. 12:55 p.m.

Dec.12 at The Kate, 300 Main St., Old Saybrook. $20.

860-510-0473, katharinehepburntheater.org.

Kate Classic: One Christmas Katharine Hepburn joins Henry Winkler, T.J. Lowther, Swoosie Kurtz, and Julie Harris in this 1994 made for television holiday movie adapted from a Truman Capote short story. 2 & 7p.m. Dec.15 at The Kate, 300 Main St., Old Saybrook. $8. 860-510-0473, katharinehepburntheater.org.

Bolshoi Ballet in HD: Nutcracker On Christmas Eve, Marie is given a wooden nutcracker as a gift.

When the clock strikes midnight, the Nutcracker transforms into a prince and saves Marie from the Mouse King and his army. 12:55p.m. Dec.19 at The Kate, 300 Main St., Old Saybrook. $15. 860-510-0473, katharinehepburntheater.org.

36 December 2015

Choose Yoga to hep you deal with the stress of the holdiays.

Comedy First Night of Funny showcases four nationally headlining comedians with four unique and hilarious perspectives on the world—with talent from Comedy Central, NBC’s Last Comic Standing & The Tonight Show. 8-10p.m. Dec.31 at Shubert Theatre, 247 College St., New Haven. $25-$40. 203-624-1825, Shubert.com.

Earl Reed and Justin McClure 9p.m. Dec.26 at Bistro B, 1595 Post Road East, Westport. $20. 203-268-5857, treehousecomedy.com.

Jim David, Louis Ramey and Peaches Rodriguez 10p.m. Dec.31 at Bistro B, 1595 Post Road East, Westport.

Pricing TBA. 203-268-5857, treehousecomedy.com.

Nick DiPaolo with Brian Bargainer and John Romanoff 9 p.m. Jan.23 at Sports Haven, 600 Long Wharf Dr., New Haven. $25-$30. 203-268-5857, treehousecomedy.com.

Andy Milonakis An American actor, writer, rapper, and comedian of Greek descent best known for creating and starring in The Andy Milonakis Show on MTV and MTV2. Milonakis was born with a congenital growth-hormone condition that gives him the outward appearance and voice of an adolescent, and used comedy as a means to cope with incessant bullying. 7p.m. Dec.19 at The Space, 295 Treadwell St., Hamden. $15-$20. 203-288-6400, thespacect.com.

Rock the Rink Guests will have the opportunity to skate on the stage and will receive complimentary skate rentals (or you can bring your own), or can spend the night singing along to your favorite pop and holiday hits. Come dressed in your ugliest holiday sweater and be entered to win a pair of tickets to one of the upcoming shows. 6-9p.m. Dec.12 at the Palace Theater, 100 East Main St., Waterbury. $25$30. 203-346-2000, palacetheaterct.org.

Ivoryton Illuminations visit the village of Ivoryton throughout the month of December to shop, eat and view the spectacular Illuminations. Tune your radio to 101.5FM to watch the lights dance to holiday music and watch the light up event and the arrival of Santa Claus. 5-8p.m. Dec.5 at Main Street, Ivoryton.

Free. 860-767-9520, ivorytonplayhouse.org.

Mind, Body, Soul Early Risers Open your body, mind and soul to the world around you, doing sun salutations along with the rising sun. Getting up and moving can help increase circulation, help you find balance both physically and mentally, all levels welcome.

6:30-7:30a.m. Dec.15-18 at Balanced Yoga Studio, 1079 Whalley Ave., New Haven. Drop-ins are $18 regular, and $15 for students. 203-980-1356, balancedyoga.us. For a full list of Early Risers classes go to their website.

BY Power This is a challenging, vigorous flow integrating breath and movement. You will work your body, building endurance and strength. All levels welcome with modifications for new students.

9-10a.m. Dec.14-18 at Balanced Yoga Studio, 1079 Whalley Ave., New Haven. Drop-ins are $18 regular, and $15 for students. 203-980-1356, balancedyoga.us. For a full list of BY Power classes go to their website.

New Moon Gong After preparing for an extended deep relaxation with stimulating Kundalini yoga, lay on the floor (or relax in a chair), and experience therapeutic meditative gong vibrations as they wash over you. Gong vibrations can elevate awareness NEWHAVENMAGAZINE.COM

and rebalance your physical, emotional and spiritual bodies. 7-9p.m. Dec.11 at Your Community Yoga Center, 39 Putnam Ave., Hamden. $22. 203-287-2277, yourcommunityyoga.com.

Hula Hooping Learn the basics of modern hula hooping. Hooping encompasses mind, body, and soul and includes strengthening of your core and limbs, an increase in energy, improvements in cardiovascular conditioning and digestion, stress reduction and more. 1-2p.m. Dec.12 at Your Community Yoga Center, 39 Putnam Ave., Hamden. $15.

203-287-2277, yourcommityyoga.com.

Natural History Bird & Nature Walk with Andrew Dasinger 7:309a.m. Dec.11 at Audubon Center at Glastonbury, 1361 Main St., Glastonbury. 203-259-0416, ctaudubon.org.

Winter Solstice Celebration & Bonfire 7:30p.m.

Dec.21 at Audubon Center at Glastonbury, 1361 Main St., Glastonbury. 203-259-0416, ctaudubon.org.

School Vacation Movie and Outdoor Fun both outdoors and indoors, a variety of fun and unique nature-based offerings are planned for each day.

Head outside to explore nature on the trails, build an ice sculpture and learn how to make snow. Inside, meet animal friends, make Play-Doh, do crafts, and watch a movie on the big screen. For children ages 4-8. 10a.m.-2p.m. Dec.28-30 at Audubon Center at Fairfield, 2325 Burr St., Fairfield. $45/child for members, $50/child nonmembers. 203-259-0416, ctaudubon.org.

Outspokin’ Ride A casually-paced destination oriented ride, leaving each week from East Rock Coffee Shop (formerly Lulu’s). Occasional extended adventures involving train trips or overnight stays-always an adventure! 10a.m.-2p.m. Dec.6-27 and Jan.3-31 at East Rock Coffee, Cottage Street, New Haven. Free. Elmcitycycling.org.

Coffee Pedaler Ride Road ride of varying length and route. 9a.m.-12p.m. Dec.5-26 and Jan.2-30 at Coffee Pedaler, 605 East St., New Haven. Elmcitycycling.org.

Road Races Christopher Martin’s Christmas Run for Children The mission is to make Christmas a little brighter for needy children in the New Haven area by giving them not only a toy, but the message of love from friends and neighbors they have never met. Over the years, the race has given over 50,000 toys to children.

10:20a.m. Dec.13 at Christopher Martin’s Restaurant, 860 State St., New Haven. $25, registration required.

203-481-5933.

Chilly Chili Run 5K road race and brunch, benefits the Amity Teen Center, INC. 8a.m. Jan.1 at High Plains Community Center, 525 Orange Center Rd., Orange. $12-

$27, registration required. 203-481-7453, Frosty 5K 9:30a.m. Jan.1 on the Guilford Green, Whitfield St., Guilford. Donation of canned goods or $10 donation contribution for the Guilford Food Bank.

203-815-5442.

History Holiday Open Houses Tuesdays in December the Bellamy-Ferriday House will host an open house.

Each featuring a different activity: visit Santa, caroling, cookie walk & a Festival of Trees Fundraiser.

6-8p.m. Dec.1,8,15,22 & 29 at Bellamy-Ferriday House & Garden, 9 Main St., North, Bethlehem. Donations appreciated. 203-266-7596, ctlandmarks.org.

Milford Historic Homes Holiday Open House Tour fundraising/community event by the Milford Historical Preservation Trust, tour includes historic homes on the Duck Pond as well as the John Downs House and First Congregational Church. Tour begins at John Downs House, 139 North Street or First Congregational Church, 34 West Main Street. 2:005:30p.m. Dec. 12 (snow date Dec. 13) tickets at the door or in advance at www.milfordpreservationtrust.org or at 5 River Street, Milford.

Cycling Devil’s Gear Bike Shop Tuesday Night Shop Ride A road ride averaging 15-17 mph, no drop. 6-8 p.m. Dec.1-29 and Jan.5-26 at The Devil’s Gear Bike Shop, Orange Street, New Haven. Free. 203-773-9288, elmcitycycling.org.

Thursday Night Medium Pace Ride 16-18 mph pace, some hills. 5:30-7:30p.m. Dec.10-31 and Jan.7-28 at Café Romeo, Orange Street, New Haven.

Elmcitycycling.org.

New Haven Critical Mass Part of the worldwide Critical Mass movement, New Haven’s ‘Kinder and Less-Critical Mass’ is a monthly celebration of bicycling. The ride is generally slow; length may vary.

5:30-7:30p.m. Dec.25 and Jan.29 at the New Haven Green, near the flagpole. Free. Elmcitycycling.org.

Lulu Ride One of New Haven’s longest-running and best-known weekly rides. The usual route is about 60 miles, through the hills to the north of New Haven before coming back down to the shore and returning to the city from the east. There’s an option for a shorter, +/- 30 mile route as well. Training pace, generally 16-18 mph. 10a.m.-2p.m. Dec.6-27 and Jan.331 at East Rock Coffee Shop, Cottage Street, New Haven.

Free. Elmcitycycling.org.

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STAGE astonishing dancing you’ve ever seen. Jan.8-9 at the Shubert Theatre, 247 College St., New Haven. $12-$111. 203624-1825, Shubert.com.

Photo: Thomas Giroir

Once Featuring an ensemble of actor/musicians who play their own instruments onstage, Once tells the enchanting tale of a Dublin street musician who’s about to give up on his dream when a beautiful young woman takes a sudden interest in his haunting love songs. Jan. 28-31 at the Shubert Theatre, 247 College St., New Haven. $20$112. 203-624-1825, Shubert.com.

The Nutcracker New Haven Ballet’s full-length production of The Nutcracker under Artistic Director Lisa Sanborn. This family friendly classic is set to music by Tchaikovsky, masterfully played by the New Haven Ballet Orchestra as conducted by Dr. Richard Gard. Dec.18-20 at the Shubert Theatre, 247 College St., New Haven. $21-$62. 203-624-1825, Shubert.com.

Chicago A true New York City institution, Chicago has everything that makes Broadway great: a

universal tale of fame, fortune and all that jazz; one show-stoppingsong after another; and the most

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‘Twas a Girls’ Night Before Christmas: The Musical This musical is guaranteed to resonate with anyone who has survived the holiday season, from the long visits with in-laws to the overcrowded malls. ‘Twas a Girls’ Night Before Christmas will feature the touching and hilarious writing by Roche that has entertained audiences worldwide, with classic Christmas songs and contemporary hits. 7:30p.m.

Dec. 10 at The Palace Theater, 100 East Main St., Waterbury. $45. 203-346-2000, palacetheaterct.org.

Ragtime The stories of an upper-class wife, a determined Jewish immigrant

and a daring young Harlem musician unfold - set in turn-of-the-century New York - as all three are united by their desire and belief in a brighter tomorrow. Their compelling stories are set to theatre’s richest and most

glorious Tony Award winning score

by Stephen Flaherty and Lynn Ahrens.

8p.m. Jan. 22, 2 & 8 p.m. Jan. 23 at The Palace Theater, 100 East Main St., Waterbury. $50-$65. 203-346-2000, palacetheaterct.org.

Woodbury Ballet’s Nutcracker at the Palace 2015 A holiday tradition where sugar plums dance, flowers waltz and snowflakes leap across the

Call or email for more information 203-781-3480 support@conntact.com

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I’ll be Home for Christmas Dec.10-20 at the Ivoryton Playhouse, 103 Main St., Ivoryton. $15-$32. 860-7677318, ivorytonplayhouse.org.

One Flew over the Cuckoo’s Nest Jan.29-Feb.7 at the Ivoryton Playhouse, 103 Main St., Ivoryton. $18-$28.

860-767-7318, ivorytonplayhouse.org.

Fiddler on the Roof A musical about Tevye, the father of five daughters, and his attempts to maintain his Jewish religious and cultural traditions, as outside influences encroach upon the family’s lives. He must cope both with the strong-willed actions of his three older daughters, who wish to marry for love, as each one’s choice of a husband moves further away from the customs of his faith.

Dec.4-20 at Downtown Cabaret Theatre, 263 Golden Hill St., Bridgeport. $28. 203-576-1636, dtcab.com.

Measure for Measure New York’s Fiasco Theater sheds new light on one of Shakespeare’s darkest comedies with live music. Nov.25-Dec.20 at Long Wharf Theatre, 222 Sargent Dr., New Haven. $60.50.

203-787-4282, longwharf.org.

Sister’s Christmas Catechism: The Mystery of the Magi’s Gold It’s CSI: Bethlehem in this holiday mystery extravaganza, by the author of the Late Nite Catechism series, as Sister takes on the mystery that has intrigued historians throughout the ages - whatever happened to the Magi’s gold? Dec.8-20 at Long Wharf Theatre, 222 Sargent Dr., New Haven. $39.50. 203-787-4283, longwharf.org. stage weaving a splendid tale of a little girl’s dream of first love. The majesty of Tchaikovsky’s music combines with a talented cast to make Woodbury Ballet’s Annual Nutcracker a treat for all. 4p.m. Dec. 19 at The Palace Theater, 100 East Main St., Waterbury. $28-$48. 203-346-2000, palacetheaterct.org.

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The Lion A wholly original musical experience of one man’s gripping coming-of-age story. The award-winning songwriter inspires and disarms with his raw wit and emotional depth as he leads you on his heartfelt journey to manhood, discovering redemption through the power of music. Jan.6-Feb.7 at Long Wharf Theatre, 222 Sargent Dr., New Haven. $30.50-$65.50. 203-787-4283, longwharf.org.

Peerless In an ordinary Midwestern high school, twin sisters M and L are competitive with every one— except each other. When the failsafe combination of perfect academics, killer extracurriculars, and calculated self-identification fails to impress The College’s early-decision admissions board, they hatch a sinister Plan B to secure their future. Written

by Jiehae Park. Nov.27-Dec. 19 at Yale Repertory Theatre, 222 York St., New Haven. $20. 203-432-1234, yalerep.org.

The Moors The bleak moors of England. The bleakest. Two spinster sisters—one desperately unhappy, the other resolutely miserable—live with their elder brother and their mastiff in a gloomy, old mansion. When a governess is summoned to their isolated home, teeming with secrets and desires, what price might they pay for love? Inspired by certain 19th-century gothic romances, and the sisters who wrote them, Jen Silverman’s The Moors courses with a distinctly contemporary, darkly comic sensibility. Jan.29-Feb.20 at Yale Repertory Theatre, 222 York St., New Haven. $86. 203-432-1234, yalerep. org.

A Christmas Carol 7p.m. Dec.10 at The Palace Theatre, 61 Atlantic St., Stamford. $30-$60. 203-325-4466, palacestamford.org.

Connecticut Ballet Presents The Nutcracker 2 & 6p.m. Dec. 19, 1 & 5p.m. Dec.20 at The Palace Theatre, 61 Atlantic St., Stamford. $40-$75. 203-325-4466, palacestamford.org.

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ART Opening Annual Holiday Show Dec.10-Jan.31 at Susan Powell Fine Art, 679 Boston Post Rd., Madison. Open 11a.m.5p.m. Wed.-Sat. 203-318-0616, susanpowellfineart.com.

24 Annual Associate Artist Exhibition & Wonders of Winter Landscape, portrait, and still life paintings, as well as sculpture by Associate Artist members.

Jan.22-Feb.26 at Lyme Art Association, 90 Lyme St., Old Lyme. Open 12-5p.m. Wed.-Sun. 860-434-7802, lymeartassocation.org.

Meant to Be Shared: Selections from the Arthur Ross Collection of European Prints Beginning in the late 1970s, philanthropist Arthur Ross avidly collected works of art by some of the most renowned printmakers of the last several centuries.

Amassed by Ross for his eponymous foundation, the Arthur Ross Collection eventually came to comprise more than 1,200 17th- to 20th-century Italian, Spanish, and French prints of exceptional quality.

Dec.18-April 24 at Yale University Art Gallery, 1111 Chapel St., New Haven. Open 10a.m.-5p.m. Tues., Wed., Fri., Sat., 10a.m.-8p.m. Thurs., 1-6p.m. Sun. 203-4320600, artgallery.yale.edu.

New Geometry A selection of works by artists Blinn Jacobs, Will Lustenader, Don Voisine, Celia Johnson, Power Boothe, Robert Storr, Gary Stephan, and Anoka Farugee in an exhibition titled, “New Geometry”. Jan.9-Feb.20 at Fred Giampietro Gallery, 1064 Chapel St., New Haven. 203-777-7760, giampietrogallery.com.

Ongoing Envisioning the Future Featuring artifacts that belonged to P.T. Barnum, Tom Thumb and others.

Open for viewing and touring 11a.m.-3p.m. Thurs. & Fri. Year round at The Barnum Museum, 820 Main St., Bridgeport. Exhibit is located in the People’s United Bank Gallery behind the Museum. 203-331-1104, barnum-museum.org.

Ivory Alive Leonor Fini and 10 other artists featured.

Through Jan.1 at Faust Harrison Pianos, 322 Black Rock Turnpike, Fairfield. Open 10a.m.-6p.m. Tues.Sat.860-581-8332, sixsummitgallery.com.

An American Place: The Art Colony at Old Lyme The Old Lyme art colony attracted many leading artists in the early 20th century – Henry Ward Ranger, Childe Hassam, and Willard Metcalf among them – who were in the vanguard of the Tonalist and Impressionist movements. Ongoing at Florence Griswold Museum, second floor, 96 Lyme St., Old Lyme.

Open 10a.m.-5p.m. Tues.-Sat., 1p.m.-5p.m. Sun. $8-$10.

860-434-5542, florencegriswoldmuseum.org.

The Ceramic Presence in Modern Art: Selections from the Linda Leonard Schlenger Collection and the Yale University Art Gallery This exhibition 40 December 2015

Holiday Decorating A lineup of trees that will grace the New Britain Museum of American Art lobby and galleries. The lobby will feature a 14-foot tree inspired by a newer gallery, The Gilded Age. Miniature trees are scattered throughout the building, including the inspirations of the Hudson River School, American Impressionism, and Contemporary works. The second floor will feature the Kwanzaa Tree, decorated with handmade ornaments by artist and docent Loretta Eason. Dec.5-Jan.31 at New Britain features over 80 objects from the Schlenger collection by leading 20th-century ceramicists– including John Mason, Jim Melchert, Kenneth Price, Lucie Rie, and Peter Voulkos–alongside works in other media from the Yale University Art Gallery’s permanent collection by artists such as Hans Hofmann, Willem de Kooning, Isamu Noguchi, Mark Rothko, and Edward Ruscha. Sept.4-Jan.3 at Yale University Art Gallery, 1111 Chapel St., New Haven. Open 10a.m.-5p.m. Tues., Wed., Fri., Sat., 10a.m.-8p.m. Thurs., 1-6p.m. Sun. 203-432-0600, artgallery.yale.edu.

All Time Favorites of the Low Illustration Collection Action and adventure, love and romance, humor and cartoons, all will be found in this exhibition of the “best of the best” illustration art. Works by the leading illustrators like Stevan Dohanos, James Montgomery Flagg, J.C. Leyendecker, Howard Pyle, and Norman Rockwell.

Through Feb.21 at New Britain Museum of American Art., 56 Lexington St., New Britain. Open 11a.m.-5p.m.

Mon-Wed., Fri., 11a.m.-8p.m. Thurs., 10a.m.-5p.m. Sat., noon-5p.m. Sun. $10-$15. 860-229-0257, nbmaa.org.

Art Today: 2000-Present Through Dec.13 at New Britain Museum of American Art, 56 Lexington St., New Britain. Open 11a.m.-5p.m. Mon.-Wed., Fri., 11a.m.8p.m. Thurs., 10a.m.-5p.m. Sat., noon-5p.m. Sun. $10$15. 860-229-0257, nbmaa.org.

The Nation’s Greatest Hits: 100 Years of New Haven’s Shubert Theatre One of the Elm City’s most celebrated cultural institutions, the Shubert Theatre has been a performing arts center presenting plays, musicals, opera, dance, classical music recitals and concerts, vaudeville, jazz artists, big bands, burlesque, and a variety of solo performances since 1914. This exhibition spotlights both the fully polished and the merely promising stars, composers, playwrights, and others who brought glamour, drama, music, and laughter to the Shubert Theatre, and New Haven, for an entire century. Through Feb.27 at New Haven Museum, 114 Whitney Ave., New Haven.

Open 10a.m.-5p.m. Tues.-Fri., noon-5p.m. Sat. 203-5624183, newhavemuseum.org.

New Media: Julie Orser Inaugurating the new, larger New Media & Digital Art space in the McKernan Gallery will be Los Angeles-based contemporary video artist Julie Orser, who will screen Always Green, Ever-Living. Through Jan.3 at New Britain Museum of American Art, 56 Lexington St., New Britain. Open 11a.m.-5p.m. Mon.-Wed., Fri., 11a.m.8p.m. Thurs., 10a.m.-5p.m. Sat., noon-5p.m. Sun. $10$15. 860-229-0257, nbmaa.org.

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All Paintings Great and Small Through Jan.9 at the Cooley Gallery, 25 Lyme St., Old Lyme. Open 10a.m.-5p.m. Tues.-Sat., 1-4p.m. Sun. 860-434-8807, cooleygallery.com.

of American Art, 56 Lexington St., New Britain. Open 11a.m.-5p.m. Mon.-Wed., Fri., 11a.m.-8p.m. Thurs., 10a.m.-5p.m. Sat., noon-5p.m. Sun. $10-$15. 860-2290257, nbmaa.org.

Deck the Walls This annual holiday show and sale features over 200 works of art in all sizes and mediums by member artists. Through Jan.8 at Lyme Art Association, 90 Lyme St., Old Lyme. Open 12-5p.m.

Wed.-Sun. 860-434-7802, lymeartassocation.org.

The Shakers: Focus On: Enfield, Connecticut The Shakers have had a vital connection to Connecticut.

On her first missionary trip in 1781, Mother Ann Lee, the Shakers’ spiritual leader, made an early stop in the town of Enfield, home of the Meacham family.

Joseph Meacham soon became the first Americanborn leader of the sect. From its establishment here in 1792 to its closure in 1917, the Enfield community was among Mother’s most powerful legacies, and an appropriate focus for the inaugural Shaker exhibition.

The exhibition features many rare and authentic items from that community—furniture, small crafts, textiles, and works on paper. Through Nov.20 at New Britain Museum of American Art, 56 Lexington St., New Britain. Open 11a.m.-5p.m. Mon.-Wed., Fri., 11a.m.-8p.m.

Thurs., 10a.m.-5p.m. Sat., noon-5p.m. Sun. $10-$15. 860229-0257, nbmaa.org.

The Artist in the Connecticut Landscape This exhibition uses a digital twist to highlight Connecticut’s role in shaping the history of American landscape painting over the past two centuries.

Through Jan.31 at Florence Griswold Museum, 96 Lyme St., Old Lyme. Open 10a.m.-5p.m. Tues.Sat., 1p.m.-5p.m. Sun. $8-$10. 860-434-5542, florencegriswoldmuseum.org.

Director’s Favorites: 1999-2015 The inaugural exhibition will highlight some of the many works acquired during Director Douglas K.S. Hyland’s tenure at the NBMAA. Over the last 16 years, Hyland has overseen the Museum’s acquisition of over 6,000 objects, growing the collection from 4,500 to over 14,000 works that span all periods and media including paintings, sculptures, photographs, and illustrations. Through Jan.3 at New Britain Museum

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Let There be Light: A Holiday Show Nov.20-Jan.10 at Spectrum Art Gallery, 61 Main St., Centerbrook. Open 11a.m.-6p.m. Wed.-Fri., 11:30a.m.-6p.m. Sat., 11:30a.m.5p.m. Sun. 860-767-0742, spectrumgallery.org.

Holiday Exhibition Through Jan.2 at Fred Giampietro Gallery, 1064 Chapel St., New Haven. 203-777-7760, giampietrogallery.com.

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MUSIC Lez Zeppelin with Clueless These four female rockers not only possess the reverence of The Mighty Zep, but the raw talent required to pull off an impeccable tribute. 8p.m. Dec.12 at the Fairfield Theatre. 70 Sanford St., Fairfield. $38. 203-3191404, fairfieldtheatre.org.

Boston with a passion to bring rock and roll back to the masses. Beyond the charisma, energy, and carefully crafted haircuts, The Weekend Riot are accomplished musicians that plan to break the mold of a conventional pop act. Conundrum Nine is a fourpiece hard rock ‘n’ roll band with prog, funk, metal, classic rock, boogie, blues, and jazz influences from Boston. 6p.m. Jan.10 at The Space, 295 Treadwell St., Hamden. $10-$12. 203-288-6400, thespacect.com.

A NPT Broadway Holiday Extravaganza New Paradigm Theatre Company, Inc. (NPT) Broadway pros will perform three NYC-esque Holiday themed shows. The holiday show is jam-packed with Broadway dancers, singers, instrumentalists, and “Ms. Clauz with a Z” featured this year in her own “Holiday TV show” segment. 8p.m. Dec.11 and 2p.m. Dec.13 at the Fairfield Theatre, 70 Sanford St., Fairfield. $35. 203319-1404, fairfieldtheatre.org.

The Machine performs Pink Floyd with the interstellar light show. The Machine look nothing like Pink Floyd, but that doesn’t matter - they sound exactly like Pink Floyd, and that’s what counts. They have built a strong reputation for their live shows, appearing at festivals like Bonnaroo. 9p.m. Dec.26 at the Fairfield Theatre, 70 Sanford St., Fairfield. $38. 203319-1404, fairfieldtheatre.org.

Echoes of Sinatra- 100th Birthday Celebration Featuring Steve Kazlauskas, this show is an exciting and entertaining production celebrating the life of an American icon. 8p.m.

Dec.12 at Ridgefield Playhouse, 80 East Ridge Rd., Ridgefield. 203-438-5795, ridgefieldplayhouse.com.

Annual Holiday “Toys for Kids” Concert ft. Rob Glassman Band and more. 5:30p.m. Dec.12 at The Outer Space, 295 Treadwell St., Hamden. 203-2886400, theouterspace.net.

The Birdmen performing the songs of James Velvet. This band bolsters the music of James Velvet, beloved New Haven songwriter, bandleader, and radio host. 8p.m. Dec.10 at the Outer Space, 295 Treadwell St., Hamden. 203-288-6400, theouterspace. net.

Dudley Farm String Band The Band brings together bluegrass, traditional and progressive styles. Their name comes from the Dudley Farm, a 19th-century farm museum and educational center located at the intersection of Routes 80 & 77 in North Guilford, where they can be found on many Saturday mornings, playing under the trees for the farmer’s market when weather permits, or inside the farmhouse on cold or rainy days. 8p.m. Dec.15 at Café Nine, 250 State St., New Haven. $5. 21+. 203-789-8281, cafenine.com.

Woody Pines integrating sounds from Leadbelly to Bob Dylan, from Woodie Guthrie to Preservation Hall, Woody Pines belts out songs of fast cars, pretty

42 December 2015

Christmas in Lübeck Simon Carrington, guest conductor. 5p.m. Dec.11 at Christ Church, 84 Broadway, New Haven. Free. 203-432-5180, Norfolk.yale.edu.

Guitar Chamber Music Students in the studio of Benjamin Verdery perform solo and chamber works for the guitar in a variety of ensembles. 7:30 Dec.15 at Morse Recital Hall, 470 College St., New Haven. Free.

203-432-5180, Norfolk.yale.edu.

Ronaldo Rolim, Piano Doctor of Musical Arts Degree recital. 4:30p.m. Jan.23 at Morse Recital Hall, 470 College St., New Haven. Free. 203-432-5180, Norfolk. yale.edu.

Grace Potter Citing Miles Davis, Dylan, the Beatles, Bowie, Blondie and Beck as prime examples, Potter is drawn to artists who make sonic leaps from record to record—a notion she has explored throughout her career. 8p.m.

Dec. 12 at College Street Music Hall, 238 College St., New Haven. $29.50-$38. 203-747-2499, manicproductions.org women and hard luck with a distinctive vintage twang. 9p.m. Jan.1 at Café Nine, 250 State St., New Haven. $10. 21+. 203-789-8281, cafenine.com.

Silverstein/ Senses Fail with Hundredth and Capsize. Leading the rise of aggressive, melodic punk, Silverstein cultivated a sound and work ethic that has brought them from basements and community centers in Burlington, ON, to main stages, and global festivals. 7:30p.m. Dec.19 at College Street Music Hall, 238 College St., New Haven. $19-$23. 203747-2499, manicproductions.org.

Jillian Jensen, This Is All Now, Marina City, Royal Street and Kalimur Jillian Jensen is a singer/ songwriter from Boston, MA., and has released two albums of all original songs and has written/ composed well over 100 songs of all different genres.

6p.m. Dec.11 at The Space, 295 Treadwell St., Hamden. $13-$15. 203-288-6400, thespacect.com.

The House On Cliff, The Weekend Riot and Conundrum Nine The House On Cliff is a four piece, 70s inspired, high-energy rock band from

Winter Jazz Series: Nicole Zuraitis Using a broad mixture of jazz, pop, R&B and indie fusion, Zuraitis bridges the gap between brands while utilizing her unparalleled voice as her instrument. 7p.m. & 9p.m. Dec.18 at the Palace Theater, 100 East Main St., Waterbury. $23. 203-346-2000, palacetheatrect.org.

Winter Jazz Series: Champian Fulton Fulton has performed in many NYC venues, including Birdland, The Garage, and Smalls and Cleopatra’s Needle, and has played with such jazz masters as Jimmy Cobb, Frank Wess, Lou Donaldson and Louis Hayes. 7p.m. & 9p.m. Jan.8 at the Palace Theater, 100 East Main St., Waterbury. $23. 203-346-2000, palacetheatrect.org.

Kate Callahan, ‘Best Singer Songwriter’ CT Music Awards. 8p.m. Dec.5 at the Funky Monkey Café, 130 Elm St., Cheshire. $10. 203-439-9161, thefunkymonkeycafe. com.

Eileen Ivers, Joyful Christmas. Known the worldover as “the Jimi Hendrix of violin,” Grammy-winning and Emmy-nominated Artist Eileen Ivers is a Celtic musician that puts the bow to the fiddle. 8p.m. Dec.17 at Infinity Hartford, 32 Front St., Hartford. $34-$49. 860560-7757, infinityhall.com.

Riders on the Storm, Doors tribute band. 8p.m.

Jan.23 at Infinity Hartford, 32 Front St., Hartford. $19$29. 860-560-7757, infinityhall.com.

Dustin Lynch, Hell of a Night Tour. 8p.m. Dec.10 at the Oakdale Theatre, 95 South Turnpike Rd., Wallingford. $18.75-$102. 203-265-1501, oakdale.com.

NEWHAVENMAGAZINE.COM

The Apple Cider Diaries

If People In Prison Can Brew, Why Can’t We?

By Rachel Bergman

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e started on Saturday, September 27 with a hard cider-making kit from Maltose Express in Monroe—a 6-gallon bucket, a 5-gallon glass carboy, a stopper with airlock so gas could escape during fermentation, plastic tubing and pump for siphoning, a bottle of sanitizing powder, caps and a tool for bottling the finished product, and a hard cider how-to manual. Owner Tess Szamatulski walked me through the steps of getting started, additional products I’d need—like a yeast packet—and handed me a couple of her own recipes for a standard hard cider, and a saison to try if I felt competent, which I didn’t. Store employees are knowledgeable and experienced, you can get any supply imaginable to make your own wine, beer, cider, or even coffee.They have self-serve sampling taps in the back with their own recipes flowing, too.

Her staff washed and sanitized my bucket so I could head right over to Beardsley Cider Mill where Dan Beardsley filled it with freshly pressed straight-from-the-orchard unpasteurized apple cider, an early season blend of gala and mackintosh. It’s the first bucket I’ve ever purchased as an adult—is that a sign of something?

As I was preparing to haul my bucket home, Beardsley assured me that my mother-in-law was wrong and that making my own hard apple cider at home would not lead to a poisonous brew that would blind me.

When I got home, I smacked my yeast packet with all the force of my ancestors and after many attempts, I felt the inner seal break and finally the packet expanded. After activating, the yeast sits on top of the cider container for about an hour so they are fairly close to the same room temperature. Cold temps shock yeast.

Don’t add cold things or work with cold cider.

When opening the lid and working with the cider to add ingredients, all utensils should be sterilized. A sterilizing powder gets mixed with warm water—about ¼ teaspoon for a gallon of lukewarm water, and dunk things in there like spoons, siphon, your hands, the tips of the yeast packet, anything that will come in contact with your cider.

For traditional New England hard cider, Beardsley adds a pound of honey per gallon of cider, but Szamatulski adds brown sugar and at a higher ratio, closer to a pound and a half per gallon.The more sugar you add, the higher the alcohol content of the finished product and the likelier a sweeter finished product because the yeast will only eat so much.

We stirred in 4 pounds of brown sugar to five gallons before “pitching” the yeast—sprinkling over the top of the cider without stirring. Lid snapped back on, air lock in place, and patience mustered to sit and wait two weeks for the yeast to activate, the cider to ferment, and the party to start.

The cider bubbled and gas seeped out of the airlock for two weeks until racking day—when all of the cider is pumped out into a clear glass carboy for stage 2 mellowing.This process also leaves sediment behind, or lees, which are solids that settle to the bottom and is composed of dead yeast and bits of apple, very bitter to the taste.

First taste revealed that it was still, fairly bland and not sweet, but quite boozy.This is normal, the apple flavor almost entirely disappears as does the sweetness through fermentation. We achieved about 14% ABV. We “backsweetened” with a bit of xylitol purchased from Edge of the Woods dissolved in hot water and a smidgen of organic apple flavoring. We had to experiment with ratios to get it right, not too chemical tasting, with an apple flavor and light sweetness. About two tablespoons of xylitol and a teaspoon of flavoring dissolved into ¼ cup of hot water per 32 oz bottle was about right.

To be sure, we brought a bottle back to Beardsley on the third Sunday in November, when he invited area hard cider home-brewers to come back with their samples from the previous year’s batches and to grab a fresh batch of heirloom cider, a combination of Northern Spy, Granny Smith, Winesap and Macs. He said our cider was some of the best he had that day.

We started fresh with a new batch and it was a tremendous difference. We used honey, in a higher quantity (5 ½ pounds), and per the advice of Maltose Express, added in a bit of malic acid (1/2 teaspoon) to the brew to try to maintain some of the original apple flavor.

Malic acid is about $6 a bottle and is the natural acid found in apples. After a week and a half, we tasted the cider.The reason for tasting early, was to attempt to maintain some of the ‘fizz’ or carbonation.This batch was excellent. Now we’re safe until the New Year.

B IB L I O FI L E S WORDS of MOUTH FÊTES IN S T Y L E O U T D O OR S

Dumplings In The House

200 Ways To Feel At Home With Jacques On the 13th anniversary of his last PBS show, Madison resident Jacques Pepin shares a collection of 200 recipes that may change the way you make the basics.

With mouth-watering photos taken by Tom Hopkins Studio, also

BODY & SOUL

Kevin Lin of The Dumpling House in Milford has been serving up soup dumplings to customers since February of this year. Originally from Sichuan Province, he learned the fine art of dumpling making from his family, but the Chinese chef also brings in some of his own recipes.

The most popular dumpling is the pork dumplings. Don’t like dumplings?

ONSCREEN

in Madison. Pepin “invites you in” to his most personal collection of at-home culinary concoctions with recipes like quick mushroom and gruyére cheese pizzas on *gasp* store-bought flour tortillas! Each recipe comes with a

Try the dan dan noodles, a traditional Sichuan dish. Located at 868 Boston Post Road in a small shopping plaza, The Dumpling House is open for lunch starting at eleven and through dinner and munchies time, closing at 10. Closed on Mondays, so don’t plan a long weekend sick day around the bbq pork buns, tempting as it may be.

Gluten Free and They Taste Good Too BRANFORD: Aleia company president James Snow likes to describe the 6-year-old operation as a “made in America” story. James Beard awardwinning chef and C.I.A. graduate Kimberly Snow, his wife, had restaurants on the shoreline, catered weddings, and even owned a bakery, but when she was diagnosed with Celiac’s Disease, a severe type of gluten intolerance, she changed her career trajectory because there were just no “quality products on the market.”

One bite of Aleia’s almond horn cookies and you’ll know that times have changed. For six years, the Aleia’s team has been increasing production and distribution at their dedicated gluten free facility in Branford, and you can now find Aleia’s all over the country in retailers large and small. Five years ago, James Snow was selling to individual grocery stores on his own, he went in the front door to sell and then into the backdoor and stocked the shelves with Aleia’s gluten free products. Holiday season is here, tasty gluten free stuffing and breadcrumbs available!

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note or story that Pepin considers to be “conversation starters” for guests—did someone comment on a particular bowl or knife he used?

Maybe this pork chop recipe will include all of the details you didn’t know you needed about selecting the right knife for the job or a special dessert will include musings on what it was like to cook with James Beard.

In lieu of an actual invitation to dinner at the Pepin home, Jacques Pepin Heart & Soul In The Kitchen is available on Amazon and in bookstores and retails for around $21.

Maybe Just One More Pumpkin?

Hurry, quick, before everything pumpkin is replaced with everything peppermint, head to C.O. Jones on State Street in New Haven and order a Drunkin’ Pumpkin to go with your chimichanga. The drink, which consists of bourbon, pumpkin butter, and a flash of citrus, comes in a glass sweetly lined and will help you say a long goodbye to the pumpkin obsession for another year.

Happy hour specials from 5-7 include the Drunkin Pumpkin and while a Mexican joint may not be the go-to for your fall pumpkin fix, C.O. Jones has always been a little different.

NEWHAVENMAGAZINE.COM

Small Plates To Beat The Winter Bulge

in this quaint establishment on the Milford Green.

Foie gras and escargots make an appearance, along with paella. Nothing on the menu disappoints and any visit to Bistro Basque feels almost like a European vacation. . . but it’s still Milford.

Txipirones squid in ink at Bistro Basque

Before you break down on New Year’s Day and join a gym you’ll only go to twice, how about just deciding to eat slightly less? Our recommendation: richly prepared small plates and tapas to watch your waistline while out and about. While it may seem unAmerican to spurn our 32 oz. slurpy culture, tiny little nibbles of Spanish or French cuisine are the perfect answer to avoiding the holiday bulge.

Barcelona Wine Bar Barcelonawinebar.com 203-848-3000 155 Temple Street, New Haven A classic popular downtown hangout, the food also happens to be great. The potato tortilla is a good choice as a closer if you’ve over-sampled the wine menu and they have the lightest, crispest calamari one could hope for. Late night weekends, there is often a dj spinning dance tunes, but in any event, most nights the restaurant does a very brisk business—so make reservations.

Ibiza Tapas and Small Plates www.ibizatapaswinebar.com 203-909-6512 1832 Dixwell Avenue, Hamden In the warmer months you can sit outside, but the patio overlooks Dixwell Avenue—if you’re into Nascar, sit outside, but car exhaust is not a preferred side dish for tapas. Restaurant ambiance makes up for this. The tapas menu is split between hot and cold, modern and traditional. Try the crispy lamb ravioli, Pequitos de Cordero, which comes with a bit of sweet potato puree and is so flavorful it will remind you why you only eat a little bit.

Village Bistro Restaurant and Bar Villagebistromilford.com 203-882-0022 1501 Boston Post Road, Milford

Again with the outdoor seating, it’s on The Boston Post Road, so Nascar fans go for it, otherwise pick a nice table inside, away from the windows. Originally a breakfast and lunch spot, the menu was expanded to include a variety of tapas and small plates, as well as entrees, and so was the bar.

Bistro Basque Bistrobasqueusa.com 203-878-2092 13 River Street, Milford

Solun Tapas Bar Soluntapasbar.com 203-298-9741 245 Amity Rd, Woodbridge A warm and elegant dining room makes for an ideal setting to nibble and sip. The flatbreads are excellent to share and very filling—the menu has a faintly Italian flair, like the Burrata, Eggplant Rollatini, and a Shrimp Cavatelli dish, but the tapas you want— the empanadas, ceviche, and other mainstays are present and delicious.

Small plates are richly prepared in a combination Spanish/French style, like the Basque region itself,

Voted Best Seafood Market 10 Years in a Row

Adriana’s

RESTAURANT & W INE BAR

Tura McNeil, Robert McNeil & Joe Lucchese Come by and say Hello to our new General Manager Joe formerly of Balducci’s & Citarella.

Sample a full line of Joe’s new prepared items.

Hours: Mon-Sat 7am-6pm 2239 State Street, Hamden 203-624-6171 | NumberOneFish.com

One of the Top Italian Restaurants in the U.S. Zagat Rated 771 Grand Ave. New Haven • (203) 865-6474 adrianasnewhaven.com new haven

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M y N ew Ha v e n

By Bruce Ditman

2015 Year End

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hat will you change this time as the calendar flips As this year to next light fantastically trips the New Year’s Eve celebrations, the booze and the bells when a spirit of self-betterment in you mightily wells.

Ah! The Resolution, the lamest of oaths A Facebook post of a promise, that everyone knows Is 10% hope and 90% Fiction with a paucity of precedent and no real jurisdiction.

Fixing the whole, in one promise, can be daunting But your problems allow it, winking, flaunting your tininess and their massive oh-so-bigness assuming, by week two, you’ll be the mere witness to their unchanging, immutable, just-over-thereness and over time, they hope that you’ll simply just care less.

Hey, how about that spare tire, or that gross smoking habit Will this be the year when you finally grab it?

Bulldogging it down, lashing up its haunches cleaning your lungs and slimming your paunches?

Will you be there for someone, be someone that matters, to put down your problems when their life is in tatters?

To pick up the phone (or more likely to text) and check in on them when life has them vexed?

And if not a doctor will a good patient you be and let those who love you administer freely their care and their love, no longer closed hearted, and allow finished the transaction you may have causally started?

Will you follow your hunches, well or ill-founded and allow fancy its flight or will it be grounded?

Foolishly, in what you think you already know Even when to learn is submit and to yield is to grow.

Will your year be about stuff, about getting more things about acquisitions and winning, about belts, about rings Or will your gains on this page, twelve months in its length Show happiness their yield, character growth their true strength?

It’s early still, not quite New Year’s Eve you have plenty of time to bob and to weave to further negotiate your oath sworn decrees Before bells toll twelve and down on your knees you swear before God, family and friends That this is the year, this one, when your bullshit finally ends.

Whatever you feel in your life you’re still lacking Or have of too much, whether it’s swearing or snacking or planning or sleeping, too little or in excess, or strutting or hiding, from love or in sex, Of bad friends or cruelty, of your own callous indifference Of heartache or apathy, what ever the instance where you can do better, feel better, give more of your heart You are cordially invited, New Haven: Come, do your part.

46 December 2015

But it needn’t be thus, this case as just stated When resolutions are well prepared and properly plated.

When eating the elephant, one does not swallow it whole As successful digestion is about portion control A bit less of this, a bit more of the better can change a whole diet, flip the script with a letter.

This letter, the last to you, my dear reader and friend, Of the year, so I’ll say this and then I’ll hit send.

I believe everyone of us has in us (and yes, it’s a hunch) The heart of a fighter and at least one good punch.

So after the ribaldry, the kisses, the singing When daylight, as it does, so swiftly is bringing Another year of life, a New Year’s beginning Get your ass up, New Haven, and let’s come out swinging.

NEWHAVENMAGAZINE.COM

Holiday Extravaganza!

Thursday, December 17 7:30pm Woolsey Hall

Chelsea Tipton, principal pops conductor Joshua Jeremiah, baritone Celebrate the holidays with the NHSO’s soundtrack for the season, Holiday Extravaganza!

Led by NHSO Pops conductor Chelsea Tipton, this program will warm hearts and enchant listeners with music from The Nutcracker, Sleigh Ride, Have a Holly Jolly Christmas, a carol sing-along and more!

Proceeds from this concert to benefit the Community Soup Kitchen.

Kids Go FREE with Purchase of an Adult Ticket!

203.865.0831 x20 | NewHavenSymphony.org new haven

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Happy Holidays from

all of us at

588 Ocean Avenue ~ West Haven, CT 06516 ~ 203-931-2510 ~ www.seacrestweb.com