Activity
Symphony of Trees set to dazzle
Dec 3rd
Symphony of Trees.
Get ready to unwrap dazzling present of the holidays as the Symphony of Trees opens its 10th season.
The Ambiance, 5225 Koch’s Lane, will welcome festival visitors Thursday through Sunday, December 2-5. Ticket prices for general admission hours will be $5 for adults, $4 for seniors and $3 for children ages three through 18.
General admission will be available as follows:
Friday, December 3, 1-8 p.m.;
Saturday, December 4, 10 a.m.-4 p.m.;
Sunday, December 5, noon-5 p.m.
School field trips will be admitted from 9 a.m.-3 p.m. on Thursday, December 2.
The festival will kick into high gear with the Gala Preview Party from 6-10 p.m. on Thursday, December 2. Glittering splashes of purple, green and gold will reflect the Mardi Gras theme and Quincy’s premiere chefs will serve up jambalaya and other Cajun favorites.
The seasonal displays will form the backdrop for entertainment by a magician and popular jazz vocalist Darden Purcell, while an exclusive raffle, the new Prize Wheel and the Wine Pull will add to the evening’s excitement. Advance tickets are required at a cost of $50 per person.
The charm of New Orleans has also inspired a new event, the festival Jazz Night, which will be held from 6-10 p.m. on Saturday. A jazz combo will set the mood for celebration and then the Big River Swing Machine will turn up the heat with its spirited big band sound while guests enjoy elegant appetizers. Advance tickets are advised at a cost of $10 per person.
Lunch at the festival will be featured on Friday with treats from some of Quincy’s favorite restaurants and special featured raffles. The event will run from 11 a.m.-1 p.m. and required advance tickets will cost $20 per person.
Of course, no Symphony of Trees would be complete without Breakfast with Santa. Children will enjoy food, a craft, games and a visit with Santa himself Saturday from 8:30-10:30 a.m. This year, rides provided by Q City Carriage will be available for a small additional fee to a limited number of guests on a first-come, first-serve basis. Advance tickets are required for the breakfast at a cost of $15 per person.
In keeping with a long-standing festival custom, Sunday will be designated as Family Day with pricing incentives to encourage attendance by the entire family and special prize giveaways.
Thanks to the creativity of designers and planners, returning favorites will have a fresh look, from majestic trees and displays to the activity and entertainment areas. Festival co-chairs Sandi Rose, Cindy Strock, Debbie Klincar, Linda Dillman and Sue Koren have guided the loving efforts of 35 committee members in preparing for this year’s event, and over 250 community volunteers will play a role in staffing it. Now celebrating its 10th season, the Symphony of Trees has been sponsored by Encore!, the Volunteer Council of the Quincy Symphony Orchestra Association since 1992.
Since that time, the festival has raised over $475,000 to support music education and appreciation in the tri-state area. “We’re really hoping to break the half-million dollar mark this year,” says Rose. All profits are returned to the community through the support of the various performing groups, concerts and projects of the QSOA, scholarships for student attendance at music camps and assistance to Quincy’s public and parochial music programs.
These year-round gifts to the community are made possible by the army of volunteers, the 150 sponsors who contribute goods and services and crowds of happy visitors who number more than 5,000 paid admissions at each festival.
For more information go to www.symphonyoftreesquincy.com.
Come celebrate the holidays at the Quincy Museum
Nov 23rd
Parlor of the Quincy Musuem at 1601 Maine.
Dining room of Quincy Museum at 1601 Maine.
After being closed during the month of November for decorating, the museum will reopen Saturday, November 27, with holiday decorations throughout the historic Newcomb-Stillwell House.
This year the decorations at the Quincy Museum will focus on Children’s Christmas Wishes. Be sure to wander throughout the museum and see displays of dolls and trains. Local florists and museum volunteers decorate the museum’s beautiful rooms for the season. Florists already signed on include Flower Country of Mendon, Hy-Vee on Broadway, Ben Franklin of Quincy, Wellman’s Florist, County Market and Adam Florist. A special exhibit will be installed in the second floor gallery for the holidays.
Friday, December 3, the museum will host its annual Members Only Christmas Party. Members will be treated to wonderful hors d’oeuvres, musical entertainment and a silent auction. Members find this a great way to kick off the holiday season!
The museum will also offer its usual Christmas classes for area school children and other groups. As always, participants in the Christmas programming will receive a guided tour of the first floor exhibit areas focusing on Victorian Christmas traditions and will participate in a special hands-on activity related to the theme of Children’s Christmas Wishes that they can take with them. These classes are available beginning Monday, November 29, and will continue through Thursday, December 30.
For more information or to schedule a class, call 224-7669. Regular museum hours are Tuesday through Sunday from 1-5 p.m. Admission is $3 for adults and $2 for children.
Barbara Wilkinson
Historical Society to host Quiz Bowl Tournament
Nov 1st
The Historical Society of Quincy and Adams County will be sponsoring a Quiz Bowl Tournament Saturday, Nove. 6, at the Knights of Columbus Hall in Quincy.
The tournament will start at 6:30 p.m. and is open to teams of no more than eight members, with a cost of $80 per team.
All participants must be at least 21 years of age. The questions will be ususal categories: movies, music, sports, history, quotations, etc.
Interested parties should call Patrick McGinley at 222-4595.
JULIE NELSON: Artoberfest to take over Quincy Art Center
Oct 12th
Quincy Art Center
The public is invited to enjoy the Quincy Art Center’s Artoberfest fundraiser as part of the community-wide Fall Colorfest Celebration.
The festival includes children’s artivities, exhibitions, entertainment on the Park District Showmobile, food and refreshments, the Vietnam Sign-in Wall and Bowl-Appetit, and more than 500 one-of-a-kind ceramic bowls hand-crafted and painted by over 200 local artists and members of the community.
The event will be held from 6 to 9:30 p.m. Friday on the lawn at 1515 Jersey and will feature a Beer Tasting Event with beer, food and soda sales; live acoustic music from Deadly Weapon; the opening reception for three exhibits; and the Bowl-Appetit auction, raffle and sale. Proceeds will benefit the Art Center’s children’s programs.
On Saturday, from 10:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. the exhibits will continue, there will be food and soda sales, Bowl-Appetit sales, children’s artivities, artist demonstrations and live entertainment.
The Vietnam Sign-in Wall provided by the All Wars Museum will be available only during the Artoberfest celebration for Vietnam veterans to sign in where they were posted and to visit with other veterans on hand.
The exhibit Vietnam Then and Now: Photographs by Nik Wheeler features 30 large-scale photographs of Vietnam taken during the war and up through the present day. The photographs were taken by British artist Wheeler who was a combat photographer for United Press International for two and a half years during the Vietnam War. He later returned four times to photograph Vietnam’s people and beauty. Wheeler, a highly regarded photographer, has worked for the magazines National Geographic, Time, Newsweek, International Wildlife and Travel and Leisure. This is the first time these images have been shown as a group. The exhibition has been underwritten by Linda Johnson, M.D.
There is a complementary exhibit entitled Vietnam Memories: All Wars Museum. This exhibit includes artifacts such as uniforms, medals, ribbons, flags and photographs taken “in country” primarily by residents of the Illinois Veterans Home in Quincy. These items have been loaned to the Quincy Art Center for this exhibit and are part of the All Wars Museum collection.
A third exhibit features recent work by three photographers. The exhibit is entitled Three Photographers Preserve Quincy: Stephen Cullo, Jewel Gwaltney and Bruce Morton. This exhibit has been sponsored by Terrell and Vicki Dempsey, the Dr. Joe and Denette Kuhlman Family and Meg Nagel, in honor of her late husband Walter.
The photographers use photographic images as their way of preserving the beauty and uniqueness of Quincy for the viewer. Cullo captures very unusual ways of looking at our city, the bridges and surrounding countryside. Gwaltney explores Woodland Cemetery from a distance and in a more intimate way. Morton portrays buildings, homes and warehouses as though they were portraits.
Talks connected with two of the exhibits will be featured every Thursday at 7 p.m. They include October 21, a talk by Gwaltney about her exploration of Woodland Cemetery; October 28, a Power Point presentation Vietnam Now with Dr. Leonard Biallas; November 4, a talk by Morton about his work; and a presentation by Cullo on his photographs on November 11.
Gallery hours are noon-4 p.m. Tuesday through Friday and 1-4 p.m. Saturday and Sunday. There is no charge for QAC members for the opening receptions or to view the exhibit. There is a $3 admission charge for nonmember adults and $1 for seniors, students and children.
Funding has also been provided in part by the Illinois Arts Council, by a grant from the Marion Gardner Jackson Trust Arts Fund and by the business and individual members of the Quincy Art Center. For additional information call 223-5900 or e-mail jnelson@quincyartcenter.org.
Julie Nelson, Quincy Art Center
SCHOLZ: Learn about Quincy’s scandalous history
Sep 7th
Everyone is invited to attend “The Great Quincy,” a fundraiser for the Quincy Public Library.
The event will be held from 6 to 8:30 p.m. Sept. 10 at the Quincy Country Club. If you have any interest in Quincy history you will want to be there. In addition to live music, WGEM and local historians have put together a great video, and Quincy Dance Theater will be there to bring the 1920s alive.
Tickets are $50 each or $75 for a pair of tickets. Ticket cost includes non-alcoholic beverages, beer, wine and appetizers. No need to bring your own bootleg beverages to this event.
Hope to see you there. Tables of 8 or more may be reserved by calling Jamie Scholz at 217-242-0975 or emailing j_keller2@yahoo.com. It’s a great way to support your local library.
JULIE BOLL: Quincyans invited to join Big Read
Aug 31st
The Quincy Public Library is giving away free books. Join us at the 2010 Big Read Kick-off Sept. 9 from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. at the Women’s City Club and pick up your free copy of this year’s book, “The Great Gatsby” by F. Scott Fitzgerald.
Enjoy a free picnic lunch, 1920s music and a display of period automobiles. Mayor John Spring will welcome the crowd at 11:30 a.m., and Dr. Deirdre Fagan, Associate Professor of English at Quincy University, will share some insights to the novel in a brief Keynote address. Don’t miss this chance to celebrate literature and join your community in reading — or rereading — this classic novel.
Once you’ve gotten your book, gather with your friends, co-workers and neighbors to discuss “The Great Gatsby” by F. Scott Fitzgerald. What motivated Fitzgerald to write “The Great Gatsby?” How did Fitzgerald’s experiences influence his writing? How has the American Dream evolved or stayed the same? Discuss these questions and more in your own backyard or at a Library Sponsored Book Discussion. For more information about Library Book Discussion groups, click here.
Enjoy a night out and interesting discussion at The Big Read at Martinis at 515. The Quincy Public Library and Young Professionals will host a book discussion on Sept. 30 at Martinis at 515. Enjoy some Martinis as you talk about one of the greatest books in American literature. Be sure to try the Gatsby Drink special — a martini twist on the classic Mint Julep featured in the book.
The Big Read will continue all month long with community book discussions, a Roaring Twenties film series and a Jazz Age lecture series.
The Big Read will culminate with “All That Jazz: The Final Party,” a theatrical performance, written and produced by Connie Phillips and the Quincy University Theater Department, featuring live jazz music performed by local jazz legends Bob Havens, Ben Bumbry, Les Fonza and Steve Parke. Audience members will witness firsthand the inner dialogue of Jay Gatsby’s famed parties complete with music, dancing and drama. Solo performances by local Jazz musicians Bob Havens, Ben Bumbry and Les Fonza and period “flapper” dance performances are among the highlights planned.
For more information about the Big Read, visit www.quincylibrary.org.
The Big Read is an initiative of the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) designed to restore reading to the center of American culture. The NEA presents The Big Read in partnership with the Institute of Museum and Library Services and in cooperation with Arts Midwest. Support for The Big Read has been provided by the W.K. Kellogg Foundation, the Paul G. Allen Family Foundation, the Boeing Company, the Poetry Foundation and the Ford Motor Company.
ROB DWYER: Professors show off summer work
Aug 26th
The annual faculty exhibit is a back-to-campus ritual at Quincy University, and faculty members enjoy the opportunity to present fresh works, especially those created during the summer.
This year’s exhibition will be on display in the Gray Gallery during the operating hours of Brenner Library through Sept. 10. A reception honoring the members of the fine arts faculty will be held at 8:30 p.m. Sept. 10 following the annual faculty recital.
The general public is invited to view the exhibition and to attend the concert and the reception at no charge thanks to sponsorship by the QU Division of Fine Arts and Communication.
The following artists will exhibit works: full-time faculty members Robert Mejer and Karl Warma and adjunct faculty members Ruth Ann Snowden, David Brown, Jason Mejer, Rebecca Butler, Peggy Ballard and Terrence Riddell.
Information about the annual faculty exhibition is available from gallery curator Robert Mejer at mejerbob@quincy.edu.
DWYER: Trio Con Brio tunes up for first Sunday Music Series
Aug 18th
Beethoven
The first Sunday Music Series of the season will feature the Trio Con Brio on August 29 at 4 p.m. in the First Union Congregational Church, 105 North 12th Street, Quincy. Admission is free and the event is open to the public.
The ensemble will be performing two delightful works by Ludwig van Beethoven: “Trio in G Major, Opus 1 No. 2” and “Trio in D Major, Opus 70 No. 1.”
Members of Trio Con Brio are Leonora Suppan-Gehrich, piano; Brian Gehrich, violin; and Helga Winold, cello.
For all composers, Opus 1 — their first printed composition — represents a signal point in their development. It marks the transition from juvenile and student works to music that the composer considers mature and worthy of publication. Beethoven was surely aware of this significance when he designed his three piano trios as Opus 1.
The “Trio in D Major, Opus 70 No.1” belongs to Beethoven’s middle period to the year, which also saw the production of the fifth and sixth symphonies and the Choral Fantasia. With its larger structure and richer sonority, it is quite different from Opus 1.
For more information call 228-2866 or 885-3350.
