Photo by Megan Mumford
Albany Is Egg-Cellent
Some people like their eggs sunny side up. Albany likes The Egg (capital E) reimagined. Earlier this year, Albany’s iconic performing arts center reopened to the public following a six-months-long, $19.5 million renovation that revamped the venue’s interior with new seats, new carpeting, and a state-of-the-art, fully LED, automated lighting system. Throughout the process, ADA compliance was prioritized, ensuring that this Egg is crackable for arts patrons of all abilities.
Omi, Oh My!
Columbia County’s multi-faceted art park is expanding next year. Art Omi, known for its 120-acre sculpture and architecture park in Ghent, is gearing up to open Art Omi Pavilions, a new cultural destination located 15 minutes away in Chatham. Situated on 190 acres, the new campus will feature 16 unique pavilions, each designed through collaborations between distinguished architects and artists, two of which will host rotating exhibitions. Once Phase One of the project opens in the spring of 2027, visitors can embark on a self-guided exploration of art, architecture, and the iconic Hudson Valley landscape.
Big Money
New York State doesn’t just believe in the arts—the governor is willing to invest in them, too. In June, Governor Kathy Hochul announced that $82.2 million had been awarded to the New York State Council on the Arts’ Capital Projects Fund to support 132 projects in every corner of the state. One notable local organization that will benefit is the Underground Railroad History Project of the Capital Region, which will use the grant to build a 14,000-square-foot education center with expanded exhibit spaces, a library and research center, a children’s center, and more. “New York’s powerful arts and culture sector is a formidable asset,” the governor said. “Our continued investments in museums, theaters, and art centers generate incredible returns—sparking innovation, boosting local economies, driving visitors, and making us the global epicenter of arts and culture.”
SPAC To The Future
Over the last 10 years, Saratoga Performing Arts Center (SPAC) has been adding off-season programming to round out its already robust warm-weather offerings. Now, the organization is undergoing a $12 million project that will renovate the Spa Little Theater, located right near the SPAC amphitheater in the Saratoga Spa State Park, for the first time since it was built in 1935. The upgrades will include a new floor plan, improved seating, a new stage floor, an outdoor patio, and more. It’s expected to open in December. Leave your mark on the theater—and the local arts community—by purchasing a seat plaque for $1,000 or $2,500, with all proceeds going toward SPAC’s aptly named Four Seasons campaign.
Music to our Ears
After 45 years, the Empire State Youth Orchestra will soon have a place to call home. In March 2022, the organization, which challenges and inspires young people to achieve excellence through music, purchased the building that formerly housed St. Joseph’s Church Parish Center in Schenectady. Now, it’s being completely transformed to create rehearsal space, practice rooms, a music library, a kitchen, a lounge area, and offices. The renovation will allow for the expansion of CHIME, ESYO’s free after-school program. It’s projected to be completed in December of this year.
The Summer Place to Be
This summer, one of the 518’s most iconic live music venues will welcome its first artist in residence. Janis Ian, legendary singer-songwriter, will conduct public workshops, discussions, and more at Saratoga’s Caffè Lena. “I intend to pass on as much knowledge and experience as possible, from guitar tricks to contracts, from songwriting to performance physicality,” Ian said. “It’s exciting to think that the knowledge others were generous enough to share with me can help artists and music lovers beyond my own small world.”
