Descended from Italian immigrants, Valley artist William Noonan has a special affinity with the Italian landscape — he’ll be teaching a weeklong painting workshop in Perugia later this month. Noonan’s current exhibit, Fields of Color, shows off two summers’ worth of plein-air paintings of the Old Country, as well as depictions of our own region’s breathtaking vistas. Daily 10 a.m.-5 p.m. through June 10. • Locust Grove. 2683 South Rd. (Rte. 9), Poughkeepsie. 845-454-4500 or www.lgny.org
 |
The 65-voice choral group Albany Pro Musica commemorates the 150th anniversary of the Civil War with a multimedia program entitled John Brown’s Body. Accompanied by the Pro Musica Orchestra — and soprano Karen Slack Blackwell and baritone Keith Kibler — the chorus performs Ralph Vaughan Williams’ 1936 cantata Dona Nobis Pacem, the text of which is taken from poet Walt Whitman’s wartime writings. Civil War era songs, as well as period images and readings of soldiers’ letters from that time, are also on the bill. June 9 at 7:30 p.m. $25-$35. • Experimental Media and Performing Arts Center (EMPAC). 110 Eighth St., Troy. 518-346-6204 or www.albanypromusica.org
 |
Ahoy matey! You (and your children) will discover your inner swashbuckler at Pirate School! This seafaring vaudeville show features bumbling pirate professor Billy Bones, who instructs aspiring buccaneers on how to stand, talk, sing, and laugh just like Capt. Jack Sparrow and his crew — while cannons boom, skulls talk, and general mayhem takes place all around. June 2 at 11 a.m. & 1 p.m. $18, $13 children. • Emelin Theatre. 153 Library Ln., Mamaroneck. 914-698-0098 or www.emelin.org
 |
The folks at the Jacob Burns Film Center kick off the summer season with a full lineup of movies for both adults and kids. The monthlong “Classic Italian Cinema” (June 1-21) series features screenings of nine films, including Red Desert (pictured) and Fellini Satyricon. Special events include showings of the documentary Hard Times: Lost on Long Island (June 6) and 1983’s The Right Stuff (June 21). And kids will be in hog heaven with Babe: Pig in the City (June 2,3,9 & 10), Porco Rosso with Three Little Bops (June 16-17), and Porky Pig shorts (June 23-24). Call for times and ticket information. • 364 Manville Rd., Pleasantville. 914-747-5555 or www.burnsfilmcenter.org
 |
Encore presentations of a pair of popular opera broadcasts from The Met: Live in HD series take place this month. First up: Donizetti’s Anna Bolena, the tragic story of Anne Boleyn, which stars soprano Anna Netrebko as Henry VIII’s ill-fated queen (June 17); the following week, hilarity rules when a disguised count (pictured at left) tries to win the hand of a countess — who has eyes only for a lowly page — in Rossini’s Le Comte Ory (June 24). 2 p.m. $12.50, $7.50 children. • Time & Space Limited. 434 Columbia St., Hudson. 518-822-8448 or www.timeandspace.org
 |
Ah, spring. The sun is shining, the birds are chirping — and local gardens are in full flower. Take a self-guided driving tour of some of the mid-Hudson’s loveliest landscapes during the Putnam County Secret Garden Tour. Marvel at the blooming buds at Garrison’s Boscobel and Cold Spring’s Stonecrop Gardens (as well as at several private homes and other sites). For a little extra cash, take a boat ride to Petra Island in Mahopac for a personal tour of a Frank Lloyd Wright-designed cottage that will knock your socks off. Organized by Putnam ARC, this annual event benefits adults and children with developmental disabilities. June 9 from 10 a.m.-4 p.m. $30 in advance, $40 on the day for driving tour; $90/$125 (if available) with the Wright cottage included. Call for reservations and other information. • 845-278-7272, ext. 287 or www.partnerswithparc.org
