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Elma Lewis Playhouse in the Park returns

The 2010 Elma Lewis Playhouse in the Park free performing arts series returns to Franklin Park July 13-Aug. 17. Performers in the series named for the founder and director of the Elma Lewis School of Fine Arts include Stephen O'Neal and IntaAfrika, plus Marcus Santos and Batukaxe (July 13 11 a.m.); jazz saxophonist and Boston Public Schools teacher Elan Trotman (left, July 13 at 6 p.m.); world music outfit Mango Blue (July 20, 6 p.m.); and Kendrick Oliver and the New Life Jazz Orchestra (Aug. 20, 6 p.m.), but there's lots more including several dance events. The free, outdoor performances take place at Valley Gates, next to The Playstead, the big field in Franklin Park between White Stadium and the rear entrance of the Zoo. The events are presented by The Franklin Park Coalition with the National Center of Afro-American Artists and the Boston Parks and Recreation Department's ParkARTS Program. For more information, call (617) 442-4141 or visit www.franklinparkcoalition.org.

Boston modern architecture not an oxymoron

"Boston Modern Architecture: Spirit of Reinvention" is the topic of a panel discussion at First Church in Boston, 66 Marlborough St., sponsored by the National Trust For Historic Preservation, Wednesday at 7 p.m. Those of us who wish to get snarky about whether there's enough of it for a discussion should take a look at the booklet prepared for the event, with text by my old Boston herald colleague David Eisen. There's plenty, from the First Church itself and the Polaroid Building to our ever-controversial, brutalist City Hall and private residences like the Gropius House and the Six moon Hill development. A lot of it is hidden away on college campuses where it's seldom seen, much less visited, by the public at large. But it's there, and its future will be debated Wednesday by a group including preservation architect David Fixler; Kathy Spiegelman, Chief Planner, Allston Development Group at Harvard University; and Charles Birnbaum, President, Cultural Landscape Foundation, and former coordinator for the National Park Service Historic Landscape Initiative.

The event is part of the Modern Module program, which is "aimed at building public support for and engaging in discussions focused on the study and protection of America’s modern architectural resources." The series of events is coordinated by the National Trust for Historic Preservation and funded by grants from the National Endowment for the Arts and the Henry Luce Foundation.The program is free and open to the public, but you have to go here to preregister.

Picture by Bobak Ha'Eri under a Creative Commons license.

Cool words and tunes in Newburyport

Saturday night in Newburyport, for free,you can hear the great music writer Peter Guralnick (biographer of Elvis and Sam Cooke, left) and the poet Major Jackson ("Hoops," right) read from their work, plus music from the duo Belle Bousolle. Did I mention free? It's the second event in the new Tannery Series, and it's being held at Jabberwocky Books at 7 p.m. Full disclosure: I fed the duo behind the Tannery Series dinner the other night; they're friends and neighbors. But whoever's in charge, the Tannery Series would be worth a look. The first event, a couple of months ago, was highlighted by my fellow Globe contributor Steve Almond's hilarious and highly filthy reading. (Pix: Major Jackson by Erin Patrice O'Brien, Peter Guralnick by David Gahr.)

Joao Gilberto cancels

HT Productions and New Festival Productions, LLC have announced that due to "travel complications," An Evening with Brazil’s Legendary João Gilberto at Symphony Hall on Friday has been cancelled.  Tickets will be refunded at point of purchase. No details on what "travel complications" means. When Tuesday night's Carnegie Hall show was called off, the New York Times blamed "international travel restrictions." Could there have been a visa denial? I'm told it's not a visa problem, but "other scheduling." Confusing.

Beantown Jazz Fest salutes Big Easy

The 10th annual Berklee Beantown Jazz Festival Sept. 15-25 will tip its stylish cap to the music and culture of New Orleans five years after Hurricane Katrina - and, though the announcement doesn't mention it, smack dab in the middle of another Big Easy disaster courtesy of BP. Trumpeter Terence Blanchard (right) is the most prominant New Orleansian on a bill that also includes Paula Cole, the Bad Blus, Danilo Perez, the Wild Magnolias, Jonathan Batiste, Nona Hendryx and many more. The 10-day event touches venues all overer the city before shutting down Columbus Ave. on Saturday the 25th for a big free outdoor party with three stages. Other than refusing to capitalize the T in Beantown, I am on board. I can already taste the BBQ.The complete release is after the jump.

Simon & Garfunkel postpone indefinitely

Simon & Garfunkel news just in from the Boston Symphony orchestra:

SIMON & GARFUNKEL POSTPONE U.S. AND CANADA TOUR

INCLUDING TANGLEWOOD APPEARANCE JULY 27

 

RESCHEDULING OF DATES TBA

 

 

The Simon & Garfunkel tour that had been set for July, and included a July 27 appearance at Tanglewood, has now been postponed indefinitely.  The tour, originally set for April and then rescheduled for July, is now on hold as Art Garfunkel continues to recover from a vocal paresis.  According to his doctors, Art is expected to make a full recovery, however they cannot predict an exact timeline.  This condition (paresis) inhibits the duo from performing shows at the highest possible level and it is for that reason and out of respect for their fans that Paul and Art have decided to put the tour on hold.

 

Simon & Garfunkel regret any inconvenience this has caused their fans and are looking forward to rescheduling the dates when Art fully recovers.  Art says, “I do feel bad about disrupting so many people’s plans but, as I continue to mend, I can’t yet bring my ‘A Game’ to a tour, and I would not perform for you with anything less.”   

 

Tickets for the July 27 concert at Tanglewood will automatically refunded within the next 4 days if the payment was made by credit card. If paid by cash or check, a check will be sent out on Monday, June 21. All handling fees will be refunded.  No refunds will be made in person at the Box Office. 

Life Is Good fest on sale today

Tickets go on sale at 10 a.m. for the Life is Good Festival in Canton Sept. 11-12. The t-shirt company that provides approximately 80 percent of the casual wardrobe for Bay State Baby Boomers hopes to raise $1 million for "kids facing life-threatening challenges" through the Life is Good Kids Foundation. Ziggy Marley, Corinne Bailey Rae, Jason Mraz, Ben Harper & Relentless 7, Guster and many other AAA favorites are on the bill, along with unexpected choices like Mavis Staples and Trombone Shorty. A hotspot at the event at a farm at the base of the Blue Hills will be the kids' stage, where Dan Zanes, They Might be Giants and more will play. Click here for info and tix, which are $50 for adults, $10 for kids 6-12 and free 5 and under.

Boston Pops counters with good news

You have to feel bad for them popping out the press release an hour after the bad news about James Levine (below). But the Boston Pops announced today that they'll celebrate their 125th season with  free small-group concerts in Boston parks and a full-orchestra performance on the Common at 3 p.m. Sept. 26. Full release after the jump.

James Levine cancels all Tanglewood appearances

James Levine's ongoing health problems have grown into a tragedy of sorts for the maestro, the Boston Symphony Orchestra and classical music lovers. Today the BSO announced that Levine is canceling his entire summer of Tanglewood appearances to allow him more time for recuperation from back surgery in April. Levine says it's on his doctors' advice, and the orchestra makes nice in the press release (which follows after the jump). But you have to wonder what effect this will have on the ongoing drama of Levine's dual tenure at the BSO and the Met and the way his many health problems have driven him from the podium on a regular basis. Replacement conductors include Michael Tilson Thomas (July 9, 16, and 17), Christoph von Dohnányi (August 1 and 2), and Hans Graf (July 25).  Johannes Debus, music director of the Canadian Opera Company, makes his BSO debut July 23.

Cheap tickets to Berkshire arts return

The ½ TIX discount ticket booths in the Berkshires open for their ninth season on June 17. The booths offer offering same-day, half-price tickets to Berkshire attractions including Barrington Stage Company, Berkshire Choral Festival, Berkshire Theatre Festival, Jacob’s Pillow Dance, Shakespeare & Company, Tanglewood, Williamstown Theatre Festival and many more. The per-ticket handling charge rises to $3.00 (from $2.50) this year to support the program. Transactions are cash only, and the booths are open six days a week, noon to 4:30 p.m., through Sept. 5. The booths are closed Mondays. The program is a partnership of  Barrington Stage Company and the Berkshire Visitors Bureau.

There will be a fifth booth at the new Lenox Visitor’s Center located in the Lenox Town Hall (6 Walker St., Lenox). The Pittsfield Visitor’s Center and the Pittsfield ½ TIX Booth have a new home in the Ben & Jerry’s located at 179 South Street in Downtown Pittsfield. The other booths are in the Adams Visitors Center (3 Hoosac St., Adams), the Southern Berkshire Visitors Booth (362 Main St., Great Barrington) and the Chatham Bookstore (27 Main St., Chatham, NY).

For information, including daily availability, call the ½ TIX Hotline at 413-743-1339. (Pictured: "The Whipping Man" at Barrington Stage.)