Roosevelt musical event inspired by art in the '30s

Roosevelt

ROOSEVELT - The sights and sounds of the New Deal era will light up borough hall on Saturday night.

Singers David Brahinsky and Karyn Grunwald, along with pianist Alan Mallach and others from Roosevelt, have put together a production titled "The '30s: Music, Words and Art of an Era," which will begin at 8 p.m. on Jan. 20, according to a Roosevelt Arts Project (RAP) press release.

The 1930s has a particular resonance in Roosevelt since the borough was founded in 1936 as a resettlement community, one of the most notable of the many social experiments of the New Deal.

The borough's connections to that era are still visible not only in the town's buildings, but also through the famous Ben Shahn mural in the Roosevelt Public School and the Franklin Delano Roosevelt head that dominates the amphitheater. There is also a continuing artistic and political commitment that characterizes the community.

The event, sponsored by the Roosevelt Arts Project, will include music, poetry and photography from the '30s.

The show harnesses the talents of a varied group of performers that will include popular folk singers Brahinsky and Paul Prestopino, who will present a selection of songs by Woody Guthrie; Mallach, who will perform solo music by Aaron Copland and Virgil Thompson; and cabaret singer Grunwald, who will perform a selection of George Gershwin songs accompanied by Mallach on the piano.

Poet David Sten Herrstrom will read selections from the works of poets of the period while an exhibit of New Deal photography, including the works of Roosevelt figures Shahn, Sol Libsohn and Ed Rosskam, will be mounted in conjunction with the performance.

Borough hall is located on Route 571 in Roosevelt. A voluntary contribution of $5 is requested at the door. For more information, call Robin Gould at (609) 448-4616.