Things to do / Travel Guide
Northern New York provides a great deal in the way of arts and entertainment thanks to centers like Saratoga Springs and Lake Placid drawing excellent artists and performers, with small towns hosting music festivals and parades during the summer. Numerous acclaimed theaters and companies are spread around the region, performing everything from opera to classical to jazz music, and from drama to comedy.
Arts and Entertainment in Lake Placid
The Lake Placid Center for the Arts, located on Algonquin Drive, features a cross-section of music, theater, film, and dance year-round - from country to classical to international. The facility also houses an art gallery, and in the summer hosts a farmer's market.
The Lake Placid Sinfonietta puts on a Summer Symphony Series at Lake Placid Center for the Arts, outdoor Pops in the Park shows at the Paul White Memorial Shell located in Mids Park in downtown Lake Placid, and other special performances around northern New York.
There are a number of fun spots at which to grab drinks and listen to music year-round in Lake Placid. Dancing Bears Lounge at the Hilton Lake Placid features live entertainment every weekend, as well as a daily happy hour with complementary hors d'oeuvres. The Lake Placid Pub and Brewery on Mirror Lake Drive serves ales and lagers brewed on-site, with standard matching pub food.
Arts and Entertainment in Saranac Lake
While in Saranac Lake, look for show times for the Pendragon Theater on Brandy Brook Avenue, a professional regional theater performing both classic and contemporary works throughout most of the year, playing to sold-out crowds all summer. Several other bars are dotted around Broadway and also on Main Street near the Hotel Saranac, many featuring live local bands performing on weekends.
On Friday evenings in July and August, free jazz, pop, blues, and rock concerts are held on Lake Flower at the Anderson Bandshell in Riverside Park, where guests can sit on blankets by the water and gaze at the stars. During July, the Adirondack Festival of American Music rotates around different venues in Saranac Lake.
Arts and Entertainment in Saratoga Springs
Saratoga Springs is a real cultural center for northern New York; visitors will not have difficulty finding many interesting performances, exhibits, and more in this area. The famed www.spac.org/Saratoga Performing Arts Center (SPAC) is an outdoor amphitheater with around 5,000 seats and surrounding lawns to sit on as well. The SPAC draws well-known pop, rock, and jazz musicians during the summer, and also features the New York City Opera in June, the New York City Ballet in July, and the Philadelphia Orchestra in August. Also on the grounds of SPAC is Little Theater, seating around 500, and hosting chamber music and dramas year-round.
Saratoga's Baroque Festival takes place at the Greenfield Center on Wilton Road every July and August. The festival is set up in a private music hall seating just over 100 and featuring baroque music played on period instruments.
Caffe Lena, recognized by many as “the oldest continuously operating coffeehouse in the United States,” is also a cultural center. It was opened in Saratoga in 1960 and has hosted early performances from such artists as Bob Dylan and Arlo Guthrie. It now operates as a non-profit institution, continuing to support music, writing, and theater, while also serving up coffee and food.
The nightlife in Saratoga provides visitors with a good amount of options, thanks to nearby Skidmore College and the Saratoga Race Course. Caroline Street is known for being lined with many bars and clubs. On Maple Avenue look for the glitzy Otto Lounge at the back of Mare Ristorante, as well as “9 Maple Avenue,” a strictly jazz joint. Many restaurants in Saratoga play host to their own lively bar scenes. The Saratoga Comedy Club hosts shows at the Inn at Saratoga on Broadway every Friday and Saturday night.
Arts and Entertainment in Lake George
Every June, the Lake George Opera leaves its theater in Saratoga Springs for Opera on the Lake. Pushing off from Steel Pier, guests cruise around the quiet evening waters of Lake George aboard the Lac du Saint Sacrement, serenaded by the Lake George Opera's apprentice artists. Refreshments are provided on board.
On Monday nights during the summer, check out the Lake Luzerne Chamber Music Festival, a free festival featuring members of the Philadelphia Orchestra. West of Lake George, in Schroon Lake, summer concerts are presented in the Boat House Theater, overlooking the lake. Schroon Lake is also home to the Seagle Music Colony, a retreat founded in 1915 by concert baritone Oscar Seagle, which puts on opera concerts and musical theater from July-early August. A newer event to the region, the Lake George Community Band Festival takes place in July in Lake George's Shepard Park.
Have a laugh with the Saratoga Comedy Club, hosting shows at both Sweet Basil Restaurant in Queensbury and at The Udder Comedy Club at the Tiki Resort in Lake George. In Lake George Village, both Duffy's and King Neptune's Pub & Night Club offer nice views of the lake and often host live music.
Arts and Entertainment in the Thousand Islands
Serving as a performance and community center for the Thousand Islands, the Clayton Opera House has been around for over 100 years. Look for free outdoor concerts at the waterfront of Frink Park in Clayton throughout the summer. In mid-July, the Decoy and Wildlife Art Show draws hundreds of exhibitors to the Clayton Arena. Check out the Festival of North Country Folklife at Robert Moses State Park - Thousand Islands every August, where traditional storytelling, music, dancing, crafts, and food are enjoyed by all.
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