Vermont entertainment events in January get 2023 off to an artsy start
The holiday season has subsided, but does that mean your fun has to grind to a halt? No way!
It is true that there are probably fewer arts-and-entertainment offerings in January than at any other time of the year in Vermont. Touring artists and local organizations need to take a breather after a busy fall, and you and your pocketbook might just want a respite as well.
Don’t deprive yourself, however, of events to enthrall and illuminate. We all require that sort of food for our hearts and souls, especially as the dark days of winter take hold. These events will be there for you when you’re ready for them.
New Year’s Day with Beethoven
3 p.m. Monday, Jan. 1, the Green Mountain Mahler Festival celebrates the first day of the year not with its namesake composer but with a performance of Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony, Elley-Long Music Center, Colchester. $10-$25. www.vtmahler.org
Thea Wren at Foam Brewers
8 p.m. Friday, Jan. 6, Vermont musician Thea Wren, whose sound has migrated from jazz more in a soulful pop vein, plays Foam Brewers, Burlington. Free. www.foambrewers.com
Celtic, Quebecois music in Addison County
7:30 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 7, Irish musician Seamus Egan and Quebecois performer Yann Falquet combine forces for the Ripton Coffee House performance at Burnham Hall, Lincoln. $15-$25. www.rcch.org
Brian Regan jokes around at Flynn
7:30 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 12, long-standing stand-up comic Brian Regan returns to the Flynn, Burlington. $42.50-$69.25. www.flynnvt.org
Middlebury College presents Afghan music
7:30 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 12, a foursome of Afghan musicians presents “Heart of Afghanistan,” showcasing the nation’s music from its pre-Islamic Buddhist period to today, Robison Hall, Mahaney Center for the Arts, Middlebury College. $5-$25. https://www.middlebury.edu/college/arts/performing-arts-series
‘Mountainfilm’ in a mountain town
7 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 14,”Mountainfilm on Tour” brings movies exploring themes related to skateboarding, climbing and skiing to the Spruce Peak Performing Arts Center, Stowe. $5-$15. www.sprucpeakarts.org
Boston band hits Higher Ground
8:30 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 14, the Boston-based, country-flavored band Dalton & the Sheriffs visits the Higher Ground Showcase Lounge, South Burlington. $15 in advance, $20 day of show. www.highergroundmusic.com
Comedy in South Burlington
7 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 19, New York comic Joe Pera goes for laughs in the Higher Ground Ballroom, South Burlington. $35 in advance, $39 day of show. www.highergroundmusic.com
New-grass bluegrass in Burlington
8 p.m. Thursday, Jan 19, the neo-bluegrass group Greensky Bluegrass plays a show presented by Higher Ground at the Flynn, Burlington. $45.25-$52.50. www.flynnvt.org
A play about yoga
7 p.m. Friday, Jan. 20-Saturday, Jan. 21, “Yoga with Jillian” – not a class or an instructional video but an immersive play written by Lia Romeo – takes place with yoga participation encouraged but not required from the audience, Town Hall Theater, Middlebury. $20. www.townhalltheater.org
Rising comic visits Burlington
7 and 9 p.m. Friday, Jan. 20-Saturday, Jan. 21, comic River Butcher performs four sets over two nights at the Vermont Comedy Club, Burlington. $25. www.vermontcomedyclub.com
VSO Jukebox becomes Juicebox
4 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 21, the Vermont Symphony Orchestra’s popular Jukebox chamber-music concerts turn into a “Juicebox” matinee geared toward children ages 10 and under, Higher Ground Showcase Lounge, South Burlington. $5-$10. At 7 p.m. same date and location, the grown-ups get their chance with an adults-only Jukebox performance. $15 in advance, $20 day of show. www.highergroundmusic.com
‘Anastasia’ goes from Broadway to Burlington
7:30 p.m. Sunday, Jan. 22-Monday, Jan. 23, the Broadway musical “Anastasia” settles in for a two-night run, the Flynn, Burlington. $65-$98. www.flynnvt.org
Music from Larry & Joe
7 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 24, the duo’s name is simple and the music is a curious mix of Appalachian and Venezuelan folk when Larry Bellorin and Joe Troop perform as Larry & Joe, Richmond Congregational Church. $23 in advance, $25 day of show. www.valleystage.net
Writer reads at Vermont Studio Center
7 p.m. Wednesday, Jan. 25, visiting writer Crystal Wilkerson, author of “Perfect Black,” gives a reading of her work, Red Mill Building, Vermont Studio Center, Johnson. She’ll follow that with a writing-craft talk at 10 a.m. Thursday, Jan. 26, Red Mill Building, Johnson. Free. www.vermontstudiocenter.org
An evening with Lotus
9 p.m. Wednesday, Jan. 25, the Indiana-born instrumental band Lotus performs in the Higher Ground Ballroom, South Burlington. $25 in advance, $30 day of show. www.highergroundmusic.com
Jon Spencer brings it to South Burlington
8 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 26, the fuzzy, psychedelic garage-rock sounds of Jon Spencer and the HITmakers, led by the former Blues Explosion front man, fill the Higher Ground Showcase Lounge, South Burlington. $17 in advance, $20 day of show. www.highergroundmusic.com
Stowe gets funny
7 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 28, the Liberty Stand-Up Comedy tour features Andy Pitz, Liz Miele and Shaun Eli, Spruce Peak Performing Arts Center, Stowe. $20-$35. www.sprucepeakarts.org
‘Love for Ashton’ fundraiser
6 p.m. Sunday, Jan. 29, the fundraiser “All Our Love for Ashton” will raise money for the family of 2-year-old Ashton Belanksy, recently diagnosed with neuroblastoma, and will include music from High Summer, Seth Yacovone and Andriana Chobot and dance from Ballet Wolcott and Stowe Dance Academy, Spruce Peak Performing Arts Center, Stowe. $25-$45. www.sprucepeakarts.org
Gregory Alan Isakov at the Flynn
8 p.m. Sunday, Jan. 29, singer-songwriter Gregory Alan Isakov plays a show presented by Higher Ground at the Flynn, Burlington. $42.25-$63.25. www.flynnvt.org
Big Thief sells out
8:30 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 31, indie-folk-rock favorites Big Thief headline a show with Buck Meek, Higher Ground Ballroom, South Burlington. Sold out. www.highergroundmusic.com
Contact Brent Hallenbeck at bhallenbeck@freepressmedia.com. Follow Brent on Twitter at www.twitter.com/BrentHallenbeck.
This article originally appeared on Burlington Free Press: Things to do in Vermont: January events get 2023 off to artsy start
