Pawling Library Centennial Gala…Hot Jazz and Flappers Happening in May!
By Susan Stone
As the culminating event for the year-long celebration of the Pawling Library’s Centennial, the Gala on May 21, 2022 at The Links at Union Vale in Lagrangeville promises to be a fantastic, fun-filled celebration with flappers, feathers and fedoras! The Centennial committee has planned an evening to remember. Dancing and merriment will be encouraged. Guests will be invited to dress in their best Great Gatsby finery. For those with nothing appropriate in their closet, signature 1920’s costumery will be provided to help imaginations soar for all in attendance.
A particularly exciting feature of this celebration will be the music of the electrifying, internationally renowned Dan Levinson and his Roof Garden Jazz Band, a group of five sensational musicians and a smooth and sassy vocalist. Levinson’s bio reads like a Who’s Who in jazz. A portion of it states, “The 2017 winner of Hot House Magazine’s ‘NYC Jazz Fans Decision’ award for Best Clarinetist, Dan Levinson is equally at home both fronting his own groups as well as performing with those led by others. His roster of musical associates includes such names as the late, great Mel Tormé, Wynton Marsalis and Dick Hyman. He has performed in Brazil with filmmaker Woody Allen’s band, as well as in Japan, Iceland, Latvia, and 18 European countries. Dan has also toured with singer/guitarist Leon Redbone. Since 1993 he has been a member of Vince Giordano’s Nighthawks, the country’s preeminent 1920s-’30s hot jazz orchestra, with whom he has appeared at Carnegie Hall, on Late Night with Conan O’Brien, and on Garrison Keillor’s A Prairie Home Companion radio program. Dan has recorded over 150 CDs. He can be heard on the soundtrack of Martin Scorsese’s ‘The Aviator,’ as well as on all five seasons of the Grammy Award-winning HBO television series ‘Boardwalk Empire’ and all three seasons of the Amazon Prime Video series ‘The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel.’” With an impressive roster of 1920’s flashy standards, the evening promises to be The Bee’s Knee’s (which, by the way, will be the signature cocktail offered throughout this cat’s meow of a wingding!).
With all the fun and frivolity planned, the gala will also serve as the final fundraising event of the Centennial celebratory year, which has focused on raising $150,000 toward the build of the library’s new children’s wing, the Kids Corner. As of this writing, 85% toward this funding goal has been achieved through community support, with the last 15% needed, well within reach.
Donations for the silent and live auction are currently being sought. A pair of tickets to the award-winning Broadway musical, Jagged Little Pill, have already been secured and several vacation options are in the works. Unique baskets for spa, wine, tea, toy, and food enthusiasts will be featured for silent bidding, as well as additional opportunities to explore and bid on specialty goods and services.
Invitations will go out in March. Tickets will be available for purchase through Eventbrite on a first come first served basis, with approximately 30% reserved for major sponsors and donors as per funding agreements. Discounts will be available for the purchase of full tables of ten.
The Centennial committee and Library board of directors are excited to celebrate the conclusion of this milestone year with the Pawling community. Further details about the Centennial are on the Centennial website, pawlinglibrarycentennial.com, where you will find info about the new Kids Corner. For information about donations, sponsorships and event tickets, the public is invited to contact Stephanie Mclaughlin at: stephaniejanemcl@gmail.com
