Salon Series

Press release:

GO ART!’s popular Salon Series returns this month through May with three programs in Genesee County, all featuring “Rising Stars” --  young artists in our communities. All GO ART! Salons are casual and fun, and each includes a themed menu, presentation from our artists, and time for socializing and discussion.

The line-up includes the following programs taking place at GO ART!, Seymour Place, 201 E. Main St. in Batavia (reservations are required):

The Forum Players: "God’s Favorite"
5 p.m. -- Saturday, March 31
Salon requested contribution: $23/members, $26/non-members

For this first salon in our series, the reservation includes the dinner / program at GO ART! AND a ticket to the 7:30 p.m. performance at Genesee Community College. To start the evening, Maryanne Arena, Forum Players’ advisor and GCC director of Fine & Performing Arts, will share informative and entertaining insights into the Neil Simon play “God’s Favorite,” which will be performed that evening.

Forum Players, a co-curricular theatrical organization, is an integral part of the Theatre Program at Genesee. All theatrical productions at the college are coordinated by the Forum Players and theater majors are encouraged to become members; however, it is open to all GCC students.

In recent years, the Forum Players have presented the adventurous play "Peter Pan" and the musical "Chicago" to sell-out crowds and rave reviews. In late 2009, the Genesee Center for the Arts at Genesee Community College Forum Players performance of “For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide / When the Rainbow is Enuf,” was a featured show at the Theater Association of New York State Festival (TANYS). It won three awards: Best Long Production, Best Choreography and Best Performance.

Menu: Fajita Bar! Strips of salmon, chicken and beef with all the toppings to make the perfect fajita or salad; bread pudding with caramel sauce.

Vocalist: Emily Tworek-Helenbrook
6 p.m. -- Thursday, April 26
Salon requested contribution: $21/members, $23/non-members

Join us for a night of international food and song! An accomplished vocalist, performer and photographer at the age of 17, Emily Tworek-Helenbrook, of Alexander, is a lyric coloratura soprano who has performed all over New York and Canada since she was 11. She has been described as a "vocal prodigy" with a "crystalline" and "hauntingly beautiful" voice. A live pianist will accompany Emily as she delights us with international-themed pieces, performing songs from France, Italy, Poland, Russia and the United States.

Ms. Tworek-Helenbrook has won the American Prize Vocal Competition in both the Opera and Art Song categories. She was a second-place winner in the Barry Alexander International Voice Competition in 2010, and in 2011 she took first place at the prestigious competition, resulting in a debut at Carnegie Hall in January 2011. She is a two time first-place winner of the Polish Heritage Society Competition. Emily won first place at the Classical Singer Competitions held at Mannes School of Music and Boston Conservatory, was a finalist in the prestigious Rochester Oratorio Competition, and has received numerous other awards.

Menu: French onion soup with baked cheese, antipasti salad, crusty rolls, cheese & potato-filled pierogi, chrusciki & hot fudge sundaes.

Chef de Cuisine: Michael Zambito
6 p.m. -- Wednesday, May 23
Salon requested contribution: $22/members, $24/non-members

A rare and wonderful treat for Batavia...the famed cuisine of Michael Zambito, owner and head chef of Zambistro in Medina, right in our backyard. Chef Zambito shares his culinary arts skills as well as his evolution as a chef, starting with a childhood spent in his nana’s kitchen. He attended the Culinary Institute of America in New York City after high school, during which time he interned at Chefs d’France in Epcot Center.

After graduating from the Culinary Institute, Chef Zambito returned to his hometown of Medina. His 50-seat bistro, Zambistro, was founded Dec. 1, 2006 to lead the way in a local culinary revolution, featuring Zambito’s unique blend of seasonal flavors and bold ingredients to create his spin on upscale comfort food. He is also executive chef for The Bistro at Shelridge (Country Club) in Medina, and has developed Zambistro Catering as part of his business model. GO ART! is proud to announce that Zambistro is now one of the official Preferred Caterers for events at GO ART!, Seymour Place.

Menu: Amuse-bouche -- Grilled & chilled shrimp cocktail, toasted barley salad, roasted tomato gazpacho; main course -- pan-seared free-range chicken breast, summer salad of romaine hearts, tomatoes, cucumbers, olives, croutons, pesto vinaigrette; dessert -- table-side presentation of espresso crème brûlée.

Each salon has a separate requested contribution, listed above, or enjoy the series of three at the discounted rate of $55 for members and $60 for non-members.

Reservations are required and can be made by phone at 343-9313, email at info@GOart.org, or by stopping in to GO ART!, Seymour Place, 201 E. Main St. in Batavia (open 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. weekdays). Reservations may also be made online at www.goart.org <http://www.goart.org> under “Events.”

The 2012 Salon Series is sponsored by The Bank of Castile.