A watercolor class, a poetry clinic, a Pilates class set to invigorating tunes: These are among the diverse activities taking place on any given night at River Arts. But on a recent evening, Morrisville's arts and community center opened its doors to a brand-new event: AMP Night. The acronym stands for art, music and poetry. "We wanted to create an event that brought a mix of people together to celebrate creativity and experience a spectrum of artistic disciplines," said Dominique Gustin, River Arts' executive director. Added Tamra Higgins, founder and program director of Jeffersonville-based Sundog Poetry Center, and AMP's co-curator: "Let's not sit alone in our own little farmhouses — let's come together. The arts are capable of impacting and changing people's lives." Alejandro Angio and his catering service, El Hornero, offered attendees Argentinian empanadas before they climbed to the second floor of the 1847 former school building. There, they encountered the "A"— the walls were adorned with 20 paintings by Morrisville artist Ted Zilius in an exhibit titled "Sad and Jazz." Event curators welcomed some two dozen audience members and introduced the night's three presentations: music by Ben Cosgrove, a reading by Vermont poet laureate Chard deNiord, and a brief talk about art by Zilius. Clad in jeans and a plaid shirt, Cosgrove, 29, sat behind a keyboard and issued a torrent of landscape-inspired melodies to the rapt listeners. Next, deNiord read a suite of his poems, which were rich in natural imagery, as well as verses that paid homage to his late mentors and predecessors, Ruth Stone and Hayden Carruth. Last, Zilius spoke about his acrylic works. Those with somber hues, he said, document his period of grief for a lost friend; the paintings with brilliant splashes of color illustrate his subsequent return to playfulness and joy. River Arts and Sundog have similar missions — to offers arts experiences as a means of fostering and enriching communities. So it seemed natural for the two organizations "to synergize," as Gustin put it, and thereby potentially reach a wider audience. Gustin and Higgins had collaborated once before, when they cohosted a publishers' fair at River Arts in 2015. In addition, Higgins had hosted a kindred series in Jeffersonville from 2013 to 2015 called Delectable Delights, which featured Vermont poets and musicians along with local food. When Gustin approached Higgins to enquire about another collaboration, the two decided to…
A watercolor class, a poetry clinic, a Pilates class set to invigorating tunes: These are among the diverse activities taking place on any given night at River Arts. But on a recent evening, Morrisville's arts and community center opened its doors to a brand-new event: AMP Night. The acronym stands for art, music and poetry. "We wanted to create an event that brought a mix of people together to celebrate creativity and experience a spectrum of artistic disciplines," said Dominique Gustin, River Arts' executive director. Added Tamra Higgins, founder and program director of Jeffersonville-based Sundog Poetry Center, and AMP's co-curator: "Let's not sit alone in our own little farmhouses — let's come together. The arts are capable of impacting and changing people's lives." Alejandro Angio and his catering service, El Hornero, offered attendees Argentinian empanadas before they climbed to the second floor of the 1847 former school building. There, they encountered the "A"— the walls were adorned with 20 paintings by Morrisville artist Ted Zilius in an exhibit titled "Sad and Jazz." Event curators welcomed some two dozen audience members and introduced the night's three presentations: music by Ben Cosgrove, a reading by Vermont poet laureate Chard deNiord, and a brief talk about art by Zilius. Clad in jeans and a plaid shirt, Cosgrove, 29, sat behind a keyboard and issued a torrent of landscape-inspired melodies to the rapt listeners. Next, deNiord read a suite of his poems, which were rich in natural imagery, as well as verses that paid homage to his late mentors and predecessors, Ruth Stone and Hayden Carruth. Last, Zilius spoke about his acrylic works. Those with somber hues, he said, document his period of grief for a lost friend; the paintings with brilliant splashes of color illustrate his subsequent return to playfulness and joy. River Arts and Sundog have similar missions — to offers arts experiences as a means of fostering and enriching communities. So it seemed natural for the two organizations "to synergize," as Gustin put it, and thereby potentially reach a wider audience. Gustin and Higgins had collaborated once before, when they cohosted a publishers' fair at River Arts in 2015. In addition, Higgins had hosted a kindred series in Jeffersonville from 2013 to 2015 called Delectable Delights, which featured Vermont poets and musicians along with local food. When Gustin approached Higgins to enquire about another collaboration, the two decided to…