Cost for summer camp is $75 HAC Members and $90 Non-Members. Space is limited!  Contact Alan Rabon at 706-629-2599 to register today!

Missoula Children’s Theatre presents BEAUTY LOU AND THE COUNTRY BEAST, an original country western adaptation of the classic fairy tale BEAUTY AND THE BEAST. Beauty Lou is the oldest daughter of the bronc-bustin’ balladeer Buck. At the local county fair, young Beauty Lou is upset by the ungrateful behavior of a miner who has won the blue ribbon for his beautiful roses. She calls him a beast and wishes that he would look like one too. Years later, when in danger of losing the family farm, Buck meets the miner-turned-beast. Beauty Lou agrees to befriend the Beast in order to save her family. Beauty Lou and the Beast both learn to look beyond appearances and first impressions and to see the beauty that dwells inside. The story, set in the American West, also features Beauty Lou’s six sisters, her Imaginary Friend, her dog Fleabite Clyde, farmhands Slim and Dusty, the neighborly Country Folk and the Barnyard Critters.

The Chamber Players of the South is an ensemble under the umbrella of Rome’s Own Musical Ensembles, Inc. (R.O.M.E.) and is directed by Dr. Sam Baltzer.  Dr. Baltzer is director of the music education program at Shorter College in Rome, GA. Besides his responsibilities at Shorter, Dr. Baltzer also directs all of the R.O.M.E. musical ensembles – the Northwest Georgia Winds, Chamber Players of the South, and the Clocktower Jazz Ensemble.  He is an active composer, arranger, performer, and clinician and is a past recipient of the Rome Area Council for the Arts “Artist of the Year” award.

Appalachian Spring was originally written in 1944 as a ballet score at the request of the famed choreographer Martha Graham.  For this piece Copland borrowed the flavor of Shaker songs and dances and directly used the dance song Simple Gifts.  The title of the piece came not from Aaron Copland, who had no particular setting in mind while writing the music, but rather from Martha Graham when titling her ballet.  Appalachian Spring became one of Copland’s most beloved works and helped establish his international fame.

Rhapsody in Blue is a musical composition by George Gershwin for solo piano and jazz band written in 1924, which combines elements of classical music with jazz-influenced effects. Brian Wilson has said on multiple occasions that “Rhapsody in Blue” is one of his favorite pieces. It was also a heavy influence on his Smile album. Michael Stipe of REM has cited this as one of the largest influences in his musical development. Rhapsody in Blue established Gershwin’s reputation as a serious composer and has since become one of the most popular of all American concert works.

“American Classics Concert”

Saturday, March 3, 7:30 PM at the GEM Theatre

$20 General Admission $18 HAC & GEM Members

Tickets may be purchased online @ www.calhoungem.org or by visiting or calling the HAC at 706 629-2599.

Easter is just around the corner and Board members and corporate friends are busy preparing themed gift baskets for silent auction to be on display March 5^th through the 30^th.

Donors have been very creative with their “baskets” – any theme in any type container is permissible, with contents having a minimum retail value of $75.

Visual Arts Committee members have pooled their contributions to gather an impressive array of drawing and painting supplies arranged in a custom artist’s duffle bag. Little Theater chose a “Weekend Get Away” theme, featuring a two-night stay in a lovely mountain home on a large creek in Haysville, North Carolina. Get ready to enjoy a “Picnic at the Beach” from the members of the Roland Hayes Museum Committee. Music Guild offers a gift certificate for guitar or banjo lessons – winner’s choice.

Other generous businesses and groups making a donation are:

Chick-Fil-A, Red Door Café, Fork in the Road Diner, Sew Sue’s Fabric Salon, Master Gardener’s, Bridges Discount Home Store, Sell All Trading Company, Salon 53, AGR Guns & Pawn, and Georgia Bank & Trust.

Featuring: Mary Ellen McCall, Elaine Little, Therese Randall, David K. Smith, Kaytlyn Reese, Jeri Dunn and Ron Amyx. With special guest performers: Michael Clark and Larry Brown.

RADIO GALS is a musical by Mike Craver and Mark Hardwick, set in the late l920′s, and concerning an enterprising woman, Hazel Hunt, of Cedar Ridge, Arkansas who, upon her retirement as the town music teacher, receives a Western Electric 500 watt radio transmitter and begins broadcasting as radio station “WGAL”. What comes out over the local airwaves is a small town diary, calendar, and stream of consciousness — sort of a Molly Bloom crossed with the Farmers’ Almanac — with generous dollops of singing and playing by Hazel’s “all-girl” orchestra, “the Hazelnuts”, and that lovesick flapper Gladys Fritts. However, due to Hazel’s habit of “channel wandering”, her broadcasts are not always so local. And listeners as far away as Montreal and Manhattan can testify. Enter O. B. Abbott, Federal Radio Inspector, intent on rescuing the airwaves from gypsies like Hazel Hunt. However, Mr. Abbott soon falls prey to the blandishments of the Hazelnuts, and the Shangri-La that is Cedar Ridge. Inspector Abbott, it turns out, also has a fine tenor voice, plays a mean accordion, and in the course of things falls for the flapper…

Friday: Workshop and dinner at Velo Vineyard.

Saturday: Main Conference; Hour and a half workshop with our keynote speaker, 2 book signing times, a panel discussion and your choice of three of six other 50 minute workshops.

Sunday Breakfast and “Open Mike” at Fork In The Road Diner.

Barbara Casey is president of her own literary agency (established in 1995 and located in Georgia), representing authors from the United States, Great Britain, and Japan in both fiction and nonfiction. She is also a manuscript consultant, and the author of seven award-winning novels in addition to numerous articles, poems, and short stories.  Her contemporary adult novels have received national recognition, including the Independent Publishers Book Award for Shyla’s Initiative published in 2007.  In 2008 her novel, The House of Kane, was considered for a Pulitzer nomination, and in 2010 Just Like Family, also a contemporary adult novel, received special recognition from the 7-Eleven Corporation.  Her latest novel, The Cadence of Gypsies, written for young adults, was reviewed by the Smithsonian for its List of Most Notable Books. Ms. Casey served as judge for the Pathfinder Literary Awards in Palm Beach and Martin Counties, Florida, for over fifteen years, and was the Florida Regional Advisor for the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators from 1991 through 2003.

• New Harmonies will tour 12 communities in Georgia from April 2012 through November 2013, highlighting the state’s distinctive contributions to American roots music.
• New Harmonies features interactive panels, listening kiosks, and tailored display cases that inspire each host community to explore and showcase its local music heritage.
• New Harmonies will begin it’s tour of Georgia in Calhoun at the Harris Arts Center at 212 South Wall Street on April 14 through May 24.

Friday April 27 and Saturday April 28 at 7:30 PM.

Tickets are $15 General Admission and $12 HAC Members/Seniors/Students.

The Georgia String Band Festival

Northwest Georgia Fairgrounds, Hwy 53 at Liberty Road
Saturday, May 12, 2012
Noon until – Dark-Thirty
$10 General Admission, Children 12 & under – Free

Featuring the Gordon County Fiddler’s Convention

String Band – $500/$300/$200
Fiddle – $200/$100/$75
Banjo – $100/$75/$50
Buck dancing – $75/$50/$25
Junior Players Competition – Age 15 & Under – Medals awarded to 1st, 2nd & 3rd place

Based on last year’s participation, the very best musicians from surrounding states will be here to vie for first place and generous cash prizes. The Junior Players Competition is a new category for 2012. Spontaneous jam sessions are encouraged throughout the day. Bring your instrument and join in or bring your lawn chair to “set a spell” and soak up the entertainment. The strains of old-time and contemporary music will fill the air from two stages. A traditional dance will end the festivities after dark, complete with caller. Food vendors are on location.
Volunteers needed!

3rd Prize $250

Calhoun’s Got Talent is back again for the third year in a row. Come share your talent – do you sing, dance, play an instrument? Are you a magician or comedian? The age limit has been lowered this year to 16 and up. Contestants must pre-register for an audition date and time. Once our showcase of “stars” has been selected, the audience votes to select winners. The application will be online as details finalize.

• Auditions will be held April 30, May 1 and 2, 5:30 until 8 pm
• Rehearsal Dates for the first show are July 7 & 15, 3 pm July 17 & 19, 6:30 pm (1st Show July 21)
• Rehearsal dates for the second show are July 17 & 19, 6:30 (2nd Show July 28)
• Rehearsal Dates for the Finale are July 31 and August 2 (Final Show August 4)

For more details please contact Alan Rabon, Program Coordinator at 706-629-2599.