The Hollow – Halloween Concert featuring Gabriella Pizzolo of Stranger Things

WHEN: Sunday, Oct 29, 2023 from 4:00 PM – 5:30 PM

WHERE: Page Hall, University at Albany, Downtown Campus, 135 Western Ave Albany, NY 12222

COST: $10 for students. Tickets available HERE

BUS: #11, 12, or walk

The Hollow – Concert and Debut of Short Film featuring Gabriella Pizzolo of Stranger Things

On October 29, Musicians of Ma’alwyck will debut the short film The Hollow, an adaptation of Washington Irving’s The Legend of Sleepy Hollow, in a concert format with seasonal music in celebration of Hallowe’en. Broadway veteran and Stranger Things actor Gabriella Pizzolo joins the ensemble to perform works from the operas Nina (for the Stranger Things fans) and The Haunted Tower, as well as a special recitation of Robert Burns’ Tam-o’Shanter poem musically set by Max Caplan. Also on the program is music of Albany’s own William Warren Green, and excerpts from Walter Claggett’s The Witches. Featured Musicians of Ma’alwyck performers include Ann-Marie Barker Schwartz (violin), Norman Thibodeaux (flute) and Al Fedak (harpsichord).

This concert is part of Discover Albany’s All Hallowe’en Festival 2023, a modern twist on the original Halloween festival celebrated annually in Albany over a hundred years ago.

Guest performer Gabriella Pizzolo made waves appearing in the Season 3 finale of the hit Netflix series Stranger Things as Dustin’s long distance girlfriend Suzie. The pair became a viral sensation with their rendition of the song “Never Ending Story.” She recently has continued her role in Stranger Things  Season 4. At age 10 she made her Broadway debut as the title role in Matilda the Musical. Following her year long run, she went on to be in the original company of the Tony Award winning Broadway musical Fun Home, eventually taking over the lead role of Small Alison. Her proudest moment was representing Fun Home when singing for Michelle Obama on the television special Broadway at the White House (TLC). She appeared opposite Jake Gyllenhaalin the City Center Encores production of Sunday in the Park with George as well as the Make-A-Wish Foundation benefit anniversary production of The Secret Garden as Mary Lenox. Following her success on Broadway, she was cast as the younger version of Idina Menzel’s character CC in Lifetime’s remake of the classic film Beaches. She has also appeared on the CBS series Braindead.  She returned to the stage in Alabama Shakespeare Festival’s new musical adaption of Because of Winn Dixie (Opal) and the Adirondack Theater Festival’s production of a new musical, Loch Ness. Currently, Gabriella can be heard voicing the series regular character Cricket on Nickelodeon’s popular animated series Butterbean’s Cafe and as Angela Waters on HBO Max’s Pretty Little Liars: Original Sin.

Musicians of Ma’alwyck will offer a free preview of this concert on Wednesday, October 25 from 12:00 to 12:45 PM at SUNY-Schenectady’s Carl Taylor Auditorium.

The mainstage concert and video premiere will take place Sunday, October 29, 4:00 pm at Page Hall, University at Albany, Downtown Campus, 135 Western Ave, Albany, NY 12203.

Tickets for the video premiere and concert at Page Hall are $40 adult/$10 students. In addition, tickets are available for a special post-concert reception at the Argus Hotel, where concertgoers can meet the cast of The Hollow short film. Cost of attending this reception is $40 in addition to the concert ticket price, and will include appetizers, a cash bar and a chance to meet Gabriella Pizzolo and the performers. This reception begins immediately after the concert ends, at approximately 5:30 pm.  Space for the post-concert reception at the Argus Hotel is limited to 40 guests – please RSVP by 10/25. To purchase tickets for the 10/29 4:00 pm concert and the 5:30 pm post-concert reception, visit https://musiciansofmaalwyck.org/home.

This event is made possible with funding from the Michele L. Vennard Hospitality Grant administered by Discover Albany, and by public funds from the New York State Council on the Arts.

ABOUT THE MUSICIANS OF MA’ALWYCK

Musicians of Ma’alwyck are a flexible-sized classical chamber music ensemble. The mission of Musicians of Ma’alwyck is to share history through music. Founded in 1999 by violinist and director Ann-Marie Barker Schwartz, the purpose of Musicians of Ma’alwyck is to cultivate and promote an understanding and appreciation for American, particularly New York State, life in the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries through the performance of chamber ensemble music at historic sites and concert venues in collaboration with other artistic organizations. Based in the Capital Region but performing throughout New York State, the ensemble serves a diverse audience of music lovers, history enthusiasts, and supporters of the arts. Core musicians include Ann-Marie Barker Schwartz, director and violin; Norman Thibodeau, flute; Sten Isachsen, guitar; André Laurent O’Neil, cello. The group frequently works with guest artists of national stature.

Musicians of Ma’alwyck produce several concerts and online programs each year, combiningarchival research, historic sites in New York State, and classical music. They have been inresidence at the Schuyler Mansion in Albany for over twenty years, and are currently holding residencies at SUNY-Schenectady and Hyde Hall, a historic house museum in Cooperstown, NY. The ensemble released its first commercial CD in 2016, Music in the Schuyler Mansion, which the Times Union called “elegant and charming,” and their second in 2021, Hyde Hall & the Silver Goddess: Operatic Brilliance of Auber, Bellini, Meyerbeer, and Rossini from the Drawing Room.