Linda Plaut Festival of the Arts: Free in three venues, May 17-19

You don’t need to travel to Newport, Rhode Island, the Coachella Valley, California, or Austin, Texas, to see a variety of talented musicians perform. All you need to do is be in Newton during May 17-19, and attend Newton Community Pride’s 9th annual Linda Plaut Festival of the Arts.

Another plus? Unlike the Newport Jazz Festival, Coachella, and South by Southwest, Newton’s multi-day event is entirely free.

“We are in a region where there is off-the-charts top talent,” said resident Chris Pitts, the festival’s producer. 

UPDATE: Newton Community Pride offers this two-minute survey to gather information and suggestions from those who attended any Linda Plaut Festival of the Arts event.

In 2019 the annual event was renamed to honor the late Linda Plaut, long-time community arts advocate and former director of the Mayor’s Office of Cultural Affairs.

“Linda Plaut deserves a lot of accolades” for her work on the arts in the city, said Pitts before last year’s festival.

This year, musicians and spoken-word artists will perform in three different locations this year: Second Church in Newton on May 17, the Allen Center for the Arts on May 18, and the Hyde Community Center Bandstand on May 19.

“We want to sort of share the love,” said Pitts. “We wanted to bring [the festival] to everybody.”

Last year’s event, which was attended by about 1,000 people, took place entirely at the Hyde Community Center in Newton Highlands, which has an indoor option in case of inclement weather. 

The two West Newton locations this year are also indoors. 

After an $8 million renovation, Pitts said the Allen House is “a nice, posh setting for real intimate types of performances,” including those by spoken-word artists Amanda Shea and Grey Held. 

The Second Church pulled out its first three rows of pews to accommodate more performing arts acts, and it can now seat 400 people.

It has “startling acoustics,” said Pitts. “It’s really awesome.” 

This year all but two of the performers (Maitreyee Chakraborty and the Thaddeus Hogarth Collective) are new to the event and a cover a wide variety of musical genres including Klezmer, Big Band, opera, Broadway showtunes, orchestral, reggae, gospel, soul, and funk. 

Although food will be sold only at the Second Church (Empanadas from Chiqui’s Kitchen), all three locations are situated near many independent restaurants. 

The festival would not be possible without help from people who donate their time and/or money. Pitts said that while there is a main sponsor (Village Bank), since Covid, there has been a decrease in volunteering and philanthropy, so raising funds is now more difficult.

Asked why he feels it’s important for people to have creative arts outlets like the Linda Plaut Festival, Pitts said one reason is that music “can take [attendees] out of the toxic daily politics” and help them enjoy the plethora of talent available in the area.

This year’s lineup is as follows:

May 17: Second Church in Newton (60 Highland St., West Newton)

• 6 p.m. Newton Family Singers – Creedence Clearwater Revival & John Fogerty
• 7:30 p.m. Maitreyee Chakraborty – Indian Vocal and Sarod

Empanadas will be available for purchase from Chiqui’s Kitchen.

May 18: The Allen Center for the Arts (35 Webster St., West Newton)

• 4PM: Amanda Shea & Grey Held – Spoken Word
• 5PM: Pro Arte Chamber Orchestra
• 6:30PM: Hankus Netsky & Eden MacAdam-Somer – Klezmer
• 7:30PM: Dominique Eade & George Russell Jr. – Duke Ellington Tribute

May 19: Hyde Community Center Bandstand (90 Lincoln St., Newton Highlands)

(Inside the Hyde Center if inclement weather.)

• 2PM: Olga Lisovskaya – Opera Classics & Broadway Showtunes
• 3:30PM: Matt Jenson Reggae Ensemble – Life of Bob Marley
• 5PM: Dennis Montgomery III with Pleasant Praise Gospel Choir
• 6:30PM: Thaddeus Hogarth Collective – Soul & Funk

Newton Community Pride’s public art exhibit — Picture Us! Newton — will be on display throughout the festival.