ABD Presents: Author: Stephanie Gayle
Date and time: Dec 5, 2022 12:00 noon

Venue: Killian Hall

Stephanie Gayle is the twice Pushcart Prize nominated author of the Thomas Lynch mystery series that begins with Idyll Threats. Her debut novel, My Summer of Southern Discomfort, made Redbook’s Top Ten Summer Reads list. She is the Immediate Past President of Sisters in Crime. A graduate of Grub Street’s Novel Incubator program, she cofounded the Craft on Draft reading series. She works in the finance department of Facilities at MIT.

The ABD is grateful and honored to have Stephanie Gayle come talk about her body of work at Killian Hall! If you are a fan of her work and have any questions for Stephanie, please email them here.

Pictured above: Amanda top left, Brendan top right, Jeff bottom left, and Kara bottom right.

ABD Presents: Singers: Amanda Casale, Kara Chu Nelson and Jeff Mitchell and Brendan Kenney on piano
Date and time: Dec 16, 2022 12:00 noon

Venue: Killian Hall

Amanda Casale, Kara Chu Nelson, and Jeff Mitchell will be singing musical theatre duet and trio selections.  Brendan Kenney will be accompanying us on the piano.

Amanda Casale graduated from Tufts University with a BS in Chemical Engineering and Mathematics, and in 2014 earned her Masters in Statistics from Harvard University.  She has worked for MIT Lincoln Laboratory for the last 13 years. Though the pandemic and becoming a mom put some things on pause, Amanda was an active musical theatre actress throughout New England between 2009 and 2019. Her last theatrical endeavours included Kate in See Rock City & Other Destinations at the 2018 Edinburgh Festival Fringe in Scotland and Elle Woods in The Footlight Club's November 2019 production of Legally Blonde: the Musical.  Now that her infant has stolen her heart and the spotlight, she has focused more on taking the stage as a vocalist in various concerts and showcases. Thank you to MIT ABD, and to Kara, Jeff, and Brendan for joining her today!

Kara Chu Nelson is honored to be singing at MIT’s Artists Beyond the Desk with some of her favorite humans! She has also performed at Umbrella Stage Company in Concord, North Shore Music Theatre in Beverly, Moonbox Productions in Boston, and Seacoast Rep in Portsmouth, among others. Favorite past roles include Éponine in Les Mis, "Somewhere" Girl in West Side Story, The Mistress in Evita, Hope Cladwell in Urinetown, and Natalie in Next to Normal. This February, she looks forward to performing in Tick, Tick, …Boom! with Colonial Chorus Players in Reading, alongside her wonderful partner, Jeff. Kara would like to thank Amanda for this wonderful opportunity!

Jeff Mitchell’s recent theatre credits include Emmett in Legally Blonde: the Musical (Footlight Club), Benedick in Much Ado About Nothing (Olde Salem Stage Company), Freddie in Dirty Rotten Scoundrels (Arlington Friends of the Drama) & Panch in The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee (Needham Community Theater). He was the recipient of the 2018 DASH award for Best Actor (Play) for his performance in Footlight Club’s Our Town & the 2019 DASH Award for Best Supporting Actor (Musical) for Riverside Theater Work’s All Shook Up. He also recently served as the Assistant Director for Umbrella Stage’s The Old Man and the Old Moon. Jeff will next be seen in February 2023 as Jon in Tick, Tick... Boom! with Colonial Chorus Players in Reading, MA.

Brendan Kenney is a music director, conductor, and accompanist in the Greater Boston area.  He has collaborated with a number of community and professional theaters around Boston including Lyric Stage Company, Speakeasy Stage Company, Umbrella Stage Company, and Greater Boston Stage Company.  Brendan also directs a regular cabaret series at the Napoleon Room of Club Café, Boston’s only piano and cabaret bar. As a performer, Brendan can occasionally be found on stage with local community theaters and has been seen singing back-up for the local performances of Josh Groban’s Bridges tour, and Sarah Brightman’s Hymn and A Christmas Symphony tours. In 2020, Brendan founded the Firebird Pops Orchestra virtually to meet the growing need for virtual performance platforms for amateur and semi-professional musicians. More info at firebirdpops.org.

The ABD is grateful and honored to have Amanda Casale and friends come perform on this December at Killian Hall!

ABD Presents: JANUARY 2023 - Available For a ZOOM* performance - Book Now!

*contact us for further details and or, optional event venues

ABD Presents: February 2023 - Killian Hall Available for a performance - Book Now!

ABD Presents: Clarinetist - Ray Jackendoff and Pianist Lois Shapiro

Date and time: March, 27, 2023 12:00 noon

Venue: Killian Hall

Ray Jackendoff received his Ph.D. at MIT in 1969, under Noam Chomsky.  For the past five years, Ray has been a Research Affiliate in Brain and Cognitive Sciences, associated with Ted Gibson and Ev Fedorenko’s lab.  While Ray's work in linguitics and contributions to musical cognition are world renowned amongst his peers, students and professionals in these fields of study, Ray also happens to be are highly regarded classical clarinetist. Ray has soloed with the MIT Orchestra on their 1968 tour and again as part of the celebration of Jerry Wiesner’s inauguration in 1971.  Ray has also soloed with the Boston Pops in 1980 for MIT Night at the Pops, as well as with the Civic Symphony of Boston (three times) and the North Shore Philharmonic.  Ray has recorded two CDs with Albany Records.

Pianist Lois Shapiro “conjures enchantment” and “produces and inspires musical magic,” notes The Boston Globe. A New York Concert Artists Guild Award winner and highly sought-after soloist and collaborative pianist, she has appeared throughout the U.S. and abroad in concerts ranging from 18th-century period-instrument performances to premieres. In May 2013, Shapiro performed and gave a workshop at the Universität für Musik und darstellende Kunst in Vienna. Shapiro has recorded on Afka, Bridge, Channel Classics, Centaur, MLAR, and Pierrot. Her 1996 duo recording with cellist Rhonda Rider was cited as “Best of the Year” in The Boston Globe. Ms. Shapiro gives numerous masterclasses and lectures on subjects such as the nature of musicianship, late-Beethoven piano sonatas, and Robert Schumann’s music in cultural context. As an expression of her abiding interest in bringing the musical experience to under-served populations, she was recently awarded an Alumni Ventures grant from Yale University to create and offer innovative interdisciplinary music programs in the Boston public schools. Always seeking to inspire music-lovers of all ages, Ms. Shapiro has recently created an intergenerational orchestra called FIGCO and, in collaboration with the Longy School of Music Dalcroze Department, she co-produced a series of engaging and highly popular family programs in which she performed as narrator and pianist. She received her musical training at the Peabody Institute of Johns Hopkins University, Yale University, and the New England Conservatory.

The ABD is grateful and honored to have Ray and Lois come play at Killian Hall this coming spring!