Montpelier, VT – April in Vermont is sweetened with festivities that celebrate a variety of Vermont’s spring-time traditions. Some events are playful, like pond skimming at ski resorts; others are enriching, like the Full Circle Festival and the Made in Vermont Marketplace. There are also several seasonal art exhibits opening. Here's a sampler of the hundreds of VermontVacation.com events you’ll want to experience:
Poem City
Montpelier & select Vermont Visitor Centers, month-long
In Montpelier, the celebration of National Poetry Month is coming into its 5th year, bringing with it a text display of contemporary Vermont poetry from through the state. This month-long celebration began with the belief that all people are poets and that their work should be cultivated, communicated and enjoyed. Come celebrate with more than 200 Vermont writers. http://poemcityvt.wordpress.com/
John Gorka
April 4, Randolph
An icon of the American folk tradition, best known for his rich baritone voice and skillful songwriting, Gorka was inspired by the folk-inspired acoustic music found at Godfrey Daniels and started touring with his own songs. The folk duo Mustard’s Retreat opens the show. www.chandler-arts.org
11th Great Gardens and Landscaping Symposium
April 5, Manchester Center
Features six dynamic lectures, a Gardener's Marketplace, great food, door prizes and gifts. Featured speakers: David L. Culp: Thomas Christopher, Deborah Trickett, Adam R. Wheeler, Kerry Ann Mendez. Lectures include: 50 Perennials I Could Not Live Without, The Layered Garden, Mowless Lawns, Celebrity Pots, Fun with Color: Variegated Foliage in the Garden, Flashy New or Underused Perennials for 2014. www.pyours.com/symposium
Tinseltown Benefit Gala
April 5, Stowe
Come join the Stowe community for a Vintage Hollywood inspired dinner party while benefiting the art center. An extraordinary art auction fills the walls. www.helenday.com/tinseltown
Hot Club of Cowtown
April 6, Middlebury
Hot Club of Cowtown, comes to the After Dark Music Series. Elana James, Whit Smith and Jake Erwin coming from Austin, Texas, are one of the hardest-swinging Western swing trios on the planet. www.afterdarkmusicseries.com
Guru of Chai
April 8,9,10, Burlington
A story of love, loss, and enlightenment, the Guru of Chai is set amid the vibrant chaos of modern India. Created by award-winning actor Jacob Rajan and musician David Ward, Guru of Chai tells the tale of a poor chaiwallah (tea seller) whose life is changed by an abandoned young girl with a beautiful singing voice. With over two dozen larger-than-life characters performed entirely by Rajan, live music, and puppetry, Guru of Chai “unearths the profoundly touching comedy of these hopeful, vulnerable lives.” (The Scotsman) in an outrageously funny and beautiful romantic thriller. http://www.flynntix.org
Dougie MacLean
April 9, Middlebury
Dougie MacLean, Scotland's pre-eminent singer/songwriter is internationally renowned for his song "Caledonia," music for the "Last of the Mohicans" and inspired performances. "A musical hero" - Wall Street Journal. www.afterdarkmusicseries.com
The Los Angeles Guitar Quartet
April 12, Randolph
The LAGQ’s inventive, critically acclaimed transcriptions of concert masterworks provide a fresh look at the music of the past, while their interpretations of works from the contemporary and world-music realms continually break new ground. Programs including Latin, African, Far East, Irish, Folk and American Classics transport listeners around the world in a single concert experience. www.chandler-arts.org
Full Circle Festival: The Art & Heart of Aging
April 11-13, Burlington
Vermont’s first regional festival to celebrate the spirit and opportunities of aging. How exactly do you feel about getting older? Explore that question in a variety of ways at Full Circle. In venues throughout downtown, over 50 events will consider the gifts of aging through a fresh and celebratory approach. www.fullcirclefestival.com
First Annual Made in Vermont Marketplace
April 12-13, Essex Junction
Vermont is home to some of the most vibrant locally made products in the country. The marketplace will feature a great variety of Vermont made products from furniture, wine, spirits, specialty foods, and crafts to home goods and fine art. www.madeinvermontmarketplace.com
Classics Concert
April 13, Newport
As part of the Now Playing Newport Music Series, the selections will include Piano Quartet No. 1 in C minor (Kuhlau). www.nowplayingnewport.com
Fiction Reading by Justin Torres
April 14, Plainfield
A graduate of the Iowa Writers’ Workshop, Torres received a Rolón Fellowship in literature from United States Artists, and was a Wallace Stegner Fellow at Stanford. "We the Animals" is a national bestseller. www.goddard.edu
Arturo O'Farrill & the Afro Latin Jazz Orchestra
April 19, Burlington
Grammy-winning pianist, composer and educator Arturo O’Farrill and the extraordinary 18-piece Afro Latin Jazz preserves the classic sounds of Latin dance bands while embracing its experimental side, roaring through compositions by Latin music’s best: Machito, Tito Puente, Astor Piazzola, Hermeto Pascoal, and his own father, Chico O’Farrill. A veteran of the groups of Dizzy Gillespie and Harry Belafonte, O’Farrill leads the orchestra in a performance that spans the Americas, playing both traditional cuts and commissioned works with the fire of a mambo workout. www.flynntix.org
Theater: Amadeus
April 23, Johnson
This provocative work weaves a confrontation between mediocrity and genius into a tale of breathtaking dramatic power. In the court of the Austrian Emperor Josef, Antonio Salieri is the established composer. Enter the greatest musical genius of all time: Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. Salieri has given himself to God so that he might realize his sole ambition to be a great composer. Mozart is a foul-mouthed, graceless oaf who has that which is beyond Salieri's grasp: Genius. www.jsc.edu
Vermont Restaurant Week
Statewide, April 25 - May 4
The fifth annual Vermont Restaurant Week is an opportunity to sample locavore, farm-to-table cuisine that is perennially celebrated in national accolades and headlines. Vermont can credit its distinction as a culinary destination to its abundance of agricultural resources and top-flight chefs paired with the state’s position as home to the most cheese makers and brewers per capita in the country. Vermont’s rural farming heritage has nurtured a dining culture that welcomes exploration: culinary visitors delight in fine, local, fresh foods amid the vibrancy of downtown, while admiring mountain views or appreciating the working farm next door. vermontrestaurantweek.com
The 48th Vermont Maple Festival
April 25-27, St. Albans
The theme of the 48th Maple Festival: A Top Ten Event! When sugaring’s over, it’s time for maple fun! The weekend is host to new syrup tasting, exhibits, street entertainment, food stands, pancake breakfasts, cooking and maple products, contests, a carnival, face painting, sugarhouse tours and a giant parade. www.vermontmaplefestival.org
Capital City Concerts: Maids in Vermont
April 26, Montpelier
“Maids in Vermont” Karen Kevra-flute, Mary Rowell-violin, Stefanie Taylor-viola, Frances Rowell- cello, Rebecca Kaufmann-harp. This all-female/all-Vermonter band's combined experience includes performances at Lincoln Center, Carnegie and across the globe. They will perform music of Ravel, Dohnanyi, Martinu, Libby Larsen, and Jean Francaix. www.capitalcityconcerts.org