Up NExt
September Classes
Discover opportunities to learn, create, and connect through hands-on workshops and classes for all ages at ACC. Click below to see what’s coming up next!
Culture Blooms
The Athens Cultural Center is thrilled to invite you to our 3rd annual fundraising Gala! Mark your calendars and join us for a fun, lively event benefitting ACC and the exhibitions, programs and events that help our community flourish and grow! The evening will feature catering by Dinosaur BBQ, entertainment by the Lou Pappas Jazz Trio and the centerpiece of the night - a live auction benefiting ACC’s programs. Embrace the spirit of the event and dress in your favorite floral-inspired clothing!
Autumn Deep Reading Night
A guided reading and participatory discussion of a John Ashbery poem—in honor of his centennial—led by scholar & translator Leonard Nalencz.
Deep Reading Night is a relaxed, screen-free evening where we’ll read and discuss one poem by the late John Ashbery, a celebrated writer who spent much of his life devoted to creative communities in the Upper Hudson Valley. The poem will be chosen for its openness, emotional range, and relevance to many different lives. Facilitator Leonard Nalencz will guide us through reading it aloud, noticing details, and talking together about what we find; no expertise or prep required. For anyone who loves to read and think in community, or who’d like to try it for the first time.
This will be a light-fare potluck, and we invite you to bring snacks to contribute to our community table.
$10-$20 suggested donation
Presented by the Matthew Strother Center for The Examined Life and The Flow Chart Foundation.
Traditional Irish Music Session
Athens’ beloved traditional Irish music session is coming to the ACC! We are thrilled to welcome a new monthly event that is not just for lovers and practitioners of Irish music but also for the Irish-curious. Bring your fiddle, your guitar, your Uillean Pipes and your Bodhrán, or just come on down and find out what the heck a Bodhrán is! Please join us for refreshments and celebration at 7PM before the inaugural session on October 1st.
Primary Rhythms with Juma Sultan
Primary Rhythms: A Hands-On Journey Through World Music & Culture.
Primary Rhythms invites students to discover the universal language of rhythm through the music and cultural traditions of communities around the world. Through live demonstrations, guided instruction, and hands-on drumming, students explore how percussion has been used for storytelling, celebration, communication, and connection across cultures and generations.
During each 40-minute session, EJA Elementary students are introduced to percussion traditions from Africa, the Caribbean, Latin America, Indigenous cultures of the Americas, Asia, and the Middle East. Every student has the opportunity to play authentic instruments while developing rhythm, listening, coordination, creativity, and teamwork—all with no prior musical experience required.
Combining music, history, geography, and cultural learning, Primary Rhythms encourages students to appreciate the diversity of musical traditions while discovering the shared rhythms that connect us all.
Painting the Day, A Community Plein Air Event
Join us for the second annual Painting the Day Community Celebration at Athens Riverfront Park! Inspired by the rich history of the Hudson River School of Art, and in memory of beloved local artist Jim Cramer, this community gathering invites participants of all ages to “paint the day” creating art inspired by nature and the historic charm of the Village of Athens.
Enjoy a live demonstration, a children’s area with water-based paints, drawing supplies, and refreshments served at noon.
FREE AND OPEN TO ALL!
10:00am Welcome at the Pavilion
10:15–10:45am Plein air demonstration
12:00pm Refreshments at the Pavilion
1:30–2:00pm Plein Air Appreciation Walk
Artists are welcome to arrive early to choose their painting location.
In conjunction with Painting the Day, the Athens Cultural Center will be open, Oct. 3 from 1-7 pm to view Seasons of Greene VII, a collection of landscape paintings by some of the area’s finest landscape artists. Seasons of Greene VlI is on view from August 21- October 11, 2026. Learn more about the exhibition here.
YG Three
Spend an afternoon with local favorite Yves Gerard and his trio as they perform a program of jazz standards and original works. Centered on improvisation and exchange between musicians, each performance is shaped by the moment, offering a fresh experience for audiences in the intimate setting of the gallery. Free, all ages.
Yves Gerard - Drums, Band Leader
Yves Gerard is a veteran recording and touring drummer whose career has taken him around the globe and across all musical spectrums. He has worked with a long and diverse list of artists including Ben E King, Mike Stern, Larry Mitchell, G.E. Smith, Blood Sweat and Tears, Ric Ocasek of the Cars, Dee Dee Ramone, Larry Hoppen, Jaco Pastorius, Francis Dunnery, Bernie Worrell of Parliament Funkadelic, Patti Rothberg and a plethora of others.
Steve Raleigh - Guitar
Steve Raleigh makes his home in New Paltz where he teaches as an adjunct music professor at Bard College, at SUNY New Paltz, and at SUNY Dutchess County. He has worked and toured with Judi Silvano, October Project, Evelyn Blakey, Nick Brignola, Darmon Meader (New York Voices), Clint Holmes, Pete Levin, Ira Coleman, Chuck Mangione, and Tommy James to name a few. Steve has also been credited as assistant producer on two CD releases which featured Pharaoh Sanders and Sam Rivers.
Lew Scott - Bass
Lew has performed across New York and throughout the country with jazz greats including Clark Terry, Joe Lovano, Herb Ellis, and John Abercrombie. His career also includes touring with celebrated vocalists like Melba Moore and Nnenna Freelon, as well as performances alongside legendary entertainers such as Robert Goulet and The Fifth Dimension.
Queer & Trans Connection Network
The Queer & Trans Connection Network offers a welcoming peer-led space for LGBTQ+ community members and allies in Greene and Columbia Counties. Meeting monthly at the Athens Cultural Center, these gatherings provide connection, conversation, resource-sharing, and support in a substance-free environment for ages 14+. Together, we share experiences, celebrate wins, and build affirming, inclusive community close to home.
Every 4th Wednesday from 6:00 - 8:00 PM
Seasons of Greene: Opening Reception
Join us to celebrate the opening of the seventh annual Seasons of Greene exhibition! Meet the artists, enjoy light refreshments, and discover new perspectives on the landscapes that surround us.
Mangkhut: Stories in the Air
Mangkhut: Stories in the Air
DATES: 7/5, 7/19, 8/2, 8/16
TIME: 5-7pm
COST: Free (suggested donation to support ACC)
AGES: all ages
ACC welcomes world renowned voice teacher, writer and longtime Athens resident Richard Armstrong, to give four readings from his forthcoming new book, Mangkhut: Stories in the Air. Following each reading, we will open the floor for an intimate Q&A conversation with the writer.
Mangkhut: Stories in the Air is conceived as an art book, with over 75 illustrations, and includes original artwork and photographs from the author’s personal archives. It is a hybrid: part memoir, part travelogue, part voice book. It is edited by Christine Graves with cover design by artist Mary Frank.
“A five-week writing journey in early 2019 took me to the island of Cheung Chau in Hong Kong, to Chiang Mai in northern Thailand and to Southwest England. The title of this book arose on that journey. It is the name given to a deadly, category 10 typhoon that hit the Philippines and Cheung Chau in 2018. It is also the name of a delicious Thai fruit.
The book takes the reader on a many-layered journey. Information gathered through my work with the human voice over five decades is interspersed with notes from the 2019 trip. These events and stories have one underlying theme: that the voice and the psyche are interlinked and therefore reveal each other. This principle is fundamental to my work. It leads to reflections on racism and gender, mythology and biology, repression and liberation, birth and death.
At age 80 and with over fifty years of experience in the world of human sound, I have stories to tell. My intention through recounting them is to prompt the reader to ask fundamental questions about self and identity”.
For more information: https://www.richardarmstrong.info
Victorian Stroll: Ideas Session 2
The time has come to start planning one of our favorite events of the year: 2026's Victorian Stroll. We would to invite any and all of our community members to join us at the Cultural Center on 8/11 at 2:00PM or 8/15 at 11:30AM for a brainstorming session with our Stroll organizers. If you are unable to attend, please email your thoughts to info@athensculturalcenter.org. Your input helps us make the Victorian Stroll the best it can possibly be, we can't wait to hear from you!
Victorian Stroll: Ideas Session
The time has come to start planning one of our favorite events of the year: 2026's Victorian Stroll. We would to invite any and all of our community members to join us at the Cultural Center on 8/11 at 2:00PM or 8/15 at 11:30AM for a brainstorming session with our Stroll organizers. If you are unable to attend, please email your thoughts to info@athensculturalcenter.org. Your input helps us make the Victorian Stroll the best it can possibly be, we can't wait to hear from you!
August Classes
Discover opportunities to learn, create, and connect through hands-on workshops and classes for all ages at ACC. Click below to see what’s coming up next!
Physicians with Lived Experience: How Their Stories Offer Clinical Guidance
We often view doctors as infallible experts, but they experience the fragile realities of life just like the rest of us. You’re invited to an evening with psychiatrist and author Michael Myers, MD. He will be discussing his latest, and most compelling book, Physicians with Lived Experience: How Their Stories Offer Clinical Guidance. This presentation bridges the gap between patient and health professional, sharing the profound insights gained when healers are felled by psychiatric illness and must seek help for themselves. Whether you work in healthcare or simply appreciate stories of human vulnerability and resilience, you will walk away with a deeper understanding of empathy and the hidden strength behind the medical mask.
Dr Myers is a Professor of Clinical Psychiatry at SUNY Downstate Health Sciences University in Brooklyn, NY. He is an award-winning clinician and internationally recognized specialist in physician health. You can read more about him at www.michaelfmyers.com.
First Friday: Animal Bodies
Join us for a First Friday reception to celebrate the works of Elana Herzog, Jean Shin, and Brigitta Váradi, in Animal Bodies, curated by Yasmeen Siddiqui of Minerva Projects.
Mangkhut: Stories in the Air
Mangkhut: Stories in the Air
DATES: 7/5, 7/19, 8/2, 8/16
TIME: 5-7pm
COST: Free (suggested donation to support ACC)
AGES: all ages
ACC welcomes world renowned voice teacher, writer and longtime Athens resident Richard Armstrong, to give four readings from his forthcoming new book, Mangkhut: Stories in the Air. Following each reading, we will open the floor for an intimate Q&A conversation with the writer.
Mangkhut: Stories in the Air is conceived as an art book, with over 75 illustrations, and includes original artwork and photographs from the author’s personal archives. It is a hybrid: part memoir, part travelogue, part voice book. It is edited by Christine Graves with cover design by artist Mary Frank.
“A five-week writing journey in early 2019 took me to the island of Cheung Chau in Hong Kong, to Chiang Mai in northern Thailand and to Southwest England. The title of this book arose on that journey. It is the name given to a deadly, category 10 typhoon that hit the Philippines and Cheung Chau in 2018. It is also the name of a delicious Thai fruit.
The book takes the reader on a many-layered journey. Information gathered through my work with the human voice over five decades is interspersed with notes from the 2019 trip. These events and stories have one underlying theme: that the voice and the psyche are interlinked and therefore reveal each other. This principle is fundamental to my work. It leads to reflections on racism and gender, mythology and biology, repression and liberation, birth and death.
At age 80 and with over fifty years of experience in the world of human sound, I have stories to tell. My intention through recounting them is to prompt the reader to ask fundamental questions about self and identity”.
For more information: https://www.richardarmstrong.info
Animal Bodies: Poetry Reading
In Animal Bodies, Herzog’s limited-edition broadside, created in conjunction with the exhibition Elana Herzog: Ripped, Tangled, and Frayed (2023) at the Visual Arts Center of New Jersey in Summit, features one-of-a-kind paper artworks by Herzog made in collaboration with master paper maker Mina Takahashi of Round Top Paper and Brenda Coultas.
We are honored to announce that as part of Animal Bodies, Coultas has invited Eleni Sikelianos to our evening of readings inspired by many ideas that also arise in the exhibition.
Coultas and Sikelianos, close friends, since the 90s, when Brenda moved to New York City to work on the staff of the Poetry Project is a 2026 grant recipient from The Foundation for Contemporary Arts. Coultas' essay on her origins as a poet can be found in the anthology Other Influences: Essays on Feminist Avant-garde Poetic Lineages. Her latest collection, The Writing of an Hour, an ars poetica, was published by Wesleyan University Press in 2022.
Born into a family of bohemians, poets, tree workers, ne’er-do-wells, visionaries, and smalltime sort-of hustlers, Sikelianos is a poet, writer, collaborator, and "master of mixing genres" (TimeOut). She is the author of a trilogy of hybrid memoirs, most recently Memory Rehearsal (City Lights, 2026), and ten books of poetry, including Your Kingdom and The California Poem. Sikelianos will read from her most recent book, Memory Rehearsal (2026), drawing our attention to the motifs of threads, repair, of images of the loom as they surface in the story of her ancestor, the composer choreographer, master weaver, and Sapphic feminist, Eva Palmer-Sikelianos.
Queer & Trans Connection Network
The Queer & Trans Connection Network offers a welcoming peer-led space for LGBTQ+ community members and allies in Greene and Columbia Counties. Meeting monthly at the Athens Cultural Center, these gatherings provide connection, conversation, resource-sharing, and support in a substance-free environment for ages 14+. Together, we share experiences, celebrate wins, and build affirming, inclusive community close to home.
Every 4th Wednesday from 6:00 - 8:00 PM
Mangkhut: Stories in the Air
Mangkhut: Stories in the Air
DATES: 7/5, 7/19, 8/2, 8/16
TIME: 5-7pm
COST: Free (suggested donation to support ACC)
AGES: all ages
ACC welcomes world renowned voice teacher, writer and longtime Athens resident Richard Armstrong, to give four readings from his forthcoming new book, Mangkhut: Stories in the Air. Following each reading, we will open the floor for an intimate Q&A conversation with the writer.
Mangkhut: Stories in the Air is conceived as an art book, with over 75 illustrations, and includes original artwork and photographs from the author’s personal archives. It is a hybrid: part memoir, part travelogue, part voice book. It is edited by Christine Graves with cover design by artist Mary Frank.
“A five-week writing journey in early 2019 took me to the island of Cheung Chau in Hong Kong, to Chiang Mai in northern Thailand and to Southwest England. The title of this book arose on that journey. It is the name given to a deadly, category 10 typhoon that hit the Philippines and Cheung Chau in 2018. It is also the name of a delicious Thai fruit.
The book takes the reader on a many-layered journey. Information gathered through my work with the human voice over five decades is interspersed with notes from the 2019 trip. These events and stories have one underlying theme: that the voice and the psyche are interlinked and therefore reveal each other. This principle is fundamental to my work. It leads to reflections on racism and gender, mythology and biology, repression and liberation, birth and death.
At age 80 and with over fifty years of experience in the world of human sound, I have stories to tell. My intention through recounting them is to prompt the reader to ask fundamental questions about self and identity”.
For more information: https://www.richardarmstrong.info
Mangkhut: Stories in the Air
Mangkhut: Stories in the Air
DATES: 7/5, 7/19, 8/2, 8/16
TIME: 5-7pm
COST: Free (suggested donation to support ACC)
AGES: all ages
ACC welcomes world renowned voice teacher, writer and longtime Athens resident Richard Armstrong, to give four readings from his forthcoming new book, Mangkhut: Stories in the Air. Following each reading, we will open the floor for an intimate Q&A conversation with the writer.
Mangkhut: Stories in the Air is conceived as an art book, with over 75 illustrations, and includes original artwork and photographs from the author’s personal archives. It is a hybrid: part memoir, part travelogue, part voice book. It is edited by Christine Graves with cover design by artist Mary Frank.
“A five-week writing journey in early 2019 took me to the island of Cheung Chau in Hong Kong, to Chiang Mai in northern Thailand and to Southwest England. The title of this book arose on that journey. It is the name given to a deadly, category 10 typhoon that hit the Philippines and Cheung Chau in 2018. It is also the name of a delicious Thai fruit.
The book takes the reader on a many-layered journey. Information gathered through my work with the human voice over five decades is interspersed with notes from the 2019 trip. These events and stories have one underlying theme: that the voice and the psyche are interlinked and therefore reveal each other. This principle is fundamental to my work. It leads to reflections on racism and gender, mythology and biology, repression and liberation, birth and death.
At age 80 and with over fifty years of experience in the world of human sound, I have stories to tell. My intention through recounting them is to prompt the reader to ask fundamental questions about self and identity”.
For more information: https://www.richardarmstrong.info
Canceled: First Friday
There will be no First Friday reception in July, we are taking the day off to celebrate the holiday. Have a wonderful weekend! Please join us for First Friday inAugust to celebrate the works of Elana Herzog, Jean Shin, and Brigitta Váradi, in Animal Bodies, curated by Yasmeen Siddiqui.
Artist & Curator Talk: Animal Bodies
Join us for an artist and curator talk exploring Animal Bodies: The Works of Elana Herzog, Jean Shin, and Brigitta Váradi, curated by Yasmeen Siddiqui of Minerva Projects. Through textiles, pattern, and material transformation, the exhibition examines connections between wild and settled worlds, inviting viewers to consider how design and manufacturing shape our relationship to the natural environment. This intimate conversation offers insight into the artists’ panoramic approaches and the ideas that connect their work.
This exhibition is organized by ACC and Minerva Projects with funding from the Athens Community Foundation and ACC members. The Athens Cultural Center’s programs are made possible by the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of the Office of the Governor and the New York State Legislature. This exhibition is made possible in part with public funds from the Greene County Legislature through the Greene County Cultural Fund, administered by CREATE Council on the Arts.
Martha Elizabeth Miller Live in concert
ACC welcomes renowned vocalist and composer Martha Elizabeth Miller to perform songs from her new album What Lies Within, praised by Tunite Music as, “a thoughtfully constructed listening experience that rewards attention from beginning to end.” Following the performance, we will open the floor for an intimate Q&A conversation with the artist.
What Lies Within is a psycho-spiritual journey circumambulating the contemplations of my inner life. These twelve songs tell a story of transformation, and follow the meandering, spiraling process of becoming one's true self. I took inspiration from the work of Carl Jung in the curation of this set. The music doesn't neatly fit into any one genre. Rather, it is a blend of the music I've been drawn to - choral, hymns, theater music, folk, classical and the progressive rock songs of my youth. I’ve always loved singing complex vocal harmonies, and I’m delighted to have Daune Campbell and Marguerite Witvoet singing with me on this album.
Co-produced with Marguerite Witvoet, the seeds of this album were planted when Marguerite, Daune and I first met years ago in vocal workshops with Richard Armstrong at the Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity in Canada, and further nurtured in more recent workshops with Richard in upstate New York.
What Lies Within is available on all streaming platforms as well as Bandcamp. For more information and links to music: https://linktr.ee/marthaelizabethmiller
Athens Community Day
Join us and the Athens community for family festivities at Athens Riverfront Park!
In addition to ACC’s free arts and crafts table for all ages, instructors Carl Thomsen and Barbara Schofield will lead a 15-minute demonstration of low-impact Qigong exercises in the park.
Qigong demonstration starts at 11:20am
Arts and Crafts 10am-2:30pm
No need to register!
June Classes
Discover opportunities to learn, create, and connect through hands-on workshops and classes for all ages at ACC. Click below to see what’s coming up next!
First Friday: Animal Bodies
Join us for First Friday to celebrate the works of Elana Herzog, Jean Shin, and Brigitta Váradi, in Animal Bodies, curated by Yasmeen Siddiqui.
Athens Pride Flag Raising
Join us at the Athens Riverfront Park at the base of 2nd Street for the annual Athens Pride Flag Raising and gathering!
None of us are free until All of us are free
Annual Meeting
WE NEED YOUR VOTE!
Over the past twenty-plus years, ACC has evolved and grown. Thanks to the strong support of our community, we no longer have members repairing and painting walls or being required to sit in the gallery on weekends when we’re open. Over the past five years, the board has grown from six to sixteen, and we now have three dedicated staff members. ACC is supported through membership dues, grants, donations, and events like our annual gala.
It's time for our bylaws to catch up!
We need to update our bylaws to reflect our growth from a member-governed to a board-governed organization and to comply with current New York State nonprofit regulations. This change requires a vote by our membership at our Annual Meeting scheduled for Tuesday, May 26, 2026, at 6:30 pm at the ACC. We hope you will join us for this important vote, review what we accomplished in 2025, and learn what we are planning for 2026 and beyond.
Can't make it? Why not use a proxy ballot?! Click the link below for more information.
Chris Parker Quartet
This event has moved indoors to ACC (24 Second Street) due to inclement weather. See you soon!
Join legendary drummer Chris Parker for a free outdoor concert as he inaugurates his brand-new music studio in Athens with an afternoon of world-class jazz. Enjoy extraordinary live music and light refreshments for a perfect spring afternoon on the lawn. This free event is a benefit concert for ACC; all donations will go to support the Cultural Center’s mission!
Featuring Yuto Kanazawa, Kyoko Oyobe, Michael O’Brien, and Chris Parker.
Bring a blanket to lounge on the grassy hillside!
In the event of poor weather, join us indoors at the Athens Cultural Center.
Students and Family Celebration
Join us for the 2026 Art Explorations student and family celebration at ACC!
All are welcome!
May Classes
Discover opportunities to learn, create, and connect through hands-on workshops and classes for all ages at ACC. Click below to see what’s coming up next!
In-school Hamlet Performance
Coxsackie-Athens, grades 8-12, Catskill Mountain Shakespeare is coming to you!
A bold new take on Shakespeare’s classic, this high-energy production of Hamlet is set in the rebellious spirit of the 1980s exploring themes of authority, identity, and resistance through a fresh, accessible lens. Fast-paced and engaging, this 90-minute performance brings Shakespeare to life in a way that feels immediate, relevant, and alive.
Performed by Catskill Mountain Shakespeare
Sponsored by Athens Cultural Center
Please note this performance is during school hours and is not open to the public.
Charity Night @ Night School
Our friends at Night School have graciously offered to make ACC the subject of their April charity night. Join us for delicious pizza, exciting raffle items, live music, and more, all raising money to help us sustain the community arts programming that you know and love! Admission is free, there's never been a better or easier way to support the arts and enjoy our thriving community at the same time!
Queer & Trans Connection Network
The Queer & Trans Connection Network offers a welcoming peer-led space for LGBTQ+ community members and allies in Greene and Columbia Counties. Meeting monthly at the Athens Cultural Center, these gatherings provide connection, conversation, resource-sharing, and support in a substance-free environment for ages 14+. Together, we share experiences, celebrate wins, and build affirming, inclusive community close to home.
Every 4th Wednesday from 6:00 - 8:00 PM
Communication with Young Children: Building a Positive Relationship and Connection
Join Mike Pagnani, Parenting Educator of Cornell Cooperative Extension of CGC, for an educational workshop offered to all caregivers of youth aged 2-7. The workshop focuses on learning effective, evidence-based communication strategies that encourage healthy social and emotional development, resiliency, motivation, and age-appropriate conflict resolution. Our shared goal is for families is to foster an environment of trust, safety, and mutual respect through positive communication.
FREE Event with an open-ended activity to be provided for young children.
Registration encouraged, walk-ins welcome!
April Classes
Discover opportunities to learn, create, and connect through hands-on workshops and classes for all ages at ACC. Click below to see what’s coming up next!