Come celebrate and support the arts in downtown Hawley! The second annual ‘Midsummer Night’s Arts Festival’ will take place on Saturday, September 6th at 8pm at the Ritz Company Playhouse on Keystone Street in Hawley.

The Ritz Company Playhouse, the Black Bear Conservatory of Music, World Dance Theatre, and the Hawley Public Library have planned an evening that will celebrate the thriving downtown Hawley arts community.  The evening will include readings and remarks by Malachy McCourt, music by artists from the Black Bear Conservatory of Music, and a selection of international dances presented by World Dance Theatre.

Mr. McCourt is a famed Irish wit and nationally know author of eight books.  He has appeared in many films, on television and stage. 
Mr. McCourt and his brother, renowned author Frank McCourt, wrote and performed the off-Broadway play, “A Couple of Blaguards”, winning rave reviews.

One of the extraordinarily talented musicians to perform at the festival is Wesley Tudor, teaching artist with the Black Bear Conservatory of Music. Mr. Tudor received his bachelor’s degree in Cello Performance from the San Francisco Conservatory of Music in 1999 and now resides in Honesdale, PA.

World Dance Theatre is an ethnic dance company based in New York and in Hawley.  The company is dedicated to the promotion of global understanding through the arts, and unites many cultural dances of the world onto one stage. The company has received several grants from the Pennsylvania Arts Council in order to help bring their performance and arts-in-education programs to Pennsylvania communities. 
“This festival represents a wealth of artistry that is present in Hawley.”, said Ryan Weber of the Black Bear Conservatory of Music.
“This second-annual event not only marks the success of our region's non-profit institutions, but also the necessary role these groups play in the lives of the community”.
General admission tickets are $25 and $10 for students and are available at the Hawley Public Library and the Settler’s Inn on Main Street, at the Black Bear Conservatory of Music on Church Street, and at the Ritz Theatre on Keystone Street, all in downtown Hawley.  There are also gala tickets available for $50, which includes admission as well as a meet and greet reception to follow at the Settler’s Inn. Please call the Ritz Theatre at 570-226-9752, the Hawley Public Library at 570-226-4620 or email MidsummerArtsFest@yahoo.com for more information.