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Caffe Lena
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April 3 – 9

In-person shows in Lena’s historic listening room in Saratoga Springs
& streamed live to living rooms around the world!
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West coast songwriter Chris Pureka brings her gentle voice and deep words to our stage on Saturday.  “…summoning the spirits of Gillian Welch’s ‘Revelator’ or Ryan Adams’ ‘Heartbreaker” -Billboard.com  Click photo for sample song
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Greetings – Folk songs tell stories, and if they’re good folk songs, they connect us with the emotional experience of another person. American folk music has a mixed history when it comes to diversity and inclusion. Certainly, folk songs have been central to movements for civil rights and labor organizing and peace. But there are also plenty of folk songs that have reflected the racism or war-mongering of their time and place. It’s a joyful fact that the first show that ever took place at Caffe Lena featured a Jewish woman opening for an Afro-Puerto Rican man. It was a great start, but achieving real racial or gender balance eluded this corner of the music world. In recent years, our stage has become significantly more diverse thanks to the many young Black, LGBT and female musicians entering the world of folk and roots music. This means we get to be part of breaking down barriers, creating understanding, shedding light, and ultimately moving a little closer to peace and understanding. Thanks for being part of the journey.

See you at the show,
Sarah

P.S. Look TV is a local nonprofit TV station that spotlights all kinds of interesting goings on that might not make it onto commercial stations. This short interview with our Executive Director aired last week.
=WEEK AT A GLANCE=
Monday
7 PM Open Mic Night
Tuesday
7 PM Storytelling Open Mic Featuring Lale Davidson
8 PM “Live From Caffe Lena” on WEXT 97.7 or 106.1 FM
Wednesday
5:30 PM Poetry Discussion group
7 PM Poetry Open Mic ft. Chase Twitchell
7 PM & 12 AM “Live From Caffe Lena” on Folk Music Notebook
Thursday
1:30 PM 10 Minutes with Mateo & Sarah on Facebook Live
CLOSED FOR PRIVATE EVENT
Friday
8 PM Kaia Kater
Saturday
3 PM Mother Jones in Heaven (A fundraiser for the Caffe Lena School of Music)
8 PM Chris Pureka
Sunday
9 AM Dharma Meditation with Pierre Zimmerman
NO SHOW TODAY. Closed for Easter.
=HIGHLIGHTS=
Chase on Poetry |  In-person info | Watch online

Twichell earned her MFA from the Iowa Writers’ Workshop. A practicing Buddhist, she is the author of eight books of poetry that often reflect her spiritual practice. Her writing is “full of sharp observation, both of the world and herself, unsentimental poems with a sinewy intellectual toughness, (that) open out into a stark, sometimes bewildered clarity.” (Robert Pinsky)
Sample Song |  In-person tickets | Watch on Caffe Lena TV

Her roots in Quebec, the Caribbean, and Appalachia inspire captivating ballads performed with “the skill of a folk-circuit veteran” (Rolling Stone). With West Virginia banjo skills & an unaffected voice, “Kater’s music is somehow ancient and brand new at the same time.” (CBC Radio 2)
  In-person tickets | Watch on Caffe Lena TV

A musical drama tackling social justice written and composed by singer, songwriter, activist and grassroots leader Si Kahn. The show opens as the infamous Mary Harris “Mother” Jones, portrayed by Vivian Nesbitt, enters heaven. Through the course of the 90 minute musical, featuring 12 of Kahn’s orginal songs, Mother Jones reflects on her fight for better working conditions and human rights throughout  America.

Actress Vivian Nesbitt (of Breaking Bad, The Night Shift, and Longmire) is also the Director of Caffe Lena’s School of Music.
Sample Song |  In-person tickets | Subscriber only Live Stream 

Folk, Americana & indie rock for listeners who crave authenticity and depth. Chris’s elegant emotionality as a vocalist and flair as a lyricist have garnered favorable comparisons to Chan Marshall, Bruce Springsteen & Patty Griffin.
MEMBERS’ CORNER
Caffe Lena has not always been a non-profit. Though Lena was not interested in sharing control of her coffeehouse with a Board of Directors, she ran it with no eye toward profit and was famously generous with her performers. She was helped by numerous volunteers, and it was those folks who filed the 501(c)3 paperwork and kept the place going when she passed away suddenly in 1989. These days, your membership has allowed the venue to expand on Lena’s mission, becoming a center for music education, a place where you can hear the stories of challenge and triumph unfolding all around us & of course an unparalleled stage for live music. Thank you!

Caffe Lena has nearly 1,000 active members. These folks are planting songs and growing community with their annual donations. They also get the best seats in the house, early access to special shows and some neat swag. Learn More
View CaffeLena.tv subscription options.
There’s still time to see last weekend’s shows!
 APRIL  /  MAY