Mechanics' Hall To Begin First Friday Performance Series In May

Mechanics' Hall has announced a new First Friday performance series called Various! Each month will showcase 5 acts and be formatted in the spirit of the art walk such that guests can come and go or stay for the entire hour. Set in the Grand Ballroom, Various! will increase exposure for Maine's many talented performers while providing members of the public with a new art walk destination.

"We are overjoyed to begin this series which highlights our mission to support creativity in our spaces," says Hall Superintendent Tom Blackburn, "Performing artists support our economy immensely and Various! is just the beginning of a new creative programming initiative at Mechanics' Hall."

In 1815, the Maine Charitable Mechanic Association was the fellowship for Portland's creative community: the blacksmiths, coopers, carpenters, and more. Today, the Hall is working to connect that history to the modern makers movement with its mission to inspire and enrich the community by promoting ingenuity, creativity, innovation and the diffusion of useful knowledge.

VARIOUS! May 3rd, 2019: Performers

The Shank Painters will present Sea Shanties from the High Seas featuring several traditional songs from seafaring culture here and beyond. The Painters are a pirate-themed folk music trio based in Portland, Maine.

Ballet Bloom Project offers The Shape of Relativity, a contemporary ballet duet performed to recorded berimbau music and choreographed by Rose Hutchins.

The Good Guys perform four of their original tunes to make you laugh, dance and sing along. This duo hails from Rockland, Maine.

Janoah Bailin's juggling and performance acts are always inventive with props and very attentive to the audience. Bailin performs variety arts and unicycling for festivals, parades and on stages all over New England, leaving behind a wake of tumbled juggling props!

Brie Hinman's Mourning Glory is an other-worldly modern-contemporary piece, performed by 16 dancers, which will explore the relationship between dreaming and memory.