“So many people I talk to, not just newcomers but longtime residents, have very little idea how historic the town’s institutions are,” said filmmaker Stephen Blauweiss. “They don’t know that Byrdcliffe was founded in 1902, WAAM [Woodstock Artists Association] in 1919, the Playhouse in 1938. Everyone knows about the iconic 1969 concert, but there were seven decades of creatives coming together beforehand that laid the groundwork for what Woodstock is today.”
Blauweiss is addressing this gap in public knowledge by making a film entitled Woodstock: 100 Years of the Arts, on the rich cultural and artistic history of the town, covering eight institutions still active today and ten artists spanning the centuries. An event celebrating the film and its subjects will be held at the Woodstock Playhouse at 8 p.m. Saturday, November 4, The evening will include short films, Gene Dauner presenting historic photographs of Woodstock, Richard Frisbie on the life of Woodstock historian Alf Evers, performances by Mikhail Horowitz and Gilles Malkine, and live music by folk cabaret duo Frenchy & The Punk.
Blauweiss, a Kingston resident, has been drawn to local history since co-directing and co-producing Lost Rondout: A Story of Urban Removal with journalist Lynn Woods. Two years ago, when the Maverick Concert Series was observing its 100th anniversary, Blauweiss was brought in to make a film about the program. Included in the film was a show of arts and artifacts about WAAM and the Byrdcliffe Arts Colony that Maverick grew out of, curated for the anniversary. “Working on that project, I learned so much,” said Blauweiss. “I love to immerse myself in these stories.”
In 2019, two more anniversaries are coming up: WAAM’s 100th and the 1969 Woodstock Festival’s 50th. “People know Woodstock because of the concert,” said Blauweiss. “But the concert came out of the Woodstock of 50 years before that.” Hervey White’s annual Maverick costume balls were uninhibited parties that are acknowledged as the predecessors of the 1969 festival. When Blauweiss met with Woodstock Festival promoter Michael Lang, they looked through footage of people at the concert, and Blauweiss said, “There are wonderful shots in the woods, where you wouldn’t know if it was the ‘60s or the ‘20s. And I have footage from ‘20s. I hope to mix the two of them together in the film.”
Blauweiss has been through the archives of several local organizations to obtain photos, footage, and other artifacts for his film. “Everyone has been extremely generous when asked for anything on every project I’ve ever done,” he said.
Last year he held an event at the Playhouse, similar to the November 4 presentation. He showed
completed parts of his film and related shorts, as well as photos and “little tidbits about the area that even natives don’t really know about. This could become an annual event. There’s plenty of material to present.”
Woodstock: 100 Years of the Arts will be celebrated on Saturday, November 4, at 8 p.m., at the Woodstock Playhouse, 103 Mill Hill Road. Admission is $25, with proceeds going toward completion of the film. Tickets can be purchased in advance at www.woodstockplayhouse.org.
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