Welcome Back, Kate Rinko!

Infinity welcomes Kate Rinko back to the Infinity Instruction Team!

Kate grew up in Ellicottville, NY and moved to the Jamestown area in 2015 after completing her degree in Communications at Fredonia State University. Kate started working for the Infinity Admin Team upon graduation and added the role of Instructor shortly after.

After noticing students wanting to explore within their lessons, Kate created the Infinite Exploration Program, which is still in use today.

Kate is returning to the Infinity Team to share her love of exploration and movement. Kate is now the Retail Coordinator at the National Comedy Center and Lucy Desi Museum and currently resides in Kennedy, NY with her fiancé and cats. In her free time, she likes to learn new things, knit, and spend time with friends and family.

Kate will be offering the following group classes beginning in February: 

Bunny Bop (Ages 3-6):  Dancers will learn basic steps and terminology in ballet and explore their own creative movement styles through the use of imaginative music and games in a safe, positive environment. Dancers in this class will improve flexibility and coordination through fun, age appropriate movement and exercises.
Movin’ & Groovin’ (Ages 6-10): A beginner-level dance class to explore basic steps, improve flexibility and coordination, learn dance terminology, and explore students’ creativity with age-appropriate, imaginative music and games.

Last Chance for Holiday Gift Certificates!

Gifting experiences has been on trend lately, and there are some great reasons why!
1. An experience is the gift that keeps on giving! You get to be excited over and over!
2. It’s one less thing to dust around the house! (The parents get that one!)
3. Gifting experiences offers a chance to learn something new!
So whether you’re looking for an experience for a young person in your life, you want to learn more about and explore our region, or you want to flex your own creative muscles in the New Year, we have some excellent gifting options available!
With a Gift Certificate to an Infinity Membership, our 2023 Infinity’s Ultimate Adventure Challenge, or our brand new creative community at Pearl City Clay House, you can give an experience this year that someone in your life will never forget!
Come get creative with us in 2023!!!
Infinity and PCCH Gift Certificates are available for local pickup until 12.22.22 at 7:00pm at the Infinity Center. 
Gift Certificates ordered between 12.23.22-1.1.23 will be shipped or available for pickup beginning 1.2.23. 

Infinity’s New Pearl City Clay House Set for Soft Opening

Infinity Visual and Performing Arts, Inc. announces a soft opening event for their new satellite location, Pearl City Clay House!

Pearl City Clay House, as the name suggests, will be a place to play with clay – but it will be so much more than that.

It will be an arts community space for everyone, from the novice crafter, to the artist with years of experience under their belt. Taking a class at Pearl City Clay House will also provide support for our community’s creative youth! 100% of all Pearl City Clay House profits will support youth music and arts programming at the Infinity Visual and Performing Arts Center.

Originally set to open in fall of 2020, COVID-19 and supply chain set-backs delayed the opening of PCCH. Virtual classes and pop-up events have been held throughout the community and helped build a creative client base as we awaited the much-anticipated opening of doors! Nearly 300 participants have experienced Pearl City Clay House classes at a variety of community partner locations in Jamestown and the surrounding area, including James Prendergast Library, ART Cloth + Craft, Audubon Community Nature Center, Tammarie Designs, Susan Gutierrez Studio, New Leaf Photography, Crary Art Gallery, and Infinity Visual and Performing Arts Center.

Infinity and Pearl City Clay House Executive Director, Shane Hawkins, says, “We are beyond excited to be at this stage. We could not have achieved this without our amazing funders, supporters, the building owner, our project manager, all of the dedicated contractors, partners, community members, Pearl City Clay House’s program director, our Board of Directors, and the entire Infinity team. This is truly a community effort, and will be a vibrant community hub for creativity for years to come.”

Pearl City Clay House Program Director Debra Eck says, “It’s been wonderful meeting students on zoom and at pop-up events all over the community, but I really can’t wait to greet the community in our beautiful new studios. We’ve lined up a wonderful team of instructors in a wide variety of contemporary crafts, as well as ceramics and they are all excited to share their talents.

The new Pearl City Clay House will open its doors at 220 East 2nd St in Downtown Jamestown, across the street diagonally from the Infinity Visual and Performing Arts Center.

Pearl City Clay House will be hosting TWO (2) Craft-In Events the week of Thanksgiving at the newly opened location.

November 23 events will include: A clay-date wheel throwing party, bring a date, your partner or your friend and enjoy an evening of fun playing on the wheel, a holiday platter workshop where you can create a unique addition to your holiday table in our beautiful ceramics studio, or you can join guest instructors to craft quilled Holiday Cards or paint your own pottery. The alcohol- free Turkey-Daze party runs from 6:00pm-10:00pm.

November 25 events will include: A series of ceramic and contemporary craft early ‘Bird” workshops. There will be a variety of ceramic workshops to choose from, along with blackout meditation, fiber arts, holiday card making, print your own wrapping paper, as well as paint-your-own pottery, and paint and sip style sessions. We invite you to join us at a workshop between the hours of 8:00am and 8:00pm.

To register for an upcoming Pearl City Clay House event or learn more about Pearl City Clay House, please visit www.pearlcityclayhouse.org/programming today!

Please stay tuned to the PCCH website and social media pages (Facebook/Instagram) to learn more about the Pearl City Clay House grand opening event and ribbon cutting ceremony at a later date in 2022.

Fall Classes and December Registration!

Upcoming Fall Classes at the Infinity Center include

General Art, Rising Stars Performance Training Group, Available Light Photography, Sculpting, Musical Theater Project, Jam Session, Songwriting Lab, Landscape Painting, Infinity Christmas Choir, Focused and Fun Teen Leadership Group, Theater Class, and Performance Class.

Additional audition-based classes and performance ensemble opportunities include: Duos and Trios Vocal Group, Advanced Art, Infinity’s Motown Group, JJ&B (Jamestown Jazz and Blues) Band, and Infinity’s Folk Ensemble.

For more information, including dates and times of classes, and age ranges, please visit Infinity’s website at www.infinityperformingarts.org/group-classes or call the Infinity Center at 716.664.0991.

Infinity accepts new students on a rolling basis each month, and is currently enrolling for December lessons.

Students who register on or before November 17 will begin lessons the first week in December.

Students who register between November 17 and December 15 will begin their lessons in the New Year!

Students interested in starting group classes can reach out for more information about how to get started now with a group class membership!

Infinity Christmas Choir

Come join the NEW Infinity Christmas Choir!
Do You LOVE Christmas? Do you love Carols?
How about joining Infinity’s Christmas Choir!! This is a short term choir just for the upcoming holiday season!
We ask that those who join this choir are you are available the following dates to perform.
Sat: Dec. 10th at 1:00pm: RTPI
Fri: Dec. 16th at 7:00pm: Infinity Arts Café
Sat: Dec. 17th at 11:30am: Marvin House (walk over from library)
The choir will meet on Wednesdays from 7pm-8pm beginning in October and will be lead by Infinity instructor, Jacob Gerace.
Infinity students: see the front desk to sign up! All ages are welcome!

Infinity Visual and Performing Arts to Hold Open Audition for New Teen Performing Ensembles

The Infinity Visual and Performing Arts Center in Downtown Jamestown is looking for motivated teenagers in Chautauqua County who would like to join a performance group. Whether you’ve always wanted to front a band as a lead singer, rock out on a drum-kit, hold down the groove as a bass player, or riff out on a guitar, Infinity offers all that you need to make those dreams a reality.

Infinity began in 1998 as an opportunity for young musicians to hone their skills and share their talents through performance, under the direction of local mentors and arts educators. Today, the Infinity Center offers something for students of all ages in music, visual arts, dance, theater, and performance.

Infinity’s Executive Director, Shane Hawkins, expressed her excitement about Infinity’s new program year, “The past few years have been challenging for so many in so many ways. We are so excited to kickstart our new year with these auditions and sign ups.

Music and the arts are restorative, and powerful. We have students arrive here at Infinity from more than 30 area schools, students meet peers they may not have met otherwise, and new friendships are formed over common interests. Our mentor instructors are simply stellar humans, and so talented, and ready to share that to support the next generation of creatives.”

In 2021, JamieLee Bonfiglio Davis began work as Infinity’s new Artistic Director, bringing a new set of performance training classes onto the Infinity roster, and working to help students develop their stage and performance skills.

Hawkins added, “JamieLee’s position as Artistic Director brings something special, and exciting to our progress, and our ability to provide students with more opportunities to showcase their hard work and talents. Stay tuned to see more from the amazing young people we are so fortunate to work with.”

Infinity’s new ensembles will begin rehearsal in the upcoming program year, which begins the week of September 19, 2022.  Auditions for Infinity ensembles are open to current Infinity students, as well as any student in the area who is performance ready and wants to be involved in this type of opportunity. 

Existing Infinity Ensembles, JJ&B (Jamestown Jazz & Blues) and Infinity’s newest Motown -Style Group (think The Supremes or The Temptations) are both seeking new members, and students are encouraged to bring their own ideas for new groups as well.

From JJ&B’s Director, Dana Nordlund, “When I was a kid playing everything with everybody, I always wanted a jazz band like this. Sometimes I forget that they are in high school (except for Ethan, who just graduated in June). These guys play like seasoned studio cats.” JJ&B was inspired by the idea of long-time Infinity student, Johnnie Siggins. Johnnie told us, “I have been in the works of making this dream (jazz band) for over a year now. I started this journey to revive a dying era of music. I’m looking to expand with sax, trombone, trumpet and piano players.”

Infinity Student Dominyck Brown was the inspiration behind Infinity’s new Motown-Style Group. Dominyck shared his love for the Motown style by saying, “My first love for 60s music was The Supremes. They were these gorgeous and glamorous black women who came from the Brewster Projects in Detroit. I just fell in love with all the girl groups from the 60s after that. I loved the sweet love songs and the teenage heartbreak songs. They were always so sweet and innocent but also sassy but classy. They had a significant style that hasn’t been done very much since and if so; not giving them any justice. I want to have a chance to execute and replicate this sound and look, but in our own way.”

Infinity Artistic Director, JamieLee Bonfiglio Davis has worked with Dominyck over the years and told us, “I grew up with the sounds of Motown. My parents loved it, but it’s rare to find a teen who has the love for Motown that Dominyck Brown has. I met Dominyck about 6 years ago and got to know him when we both were casted in the show Hairspray at JCC.  He expressed to me his love of the female groups of Motown then. I remember his father and grandparents nurtured his passion. They bought him albums and tickets to a Motown show for his birthday and Dominyck was elated, so, when he became my voice student I wasn’t surprised the songs he was interested in performing were from that era. Our conversations are fascinating because Dominyck’s passion goes beyond just enjoying music; His enthusiasm dives into the history of the groups, individual singers and Motown itself”

Ensemble Audition dates are currently set to take place at the Infinity Center at 301 East 2nd St in Downtown Jamestown on the following dates:

  • Monday, September 12 3:30pm-5:30pm
  • Tuesday, September 13 3:30pm-5:30pm

Students should come prepared with one to two songs in the genre/style of the group they’d like to audition for. Please contact the Infinity Center at 716-664-0991 or info@infinityperformingarts.org to let them know if you’ll be attending auditions.

In addition to these ensembles, the Infinity Center will also have the following group classes starting in its new program year which starts September 19, 2022:

Advanced Art, Available Light Photography, Best Part of Me Photography Series, Contemporary Dance, Creative Dance, Duo’s and Trios Vocal Ensemble, Focused and Fun Teen Leadership Class, General Art, Infinity Folk Ensemble, Jam Session, Landscape Painting, Musical Theater Dance, Musical Theater Project, Rising Stars Performance Prep Group, Sculpting, Songwriting Lab, Theater Class.

The Infinity Center is a 14,000 square foot learning space, fully stocked with instruments, learning materials, and advanced equipment for our students. More than 30 professional musicians, artists, actors, and dancers serve as instructor mentors for our students.

A monthly membership fee covers

  1. One 30-minute, weekly, private lesson in the field of study of the student’s choice.
  2. A variety of weekly group class options (music, art, dance, theater, and more).
  3. Abundant performance and talent-showcasing opportunities.
  4. Unique mentoring options including audition prep, portfolio creation, and college prep.
  5. The opportunity for performance-level students to join performing ensembles.
  6. Leadership classes and opportunities.

Subsidized membership rates are also available through Infinity’s Access to Arts Education scholarship fund for families with financial need.

Infinity’s Ultimate Adventure Challenge: A FUN Family Activity!

School is out, and if you’re looking for a fun way to spend your summer, we have just the adventure you need!

Join Infinity’s Ultimate Adventure Challenge today! IUAC combines popular hiking challenges with a fun, arts related scavenger hunt throughout Chautauqua County.

Visit 24 unique locations, and even partake in a variety of bonus challenges to extend your adventure time. Complete the challenge by October 31, and you’ll receive a one-of-a-kind completion patch, designed by local artist, Ash Ordines!

IUAC is designed for participants of all ages and experience levels. Whether you’re brand new to outdoor adventures, or a hiking enthusiast, there is something for you!

JOIN TODAY! 

Infinity Announces Second Annual Ultimate Adventure Challenge and Pearl City Clay House Earth Day Classes!

Infinity Visual and Performing Arts, Inc. is bringing Chautauqua County a group of fun outdoor-themed classes and adventures in April and May!

Infinity’s Pearl City Clay House will be hosting four nature-inspired classes to celebrate Earth Day and Arbor Day.

Classes include:

Vellum Leaves with local artist, Wendy Bale on Friday, April 29th.

In this fun, beginner-level class, you will learn the basics of paper sculpture, using vellum and other specialty papers to personalize your work, while creating colorful paper leaves. $35. 6:30pm-8:30pm.

Jamestown Oaks Coptic Book on Saturday April 30th with Pearl City Clay House Program Director, Deb Eck. Learn how to make a traditional, elegant, Coptic-sewn binding featuring tree cookies taken from the Third Street oak trees, and decorative papers made by Deb from plants collected on Jamestown’s Riverwalk.

$75. 9:00am-12:00pm.

Register online today at www.pearlcityclayhouse.org. All classes will take place at Infinity Visual and Performing Arts Center, while construction of Pearl City Clay House continues!

Additionally, Infinity’s second annual Infinity’s Ultimate Adventure Challenge will begin on May 1st. Running until Monday, October 31., this summer-long outdoor adventure combines our beautiful, local public art and aspects of popular hiking challenges with a fun, family-friendly scavenger hunt twist!

Infinity’s Ultimate Adventure Challenge will take place at twenty-four various outdoor locations throughout Chautauqua County, where you will take snapshots and selfies at certain markers to earn a unique patch or sticker, designed by local artist Ashley Ordines.

Ultimate Adventure Challenge Registrations range anywhere from $10-$50, and include options for youth, adults, and families.

Register online today at www.infinityperformingarts.org/adventurechallenge

Please be sure to follow Infinity Visual and Performing Arts and Pearl City Clay House on Facebook & Instagram for more updates!

Infinity’s Ultimate Adventure Challenge is sponsored by: Jamestown Business College, Chautauqua Sunrise, Rhoe B. Henderson, Larson Orthodontics, Lutheran Jamestown, Courier Capital, Wegmans, Heron Farm and Event Center, Axiom, Three-Sixty Graphics, and Forte.

Contact

Infinity Visual and Performing Arts, Inc.
301 E 2nd St, Suite 101
Jamestown, NY 14701

 

info@infinityperformingarts.org
716.664.0991

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