January Client Letter

January, 2019

Dear Clients, Colleagues, and Friends,

We’re proud to share our clients’ activities

The Big Broadcast! the14th annual Jazz Ensembles of Mount Holyoke College recreation of a live 1940s radio show returns to Chapin Auditorium, Mount Holyoke College, on March 2.It’s created and directed by Mark Gionfriddo, and starring Brian Lapis as emcee Fred Kelley. Tickets now on sale at The Odyssey Bookshop in South Hadley, MA and the UMass Fine Arts Center Box-Office. 413-545-2511, 800-999-UMAS or www.fineartscenter.com. .

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The Capitol Steps perform every Friday and Saturday at the Ronald Reagan Building and International Trade Center, in Washington, DC. Tickets are available through Ticketmaster. Their public radio New Years Eve special,Politics Takes A Holiday, airs on many NPR-member stations New Year’s Eve and January 1. They also perform throughout the year at theatres coast-to-coast. Note: The government shutdown is not impacting their DC performance schedule.  For details: http://capsteps.com/

Kevin Rhodes begins the New Year conducting performances of The Nutcracker at the Vienna State Opera Ballet, and ends January conducting performances of their new, highly-acclaimed production of Sylvia. For details:https://www.wiener-staatsoper.at/en/artists/opera/detail/artist/943-rhodes-kevin/

Steven Schoenberg, pianist and composer, laucnhed a new website in December, designed by Claudia Palmira, a terrific designer I used to collaborate with on projects for New England Public Radio. http://claudiapalmira.com/  For details on Steven Schoenberg: http://stevenschoenberg.com/

Mike Thornton, my longtime colleague at The Capitol Steps, released his new jazz album: Homeward. Mike recorded portions of it before a live audience at The Egremont Barn in The Berkshires in 2017. For details:https://mikethorntonjazz.com/  or preview: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DgcADUg11Ws

Jeanne Yocum’s The Self Employment Survival Guide has gained major attention in the media, on blogs, and amongst those with start-ups or those thinking of starting one in the New Year. . https://www.succeedinginsmallbusiness.com/the-self-employment-survival-guide/

More Shameless Self-Promotion

ArtsBeat Radio on 89.5fm/WSKB airs weekly on Fridays at 8AM. Tune in on 89.5fm/WSKB, or stream viawww.wskb.org or www.westfieldtv.org. You can find old episodes archived on WSKB’s YouTube Channel.https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCjzPcoGhNs723gdf2cFc1pQ

I’m really proud of a two-hour special I co-produced and co-hosted with the cast of TheaterWorks’ Christmas on The Rocks at the theatre.. Yes, that’s Randy Harrison in the cast. Thanks, Peter Cowles, Patrick Berry, and The TheaterWorks team. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eMDIbGFgCDc

My ArtsBeat columns and theatre reviews for Westfield News Group, and articles for Succeeding in Small Businessare catalogued at Random Notes From a P.R. Guy: http://mgauerbach.blogspot.com/

I’ll be taking a little work break December 31-January 2. 

Best wishes for a joyous  holiday season and a happy New Year..

Westfield New Group ArtsBeat 12/26/18

Westfield News Group ArtsBeat 12/26/18. The final installment o the Best o The Year trilogy. Performances and innovators who made this year's theatre so memorable.
https://thewestfieldnews.com/arts-beat-2018-year-in-review-part-iii/

ArtsBeat Radio / 89.5fm-WSKB / December 21

ArtBeat Radio on 89.5fm/WSKB 12/21/18. Theatre Critics roundtable--the best of the year.  J. Peter Bergman from Berkshire Theatre Critics Association, Chris Rohmann from The Valley Advocate, Fred Sokol from Talking Broadway, and Mark G. Auerbach from The Westfield News Group. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HdA06dKctcg

Westfield News Group ArtsBeat 12/19/18

Westfield News Group ArtsBeat for 12/19/18. ArtsBeat 2018 Year in Review, Part II. The outstanding plays, musicals, directors, and designers in WMass and No,CT area theatres this year. https://thewestfieldnews.com/arts-beat-2018-year-in-review-part-ii/

Mark G Auerbach Public Relations / Year End Letter

This year, as in previous ones, I’ve chosen to honor the spirit of giving, by making contributions to some worthy non-profit organizations in my community that mare making efforts to better life for many. The money I could have spent on cards, postage, and client gifts, can go to make someone’s world better.

It’s been a great year for me workwise with some interesting projects and events to keep me busy from The Jazz Ensembles at Mount Holyoke College’s The Big Broadcast! to the Berkshire Film and Media Collaborative’s WMass Film and Media Exchange.. I did my annual stint with The Capitol Steps in Cambridge, and the publicity for two  shows in Torrington, CT and Northampton, MA. Those were for producer The Mike Thornton Agency. I’m now doing national press and social media support for The Capitol Steps and their national Make America Grin Again tour. Their New Year Special, Politics Takes A Holiday, airs at the end of the month on many NPR member stations.

I also did some public relations work for composer Steven Schoenberg, conductor Kevin Rhodes, and author Jeanne Yocum, whose book, The Self Employment Survival Guide launched last Spring..

The journalism side of my life picked up. In addition to writing the weekly ArtsBeat column and providing theatre reviews for The Westfield News Group, I wrote for the blog Succeeding in Small Business. 89.5fm/WSKB, where I was a frequent arts contributor, offered me the opportunity to produce and host a weekly show, ArtsBeat Radio, which airs Fridays, an is available for download as a podcast from YouTube.

I’m especially proud of three programs, each two hour specials live taped on location. Patrick Berry and I interviwed the Berkshire Theatre Group’s creative team from the Fitzpatrick Main Stage in Stockbridge, a celebration of their 90th season; and joined the TheaterWorks company on their set for Christmas on The Rocks. I did a Capitol Steps special from The Cranwell resort in The Berkshires.

My columns, reviews, and radio programs live on my blog Mark.My.Words. http://wordsbymarka.blogspot.com/

There was plenty of pool time this summer, and time spent with my 99 year old father. I co-chaired my Northfield Mount Hermon milestone reunion, an exhilarating experience as 125 classmates returned in June. I’m taking a much needed break from NMH after years of volunteerism.

Here’s hoping that your holidays are terrific, and hopes for peace, health, and happiness in the coming year.

Best,

Mark

My December Succeeding in Small Business Column

My ecember column for the award-winning "Succeeding in Small Business" blog. https://www.succeedinginsmallbusiness.com/small-business-social-media-resolutions-for-the-new-year/?fbclid=IwAR0qCMIFHnZj7HbvqtFbppkbYw2bXeKvuIiXEkvhnK7JWNb0iKcU5PkUhN4#.XBJ0FCMrJaV

Review: Hamilton Hits Hartford

Westfield News Group review of "Hamilton" at The Bushnell.  Yes, it's great!
https://thewestfieldnews.com/review-hamilton-at-the-bushnell/

Westfield News Group ArtsBeat 12/12/18

Westfield News Group ArtsBeat 12/12/18. 2018: The Arts Year in Review. Part 1. The Newsmakers. https://thewestfieldnews.com/arts-beat-255/

ArtsBeat Radio / Westfield News Group Radio Special: TheaterWorks

The Westfield News Group / ArtsBeat Radio special on TheaterWorks' "Christmas on The Rocks" for 89.5fm/WSKB, with hosts Patrick Berry and Mark G. Auerbach, producer Peter Cowles, and from TheaterWorks: Eric Ort, Tom Bloom, Jenn Harris, Randy Harrison, and Jacques Lamarre. Thanks to Rob Ruggiero, Freddie McInerney, Cecilia Chapman, and Michael McKiernan.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eMDIbGFgCDc

Review: Storm Large at The UMass Fine Arts Center

Westfield News Group review: Storm Large's Holiday Ordeal at the UMass Fine Arts Center. https://thewestfieldnews.com/review-storm-larges-holiday-ordeal-at-the-umass-fine-arts-center/

Westfield New Group ArtsBeat 12/5/18

Westfield News Group ArtsBeat 12/6/18. "Home For The Holidays" at Te Majestic, Kevin Winkler's new Fosse book, and "Hamilton" comes to Hartford, plus arts news for WMass and NoCT. https://thewestfieldnews.com/arts-beat-254/

Review: Christmas on the Rocks at TheaterWorks

Westfield News Group review of "Christmas on The Rocks" at Hartford's TheaterWorks. It has rapidly become the new holiday season tradition for area theatregoers who need their season spiked with an abundance of laughs, some holiday spirit, and a first-class 90 minute laugh riot. Randy Harrison joins the cast this year. https://thewestfieldnews.com/review-theaterworks-christmas-on-the-rocks/