Powers House Revel: The art party of the summer

Hey, 518 readers! Today, we’re pointing you toward North Troy where Powers House Revel is going down this Labor Day weekend. This end-of-summer art party overlooking the Hudson is not to be missed!

🍸️ We had an absolutely delicious time at The 518 Dinner Club in Troy last week. Thanks again to our generous sponsors, Emry’s Garden & The Berlin Lounge.

Here’s what Jessica Wakefield had to say: “We had the best time! I actually left hungry bc I was having too much fun talking to focus on my food! 😂 There's always SUCH lovely, kind people at The 518 events.”

Kelsey Shadick added: "This was such a great experience! From the company to the food and drinks, it was an awesome night."

🎟️ Save your seat for the next 518 Dinner Club on Thursday, Sept. 24. We’re heading back to Albany’s Center Square / Lark Street!

—Phat X. Chiem & Karley Sullivan

Powers House Revel: The can’t-miss art party of the summer

Last summer, Powers House Revel turned the sprawling riverside lawn of a historic North Troy home into something between an outdoor art exhibition, a performance space, and a very hip backyard party.

For its second year, the organizers are going bigger and giving the event a little more room to breathe.

Expanded into two days, Powers House Revel returns this Labor Day weekend with more than 20 artists and performers from the Capital Region, New York City and beyond. The event is organized by a collective of curators and artists, led by Adam Frelin, Daniela Kostova, Eun Young Choi and Meglena Zapreva.

Saturday is the more eventful day. Beginning at 1 pm, the property will fill with large-scale installations (including a couple of big inflatables that have become the event’s signature pieces), performances, and participatory art. For the first time, there will be a dedicated main stage with a full afternoon and evening of live music.

The lineup includes Troy singer-songwriter Caity Gallagher, experimental sound duo Dunnage and dream-pop/grunge trio Reality Distortion, along with site-specific dance and performance pieces throughout the grounds. By 8:30 pm, Picture Lock One will be projecting film abstractions as DJs from groop.lab take over and the event shifts into a dance party.

Programming director Corey Aldrich says the stage is part of an effort to make the event more organized and ambitious without losing the creative energy that made the first gathering so special.

“We’re really trying to ramp up the professionalism side of the event,” he says, “while maintaining the quirky and eclectic nature of what it is.”

Sunday takes a more leisurely approach. Workshops and a guided art tour kick off the day, while the centerpiece is Daniela’s “Running Table,” a communal potluck lunch beginning at 1 pm.

“I love these events that mix art with performance and food,” Daniela says, “so there’s more than one way to connect.”

The idea of connection runs through the event. Powers Revel House was conceived in part as a way to bring artists from both the Capital Region and downstate into conversation together.

Among the artists featured are Michael Oatman, the Troy contemporary artist known for his immersive installations, collage and archival-based work; Tamar Ettun, an accomplished sculptor and performance artist who is currently a Smithsonian Artist Research Fellow at the Hirshhorn Museum; Allie Wist, who works at at the intersection of art, food and climate; notable NYC new-media artist Eva Davidova; John Umphlett, an art fabricator/designer who is on the sculpture faculty at Bennington College; and emerging Albany talent Phoebe Rotter.

This year’s ambitious event reflects the growth of Troy’s art scene, which has noticeably expanded as part of a broader creative surge across the Capital Region.

“What I’ve been seeing in recent years is basically this blooming art scene in Troy,” says Daniela, who earned a graduate fellowship at RPI. “It’s super exciting because it wasn't like this when I was there at school.”

By the way, Powers House is named for Deborah Powers (1790–1891), the pioneering Lansingburgh businesswoman and philanthropist. It’s fitting that her former estate now supports a thriving art scene.

The deets: Powers House Revel; 415 2nd Ave, Troy. Free parking along Second Avenue. Sat, 1-10p; Sunday 11a-3p. Potluck lunch at 1p—bring a dish to share! Follow their Insta for the latest news.

👨‍🚒 On Saturday, Broadway in Albany’s Warehouse District will be closed for a fundraiser benefiting two Department of General Services employees who were severely burned in a fuel pump explosion. [Times Union]

👨‍🌾 Have you checked out the new Pine Hills Farmers Market on the former St. Rose campus? This Thursday is a great time to visit since it will be Food Truck Nite, from 5 to 8 pm.

🕹️ Herbie’s Burgers has taken over the former Bomber’s Burrito Bar on Lark Street and transformed it into a “barcade” complete with old-school arcade games and a full-service bar. [Instagram]

🇮🇹 Next weekend will see two dueling Italian festivals competing for crowds in the Capital Region. Schenectady’s Little Italy StreetFest and Amsterdam’s ItaliaFest are both set for Sat, Sept. 12. It also happens to be the same day as PearlPalooza in downtown Albany 😲 [News10]

Simply enchanting! This charming 1830s farmhouse sits in a magical country setting, offering cozy spaces, wideboard floors, period details, and modern updates. Enjoy the fireplace, sunroom, screened porch, spacious deck, and streamside gazebo overlooking a peaceful waterfall. A two-story antique barn adds versatile storage or hobby space, while excellent skiing, hiking, restaurants, and Tanglewood are all just a short drive away.

The deets: 3 bd, 2 ba, 1840 sq. ft. Asking: $750,000. Days on market: 7. See the full listing here.

TOP 5 PICKS

⭐️ 🍺 Opalka Popup Beer Garden | The headlining event for this month’s First Friday Albany, Opalka’s art-and-music lawn party generates the kind of energy that reminds us why Albany is actually a pretty cool place to live. Expect a big crowd for Super 400, Melora Creager, and special guest Ryder Cooley—who performs with a stuffed ram! Don’t miss the new exhibition, Light and Transient Causes, smartly curated by our friend Marisa Espe. Fri, 6–9p, free.

⭐️ 🖼️ Powers House Revel | Get to this historic riverside estate in Troy’s Lansingburgh neighborhood for a sprawling end-of-summer art party featuring screenings, performances, site-specific installations, workshops, participatory experiences, sound art, and live music. The dance party gets going on Saturday night, while Sunday afternoon offers a more relaxed experience with a potluck lunch. Sat, 1-10p; Sunday 11a-3p, free.

⭐️ 🔦 This looks pretty darn cool! Night Lights in New Lebanon invites visitors to follow a quarter-mile path through fields and wooded areas, discovering original illuminated installations created by lighting designers and volunteers. And it’s free! Sat, 8-11p.

⭐️ 🎷 Albany Riverfront Jazz Festival | Albany’s annual jazz fest returns to Jennings Landing on Saturday with a full day of live music, food, and vendors along the Hudson River. This year’s lineup includes Ghost-Note, New Breed Brass Band, Glen David Andrews Band, The Harlem Gospel Travelers and Shiri Zorn Trio, with fireworks closing out the free, all-ages show as usual. Sat, 12:30-9p, free.

⭐️ 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿 Capital District Scottish Games | This annual celebration of Scottish culture takes over the Altamont Fairgrounds on Saturday with pipe bands, Highland dancing, traditional athletic competitions, food, vendors and free pint-size games for the wee lads and lassies. This year’s live music lineup includes Scottish folk-rock favorites Skerryvore, along with Cécilia, Hadrian’s Wall and Friends Union. Sat, 8a-6:30p. Tix: $25 at the gate; free for kids 12 and under.

Honorable mentions…

⭐️ 👗 The Vintage Roundup | Arguably the best vintage market in the Capital Region returns to Albany’s Warehouse District on Saturday with 60+ vendors offering cool threads, home decor, jewelry, and collectibles. While you’re there: Head to Nine Pin across the street and get 10% off all cider pours by mentioning “The 518 Crew.” Sat, 11a-5p, free.

⭐️ 🔈️ TOPOS Festival | Over four days, EMPAC explores the many ways music can shape how we understand ourselves and each other, with performances, screenings, talks and experimental collaborations from artists including Vijay Iyer, Wadada Leo Smith, Miho Hatori and Fred Moten. The festival finishes Saturday with a free community BBQ (from Brooks House of BBQ), followed by an afternoon and evening of experimental music, drumming, and a live-scored screening of the Japanese silent film, A Page of Madness. Wed-Sat, various times. Tix: $50 all-festival pass; $20 single tickets.

🎭️ AT THE THEATER

• Jekyll & Hyde opens Sept. 11 at SLOC Musical Theater and runs through Sept. 20. The Frank Wildhorn musical kicks off SLOC's 100th season.

• Get tix to Harbinger Theatre’s The Counter, about a lonely waitress who befriends a regular customer. Starting Sept. 17.

• Parallel Lives begins with a pay-what-you-will preview Sept. 17 at Albany Civic Theater and officially opens Sept. 18.

• Capital Repertory Theatre launches its season Sept. 25 with The Last American Newspaper, running through Oct. 18.

WEDNESDAY

🎙️ Hear what Natalie Merchant has to say about her new album and her Mother Goose nursery rhyme project, in conversation with WAMC’s Joe Donahue. Brought to you by the New York Writers Institute at UAlbany.

🎟️ Admission is only $2 at opening day for The Great Schaghticoke Fair (plus enjoy $2 rides and $2 food at select vendors).

🎡 The Fonda Fair and the Columbia County Fair also kick off on Wednesday and run through Labor Day.

THURSDAY

✏️ Fur Trade invites you to draw a live nude bear (not the animal kind, y’all) at Troy’s Context Collective.

FRIDAY

🖼️ First Friday Albany is back! Besides Opalka’s Pop-Up Beer Garden, highlights include: Free admission and a performance by HV music collective Pulso de Barro at the Albany Institute of History & Art; Caity Gallagher at The Eleven; swing dancing with Eight to the Bar at the Elks Lodge; and the 47th Annual Photography Regional Show at Albany Center Gallery.

🎹 Troy-based pianist and composer Sophia Vastek (who runs the Troy Listening Room with her partner) celebrates her first album under her new moniker, at the Sova: Alight! album release party.

👻 Is it already spooky season? Haunted Upstate launches its Ghosts of the Gilded Age tours this week. (Pro tip: Use code SUMMERWEEN for $5 off your ticket).

SATURDAY

🌮 Carne asada tacos and cumbia? Yes please! Los Hermosos is popping up at Yesfolk for an evening of delish eats, kombucha and the beats of DJ Lovely Candela.

🧘‍♂️ It’s the last Saturday to get your Rise & Flow on at Peebles Island for free.

🎷 Byrdhouse Records presents An Evening of Anime Jazz with Catbus Collective at Troy’s No Fun.

SUNDAY

⛴️ Join a dressed-to-impress, 420-friendly crowd aboard the 3rd Annual Capital District Cannabis & Wellness Boat Party.

🎭️ Improv Spaces Music Festival showcases the work of more than 20 musicians and artists working in improvisation at Saratoga Arts.

MONDAY

🍔 It’s Labor Day, America! Rest up, pop a cold one, and make the best backyard burger with these Reddit tips.

Our music listings are now published separately on The 518 website. Click here.

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