Ric Chesser

Songs to Amuse
presents
Noël and Cole: A Marvelous Party with Coward and Porter
Nobody captured the exuberant spirit of the’20s and ‘30s better than Cole Porter and Noël
Coward, whose songs became synonymous with wit and elegance. They became a tonic during
the Great Depression, and have continued to add sparkle to the repertory of performers unafraid
to indulge in such delights.
Among those performers are Byron Nilsson and Malcolm Kogut, who will be ringing in 2026
with a program of Porter and Coward songs during their ninth New Year’s Eve show at Albany’s
Steamer No. 10 Theatre. Nilsson and Kogut, who style themselves as “Songs to Amuse,” have
long been proponents of neglected but compelling categories of song, tending towards well-
crafted and often-comic numbers. “We present songs that you’re unlikely to know,” says
Nilsson, “so you don’t know how they’re supposed to sound.”

The Bad Seed
(1956) Psycho Drama, Horror, B&W, 129 min.
Sunday, January 11 at 7:pm
Admission free, $5 donation suggested
A woman realizes her Sweet and Innocent looking daughter was born to kill.
Nancy Kelly, Patty McCormack, and Gage Clark

The Public Enemy
(1931) Gangster, Crime, Drama, B&W, 83 min.
Sunday, January 25 at 7:pm
Admission free, $5 donation suggested
An Irish-American street punk tries to make it big
in the world of organized crime.
James Cagney, Jean Harlow, Edward Woods

A fully produced staged reading
Admission FREE
By Donald Margulies
Directed by Eleah Jayne Peal
February 6 - 7:30 pm

The partnership between a photojournalist and a foreign correspondent is based upon telling the toughest stories and, together, making a difference. But when their own story takes a sudden turn, the adventurous couple confronts the prospect of a more conventional life.

A fully produced staged reading
Admission FREE
By Donald Margulies
Directed by Eleah Jayne Peal
February 7 - 2:30 pm

The partnership between a photojournalist and a foreign correspondent is based upon telling the toughest stories and, together, making a difference. But when their own story takes a sudden turn, the adventurous couple confronts the prospect of a more conventional life.

A fully produced staged reading
Admission FREE
By Donald Margulies
Directed by Eleah Jayne Peal
February 7 - 7:30 pm

The partnership between a photojournalist and a foreign correspondent is based upon telling the toughest stories and, together, making a difference. But when their own story takes a sudden turn, the adventurous couple confronts the prospect of a more conventional life.

A fully produced staged reading
Admission FREE
By Donald Margulies
Directed by Eleah Jayne Peal
February 8 - 2:30 pm

The partnership between a photojournalist and a foreign correspondent is based upon telling the toughest stories and, together, making a difference. But when their own story takes a sudden turn, the adventurous couple confronts the prospect of a more conventional life.

The Public Enemy
(1931) Gangster, Crime, Drama, B&W, 83 min.
Sunday, February 15 at 7:pm
Admission free, $5 donation suggested
An Irish-American street punk tries to make it big
in the world of organized crime.
James Cagney, Jean Harlow, Edward Woods

The Fly
(1958) Science Fiction, Horror, B&W, 94 min.
Sunday, February 8 at 7:pm
Admission free, $5 donation suggested
A scientist has a horrific accident when he tries to use his newly       invented teleportation device.
Dir: Karl Neumann - Al Hedison, Herbert Marshall, Vincent Price

Saturday, February 28 at 7:pm
Admission free, $5 donation/movie suggested
The Thing from Another World – 1951 - Scientists and American Air Force officials fend off a bloodthirsty alien organism while at a remote arctic outpost
The Thing – 1982 - A research team in Antarctica is hunted by a shape-shifting alien that assumes the appearance of its victims.

Love Me or Leave Me
(1955) Musical Drama, Color, 122 min.
Sunday, March 8 at 7pm
Admission free, $5 donation suggested
A fictionalized account of the career of jazz singer Ruth Etting and her tempestuous marriage to gangster Marty Snyder, who helped propel her to stardom.
Doris Day, James Cagney

Waking Ned Devine
(1998) Dark Comedy, Farce, Color, 91 min.
Sunday, March 15 at 7:30 pm
Admission free, $5 donation suggested
When a lottery winner dies of shock, his fellow townsfolk attempt to claim the money.
Ian Bannen, David Kelly, Fionnula Flanagan