BRATTLEBORO — Hilltop Montessori School and the Latchis Theatre will present a family concert with the New England-based folk quartet, Rani Arbo & daisy mayhem, on Saturday, April 23, at 2 p.m., at the Latchis Theatre. This is the first partnership between the two organizations.
Rani Arbo & daisy mayhem are Rani Arbo (fiddle, guitar), Andrew Kinsey (bass, banjo, ukulele), Anand Nayak (electric and acoustic guitars) and Scott Kessel (percussion). The group, which has been together for 15 years, has played folk festivals all over the country including the Newport Folk Festival and the California World Music Festival.
Their family show is a foot-stomping, toe-tapping journey through 200 years of American roots music, with stops in the Georgia Sea Islands, the Appalachians, a Texas dance hall, a New Orleans parade, and a slew of other fun and funky places.
Rani Arbo & daisy mayhem's debut family CD, Ranky Tanky, made a splash when it was released in 2010, scooping up Gold Awards from the Parents' Choice Foundation and the National Association of Parenting Publications and earning heavy airplay on Sirius XM Kids.
There will be an area at the Latchis opened up for dancing to this irresistible music.
The concert will benefit Hilltop's Tuition Assistance Program. Fifty percent of current Hilltop families receive some kind of tuition assistance, both from state programs and school funds. The school's goal is to have the student body truly reflect the diversity of the Brattleboro community.
“The need for tuition assistance is growing as costs increase.” Tamara Mount, the Head of School, said in a news release. “We do not want our school finances to be completely tuition driven. In order to do that, Hilltop will be launching an endowment campaign to help support future generations of students attending the school no matter what their family's finances allow.”
Tickets for the concert are $15 for adults and $10 for children. In order to include families of lower income levels, Hilltop and the Latchis are structuring ticket sales with a “buy one, donate one” option. The two organizations have partnered with the Boys and Girls Club, Youth Services, Health Care and Rehabilitation Services of Vermont, and Groundworks Collective to help distribute tickets to children who might not otherwise be able to attend.
Tickets are available online at app.arts-people.com/index.php?ticketing=larts.