Join AARP Vermont for Fun, Discounted Events!

Did you know that making and enjoying music can stimulate your brain, trigger memories and emotions, connect you with other people and enrich your life, according to a report from AARP’s Global Council on Brain Health (GCBH).

Music engages multiple parts of the brain — including those involved in memory, thinking skills, movement, attention, language and emotion — and helps them work together, according to the report, which is based on a review of scientific literature by independent experts.

To read more about music and brain health, check out these links:
The Magic of Music and the Brain
The Extraordinary World of Music and the Mind
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Get to know AARP Vermont at events and concerts around the state with discounted admission, sponsored by AARP. Discover new possibilities in your community and get to know us and what we're doing in Vermont. We look forward to seeing you!

*Please note that none of the events listed are AARP events. Any information you provide to the host organization will be governed by its privacy policy.

[TITLE OF SHOW]
April 30 - May 18, 2025 - Vermont Stage Company
Tickets: https://www.vermontstage.org/

AARP Members & Guests get 10% off ticket prices. Use code: Partner10 to access the discount.

Music and Lyrics by Jeff Bowen
Book by Hunter Bell
Directed by Jamien Forrest
Music Direction by Nate Venet

Jeff and Hunter, two struggling writers, hear about a new musical theatre festival. However, the deadline for submissions is a mere three weeks away. With nothing to lose, the pair decides to create something new with the help of their friends. “[title of show]”—taken from the space on the festival's application form which asks for the "[title of show]"— follows their hilarious and heartfelt journey through the gauntlet of creative self-expression.

LYLE LOVETT AND HIS LARGE BAND
August 1, 2025 - Ben & Jerry's Concerts on the Green at Shelburne Museum
Tickets: highergroundmusic.com/events/lyle-lovett

AARP Members & Guests get 10% off ticket prices. Use code: LYLE2025 to access the discount.

A singer, composer and actor, Lyle Lovett has broadened the definition of American music in a career that spans 14 albums. Coupled with his gift for storytelling, the Texas-based musician fuses elements of country, swing, jazz, folk, gospel and blues in a convention-defying manner that breaks down barriers.

Whether touring as a ‘Duo’ or with his ‘Acoustic Group’ or his ‘Large Band,’ Lovett’s live performances show not only the breadth of this Texas legend’s deep talents, but also the diversity of his influences, making him one of the most compelling and captivating musicians in popular music.

Since his self-titled debut in 1986, Lyle Lovett has evolved into one of music’s most vibrant and iconic performers. Among his many accolades, besides the four Grammy Awards, he was given the Americana Music Association’s inaugural Trailblazer Award, and was named Texas State Musician.

His works, rich and eclectic, are some of the most beloved of any artist working today.

DORSET THEATRE FESTIVAL SUMMER SEASON
June 20 - September 6, 2025 - Dorset Playhouse
Tickets: https://dorsettheatrefestival.org/

AARP Members & Guests get 10% off ticket prices. Use code: 50Plus to access the discount.

Now in its 48th year, Dorset Theatre Festival presents a professional Main Stage season at the historic Dorset Playhouse in Dorset, VT, highlighting both new plays and classic works. Enlightening, entertaining, and inspiring audiences since 1976, the Festival’s annual celebration of great plays runs June through September and features top theatre-makers from around the country. Increasingly known for high-quality world and regional premiere productions, in 2017 the Boston Globe dubbed the Festival, “Just north of the Berkshires, a new destination for playwrights.”

SALVAGE
A New Heartfelt Comedy by Lena Kaminsky
June 20 - July 5

THE BOOK CLUB PLAY
A Laugh-Out-Loud Comedy by Karen Kacarías
July 11 - July 26

SATELLITES
A New Romantic Drama by Erin Breznitsky
August 6 - 16

OTHER DESERT CITIES - 2012 Pulitzer Prize Finalist for Drama
A Contemporary Dramatic Comedy by Jon Robin Baitz
August 22 - September 6

EAST COAST INSPIRATIONAL SINGERS
June 21, 2025 - Highland Center for the Arts
Tickets: highlandartsvt.org

AARP Members & Guests get 10% off ticket prices. Use code: 50Plus to access the discount.

Commemorate Juneteenth with the energetic, high-spirited, East Coast Inspirational Singers. Hailing from Harlem and using gospel, R&B, jazz, and the blues as their medium, the ensemble shares their passion for raising awareness about black history with audiences. The Singers command the stage, having shared performances with many acclaimed artists such as Josh Groban, Celine Dion, Alicia Keys, Mariah Carey, Patti LaBelle, Jennifer Hudson, and producer David Foster. They have been featured in off-Broadway and Broadway shows such as Dreamgirls, Smokey Joe’s Café, Ain’t Misbehavin’, Black Nativity, The Color Purple, Motown The Musical, The Wiz, RENT, Jesus Christ Superstar, Hair, and Showboat, with performances at world famous theaters like The Apollo, The Blue Note, Lincoln Center, Madison Square Garden, PlayStation Theater, and Carnegie Hall.

TONY TRISCHKA'S EARLJAM
August 9, 2025 - Next Stage Arts
Tickets: nextstagearts.org

AARP Members & Guests get 15% off ticket prices. Use code: 50Plus to access the discount.

Tony Trischka is widely regarded as the consummate banjo artist and perhaps the most influential banjo player in the roots music world. For more than 50 years, his playing has inspired generations of bluegrass and acoustic musicians, showcasing the many voices he has brought to the instrument.

Tony will be honoring the music of Earl Scruggs, the pioneer of the three-finger banjo style and one of the most important musicians in bluegrass—and, in Tony’s opinion, in any genre.

Trischka recently acquired extremely rare recordings of jam sessions with Scruggs and John Hartford. He has transcribed and recorded Scruggs’s note-for-note solos from many of these sessions, including songs Earl never recorded.

An album featuring this music is currently in production with a new label founded by some of the creators of Rounder Records. The album will also feature several bluegrass luminaries.

Alongside his ace band—Michael Daves on vocals and guitar, fiddler Alex Hargreaves, and bassist Jared Engel—Tony will trace Scruggs's story from his childhood to his final years. This show, which debuted at Joe’s Pub in New York City, has already garnered significant interest, including an appearance on the Grand Ole Opry—a rarity for a banjo player these days.

Earl is my North Star, a lifelong pathway. And I’m not alone,” says Trischka, a banjo innovator and educator who has influenced everyone from Béla Fleck to Steve Martin. “Through his music, this shy kid from Flint Hill, North Carolina, went on to enrich the lives of countless thousands. When I first heard 16 notes of Scruggs-style banjo at the age of 13, I put down my folk guitar and mercilessly pestered my parents to buy me a banjo. Once in my hands, that 5-string became my obsession—and it has been for 60 years.”

He adds, “The depth of his genius becomes ever more apparent when I transcribe his solos, which I’ve been doing my entire musical life, now with renewed vigor. Discovering new twists and turns in his playing is pure joy—and, in fact, it’s the inspiration for this tribute show and album.”

VSO SUMMER FESTIVAL TOUR
July 1-5, 2025 - Statewide

Tickets: vso.org

AARP Members & Guests get 15% off ticket prices to five of the six VSO Summer Festival Tour shows (see below for specifics). Use code: Summer15 to access the discount.

Tuesday, July 1: 7:30 p.m. performance, Castleton
Wednesday, July 2: 7:30 p.m. performance, South Pomfret
Thursday, July 3: 7:30 p.m. performance, Grafton
Friday, July 4: 7:30 p.m. performance, Shelburne
Saturday, July 5: 7:30 p.m. performance, Burke

Come feel the love with the Vermont Symphony Orchestra as we embark on our 2025 Summer Festival Tour. This year’s dynamic program, Summer of Love, features works from across the world and a range of genres, including pieces from Tchaikovsky’s Romeo and Juliet, John Williams’ Star Wars Theme, Leonard Bernstein’s West Side Story, and pop hits such as “I Put A Spell On You” and “Nature Boy.” This summer the VSO welcomes mezzo Nikola Printz as the tour’s special guest vocalist.

An annual VSO tradition, the Summer Festival Tour celebrates music, community, and the summer season. All locations will include VSO’s Musical Petting Zoo where the audience can explore a variety of orchestral instruments, available before the performances, and Grafton, Shelburne and East Burke’s concerts feature fireworks at the close of the program.

BURLINGTON DISCOVER JAZZ FESTIVAL - MAIN STAGE PERFORMANCES
June 4, 2025 - Origins: Sounds and Stories of African Diaspora

June 8, 2025 - Translinear Light: The Music of Alice Coltrane
Tickets: flynnvt.org

AARP Members & Guests get 15% off ticket prices. Use code: JazzFest2025 to access the discount.

Burlington Discover Jazz Festival is back for it's 42nd year. This year’s festival, produced by the Flynn and presented by Vermont Tire & Service Inc. with Nokian Tyres, takes place across Downtown Burlington from June 4-8. The Flynn is also thrilled to announce that Anthony Tidd, an international jazz artist, multi-instrumentalist and Guggenheim Fellow, will serve as the curator for the 2025 Burlington Discover Jazz Festival. Tidd will present an exclusive World Premiere of Origins: Sounds and Stories of the African Diaspora, a collaborative performance showcasing seven jazz musicians and seven special guests. The performance, which opens the festival, will be held on the Flynn Main Stage on June 4 at 7:30 p.m. The festival closes with a tribute to the one of the greatest and most influential women in jazz, Alice Coltrane, by her son Ravi Coltrane, and special guest Brandee Younger. Translinear Light will play on the Flynn Main Stage on June 8 at 6 pm.