With the economy going south, there seems to be a desire to find events that serve the pocketbook and well as the entertainment part of the brain. I will use this forum on a weekly basis to alert you to good things at great prices.

This Sunday, Home Made Theater in Saratoga Springs is offering a free play reading of "I Am My Own Wife." It's at 3 p.m. in the Little Theater on the grounds of Saratoga Performing Arts Center.

A good play reading is essentially a rehearsed performance with the actors working with script in hand. "I Am My Own Wife" should make a good reading as it is a one-person show, which tends to convert well to readings. That "I Am My Own Wife" is great material also adds to the experience. It is a play about Charlotte von Mahisdorf, who prospered while living behind the Iron Curtain as she outwitted both the Nazis and the Communists while living in East Germany.

The tale is interesting as it stands because Charlotte is such a bigger-than-life figure. It becomes intriguing when Tony Award-winning playwright Doug Wright discovers that politically Charlotte might not be the person she presented herself to be during their interviews. Wright twists the play from biography to a piece of theater that leaves you thinking about reality and truth in art. It's free and well-worth your time.


Also on Sunday is a free concert in Clifton Park. Northeast String Orchestra is offering it's Second Annual Winter Concert at Shenendehowa United Methodist Church on Route 146. The concert is at 6 p.m. and admission is free.

Northeast String Orchestra was formed in 2007 by teachers Ellen Madison and Susan Nazzaro for young performers ranging from second to ninth graders. Before you roll your eyes at the youth of the performers, reflect on how many superior performers you experienced that were ignored by others because they didn't realize the talents of our young performers.

The conductor is Ubaldo Valli, who has put together a program consisting of pieces by G.F. Handel, Robert Schumann, Richard A. Stephan and Brian Israel. The work will challenge the performers and entertain the audience. As I said, it's free


This is your last chance to attend The Hyde Collections exhibit "California Impressionism: Paintings from the Irvine Museum." The exhibit in the Charles Wood Gallery closes on Sunday. It is free and open to the public.

Located in Glens Falls, The Hyde just might be one of the most underrated art museums in the area. Not only does this 60-painting exhibit promise to be gorgeous, it is revealing as it shows how California's climate fostered an art movement that had its roots in France.

The Hyde Collection is open Tuesday-Saturday 10 a.m. - 5 p.m., Sunday noon- 5 p.m. If you miss this exhibit, their permanent collection alone is worth the drive to Glens Falls