Albany Times Union
MONDAY, MAY 12, 2003
Page 1 

By CLAIRE HUGHES, Staff writer First published: Monday, May 12, 2003

Pam Wojtowicz and 20 relatives met, as they have for 20 years, at "their" tree.

It's the one at the top of the hill, nearest the rear entrance at the Saratoga Performing Arts Center. They met bearing blankets, chairs, food -- and this year, a beach umbrella from the sister in Florida who couldn't make it.

Their Mother's Day tradition was started by Wojtowicz's mother, Mary Agnes Murray, who died 10 years ago. Now the free concert is a family event with its own momentum -- an annual gathering that on Sunday attracted relatives ages 2 months to 86 years. And for Wojtowicz, 54, of Saratoga Springs, it's a great way to remember mom.

"It was her tradition, to come here under the tree," Wojtowicz said.

The free Mother's Day concert, sponsored by Price Chopper Supermarkets, has opened the SPAC performance season for the past 32 years. Sunday's crowd topped 1,400 -- the number of red carnations handed out to moms and anyone else who said they wanted one. Many make the concert an annual outing, drawn by the open-air venue -- perfect for youngsters who want to run while mom relaxes on a blanket -- and the lack of admission price -- making it affordable for large, multigenerational groups.

"It's really great that they have something like this," said Patricia Gioia, 73, of Schenectady, who was surrounded by three generations of family at the event.

Others were attending for the first time. Larry Quinn of Niskayuna offered the concert as his Mother's Day gift to wife Jeanmarie. Jeanmarie Quinn said she was pleased -- nevermind that the concert didn't cost her husband a penny.

"It's nice to get out," she said. "And the kids have someplace to run around."

Friend Maureen Niesz said of her busy sons Colm, 3, and Liam, 9 months: "They'll sleep tonight, and that's a good thing."

Laura and Paul Kelly of Diamond Point, Warren County, decided to bring sons Addison, 3, and Luke, 2, because the couple are fans of singer Maura O'Connell, the concert's featured performer. The Irish-born O'Connell -- whose presence prompted many audience members to claim even a sliver of Irish heritage -- sang modern acoustic melodies for 90 minutes.

To mothers, O'Connell dedicated "Feet of a Dancer," whose lyrics are a parent's wish to children:

I hope you find the feet of a dancer I hope you can sing in the rain I hope you find all the easy answers to your pain

There was little dancing at Sunday's concert. Rain started in a drizzle about 30 minutes into the performance and was pelting anyone still on the lawn a half-hour later. The audience huddled under pedestrian bridges and gathered in the amphitheater's sheltered seats.

But some children managed to move between the aisles, nonetheless. Haley Nicholson, 5, and her brother Ryan, 4, from Fort Edward, made fast friends with 2-year-old Sophia Post of Saratoga Springs, and the three twirled around each other in front of their parents' seats. The girls wore lace and ribbons; Ryan had long abandoned the jacket and tie he wore to church and brunch.

"Just like a guy," said mom Susan Nicholson, 30.

The concert was a surprise planned by her husband, Mark, after brunch at the Golden Corral restaurant -- the choice of Susan, a native of the South who savors its okra. On Sunday, there was no okra, but Susan Nicholson was still pleased: "I had fried squash instead," she said.

Post was with her mother, Zuzia Kwasniewski, who said she might bring her daughter another year.

"They have a musical venue that's kid-friendly," Kwasniewski said of the annual event. "And 'free' helps."