events, activities – summer edition
From June 5 through 13, the Armonk Players will be presenting The Spitfire Grill.The story of a young woman newly released from prison and seeking a fresh start in a rural Wisconsin town, this musical has been captivating audiences since its premiere over 25 years ago. Performances are at the Whippoorwill Theater in Armonk (adjacent to the North Castle Public Library). For more info, go to https://www.armonkplayers.org/schedule.html
The Westchester County Parks Department is awash in heritage events that will take place at Kensico Dam Park. Take your pick among: the 29th Annual Asian-American Heritage Festival on June 6; Albanian Heritage Day on June 7; Irish Heritage Day on June 27; the African-American Festival on June 28; the Hispanic Heritage Festival on July 12; the Italian Heritage Festival on July 26; the Heritage of India Festival on August 2; the 50th Annual Jewish Music and Arts Festival on August 16; and the Muslim Heritage Festival on August 23. Most of these festivals are free to attend. For more details and times, go to https://parksevents.westchestercountyny.gov/events/category/all-programs/special_events/festival/
On June 19, the Tarrytown Music Hall will feature the 1964 movie Dr. Strangelove (or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb). Directed by Stanley Kubrick and starring Peter Sellers (at his best, playing three roles), the film follows a mentally unstable American general who orders a hydrogen bomb attack on the Soviet Union, triggering a path to global nuclear holocaust that a war room full of politicians and generals frantically tries to stop.
The Hudson River Music Festival comes to Croton Point Park in Croton-On-Hudson on June 21, with live performances across multiple stages, family-friendly music, a vibrant marketplace featuring local artisans, craft beer and regional food vendors—along the Hudson River. To buy tickets, go to https://parksevents.westchestercountyny.gov/event/hudson-river-music-festival/
The Scarsdale Adult School is offering Basket Weaving in One Sitting: Apple Picking Basket on June 23. Emphasis will be on shaping the basket and making it sturdy for picking apples or storing yarn or other project items. The class takes place at Temple Shaarei Tikvah, and is led by Robin Ingram. Another one of the adult schools many one-session courses includes Pressed Flower Art on August 4. The class will cover basic principles of composition, balance, and color, along with an overview of how flowers are pressed and preserved. Participants will create a finished pressed flower piece to take home. No prior art or floral experience is required. Be sure to check out the abundant offerings in arts and crafts, fitness and dance, games, retirement planning, health and wellness, art appreciation, walking tours and much more at https://scarsdale.augusoft.net/index.cfm
On Saturday, August 1, Hanging Cow Productions will perform the interactive parody Greased Lightning—asking you where the alumni of Wydell High School are now—at Taormina’s restaurant in Peekskill. The ticket price of $95 includes the show, a full dinner and prizes. Go to HangingCowProductions.com for tickets and details.
Several new and magnificent art exhibitions have been installed at Storm King–an art center always worth visiting. South Korean born Anicka Yi’s Message from the Mud, the artist’s first large-scale outdoor project, is arranged like an archaeological dig, inviting viewers to engage with concepts of deep geological time and evolutionary history through the lens of “prehistoric biofiction.”
Saif Azzuz’s weych-pues / tàkhòne (where the rivers meet), pictured above and to the left (photo by Jeffrey Jenkings) takes the form of a giant sturgeon made of steel, aluminum, and salvaged car parts from the Hudson Valley, together with natural materials from the San Francisco Bay Area. And Liz Glynn has reconstructed the couches, footstools, armchairs, and arched window forms of Open House based on images of Louis XIV-style furniture from an opulent Gilded Age ballroom.
Caramoor Center for Music and the Arts has a robust summer line-up, kicking off on June 20, ranging from their American Roots Festival, the Louis Armstrong Hot Five Centennial Celebration and Pops, Patriots and Fireworks to Patty Griffen, Dancing at Dusk, the Mark Morris Dance Group, Bruce Hornsby & The Noisemakers, and much more. For the complete calendar, visit Caramoor.org.
The 52nd Annual Bicycle Sunday season, on the Bronx River Parkway, kicked off in May and continues into October. The parkway is closed to traffic during these days/times, when participants can bike, walk, or jog the scenic roadway. For specific dates and times, visit https://www.thewpf.org/bicycle-sundays
And don’t forget about the Westchester Mall Walking Club which meets Tuesdays and Fridays at the mall. To join, sign up at the Parks table, next to the horse fountain, on retail level 2 (between Crate & Barrel and Urban Outfitters), on the mornings of the program (8am to 10pm). Be sure to call 914-231-4539 first to make sure nothing has disrupted the walk.