Best bets: Veterans, civil rights, a history of Cape Cod POC, concerts and a car show

It is a busy week on the Cape and Islands with a Flag Day event honoring and raising money for veterans; the Cape Cod Chorale singing show tunes to help a local anti-hunger group and the return of the Nantucket Book Festival.

Poets and musicians in Wellfleet mark the 50th anniversary of the death of civil rights activist Medgar Evers. In a separate series of Juneteenth events, the Cape Cod Branch of the NAACP and Zion Union Heritage Museum will host three screenings of a newly released film about the history and contributions of Cape Cod’s people of color.

Heritage Museums & Gardens in Sandwich is hosting its annual car show (not to be confused with the Father’s Day show in Hyannis.) “Beyond Bohemia,” a multi-media event, takes to the streets of Orleans, and the international cultural festival Worldfest returns to Provincetown after a three-year hiatus due to COVID-19.

Eventide Theatre Company’s tickets to its silver gala, celebrating 25 years of performances, are selling fast for the June 18 fundraiser. So grab your calendars and let’s dig right in:

Marking the 60th anniversary of civil rights leader’s death

Voices of Poetry will present “For Us, The Living,” an afternoon of poetry and music Saturday, June 10, in honor of the 60th anniversary of the murder of civil rights activist Medgar Evers. The free event is at 2 p.m. at Wellfleet Public Library, 55 West Main St. Seating is limited.

Featured poets will be Jennifer Markell (“Samsara” and “Singing at High Altitude,”) Tzynya L. Pinchback (“How to Make Pink Confetti,”), Lynne S. Viti (“The Walk to Cefalù,” “Dancing at Lake Montebello: Poems”) and Anthony Walton (“Cricket Weather,” and the nonfiction “Mississippi: An American Journey.")

There will be music from singer/songwriters Gabriella Simpkins and Ric Allendorf.

Allendorf has spent more than 30 years in acoustic music, visual arts and arts education. Since attending the Cape Cod Songwriters Retreat in 2014, he has been a finalist in three performing songwriter competitions and has performed opening sets for musicians throughout New England.

Simpkins is a Cape Codder studying music theory at Salem State College who offers an eclectic mix of folk and indie rock with jazz harmonies and classical flourishes.

WorldFest International Cultural Festival returns to Provincetown

Created in 2011 and held annually through 2019 to welcome and support Provincetown’s international seasonal and year-round student/worker population, WorldFest provides live music and performance events for a diverse community.

After a three-year pause due to the pandemic, WorldFest returns on Sunday and Monday, June 11 and 12, with two free events at the Unitarian Universalist Meeting House of Provincetown, 236 Commercial St.

From 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday, the Boston-based folklore dance ensemble Ludo Mlado will present, on the Meeting House lawn, three hours of music, traditional costumes, dancing and free workshops so everyone can join in the traditional horo (circle dance). "Ludo Mlado is devoted to preserving and spreading awareness of the rich dance traditions of Bulgaria and the Balkan people," organizers write. On Monday, beginning at 7 p.m., the Jah-N-I Roots Band, featuring JahRiffe will bring live world roots reggae inside the UU Meeting House. JahRiffe describes the music as “a vibe, an aura, a frequency that transmits messages through our inner ear and being” and “a message that reminds us who we are.” In addition to a full music set by the band, J1 and H2B international students and workers are invited to perform a few songs too. Contact info@ptownmusic.org.

Chorale brings Broadway to Sandwich

Cape Cod Chorale will present a Broadway Benefit, at 7 p.m. Saturday, June 10, at First Church Sandwich, 136 Main St., Sandwich. The benefit for the Barbara Knight Memorial Scholarship Fund for a graduating high school senior and the Family Table Collaborative will include music from “Fiddler on the Roof” (in Yiddish with English translation) “Kiss Me, Kate!,” “42nd Street,” “Wonderful Town,” “Company” and more.

The chorus is conducted by Artistic Director Danica A. Buckley, accompanied by chorale pianist Cathy Bonnett, and joined by Matthew Brown on bass, and Michael Dunford on drums.

Tickets are $25 online and at the door. There will be a reception after the concert for Cape Cod Chorale’s 40th anniversary and a chance to meet folks from the Family Table Collaborative.

Antique, classic, hot rods and custom car show in Sandwich

Are you a fan of antique and classic automobiles, hot rods and custom cars in excellent original or restored condition? All body styles are invited and displayed on the lawns and fields at Heritage Museums & Gardens for the annual car show from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday at 67 Grove St., Sandwich. Rain date is Sunday.

Visiting the show is free with museum admission ($22 for adults, $12 for ages three to 17) or membership. Tickets can be purchased online at www.heritagemuseums.org or at the ticket window on the day of the event. Registered cars can compete for awards. There is a cafe for those who want to buy lunch.

‘Beyond Bohemia, An Artistic Celebration of Culture and History’

There will be a gathering of artists painting at Rock Harbor in Orleans during the morning of Saturday, June 10. View the wet paintings at a reception from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. at the Addison Art Gallery, 43 South Orleans Road, Orleans. Explore the exhibitions of new works throughout the gallery while chatting with the artists.

“Painting en plein air (in the open air) is a Cape Cod tradition that goes back well over 100 years to the days when Charles Hawthorne founded The Cape Cod School of Art, considered the start of the Provincetown Art Colony,” wrote gallery owner Helen Addison.

Artists planning to paint at Rock Harbor on June 10 include Paul Batch, Linda Beach, Sara Jane Doberstein, Jonathan Earle, Maryalice Eizenberg, Catherine Hess, Marc Kundmann, Joan Lockhart, Rebecca Lussier, Tracy Nee, Andrea Petitto and Paul Schulenburg.

"Beyond Bohemia” is a multimedia effort including art exhibitions, book signings, panels, music, live model painting and plein air gatherings. Find more info and examples of artists’ work at addisonart.com.

Getting an early start on Juneteenth

As part of the Cape’s upcoming Juneteenth celebrations, the Cape Cod Branch of the NAACP and Zion Union Heritage Museum will present three screenings of a newly released film about Cape Cod’s people of color.

“Journey in the Light: Democracy, Diversity, and Myth in the Wake of the Mayflower” will be shown at 7 p.m. Tuesday, June 13, at the Wellfleet Library; 1 p.m. Friday, June 16, at the Cape Cod Museum of Art in Dennis; and at 1 p.m. June 17 at the Provincetown UU Meeting House. The screenings are free to the public (in the case of Cape Cod Museum of Art, free with paid admission to the museum) and will be followed by Q & A with the filmmaker, Janet Murphy Robertson of artistsandmusicians.org, as well as NAACP and Zion representatives.

“The film’s creators look beyond the iconic Euro-centric Mayflower story to present highlights in the history of the African American, Cape Verdean, and Wampanoag people in this region since the arrival of the English settlers in 1620,” organizers write.

The one-hour documentary features local artists including Robin Joyce Miller, Carl Lopes, Pamela Chatterton-Purdy, Joe Diggs, Michael Alfano, Sean Cassidy, Vasco Pires and local historians and history-lovers associated with the museum, including John L. Reed, Harold Tobey, Julia Johnson, Dolores DaLuz and Scoba Rhodes.

‘Voices of Veterans: A Conversation About the Way Home’

A panel discussion among veterans who are now serving the needs of other veterans will be held at 7 p.m. June 14 at Cape Cinema in Dennis. Tickets, available through CapeCinema.com, are $35 ($25 for military) for the fundraiser, which benefits Cape nonprofit veterans groups.

“Veterans confront visible and invisible challenges as they transition from military to civilian life, navigating work, family and everyday living,” writes event coordinator Kim Roderiques.

Rep. Steven G. Xiarhos, R-Barnstable, former Yarmouth police deputy and founder of the Nicholas G. Xiarhos Memorial Foundation and Big Nick’s Ride, in memory of his son and 15 other fallen heroes, will moderate. The panel includes:

Derek Hill, former U.S. Marine Corps Forces Special Operations Command Raider and Government Clandestine Services Operator, and his service dog, Jax.

Nicole Sheridan, program director of Emerald Hollow Therapeutic Riding Center, Inc. Free to veterans, The Equus Effect, developed by Jane Strong and David Sonatore, is an experiential program designed to teach through physical experience.

Damon Green, vice president and director of B Free Wellness Veterans Program’s “One Call Away,” an effort Green founded to prevent suicide among veterans.

BJ Ganem, CEO and founder of Sierra Delta Service Dog Network for veterans. After being wounded in November of 2004, the Marine infantryman found purpose in helping other men and women veterans transition back to society.

Nicholas Nadeau, injured in 2006 and now director of the service dog program Clear Path for Veterans New England, a Fort Devens-based effort that trains and provides free dogs to veterans.

Don Cox, founder of The Massachusetts Military Support Foundation serving active-duty military, guard members and veterans since its establishment in 2017.

Nantucket Book Festival features Jody Picoult, Jennifer Boylan, Hernan Diaz and more

The Nantucket Book Festival is back June 15-18 for its 12th annual gathering of booklovers and award-winning authors. On the schedule are author readings, panel discussions and social events, organizers write, “in an informal atmosphere that encourages conversations between writers and readers.” Most Festival events are free and held within walking distance of the ferries.

Featured authors at this year’s festival include co-winner of the 2023 Pulitzer Prize for fiction, Hernan Diaz; acclaimed contemporary fiction authors Jodi Picoult and Jennifer Finney Boylan; 2022 National Book Award in nonfiction winner, Imani Perry; and lifelong Nantucket summer visitor, Luke Russert.

Festival favorites Wyn Cooper, Sebastian Junger, Tiya Miles, Kirk Wallace Johnson, Samantha Hunt and Betsy Tyler join newcomers Tracy Kidder, Ilywon Woo, Jessie Greengrass, Dolen Perkins-Valdez, Stacy Schiff, Sally Bedell Smith, Julie Gerstenblatt, Emma Straub, Sarah Stodola, and Danielle Trussoni.

Ticketed events include an Author’s Dinner at the White Elephant on Friday and Poetry and Music at the Chicken Box on Saturday, featuring Asheville, North Carolina’s “Humans and Poetry” group and Nantucket’s “The Shep Cats” led by local author and musician, Steve Sheppard.

A full roster of events and genres can be found at https://nantucketbookfestival.org/.

Eventide Theatre Company sings for its supper at June 18 fundraiser

Eventide Theatre Company celebrates its 25th anniversary (having staged more than 75 shows including the regional premiere of Harper Lee’s “To Kill A Mockingbird”) with a music-filled gala from 6 to 9 p.m. Sunday, June 18, at the Cultural Center of Cape Cod, 307 Old Main St., South Yarmouth. Tickets are $30 and are available at the box office, 508-233-2148 or at https://www.eventidearts.org. In addition to the cabaret evening, there is an online auction active now through the website.

This article originally appeared on Cape Cod Times: Things to do on Cape Cod: Nantucket Book Fest, Broadway in Sandwich