Dancing, Art Week, books & 'Moby-Dick' marathon: 14 top things to do on Cape Cod April 29-May 5
Multiple celebrations converge this weekend. Sunday is the start of the new Cape Cod Art Week. Saturday is both Independent Bookstore Day and the final day of National Poetry Month, plus the opening day for Brewster historical sites. And there are three days both of the Ruck4HIT relay race all over the Cape and the Provincetown marathon reading of "Moby-Dick." (In person again!)
Other highlights include: a Celtic concert, the work of Dennis artist Ric Howard, a dance marathon, a 40th-anniversary party for radio station WOMR, the Falmouth Chorale and motorcycles being blessed. Talks involve the grandson of a Broadway legend and an author with a remarkable personal story. Take a look:
Three days of the entire ‘Moby-Dick’
After two years of virtual content, Herman Melville’s 1851 classic story of revenge against the great white whale returns in person for the fifth annual Provincetown Public Library "Moby-Dick Marathon Reading." The event unites members of Provincetown’s literary, art, theater, library and academic communities, with more than 110 participants reading roughly five pages each over a total of more than 24 hours in three days. Audiences are welcome for any part of the book.
When: 10 a.m. (arrive by 9:50 a.m. for seating) to 5 p.m. Friday, 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. Saturday and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday
Where: The starboard side of the Rose Dorothea model at Provincetown Public Library,
Admission: Free
Information: https://www.provincetownlibrary.org/
Get reading: It’s Independent Bookstore Day
Saturday’s Independent Bookstore Day will be celebrated in a variety of ways at area new and used bookstores, 21 of which are part of a relaunch that day of the Cape and Islands Bookstore Trail. Through Oct. 31, people who visit five or more stores during 2022 will be given a trail sticker; those who visit 15 or more have the chance to win either a $50 or $250 gift certificate to the bookstore of their choice. Trail maps will be available at participating stores and on the group's website, and information available on stores’ social media.
Individual celebrations include at Titcomb’s Bookshop in Sandwich, which will hold two events: a “Look for a Book!” children’s scavenger hunt, with a free book and snack at the end; and an adult hunt in the evening with mocktails and live music. Brewster Book Store will host Caldecott Award winner Sophie Blackall, illustrator of over 40 children’s books and one of just nine two-time Caldecott-winning illustrators in the world. She will sign her newest book, “Things to Look Forward To: 52 Large and Small Joys for Today and Everyday.” The store will also have arts and craft activities, giveaways, food, and more throughout the day.
When: Saturday; Titcomb’s events 9 to 11 a.m. (children) and 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. (adults); Blackall 10 a.m. to noon in Brewster, events all day
Where: Titcomb’s Bookshop, 432 Route 6A, Sandwich; Brewster Book Store, 2648 Main St.; trail at multiple other bookstores
Cost: $8 for adult event at Titcomb’s; free for children; free events in Brewster
Information: capeandislandsbookstoretrail.com for the trail; https://www.titcombsbookshop.com/; https://brewsterbookstore.com/
Celebration to close out 36-hour relay race
Cape Cod Coffee will host a public finish line party for the Ruck4HIT 36-hour relay race, a challenging event that starts Friday in Bourne with 100 participants on 13 teams rucking (running while wearing a 10-20-pound rucksack) through every town on Cape Cod. The relay race, in its seventh year, is the biggest fundraiser for the Mashpee-based nonprofit Heroes in Transition and honors the sacrifices members of the military and veterans are making and have made in service to the country. The Mashpee party will include live entertainment (Rick Lockwood, Beautiful Tuesday and Carly Tefft), face-painting, family-friendly activities, games, raffles and food and drink for purchase.
When: 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday
Where: Cape Cod Coffee, Mashpee Commons, 53 Market St.
Information and to support the event: www.ruck4hit.org, www.heroesintransition.org.
Historic properties open for the season
The Brewster Historical Society will begin its 2022 season with two open houses, one at the restored Elijah Cobb House and the second at the village that includes a windmill, working blacksmith shop and 18th century small Cape Cod house.
When and where: Saturday, noon to 3 p.m. at Windmill Village, adjacent to Drummer Boy Park, 773 Main St., Brewster; 1 to 4 p.m. at Cobb House, 739 Lower Road, Brewster
Admission: Free
Information: https://www.brewsterhistoricalsociety.org/
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Grand finale for National Poetry Month
The Voices of Poetry group will host four poets for readings as a way to “ring out” April as National Poetry Month. They are: Mary Buchinger, president of the New England Poetry Club and author of two full-length poetry collections; M.P. Carver, director of the 2021 Massachusetts Poetry Festival and co-founder of tiny lit mag “Molecule”; Tom Daley, a poet, playwright and actor who leads writing workshops in the Boston area and online; and Max Heinegg, a teacher whose poetry collection “Good Harbor” won the inaugural Paul Nemser Book Prize.
When: 2 p.m. Saturday
Where: Brewster Ladies’ Library, 1822 Main St. (Route 6A)
Admission: Free
Information: 508-896-3913, https://www.brewsterladieslibrary.org/
Dancing to raise money for women's health
After two years of virtual dance marathons, the Cape Cod Academy Dance Marathon will return in person to benefit Cape Cod Health Care Foundation’s WED (Women’s Early Detection) Fund, which provides grants for diagnostic procedures for women’s cancers not covered by insurance.
The event, hosted by the school’s Community Service Organization, will include open-floor dancing to music played by DJ Stephanie Viva, plus performances by dance groups that include Beth Walsh Dance Centre, Dance Designs, Dance Factory Plymouth, Harper Dance Center, Open Space Studio and Troope Mirage. Admission includes a 2022 T-shirt while supplies last, bottled water and a snack (for those who make it to the last hour).
When: 3 to 7 p.m. Saturday
Where: Main gym at Cape Cod Academy, 50 Osterville-West Barnstable Road, Osterville
Admission: $10 if pre-registered, $20 at the door
Registration: at the academy’s main office, participating dance studios and via Venmo at Dance_Marathon_Cape_Cod.
Chorale to welcome spring with community concert
Falmouth Chorale aims to celebrate “love, family and spirit” with a “What Brings Us Together” concert under guest conductor Andrew Jonathan Welch. The program includes a cappella selections from Ysaye Barnwell; Shulamit Ran’s, “Shirim L’Yom Tov: Four Festive Songs” that uses scriptural passages from her sons’ Bar Mitzvahs; Gwyneth Walker’s “A Heart in Hiding,” based on Emily Dickinson poems; and Paul Halley’s “Love Songs for Springtime.” The chorale will be joined by mezzo-soprano Krista River as guest soloist.
When: 4 p.m. Saturday and 3 p.m. Sunday
Where: John Wesley United Methodist Church, 270 Gifford St., Falmouth
Tickets: $25 in advance, $30 at the door, and $5 for students
COVID-19 protocols: Masks required; there will be a spatial separation between singers and the audience.
Reservations and information: https://falmouthchorale.org/ or 774-392-2383; also available from members of the Chorale and at Eight Cousins Books in Falmouth, Uncle Bill’s Country Store in North Falmouth, Market Street Bookshop in Mashpee Commons, and Titcomb’s Book Shop in East Sandwich.
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Celtic group Fellswater to play at cultural center
The Boston-based eight-piece Celtic ensemble Fellswater will perform a wide range of music from traditional to modern compositions, drawing from the music of Scotland, Ireland, Brittany, Canada and beyond. The band, which has released three albums, was featured in the 2015 Royal Nova Scotia International Tattoo, playing for 8,000 nightly, and performed at the Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo and Edinburgh Festival Fringe. The band features Dave Cabral on cello, viola and Celtic harp; Kyle Forsthoff on percussion; Betsy Ketudat on violin and nyckelharpa; Jim MacConduibh on acoustic bass guitar and high-strung guitar; Sarah MacConduibh on Irish flute, whistles and fife; Andrew McIntosh on Scottish smallpipes and border pipes; Chris Myers on vocals, guitar, octave mandolin and banjo; and Diane Myers on vocals.
When: 7:30 p.m. Saturday
Where: Cultural Center of Cape Cod, 307 Old Main St., South Yarmouth
Tickets: $20
Reservations and information: cultural-center.org; 508-394-7100
Cape Cod ArtWeek premiere starts Sunday
The Cape Cod Museum Trail will launch its first Cape Cod ArtWeek May 1-8 as a way to celebrate arts events across the region. More than 30 events are scheduled at various organizations, including family fun, jewelry design, films, theater, artist demonstrations, lectures, classes, concerts and exhibits. The aim: “We believe that sharing programs demonstrates the importance of cultural organizations and their benefit to the community at large. … This week showcases all that makes Cape Cod special for those that live here and those that visit.”
When: Sunday through May 8
Where: Multiple arts venues
Information and a full schedule: www.capecodmuseumtrail.com/cape-cod-artweek/
WOMR celebrates 40 years on the Cape
WOMR, the Provincetown-based community and grassroots radio station, will start a celebration of its 40th anniversary with an open house gathering that will include beer, wine and food for purchase. A dream since 1976, WOMR went on the air in 1982 with 1,000 watts at a frequency of 91.9 FM, then in 1995, moved to 92.1 FM, raising power to 6,000 watts to reach a wide audience. A second transmitter (WFMR 91.3 FM) was eventually installed to improve the signal from Orleans to Hyannis. The open house host will be Executive Director John Braden, who began volunteering at the station in 1991.
When: noon to 4 p.m. Sunday
Where: The Schoolhouse, 494 Commercial St., Provincetown
Admission: Free, with refreshments for sale.
Information: www.womr.org
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Motorcycles to be blessed at beach gathering
After a two-year hiatus because of the pandemic, the Cape Cod & Islands Chapter of the Blue Knights International Law Enforcement Motorcycle Club will hold its 44th annual Blessing of the Bikes. Proceeds benefit the group’s charitable activities. Refreshments will be available for purchase. In past years, up to 1,500 motorcycles traveled from every New England state for the blessing, with more than 2,000 people in attendance.
When: Noon Sunday, with gates opening at 9:30 a.m., and all bikes registered and parked by 11:30 a.m.
Where: West Dennis Beach, Davis Beach Road
Admission: Minimum donation of $5
Information: https://www.blueknightsma6.org/
Oscar Hammerstein to talk about his famous family
Cotuit Center for the Arts and Miller White Fine Arts will present “An Evening with Oscar Andrew Hammerstein,” a conversation about, music and art with artist Oscar A. Hammerstein III, grandson of acclaimed Broadway lyricist and librettist Oscar Hammerstein II. The event’s guest is also a writer, lecturer and family historian who has devoted much of his adult life to preserving the archives and influences of the celebrated family legacies in musical theater. Hammerstein’s presentation will feature events from his grandfather's life, and conclude with live performances of selections from Rodgers and Hammerstein's songbook by the Brentwood Brass. There will also be a preview of Hammerstein’s solo exhibition that will open May 6 at Miller White Fine Arts in South Dennis.
When: 6 to 8 p.m. Tuesday
Where: Cotuit Center for the Arts, 4404 Route 28
Admission: Free
Information: artsonthecape.org or 508-428-0669
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Author reveals story behind his hidden blindness
Six libraries — in Centerville, Eastham, Edgartown, Provincetown, Vineyard Haven and West Barnstable (Whelden Memorial) — are partnering to present a virtual talk by author James Tate Hill about his 2021 memoir “Blind Man's Bluff.” At age 16, Hill was diagnosed with Leber’s hereditary optic neuropathy, a condition that left him legally blind — a blindness he hid from family, friends, colleagues and lovers for 15 years.
When: 6-7 p.m. Tuesday
Where: Via Zoom
Reservations: https://www.brewsterladieslibrary.org/ and other libraries
Reception to celebrate Dennis artist Ric Howard
There will be an opening reception for “Ric Howard: Red, White & Blue,” a new exhibit at Cape Cod Museum of Art celebrating the longtime Dennis artist. The exhibit will be on display through July 4. The event will include an open mic for guests to talk or tell a story about Howard. The museum describes Howard as an internationally recognized “sophisticated primitive” artist whose work has been seen at the White House and is in the Smithsonian collection. He was known for his “clean, spare style of patriotic flag paintings, as well as paintings of local landmarks and amusing depictions of Victorian family life.” The museum recently received a bequest of 30 Howard paintings from the late scenic designer Helen Pond, giving the museum the greatest representation of Howard’s work anywhere. A selection of Howard's sketchbooks and advertising designs are also included in “Red, White & Blue.”
When: 4 to 7 p.m. Thursday, May 5; 5:30 p.m. open mic
Where: Cape Cod Museum of Art, 60 Hope Lane, Dennis
Admission: Free
RSVP (including whether you wish to speak) and information: https://www.ccmoa.org/, 508-385-4477.
Contact Kathi Scrizzi Driscoll at kdriscoll@capecodonline.com. Follow on Twitter: @KathiSDCCT.
This article originally appeared on Cape Cod Times: Cape Cod things to do: Dancing, art, books, 'Moby-Dick,' race, music
