Six Flags Hurricane Harbor opens, and other things to do this weekend at the Jersey Shore
Six Flags Hurricane Harbor will launch the summer season with a preview from 11 a.m. to 5 a.m. Saturday and Sunday.
In what is being billed as the largest investment in the water park in more than two decades, Hurricane Harbor is adding seven new slides, an interactive kids’ play area, and more options for shade and dining.
New additions include Splash Island, a treehouse-style play structure with mini-slides, curtain waterfalls and a giant water bucket for splashing guests.
There will also be seven new slides for smaller guests: Cowabunga, the two-slide Jellyfish Twist, RipCurl, Shark Attack, Splashin’ Seal and Stingray Racer.
Families will also have the option to rend cabanas and oversized umbrellas for shade, and across a bridge from Splash Island will be an open-air dining area.
Hurricane Harbor will operate weekends through June 11. The park is open from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. May 27 to 29, June 3 and 4, and June 10 and 11.
Daily operation begins June 17 and runs through Monday, Sept. 4
Go: Six Flags Hurricane Harbor, Route 537, Jackson, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday and Sunday; sixflags.com/hurricaneharbornj.
Here are other things to do this weekend at the Jersey Shore and around the Garden State.
Bonfire on the Beach in Asbury Park
Bring your blankets and chairs and spend a relaxing evening at Bonfire on the Beach in Asbury Park.
The bonfires take place from 7 to 10 p.m. Fridays in May, June and September, and begin at 8 p.m. Wednesdays in July and August.
This Friday's bonfire takes place at the Fifth Avenue beach. On Friday, May 26, the bonfire will be at Sunset Avenue, north of Convention Hall. For a schedule of bonfire events, including the location for each bonfire, visit apboardwalk.com.
Note that the schedule is subject to change based on weather. Visit Asbury Park Boardwalk’s social media channels for “day of” updates on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
Go: Beach on the Asbury Park Boardwalk, 7 to 10 p.m. Friday, Fifth Avenue beach; apboardwalk.com.
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'The Empire Strikes Back' in concert
"I am your father."
The New Jersey Symphony will present "Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back in Concert," featuring screenings of the complete film with Oscar-winning composer John Williams’ musical score performed live during the movie.
The concert comes to the Count Basie Center for the Arts at 8 p.m. Friday. It also can be seen at 7:30 p.m. Thursday in Morristown at Mayo PAC, 8 p.m. Saturday at NJPAC in Newark, and 3 p.m. Sunday at the State Theatre in New Brunswick.
The concerts will be led by conductor Constantine Kitsopoulos.
Go: "Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back in Concert," 8 p.m. Friday, Count Basie Center for the Arts, 99 Monmouth St., Red Bank, tickets start at $55; 732-842-9000, thebasie.org.
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Monmouth Civic Chorus show in Freehold
Monmouth Civic Chorus presents "Message in a Bottle: Songs Sent Across the Season" at 4 p.m. Sunday in Freehold.
A collection of iconic shorter works originating in the United States and Europe, the show features favorites by Morten Lauridsen to celebrate his 80th year.
“The choral works Morten Lauridsen created in the 1990s reignited the choral repertoire, earning quickly and truthfully the oft-meaningless designation ‘instant classics,’ " said artistic director Ryan James Brandau. "I’ll never forget hearing them for the first time, feeling them mesmerize my young musical mind. This was music that somehow glimmered, shone, and pulsed in a way I hadn’t experienced before. Lauridsen alit on a combination of harmony and voicing that beguilingly and powerfully conveyed the images of light and spirit and mystery in his texts.”
In July, the chorus will tour Austria and Italy with a similar repertoire.
Go: "Message in a Bottle: Songs Sent Across the Seas," 4 p.m. Sunday, First Presbyterian Church of Freehold, 118 W. Main St., $35, $32 seniors, $15 students; 732-933-9333, monmouthcivicchorus.org.
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Manasquan Reservoir boat tour
Look for turtles, egrets, herons, ospreys and other wildlife in their natural habitat during a boat tour of the Monmouth County Park System’s Manasquan Reservoir.
Led by a Park System naturalist, these 45-minute tours leave from the Visitor Center on Windeler Road in Howell. Tours are offered at the top of the hour from 2 to 5 p.m. on Saturdays, Sundays and holidays, through Labor Day (Sept. 4).
Wednesday afternoon tours are offered at 2, 3 and 4 p.m. from July 12 to Aug. 30. Evening tours are offered at 6 and 7 p.m. on the first Friday of June, July and August.
All tours are weather and water level dependent.
Tickets are $6 per adult, $4 per child 12 and younger. Life jackets are required and provided. Tickets can be purchased in the lower level of the Visitor Center on the day of the tour.
Go: Boat tour of Manasquan Reservoir, 2 to 5 p.m. Saturdays, Sundays and holidays through Labor Day, 2 to 4 p.m. Wednesdays, July 12 to Aug. 30, 6 and 7 p.m. on the first Friday in June, July and August, $6, $4 for kids 12 and younger; 732-751-9453.
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Asbury Park vegan festival
Vegans, assemble! It's time again for the Asbury Park Vegan Food Festival, taking place Saturday and Sunday at Bradley Park.
The fest will feature nearly 100 vendors, including Bo Burger, Mexi Boys, Tony Boloney's, Two River Mushrooms, Oh My Cod Vegan Seafood Co., Sprout House, and Something Sweet Vegan Bakery.
Tickets cost $20 per day, $35 for both days, or $50 for a pass that includes both days in Asbury Park, and at the New Jersey Vegan Food Festival, taking place in November at the Meadowlands Expo Center in Secaucus. There is no charge for children 13 and younger. Food prices will vary by vendor.
Go: Asbury Park Vegan Food Festival, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday and Sunday, Bradley Park, 101 to 199 5th Ave., Asbury Park; instagram.com/njvegfest.
Save Barnegat Bay documentary 'Drift'
The Democratic Coalition of Ocean County is sponsoring a free screening of Save Barnegat Bay’s documentary film "Drift" at 2 p.m. Sunday at the Barnegat Community/Recreation Center.
The nonprofit organization Save Barnegat Bay co-produced "Drift," which tells the story of the bay through the voices and eyes of people who cherish it as a natural, recreational and economic resource. The film allows the viewer to "Drift" through 50 years of complex issues through a series of short vignettes, using a variety of perspectives, viewpoints and experiences.
Britta Forsberg, Save Barnegat Bay’s executive director, will introduce the film. Light refreshments will be served.
Go: "Drift" screening, Barnegat Community/Recreation Center, 900 West Bay Ave. (behind Town Hall), 2 p.m. Sunday, free; 212-249-6292.
Art Alliance exhibit in Red Bank
Elie Porter Trubert's "Ephemerol Meditation Circles" can be seen this month at the Art Alliance of Monmouth County. The sculptural works assembled from gathered natural materials allude to impermanence, interconnectedness and attunement, a news release says.
Turbert says ultimately these works will be washed or blown away, or changed by natural processes.
In the main gallery space, Trubert will jury works by members on the theme "Tell a Tale," including pieces by Middletown South High School students.
The gallery is open noon to 4 p.m. Tuesdays through Saturdays.
Go: Elie Trubert, "Ephemerol Meditation Circles," Art Alliance of Monmouth County; 732-842-9403.
NJ Youth Chorus celebrates 30th anniversary
The New Jersey Youth Chorus is celebrating its 30th anniversary with a spring concert and 30th anniversary reception at 4 p.m. Sunday at Our Lady of the Lake Church, 22 Lakeside Ave. in Verona.
There will be performances by all five of NJYC's ensembles, as well as an alumni choir, featuring several members of the original Somerset Hills Children's Chorus.
The program will include the premiere of "A Bright Youthful Future" by Aadhitya Raam Ashok, the 2022-23 Wharton Arts Annual Choral Composition Competition winning piece. Following tradition, the program will end with the choir and alumni singing Katie Moran Bart’s "Blessing," a piece that has been performed on every spring concert program since the chorus’ inception 30 years ago.
Tickets are $40, $30 for students and seniors.
Go: New Jersey Youth Chorus, spring concert and reception, 4 p.m. Sunday, Our Lady of the Lake Church, 22 Lakeside Ave., Verona, $40, $30 for students and seniors; NJYC30.org.
This article originally appeared on Asbury Park Press: Jersey Shore things to do: Vegan Fest NJ, Six Flags Hurricane Harbor
