Byfield is getting into the Mardi Gras spirit this weekend.
The Squeezebox Stompers will entertain the audience at the Byfield Community Arts Center Saturday — and they promise to provide some "rootsy, bluesy, foot-stomping fun."
The Cajun-Zydeco band includes Ralph Tufo on accordion, keyboard and vocals; Larry Plitt, acoustic and electric guitar and vocals; Paul Tag, electric bass and vocals; Mike Migliozzi, percussion and vocals, and John Donahoe on fiddle, mandolin, saxophone and vocals. The Squeezebox Stompers offer a high-energy, flamboyant, Louisiana-inspired flair.
Doors open at 7:30 p.m.
Gumbo, rice and beans will be sold for a small fee. Vegan options will also be available, as will Cajun beer, wine, soda, coffee and tea.
The Byfield Community Arts Center is located at 7 Central St., Byfield. Tickets are $15 and will be available at door.
Author visits Emma Andrews Library
The Emma L. Andrews Library will host author Jennifer Karin tonight as part of their February Author Series.
An award-writing author, Karin will share tips on how parents can encourage their children to read and write — especially boys between the ages of 5 and 12.
Karin, of Newburyport, has created the Dreamstarter Community for Kids, based on her storytelling activity books.
Her talk will begin at 7:30 at the library on Purchase Street, Newburyport.
'A Night of Sinatra' in Salisbury
Boston-based singer Rich DiMare will appear at Seaglass in Salisbury tonight to perform "A Night of Sinatra."
The show will run from 6 to 9 p.m. in the Seaglass lounge. DiMare will be joined by an acoustic bassist and keyboard player as he performs a selection of Sinatra's tunes and classic songs.
Admission is free. Seaglass restaurant is at 4 Oceanfront North, next to Blue Ocean Music Hall.
Fish fry at Moose Lodge
The Women of the Moose Lodge in Merrimac will hold a Fish Fry tomorrow night from 6 to 8.
Admission is $8 per person and allows visitors to enjoy a menu of fried fish, French fries, onion rings, cole slaw, a roll, beverage and dessert.
The Moose Lodge is located at 34 Broad St., Merrimac.
Acoustic performance at Rockfish
Head to the Rockfish on State Street in Newburyport Saturday and hear three acoustic bands play.
The bands from New Hampshire will perform original music from 9 p.m. to midnight. There is no cover charge.
Sketchbook Club meets Sunday
The newly formed Sketchbook Club will meet on Sunday.
A Newburyport Art Association group, members meet each month to discuss, create, collaborate and share ideas for how to use sketchbooks.
"Each month will feature a new challenge whether it be a theme or a new medium to try out," according to organizer Chris Robinson. "Just like a reading group, members will decide the direction and focus of each month's challenge."
The club will meet at 1:30 p.m. at the Art Association. Bring a sketchbook and drawing tool. The group is open to the public.
Parker Wheeler continues Black History Month celebration
The Black History Month celebration continues at Parker Wheeler's Blues Party Sunday.
Guitarist/vocalist Jon Butcher will join in the party at The Grog on Middle Street. A Grammy Award nominee, Butcher will be joined by guitarist Cliff Goodwin, bassist Wolf Ginandes, drummer Marty Richards and saxophonist Amadee Castenell.
The Blues Party runs from 6 to 10 p.m. Admission is $7.
Author reading at The Book Rack
Boston journalist Erin Byers Murray will visit The Book Rack in Newburyport next Thursday, Feb. 23.
Murray will read from her book, "Shucked: Life on a New England Oyster Farm," beginning at 6 p.m.
Murray specializes in food and wine writing. She is the former Boston editor for DailyCandy.com.
West Newbury's Steve Kidd stars in 'Festen'
West Newbury native Steve Kidd is earning rave reviews in his new role —starring in "Festen" at the Sandra Feinstein-Gamm Theater in Pawtucket, R.I. He performs with Will Lyman.
Kidd is an actor, playwright and educational director of the Gamm Theater. He caught the acting bug when performing at Page Middle School and Pentucket High School. He also performed in Anna Smulowitz' "Terezin: Children of the Holocaust."
Kidd began working at the Gamm Theater after earning a master's degree in theater arts from Brown University. He has started an outreach program, "Pawtucket Literacy and Arts for Youth" (PLAY) with the local schools.
According to the theater, in "Festen," Helge (Lyman) is turning 60, and everyone is coming home for the party. His eldest son, Christian (Kid), whose twin sister, Linda, recently committed suicide, will raise the first toast — and reveal a shocking family secret."
'Food, Inc.' showing in Amesbury
The thought-provoking documentary, "Food, Inc.," will be shown in Amesbury on Tuesday.
The Oscar-nominated film is being presented by the Amesbury Peace Center. It takes a look at the food industry's effects on one's health and the environment. A discussion will follow.
"The domination of our food supply by just a few corporations, the use of factory farming with the needs for pesticides and antibiotics, and finally the critical issue of the genetic engineering of our foods raise human, practical and ethical questions," Peace Center member Sam Baily wrote in an e-mail.
The documentary will be shown at 7 p.m. at the Amesbury Friends Meetinghouse, 120 Friend St., Amesbury.
Locals join in melopoeia in Salem
Newburyport's Rhina Espaillat will read several of her love poems during a melopoeia in Salem next week.
The House of Seven Gables is hosting a celebration of music and poetry to mark the 170th anniversary of the marriage of Nathaniel Hawthorne and Sophia Peabody.
Espaillat will present her poems in English and Spanish. She will be joined by poet and author Alfred Nicol. Vocalist Ann Tucker will also perform a selection of 18th century Portuguese love ballads.
Newburyport's John Tavano will accompany the presenters on the guitar and mandolin.
The festivities begin at 7 p.m. on Tuesday. The House of the Seven Gables is located at 115 Derby St., Salem. Admission is $15 for the general public. Reservations are recommended and can be made by calling 978-744-0991.
'Van Gogh' coming to art association
The Newburyport Art Association will bring an evening of live theater to the Water Street gallery space this spring.
In a new program, the association will present "Vincent," a one-man play that tells the story of troubled artist Vincent Van Gogh, as depicted by husband-wife team Doug and Kristina Brendel.
The pair first presented the show at their gallery, Time and Tide Fine Art in Ipswich.
There, a member of the Newburyport Art Association saw the performance. She mentioned the production to executive director Elena Bachrach, who reached out to the Brendels.
The performance will come to Newburyport from March 16 to 18 at 8 p.m.
The plot of "Vincent" centers around Van Gogh's brother, Theo, who gathers friends together a week after his death "and tells them his side of the story, occasionally reading from Vincent's letters, and often playing the role of Vincent himself," according to the art association.
Tickets are now on sale. Visit the NAA website at www.newburyportart.org, or contact the Newburyport Art Association at 978-465-8769.
Local students perform in 'Chicago'
Three local students at Pingree School in South Hamilton have been cast in the school's production of "Chicago."
Dylan Wack of Newburyport and Ella Fogel and Allegra Larson of West Newbury will perform in the musical March 2 through March 4 at the school.
Wack, a sophomore, plays the role of "Billy," Larson, a junior, plays "Mary Sunshine," and Fogel, a freshman, plays Hunyak.
To purchase tickets, call 978-468-2194. A donation of $10 per ticket is suggested.
PI Surfcasters fundraiser Feb. 25
The Plum Island Surfcasters will hold their annual fundraiser and Junior Program Support Fishing Show on Saturday, Feb. 25, at The Elks Lodge, 25 Low St., Newburyport.
Seminars will be led by Dave Anderson and Jimmy Fee. Anderson, the founder of Surfasylum Lures, has been published in The Fisherman and Surfcasters Journal. Fee is a contributing writer for "On The Water." He will teach participants "where, when and how to present small plugs, jigs and lure big fish."
The program runs from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. Tickets are $13 for the general public, and children under age 13 are free.
For more information, visit www.plumislandsurfcasters.org.
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