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Better Off Dead at Cinemagic Hooksett

Most people of a certain age will instantly recognize the movie quote, “I want my two dollars!” It brings back recollections of madcap teen comedies filled with the likes of Molly Ringwald, Anthony Michael Hall, and of course John Cusack. Don’t miss your chance to take a stroll down memory lane this Thursday, April 5 when Cinemagic in Hooksett, NH holds a screening of Better Off Dead!

Don’t remember the iconic quote? Need to refresh your memory? Is it possible you’ve never seen the movie?!? Check out the trailer:

Better Off Dead was released in October of 1985, which means it will be 33 years old this fall. Want to see if the laughs you remember still hold up? Tickets are available online now! The movie starts at 8:00 pm, and tickets are $8.75 each. For more information and to purchase tickets, go to: http://www.cinemagicmovies.com/movie/27708/Better-Off-Dead

Did you know the Cinemagic in Hooksett hosts a Cult Classics movie every month? The lineup for the remainder of 2018 is as follows:
. April 5th – Better Off Dead
. May 3rd – The Last Starfighter
. June 7th – The Burbs
. July 5th – Last Unicorn
. August 2nd – Commando
. August 2nd – Total Recall
. September 6th – Time Bandits
. October 4th – Dead Alive
. November 1st – Ninja Scroll
. December 6th – Excalibur

I have to say I’m excited about the idea of seeing The Last Unicorn on the big screen again! I saw it with Townie #2 a few years ago when Red River Theatres in Concord, NH hosted The Last Unicorn author Peter Beagle for a special screening. It was an honor to meet him!

I also have to say that seeing Excalibur on the big screen would be pretty awesome. What future Cult Classic movies are you excited about seeing?

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Zimmerman House Advance Tickets Now On Sale!

Tucked away in a residential area in the north end of Manchester, NH lies the architectural gem known as the Zimmerman House. Designed by Frank Lloyd Wright, the home was built in 1950 and is the only Wright designed building open to the public in New England. The house was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1979.

Tours of the Zimmerman house are managed by the Currier Museum of Art, and advance ticket sales are now open! Public tours begin on Monday, April 16th.  Tours are offered through the week except on Tuesdays and Wednesdays. All tours begin at the Currier Museum on Ash Street in Manchester, and visitors are transported to the Zimmerman house by van.

Things to keep in mind: Children under 7 are not permitted. Comfortable walking shoes are suggested. There is no bathroom on site at the Zimmerman house, but bathrooms are available at the Currier Museum Art. The tour of the house is approximately 90 minutes. Photography is only allowed of the exterior of the house.

Visit the Currier’s page about the Zimmerman house for more information and to reserve your tickets! http://currier.org/education-programs/zimmerman-house-tours/

On the web page you’ll also find information on Zimmerman House Focus Tours, as well as Twilight Tours. Both of these special tour options are also open for reservations. I know personally I’d love to go on one of the twilight tours, as well as the September 15th Behind the Scenes of the Restoration of the Zimmerman House tour!

 

 

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In the Heights, in the 603! (at Seacoast Rep)

Townie #2, who admittedly is my big theater nerd, fell in love with the Broadway cast recording of In the Heights the very first time she listened to it a few years back. One go through, and she was hooked on the catchy rap tunes and the way they blend seamlessly with the salsa and bodega beats. She’s often lamented since that first listen how she hadn’t known about In the Heights when it was still on Broadway, and has often dreamed of seeing the show. Imagine my glee when I heard that the Seacoast Repertory Theatre was staging a production of In the Heights this spring!

With a preview night  on Thursday, March 22, In the Heights has its opening night on Friday, March 23rd and will run through Sunday, April 22nd. The Seacoast Repertory Theater is located in the heart of downtown Portsmouth, NH. There are still seats available at just about every performance, but you’ll have a better selection the further out you are willing to book your tickets.

For more information on the show or to purchase tickets, visit the Seacoast Repertory website at: http://www.seacoastrep.org/in-the-heights/

A note on parking when you attend a show at Seacoast Rep: while it will be tempting, don’t park in the St. John’s Episcopal Church parking lot which is *right across the street* .  Patrons to the theater do not have permission to park there and you run the risk of being towed. There are plenty of parking options in Portsmouth within walking distance, one of the big ones being the Hanover Street garage. (Parking tip for the garage: if the “Lot Full” sign is up on the Hanover Street entrance, drive around to the Fleet Street side and enter there…odds are you can find a spot somewhere on the upper levels.) Leave extra time to account for finding parking and hoofing it to Seacoast Rep! My favorite place to park in Portsmouth is what my family refers to as “The Whale Parking Lot”… the metered public parking area officially known as the Worth Lot just off Maplewood Avenue. There’s one of the life-size whale murals painted by artist Robert Wyland there. The name of the mural is Isle of Shoals Humpbacks, and it was the 37th mural out of the 100 he painted as part of his 27 year project. It’s a fascinating story. For more informationon Wyland and his murals, go to: http://www.wylandfoundation.org/community.php?subsection=wyland_walls

There are so many great dining options in Portsmouth, it’s easy to have a fantastic dinner after a matinee performance or before an evening show. One of my new favorite casual spots in Portsmouth is BRGR Bar, at 34 Portwalk Place (corner of Deer St. and Portwalk Pl., right next to the Marriott Residence Inn) This place doesn’t serve your typical boring burgers and fries. Their takes on the American classic are unique and delicious. It’s worth a visit for the peanut butter and chocolate milkshake alone! https://www.brgr-bar.com/

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Ticket Alert: The Cashore Marionettes – Simple Gifts at the Capitol Center for the Arts in Concord, NH

The Capitol Center for the Arts in Concord, NH offers a special concert series every year called the William H. Gile Concert Series. This series opened on December 16, 1960, after a legacy of more than $700,000 was left by Helen B. Gile to finance a free concerts for the residents of Concord. The bequest was made in memory of Miss Gile’s father, William H. Gile.

In the past few years I’ve been lucky enough to take Townies 1, 2, & 3 to see free performances of The Pirates of Penzance and a ballet performance of Cinderella. There’s usually at least one Gile Series performance a year that is family friendly! On Tuesday April 10th, 2018 at 7:00pm, the latest Giles series concert will be The Cashore Marionettes – Simple Gifts. From the Capitol Center for the Arts website:

Simple Gifts is a series of touching portrayals and poignant scenes from everyday life set to stunning music by such composers as Vivaldi, Strauss, Beethoven and Copland. Through a combination of virtuoso manipulation, beautiful music, theatrical illusion, and artistic insight, the original vignettes presented in Simple Gifts provide an entertaining and sensitive vision of what it is to be human. The performance explores a range of emotions with characters and actions that are amazingly convincing. The marionettes are engineering marvels and the quality of movement is extraordinary.

Tickets to this performance will be available online on Tuesday March 13th at 11:00am. Tickets are FREE, and there is a 4 ticket per person limit.  You do not have to be a resident of Concord, NH to attend. Make sure to mark you calendar and be logged in on the CCANH website ready to get your tickets, because the Gile Concert Series tickets can go FAST!

If you aren’t able to get tickets before the show “sells out”, check back with the Capitol Center for the Arts in the weeks leading up to the show. People’s plans often change, and tickets may become available.

For more information and to see what else is upcoming at the Capitol Center for the Arts, see their website at: www.ccanh.com

Information about the William H. Gile series can be found under Shows and Tickets/Community Events/Gile Series.  The next Gile Series Concert after the Cashore Marionettes is Tom Rush on May 20th. Those tickets will be available on April 23rd at 11:00am.

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Chris Bohjalian at Gibson’s Bookstore

I’ve been a fan of Chris Bohjalian for years. I love the way he weaves a story together with characters so real that you could imagine bumping into them at the grocery store (or maybe General Store is a better reference, since many of his novels take place in small town New England!)

You can bump into Chris Bohjalian yourself when he visits Gibson’s Bookstore in Concord, NH on Friday, March 16th at 7:00 PM to promote his latest novel, “The Flight Attendant”. Here’s a teaser about the novel, from its publisher, Doubleday:

Cassandra Bowden is no stranger to hungover mornings. She’s a binge drinker, her job with the airline making it easy to find adventure, and the occasional blackouts seem to be inevitable. She lives with them, and the accompanying self-loathing. When she awakes in a Dubai hotel room, she tries to piece the previous night back together, counting the minutes until she has to catch her crew shuttle to the airport. She quietly slides out of bed, careful not to aggravate her already pounding head, and looks at the man she spent the night with. She sees his dark hair. His utter stillness. And blood, a slick, still wet pool on the crisp white sheets. Afraid to call the police – she’s a single woman alone in a hotel room far from home – Cassie begins to lie. She lies as she joins the other flight attendants and pilots in the van. She lies on the way to Paris as she works the first class cabin. She lies to the FBI agents in New York who meet her at the gate. Soon it’s too late to come clean-or face the truth about what really happened back in Dubai. Could she have killed him? If not, who did? Set amid the captivating world of those whose lives unfold at forty thousand feet, The Flight Attendant unveils a spellbinding story of memory, of the giddy pleasures of alcohol and the devastating consequences of addiction, and of murder far from home.

This one sounds like a provocative ride!  I hope it brings the same levels of suspense and excitement found in his last novel, “The Sleepwalker”. I’m loath to admit that I didn’t really love “Close Your Eyes Hold Hands”, or “The Guest Room”, the two novels he published prior to “The Sleepwalker”, since I’ve loved so many of his other novels (as in, ALL the other books by him I’ve read!). I felt like Bohjalian hit a storytelling win with “The Sleepwalker”, and I’m anticipating this new novel, “The Flight Attendant” will continue the winning streak.

Gibson’s Bookstore does a fabulous job with author events. I’m delighted to go to Concord next Friday, hear Chris Bohjalian speak, and have a chance to meet him as well! For more information, or to pre-order a copy of “The Flight Attendant”, visit Gibson’s Bookstore’s website at: http://www.gibsonsbookstore.com/event/the-flight-attendant

One final note: If you’ve ever wondered how to pronounce Bohjalian, you can listen to the short clip on this website where Chris Bohjalian himself explains it! https://www.teachingbooks.net/pronounce.cgi?aid=20658

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NH Institute of Art Bowl Sale

The Ceramics Department of the New Hampshire Institute of Art in Manchester, NH holds a Bowl Sale every year. This event is a fundraiser for the department, and funds raised this year will go towards a student trip to the 2018 National Council on Educations for the Ceramic Arts (NCECA) Conference.  All bowls are $20 each; the bowls are handcrafted by NHIA students and faculty.

I managed to make it there on Tuesday afternoon and was excited to see the variety of beautiful crafted bowls available for purchase! This event was originally scheduled to be held on Tuesday through Thursday of this week, but the snowstorm forced the school to cancel Wednesday and Thursdays sale dates.  If you missed the chance to get there on Tuesday, NHIA is opening the bowl sale all day on Friday, March 9th. The sale will take place from 8:30am – 5:00pm at 77 Amherst Street in Manchester, NH.

Scroll below to check out the beautiful bowl I picked up! The students on hand staffing the sale told me this bowl was made by one of their faculty members, and in their opinion it was a STEAL at $20. It’s really lovely and I’m so glad I took the time to go. I think these would make great birthday/hostess/holiday gifts. I’ll definitely be marking my calendar and going next year as well!

 

 

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Two Studio Ghibli Films at Red River Theatres!

Are you a Miyazaki fan? Red River Theatres in Concord, NH is holding  screenings of the classic Studio Ghibli films, My Neighbor Totoro and Howl’s Moving Castle. Both movies will be shown in the month of March. These make the 3rd and 4th Studio Ghibli movies that Red River Theatres has shown; they’ve previously had screenings of Spirited Away and Princess Mononoke.  I hope they continue showing more of the Studio Ghibli canon!

My Neighbor Totoro will be shown on Saturday, March 10th at 10:00am. http://www.redrivertheatres.org/2018/02/my-neighbor-totoro/
This screening will be the dubbed English version. Fun for the whole family!

Howl’s Moving Castle will be shown on Thursday, March 29th at 7:00pm http://www.redrivertheatres.org/2018/02/howls-moving-castle/
This screening will be the Japanese version with English subtitles.

It’s not unheard of for these screenings to sell out, so if you’re interested in attending I’d recommend purchasing your tickets online ahead of time.

Last year Townie #2 and I attended the screening of Princess Mononoke at Red River Theatres. Going to special movie events there is always tons of fun! They welcome and encourage moviegoers to dress in costume for the show, so plan ahead. For Princess Mononoke Red River Theaters suggested folks come dressed as their favorite Miyazaki characters- we dressed as Totoro and Mei and won movie passes for our efforts! We may have to break out these costumes again!

(These outfits brought to you by my trusty hot glue gun!)

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Prescott Park Arts Festival Announces 2018 Summer Musical

2018 is the Summer of Seuss! Earlier this week the Prescott Park Arts Festival of Portsmouth, NH announced that their 2018 Summer Musical will be Seussical the Musical. If you’ve never been to one of the Summer Musical shows at Prescott Park, this will be a great year to experience the fun! We’ve been going for many years now and we always look forward to fitting it into our summer schedule.

See the Prescott Park Arts Festival for information and to buy a table, reserve a blanket, or order pizza (yes, that’s already set up and open for reservations!):

https://www.prescottpark.org/event/seussical-presented-by-cj-bus-lines

The show will run from June 22 – August 19, on Thursday, Friday, Saturday, and Sunday nights, with some weekend matinees added as the season progresses. (Thursday and Sunday the show is at 7:00 pm, Friday and Saturday it’s at 8:00 pm)

We’ve done this as a last minute, hey-let’s-show-up-and-squeeze-in-where-we-can, we’ve sat at the tables in the back, and we’ve also reserved blankets. My favorite has been reserving a blanket. I’ll be honest, it’s not cheap, this year it’s $55 per blanket plus a $5 transaction fee. But, it’s totally worth it to show up just before the show starts and know you’ve got killer seats right in the front. Blanket reservations do sell out, so if you know when you want to go, purchase your spot ahead of time!

Other Things to know before you go:
Parking: There’s not a lot of on street parking right by Prescott Park. In past years we’ve found the best free parking is on Peirce Island, which is a short walk. BUT the city of Portsmouth has ongoing construction on Peirce Island and has requested that patrons avoid parking there. (BUMMER!) The City suggests the following alternatives:

City Hall Lot
South Mill Playground

Thursday through Sunday, there is a free shuttle that runs from the Connect Community Church parking lot (just off exit 7 of I-95) to the Hanover St. Bus Stop. The shuttle runs approximately every ten minutes until 1:30 A.M.

The city also offers parking at the Municipal Parking Garage on Hanover Street. Parking in the garage is $1.25/hr and a five-minute walk to the Festival gates through the downtown area. Patrons may also park at the Municipal Lot on Parrot Avenue or Strawbery Banke Museum.

Admission: General admission is offered at a suggested donation of $5-10 per person. Even at $10 a person, a professional quality musical of this caliber is a steal! Bring cash, they aren’t set up to process cards for admission. You can use credit/debit at the concession stand and merchandise booth.

Where to sit?: If you aren’t paying to reserve a blanket or a table, you’ll need to decide before you go if you want to bring a chair or a blanket. There is a line of tape about halfway up the lawn that marks the dividing line of where blankets are allowed and then chairs go behind them. If you can get there early enough, I’ve always thought the best thing to do was straddle that line; bring chairs for the adults, a blanket for the kids. They do enforce the “No chairs” policy in the blankets only area, so don’t try to get away with using a chair there. The city of Portsmouth does not allow blankets to be put down in the park prior to 3pm, and do not use a tarp.

Dinner/Snacks: Pack a picnic! This is a great time to pack a yummy spread and bring along dinner, or even just some snacks. Keep in mind alcohol is not allowed in the park. Don’t feel like filling a picnic basket? Prescott Park has an excellent concession stand/restaurant called The Prop, where you can get delicious fresh items that go beyond standard concession fare. Check out the 2017 menu here:

https://www.prescottpark.org/sites/default/files/The_Prop/2017%20Prop%20Menu.pdf

The grilled chicken rice bowl was excellent, and the wheat free brownie was a special treat!

What Else to Bring: Prescott Park is right on the water, so make sure to grab a sweater and/or extra blanket in case it gets chilly. Bring some extra cash: aside from snacks at The Prop, they also have the merchandise booth where they sell giant Lindt chocolate bars as a fundraiser. There are three or four bars with “Golden tickets” inside them. If you find a golden ticket when you open your bar, you are a winner! In 2017, the bars were $8 each or 3 for $20. Last summer’s prizes were a trip to London, England,  Disney World, or a year’s supply of chocolate! There are also fun souvenirs for sale such as t-shirts and programs.

For more info., check out the How it Works page on the Prescott Park Arts Festival Website:

https://www.prescottpark.org/reservations/how-it-works

Keep dreaming of summer, and maybe I’ll see you at the show!

 

 

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Special Event: Winter Olympics Opening Ceremonies Watch Party at Red River Theatres!

Red River Theatres in Concord, NH is holding an Opening Ceremonies Watch Party on Friday February 9th at 8:30 am. This event is free and open to the public!

From RRT’s website:
On February 9th, at 8:30 AM, Red River Theatres and the World Affairs Council of New Hampshire invite you to join us for the opening ceremonies for the PyeongChang Winter Olympics. Celebrate the event with friends and sports enthusiasts as we watch the world come together through the love of sport. Whether you can come for fifteen minutes or stay for the whole ceremony it will be a great sight to see the ceremonies on the big screen! Light refreshments will be available for those who attend.

For more information see Red River Theatres’ event page at:
http://www.redrivertheatres.org/2018/01/opening-ceremonies-watch-party/

Fore more information about the 2018 Winter Olympics, see:
https://www.pyeongchang2018.com/en/index

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Sunday Art Talk at LaBelle Winery: A Sense of Place with Yoav Horesh

LaBelle Winery, in partnership with the New Hampshire Institute of Art (NHIA), is presenting “A Sense of Place” with Yoav Horesh. This lecture will take place on Sunday, January 28th from 3:00-5:00pm at LaBelle Winery, 351 Route 101, in Amherst, New Hampshire. Horesh is a contemporary Israeli photographer best known for his work in both black and white and color photography capturing images of conflict, human tragedy, memory, and recovery in Europe, Asia, and the Americas.

From the LaBelle Winery website:  “Since 2001, Yoav Horesh’s work has been concerned with history, conflict, memory, ethnicity and multiculturalism. His projects took place in the American South-West, Germany, Laos, Israel, the Gaza Strip, Bolivia, Vietnam, Hong Kong, Mongolia and Cambodia, where history still shapes and influences current events and daily life. In his lecture, Yoav will talk about the “Sense of Place” as a common thread running through his work and how it relates to time, space and history.”

A cheese and wine reception will begin at 3:00pm, followed by Horesh’s lecture at 3:30. Registration is required; the event is free to NHIA members and alumni, and $5.00 for general public. For more information and to register, visit LaBelle’s website at:

https://www.labellewineryevents.com/event-registration/?ee=1073

Yoav Horesh is the current BFA Chair of Photography at NHIA, as well as a MFA Photography faculty member. More information about Yoav Horesh’s photography can be found at his website: http://yoavhoresh.com/

If you are interested in more information about membership opportunities at the New Hampshire Institute of Art, visit the membership page of their website at:

http://www.nhia.edu/alumni-and-friends/nhia-membership

Also of note, Horesh has an upcoming exhibit at Gallery Kayafas in Boston, Massachusetts.  His “Serene Oasis” Solo show at Gallery Kayafas, runs
March-April 2018. For more information on this show, visit Gallery Kayafas:

http://www.gallerykayafas.com/home/artists/yoav-horesh/