Compiled by Katrina Langer and Kevin Coughlin
Downton Abbey therapy, Gilded mansions, art walks, Shakespeare for kids, a high school play, show-and-tell with a movie director, electronics recycling…there’s even a gun buy-back. Whew, what a weekend!
Greater Morristown is the place to be for the next few days. Below are some suggested highlights; for even more options, visit our handy calendar.
THURSDAY, MARCH 14, 2013:
Season Three of Downton Abbey was rough! And now begins the long, agonizing wait for Season Four to pick up the pieces. The Morristown & Township Library feels your pain, and is hosting another D.A. Support Group meeting, at 7 p.m., to recap the tumultuous travails of the (sometimes) Creepy Crawleys on the award-winning PBS soap. The library advises: “Tea and scones will be served along with a lot of conversation about Mr. Bates’s imprisonment, Mrs. Levinson’s free-speaking manner, and Lady Edith’s eternal search for true love! Period costume is always welcome, but not required.” Admission is free. The library is at One Miller Road in Morristown.
When Yogi Berra said “It ain’t over till it’s over,” who knew he was referring to the Revolutionary War? Skirmishes actually continued beyond the formal end of hostilities, as Bill Chemerka, award-winning teacher and History Channel commentator, will explain at 7:14 pm at the American Revolution Round Table meeting. It’s free and all are welcome, at the Washington’s Headquarters Museum Auditorium, 30 Washington Place, Morristown.
FRIDAY, MARCH 15:
Art Around the Park, Morristown’s quarterly self-guided gallery tour, returns from 5 pm to 8 pm, followed by an optional $25 prix fixe dinner at the Hyatt Morristown’s Eclectic Grill. Seven venues are showing art this evening: Atrium Gallery, 10 Court St.; Citibank, 30 W. Park Pl.; Gallery at 14 Maple, 14 Maple Ave.; Hyatt Morristown, 3 Speedwell Ave.; J&K Steakhouse, 56B South St.; Simon Gallery, 48 Bank St. , and Sweet Lucy’s Bakery, 56A South St. The tour is free.
Short Shakespeare returns to Madison’s Shakespeare Theatre of New Jersey with dynamic one-hour productions appropriate for ages eight and up. Shakespeare Live! offers audiences the opportunity to experience Shakespeare’s works as the playwright intended—in performance. Enjoy the visually imaginative, compelling “Romeo and Juliet.” Admission: $16. At Drew University, 36 Madison Ave. Call 973-408-5600 for details. There also is a 2 pm performance on Saturday.
Katherine Merwin is not one to rest on her laurels. Fresh off last month’s victory in Morristown’s Got Talent, the Morristown High School junior has a lead role as a beauty pageant contestant in the musical comedy Smile, at 7:30 pm at the high school. Also starring Estefania Giralda, Sarah Washington, Dana Demnitz and Rebecca McLain. The show is being dedicated to the late Marvin Hamlisch, who composed the score. Admission is $11; $6 for students and seniors. Tickets available here. You also can catch the show on Saturday evening and on Sunday afternoon. The high school is at Early Street and Atno Avenue.
Hear future stars at the monthly Open Stage at The Minstrel in Morris Township. This is an opportunity for all acoustic musicians to perform a 15-minute set on our stage, and for the audience to be treated to a diverse collection of acoustic musicians. We’ve often seen previews of our regular scheduled acts for the first time at Open Stage. For information on how to secure a performance slot, call 973-335-9489, or visit the website. At the Morristown Unitarian Fellowship, 21 Normandy Heights Road, at 8 pm.
Fountains of Wayne will perform at Morristown’s Mayo Performing Arts Center at 8 pm. The New Jersey-based power pop band burst onto the scene in the late 1990s, armed with catchy hooks and clever lyrics on songs like “Stacy’s Mom” that have made them indie rock favorites and critical darlings from the start. Tickets: $29-39. At 100 South St. Call 973-539-8008 for more.
SATURDAY, MARCH 16:
Are guns taking up space in your closet? Morris County authorities will pay you for them, no questions asked. The buy-back runs from 9 am to 7 pm at St. Peter’s Episcopal Church in Morristown; use the 70 Maple Ave. entrance. A .22 caliber rifle will earn you $50. A revolver is worth $100; a semi-automatic pistol, $150; and an assault rifle will fetch $250, authorities said. BB guns won’t be accepted. Inoperable firearms can be turned in, though there won’t be any payment for them. Buy-back funds come from the Morris County Sheriff’s Office CrimeStoppers program, and from forfeiture money collected by the Morris County Prosecutor’s Office. The Morris County Park Police, the state Attorney General’s Office and a corporate sponsor also are involved.
Samsung is sponsoring an Electronics Recycling Day in collaboration with the Town of Morristown: Responsibly recycle your old electronics at no cost, take the ENERGY STAR pledge and have a chance to win Samsung prizes! From 10 am to 2 pm at town hall, 200 South St. (Franklin Street entrance.)
Eleven young artists perform at the fifth annual Pearl & Julius Young Music Competition, starting at noon at Dolan Hall, in the Annunciation Center at the College of Saint Elizabeth, 2 Convent Road, Morris Township. Admission: Free. These electrifying young musicians will perform music of Elgar, Sibelius, Tchaikovsky, Charminade, Goossens and Beethoven Don’t miss hearing tomorrow’s solo artists as they compete for over $1500 in prizes and the opportunity to perform in concert with The Baroque Orchestra of New Jersey.
The Morristown High School theater department presents Smile at 7:30 pm. See Friday entry for details.
The Thirteen, a top-notch professional choir based near Princeton, returns to the Music on the Green series at The Presbyterian Church in Morristown at 7 pm to perform J.S. Bach’s “St. John Passion” with the Baroque Chamber Orchestra. Below is video of The Thirteen, performing in Morristown last fall, soon after Hurricane Sandy.
If you’re an oenophile–or if you simply know what that means–the place for you tonight is the New Jersey Food and Wine Festival at Cascades Lodge, at the Crystal Springs Resort in Hardyston. One hundred wines will be available for sampling; it’s the centerpiece of the three-day festival. See the festival website for more details.
SUNDAY, MARCH 17:
Mansions expanded dramatically in the half-century after the Civil War. Why? Ulysses Grant Dietz, great-great grandson of Ulysses S. Grant, will explain at 3 pm at Fairleigh Dickinson University in Madison. His talk is based on his book, Beauty, Money and Power: Transformation of Taste in America’s Gilded Age. The author also serves as chief curator and curator of decorative arts at the Newark Museum. He will speak in FDU’s Hartman Lounge, in Hennessy Hall, at 285 Madison Ave. Admission is $15, payable at the door. Copies of the book also will be available for purchase. The lecture is hosted by the Friends of Florham and all proceeds go toward restoration of FDU’s main building and gardens in Madison. For more details contact Susan McConville at 201-692-7008.
Your last chance to catch the Morristown High production of Smile is at 2 pm. See Friday entry for details.
St. Peter’s Episcopal Church in Morristown concludes its Lenten program, Removing Our Veils, at 5 p.m. with a screening of Wonderful World, a comedic drama in which Ben Singer–played by Matthew Broderick– has his cynical world view darkened by his roommate Ibu’s sudden medical situation. But the arrival of Ibu’s sister, Khadi, might remedy both men’s ills. The film’s director Josh Goldin, who earned a master’s at Columbia Film School in New York, will speak after the screening. A light soup-and-bread supper will be available for those attending the program. Suggested donation is $10. The church is at the intersection of South Street and Miller Road.
Morristown’s Sunday Night Portrait Drawing Sessions have returned to ArtSpace at 14 Elm St. Sessions run from 6 pm to 9 pm and feature live models and camaraderie for $10.