Compiled by Kevin Coughlin
Summer is all about travel. So why not travel back in time this weekend?
Greater Morristown offers voyages to the ’80s pop charts, 19th-century Base Ball, and even to the fringes of the universe, at the dawn of time.
If all that nostalgia fails to bring a smile, spend a morning with a local children’s author, catch a film about Serotonin levels, enjoy an outdoor festival or take in some cabaret.
Need more? Travel to our handy calendar for additional activities!
THURSDAY, AUG. 7, 2014:
The ’80s gave us Ronald Reagan, a crumbling Soviet Union…and some really catchy pop tunes. Many of the catchiest ones will be reprised at Morristown’s Mayo Performing Arts Center at 8 pm. Rock of the Eighties boasts The Romantics (Talking in Your Sleep, What I Like About You), The Smithereens (A Girl Like You, Only a Memory), Marshall Crenshaw (Someday Someway, Whenever You’re On My Mind) and Tommy Tutone (867-5309/Jenny). Tickets are $39-$69. Call 973- 539-8008 for details. The theater is at 100 South St. Here are some Morristown Green video clips to whet your appetite:
The Smithereens
Oklahoma!, the classic Rodgers and Hammerstein musical, continues its run at the Bickford Theatre in Morris Township at 8 pm. Additional performances Friday, Saturday and Sunday (2 o’clock matinee). A production of the New Jersey Youth Theatre and Algonquin Arts Center. Tickets: $35. At 6 Normandy Heights Road. Call 973-971-3700 for more details.
FRIDAY, AUG. 8:
What are those celestial shapes in the summer firmament? Find out at the Longo Planetarium, at the County College of Morris in Randolph. The Shapes in the Sky show starts at 1 pm and costs $10 ($5 for seniors and kids under 12). Come back at 7 pm for the Space Extreme! show. At 214 Center Grove Road.
Altruism is good for you! It’s a scientific fact, according to the documentary Serotonin Rising, which will be screened at the Center for Spiritual Living Morristown, 331 Mount Kemble Ave., Harding. Selected shorts roll at 7 pm and the main feature follows at 7:30 pm. Admission: Free, goodwill offerings welcomed. Call 973-539-3114 for more details.
The Baroque Orchestra of New Jersey continues its Summer Music Festival at 7:30 pm at Grace Church in Madison, with chamber music featuring Arioso Consorte and Amite Trio plus a special performance of Antonin Dvorak’s romantic Piano Quintet in A Major, showcasing violinist Agnes Kwasniewska and pianist Paul Zeigler. Tickets: Adult: $20, Senior: $15, Student: $5. At 4 Madison Ave.
Time to give voice to your inner star, at The Minstrel’s monthly open stage. Acoustic musicians perform 15-minute sets and the audience discovers new talent, which often is recruited for real Friday gigs. While all the reserved performance slots are taken, seven slots will be parceled out by lottery 15 minutes before the 8 pm start. Chances are good that you can land a slot this way. To learn how to reserve a performance, call 973-335-9489 or visit the Open Stage page. The Minstrel is at the Morristown Unitarian Fellowship, 21 Normandy Heights Road, Morris Township.
SATURDAY, AUG. 9:
For nearly a decade, Lashone Murphy has worked at the Morristown Neighborhood House to give economically disadvantaged kids a brighter future. Inspired by that experience, she has written a children’s book, The Day I Made the Sky Smile, about the importance of self-esteem. Lashone will read from her book at 11 am, in the Children’s Room of the Morristown & Morris Township Library, at One Miller Road in Morristown.
The Community Family Day Festival celebrates its 12th anniversary with an afternoon of music, food and family fun at Morristown’s Cauldwell Playground, on the corner of Flagler Street and Martin Luther King Avenue. The event is hosted by the Morristown Neighborhood House and its parent organization, Cornerstone Family Programs. They have invited many fellow nonprofits to bring information about their services, too. The day’s activities run from noon to 5 pm and they are free; all are welcome.
They used to call it Base Ball, and there were no dainty batting gloves. Or catching gloves, for that matter. To see the rugged 19th-century version of our national pastime, head to Smith Field Park on Route 46 in Parsippany at 12:30 pm for a doubleheader featuring the Hoboken Nine and the Flemington Neshanocks. Admission is free. The event is sponsored by the Morristown chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution and the North Jersey Civil War Roundtable.
Take a Tour of the Planets, without ever leaving Jersey. It’s completely legal, and launches at 3 pm from the Longo Planetarium at the County College of Morris in Randolph. Tickets: $10 ($5 for seniors and kids under 12). See Friday entry for more details.
Life is a cabaret, old chum, thanks to The Baroque Orchestra of New Jersey’s Summer Music Festival, which continues at 7:30 pm with Cabaret Night. The show is in Grace Hall, at Grace Church in Madison, and features music from Broadway and opera, with Emily Thompson, Noelle Arteche, Brian Jamieson, Dominika Zamara and Don Sheasley. Patrons are encouraged to bring refreshments and enjoy the entertainment in a table-seating arrangement. Tickets: Adult: $20, Senior: $15, Student: $5. At 4 Madison Ave.
SUNDAY, AUG. 10:
The Morristown Farmers Market is back for its 24th season, courtesy of the Morristown Partnership and its sponsors. From 8:30 am to 2 pm, you can find produce from North Jersey farms, baked goods, and more, in the municipal parking lot 10, behind the post office. Lots of entertainment- and wellness events will be sprinkled throughout the year. The Farmers Market is open on Sundays through the end of November.
All good things must come to end, and that goes for the Summer Music Festival of The Baroque Orchestra of New Jersey. Maestro Robert Butts & Co. have saved some of the best for last, with a 3 pm concert in Dolan Hall at the College of Saint Elizabeth that includes the maestro’s The Cask of Amontillado and Ruggiero Leoncavallo’s I Pagliacci. Starring roles go to Karole Lewis, Peter Lewis, Emily Thompson, Brenda Belohoubek, Dmitri Zigrino, and Michal Alworth. Tickets are $40 general admission, $30 for seniors and $5 for students. Ar 2 Convent Road in Morris Township.
