Compiled by Kevin Coughlin
Can you believe another Fourth of July is upon us?
Go here for our complete listing of area fireworks and patriotic events.
Below are additional items to entertain you between barbecues. Choose from Welsh clog dancing in a church, bluegrass in a garden, fifes on a lawn, and Shakespeare under the stars, for starters.
Even more fun activities await you in our handy calendar. A Safe and Happy Independence weekend to everyone!
THURSDAY, JULY 2, 2015:
Photographing America’s History, a an exhibit featuring works by 30 area photographers and exclusive images from the collections of the late Geraldine Rockefeller Dodge and the Morristown & Township Library, is at the 70 South Gallery in Morristown. A screening room also is showing winning entries from the 2015 Morristown High School Film Festival. The Dodge photos are courtesy of the Hartley Farms Historical Society.
Shakespeare Under the Stars is back at the amphitheater of the College of Saint Elizabeth in Morris Township, with Love’s Labour’s Lost at 8 pm. This production — about four young noblemen who vow to swear off women and hit the books — runs through July 26, 2015, at 8 pm each night with an extra 4:30 pm show on Sundays. Tickets are $15-$35. Call 973-408-5600 or visit The Shakespeare Theatre of New Jersey. At 2 Convent Road, off Madison Avenue. Parking is free.
FRIDAY, JULY 3:
Enjoy a free lawn concert at Washington’s Headquarters Museum in Morristown, at 2 pm. Bring lawn chairs and blankets. Music by The Fifes & Drums of the Old Barracks. At 30 Washington Place.
The Minstrel in Morris Township presents a special show at 8 pm: Calan, five young musicians who “breathe new life into the old traditions through their sparkling melodies, rhythmic tunes and spirited, energetic performances of Welsh step-dancing.” Admission for this concert is $12 in advance, and $15 at the door. At the Morristown Unitarian Fellowship, 21 Normandy Heights Road.
Video preview of Calan:
SATURDAY, JULY 4:
The Morris Plains Farmers Market is back for its 13th season, every Saturday through Oct. 10, 2015, from 9 am to 2 pm. It’s on the Merchant Block, at the Speedwell Avenue extension, just before the train trestle.
The Morris Tourism Bureau and the National Park Service have lined up some patriotic Independence Day festivities in Morristown, starting at 11 am, at the Presbyterian Church on the Morristown Green, with musical entertainment by The Four Old Parts.
They are followed at 11:30 am by the National Anthem and audience warmup activities by Park Ranger Eric Olsen, and a noon reading of the Declaration of Independence by Park Ranger Tom Winslow.
At 12:45 pm, the 2nd New Jersey Regiment, Helms Company, will demonstrate a feu de Joie musket firing. Church bells will toll at 1 pm, with a musket salute on the Green.
The Presbyterian Church will conduct free graveyard tours, while family activities and a 1:30 pm ceremony honoring war veterans are scheduled for the Green.
SUNDAY, JULY 5:
The Morristown Farmers Market celebrates its 25th season, from 8:30 am to 2 pm every Sunday through Nov. 22, 2015, in municipal lot 10. That’s behind the Morristown Post Office, accessible via Morris Street or Dumont Place. Organized by the Morristown Partnership, the market features 16 area farms and specialty vendors, with entertainment offered once per month.
The Morristown National Historical Park will be free from 9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Tour the Frelinghuysen Arboretum at 2 pm. Meet in the lobby of the Haggerty Educational Center Center. Ticket: $3. At 353 E. Hanover Avenue, Morris Township.
It was the Cheers of the Revolutionary era. Learn about Arnold’s Tavern of Morristown at a Morris County Historical Society exhibit at Acorn Hall. There also is an interpretive walking tour at 1 pm, 2 pm and 3 p.m., to a Revolutionary era powder mill site just beyond Acorn Hall, along the Whippany River. Tickets: $6 adults, $5 seniors, $3 students. Free for children under 12. At 68 Morris Ave., Morristown.
Boston’s Lonely Heartstring Band brings its bluegrass stylings to the garden of the Macculloch Hall Historical Museum at 4 pm. (The show moves inside if it rains.) Tickets go on sale at 1 pm; no advance sales. Prices are $15; $10 for members, seniors and students. Free for children under 12. Please bring blankets or chairs, no seating is available. Only service animals permitted, no pets please. At 45 Macculloch Ave. in Morristown.