Museums, Music, and Musicals

Mapping Climate Change: The Knitting Map and The Tempestry Project is just one of three exhibits on display until November 30th (and the one I’m most interested in seeing!), at the Berman Museum of Art, on campus at Ursinus College, 601 E. Main Street, Collegeville, PA. Home knitters have been posting their scarves and blankets yarnwork based on the weather in their backyard for some time now – temperature scarves and sky scarves – but this is the first time I’m seen a museum exhibit with this theme.This free museum is open Wednesdays through Sundays from 11 a.m. – 4 p.m.

Downtown Allentown is hosting the free Blues, Brews, and Barbecue Festival on Saturday, July 31st, from noon until 10 p.m., taking over most of Hamilton Street between 6th and 9th. Featuring five stages and a mix of local and nationally known blues musicians, along with barbecue stands run by restaurants from all over the Lehigh Valley area, and craft beer (and mead) tents, and children’s activities ensure that all ages will have a good time outside this weekend.

Celtic Concert: Sun Burns, featuring the music of Robert Burns, along with traditional Scottish and Irish music is scheduled for this Saturday evening, 7 p.m. on July 31st, live at COHS in Harleysville, PA and livestreamed on Facebook. The Jameson Sisters – Ellen Tepper and Terry Kane – perform on harp, mandolin, and other string instruments, often accompanied by their wonderful voices. A free will offering will be accepted – suggested donation is $25. The concert will be held inside the Church of the Holy Spirit, 2871 Barndt Road, Harleysville, PA – all are welcome to attend, no ticket required.

This is the final weekend to see the Neil Simon musical They’re Playing Our Song at the 19th Street Theater (Civic Theater) in Allentown, PA. There is a wait list for tonight’s performance, but tickets are still available for Saturday night – July 31st – closing night!

And just one week until Musikfest in Bethlehem is back! With more than 500 free performances over 10 days, August 5th to August 15th, there really is something for everyone, regardless of age or musical tastes! In addition to music, artisan crafts, food, and arts activities (for kids and adults, including a glass studio) are also back, along with closing night fireworks at 10 p.m. on Sunday, August 15th.

Christmas in July!

With so many restrictions in place in December 2020, and so many families forced to be apart, many are making up for it by celebrating the holidays now, this weekend, July 24th and 25th.

And families and friends aren’t the only ones celebrating Christmas in July – here in the Upper Perkiomen Valley, and in Bethlehem, and in Chestnut Hill (and probably many other places, as well), the shops and bakeries are hosting carolers, cookie decorating activities, ornament crafting, as part of a fun summer weekend!

Abella Specialties, East Greenville, PA

On Saturday, July 24th, from 10am-5pm at Abella Specialties, inside and on the porch at 222 Main Street, East Greenville, PA, enjoy a “sneak peek at Christmas!” There will be handmade holiday decorations and crafts available and their Snow Day Candle! Join in making Christmas ornaments on the porch and help decorate Christmas cookies with the folks from Kevin’s Corner Sweets, who will be inside the kitchen at the store – and don’t forget to try the “frozen hot chocolate.” Event is totally FREE!!

Perkiomen Valley Brewery (101 Walnut Street, Green Lane, PA) got a jump start on Christmas in July, starting on Thursday and continuing through Sunday, July 25, 2021. Enjoy German food, live music, and an ugly Xmas t-shirt contest (there is a $50 gift certificate prize for the winner). The brewery will also be breaking out their Christmas Ale for the weekend.

Historic Bethlehem has been celebrating Christmas in July all month, featuring winter holiday window displays all along Main Street, Bethlehem, PA, as well as a snowball scavenger hunt, special restaurant and take out food for the Fest of Seven Fishes, and more.

Elmwood Zoo in Norristown also decided to invite Santa to stop by and visit this July 25th;

Tis not quite the season, but we celebrate nevertheless! Visit the zoo on Sunday, July 25th from 10:00 am to 5:00 pm for a Christmas in July celebration. Enjoy animal encounters and live music. You’ll even have a chance to write your 2021 Christmas wishes for our special guest, on holiday from his home way off in the North Pole! Catch tropical Santa as he stops by during his summer vacation. He’ll be circling the zoo in style so be ready to spot him!

https://allevents.in/norristown/christmas-in-july/200021277542835

Christmas in July in Chestnut Hill will feature carolers, a brass quartet, a visit from Santa, holiday displays, and a make your own ugly sweater cookie, among other activities (and sales) taking place all weekend, July 24th and 25th, along Germantown Avenue in Chestnut Hill, Philadelphia.

And to bring the mid-year winter holiday celebration to a close, check out the free Mummers concert in Souderton, PA on Sunday night. The Joseph A. Ferko String Band will begin playing at 7 p.m. at the free, open to the public Concert Sundae at Maurice W. Foulke Bandwhell, Wile Avenue and Reliance Road (rain location Indian Crest Middle School). Bring a lawn chair or blanket to sit on. Ice cream will be on sale at the park, of course!

Books, Blueberries, and Beyond….

Friends of Upper Perkiomen Library are hosting a two day only Used Book Sale, Friday July 16th (10 a.m. – 4 p.m.) and Saturday, July 17th (10 a.m. – 2 p.m.), on the lower level of the Upper Perkiomen Library, 350 Main Street, Red Hill, PA. Here you can find a very large selection of books for all ages; children’s books sell for 10 cents and all other books are 25 cents (yes, just 10 and 25 cents!). All proceeds go to the Upper Perkiomen Library.

Ralph Pagano is hosting Voices of the Valley‘s Blueberry Jam Acoustic Open Mic beginning at 5 p.m. on Saturday, July 17th on the Brewery Stage at the 34th Annual Blueberry Festival in Bethlehem, PA. The Festival has live music playing on multiple stages all day Saturday and Sunday this weekend, along with hosting local crafters and vendors, children’s crafts and activities, a petting zoo, live demonstrations, tours of historic house and barn, a Blueberry Brewery Tasting Tent, a pie eating contest, and, of course, all things blueberry (blueberry beef jerky, anyone?), at the Burnside Plantation, 1461 Schoenersville Road, Bethlehem, PA. There are two ticket levels; one for general admission and one including brewery tastings.

Wunderbarn’s Third Friday Only an Hour and a Half Variety Hour starts at 6:30 p.m. (or thereabouts) on Friday, July 16th. This month’s Variety Hour features poetry from Dawn Leas, Mischelle Anthony, and Jennifer Judge Yonkoski, followed by a (limited) open mic. This event is free and open to the public. The Rainbow Tomatoes Garden farmstand will be open, and selling homemade baked goods and other refreshments – and don’t forget to check out the small shop in the barn for additional food treats, along with some handcrafted items, books,small zines, and other small surprises. 2979 Kutztown Road, East Greenville, PA
Map: Get directions

Outdoor free summer concerts are back! Two local ones scheduled for this Sunday evening, July 18th, are Barefoot Bobby and the Breakers, 6:30 p.m. Concert in the Park at Univest Performance Center, 301 W. Mill Street, Quakertown (raindate Monday) and Mainstreet Brass, 7 p.m. at Soudertown Community Park, Maurice W. Foulke Bandwhell, Wile Avenue and Reliance Road (rain location Indian Crest Middle School).

Looking forward to July!

Saturday night concerts are back this month in Harleysville, at the Church of the Holy Spirit! Enjoy an evening of piano music featuring Gerschwin’s Rhapsody in Blue, along with works by American composer Florence Price, and pieces by Ginestera, Chopin, and Schuman, performed by pianist extraordinaire Helen Kohler, along with Erica Cherry, this Saturday, July 3rd. At the end of the month, on Saturday, July 31st, The Jameson Sisters will fill the concert space with Celtic music, “combining harp and mandolin with soaring vocals.” Both concerts begin at 7 p.m., and are open to the public – no tickets required. A free will offering will be accepted, with a suggested donation of $25. The concerts will be held inside the church at 2871 Barndt Road, Harleysville, PA.

Pennsylvania Shakespeare Festival is also back this month, in-person and virtual, and with a new outdoor performance space for several of their shows. Charlotte’s Web, based on the classic children’s novel by E. B. White, will be playing all of July, with 10 a.m. weekday live performances. Run time is 60 minutes with no intermission, and audience members are asked to bring their own chairs to be part of the socially distance audience in the outdoor theatre. One may also buy tickets to view the show virtually, on weekdays at noon.

With the help of a young girl named Fern, and Charlotte the gentle spider, the lovable Wilbur transforms from the runt of the litter to a prize-winning pig. E. B. White’s beloved classic tale spins a heartwarming and colorful story of fun on the farm and the power of true friendship. Everyone in the barnyard bands together to help save Wilbur’s life, as we learn just how extraordinary an ordinary pig can be.

Pennsylvania Shakespeare Festival

Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream will also be staged at the Festival’s new Open Air Theare, beginning on July 7th, and running hrough August 1st, 2021. All live in-person performances beginat 6:30 p.m. and run approximately 90 minutes. Audience members are asked to bring their own lawn chairs. This production is also available to stream and view from your own home.

Some plays will be held inside on the Main Stage, with no virtual option – August Wilson’s How I Learned What I Learned opened this week on June 29th and runs through July 11th, 2021. Masks must be worn to attend these performance in a limited-capacity socially distanced audience space. The show will have no intermission and run approximately 90 minuts.

Folks are advised to buy tickets in advance for all these shows, which will be held on the campus of DeSales University, 2755 Station Avenue, Center Valley, PA

SteelStacks in Bethlehem is continuing its summer tradition of free outdoor concerts on the weekends with a packed schedule (and fireworks) over the 4th of July, including a power rock band, the traditional and iconic Allentown Band, and sone blues. No tickets required, free parking – but you might want to bring your own lawn chair.

And right here in the Upper Perk Valley, the Red Hill Band will once again be part of the Hometown 4th of July Celebration on Sunday evening, July 4th at the Bandshell at New Goshenhoppen Park, 3rd Street, East Greenville. The free musical performance begins at 7 p.m., and ends when the fireworks begin at 9 p.m.

Looking ahead, Green Lane Park continues hosting free performances at the Amphitheater; enjoy a night of music, or of Shakespeare!, in the park this summer; Sunday, July 18th Steve Pullara and his Cool Beans Band take the stage at 6 p.m. with a concert for children and families. Mark the calendar for Saturday, August 7th when Theatre on the Verge returns to present Shakespeare’s As You Like It, beginning at 5 p.m. Bring a lawn chair or blanket (and maybe a picnic dinner). The Amphitheater is at Green Lane Park, by the playground and tennis courts, at 2298 Green Lane Road, Green Lane, PA.