Month: June 2022

Wunderbarn Weekend, Juneteenth, and MMUP!

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The first official day of summer – and Make Music Upper Perk – is still a few days away – Tuesday, June 21st – but that doesn’t mean you have to wait to enjoy good music, art, theater, and more, inside and out!

Wunderbarn has scheduled a weekend of fun at their marvelous performance arts space in East Greenville (2979 Kutztown Road, East Greenville, PA – by Rainbow Tomatoes). The Only an Hour Variety Hour begins at 6:30 p.m. tonight, Friday, June 17, 2022; this open mic evening is open to poets, musicians, comedians, dancers and writers wishing to share some of their works in progress or in print with the audience. Folks should feel free to bring their own blanket or chair and snacks for this free public event – though some very tasty snacks, baked goods, and beverages will be for sale at the Rainbow Tomatoes farmstand.

Saturday, June 18th, Wunderbarn is celebrating self-declared Social Circus Day, from 10 a.m. – 2 p.m.;

Meet the multitalented circus artists of SpinCo Philly and learn how to juggle, spin poi, hoop, spin plates, and ribbon dance. Enjoy performances on the Wunderbarn stage at 1 p.m., play a game, and make a kazoo. Then go home tired and deliriously happy, ready to start your own circus! This event is free, but donations to SpinCo are welcome. 

Wunderbarn

And on Sunday, June 19th, Wunderbarn is hosting a writing workshop “guided by a wide array of special instruments including handpan, medicine drum and gong.” Sound Immersion with Jen Ryan will be from 1 p.m. – 2:30. Registration is requested, via email (jenniferdunnhill@gmail.com), though drop-ins are welcome. There is a $20 fee.

Wunderbarn is also participating in this year’s Make Music Upper Perk! On Tuesday, June 21st, Wunderbarn is hosting an evening of Poetry, Prose, and Music. Check out Tom Mato’s report from Wunderbarn on Make Music Upper Perk on YouTube.

Of course, Wunderbarn isn’t the only place having fun this weekend.

Live music at multiple local breweries tonight, Friday, June 17th, including at the brand new Publication Brew Works (at the former Town and Country building) at the intersection of Main Street (Rt 29) and Route 663 aka Pennsburg Square, holding their Grand Opening tonight. Ian Althouse will be providing the live music from 6 p.m. – 9 p.m. Perkiomen Valley Brewery in Green Lane is hosting “Bluegrass with Gabe Delp and Friends” from 7 p.m. -9 p.m. tonight, as well.

The Stahl Summer Pottery Festival is outside this Saturday, June 18th from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. At this festival there will be over 30 potters displaying and selling contemporary and traditional works, an opportunity to try using a potter’s wheel, and to tour the potting shed and kiln, demonstrations by master potters, an exhibit of historic Stahl pottery, food for sale, and more. Parking is free, there is a $4 entrance fee for adults (children are free). 6826 Corning Road Zionsville, PA

Celebrations for Juneteenth – now a national federal recognized holiday – are happening all over! Nearby celebrations include A Celebration of Liberty at SteelStacks in Bethelehem, PA;

Join us as we celebrate Juneteenth 2022 on June 18th from 11 am – 7 p.m. at SteelStacks in Bethlehem

There will be a theatrical presentation, a variety of musical bands (Soul, R&B, Jazz, and Reggae), ethnic food trucks and vendors, children’s activities (creative story telling and arts and crafts), relevant cinema viewing with a panel discussion, historical menu tasting, a fine arts display and more.

Juneteenth Lehigh Valley

Elmwood Park Zoo (1661 Harding Blvd, Norristown, PA) is hosting the Greater Norristown NAACP Juneteenth Celebration from 1 – 4 p.m. on both Saturday, June 18th and Sunday, June 19th, 2022.

This family friendly event will feature live music, animal meet and greets and keeper chats. On Sunday June 19, guests will have the opportunity to connect with local organizations in our community.

Elmwood Park Zoo

Norristown Borough residents (19401) can attend the event (June 18 or June 19) for free by PRE-REGISTERING HERE

Zydeco-a- Go-Go takes the stage at the Green Lane Park Amphitheater at 6 p.m. on Sunday, June 19, 2022. Bring a blanket or lawn chair, and maybe a picnic or some snacks, and head over to the Green Lane Park to enjoy this free, family friendly, two hour concert of ” Louisiana Zydeco dancehall hits and Cajun blues mixes with vintage New Orleans rhythm & blues” outdoors in the park (not far from the playground and tennis courts). 1960 Snyder Road, Green Lane, PA

This is the last weekend to catch the stage play Murder on the Orient Express at DCP Theater, just down the road in Telford. Tickets are available online and at the door. 795 Ridge Road, Telford, PA. Masks are recommended but not required.

This weekend (and all next week), head over to Schwenkfelder Library and Heritage Center to look back at favorite photos, posters, and programs from 2013-2022 – 10 Years of Make Music Upper Perk! – upstairs in the large meeting room with the grand piano (where musical performances open to the public will be happening from 11 a.m. – 6 p.m. on Tuesday, June 21st). The Schwenkfelder Library is open 10 a.m. – 3 p.m. on Saturdays, 1 p.m. – 4 p.m. on Sunday, CLOSED on Monday, 9 -6 Tuesday, June 21st, 9-4 Wednesday, 9-8 on Thursday, and 9-4 on Friday.

And don’t forget to celebrate the first day of summer at Make Music Upper Perk! Tuesday, June 21st, at 19 locations, 130 acts, over 300 musicians, all over the Upper Perkiomen Valley; all free, all day (9 a.m. – 10 p.m.), all types of music, for all ages.

Feels Like Summer!

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The very warm weather has us feeling like we are already in the heart of summer, despite school still being in session for some, and local strawberries coming in a bit late this year (but rumor has it that the fields will be open for “pick your own” sometime next week).

Meanwhile, the weekend is packed with local fairs and festivals (and many more to come, as the month and season goes on).

The tents are set up at the Schwenkfelder Library and Heritage Center (105 Seminary Street, Pennsburg, PA) for this year’s Penn Dry Goods Market (back after a 2 year pandemic hiatus). The event opened on Friday, June 3rd, and continues on Saturday, June 4th, 10 a.m. – 4 p.m. The event includes lectures on needlework, quilt history, “This exploration of grief and loss in 19th century American photographic images centers upon the use of textiles” and more (all lectures are ticketed events – tickets may be purchased online), a special exhibit of crazy quilts, and an antiques show and sale.

The annual June Festival at New Goshenhoppen Park (618 3rd Street, East Greenville, PA) starts at 10 a.m. and continues until 5 p.m., with food, games, a petting zoo, and the Red Hill Band playing from 3 p.m. – 5 p.m. Juli Kells Dancers will take the stage for a 1 p.m. performance. All rides, including moon bounce, giant slide, and kiddie train, are free! Free admission.

First Saturday Makers’ Market and Menagerie Food Truck features local vendors, creators, and bakers outside at the Perkiomen Valley Brewery (101 Walnut Street, Green Lane, PA) begins at noon and goes until 5 p.m. on Saturday, June 4, 2022.

PV Art and Food Truck Festival is noon to 4 p.m. on the Perkiomen Valley High School campus (509 Gravel Pike, Collegeville, PA), featuring two stages with live music, local artists, a festival chalk wall, and more.

Bethlehem’s Touchstone Theater presents “World-Wide Ukrainian Play Readings” at 7 p.m. Saturday, June 4, 2022. Works by Ukrainian writers include staged readings of recently (since the war began) written works, a short film, and a performance by KAZKA Ukrainian Folk Ensemble (folk music and dance). Instead of purchasing tickets, audience members are asked to make a donation to the Voices of Children Foundation. The curtain rises at 7 p.m. in Prosser Auditorium in Moravian’s Haupert Union Building (1200 Main Street, Bethlehem, PA). “World-Wide Ukrainian Play Readings” is a global initiative to commission new plays by Ukrainian writers besieged by the assault on their homes, language, and culture.

Matilda, The Musical is on stage for two more weekends, through June 12, 2022, at Steel River Playhouse (245 E. High Street, Pottstown, PA) Tickets may be purchased online.