The Hippo Press

This Week 26/06/25

Friday, June 26

School of Rock, a teen Actorsingers production of the stage musical featuring a score by Andrew Lloyd Webber, will take place tonight, and Saturday, June 27, at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday, June 28, at 2 p.m. at the Janice B. Streeter Theater, 14 Court St. in Nashua, according to actorsingers.org, where you can purchase tickets. “Based on the hit Jack Black film, this crowd pleaser follows slacker musician Dewey Finn as he bluffs his way into a prestigious prep school and transforms a class of straight A students into a mind-blowing rock band. With heart, humor and powerful anthems, it is a feel-good story about finding your voice and chasing your dreams,” the website said.

Friday, June 26

It’s the “Rolling Together Revue” tonight at The Range in Mason featuring Donavon Frankenreiter, G. Love and Moon Taxi, according to therangemason.com, where you can purchase tickets. The show starts at 6 p.m., gates open at 5 p.m. Find more concerts this weekend and beyond in the cover story (which starts on page 8) and most weeks in our Concert listings in the Nite section.

Saturday, June 27

The New England Sea Glass and Craft Festival takes place today and tomorrow, June 28, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Whittemore Center at UNH in Durham, featuring more than 100 exhibitors, specialty foods and more, according to facebook.com/GNECraftArtisanShows, where you can find links to advance tickets.

Saturday, June 27

1776 The Musical In Concert, presented by the Powerhouse Theatre Collaborative and the Lakes Region Symphony Orchestra, will be on stage at the Colonial Theatre, 609 Main St. in Laconia, today with shows at 2 and 7 p.m., according to powerhousenh.org, where you can purchase tickets.

Saturday, June 27

Heritage in Bloom: A Garden Tour held by the Garden Club of Deerfield will take place today from 3 to 7 p.m. and feature “a self-guided tour through the gardens of historic homes and properties throughout Deerfield. Guests will have the opportunity to explore beautifully maintained landscapes rooted in the town’s rich agricultural and cultural history while enjoying the magic of a New England summer evening during the golden hour. More than a traditional garden tour, Heritage in Bloom offers a thoughtfully curated experience where music, art, and nature come together. Throughout the gardens, visitors will discover local musicians, artists, and special touches …,” according to a club press release. See givebutter.com/heritage-in-bloom for tickets.

Saturday, June 27

Catch comedian Lenny Clarke tonight at 8 p.m. at the Tupelo Music Hall in Derry. See tupelomusichall.com for tickets. Find more laughs this weekend and beyond in the Comedy This Week listings on page 23.

Sunday, June 28

The next New England Reptile Expo runs today from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. at DoubleTree by Hilton Manchester Downtown, 700 Elm St. in Manchester, featuring more than 200 vendor tables, according to reptileexpo.com.

Save the Date! Sunday, June 28
2026 Creative Guts Short Film Festival will take place at Red River Theatres in Concord on Thursday, July 30, at 6 p.m., according to redrivertheatres.org, where you can purchase tickets now. “For the third year, Creative Guts Short Film Festival presents short films by independent filmmakers from New Hampshire and beyond. This 3-hour festival will feature various films and creatives of all backgrounds. The spirit of this festival is to celebrate the creativity, voice, and collaboration of filmmakers. All films will be open captioned,” according to the website.

Featured image: School of Rock. Courtesy photo.

Quality of Life 26/06/25

Bird feeders are more tempting than pic-a-nic baskets

As reported by WMUR in a June 21 online article, this is the time of year — late June and early June — when you are most likely to have a close encounter of the bear kind, especially among chicken-owners. In a related June 17 press release from NH Fish and Game, wildlife biologist Dan Bailey pointed out that many New Hampshire homeowners accidentally entice bears onto their property. “Despite the current abundance of natural foods,” Bailey wrote, bird feeders “represent highly tempting food to bears. Black oil sunflower seeds are higher in fat and protein than any other food a bear can find in the wild.”

QOL score: -1 for the people, the bears and the chickens involved

Comment: Experts recommend protecting poultry from bears with electric fencing. “Biologists from Fish and Game and U.S. Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services loan out over 100 electric fences each summer to protect poultry from bear damage,” the Fish and Game press release read. “The other purpose of this loan program is to demonstrate the effectiveness of the equipment to help convince poultry owners to make this investment for themselves. Shooting bears and other wildlife that are attracted to chickens is a cyclical approach rather than a long-term solution.”

The strawberries are dry

WMUR reported in a June 22 online article that the state’s ongoing drought is affecting this season’s strawberry crop. “Despite recent rain, some farmers in the Granite State are struggling with their strawberry crops this year,” the article read. One farmer was said to have reported that “the combination of dry soil and hot days is making things tough. To deal with the challenges, the farm says they are increasing their prices and relying more on their irrigation system.”

QOL score: -1

Comment: According to the National Integrated Drought Information System (drought.gov/states/new-hampshire), almost a million New Hampshire residents currently live in an area of drought.

Pollen, achoo

A June 16 online article from NHPR reports that despite thick layers of yellow pollen covering cars and outdoor furniture, this year’s pollen count is about the same as it was last year. NHPR quoted An Huynh, an allergist and clinical immunologist at Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center, who said that while total pollen levels are not much higher in recent years, some people with allergies are being exposed to pollen from trees and grass simultaneously. “Right now some people are just getting it much worse than other times of the year or their previous years.”

QOL score: -1

Comment: The NHPR article read, “Overall, Huynh says, pollen counts have been increasing over the last two decades by about 20 to 25 percent.” Visit dartmouth-health.org/articles/pollen-really-worse-year

QOL score last week: 48

Net change: -3

QOL this week: 45

What’s affecting your Quality of Life here in New Hampshire?

Let us know at news@hippopress.com.

News & Notes 26/06/25

Manchester Pride Festival

The Manchester Pride Festival & Parade will take place Saturday, June 27, from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. in Veterans Memorial Park in downtown Manchester, according to manchestertrue.org. The parade will kick off the day at 11:15 a.m. starting at Bridge Street and heading down Elm Street to Veterans Park, the website said. There, the day will include live performances, food, local vendors and community organizations and more from noon to 5 p.m., according to the website, where you can see a map and a schedule of performers. See the Manchester True Collaborate website for details on other Pride events happening this week such as Queer Field Day in Livingston Park on Friday, June 26, from 4 to 7 p.m. and Manchester True’s Official Pride After Party on Saturday at Jewel Night Club (see the website for information on ticket tiers and after party entertainment).

Manchester’s Final Fridays

The first of Manchester’s “Final Friday” community block parties taking place monthly through October will come to Hanover Street between Chestnut and Elm streets on Friday, June 26, from 4 to 8 p.m., according to the event’s Instagram page. “We’re turning the last Friday of every month into a celebration of local art, music, food, makers, businesses, and community right here in downtown Manchester,” the post said. “The dates for Final Friday are scheduled for June 26th, July 31st, August 28th, September 25th, and October 30th,” according to the MEDO Minute, the newsletter for the Manchester Economic Development office.

Find Waldo

Wonderland Toys and Books in Manchester and 25 businesses in Manchester, Bedford and Hooksett are participating in the nationwide “Find Waldo Local” game held by Candlewick Press and the American Booksellers Association in July, according to a press release from Wonderland. “Families love joining the scavenger hunt to find the iconic children’s book character, with his red-and-white-striped shirt and black glasses, hidden in … local businesses and museums,” the release said. Pick up a “‘Find Waldo Local in the greater Manchester area’ stamp card at any of the participating stores. With each miniature Waldo they spot, searchers get their card stamped or signed by the participating shop. Eagle-eyed hunters can also look for Wizard Whitebeard hidden in Wonderland Books and Toys. Participants who collect store stamps or signatures at 10 businesses can return it to Wonderland Books and Toys for a Where’s Waldo? poster (limited to the first 125 seekers) and a $1 off coupon for a Where’s Waldo? book. Collecting 20 or more businesses will earn an entry into a grand prize drawing for Waldo books and other prizes from participating businesses and all hunters are welcome to attend the celebration party and prize drawing at Wonderland Books and Toys on Sunday, Aug. 2, at 2 p.m.” the release said. See wonderlandbooksandtoys.com/waldo2026.

There will be a public reading of Frederick Douglass’s speech “What to the Slave is the Fourth of July?” at the Warner Town Hall, 5 E. Main St. in Warner, on Saturday, June 27, at noon, according to a press release, which said this free event is sponsored by the Black Heritage Trail of New Hampshire in collaboration with the Warner Historical Society.

Concord painter Pamela R. Tarbell will hold an open studio/gallery on Saturday, June 27, and Sunday, June 28, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at 236 Hopkinton Road in Concord, according to her newsletter. See pamtarbell.com.

NH Roller Derby plays a doubleheader on Saturday, June 27, with games at 4 and 6 p.m. at JFK Memorial Coliseum, 303 Beech St. in Manchester, according to a post on the team’s Facebook page. Tickets to this Pride-themed night will be sold at the door (doors open at 3:30 p.m.) and are $15 with discounts for veterans with military ID and New Hampshire Roller Derby veterans; kids under 12 get in free, the post said.

Local authors celebrate Manchester’s 180th anniversary on Saturday, June 27, noon-4 p.m. at Barnes & Noble in Manchester (1741 S. Willow St., bn.com). Attending authors will include Robert B. Perreault, author of Franco-American Life & Culture in Manchester, NH, the recent novel Courtship in Purgatory and other titles; Gary Samson, author of Manchester: The Mills and the Immigrant Experience; Yvette Lazdowski, co-author of Manchester’s Shoe Industry, and Kelly Kilcrease, author of Boston’s Long Wharf: A Path to the Sea.

Coffee in Summer— 06/18/2026

on the cover

In this week’s cover story, John Fladd looks at that popular summer — and year-round — way to caffienate, iced coffee. As with all tasty things, there is an art to making a good cup of iced coffee and to picking just the right flavors to add in, if you so desire. John explains it all in the story that starts on page 8.

Also on the cover, St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church in Manchester presents its annual celebration of food and culture this weekend with its Lamb BBQ & Food Festival on Saturday, June 20, and Sunday, June 21. John serves up the details on page 16. And start planning your baking (or buying) for next weekend’s Cake Fest in Deerfield (see page 16). Michael Witthaus talks to John Shields of Little Stranger ahead of their show on Friday, June 19, at the Northfields Music & Art Festival this weekend (see page 23).

Read the e-edition

News & Notes 26/06/18

260618 Featured Content News

Veggies for Granite Staters Formula recall Parents and caregivers are advised not to use Nara Organics Powered Infant Formula, according ...

Quality of Life 26/06/18

260618 News Quality Of Life

June weather brings gunkier water As reported by WMUR in a June 4 online article, several blooms of cyanobacteria have ...

World Cup runneth over

260618 News Sports

The Big Story – Tie – Knicks Take NBA Title and World Cup Begins: Normally a New York story isn’t ...

This Week 26/06/18

260618 News This Week

Thursday, June 18 Head to the coast for the 26th Annual Hampton Beach Master Sand Sculpting Classic, which runs today ...

COFFEE In Summer

plastic take out cup filled with iced coffee, sitting on a counter

260618 Cover Stories Featured Content

Iced coffee offers a refreshing way to get your caffeine in the hot season and year-round Chip George gets a ...

Birthday boy

promo poster for adaptation of Company showing man holding birthday cake topped with the figures of other cast members

260618 Art & Theater Featured Content

Cue Zero stages Sondheim’s Company In 1970, Stephen Sondheim and George Furth’s Company seismically shifted the theater world. One of ...

Treasure Hunt 26/06/18

plate seen from above, painted with flowers, butterflies, and colorful birds

260618 Family Fun Treasure Hunt

Hello, Donna, I was going through a china cabinet and found this plate. I’m not sure where my mother got ...

Celebrating 250 and 300

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260618 Featured Content Outdoors

Liberty and Legacy kicks off a summer of history As it turns out, this summer is not only the 250th ...

Kiddie Pool 26/06/18

260618 Family Fun Outdoors

Family fun for whenever Summer celebrations • SEE Science Center (200 Bedford St. in Manchester) will hold its Kick Off ...

The Weekly Dish 26/6/18

260618 Food

Summer celebrations • SEE Science Center (200 Bedford St. in Manchester) will hold its Kick Off to Summer Saturday, June ...

Lamb barbecue

tray filled with Greek pastries in cupcake wrappers

260618 Featured Content Food

St. Nicholas kicks off this summer’s Greek food festival season There are three Greek churches in Manchester, and each opens ...

They’re all good cakes

260618 Food

Cake Fest expects up to 125 cakes The idea for Cake Fest came to Susan Witts, the owner of Susie ...

Father’s Day icebox cake

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Several years ago, in an action that can only be described as evil and motivated by malice, the National Biscuit ...

Album Reviews 26/06/18

album covers for Sublime, Until The Sun Explodes and Tori Kelly, God Must Really Love Me

260618 Albums Pop

Sublime, Until The Sun Explodes (Atlantic Records) Said to be the last album from the ’90s ska-punk/reggae-rock juggernaut, this one ...

Ruins, by Lily Brooks-Dalton

book cover for Ruins showing a graphic illustration done in green, of a barren landscape with a monument in the distance under a single moon, a small red figure stands in the middle of the landscape

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Grand Central Publishing, 389 pages By her admission, Ember Agni was a weird kid. For fun, she liked to bury ...

Space!

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260618 Film Reviews Pop

The summer movie frontier? Who doesn’t love summer movie space aliens? (Spoilers ahead — I don’t really know how to ...

The Music Roundup 26/06/18

260618 Music This Week

• Stacked show: A release event for cathartic Providence rockers Valoria’s EP From Me To You is a five-band affair, ...

Field Day

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260618 Featured Content Nightlife

Northlands Festival returns As John Shields begins a phone interview, he’s also readying a jagged week of travel, a mini-tour ...

Kiddie Pool 26/06/18

Family fun for whenever

Summer celebrations

• SEE Science Center (200 Bedford St. in Manchester) will hold its Kick Off to Summer Saturday, June 20, through Friday, June 26, “featuring activities using LEGO® Bricks and celebrating the 20th anniversary of the completion of our LEGO® Millyard Project,” according to see-sciencecenter.org, where you can find admission prices and pre-purchase admission. Through Labor Day, the Center is open Monday through Friday, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., and Saturday and Sunday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., the website said.

• The Wilton NH Main Street Association’s SummerFest will be held Saturday, June 20, according to facebook.com/wiltonmainstreetnh. “Main Street will be closed to traffic and full of vendors from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. We have live music on two stages during that entire time. The Lions will also have their annual Duck Drop fundraiser in the afternoon,” according to an email from organizers. “Activities move up to Carnival Hill in the evening from 6 to 10 p.m. That will include music provided by a DJ, kids’ games, a pie-eating contest and an amazing fireworks display by JPI Pyrotechnics, enhanced this year for the 250th birthday of America,” the email said.

• The Seacoast Science Center in Rye will celebrate World Ocean Celebration Day on Saturday, June 20, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. featuring games, educational activities, tide pool sessions, food trucks and more, according to seacoastsciencecenter.org, where you can purchase tickets.

• The 44th Somersworth International Children’s Festival will take place Saturday, June 20, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at Noble Pines Park and on Main Street and feature activities for kids, food vendors, craft vendors, a World Cultures Passport Center, a kids’ play area, Wildlife Encounters, roaming entertainers, a petting zoo and more, according to nhfestivals.org.

• The Nesmith Library in Windham (nesmithlibrary.org) will hold its Summer Reading Program Kickoff on Tuesday, June 23, from 4 to 7 p.m. with lawn games, the Walking Gourmet Food Truck and Bryson Lang juggling at 6 p.m., according to the website.

Live performances

• Children’s musical performer Mr. Aaron will be at the Riverfront Park in Northfield on Friday, June 19, at 6:30 p.m., according to mraaronmusic.com. You can also catch him Saturday, June 20, at noon at the Seacoast Science Center in Rye for World Ocean Day, the website said.

• The Prescott Park Arts Festival’s outdoor production in Portsmouth Rodgers & Hammerstein’s Cinderella will begin its summer run on Friday, June 19, with shows through Aug. 9, according to prescottpark.org. Performances take place most Thursdays through Sundays at 7 p.m., with some matinee performances, according to prescottpark.org, where you can reserve blanket or table space.

• The Nashua Public Library, 2 Court St. in Nashua, will rock out on Tuesday, June 23, at 7 p.m. with its Teen Rock Show featuring Fates Collide from Nashua Community Music School, according to nashualibrary.org.

• Add your voice toK-Pop Demon Hunters Sing Along, part of the Summer Movie Clubhouseseries at Cinemark Rockingham Park (15 Mall Road in Salem; cinemark. com/theatres/nh-salem/cinemark-rockingham-park-and-xd), according to the website. The movie screens Wednesday, June 17, and Thursday, June 18, at 10:30 a.m.

This Week 26/06/18

Thursday, June 18

Head to the coast for the 26th Annual Hampton Beach Master Sand Sculpting Classic, which runs today through Saturday, June 20, with the illuminated sculptures on display through June 28, according to hamptonbeach.org/events/sand-sculpture-event, where you can find a schedule of events.

Friday, June 19

Watch the U.S. Men’s National Soccer Team take on Australia at a World Cup viewing party today at BNH Stage in Concord. Tickets are free but can be reserved at ccanh.com; show up by 2:30 p.m. to keep your spot, the website said.

Friday, June 19

Catch Of Mice and Men, presented by the Majestic Theatre, 880 Page St. in Manchester, tonight at 7 p.m.; Saturday, June 20, at 2 and 7 p.m., and Sunday, June 21, at 2 p.m., according to majestictheatre.net, where you can purchase tickets.

Saturday, June 20

The Aviation Museum of New Hampshire will hold its annual Father’s Day Weekend Fly-In BBQ at Boire Field in Nashua today from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., according to aviationmuseumofnh.org, where you can purchase tickets that include the barbecue or just for ramp access to check out the planes.

Saturday, June 20

The New London Parks and Recreation Department will hold its ninth annual Strawberry Fest today from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. in the town green, featuring strawberries and strawberry shortcake for sale (cash or check only) as well as other food and vendors and entertainment, according to newlondon.nh.gov/recreation and a post on the department’s Facebook page.

Saturday, June 20

Black Womxn in New Hampshire Collective will hold its Juneteenth New England celebration today starting at 1 p.m. at Crossway Christian Church in Nashua featuring music, dancing, storytelling, food, history, community connection and more, according to a post at the group’s Facebook page facebook.com/bwinhinc. See also bwinhsc.com.

Saturday, June 20

The Palace Theatre’s Red, White and Bloom Garden Tour 2026 takes place today from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. with a self-guided tour of public and private gardens throughout Manchester, according to palacetheatre.org, where you can purchase tickets.

Sunday, June 21

The Second Annual Audubon Nature Challenge will kick off today and run through Saturday, June 27, according to nhaudubon.org. “Join people all over New Hampshire documenting birds, mammals, insects, reptiles, amphibians, flowers, trees, mosses, mushrooms, and everything else during this weeklong conservation event. There is at least one location in every county and three that meet ADA accessibility guidelines,” according to the website. Participants can explore on their own or join a guided tour in locations listed on the website, where you can register to participate in the challenge.

Sunday, June 21

It’s a day of music with the Sunday Blues Jam, 1 to 4 p.m. today at Riley’s Place in Milford, followed by Charlie Chronopoulos and the White Horse Round from 5 to 8 p.m. Find more live music at area restaurants and breweries in the Music This Week, starting on page 24.

Save the Date! Thursday, June 25
Concord’s Market Days Festival will run Thursday, June 25, through Saturday, June 27, from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. daily, according to marketdaysfestival.com. Each day features music and performances on three stages, food trucks and food vendors, vendors selling other goods and more, the website said.

Featured image: Market Days. Courtesy photo.

Author: The Hippo Press

This Week 26/06/25

Quality of Life 26/06/25

News & Notes 26/06/25

Coffee in Summer— 06/18/2026

Kiddie Pool 26/06/18

This Week 26/06/18

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