Category: Family Fun

Family fun for the weekend

Library excitement

• Ever wanted to be in an episode of Stranger Things? The Manchester City Library (405Pine St.) is offering something like that at its teen escape room on Thursday, Feb. 2, at 3 p.m. Teens in grades 6 to 12 are invited to hang out during the Teen Thursday, where the escape room will be happening in addition to usual activities including snacks and gaming sessions on the library’s Nintendo Switch. For more information, visit manchester.lib.nh.us.

• Join the Nashua Public Library (2 Court St.) for a special event called take your child to the library day, sponsored by children’s musician Steve Blunt and author and illustrator Marty Kelley on Saturday, Feb. 4 from 10:30 to 11:30 a.m. Blunt and Kelley will perform a show with music, books and laughter all about going to the library. This event is free to attend. Visit nashualibrary.org.

Soccer star

• Kim Chafee, a children’s author, is slated to attend the storytime and crafts event at Bookery (844 Elm St. in Manchester; bookerymht.com) on Saturday, Feb. 4, at 11:30 a.m. She will read her new book Courage in Her Cleats: The Story of Soccer Star Abby Wambach and the event will include soccer-themed activities, according to the website. The event is free; register online.

Beary fun

• A special Girl Scouts build-a-bear workshop is opening at the New Hampshire Girl Scouts council office (1 Commerce Drive in Bedford) on Saturday, Feb. 4, with a special gala taking place from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. The location will have Girl Scouts branded merchandise for troop members to choose from. The gala will have raffles and giveaways while customers get the chance to explore the new location. For more information about this event, visit girlscoutsgwm.org.

Outdoor adventures

• The New Hampshire Audubon Massabesic Center (26 Audubon Way in Auburn; nhaudubon.org, 668-2045) is hosting a cold creatures and hot cocoa event on Saturday, Feb. 4, from noon to 1 p.m. Families can learn all about cold-blooded creatures like snakes, turtles, frogs, lizards and more, as well as meet some of them in person, all while sipping on delicious hot beverages. The Massabesic Center recommends this program for kids ages 5 to 13. It costs from $15 per family and registration can be completed at nhaudubon.org.

• The NHScots second annual great kilt skate will be on Sunday, Feb. 5, from 2 to 4 p.m. at White Park (1 White St. in Concord). The organization will have Scottish tunes, hot chocolate, coffee and a few other wintery surprises. The group invites everyone to don a kilt, but dress warmly, and take to the ice with them in the free event. There is a warming house available for anyone who gets too cold. Visit nhscot.org for more information.

• Dreamer’s Ranch (125 N. Lowell Road, Windham) is hosting a Fire and Ice Winter Festival on Saturday, Feb. 4, from 4 to 8 p.m. Take a wagon ride from the ranch’s parking lot to the festival grounds, where there will be sledding, skating and other winter activities. Live music will be provided by local bands, and the ranch will have bonfires to help visitors keep warm. There will also be hot dogs and hamburgers from the grill. Tickets for the event cost $15 and can be purchased in advance at youthstorm.org/dreamersranch.

Family fun for the weekend

Museum fun

• On Thursday, Jan. 26, at 7 p.m. the Aviation Museum of New Hampshire (27 Navigator Road, Londonderry) will be hosting Lighter Than Air, an educational program and lecture about the people who pioneered flight through hot air balloons. The event will have photographs of the early pioneers of air travel, many of whom were in the Manchester region. Tickets to the event cost $10 for nonmembers and are free to members. Visit nhahs.org for more information.

• Join the Children’s Museum (6 Washington St., Dover) for a Robotics Petting Zoo presented by Sages Entertainment on Saturday, Jan. 28 at 11 a.m. and again at 1:30 p.m. Kids will learn about what makes robots special, how people use them in everyday life, and the code that brings robots to life. There will also be a robot scavenger hunt and robot-themed craft in the Muse Art Studio at the museum. Join the event by purchasing morning or afternoon play tickets at childrens-museum.org. Tickets cost $12.50 for children and adults, $10.50 for seniors older than 65. Children younger than 1 year old are free.

• Build a plane with the Aviation Museum of New Hampshire (27 Navigator Road, Londonderry) at their student and family plane-build open house on Wednesday, Feb. 1, at 7 p.m. The open house is to promote a program with the Manchester School of Technology, where students will work with volunteers to build a plane from scratch during the school year. The program is free for students who meet the age requirement, and students from other schools or districts or who are homeschooled are able to participate as well. To learn more about the program, visit nhahs.org.

Showtime

• All three Chunky’s (707 Huse Road, Manchester; 151 Coliseum Ave., Nashua; 150 Bridge St., Pelham) will have a little lunch date showing the movie Shrek (PG, 2001) on Friday, Jan. 27, at 3:45 p.m. The family-friendly showing will have dimmed lights. Admission is free, but reserve a seat with a $5 food voucher at chunkys.com.

• Get your claws and whiskers ready for a family-friendly production of Cats: the Young Actors Versionby the Majestic Academy of Dramatic Arts at the Derry Opera House (29 West Broadway). Opening night is Friday, Jan. 27, at 7 p.m. and following shows are on Saturday, Jan. 28, at 2 and 7 p.m. and on Sunday, Jan. 29, at 2 p.m. Tickets cost $15 for adults, $13 for seniors ages 65 and older, $10 for youth 17 and younger. Purchase tickets at majestictheatre.net.

• Red River Theatres (11 S. Main St., Concord) is screening Frozen (PG, 2013) on Saturday, Jan. 28, at 10 a.m. as part of the Concord Winter Festival. Tickets cost $10 per person; visit redrivertheatre.com to purchase tickets.

Save the date

• Get prehistoric with the Children’s Museum of New Hampshire (6 Washington St., Dover) with a dinosaur-themed Valentine’s Day party on Sunday, Feb. 12, from 1 to 3 p.m. The party will have a dinosaur-themed craft, stories, and a meet and greet with a friendly dinosaur. This event is a special ticketed event. Tickets cost $10 for members, $16 for nonmembers, free for children under a year. Ticket sales start on Wednesday, Jan. 25, for members and open to the public on Monday, Jan. 30. To purchase tickets, visit childrens-museum.org.

• Winter vacation is just around the corner, and Park Arts (19 Main St., Jaffrey) is holding a winter vacation camp for all the little performers starting on Monday, Feb. 27. The camp will run the whole week and include a performance on March 4. The play for elementary students will be The Elves and the Shoemaker and the play for middle school students is Mystery Anyone? Each camp costs $90 for admission, with an optional $12 for a commemorative T-shirt. Registration is open and can be done at theparktheatre.org.

Family fun for the weekend

Stories plus…

• Bookery Manchester (844 Elm St. in Manchester; bookerymht.com) will hold a storytime and craft on Saturday, Jan. 21, at 11:30 a.m. centered around the book Kunoichi Bunny, by author Sara Cassidy and illustrator Brayden Sato. Described as a “wordless picture book in graphic novel format,” the book tells the story of a girl and her stuffed bunny and their adventures throughout the day, according to the website. After the story, kids will do a handprint bunny craft, the website said. Admission is free; reserve a spot online.

• Get some science with your story at Storytime Science at the SEE Science Center (200 Bedford St. in Manchester; see-sciencecenter.org, 669-0400) on Tuesdays and Wednesdays at 2:30 p.m. The storytimes are geared to kids ages 2 to 6 and include a story and a STEM activity, according to the website. The series is slated to run through March and is included in the price of admission ($12 for ages 3 and up). Register for the storytime in advance via the website.

Live performances

• The Portsmouth Symphony Orchestra will host a chamber music concert designed for the whole family on Saturday, Jan. 21, at 3 p.m. at St. John’s Epsicopal Church (101 Chapel St. in Portsmouth). There is a suggested at the door donation of $15 per family, the release said. See portsmouthsymphony.org.

• See Dragons and Mythical Beasts come alive on stage at the Capitol Center for the Arts’ Chubb Theatre (44 S. Main St. in Concord; ccanh.com) on Sunday, Jan. 22, at 2 p.m. Tickets cost $25 to $55 plus fees. The trailer for the show on the Cap Center’s website shows a production full of elaborate puppet creatures, some worked by more than one person. The doors open at 1 p.m.

• Palace Youth Theatre will present Disney’s Newsies Jr.featuring student actors in grades 2 through 12 on Tuesday, Jan. 24, and Wednesday, Jan. 25, as well as Tuesday, Jan. 31, and Wednesday, Feb. 1, all at 7 p.m. Tickets to the Palace Theatre show (80 Hanover St. in Manchester; palacetheatre.org, 668-5588) start at $12.

• See Llama Llama Liveon Tuesday, Jan. 24, with performances at 9:30 and 11:30 a.m. at the Music Hall Historic Theatre (28 Chestnut St. in Portsmouth; themusichall.org). The show is geared toward ages 3 to 6 and is about an hour long. Call 436-2400 for tickets.

Basketball!

• Catch some Saint Anselm Hawks basketball action this Saturday, Jan. 21, when the women’s team plays Southern Connecticut State University at 1:30 p.m. The men’s team will play Southern Connecticut on Saturday at 3:30 p.m. Tickets to a game cost $10 per person and are available for purchase (credit cards only) at the ticket booth at Stoutenburgh Gymnasium (73 College Road in Manchester), where the games take place. See saintanselmhawks.com.

• Catch some Southern New Hampshire University Penmen basketball at home next week. The women play Southern Connecticut State University on Tuesday, Jan. 24, at 5:30 p.m. The men play Southern Connecticut State at 7:30 p.m. Both games take place at Stan Spirou Field House at the SNHU campus, 2500 N. River Road in Manchester. Admission is free. See snhupenmen.com.