Category: Outdoors

Kiddie Pool 22/09/15

Family fun for the weekend

Fairs and festivals

• The Humane Society for Greater Nashua is holding its annual fundraiser the Wags to Whiskers Festival on Saturday, Sept. 17, from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. at Anheuser-Busch Brewery (221 Daniel Webster Hwy., Merrimack). The festival is billed as “New England’s largest pet dog event” and will have demonstrations by the Granite State Disc Dogs and the Merrimack Police Department K-9 Drei. There will also be dog-friendly vendors, giveaways, carnival games and prizes, adoptable dogs and puppies, and food trucks. Tickets to the festival are $12 per person, free for kids and teens ages 17 and under. For more information visit hsfn.org/wags-whiskers-festival.

• Get ready for a fun-filled day at the Granite State Fair (formerly the Rochester Fair), which opens on Thursday, Sept. 15, and runs through Sunday, Sept. 18, as well as the following week on Thursday, Sept. 22, through Sunday, Sept. 25, at the Rochester Fairgrounds (72 Lafayette Road). The fair will have midway rides, a full schedule of live music, local vendors and exhibitors, a cornhole tournament, circus performances and a delicious variety of fair food. Advance tickets are $10 per person and are available through Sept. 14. Tickets at the door are $12 per person and free for kids ages 8 and under. Visit granitestatefair.com.

• Festivities will take over the town at the Hollis Old Home Days on Friday, Sept. 16, and Saturday, Sept. 17, at Nichols Field and the adjacent Lawrence Barn (Depot Road, Hollis). There will be a town parade, midway rides, hot air balloon rides, a local artisan market, live entertainment, and a fireworks celebration on Saturday evening. The event is free. For more information visit hollisoldhomedays.org.

• Derryfest returns to MacGregor Park (East Broadway, Derry) on Saturday, Sept. 17, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. The free event will have live entertainment all day, ranging from games and live animal demonstrations to local crafters and vendor booths. For more information, visit derryfest.org.

• Celebrate Pelham with Pelham’s Old Home Day on Saturday, Sept. 17, from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. at 3 Main St. A variety of activities, including a pancake breakfast, craft vendors, food trucks, a town parade, live performances, a penny sale and a cornhole tournament will be the highlights of the day. For more information visit pelhamoldhomeday.org.

• The annual Fall Equinox Festival, held by TEAM Exeter, is back for the eighth year on Saturday, Sept. 17, from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. at Swasey Parkway. The fest will feature live music, artisan vendors, local food, children’s activities, dance performances and cultural exhibits. There is a suggested donation of $10 per person or $20 per family. For more information visit teamexeter.com.

• Celebrate the Children’s Museum of New Hampshire (6 Washington St. Dover) coming back from their week of annual maintenance with the Toddler Fest starting on Friday, Sept. 16, and running through Sunday, Oct. 2. Each day will have different themes and activities, ranging from the bubble dance party to clay nature play. Toddler Fest is included in the price for regular tickets to the museum, $12.50 per child and adult. For more information and a full schedule, visit childrens-museum.org.

Movie Night

• Go on an adventure with Shrek (PG, 2001) on Friday, Sept. 16, at dusk in Greeley Park (100 Concord St. in Nashua). This is part of Nashua’s “Pics in the Park” screenings. The movie follows ogre Shrek as he rescues the princess Fiona with the help of his friend, the donkey named Donkey. This movie is free to attend.

All about animals

• Learn all the different ways to find animals with naturalist and author Susie Spikol as she talks about her new book How to Prowl for an Owl, Make Snail Slime, and Catch a Frog Bare-Handed and 50 Other Activities to Get Wild with Animals on Saturday, Sept. 17, at 11 a.m. at The Toadstool Bookshop (12 Depot Square, Peterborough). Spikol will teach kids how to treat their backyard and neighborhood like their own nature preserve through her new book. The event is free to attend; the book costs $18 and can be purchased at toadbooks.com.

Touch a truck

• The Nashua Parks & Recreation Department is bringing back Wheels & Wings at the Nashua Airport at Boire Field (93 Perimeter Road) on Saturday, Sept. 17, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. More than just trucks will be at this free touch-a-truck event. There will be various fire trucks, police vehicles, planes, helicopters and electric cars on display for kids to learn about and explore. While admission is free, the local nonprofit 68 Hours of Hunger will be in attendance to collect nonperishable food donations. See “Wheels & Wings 2022” on Facebook for more details.

Are your plants suffering from a drought?

Water deep if you can, and mulch properly

Many of my readers are suffering from a serious drought, enough so that plants are losing leaves and going dormant long before they should. Most well-established plants will recover from the effects of drought, even if they lose their leaves now. And new things? If you have not been giving them water weekly or more often, some may die.

Added to the problem is the fact that many places have enacted watering bans or limitations. And wells may not have enough to water everything. And of course watering takes time — time away from family, dogs and recreation.

If you have not been thinking about the drought, you should. Start by looking at your plants. Are leaves limp, withered or turning brown? If so, you need to water them well — today! They need a good deep watering.

Deep watering is not easy. If you take your hose and spray the base of the tree for a minute, you are not actually giving it much water. Wait 10 minutes after watering and go back to the new tree or shrub that you planted last spring. Use your finger or a tool like the CobraHead weeder (a weeding tool with a single tine) to dig down 4 inches or more. Is the soil moist? It should be. Most roots are in the top foot of soil. Add more water as needed.

If your soil is like powder, it is not easy to get water to penetrate the soil. If your tree is on a hillside, water you apply will run away almost immediately and not soak in at all. Even a gentle slope will allow water to run off. You will need to make a ring of soil or mulch around the tree or shrub to contain water.

If you are using a hose, use a watering wand to apply water rather than a spray nozzle held in your hand. These wands are usually 24 inches long with a nice “rose” on the end that makes the water flow in a gentle spray and have a valve to turn the water on, off or part way on. Since the tip of the wand is near the ground, it is less likely to wash away the soil. And it allows you to direct the water just where you want it. Soaker hoses on timers are good if you travel a lot, or vacation when it’s hot and dry.

Before you start watering, learn how much water your hose delivers. Do this by timing how long it takes to fill up a 5-gallon pail. Two or three minutes is usually long enough, but it depends on the diameter of your hose and the water pressure. Half-inch hoses are worthless. Five-eighths-inch hoses are adequate, and three-quarter-inch hoses are good for long-distance runs. Five gallons is the minimum quantity of water needed by a thirsty shrub or newly installed tree.

Most new woody plants need five gallons every week, but it does depend on the soil type. Sandy soil dries out the quickest and needs the most water. Clay soil holds water, but is hard to get thoroughly moist. Even though I have good soil, I always add compost to the soil when I plant anything. Not only does it add biological activity; it also holds water in sandy soil and loosens up clay soils. I buy it by the truckload. Most garden centers sell it in bulk, which is cheaper than buying it by the bag. Of the bagged compost, I like Moo-Doo and Coast of Maine brands.

Grasses and weeds suck moisture out of the soil, so dig them out around your trees. Weed a ring around new or struggling trees that is 3 to 4 feet wide. Then get some fine mulch (double-ground mulch, not wood chips). An inch and a half of mulch is about right, or two inches. Deeper than that and short rain showers will never get moisture to your plants’ roots.

Don’t buy bagged wood chips based on price — or if you do, buy the most expensive. Cheap mulch may be ground up and shredded construction debris and pallets. “Color enhanced” mulch is stained or dyed with something and may spread chemicals in the garden — and fade with time.

Never let the mulch touch the bark of your tree, or worse yet, make a faux-volcano of mulch. Mulch can harbor fungi that will rot the bark of your tree, killing it in six to 10 years. Once the cambium layer under the bark gets rotted, the tree will die. If you have mulch against any of your trees, please fix it right away.

Years ago I visited my friend Sydney Eddison at her home in Newtown, Connecticut. Sydney is a garden designer, author of many fine gardening books and a poet with terrific gardens. They were in the midst of a terrible drought — so bad that mature oaks were losing their leaves in the forest by August. A water ban was in place, but her gardens looked great.

“Sydney,” I said, “You’ve been cheating and watering your plants.” No, she explained, “It’s all about the mulch.” Each fall her husband, Martin, mowed over all the leaves that fell on the lawns and bagged them. He stored them in the barn until spring, and after all her plants woke up in the spring, she added a layer of chopped leaves. Not only did they hold in moisture, as they broke down they added organic matter to the soil — making it better each year.

This fall, do the same. Collect your leaves, or have the lawn service collect them for you. I don’t bag them up, I just add them to a pile and use as mulch in the spring. It really works. A 2-inch layer is perfect.

Don’t be disheartened if some of your plants go dormant now. It is their way of protecting themselves. But do water if you can — and get it down deep. Your plants will bless you!

Featured photo: A straw used to remove air from a bag of cherry tomatoes. Photo by Henry Homeyer.

20 years of fandoms

Granite State Comic Con celebrates comic books, sci-fi, games and more

By Katelyn Sahagian

[email protected]

What started as a small gathering of friends and fans of comics in Manchester snowballed into a three-day event that celebrates comics, sci-fi, fantasy, cartoons, gaming, wrestling and more. Now, 20 years after it began, Granite State Comicon grabs attention from people around the world.

“The craziest thing is hearing people say, ‘We are traveling from California,’ but now people are coming internationally,” said Chris Proulx, the director of the con.

This is the 20-year anniversary of Granite State Comicon. Proulx is also one of the owners of Double Midnight Comics, the shop that hosts the convention. The con’s first year, Proulx said, it was just a group of people who loved comic books and tabletop games like Magic the Gathering.

Two decades later, the con has meet-and-greets with stars like actor Julian Glover (Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade, Star Wars: Episode V, The Empire Strikes Back), WWE wrestling hall of famer Mick Foley, and co-creator of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Kevin Eastman.

Man, woman, and two girls posing together in cosplay costumes at event
Families that cosplay together stay together. Courtesy photo.

“I never dreamed it would be this big event,” Proulx said. “We’re using every conceivable space and we still had a waiting list for people wanting to set up booths in artist alley.”

This year, the con is bigger than it’s ever been. Proulx said the convention was struggling to find space to accommodate everyone who wanted to be a part of the con. This year, the artist alley alone has over 100 artists, the vast majority of whom come from New England.

The mutant turtles are very near and dear to New Hampshire, said Proulx, since they were created right in Dover.

Eastman agreed to pose with fans for photographs on a set built to mimic the sewer lair the teenage superheroes hang out in. Proulx said this would be the second year Eastman has come to the con.

“Turtle fans travel from all over the country to come to the home of the turtles,” Proulx said. “Whenever [Eastman] is in town, we always make a big deal of them.”

The different guests doing meet-and-greets will be on panels talking about a variety of topics. Voice actors will talk about how they got into their industry, and professional cosplayers will talk about how to start building cosplay costumes.

Proulx said it was super important to him to have events that kids might be more excited about. So when Emily Drouin, one of the creators of Kids Con New England, reached out to Proulx in 2014 about setting up a booth at the Granite Con, he was thrilled.

This year Drouin is offering activities that range from learning to draw Pokemon and Nintendo characters to meet-and-greets with princesses and superheroes. This is in addition to the kids’ costume contest put on every year by Granite Con.

Drouin’s advice for parents who are unfamiliar with comicons is to just take some time and take it all in.

“There’s something for everyone,” Drouin said. “Don’t be intimidated or shy that you’re not too familiar. This is a great way to meet creators firsthand and you’ll be surprised at all the neat things you find.”

Drouin will be in the expo center’s concourse area, and this year she’ll be dressed up as Merida from the Disney Pixar movie Brave.

Proulx said that the Granite Con has been designed to be a place where families can go for a day of nerdy fun. He said that there is no judgment on the type of content people like. Everyone from anime lovers to Trekkies is welcome.

“It’s a celebration of all things fun and geekty,” Proulx said. “Whether it’s the [Marvel Cinematic Universe], Star Wars or The Walking Dead, there’ll be stuff to see.”

Featured photo: Granite State Comicon Costume Contest 2021 Winners. Photo by David Lockhart.

Arts in the city

A street fair caps the weeklong Manchester Citywide Arts Festival

By Katelyn Sahagian

[email protected]

For one week, Manchester will be an explosion of all types of artistic expression, thanks to the brand-new citywide arts festival.

The Palace Theatre has organized a week-long list of events, finishing off with a two-day Street Fair on Saturday, Sept. 17, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., and Sunday, Sept. 18, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.

The Street Fair, billed as a family-friendly event, will feature an arts market highlighting dozens of local artists, artisans and crafters, interactive arts installations and live performances by musicians and dancers as well as food trucks.

“It really is … in my wheelhouse of things that I’m passionate about,” said Laura Zorawowicz, the director of the festival, about the weeklong event. “Connecting artists with each other and with the community is just super exciting.”

Zorawowicz, who has a background in art education and community arts, said that this is her first time planning an event of this size. She had only been working at the Palace as a bartender when Palace president Peter Ramsey started talking about an arts festival.

Almost immediately Zorawowicz volunteered to be part of the planning. She said she felt lucky that Ramsey had taken a chance with her.

Because it was important to include all forms of art in the festival, Zorawowicz found community institutions that focused on the arts to partner with The Palace. Bookery, Currier Museum of Art, Dimensions in Dance, Manchester Community Music School, and Studio 550 are all hosting events in conjunction with the theater. There will be all types of dance classes at Dimensions in Dance, an open house at the Community Music School, and artist speaker series at Bookery. The Currier will have special exhibits and The Palace Theatre’s production of The Little Mermaid will open that week.

Studio 550 will have creators building monsters out of clay and an interactive art project that anyone can participate in (but it will live in the studio), said Monica Leap, 550’s founder.

Leap said she was thrilled to see the arts community come together.

“Manchester has a lot of potential with the arts, but it’s not concerted or together, so it’s exciting to see something this big,” Leap said about the festival. “I hope people participate and experience something new.”

Several of Leap’s intermediate potters and former students (known as members) will be taking on the new challenge of selling items during the Street Fair. She said everyone seems excited to participate at the vendors’ booths and everyone is busy sculpting away.

“These people are making some really fantastic things,” Leap said. “You can tell there’s skill. … It’s exciting to see what they’re capable of.”

While many of the artists at the festival will be vendors selling their works, Karen Jerzyk is excited to have the human interaction back in her artwork.

Jerzyk is a photographer but, in her own words, “the photography is almost the documenting of what I do [to set up].”

All of Jerzyk’s sets are designed and built by her. She said she is mostly inspired by post-apocalyptic themes but also loves the aesthetic of the 1960s. Her sets are designed to be interactive, something she is bringing to a studio space provided by Palace Theatre. This set will look like an old-fashioned living room, including an old couch, a vintage television set, and more interesting items and details to explore, including a few sculpted “creatures” to add a sci-fi flair to the mid-20th-century set. People will be able to walk through the set and take selfies.

While it’s only the first year, Jerzyk said she is thrilled to be traveling down the road from her studio to exhibit at an arts fair, as opposed to traveling farther to New York City or Los Angeles. She hopes this will be the first of many arts festivals the city offers over the years.

“There’s a lot of art and culture in Manchester but … it feels like the general public doesn’t realize the talent in the area,” Jerzyk said. “This will bridge that gap and showcase all the talent in this city.”

Manchester Citywide Arts Festival Street Fair
Street Fair
Where: Opera Block of Hanover Street (between Elm and Chestnut streets)
When: Saturday, Sept. 17, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Sunday, Sept. 18, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Price: free
Visit: palacetheatre.com

Musical performances
The River Stage at the Manchester Citywide Arts Festival Presents Intersection of Hanover Street and Londonderry Lane

Saturday, Sept. 17
10 a.m.: Children’s music concert with Miss Julieann presented by Manchester Community Music School
11 a.m.: Dimensions in Dance performance and interactive workshop
noon: Brother Seamus
1 p.m.: Paul Nelson
2 p.m.: Palace Youth Theatre performance
3 p.m.: Interactive drumming circle with NH Artist Laureate Theo Martey
4 p.m.: Drag performance by House of Marvel Entertainment

Sunday, Sept. 18
10 a.m.: Palace Youth Theatre performance
11 a.m.: Justin Cohn
noon: Southern NH Dance Theater – Nutcracker demonstration
1 p.m.: Queen City Improv
2 p.m.: Songwriter showcase with Liam Spain
3 p.m.: Manchester Community Music School student performers (location: Spotlight Room)
2 to 4 p.m.: Go Ninja Circus Arts aerial performers (location: intersection of Hanover Street and Nutfield Lane)

Manchester Makes — Community Art Area
Spotlight Room, 96 Hanover St., all day both days
• Live painting demo with local artist Michelle Peterson
• Interactive community mural with muralist Jyl Dittbenner
• Drop-in visits by Eddy the Comfort Pony of the MPD.
• Interactive Sci-Fi photo set with Karen Jerzyk

Featured photo: Brother Seamus. Courtesy photo.

Manchester Citywide Arts Festival

The Queen City celebrates art, dance, theater, music and more with a week of events

Calendar of Events

Event descriptions are according to the organizers. See manchesterartsfestival.com for the latest festival updates and to register for events.

Monday, Sept. 12

• Family Clay Monster Sculpting
4:30 to 5:30 p.m.
Studio 550 Art Center (550 Elm St.)
Make your own monster out of clay. Studio 550 will have pre-made “monster bodies” for you to embellish with your own horns, teeth, eyeballs and texture. Projects can be sculptures or can be modified to be a jar. Preregistration is required.

• Meet & Greet Artists @ Cat Alley
5 to 7 p.m.
Bookery (844 Elm St.)
Learn about the origins of Cat Alley and talk to emerging artists to professional muralists who were part of this project. Registration is recommended.

• Artist Talk with Ryan ORourke, Rich Pellegrino and Emily Dumas
6 to 7 p.m.
Bookery (844 Elm St.)
Ryan ORourke, Rich Pellegrino and Emily Dumas will be chatting about how they’ve gone from emerging artists to published illustrators. David Hady will be moderating. Registration is recommended.

Tuesday, Sept. 13

• Free dance class and story time for ages 2 to 5
10 to 10:45 a.m.
Dimensions in Dance (84 Myrtle St.) Register via Art Fest website.

• Jewelry workshop
3 to 5 p.m.
Institute of Art & Design at New England College (148 Concord St.)
Free. Learn how to make wire rings using basic jewelry tools and copper and brass wire. Registration required.

• Manchester Community Music School open house
5:30 to 7:30 p.m.
Manchester Community Music School (2291 Elm St.)
Come visit the Manchester Community Music School. Take a tour, listen to ensembles rehearsing, try out some instruments, meet the faculty, and learn more about individual and group lessons. Registration is recommended.

Wednesday, Sept. 14

• Free ballet class for adults
10 to 11:30 a.m.
Dimensions in Dance (84 Myrtle St.)
Register in advance. No experience needed.

• Excerpts & Investigation: A NH Dance Collaborative Performance
5:30 to 7 p.m.
The Factory on Willow (252 Willow St.)
Free event (registration is recommended). Watch three short segments of an evening-length dance called The Shire performed by Nsquared Dance. A post-performance discussion will feature the choreographer and the dancers.

• Pumpkin topiary workshop
6:30 to 8:30 p.m.
The AR Workshop (875 Elm St.)
Register in advance.

Thursday, Sept. 15

• Jewelry workshop
3 to 5 p.m.
Institute of Art & Design at New England College (148 Concord St.)
Free. Learn how to make wire rings using basic jewelry tools and copper and brass wire. Registration required.

• Printmaking workshop
3 to 5 p.m.
Institute of Art & Design at New England College (148 Concord St.)
Free. This workshop introduces the creative process of Intaglio printmaking. Spend an afternoon working with dry point on copper plates. Registration required.

• Free trial class of our Tap/Jazz combo class for kids in grades 3 to 5.
4 to 5 p.m.
Forever Emma Studios (516 Pine St.)
Tap shoes not required.

• Art After Work
5 to 8 pm
Currier Museum of Art (150 Ash St.)
Free exhibition tours and gallery admission to the museum, live music in the Winter Garden (tonight’s scheduled performers are Hickory Horned Devils), happy hour drink specials and a full menu available for purchase every Thursday night. See currier.org.

Friday, Sept. 16

• Glass demonstration
3 to 7 p.m.
Studioverne, Fine Art Fused Glass (412 Chestnut St.)
Stop in to meet the artist and see a demonstration. This painterly process of using only glass powders is just one technique to form fused glass art. It’s free to try for yourself. Fall leaves will be available. Browse the gallery and shop new collections early. See studioverne.com.

• Family pottery workshop
4:30 to 5:45 p.m.
Studio 550 Art Center (550 Elm St.)
Families can get a crash course on the pottery wheel. Kids must be 9+. One finished piece of pottery is included per participant. Pre-registration is required.

• Free jazz class for ages 6 to 10
5:30 to 6:30 p.m.
Dimensions in Dance (84 Myrtle St.)
Register via Arts Fest webpage. No experience needed.

• The Little Mermaid, opening night
7:30 p.m.
The Palace Theatre (80 Hanover St.)
Get your ticket to Disney’s The Little Mermaid at palacetheatre.org.

• Friday Night Comedy at the Rex 7:30 p.m.
Rex Theatre (23 Amherst St.)
Featuring Dan Crohn and Emily Ruskowski. Tickets at palacetheatre.org

Saturday, Sept. 17

• Street fair
10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
The Opera Block of Hanover Street.
The Arts Festival will culminate in a free family-friendly street fair in the Opera Block (Hanover Street between Elm and Chestnut streets) featuring an arts market, interactive art installations, live performances, food trucks and more. See the following page for more.

• Glass demonstration
10 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Studioverne, Fine Art Fused Glass (412 Chestnut St.)
Stop in to meet the artist and see a demonstration. This painterly process of using only glass powders is just one technique to form fused glass art. It’s free to try for yourself. Fall leaves will be available. Browse the gallery and shop new collections early. See studioverne.com.

• Printmaking wood blocks with Steamroller
10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Institute of Art & Design at New England College (77 Amherst St.)
Watch students create large scale prints with a steamroller.

• Storytime with illustrator Ryan ORourke
11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.
Bookery (844 Elm St.)
Illustrator Ryan O’Rourke will read and talk about his job creating art for books.

• Witch Crafting Series with Shadow & Soul Emporium
11:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. (30-minute classes on the half-hour)
At the Soul Emporium tent at the Street Fair
Create magical crafts with Shadow and Soul Emporium. Registration required.

• Painting demo with artist Diane Crespo
noon to 2 p.m.
The Diane Crespo Fine Art Gallery (32 Hanover St.)
See dianecrespofineart.com.

• The Little Mermaid
2 p.m. and 7 p.m.
The Palace Theatre (80 Hanover St.)
Tickets for Disney’s The Little Mermaid are available at palacetheatre.org.

• Show opening of “Full Circle” at Mosaic Art Collective
5 to 8 p.m.
66 Hanover St., Suite 201
Mosaic Art Collective is hosting a grand opening and their first show, a group show of southern New Hampsire artists called “Full Circle.” An internal gallery opening for the show “The Locals” will be presented by See/Saw Art. See mosaicartcollective.com.

• Chunky Herringbone Knit Blanket Workshop
6:30 to 8:30 p.m.
AR Workshop (875 Elm St.)
The workshop will guide you step by step through the hand knitting process to create a cozy one-of-a-kind blanket with herringbone details. Register via Arts Fest webpage.

Sunday, Sept. 18

• Street fair
10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
The Opera Block of Hanover Street.
The Arts Festival will culminate in a free family-friendly street fair in the Opera Block (Hanover Street between Elm and Chestnut streets) featuring an arts market, interactive art installations, live performances, food trucks and more. See the following page for more.

• Free trial classes for adult tap program
Beginner: 9:30 to 10:30 a.m.
Intermediate: 10:30 to 11:30 a.m.
Forever Emma Studios (516 Pine St.)

• Free trial classes of teen Hip Hop and Contemporary program (grades 4 to 12)
Level 1 Contemporary: noon to 1 p.m.
Level 2 Hip-hop: noon to 1 p.m.
Level 1 Hip-hop: 1 to 2 p.m.
Level 2 Contemporary: 1 to 2 p.m.
Forever Emma Studios (516 Pine St.)

• The Little Mermaid
2 p.m.
The Palace Theatre (80 Hanover St.)
Tickets for Disney’s The Little Mermaid are available at palacetheatre.org.

Throughout the week

• Mini-Mural Monster Hunt
Aug. 29 through Sept 16
During any business hours (specific locations will vary)
Find all the mini-mural monsters for a chance to win a gift card to a participating downtown business. For an official monster mural checklist, visit a participating business. For an updated list of businesses go to 550arts.com or email [email protected].

• Community Threads
Sept. 15, Sept. 17 and Sept. 18
Currier Museum of Art (150 Ash St.)
The Currier invites community members to contribute to an ongoing large-scale weaving project that represents individuals and communities.

Featured photo: Dimensions in Dance. Courtesy photo.

Kiddie Pool 22/09/08

Family fun for the weekend

Free Saturday

• Take a free trip to the Currier Museum of Art (150 Ash St. in Manchester; currier.org, 669-6144) this Saturday, Sept. 10, when, as with the second Saturday of every month, New Hampshire residents get free admission to the museum. (Normally, admission costs $15 for adults, $13 for 65+, $10 for students and $5 for ages 13 to 17; children 12 and under get in for free.)

• Enjoy a free movie under the stars in Concord. The movie Encanto (PG, 2021), the Disney animated musical famous for not wanting to talk about Bruno (no no no), will screen Saturday, Sept. 10, at Keach Park, 20 Canterbury Road in Concord, as part of a joint effort between Red River Theatres and the Concord Multicultural Festival. The screening starts at sunset (about 7 p.m.); bring a blanket and some snacks.

• Benson Park Family Fun Day, which will be held at the Benson Park Ampitheatre (Benson Park is on Kimball Hill Road in Hudson), will run Saturday, Sept. 10, from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. This free community event will feature games, a raffle, a coloring booth and performances such as a concert from “Let’s Play Music” (featuring local youth talent) from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.; a Wildlife Encounters live animal education program from 1:30 p.m. to 2:30 p.m., and magic with Jim Leach from 2:45 to 3:15 p.m. See friendsofbensonpark.org for more about the event (the website recommends bringing a picnic and lawn chairs) and about the park, where the Friends of Benson Park are currently operating the seasonal store Friday through Sunday from noon to 4 p.m.

Rockin’ kids

• The student performers of the Palace Youth Theatre will present Rock of Ages: Youth Editionat the Palace Theatre (80 Hanover St. in Manchester; palacetheatre.org, 668-5588) on Friday, Sept. 9, at 7 p.m. and Saturday, Sept. 10, at 2 p.m. Tickets cost $15 for adults and $12 for children and are available for purchase online.

Time with nature

• Kids can learn more about the butterflies on the move at “Buds & Blooms: The Magic of Monarch Migration” on Saturday, Sept. 10, from 10 to 11 a.m. at the New Hampshire Audubon’s Massabesic Center (26 Audubon Way in Auburn; nhaudubon.org, 668-2045). The session, which requires parental supervision and is suited for children ages 4 to 12, will explain the monarch butterfly’s journey south from New Hampshire to northern Mexico, according to the website. The event is free but pre-registration is required to reserve a spot.

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