• Make it maple: It’s New Hampshire Maple Month, and several farms and sugarhouses across the Granite State will once again be welcoming visitors for multiple weekends of tours, demonstrations, tastings and family activities, all revolving around local maple syrup production. At Ben’s Sugar Shack (83 Webster Hwy., Temple), for instance, maple sugaring tours start the weekend of Saturday, March 5, and Sunday, March 6, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., with free tours of the premises beginning every 15 minutes. Samples will be provided and items will be available inside the gift shop, including everything from maple syrup to maple cotton candy, fudge, roasted nuts, doughnuts and more. For a walk back through time, check out one of the sugar camp hiking tours being offered at Canterbury Shaker Village (288 Shaker Road) on Saturdays, March 12, March 19 and March 26, at 1 p.m. Local land surveyor Mark Stevens will lead guests on a tour to the Shakers’ remote sugar camp, where they produced maple syrup each year. A full list of local sugarhouses participating in New Hampshire Maple Month (including New Hampshire Maple Weekend, set for Saturday, March 19, and Sunday, March 20) can be found on the New Hampshire Maple Producers Association website at nhmapleproducers.com.
• Bowlfuls of deliciousness: The ninth annual soup/chili/chowder cook-off is happening at Epsom Central School (282 Black Hall Road, Epsom) on Monday, March 7, from 5 to 7 p.m. Dozens of local soup, chili and chowder makers will participate in this friendly competition to raise money for various student activities at the school. Winners from each of the three categories receive a “Souper Bowl” trophy, and the top vote getter also wins a $50 Visa gift card. Two People’s Choice recipients from each category are awarded ribbons. The cost to attend the cook-off as a taster is $8 for adults and $6 for kids ages 10 and under, and includes access to up to 10 four-ounce sampling cups for adults and up to five samples for kids, along with sides of cornbread. Tickets will be sold at the door while supplies last. For more details, see “9th annual ECS Soup/Chili/Chowder Cook-off” on Facebook, or find our story about the event on page 25 of the Hippo’s Feb. 10 issue.
• New date for Amherst chili cook-off: A new date has been set for the Amherst Lions Club’s annual Fire & Ice chili cook-off and ice cream social, which was originally scheduled for Feb. 4 but postponed due to rising Covid numbers. Amherst Lion Joan Ferguson said the event will now be held on Friday, March 11, from 5 to 7 p.m. at Amherst Middle School (14 Cross Road). This will be the first in-person cook-off in two years following last year’s pre-recorded “virtual” event. Local restaurateurs and community members compete for the title of the best chili in one of three categories, and winners are awarded an engraved trophy and bragging rights for a year. Admission is $8 for adults and free for kids under 5, or $25 per family of four, with proceeds benefiting local charities selected by the Lions Club. Visit e-clubhouse.org/sites/amherstnh or follow them on Facebook @amherstnhlionsclub.
• Spring into healthy eating: Local Baskit (10 Ferry St., Suite 120A, Concord) is offering its next Instant Pot series, a seven-week program featuring various pressure cooker meals, from the week of March 7 through April 18. The theme is “spring and speed,” with quick and healthy options designed for those with busy and active lifestyles. The seven-week series includes all of the pre-measured (and, in some cases, pre-chopped) ingredients for each meal, along with complete instructions and a tested recipe serving three to five. Meals include teriyaki chicken, butternut squash farro risotto, lemon mustard chicken with potatoes, vegan white bean stew, cashew chicken, curried spring vegetable potato chaat, and fig and pig quiche. The cost is $64 for the full seven weeks. Dinners can be picked up at Local Baskit or can be delivered to select towns on Tuesdays or Wednesdays — visit localbaskit.com for the full list of drop-off locations.
• Tastes from the trucks: Tickets to this year’s Great Bay Food Truck Festival will go on sale beginning Monday, March 7. The second annual event will return for the first time since 2019 on Saturday, May 7, from noon to 5 p.m. at Stratham Hill Park (270 Portsmouth Ave., Stratham). The rain-or-shine festival is being organized by the Stratham Parks and Recreation department in conjunction with the Exeter Area Chamber of Commerce, and will feature dozens of food trucks and vendors, as well as lawn games, live music and more. Admission starts at $5, while all available foods and drinks are priced per item Visit greatbayfoodtruckfestival.com.
A deep dive into the nostalgic treat and its many sweet variations
It started as a way to raise money for her daughters’ synchronized swim teams — Heather Pfeifer of Goffstown made whoopie pies and presented them at bake sales to rave reviews. Eventually, she began serving pumpkin maple whoopie pies at the annual Goffstown Pumpkin Regatta; last year she sold out of nearly 1,000 before the event was over.
“People [in town] were going up to me and being like, ‘Are you the pumpkin maple whoopie pie lady?’ or they’d say, ‘They’re so good, where can I get them?’” Pfeifer said, “and I was just like, ‘Well I don’t know, I can bake some if you want.’ … I was cooking out of my kitchen for fun, but so many people were requesting where they could get them. So I started pursuing that.”
Pfeifer is now the owner and founder of Granite State Whoopie Pies and takes weekly pre-orders of the nostalgic treat in all kinds of flavors. She works out of the prep kitchen at White Birch Eatery in Goffstown, mostly on Mondays and Tuesdays when it’s closed for the day, and accepts requests to make any of her whoopie pies gluten-free, dairy-free or vegan.
Photo courtesy of Granite State Whoopie Pies of Goffstown.
With a regular offering of classic chocolate and vanilla or peanut butter, as well as two new special flavors released every two weeks, Pfeifer is proving that the whoopie pie can lend itself to all sorts of fun variations. Currently, she’s celebrating St. Patrick’s Day with chocolate and mint grasshopper and chocolate mocha Irish cream whoopie pies, while other flavors she’s previously dabbled in have included black forest, milk and cookies, red velvet, and peanut butter and jelly. Sometimes she’ll incorporate local ingredients — her maple bacon whoopie pie, for instance, featured bacon crumbles from Shaker Road Provisions of Loudon, while just last month she made chocolate milk stout whoopie pies using the Summit stout from Goffstown’s Mountain Base Brewery.
“I have a list of probably about 50 or 60 flavors … and more come to mind every day,” she said.
Similar whoopie pie flavor experimentations have been going on in the kitchen of Angela’s Pasta & Cheese Shop in Manchester. There you’ll find all kinds of whoopie pie flavors on the shelf, and you never know what bakers Laura and Adam Rexford will come up with next, like lemon poppy strawberry, Fireball whiskey pumpkin, tiramisu, pineapple upside-down cake and more.
“This year, people have been buying whoopie pies like crazy,” Laura Rexford said. “I can’t tell if it’s that we’re being more adventurous with flavors, or if people just want more comfort foods. … I feel like a whoopie pie is so much easier to eat than a cupcake, because of the distribution of cake to frosting. It’s almost like a sweet hamburger. The frosting is more contained.”
From the treat’s delicious creamy filling to the cakes surrounding it — which Pfeifer calls the “whookies,” or “whoopie cookies” — we take a look at how some local whoopie pies are made, and also attempt to trace back its origins as a New England staple.
Flavors and fillings
Today, the most common whoopie pie filling features a vanilla or marshmallow buttercream. Jordyn Hotchkiss of The Cat’s Pajamas, a home bakery based in Weare, said hers have a mixture of butter, confectioner’s sugar, marshmallow Fluff and a little bit of vanilla. The filling for her peanut butter whoopie pies uses those same ingredients, in addition to creamy peanut butter, kosher salt and milk — both flavors are stocked weekly at the Weare Real Food Farmers Market.
Pfeifer’s whoopie pies, meanwhile, have a roux-based filling, or a milk and flour thickener that’s mixed with granulated sugar, vanilla, butter, Crisco and a little bit of salt.
“I would equate the flavor … to almost like a Devil Dog,” she said. “The granulated sugar actually melts right into the roux … and what it does is it whips up so nice and fluffy, but it’s not overpoweringly sweet. … It creates this very light and creamy filling. It’s a more traditional way, but it’s not the most common way because it’s not the most shelf-stable.”
Pfeifer described her “whookies” as a thicker version of a muffin top, with a proper consistency resembling a brownie batter and a total baking time of around 10 to 12 minutes. Her roux is made first so that it has time to cool down once the cakes are baked.
Depending on the flavor she’s working with, additional ingredients are added to either the cakes or the filling. As for the diet-friendly options, she’ll substitute oat milk and plant-based butter for the dairy-free pies, and Bob’s Red Mill brand 1-to-1 flour blend for the gluten-free pies.
Photo courtesy of Angela’s Pasta & Cheese Shop in Manchester.
At Angela’s, classic chocolate and vanilla or peanut butter whoopie pies are always in stock, each of which is made with a house buttercream recipe. Those are sold individually, or you can try one of the shop’s themed duo packs — last month’s, dubbed “The Romance Package,” featured candied maple bacon and raspberry Frangelico-flavored whoopie pies. Currently available is the “Luck of the Irish” whoopie pie duo, with crème de menthe and milk chocolate Irish cream flavors. The shop also puts out bite-sized miniature whoopie pies in an assortment of flavors, sold in packs of a dozen each.
“Those have had a huge response,” Rexford said. “I think people feel a little less guilty about the mini whoopie pies, because you can just pop them in your mouth. They’re like little Munchkins.”
In Hooksett, The Cake Fairy has been baking whoopie pies since before it even had a storefront, back when it had a booth at the Deerfield Fair, manager Brianna Lucciano said.
“My mom would make these behemoth whoopie pies, like the size of a man’s hand, and people would walk around the fair with them, and others would say, ‘Oh, my gosh, where did you get that?’” she said. “It got to the point where we’d get a delivery, and people were just taking them out of the box because we couldn’t even get them on the table fast enough.”
They no longer sell at the fair, but you can still get that familiar gigantic “Deerfielder” whoopie pie at the bakery, along with a few smaller sizes. In addition to the classic, there’s a Funny Bone whoopie pie with a chocolate cake and peanut butter filling, and a Boston cream whoopie pie with a vanilla cake, chocolate ganache and a custard buttercream.
Photo courtesy of The Cannoli Stop at The Candy Shop in Concord.
At The Cannoli Stop at The Candy Shop in Concord, owner Melinda Sergi has a regular assortment of fillings for her whoopie pies, from vanilla or chocolate cream to raspberry, peanut butter or pistachio. But she also takes things a step further by making whoopie pies with any one of the shop’s more than 50 flavors of cannoli fillings — those options run the gamut from cake batter and cookie dough to red velvet, bubble gum, cotton candy, salted caramel and more.
Lemon cake whoopie pies are part of the regular lineup of products at Fabrizia Lemon Baking Co., an online-only bakery based in Salem featuring uniquely crafted limoncello-infused treats. Also in Salem, Chatila’s Sugar Free Bakery offers an assortment of sugar-free and dairy-free whoopie pie flavors using a fluffy French creme-based filling.
Competing claims
Multiple U.S. states claim to be the birthplace of the original whoopie pie. Two of those states in particular — Pennsylvania and Maine — are notably linked by their Amish heritage, Pfeifer said.
While there are several theories, according to at least one edition of The Oxford Companion to American Food and Drink, an encyclopedia edited by Andrew F. Smith and published by Oxford University Press, it’s generally accepted that the first whoopie pie originated around the era of the Great Depression. The story goes that the cakes were made from a leftover batter, contributor Susan McLellan Plaisted writes, and, according to Amish legend, kids would find the cream-filled treats in their lunch bags and yell “whoopie!” with delight, giving them their name.
A bakery in Lewiston, Maine, called Labadie’s claims to be “the home of Maine’s first whoopie pie,” with a recipe dating back to 1925, according to its website. Another possible clue into how the treat became so popular in New England involves the Massachusetts-based Durkee Mower Co., the manufacturer of marshmallow Fluff. According to its website, an episode of a 1930s weekly radio show called “Flufferettes” promoted The Yummy Book, a book of various recipes using Fluff as the cornerstone ingredient — one of those was, of course, for whoopie pies.
Photo courtesy of Sully’s Superette in Allenstown.
But who exactly was the first to create the sweet treat, and where, is likely lost to history.
“It’s like saying who made pizza first,” Lucciano said. “In reality, it’s a form of chocolate cake and a delicious filling. We all had the same ingredients, but whose grandmother did it first?”
Both Pennsylvania and Maine hold annual whoopie pie festivals — Maine’s is set to return on June 25 to the town of Dover-Foxcroft, featuring samples from various bakers across the state, while Pennsylvania’s is held at the Hershey Farm Restaurant & Inn in Lancaster County in September. Since 2011, the whoopie pie has been honored as Maine’s official “state treat.”
While there are no large whoopie pie-centered festivals in the Granite State, Pfeifer does have a few upcoming local appearances where you can go to enjoy her whoopie pies. Find her at Mountain Base Brewery on Thursday, March 17, from 4 to 8 p.m., serving her classic, peanut butter, grasshopper and Irish cream flavors. Then on Saturday, March 19, she’ll be participating in the Downtown Concord Winter Farmers Market from 9 a.m. to noon. More events are in the works for the coming weeks and months.
Whoopie pies at home
A simple whoopie pie recipe uses ingredients easily within reach in your kitchen.
“It’s a process … because you have the two separate parts of it,” Hotchkiss said. “I use Crisco, sugar, eggs, milk, vanilla, flour, baking soda, baking powder, cocoa powder and a little bit of salt, and that’s just for the cake itself. … The oven actually gets preheated to 425, so it’s a bit of a hotter bake, and they only have to bake for about 10 minutes each.”
When baking them at home, Hotchkiss said, it’s important to make sure the cakes are spaced out enough so that they don’t spread into each other. She places either a silicone baking sheet or a piece of parchment paper on the baking pan to prevent sticking and help with their removal.
“Generally, once I get the cake part of it all done, I let them cool for a few minutes and then I start with my filling,” she said, “because they need to be fully cooled before you put them together; otherwise the filling will just start to melt. … Personally, I love having Fluff in them.”
Rather than spreading the filling over both cake halves, Hotchkiss said she likes to scoop it on just one and pushes the two parts together to finish the whoopie pie.
“It just makes for a good ratio, in my opinion,” she said. “Everyone has their own viewpoint of how much cream to cake there should be … but for the most part they’re relatively even.”
The pies remain fresh when wrapped for roughly a week, or you can freeze them.
“A friend of mine actually discovered that they freeze really well, so that was good to find out,” Hotchkiss said. “So if you don’t want to eat them right away, they can go in the freezer and then, when you’re ready to eat it, it will thaw out no problem.”
Where to get whoopie pies
Check out this list of local bakeries, shops, homestead bakers and other businesses offering homemade whoopie pies, from the classic chocolate and vanilla or peanut butter to all kinds of unique flavors. Some have them on hand all the time, while others will rotate their whoopie pies out with other pastries and treats from their bakery case — be sure to contact each establishment directly for the most up-to-date availability on their products.
• Angela’s Pasta & Cheese Shop (815 Chestnut St., Manchester, 625-9544, angelaspastaandcheese.com) offers both large-sized whoopie pies and mini pies that are sold by the dozen, and you never know which flavors bakers Laura and Adam Rexford will be working on next. Classic and peanut butter are usually available, while other options have included lemon poppy strawberry, Fireball whiskey pumpkin, tiramisu, pineapple upside-down cake and more. Angela’s has also recently begun offering themed duo packages of whoopie pies — the current one available, a St. Patrick’s Day-themed duo called “Luck of the Irish,” features crème de menthe and milk chocolate Irish cream flavors.
• Baked Downtown Cafe & Bakery (1015 Elm St., Manchester, 606-1969; 249 Sheep Davis Road, Concord, 856-8871; bakeddowntown.com) offers classic, peanut butter and seasonal whoopie pie flavors.
• The Bakeshop on Kelley Street (171 Kelley St., Manchester, 624-3500, thebakeshoponkelleystreet.com) offers classic and brown sugar maple whoopie pies, as well as several specialty flavors throughout the year, like pumpkin, red velvet, pineapple upside-down cake and a Bailey’s-filled chocolate Guinness whoopie pie for St. Patrick’s Day.
• Bearded Baking Co. (819 Union St., Manchester, 647-7150, beardedbaking.com) offers multiple sweets treats out of its bakery case, usually including whoopie pies.
• Benson’s Bakery & Cafe (203 Central St., Hudson, 718-8683, bensonsbakeryandcafe.com) offers classic whoopie pies, in addition to seasonal specials for flavors.
• Bite Me Kupcakez (4 Mound Court, Merrimack, 674-4459, bitemekupcakez.com) has a variety of pastries and sweet treats out of its bakery case, usually including whoopie pies.
• The Black Forest Cafe & Bakery (212 Route 101, Amherst, 672-0500, theblackforestcafe.com) offers classic whoopie pies, as well as seasonal specials.
• Buckley’s Bakery & Cafe (436 Daniel Webster Hwy., Merrimack, 262-5929; 9 Market Place, Hollis, 465-5522; buckleysbakerycafe.com) offers whoopie pies with whipped marshmallow frosting at both locations.
• The Cake Fairy (114 Londonderry Turnpike, Hooksett, 518-8733, cakefairynh.com) offers whoopie pies in a variety of flavors, like classic, Funny Bone, Boston cream and more, all in several sizes. The “Deerfielder” size is a throwback to the bakers’ days selling oversized whoopie pies at the Deerfield Fair, manager Brianna Lucciano said.
• Candia First Stoppe Country Store (285 Old Candia Road, Candia, 483-4888, candiafirststop.com) offers classic whoopie pies in small and medium sizes, as well as larger whoopie pies that are made to order.
• The Cannoli Stop at The Candy Shop (239 Loudon Road, Concord, 224-9706, thecannolistop.com) offers whoopie pies with a variety of fillings, from vanilla or chocolate cream to raspberry, peanut butter or pistachio. You can also order whoopie pies with any one of the shop’s more than 50 cannoli fillings, like cookie dough, red velvet or salted caramel.
• The Cat’s Pajamas (available at the Weare Real Food Farmers Market, 65 N. Stark Hwy., Weare, catspajamasnh@gmail.com, and on Facebook @catspajamasnh) offers classic and peanut butter whoopie pies, as well as a pumpkin whoopie pie that’s available seasonally.
• Chatila’s Sugar Free Bakery (380 S. Broadway, Salem, 898-5459, sugarfreebakery.net) has several sugar-free whoopie pie options, like classic, pumpkin spice, red velvet and more.
• Crosby Bakery (51 E. Pearl St., Nashua, 882-1851, crosbybakerynh.com) has whoopie pies available most days, as part of its lineup of freshly baked pastries and sweet treats.
• The Crust and Crumb Baking Co. (126 N. Main St., Concord, 219-0763, thecrustandcrumb.com) usually offers three or four whoopie pie flavors to choose from daily, like classic and salted caramel, as well as a blueberry cake with lemon filling and a raspberry cake with coconut filling. Ice cream-filled whoopie pies are also available seasonally.
• Dulces Bakery (87 Amherst St., Manchester, 606-2613, find them on Facebook @dulcesbakerynh) offers multiple options on its pastry menu, usually including whoopie pies.
• Duston’s Bakery & Deli (153 Portland Ave., Dover, 742-2506, dustonsmarket.com) has classic whoopie pies, as well as pumpkin seasonally, in addition to a few other flavors.
• Fabrizia Lemon Baking Co. (Salem, fabrizialemonbakingcompany.com) offers lemon cake whoopie pies, baked with Fabrizia Spirits limoncello worked into the batter. They’re wrapped two per pack and available for online ordering only.
• Frederick’s Pastries (109 Route 101A, Amherst, 882-7725; 25 S. River Road, Bedford, 647-2253; pastry.net) offers several flavors of whoopie pies, including dark chocolate and chocolate chunk cookie. Miniature whoopie pies are also available.
• Good to the Last Krumb (Hudson, find them on Facebook @goodtothelastkrumbnh) offers multiple sweet treats available for pre-order, including whoopie pies. They can also usually be found at Mack’s Apples (230 Mammoth Road, Londonderry) and Estey’s Country Store (9 Old Nashua Road, Londonderry).
• Granite State Whoopie Pies (Goffstown, granitestatewhoopiepies.com) offers classic and peanut butter whoopie pies, as well as a selection of two specialty flavors that rotate out every two weeks, available for pre-order by the dozen as regular or miniature sizes. Currently available are chocolate and mint grasshopper and chocolate mocha Irish cream whoopie pies. Any flavor can also be made gluten-free, dairy-free or vegan. Weekly orders are due by Friday for pickup the following Wednesday through Saturday, between 7 a.m. and 1 p.m., at White Birch Eatery (571 Mast Road, Goffstown). Single-serve pies are also available for purchase there, as well as at Little Red Hen Farm & Homestead (85 Norris Road, Pittsfield). Find owner and founder Heather Pfeifer with her whoopie pies at Mountain Base Brewery (553 Mast Road, Goffstown) on Thursday, March 17, from 4 to 8 p.m., and at the Downtown Concord Winter Farmers Market (7 Eagle Square) on Saturday, March 19, from 9 a.m. to noon.
• Harvey’s Bakery and Coffee Shop (376 Central Ave., Dover, 742-6029, harveysbakery.com) offers several specialty pastries and sweet treats, including whoopie pies.
• It’s All Good in the Kitchen (184 N. Broadway, Salem, 458-7434, itsallgoodgf.com) is a specialty gluten-free bakery offering a wide array of treats, usually including whoopie pies.
• Just Like Mom’s Pastries (353 Riverdale Road, Weare, 529-6667, justlikemomspastries.com) offers dozens of traditional and specialty whoopie pie flavors and flavor combinations.
• Klemm’s Bakery (29 Indian Rock Road, Windham, 437-8810, klemmsbakery.com) offers a wide array of pastries and sweet treats daily, usually including whoopie pies.
• Purple Finch Cafe (124 S. River Road, Bedford, 232-1953, purplefinchcafe.com) offers several specialty flavors of whoopie pies that are usually rotated out, from chocolate chip with vanilla to red velvet, maple cream and more.
• The Red Arrow Diner (61 Lowell St., Manchester, 626-1118; 112 Loudon Road, Concord, 415-0444; 137 Rockingham Road, Londonderry, 552-3091; 149 Daniel Webster Hwy., Nashua, 204-5088; redarrowdiner.com) offers classic whoopie pies, as well as red velvet and pumpkin whoopie pies that are available seasonally.
• The Red Blazer Restaurant & Pub (72 Manchester St., Concord, 224-4101, theredblazer.com) offers both large and small whoopie pies on its dessert menu, as well as a whoopie pie cake on its bakery menu, featuring chocolate cake layered with the classic whoopie pie filling and finished with chocolate ganache and a white chocolate drizzle.
• Sully’s Superette (39 Allenstown Road, Allenstown, 485-9955; 10 N. Mast St., Goffstown, 497-8176; sullyssuperette.com) offers classic whoopie pies at both locations.
• Wild Orchid Bakery (836 Elm St., Manchester, 935-7338, wildorchidbakery.com) has a rotating selection of pastries and sweet treats out of its bakery case, including whoopie pies.
• Zizza Authentic Pizzeria (653 Elm St., Milford, 249-5767, zizzapizza.com) offers multiple flavors of whoopie pies on its dessert menu.
Featured photo: Funny Bone whoopie pies from The Cake Fairy in Hooksett. Courtesy photo.
Lou Saviano and his fiance, Meagan Boucher, are the owners of Renewal Garden & Compost, a residential compost pick-up business serving the greater Manchester area.
Explain your job.
Primarily, we collect food scraps from households, businesses and events [and] process the food scraps into compost to be used as a soil additive at farms and for gardening. … We [also] offer backyard raised garden builds and vegetable and meat CSA delivery. Our goal is to divert waste from going into landfills and turn it into nutrient-rich soil … to help support local farms.
How long have you had this job?
We started Renewal one year ago.
What led you to this career field and your current job?
I studied environmental science at the University of New Hampshire. When workplaces started to shut down … [and] my place of work quickly switched from an office to remote … I gave the work-from-home a chance, which gave me a lot of time to reflect. … I remembered why I had chosen to study environmental science. I wanted to work outdoors, but here I was, sitting at a computer. I realized I needed a change, and we started talking about starting our own business. … There’s a need for compost pick-up in Manchester and surrounding towns; many people don’t have the space to do it themselves. It all seemed like a natural fit to begin this journey.
What kind of education or training did you need?
Although it wasn’t necessary for starting a compost business, [studying at] UNH did provide a foundation for this passion. I was fortunate enough to work on both the organic and conventional dairy farms. What’s required for starting a business is patience and perseverance. I’ve also obtained my certificate in solid waste management in order to process compost, according to New Hampshire DES rules.
What is your typical at-work uniform or attire?
Wrangler [jeans in] Cowboy Cut, a Renewal T-shirt, good dirt-working boots, Darn Tough socks, a ballcap, sunglasses if it’s hot and a flannel if it’s cold.
What do you wish you’d known at the beginning of your career?
Part of the fun of owning our own business is figuring out how we’re going to solve problems that arise. One thing that has been interesting to troubleshoot is frozen compost in 64-gallon totes. … In extremely cold temperatures, not all of the material can be emptied. At first we tried using hand tools to chip away at the frozen compost but quickly realized it was more efficient to invest in extra containers and switch the frozen ones out for empty ones, then store the frozen containers and wait until a warmer day [to empty them]. [Challenges] like this are what make the job interesting.
What do you wish other people knew about your job?
Many people have heard about composting but aren’t yet aware that we’ll do the work for them. Our job is to make composting easy for households and businesses. Also, I’d like people to think of food scraps as useful material. If you switch to that mindset, we can divert waste from filling our landfills … and turn it into nutrient-rich material.
What was the first job you ever had?
Market Basket cart collector extraordinaire.
What’s the best piece of work-related advice you’ve ever received?
No matter what it is [that you do], choose it.
Five favorites Favorite book: The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People by Stephen Covey Favorite movie: The Fighter Favorite music: Country, [especially] Toby Keith Favorite food: Lobster Favorite thing about NH: The outdoors. We’re so fortunate to have a ton of outdoor activity options with the White Mountains, the Atlantic Ocean and so many lakes, ponds and rivers all right here in the state.
Featured photo: Lou Saviano and fiance Meagan Boucher. Courtesy photo.
• The Aviation Museum of New Hampshire (27 Navigator Road in Londonderry; aviationmuseumofnh.org, 669-4820) will open on Thursday, March 3, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. — a vacation week addition to the regular hours of 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays and 1 to 4 p.m. on Sundays. Admission costs $10 for adults, $5 for ages 6 to 12 and free for children 5 and under.
Science Friday
• And if you want more fun with a side of learning, go to the Children’s Museum of New Hampshire (2 Washington St. in Dover; childrens-museum.org, 742-2002) on Friday, March 4, for their “Science Friday” programming, part of the regular admission to the museum, which is open Tuesdays through Sundays, with sessions from 9 a.m. to noon all six days as well as from 1 to 4 p.m. Wednesdays through Saturdays. Admission costs $11 per person, $9 for 65+ (no charge for children under 1). Reserve admission online.
• The McAuliffe-Shepard Discovery Center (2 Institute Drive in Concord; starhop.com, 271-7827) is open daily through Sunday, March 6, with sessions from 10:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. and 1:30 to 4 p.m. There will be four planetarium shows daily, according to the website, which recommends purchasing timed tickets in advance. Admission costs $11.50 for adults, $10.50 for students and seniors and $8.50 for kids ages 3 to 12 (admission is free for children 2 and under; masks required for visitors over the age of 2). Planetarium show tickets cost $5 per person (free for children 2 and under); see the website for the schedule of planetarium shows. And after a day in person at the center, get an extra helping of science programming with this month’s Super Stellar Fridays online event, “The Dinosaurs and Geology of Thermopolis, Wyoming.” In this presentation, Discovery Center educator Brendan Clement will discuss his summer internship at the Wyoming Dinosaur Center, according to the website. The event starts at 7 p.m. and is free but online registration is required.
Story Saturday
• The Bookery Manchester (844 Elm St. in downtown Manchester; bookerymht.com) will feature a St. Patrick’s themed story time on Saturday, March 5, at 11:30 a.m. with the books Tim O’Toole and the Wee Folk by Gerald McDermott and Three Ways to Trap a Leprechaun by Tara Lazar and illustrated by Vivienne To, according to the store’s website. After stories, attendees can make rainbows out of paper plates, the website said.
On stage
• Disney’s The AristocatsKids, featuring a cast of student actors in grades 2 through 12 from the Palace Youth Theatre’s vacation camp, will hit the stage at the Palace Theatre (80 Hanover St. in Manchester; palacetheatre.org, 668-5588) on Saturday, March 5, at 11 a.m. Tickets cost $15 for adults, $12.
• On Wednesday, March 9, head to the Music Hall (28 Chestnut St. in Portsmouth; 436-2400, themusichall.org) to spend some time with Rosie Revere, engineer, and her buddies Iggy Peck, architect, and Ada Twist, scientist. The musical stage show Rosie Revere, Engineer, and Friendswill feature the characters from the popular books by Andrea Beaty and will be presented at 9:30 and 11:30 a.m. The shows last about an hour and tickets cost $7, according to the website.
Save the date: for that first gig
• NH Music Collective and the Belknap Mill (25 Beacon St. in Laconia; belknapmill.org, 524-8813) hold a Young Performers Open Mic at the Mill on the fourth Sunday of each month at 2 p.m. The open mic sessions will run for two hours and are open to all middle and high school students, according to a press release. The events will run through May 22 and are family friendly, according to the press release.
More summer camp
• The Children’s Theatre Project of the Community Players of Concord will hold a summer camp for young actors ages 8 to 14, Sunday, July 31, through Friday, Aug. 5. The kids will rehearse Peter Pan Jr. which will be presented on Friday evening, according to a press release. The camp begins with a meeting at The Players Studio (435 Josiah Bartlett Road in Concord) on July 31 from 1 to 3 p.m. and then runs from 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Monday, Aug. 1, through Thursday, Aug. 5 p.m. On Friday, the camp moves to the Concord City Auditorium from 8:30 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. The cost is $225; see communityplayersofconcord.org or email k.braz@comcast.net with questions, the release said.
By now many gardeners are fed up with winter: icy sidewalks, misplaced mittens and dogs that need to go out at 5 below zero. But it will soon be time to start planting seeds indoors, so you might want to start getting ready now.
It’s true that greenhouses and garden centers do a nice job of starting plants if you are not interested in babying seedlings along for 8 to 12 weeks. I do let them start some for me but find that there are plenty of things I want to grow that are not available. So I do both. I start some now and buy others later.
In order to be successful with your seed-starting efforts, you will need supplemental lights. If you try to save money and just start a few seedlings on a sunny windowsill, you will most likely be disappointed. Even under the best conditions, direct sun only reaches your seedlings about six hours a day, much less than they need.
Fluorescent lights are the least expensive solution to the need for supplemental light. My fixtures are 4 feet long and use two T-8 tubes each. The fixtures are available at hardware and big box stores, and cost from $16 to $40 each, depending on where you buy them.
T-8 tubes use 32 watts of energy per hour, while older-model T-12 tubes use 40 watts. This year I bought some LED bulbs that fit my 4-foot fluorescent fixtures but use only half the electricity. I’m switching over to LED for the sake of the environment, but as the tubes cost about $8 each, I am spreading out my purchases over a few years. If you want to make the switch, make sure the package says they do not require any rewiring of the fixtures (older models did require that). One nice thing about the LED lights is that they don’t break if you bump them hard or drop them. Select lights that are 4000K or 5000K color spectrum, which are close to daylight color.
I use a biodynamic calendar called Stella Natura to help decide on planting dates. It uses the sun, moon and stars to determine the best time and day to plant four categories of plants: flowers, fruit, leaf and root. It also has “blackout” days when nothing should be done. I am not 100 percent convinced that this calendar really works, but have done some informal experiments planting seeds on their suggested days, and on blackout days, and it seemed to make a difference.
Read the seed packages carefully if you are new to starting indoors. Onion-family plants and peppers take a long time to develop, so most people start them in early March, though I started my onions and scallions on Feb. 20 this year. Tomatoes I start around April 10 — I don’t want them to get root-bound or too tall before I put them out on June 10. If you plant outside earlier, start seeds earlier.
Not everything needs to be started indoors. Most root crops are direct seeded in the garden, though you can start beets indoors. Some flowers hate to be transplanted — larkspur, for example, which also needs cold temperatures after planting. Lettuce can be planted indoors or out, or both. I like to get some started early indoors. All the cucumber family plants I start indoors four to five weeks before planting outside as this protects them from striped cucumber beetles when they first germinate.
An important key to success with your seedlings is to water properly. If seeds dry out before they germinate, or when they are tiny, they are likely to fail. On the other hand, keeping seeds soggy all the time can lead to root rot. Check them every day. If you see the planting mix turn a lighter color or if it feels dry to the touch, water. I water with a dilute solution of fish or seaweed fertilizer once a week.
To get seedlings to wake up and start to grow, I use heat mats sold for that purpose. They plug in and gently warm the seed flats. But I only use them until most seeds have germinated as too much heat for seedlings is bad. For one thing, the “soil” dries out fast with extra heat. I prevent that by using clear plastic covers sold to fit over the flats, creating mini-greenhouses that hold in the moisture.
I mostly use flats with 32 cells per trays that are roughly 9 by 18 inches, although others are sold with up to 108 cells per flat. I want plenty of room for roots to grow, so I buy cells that are as deep as I can find. I plant two or more seeds in each cell, just in case one seed does not germinate. For onions, I plant three or four seeds per cell, as they don’t mind a little crowding.
Most seeds germinate about 90 percent of the time. For tomatoes I sometimes snip off one plant when young, other times I let both grow, and separate them and replant both in bigger pots when they are 4 to 6 inches tall. For me, it’s hard to kill seedlings by snipping them off and I can always share seedlings with others.
Garden centers and catalogs sell a variety of stands with lights for growing seedlings. Most are quite expensive. You can also go to my website, gardening-guy.com, and search for “Building a Plant Stand.” That will give step-by-step directions for building an inexpensive A-frame plant stand that will hold six flats, and have room below it for four to six more flats on the floor.
Starting seedlings is not rocket science. It involves some investment, but the lights and plant stands last nearly forever. And, as the bumper sticker says, “Growing Tomatoes Is Cheaper than Therapy — and You Get Tomatoes!”
I’m hoping you can provide me some help. I have three of these antique cast iron brackets. I would like to use them but would need to have a fourth. Can you shed any light on where to find a match?
Charles
Dear Charles,
Your Victorian-era shelf brackets look to be in great condition. The design is sweet! Finding a match could be tough but you might get lucky.
I think there are several ways to search. Today with the internet right at our fingertips, some difficult finds can be easier. I would start there looking for Victorian-era cast iron brackets. You know the measurements, so look carefully and see if you come up with one or even several.
Next I would look in antique shops, flea markets, thrift stores, etc. The hunt can be fun. It just depends on what you feel comfortable with. All of it could be necessary to find that exact one you are looking for. Good luck in your hunt, and I too will keep my eyes open if you can send me dimensions. Who knows, maybe even a reader has one or another pair.
As far as what you might expect to pay, a single one would be around $10. A pair is tougher to find so expect to pay $30 to $40 depending on size.
I can’t think of a better word than feral to describe my daughter’s love for the outdoors, so for now, I’m going with that.
We’ve raised Little Bean to be as unafraid of the traditional challenges of nature as possible. Mud. Wind. Snow. Dirt under the fingernails. All fair game.
The constraint of goal-setting when on the trail can often stifle exploration. The mountaintop will always be there, but hey, look at that cool rock! That sort of thing.
There’s a whole line of child psychology, in fact, that studies a developing field called Risky Play. Remember when you were a kid and you spent basically the whole day outside, unsupervised, doing things that adults today would be horrified to learn you were doing? Well, folks like Mariana Brussoni, a professor at the University of British Columbia, remembers. She says it was good for you, and a little of that today would also be good for kids.
The Head’s Pond Rail Trail runs along a 1.7-mile section of the famous Portsmouth and Concord Railroad line. Between 1847 and 1861 the line connected New Hampshire’s Seacoast to Concord. Photos by Dan Szczesny.
Risky Play done in the context of a relatively safe space is “really a fundamental way for them to figure out the world — how the world works, how their body works,” she says.
This was on my mind recently during a hike with Little Bean along the Head’s Pond Trail in Hooksett. This amazing little jewel of a rail trail sits right off Route 3 and is built along a 1.7-mile section of the old Portsmouth and Concord Railroad line, which dates back to 1847. Back then, it connected the coast to the capital and ran right through Hooksett. Today, it’s a super fun family hike during any season. Flat. Wooded. Water and rocks all over.
We love this trail, in part because it’s the home of Sheep Rock, a huge glacier erratic that looks like a sheep head, and a rock that we included in our Field Guide NH Rocks That Rock. On this trip, we were thrilled to have a crew from New Hampshire Public Radio accompany us to the rock.
All that was great. Except for the ice. And except for the fact that my daughter wanted badly to engage in Risky Play, the one thing we taught her to do and the one thing I wished, just this once, she wouldn’t!
How would this group of professionals with microphones and an itinerary react to my daughter taking great running head starts and sliding on the ice on her knees, screaming at the top of her lungs? How would they react to her being distracted by a cool branch or an icicle in the middle of asking her a question about rocks?
Well, pretty well, it turns out.
To their credit, the crew took their cues from Little Bean, letting her lead in her own way, letting her be a little crazy because sometimes crazy just means joyful and joyful is OK.
Push too hard and you’ll lose them. Keep them boxed up and they won’t come back. Let them be in a little bit of controlled danger to find their own footing.
There’s a more universal lesson here as well about the power of creating your own story, of building memory and self-worth. There’s lots of places to do this, but hiking with kids, I’ve found, lends itself best to forging bonds, building a history and boosting confidence.
But you need to be patient. And you need to exist in the same space as your kid, not the other way around.
We reached our destination that day, and by the time Little Bean sat atop that rock shaped like a sheep, her knees were filthy, her hair was a tangled web and she had bruises on both elbows. In other words, it was a good hike, and more importantly, it was her hike.
Featured photo: The author’s daughter sits atop Sheep Rock, just off the Head’s Pond Rail Trail in Hooksett. Sheep Rock is listed in the NH Rocks That Rock 25 field guide, a collection of the state’s most famous and historic rocks and boulders. Courtesy photo.
The latest from NH’s theater, arts and literary communities
• Printmaking exhibition: Catch Two Villages Art Society’s exhibition “For the Love of Impression” at the Bates Building (846 Main St., Contoocook) before it’s gone on Saturday, March 5. The exhibition features eight local artists who are members of the group New Hampshire Printmakers. Their work utilizes traditional techniques and materials, combined with contemporary aesthetics, new materials and new technology. “Printmaking is a time-honored artistic process in which images are transferred from a wooden, metal or glass matrix onto another surface, such as paper or fabric,” Two Villages Art Society president Alyssa McKeon said in a press release. All pieces are for sale. Gallery hours are Thursday through Saturday, from noon to 4 p.m. Visit twovillagesart.org or call 413-210-4372.
• Auditions for Macbeth: Manchester-based Cue Zero Theatre Co. is looking for actors for its June production, an original female-driven interpretation of William Shakespeare’s Macbeth by Cue Zero’s artistic director Dan Pelletier. “It can be argued that all of the important action of the play is motivated by the ambitions and desires of Lady Macbeth,” Pelletier said in a press release, “and I want to lean into that; make her the central focus and maybe even the cause of every plot point.” Auditions will be held on Sunday, March 13, from 3 to 6 p.m., and Tuesday, March 15, from 6 to 9 p.m., with callbacks, if needed, on Thursday, March 17, from 6 to 9 p.m., and will take place in person at Granite State Arts Academy (19 Keewaydin Drive, No. 4, Salem). Performers should sign up for a timeslot in advance on the Cue Zero website and prepare two contrasting Shakespearean monologues totaling no more than four minutes combined. Actors will rehearse three days a week between Sunday and Thursday based on their availability. The performance is planned for Friday, June 17, through Sunday, June 19, at the Derry Opera House. Visit cztheatre.com or email cztheatre@gmail.com.
Nature textiles The New Hampshire Art Association presents an exhibition “Stitched Together – Elements of Nature from Textile Fragments,” featuring the work of Cheryl Miller, at the Greater Concord Chamber of Commerce Visitor Center (49 S. Main St., Concord) now through April 15. Miller, a textile artist, creates fabric collages using hand dyed cottons, batik and machine-stitched vintage fabrics. The exhibit includes a series of her textile collages inspired by the colors in nature. “The compositions are mostly abstract but also incorporate some elements of landscape, trees or leaves,” she said in a press release. “The idea of these pieces is to evoke a mood through the use of color and focus on small details in nature.” Gallery hours at the Chamber are Monday through Friday from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. All works are for sale. Visit nhartassociation.org or call 431-4230.
• High standards: The League of New Hampshire Craftsmen’s triennial exhibit “Setting the Standard” is on view now through March 31 at its headquarters gallery (49 S. Main St., No. 100, Concord). The exhibit features new works by 45 League jurors, master craftsmen who volunteer to work with League hopefuls and review their work to uphold the League’s standard of artistic excellence. A variety of media is represented, including wood, textile, clay and metal. “These works … will reflect the spirit of the maker,” League executive director Miriam Carter said in a press release. “Given the difficulties faced during the past several months, the work of our members takes on an almost indomitable nature, mixing the strength and resilience of the artists with the vulnerability that we have all experienced,” Gallery hours are Tuesday through Thursday from noon to 4 p.m. Pieces are for sale and can be picked up when the exhibit closes. Visit nhcrafts.org or call 224-3375.
Ancient World photographs The Currier Museum of Art (150 Ash St., Manchester) presents an exhibition, “Appeal of the Real: 19th Century Photographs of the Ancient World,” now through June 12. It features photographs of the ruins of ancient Egypt, Greece and Rome, taken prior to when tourists could take their own photographs, often at the request of wealthy European and American tourists. Museum admission costs $15 for adults, $13 for seniors age 65 and up, $10 for students, $5 for youth ages 13 through 17, and is free for children under age 13 and museum members. Current museum hours are Thursday, from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m.; Friday through Sunday, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., closed Monday through Wednesday. Call 669-6144 or visit currier.org.
• Little Women on stage: The Franklin Footlight Theatre presents a production of Little Women at the Franklin Opera House (316 Central St., Franklin) with showtimes Thursday, March 10, through Saturday, March 12, at 7:30 p.m., and Sunday, March 13, at 2 p.m. Based on Louisa May Alcott’s classic 1869 novel, the play follows the adventures of four sisters living with their mother in Massachusetts while their father is fighting in the Civil War. Tickets cost $16 for adults and $14 for students and seniors. Visit franklinoperahouse.org or call 934-1901.
• Political comedy: Theater company Bedford off Broadway presents The Senator Wore Pantyhose at the Bedford Old Town Hall (70 Bedford Center Road, Bedford) from March 4 through March 13, with showtimes on Friday and Saturday at 8 p.m., and Sunday at 2 p.m. The comedy by Billy Van Zandt and Jane Milmore centers on a failing presidential campaign where the candidate’s unwavering integrity and honesty are set against a sleazy campaign manager who will do whatever it takes to win votes. Tickets cost $15 for general admission and $12 for seniors and students. See “Bedford off Broadway” on Facebook.
Poetic movement ANIKAYA Dance Theater will perform Conference of the Birds at the Stockbridge Theatre (Pinkerton Academy, 5 Pinkerton St., Derry) on Tuesday, March 8, at 7 p.m. The multimedia movement theater work, created by a team of artists from 10 different countries, tells modern-day stories of migration through the lens of the Persian epic poem of the same name by Farid Ud din Attar. Tickets range from $5 to $30. Call 437-5210 or visit stockbridgetheatre.com.
ART
Exhibits
• “FOR THE LOVE OF IMPRESSION” Art exhibition features prints that were created using traditional techniques and materials, combined with contemporary aesthetics, new materials, and technology by eight local artists, all of whom are members of the artist group New Hampshire Printmakers. Bates Building (846 Main St., Contoocook). On view now through March 5. All of the pieces in the exhibition are for sale. Current gallery hours are Thursday through Sunday, from noon to 4 p.m. Visit twovillagesart.org or call 413-210-4372.
•“CONNECTING THREADS” New Hampshire Art Association fiber art invitational exhibition features hand-dyed fabrics, Japanese weaving, fine art quilting, embroidery and felting by New England fiber artists. NHAA’s Robert Lincoln Levy Gallery, 136 State St., Portsmouth. On view now through March 27. Opening reception at the gallery on Fri., March 4, from 5 to 8 p.m. Gallery hours are Tuesday through Thursday, from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Friday and Saturday, from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m.; and Sunday, from noon to 5 p.m. Visit nhartassociation.org or call 431-4230.
• “AWAKENING” New Hampshire Art Association exhibition features members’ works inspired by the natural or inner world. NHAA’s Robert Lincoln Levy Gallery, 136 State St., Portsmouth. On view now through March 27. Opening reception at the gallery on Fri., March 4, from 5 to 8 p.m. Gallery hours are Tuesday through Thursday, from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Friday and Saturday, from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m.; and Sunday, from noon to 5 p.m. Visit nhartassociation.org or call 431-4230.
• “SETTING THE STANDARD” exhibition features new work from League jurors in all media areas. League of New Hampshire Craftsmen headquarters, 49 S. Main St., #100, Concord. On view now through March 31. Regular exhibition hours are Tuesday through Thursday, noon to 4 p.m. Visit nhcrafts.org.
• “STITCHED TOGETHER – ELEMENTS OF NATURE FROM TEXTILE FRAGMENTS” New Hampshire Art Association exhibition features the textile collages of Cheryl Miller, inspired by the colors in nature. On view now through April 15. Greater Concord Chamber of Commerce Visitors Center. Gallery hours are Monday through Friday, from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. All work is for sale. Visit nhartassociation.org or call 431-4230.
• “APPEAL OF THE REAL: 19TH CENTURY PHOTOGRAPHS OF THE ANCIENT WORLD” exhibition features photographs taken throughout the Mediterranean to record the ruins of ancient Egypt, Greece and Rome. The Currier Museum of Art (150 Ash St., Manchester). On view now through June 12. Museum admission costs $15 for adults, $13 for seniors age 65 and up, $10 for students, $5 for youth ages 13 through 17 and is free for children under age 13 and museum members. Current museum hours are Thursday, from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m.; Friday through Sunday, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., closed Monday through Wednesday. Call 669-6144 or visit currier.org.
• “WARHOL SCREEN TESTS” exhibition features 20 films from Andy Warhol’s silent black and white Screen Tests, shown in loops across four largescale projections. The Currier Museum of Art (150 Ash St., Manchester). On view March 31 through July 3. Museum admission costs $15 for adults, $13 for seniors age 65 and up, $10 for students, $5 for youth ages 13 through 17 and is free for children under age 13 and museum members. Current museum hours are Thursday, from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m.; Friday through Sunday, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., closed Monday through Wednesday. Call 669-6144 or visit currier.org.
• “ARGHAVAN KHOSRAVI” Artist’s surrealist paintings explore themes of exile, freedom and empowerment; center female protagonists; and allude to human rights issues, particularly those affecting women and immigrants. The Currier Museum of Art (150 Ash St., Manchester). On view April 14 through Sept. 5. Museum admission costs $15 for adults, $13 for seniors age 65 and up, $10 for students, $5 for youth ages 13 through 17 and is free for children under age 13 and museum members. Current museum hours are Thursday, from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m.; Friday through Sunday, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., closed Monday through Wednesday. Call 669-6144 or visit currier.org.
• “ECHOES: ABSTRACT PAINTING TO MODERN QUILTING” exhibition features abstract paintings inspired by the bold colors, asymmetry, improvisational layout, alternate grid work and negative space in composition of modern quilting. Two Villages Art Society (46 Main St., Contoocook). April 22 through May 14. Visit twovillagesart.org.
“NATURE AT NIGHT: PAINTINGS BY OWEN KRZYZANIAK GEARY” Two Villages Art Society (46 Main St., Contoocook). May 27 through June 18. Visit twovillagesart.org.
• “NEW HAMPSHIRE NOW” A collaborative photography project presented by the New Hampshire Historical Society and the New Hampshire Society of Photographic Artists, on display in eight exhibitions at museums and historical societies across the state. Nearly 50 photographers participated in the project, taking more than 5,000 photos of New Hampshire people, places, culture and events from 2018 to 2020 to create a 21st-century portrait of life in the Granite State. Exhibition locations include Belknap Mill Society in Laconia; Colby-Sawyer College in New London; Portsmouth Historical Society; Historical Society of Cheshire County in Keene; the Manchester Historic Association; Museum of the White Mountains at Plymouth State University; and the Tillotson Center in Colebrook; with the flagship exhibition at the New Hampshire Historical Society in Concord. Visit newhampshirenow.org and nhhistory.org.
• ART ON MAIN The City of Concord and the Greater Concord Chamber of Commerce present a year-round outdoor public art exhibition in Concord’s downtown featuring works by professional sculptors. All sculptures will be for sale. Visit concordnhchamber.com/creativeconcord, call 224-2508 or email tsink@concordnhchamber.com.
Tours
• NASHUA PUBLIC ART AUDIO TOUR Self-guided audio tours of the sculptures and murals in downtown Nashua, offered via the Distrx app, which uses Bluetooth iBeacon technology to automatically display photos and text and provides audio descriptions at each stop on the tour as tourists approach the works of art. Each tour has 10 to 15 stops. Free and accessible on Android and iOS on demand. Available in English and Spanish. Visit downtownnashua.org/nashua-art-tour.
Workshops and classes
• WINTER ART CLASSES Art classes for teens and adults, including Pottery, Stained Glass, Intermediate Watercolor and Clay Hand Building. Studio 550 Art Center (550 Elm St., Manchester). Five-week sessions. Classes met for two hours a week. Call 232-5597 or visit 550arts.com for the full schedule and cost details.
• DRAWING & PAINTING CLASSES Art House Studios, 66 Hanover St., Suite 202, Manchester. Classes include Drawing Fundamentals, Painting in Acrylic, Drawing: Observation to Abstraction, Exploring Mixed Media, and Figure Drawing. Class sizes are limited to six students. Visit arthousestudios.org.
• GENERAL ART CLASSES Weekly art classes are offered for both kids and adults of all skill levels and cover a variety of two-dimensional media, including drawing and painting with pastel, acrylic, watercolor and oils. Classes are held with small groups of three to eight to five students. Diane Crespo Fine Art Gallery (32 Hanover St., Manchester). Kids classes, open to kids ages 10 and up, are held on Thursdays and Fridays, from 4:15 to 5:45 p.m. Adult classes are held on Thursdays, from 6:30 to 8:15 p.m., and on Saturdays from 10:30 a.m. to 12:15 p.m. Tuition is pay-as-you-go at $20 per student per class and is due upon arrival. Call 493-1677 or visit dianecrespofineart.com for availability.
THEATER
Auditions
• THE BALD SOPRANO The Community Players of Concord holds open auditions for its June production of The Bald Soprano. Mon., March 21, 7 p.m., Players’ Studio, 435 Josiah Bartlett Road, Concord. Visit communityplayersofconcord.org/auditions.
Shows
• LIFESPAN OF A FACT Produced by Lend Me a Theater. The Hatbox Theatre (Steeplegate Mall, 270 Loudon Road, Concord). Now through March 6. Showtimes are on Friday and Saturday at 7:30 p.m., and Sunday at 2 p.m. Tickets cost $22 for adults, $19 for students, seniors and members and $16 for senior members. Visit hatboxnh.com.
• DEADLY Cue Zero Theatre Co. presents an original movement-based theater piece by Crystal Rose Welch. Granite State Arts Academy (19 Keewaydin Drive, No. 4, Salem). Fri., March 4, through Sun., March 6. Visit cztheatre.com.
• THE SENATOR WORE PANTYHOSEBedford off Broadway presents. March 4 through March 13, with showtimes on Friday and Saturday at 8 p.m., and Sunday at 2 p.m. Tickets cost $15 for general admission and $12 for seniors and students.
• CONFERENCE OF THE BIRDS Multimedia movement theater work inspired by the epic poem of Farid Ud din Attar embodying modern-day stories of migration. Tues., March 8, 7 p.m. Stockbridge Theatre at Pinkerton Academy, 5 Pinkerton St., Derry. Tickets range from $5 to $30. Call 437-5210 or visit stockbridgetheatre.com.
• LITTLE WOMEN The Franklin Footlight Theatre presents. Franklin Opera House (316 Central St., Franklin). Thurs., March 10, through Sat., March 12, 7:30 p.m.; and Sun., March 13, 2 p.m. Tickets cost $16 for adults and $14 for students and seniors. Visit franklinoperahouse.org or call 934-1901.
• BYE BYE BIRDIE Mainstage production by The Palace Theatre. 80 Hanover St., Manchester. March 11 through April 3. Tickets range from $25 to $46. Visit palacetheatre.org or call 668-5588.
• CHICKEN LITTLE presented by Upside Arts. The Players’ Ring Theatre (105 Marcy St., Portsmouth). March 12 through March 20, with showtimes on Saturday and Sunday at 10 a.m. Tickets cost $18 for adults and $15 for kids under age 12. Visit playersring.org or call 436-8123.
• PIPPIN The Pinkerton Players present. Fri., March 25, and Sat., March 26, at 7 p.m., and Sun., March 27, at 2 p.m. Stockbridge Theatre at Pinkerton Academy, 5 Pinkerton St., Derry. Tickets cost $15 for adults and $10 for seniors and students. Call 437-5210 or visit stockbridgetheatre.com.
• PUFFS! OR SEVEN INCREASINGLY EVENTFUL YEARS AT A CERTAIN SCHOOL OF MAGIC AND MAGIC Cue Zero Theatre Co. presents. Granite State Arts Academy (19 Keewaydin Drive, No. 4, Salem). Fri., April 29, through Sun., May 1. Visit cztheatre.com.
• MUSICAL MOM Produced by the Community Players of Concord. The Hatbox Theatre (Steeplegate Mall, 270 Loudon Road, Concord). May 5 through May 15. Showtimes are on Friday and Saturday at 7:30 p.m., and Sunday at 2 p.m. Tickets cost $25 for adults, $22 for students, seniors and members and $19 for senior members. Visit hatboxnh.com.
• LAST GAS Produced by the Community Players of Concord. Concord City Auditorium, 2 Prince St., Concord. Fri., May 6, through Sun., May 8. Tickets cost $18 for adults, $16 for youth ages 17 and under, $16 for seniors age 65 and up. Visit communityplayersofconcord.org.
• THE BALD SOPRANO Produced by the Community Players of Concord. The Hatbox Theatre (Steeplegate Mall, 270 Loudon Road, Concord). June 17 through June 26. Showtimes are on Friday and Saturday at 7:30 p.m., and Sunday at 2 p.m. Tickets cost $22 for adults, $19 for students, seniors and members and $16 for senior members. Visit hatboxnh.com.
Classical
• WINTER MAINSTAGE CONCERT The Portsmouth Symphony Orchestra performs. The Music Hall Historic Theater, 28 Chestnut St., Portsmouth. Sun., March 13, 3 p.m. Tickets cost $25 to $35 for adults, $20 for students and $25 to $30 for seniors age 60 and up. Call 436-2400 or visit themusichall.org.
• DRAWN TO THE MUSIC 2022 – STORIES IN MUSIC The New Hampshire Philharmonic Orchestra performs. Seifert Performing Arts Center, 44 Geremonty Drive, Salem. Sat., April 9, 2 p.m., and Sun., April 10, 2 p.m. Visit nhphil.org.
Seven actors, seven sins — that’s the idea behind Deadly, the newest all-original production from Cue Zero Theatre Company.
“It’s an original movement piece that takes the classical deadly sins and kind of examines them through a more modern lens, with an interesting twist [that makes them more] accessible and relatable,” Cue Zero founder Dan Pelletier said.
The production was written and is directed by Merrimack native Crystal Rose Welch, and it’s set entirely to music, with no spoken words.
“I think we assume that verbal language is the most important thing [but] people can communicate in other ways,” she said. “I wanted to create theater that felt accessible when words aren’t accessible, for when the feelings are too big.”
Welch said movement theater is a relatively new and misunderstood form; most people think it’s like dance, but it’s not.
“You are crawling and dragging and basically embodying the emotions,” Welch said.
Welch came up with the idea for the play back in 2016, when she was still in college.
“It’s changed and evolved a lot. There’s a whole different soundtrack because copyright is awful,” she laughed.
The way that the seven deadly sins are expressed is pretty different from her original idea too; it began as a production about one person experiencing all of the sins, Welch said.
“I think having just more experience in life and the world [helped it evolve]; since I came up with it I have graduated college, I’ve fallen in love and gotten married … we’ve been through a pandemic,” she said. “[I’ve realized] no one person is experiencing all of the ‘sins,’ and there is no ‘sin’ — that’s just a dirty word to make you feel guilty.”
The way the “sins” are portrayed, then, is designed not to show the “bad” sides of people, but to show the struggles that all humans go through.
Pelletier, for example, is sloth.
”We look at it kind of through the lens of depression, so my character … ends up coming off looking lazy and slothful but you see it’s because of how beat down and exhausted [he] becomes from the challenges of life,” Pelletier said. “The depression to the outside observer looks like sloth but it’s due to this serious mental illness.”
Gluttony is portrayed through alcoholism, and technology plays a big role in lust. But the emotions behind people’s behaviors is the real message.
“Fear [for example] is something we all feel in different ways,” Welch said. “We have a song about what it is like to live with social anxiety, so someone comes to ask for directions [and the character] is freaking out. I wanted to use movement to show a modern version of something that is actually deadly, something that divides us and keeps us away from community and keeps us from feeling our best.”
Pelletier said the soundtrack of modern music adds to the show’s emotional vibe and helps make it “a very exciting, very high-energy piece.” And relying on movement rather than spoken word allows plenty of room for the audience to have their own feelings.
“It tells a story, but we leave some things where people can interpret them in their own way,” he said.
And that’s exactly what Welch is going for.
“I want to help people process emotions and open doors for conversation — this, this is what I feel. That’s how I feel when I’m scrolling through the news and I’m just getting more and more depressed,” she said.
Despite the intense emotions, though, Welch said the production is not doom and gloom.
“I want people to be open to feeling things and not be afraid that this show is going to wreck them for the night,” she said. “You shouldn’t leave this feeling worse. If people are looking for some hope, this show can provide it.”
Deadly Where: Granite State Arts Academy, 19 Keewaydin Drive No. 4, Salem When: Friday, March 4, and Saturday, March 5, at 7:30 p.m., and Sunday, March 6, at 2 p.m. Cost: $15, for in-person or livestream More info: cztheatre.com
Local musicians unite to honor the spirit of the Green Martini, a Concord nightlife spot that burned down about 10 years ago, tonight at 8 p.m. at the Bank of NH Stage (16 S. Main St. in Concord; ccanh.com). Tickets cost $15 for general admission (plus fees). The line-up for the evening is slated to include more than a dozen musicians. Michael Witthaus spoke to the Green Martini’s former owners about the show and the bar in last week’s Hippo. Find the e-edition at hippopress.com and go to page 41.
Friday, March 4
Bedford Off Broadway will kick off its two-week presentation of The Senator Wore Pantyhose, a comedy by Billy Van Zandt and Jane Milmore, tonight at 8 p.m. Tickets cost $15 general admission, $12 for seniors or students. The show will also run Saturday, March 5; Friday, March 11, and Saturday, March 12, at 8 p.m. And Sundays, March 6 and March 13, at 2 p.m.
Friday, March 4
Another comedy hitting a local stage: The Philadelphia Story presented by the Milford Area Players at the Amato Center (56 Mont Vernon St. in Milford). See the show tonight and Saturday, March 5, (and next Friday, March 11, and Saturday, March 12) at 8 p.m. and Sundays, March 6 and March 13, at 2 p.m. Tickets cost $15 for adults, $10 for seniors and students. See milfordareaplayers.org.
Saturday, March 5
See Dyer Holiday play at Liquid Therapy (14 Court St. in Nashua; liquidtherapynh.com) tonight at 6 p.m. Find more live music at area bars and restaurants in our Music This Week listing on page 35.
Saturday, March 5
Steve Sweeney is the featured comedian at tonight’s Tupelo Night of Comedy, which starts at 8 p.m. At Tupelo Music Hall (10 A St. in Derry; 437-5100, tupelomusichall.com). Tickets cost $25. Find more comedy happening this weekend in the Comedy This Week listing on page 34.
Sunday, March 6
Enjoy an evening with Dolly Parton and James Patterson, who co-authored the new book Run Rose Run, tonight at 7:30 p.m. via Gibson’s Bookstore. The virtual event precedes the March 7 release of the book; a new Dolly Parton album of the same name is slated for release Friday, March 4. Access to the event starts at $30 (plus fees) and includes a copy of the book. See gibsonsbookstore.com. The Bookery in Manchester is also selling tickets to the event; see bookerymht.com.
Save the date: March 11
Tickets are on sale now for the Palace Theatre’s (80 Hanover St. in Manchester; palacetheatre.org, 668-5588) next big show: Bye Bye Birdie, which starts Friday, March 11. The musical, which features such classics as “A Lot of Livin’ to Do” and “Put on a Happy Face,” features an Elvis-ish rock star headed to the Army and the publicity stunt that has him give “One Last Kiss” to an everygirl fan. The production runs through Sunday, April 3, with shows Fridays and Saturdays at 7:30 p.m., Saturdays at 2 p.m. and Sunday at noon. Tickets for adults cost $39 and $46.
