Go to church … for some zydeco or a variety show
BATH — The Chocolate Church Arts Center will present a weekend of music, magic, comedy and celebration with two unrelated performances this weekend.
On Friday, May 23, at 7:30 p.m. the Squeezebox Stompers will kick off the weekend with their infectious rhythms. Boston’s beloved American Roots band, with over 25 years of crowd-pleasing performances under their belt, will present their high-energy ensemble blending Cajun, zydeco, blues and folk.
Then on Saturday, May 24, at 7:30 p.m. the Burst & Bloom Variety Show will bring an evening of nonstop entertainment, featuring a powerhouse lineup of performers including: Tiger Saw: soulful, heart-stirring musical magic; Danny Jordan: hilarious comedy that will leave you breathless with laughter; Joel the Wizard: mind-bending illusions and world-class magic; and Dylan Fuller: thrilling circus feats and dazzling stage presence.
For tickets and info: chocolatechurcharts.org/events.
Stroll the season’s first Art Walk LA
LEWISTON — The flowers are in bloom and art is blossoming in downtown Lewiston once again. On Friday, May 30, 5-8 p.m., LA Arts will present the first of five Art Walk LA events for the 2025 season. The public is invited out to lower Lisbon Street for this free event, which celebrates the arts in our community and helps support local businesses.
Art Walk LA turns Lewiston’s downtown into a bustling arts district on the final Friday of each month from May through September. Outdoor plazas, sidewalks, local businesses and storefronts are converted into lively art galleries, creative exhibitions, reception venues and festive live performance spaces.
Featuring both indoor and outdoor activities for kids and adults, the Art Walk LA series brings artists, craftspeople, musicians, buskers and other performers together to showcase their talents in a safe, family-friendly environment.
Featured artists and performers Friday include: Chicks with Sticks steel drummers in Dufresne Plaza; the art of Jaime Wing, Robert Russell and Jon Petherbridge at Ellard Studios; mixed-media art and decor by Cynthia Jalbert at Quiet City Books; an opening reception for Libby Sipe: Showing Skin at the LA Arts gallery at 168 Lisbon St.; an opening reception at Munka Studios for Freedom in the Equation, an exhibition dedicated to repressed and murdered Ukrainian scientists; a display inside and table outside The Vault of works from participants at YES Art Works, a nonprofit that provides day programs, art studio space and supplies to support adults with disabilities to become working artists; an assortment of offerings from resident artists and guest vendors at Wicked
Illustrations; and more.
For more information: go to www.laarts.org/artwalk.
Celebrate Bob Dylan’s birthday
HALLOWELL — Johnson Hall Opera House will celebrate Bob Dylan’s 84th birthday on Saturday, May 24, starting at 7:30 p.m.
Hallowell Does Dylan will bring together some of Maine’s finest musicians for an unforgettable tribute to a legend. It will be a night of iconic music and local talent. Doors will be open 90 minutes prior. To purchase your ticket visit Visit Gardiner Main Street.
Take in the ‘scent’sational at McLaughlin Lilac Festival
SOUTH PARIS — The sweet smell of spring produced by 125 different varieties of lilacs will be greeting visitors to the McLaughlin Garden and Homestead during its annual Lilac Festival, Friday to Monday, May 23-26, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Enjoy glorious sights and smells while exploring the McLaughlin lilac collection and the rest of the garden on your own, or take a guided Lilac Care garden tour daily at 11 a.m. with the garden’s horticulturist.
There will also be family-friendly activities, a curated selection of native and unique plants for sale and a gift shop.
Admission is $5. McLaughlin Garden and Homestead is at 97 Main St.
Bring your essentials to a community gathering
LEWISTON — Called “a love letter to Maine,” the first Maine Needs Community Walk/Run will take place on Saturday, May 24, in Lewiston and Portland.
The fundraising event is an opportunity to celebrate all that makes Maine a truly special place to live. Open to all abilities, the event encourages participants to gather and walk, run, wheel, push a stroller — whatever works for you — in the spirit of solidarity and supporting others, while raising funds and wearing and donating basic essentials.
Organizers encourage participants to wear some basic essentials to the event: “By wearing your basics (bras, underwear, etc.) on the outside of your clothes, or wearing your highest socks … (participants will) raise funds to help meet the material needs of individuals and families all throughout Maine.”
Each event will also feature a donation drive for some of the summer’s top-needed items. Participants are also encouraged to bring bottles of tick spray, sunblock, deodorant and bars of soap. Registration is open until the day of the event at www.maineneeds.org/walk.
In Lewiston, the event will start at 9 a.m. at Sunnyside Park and follow a 2-mile route. $35 registration, $15 for kids under 18.
Quench your music thirst with Oasis of Music
LEWISTON — The 2024-25 season of The Oasis of Music will conclude Wednesday, May 28, with a performance beginning at 12:30. The Oasis of Music has its home in Trinity Commons, 247 Bates St.
The husband-and-wife duo Katherine Liccardo and Matt Consul will bring a program that dances between traditional and original Celtic tunes, original songs, Brazilian choro, Bach, and more.
Consul plays viola with the Portland Symphony and is a teaching artist for the Symphony’s Explorers Program, which integrates classical music into Portland Public Schools. Liccardo is the associate director of the Vigorous Tenderness concert series and has a full studio of violin and viola students spanning from Maine to Australia. Together, they play with Shelter Music Maine, an organization that brings classical music to homeless shelters and other sheltering environments throughout Maine.
Admission to the Oasis of Music is free, with donations accepted. For more information email [email protected].
Take in some bloomers at the annual Iris Show
AUBURN — Spring will be blooming in all its many colors when the the Maine Iris Society hosts its 44th Median Iris Spring Flower Show on Saturday, May 24, from 1:30 to 4 p.m.
The show will offer a stunning display of colorful iris flowers and spring blooms. The event is cultivated for both the seasoned gardener and those who just love flowers.
It will be held at Auburn Middle School, 38 Falcon Drive. Admission is free and open to the public.
The event will also offer a potted plant sale, and participants will be able to vote for their favorite iris stalk or spring flower.
Have a Bal folk dancing
AUGUSTA — Bal Folk, a fun, social dancing that is popular in Europe, will be taught and led by Marie Wendt at the Unitarian Universalist Community Church of Augusta on Saturday, May 24, 7-9 p.m. No experience or partner are needed.
Wendt is an experienced teacher who loves to introduce people to this kind of dancing. Live music will be provided by Le Bon Truc, a trio who have been playing this music around Maine and beyond for a dozen years.
The church is at 69 Winthrop St. For more information call 207-622-3232. Price is $5.
Have an event you’d like to get in? Email details to [email protected]. (Make sure your information is editable: not embedded in an image or PDF.)
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