In Lewiston, hear works by Black classical composers

LEWISTON — Palaver Strings, a Portland-based 12-piece string orchestra, returns to the Oasis of Music at 12:30 p.m. Wednesday, March 11, to offer “The Apple of Their Eyes,” an exploration of the African American experience in classical music through the eyes of Black composers.

According to organizers, it begins with the “blues” movement of Ravel’s Violin Sonata No. 2, arranged for string orchestra and solo violin, and continues with Julia Perry’s “Prelude for Piano,” a “nuanced, neoclassic gem full of anticipation and reflection.” At the heart of the program is Edmund Thornton Jenkins’ “Romance and Reverie Phantasy for Violin and String Orchestra,” restored, edited, and arranged by Tuffus Zimbabwe. It concludes with the works of Adolphus Hailstork and William Grant Still, “linked by themes of spirituality, meditation and familial bonds,” say organizers.

The Oasis of Music is held at Trinity Commons, 247 Bates St. Admission is free, with donations accepted. Email Greg Boardman for more information at [email protected]

Learn how to raise an ecological garden in Paris

PARIS — On Wednesday, March 11, from 3:30-5 p.m. Jennifer Cappello-Ruggiero, a University of Maine Cooperative Extension horticulture professional, will present a flower-filled exploration of ecological gardening at McLaughlin Garden and Homestead.

Ecological gardening is the practice of working with nature to create aesthetically pleasing, environmentally sustainable spaces that support biodiversity. In this lecture Cappello-Ruggiero will teach how to start and maintain a biodiverse garden.

The lecture is one of several being held each Wednesday in March at at the garden at 97 Main St.

On March 18, Maine Master Naturalist Jana Magnusson will speak about frogs. On March 25, Shawn Jalbert, owner of Native Haunts Plant Nursery and Consulting, will discuss native ferns and explore the critical role they play in the local environment.

The Winter Lecture Series is free, with donations encouraged. Tea and snacks are served at 3:30 p.m. before the presentation at 4 p.m. Register for the Zoom presentation at tinyurl.com/McLaughlinLecture.

For more information, visit the McLaughlin Garden website at mclaughlingarden.org or call 207-743-8820.

Hear the stories of powerful African American women in Farmington

FARMINGTON — ArtsFarmington will host “Ain’t I a Woman!” on Wednesday, March 11, at 7 p.m. in the Emery Community Arts Center at the University of Maine in Farmington.

The presentation is a celebration of the life and times of four powerful African American women, according to organizers. They are renowned novelist and anthropologist Zora Neale Hurston, ex-slave and fiery abolitionist Sojourner Truth, exuberant folk artist Clementine Hunter and fervent civil rights worker Fannie Lou Hamer.

“The musical score is drawn from the heartfelt spirituals and blues of the deep South, the urban vitality of the Jazz Age, and contemporary concert music by African Americans. ‘Ain’t I a Woman!’ is a joyful exploration of the trials and triumphs of four passionate and accomplished women,” say organizers. 

The production is presented by The Core Ensemble, featuring Mikael Darmanie on piano with Tiffany Terrell playing all four of the women.

A discussion will follow the performance and includes issues the nation is currently facing.

Suggested adult ticket price is $20, more if you can, less if you can’t; all welcome, no one turned away, according to organizers. UMF students may attend for free, as well as anyone 18 years old or younger.

Tickets are available at the door or at artsfarmington.org.

The Emery Community Arts Center is at 16 Main St.

See the world through Franco artists’ eyes in Lewiston

LEWISTON — The Franco-American Collection at the University of Southern Maine will hold the opening reception of the exhibit “Through Our Eyes: Franco Artists Looking at the World” from 6-7:30 p.m. Thursday, March 12.

The free public exhibit is in the Atrium Gallery, 51 Westminster St. Learn more at usm.maine.edu/calendar-of-events/. The exhibit will be on view through the beginning of May.

The exhibit will feature the works of working Franco artists Joyce Coyne, Jeanelle Demers, Mercedes Gastonguay, Sean Hasey, Anita Poulin and Linda Clavette Quigley, as well as Franco artists of the past, including the works of Raoul Nadeau, exhibited by his grandchildren Jane Martin and Michael Gagnon.

Following a reception with refreshments, artists will speak about their creative process and how their Franco identity shapes their art.

For more information or to register to attend this exhibit, contact Franco-American Collection archivist Anna Faherty at [email protected] or by phone at 207-753-6545.

Enjoy some four-handed piano in Farmington

FARMINGTON — ArtsFarmington will present a concert by Steve Pane and Yuri Funahashi featuring both solo and four-handed piano music Sunday, March 15, at 3 p.m. in Nordica Auditorium at the University of Maine at Farmington.

The concert will be a preview of their upcoming performances at the music conservatories in Pescara and Venice, Italy. The concert brings together an eclectic range of composers whose works reflect connections between Maine and Italy.

Formed in 1990, the Pane-Funahashi Piano Duo has performed at major venues and academic institutions, including the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C., Weill Hall at Carnegie Hall, the Saratoga Performing Arts Center and numerous colleges and universities.

The suggested adult ticket is $20, more if you can, less if you can’t; all are welcome, no one will be turned away. It is free for all UMF students and area youth 18 years old and younger.

Tickets are available online at artsfarmington.org or at the door.

Nordica Auditorium is at 246 Main St.

Catch the ‘Moon Over Buffalo’ in Monmouth

MONMOUTH — The Monmouth Community Players will present Ken Ludwig’s “Moon Over Buffalo” from March 13-22 at historic Cumston Hall.

In the madcap comedy tradition of “Lend Me a Tenor,” “Moon Over Buffalo” centers on George and Charlotte Hay, fading stars of the 1950s, who, on the brink of a disastrous split-up, receive word they might just have one last shot at stardom.

Unfortunately for George and Charlotte, everything that could go wrong does go wrong, abetted by a visit from their daughter’s clueless fiancé and hilarious uncertainty about which play they’re actually performing, caused by Charlotte’s deaf, old stage manager-mother who hates every bone in George’s body.

For more information, dates, showtimes, tickets and more, visit monmouthcommunityplayers.org, email the box office at [email protected] or call 207-370-9566.

Cumston Hall is at 796 Main St.

City Planners to staff Johnson Hall stage in Gardiner

GARDINER — Johnson Hall’s Homegrown Series will feature City Planners, a five-piece, female-fronted indie band based in Portland, on Saturday, March 14, starting at 7:30 p.m.

According to organizers, City Planners fuses a post-punk attack with synth-pop melodies, playing “upbeat, guitar-driven songs drenched in reverb and anchored by catchy hooks and raw energy.”

Since forming, the group has played a host of popular New England venues, along with regional festivals. They’ve also been featured on local radio stations 90.1 WMPG and 98.9 WCLZ, and Boston’s 92.5 The River WXRV.

The show’s opening act is by Maine’s own Louisa Stancioff and her band. “Backed by her talented bandmates, her intelligent and soulful writing pairs with a confident and catchy indie sound drawing on folk, rock, pop, and her own Balkan heritage,” say organizers.

For tickets and more information, go to johnsonhall.org

Johnson Hall Opera House is at 280 Water St.

Decorate flower pots for spring in Lewiston

LEWISTON ?— On Saturday, March 14, from 11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. families with children ages 14 and younger will be able to decorate a flowerpot using acrylic paint pens at the Lewiston Public Library.

After decorating their pots, participants will be able to fill the flowerpots with soil and plant ranunculus flower bulbs.

All materials will be provided. There will be one flowerpot per family. Siblings are also welcome to attend and participate.

This program will take place in the Children’s Department on the third floor of the library. The activity is free and there is no registration required, but supplies are limited. First come, first served.

More information is available by contacting the Lewiston Public Library at 513-3133 or [email protected].

The library is at 200 Lisbon St.

Looking for St. Patrick’s Day events?

Here are three happening locally that raise a glass to the celebration next week. Look for more in a special St. Patrick’s Day listing coming soon in the Sun Journal and here.

■ Boxty, Boston’s premier Irish folk band, will be at the Chocolate Church Art Center at 804 Washington St. in Bath on Friday, March 13, starting at 7:30 p.m. FMI: www.chocolatechurcharts.org

■ Donnybrook Farm, a Maine-based band that plays a mix of Irish traditional, folk, punk and original music, will be at the Franco Center at 46 Cedar St. in Lewiston on Tuesday, March 17, at 7 p.m. FMI: francocenter.org

■ Paper strip shamrock take-and-make kits will be available at the Auburn Public Library on Tuesday, March 17, from 1-4 p.m. giving those ages 12-18 a chance to try paper quilling: the art of folding and bending paper into beautiful shapes. The beginner-friendly kits are available on a first come, first served basis and are limited to one per person at the reference desk. The library is at 49 Spring St. Call 207-333-6640 for more information.

Have an event you’d like to get in? Email details to [email protected] to be considered for inclusion in the weekly listing. And add your event to the Sun Journal calendar here: www.sunjournal.com/events-calendar/