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Get your folding chairs and blankets ready – it’s almost time for the increasingly popular Project Arts free summer concert series. The 29th season is scheduled to kick off at Pilgrim Memorial State Park on the waterfront on Wednesday, June 25, from 6:30 to 9 p.m. It’s a Plymouth summer tradition that attracts people from throughout the region.
And if rain is in the forecast, “For some reason, usually it stays north of the North River in Marshfield,” according to Project Arts board member John Sjostedt.
The nonprofit’s board members are volunteers who are tasked with raising funds for the series – something Sjostedt said is a “ginormous feat.” The cost just for paying the musicians comes to – at minimum – $20,000 per season. (There are 10 shows, and the artists are paid $2,000 or more.) Adding to that, Sjostedt said, the organization needs to pay for permits from the state and for detail officers. The money comes from donations, local businesses, raffles, and fees charged food trucks.
“We have great donors,” Sjostedt said. Local businesses often donate gift cards to supplement the prizes from the raffles, giving a little more to raffle ticket buyers.
Sjostedt said the concerts are always “family friendly.”
“It’s no place for anyone who doesn’t want to be there.”
The June 25 opening concert will feature the Pickpockets, a local group that Sjostedt said is a fan favorite, playing classic rock and top 40 songs.
The summer lineup also includes: Larsen, a local singer/songwriter, on July 2; Total Strangers, a local band that performs covers and originals, on July 9; Draw the Line, an Aerosmith cover band, on July 16; Booty Vortex, which plays funk, rock, and dance music, on July 23; Munk Duane, a local singer/songwriter playing top hits, on July 30; Uncle John’s Banjo, a Grateful Dead cover band, on Aug. 6; Third Left/Fey Band, a local band, with a repertoire of rock and classic rock, on Aug. 13; Chicago Total Access, a Chicago cover band, on Aug. 20; and Nineteen89, a Taylor Swift tribute band, on Aug. 27.
Food trucks and catering will include Alden Parked, Plymouth Party, Artisan Pig, Dillon’s Local, and Loco Larry’s Tacos.
For more information, check the Project Arts website (which is still being fine-tuned) or its Facebook page.
Monday, June 9
“Friendship,” a black comedy starring Tim Robinson, Paul Rudd, and Kate Mara, will be screening at the Plimoth Cinema in Plimoth Patuxet Museums, 137 Warren Ave. Neighbors Craig (Robinson) and Austin (Rudd) meet and initially hit it off, but their friendship takes a turn for the worse. “Jane Austen Wrecked My Life,” about an awkward French bookseller who goes on a writers’ retreat, will also continue. Both films are showing through Thursday, June 12. “The Materialist,” a romantic comedy starring Dakota Johnson, Chris Evans, and Pablo Pascal, will start on Friday, June 13. The film follows a matchmaker whose business is complicated when she is caught between the “perfect match and her imperfect ex.” “The Life of Chuck,” starring Tom Hiddleston, is a science-fiction drama based on a novella written by Stephen King, and begins screening Friday, June 13. Film times are 4:30 and 7 p.m., and tickets are $12.50, $11 with a club card, $10 for seniors or members, and $8.50 for seniors with a club card.
The Plymouth Philharmonic Orchestra Golf Tournament tees off at 1 p.m. at Southers Marsh Golf Club. The tournament is a fundraiser to support the orchestra’s mission to inspire, engage, and entertain through music. Included in the ticket price are a boxed lunch, 18 holes of golf with two mulligans, golf carts, putting and hole contests, a 19th hole reception, a goodie bag, a buffet dinner, and fellowship with other patrons of the orchestra. Tickets are $185, and you can get them here.
Tuesday, June 10
“Celebrating Courage, Commitment, and Community,” the Second Annual Plymouth Addiction Response and Improvement Strategies Effort (ARISE) Honoree Award Ceremony will take place from 10:30 am to 12:30 p.m. at the Mayflower Society House, 18 Winslow St. The Plymouth Department of Health and Human Services will honor ARISE grantees that have created innovative approaches to combat opioids in the local community. The grantees – nonprofits and municipal government entities – were selected by an independent review committee to start projects that improve services for people affected by the opioid epidemic in Plymouth. Federal, state, and local dignitaries will attend the ceremony, including leaders and representatives from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, U.S. senators Warren and Markey’s offices, U.S. Congressman Keating’s office, the Massachusetts State Senate and House of Representatives, the Massachusetts Attorney General’s Office, and the Massachusetts Department of Public Health.
Thursday, June 12
Peter Zheutlin will give an illustrated book talk at Book Love, 7 Village Green South in the Pinehills, from 6 to 7:30 p.m. Zheutlin – who is a Plymouth Independent columnist – has written two books, one fiction and one nonfiction, about his grandaunt, Annie Londonderry, who made a bicycle trip around the world from 1894 to 1895. She was the first woman to do so – a Jewish mother from the West End of Boston who left her husband and three small children for 15 months to make the trip. The books are titled “Spin” and “Around the World on Two Wheels: Annie Londonderry’s Extraordinary Ride.” Tickets for the talk are $7.81, and you can get them here.
Plymouth County Mosquito Control and town entomologist Blake Dinneas will give a short presentation on tick and mosquito safety from 5 to 6 p.m. at the Plymouth Public Library’s Manomet Branch, 12 Strand Ave. The presentation aims to help people prepare for the warmer weather. No registration is necessary.
Legendary singer/songwriter Steve Earle will perform at the Spire at 8 p.m., with doors opening at 7 p.m. Earle, whose songs have been recorded by Johnny Cash, Waylon Jennings, Joan Baez, Emmylou Harris, and The Pretenders, among others, was inducted into the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2020. In 2023, he was honored by the Bruce Springsteen Archives & Center for American Music. Earle has also acted in films and TV (including “The Wire” and “Tremé”) and has written a novel (“I’ll Never Get Out of This World Alive.”) South Carolina singer/songwriter Elias Hix, whose songs reflect his Southern rural upbringing, will open the show for Earle. Tickets are $109, and you can get them here.
Saturday, June 14
A Chess Tournament is set for the Plymouth Public Library, 132 South St., from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. The format is four or five rounds (depending on the number of sign-ups) with each round lasting 20 minutes. There are two sections: age 14 and younger, and an open section. Participation is limited to 16 players in each section. For more information, contact Bill Petrillo of the Plymouth Public Library Foundation at 774-766-7689.
Charles Conway, author of the memoir, “Layman’s Alzheimer’s Observations: A 10+ Year Caregiving Journey,” will return to the Plymouth Public Library, 132 South St., for a talk at 3 p.m. about the disease and its progression. Although not a clinician, Conway will share his experiences and what learned along the way. Attendees will receive a free copy of the memoir. Space is limited, so registration is encouraged.
Monday, June 16
Kristy Woodson Harvey will present a book talk from 12:30 to 2 p.m. in the Fehlow Meeting Room at the Plymouth Public Library, 132 South St. The author and Jenna Paone will discuss Harvey’s new novel, “Beach House Rules.” The book describes a mother-daughter pair learning to lean on their community of women (a local “mommune”) as well as each other, after their world is turned upside down.
Tuesday, June 17
The Plymouth Public Library, 132 South St., will host the first of a three-part lecture series entitled “A Monument in the Making” by Rev. Dr. Robert Gomes, at 6:30 p.m. in the Fehlow Meeting Room. The lecture will honor and commemorate the four former slaves who founded Plymouth’s Parting Ways, a Revolutionary War-era settlement. The lecture series by Gomes is based on his Harvard University paper, and will highlight personal connections to Parting Ways, community engagement, and historic preservation ideas. Registration is not required.
Wednesday, June 18
Today is the deadline to register for the non-juried show, “A Different Vision 2.0” at the Plymouth Center for the Arts, 11 North St.The idea behind it is to encourage more sensory- accessible art, giving audiences and artists ways to see, hear, smell, touch, interact with – and even manipulate – artworks. Register, or just find out more about the show, here.
Friday, June 20
The Dr. Richard M. Shiff Fund will present Hungrytown in concert in the Fehlow Meeting Room at the Plymouth Public Library, 132 South St., from 4 to 5 p.m. Hungrytown consists of the award-winning duo of Rebecca Hall and Ken Anderson, whose music features their trademark close harmony singing, along with intricate arrangements performed on a variety of instruments. The couple have toured worldwide and through “tireless devotion to many classic genres of music, have crafted Hungrytown into a true artistic hybrid.” Registration is required, and you can register here.
Saturday, June 21
The Wildlands Trust invites the public to a free Solstice Celebration at Davis-Douglas Farm, 675 Long Pond Road, from 12 noon to 4 p.m. This celebration of the longest day will include a poetry reading by Plymouth’s Tzynya Pinchback and music from Drumming with Pride. There will also be games and crafts, such as cyanotype printing, nature stamping, and the construction of fairy and gnome homes. Also, there will be guided hikes on trails that the trust helped build. Food from The Filling Station and beverages from Second Wind Brewing will also be available. Find out more about the solstice celebration here.
Little Lies, an eight-piece Fleetwood Mac tribute band, will perform at 1620 Winery, 55 Cordage Park Circle, from 7 to 11 p.m. Hors d’oeuvres (included in the ticket price) will be served during the cocktail hour, and the winery’s cash bar will be open all night. Tickets are $49.87 and you can buy them here.
“Opus 25 – a PFC Journey” is the title of the Pilgrim Festival Chorus’s 25th anniversary concert, which starts at 7:30 p.m. at the Church of the Pilgrimage, 8 Town Square. Artistic director William B. Richter will conduct, accompanied by artistic director Elizabeth Chapman Reilly on piano. Tickets are $20 for adults, and admission is free for children ages 14 and under or for Card to Culture attendees. Tickets for this performance are available at the door, from chorus members, or you can get them here.
Guitarist Stanley Jordan will perform “Stanley Jordan Plays Jimi” at the Spire at 8 p.m., with doors opening at 7 p.m. Although his show is a tribute to Jimi Hendrix, Jordan explained, “This is my fantasy Jimi Hendrix concert if Jimi were still playing today. By re-imagining his music and channeling his persona, I try to bring that fantasy to life.” Jordan already has earned renown as a guitarist with a signature style, but said he always admired Hendrix. Tickets are $41.80 and $46, and you can get them here.
Sunday, June 22
“Opus 25 – a PFC Journey” featuring the Pilgrim Festival Chorus will perform at 4 p.m. at St. Bonaventure Parish, 803 State Road. The concert celebrates the 25th anniversary of the chorus, with artistic director William B. Richter conducting, and artistic director Elizabeth Chapman Reilly on piano. Tickets for the concert are $20 for adults, free for children under age 14 or for Culture Card members, and you can get them here, from a chorus member, or at the door.
“A Swingin’ Affair, an All-Star Tribute to Frank Sinatra,” will perform at the Spire at 3 p.m., with doors opening at 2 p.m. As part of the Spire’s Sunday Serenade – Matinees with Timeless Charm series, the show will feature 16 instrumentalists diving into the Great American Songbook, and exploring the legendary tunes of Sinatra, Dean Martin, Bobby Darin, and the timeless “Rat Pack.” Bandleader Steve Bass, frontman vocalist Donnie Norton, and special guest vocalists will bring the “swingin’” vibe of a big band Sinatra concert. Attendees are welcome to dance to the music. The band supports middle and high school instrumental students with master classes led by top artists, preserving the living history of swing and jazz culture with today’s aspiring musicians. Tickets are $40 and $44, and you can buy them here.
Wednesday, June 25
Project Arts kicks off its free summer concert series from 6:30 to 9 p.m., featuring local band Pickpockets. See the lead item in this column for more details.