Culture - Marblehead Current

Festival of Arts reveals Concerts @ Crocker lineup

1Apr

By Leigh BlanderNo Comments

Art, Community resources, Culture, Entertainment, Local News, Recreation

Festival of Arts reveals Concerts @ Crocker lineup

The 58th Marblehead Festival of Arts has announced this summer’s Concerts @ Crocker Park lineup, featuring more than 75 musicians and genres, including jazz, salsa, Cajun/zydeco, reggae, folk, soul, R&B and rock ’n’ roll. “Our goal is to bring families, friends and the North Shore community together under the umbrella of music,” said Performing Arts chair and Concerts @ Crocker Park producer Brian Wheeler. Here’s a look at the schedule: Wednesday, July 3 6 p.m. Jazz with the Debby Larkin/Jeff Stout Quintet 8 p.m. Latin dance and reggae with Combo Sabros Thursday, July 4 11:30 a.m.-noon Classic rockers Squall House 12:15 p.m.-1 p.m. Marblehead School of Music 2 p.m. Indie alt rock band River Sang Wild 6 p.m. Pop funk with The Far Out ...

MARBLEHEAD CHRONICLES: The town and the American Revolution: Commodore John Manley

28Mar

By Pam PetersonNo Comments

Columns, Culture, Local History, Pam Peterson

MARBLEHEAD CHRONICLES: The town and the American Revolution: Commodore John Manley

The Hannah was the first vessel in George Washington's fleet, with Nicholson Broughton of Marblehead as captain. Washington's Navy used the Pine Tree flag for New England vessels in 1776. COURTESY PHOTO The next three of the early vessels commissioned by Washington in 1775 were also captained by Marbleheaders. In November of 1775, Capt. John Manley of Marblehead was made commander of the Lee, a 72-ton topsail schooner. It flew the new Pine Tree flag, a precursor of Betsy Ross' flag, and the one most favored by privateers in the first part of the American Revolution. The schooner Lee had an impressive naval start, almost immediately capturing a British brigantine, the Nancy, which yielded a bonanza of weapons for the struggling Revolutionary army. Washington was pleased, and Jo...

FROM THE VAULT: Marblehead’s suffragette banner from 1887

27Mar

By Jarrett ZemanNo Comments

Columns, Culture, Local History

FROM THE VAULT: Marblehead’s suffragette banner from 1887

Marblehead has a rich history of women fighting for their political rights. The Marblehead Women’s Suffrage League created this banner, which they may have marched with in parades or displayed during meetings. The Marblehead Women’s Suffrage League created this velvet banner with an embroidered quote from Alfred Lord Tennyson, declaring, ‘The woman’s cause is man’s; they rise or sink together.’ The banner, which dates to February 1887, was likely carried in parades or displayed at meetings to advocate for women’s right to vote. COURTESY PHOTO /MARBLEHEAD MUSEUM The banner declares, “The woman’s cause is man’s; they rise or sink together,” a quote from an Alfred Lord Tennyson poem. Founded in 1887, the Suffrage League’s membership included prominent local women like Marcia Selman, th...

NEWS IN BRIEF: Week of Monday, March 25, 2024

25Mar

By Will DowdNo Comments

Community resources, Culture, Local History, Local News, Uncategorized

NEWS IN BRIEF: Week of Monday, March 25, 2024

The Current welcomes submissions (150-200 words) to the news in brief. Send yours to wdowd@marbleheadnews.org. Brief ‘shelter in place’ at Village School A "shelter in place" order was briefly enacted at Village School on March 19, after a student made threats via walkie-talkie around 11:30 a.m. Principal Mandy Murphy confirmed that the situation was quickly contained, emphasizing that it was an isolated incident and no one was in danger. The student involved was supervised, and the school reassured that student and staff safety is a priority. Further details on the incident were withheld due to student confidentiality. Marblehead Museum awarded NPS grant Marblehead Museum's grant from the National Park Service will fund the restoration of the Brick Kitchen & Slave ...

CURRENT EVENTS: Marblehead’s best bets coming up

25Mar

By Leigh BlanderNo Comments

Community resources, Culture, Entertainment, Environment, Life Style, Local News, Religion, Top Stories, Views & Reviews

CURRENT EVENTS: Marblehead’s best bets coming up

Current Events spotlights exciting happenings in the coming days. If you’d like to contribute a listing, please email Current Editor Leigh Blander at lblander@marbleheadnews.org. Marblehead’s Got Talent finalsWednesday, March 27, 7 p.m.-9 p.m. Ten students, $15,000! Come watch this year’s Marblehead’s Got Talent finals, put on by the Marblehead Rotary Club. The event is at the Cabot Theater, 286 Cabot St., Beverly. $50 adults, $25 at the door. Learn more at marbleheadrotary.com. VFW fundraiser with the Guy Ford BandSaturday, March 30, 8 p.m. Come rock out with the Guy Ford Band at a special VFW fundraiser for Company 2 Heroes. The nonprofit provides service dogs to veterans with post traumatic stress disorder. The event is free, but donations are welcome. 321 West Shor...

20Mar

By Leigh BlanderNo Comments

Art, Community resources, Culture, Entertainment, Life Style, Local News, Recreation

CURRENT EVENTS: Marblehead’s best bets coming up

Current Events spotlights exciting happenings in the coming days. If you’d like to contribute a listing, please email Current Editor Leigh Blander at lblander@marbleheadnews.org. Old North Church Lenten Choral ConcertSunday, March 24, 7:30 p.m. The Old North Festival Chorus will perform its annual Lenten Choral Concert in the sanctuary, 35 Washington St. The program includes Michael Haydn’s Requiem in C Minor, along with the local debut of “Fermata” by Dan Forrest. “Fermata” is an a cappella piece to the text of a poem written by Festival Chorus member Clem Schoenebeck. The concert is free and open to the public. More info at onchurch.org. Using AI in your businessWednesday, March 20, noon-1 p.m. During this live demonstration, learn about the benefits of using AI (...

DancEnergy celebrates 40 years of movement, music, community

20Mar

By Leigh BlanderNo Comments

Art, Culture, Health, Local News, Top Stories

DancEnergy celebrates 40 years of movement, music, community

Nearly 70 women crowded into a brightly lit studio at the JCC on March 12 to celebrate the 40th anniversary — to the day — of DancEnergy in Marblehead. Founder Joyce Colahan, who still teaches five times a week, led the milestone class. She made it through to the last song before she started crying. “The love I get from everybody… I feel so honored and privileged. I look back at it in awe,” she said of her career. “I had no idea when I started teaching that it would grow into this.” Joyce Colahan leads her 40th-anniversary DancEnergy class on March 12. CURRENT PHOTO / LEIGH BLANDER Colahan, who lives in Marblehead, was a professional dancer and traveled the world with the Joyce Trisler Danscompany. She started teaching at Energy Works on Barnard Street in 1984 and has worked with...

FOOD 101: Tea — high, low, up, down and how to stir it

20Mar

By Linda BassettNo Comments

Columns, Culture, Life Style, Linda Bassett

FOOD 101: Tea — high, low, up, down and how to stir it

Centuries before our ancestors decided to toss a few tea bags into Boston Harbor, ale was Britain's national drink. From breakfast through bedtime, the bubbly brew was safer than foul drinking water. When their king married a Spanish princess, she brought her country's access to the Asian tea-growing world. Fortunes were made. The tea-drinking princess also started a custom that continues to this day. Royals, and anyone who wanted to be part of the "in" crowd, began drinking tea. (Brewing the leaves worked just as well at making drinking water safe as did brewing grains.) The habit filtered to everyday folk, further enriching tea investors. That is until they lost that huge shipment in 1773. After that, this entire continent switched to coffee, eventually fostering Dunkin' Donut...

20Mar

By Will DowdNo Comments

Art, Culture, Local History, Local News, Municipal Matters

NEWS IN BRIEF: Week of Monday, March 18

The Current welcomes submissions (150-200 words) to the news in brief. Send yours to wdowd@marbleheadnews.org. Marblehead scholarship honors youth sports coach The 2024 Charles J. Garrett, Jr. Memorial Scholarship will award $2,000 to a deserving Marblehead High School senior who has participated in the Marblehead Youth Soccer Association, maintains a minimum 3.0 GPA and plans to pursue post-secondary education in a STEM or STEM-skilled field. The scholarship honors the life of Chuck Garrett, a Marblehead resident and dedicated youth sports coach who passed away in 2021. Applications are due by April 21. For more information, contact cjgmemorialscholarship@gmail.com. The Marblehead Museum, 170 Washington St., will host a lecture by Professor Robert Allison on the Intolerable Act...

CURRENT EVENTS: Best bets coming up in Marblehead

14Mar

By Leigh BlanderNo Comments

Art, Community resources, Culture, Entertainment, Environment, Local News, Nonprofit corner, Recreation

CURRENT EVENTS: Best bets coming up in Marblehead

Spring feverTuesday, March 19, 6:45 a.m. Welcome spring at the sun circle at Preston Beach. The annual vernal equinox ceremony will begin with the blowing of a conch shell as the sun rises. All are welcome to bring metal instruments such as Tibetan bowls and chimes. There will be remarks, intentions and a gong sound bath. Community members are invited to share a poem, song or message. Spring celebrations continueTuesday, March 19, 10 a.m.-11 a.m. Join Abbot Library’s adult services librarian Wesley Sueker in welcoming spring on the equinox. Sueker will share a presentation on the history and science of the equinox and common equinox practices around the world. Stay for a seed-planting activity. The event is free and limited to 10 people. More info at abbotlibrary.org. ...