To celebrate National Poetry Month, Gloucester Lyceum and Sawyer Free Library will be presenting poets Erica Funkhauser and Kate Colby reading from their work and speaking in a program set for Tuesday at 7 p.m. at the library in Gloucester.
Funkhauser, who lives in Essex and teaches at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, is author of several collections of poetry, the most recent being "Earthly," published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt.
Colby is the author of four books of poetry including "Beauport," published recently by Litmus Press. Her first book, "Fruitlands," won the 2007 Norma Farber First Book Award from the Poetry Society of America. She hosts a quarterly poetry series at the Gloucester Writers Center.
Following their readings, the poets will engage each other and the audience in a dialogue on poetry's role in maintaining the human connection in a fractured world. They will talk about writing practice and contemporary poetry culture. This event is free to the public.
Daisy Nell, Capt. Stan and Crabgrass Band
Daisy Nell, Capt. Stan and the Crabgrass Band will perform in concert Saturday at 8 p.m. as part of the One World Coffeehouse series at First Universalist Church at 59 Main St. in Essex.
A familiar voice on the North Shore music scene, Nell is known for a repertoire of folk, chantey and contemporary songs. Her husband, Capt. Stan, adds his guitar and dobro to her banjo and guitar.
For this year's spring concert, they will play old and new love songs, including a 19th century sailor's ballad from Nova Scotia, "The Golden Ring" and a song written by Nell and Capt. Stan, "Feeling Lucky."
There is always a little irony in their set list: This year, it's a gospel song called "Open up The Window, Noah," followed by "Shut the Door, Keep Out the Devil." Mandolin player Pat Conlon has taught the group an Italian tune called "Cine Citta."
Special guest will be Scott Alarik, performer and folk music reviewer, who wrote "Revival: A Folk Music Novel," a National Book Award winner.
He will read passages from his book, which will be on sale at the CD table. Admission is $15. For reservations, call 978-768-3690. Parking is available behind the police station on Rte. 22.
Consummate brass quintet
The BSO Brass Quintet will perform at the Shalin Liu Performance Center on Friday at 8 p.m., featuring musicians of the Boston Symphony Orchestra.
The quintet features the foremost brass players in the country. For its debut here, the quintet offers a program that includes works by Gunther Schuller, Leonard Bernstein and Malcolm Arnold.
"The BSO Brass Quintet features the cré®me-de-la-cré®me of brass players," said Greg Sorensen, Rockport Music spokesman. "This event gives audiences the opportunity to experience these virtuoso musicians up close in an intimate setting."
Tickets start at $19. For information and tickets, visit www.rockportmusic.org or call 978-546-7391.
Susan Oleksiw photo exhibit
Susan Oleksiw will hold a photography exhibit and talk tonight at 7 at Sawyer Free Library, where she will discuss the Pongala, a women's festival in Kerala, India.
Oleksiw will talk about highlights from her trip and her photographs of the festival. This event is free and open to the public.
Bandit Kings with Andrea Gillis
The Gloucester band Bandit Kings will appear with Andrea Gillis on Friday at the Dog Bar in Gloucester at 9 p.m.
Gillis is a Boston singer-songwriter who has received two Boston Music Award nominations, for Best Local Female Vocalist and Best Local New Act, and a Maxie Award for Best Female Vocalist.
Tin Can Sally exhibit
The recent work of Tin Can Sally is on exhibit titled "Gone Fishin'" featuring tin fish, tin lobsters, tin crabs, tin mobiles and much more.
A longtime member of Local Colors, she demonstrates a creative reuse of an everyday material in a whimsical manner. The show runs from Friday through May 13 at Local Colors Artists' Cooperative at 121 Main St. in Gloucester,
For information, visit their Facebook page.
Family Fun on Saturday
Families looking for activities over the final days of school vacation week can attend the free Cape Ann Family Fun Fair at Pathways for Children at 29 Emerson Ave. in Gloucester on Saturday, April 21, from 9:30 a.m. to noon.
The event will feature family fun activities, raffles and more than 20 exhibitors. There will be a performance by Curious Creatures, an interactive puppet show by Adventures with Amy, along with face painting, seed planting and more.
Anyone seeking more information should call Amy Larson at 978-281-2400 ext. 120.
Chocolate and wine tasting
Schooner Adventure will host a benefit chocolate and wine tasting event at the Gloucester House Restaurant on Friday from 7 to 9:30 p.m.
Cost is $25 in advance, $30 at the door. To pre-purchase tickets, call the Adventure office at 978-281-8079. Those attending can enjoy fingers foods, chocolates and wines. Proceeds support the restoration of the National Historic Landmark, Schooner Adventure, Gloucester's last surviving dory fishing schooner.
Rockport photos, then and now
The Rockport Council on Aging is extending an invitation to all area residents to attend an event featuring historical Rockport photos and a video of Rockport on Friday at 7 p.m. at the Rockport Senior Center at 58 Broadway.
The presentation will be a comparison of historical photographs with current photos. There is no fee, refreshments will be served. Pre-registration is requested by calling 978-546-2573. The evening also will be an opportunity to view the recently restored oil paintings that were placed in the building in the late 1930s. Gil McCarthy is preparing a photo video of "Rockport — Historical Photos, Then & Now."
Cape Ann's 'Flying Enterprises'
The Cape Ann Museum will present a program titled "Flying Enterprises: Cape Ann Arts, Crafts and Literary Festivals of the Early 1950s," an illustrated talk by Gloucester resident and local historian Mary Rhinelander McCarl.
The program is set for Saturday at 3 p.m. in the Folly Cove Auditorium. The program is included with admission, and reservations are required. To make a reservation or for more information, call Jeanette Smith at 978-283-0455, x11 or email jeanettesmith@capeannmuseum.org.
Cape Ann was full of graphic and sculptural artists, artisans in many media, writers, poets and playwrights in the early 1950s. In 1952, thanks largely to the sculptor Walker Hancock, the series of the Cape Ann Festival of Arts was begun. These festivals lasted until 1969 but this talk will focus on the first two years.
The Cape Ann Museum is at 27 Pleasant Street in Gloucester. For more information, call 978-283-0455.
Bickhardt Old Sloop concert
Old Sloop Coffeehouse will present Craig Bickhardt on Saturday at 7:30 p.m. at the First Congregational Church of Rockport, at 12 School St.
Bickhardt's big break came in 1982, when he was chosen to write and sing two songs for Robert Duvall's Academy Award winning film "Tender Mercies." In the wake of that film's success, Bickhardt moved to Nashville and wrote songs that were included on platinum and Grammy winning CDs by Ray Charles, B. B. King, Martina McBride, The Judds and Dianne Schuur.
Bickhardt will be joined for this performance by his friend and Grammy winning singer-songwriter Don Henry. Rockport native Larry Ahearn will open the concert.
Tickets can be purchased in advance for $10 from the coffeehouse website at oldsloopcoffeehouse.org, or at Gloucester Music, and Toad Hall Bookstore in Rockport.
The suggested donation at the door is $12 for adults, $7 for those 65 and older, $5 for those younger than 18, and $24 for a family. There is on-site babysitting during concerts.
For more, visit the website or call 978-546-3551 for more information.
A new book on Dogtown
The Bookstore at 61 Main St. in Gloucester will host a reading of a new book by Gloucester's Mark Carlotto on Thursday at 7 p.m. He will give a slide presentation and lecture on his new Dogtown book titled "The Island Woods."
The book explores the abandoned colonial settlement, granite quarries, and enigmatic boulders in the wooded interior of Cape Ann.
Greg Gibson, of the Ten Pound Island Book Company, said the book's "topographical approach to history makes Carlotto's new book a worthy successor to Copeland and Rogers' Saga of Cape Ann."
"In fact," he said, "this is the best book on local history since Garland's Gloucester Guide. Must reading for anyone interested in Cape Ann."
Around Cape Ann is a column devoted to events happening on Cape Ann and artists from Cape Ann performing elsewhere. If you would like to submit an item, contact reporter Gail McCarthy at 978-283-7000 x3445, or gmccarthy@gloucestertimes.com. Items should be submitted at least two weeks in advance of the event.
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