End of Summer Cast Party, Priscilla Beach Theatre, Priscilla Beach, Plymouth, Massachusetts, USA

On the day of the final performance of the summer children's workshop season, Priscilla Beach Theatre (PBT) owners and guardians Bob and Sandy Malone (seated in front), invited the cast(s) and staff to a luncheon party. This occasion is also an opportunity to create the annual cast photo that will adorn the upcoming year's PBT calendar.

It's been a remarkable summer with the reopening of the newly restored PBT Barn Stage, an icon of American theatre, the oldest barn theatre still in operation in America - it's 79th year!

PBT owners and guardians Bob and Sandy Malone ready to cut the celebratory cake.

Although the summer children's workshops may have ended, PBT still has one children's fall show, "Alice in Wonderland, Jr.," to open in late October. 

For adult casts, in mid-September, PBT will open the long-time favorite by Neil Simon, "Odd Couple," to the Barn Stage, directed by Theresa Chiasson, and in early October, the musical "Breaking Up is Hard to Do," directed by Conni DiLego, based on the songs of Neil Sedaka.

Contact PBT on line at http://www.pbtheatre.org/ or by phone at (508) 224-4888 for tickets and information - and tickets are already selling out before rehearsals have even begun! High public demand at PBT is reflective of the high quality of performances that Bob and Sandy Malone and their team of theatre professionals are bringing to our community. Get your tickets now while you still have an opportunity!

Wandering Around - Part 3 - Boston, Massachusetts, USA

After Charles Street, I walked through the Public Garden and into the East Back Bay neighborhood along Marlborough Street then back to the Garden via the Commonwealth Avenue pedestrian mall.

In tribute to Robert McCloskey's 1941 book, "Make Way for Ducklings," these bronze statues are popular for the kids. They never need polishing since the kids climbing all over them keeps them shining brightly.

A blanket and a picnic lunch is popular, too.

Marlborough Street.

Commonwealth Avenue pedestrian mall.

Wandering Around - Part 2 - Boston, Massachusetts, USA

Exiting the subway Red Line at the Charles/MGH stop, I wandered down Charles Street in the Beacon Hill neighborhood and up the hill via Pinckney Street to Louisburg Square.  

Louisburg Square. The brick townhomes that surround this private neighborhood park are valued by the real estate website Zillow in the $5-15 million USD price range.

After the Square, I walked a block over to Acorn Street, perhaps the most photographed street in Boston.

The brick townhomes along Acorn Street are valued by the real estate website Zillow in the $3-4 million USD price range.

Location, location, location.

And back on Charles Street, this market has a sidewalk produce stand if you want something fresh to eat.

More to come............

Wandering Around - Part 1 - Boston, Massachusetts, USA

Those of you regular readers know that sometimes this is a travel blog. It is also true that one person's foreign destination is someone else's home.  Since many of my readers are from other parts of the world, they think of my home area, Boston, as a foreign destination.  So, I thought I'd try to be a tourist here and tell you a little bit about Boston as a visitor.

Every trip the world over to a big city starts with a decision about how to get there - train, plane, bus, boat, car, bike, or foot.  In my case, the most painless (and least expensive) way into the city is on mass transit, the subway system, locally referred to as the "T."  Driving to the southernmost point on the Red Line, my trip begins in Braintree.

The Boston subway system claims title as the oldest in the United States.

If you travel on a weekday after rush-hour and get on at the first stop, it's usually pleasantly uncrowded.

Farther in the journey, there are more riders. In the old days, most people read newspapers - today, only one person had a paper, the rest had a digital device.

For $1.60 each way, I enjoyed sitting quietly and people-watching instead of spending the 45 minutes driving in a car in heavy traffic, then paying $20-40 for parking in the city. If I were 65 years old, the subway fare would only be $1.05 - there are advantages to getting older.

In another post, more about what I saw in the city on this visit.........

Beauty, Manomet, Plymouth, Massachusetts, USA

With summer two-thirds over, this garden is starting to take on a decidedly fall-ish look.

These zinnias, on the other hand, make it seem like early summer anytime.

What beautiful and/or interesting person, place, or thing did you focus on today? Or, are you too focused on catastrophizing to see all the beauty and wonder in the world?  

Vegan Food, Manomet, Plymouth, Massachusetts, USA

This is another post in my occasional series about what do vegans eat?

This dish includes whole wheat rotini pasta, with steamed broccoli, zucchini, tomatoes, snap peas, green peas, roasted corn, tomato and garlic pasta sauce, topped with cheese-like vegan shreds and roasted pine nuts. Yum!

Random Sights, Manomet, Plymouth, Massachusetts, USA

Clouds, clouds, everywhere - real and reflected.

Late afternoon sunlight illuminates a little green tree in an otherwise black and white and zoom-burst world.

Floating flowers - a perfumed birdbath for our feathered friends.

Only one cygnet has survived (at left) in the Bartlett Pond swan family this year.- survival of the fittest and luckiest.

Barn Show, Manomet, Plymouth, Massachusetts, USA

Once again, Manomet gets to enjoy outdoor live music as the Barn Show Music Series continues its second season of outdoor concerts at Holmes Farm on Manomet Point Road. Above, the crowd begins to gather before the show begins.  Co-presented by Hayley Sabella and Brewster Productions, the concert series features up-and-coming original music, ranging from folk to country to rock, and everything in between.  The Holmes Farm property is owned by the Manomet Center for Conservation Sciences.

Note just to the right of center on the horizon line there's a big rock.......

.... that provides a great play spot for the energetic kids in attendance - no moving parts and no electronics required.

Promoter Hayley Sabella introduces the first act.

Tonight's show was the fourth of five in the series and included opener Monica Rizzio, followed by JR Wyatt, and concluded with headliner Sarah Blacker.

Support local, live, outdoor, summer music in our community.  Here's their website for more information:  http://barnshowmanomet.com/

Monica Rizzio.

Guest performer Jake Hill (at center) joins in for a cameo vocal.

A brief break in the action as JR Wyatt prepares to take the stage.

JR Wyatt.

  

This double exposure-ish image captures JR Wyatt leaving the stage after his set ends. For you photographers out there, it is actually the result of in-camera HDR processing.

 A spectacular sunset welcomed the headliner, Sarah Blacker.

Sarah Blacker.

Sarah is joined by her bass player and a back-up singer.

Promoter Hayley Sabella (at right), also a musician and performer in her own right, joins Sarah Blacker and her band for a cameo vocal. 

Mark your calendar for the final show this season on September 6. Here's their website for more information:  http://barnshowmanomet.com/

A few of my previous posts about the Barn Show Series can be viewed at the following links:

http://joesretirementblog.blogspot.com/2015/06/barn-show-manomet-plymouth_26.html

http://joesretirementblog.blogspot.com/2015/06/barn-show-manomet-plymouth.html

http://joesretirementblog.blogspot.com/2014/09/barn-show-holmes-farm-manomet-plymouth.html

http://joesretirementblog.blogspot.com/2014/07/barn-show-holmes-farm-manomet-plymouth.html

http://joesretirementblog.blogspot.com/2014/07/barn-show-manomet-plymouth.html

http://joesretirementblog.blogspot.com/2014/06/barn-show-manomet-plymouth.html

Summer, Plymouth Harbor, Plymouth, Massachusetts, USA

Summertime and the livin' is easy. Plymouth Harbor area is a popular spot on a bright summer day.

Some folks are content to enjoy a nice bench seat to watch the comings and goings in the harbor.

 Although many other visitors opt for the fishing or whale watch excursions, or a fast ferry across Cape Cod Bay to Provincetown........

.....and the concessionaires are doing a brisk business from their little booths,...........

.......though some tourists need the added enticement of ice cream to get them on a boat!

Plymouth - it's a nice place to be known as "America's Hometown."