Around Town

Watertown Library Turned Into Glamorous Venue for 150th Anniversary Gala

By |

Guests at the Watertown Free Public LIbrary’s 150th Anniversary Gala entered through a building decked out for a celebration. The normally subdued Watertown Free Public Library was transformed into a glittering, glamorous party venue on Saturday night in celebration of its 150th Anniversary. Several hundred people filled the library for the 150th anniversary Gala Celebration. Strings of lights were draped in the entryway to the library, and vases full of flowers decorated tables around the library. Several hundred people filled the Watertown Library for the 150th celebration.

Entertainment

Watertown Native’s Cartoon “Small Saves” Makes its Watertown News Debut

By |

The comic strip Small Saves makes its Watertown News debut this week. The strip has been featured in a number of places, including a national hockey publication. Its author, James DeMarco, played hockey as a youngster growing up in Watertown. The cartoon will run weekly on Watertown News. The following information was provided by James DeMarco:

James DeMarco became a goaltender at age 5.

Around Town

Best Selling Author Talks About Love of Libraries, Her Latest Book in Watertown

By |

Bestselling author Susan Orlean, right, poses with a fan after she spoke at the Watertown Free Public Library on Thursday. For writer Susan Orlean, trips to her hometown library in Shaker Heights, Ohio, had been a childhood ritual, a way of bonding with her mother as they collected armfuls of books to read and discussed their borrowed treasures on the ride home. Even today, she can remember the sights and smells of that small branch library, and the thump of the date-stamp machine as it gave the books their due dates. But for all the magic of those early visits, the adult Orlean became more of a bookstore customer than a library patron, a buyer rather than a borrower. She rediscovered her fascination with libraries around 2010, when she took her young son to visit their local library.

Entertainment

Final Revels Fringe Concert Features Celtic Harpist Maeve Gilchrist

By |

Celtic harpist Maeve Gilchrist will perform in Watertown at the Revels Fringe concert on April 27. The following piece was provided by Revels:

Experience the voices at the forefront of today’s music scene at Revels FRINGE, a series of concerts exploring the unpredictable edge of the folk process. Join us for our final Revels FRINGE concert of 2019 when the innovative Celtic harpist Maeve Gilchrist presents her new solo show, The Harp Weaver, Saturday, April 27 at 7:30 p.m., at the Belmont-Watertown UMC in Watertown, MA. An amazing young artist known for examining and redrawing the boundaries of traditional music, Maeve was one of our first FRINGE performers, appearing with Galician piper Carlos Nuñez in 2014 and with avant-garde folk musician Sam Amidon in 2015. 

Rooted in the traditions of her native Scotland, Maeve has continuously pushed boundaries and has taken the music of the traditional lever harp to the outer limits. With both the ability and the instinct to straddle several disciplines she moves easily from the traditional to the cutting edge.

Entertainment

Public Flocks to See Artwork Created by Students from All the Watertown Schools

By |

Artwork created by students in Watertown High School art classes are part of the display at the annual Watertown Public Schools K-12 Art Show. Colorful paintings of animals, detailed portraits sketched in pencil, and still lifes of fruits and vegetables greet visitors of the Watertown Mall these days. The artwork comes courtesy of Watertown Public Schools students from elementary school all the way to the high school. The annual Watertown Public Schools Art Show will be on display at the Watertown Mall through April 11. On April 1, a reception was held for the artist, their parents, teachers, and interested viewers.

Entertainment

The Halalisa Singers Present ‘Voices of Hope’ in Watertown

By |

The Halalisa Singers will be performing at Watertown’s First Parish Church. The following information was provided by Halalisa Singers:

Artistic Director Mary Cunningham leads the 39-voice Halalisa Singers  in Voices of Hope and Heart, a timely concert offering messages of hope in adversity and the power of love to bring joy and healing. Accompanying the singers will be Trevor Berens and percussionist Bertram Lehmann. The ensemble will repeat the diverse program showcasing American values of inclusiveness and justice on a May 2019 tour of Ireland with performances in Dublin, Kinsale, Killarney, and Galway. Saturday, April 27, 8 p.m. at the Unitarian Universalist Church of Reading, 239 Woburn St., Reading.

Around Town

Learn About What Goes on at the Commander’s Mansion on This Watertown Cable Show

By |

The latest episode of Inside Watertown featured Tammy McKenna, second from right, and Gina Nolan, from the Commander’s Mansion. Co-hosts John Airasian, left, and Charlie Breitrose spoke with them about all the events at the town-owned historic home. Find out about all the things that go on at Watertown’s own historic mansion on the latest episode of Inside Watertown. The Watertown Cable show highlights the town-owned Commander’s Mansion, located in the historic Watertown Arsenal. Co-hosts Charlie Breitrose and John Airasian welcomed Tammy McKenna and Gina Nolan, who run events at the home.

Brian Munger

Watertown Native Brian Munger Returning to Perform His Music Live

By |

Brian Munger will return to his hometown in April to perform acoustic rock songs, both his own and covers. Brian Munger was born and raised in Watertown, and went on to be a musician who opened for some big name groups. He will be back in town to perform live on April 5, 2019. Munger always says,”I was born in the East but raised in West Watertown.”

One of eight children of Walter and Joyce Munger and graduate of Watertown High School’s class of 1974. Munger has held many careers but always performed music throughout New England through his life.