Be Prepared to feel old

When I joined Cub Scouts in the third grade, the Boy Scouts of America were celebrating their 50th anniversary.

And now the organization is celebrating its centennial. The Red Mill Museum Village in Clinton is helping to celebrate the occasion with a special exhibit, “100 Years of Boy Scouts by Area Boy Scouts.” It will be up through Oct. 3.

Although I grew up in Connecticut, I have a New Jersey Boy Scout connection. In 1963, my Tenderfoot year in Boy Scouts proper, my troop made a camping trip to Gettysburg and Valley Forge. On the way back, we made a stop at the Boy Scouts' National Headquarters, which was then located in North Brunswick. The headquarters has since moved to Texas, but I believe part of the site is now a park.

The Red Mill Museum Village is located at 56 Main St., Clinton. Hours: 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Tues.-Sat., noon-5 p.m. Sun. (April-Oct.), 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Sat., noon-4 p.m. Sun. (Nov. 1-Dec. 21). theredmill.org or (908) 735-4101.

Pretty Darned Funny

My wife, Karen, and I are huge P.D.Q. Bach fans.

"P.D.Q. Bach" is sort of the "Rocky Horror Picture Show" of classical music in that it has sort of a cult following. The famously untalented illegitimate son of Johann Sebastian Bach, P.D.Q. is the creation of Prof. Peter Schickele, who brings his latest classical parody, "What's Your Sign?" to Princeton's McCarter Theatre Center Tuesday evening.

When we lived in New York City, Karen and I went to Schickele's Christmas concert at Carnegie Hall every year.

One year, however, for some reason we couldn't go on any of the dates he was performing in NYC, so we went down to Trenton to see him at the War Memorial.

Now if you're a true P.D.Q. Bach fan, you know you're supposed to hiss when the stage manager comes out in his godawful purple plaid sports jacket and announces that Prof. Schickele will be late. And if you go to a concert in New York, everyone in the audience is in on the gag. That wasn't the case in Trenton. When the stage manager came out and Karen and I started hissing, the people next to us looked at us as if we came from another planet and asked us why we were hissing!

One year Schickele's program included "Oedipus Tex," a Western takeoff on Oedipus Rex. In this piece, right after Oedipus gouges out his eyes, he sings "I kinda wish I hadn't done that." We knew one of the soloists in the performance, and when we met her backstage after the concert, we asked her "How do you keep from cracking up?" She groaned and said, "You have no idea." She said when they came to the aforementioned line, everyone glanced at each other and almost lost it.

We lived in Hackensack for 15 years, so Schickele's "O Little Town of Hackensack" is close to our hearts. Also, when our son Doug was in the Select Chorus at River Dell High School, one year their holiday concert included "Good King Kong Looked Out."

Anita Donovan offers more background on Schickele's classical spoofs in her column in this week's Good Times. She also gives us a heads-up about the Westminster Jubilee Singers' 15th anniversary concert Sunday at Bristol Chapel on the Westminster Choir College campus in Princeton.

The cover story this week is Ted Otten's interview with "Saturday Night Live" alumna Rachel Dratch, who is appearing in A.R. Gurney's "Sylvia." Dratch plays the title character, who just happens to be a dog who wins the heart of Greg, played by Tony Award-winner Boyd Gaines.

Also of note is Janet Purcell's review of the "Focus on Sculpture" exhibition at Grounds for Sculpture in Hamilton. I've blogged about this show before because it includes a photo by my cousin, Susan Mills. Jan has nice things to say about Susan's picture of the MLK Fountain on the Princeton campus, and a copy of Susan's photo appears with the column.

In Backbeat, Lisa Rich tells us about Mission Hill, who performs Friday evening at the Triumph Brewing Company in Princeton.

Susan Yeske reviews the recently reopened National Hotel in Frenchtown, and gives the food a solid thumbs-up.

This doesn't appear to be a good week for new movies. Steve Whitty gave a so-so review of "Date Night," although he praised Dratch's "SNL" cast mate, Tina Fey, and "The Office" star Steve Carell for their performances. As for "The Black Waters of Echo's Pond," Steve advises you to skip this one and catch up with one of the older releases this weekend.

So this is another week with lots going on in Trenton Times Land. Enjoy!

Grounds for Enjoyment

I finally got a chance to visit Grounds for Sculpture this weekend, and what a unique gem it is!
Karen and I met up there Sunday with with my cousin, Susan Mills, who has a photo in the current exhibition, "Focus on Sculpture 2010." It's a detail of the Martin Luther King statue on the Princeton campus.
It was gloomy and drizzling when we arrived, but miraculously the sun came out just long enough for us to enjoy a stroll around the grounds. The place is beautifully landscaped, with sculptures arranged in perfect settings. There are surprises around every corner. We particularly enjoyed J. Seward Johnson's three-dimensional recreations of Impressionist paintings, such as "The Boating Party" pictured here.
We also enjoyed Flo Perkins' art glass exhibition,"The Common as Uncommon," with its clever glass sculptures of cactus flowers, and bowling balls arranged so that reflected light made them appear as smiley faces.
As an added treat, one of the many peacocks on the grounds put on a full display for us. We were more impressed than the hen he was trying to attract.
Now I'm looking forward to coming back in the summer when the weather's better.
The one disappointment was Rat's Restaurant. We hoped to have dinner there, and arrived long before it was scheduled to close. However, the hostess told us that since things were slow, they had closed down early and couldn't serve us. Bummer!
On the other hand, Susan came up with a really good alternative: The Alchemist and Barrister in Princeton. The food and service were great. I ordered their chicken pot pie, which turned out to be HUGE! I just finished my doggy bag tonight.
For a late breakfast/early lunch Monday, Karen and I tried Mom's in Ringoes, which Susan Yeske reviewed for Good Times a couple of weeks ago. Good, stick-to-the-ribs food in a homey atmosphere.
Then we stopped in at the Princeton Doll and Toy Museum in Hopewell, which was of particular interest to Karen because she's a school speech pathologist who uses toys and children's books in her work with young children. Director Virginia Aris is there with plenty of entertaining stories.
All in all, a pleasant weekend in Trenton Times Land.
All in all, a great weekend

Go Ask Alice

One pill makes you larger
And one pill makes you small
And the ones that Mama gives you
Don't do anything at all...

Yeah, yeah, I'm dating myself. Jefferson Airplane's classic psychedelic anthem "White Rabbit" came out during the 1967 Summer of Love, which fell between my sophomore and junior years of high school. In her haunting contralto, Grace Slick borrowed images from Lewis Carroll's "Alice in Wonderland" and put them in the context of a hallucinogenic drug trip.
Tim Burton's new 3D interpretation of "Alice," with Helena Bonham Carter as the Red Queen and Johnny Depp as the Mad Hatter, arrives in theaters Friday. Critic Roger Moore's review is the cover story in this week's Good Times. He gives the movie a thumbs-up, saying that it's inspired as much by "White Rabbit" as by the original novel. Read the review and decide for yourself.
Elsewhere in Good Times you'll also find reviews of “Brooklyn’s Finest” and “The Ghost Writer.”
Also, Michele Angermiller profiles Jersey boy turned country-western singer Moot Davis, returns to his hometown of Hamilton for a concert Saturday night.
In "Fine Arts," Janet Purcell reviews an exhibition titled "Living Among Giants: Seeing the Forest for the Trees," in which painters and photographers explore the unique character of each tree, at the D&R Canal Land Trust in Princeton.
Susan Sprague Yeske reviews the Za Restaurant in Pennington.
Ted Otten previews the Passage Theatre’s Solo Flights Festival, opening this weekend Mill Hill Playhouse in Trenton with Lauren Weedman's "Bust."
"Backbeat" columnist profiles blues devotee J.B. Kline, who performs with his band Friday night at the Bordentown Record Collector.
And classical music writer Anita Donovan previews the Lenape Chamber
Ensemble's program of Mozart and Shostakovich works this weekend in two Bucks County locations.

Fearsome Fairies

When most people think of fairies, they think of Tinker Bell, the mischievous but harmless little sprite of Disney's "Peter Pan."

But that wasn't always the case. In olden days, before they became Disneyfied, fairies were feared as powerful supernatural beings who could really wreak havoc on the world. That was what Shakespeare had in mind when he wrote "A Midsummer Night's Dream" and populated it with the likes of Puck and especially Oberon, the ferocious King of the Fairies.

My son, Doug, has been cast as Oberon in the upcoming production of "Midsummer" at the College of St. Elizabeth in Madison. I've warned him that he'd better start hitting the gym, because every Oberon I've ever seen has been a muscular, bare-chested athlete.

In this week's column, classical music writer Anita Donovan has observed that fairies are the common theme of two major concerts in the area this weekend. On Friday night at the Trenton War Memorial's Patriots Theatre, the New Jersey Symphony Orchestra will present its program "Best of ...Fairy Tales." It will feature Ravel's "Ma Mere L'Oye," or "Mother Goose Suite." Then on Saturday night, the Tchaikovsky Ballet Theatre presents "Sleeping Beauty" at the Matthews Theatre at the McCarter Theatre Center in Princeton. The princess is cursed into her lengthy sleep by an evil fairy because she felt snubbed at not being invited to her christening. Believe me, that's no Tinker Bell!

Elsewhere. the cover story in this week's Good Times is Backbeat columnist Lisa Rich's story about fiddler Natalie MacMaster, who brings her energetic, foot-stompin' Cape Breton style of fiddling to McCarter tonight.

Michele Angermiller warns people they need a thick skin to attend Lisa Lampanelli's performance at the War Memorial Saturday. Lampanelli is an equal opportunity offender with an unkind word for just about everybody.

Fine Arts columnist Janet Purcell tells us about a photography show showcasing Tasha O'Neill's unique perspective at Gallery 14 in Hopewell.

Theater columnist Ted Otten interviews playwright Barry Wyner, whose new musical "Calvin Berger," based on the timeless story of Cyrano de Bergerac, is making its debut at New Brunswick's George Street Playhouse.

Food maven Susan Yeske reviews Hanami, the reincarnation of the popular Chinese restaurant Sunny Garden in West Windsor.

We also have a heads-up about the Trenton Film Society's annual "Oscar Shorts" screening Saturday at the Mill Hill Playhouse. There will be two showings of all 10 Academy Award-nominated short films, both in the animated and live action categories. Among the animated shorts will be a new Wallace and Gromit cartoon, "A Matter of Loaf and Death."

As for full-length movies, film critic Stephen Whitty gives a thumbs-up to the remake of "The Crazies," but he wasn't so crazy about the Bruce Willis-Tracy Morgan flick "Cop Out."

As always you can read all of these stories on nj.com. Go to The Times of Trenton link and then click on Entertainment.

Rallying for the park

On Christmas Day in 1776, General George Washington and his troops made their famous crossing of the Delaware to attack the Hessians at Trenton, a victory that marked a turning point in the war for independence.

The attack was launched from a site on the Pennsylvania side of the river that is now Washington Crossing State Park.

Now, unfortunately, the park is under attack, not from the Redcoats but from Pennsylvania state parks budget cuts forced by the recession. The cuts could mean the closure of the park.

To stave off this assault, several area artists have created paintings and other works depicting scenes around the park for a special exhibition, "Rallying the Troops," at the Canal Frame-Crafts Gallery in Washington Crossing. Some of the proceeds from the sale of these works will go the the Friends of Washington Crossing State Park, an organization that is attempting to ensure that this historic site stays open to the public.

In this week's Good Times cover story, Fine Arts columnist Janet Purcell writes about the exhibition and some of the beautiful works created especially for it. Several of the works are reproduced in the section, many of them in color. Anyone with an appreciation for either art or history should check out this exhibit.

Elsewhere in the section, theater columnist Ted Otten writes about the new production of George Bernard Shaw's "Pygmalion" at Mercer County Community College's Kelsey Theatre in West Windsor. This production transports the story from Victorian London to modern-day New York.

Classical music writer Anita Donovan tells us about the Philadelphia Simfonia, an orchestra composed of talented young musicians, which is giving a concert Sunday afternoon at the Trenton War Memorial.

"Backbeat" columnist Lisa Rich tells us about High Hearts, a band that puts an upbeat spin on life's trials and tribulations, performing Saturday night at Mitchell's Cafe in Lambertville. Oh, and whether due to modesty or journalistic objectivity, Lisa didn't mention that she's opening for the band herself that night!

Susan Yeske reviews Jester's Cafe Restaurant and Bar in Bordentown, and Steve Whitty gives a thumbs-up to the new Leonardo DiCaprio thriller, "Shutter Island."

Check out all the great stuff going on in the Trenton area this weekend in Good Times or by going to nj.com and

Folk Brothers

When we lived in New York City in the mid-'80s, Karen and I used to attend the annual Fast Folk show at the Bottom Line.

Fast Folk was a collective of New York singer-songwriters who published a monthly magazine containing an album of songs written and performed by its members.

Among the artists we got to see at these concerts were Suzanne Vega, before she had her big hit "Luca," and Dave Van Ronk. The emcees were Jack Hardy and the always-hilarious Christine Lavin, and the lineup included David Massengill, Lucy Kaplansky, Rod MacDonald and many others.

Jack Hardy and David Massengill now perform as a duo, billing themselves as the Folk Brothers, and they will be performing Friday night at Christ Congregation Church in Princeton.

Jack is an especially clever songwriter. I recall him telling the story of a meeting of the collective at which each member was assigned to write a song about an elevator for the following week's meeting. Jack returned the following week and performed his song. His colleagues listened and told him it was a good song, but it never mentioned the word "elevator." He replied, "It's an acrostic...the first letters of each line spell the word 'elevator.'"

He added with a wink, "I think I won." He proceded to play the song, and you never saw an audience listen more raptly to a song's lyrics to catch the lines spelling out "E-L-E-V-A-T-O-R!" There were even a few subtle allusions, such as "Endless numbers lit up as she passed/Lifting her spirits like a jet." And each verse ended with the line "Refusing to mention it by name."

David, who has an especially pleasant voice, may be Jack's musical brother, but the story of Jack's real brother is a sad one. At the Fast Folk shows, Jeff Hardy accompanied his brother on bass, and at the end of the concerts, Jack would introduce him as "my bassist, brother and bodyguard." Sadly, Jeff was killed on 9/11 while working at Windows on the World on the top of the World Trade Center.

Jack and David should provide an enjoyable evening. The concert, sponsored by the Princeton Folk Music Society, begins at 8:15 p.m., with doors opening at 7:30. Admission is $15 for society members, $20 for nonmembers and $5 for children under 12. The church is located at 50 Walnut Lane, Princeton.

"Love Letters" and Lovers' Lava Lamps

Karen and I became engaged on Valentine's Day in 1985, so on Sunday we celebrated the 25th anniversary of the event with dinner and a show.

First, we went to a matinee performance of "Love Letters" at the Morristown Community Theatre's Mayo Center. The show starred the husband-and-wife team of Jill Eikenberry and Michael Tucker, best known for their roles as husband-and-wife lawyers Ann Kelsey and Stuart Markowitz on "L.A. Law."

A.R. Gurney's play chronicles the lifelong relationship of two people through their correspondence. It's a clever idea, often with the silences between unanswered letters saying as much as the letters themselves.

However, if you go for live theater, it's kind of a rip-off. Seeing just two people, however talented, just sitting at a desk reading the script (even visibly turning the pages) isn't my idea of live drama.

After the show, we went to one of our favorite restaurants, the Black Horse Tavern in nearby Mendham. The historic inn has been completely refurbished in recent years and looks stunning, inside and out.

The food has always been great here, and this time didn't disappoint. Karen had the chicken saltimbocca, and I had a salmon and spinach stuffed phyllo. Both were excellent.

But the most memorable menu item was the drink special: a concoction called a "Lovers' Lava Lamp." It consisted of Prosecco, Grand Marnier and diced cranberries. The carbonation in the Prosecco made the berries rise and fall just like the globs of wax in a real lava lamp.

For the price of a drink, you got a show too! It took us back to those good old days in the dorms in the '70s.

Sweet Judy Blue Eyes

One of my most prized possessions is an autographed copy of Judy Collins' book "Singing Lessons."

I had the opportunity to meet the folk icon at a book signing in Ridgewood after the 1998 release of the autobiography, which she wrote to explain how she dealt with her grief after the suicide of her son.

What impressed me most about her presentation is just how naturally singing comes to her. As she related stories of how her musical family always sang together, she segued from talking to singing "Danny Boy" in that voice that has been compared to "liquid silver" without missing a beat.

A few years later I got to see Judy in a Christmas concert at Ramapo University's Berrie Center (no relation, sadly). A highlight of the concert was her performance of "Kingdom Come," her tribute to the firefighters lost on 9/11. She was accompanied by the Ramapo student chorus, and the arrangement had a surreal, almost nightmarish quality. You could almost feel the horror of being trapped in the burning World Trade Center.

Judy is performing next Friday, Feb. 19, at Princeton's McCarter Theatre Center, and "Backbeat" columnist Lisa Rich's preview is the cover story in this week's Good Times section. Unfortunately the concert is sold out, but you can still get tickets through the Coalition for Peace Action, and for $100 you can not only see the concert but meet this lovely lady at a reception afterwards. See Lisa's story for information on how to order tickets.

Mike Mancuso's cover design features a black and white photo of Judy, with those stunning blue eyes that inspired onetime boyfriend Stephen Stills to write "Suite: Judy Blue Eyes" in color. Unfortunately, some might say it makes her look possessed, or like a resident of the "Village of the Damned!"

Several other columns in Good Times this week follow a romantic theme in connection with Valentine's Day. "Fine Arts" columnist Janet Purcell writes about an exhibition of wedding photography mingled with romantic bridal suite decor at the Tomato Factory in Hopewell. Classical music columnist Anita Donovan previews the Riverside Symphonia's concert, "From Heart to Heart," Saturday night in Lambertville, and the VOICES Chorale concert, "In the Key of Love: A Valentine's Day Cabaret," Sunday at the Paul Robeson Center for the Arts in Princeton.

Theater writer Ted Otten interviews members of the cast of Bristol Riverside Theatre's production of the screwball comedy, "The Foreigner," and dining critic Susan Yeske reviews the No. 9 Restaurant in Lambertville.

Newhouse newspapers film critic Stephen Whitty gives a thumbs-up to "Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Lightning Thief," a so-so review to the remake of "The Wolfman," and despite its timely title, a "bah humbug" to "Valentine's Day."

Hope your own Valentine's Day earns more than the one and a half stars that Steve gave the movie!

"Carmen" Electrifying

My wife, Karen, and I used to sing in a Bergen County chamber chorus called Canta Lyrica. In our performances, we were usually joined by a couple of professional soloists.

In one concert, we performed a medly of songs from "Porgy and Bess." Our female soloist was a lovely young lady named Kirsten Chavez. Not only did she have a glorious voice and delightful stage presence, she looked great too. We heard that she had sung the title role in "Carmen" for the New York City Opera, among other companies.

Opera New Jersey and the New Jersey Symphony Orchestra are now mounting their own production of "Carmen," and they had lined up Metropolitan Opera diva Denyce Graves to sing the title role. Unfortunately, Ms. Graves came down with a bad case of bronchitis and had to bow out. Luckily, Kirsten Chavez was available to step in for her, and opera fans should have no reason to be disappointed.

"Carmen" will be performed at the McCarter Theatre Center in Princeton Friday night and at the State Theatre in New Brunswick on Sunday, and classical music columnist Anita Donovan gives us a preview in this week's Good Times cover story.

Anita also writes about a sneak preview of "Warsaw," a Broadway-bound musical drama about a young Jewish man forced into the Warsaw Ghetto during World War II, which is taking place at the Trenton War Memorial's Patriots Theatre Saturday night. The one-night-only performance is a benefit for the Boheme Opera.

Elsewhere in Good Times this week, "Fine Arts" columnist Janet Purcell reviews Paul Rickert's exhibition "Industrial Visions," opening at the Rider University Art Gallery in Lawrence. Rickert's colorful paintings actually find beauty in industrial scenes that most people would consider commonplace or even ugly.

Theater columnist Ted Otten tells us about the Ritz Theatre's production of the classic Broadway musical "A Chorus Line" in Oakland.

In Backbeat, Lisa Rose tells us about Keith Monacchio's concert at the Robeson Center for the Arts in Princeton tonight to celebrate the release of his new CD.

Dining critic Susan Yeske offers her review of Santino’s Pizza & Restaurant in
Robbinsville.

And Talking Pictures reviews "From Paris With Love," "Dear John," "Frozen" and "The last Station."

Pray that the snowstorm doesn't throw a wrench in any of these great events.

A zaftig dining experience

My wife, Karen, and I had a truly serendipitous dining experience Sunday afternoon.

We were returning home from Virginia, where we had been visiting our nephew Adam and his family, including their newborn son, Joshua.

Driving back along I-95 as lunchtime approached, Karen couldn't work up any enthusiasm for the food offerings at the highway rest stops (Who could?). She decided she had a yen for deli food.

Our GPS can find different kinds of restaurants and their proximity to our route, so we decided our best bet was to detour up the west bank of the Delaware through Philadelphia. The closest deli was the Famous Fourth Street Deli in the Queen section of Philly.

We arrived at the deli, which fortunately wasn't too crowded in mid-afternoon. We were quickly seated, and as Karen perused the menu and the framed photos on the wall, she noticed that the deli owners were from the family that had owned several delis in Brooklyn under the name "Radin's."

"I think my mother used to work there," Karen exclaimed. She said the Radins, Lubins and Cowans were part of her mother's extended family. We also noticed that the "ungashtupt" sandwiches on the menu were named for the various locations of the family's delis, including the "Lee Avenue," a pastrami, turkey and swiss combo. "That's the one where my mother worked," she said.

The regular sandwich menu offered a choice of "regular" and "zaftig" sizes. I opted for a "regular" size chicken salad sandwich and a bowl of matzo ball soup. As it turned out, both of them were HUGE. The matzo ball was the size of a grapefruit, and the sandwich was way too big to finish at one sitting. I finally finished it at the office at lunchtime Monday.

I asked our server how much bigger the "zaftig" would have been. "You see how much space the lettuce and tomato take up?" she asked. "In the zaftig the meat would take up that much more space."

After we finished eating, we introduced ourselves to owner Russ Cowan, and sure enough, he and Karen turned out to be second or third cousins! He remembered Karen's mother, as well as other family members that Karen knew. "That's your Aunt Molly right there," he said, pointing to a picture of deli owners gathered for a dinner dance in 1937.

It was really surreal that the GPS led us to this unexpected family reunion. Could there be a divine hand in those signals coming down from those satellites?

For anyone who appreciates authentic Kosher deli food and who isn't on a serious diet, I highly recommend the place. The sandwiches aren't cheap, but you can definitely get a second meal out of them.

The Famous Fourth Street Delicatessen is located at 700 South Fourth St. at the corner of Bainbridge Street, Philadelphia.

Bohemian rhapsody

There's a little slice of Greenwich Village in Bucks County.

For the past 37 years, John & Peter's Place in New Hope has been presenting an eclectic mix of musical acts in a Bohemian atmosphere.

In Friday's Good Times, Lisa Rich interviews the owner of John & Peter's, John Larsen, a truly colorful character. The 82-year-old free spirit recalls the trials and tribulations of running this shoestring operation over the years, and the top artists who performed there before they became famous, such as George Thorogood and Norah Jones.

Another interesting personality profiled in this week's edition is the Rev. Charles McCollough, who is interviewed in Janet Purcell's Fine Arts column. Since retiring as an official with the United Church of Christ (in the interest of full disclosure, I'm a member of that denomination), McCollough has devoted himself full-time to sculpture. His work is now on display at the Straube Center in Pennington as part of its winter exhibition.

Also in Good Times, classical music columnist Anita Donovan previews the Dryden Ensemble's "Bach Looking Bach" program, which juxtaposes Bach's compositions with those of the earlier composers who influenced him, taking place Saturday at St. Paul's Episcopal Church in Doylestown, Pa., and Sunday at Princeton Theological Seminary. She also gives us a heads-up about the Princeton Symphony Orchestra's "POPS: The Broadway Concert," coming up Saturday at Princeton's Richardson Auditorium.

Ted Otten interviews members of the cast of the Off-Broadstreet Theatre's production of the British sex farce "Bedside Manners," now playing in Pennington.

In her regular "Backbeat" column, Lisa Rich tells us about an appearance by Lemonheads founder Evan Dando Sunday at the Record Collector music store in Bordentown.

Michele Angermiller interviews Shelly Snyder, a student at The College of New Jersey who is a finalist in Saturday's "King or Queen of Campus Comedy" competition on the Rutgers campus in New Brunswick.

Susan Sprague Yeske reviews the Green Parrot Restaurant and Pub in Newtown, Pa.

We also present Stephen Whitty's reviews of "Edge of Darkness" and "When in Rome."

Check out all these interesting articles and more in The Times of Trenton's Good Times section Friday.

Grounds for Photography

A few months ago I reconnected online with a cousin I hadn't seen in more than 20 years. We both grew up in Connecticut, but careers, marriage and the deaths of family members who usually brought us together caused us to lose touch.



So to my surprise, it turned out we're both living in New Jersey now, and she lives in Ewing, close to my workplace in Trenton. And, as it turns out, shes a really good amateur photographer.



And Susan Alexander Mills is one of the 35 photographers whose work was selected out of more than 200 entries for Grounds for Sculpture's Winter Season 2010 Exhibition, which opens tomorrow at the Hamilton sculpture park.



"Focus on Sculpture 2010" is a juried exhibition of amateur photographers' images of sculpture. Susan's subject is the MLK Fountain on the Princeton University campus. Her image, which resembles an Impressionistic painting, accompanies this post.



Grounds for Sculpture is a 35-acre park located on the former site of the New Jersey State Fairgrounds. Founded in 1992 by J. Seward Johnson, it features more than 200 works by both established and emerging artists. It's located at 18 Fairgrounds Road, Hamilton, just off Exit 65B of Route 295 and close to NJ Transit's Hamilton station.



I've been wanting to visit Grounds for Sculpture since I started working at The Times a year ago, but since I live up in Bergen County, the distance has kept me from getting around to it. Now I have an extra incentive to get there and see Susan's work along with everything else there.

Peter the Magic Folksinger

I was a huge fan of Peter, Paul and Mary, the legendary folk singing trio of the '60s.

On Sunday afternoon, one-third of the group will be performing in Princeton. Peter Yarrow will appear at Princeton High School in a benefit concert for the Princeton Public Library.

Lisa Rich's "Backbeat" column about Yarrow is the cover story in this week's Good Times section, coming out in tomorrow's edition of The Times of Trenton.

My most indelible musical memory involves Yarrow and his musical partners, Noel Paul Stookey and the late Mary Travers.

In May 1970, I was a freshman at Bucknell University. PP&M were scheduled to give a concert on campus, and as it turned out, it fell just a few days after the Kent State shootings.

Like most colleges around the country, our campus was on strike to protest the Cambodia invasion. We were all on pins and needles worrying that the National Guard would march on campus and start shooting at us.

One of the songs PP&M performed in the concert was Yarrow's "The Great Mandala (The Wheel of Life)," which is about an imprisoned war protester who goes on a hunger strike and eventually starves to death. With several antiwar activists imprisoned at the Lewisburg federal penitentiary only a few miles away, the recorded version of the song struck close enough to home.

However, in their performance PP&M added a verse about a crowd gathering around the prison gates shouting "Kill him! Kill him!" over and over, rising to a crescendo.

All around me people were breaking down in sobs. It was the most intense musical experience I ever had.

If you go to Princeton High School Sunday, you're sure to have a moving experience of your own.

Elsewhere in Good Times this week, you'll see Steve Whitty's review of the movie "Extraordinary Measures," which is based on the real-life story of the Crowley family of Princeton, who took it upon themselves to find a cure for the rare genetic disorder afflicting two of their children. The movie, which stars Brendan Fraser and Harrison Ford, for some inexplicable reason is relocated to Oregon.

Classical columnist Anita Donovan gives a preview of the Greater Princeton Youth Orchestra's concert Saturday night at Princeton's Richardson Auditorium, and the Westminster Conservatory Orchestra and Chorus performance in the Princeton Chapel that same night. She also interviews the Princeton Symphony Orchestra's new director, Rossen Milanov, who will conduct the orchestra for the first time at its concert Sunday at Richardson Auditorium.

Ted Otten writes about the Actors' NET of Bucks County's premiere performance of Paul Osborn's "On Borrowed Time" this weekend at the Morrisville Heritage Center just across the river in Morrisville, Pa.

Michele Angermiller has had a busy week. She interviews former Olympic skater Natasha Kuchiki, who is appearing as Mulan in "Disney on Ice: 100 Years of Magic," coming to Trenton's Sun National Bank Center Wednesday for a run through Jan. 31. She also interviews Frank Santorelli, who played Georgie the Bartender on "The Sopranos," who was repeatedly getting beaten up by Tony Soprano. This weekend he brings his standup comedy act to the relative safety of Catch a Rising Star at the Hyatt Regency in West Windsor.

And for all the foodies out there, Susan Yeske reviews H.I. Rib & Co. in Pennington, which is alive and well despite rumors that it had been demolished along with the next-door strip mall.

So whatever your interests, there's plenty to do in the Trenton area this weekend. Get out and take advantage of the cultural opportunities the Capitol region offers.

The Trenton arts scene

Trenton, New Jersey, is hardly anyone's idea of a cultural mecca, right?

There's more going on there than you would expect. As arts and entertainment editor of The Times of Trenton, it's my job to stay on top of the cultural scene in the Trenton area, and believe me, there's a lot going on.

For starters, Trenton itself has a couple of major concert venues. There's the Patriots Theatre at the Trenton War Memorial, which plays host to numerous top local and nationally known orchestras. You've also got the Sun National Bank Arena (until recently the Sovereign Bank Arena), which plays host to top names in popular entertainment.

Trenton also has the Trenton City Museum, which displays both historic artifacts and exhibitions of the fine arts. There are also numerous smaller venues in downtown Trenton that host art exhibitions and musical performances.

You don't have to venture far outside Trenton to find the university community of Princeton and all the cultural attractions that pertain to an Ivy League institution. Princeton's own Richardson Auditorium is a major concert venue, and the university's art museum houses a major collection.

Princeton is also home to the McCarter Theatre Center, a venue that attracts major classical and popular artists. Also in town is the Westminster Conservatory, a training ground for top vocal and instrumental talent.

Mercer County is particularly blessed with its visual arts venues. In nearby Hamilton is the famous Grounds for Sculpture, one of the nation's largest sculpture gardens. And facing each other on the Delaware River are the twin artists' colonies of Lambertville, N.J., and New Hope, Pa., which are chock full of galleries displaying the works of local artists.

Of necessity, this is a superficial introduction to the Trenton area arts scene. In future entries I'll go into greater detail as I give you a heads-up about what's appearing in the latest edition of our weekend arts and entertainment tabloid, Good Times. I'll point you to the columns by my staff of knowledgeable writers: Anita Donovan on classical music, Lisa Rich on rock and pop music, Ted Otten on theater and Janet Purcell on visual arts. Stay tuned.