Community Corner

Vampires, Anna Quindlen and More

There's plenty going on this weekend.

It’s Thursday, and you’ve got no idea what you’ll do for the weekend.

Patch is coming to the rescue. We’ve got the best bets for your done-work-outta-here time. Check our picks for the activities to hit.

Thursday, March 24

Find out what's happening in East Windsorwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Vampire School

Come to , in East Brunswick Thursday, March 24, and Friday, march 25, for a performance of New Kids at Vampire School. The shows are 7 to 9 p.m. The show is a comical take on the “Twilight” saga. General admission is $8 and students and seniors are $5. Tickets go on sale a half-hour before the show. For more 732-613-6800 ext. 5885.

Find out what's happening in East Windsorwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

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Anna Quindlen at Barnes & Noble in Princeton

Anna Quindlen, best-selling author and a past winner of Womanspace’s Barbara Boggs Sigmund Award, will discuss and sign her new book on Thursday, March 24, at 7 p.m. at the Barnes & Noble in the Princeton Marketfair in West Windsor. Her appearance will support Womanspace, a Mercer County non-profit dedicated to serving families impacted by domestic and sexual violence. All purchases made on March 24 between 9 a.m. and 10 p.m. at the store will benefit the Womanspace Library Fund, as long as a voucher (Bookfair ID# 10429736) is presented to the cashier at check-out. Online purchases using the Bookfair ID between March 24 and March 29 will also benefit Womanspace. Visit http://www.womanspace.org to download vouchers and instructions.

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Meet the Artist

Mel Leipzig, a nationally-recognized artist who lives in Trenton and works as a professor of art at Mercer County Community College, will give a talk about his art at 7 p.m. on March 24 at the Rider University Art Gallery in the Bart Luedeke Center on the campus at 2083 Lawrence Rd. (Route 206) in Lawrence Township. For more details, click here. Leipzig's works will be on display during his talk and can also be viewed on Sunday, March 27, in the Rider art gallery from noon to 4 p.m.

Friday, March 25

Walter Choroszewski will present his historic photos of New Jersey in the Large Group Room of the . His work was the inspiration for the state tourism campaign "NEW JERSEY & You ...Perfect Together." The show, which is sponsored by the , will begin at 7 p.m.

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Glenis Redmond

Glenis Redmond returns as the State Theatre's 2011 Artist-in-Residence. This performance will be held at the Crossroads Theatre. Redmond is a poet, educator, performer, and counselor rolled into one passionate soul. Redmond tells stories with poetry—tales from her life, her family, her African-American heritage, and her sensitive observations of the world around her—inspiring audiences of all ages. She has won numerous awards including the North Carolina Literary Award and a Denny C. Plattner Award for Outstanding Poetry, awarded by the Appalachian Heritage Journal. She is a national workshop leader with the Kennedy Center's Partners in Education Program in Washington, D.C. She is a past winner of the Southern Fried Poetry Slam and a top-ten finalist in the National Poetry Slam.

 This performance is free to the public, however tickets are required. For tickets and more information, please contacteducation@statetheatrenj.org or 732-246-7469, ext. 545.

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Mercer County Vo-Tech Open House

Mercer County Technical Schools will host a technical college fair for students in grades 11 and 12. The fair will be open to students from 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. and from 12:15 p.m. to 2:15 p.m. on Friday, March 25, at the Mercer County Technical Schools’ Arthur R. Sypek Center at 129 Bull Run Rd. in Hopewell Township.  More than 20 technical colleges and post-secondary trade schools will be on-site to network with students currently enrolled at Mercer County Technical Schools.  The school district offers numerous shared-time career and technical education programs for high school students in Mercer County.  Several of the programs allow students to earn college credit or industry certifications before they've graduated from high school. For more information, visit www.mcts.edu.

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Steel Magnolias at Kelsey

Eavesdrop on small town gossip, playful bickering, and the triumphs and tragedies of six Southern women when “Steel Magnolias” comes to Mercer County Community College’s Kelsey Theatre. The Pennington Players presents this powerful story of strength and friendship Fridays, March 25 and April 1 at 7:30 p.m.; Saturdays, March 26 and April 2 at 7:30 p.m.; and Sundays, March 27 and April 3 at 2 p.m.  Kelsey Theatre is conveniently located on the college's West Windsor campus, 1200 Old Trenton Road. A reception with the cast and crew follows the opening night performance on March 25.

Tickets are $14 for adults; $12 for seniors, and $10 for students and children. Tickets may be purchased online at www.kelseytheatre.net or by calling the Kelsey Box Office at 609-570-3333. Kelsey Theatre is wheelchair accessible and free parking is available next to the theater.

Saturday, March 26

Gospel concert

The will host the musical Jacobs Brothers of Dillsburg, Pa., for the third year running, starting at 6 p.m. There's no charge for admission, but free-will offerings will be accepted.

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Charity concert to celebrate spring

On Saturday, The East Brunswick Arts Commission and Aldersgate United Methodist Church will hold A Musical Celebration of Spring, with proceeds going to benefit the Mayor’s Charity Fund and the Crisis Room at Aldersgate Church. On tap will be piano and flute solos, a flute quartet, a flute choir, a Marimba performance, and pieces on an organ and string quartet, and everything performed by East Brunswick residents, including fifth-grade pianist Bryan Tong. While the concert is free, tax-deductible donations are being sought.  The show begins at 7 p.m.

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The Music of Styx

Visit the State Theater in New Brunswick when singer/songwriter/keyboardist/record producer Dennis DeYoung, a founding member of Styx, recreates 30 years of musical history featuring all the music he wrote and sang during his career. Featuring DeYoung and his six-piece rock band, hear all your favorite classics including  eight top 10 hits such as “Lady,” “Babe,” “Come Sail Away,” “Best of Times,” “Mr. Roboto,” “Don't Let It End,” “Show Me the Way,” “Desert Moon,” plus Rock anthems “Suite Madame Blue,” “Grand Illusion,” “Lorelei,” “Rockin’ the Paradise,” and music from his new rock CD 100 Years From NowFirst set performed by Bob Burger. 

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Scrapbook and paper crafts

The Pinpricks and Papercuts Scrapbooking and Paper Crafts group will meet in the South Brunswick Public Library at 10:30 a.m. to work on their projects and share tips, tricks and good conversation. All craft warrriors are welcome to join this group; bring your own supplies and projects, the group provides support, encouragement and non-judgmental critique if you want it. Contact the organizer, Roselyn Riley at ppandpc@gmail.com  for more information or to let her know if you plan to join the group.  Location: Program Rooms 1A and 1B

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Become Financially Fit

Become more financially fit when members of the non-profit organization Society for Financial Awareness (SOFA) holds a series of workshops at the South Brunswick Public Library from 2 to 4 p.m. that are designed to educate the American public on basic financial issues. Their aim and commitment is to eliminate financial illiteracy; enlighten the public through financial education; empower all individuals to take charge of their finances; and to embrace our communities by building relationships through trust, integrity and public service. This workshop will cover the basics of Getting 'Fiscally Fit' which includes insight into the basic principles of cash management; •accumulating wealth; locating and maximizing discretionary income; the importance of having a financial blueprint; and roadblocks to financial success.

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Rid of used electonics and household chemicals

 The Mercer County Improvement Authority will host a household chemical and used electronic collection event at the county's Capt. John T. Dempster Sr. Fire Service Training Center in Lawrence Township from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. on March 26. County residents can - free of charge - dispose of used motor oil, car batteries, paint thinner, anti-freeze, old computers and printers, old TVs and microwaves and a host of other things. For a full list of what will be accepted and and what will not be taken, click here (PDF). Proof of county residency (driver's license) must be shown.

Sunday, March 27

Marc-Andre Hamelin Returns

Visit the State Theater in New Brunswick for a concert by Marc-Andre Hamelin. Lauded as a performer “whose abilities defy the imagination,” pianist Marc-André Hamelin stars in Mozart’s lively Concert Rondo and Strauss’s witty Burleske. A northern sun warms the snowy landscapes of Sibelius’ First Symphony.

* Classical Conversations begin 1 hour before the performance.


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