Orchard House Turns 100, Charlotte’s Web Comes to Concord, and It’s Time to Register for the PMC Kids Ride

Maureen is right: , and the weather is getting milder – perfect for those walks in the woods. If you haven’t yet been up in the woods where all the Thoreau quotes are, as well as the quotes of other famous people, then take the time to do it. Totally worth the walk.

The Concord Players closed out their very successful run of Little Women last weekend, and now Louisa May Alcott’s Orchard House is getting ready to celebrate their 100th anniversary as a museum. If you’re going to be around over the Memorial Day weekend, consider buying tickets to the Saturday night Boston Pops performance at Symphony Hall. That night, May 26, is a benefit for Orchard House, and will feature a special performance by Maureen McGovern, the actress who played Marmee in the Broadway production of Little Women – The Musical. I do love a good show tune!

There are a number of other events happening over the next few months to honor the centennial, including a 5k walk/10k run in September; check out their website here for the full calendar. To order your tickets for the May 26 Pops concert, you can either visit their website or call 978-369-4118, ext. 104. Just know, you HAVE to order your tickets through Orchard House for them to get the money.

Now, if you’re looking for something to do THIS weekend, and you have young children who need entertaining, Concord Youth Theater (CYT) is performing Charlotte’s Web, the beloved tale about a pig, a spider, and a little girl. What’s cool about this is that it’s performed by kids – extremely talented kids, by the way. CYT provides theatrical training and performance opportunities for kids ages 10 and up; they are a great resource to have so close to home. Performances take place over at Emerson Umbrella on May 18 at 7:30 p.m., May 19th at 2:30 p.m. and 7:30 p.m., and May 20 at 2:30 p.m. and 6:30 p.m. To order your tickets, go to www.concordyouththeatre.org, or call 978-371-1482, mailbox 1. They are $13 apiece, and can also be purchased at the door with cash or a check.

Lastly, I’m sure most of you are familiar with the PMC ride every summer that raises money for cancer research. Well, do you know there’s also a PMC Kids Ride to support the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute’s Jimmy Fund? This year marks the 5th Annual Concord PMC Kids Ride, and the organizers are looking to sign up as many kids as possible. The ride takes place June 10 at the Middlesex School and registration is open at http://kids.pmc.org/concord/. This is a totally kid-friendly event, with face painting and food and music. Plus there are several different routes, from really short to longer, to truly accommodate any ability. It’s a lot of fun, and for an excellent cause.

Now we just need some truly great weather to make all these events a roaring success.

Do you have something you would like to share? Contact me at stefanieac@comcast.net or Maureen at mcb23@comcast.net, and we will be happy to help you spread the good news. And follow us on Twitter: Maureen is @cosmo1162, I’m @stefanie3131.