Wednesday, May 30, 2012

Peterborough Players Summer Theatre


We are excited about the upcoming summer program at Peterborough Players. Our Theatre Package includes an overnight stay, 2 theatre tickets, and dinner for 2 at a great Peterborough restaurant. Ask about our Theatre Special when booking.

June 20 - July 1
A World Premiere comedy/drama by Jack Neary
NYPD Blue Emmy-award winning actor Gordon Clapp stars in this world premiere as Joe LaCedra, a gangster with unsavory intentions. You will laugh, you will laugh, you will laugh! And you may even shed a few tears.
July 4 - 15
A musical with book and lyrics by Tom Jones, music by Harvey Schmidt
A musical chock full of song and dance, based on the Jan de Hartog play The Fourposter, with music by the same team who wrote The Fantasticks.
July 18 - 29
A mystery/comedy adapted by Patrick Barlow from the book by John Buchan from the movie of Alfred Hitchcock
Mix a Hitchcock masterpiece with a juicy spy novel, add a dash of Monty Python and you have The 39 Steps, a fast-paced whodunit for anyone who loves the magic of theatre. Patrick Barlow adapted the play from the novel by John Buchan and the film by Alfred Hitchcock to create over 150 zany characters (played by a ridiculously talented cast of four, including Tom Frey and Kraig Swartz).
August 1 - 12
A comedy by J. M. Barrie
Downton Abbey meets Swept Away, from the playwright who brought us Peter Pan! Once a month, Lord Loam invites his servants to the drawing room for tea, whereupon the household is forced to abandon class distinctions for an hour.
August 15 - 26
A comedy by Noel Coward
An audacious comedy, starring Jack Koenig as the popular and pampered actor, Garry Essendine, who is busily making preparations for an extended overseas tour. His plans are complicated by a beautiful stage-struck ingenue and an ardent, aspiring playwright who both insist on his attentions. When his wife, his agents, and his numerous admirers arrive, Garry is hard pressed to escape.
August 29 - September 9
A comedy with heart by Richard Dresser
Two coaches. One believes that his job is to shield the kids from the intense pressure of competition while making sure everyone has a good time. The other coach thinks he should be teaching the kids how to win. Out of these conflicting philosophies, the real issues of the play emerge: how should we raise our children? And what does it mean to be an American man?
September 19 - 23
A comedy by Jane Condon
A hilarious and moving account of how a girl with working class roots became a Greenwich, CT housewife and an award-winning comedian. Janie Condon has been a storyteller and comedian since she was born the youngest of four in an Irish Catholic family and wanted attention. She learned comedy at the knees of the masters, her fellow students at Cardinal Spellman High School in Brockton, MA.
Second Company
10:30am Jun 29, 30, July 6, 7, 11, 13, 14, 20 & 21
By Catherine Gray, adapted from the book "The Ugly Duckling" by Hans Christian Andersen
A heartwarming tale of finding true beauty, happiness, and a sense of belonging. Watch the “ugly duckling” grow into a swan and discover that what’s on the inside is what counts! Suitable for age 4 and up.
Tickets: $8 children, $10 adults
2pm August 18, 21, 24 & 25; 7pm August 20
adapted by Gus Kaikkonen from the book by Louisa May Alcott
Boys—they bring joy as well as troubles! Little Women’s Jo, after inheriting the house, turns it into a school for boys and helps them to be good in studies and to be good human beings. Suitable for age 8 and up.
Tickets: $8 children, $10 adul

Monday, May 21, 2012

Fabulous Vegan Blueberry Muffins



Vegan Blueberry Muffins – makes 12 regular or 6 jumbo muffins

2 cups flour
1 ½ tsp. baking soda
½ tsp. salt
zest from 1 lemon
½ cup brown sugar
½ cup white sugar
1 cup  soy or rice milk 
1/3 cup canola oil
2 tsp. fresh lemon juice
1 Tb. white vinegar
1 ½ cups fresh or frozen blueberries*

Topping

1/4 cup flour
1/4  cup sugar
1/4  tsp. salt
1/4  tsp. cinnamon
3 Tb. Earth Balance, softened


Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Lightly grease muffin tin.

In a small bowl mix topping ingredients together until small clumps form.

In a medium bowl combine the flour, baking soda, salt, and lemon zest.

In a large bowl combine the sugars, milk, oil, lemon juice, and vinegar. Mix well.

Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients, stirring until just combined. Do not over mix.

Gently fold in the blueberries. *If using frozen blueberries lightly dust them in flour first.

Fill the muffin tins about 2/3rds full.

Sprinkle a little topping over each muffin.

Bake approx. 22 mins. for regular muffins, 30 mins. for jumbo muffins or until a toothpick inserted into the muffins comes out clean.





Friday, May 4, 2012

Bird Sightings


Eastern Bluebird in our yard

In my next life I think I will be an ornithologist. My first true awareness of birds happened during the summer of my 15th year. It was my job to weed our enormous vegetable garden. I would begin very early in the morning because that is when the ground is the softest and the weeds pull easily. In my early morning solitude I was alone with my thoughts but I was not alone in my garden. The birds greeted me every day.  Over time I would stop and look up to see which bird it was that was singing which beautiful song.  They made me stop and pay attention.  Slowly I learned to distinguish bird from bird and song from song. It was the beginning of a lifelong friendship.

Currently residing in our yard are cardinals, goldfinches, bluebirds, tufted titmice, chickadees, nuthatches, robins, blue jays, swallows, sparrows, crows, rose-breasted grosbeaks, red tailed hawks, wrens, mockingbirds, woodpeckers, mourning doves, wild turkey, and killdeer. I’m sure I am forgetting some. The ducks, geese and loons have returned to the lake. Next week the Baltimore orioles and the hummingbirds should arrive. Last summer a magnificent bald eagle made frequent visits.

Here is a link of all the Massachusetts birds from the Audubon Society. Better than viewing them online, however, is seeing and hearing them in person. Sip your morning coffee outside on the porch while enjoying the ever-changing symphony.


Tuesday, May 1, 2012

Mother's Day

Pickity Place, Mason NH
       

"A mother is the truest friend we have,
when trials heavy and sudden, fall upon us;
when adversity takes the place of prosperity; when friends who rejoice with us in our sunshine desert us; when trouble thickens around us, still will she cling to us, and endeavor by her kind precepts and counsels to dissipate the clouds of darkness, and cause peace to return to our hearts." 
                                         ~Washington Irving 
                                                              
If you are looking for a special gift for Mom this Mother's Day why not treat her to a beautiful 5-course luncheon at Pickity Place, followed by an overnight stay at The Maguire House. Contact us by email or by phone (978) 827-5053 and we will take care of all the arrangements for you.