About Town: Weekend Events In and Around Rye

Here are ten events of unusual interest in and around Rye ranging from a free Summerfest to a free al fresco “Despicable Me, and from Native American Dancing to Invesiana to “Five Paintings Every Art Lover Should See” and more.

Friday

Power has been partially restored to the in the wake of Tropical Storm Irene as of Thursday so parts of the building will be open today including the Fitness Center and the lockers rooms. The six- lap Brookside Pool will almost certainly be open as well, but not the adjoining Pa Cope Pool. That was flooded and had to be drained but should be operational by Sept.10.

The good news is that the phone system is also now working. So Y-goers are advised to call ahead for the latest updates. Information: 967-6363.

In addition, all YMCA classes –from Yoga to Pilates to Limbercise—are running as usual at in the aerobics studio in the Carriage House at Rye’s e. Further updates available on the Y’s Twitter feed on the Rye website –RyeYMCA.org—and the Y Facebook page.

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’s Friday Morning Book Café will meet at 9:15 a.m. to discuss David Grann’s “The Lost City of Z: A Tale of Deadly Observation’ in the Amazon.”

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Free fireworks summer season finale at 9:15 p.m. at Rye .

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Free showing of “Despicable Me” as part of al fresco movie event staged by Port Chester Care Community Coalition from 6:30-9 p.m. at Ryan Stadium, Port Chester High School.

Sponsors will supply free popcorn and water and sell baked goods, snacks and beverages to encourage family picnicking on grounds. 

Animated comedy film features voice overs by Steve Carrell and Julie Andrews in a movie that focuses on “World’s Greatest Criminal” committing “World’s Greatest Crime” (stealing the moon), but three young girls convince the hood that he has the makings of the “World’s Greatest Father.”

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Saturday

Did you know that tens of thousands of prints of the now familiar and iconic Currier & Ives landscapes, sporting events and other aspects of daily middle class American life represented the vision and the handiwork of Rye’s own James  Merritt Ives? If you knew that, you are really up on your Rye’s Ivesiana. If not, you know it now.

Either way, you can learn a lot more Ives-wise because the will hold its opening reception for “James Merritt  Ives: Rye’s Printmaker to America” tonight  at 7:30 p.m.

Ives lived in Rye for more than 30 years. Along the way, he is credited with transforming a small artisanal printing firm into a modern, industrial enterprise, which produced and distributed all those famous prints mentioned above.

The ongoing exhibit of Ivesiana will run at the Square  House Museum on the Village Green Tuesday-Friday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Further information: 967-7588;  www.ryehistory.org.

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Green Corn Festival, a celebration of the  Hudson’s Valley’s Native American Heritage, runs from 10 a.m.-5 p.m. today through Monday at Philipsburg Manor, 381 N. Broadway. Highlights range from master storyteller and musician Kenneth Little Hawk to Red Hawk Dance Troupe, a group of Native American performing artists. They encourage audience participation while they teach Native cultural traditions.

Other events include games, open-hearth cooking demonstrations, hands-on activities and child friendly crafts including corn-husk doll making. Picnic fare available. Further information: 631-8200; www.hudsonvalley.org.

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Naturalists will conduct a “Pond Discovery” walk through showcasing Rye’s ’s variety of ponds –frogs and all - at 2 p.m. Wear long pants and shoes because you never know what you will discover.

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Sunday

The early bird catches the best sightings of migrating warblers and other birds on the move at 7:30 a.m. at  Rye’s Marshlands. Bring binoculars. And coffee.

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Rembrandt? Picasso? Van Gogh? Monet? Da Vinci? Your guess is as good as ours, but Columbia professor Tina Rivers will discuss “Five Paintings Every Art Lover Should See” from 9:30 a.m. to noon at in Rye Brook.

Rivers artsy talk will look at a quintet of sterling works from different times, places and genres that provide true insights into the possibilities of painting leading to a greater understanding of what Western art is all about, according to a program announcement.

Rivers knows what she is talking about –-she teaches “Art Humanities: Masterpieces of Western Art” at Columbia,  where she did her undergraduate work. She also attended Harvard and has three master’s degrees from Columbia and the University of California.

Further information: 800-300-3488; www.EmptyNestEvents.com.

Helpful hint: Monet’s “Impression Sunrise” is one of Rivers’ 5 greatest artistic hits.

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Rye’s 17th annual Summerfest runs from 3-5 p.m. at Rye Rec Park. Leaders of Tomorrow Education and sponsor the traditional kids-oriented/family fun event that is a throwback to the traditional old-style community country fair with a variety of races, from potato sack to 30-yard dashes.

Also on tap: a cupcake-eating contest, water balloon competition, horseshoe tournament, women’s pillow fighting, a putting contest, a bare handed wooden bat baseball game and a wooden racquet tennis tournament.

What else? Free hot dogs  and fixings supplied by Jerry and Martha McGuire. And two hours of live Big Band Music from Scott Wenzel’s Reddy Valentino Orchestra.

Further information: 967-1139; www.Rye1904@yahoo.com.