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There it is, looming on the calendar, the third full week of February, the dreaded winter school vacation week. (Depending on your perspective, of course.) It’s too early for spring sports, outdoorsy wintry fun (snowmen, sledding) seems to be something of the past, and everybody – parents included – needs to get out of the house. What should families do?
Happily, the town’s 200-year-old Pilgrim Hall Museum can help solve this modern-day dilemma by offering four days of family-oriented free events during school vacation week.
“February Kids Week” at the museum will feature activities and free admission for everyone for three hours Tuesday through Friday, Feb. 20- 23, with daily “treasure hunts” and reading circles, and special programs for kids.
“Every day there’s something different,” said museum executive director Donna Curtin.
Before the week begins, the museum will commemorate the anniversary of the establishment of Plymouth Colony’s first colonial militia, on Saturday, Feb. 17, when the colorfully costumed re-enactors of the New Plimmoth Gard brandish pikes and swords and fire live musket volleys on the museum lawn in a celebration of “Establishment Day.”
The re-enactment is free. Visitors are invited to come indoors on that day as well, from 10 a.m. to noon. (The museum has been closed since December and will reopen for regular hours next month.)
The forming of the colony’s militia, Curtin said, was one of the new settlement’s first official acts.
“It was the dead of winter,” Curtin said, “a terrible time with sickness, colonists falling ill and dying.”
The colonists chose a captain of the militia before they officially chose a governor in a clear testimony to their feelings of vulnerability. They had also noticed they were under observation by members of the region’s Indigenous people.
Colorfully costumed re-enactors of the New Plimmoth Gard will brandish their pikes and swords and fire off their muskets in commemoration of that first gesture of self-organization and defense.
Then it’s on to “February Kids Week,” sponsored by the Sunrise Rotary Club of Plymouth, featuring family-friendly activities and free museum admission, with daily “treasure hunts” plus other programs for kids.
A guided exploration of the museum’s collection for young learners and a story telling session will take place each day, and each day offers a new presentation for children as well.
Monday, Feb. 19, is Presidents Day. But on the following four days, Tuesday through Friday, Feb. 20-23, the museum will be open and “free to the public” from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. A guided exploration of original collections prepared for young learners will take place each day, led by costumed guides.
“It’s wonderful for a young kid to be able to hold a day-to-day object such as a replica of the beer tankard made of oak wood that the Pilgrims used,” Curtin said, citing an example from the museum’s collection.
Tuesday, Feb. 20, features Mary Brewster’s Reading Circle at 10:30 a.m. The museum’s head of visitor services, Kathleen Wall, an experienced Pilgrim role-player, will read.
And a new coloring book about the Herring Pond Wampanoag Tribe illustrated by artist and tribal member Quincy Harding will be displayed.
On Wednesday, Feb. 21, the guided exploration will be led by a staff member at 10 a.m. Mary Brewster’s Reading Circle will take place at 10:30 a.m. At 11 a.m., storyteller Jackson Gillman, “The Stand-up Chameleon,” will present what the museum calls a “rollicking ride into his wildly imaginative worlds of creative adventure.” His storytelling aims at “bringing the wonders of wintertime alive for audiences of all ages.”
On Thursday, following storytime, Charlotte Anne Dore presents “Rosalita’s Puppet Show” at 11 a.m. The character of Aunty Goose, described by the museum as “Mother Goose’s story-telling sister,” offers a fun show with handmade puppets “and plenty of interaction to delight younger audiences.” The presentation is described as well suited for children aged 3 to 9.
On Friday, the entertainment includes a “Rhythm Drum Circle” at 11 a.m. featuring Ed Sorrentino, percussion department chair of the South Shore Conservatory, who demonstrates keeping the beat with an array of West African drums. Visitors will be invited to join the drumming circle and experience the pleasure of making music “with drums from many lands.” Later, at 1 p.m. storyteller and musician John Porcino mixes stories and songs to share these pleasures from around the world.
For more information about the museum, visit its website.
Things to do this week and beyond
Monday, Feb. 12
It’s the last day to cast a vote for Plimoth Patuxet Museums as “Best Open Air Museum” in USA Today’s 10 Best Readers’ Choice Awards competition. A panel of industry experts and editors at USA Today nominated Plimoth Patuxet for one of their 10 Best Readers’ Choice Awards. You can place your vote here.
The Manomet branch of the library presents “Birds of a Feather” from 4:30 to 5:30 p.m. Children will enjoy hands-on activities exploring migration, adaptations, bird diets, and other subjects. Participants will also make and take home their very own pinecone bird feeder. For more information call 508-830-4250, x210.
The Plymouth library hosts the True Crime Book Club, in which members discuss a different true crime selection every month, from 6 to 7 p.m. This month, the club reads “Manhunters: How We Took Down Pablo Escobar” by Javier F. Peña and Steve Murphy. Copies of the book will be available to check out at the circulation desk.
Plymouth Night Tour continues its evening Anti-Valentine Tour through Wednesday, Feb. 14. Beginning at 7:30 p.m. the 75-to-90 minute walking tour covers stories of “Plymouth’s Murderous Marriages, Twisted History and Love Gone Wrong.” Tickets are available here.
Tuesday, Feb. 13
All Town Fresh, 22 Long Pond Road, hosts a morning mixer from 8 to 9:30 a.m. for Plymouth Area Chamber of Commerce members. Nonmembers can register here.
Wednesday, Feb. 14
The Church of the Pilgrimage, 8 Town Square, conducts an Ash Wednesday service at 7 p.m. The service includes the Imposition of Ashes by Pastor Dianne Arakawa with organ music by Michael Eaton. The church has disability access with nearby parking. All are welcome.
La Vie Luna Apothecary, 65 Main St., hosts a “Valentine’s Day Date Night Sip & Pour Candle Making Class,” from 6 to 7:30 p.m. For more information call Emily Walsh at 857-526-0211.
Plymouth Library hosts the Wednesday Night Writing Group from 6 to 8 p.m. in the board room. There will be writing prompts available to get you started.
Or spend an anti-romantic evening with Plymouth Night Tour’s Anti-Valentine Tour. See the Feb. 12 listing for details.
Thursday, Feb. 15
The Center for Active Living, 44 Nook Road, offer a boatload of programs for health, fitness and wellness, and classes in other subjects. You can reach the center by phone at 508-830-4230 from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. or visit its website here.
Terrace Rooftop Dining invites the public to a ribbon-cutting to celebrate the opening of the restaurant at 150 Water St., from 3 to 4 p.m. For more information call R. Perkins at
508-830-1620.
Friday, Feb. 16
Local homeschoolers are invited to meet other homeschoolers at the library from 1 to 2:30 p.m. and learn about what the library has to offer. Crafts, Legos, and board games will be available to play. The activity is intended for families with children of all ages, and registration is encouraged. The library notes, however, that “this is not a drop-off program.”
Club 1620, at the 1620 Winery, 55 Cordage Park Circle, invites dance-lovers ages 21 and over to come out for a night of EDM, trance, and hip hop, starting at 7 p.m., and featuring Mass Bay DJ. A cash bar will be open and food will be available for order. Admission is $10 at the door.
Curtis Stigers, singer, sax player, and guitarist, performs at The Spire, 25 Court St., at 8 p.m. Tickets are $28.80 to $32 and are available here.
Saturday, Feb. 17
Plymouth library hosts “Saturday Stories” from 11 to 11:30 a.m. This half-hour story program gives parents, caregivers and children 6 and under the opportunity to enjoy books, songs, rhymes, and movement activities together.
Victoria Coe, the Duxbury-basedauthor of the “Fenway and Hattie” series, the “Make Way for Fenway!” chapter book series, and the middle grade novel “Ezra & The Mouse: The Search for Lafayette,” will sign books at Book Love, 7 Village Green South, from 11 a.m. to noon. The event is free.
Duke Robillard, founder of the legendary band Roomful of Blues, performs at The Spire, beginning at 8 p.m. Tickets, $25.20 and $28, are available here.
Sunday, Feb. 18
Uva Wine Bar, 46 Main St, challenges you to “channel your inner Viking” at the bar’s Longhouse Axes & Ales Beer Fest, where you can enjoy a wild day of beer tasting and axe throwing from 2 to 4 p.m. Admission is $30. To reserve a space, go here.
Monday, Feb. 19
It’s Presidents Day. Put your feet up and read a biography of Abe Lincoln or FDR, the only two American presidents who are almost universally admired. Unless you developed a childhood crush on JFK. Or Obama?
Tuesday, Feb. 20
As reported above, Pilgrim Hall Museum invites the public to “February Kids Week,” featuring family-friendly activities and free museum admission, with something different each day from Tuesday through Friday, from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.
The library hosts an online talk with New York Times bestselling author Jason Mot. In his recent novel “Hell of a Book,” a Black author sets out on a cross-country publicity tour to promote his bestselling novel. Mott’s novel also tells the story of Soot, a young Black boy living in a rural town in the recent past, and “The Kid,” a possibly imaginary child who appears to the author on his tour. The talk takes place from 4 to 5 p.m. To register, go here.
Wednesday, Feb. 21
The Plymouth Center for the Arts, 11 North St., holds an opening reception for its “Abstractions” show from 6 to 8 p.m. It’s free and open to the public. The show will continue through March 24.
Thursday, Feb. 22
The school vacation week program at Pilgrim Hall Museum presents Charlotte Anne Dore and “Rosalita’s Puppet Show” at 11 a.m. The character of Aunty Goose, described as “Mother Goose’s story-telling sister,” offers a fun show with handmade puppets.
Friday, Feb. 23
Plymouth library hosts a children’s program on hibernation, migration, and the amazing adaptations animals have for surviving our harshest temperatures, from 2 to 3 p.m. for ages 5 and up Registration is required.
Saturday, Feb. 24
The South of Boston Board Game Group hold a “meet-up” at Plymouth library’s craft room from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. today for all ages and skill levels. Playing “modern strategic board games” such as “Euro, Cooperative, Social Deduction, Area Control, Filler, Roll and Write,” it’s unlikely anyone will be bored at the board game meet-up.
Sunday, Feb. 25
The 1620 Winery, 55 Cordage Park Circle, hosts its eighth Bridal Expo from 12 to 3 p.m. All engaged couples, along with friends and family, are invited to see the rustic winery venue, meet local vendors, dance to the live DJ, and enjoy hors d’oeuvres prepared by the winery’s executive chef and the cash bar. Admission is free, but pre-registration is required here.