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Salem Does Not Rest; Downrigging Weekend Next Event

History, Salem Event, Salem Festivals No Responses »

Nov 012014

Halloween has come and gone, but Salem does not roll up the sidewalks. We move on to the next big event, which in the case of this weekend, harkens not to our “witchy” past, but our maritime history. Salem’s first annual Downrigging Weekend is set for November 1 & 2.

The Essex county sailing community marks the end of the sailing season with this two-day event. And you benefit!!! Half-price public sails on the schooners Thomas Lannon, Ardelle, and Fame and downrigging demonstrations aboard Friendship are just some of the elements of this festival.

The Thomas Lannon is a beautiful representation of a turn-of-the-century Gloucester fishing schooner.
The Ardelle is a representation of the handsome and seaworthy pinky schooners that dominated the fisheries in the 1820-1840 period.
The Fame is a representation of the Salem privateer that captured the first prizes of the War of 1812.

Inspired by the Sultana Downrigging Weekend, the Salem Downrigging Weekend is a celebration of not only the end of the sailing season, but also a tip of the sailor’s cap to maritime culture, wooded boats and the sailing heritage of the Essex county.

The Captains of the Fame, Ardelle & Thomas Lannon, along with the Salem Maritime National Historic Site and Essex National Heritage Area are partnering together to offer this weekend of activities – both on land and sea.

There will be 6 public sails, 6 live demonstrations, 2 films, 3 Q&A sessions with captains, ship tours and more! Public sails require a reservation and fee, but all other activities are free and open to the public.

Then you can follow-up your stint on the water at Finz Restaurant from 7-10pm on Saturday night for drinks, free appetizers, music, raffles and plenty of salty sailing wisdom.

Schedule of Events

Make sail reservations online for all vessels via the Schooner Fame website
Please make a note of the individual trip times (see below) for each vessel. When making a reservation, choose the reservation time that matches the vessel you’d like to sail.
Fame sails: 10:30am, 1:00pm, 3:00pm.
Ardelle sails: 11:30am, 2:00pm.
Lannon sails: 4:30pm.

Saturday, November 1st

10:30 – 4:30pm. public sails aboard Fame, Ardelle, Thomas Lannon.
11am – 4pm. Friendship open for public visitation.
11am – live demonstration aboard Friendship.
12:30pm – free screening of the Thomas Lannon movie, plus q&a session with captain.
2:30pm – live demonstration aboard Friendship.
4:30pm – free screening of the Fame movie, plus q&a session with captain.
7pm – 10pm. “downrig or die” evening event at Finz Restaurant.

Sunday, November 2nd

11am – splicing workshop aboard Fame.
12pm – Ardelle downrigging demonstration.
1pm – Lannon downrigging demonstration.
2pm – Friendship downrigging demonstration. q&a session with captain on the ongoing preservation and maintenance program for Friendship.

All vessels will be docked at the Salem Maritime National Historic site (173 Derby Street) or Pickering Wharf Marina (23 Congress Street). Free film screenings will be held in St. Joseph Hall, 2nd floor. (160 Derby Street). Visit www.nps.gov/sama for the complete schedule and updated information.

Be safe. Be considerate. Use common sense. Halloween in Salem.

Haunted Happenings, Salem Event, Salem Festivals No Responses »

Oct 282014

Really, those are the words that should guide you in your visit to Salem Ma and interactions with other enthusiasts celebrating Halloween here on Friday.

Being that Halloween falls on a Friday, we are expecting a lot of you to invade/join the party. Keep that in mind when you consider your method of transportation in AND out of the city.

And be prepared to leave at the end of the evening. We appreciate you having a good time. Of course, when the party’s over, the party’s over and we have to clean up. But, the street party concludes with fireworks. Yes we have fireworks on Halloween!

We try to make it a fun event, but to do so, there are some rules to also make it safe for everyone. Please take a few minutes to look them over.

That link also gives a schedule of the day & evening events, courtesy of our friends at HauntedHappenings.org.

For example, did you know we also have a Fiesta Shows Carnival, a Shock Top Beer Garden, more than one costume ball, and live music in spots across the city? This is after all, a big bad Halloween bash to end our month-long Haunted Happenings celebration.

Oh, also, do not bring weapons real or fake to Salem on Halloween. You may know how to properly wield a broad sword but someone else may not. Anything that looks like a weapon will be confiscated.

Enjoy and come back next year!

Open Market Open For Biz – Traditional and a Bit Strange

Haunted Happenings, Salem Event, Salem Festivals, Salem Shopping 2 Responses »

Oct 232014

Where can you find the “best independent designers, artisans, artists and crafters together in a maelstrom of cutting edge design, art and handmade wares?” Where else but in Salem Ma; Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays during the last three weeks of October, you will find SOWA, an open-air arts market with over 50 booths.

Just to give you an idea of the eclectic items that await you, here are descriptions of three vendors that have been or will be available on the weekend.

Nick & Jillian of R.H. Mardigan Enterprises and Emry’s Handcrafted Fynery. She makes jewelry and accessories out of ephemera, resin and other findings. He makes leather cuffs and accessories with a steampunk flair. And from the Steampunk events at the Peabody Essex, you know there is interest in that genre.

Diane Koss of Cutesy But Not Cutesy, specializes in making monsters (we think we’ve seen a few of those in recent weeks in Salem), but she also makes monster designer toys that you can cuddle; and a popular item has been the amazing monster hoodies for kids, adults and dogs!

And then there is the strange relationship between Zombies (always a big item in Salem during October) and published author / illustrator Greg Stones. Just look at this picture representing (at least to us) the clash of a long running horror theme and a recent over-the-top horror craze.

SOWA will run Friday-Sunday 10/24-26 at Derby Square Vending from 11 am – 6 pm, and Essex Street Vending from 11am – 10 pm. For more info go to their website http://newenglandopenmarkets.com/

The “Other” Salem Court Case Presented as Interactive Murder Mystery

Haunted Happenings, History, Salem Dining, Salem Event, Salem Festivals No Responses »

Oct 182014

If you’ve enjoyed the excellent performances by History Alive! Inc. with the interactive and “moving” production of Cry Innocent, then we are here to advise of a 2nd production it presents in Salem, titled Goodnight Captain White. But— this is just a bit different.

Running Oct. 24th, 25th, 31st and November 1st. at Old Town Hall, this comedic-mystery retells the not so well-known true event of the 1830 murder of Salem Sea Captain Joseph White:

It’s 1830. “All friends and well wishers are invited to attend” the retirement party of Captain Joseph White’s favorite ship, the Caroline. But this magnanimous invitation lures a host of enemies and ill-wishers into the perfect opportunity to murder the rich, old captain. Allegiances twist and turn. Foibles are exposed, depravities revealed. It’s up to the audience and an under cover Daniel Webster to figure out whodunit and how.

Written by Mark Stevick and directed by Kristina Wacome Stevick, the tale is about the real Captain Joseph White, a rich, elderly, retired shipmaster, who was murdered while sleeping in his Essex Street home. It has all the elements of good book, movie or TV episode: local folks among the accused & guilty, and a high-profile prosecuting attorney in Senator Daniel Webster, hired by the White family to prosecute for the Commonwealth.

But where is the comedy? Goodnight, Captain White is not a reenactment like Cry Innocent. “We’re not sticking to the exact history here,” Mark Stevick has commented previously. “We follow the original story, but we’ve cut and combined to make for a more high-energy, comic period piece.”

Kristina Wacome Stevick has also stated “Is it right to laugh about terrible behavior? To do so doesn’t mean we endorse murder, adultery, slavery, betrayal. In our laughter we release the tension of recognition. As we watch these extreme fellows careen toward their comeuppance, we’re relieved they are not ourselves and we cringe at the thought that they could be, were our circumstances less privileged or graced.”

Use of innuendo, double entendres, a bit of improv from the actors, and even input from you, the audience, to help uncover & define the clues makes for a lively evening— that has nothing to do with ghosts, goblins or ghouls. Just a nice murder mystery.

Doors open at 7:15pm for “noshing and revelry.” Show begins at 7:30pm. The price of admission includes soirée fare and a “Crowninshield Punch.” For more information email historyalive@gordon.edu or call 978-867-4767.

Sanderson Sisters Return to Salem Rescheduled; Hocus Pocus on the Common Oct. 18

Haunted Happenings, History, Salem Event, Salem Festivals No Responses »

Oct 092014

Come little children, I’ll take thee away; into a land of enchantment. Come little children, the time’s come to play: here in my garden of magic.

Hauntingly chanted by a Sanderson sister in the 1993 film Hocus Pocus, that is something as children we learned was a bad thing to hear echoing in the cloud-filled skies— be you in Salem Ma or elsewhere. But, after all it was just a movie. And that movie is fondly recalled every year here in Salem, where the producers actually took the time to film several scenes.

Radio 92.9 is presenting a free, weekly Haunted Movies Series in Salem during October; this week Hocus Pocus, rained out last week (perhaps the burning rain of death?) has been reset for Saturday, October 18 from 6:30 to 8:30 pm on the Salem Common under the stars.

Bring a blanket or beach chairs to watch this movie, which picked up 2 wins and 11 overall nominations during the 1994 Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Films, USA awards.

Last year was the 20th anniversary of the movie. Here is a bit of trivia: did you know that the actor playing Thackery (not Zachery) Binx was Sean Murray who now plays Tim McGee on NCIS? You did? Well, did you also know that he was the voice of neither Thackery nor the cat? Movie Magic.

Hello Salem! My name’s Winifred, what’s yours? I put a spell on you…

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