Events | Polka party

BY RUTH RICE

RRICE@TRIBDEM.COM

Friendly City PolkaFest will be held tonight through Sunday at St. Mary’s Byzantine Catholic Church pavilion, Fifth Avenue and Power Street in the Cambria City section of Johnstown.

Hours are 5 to 10 tonight, 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Saturday and 1 to 6:30 p.m. Sunday.

Featured bands are Johnstown Button Box, tonight; Polka Family Band, tonight; Don Wojtila Orchestra, tonight and Saturday; Del Sinchak, Saturday; Rosie & The Jammers, Saturday; Eddie Blazonczyk’s Versatones, Saturday; Joe Grkman’s Grkmania, Saturday; Pan Franek and his fiddling daughters, Saturday and Sunday; John Gora Band, Sunday; and Eddie Rodick Orchestra, Sunday.

Members of SS. Casimir & Emerich Roman Catholic Church will hold a fish fry from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. today and will offer other items throughout the festival at their church hall at 501 Power St.

Power Street will be one-way from Fourth to Sixth avenues today for the fish fry and will be closed during festival hours on Saturday and Sunday.

Fifth Avenue will be closed from Power Street to Brallier Alley today through Sunday, and there will be police barricades at Chestnut Street and Fifth Avenue and Cambria Place and Fifth Avenue.

Admission to the festival is free.

There will be no shuttle service, but free parking will be available at Senior Life, 401 Broad St.

Information: www.visitjohns-townpa.com, 536-7993 or (800) 237-8590.

Musical medley

“Some Enchanted Evening,” a musical revue of the hits of Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein, will be presented Thursday through June 6 at Cresson Lake Playhouse, 279 Shapiro Road, Loretto.

Curtain times are 8 p.m. Tuesdays through Saturdays and 2 p.m. Sundays.

This musical homage begins with the five cast members getting warmed up backstage as they prepare for their fictional evening on the stage.

Songs to be showcased are “June Is Bustin’ Out All Over” from “Carousel”; “Surrey With the Fringe on Top” and “I Can’t Say No” from “Oklahoma”; “I Enjoy Being a Girl” from “Flower Drum Song”; “In My Own Little Corner” from “Cinderella”; and “Younger Than Springtime,” “There’s Nothing Like a Dame” and “I’m Gonna Wash That Man Right Out of My Hair” from “South Pacific.”

There will be a medley of Rodgers and Hammerstein hits leading up to the finale, “Some Enchanted Evening” from “South Pacific.”

Tickets are $17 for adults and $10 for children younger than 12.

Information: 472-4333.

Twisted Tara

The musical spoof, “I’ll Never Be Hungry Again” will open the 70th anniversary season on Tuesday at Mountain Playhouse, Jennerstown.

The musical, which continues through June 14, makes light of the film classic “Gone With the Wind,” which premiered in 1939 when the playhouse opened.

Curtain times are 8 p.m. Tuesdays, 2 and 8 p.m. Wednesdays, 8 p.m. Thursdays, 2 and 8 p.m. Fridays, 8 p.m. Saturdays and 3 p.m. Sundays.

Tickets are $8 to $37 depending on performance day, time, seat location and eligible discounts.

Information: 629-9201.

Flood commemoration

Three events sponsored by Johnstown Area Heritage Association and the National Park Service will commemorate the 120th anniversary of the Johns-town Flood of 1889.

A display of luminaria may be viewed from dusk to 10 tonight at Johnstown Flood National Memorial, 733 Lake Road, South Fork.

The 2,209 luminaria represent the victims of the flood, one of the worst natural disasters in the United States.

Admission is free.

Information: 495-4643.

“An Interview with Col. Unger,” a production featuring the president of the South Fork Hunting & Fishing Club and the flood’s story and aftermath, will be presented by the Club House Players at 1 p.m. Sunday at South Fork Fishing & Hunting Club near St. Michael.

Admission will be $2.

Information: 495-4643.

“The 1889 Flood: Through the Eyes of the Johnstown Tribune” will be presented at 4 p.m. Sunday at Heritage Discovery Center, 201 Sixth Ave. in the Cambria City section of Johnstown.

Patty Wharton-Michael of Berwinsdale, Clearfield County, assistant professor of communications at Pitt-Johnstown, will present the flood story told by the Johnstown Tribune and its editor, George Swank.

Admission is free.

Information: 539-1889.

Song busters

Auditions for “Ghosts: The Musical” will be held at 6 p.m. Sunday and 7 p.m. Monday at Cresson Lake Playhouse, 279 Shapiro Road, Loretto.

Those who audition should prepare a song from a contemporary musical with sheet music only, no a cappella or music tracks, and be prepared to learn a short dance sequence.

This fun-filled romp into the supernatural, which includes music from swing to rap, will be onstage Oct. 15-18 and 22-25.

Information: 472-4333 or 207-6815.

Firemen’s frolics

Southmont Volunteer Fire Company Jubilee will continue from 6 to 10 tonight and 2 to 5 and 6 to 10 p.m. Saturday at the Southmont ballfield on State Street in Southmont Borough.

There will be one-price rides every night.

Friday fest

Last Friday will begin at 5 p.m. today at the Ethnic Social Club at the Heritage Discovery Center, 201 Sixth Ave. in the Cambria City section of Johnstown.

There will be a cash bar, and live music will be provided by the Whiskey River Panhandlers, a western Pennsylvania band whose sound combines Americana, folk, country, Appalachian and bluegrass.

Located on the fourth floor of the building, the club’s bar, furnishings and decorations create the authentic atmosphere of a Johnstown ethnic social club.

Information: 539-1889.

Bandshell blast

The Roxbury Bandshell summer concert series will continue Sunday at the bandshell on Franklin Street in Johnstown.

Featured performers will be Aaron Kelly at 5 p.m. and Spinelli Brothers at 6.

Concerts will continue on Sundays through Sept. 13, excluding Labor Day weekend.

Slovak celebration

A Celebration of Slovenian Heritage that features Idrija lace by East Wheatfield Township artist Allie Marguccio will be on display through June 15 at Bottle Works Ethnic Arts Center, 411 Third Ave. in the Cambria City section of Johnstown.

Bobbin-lace demonstrations will be held at 7 p.m. June 9 and bobbin-lace and wood-turning demonstrations will be held at 10 a.m. June 13.

Slovenian music and dance with Bronco Toter will be featured at 6:30 p.m. June 13.

Admission is free.

Information: 536-5399.

Historical brides

Portage Area Historical Society will host “Wedding Belles: Wedding Fashions and Customs from 1770 to 1900” at 2 p.m. Sunday at Portage Elementary School auditorium, 84 Mountain Ave.

Women from the Blair County Historical Society will model wedding dresses, and Peggy Fields, a national expert on period clothing, will narrate the program and provide a look at wedding customs.

Donation is $5.

Information: 736-9223.

Band played on

Bands from Laurel Valley and Ligonier Valley high schools will kick off the summer band concert series sponsored by Ligonier Valley Chamber of Commerce at 7 p.m. Sunday at the Diamond in Ligonier.

Information: (724) 238-4200 or www.ligonier.com.

Festive jazz

The Latin jazz group Siora will perform at LatinFest at 6 p.m. June 5 at Artworks in Johnstown, 413 Third Ave. in the Cambria City section of Johns-town.

Siora will give workshops on Latin rhythm and dance, and Mexican-style food will be available.

Both the concert and food are free of charge.

Information: 536-5399.

Wine sampler

The auxiliary of Memorial Medical Center will hold a wine tasting from 6 to 9 p.m. June 5 at Meadowbrook School Bed and Breakfast, 160 Engbert Road, Richland Township.

This casual event will feature a sampling of German wines, beers and foods.

The cost is $40 per person.

Information: 534-5985.

Swedish sensation

Bjorn Again: The ABBA Experience will give a command performance at 7 p.m. June 12 at Arcadia Theater, 1418 Graham Ave., Windber.

Tickets are $39, $37 and $35.

Information: 467-9070.

Homegrown talent

“A Satori in Johnstown,” a free art and music street festival presented by Satori Gallery, 155 Village Street in the Moxhan section of Johnstown, will be held from noon to dusk June 14 in front of the gallery.

Local talents will show artwork and perform original music.

The musical lineup includes The Wheels, Dave DiStefano with Grand Hadron, Endless Mike & the Beagle Club, The Jeff Perigo Opus, Inside Out, The Sunflower Spectacle, Emmet and Mary, Dallas Zimmerman, Justin Garman, AM Radio and Glenn Henry.

SongWorks, Johnstown’s songwriting group, will perform and host an open mic all day.

There will be an open drum circle at sundown, and refreshments will be furnished by Village Street Café.

Information: www.my-space.com/satorigallery or 659-1180.

Text Only | Photo Reprints