New "Star" Attraction @ Stepping Stones Museum for Children

A new, space-themed exhibition has opened at Stepping Stones Museum for Children in Norwalk. A collaboration between the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and the National Informal STEM Education Network (NISE Network), the Sun, Earth, Universe exhibition will be on display at Stepping Stones in 2019 as part of a nationwide effort designed to engage audiences in the awe-inspiring fields of Earth and space science.

Packed with engaging, hands-on interactive exhibits and dazzling imagery, this 600-square-foot exhibition will connect visitors with current NASA science research and launch them on a journey to explore the universe! How is Earth changing? What is it like on other planets? Does life exist beyond Earth? What’s happening on the Sun, and how does it affect us? Sun, Earth, Universe is a new exhibition about our planet, the solar system, and the universe, and the big questions NASA is trying to answer about each.

Sun, Earth, Universe includes fun and compelling exhibits for visitors of all ages. Follow the design-build-test cycle of engineering and build a model spacecraft for your own mission to space. Spin a tumbler of 10,000 beads, representing all of the stars we can see from Earth to search for the unique one that represents our Sun. Reveal hidden images using the same tools NASA scientists employ to explore the otherwise invisible forces and energy of the universe. Take a break in the seating area and play the Your Mission to Space board game, or help younger visitors pilot rovers across the Mars landscape play table. These fun experiences (and many more!) introduce visitors to ongoing NASA research in the fields of heliophysics, Earth science, planetary science, and astrophysics, and encourage them to imagine what the future of Earth and space science might hold.

Many panels on the Sun, Earth, Universe exhibition provide question prompts and a link to explorescience.org/sun. This companion website features NASA video footage and mobile-friendly interactives that provide visitors opportunity to investigate themes further on their mobile devices while at the museum or at home using their mobile device.  

“First and foremost, Stepping Stones is extremely honored to be chosen as one of the 52 institutions across the country that will be displaying this awesome exhibition during the course of the next year!” said Brian Morrissey, Director of Exhibits. “Many children are fascinated with outer space, but this exhibit isn’t just for those who are space enthusiasts. Sun, Earth, Universe provides great opportunities to experience the world of aerospace and beyond, allows for moments of hands-on exploration and shared discovery among family members and will, perhaps, inspire interest in Earth and space sciences.”

“Stepping Stones is excited to host this exhibit because it aligns perfectly with our commitment to broaden and enrich the educational opportunities of children and to enhance their understanding of the world, and in the case, beyond,” Morrissey said. 

The Sun, Earth, Universe exhibition was created through a project led by Arizona State University, in collaboration with the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). The Sun, Earth, Universe exhibition was developed by a team led by the Science Museum of Minnesota, and fifty-two copies will be fabricated and distributed nationwide by the National Informal STEM Education Network (NISE Network). Exhibitions will be delivered between fall 2018 and summer 2019 and then will be on display at museums across the country over the next several years.

The Sun, Earth, Universe exhibition is free with paid admission to Stepping Stones. For more information, visit www.steppingstonesmusuem.org/seu.

Acknowledgement

The Sun, Earth, Universe exhibition was developed in collaboration with the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). Sun, Earth, Universe exhibitions are developed and distributed nationwide by the National Informal STEM Education Network (NISE Network).

This material is based upon work supported by NASA under cooperative agreement award number NNX16AC67A and 80NSSC18M0061. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the view of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA).

About Stepping Stones Museum for Children

Stepping Stones Museum for Children is an award-winning, private, non-profit 501 (c)(3) children’s museum committed to broadening and enriching the lives of children and families. For more information about Stepping Stones, to book a field trip or schedule a class, workshop or facility rental call 203-899-0606 or visit www.steppingstonesmuseum.org.

Stepping Stones Museum for Children is located at 303 West Avenue, Norwalk, CT, exit 14 North and 15 South off I-95. Museum hours are: Labor Day through Memorial Day, Tuesday-Sunday and holiday Mondays from 10:00 am – 5:00 pm; and Memorial Day through Labor Day, Monday-Sunday from 10:00 am – 5:00 pm.  Admission is $15 for adults and children and $10 for seniors. Children under 1 are free. Get social with Stepping Stones on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram.

About the NISE Network

The National Informal STEM Education Network (NISE Network) is a national community of informal educators and scientists dedicated to fostering public awareness, engagement, and understanding of current science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM). http://nisenet.org/about

Mardi Gras Party at the Carousel Museum

The New England Carousel Museum will be in full New Orleans-style celebration mode during its 29th annual Mardi Gras party on Saturday, March 2, 2019, from 7:30 PM-midnight.  Come join us for an evening of fun and frolicking with great music, good food, bourbon, and beads.

The Big Easy evening features music and dancing in the magnificent museum ballroom. Along with a 50/50 auction and entertainment.  There will be bourbon and wine tastings in the Speakeasy, beads, and doubloons, and a catered dinner!  This is a BYOB event.  "This unique party brings a taste of New Orleans to Bristol," said Louise DeMars, the museum's Executive Director. Attendees are encouraged to wear an optional mask or come in full costume. Masks are available to purchase in the museum gift shop. 

The evening's festivities will culminate in the crowning of a king and queen of the ball.  Gather your friends and come kick up your heels to help us celebrate our 29th year while supporting the wonderful programming and events produced by the Carousel Museum for the Greater Bristol community.

Tickets are on sale at the Carousel Museum or you may order them by mail, by phone, or online.  The cost is $50 per person and pre-paid tables of 8 may be reserved. The event will be held at the New England Carousel Museum, 95 Riverside Ave, Bristol, CT.  For more information or to purchase tickets, please contact The New England Carousel Museum at (860) 585-5411 or email manager@thecarouselmuseum.org.

BOOK ONLINE:

https://www.thecarouselmuseum.org/mardi-gras

RACE Premiere's at TheatreWorks New Milford

On February 22 TheatreWorks New Milford will premiere David Mamet's controversial and provocative drama, Race. 

This production is under the direction of Francis A. Daley of Danbury, CT and features the following cast: Dan Lerner of White Plains, NY as Jack Dawson, Kevin Knight of Norwalk, CT as Henry Brown, Aaron Kaplan of Bethel, CT as Charles Strickland, and Danique Ashley of Derby, CT as Susan.

When a rich white man is accused of raping a younger African- American woman, he looks to a multicultural law firm for his defense. But even as his lawyers—one of them white, another black— begin to strategize, they must confront their own biases and assumptions about race relations in America.

David Mamet is a playwright, essayist, and screenwriter who directs for both the stage and film. He was awarded the Pulitzer Prize and New York Drama Critics’ Circle Award for Glengarry Glen Ross. His plays include China Doll, Race, The Anarchist, American Buffalo, Speed-the-Plow, November, The Cryptogram, Sexual Perversity in Chicago, Lakeboat, The Water Engine, The Duck Variations, Reunion, The Blue Hour, The Shawl, Bobby Gould in Hell, Edmond, Romance, The Old Neighborhood and his adaptation of The Voysey Inheritance.

Note: This play has very strong language and controversial themes.  

Race runs Fridays and Saturdays from February 22 through March 16, 2019. Curtain time is 8:00 p.m. on Fridays & Saturdays, and 2:00 p.m. on one Sunday matinee March 10th. Tickets are $25 for reserved seating. Students and Military personnel and Veterans with ID will be admitted for $20.00.

Reservations can be made online at theatreworks.us or by calling the box office at (860) 350-6863. 

TheatreWorks has been awarded "Best Small Theater in Connecticut" by Connecticut Magazine (2017), Best Community Theater in Connecticut (2014), and is a recipient of the Northwest CT Arts Council CultureMAX Award. They are a non-Equity theatre company located at 5 Brookside Avenue, just off Route 202 (next to the CVS), in New Milford, CT. 

WINter Weekend in Norfolk Feb. 23-24

It’s the perfect winter celebration: outdoor sports; tour of stained glass windows, a brunch crawl, and a pancake breakfast; concerts and art shows; kids’ activities, tours and open houses, tea tasting, a look at the stars, and much more will be featured during Norfolk’s Second WINter Weekend, Saturday and Sunday, February 24 and 25. What’s even better, most of the events are free.

Event Highlights

Music and art will be strongly represented. The Doobie Others Band will perform at Infinity Hall Saturday night at 8 p.m. and, early birds take note, Will Evans of Barefoot Truth will be at Infinity on Friday evening. For classical music lovers, the Norfolk Chamber Music Festival is sponsoring a free performance, Music among Friends, with composer Krists Auznieks and the Yale School of Music Piano Quintet in the library on Saturday afternoon from 2 to 3:30 p.m. And the library plans fun entertainment for the whole family by hosting the Traveling Lantern Theater Puppet Show on Saturday from 10 a.m. to 11 a.m., free of charge.

As for art, there is a show by painter Victor Leger at the library on Saturday and Sunday from noon to 4 p.m. The Norfolk Artisans Guild is hosting a variety of artisan demonstrations and an art show by watercolorist Pamela Harnois from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. The Norfolk Historical Society will be open with a fabulous display of work by 19th-century photographer Marie Kendall on Saturday and Sunday from noon to 4 p.m. New this year at the Norfolk Hub in the center of town, will be video showings of Haystack Book Talks on Saturday at 11 a.m., 12:30 p.m., and 2 p.m.; the videos will run again on Sunday at 12 noon and 1:30 p.m. Another highlight offered at the Hub is a demonstration on how to make handmade art journals by Leslie Watkins on Saturday from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Stefanie Gouey, chef/owner of Station Place Cafe, just told me she’s going to be holding a cooking class on Sunday afternoon, Feb 24, during Winter WIN! She will teach participants how to make chicken pot pie with a puff pastry crust; participants get to take their pies home. Spaces for hands-on participants are limited to 12 and there will be a $10 fee to cover ingredients but others are welcome to come watch and learn. At Station Place Cafe, 10 Station Place, Norfolk. Sunday afternoon time to be announced. Call 860-542-2555 to make a reservation for a spot in the class.

Revelers won’t go hungry. Don't miss out on all the goodies at the indoor Farmers Market, inside Town Hall from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Saturday. The Norfolk volunteer ambulance squad will serve up hot cider and donuts free of charge on Saturday from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. and Great Mountain Forest will open its sugar shack on Saturday and Sunday from 12 noon to 4 p.m., Mother Nature permitting. The restaurants in Norfolk have organized a brunch crawl, the Manor House Inn will host a Murder Mystery on Sunday evening from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m., and Mountain View Green Retreat will offer visitors tea, food tastings and mini spa services on Sunday from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. The Immaculate Conception Church will host a free pancake breakfast on Sunday. And, of course, sit-down meals will be readily available at almost any time of day.

A perennial favorite of WINter Weekend are the tours offered by the Norfolk Curling Club that will have an Open House on Saturday from 8 a.m. to 9 a.m. and Sunday from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. If you like stained glass, don't miss the stained glass window tours of Church of Christ on Saturday and Sunday. The tours of these beautiful stained glass windows by Tiffany and Armstrong begin on Saturday and run on the hour from 10 am to 3 pm and on Sunday from 12 noon to 3 p.m. Immaculate Conception Church will also have docents on hand each day to talk about its own gorgeous stained glass.

Interested in sports? There will be plenty—skating on the town ice rink with lessons on Saturday from 10 a.m. to 11 a.m., there is all day cross-country skiing, hiking and snowshoeing on one of Norfolk’s many trails including the beautiful North Brook Trail and sledding for all ages on the hill behind the Congregational Church on the green (bring your own sled). There will be an owl prowl from 4 a.m. to 6 a.m. and then a wildlife walk on Saturday from 9 a.m. to noon, both at Aton Forest. New this year is the Astronomy Night on Saturday from 7 p.m. to 11 p.m. for a look at the winter constellations, complete with a bonfire and hot chocolate to take the chill out of the air. To round things out, the Norfolk Land Trust is hosting a slide talk on wolf trees by Michael Gaige at the Norfolk Library from 4 p.m. to 5:30 p.m.

To see a full schedule of events and times, including extras not mentioned here, go to weekendinnorfolk.org. For updates, follow Weekend in Norfolk on Facebook. And save the date: Norfolk’s annual festival, Weekend in Norfolk, is coming up August 2, 3 and 4, 2019, for three days of summer fun.