In Town
Mercer County and Mercer County Community College present a course on personal emergency preparedness training that begins Wednesday, February 12. Visit www.mccc.edu.
Community Emergency Response Team training is designed to teach people how to take care of themselves and their families and assist neighbors in a large-scale disaster or emergency. The course consists of nine Wednesday evenings of classroom instruction before finishing with a Saturday practical exercise. Students will also have the ability to join their municipal-based CERT program. Tuition is provided through the Mercer County Homeland Security Grant.
Mercer County Park Commission is accepting reservations at the five picnic areas throughout Mercer County. Visit www.mercercountyparks.org/about/picnics for information, pictures, amenities of each area, as well as to make reservations. Users will have the opportunity to view available dates and picnic areas for rent. Interested parties should have either a MasterCard or Visa card ready to make a reservation. Reservations may also be made at the Events & Recreation Center at 1638 Old Trenton Road, West Windsor.
Princeton Education Network presents coffee and conversation with Barbara Kalmus, the director. She will talk about preparing for SAT and ACT. WW-P High School North, Thursday, March 20, 7 to 9 p.m. WW-P High School South, West Windsor, Tuesday, March 25, 7 to 9 p.m. Register to info@PrincetonEd.com.
McCaffrey’s in West Windsor will sell $4.99 “Valentines for Food” through February 14. McCaffrey’s will match purchases dollar for dollar, up to $5,000. There are food drives at West Windsor-Plainsboro schools.
Virtual Valentines and Virtual Food Drive are available at www.thecrisisministry.org. E-mail or traditional mail will be sent to recipients designated by the donor. Call 609-396-9355 or E-mail info@thecrisisministry.org.
Workshops
NAMI Mercer is accepting registrations for Family-to-Family, a free, 12-week education course for adult family members of persons living with mental illness. Tuesday evening classes start February 25, at Trinity United Methodist Church, 1985 Pennington Road, Ewing. Thursday evening classes begin February 27 at the NAMI Mercer Center, 3371 Brunswick Pike, Lawrenceville. Both classes are from 6:30 to 9 p.m.
Family members have the opportunity to meet others like themselves in a confidential setting. The curriculum covers the biology of brain disorders, recent developments in brain research, and the latest medication and treatment options. Families also learn how to cope with the stress of caregiving and how best to advocate for their loved ones. Registration required. E-mail home@namimercer.org or call 609-799-8994.
For the Young
Mercer County Improvement Authority invites students in grades K-12 to participate in the Mercer County Recycles Video contest. Submit a three-minute video on the benefits of organic/food waste recycling. The deadline for video submission is Monday, March 31.
Prizes will be awarded in each grade level. Winners will be announced during Earth Day week. Visit www.mcianj.org or E-mail Brenda Ricci at bricci@mercercounty.org.
PrincetonKIDS wants to recognize and celebrate the best teachers in the greater Princeton area. Students from Pre-K to 12th grade living in Mercer, Middlesex, Somerset, and Bucks counties are invited to submit an essay describing their favorite teacher. Include how the teacher has influenced your life and what makes your teacher the best teacher ever in 450 words or fewer. Include your name, age, grade level, name of your school, name of your teacher, and your contact information.
Five winning essays and the teacher featured in each winning essay will receive a $100 gift card. Winning essayists will receive a treat for his or her homeroom class. Send entries to PrincetonKIDS, Box 1392, Princeton 08542; or E-mail teacher@princetonkids.com. Visit www.princetonkids.com/best-teacher-ever. Submissions must be postmarked by Saturday, March 1.
Yardville CYO Spring Pee Wee Tee Ball League, a co-ed instructional league for 4 and 5 year olds, begins Saturday, April 5. The registration fee is $75. Games and practices will be held on Saturday mornings at the Yardville CYO. Volunteer coaches and team sponsorship opportunities are available. Contact Dan Bossio at 609-585-4280, ext.112; or E-mail dbossio@cyomercer.org for information.
For Singers
Community Christian Choir is accepting registration for the upcoming season. The adult and children’s choir will present a series of benefit concerts in April and May at several area venues.
The multi-denominational group has members ages five and up. Church affiliation is not required for membership. The choir has both adult and children divisions. The children’s choir has divisions for ages 6 18. Singers are placed according to experience, ability, and commitment.
The children’s divisions rehearse Sunday at Pond Road Middle School in Robbinsville. The adult choir is un-auditioned and rehearses two to three Friday evenings a month. There is also an auditioned adult ensemble. Practice tracks are provided for registered singers. Music reading ability is helpful but not required. Visit www.ccchoir.com or call 609-587-7076.
Drama
The Village Players, a new community theater group created by the Lawrenceville School for adults, invited adults with an interest In theater to participate in its first meeting on Sunday, February 9, from 4 to 6 p.m. at the Kirby Arts Center.
No experience is necessary, just an interest in any aspect of theater. Discussions, rehearsals, and performances will be overseen by Chris Cull, the school’s director of performing arts. E-mail villageplayers@lawrenceville.org. The school is located at 2500 Main Street in Lawrenceville.
Auditions
McCarter Theater has non-equity auditions for “The Figaro Plays” on Tuesday, February 11, at 91 University Place, Princeton. Teenage auditions are Monday, February 10. Actors are needed in non-speaking roles to play peasants, jurors, tenants, and more. Some actors will need to sing well, others to carry a tune. Male actors will play women for some scenes.
Stephen Wadsworth adapted two new translations of the farces that inspired Mozart’s operas “The Marriage of Figaro” and “The Barber of Seville.” The two plays will be performed in repertory with the same company of actors. Not all actors will appear in both plays.
Actors needed include ages 13 to 16, male and female, all ethnicities. Male actors, ages 18 to 30, all ethnicities. Ability to play guitar a plus. Female actors, ages 18 to 30 and 40 to 60, all ethnicities.
Prepare two contrasting monologues and bring headshot and resume. Contact Courtney Little at 609-258-6505 or E-mail casting@mccarter.org.
Bimah Players Community Theater seeks actors, singers, and musicians for “In Transit,” a comedy/drama with music based on works by Chaucer, O. Henry, and others. Auditions are Sundays, March 2 and 9, from 1 to 6 p.m.; Thursday, March 6, from 7 to 9 p.m. at Monroe Township Jewish Center, 11 Cornell Avenue, Monroe. Visit www.bimahplayers.org, E-mail: DirBimahPlayers@aol.com, or call 609-395-2969.
Paper Mill Playhouse seeks children to fill two roles in “South Pacific.” The musical is a story of romance and love set against the backdrop of a lush, exotic, and mysterious tropical island during WWII. The roles are to portray Emile’s bi-racial children with a Maori mother and a Caucasian father. Jerome is a boy, age 7 to 9; and Ngana is a girl, age 9 to 11.
Performers must sing, act, have a comfortable stage presence, and must be able to learn French phrases. Any child who auditions will be asked to sing “Dites-Moi” from the show. Callbacks will be held on the same day.
Audition signup will take place in the theater’s lobby on a first-come, first-served basis on Saturday, February 15, beginning at 10 a.m. Children and their guardian should join the line in front of the theater at 22 Brookside Drive, Millburn, and enter through the front doors of the theater only. Every child should bring a picture and resume stapled together.
Call for Art
D&R Greenway has an open call for artists for a juried art exhibition, “Oasis and Mirage: Disappearing Water.” The submission deadline is Tuesday, March 4. Visit www.drgreenway.org to submit works and pay entry fee of $20.
Volunteer Please
DARE New Jersey seeks volunteers for special events, office assistance, and more. Call Patty Titen at 609-860-6777 or E-mail her at ptiten@darenj.com.
Princeton Learning Cooperative seeks volunteers to work with its teen members in a number of ways including tutoring, leading a class or activity, presenting a workshop, or mentor students in academic and non-academic pursuits.
Their highest priority needs are languages (Spanish, Mandarin, Swedish, Russian), world history, environmentalism, philosophy, animal behavior and anatomy, drawing, music, law, GED and SAT prep, photography, meteorology, computer programming, others), writing, edible plants, and math tutoring. E-mail info@princetonlearningcooperative.org or call 609-851-2522.
