WWII WEEKEND, PHILLY FLOWER SHOW HIGHLIGHT EVENTFUL WEEKEND
The summer events season heats up for real this weekend, with major draws including World War II Weekend in Reading and a reimagined Philadelphia Flower Show. Here’s the rundown:
World War II Weekend
The Mid Atlantic Air Museum’s 30th annual World War II Weekend at Reading Regional Airport runs Friday through Sunday with a theme of “A Gathering of Warbirds.” Ten bombers — heavy, medium, dive and torpedo — are scheduled to fly and appear. Five fighters will form the escort, with five transports supporting the effort. A score of primary and advanced trainers will take to the air. A half-dozen “L-birds” will liaise. And a quartet of Civil Air Patrol planes will watch over the home front at Spaatz Field. Events, including warbird rides, re-enactments, encampments, guest speakers and period music, generally run from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily, with Hangar Dances continuing until 10 p.m. Friday and Saturday. For details and ticket information, see maam.org/maamwwii. html.
Philadelphia Flower Show
For the first time in its 193-year history, the Philadelphia Flower Show will be presented outdoors, in South Philadelphia’s FDR Park, from Saturday through June 13. With the theme “Habitat: Nature’s Masterpiece,” this year’s show will feature the most designers, gardens and floral displays in show history, with over 75 unique installations spanning the 15-acre outdoor area. The show will feature 34 major exhibitors, whose displays average approximately 1,000 square feet. Almost half of these will consist of the large-scale, ornate displays that the Flower Show is famed for. These sizable and imaginative floral and landscape creations are inspired by the show’s outdoor setting and the late-blooming spring season. The show offers dozens of additional floral and landscape gardens, educational experiences and horticultural exhibits throughout the grounds of FDR Park. There will be morning and afternoon sessions daily, and tickets cost $45 for adults, $30 for ages 18-29, $20 for ages 5-17 and are free for ages 4 and younger. For more information and to reserve, visit phsonline.org/flowershow.
Other events
Here are some additional weekend event highlights: • The Apple Dumpling Festival and Pageant continues through Saturday at Konopelski Katering’s Willow Glen Park, Sinking Spring, Berks County. It includes three pageants for ages 4-17, food, rides, games, market stands, contests and live entertainment, including Bandapalooza featuring the Uptown Band, the Groovemasters and Blitz Dynette on Friday from 6to 11p.m. Festival hours are 5:30to 10p.m. today, 5:30to 11 p.m. Friday and 3to 11p.m. Saturday. Festival admission is free. Bandapalooza costs $25at the door. For more information, see appledumplingfest.com.
•
The summer concert season at Pat Garrett Amphitheater,
Strausstown, Berks County, kicks off with concerts by Less Than Jake on Friday at 8 p.m. and Face to Face on Sunday at 5 p.m. Tickets are $20-$25 for Less Than Jake and $25for Face to Face at flagshipmusicproductions.com.
• The Main Line Art Center, Haverford, hosts a Garden Sculpture Exhibition starting Saturday and running through Oct. 30. The gardens will be transformed into an outdoor gallery featuring the work of acclaimed local sculptors working in a variety of mediums. Ceramic sculptures dance through the garden beds, windchimes sway in the breeze, creatures crawl up the building, fiber and textiles hang from trees, and glass flowers bloom among the native plants to create an enchanted landscape for visitors to explore. A garden party opening is set for Saturday from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Kids can enjoy an exhibitioninspired scavenger hunt. Hours are 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday and until 4 p.m. Saturdays. For more information, visit mainlineart.org.
• The Camel Project 2021 Street Art Festival, where all ages can show off their drawing talents with chalk on the paved lot, will be held Saturday from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. on the campus of Reading Muhlenberg Career and Technology Center, Reading. It will include vendors, food trucks, a DJ and several art interactive demonstrations, where adults and children can enjoy and participate. A tub of 20 sidewalk chalks with seven color will be provided to all registered artists to express themselves. Admission is free. For more information, visit www.thecamelproject. org.
• Dino Stroll comes to the Greater Philadelphia Expo Center, Oaks, on Saturday and Sunday, with timed tickets available starting at 10 a.m. each day and every half hour through 5 p.m. Visitors will experience a transformation into the Mesozoic Era with prehistoric dinosaurs from the Triassic, Jurassic and Cretaceous periods. As guests walk through this Dinosaur adventure they are able to get up close and personal with almost 75life-like creatures, reptiles and lifesize dinosaurs, with most standing over 25feet tall and spanning over 60 feet long, including T-Rex, Velociraptors and Stegosaurus. Tickets are $24and available online for advance purchase only at www.DinoStroll.com.
• The latest exhibition at the Reading Public Museum, “In Nature’s Studio: Exploring Pennsylvania’s Waterways,” opens Saturday and runs through Sept. 6. It features eight paintings on loan from the Philadelphia Museum of Art. Complementing the exhibition is “In Nature’s Studio: Two Centuries of American Landscape Painting,” which focuses on the sweep of American landscape painting by artists, including members of the prestigious Peale family, who selected as their subjects the rivers, creeks and streams in the southeastern region of the state, including Wissahickon Creek and the Schuylkill and Delaware rivers. Museum hours are 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily. Admission is $10 for adults and $6 for seniors and students.
For more information, visit readingpublicmuseum.org.
• Philly Beer Week runs Friday through June 13, with dozens of events ranging from beer tastings to happy hours, tap takeovers and live music, game nights to educational workshops, charity events, outdoor festivals and a 5K run. Details are posted on the calendar at PhillyLovesBeer.com.