At Quaquanantuck

Lest We Forget

May 25, 2023May 25, 2023 atquaq1 Comment

As regular readers of this now exceedingly intermittent column know, At Quaquanantuck delights in examining the fuzzy interface between specific dates and the seasons they are meant to divide, as well as the events and issues that are pinned to these squares on the calendar.

So, yes, as has been pointed out many times before, even though the calendar and the physics of astronomy tell us that the season following spring officially begins on the solstice (June 21)—and students will tell you that it doesn’t really begin until school lets out—Memorial Day weekend, especially in the summer resort mecca of eastern Long Island, is almost universally accepted as the starting line for summer.

But way back when, Memorial Day was principally about the day itself, originating as the national holiday known as Decoration Day in 1868 to honor Union and Confederate war dead. Observances were held every year on May 30 until it became a federal holiday in 1971, to be celebrated yearly on the last Monday in May, after expanding in its scope to include all those who had fallen while in the service of the United States Armed Forces. By the 1970s, the weekend had also become accepted as the unofficial start of summer, bookending with Labor Day on the first Monday of September as the last day of summer, with the Fourth of July holiday sandwiched near the middle.

At Quaquanantuck is old enough to remember working at a newspaper when obituaries were coming in for the last surviving veterans of the First World War. Today we read about the last few men and women who served in World War II passing on, and it reminds us of the many who did not survive but who fell in that global conflict. Sadly, we do not need these now long ago wars to be reminded of those who laid down their lives. Korea, Vietnam, Iraq in 1990, Iraq again from 2003 to 2011, Afghanistan 1999-2021.

As long as there are armed forces in the U.S., there will be women and men who give their lives for their country, in both war and peace time. In the giddy celebration of the start of summer, may we always reflect, somberly and soberly, on the ultimate sacrifice made by these truest of patriots.

This year’s Memorial Day Ceremony, sponsored and organized as always by the Quogue Volunteer Fire Department, is scheduled to start at 10 a.m. (rain or shine) on Monday, May 29, in front of the Firehouse. Chief Mike Nelson will welcome everyone with some brief remarks, followed by the invocation by the QFD pastor.

Mayor Bob Treuhold will offer a few words before organizer Steve Alpert introduces this year’s guest speaker, Colonel Kamal Kalsi MD, US Army Reserves. Dr. Kalsi is an emergency medicine physician from New Jersey who has served in the Army for 20 years and was awarded a Bronze Star for his work taking care of hundreds of combat casualties on the front lines in Afghanistan. Now transitioned into the Army reserves, he now serves as a senior advisor for Policy Vets and is a Fellow of the Truman National Security Project’s Defense Council. He founded the Sikh American Veterans Alliance (SAVA) in order to promote diversity, religious freedom, and service.

Members of the Quogue Fire Department will lay a wreath and flowers at the memorial in front of the Firehouse and all those who attend will be offered the opportunity to lay a flower as well. The ceremony will conclude with QFD volunteer Patrick “Skip” Heaney bugling Taps.

Incorporated Quogue Turns 95
Speaking of significant dates, Quogue Mayor Bob Treuhold sent out a birthday greeting to the village on May 12, noting that 2023 marks the 95th anniversary of the village’s incorporation in 1928, “when some of our very astute residents had the good sense to incorporate our village,” the mayor wrote, “thereby giving us much more control over our destiny.”

May 12, as local history buffs know, was the day 364 years ago when the Village of Quogue was established upon the purchase by John Ogden of a vast parcel of land stretching from Canoe Place to the east (now the Shinnecock Canal) to Beaverdam Stream to the west (now Westhampton) and extending three miles north from the high water mark.

All those interested in knowing more about village history will have ample opportunity to explore further this summer, thanks to the unstinting efforts of the Quogue Historical Society; exhibitions and archives at its Pond House headquarters; and at the 1822 Schoolhouse Museum on the grounds of the Quogue Library. www.quoguehistory.org.

Mayor Offers State of the Village Address May 27
Quogue Village Mayor Bob Treuhold’s very first State of the Village address is scheduled for this weekend on Saturday morning, May 27, at 10 a.m. in front of the Fire Department. In the event of rain, the mayor’s talk will be moved into the courtroom on the north side of the Community Hall.

Topics for Hizzoner’s address, will include—but not be limited to, by any means—the Village elections scheduled on Friday, June 16; an update on the 2023/2024 Village budget and tax comparisons; an update on the Fire Island to Montauk Point (FIMP) coastal erosion/beach nourishment project; and an update on some upcoming road projects (which the Mayor assures At Quaquanantuck will be nothing as significant, or disruptive, as the recent Scrub Oak/Jessup reconstruction).

Mayor Treuhold will also discuss some green initiatives and Suffolk County Water Authority guidelines for water conservation, while leaving time for questions from the assembled citizenry.

Quogue Association Annual Meeting; Summer Events Update
The Quogue Association has scheduled its 2023 Annual Meeting on Saturday, May 27, at 8:30 a.m. the Quogue Village Courtroom, with a pledge to conclude the session in plenty of time for QA members to get over to the State of the Village address next door at the Firehouse at 10 a.m.

As part of the Annual Meeting, a new board member nominee, Claudia Step, will be presented by the membership committee for member vote approval. QA members can cast a vote to approve the new board member before the meeting by emailing “Yes” to quogueassociation@gmail.com.

The Quogue Association has rolled out the calendar for this summer’s three big events: The second annual Concert on the Quogue Village Green will be held on Friday, June 23; the Duck Race from the Quogue bridge to the Village Dock will be held on Friday, July 28; and the annual QA Beach Party at the Village Beach will be Friday, August 18, with a rain date of Friday, August 25. Watch for updates and details from the Quogue Association.

*Sign of summer: rosa rugosa. —A. Botsford Photo*

Schmidt’s Country Market Lighting Up Jessup Avenue
For those seasonal residents and visitors just now arriving on the scene, you will have surely noticed the transformation of Jessup Avenue with the opening in late March of Schmidt’s Market, late of Southampton Village.

Southampton’s loss is truly Quogue’s gain, as attested not only by the array of fresh produce, a bustling (and thankfully hustling) deli counter, extensive salad bar and homemade soups, full service butcher, and super friendly and helpful staff, but also by the effect of the increased traffic on the nearby Quogue Shop and the newly expanded Homespun.

Meanwhile, there is a gratitude contest going on. Village residents and shoppers from nearby hamlets and villages believe they are the most thankful that this wonderful store has opened in Quogue; while Dan Schmidt and his family are convinced that they are even more grateful for the wonderful response and warm embrace they have received from the community. It’s a good contest to have: everybody wins. If you haven’t already, which is hard to imagine, stop in at the store, and also check out the website, schmidtscountrymarket.com. Summer hours are Monday through Friday from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m.; Saturday from 6:30 a.m. to 6 p.m.; and Sunday from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m.

HTC’s “The Portuguese Kid” On Stage Through June 11
Thanks to a splendid press release from Hampton Theatre Company President Roger Moley, At Quaquanantuck can report that “The Portuguese Kid,” a dizzyingly funny adult comedy from Oscar, Tony and Pulitzer Prize winner John Patrick Shanley, will conclude the Hampton Theatre Company’s 2022-2023 season, with performances running from tonight, May 25, through Sunday, June 11, at the Quogue Community Hall.

*Esmeralda Cabrera, David Cardali, Vay David, Andrew Botsford and Rosemary Cline in a scene from “The Portuguese Kid,” running through June 11 at the Quogue Community Hall. —Dane DuPuis Photo*

Returning to the romantic-comedy orbit of “Moonstruck,” the hit movie which won Shanley a Best Original Screenplay Academy Award, “The Portuguese Kid” spins a marvelous comedic web involving two mismatched couples and one overbearing matron.

In Providence, RI, a habitually widowed Greek temptress named Atalanta Lagana pays a visit to frazzled lawyer and childhood friend Barry Dragonetti, ostensibly intending to clear up her latest late husband’s affairs. Instead of establishing legal clarity, the larger-than-life Atalanta badgers her insecure, self-aggrandizing attorney into imagining a hysterical alternate universe of what-ifs and what-might-have-beens. Add Barry’s impossibly obstreperous Croatian mother Fausta, his beautiful young Puerto Rican wife Patty, and Atalanta’s new boy toy Freddie, who just happens to be Patty’s ex, and you have in hand a perfect recipe for comic combustion.

“The Portuguese Kid” was originally produced by the Manhattan Theatre Club in New York City in September 2017, and featured a cast including Sherie Rene Scott, Jason Alexander, Mary Testa, Aimee Carrero and Pico Alexander. The play was lauded by The Wall Street Journal’s Terry Teachout as “the funniest new comedy I’ve reviewed since … well, maybe ever,” adding, “I don’t know when I last saw another stage comedy that was funny right from the top, or one that whose last scene was so unmanipulatively touching. To laugh this hard for that long is downright therapeutic.”

Entertainment Weekly called the play “uproariously entertaining” and “deliciously funny … ‘The Portuguese Kid’ makes for a wildly entertaining 90 minutes of whip-smart banter.” And NY1 promised, “You will laugh – of that I have no doubt!”

“The Portuguese Kid” features a spirited cast of five, including three HTC veterans. Andrew Botsford (last seen on stage in “A Doll’s House, Part 2”) is Barry; Rosemary Cline (“A Doll’s House, Part 2”) is Atalanta; and Vay David (HTC’s “Other Desert Cities”) plays Fausta Dragonetti. Making their HTC stage debuts are David Cardali as Atalanta’s young boyfriend Freddie Imbrossi and Esmeralda Cabrera as Patty Dragonetti.

Bob Kaplan (HTC’s “Mauritius,” “Glengarry Glenn Ross”) directs; Laurie Atlas (recently on stage in HTC’s “The Lifespan of a Fact”) is the producer. Set design is by Mr. Kaplan and Ricky Bottenus and Meg Sexton; lighting design by Sebastian Paczynski; sound by Seamus Naughton; and costumes by Teresa Lebrun.

Performances of “The Portuguese Kid” will run from May 25 through June 11 on Thursdays and Fridays at 7, Saturdays at 8, and Sundays at 2:30. An additional matinee performance will be offered during the final weekend of the production, on Saturday, June 10 at 2:30, prior to the regular 8 p.m. performance that evening. Note: This adult comedy contains strong language; viewer discretion is advised.

Two “talkbacks” with the cast will be offered to ticketholders immediately following the June 2 and June 9 Friday-evening performances. Tickets are $36, $31 for seniors, and $20 for students 25 and under, and are available at the Hampton Theatre Company website at hamptontheatre.org or by calling 631-653-8955. Patrons can also purchase season subscriptions and individual tickets for the theatre’s 2023-2024 season; details will be available on the HTC website.

*Esmerald Cabrera, David Cardali, Andrew Botsford and Rosemary Cline. —Dane DuPuis Photo*

Mark the Calendar for More Events You Won’t Want to Miss
The Quogue School Parent Teacher Association will host the 31st annual Chicken Dinner next week, on Friday, June 2, from 5 to 7 p.m. This evening of fun and games, great food and fellowship in support of the school—rated among the best in all of New York State—is one of the best community events of the year. Don’t miss it.

*The Galvin Cello Quartet will perform in a Quogue Chamber Music concert on June 17 at the Community Hall.*

On Saturday, June 17, at 7:30 p.m., Quogue Chamber Music will present the Galvin Cello Quartet, winner of the Concert Artists Guild Competition, at the Quogue Community Hall, with a program including works by Mozart, Bach, Rossini, Piazzolla, Gardel, Gershwin, Fitzenhagen and Popper. The program will be followed by a post-concert celebration. Tickets can be purchased online at www.quoguechambermusic.org.

East End Hospice (www.eeh.org) is holding its annual gala on June 24, and the Quogue Wildlife Refuge (quoguewildliferefuge.org) will host the 15th annual Wild Night for Wildlife Summer Gala at the Refuge on July 15.

Rebirth Everywhere

March 23, 2023 atquaq1 Comment

At Quaquanantuck was heartened last week by readers’ warm response to the first column that’s been posted since November. Gratified, too, to note that visitors to last week’s post included four from Mexico, two from Finland, and one each from Austria, Germany, the United Kingdom, Antigua & Barbuda, Italy, France, and Vietnam.

On the chance that not all of them are residents of our village who are off globe trotting, it’s so intriguing to speculate on what these international visitors’ interest in Quogue might be.

Meanwhile, the season continues to spring forward, with early grackle scouts joining red-winged blackbirds at the feeder and tom turkeys rakishly fanning out their proud displays to woo prospective mates. It is indeed the season of rebirth, and while it’s not clear at this time when the next column might be posted, At Quaquanantuck would like to once again ask readers to contribute their own observations on the different signs and signals that spring is picking up momentum.

Please send your thoughts (and photographs, in Large size) to AtQuaq@gmail.com so they can be shared in this space with other village residents as well as devoted readers from Finland to Antugua & Barbuda, and beyond.

As road work continues on Jessup Avenue so that there can be a rebirth of that storied thoroughfare, there is another significant resurrection underway in the business district, one that has mouths watering and chefs of every stripe already contemplating the many ways they will soon be able to enhance and bring new life to all their recipes. I refer, of course, to the upcoming opening of the new Schmidt’s Country Market in the very same complex that—many, many years ago—housed side by side both Pat & Howard’s and the Quogue Market.

*Similar on the outside but very different inside. —A. Botsford Photo*

Schmidt’s Country Market Poised to Open March 31
Interviewed this week, Dan Schmidt, who could best be described as ebullient, told At Quaquanantuck that after undergoing one final inspection tomorrow, Friday, March 24, his staff will be stocking the shelves and preparing food starting on Monday in order to be ready to open doors to the public on Friday, March 31.

Hours at the start will be 5 a.m. to 5 p.m., Dan said, possibly shifting to 5 a.m. to 6 p.m. depending on the community’s needs. In order to emulate the well oiled efficiency of his family’s Southampton operation, the store will be manned by a staff of 12, plus Dan and members of his family.

*Dan Schmidt in front of bins awaiting fresh produce. —A. Botsford Photo*

Anyone familiar with the legendary Southampton operation might be excused for a sense of deja vu in the new store when it opens. As Dan said, Quogue will have everything that Schmidt’s in Southampton had, plus a little more. There will be lots of every kind of the freshest produce, a complete selection of fine cheeses, salad bar, a full selection of beverages and market items, homemade soups, and a comprehensive deli section serving breakfast and lunch, including hot food, along with prepared foods and salads.

In line with the family feel of the operation, Dan uses first names only when speaking about employees. Staffers coming from Southampton—who will be familiar to patrons of that establishment—include Schmidt’s longtime chief cashier, the smiling and charming Fareen; maestro Anthony will be heading up the kitchen team; the sure hand of Sylvia will at the tiller of the deli operation; and the magical Martina will once again be demonstrating how to put together the East End’s best salad bar.

New to the staff will be Chef Mike, who will oversee an expansion of the catering operation. Whereas in the past catering was limited to making up trays of food and delivering same to parties, the Quogue Schmidt’s will offer full service catering, including staff, setup, food preparation and service.

There is a new counter inside the front window, where diners can sit and look out at goings on on Jessup Avenue and the Village Green. And there will once again be a few tables outside as the weather warms.

As has been reported elsewhere, so far Dan has been “knocked out” by the support and encouragement of the Quogue community as well as longtime customers of Schmidt’s in Southampton, many of whom have pledged to make the trip to Quogue. Time will tell if his happiness in being here can possibly match the immeasurable happiness of many village residents to have him and his wonderful market here.

At Quaquanantuck salutes both Dan and Mayor Bob Treuhold, whose foresight and timely outreach are responsible for the new Schmidt’s coming to our village. Bravo!

“The Lifespan of a Fact” Earning Rave Reviews
The Hampton Theatre Company production of “The Lifespan of a Fact,” the riveting three-character play that combines biting humor with timely arguments about the collision of print journalism with poetic license, earned rave reviews, standing ovations, and, on Sunday, thunderous applause demanding the actors return to the stage for another set of bows.

As theatergoer Debora Jacques commented this week: “Just saw ‘The Lifespan of a Fact’ at HTC. Had seen this play on Broadway with Daniel Radcliffe and I thought the HTC actors did a better job. They were amazing. They got a standing ovation and deserved it!”

The second show of the HTC’s 2022-2023 season continues this week, with performances running through April 2 at the Quogue Community Hall. A talkback with the cast will be offered to ticketholders immediately following the Friday, March 24, evening performance.

*Jamie Baio and Matthew Conlon. —Dane DuPuis Photo*

Based on a nonfiction 2012 book of the same name by John D’Agata and Jim Fingal—which in turn was inspired by an essay written by D’Agata about a teenager’s 2002 suicide in Las Vegas—“The Lifespan of a Fact” was adapted for the stage in 2018 by Jeremy Kareken & David Murrell and Gordon Ferrell. The play tells the story of how Fingal, an idealistic, fresh-out-of-Harvard intern, was tasked by the editor of a prestigious yet troubled New York magazine to fact-check a groundbreaking piece written by celebrated author D’Agata—with a strict deadline only a weekend away.

Excited by the opportunity to prove himself on such a prestigious piece, Jim’s mood quickly changes to alarm when he discovers a disturbing pattern of unsubstantiated claims and creative liberties taken by D’Agata throughout the otherwise brilliant 15-page essay. The play climaxes with an 11th-hour faceoff between author, editor and fact-checker—with none willing to give ground as the hours grind by and a deadline decision looms.

The HTC production of “The Lifespan of a Fact” features Laurie Atlas (“Ripcord”) as Emily, Jamie Baio (“Lost in Yonkers”) as Jim, and Matt Conlon (“Ken Ludwig’s Baskerville: A Sherlock Holmes Mystery,” “Man of La Mancha”) as John.

George Loizides (“Over the River and Through the Woods,” “A Doll’s House, Part 2”) directs. Set design is by Mr. Loizides; lighting design by Sebastian Paczynski; sound by Seamus Naughton; and costumes by Teresa Lebrun.

Performances of “The Lifespan of a Fact” through April 2 are on Thursdays and Fridays at 7, Saturdays at 8, and Sundays at 2:30. An additional matinee performance will be offered during the final weekend of the production, on Saturday, April 1, prior to the regular 8 p.m. performance that evening.

Tickets are $36, $31 for seniors, and $20 for students 25 and under, and are available at the Hampton Theatre Company website at hamptontheatre.org or by calling 631-653-8955.

*Shoreline physics: the lowest tide, the most beach. —A. Botsford Photo*

Mayor Treuhold Carries the Torch
Quogue Village Mayor Bob Treuhold released another of his reasonably regular newsletters this week, and At Quaquanantuck joins many village residents in their gratitude not only for announcements and updates related to village government and public works but also his mentions of cultural and educational opportunities and highlights.

Readers are encouraged to check out the most recent, and all of Hizzoner’s missives, at villageofquogueny.gov. A few highlights below:

Special School Vote March 29
The Quogue School District has scheduled a “Special Proposition Vote” on March 29 from 2 to 8 p.m. at the Quogue School. Voter approval is sought to authorize the use of funds from the school’s “Facility Preservation and Upgrade Capital Reserve,” established in 2017, for the purpose of performing a complete renovation of the existing, deteriorating, and outdated playground structures.

Lest anyone become overwrought, it’s important to note that this vote is only related to renovating the playground structures at the school, a project that is sorely needed for both the students at the school and children in the Quogue community who do not attend the Quogue School but who are free to use the playground.

Seals on Long Island Shores
A lecture at the Quogue Wildlife Refuge at 2 p.m. on Saturday, March 25, will provide an introduction to the different species of seals found in New York waters. Visitors will have an opportunity to learn about the New York Marine Rescue Center and its programs aimed at helping these animals when needed. This is especially timely, the mayor noted, given the sighting of a very large gray seal this week on the beach in Quogue. https://longisland.news12.com/amp/ny-marine-rescue-center-to-monitor-grey-seal-on-quogue-beach

Easter Egg Hunts
On Saturday, April 8, the Wildlife Refuge will host two sessions of an egg hunt for toddlers age 2 to 4; one at 9 a.m. and the second at 10. Register at www.quoguewildliferefuge.org.

Meanwhile, the Quogue Volunteer Fire Department will host its traditional Egg Hunt on the lawn in front of the firehouse at 11 a.m. sharp on Saturday, April 8.

Spring Leaf Pickup
The Village Highway Department will begin picking up leaves on April 1, with the usual rules in effect. Leaves must be on the shoulder of the street by April 30 in order to be picked up. Leaves must not be piled around fire hydrants or utility equipment, and cannot be placed in plastic bags or they will not be picked up.

For complete details, visit villageofquogueny.gov.

*The marsh is still brown; the great egret still pure white. —A. Botsford Photo*

Signs of Spring

March 16, 2023 atquaqLeave a comment

Okay, so everybody knows what the calendar tells us: that the first day of spring in 2023 will be Monday, March 20, the date of the vernal equinox, with hours of light and darkness in perfect balance.

But everybody also knows that the start of spring is as much a feeling as it is an astronomical fact, a feeling fueled by the myriad signs, large and small, that restore color and depth to senses flattened by monochromatic winter, no matter how atypically warm January might have been, or how bone chilling and blustery as this March has turned out to be.

What signs? Start with the gains in daylight. After, achingly, only inching ahead every day since the winter solstice, the sun’s light has now been doused in the accelerant of Daylight Saving Time, and the resulting bright postponement of dusk changes our perspective on everything that happens, or delightfully doesn’t, between 4:30 and 7:30 p.m.

There is the crescendo in the chorus of birdsong celebrating the sunrise, as if to herald not only the increased quantity of light, but the very real change in its quality. Yes, there are more cars on the roads, but the oppressive crush of summer traffic is still a ways off and now it just seems like life returning to our East End arteries, just as it is in the soil and in the bays and ocean.

The egrets have started to show up in the creeks and on the marshes, and now the ospreys are returning. And many stores, closed up tight for the winter months, are starting to open their doors again, just like the blossoms of crocuses and daffodils.

In our village, of course, anticipation continues to mount for a particular mercantile blossoming: the opening of the new Schmidt’s Country Market on Jessup Avenue, in the building that formerly housed the Quogue Country Market. Southampton’s loss is most certainly Quogue’s gain, and At Quaquanantuck is eager to share more details about the store next week. Stay tuned.

Another traditional sign of spring—first restored post-Covid last March—is the Hampton Theatre Company’s spring production, which it is hoped will not be too severely impacted by another spring tradition, i.e. roadwork, in this case phase two of the Jessup Avenue overhaul.

“The Lifespan of a Fact” Opens March 16 at Quogue Community Hall
“The Lifespan of a Fact,” a riveting three-character play that combines biting humor with timely arguments about the collision of print journalism with poetic license, continues the Hampton Theatre Company’s 2022-2023 season with performances running from March 16 through April 2 at the Quogue Community Hall.

*Jamie Baio, left, and Matthew Conlon in a scene from “The Lifespan of a Fact.” —A. Botsford Photo*

“The Lifespan of a Fact” premiered at New York’s Studio 54 in October 2018, with Daniel Radcliffe as Jim and Bobby Cannavale as John; Cherry Jones rounded out the cast as Emily Penrose, the editor who sees in D’Agata’s essay the kind of buzzworthy piece that could save the magazine from irrelevancy and possible ruin.

A New York Times “Critics’ Pick,” the play was lauded as “buoyantly literate” by The Washington Post, with Variety praising its “terrifically funny dialogue … the debate at the heart of this play transcends comedy and demands serious attention.” The Hollywood Reporter called it an “ingenious adaptation of the sui generis book of the same name … moves with the ticking-clock urgency the situation demands, yet finds appropriate moments to breathe and let us ruminate on the personal, professional and moral issues at stake.”

The HTC production of “The Lifespan of a Fact” features a trio of accomplished actors, each of whom has performed on the HTC stage before: Laurie Atlas (“Ripcord”) as Emily, Jamie Baio (“Lost in Yonkers”) as Jim, and Matthew Conlon (“Ken Ludwig’s Baskerville: A Sherlock Holmes Mystery,” “Man of La Mancha”) as John.

George Loizides (“Over the River and Through the Woods,” “A Doll’s House, Part 2”) directs; HTC veteran Andrew Botsford is the producer. Set design is by Mr. Loizides; lighting design by Sebastian Paczynski; sound by Seamus Naughton; and costumes by Teresa Lebrun.

Performances of “The Lifespan of a Fact” will run from March 16 through April 2 on Thursdays and Fridays at 7, Saturdays at 8, and Sundays at 2:30. An additional matinee performance will be offered during the final weekend of the production, on Saturday, April 1, prior to the regular 8 p.m. performance that evening.

A talkback with the cast will be offered to ticketholders immediately following the Friday, March 24, evening performance.

Tickets are $36, $31 for seniors, and $20 for students 25 and under, and are available at the Hampton Theatre Company website at hamptontheatre.org or by calling 631-653-8955.

*Jamie Baio, Laurie Atlas and Matthew Conlon in “The Lifespan of a Fact.” —A. Botsford Photo*

Grateful

November 24, 2022 atquaq1 Comment

Honoring a promise made to the late Quogue Village Historian and keeper of the flame Pat Shuttleworth, At Quaquanantuck is happy to share once again—even if it’s not in newsprint that can be put up on the refrigerator anymore—its annual reflection on just a few of the many things for which all of us who are lucky enough to spend time in this blessed community can be truly grateful.

*Surfcaster’s sunrise. —A. Botsford Photo*

With so many challenges continuing to dog us as we attempt to navigate our way out of the pandemic and get past seemingly intractable political divides in order to address the burgeoning threats to our democracy and the very future of our planet, it is more important than ever that we understand just how fortunate we are to be living in Quogue, so that we might better show compassion and generosity to those who are not so blessed.

With beachfront erosion a constant threat even under the best of circumstances, we can all be extremely thankful that 2022 was another off year for hurricanes making a direct hit on the eastern seaboard. Still, we must always honor the lessons of the past by remaining vigilant, heeding evacuation warnings, and following safety protocols when a major storm has the East End even tangentially in its sights. And always bear in mind that it’s not a question of if another major storm will hit Long Island, only when.

We can be thankful for, and humbled by, the courage and community spirit of the members of the Quogue Volunteer Fire Department and all first responders, ready to make whatever sacrifices are called for to ensure the safety and protect the property of all residents.

And, emerging with some caution from the Covid and variants pandemic, we can be grateful for the fire department continuing to give fire safety lessons to Quogue School students and resuming all the activities and programs that help give our village its identity: a full fledged Halloween Ghost Parade, support services for Santa’s visit to our village (a possible sighting is predicted on Friday, December 9, at the 5:30 p.m. tree lighting on the Village Green), the Easter Egg hunt, and, this weekend, bringing back the traditional pancake breakfast at the firehouse, on Sunday, November 27, from 8 a.m. to noon.

Another example of our Volunteer Fire Department bringing the community together in a beautiful way, Sunday’s breakfast—replete with raffles and a silent auction to complement the delicious fare—is the principal fundraiser for the Fire Department’s Benevolent Association. All are invited, and encouraged, to stop by and greet friends and neighbors while supporting our faithful volunteers.

Likewise we can be thankful that we are blessed with the talented teams of people who work for the Village of Quogue and serve in village government, in the Village Office and Building Department, on the police force, and out on the roads and bays: their efficient management of affairs of state, their dedication to helping us all keep safe through the pandemic, and their community spirit translate into the best possible quality of life for all of us.

And don’t forget that the fine folks of the Village Highway Department will continue to graciously pick up leaves piled at the roadside through December 15. Check the village website, www.villageofquogueny.gov, for parameters and restrictions.

*Jailhouse scene from the Quogue Junior Theatre Troupe production of “Chicago.” —Photo courtesy of QJTT*

We can be grateful that our beautiful Community Hall has been, and will continue to be, a center for the performing arts on eastern Long Island. Home to the Quogue Junior Theater Troupe and the Hampton Theatre Company as well as the Quogue Chamber Music series and occasional special Westhampton Garden Club programs, the Community Hall is a thriving cultural hub only because of, first, the support of the fine folks in Village Hall, donors, subscribers and volunteers, and, second, the efforts of the creative people dedicated to making live theatre and presentations of the highest quality to honor this support.

Coming up next at the Community Hall, the Hampton Theatre Company will present a limited run of the family friendly “It’s a Wonderful Life Live Radio Play” December 16, 17 and 18. All tickets are $10 and complimentary cider, hot chocolate and cookies will be served prior to the 45-minute production. For tickets or more information, visit hamptontheatre.org.

George Loizides, Catherine Maloney, Meg Hrinkevich, Patrick Osborne, Amelia Chiaramonte, and Carl DiModugno in a scene from the Hampton Theatre Company production of “Over the River and Through the Woods.” —Tom Kochie Photo

We can give thanks that the Quogue School has been certified as something we in the community already knew it to be: one of the best schools on the East End—and in all of New York State—courtesy of the caring and committed teachers, administrators, support staff and the Parent Teacher Association all working together to create a truly superlative and nurturing educational experience, all while meeting or exceeding the highest standards of elementary school education.

In cataloguing our gratitude, it bears mentioning that the Quogue School District has the lowest tax rate by far when compared to neighboring districts in East Quogue, Hampton Bays, Westhampton Beach, and Remsenburg-Speonk.

Our village is blessed, too, with the fantastic Quogue Library, following through beautifully on all the promise of its beautifully renovated, restored and expanded headquarters on Quogue Street.

Give credit for the vast array of in-person and virtual programs there to an enthusiastic and thoroughly engaged board of directors and an accomplished and helpful staff, all of whom understand the vital role the library has in binding our community together, across generations, different viewpoints and disciplines.

Another jewel of our village is the Quogue Historical Society, managing and curating the artifacts and accounts of Quogue’s storied history dating back to the 17th century for the benefit of young and old, today and for generations to come. At Quaquanantuck is particularly grateful to the Society, board member and newly minted Quogue Village Historian Pi Gardiner, and QHS Curator Julie Greene for frequently sharing fascinating tidbits of village history that have immeasurably improved the texture of this column’s postings.

*The circa 1820 Capt. Henry Gardiner House at 83 Quogue Street is one of five houses featured in the 2022 Quogue Historical Society Holiday House Tour. —Photo courtesy of QHS*

This year’s Quogue Historical Society Holiday House Tour—celebrating the 200th anniversary of Quogue’s one-room schoolhouse—is scheduled for Saturday, December 10, from 2 to 6 p.m., followed by a cocktail party from 6 to 8. Tickets are available at the QHS website, quoguehistory.org/calendar/events-and-exhibitions.

On the northern border of our village sits another reason to be thankful: the Quogue Wildlife Refuge, where—thanks to the Southampton Town Wildfowl Association, the village, the town, and thousands of supporters since 1934—all are welcome to wander and experience and learn about the unspoiled natural beauty of this area, the flora and fauna and hundreds of direct links to the spirit of Quogue’s past. Check the QWR website, quoguewildliferefuge.org, regularly to find out more about this year’s annual appeal as well as all the wonderful programs being offered there year-round.

*Golden hour at Quogue Village Dock. —A. Botsford Photo*

Although the Westhampton Garden Club doesn’t have our village name in its title, Quogue is clearly ever-present in the hearts and minds of its members. The WGC established and maintains all the public gardens in Quogue, including the flowers and greenery at the Village Green; the historic garden and the pollinator garden at the Quogue Library; and the Butterfly Garden at the Quogue Wildlife Refuge, calling attention to “The Pollinators” and threats to the monarch butterfly and bee populations, among others. The WGC has also brought renowned speakers to the village, offering engaging and compelling programs that have packed the Community Hall.

Need more? How about the Quogue Association? Nothing inspires gratitude like the efforts of a group of people who get together to inform, educate, do good works, and throw great parties based on a shared love for the place where they live. It is incumbent upon all of us who care about our village—and is there anyone who doesn’t?—to join or donate to the Quogue Association, or if you are already a member, to renew your membership right away, at quogueassociation.org.

Although At Quaquanantuck is saddened by the closing of Double Rainbow and the (hopefully) temporary closing of the Quogue Country Market, still it is important to be grateful for, and to support, small “downtown” businesses like the Little Q Quogue Shop, Quogue Liquors, Blown Away Dry Bar and Salon, Flowers by Rori and Jen Going Interiors, all of which offer a range of goods and services to delight all ages and tastes.

*“Red Trees” by Margot Carr is one of the works on view in the Quogue Gallery’s “Quogue in Common” group show opening this weekend. —Image courtesy of Quogue Gallery*

The beautiful private Quogue Gallery is another jewel in the necklace of our business district. Appropriate for a celebration of our community at this time of year, an opening reception for the “Quogue in Common” group exhibition is scheduled this weekend, on Saturday, November 26, from 5 to 7 p.m. (Visitors who are not vaccinated must wear masks.)

Continue with the checklist: The Post Office, the stalwart Board of Election volunteers, the Village Dock and boat launching ramps, the expanded Village Beach facility and the drawbridge that provides access to it, the Quogue Cemetery Association: all of these places and institutions and the people who work for them and who make them work so well: all contribute essential and cultural services, texture and color to make Quogue truly beautiful, and unique.

*Family constitutional. —Anacarolina Schaffauer Photo*

At Quaquanantuck is aware that these are the most obvious elements of life in our village that prompt our gratitude. Photos and news items regularly sent in to this column by readers offer a more nuanced picture. Although the column is no longer being posted on a regularly scheduled basis, it is hoped that readers will continue this practice; please send news and social items, comments and observations, and photos (in Large size if taken on a smartphone) to AtQuaq@gmail.com.

On a personal note, At Quaquanantuck is sincerely grateful to all the people who have voiced their appreciation for this column and support for this scribe’s efforts over the past five years since it ceased to be published in The Southampton Press and moved to this online site.

Seeing the health crisis and economic havoc wrought by the pandemic and now the war in Ukraine, in our nation and around the world; seeing so much conflict around the globe and so many forced to flee their homes and struggle, amid horrific circumstances, to make a new start; the meteorological anomalies, natural disasters, and other mounting threats stemming from global warming; and so many challenges facing so much of the world today: may none of us ever take for granted the security of having comfortable shelter and food on our tables, and may we all be ever mindful of all the natural beauty and all of the many blessings we share in this village as we celebrate this holiday of gratitude. Happy Thanksgiving!

Scary Times

October 27, 2022 atquaqLeave a comment

While the near contemporaneous arrival of Halloween and Election Day has always struck At Quaquanantuck as more than a little ironic, it’s hard to say whether it’s simply a matter of getting older or our nation’s clearly troubled recent history that has made the trick or treat of Election Day the scarier of the two.

*Big swell; north wind. —A. Botsford Photo*

In the two years since the last presidential election, the stakes have only gotten higher for elections at every level, from village and town up to county, state and national posts. Meanwhile, inflammatory algorithms, disinformation, and media misdirection continue to widen the chasm separating voters’ differing views of America, to the point where it is beginning to look unbridgeable.

It seems to At Quaquanantuck, though, that this year’s Election Day offers an opportunity for U.S. citizens to take a simple and logical first step in building a bridge across the abyss. If there is any candidate on the ballot who voted not to certify the results of the last presidential election after the breaching of the Capitol, or any candidate who has endorsed or promoted the idea that the election was “stolen,” consider them disqualified and withhold your vote for that candidate, whatever post they are running for.

What’s the logic? Consider the fact that close to half of all U.S. voters recently polled said that they didn’t consider the last presidential election to be legitimate, based solely on the endlessly repeated misrepresentation of an election “stolen” through voter fraud and “irregularities” without a single shred of evidence to support the claim, and despite this accusation being refuted in every judicial and state legislature arena where it was tested.

Having thus undermined Americans’ faith in the electoral process, and turned their backs on one of our democracy’s most important foundational principles supporting the peaceful transfer of power, the current slate of “stolen election” candidates are now asking voters to have faith in the process that they have so vociferously trashed and to come out and cast a vote for them. Of course, should they win, then elections would have to be considered fair and the results should be accepted unequivocally, right? If they lose, though, then what else could anyone expect except a claim that the election was “rigged” and “stolen” and the results are therefore illegitimate?

Logically, by doing their best to poison the well after the last election, they have categorically disqualified themselves from consideration in this one.

It’s possible that some readers—specifically those who formerly applauded At Quaquanantuck for not taking sides and championing instead the greater good—will be offended by this idea and dismiss it as just more party politics. To them I would say that my position is not so much political as philosophical. It’s not my intention to promote one side over the other; rather, I’d like to call out any elements that seek to undermine our democracy and the democratic process of free and fair elections. And to champion faith in our elections, whatever the outcome, and the peaceful transfer of power.

Our system of government depends on the integrity of those who serve as our representatives, whether in the judicial, legislative or executive branches. Any office holder, or candidate for office, who willfully misrepresents the facts for political gain, or to obstruct the peaceful transfer of power, is doing a huge disservice to our democracy and should not be allowed to represent us, no matter how much their views on other issues might align with ours.

Anyone seeking a model of how it’s supposed to work needn’t look far. In 2000, when the Supreme Court essentially decided the issue and the “loser” had a host of legitimate reasons to contest the election, to the dismay of his millions of supporters, Al Gore opted instead to concede, selflessly opting to ensure the peaceful transfer of power while also including a call for unity at the same time: “Let there be no doubt, while I strongly disagree with the court’s decision, I accept it. I accept the finality of this outcome, which will be ratified next Monday in the Electoral College,” he said in his concession, adding, “I particularly urge all who stood with us to unite behind our next president.”

Two decades later, algorithms engineered to garner the maximum number of hits (and profits), along with many politicians, feed on, and also fuel, self-interest, greed and grievance. But the only way to take on the biggest issues facing us today, it seems, is for all sides to work together based on a shared sense of gratitude for our immeasurable good fortune to be living in this great nation, and a commitment, based on that gratitude, to look beyond simple self-interest and focus on the greater good for all Americans.

Just as no one party is responsible for a crippling worldwide pandemic, or a devastating and globally disruptive war in Ukraine, or the associated painful economic fallout of these, neither can one party, by itself, wave a magic wand and make everything better. As in the past, the biggest challenges we are facing—global warming and the worldwide refugee and migrant crisis, to name only two—should, and must, unite us if we are to have any hope of gaining ground against them.

Those whose path to power is based on obstruction rather than working together on solutions can only allow problems to fester or make them worse. And those who would rise by baselessly casting doubt on the democratic process that made this nation the greatest in the world cannot be countenanced.

Agree or disagree, please be sure to exercise your right to vote, on this and every other Election Day.

Firefighters Snuff Smoky Dune Road Structure Blaze
Just as At Quaquanantuck was preparing to set up a photo and caption about the Quogue Fire Department conducting joint exercises with volunteers from the Westhampton Beach Fire Department, Quogue Chief Mike Nelson sent the following report on a fire that closed Dune Road in both directions for a time on Wednesday, October 26:

“The Quogue Fire Department was paged out for a structure fire on Dune Road shortly after noon on Wednesday, October 26. The Westhampton Beach Fire Department also responded as part of an automatic mutual aid plan.

“The fire was called in by a passerby and was verified shortly thereafter by Quogue Village Police Department officers and by Ted Jankowski, the chief of the East Quogue Fire Department, who happened to be in the vicinity.

*Volunteers battle thick smoke as they work to douse the blaze. — John Neely Photo*

“Quogue Second Assistant Chief Dave Schaffauer and Westhampton Beach Second Assistant Chief Larry Saccente arrived on scene simultaneously. They reported heavy black smoke coming from a garage attached to a pool house near the front of the oceanside property. A Westhampton Beach engine arrived a few minutes after the chiefs, followed shortly by a Quogue engine and Quogue Chief Mike Nelson, who assumed command.

“Firefighters were able to force open the garage doors and commenced pouring water on the fire, which was contained to the garage area. The volunteers were hampered by the dense smoke and by numerous pieces of outdoor furniture, a barbecue grill, and other items that were being stored in the garage for the winter. The fire was quickly extinguished, but the firefighters had to spend the next hour and a half doing overhaul, which entailed tearing out sheetrock and wood roof shingles in search of residual pockets of fire.

“The Westhampton Beach Fire Department responded with three chiefs, an engine, and fire police. Quogue responded with three engines, four chiefs, and two fire police vehicles. The East Quogue Fire Department sent one engine and two chiefs. The Westhampton War Memorial Ambulance, the Flanders Northampton Volunteer Ambulance Company, the Quogue Village Police Department, and the Westhampton Village Police Department were also on scene, as were the Southampton Town Fire Marshal and a Suffolk County Fire and Rescue coordinator.

“Dune Road was closed in both directions for the duration of the incident. There were no reported injuries. The cause of the fire is under investigation.”

*Firefighters work to* get the blaze under control. —John Neeley Photo

Many thanks to Chief Nelson for filing this detailed report, to John Neely for the fabulous photos, and to all men and women of the various departments for their preparedness, their professionalism, and their willingness to serve. For this kind of response, and for so many other kinds of community support they offer, we are eternally in their debt.

Volunteers from the Quogue and Westhampton Beach fire departments participated in a joint drill at the Suffolk County Fire Academy on Monday, October 24. Known as a taxpayer drill, the exercise simulated a fire in some strip mall stores with apartments above. The two departments frequently call on each other for mutual aid during fires and other emergencies and this exercise gave both departments valuable training in hose handling, search and rescue, and communications skills. (John Neely photo courtesy Westhampton Beach Fire Department)

Wildlife Refuge Hosts the Brighter Side of Halloween
Courtesy of the fine folks at the Quogue Wildlife Refuge, children age 2 to 7 accompanied by an adult are invited to register for the third session of guided walks on the Enchanted Forest Trail on Saturday, October 29, from noon to 2 p.m.

Participants will follow their guides on the trail to meet whimsical, fun, and educational characters. All are invited to wear Halloween costumes while learning about animals and nature. Activities, crafts, and games will be available in the main staging area for before and after walks on the trail.

Reservations are required; call 631-653-4771 to register.

*QWR Program Director Cara Fernandes portrays a luna moth on the Enchanted Trail. —Dennis Maroulas Photo*

Fire Department Ghost Parade Slated for Halloween
The Quogue Fire Department Halloween Ghost Parade and Party will be held on Monday, October 31, starting at 4 p.m., the appointed hour for children and families to gather at the south end of Jessup Avenue.

As in years past, parade participants will follow a fire truck up Jessup Avenue from Quogue Street to the Firehouse, where food will be served for the kids. Along the parade route, Quogue Village Police officers will be handing out safety information, and a few firefighter families and other residents will be handing out candy.

As always, children and families are encouraged to participate in costume.

Theatre Company Opens Postponed Fall Production This Week
Costumes of a different sort (by the talented Teresa Lebrun) will be worn by performers in the Hampton Theatre Company production of Joe DiPietro’s “Over the River and Through the Woods,” opening tonight, Thursday, October 27, at the Quogue Community Hall following a one-week postponement due to Covid exposure among the cast.

The raucous, warm-hearted comedy from Tony Award-winning playwright Joe DiPietro (“Memphis,” “I Love You, You’re Perfect, Now Change”) is the first production of the Hampton Theatre Company’s 2022-2023 season, now running through November 13.

*George Loizides, Catherine Maloney, Meg Hrinkevich, Patrick Osborne, Amelia Chiaramonte, and Carl DiModugno in a scene from “Over the River and Through the Woods.” —Tom Kochie Photo*

Set inside a suburban house in the not-too-distant past, “Over the River and Through the Woods” puts to the test the concept of “tengo familia” – an Italian phrase connoting the importance of “keeping family first” – through the eyes and opinions of two sets of doting Italian-American grandparents and their beloved, if restless, 29-year-old grandson.

Nick Cristano may be living the life of a single young professional in NYC, but his four grandparents – Frank and Aida Gianelli, and Nunzio and Emma Cristano – never let him forget where he belongs: in New Jersey with them, in the bosom of a tenacious, tender-hearted, loud, and well-fed family. The comfy status quo is upended when Nick announces that he has been offered a big promotion … in Seattle. This bombshell revelation leads his grandparents to hatch a code-red plan to map out an irresistible alternate future designed to keep Nick close to home. At the center of this scheme is Caitlin, a surprise dinner guest who might just turn the tables in the elders’ favor.

A boisterously funny and touching story about intergenerational relationships, deep familial love, and the inevitable little heartbreaks that occur as time passes and children grow, “Over the River and Through the Woods” played 800 performances at the John Houseman Theatre in New York from 1998-2000. The play was lauded by BackStage as “a hilarious family comedy that is even funnier than [DiPietro’s] ‘I Love You, You’re Perfect, Now Change.’” The Star-Ledger wrote that the play is “loaded with laughs every step of the way,” with YourObserver.com calling it “a crowd-pleasing night of theater.”

*Patrick Osborne and George Loizides. —Tom Kochie Photo*

The HTC production of “Over the River and Through the Woods” features a spirited ensemble cast of six, including three HTC veterans: George A. Loizides (“On Golden Pond,” “Alarms & Excursions”) as Nunzio; Catherine Maloney (“Sylvia,” “A Comedy of Tenors”) as Emma; and Patrick Osborne (“The Foreigner”) as Nick. Newcomers to the HTC include Amelia Chiaramonte as Aida, Carl DiModugno as Frank, and Meg Hrinkevich as Caitlin.

In addition to acting in the play, George Loizides (“A Doll’s House, Part 2,” “Native Gardens,” “Private Lives”) directs, with Roger Moley co-directing. Set design is by Mr. Loizides; lighting design by Sebastian Paczynski; sound by Seamus Naughton; and costumes by Teresa Lebrun.

“Over the River and Through the Woods” will now be performed from October 27 through November 13 on Thursdays and Fridays at 7, Saturdays at 8, and Sundays at 2:30. An additional matinee performance will be offered during the second weekend of the production, on Saturday, November 5, prior to the regular 8 p.m. performance that evening. A talkback with the cast will be offered to ticketholders immediately following the Friday, November 4, evening performance.

Tickets are $36, $31 for seniors, and $20 for students 25 and under, and are available at the Hampton Theatre Company website at hamptontheatre.org or by calling 631-653-8955. A discounted season-subscription offer, applied to all three HTC productions in 2022-2023 at a savings of up to 20 percent, is also available through the theatre website or phone number.

Register Now for the 2022 Hudsy Run on November 5
This year’s Hudsy 5K Run/Walk funding heart-healthy activities at the Quogue School will be held on Saturday, November 5, starting at 9 a.m., rain or shine, in front of the school on Edgewood Road. The traditional Kids Fun Run will follow the 5K finish.

Long sleeve t-shirts will be given to the first 150 registered race participants. For more information or to register or make a donation, visit events.elitefeats.com/22hudsy.

That’s All, Folks

September 1, 2022 atquaq2 Comments

Well, maybe not forever, but At Quaquanantuck has definitely come to the end of its regularly scheduled programming.

With a nod to Lewis Carroll:

The time has come, the columnist said,
To speak of that and this:
Of news amassed
And email blasts
And deadlines I won’t miss.

Until 2017, At Quaquanantuck appeared weekly in the Hampton Chronicle-News (subsequently, and sadly, renamed The Southampton Press Western Edition) and since then—after the publisher saw fit to eliminate community columns—weekly on this website until 2020, for about 30 years total or some 1,500 columns. For the last two years it has been posted, generally, about every three weeks. After this week, as this scribe attempts to marshall his rapidly depleting energy resources for other writing projects, it’s not clear at this time when the next column might be posted.

Close readers will have noticed that there have been no requests for voluntary “subscriptions” for more than a year now. A few checks have come in unsolicited, and I am as grateful for those as I am for all the contributions from readers over the last couple of years since I first asked for help in keeping the website “free” and accessible to all. While this project has never been about making money for me, I have done my best to keep the column worthy of these free will donations.

I am grateful, too, for all the support I have received for this endeavor: from readers; photo and news item contributors; and all the organizations that the column covers. Taken together, all of these are a big part of what makes our village both special and unique, and almost always a pleasure to write about in this column.

Website administration, laying out photos and copy for an online platform, and preparing and launching email announcements for each posting have all posed big challenges for a writer and editor who started out with only a manual typewriter, a stack of copy paper, a pack of Pall Malls, and a big cup of 7-Eleven coffee on his desk.

While access to website analytics allowed me the joy of seeing that the column was being read (or visited anyway) by individuals in Singapore, Uganda, Hong Kong, Finland, Thailand, South Africa and other far flung locales, less encouraging was to see the increasingly anemic number of readers. There are 481 people signed up to receive an email blast from me every time a column is posted, and an additional 40 or 50 “followers” of the column who get an independent email version of every column posted. But nowadays only a little over 200 of these actually visit the column in the first three days after it is published.

Again, writing the column has been no more about getting and keeping a large audience than it has been about money. Still, it would be disingenuous to say that it’s not daunting to see the numbers falling.

Part of the reason for the decline may be connected to reduced need for what the column works to bring to readers. When the Press eliminated community columns and I launched At Quaquanantuck on my own in 2017, almost all the major programmers in our community were just beginning to build and administer better websites, develop email lists, and get started on social media. So this column was useful for readers as a clearinghouse for what was going on or coming up at the Quogue Library, the Quogue Wildlife Refuge, the Quogue Association, the Quogue Historical Society and, in the early days of the online platform (with help from Sarah Adams), over at the Quogue School.

Now, though, a lot of what is published in At Quaquanantuck is redundant, since these organizations and institutions have already notified residents of their offerings via email or their websites, and the Quogue School only communicates with parents and students and taxpayers directly. And, in all cases, this column can’t possibly be as comprehensive as these organizations’ own platforms.

There was a time, too, when readers used to send in wedding announcements and wedding photos; birth announcements and baby photos; graduations and other items referred to as “social” in newspaper-ese. Haven’t seen any of these in over a year.

Going forward, there are no plans to take down the At Quaquanantuck website, which means that visitors can still read columns in the archives going back to 2017. The AtQuaq@gmail.com email will still be active, and I am hoping people will still send in photos and even news or social items of interest. I’m open to and interested in the idea of running guest essays as future columns, or columns consisting of photos only, my own as well as readers’. And I may post an essay of my own or a more traditional column around the holidays or if the spirit or current events move me. So there is some kind of future for this platform; I’m just not sure at this point what that will look like. I do know it’s at least two months away, maybe longer.

In the meantime, I urge you all, dear readers, to stay connected. If you are not already a member of, or a donor to, the Quogue Association, the Quogue Wildlife Refuge, the Quogue Historical Society, the Quogue Library and Quogue Library Society, Quogue Chamber Music, the Quogue Junior Theater Troupe, or the Westhampton Garden Club, please connect to them right away, make sure you are on their email lists, and check their websites regularly. And remember to renew your membership every year. If you’re interested in the Hampton Theatre Company, you can get on their email list by writing to info@hamptontheatre.org.

Hats off to our new mayor, Robert Treuhold, who is continuing, and expanding in some ways, the practice started by Peter Sartorius of communicating with residents via open letters on email, which are then posted on the village website (www/villageofquogueny.gov) under Announcements.

Mayor Treuhold is including in his letters a fairly comprehensive listing of events of note in the community. For example, among the items included in the Final Days of Summer letter, which was posted to the village website on August 23 are: a Quogue Village Police Department free child car seat education and safety check on Sunday, September 4, at the Firehouse, with instructional seminar from 9 to 9:30 a.m. followed by car seat safety checks from 9:30 to noon; and a ceremony commemorating the anniversary of 9-11 at the Firehouse on Sunday, September 11, beginning at 10 a.m. Other items on Hizzoner’s list are addressed in this week’s column.

All residents should make a habit of checking the village website frequently, and readers who are not already on the village email list can sign up by writing to Village Clerk Aimee Buhl at ABuhl@villageofquogueny.gov.

Having written the column as part of my job for two different publishers and a couple of editors, I can say honestly that you, my faithful readers, have been the greatest boss I could have hoped for. I have assembled and written the column for you and you have been unfailingly supportive of all my efforts. While this is admittedly a very big change, it is not the end. Thank you.

*Summer reading. —Florrie Morrisey Photo*

Southampton Town Supervisor’s State of the Town
Next up on the Quogue Association’s civics centered agenda will be the state of the town address by Southampton Town Supervisor Jay Schneiderman on Saturday, September 10, at 10 a.m. The plan is for Mr. Schneiderman to speak outdoors on the Village Green, weather permitting. In case of precipitation or high winds, the Supervisor’s address will be moved inside Quogue Village Hall.

Smart Phone Photographers, Here’s Your Chance
It’s a fact of contemporary life that pretty much everyone—from first graders (yikes!) to great-grandparents—has a smart phone these days. And perhaps the first corollary to ownership is the use of said device by each and every smart phone owner to take photos … of everything.

Recognizing this common thread woven through the human experience in the early 21st century, those clever folks on the Quogue Library Art Committee have come up with a September contest that will ultimately furnish the library art gallery with an exhibition that will close out the 2022 season.

The committee’s Smart Phone Portrait Contest and Exhibition will be judged and curated by professional photographer Lauren Lieberman, of LILA Photo. One hundred portraits will be chosen, printed and exhibited in the Quogue Library Art Gallery from November 19 to January 4, 2023.

Three winning portraits will be publicly recognized at a gallery reception open to the public on November 25.

Submissions are open from September 1 to September 30, and selected artists will be notified via email. Images selected that contain children under age 18 will require parental consent for public display.

The entry fee is $20, with up to two images allowed per entry. Entries should be high resolution, vertical orientation; human portraits only. Jpeg format preferred; alternate formats will be transferred to jpeg. Entry does not guarantee display in exhibitionFor details, click here or visit www.quoguelibrary.org. Inquiries may also be addressed to smartphonecontest22@gmail.com.

Quogue Chamber Music Concert September 10
In June of 2021, Quogue Chamber Music brought the Manhattan Chamber Players to our village for an exciting and highly successful concert. Next week, at 7:30 p.m. on Saturday, September 10, members of the renowned ensemble will be returning to Quogue for a program of Mozart and Brahms for clarinet and strings in the Quogue Community Hall on Jessup Avenue.

Violinist Siwoo Kim. —Sophie Zhai Photo

In accordance with protocols at Lincoln Center in New York, Quogue Chamber Music will no longer be requiring proof of vaccination, but patrons will be required to wear masks while inside the building and throughout the concert.

Tickets are $50 for the concert only ($5 for students); $110 with addition of the post-concert celebration. To purchase tickets in advance, patrons are asked to send checks payable to Quogue Chamber Music, Inc. to POB 1984, Quogue, NY 11959. Tickets may also be purchased on the QCM website, www.quoguechambermusic.org, or at the box office on the night of the concert.

Cellist Brook Speltz.—Anna Kariel

The Manhattan Chamber Players are a chamber music collective of New York-based musicians who share the common aim of performing the greatest works in the chamber repertoire at the highest level.

Formed in 2015 by Artistic Director and violist Luke Fleming, MCP is comprised of an impressive roster of musicians who come from the tradition of great music-making at the Marlboro Music Festival, Steans Institute at Ravinia, Music@Menlo, Yellow Barn Chamber Music Festival and Perlman Music Program, and are former students of the Curtis Institute, Juilliard School, Colburn School, and the New England Conservatory.

MCP has been praised in Strings Magazine for “A fascinating program concept … It felt refreshingly like an auditory version of a vertical wine tasting.” The article went on to applaud the musicians for “an intensely wrought and burnished performance…Overall, I wished I could put them on repeat.”

At the core of MCP’s inspiration is its members’ joy in playing this richly varied repertoire with longtime friends and colleagues, with whom they have been performing since they were students. Its roster allows for the programming of the entire core string, wind and piano chamber music repertoire—from piano duos to clarinet quintets to string octets. While all its members have independent careers as soloists and chamber musicians, they strive for every opportunity to come together and share once again in this special collaboration.

The program being performed in Quogue will include the Mozart Quintet for Clarinet and Strings, in A Major, K 581 and the Brahms Quintet for Clarinet and Strings, in B Minor Op. 115. Performers will be Yoonah Kim, clarinet; Siwoo Kim and Brendan Speltz, violins; Luke Fleming, viola, and Brook Speltz, cello.

The cast of the Quogue Junior Theater Troupe production of “The Little Mermaid,” joined by three members of the creative team: at left, standing behind the second row, are director Chris Kelly and costume designer and director Sheila Rankowitz; at right in the back row, music director Chris McKee. —Dick Prior Photo

As village residents have come to expect, the Quogue Junior Theater Troupe younger cast once again hit one out of the park with “The Little Mermaid.” At Quaquanantuck received this report from QJTT founder and Artistic Director Sue Prior: “Super enthusiastic audiences definitely helped the cast more than rise to the occasion. ‘Mermaid’ is an especially colorful musical show, with glow paint sets and very colorful under-the-sea costumes: our black lights really did their job. We had four sold out shows and lots of audience participation in the cheering department.”

Pond House Museum News; Maps Available for Walking Tours
This just in, literally, from the Quogue Historical Society: the Pond House Museum on Jessup Avenue will be open on Saturdays from 10 a.m. to noon, and by appointment, in September and October.

For an added treat, after visitors tour the two levels of exhibitions on 350 years of Quogue history at the museum, they can pick up a map from the receptacle on the front door and take a self-guided walking tour of Historic Jessup Avenue, Quogue’s bustling commercial, cultural, and civic center. Maps can also be printed from the QHS website: quoguehistory.org/at-home-post/walking-tour-historic-jessup-avenue.

Also, be sure to save the date for the Historical Society 2022 Holiday House Tour on Saturday, December 10, from 2 to 6 p.m. And check the QHS website calendar regularly for more details.

The beautiful backyard and gardens of Sally and Bill Beatty provided an ideal setting for the Hampton Theatre Company “Cocktails and Comedy” benefit party on August 20. Below, Matthew Conlon, Jane Lowe and Andrew Botsford in a scene from Lanford Wilson’s “Abstinence,” which was presented at the party. The cast steps out for a there-is-no-curtain call: from left, Catherine Maloney, Andrew Botsford, Jane Lowe, Matthew Conlon, and Rebecca Edana. —Graham Russell Photos

New Honor for Wildlife Refuge’s Marisa Nelson
How wonderful—and how appropriate—that Marisa Nelson, the associate director of the Quogue Wildlife Refuge, has been named one of the 2022 honorees in the Dan’s Papers Power Women of the East End program.

She joins a group of women who “make the East End the thriving and vibrant place it is to work, live and do business. When women support women, amazing things happen.”

All are invited to join Marisa and other honorees at a special Power Women of the East End event at The Muses, 111 St. Andrews Road, Southampton, 11968 on Thursday, September 8, at 6 p.m. For more information, visit www.powerwomenee.com.

And, as always, to find out more about what’s going on at the Quogue Wildlife Refuge, visit www.quoguewildliferefuge.org.

*Yellow-rumped warbler, spotted near Sebonac Creek. —Florrie Morrisey Photo*

Great Decisions Looks at Outer Space Policy
The next Foreign Policy Association Great Decisions Discussion program on Saturday, September 10, at 5 p.m. will focus on the topic of “Outer Space Policy.” In an effort to provide the broadest possible access, the September 10 program will be hybrid and can be joined virtually by Zoom or attended in person at the Quogue Library.

Refreshments will be served. Virtual and in-person participants will view a video presentation on the topic before joining or listening to a live, 40-minute participant discussion moderated by David Rowe and facilitated by Susan Perkins.

Way back when, the Soviet launch of Sputnik 1 in October 1957 marked the beginning of the space era and the space race between the United States and the Soviet Union. In the 21st century, there are many more participants in space, including countries such as India and China, and commercial companies such as SpaceX.

The September 10 program will address the question of “How will the United States fare in a crowded outer space?”

To register for the September 10 program, in-person or Zoom, click here, or visit www.quogue.libraryevents.com and click on the Foreign Policy Association Great Decisions entry on September 10.

The 2022 Great Decisions Briefing Book may be purchased ($22) at the Quogue Library or digitally from fpa.org. Visit the FPA website here to join and receive notices of events and information about Great Decisions and other programs.

“High Society” Screening at Return of Film Feast September 17
The perennially popular Film Feast series is coming back to the Quogue Library on Saturday, September 17, at 6 p.m. with a screening of another Grace Kelly (and multiple other stars) film, “High Society.”

Directed by Charles Waters and released in 1956, this lively musical adaptation of “The Philadelphia Story” also stars Bing Crosby, Celeste Holm, Frank Sinatra, and Louis Armstrong. The film tells the story of a spoiled heiress who must choose, on the eve of her wedding, among three suitors: her jazz musician ex-husband, her stuffy businessman fiancé, and an undercover tabloid reporter.

As one critic wrote: “‘High Society’ doesn’t just have a voice; it has a heart and a soul as well.” A BBC review offered: “After opening with a calypso tune from the inimitable Louis Armstrong, ‘High Society’ really has nowhere to go but down, yet somehow director Charles Walters manages to keep this Technicolor musical sparkling through the next 100 minutes.”

The “price” of admission for the September 17 Film Feast will be a potluck dish to serve at least six people and a beverage to share. Email info@quoguelibrary.org or call 631-653-4224, ext. 101, to register or for more information.

Always remember to check the library website, http://www.quoguelibrary.org, to find out more about the myriad programs and activities on offer there.

*Brooke diCapua and Bob Murray with Shinnecock Yacht Club Snapper Derby first place winner Casper Keeber, who reeled in a 16-inch herring shad to take top honors. —Amanda Murray P*

So, that’s a wrap. Please keep in touch.

Peace out.

Onward.

The Home Stretch

August 11, 2022August 11, 2022 atquaqLeave a comment

Even in times when rain is plentiful, a very strong case could be made against cultivating and maintaining the kind of perpetually thirsty and pesticide laden lush green lawns that are the pride of suburban subdivision residents and sprawling estate owners alike.

But At Quaquanantuck won’t be making that case in this post, focusing instead on the recent drought-driven plea from the Suffolk County Water Authority for homeowners to refrain from watering their lawns in the hours between midnight and 6 a.m. in order to ensure that there will be sufficient water, and pressure, for such essential uses as putting out fires.

It is hoped that all Southampton Town residents will heed this plea and go at least one step further and limit lawn watering to one or two days a week. Or temporarily suspend lawn watering altogether. After all, even the most burned out lawns will recover; they always do. Let brown grass be a new badge of civic responsibility, one small step toward facing up to climate change. It has to start somewhere.

Hundreds of village residents took advantage of the fire engine rides offered at last Sunday’s Quogue Fire Department Open House. Below, target practice with a fire hose provided one way to cool off at the Open House. —A. Botsford Photos

Big Weekend for Historical Society: “Celebrate Art!” Party and Saturday Art Show
If it’s the beginning of August, it must be time for the Quogue Historical Society’s one-two fundraising punch: the “Celebrate Art!” cocktail party with guest speaker on Friday, August 12, followed by the Annual Art Show & Sale on Saturday, August 13.

Friday’s “Celebrate Art!” cocktails and hors d’oeuvres party on the Village Green runs from 5 to 7 p.m. Speaking at 5:30 p.m. on the topic of “Long Island Artists: Nationally Recognized Modernists You’ll Want to Know” will be Karli Wurzelbacher, Ph.D., curator at the Heckscher Museum of Art.

Tickets to the “Celebrate Art!” party start at $60 per person, with patron tickets priced at $100. All tickets sold at the door will be $100. To purchase tickets in advance or make a donation to the Quogue Historical Society, click here or visit www.quoguehistory.org and click on Support.

The Annual Art Show & Sale is the largest QHS fundraiser of the year. Held rain or shine from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on the Village Green, this year’s Art Show will feature more than 30 artists exhibiting works ranging from oils and pastels to photographs and textiles. Suggested donation is $5 per person. All proceeds benefit the Historical Society’s new and ongoing programs.

There was a good turnout on Saturday, August 6, for this year’s “Coffee with a Cop” event in front of Beth’s Café, with residents and passersby who stopped to chat and ask questions treated to coffee and donuts by the Quogue Police Benevolent Association (PBA). Left to right, Lieutenant Daniel Hartman, Quogue Village Police Chief Chris Isola, Detective William Gladding, Officer Theodore Richert, Quogue Village Mayor Robert Treuhold, and Officer Jonathan Stanton. —Steve Fadem Photo

Great Decisions Looks at “Renewed Climate Change Agenda”
With even some recalcitrant senators finally conceding the need for action, the next Foreign Policy Association Great Decisions Discussion program on Saturday, August 13, at 5 p.m. will focus on a topic very much in the news these days, “The Renewed Climate Change Agenda.” In an effort to provide the broadest possible access, the August 13 program will be hybrid and can be joined virtually by Zoom or attended in person at the Quogue Library.

The ideological divide in the United States on the subject of climate change has impeded progress in curbing greenhouse emissions and developing alternative energy sources. But extreme weather events at both ends of the thermometer have focused attention on the consequences of inaction. What role will the United States play in future negotiations on climate?

To register for the August 13 program, in-person or Zoom, click here, or visit www.quogue.libraryevents.com and click on the Foreign Policy Association Great Decisions entry on August 13.

*The spirit of the occasion shines through in this image of a recent Quogue Association Beach Party.—Jessica Insalaco Photo*

Next up in the Quogue Association’s ongoing celebration of summer will be the 2022 edition of the big blowout beach party, slated this year on Saturday, August 20, from 6 to 9 p.m. at the Quogue Village Beach. Rain date is Saturday, August 27.

This summer’s party will feature traditional delectable fare of chicken tenders, hamburgers, hot dogs, and salads, catered for this edition by the fine folks at the Quogue Country Market. Beverages included in the price of admission are beer, wine, lemonade and water.

There will once again be a bonfire on the beach; new this year will be an ice cream truck and a steel pan musician. Cost is $30 per person; $15 for kids 5 to 10; free for children under 5. The first 75 revelers to arrive will receive complimentary Quogue Association coffee tumblers.

*Beauty behind bars in the QJTT older cast production of “Chicago Teen Version.” —Sue Prior Photo*

Riding High on “Chicago,” QJTT Readies High Dive for “Little Mermaid”
At Quaquanantuck was delightfully knocked out by last week’s production of “Chicago Teen Version” featuring the older cast of the Quogue Junior Theater Troupe.

Congratulations to director and choreographer Micky Nugent and musical director Chris McKee for pulling together a beautiful show that brought out the best in all the performers, backstage crew and tech personnel, and more than did justice to one of the greatest musicals of all time.

A special shout out here to the very talented and spirited—and seamlessly tight-knit—ensemble, every one of whom brought wonderful life and energy to one outstanding production number after another.

Fresh on the heels of the boffo run of “Chicago,” the Quogue Junior Theater Troupe younger cast is getting ready for the opening of “The Little Mermaid” on Tuesday, August 23. Showtimes are at 7 p.m. on August 23, 24 and 25, and at 5 p.m. for the final performance on Friday, August 26.

For tickets to the younger cast production of “The Little Mermaid,” running August 23 through August 26, click here, or visit https://qjtt.org.

For more information, email boxoffice@qjttonline.org or call 631-996-9392.‬

Boys and girls rehearsing different numbers for the QJTT production of “The Little Mermaid,” opening September 23 at the Quogue Community Hall. —Melissa Ryder Photos

Irreverent Lanford Wilson Comedy at HTC Benefit August 20
The Hampton Theatre Company will host a benefit cocktail party with live entertainment on Saturday, August 20, from 6 to 8 p.m. at a private venue in Quogue.

Performers who are well known to HTC audiences will present “Abstinence” by Lanford Wilson, an irreverent, 15-minute, contemporary comedy during the benefit. The musical backdrop for cocktails and hors d’oeuvres from Joan Toohig will be provided by the QJ3 (Quogue Jazz Trio), with the presentation of “Abstinence” scheduled to start at 7 p.m.

Tickets to the benefit start at $150 per person, with Silver Sponsor tickets $350 and Gold Sponsor tickets $500. Silver Sponsors receive a listing in the program, priority seating, and a backstage tour of the HTC fall production. Gold sponsors receive a dinner with members of the company in the fall in addition to the Silver Sponsor benefits. Tickets for under 30 are $100. Rain date is Sunday, August 21. Tickets must be purchased in advance.

Tickets and more information available online at www.hamptontheatre.org; email info@hamptontheatre.org or call (631) 653-8955.

Birds of Prey Today at QWR; Storybook Reading Friday
There might still be room for adults and families with children age 6 and up to attend the Live Birds of Prey program at the Quogue Wildlife Refuge today, Thursday, August 11, at 3 p.m.

*Cooper’s hawk. —Florrie Morrisey Photo*

During the 45-minute presentation, visitors will meet some of the resident raptors at the Refuge and learn about native Long Island species—their diets, habitat, and physical adaptations that make them such successful hunters—as well as ways to help protect them.

Visitors are asked to arrive early and get settled prior to the start of the presentation. Cost is $10 per person; $5 per child under 10. Reservations and pre-payment required; click here and scroll to August 11, or call 631-653-4771 for more information.

A Storybook Reading and Meet the Author event is coming up at 10 a.m. on Friday, August 12, at the Quogue Wildlife Refuge, when author Nancy Littlefield will read her charming children’s story, “Mariposa’s Wish,” about a monarch butterfly who wishes to go on a journey.

For more information about the book, visit mariposaswish.com. To register, call the QWR at 631-653-4771.

A signed copy of the book will be gifted to each child who pre-registers for this free program inside the Nature Center at the Refuge offered in collaboration with the Quogue Library. The program is part of an important initiative generously sponsored by the Leo S. Walsh Foundation. For further information, call 631-653-4771 or e-mail: info@QuogueWildlifeRefuge.org.

Vikram Malhotra Up Next in Library’s Author Series
The summer Author Series at the Quogue Library resumes on Sunday, August 14, at 5 p.m. when Vikram Malhotra, co-author of “CEO Excellence: The Six Mindsets That Distinguish the Best Leaders from the Rest,” comes to the library for a conversation with series host Andrew Botsford.

A New York Times and Wall Street Journal bestseller, “CEO Excellence” is described by publisher Simon & Schuster as “an insight-packed, revelatory look at how the best CEOs do their jobs based on extensive interviews with today’s most successful corporate leaders—including chiefs at Netflix, JPMorgan Chase, General Motors, and Sony.

“Being a CEO at any of the world’s largest companies is among the most challenging roles in business. Billions, and even trillions, are at stake—and the fates of tens of thousands of employees often hang in the balance. Yet, even when “can’t miss” high-achievers win the top job, very few excel. Thirty percent of Fortune 500 CEOs last fewer than three years, and two out of five new CEOs are perceived to be failing within eighteen months.

“For those who shoulder the burden of being the one on whom everyone counts, a manual for excellence is sorely needed.”

Beyond its status as a manual for excellence for CEOs, this book has immeasurable value for anyone interested in being a better leader.

On August 21, the guest author will be Elena Gorokhova, author of “A Train to Moscow.” In post–World War II Russia, a girl must reconcile a tragic past with her hope for the future in a powerful and poignant novel about family secrets, passion and loss, perseverance and ambition.

A critic for the Portland Book Review wrote: “‘A Train to Moscow’ is Elena Gorokhova’s first novel. It’s poignant and masterful, beautifully and intricately laced with imagery, intrigue, and emotion. Sasha’s passion for theatre and a better life, one free of the lies her family has held onto, is palpable.

“The storyline is riveting, corkscrewing into an array of twists and turns. Despite being fictional, the contents are reflective of the cultural and political environment of post-Revolutionary Russia.”

The final installment of this summer’s series will feature Adele Myers, author of “The Tobacco Wives” on August 28.

As a reviewer from Bookreporter observed: “Adele Myers has constructed a disturbing, realistic view of the once-mighty tobacco industry and its perfidies as observed by a feisty lady.”

Offered on Sundays at 5 p.m., this summer’s in-person series under the tent typically features a reading by a guest author followed by a conversation with writer and editor Andrew Botsford before the author fields questions from the audience. Tickets are $25 and registration is online at quoguelibrary.org, by calling 631-653-4224, or in-person at the library at 90 Quogue Street. More information on all library events and programs at quoguelibrary.org.

Final Films in PAC Summer Series
Courtesy of gifted curator Allison Frost, the parade of top notch films continues in the “Tuesday Night at the Movies with Andrew” summer series at the Westhampton Beach Performing Arts Center. To find out more and buy tickets online, visit www.whbpac.org and click on Films.

Coming up next Tuesday, August 16, at 7:30 p.m. the PAC will screen the compelling documentary “Daughter of a Lost Bird.” Sociologist Susan Toliver will join Andrew to discuss this film after the screening on Tuesday.

“Lost birds” is a term used to describe Native children adopted out of their tribal communities. Right after the Indian Child Welfare Act of 1978 became law, Kendra Mylnechuk Potter was adopted into a white family and raised with no knowledge of her Native parentage. This beautiful and intimate film follows Kendra on her journey to find her birth mother April, also a Native adoptee, and return to her Lummi homelands in Washington State.

With a sensitive yet unflinching lens, director Brooke Swaney (Blackfeet/Salish) documents Kendra and April as they connect with relatives and navigate what it means to be Native, and to belong to a tribe from the outside looking in. Along the way, Kendra uncovers generations of emotional and spiritual beauty and pain and comes to the startling realization that she is a living legacy of U. S. assimilationist policy.

By sharing a deeply personal experience of inherited cultural trauma, the film opens the door to broader and more complicated conversations about the erasure of Native culture and questions of identity surrounding adoption.

On Tuesday and Wednesday, August 23 and 24, the coming-of-age documentary/cinematic memoir “Beba” will be the featured film.

Reflecting on her childhood and adolescence in New York City as the daughter of a Dominican father and Venezuelan mother, first-time feature filmmaker Rebecca “Beba” Huntt investigates the historical, societal, and generational trauma she’s inherited and ponders how those ancient wounds have shaped her, while simultaneously considering the universal truths that connect us all as humans.

Throughout the 79-minute film, Ms. Huntt searches for a way to forge her own creative path amid a landscape of intense racial and political unrest. Poetic, powerful and profound, “Beba” is a courageous, deeply human self-portrait of an Afro-Latina artist hungry for knowledge and yearning for connection.

Due to a prior commitment, Andrew Botsford will not be guiding the discussion of this film. For further information, call 631-288-2350.

The summer 2022 series concludes on August 30 and 31 with “HALLELUJAH: Leonard Cohen, A Journey, A Song,” a new feature-length documentary directed by Dan Geller and Dayna Goldfine that offers a comprehensive exploration of singer/songwriter Leonard Cohen as seen through the prism of his internationally renowned hymn, “Hallelujah.”

Andrew’s guest for the discussion of this film will be WLIW 88.3FM radio personality and music authority Brian Cosgrove, host of “The Afternoon Ramble” Monday through Saturday at 1 p.m. and “The Overnight Ramble” Tuesday through Saturday at 2 a.m.

The feature-length documentary weaves together three creative strands: The songwriter and his times; the song’s dramatic journey from record label reject to chart-topping hit; and moving testimonies from major recording artists for whom “Hallelujah” has become a personal touchstone.

Approved for production by Leonard Cohen just before his 80th birthday in 2014, the film accesses a wealth of never-before-seen archival materials from the Cohen Trust, including Cohen’s personal notebooks, journals and photographs, performance footage, and extremely rare audio recordings and interviews.

Featuring Leonard Cohen, Jeff Buckley, John Cale, Brandi Carlile, Eric Church, Judy Collins, Bob Dylan, Glen Hansard, Sharon Robinson, Rufus Wainwright, and many others, this film was a selection at Venice Film Festival, Telluride Film Festival, and Tribeca Film Festival.

To find out more and buy tickets online, visit www.whbpac.org and click on Films.

On Wednesday, July 27, Abigail Ericson and Sarah Adams organized a presentation at the Quogue Library by the Riverhead based Butterfly Effect Project: Creating Safe Spaces for Girls to Dream and Succeed. At left, Program and Development Director Brienne Ahearn; right, “Butterflies” who spoke about their experience included Nylah Claude (at podium), Genesis Fulford and Destiny Tuck. More information about the Butterfly Effect Project is available at http://www.bepgirls.org. —Abigail Ericson Photos

*“Joanie Study,” a 2021 watercolor by Anna Stabler, is one of the works on view in the “Art Gene” exhibition currently on view at the Quogue Library Art Gallery. —Image courtesy of the artist*

“Art Gene”: A Family Story Exhibition at Library Art Gallery
On view through September 7 at the Quogue Library Art Gallery, “Art Gene: Five Generations of Quogue Artists” features works by artists from five generations of one family: Disston, Jones, Larson, Lyman, Peters, and Stabler.

The artists with work on view include: Emily Hoe Lyman (1907-1986); Barbara (Babby) Lyman Peters (1930-1992); Joan Lyman Larson (b. 1934); Connie Peters Jones; Geoffrey Disston; Stuart Disston; Elsa Anders Cook; Mary Helen Brown; Anna Stabler; Kitt Disston; Debbie Disston; Timothy Maturo; and Lucie Maturo.

According to the library’s Art Gallery Committee, “this exhibition is about the inspiration, teaching, and passion for art from one generation to another. It is also about the inspiration from, and connection to, a place that is held dear and stores generations of memories.”

Left to right, Stuart Disston, Kitt Disston, Anna Stabler, Joan Larson, Geoff Disston, Debbie Disston, and Connie Jones at the August 6 reception for the “Art Gene” exhibition at the Quogue Library Art Gallery.—Victoria Sartorius Photo

Family Affair Exhibition Up Next at Quogue Gallery
Works by Sally King Benedict and her father-in-law George Read will be on view in the next exhibition scheduled at the Quogue Gallery at 44 Quogue Street. The exhibition will run from August 18 through September 30; an opening reception will be held from 5 to 7 p.m. on Saturday, August 20.

Sally King Benedict is a contemporary artist living and working in Sun Valley, Idaho. She and her work have been featured in major publications across the U.S., including Elle Decor, Architectural Digest, Domino, Garden & Gun, and Southern Living, among others.

According to a release from the gallery, the artist’s work in a wide range of mediums appeals to established and new collectors alike: “She has the ability to create visual texture with a rich, adventurous color palette and expressive linear techniques.”

*Sally King Benedict, “Sailor Face” (2022)*, *mixed media on canvas, 36″ by 30″. —Image courtesy of Quogue Gallery*

Ms. King Benedict grew up in Atlanta, frequently traveling and attending art openings, exhibits, and design shows, seeking inspiration from the work of both past and contemporary artists. She completed her education at the College of Charleston in 2007.

After a long and varied career in and around the artists, critics and collectors who populate the landscape of contemporary fine art, George Read has recently found his way back into the studio. He describes the “break” as immensely valuable, “an opportunity to sharpen and refine, even if the break was a bit longer than anticipated,” he adds.

He works quickly and on as many as a dozen pieces at once, a practice he picked up from his former mentor, Eduardo Chillida. Chillida suggested that he begin several pieces at once, putting each one aside when it had just begun to find form and definition. Then, with a roomful of works in varying stages of progress, Chillida encouraged him to move freely among them, from image to image, without a set pattern or plan. The practice suited him; he found it helped keep his eyes fresh and, most important, it forestalled over-analysis.

George Read, “Glyph II” (2022), graphite, mineral pigments, Flashe black and sienna on archives cover paper, 30″ by 20″. —Image courtesy of Quogue Gallery

Mr. Read suggests that painting and sculpture are, far more than anything one learns or practices, “an attitude.” Artists can create narratives, he maintains, they can create images, or they can create experiences.

“Picasso and Miro were the first, master storytellers,” the artist says. “Rothko and Tapies created compelling images, and color field painters and others, like Diebenkorn, created complex visual experiences. I find myself pursuing something between the last two. I hope to create evocative images accompanied by experiences of color and form.”

The current retrospective exhibition of the work of Harry Bertschmann, featuring more than 25 paintings by the artist from the 1960s up to the 1990s, will remain on view through August 16.

Quogue Gallery is at 44 Quogue Street, Quogue, NY 11959. Quoguegallery.com.

Sunday Services at Church of the Atonement
The Reverend Zachary Thompson, the Vicar at St. James’ Church in Manhattan, will officiate at the 8 a.m. and 10 a.m. services at Church of the Atonement on Sunday, August 14.

Prior to joining the staff at St. James’, Rev. Thompson served as Rector and Associate Priest at the Church of Our Savior in Atlanta, GA, as well as Chaplain to Emory University. His wife, Amy, is the Assistant Head of School at the Church of the Epiphany Day School.

The Reverend Dr. Robert Dannals, now in his 20th season at Church of the Atonement, will officiate on three Sundays: August 21, 28 and September 4.

At 11 a.m. following the final summer service on Sunday, September 4, there will be a special coffee hour at the church organized to honor Patricia Osborne Feiler, who is stepping down after 50 years of service as organist and choir director. All are welcome, with a special invitation to all those who have sung with the choir or who have children who do, or did.

Currently serving as the Interim Rector at the Church of Bethesda-by-the-Sea in Palm Beach, Florida, Rev. Dannals was for many years Rector of Saint Michael and All Angels Church in Dallas, Texas, and served in interim ministry in New York City, Atlanta, and Beverly Hills.

Rev. Dannals earned his Masters of Divinity from Virginia Theological Seminary, a Doctor of Ministry from Drew University and a Ph.D. from Graduate Theological. For more than 12 years he has been writing daily lectionary-based e-devotions.

He and his wife Valerie have their permanent residence in Jacksonville. They have three daughters: Danielle with two daughters in Jacksonville; Kaleigh, married with two sons in Charlotte, NC; and Mary Blair, married in Washington, DC.

Services are at 8 a.m. and 10 a.m. and all are welcome. As per diocesan guidelines, masks are optional at church services. For details and a full schedule, go to quoguechurch.org.

All children in the community age 7 to 14 are invited to sing in the junior choir, which is led by organist and Choir Director Patricia Osborne Feiler. Rehearsals are at 9 a.m. on Sunday mornings. For additional information regarding the junior choir, contact Mary Vogel via email at mtvogel@icloud.com.

At Quaquanantuck is happy to provide a forum for civil discussion of village issues and initiatives and welcomes all comments. All are encouraged to share observations, ideas and opinions by writing to AtQuaq@gmail.com.

News Items and Photos
At Quaquanantuck encourages readers to send in news and notes and photos of interest to Quogue residents, even if the items are being sent from winter addresses or other parts of the country—or the world. Friends and family who enjoy all things Quogue are encouraged to email AtQuaq@gmail.com and ask to be put on the mailing list.

Come One, Come All

July 28, 2022 atquaqLeave a comment

One indication that it might be time for At Quaquanantuck to sign off would be this scribe’s failure in the last column to remind readers of two events that have historically helped to define summer in our village.

I am referring here, of course, to the Quogue Volunteer Fire Department’s annual Open House, scheduled this year on Sunday, August 7, from 4 to 6 p.m.; and, in the week before the Open House, the Quogue Junior Theater Troupe older cast production of “Chicago Teen Version” at the Quogue Community Hall, Tuesday, August 2 through Friday, August 5, with lights up at 7:30 p.m. for all performances.

This year’s Fire Department Open House will more closely resemble the events of the Before Times, with the perennially popular fire truck rides through the village; hot dogs, roasted corn, clams on the half shell raw bar, ice cream, tunes from DJ “Off the Radar” (could that be the street name of First Assistant Chief Dave Shaffner?), games and demonstrations.

According to the head honcho for this year’s Open House, First Lieutenant, Co. 2 Tommy Otis, while the bouncy castle corner will be missing this year, there will be a focus on the fun side of education. An example would be giving kids, assisted by firefighters, a chance to use a fire hose to shoot water at targets.

Demonstrations will include a “vehicle extrication” using the so-called Jaws of Life; and extinguishing a barbecue fire. There will also be a photo booth with the option to receive images via email.

The annual Open House is the kind of event that has sufficient gravitational heft to pull together the entire community, and one of the few opportunities the rest of us have to show our support for the full-time heroes of our volunteer fire department. Don’t miss it.

*Rehearsing a dance number for “Chicago Teen Version,” running August 2-5. —Sue Prior Photo*

It’s Showtime for the QJTT
With “Chicago Teen Version” coming up next week, the Quogue Junior Theater Troupe will get things going with this summer’s benefit evening on Friday, July 29, with a 7 p.m. performance at the Quogue Community Hall and an 8 p.m. cocktail reception at the Quogue Field Club. For ticket information, click here or visit www.qjtt.org/donate.

Meanwhile, for tickets to “Chicago Teen Version” or the younger cast production of “The Little Mermaid,” running August 23 through August 26, click here, or visit https://qjtt.org.

For more information, email boxoffice@qjttonline.org or call 631-996-9392.‬

*Jailhouse scene from “Chicago Teen Version.” —Sue Prior Photo*

Reception August 6 for “Art Gene” at Library Art Gallery
A Quogue Library Art Gallery reception is scheduled on Saturday, August 6, from 3:30 to 5 p.m. for “Art Gene: Five Generations of Quogue Artists.”

On view through September 7, the exhibition features works by artists from five generations of one family: Disston, Jones, Larson, Lyman, Peters, and Stabler.

*At top, Quogue Association Duck Dumping Deputies poised to pour. Second photo, pouring the payload. Above, it’s raining ducks to start the annual Duck Race on Saturday. —A. Botsford Photos*

*Breaking for daylight. —A. Botsford Photo*

*Quogue Association President Lynn Lomas, left, and QA Duck Race Chair Stefanie Beck, right, presented the second place prize to John Rasulo and Karen Griffin. —Kathy Lomas Photo*

At left, first place winner Lucie Benedetti with the winning duck and her prize money. —Stefanie Beck Photo. Right, third place winner Dean Aaron, age 3.

*A few of the also-rans that were collected after the race. The Quogue Association sold 2,500 ducks for the big race. —A. Botsford Photo*

And They’re Off!

July 21, 2022 atquaqLeave a comment

Or they will be, anyway, on Saturday, July 23, when all the hundreds upon hundreds of entrants in the Quogue Association’s annual Duck Race extravaganza are dumped from the Post Lane bridge into the Quogue Canal and start bobbing along with the tide toward the finish line adjacent to the Village Dock at the end of Quogo Neck Lane.

*The Quogue Village dock, site of Saturday’s Quogue Association Duck Race reception. —A. Botsford Photo*

If you haven’t already obtained a selection of thoroughbred ducks to enter into the big race, which benefits the Association’s community projects, first of all: shame on you! And, second, you still have a chance to get into the swim of things. Ducks—the majority of which have been cleaned and recycled—can be purchased all this week at the Quogue Library and the Quogue Shop on Jessup Avenue.

And QA representatives will be making final duck sales from 10 a.m. to noon on Saturday, July 23, just in time for buyers to get them marked up with name and telephone number and returned to organizers for the 4 p.m. duck drop.

Prices are in line with past years: one duck for $5; five for $20; 13 for $50; 30 for $100; and 100 (which might require a team to mark in time) for $300. The purse is also the same: $500 to the owner of the first place duck; $250 for second place; and $150 for third.

The Quogue Association flag is already flying down at the Village Dock in anticipation of the festive reception at the finish line, running from 4 to 6 p.m. Live music will be provided by the band Soul’d Out as a lively soundtrack for the free beer and wine party, with lemonade for the kids, a popcorn machine, and other snacks.

Quogue Association flags will be available for purchase.

Next up on the Quogue Association’s summer calendar will be the big blowout beach party on August 20 at the Quogue Village Beach. Details to follow in the August 11 At Quaquanantuck.

White Shark Washes Up on Quogue Beach
On Wednesday morning, June 20, Quogue Police responded to a report of a dead white shark on the beach in Quogue, between numbers 80 and 90 Dune Road.

Originally reported by a Dune Road resident, the shark was apparently washed back out to sea before police could secure it for a necropsy by the South Fork Natural History Museum Shark Research and Education Program, who are working with the police to monitor the situation, or personnel from the Stony Brook Southampton Marine Science field station.

Swimmers and boaters in the area are cautioned to be aware of the situation and to report any sightings to the Quogue Village Police at 631-653-4791.

Many mysteries connected to the sighting, including probable cause of death, and how a fish of that size (7 to 8 feet long) and weight, once washed up on the shore, could so easily be washed back out to sea. Stay tuned. And watchful.

Strong Lineup for Library’s Author Series
This summer’s Author Series at the Quogue Library got off to a great start last weekend with “Who Is Maud Dixon?” author Alexandra Andrews.

Coming up next in the series will be: Amanda Fairbanks, author of “The Lost Boys of Montauk” on July 24; and Anna Pitoniak, author of “Our American Friend” on July 31. The series skips a week on August 7 before Quogue’s own Vikram Malhotra, author of “CEO Excellence” comes to the library for the August 14 program.

Offered on Sundays at 5 p.m., this summer’s in-person series under the tent features a reading by a guest author followed by a conversation with writer and editor Andrew Botsford before the author fields questions from the audience. Tickets are $25 and registration is online at quoguelibrary.org, by calling 631-653-4224, or in-person at the library at 90 Quogue Street.

In the nonfiction “The Lost Boys of Montauk” author Amanda Fairbanks tells “the True Story of the Wind Blown, Four Men Who Vanished at Sea, and the Survivors They Left Behind.”

In March of 1984, the commercial fishing boat Wind Blown left Montauk Harbor on what should have been a routine offshore voyage. Its captain, a married father of three young boys, was the boat’s owner and leader of the four-man crew, which included two locals and the blue-blooded son of a well-to-do summer family. After a week at sea, the weather suddenly turned, and the foursome were caught offshore in a vicious, hurricane force nor’easter. Neither the boat nor the bodies of the men were ever recovered.

The fate of the Wind Blown—the second-worst nautical disaster suffered by a Montauk-based fishing vessel in over a hundred years—has become interwoven with the local folklore of the East End’s year-round population.

Ms. Fairbanks examines the profound shift of Montauk from a working-class village to a playground for the ultra-wealthy, seeking out the reasons that an event more than three decades old remains so startlingly vivid in people’s minds. And she shines a light on the powerful and sometimes painful dynamics between fathers and sons, as well as the secrets that can haunt families from beyond the grave.

An article in Vanity Fair when the book came out noted that Ms. Fairbanks “traces a wide range of stories that connect back to the men, from the history of Montauk to the men’s relationships with their fathers to how tilefish became such a prized catch for fishermen in the ’80s. The result is a sweeping, and often devastating, portrait of a community on the brink of transformation, and of how grief can ricochet across generations.”

To register for the Amanda Fairbanks reading and conversation, click here.

Author Anna Pitoniak spins a yarn described as “a Cold War-era political thriller” in her novel “Our American Friend,” which follows one intrepid journalist working on the official biography of a mysterious First Lady and “uncovering secrets that could destroy them both.”

Kate Quinn, New York Times bestselling author of “The Alice Network,” calls the book “an intriguing Russian nesting doll of modern Washington politics, Cold War spy games, and above all women with secrets. … Just what is the President’s wife hiding? Anna Pitoniak’s masterful puzzle of espionage, love, and betrayal keeps us flipping the pages to find out!”

A review in The New York Times described “Our American Friend” as “Elegant and well-paced … like ‘Emily in Paris’ meets ‘Scandal’—fantastic fun.”

And #1 New York Times bestselling author Lee Child wrote: “Spectacular—a global thriller with pace, tension and ever-higher stakes, born of an intimate and unlikely friendship between two very different women … The story succeeds on every level.”

To register for the Anna Pitoniak program, click here.

All books are available for purchase at the library or from www.bookhampton.com. More information on all library events and programs at quoguelibrary.org.

More details on Vikram Malhotra in the August 11 At Quaquanantuck. Other authors in this summer’s lineup are: Elena Gorokhova, author of “A Train to Moscow” on August 21; and Adele Myers, author of “The Tobacco Wives” on August 28.

More information on all library events and programs at quoguelibrary.org.

*Anne and Charles Mott were honored at the Wild Night for Wildlife for their many years of support for the Quogue Wildlife Refuge’s work and mission. —Amanda Bellenir Photo*

Wildly Successful Wild Night; Calling All Teen Explorers
Always (when it’s held) the biggest fundraiser of the year for the Quogue Wildlife Refuge, this year’s Wild Night for Wildlife was a resounding (and well deserved) success.

*QWR Director Michael Nelson, left, and Associate Director Marisa Nelson, right, with Conservator Award honoree Ine Wijtvliet. —John Neely Photo*

According to Associate Director Marisa Nelson, there were some 405 revelers in attendance and fundraising happily exceeded expectations.

Animated auctioneers Bill Ritter and Jim Cramer coaxing higher bids, left; and Joe and Yoly Light stepping out on the dance floor at the Wild Night for Wildlife. —John Neely Photos

Meanwhile, registration is still open for teens entering grades 10, 11 and 12 in the QWR Explorers program running from Monday, July 25, through Friday, July 29. Participants will visit favorite places at the Refuge, explore by kayak, and enjoy off-site field trips.

Program hours are: Monday, July 25, 9 a.m. to noon at the Refuge; Tuesday, July 26, 9 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. at Sunken Forest on Fire Island; Wednesday, July 27, 9 a.m. to 2:30 for kayaking on the Peconic River; Thursday, July 28, 9 a.m. to noon at the Refuge and returning to QWR for a 7 p.m. hike followed by a campout at the Refuge; Friday, July 29, 9 a.m. pickup at the Refuge.

Parents are responsible for transportation on Tuesday and Wednesday; additional information about off-site trips will be emailed upon registration. For more information and to register, click here, or visit the QWR website at quoguewildliferefuge.org and click on Education and then Summer Camps.

For further information, call 631-653-4771 or e-mail: info@QuogueWildlifeRefuge.org.

Be sure to mark the calendar for Earth Yoga Outside with Amy Hess on Wednesdays at 9:30 a.m.; Kids Painting for Pollinators on Monday, August 1, at 2 p.m.; Whales, Dolphins & Seals of Long Island with Dr. Artie Kopelman on Tuesday, August 2, at 7 p.m.; and a Full Moon Night Hike on Tuesday, August 9, at 7:30 p.m. For more information about these and other programs and activities at the Refuge, visit www.quoguewildliferefuge.org.

*One of the nesting pair known as Mary and Ralph, photographed on July 4. See if you can make out the eye of a chick between the twigs at the top of the right side of the nest.—Florrie Morrisey Photo*

More Great Movies in PAC Summer Film Series
Courtesy of gifted curator Allison Frost, the parade of top notch films continues in the “Tuesday Night at the Movies with Andrew” summer film series at the Westhampton Beach Performing Arts Center. .

*Antonio Banderas and Penelope Crus in “Official Competition.”*

Coming up on Tuesday, July 26, Penelope Cruz and Antonio Banderas share the screen to hilarious effect in “Official Competition,” playing two of three egomaniacs (Oscar Martinez is the third) commissioned by a millionaire to make a movie together in this sharp comedy skewering wealth, art, and pride.

The following week, Mark Rylance and Sally Hawkins star in “The Phantom of the Open,” coming to the PAC August 2 and 3. Rylance plays amateur golfer Maurice Flitcroft, who achieves his late-in-life goal of participating in the British Open Golf Championship, causing an uproar in the staid golfing community.

*Mark Rylance in “Phantom of the Open.”*

On August 9 and 10, the PAC will screen “Butterfly in the Sky,” a new feature-length documentary chronicling the legacy of one of the most important and influential children’s television shows of all time, “Reading Rainbow.” Spanning nearly 40 years from 1981 to the present, the film tells the story of a handful of broadcasters, educators, filmmakers, and one incredible host, LeVar Burton, who believed television could inspire a lifelong love of reading.

To find out more and buy tickets online, visit www.whbpac.org and click on Films. More on the rest of the summer 2022 schedule in the next At Quaquanantuck.

“Art Gene” Exhibition at Library Art Gallery
Opening next week and running through September 7, the Quogue Library Art Gallery will present “Art Gene: Five Generations of Quogue Artists,” an exhibition of works by artists from five generations of one family: Disston, Jones, Larson, Lyman, Peters, and Stabler.

According to the library’s Art Gallery Committee, “this exhibition is about the inspiration, teaching, and passion for art from one generation to another. It is also about the inspiration from and connection to a place that is held dear and stores generations of memories.”

An art gallery reception is scheduled on Saturday, August 6, from 3:30 to 5 p.m. At Quaquanantuck hopes to have more details and representative artworks from this show in the next column, posting on August 11.

At top, Quogue Library Trustees Kathy Lomas, Meredith Imber, Sarah Adams and Barbara Sartorius kick up their old school heels at the library’s 125th Anniversary party on July 3. Above, library patron Jim Conlin, left, entertained the crowd; visitors tried their hand at weaving and yarn spinning. —Arie Weber and Kristy Verity Photos

Miss Lizabeth, left, takes students of all ages through a typical school day in the 19th century during the celebration of the 1822 Schoolhouse’s 200th anniversary on July 3. All are encouraged to check out the summer-long exhibition organized by the Quogue Historical Society, “An 1868 School Day with Schoolmistress Miss Lizabeth Griffing,” open during library hours through Labor Day. —Photo courtesy of Quogue Historical Society

“Harry Bertschmann: Retrospective” Opens July 28 at Quogue Gallery
Opening July 28 and running through August 16, the Quogue Gallery at 44 Quogue Street will present a retrospective exhibition of the work of Harry Bertschmann, featuring more than 25 paintings by the artist from the 1960s up to the 1990s.

An opening reception will be held at the gallery on Saturday, July 30, from 5 to 7 p.m.

*Harry Bertschmann, “Figurative Series, No. 37,” acrylic on canvas, 48″ by 58″. —Image courtesy of Quogue Gallery*

Paintings from the 91-year-old artist’s many different series will be on display, including work from the Grid Series, the Bank Street Series, the Iconic Man Series, the Form Composite Series, and the Subway Series.

According to a press release from the gallery, early success at museums and galleries during the 1950s portended Bertschmann joining the ranks of the masters of abstract expressionism with whom he exhibited. In 1958, the jury of the prestigious Carnegie International selected him as its youngest exhibitor, showing his work alongside Rothko, Kline, Newman, Guston, and Motherwell. Shortly afterwards, he was represented by the avant-garde Howard Wise Gallery, and in 1961 his solo exhibition followed one for Elaine de Kooning.

After settling in Greenwich Village in 1962, Bertschmann purposely drifted from the gallery scene because he was leading a double life. His training at the famous Basel School of Design led him to become an innovator in graphic design, and many of his commercial logos and packaging designs have become pervasive in American culture.

The logos and packaging for Kent and Newport cigarettes, Nestlé’s, and Bufferin are but a few of his creations. In 1997, his home city of Basel honored him with a retrospective. In 2018, the Fashion Institute of Technology honored him with the school’s rarely-bestowed Lifetime Achievement Award.

In parallel with earning a living from his commercial projects, the artist was resolute in painting every day. Art critic and historian Prof. Robert C. Morgan described his vision as “abstract gestural signs that suggest a language.” He added, “Bertschmann is essentially an art world outsider looking inward. He is a seasoned artist, a highly creative artist, an articulate individual, and a nearly obsessive worker, always willing to stand back and examine what he does before moving ahead. He is also an exemplary draughtsman … His atelier is a phenomenon to behold.”

*Harry Bertschmann, “Subway Series, No. 36,” acrylic on canvas, 57.5″ by 49″. —Image courtesy of Quogue Gallery*

The “David Michael Slonim: Color Song” exhibition featuring 11 recent works on canvas will continue at the Quogue Gallery through July 25.

Art historian John Seed describes the exhibition as “a suite of works that create emotional spaces for calm contemplation.” Mr. Seed goes on to note that “Slonim is a formalist who distills as much beauty as he can out of each composition and thinks of each work as ‘an attempt to love a tiny corner of the universe into existence.’”

Quogue Gallery is at 44 Quogue Street, Quogue, NY 11959. Quoguegallery.com.

Sunday Services Schedule for Church of the Atonement
The Rev. Anne Marie Witchger will officiate at the Church of the Atonement at 17 Quogue Street on Sunday, July 24.

Rev. Witchger is Associate Rector and Chief of Staff at Church of the Heavenly Rest in New York City. She and her husband, Joshua, have two daughters, Magdalena and Simeon, who love to sing, draw, help in the kitchen, and ride through Central Park on their matching orange scooters.

The Reverend Stephen Setzer will officiate at the 8 a.m. and 10 a.m. services at the church on Sunday, July 31.

Rev. Setzer has served in parishes from Dallas to Delaware. Most recently he was the priest in charge at St. John’s Park Slope. His wife, Yoana, is an attorney at Cooley LLP, and the couple lives in Park Slope.

The Reverend Zachary Thompson will officiate at the Church of the Atonement on Sunday, August 7 and 14.

Rev. Thompson is the Vicar at St. James’ Church in Manhattan. Prior to joining the staff at St. James’, he served as Rector and Associate Priest at the Church of Our Savior in Atlanta, GA, as well as Chaplain to Emory University. Originally from Princeton, NJ, he earned his Master of Divinity at Emory University and a Master of Sacred Theology at Sewanee: The University of the South.

His wife, Amy, is the Assistant Head of School at the Church of the Epiphany Day School. They have two sons, Rowan, 10, and Ezra, 8.

Services are at 8 a.m. and 10 a.m. and all are welcome. As per diocesan guidelines, masks are optional at church services. For details and a full schedule, go to quoguechurch.org.

All children in the community age 7 to 14 are invited to sing in the junior choir, which is led by organist and Choir Director Patricia Osborne Feiler. Rehearsals are at 9 a.m. on Sunday mornings.

For additional information regarding the junior choir, contact Mary Vogel via email at mtvogel@icloud.com.

Independence

June 30, 2022June 30, 2022 atquaqLeave a comment

Here’s an idea: Instead of celebrating Independence Day with parades and fireworks and parties laid on merely for the sake of celebration, why not take a moment to consider where we are as a nation some 250 years after the original idea to form a new republic took shape in the text of the Declaration of Independence?

For anyone who has been paying attention—generally for the past decade and specifically during the time from Election Day in 2020 up to this week’s hearings in Washington, D.C.—it’s not looking good.

What happened to the idea that “Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed”? Politicians on both sides of our sadly and severely riven democracy are seemingly deriving their questionable powers only from themselves, and basing their decision making solely on self preservation and ensuring their reelection. Incited and misinformed by algorithm-driven media, both social and mainstream, the equally divided electorate rallies behind slogans and ideas that are divorced from facts and a basic understanding of how our government is supposed to work, was designed to work by the founding fathers.

Isn’t it time to declare our independence from the kind of lockstep party politics that has veered so far from our republic’s foundational principles as to almost guarantee that government cannot possibly be by, for and of the people? Can we possibly go back to a dependence on the moral, ethical and humanitarian imperatives that the signers of the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution believed should guide all the branches of our government and all our representatives holding office in those branches? That would be a happy Independence Day.

*A sizeable crowd gathered on the Village Green last Friday to honor and give thanks to Mayor Peter Sartorius for his 13 years of service. —A. Botsford Photo*

Transfer of Power, Quogue Style
There has been a lot of focus lately at the national level on the peaceful transfer of power. In our village though, the recent passing of the mayoral baton from Peter Sartorius to Robert Treuhold seems more like a love fest in the passing along of civic responsibility.

Witness the Quogue Association celebration honoring Mayor Sartorius on the Village Green last Friday, prior to the Gene Casey and the Lone Sharks concert. All the speakers thanked Hizzoner for his 13 years of diligent service and the Village Trustees served up a proclamation lauding his accomplishments and naming him the Person of the Year for 2022, even though it’s only the end of June.

Then Mayor Sartorius thanked everyone for thanking him, thanked everyone in village government and all the village workers and the Quogue Village Police and Quogue Volunteer Fire Department ro making his job so much easier, and offered special thanks to newly elected Mayor Treuhold and Village Trustee Sally Beatty for stepping up: he from Trustee to Mayor; she to fill his space on the Village Board.

In his final missive to village residents this week, Mayor Sartorius repeated his thanks to all, happily turning his job over to his successor. How refreshing.

No, that’s not now former Mayor Peter Sartorius; it’s newly elected Mayor Robert Treuhold.—A. Botsford Photos

*Members of the Quogue Field Club went all in back in the day on special decorations for this automobile for a July 4th celebration. —Image courtesy of Quogue Historical Society*

Historical Society and Library Join Forces for Big Celebration
This Sunday, July 3, the Quogue Historical Society and the Quogue Library will co-host a bigtime celebration to mark the 200th anniversary of the 1822 One-Room Schoolhouse and the 125th anniversary of the Quogue Library.

At 2:30 p.m. Quogue Historical Society Curator and Southampton Town Historian Julie Greene will offer a talk on “Quogue’s One-Room Schoolhouse: History.”

Then, at 3:30 p.m., visitors will have a chance to “step back in time to 1868 with Schoolmistress Lizbeth Griffing.”

Also on offer as part of the celebration will be games, ice cream, face painting, live music and more, all on the grounds of the Quogue Library. The one-room schoolhouse and 1868 School Day exhibition will be open all summer during library hours. The QHS Pond House headquarters on Jessup Avenue will be open on Saturdays from 10 a.m. to noon, through September 3, and by appointment. www.quoguehistory.org

*Bob Murray, center, served as conductor and tour guide for the Quogue Historical Society trolley tours of the Village Historic District on June 24. —Scott Moger Photo*

Summer Film Series Resumes at Performing Arts Center
Formerly only screening foreign films, independent cinema, and documentaries from July 4th through Labor Day, the Westhampton Beach Performing Arts Center got an early jump on its “Tuesday Night at the Movies with Andrew” summer film series this year.

Starting with the riveting, if brutally disheartening, “Donbass” on June 7 and 8, series curator Allison Frost has lined up exceptional films for this summer, including “Benediction” on June 14 and 15; “Lost Illusions” on June 21 and 22; and, this week, the Greek Weird Wave film “Apples.” To see the complete schedule of what’s coming up and to buy tickets, go to www.whbpac.org and click on Films.

The movies screen on Tuesday and Wednesday at 7:30 p.m. each week, with commentary by Andrew Botsford and occasional guests following the Tuesday evening screenings. Next week, Andrew and moviegoers will have a rare treat when the director of next week’s film, “The Art of Making It,” Quogue’s own Kelcey Edwards, will be on hand to discuss the documentary after the screening on Tuesday, July 5.

*Artist Gisela McDaniel in “The Art of Making It.”—Image courtesy of Wischful Thinking Productions*

Focusing on a diverse group of compelling young artists at pivotal moments in their careers, “The Art of Making It”—which is having its theatrical premiere screenings at IFC in New York City this week—explores the forces that thrust some into the stratosphere while leaving others struggling to survive. Who gets seen, who gets left behind, and why does it matter who is anointed to tell the stories of our time?

Interweaving the voices of creative luminaries and disruptors, the film is both a cautionary tale about what America stands to lose if we don’t rethink what we value and why, and a love letter to those who persevere in their artistic practice in spite of the extraordinary odds of ever achieving commercial success.

In a director’s statement included in press materials about the film, Ms. Edwards wrote that “Upon meeting producer Debi Wisch, I realized we shared a vision of a documentary that explored the cultural value of art through the world of today’s emerging artists and what their challenges could reveal about our society at large.

*“The Art of Making It” director Kelcey Edwards.—Kelli Hull Photo*

“Working across a variety of media, the talented young artists in our film struggle to balance making art with making ends meet. They reflect on the challenges of navigating an art world ecosystem in which they are almost entirely dependent on a combination of their own fortitude, the whims of an unregulated market, and support from institutions with a history of barriers to entry based on race, gender and socio-economic class.”

“When we began filming in 2019,” Ms. Edwards continues, “little did we know our film would literally capture the final months of the art world as we knew it. Now seen as an accelerant, COVID-19 brought the inequities of the status quo into even sharper focus. Facing mounting debt, and with little infrastructure in place to support the arts other than private philanthropy, galleries, artfairs, art schools, and even museums around the country, were forced to shut their doors. Yet amidst the fallout, our artists continue to make work, reminding us that every act of creation is an act of hope.Completing our final interview in early 2021, our film captures the rethinking of many of the art world’s most entrenched systems in real time.”

On July 12 and 13, the PAC film series will offer another—decidedly more quirky—documentary, “The Pez Outlaw.” The film flips the lid on the story of Steve Glew, a Midwestern machinist who smuggles rare Pez dispensers from Europe and sells them for thousands, drawing the ire of both the U.S. Pez corporation and rival collectors.

Up from Florida for the Southampton Writers Conference, former U.S. Poet Laureate and authority on quirk Billy Collins will be Andrew’s guest to talk about the film following the July 12 screening.

*“Queen of Glory” comes to the PAC July 19 and 20.*

The following week brings the feature film “Queen of Glory” to the PAC on July 19 and 20. Ghanaian-American Sarah is all set to abandon her Ivy League doctoral program to follow her married lover across the country. But her plans are derailed when her mother’s sudden death leaves her the owner of a neighborhood bookshop in the Bronx.

While Andrew does not as yet have a guest for this film, he is hoping that enough readers will plead with screenwriter, script doctor, screenwriting textbook author, and strikingly handsome Dan Gurskis to step up so that he has no choice but to accede to their wishes.

Penelope Cruz and Antonio Banderas share the screen to hilarious effect in “Official Competition” on July 26 and 27; and Mark Rylance stars in “The Phantom of the Open,” coming to the PAC August 2 and 3. More on these films and the rest of the schedule in the next At Quaquanantuck.

House and Garden Tour July 8
The Westhampton Garden Club Biennial House and Garden Tour will be held on Friday, July 8, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. The self-guided tour will feature premier homes and gardens in the Westhampton, Quogue and Remsenburg areas.

The 2022 tour will showcase seven outstanding homes and gardens, each with its own unique style. One is a beautiful waterfront property recently featured in Hamptons Cottages and Gardens. Another is a historic home flawlessly renovated for modern times. All the homes feature award-winning gardens by prestigious landscape architects. The tour includes entry into a private garden open only for participants of the WGC tour. Complimentary refreshments will be offered poolside in one of the gardens.

There will also be a luncheon held at the Westhampton Country Club, offered at an additional price. Guests at the luncheon will be able to shop at pop-up boutiques featuring gifts, clothing and jewelry. For more information and to purchase tickets for both the house and garden tour and the luncheon, visit: www.westhamptongardenclub.org.

*David Michael Slonim, “Chicken on the Run,” 2021, oil on canvas, 36″ by 36″. —Image courtesy of Quogue Gallery*

David Michael Slonim Up Next at Quogue Gallery
Speaking of making art, and the role of galleries in the art of making it, from July 7 to July 25 the Quogue Gallery will present “David Michael Slonim: Color Song,” an exhibition featuring 11 recent works on canvas by the artist. An opening artist reception will be held at the gallery at 44 Quogue Street on Saturday, July 9, from 5 to 7 p.m.

A press release from the gallery offers this quote from art historian John Seed: “Painter David Michael Slonim, who considers art-making a journey of discovery, hopes that visitors to his exhibition, ‘Color Song,’ will make discoveries of their own. By offering a suite of works that create emotional spaces for calm contemplation, he offers the opportunity to connect with the varied moods of his abstractions. Slonim is a formalist who distills as much beauty as he can out of each composition and thinks of each work as ‘an attempt to love a tiny corner of the universe into existence.’

“His art is intended as a way of showing love for others and the world that they share: each work carries the potential to serve as a unifying force. At this point in his life, Slonim has given intuition free rein. Although he is aware that the occasional viewer may wonder why his work is so spare or so abstract, Slonim is not interested in changing course. What motivates him is discovery, which he wills himself to each time he enters the studio. His commitment to discovery—which takes courage—is one of the pillars of Slonim’s artistic practice. This commitment itself is a kind of structure, endowing each of his paintings with a precious and highly personal from of artistic integrity.”

*David Michael Slonim, “Blue Bang,” 2022, oil on canvas, 72″ by 60″. —Image courtesy of Quogue Gallery*

Remaining on view at the gallery through the holiday weekend will be “Eugene Healy: Ultramarine,” the second solo exhibition of the summer season. The exhibition features 12 recent works on canvas by the artist.

The title of the exhibition refers to the deepest and richest of blue pigments, which is frequently used by the artist as part of his examination of “the often dramatic and beautiful interplay between shore, ocean, and sky,” according to a release from the gallery.

Quogue Gallery is at 44 Quogue Street, Quogue, NY 11959. Quoguegallery.com.

Quogue Library Author Series Starts July 17
Beyond this Sunday’s big double anniversary celebration co-hosted by the Quogue Historical Society (see above), as always, the Quogue Library has an array of programs and activities to choose from in the month ahead.

One of the most helpful of these might be two in-person sessions of “How to Use the New Quogue Library Website,” led by Tech Assistant Amber on Thursday, July 7, at 11 a.m. and Saturday, July 9, at 10 a.m.. Familiarity with all the features of the new website will make it easier than ever to check out all the virtual and in-person programs being offered at and through the Quogue Library. To find out more and try out your existing skills, visit www.quoguelibrary.org and click on the Calendar.

While you are on the site, be sure to look into this summer’s Author Series at the library, which kicks off on Sunday, July 17, at 5 p.m. with the long-awaited reading by—and conversation with—Alexandra Andrews, author of the highly praised debut novel “Who Is Maud Dixon?”

Offered on Sundays at 5 p.m., this summer’s in-person series under the tent will feature a reading by the guest author followed by a conversation with writer and editor Andrew Botsford before the author fields questions from the audience. Tickets are $25 and registration is online at quoguelibrary.org, by calling 631-653-4224, or in-person at the library at 90 Quogue Street.

All books are available for purchase at the library or from www.bookhampton.com.

Other authors in this summer’s lineup are: Amanda Fairbanks, author of “The Lost Boys of Montauk” on July 24; Anna Pitoniak, author of “Our American Friend” on July 31; Vikram Malhotra, author of “CEO Excellence” on August 14; Elena Gorokhova, author of “A Train to Moscow” on August 21; and Adele Myers, author of “The Tobacco Wives” on August 28. More information on all library events and programs at quoguelibrary.org.

*Green heron on the hunt at Sebonac Creek. —Florrie Morrisey Photo*

Wild Night On the Horizon
One question for any readers who have not yet purchased tickets for the QWR Wild Night for Wildlife on July 16: Why not?

The biggest fundraiser of the year for the Refuge, the Wild Night is an event not to be missed. Tate’s Bake Shop and North Fork Chocolate Company are the dessert sponsors, and Crop Organic Cucumber Vodka will be the official liquor sponsor, complementing the substantial hors d’oeuvres by East End Events Catering, copious cocktails, wine from Pellegrini Vineyards, and beer from Long Island Farm Brewery.

The band Noiz will provide lively live music; auctioneers Bill Ritter of ABC “Eyewitness News” and Jim Cramer of CNBC “Mad Money” are returning to ramp up the bidding in the live auction; the silent auction will be brimming with treasures and experiences of a lifetime to bid on; and guests will have a chance to meet QWR resident animals up close. The party starts at 7 p.m.; a private VIP reception will be held at 6 p.m. for those contributing $750 or more per person.

Contributions are tax deductible. Tickets will be held at the door. For further information, call 631-653-4771 or e-mail: info@QuogueWildlifeRefuge.org. For more information about other programs and activities at the Refuge, visit www.quoguewildliferefuge.org.

Haywire Returns to Hamptons Home Base
Raenell Murray, owner of the heavenly fashion haven known as Haywire, is inviting her extended family of established customers as well as new friends to come to her house in Quogue to see all of the clothing items and jewelry she has collected and curated for their perusal and perhaps purchase.

For the last two years, in the summer and early fall, Raenell has opened her house, by appointment, for prospective customers to see her items. As before, she tells At Quaquanantuck, there will be her “regular, fun items” in the house and a barnful of sale items at 50 to 75 percent off.

All are invited to come see fabulous French capris and trousers, cashmere sweaters, shawls, colorful tops, tailored shirts, jewelry and much more. To set up an appointment, call Raenell at 631-283-2809.

*A sample of some of the wares available this summer at Raenell Murray’s Haywire.*

July Lineup at Church of the Atonement
The Reverend Dr. Richard D. McCall will officiate at the Church of the Atonement on July 3, 10 and 17. He and his wife, the Reverend Dr. Terry McCall, live in Bloomington, IN, and have three children: a daughter Anne and her husband Myles in New Orleans, a son Ross and his wife Liz in Atlanta, and a daughter Emily and her husband Trent in Bloomington with their two boys, Parker and Charlie.

The Rev. Anne Marie Witchger will officiate at the Church of the Atonement on Sunday, July 24.

Rev. Witchger is Associate Rector and Chief of Staff at Church of the Heavenly Rest in New York City, where she directs programs and outreach ministries and supports the rector with strategic and long-term planning. She and her husband, Joshua, have two daughters, Magdalena and Simeon, who love to sing, draw, help in the kitchen, and ride through Central Park on their matching orange scooters.

Services are at 8 a.m. and 10 a.m. and all are welcome. As per diocesan guidelines, masks are optional at church services.

All children in the community age 7 to 14 are invited to sing in the junior choir, which is led by Organist and Choir Director Patricia Osborne Feiler. Rehearsals are at 9 a.m. on Sunday mornings.For additional information regarding the junior choir, contact Mary Vogel via email at mtvogel@icloud.com.

Write America Readings Schedule
Currently Crowdcasting from Byrd’s Books in Bethel, Connecticut, the “Write America” program originally conceived by Roger Rosenblatt continues to offer readings and discussions aimed at bridging some of the widening divisions currently eroding the foundations of our republic.

Coming up in two weeks, on Monday, July 11, at 7 p.m., will be Vanessa Cuti, Elizabeth Nunez and Imani Perry. Check the schedule for future readings; register for the Monday evening programs; and check out past episodes on the Byrd’s Books website, www.byrdsbooks.com/write-america.