In the Arts

The Eastern Branch of the Monmouth County Library on Route 35 in Shrewsbury will host a free screening of "Peaceable Kingdom" July 21, 7-8 p.m. A dessert reception will follow the screening of the movie, which speaks to the issue of factory farming and presents a portrait of human and animal lives caught up in an out-of-control industrial machine. According to the library, "Peaceable Kingdom" is about personal redemption, commitment, healing and hope, and offers a vision of a peaceful world that is within our reach. For more information, contact Satya Dosapati at (732) 780-0478.

Cel-ebration! Gallery in Red Bank will host an appearance by artist and dimensional illustrator Liz Lomax July 17, 2-4 p.m., at the gallery, located in the Victorian Courtyard on Monmouth Street. Lomax is known for her unique process of designing and sculpting characters in their environment and then photographing them for illustration. Works by Lomax will be on display and for sale. The gallery is open Tuesday through Saturday, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. For more information, call (732) 8423-8489 or visit www.cel-ebration.com.

A traveling photographic and memorabilia exhibit in honor of William "Count" Basie’s centennial will open July 17 at 1 p.m. at 17 E. Front St. in Red Bank. "The Gentleman from Red Bank, Swinging the Blues" will feature various memorabilia from the Count’s life including records, Grammies, photos and paintings. The exhibit is free and open to the public on Saturdays from 1-5 p.m. and 7-10 p.m., and Sundays 1-5 p.m., through Aug. 29. Live jazz performances will take place on Saturday evenings. Exhibit curator is Lauren Grabelle, Tinton Falls.

The exhibit is a presentation of the Count Basie Centennial Committee in collaboration with the Institute of Jazz Studies, Rutgers-Newark, and the William J. Basie Trust. For more information on the centennial or to view a schedule of upcoming events, visit www.countbasiecentennial.org.

An exhibit of watercolor paintings by the late Agnes Stone will be on exhibit at the Monmouth Beach Cultural Center, Ocean Avenue, through Aug. 1. A reception with members of the Agnes Stone family will be held July 31, 5-7 p.m. A self-taught painter, Stone was the wife of Harlan Fiske Stone, U.S. Supreme Court Justice from 1941-46. She began to paint in the 1920s and continued through the 1950s and began exhibiting her paintings at galleries in the Washington, D.C., area in the 1930s. Her work was praised for its bold composition, sense of rhythm and warm colors. For the exhibit at the cultural center, her grandchildren Harlan F. Stone II of Monmouth Beach and Peter H. Stone of Cambridge, Mass., have loaned watercolors they inherited. The center, located at 128 Ocean Ave., is open Wednesday through Sunday, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

The Monmouth Museum will join more than 20 other New Jersey cultural institutions in a statewide art exhibit of works by culturally diverse artists, "Transcultural New Jersey: An Arts and Education Initiative." On Aug. 1, "Culture Memories Threaded through the Fiber Arts" will open at the museum, located on the campus of Brookdale Community College in Lincroft, as part of the statewide project.The exhibit, which will run through Sept. 5, explores the rich heritage and traditions of diverse cultures through the fiber works of New Jersey artists and craft artists from diverse backgrounds, including Betsey Regan, Lincroft, Autumn Wind Scott, Farmingdale, and Edith Chevalier, Old Bridge. Traditional and contemporary works include quilts, weavings, tapestries, batik and fabric sculpture. The exhibit was curated by Marianne Ficarra, Fair Haven, of the Rutgers University Office of Intercultural Initiatives.

An African-American quilting demonstration and workshop by members of the Nubian Heritage League will be held at the museum Aug. 24, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Museum hours are Tuesday through Saturday, 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., and Sunday 1-5 p.m. Admission is $5. For more information, call (732) 747-2266.

The Unlimited Potential Theater Company, a project of VSA arts of New Jersey, is seeking poems, essays and plays written by New Jersey residents for its 11th annual Joyce Indik New Jersey Wordsmith Competition. The contest is open to all writers 18 years and over, and submissions by writers with disabilities are especially encouraged. A panel of theater and literature professionals will judge works submitted. Selected works will be showcased at the New Jersey Readers’ Theater. Deadline for submissions is Oct. 15. UPTCo. is an inclusive program designed to involve individuals with physical disabilities in all aspects of the performing arts.

To request an application or for more information, contact Valerie Grier at (732) 745-3885, 745-5936 or 745-3913 (TTY) or visit www.vsanj.org.

The Monmouth Civic Chorus invites all singers for a Summer Sing of Franz Schubert’s Mass in E Flat Major Aug. 4, 7:30 p.m. at Trinity Episcopal Church, 65 W. Front St., Red Bank. Admission is $5 and includes refreshments; scores will be available for singers to borrow. The sing will be conducted by Dr. Mark Shapiro, artistic director for MCC. For more information, call (732) 933-9333 or visit www.monmouthcivicchorus.org/>www.monmouthcivicchorus.org.

July 17 marks the 11th anniversary for Dunesday at Donovan’s Reef in Sea Bright. The annual summer concert is a collaboration of several talented local bands, merchants, partygoers, and a spotlight charity coming together for the good of one cause. In the past, this event has drawn thousands of partygoers who gathered on the beach to listen to music, enjoy the beach from the afternoon into the night, and rock out, all for the benefit of a charity.

The center-stage charity at this year’s Dunesday will be The Tallman Family Fund. Hosts Donovan’s Reef and Brian Kirk and the Jirks will donate all of the proceeds to this charity founded by a group of close friends and family of Mike Tallman, who sustained a spinal cord injury on April 24, 2003, during a pickup hockey game, causing paralysis from the waist down. This organization is devoted to providing support mechanisms necessary to get Mike firmly on the road to recovery, including daily rehabilitation, a wheelchair, a vehicle and home remodeling. Tickets are $10 and are available at Donovan’s Reef, 1171 Ocean Ave., Sea Bright. For details, call Donovan’s Reef at (732) 842-6789 or visit www.donovansreefseabright.com. or www.jirks.com.