In the Arts

Maybe Pete!

Stand-up comic Margaret Cho will appear at the Count Basie Theatre in Red Bank on Friday, Aug. 4, at 7:30 p.m. Cho has a distinctive, outrageous and ultimately empowering personal voice. The Count Basie is located at 99 Monmouth St. Tickets are $58 - $38 and are on sale at the box office or by calling (732) 842-9000.

The New Jersey Photography Forum of the Visual Arts Center of New Jersey is staging an exhibit in the Main Gallery from Aug. 1-31. The forum is a nonprofit group started in 1995 that has grown over the years to become the largest group of fine art exhibiting photographers in the state with membership from all areas of the state. The gallery is open Monday - Friday 10 a.m.-5 p.m. and Saturday - Sunday 10 a.m.-4 p.m. The arts center is located at 68 Elm St., Summit. Contact Nancy Ori at (908) 790-8820 or e-mail to: nancyori@comcast.net.

Don't let those vocal cords get rusty over the summer. The Shrewsbury Chorale invites singers in all voice parts to participate in the annual Summer Sing on Tuesday, Aug. 15, 7:45-10 p.m. at the Unitarian Universalist Meeting House, 1475 West Front St., Lincroft. Meet new people who share a love of singing or get reacquainted with old friends in the relaxed setting of the Summer Sing. Repertoire includes Randall Thompson's "Last Words of David," Howard Hanson's "Song of Democracy" and Franz Schubert's "Mass in G." Music provided, refreshments served. Admission $5. Call (732) 776-5276 or visit www.shrewsburychorale.org/>www.shrewburychorale.org

Anthony Calacchio at bat for the Basie team.

The Songwriters in the Park series sponsored by 90.5 The Night, Brookdale Public Radio, will feature Steve Forbert and Arnie Baird Friday at 7 p.m. in Riverside Gardens Park on W. Front Street in Red Bank. For information, visit 90.5thenight.org.

The Red Bank Music Community (RBMC) is sponsoring an "open mic" July 30 for all ages at the Internet Caf on W. Front Street in Red Bank beginning at 7:30 p.m. There will be a $4 minimum, no cover; Songwriters in the Park will be held Aug. 1, 6:30 p.m., with ThunderKatz. Moosejaw Muldoon and Peter Klein will be at Riverside Gardens Park on W. Front Street in Red Bank; Guest speaker series will be Aug. 1 at 7:30 p.m. featuring Numa Saisselin of the Count Basie Theatre at the theater, 99 Monmouth St., Red Bank; Drum Circle hosted by M'zume Carnaval will be held Aug. 3 at 8:30 p.m. at the Count Basie Theatre. For more information, visit RedBankMusicCommunity.org.

Monmouth County Park System summer theater presents the musical "Sweet Charity," July 27-Aug. 13, Thursday through Saturday at. 8 p.m. and Sunday at 7 p.m. at Thompson Park Summer Theatre, Newman Springs Road, Lincroft. For information or reservations, visit www.monmouthcountyparks.com/theatre or call call (732) 842-4000.

The fourth annual Boardwalk Art Show will take place in historic Ocean Grove on Saturday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., rain or shine. The juried show, sponsored by the Ocean Grove Area Chamber of Commerce, features 74 artists displaying and selling their work. The entries are varied oil and acrylic paintings, pastels, mixed media, pottery, sculpture, photographs, paintings on floor cloths, etchings and paper collage. For more information, call (732) 774-1391 or visit www.oceangrovenj.com.

Artwork from "Peter Pan" and "Pirates of the Caribbean" will be featured in a special show at Cel-ebration! Gallery in Red Bank July 29-Aug. 26. Rare production cels and drawings from the animated film "Peter Pan" will be available. Newly released limited edition giclees of Johnny Depp as Capt. Jack Sparrow, Orlando Bloom as Will Turner, and the pirate ship "The Black Pearl" are included in the show. The gallery will host a "Pirates Kick Off Party" July 29, 2-5 p.m. Cel-ebration! Gallery is located at 30 Monmouth St. in the Victorian Courtyard shops. For more information, call (732) 842-8489 or visit www.cel-ebration.com.

The Shore Institute of the Contemporary Arts in Long Branch will present another exciting Broadway Backlot concert and barbecue with Accelerator, Riffsurfers, and Maybe Pete! on Saturday. The three bands have played some of the coolest venues in Jersey and now get to add SICA's parking lot to that list. Come out for a night of rock music, great food and to support local artists. The show starts at 5 p.m. and continues until dark. There will be a $5 cover. SICA is located at 20 Third Ave. For information, call (732) 263-1121.

On Saturday, July 1, the first annual softball game between the Count Basie Theatre of Red Bank and the State Theatre of New Brunswick took place at Johnson Park in Piscataway, proving that ticket sales aren't the only thing the area theaters are competitive about.

Both teams comprised administrative staff, stage and security crews and friends. The Basie team held a strong lead in the first five innings, but the bottom of the eighth saw the score tied at 14-14. The final inning brought the winning run, making the score 15-14 in favor of the Basie team. A great time was had by all and included a "losing team pays" barbecue following the game. Plans for a rematch are already in the works.