This Saturday, September 24, 2-5pm, the Kent County Chamber of Commerce will stage a free, carnival-style midway on High Street, featuring games of skill and chance, prizes, a bounce house, an adventure raffle, a sound stage with calliope music, beer, wine and popcorn. Brian Moore and Leslie Sea, “Moore or Les,” from WCTR will be the MCs and will be drawing raffle tickets for fun adventures.

And just announced — Chestertown RiverArts will be bringing their whimsical street sculptures, colorful, crowd-sourced garden mural, DYI tiny paintings, and other entertaining displays that had been slated for their rained out !magine event. Their KidSpot team will provide creative activities for youngsters, and grownups will be invited to flex their own creative muscles with art activities and engaging art displays.

The Chamber’s member businesses and nonprofits are creating this fun and festive event for people of all ages can come out and play. Participating members planned their own games and prizes and are looking forward to meeting new residents and visitors, and reconnecting with the community now that covid is finally subsiding.

Local businesses were hit hard by the pandemic, and The Kent County Chamber of Commerce is committed to helping its members promote and grow their businesses. The event is sponsored by The Peoples Bank, Chesapeake Bank and Trust, Gillespie & Son, H&R Block, WCTR Radio, and the Kent County Department of Economic Development.

The 2022 Chestertown Jazz Festival kicked off Thursday night with Zydeco a-Go-Go’s infectious beats on the Mainstay’s new outdoor stage and set the tone for a weekend of New Orleans-style jazz.

By the second number, many in the audience of 130 were up and dancing between trips to get fresh-shucked oysters or a drink at the bar. Beignets were even passed around before the show.

Director of the Mainstay Matt Mielnick says he couldn’t be happier with the evening’s turnout. The spontaneous conga line was indicative of the spirit of a Mainstay event.

And there’s a surprise coming Wednesday, September 21. Turns out that a generous Rock Hall neighbor in the movie theatre business is loaning a large screen and professional projector to show outdoor movies with “Jaws” as its inaugural film at 8 pm that evening.

“And don’t forget, every Wednesday is Open Mike and we have a lot of fun showcasing some great local talent from classical piano to blues, and poetry. Chuck Redd and Nate Najar will perform a birthday tribute to Charlie Byrd on September 16.

The Mainstay, founded in 1997, is a nonprofit live music venue dedicated to the performing arts, serving the Eastern Shore of Maryland, and readily accessible to our neighbors from Baltimore, Annapolis, Washington D.C., Wilmington, and Philadelphia. In its keystone location in the harbor town of Rock Hall, Maryland, the Mainstay programs an impressive year-round, weekly calendar of accomplished local, regional, national, and international performing artists.

The Spy offers two minutes of Zydeco a-Go-go. Enjoy the weekend! For more information and tickets go here, or see their Facebook page here.

 

 

Shops were open late; musicians sang in the street, and Labor Day weekend’s First Friday did not lack for a crowd who wanted to share the spirit of the long weekend.

One striking aspect was discovering how many service organizations are available to Kent County residents, as evidenced by the many information tables and helpful volunteers.

The Spy thought we’d pay tribute to them during our stroll through town and took notes for future interviews.

Here are a few highlights of our stroll up High Street. The introductory song is by Maddie Freeman.

This video is approximately two minutes in length.

 

Kayti Didriksen – Resident Artist for the Kent Cultural Alliance talks about her sculpture for the upcoming Chestertown RiverArts Imagine Street Fair celebrating the 10 year anniversary of RiverArts.  The Street Fair will be held in downtown Chestertown Sunday September 11 from 1 – 6PM.  

For more information visit:  ChestertownRiverArts.org