By AML Publisher
Photos courtesy of Courtney Apple Photography

Bug Fest is Back!

As far as 200th birthdays go, Lorenzo Langstroth doesn’t usually spring to mind like, say, Charles Darwin does. But come August 14th and 15th, the Philadelphia native’s name will be rolling off the tongues of 10-year-olds as easily as T. rex. That’s because Langstroth’s beloved bees will be the center of attention at the Academy of Natural Sciences’ third annual Bug Fest. “It’s such a fun weekend to celebrate all things ‘buggy.’ And, it’s a great opportunity for the kids and the parents to connect with the experts and our Academy scientists. Its always fun to see a world expert at Bug Fest nose-to-nose with a young child having a great conversation,” enthused Barbara Ceiga, the Academy’s vice president for public operations.

“Bees” is the theme of this year’s popular festival, which also celebrates insects of all kinds—yes, even roaches. Langstroth (1810-1895), a clergyman and teacher dubbed the father of American beekeeping, revolutionized the beekeeping industry by determining the amount of space a bee needs to survive and then inventing the movable frame beehive. The Philadelphia Beekeepers Guild is raising funds to place a historical marker at his birthplace at 106 South Front St.
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By AML Publisher
Photography courtesy of Mark Garvin

People’s Light and Theatre Company presents The Emperor’s New Clothes, through July 11, 2010. A world premiere production, with a script by Richard Hellesen, it is based on the children’s classic tale by Hans Christian Andersen.

People’s Light & Theatre Company presents The Emperor’s New Clothes, from June 16 – July 11, 2010, on the Main Stage. A world premiere production, with a script by Richard Hellesen, it is based on the children’s classic tale by Hans Christian Andersen. Abigail Adams directs.

The Emperor’s New Clothes is a slapstick, mad cap, puppet-romp version of the classic tale of an Emperor with a passion for fashion. In the Empire of Abalonia, the bratty new Royal demands a trendy new wardrobe. Enter two scamming rogues who are only too happy to help while trying to loot the royal treasury.

Artistic Director Abigail Adams says, “This script pays homage to the Marx Brothers and Abbott and Costello—it is wacky and zany and we’ve assembled a very talented cast and artistic team to help tell this familiar tale in a fresh and funny way.”

People’s Light Mary Elizabeth Scallen plays the Policeman in the play and is a puppeteer. “This production is pulling from a lot of classic comedy traditions from the past and, combined with the puppets, it really offers a unique spin on a classic fairytale. Because it’s a slapstick comedy, the play is very fun and surprising. The characters in the play create a lot of mayhem-sort of like rambunctious kids getting in a lot of trouble so the kids will really love it. And the parents will appreciate the quirky tone of the Marx Brothers. The only person in the town who ‘sees the truth’ in the end is the youngest person in the play and there is a neat message in that,” explained Scallen.

The Emperor’s New Clothes, part of the TARGET Family Discovery Series, features Resident Company Members Kevin Bergen, Alda Cortese, Marcia Saunders, Mary Elizabeth Scallen and Tom Teti, who join guest artists Pete Pryor, Andrew Kane and Claire Inie-Richards, in addition to over 50 handmade puppets by Martina Plag. Before each show, children are invited to D.Y.O.B. (Decorate Your Own Boxers) for free. The crafts will begin one hour before each performance in the upstairs lobby. Go to www.peopleslight.org for details.

The play opened on Friday, June 18th at 7pm and runs through July 11th. Audiences are encouraged to join the artists after each performance to discuss the production. People’s Light & Theatre Company is located at 39 Conestoga Road, Malvern. For tickets call 610.644.3500 or visit PeoplesLight.org. This project is supported in part by TARGET.

Single tickets start at $20 for youth and $29 for adults, with special discounts available for students and groups of 10 or more. 10am student group performances, discount meal packages, and talk-backs with the artists are also available. For more information or to purchase group tickets, call 610.647.1900, ext. 134 or email group@peopleslight.org. Actors, prices, performances dates and times are subject to change. Additional service charges may apply.

About People’s Light

People’s Light, a professional theatre founded in 1974 in Chester County, Pennsylvania, makes plays drawn from many sources to entertain, inspire, and engage our community. We extend our mission of making and experiencing theatre through arts education programs that excite curiosity about, and deepen understanding of, the world around us. These plays and programs bring people together and provide opportunities for reflection, discovery, and celebration.

By AML Publisher
Photography courtesy of Belle Vie Photography

The Admiral Fell Inn is a renovated urban inn located on Baltimore’s celebrated waterfront.

AML sent the Berkenstock family of Lansdale for a fun three day summer vacation to Baltimore’s Inner Harbor. Thinking of taking the kiddos on the road? Don’t worry about figuring it all out—below is the perfect three day Baltimore family experience planned out for you. Want more information on planning a summer family vacation to Baltimore? Check out visitbaltimore.org for a complete guide and details for your Inner Harbor experience. Or, visit their new website—bmorehappy.com.

Safe travels!

Day 1

The Admiral Fell in What?
Admiral Fell Inn
www.admiral-fell-inn.com
888 South Broadway
Baltimore, MD 21231
(410) 522-7377

Located in Baltimore’s historic Fell’s Point, the Admiral Fell Inn is a renovated urban inn located on Baltimore’s celebrated waterfront. The Fell’s Point section of Baltimore is a jaunty water taxi ride across from the more famous section of Inner Harbor, but it’s not to be missed, especially if you prefer your lodging a little subdued. Fell’s Point itself is worth a trip, as its cobblestone streets are brimming with charming shops, boutiques, galleries, pubs, and restaurants. Read the full story

By AML Publisher
Photos courtesy of Courtney Apple Photography

Nectar executive chef and partner Patrick Feury is hosting a beer dinner with his brother, chef Terence Feury, and Bill Covalescki of Victory Brewery.

The bad news? Philly Beer Week is coming to an end. The good news? If you have not had time to partake in the hundreds of events across the city and suburbs this week, a fantastic finale is planned this Sunday at Bryn Mawr’s popular pan-Asian restaurant, Nectar.

Executive chef and partner Patrick Feury has teamed up with Downingtown’s Victory Brewery and his brother, Fork executive chef Terence Feury, to launch Fists of Feury. Fists is an English pale ale created via the Victory collaboration. It is only available at Nectar, Old City’s Fork and Victory while the batches last. Sunday both Feury brothers and Victory’s Bill Covaleski will host a special four course beer dinner at Nectar, with one seating, starting at 5 p.m.

AroundMainLine.com: Chef Feury, I love that, as one of the Main Line’s most prestigious and respected chefs, you are vested in beer and food pairings. How did this event and relationship between Nectar and Victory come about?

Patrick Feury: I’ve known Bill (Covaleski) for many years and I’ve been home brewing since I was very young. So we decided to do a beer that was ‘chef driven’ and paired well with food. It’s the perfect marriage and it’s been a great learning experience for Terry and me.

AML: What inspired you to brew an English pale ale specifically?

PF: My mom was born in England and my dad is first generation Irish. We really wanted a brew that was similar to our heritage and so Terry and I took English hops and American hops and came up with Fists.

AML: I guess we can let everyone in on the ‘secret weapon’ in Fists of Feury-rosemary.

PF: I use rosemary a lot in my food at Nectar as a background accent that people may not realize is in their food. Even my citrus vinaigrette that I use for my salads has rosemary. I thought rosemary would be fun in the beer!

AML: Count me in for Sunday night! What can the diners expect with this event?

PF: We designed the dinner to be a loose, fun party atmosphere, with stellar food, for everyone on Sunday. Its not so structured as you would think for a four course dinner. We will also be serving Victory’s Summer Love ale-and Bill has never launched two ales at once which I think beer lovers will appreciate. Its really going to be fun.

Fists of Feury Beer Dinner at Nectar

When: Sunday June 13th 5 p.m. Please arrive by 5 p.m. as there is one seating.

Where: Nectar Restaurant, Bryn Mawr

What: A special four course dinner celebrating the release of Fists of Feury, a limited release English pale ale

Cost: $55 per person, beer included, gratuity is additional

Reservations: Call Nectar for reservations, seating is limited: 610-725-9000

Address: 1091 East Lancaster Avenue, Berwyn

Website: www.tastenectar.com

Facebook Fan Page: Nectar Restaurant and Lounge

Photos courtesy of Courtney Apple Photography
Click here for an online tour of the Little Apple on Facebook

A fresh face on Manayunk’s Main Street, Molly Cygan’s The Little Apple

A little piece of the O.C. has landed on Manayunk’s Main Street! Entrepreneur and Southern California native Molly Cygan opened The Little Apple boutique in February with an Etsy meets Anthropologie feel to the charming, and now popular, shop. Cygan, a 2006 Berkeley grad who boasts an art history degree, was inspired years ago by her boarding school days at Exeter Academy in New Hampshire. “The seeds were definitely planted when I was at boarding school at Exeter. Here we were-lots of young kids in a small town with disposable cash—but nowhere to spend it. I was determined when I went back for my five year reunion (at Exeter) to start looking into opening a little boutique. And, of course, when I returned the downtown was packed with great shops-so clearly a few other people had the same idea! So, I kind of gave it up at that time but still wanted to pursue opening my own shop when the time was just right,” explained Cygan.

That time came last fall. After Berkeley, Cygan lived in New York City briefly before moving to Philadelphia this past October with her fiancé, who is in medical school at Drexel. (They will be tying the knot at her parent’s house in Cal July 3rd.) It was then that she started to rethink the idea of her own storefront. “I started to check out some spaces around the city and nothing seemed to be a fit. Then, some of my fiancé’s friends suggested that I look into Manayunk and that’s when I found this space on Craig’s List. It needed some serious TLC but I could see the potential,” said Cygan. Read the full story

By AML Publisher
Photos courtesy of Brenda Carpenter Photography

The very popular Devon Hat Parade, with Horse Show enthusiast and celebrity Caron Kressley as emcee, is on Wednesday, June 2, from 12:30 to 2:30 p.m. Registration begins at 12:30.

Two top notch exhibitions will add even greater variety to the Devon Horse Show, which already has a huge variety of horses competing, from hunters and jumpers to four-in-hand carriages, Saddlebreds, roadsters and Friesans among others. There will be a reining exhibition by Stacy Westfall on May 28-30, and the beloved Budweiser Clydesdales will perform in exhibition the last four evenings, Wednesday through Saturday, June 2nd through June 5th.

The Devon Horse Show and Country Fair has donated almost $14 million to Bryn Mawr Hospital over the nine decades of their association. It takes the efforts of over 2,000 volunteers, many of whom work year-round and all of whom work hours at the show, to keep the Country Fair ticking along. The Horse Show also has its volunteers, first and foremost Leonard A. King, chairman, and Wade McDevitt, president. But, it also has two professional horse show managers, David Distler and Peter Doubleday, as well as professional judges for its myriad divisions and a very competent office staff, including Amy Davis and Meg Wiederseim, who works year-round, and Kathy Gillmer who works from January through June. Read the full story

By AML Publisher
Photos courtesy of Brenda Carpenter Photography

The Devon Horse Show and Country Fair is one of the largest and most prestigious outdoor equestrian events in the country.

The Devon Horse Show has been honored with the United States Equestrian Federation’s designation as a USEF Heritage Competition. A historic Pennsylvania equestrian event that has become a part of the fabric of the American horse show scene and a Main Line family tradition, Devon is only the fourth show to receive this honor. Devon opens Thursday, May 27 with a full day of equitation in the Dixon Oval and pony breeding in the Gold Ring. Children 12 and under will be admitted free on opening day, courtesy of Hartstrings, a locally headquartered children’s clothing company.

The Devon Horse Show and Country Fair, May 27th to June 6th, benefits the Bryn Mawr Hospital, to which it has donated almost $14 million. New footing in the Dixon Oval at Devon has been installed by Equestrian Services International, which has provided the footing for the 2008 Olympics in Hong Kong, and jumper riders are thrilled with it. A Devon favorite is Laura Chapot, who has ridden the Open Jumper Champion for three of the past five years and has also been Leading Open Jumper Rider three of the past five years. Chapot is bringing a new grand prix horse to Devon this year, Tsarin, a mare she got only recently in Europe. Chapot is bringing three additional horses, Bradbury, Valentia and Chili Pepper as well as a couple of young horses for the Five-Year Old, Six-Year-Old and Seven/Eight-Year-Old sections which will compete Tuesday and Wednesday, June 1st and June 2nd. Open Jumpers compete Tuesday May 31 through Saturday, June 5. Read the full story

By AML Publisher
Photos Courtesy of Belle Vie Photography

The perfect pony party!

Like any busy mom, Linda H. was late getting started on the logistics of her daughter Lily’s third birthday party. So, in a time crunch, she went to the best source of inspiration: her child. “I asked Lily one afternoon what type of birthday party she would like and she did not hesitate for a second. She turned to me and said, ‘A pony party Mommy!’ Then of course that set the stage and that is really all I needed for my creative juices to start flowing,” recalled Linda. “I think she picked ponies because we are zoo addicts, and she loves to ride the ponies there. Lily picked the color too…I showed her three horses to choose from and she picked the brown pony. Alas, pink and brown became her colors for the day!”

Linda, a Penn Valley native and Notre Dame Academy grad, moved back to the area after over two years in Montana with husband Kevin-whom she met there. Lily was born in Big Sky, a gorgeous albeit less populated place Linda and Kevin, a Mississippi native, were accustomed too. “Montana was amazingly beautiful, but we had to drive baby Lily an hour each way just to go to the pediatrician…we knew it was time to come back to the east coast,” she explained.
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By AML Publisher
Featured homepage photo: Silverspoon Café, Wayne, Courtesy of Belle Vie Photography

Silverspoon Café in Wayne is hosting their first Mother’s Day at their new locale in the Eagle Village Shops. Photo courtesy of Belle Vie Photography

Silverspoon Café
Eagle Village Shops
Wayne, PA
www.silverspoonwayne.com
Twitter: silvrspoonwayne
610-688-7646

Wayne’s popular Silverspoon Café will be hosting their first Mother’s Day brunch at their new spacious location in Eagle Village Shops-complete with a cozy outdoor patio. The casual country bistro, headed by husband and wife team Ron and Ruth Silverberg, offers contemporary American favorites. In addition to a lovely brunch from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., Silverspoon will be treating all Moms to chocolate dipped strawberries, a fresh cut flower and a $10 return gift card.

Menu highlights include: huevos rancheros; crispy braised pork belly with potato hash, poached eggs, hollandaise, and spinach; pancetta benedict, homemade english muffins, caramelized onions, aged cheddar, hollandaise; and a Cape May panini sandwich complete with sliced turkey breast, fennel cabbage slaw, strawberry mustard and cheddar. Silverspoon also prides itself on a number of gluten-free menu options.

Valley Forge Radisson
1160 First Avenue
King of Prussia, PA
www.radissonbrunch.com
610-354-8000

This Mother’s Day, show your love and affection for your mom by treating her to one of the most delectable Mother’s Day brunch in town at the Radisson Hotel Valley Forge, from 11:00am until 3:00pm. The menu includes extravagant spreads of the finest breakfast foods, sides, entrees and desserts served in the Radisson Valley Forge’s elegant Grand Ballroom. Guests will be enticed by delicious brunch selections including omelets cooked-to-order with a variety of toppings to choose from. The Radisson’s Chefs will also be making waffles to order.
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By AML Publisher
Featured photography courtesy of Belle Vie Photography

Chesapeake City, Maryland oozes with old world charm, quaint shops, gorgeous gardens and great dining. It’s a great daycation spot with mom and less than a 90 minute drive from the heart of the Main Line. Photo courtesy of Jubilee Photography

1) Chesapeake City, Maryland
www.chesapeakecity.com
Read our full story on Chesapeake City

Quaint, historic and charming Chesapeake City, Maryland-located in Cecil County-is a short and beautiful drive from Philly’s western suburbs. It is one wonderful daycation for a very deserving mom in your life! Chesapeake City’s historic area is on the National Historic Registry, as well as Maryland’s Historic Registry. The town has many restored historic homes, shops and galleries, featuring hand-painted originals and prints, antiques, collectibles, clothing, gifts and crafts.

Boasting a bevy of B&Bs, it’s a perfect getaway for mom and daughters or sisters for the holiday weekend. The town’s holiday dining spot for Mom’s Day is, without doubt, the Bayard House.The restaurant serves award-winning crab soup, tournedos Baltimore, and a breathtaking tableside view of the famous Chesapeake and Delaware Canal (C&D Canal), one of only two vital sea-level canals in the United States.

Additional sites include the Canal Museum, art galleries, summer concerts, boat tours, and tours of the nearby horse country. Convenient to several large cities on the east coast, this historic village on the banks of the C&D Canal is a favorite spot for those seeking a weekend getaway or a vacation retreat.
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