Events in Westerly today

Young chefs can dive into a carnival-themed cooking class that blends hands-on fun with learning in the kitchen. Participants will make festive fair-style treats while building fundamental cooking skills in a supportive setting. Designed for ages 6 to 9, the session takes place at the Groton Community Center in Room C102. Please send an apron and a container so finished goodies can travel home. The fee is $45 for residents and $65 for non-residents. Class size is limited to keep the experience interactive.

A special meeting of the Cable Television Advisory Council of Southeastern Connecticut is scheduled at Groton Public Library, with a Zoom hybrid option available upon request. The agenda begins with an opportunity for public comments, followed by reports, old business, new business, communications, and adjournment.

Designed for every level of competitive Rally, this relaxed drop-in class welcomes newcomers getting started, handlers aiming to build on a titled dog’s skills, and seasoned teams looking to give a retired champion some extra time in a ring-like setting. It is also a simple way to learn what Rally involves if you are just curious. No preregistration is required, so you can participate when it works for you. For more information, contact Christine at stareba@gmail.com.

Set at the fort, this no-cost fitness session welcomes male participants and offers a new routine each week. While the exercises change from week to week, the aim stays the same... participants leave feeling stronger than when they arrived.

Experience a welcoming yoga practice that blends breath work, stretching, and a mindful Vinyasa flow to support vitality and a deeper connection with body, heart, and spirit. Move with a spirit of grace and gratitude in a calm setting at the Lanphear Reading Room, which is owned by the Watch Hill Conservancy. This charity provides the community gathering, and donations to WHC are appreciated. New students are required to sign a practice waiver. Please register and arrange payment by emailing yogasthaliving@gmail.com. The class fee is $23, or use a monthly pass. Cash and check are preferred, and electronic payment is available upon request. Enter through the rear entrance, as the front door remains locked. Use the back lobby doors to enter and the Reading Room exit to leave, and do not use the garage doors. Sign in upon arrival. Students bring their own mats and props, and bringing a blanket and water and dressing comfortably is encouraged. Electronic payments can be completed prior to arrival, or you may pay on site. Cancellations require 24 hours notice by phone at (401) 408-9295. Questions can be directed to the same number.

Enjoy summertime music at Mystic Seaport Museum as the outdoor series returns to Schaefer’s Spouter Tavern. Bring a blanket or lawn chair and find a place on the lawn, since seating is limited and can fill quickly. Free entry to the Museum is available through the North Entrance for this event. The Kenn Morr Band appears as part of the series while touring behind its latest release, "Still Shining," recorded at Sandy Brook Studios in Colebrook, Connecticut. The album includes eleven original songs by Kenn Morr and highlights the band’s well-honed interplay in a scenic waterfront setting.

Free Magic: The Gathering Commander games are hosted at The Citadel Game Cellar. There is no charge to enter or for table space. Players can come with friends or arrive solo to meet others in the community. Drinks are available for purchase, or bring your own, with no alcohol permitted. Decks and bulk cards are available for purchase for anyone looking to expand their collection.

Travel to the offbeat, snow-dusted town of Almost, Maine, where love works in unexpected ways. This theatrical collection interlaces playful and heartfelt scenes that trace romance through joy, sorrow, and surprise. With a blend of humor and tenderness, the stories reveal how connection can surface in the unlikeliest places, just when it is least expected.

At the United Black Box Auditorium, Simply the Best delivers a high-energy tribute to Tina Turner. Jenn Cristy leads the performance by channeling Turner’s powerhouse presence rather than copying it, creating a live concert experience that aims to captivate from the opening moments to the final bow. The show highlights classics including Proud Mary, River Deep, Mountain High, What’s Love Got To Do With It, The Best, and additional favorites. This is a fully seated performance in the Black Box auditorium. All tickets are non-refundable and non-exchangeable, and The United is not responsible for tickets bought through third-party sellers.

Misfit Club transforms into an electrifying dance floor for a Friday night celebration of sweat, sparkle, and freedom. Expect thumping beats, low lights, and a charged atmosphere that invites you to get lost in the music alongside the Misfits community. Come however you want to be seen, whether dressed to turn heads, to express yourself, or to let everything go, because every style and energy is welcome. There is no judgment and no holding back, just joyful, high energy chaos in the best possible way, all happening only at Misfit Club.

Help care for Bates Park by collecting litter, tending to trails, and pitching in on park improvements. Gather at the container marked with the BFF logo near Animal Control, then head out with the group. Participants can move at a comfortable pace and are welcome to wrap up early if needed. Tools and gloves will be provided, and bringing personal gear is fine. Be sure to bring water.

Explore miniature painting with guidance from a painting pro at a free, hands-on session focused on gaming figures. Whether starting out or refining existing skills, participants learn practical techniques and tips, with miniatures, paints, and tools provided. All supplies are covered, so a creative mindset is all that is needed.

This event features a music-filled day benefiting the Friends of the Westerly Animal Shelter.

Tapped Apple Cidery & Winery hosts a stand-up showcase from Next Stop Comedy, featuring a fresh roster of comedians at every show. The lineup rotates, with performers who have appeared on television and on popular podcasts. Each installment brings a new mix of acts to the cidery and winery.

Preacher Dogs bring a psychedelic rock journey to Sneekers Cafe, radiating love, peace, and uplifting high energy. The set celebrates classics from the 60s and 70s, featuring songs by The Doors, Led Zeppelin, Jimi Hendrix, The Beatles, Cream, The Rolling Stones, Deep Purple, Joe Cocker, John Lennon, Steppenwolf, Cheap Trick, and more.

Vettes at the Beach takes place at Ocean Beach Park and features a full day of food and music, raffle prizes, trophies, and takeaways that include a dash plaque, T-shirt, and goodie bag. Admission is &20, while spectators are free. The club with the strongest participation will receive a $1,000 donation directed to the charity it chooses. Presented in memory of Jan D. Christiansen. For details, contact Markcjan@yahoo.com or 860-705-3473.

Celebrate beluga whales at an all-ages gathering that connects the Arctic, where these whales live, with experiences close to home. Explore activity stations, try engaging projects, and discover everyday and larger steps that support community resilience. The program highlights ongoing research and conservation work in Cook Inlet, Alaska, showing how these Arctic whales can motivate action for a healthier planet. Admission is covered by regular Aquarium entry.

Explore New London’s connection to the sea on a walking tour that traces the people, ships, businesses, and pivotal moments that shaped this historic waterfront city. The route moves through downtown and along the shoreline, highlighting stories that span from Indigenous travel on local waterways and the Revolutionary War to privateers, whaling captains, naval figures, submarines, and the longstanding role of the United States Coast Guard. Along the way, hear about heroic rescues, notable vessels, periods of wartime service, and the men and women whose lives were influenced by the Thames River and the city itself. Suited for history fans, maritime enthusiasts, and the simply curious, this experience offers a respectful salute to a maritime legacy that continues today.

Explore, play, and discuss conflict simulations spanning all periods and styles. Cover and concealment take center stage, and tense moments are on the menu as the action unfolds in The Cellar, paired with plenty of conversation around strategy and tactics.

Stonington Pride partners with Bank Square Books for a welcoming Dungeons & Dragons campaign that celebrates creativity and inclusion. Hosted at Bank Square Books, the table is limited to seven players with a dedicated Dungeon Master, so registration is required due to limited capacity. Participants must be at least 12 years old, and both newcomers and seasoned adventurers are welcome. The bookstore is wheelchair accessible.

A spoken word open mic on second Sundays where poets can share original pieces, novelists can read excerpts in progress, and readers can present works by favorite authors, poets, or songwriters. Participants may share their own writing or read the words of those they admire.

Presented by The UNITED and Martin House Books, this event features number one New York Times bestselling novelist Jodi Picoult discussing her newest book, Hollow Bones, with bestselling author and Ocean House Author Series host Deborah Goodrich Royce at the UNITED Black Box Auditorium. The novel carries a notable Rhode Island thread through its protagonist, Molly Fitzgerald, who leads the state’s Department for Emergency Preparedness, and it explores the stories we craft to protect ourselves, the bonds between mothers and daughters, and how love endures when life is upended. Attendees receive access to Hollow Bones two days ahead of its official release. A single ticket option is available, General Admission with book, priced at $42. Every ticket includes a signed copy of Hollow Bones and a professional photo opportunity with Jodi. Extra copies of the new novel, a selection from Jodi’s backlist, and Deborah’s books will be available for purchase. Please note that books will not be personalized and no additional items will be signed. Picoult is the author of thirty novels, including By Any Other Name, Mad Honey, Wish You Were Here, The Book of Two Ways, A Spark of Light, Small Great Things, Leaving Time, and My Sister’s Keeper, along with two young adult collaborations with her daughter. She lives in New Hampshire with her husband. Deborah Goodrich Royce is a bestselling novelist whose recent titles include Best Boy and Reef Road. Her career began in acting and later shifted to story development in film, and she has helped restore cultural landmarks such as the Avon Theatre, Ocean House Hotel, Deer Mountain Inn, the United Theatre, and Martin House Books.

Bank Square Books presents an author talk and signing with poet Jennifer Clarvoe highlighting her collection Piano Piano. The book reflects on time and loss, showing how art can reshape grief with tenderness. The poems unfold at a measured, gentle pace that echoes the title, traveling from a father’s last days to discoveries such as ancient curse tablets found in Turkey. With meticulous craft, Clarvoe links intimate moments like a bee at her window to artifacts marked by old mends, and to the earliest flickers of cinema from the Lumière brothers. She attends to what is fragile or overlooked, turning medical details into praise and torn notebook pages into elegy. The collection lingers on memory and the ways art preserves what matters, tracing a quiet radiance through a father’s final season. Clarvoe is the author of Invisible Tender and Counter-Amores, and her honors include the Kate Tufts Prize, the Poets Out Loud Prize, a fellowship from the Sewanee Writers Conference, a residency at the James Merrill House, and the Rome Prize in Literature. She taught literature and creative writing at Kenyon College for many years and lives in Somerville, Massachusetts with her husband, Tony Sigel.

At Westerly Town Beach Pavilion, this free end-of-summer three-mile beach run takes participants a mile and a half to a turnaround point and back along the shoreline at low tide. Presented by the Westerly Track Club together with the Stavros family, it honors Charlie Stavros, a runner who died during a one-mile road race in Westerly in May 1993. Check-in and bib pick-up occur before the start, and the beach run follows. Food and refreshments are provided courtesy of the Stavros family. For more information, email info@westerlytrackclub.org or call 401-447-1879.