The Weekender: What's Happening in Belleville, Nutley and Beyond

Check out some of the events happening this weekend.   Click on 'EVENTS' on the homepage to see all the opportunities available.

BELLEVILLE

WHAT:  
WHERE:  Senior Citizens Building, Belleville
WHEN:    Friday  12:30 p.m.
WHY GO: Belleville Seniors meet every Friday, with coffee, buns and bingo following.  New members are always welcome.

WHAT:  WHERE: Wesley United Methodist Church, 225 Washington Ave., Belleville
WHEN:   Saturday, 3-4:30 p.m.
WHY GO: Our Kids Club is a little bit of Vacation Bible School each week. We play games, do crafts, learn about the Bible.   All elementary-aged kids are invited to join.

WHAT: 
WHERE:  Belleville Public Library, 221 Washington Ave, Belleville
WHEN:     Saturday  2pm
WHY GO:    Watch with your friends as Harry, Ron and Hermione search for Voldemort's remaining Horcruxes in their effort to destroy the Dark Lord.

NUTLEY

WHAT:  
WHERE:  Nutley Little Theater, 47 Erie Pl, Nutley
WHEN:   Evening performances are at 8pm on April 26, 27 and 28. Matinees are 2pm on April 28.
WHY GO:  In the mountains of Connemara, County Galway, unfolds this darkly comic tale of Maureen Folan, a plain and lonely woman in her early forties. Mag, her manipulative, aging mother, interferes in Maureen's first and possibly final chance for a loving relationship, setting in motion a train of events that leads inexorably towards the play's terrifying dénouement.

WHAT:  
WHERE:   Nutley Public Library, 93 Booth Drive, Nutley
WHEN:    Friday & Saturday  10am – 4pm
WHY GO:  Books, DVDs, CDs and more will be available. Any purchase supports the Friends of the Library and the many library programs they sponsor.)

WHAT:  WHERE:  Parks & Recreation Building, 44 Park Ave, Nutley
WHEN:    Saturday  7pm  (7:45 Bell Time)
WHY GO:  Headlining the extravaganza are main event bouts with WWE Hall of Famer Tito Santana and WWE Legend The Rocker Marty Jannetty.  Santana and Jannetty are former Intercontinental and Tag Team Champions.  WWE Legend Young Stallion Jim Powers, a former Survivor Series winner, hosts a meet and greet session.  Nutley High School graduate Kevin Knight will defend the IWF Heavyweight Title.
COST:    Tickets are $22 VIP Ringside, $18 Ringside Floor, and $12 General Admission.  Groups of 6 or more save $2 per ticket.   973-284-4966     

BLOOMFIELD

WHAT:   WHERE:   Bloomfield Town Green
WHEN:   Friday  6pm
WHY GO:   We invite you to get involved in this once in a lifetime celebration of our heritage - join us for the planting of the Bicentennial Tree

WHAT: 
WHERE:  Bloomfield Public Library, 90 Broad Street, Bloomfield
WHEN:  Friday   11am
WHY GO:   Do you knit, crochet, needlepoint, quilt?  Then come to the Bloomfield Public Library Friday mornings and share your patterns/techniques with other crafters!   Beginners welcome! 

WHAT: 
WHERE:   Bloomfield Civic Center
WHEN:      Offered twice - Friday & Saturday   9am – 11am
WHY GO:  Participants will learn about dog body language, how to assess the risks of a situation and to act appropriately to prevent unsafe interactions with dogs.  For more information about this event or to buy tickets, email adoptatbas@yahoo.com or call the Bloomfield Animal Shelter at 973-748-0194.
COST:   $25

WHAT: 
WHERE:  Westminster Arts Center, 449 Franklin St, Bloomfield
WHEN:   Friday & Saturday   8pm  -  Sunday  2pm  (doors open 30 minutes before show time)
WHY GO:  With music by Cy Coleman, lyrics by Dorothy Fields, and book by Neil Simon (based on Federico Fellini’s film Nights of Cabiria), the show tells the story of dancer-for-hire Charity Hope Valentine’s sweet and hopeful search for love. The Tony award-winning musical comedy featuring lively choreography, snappy dialogue, and show-stopping numbers including such favorites as “Big Spender,” “Rhythm of Life,” and “If They Could See Me Now” opened to rave reviews on Broadway in 1966.
COST:   Tickets for Sweet Charity are $25 for Adults, $22 for Senior Citizens, $15 for Students with a valid ID, and $4 for Bloomfield College Students with a valid ID

WHAT:  
WHERE:   Brookdale Park, Bloomfield
WHEN:  10am
WHY GO:  Cerebral Palsy of North Jersey (CPNJ) is having its second annual “Expand Your Horizons” 5k Run/Walk.  All proceeds from the event will benefit the agency’s Horizon High School, which serves more than 80 students with multiple disabilities from throughout northern New Jersey.
COST:   The registration fee for the run is $25 (and $10 for the one-mile Fun Run).  You can register online at www.active.com 

WHAT: 
WHERE:  Bloomfield Middle School, 60 Huck Road
WHEN:    Sunday  3pm
WHY GO:  Join the lifetime celebration of our heritage and come to the Bicentennial Concert performed by The Bloomfield Civic Band

WHAT:
WHERE:  Bloomfield Public Library, 90 Broad St., Bloomfield
WHEN:    Saturday, 10 a.m.
WHY GO: Challenge your chess skills and have fun!

NEWARK

WHAT: 
WHERE:  Newark Museum, 49 Washington Street, Newark
WHEN:    Saturday  12:30pm
WHY GO:  The Claire Daly Quartet demonstrates what a melody is, why it's important and why it stands out. Melody is where harmony and rhythm come together. While enjoying music, the listener loves and learns the melody - it's what makes a song memorable.  Free Admission - Tickets are handed out in the lobby of each venue on the day of performance only and on a first-come, first-served basis. 

WHAT:   
WHERE:   Rutgers – Multi Campus Event
WHEN:     Saturday  10am – 4pm
WHY GO:  Rutgers Day, Rutgers University’s annual welcome to the people of New Jersey, is coming, rain or shine.   Rutgers Day will include nearly 500 events, exhibits and activities on the flagship campus in New Brunswick and Piscataway. There will be plenty to stimulate the minds and senses of New Jerseyans of all ages, and all programs are free. Visitors will be able to flex their creative muscles; sample music and culture from around the world; and mingle with Rutgers students, scientists, poets, philosophers and other scholars.  Parking is free and buses will be available to shuttle among the College Avenue, Douglass, George H. Cook and Busch campuses.  Each campus will offer visitors a rich menu of sights and sounds including:
College Avenue Campus -   Visitors can stage a “getaway” to the ocean, outer space or an exotic locale by having their photos taken against a “green screen;” and student organizations will help kids make bracelets and other crafts.
Busch Campus -  Visitors can explore the largest university-based cell and DNA repository in the world, courtesy of the Department of Genetics. Engineering students will send a robot through an obstacle course. Visitors can take in the Scarlet & White football game – a one-hour scrimmage that caps off the Scarlet Knights’ spring practice.
Douglass Campus - visitors can search the Big Dig – the Department of Anthropology’s mock archaeological dig – to learn how an excavation works and make stone tools and arrowheads.  
George H. Cook Campus - visitors can meet Seeing Eye puppies, create rain barrels and learn about their role in water conservation; visit baby farm animal and watch as a sculptor creates art out of ice with a chainsaw.  

WHAT: 
WHERE:   United Way, 303 Washington Ave, Newark
WHEN:    Saturday  10am
WHY GO:  United Way of Essex and West Hudson is hosting a FREE community health and wellness fair.  Participants will have an opportunity to connect with community agencies who will provide resources, educational workshops and health screenings. Bring the family. There will be: Fun activities, Giveaways, Raffles.

WHAT:   
WHERE:  Rutgers, 175 University Ave, Newark
WHEN:   Friday  10am – 3pm;  Saturday   10am – 6pm
WHY GO:  The Harlem Book Fair (HBF)-Newark launches as a dynamic multi-cultural community based literary festival that has as its theme “Let us Read.” The book fair will engage families, avid readers, aspiring writers and visitors to the city.   Friday’s event schedule, titled “Family Fun,” will run from 10 a.m. – 3 p.m., and target students, parents and educators in the following fun-filled activities.   Saturday’s event schedule will run from 10 – 6 p.m. and will feature authors, poets, illustrators and entertainers in the following activities.

WHAT:  
WHERE:  Newark Museum, 49 Washington Street, Newark
WHEN:    Sunday  10am – 4:30pm
WHY GO:  Meet and interact with ‘Mighty T-Rex’ (provided by Field Station: Dinosaurs), a 15-foot-long, animatronic.  Families will also have the opportunity to make fossil rubbings, dig for fossils, join in live animal presentations, and sluice for gemstones.
COST:   Children, Seniors & Students with Valid I.D.: $6; Adults: $10; Members: Free