Thursday, October 31, 4:00 pm – 6:00 pm – Halloween at the Clarendon Street Playground

The Neighborhood Association of the Back Bay and the Friends of the Clarendon Street Playground invite you to celebrate Halloween in the Back Bay.  Join them at the playground party (corner of Clarendon Street and Commonwealth Avenue) for magic and juggling show – performance begins at 4:45 – a hayride, and spooky good time.  Be sure to wear your favorite costume.  Pizza slices, drinks and glow necklaces will be on sale.  The neighborhood Safe House Trick-or-Treat list will be distributed at the event.  To add your house to the list call NABB at 617-247-3961 or email info@nabbonline.com.  Image from www.st.houzz.com.

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Saturday, November 2, 9:30 am – 4:30 pm – Landscape Design Clinic: Introduction to a Coherent Process

This fast-paced, information-saturated Berkshire Botanical Garden clinic on Saturday, November 2 from 9:30 – 4:30 will introduce design students, home owners and  others to an opportunity finding and problem solving design process. It will lead to the basic conceptual elements of a landscape master plan. All attendees will participate in the process of observing and designing. Students will come away coherent examples of how design happens. An active discussion format will focus on common design principles. A step by step power point presentation will focus the discussion later in the afternoon. This all day workshop is a prerequisite for Landscape Design Clinic Level II course offered in spring 2012. The field trip is held rain or shine. This class can be taken as a core requirement for the Horticulture Certificate Level II program, or as an individual class.  $125 fee.  To register call Berkshire Botanical Garden at 413-298-3926, or Berkshire Community College, 413-236-2127.

Instructor – Walter Cudnohufsky, M.L.A. is a long-time dedicated teacher. Having founded and for twenty years directed the nationally acclaimed Conway (Mass.) School of Landscape Design, he has honed a reasoned approach to planning design. Currently his firm is engaged in many diverse and stimulating planning/design projects throughout the region.

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Friday, November 1 – Sunday, November 3 – Orchids in Wonderland

The Massachusetts Orchid Society presents its Annual Show and Sale Orchids in Wonderland at Tower Hill Botanic Garden, 11 French Drive, Boylston, on Friday, November 1 through Sunday, November 3.  Hours are Friday 1 – 5, Saturday 9 – 5, and Sunday 9 – 4.  You will see exhibits of blooming orchids, potting demonstrations, educational sessions, hourly plant raffles, and sales of orchids and supplies.  For more information visit www.towerhillbg.org, or www.massorchid.org.

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Thursday, November 7, 7:00 pm – 8:00 pm – 100 Years On: Alfred Russel Wallace, Evolution’s Unsung Discoverer

Andrew Berry, PhD, Organismic and Evolutionary Biology, Harvard University, will speak at the Hunnewell Building at the Arnold Arboretum on Thursday, November 7, beginning at 7 pn, on Alfred Russel Wallace, Evolution’s Unsung Discoverer. Remarkably, what is arguably the simplest and most powerful theory in all of science, the theory of evolution by natural selection, was discovered not once but twice. It was developed completely independently by two Victorian scientists, Charles Darwin and Alfred Russel Wallace. Today Darwin is famous, the face of evolution, but Wallace is very little known. This talk, on, to the day, the centenary of Wallace’s death, will address three issues: 1. Why was this long sought theory discovered twice and more or less at the same time? 2. Who was Wallace, and how did he come to the idea? 3. Why has Wallace been so comprehensively eclipsed by Darwin in the popular imagination? Overall, this talk is a celebration of Wallace’s life and extraordinary contributions. He was a visionary scientist, bold adventurer, superb writer, and compassionate campaigner. Free to Arboretum members and students, $10 nonmember fee.  Register online at https://my.arboretum.harvard.edu/SelectDate.aspx.

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Sunday, October 27, 4:30 pm – 6:30 pm – Fall Pumpkin Fest

Mayor Thomas M. Menino presents the Fall Pumpkin Fest on the Boston Common Frog Pond on Sunday, October 27th from 4:30 – 6:30 pm.  Bring an 8 inch or smaller carved pumpkin to the Frog Pond to float and help set the Pond aglow at twilight.  Interact with spooky ParkSCIENCE experiments from the Massachusetts Horticultural Society, Bio+Art Collaboration, and Boston Best Bees Company.  Wear your Halloween costume and participate in the Halloween Parade led by Frog Pond Freddie.  Watch Rosalita’s Ghoulish Puppet Show, a dazzling magic show by Kayla Drescher Magic, and a fun bubble show by “Bubble Man” Jim Dichter.  Try scarily delicious treats, refreshments and games from National Dairy Council’s Fuel Up to Play, Archway Cookies, New England Coffee, Magic 106.7 and more.  Bring donations of canned goods for CANshare, Mayor Menino’s annual food drive for those in need.  ParkSCIENCE is funded in part by a Green Parks Green Kids grant through a partnership between the National Recreation and Park Association and the National Recreation Foundation.  Free.

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Sunday, November 3, 10:00 am – 11:30 am, 11:40 am – 1:10 pm, and 1:20 pm – 2:50 pm – The 10th Annual Boston Tea Party: Housouge – Symbol of Past, Present, Future …

The 10th Annual Boston Tea Party – Housouge: Symbol of Past, Present, Future … will take place Sunday, November 3 at the Sanzashi-An Tea House at Showa Boston, presented by Kyoko Wada, Urasenke Tea Instructor, and sponsored by the MIT Spouses and Partners.  There will be three seatings: 10 – 11:30, 11:40 – 1:10, and 1:20 – 2:50.  Each session includes two styles of thin tea and an exhibition of Chashaku made by Rakufoo Azumi.  Seating is limited and tickets must be purchased in advance.  Admission is $20, and you must rsvp by October 30.  To register and for further information call 781-301-1525, or email bostonjtc@gmail.com.  Believe it or not, the following statement has to be made: The 10th Annual Tea Party is not affiliated with any political group or event.  We can thank all higher powers for that, at least.

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Sunday, October 27, 1:00 pm – 4:00 pm – Gore Farm Autumn Fest

Enjoy a wagon ride, games, live music, stories, and refreshments at Gore Place’s first annual Autumn Fest on Sunday, October 27 from 1 – 4. See their scarecrows! Wear your costume! Recommended for families with children ages up through 10 years old. Children must be accompanied by an adult. Free parking. No reservations necessary. $5 per person, all ages, members free. For more information visit www.goreplace.org. The scarecrows below are from the Morris Arboretum’s scarecrow contest, which we think is a great idea!.

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Sunday, October 27, 1:00 pm – 3:00 pm – 10th Anniversary Celebration of the Women’s Memorial

We have learned that this coming weekend, the 10th Anniversary of the Women’s Memorial between Fairfield and Gloucester Streets on the Commonwealth Avenue Mall will be celebrated.  Enjoy a charming video of the making and the dedication of the statue at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=12t429KHAL8&feature=youtu.be, featuring a young Tom Menino.

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Tuesday, November 12 – 2013 Annual Meeting of the Emerald Necklace Conservancy

You are invited to the 2013 Annual Meeting of the Emerald Necklace Conservancy on Tuesday, November 12 at the Linda K. Paresky Conference Center at Simmons College, 300 The Fenway, Boston, Massachusetts.  Reception begins at 5:30, program at 6 pm.  Please join them and come together to thank volunteers, celebrate our parks community, and share a vision of the Emerald Necklace.  The Keynote Address will be given by Ned Friedman: The Emerald Necklace – Urban Gems of Landscape and Biodiversity.  There will be a special presentation of the 2013 Volunteer of the Year Award to Gerry Wright, co-founder of Olmsted 2022, Friends of Jamaica Pond, and Friends of Olmsted Park – Boston.  Hosting sponsor of this meeting is Simmons College, and the meeting sponsors are MASCO and Colleges of the Fenway.  This event is free and open to the public.  RSVP by November 4 online at www.emeraldnecklace.org, or by calling 617-522-2700.

William (Ned) Friedman is Director of the Arnold Arboretum of Harvard University, and Arnold Professor of Organismic and Evolutionary Biology.  He received an A.B. in Biology from Oberlin College and a Ph.D. in Botany from the University of California, Berkeley.

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Friday, November 8 – Saturday, November 23 – Simple Machine’s Stage Adaptation of The Turn of the Screw

From November 8 through November 23, 2013, Simple Machine proudly presents Henry James’ The Turn of the Screw, adapted for the stage by Jeffrey Hatcher and directed by M. Bevin O’Gara.

James’ classic story of a young governess charged with caring for two orphaned children at a lonely English country estate is one of the most famous Victorian ghost stories ever written. Hatcher’s adaptation ratchets up the psychological suspense and intimacy of the story with two actors playing all the roles.

The Turn of the Screw will be staged in two historic houses in Boston. The Gibson House Museum in Back Bay is a beautifully preserved 19th century home that has served as a museum for over 40 years. The Taylor House Bed & Breakfast was built as a residence in the 1850s at the height of Jamaica Plain’s golden age and has been lovingly restored in recent years to its former glory. Although both houses are from the same era, the staging in each will be unique to that location; these remarkable settings will give audiences an authentic and exhilarating atmosphere in which to experience this classic Gothic thriller. All performances will start at 7:30 pm. The performance runs approximately 80 minutes with no intermission. Due to the intimate nature of the venues, there will be no late seating.

Tickets and specific dates of performance are available through www.simplemachinetheatre.com for $25.

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