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The Riverhead weekend guide: Mardi Gras, BBQ chicken and Shakespeare

By Vera Chinese

KATHARINE SCHROEDER PHOTO | Shakespeare-in-the-park returns to Mitchell Park this weekend.

Looking for something nearby and affordable to do this weekend? Here is a list of events happening locally, including the much-anticipated Riverhead Summer Mardi Gras Festival.

Also, you can always check out our weekly calendar, located under the community section tab on our homepage.

• The first-ever Riverhead Summer Mardi Gras Festival kicks off Saturday with a parade down Main Street at noon.The event’s organizers, members of the Riverhead Business Improvement District, hope it will fill the void left by the Riverhead Blues Festival.

The fun continues after the parade with music by many New Orleans-style bands on two stages along the Peconic River from 1 until 11 p.m. And the best part? This event is totally free. For more information visit Riverheadbid.com.

The News-Review will be there so be sure to click back later in the day for photos and video.

• For the theater lovers, check out Northeast Stage’s Shakespeare-in-the-park “Romeo and Juliet” at Greenport’s Mitchell Park. These free performances will run Friday, Saturday and Sunday begining at 7 p.m. Bring a blanket.

Check out photos from the dress rehearsal right here.

• The North Fork Theatre Company will continue its summer 2011 Youth on Stage Production of ‘Footloose!’ Performances will be held at 8 p.m. Friday and  Saturday and 2:30 p.m. Sunday at the Old Sound Avenue theater. Tickets are $20 and are available by calling 298-NFCT or by visting NFCT.COM. You can read our review of the play here and check out photos from the dress rehearsal here.

• Baiting Hollow Congregational Church’s Annual Chicken BBQ will begin at 5:30 p.m. Saturday. The church is located at 2416 Sound Ave. Tickets are $18 advance, $20 at door, and kids under 12 are $12 advance and $14 at door. The menu includes half-chicken, corn on the cob, baked beans, rolls, watermelon and more. Call Sandy at 369-4318 for info or tickets. The rain date is Sunday, Aug. 7.

Other Events:

Shoreham-Wading River Community Band’s ‘Music By The Ponds,’ 7 p.m. Saturday at Wading River Congregational Church, 2057 North Country Road, sponsored by SWR Community Programs. Admission free-will offering. Summer Youth Ministry will sell refreshments. Bring blankets or lawn chairs.

NoFo: Up Close, A Photo Exhibit and Benefit for Kent Animal Shelter, noon-3 p.m. Saturday at Peconic Bay Winery, 31320 Main Road, Cutchogue. Admission: $12 in advance, $15 at door, includes one glass of wine/beverage and hors d’oeuvres. Additional glasses of wine $8 with half going to Kent Animal Shelter. Tickets: www.NadlerPhotoDesign.com/NoFo.

Vera Chinese has been the editor of northforker.com and northforker magazines since May 2014. Prior to that she spent two and a half years as a staff reporter for the New York Daily News. She joined the Riverhead News-Review as a staff writer in January 2010 and was named Associate Web Editor nine months later. She previously worked for the Southampton Press Western Edition and was named the third place 2008 Rookie Reporter of the Year by the New York Press Association. She graduated from Wagner College in 2006 where she received a bachelor's degree in English. She earned a master's degree in English education from New York University in 2007. She is a 2002 graduate of Eastport High School and has lived on the East End for more than 20 years.

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