Rey Center’s 7th Annual Curious George Cottage Family Festival returns in August to speak to the curiosity in us all. The festival is a 2-day event this August 10-11, 2013,
(TRAVPR.COM) USA - July 22nd, 2013 - WATERVILLE VALLEY, NH - The Margret and H.A. Rey Center’s 7th Annual Curious George Cottage Family Festival returns in August to speak to the curiosity in us all. The festival is a 2-day event this August 10-11, 2013, featuring a weekend full of family-friendly activities with Curious George and the Man With the Yellow Hat. The Festival is a celebration of curiosity, providing families the opportunity to play and learn together as they explore art, science and nature just like Curious George loves to do. The weekend includes a banana pancake breakfast with Curious George, a family nature walk, live music, a BBQ lunch with Curious George, photo opportunities with the characters, a farmyard petting zoo, Mad Science shows, games for kids, Curious George story hour and craft time, “Curious Characters” drawings by local artists, planetarium shows, weather balloon launch, and model rocket launching. All proceeds from the event support the Margret and H.A. Rey Center’s art and science education programs for all ages held throughout the year.
Headlining the festival this year is children’s musician Zak Morgan. GRAMMY nominee Zak Morgan's unique brand of children's music delivers songs and poems with wit and charm that inspire and tickle the funny bones of children and adults alike. According to Rick Bird of the Cincinnati Post, “Morgan sounds a bit like singer Cat Stevens, and his storytelling is an inspired cross between Dr. Seuss-style word games and the sly, edginess of Shel Silverstein. In short, it's children's music that adults can love.” When he is not writing and recording, Zak performs family concerts throughout the country. His live performances are always filled with laughter and warmth as he encourages children to read, imagine and believe in themselves. Morgan has released three critically acclaimed records and one DVD for children and was nominated for a GRAMMY in 2003 – a rare feat for an independent artist. Morgan currently resides in Cincinnati, OH and is working on his fourth record. The Festival will feature a Zak Morgan performance on both Saturday and Sunday.
Also performing on the Festival stage on Saturday will be an interactive musical experience by Tony Fonseca of All Hands Drumming. Tony has been studying, playing and teaching drumming for over 40 years. His influences are in the traditions of West African, Cape Verdean and Afro-Cuban rhythms. Tony’s interactive drum-fun entertainment is for children, youth and adults who want an exciting, fun and memorable experience. During his performance, Tony sets up a drum-circle of ten to thirty drums of various heights to accommodate children, youth, and adults of all ages and sizes. From inside the circle, Tony plays a continuous series of heart-pounding beats as he interacts with the visitors to the circle as they play along on the drums. For those at the event who do not choose to try drumming at the circle, they still enjoy watching and listening to Tony, as he keeps the atmosphere lively and upbeat with his masterful drumming style.
Mad Science will return once again this year to perform one of their edu-taining science programs, “Fire and Ice.” In the land of Fire and Ice the Mad Scientist starts with a magic trick that makes a card disappear and magically reappear. Heat and chemicals combine with an "aaahesome" result. Finally, in the ice portion of this program they will amaze children with exciting experiments using frozen carbon dioxide gas at -109 degrees F.
A festival favorite is the Banana Pancake Breakfast with Curious George hosted by The Snowy Owl Inn of Waterville Valley. In addition to an intimate visit with Curious George and the Man With the Yellow Hat, this year’s breakfast, held on both Saturday and Sunday, will feature live music by Laurel Dodge. Kids can sing along with Laurel as she plays and sings some well-loved kids’ tunes!
New to the festival this year are planetarium shows by the McAuliffe-Shepard Discovery Center. A Discovery Center educator will take participants on a tour of the night sky followed by an exciting journey of discovery to explore our solar system, including breathtaking images from the Hubble Space Telescope using full dome video technology in their portable dome planetarium. The Rey Center is also please to welcome FlisKits, Inc model rockets to the festival this year. Jim Flis of FlisKits, Inc will launch several model rockets throughout the day on Saturday to the delight of young and old alike. The Backwoods Farm Petting Zoo of Rumney, NH will also be joining the festival for the first time this year. Their family friendly petting zoo gives kids the opportunity to get up close and personal with their loveable barnyard critters. Other exciting additions to the weekend’s lineup are a weather discovery exhibit by the Mount Washington Observatory and a weather balloon launch by the Judd Gregg Meteorology Institute at Plymouth State University.
Wristbands for the 7th Annual Curious George Cottage Family Festival are $23 per person for a 2-day pass, which includes all activities and performances. Children two and under get in free with a paying adult. Additional tickets are required for the banana pancake breakfast. Lunch is available for purchase onsite. A limited number of wristbands are available at the event for $28 per person; advance purchase is recommended. To view the complete event schedule and to purchase wristbands visit http://thereycenter.org or call the Rey Center at 603-236-3308.
Roper Real Estate, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, Louis Karno & Company, Waterville Valley Realty, Parenting NH Magazine, ABODE Homebuilders, and Community Guaranty Savings Bank, as well as many other local businesses are generous sponsors of the Curious George Cottage Family Festival.
About the Rey Center: The Margret and H.A. Rey Center is named for the authors of the popular Curious George books, former summer residents of Waterville Valley, NH. The Rey Center honors the Reys’ spirit of curiosity and discovery by increasing understanding and participation in art, science and nature through programs for youth, adults and families. Rey Center programs include hands-on science programs for school students, community gardens, community art exhibits, adult art workshops, lectures, environmental research and citizen science, astronomy nights, family nature exploration programs and more for our region as well as for the many families from throughout New England that vacation in Waterville Valley. All proceeds from the Curious George Cottage Family Festival directly support the Rey Center’s art, science and nature programs for all ages. For more information visit http://thereycenter.org or call 603-236-3308.
Waterville Valley was designed and planned specifically as a self-contained, four-seasons resort. Today in addition to its world-class ski area, Waterville Valley Resort has award-winning tennis courts, golf, hiking, biking, lodging, cultural activities and summer theater, kids camps, an indoor ice rink, boating, a skate park, and a host of outdoor activities. It is home to the Margret and H.A. Rey Center and Curious George Cottage, and it hosts summer outdoor concerts, Children’s Theatre, and numerous summer festivals. Dining options include traditional favorites and elegant dining. For more information, call 1-800-GO-VALLEY or visit www.visitwatervillevalley.com.
###
