Whitewater bluegrass concert here Saturday

PATTERSON, Mo. -- The public is invited to a bluegrass concert at 7 p.m Saturday at Sam A. Baker State Park near Patterson in the amphitheater. The program is sponsored by Missouri State Parks. The concert will feature Whitewater, an upbeat bluegrass band that plays traditional and new bluegrass music. The concert is free and open to the public. Seating is limited, so lawn chairs or blankets are encouraged. Sam A. Baker State Park is located four miles north of Patterson on Highway 143 in Wayne County. For more information on the event or to register, call the park at 573-856-4411. For more information about Missouri state parks and historic sites, visit mostateparks.com.

Symphony orchestra to perform on East Coast

The Southeast Missouri Symphony Orchestra is on its first-ever concert tour of the East Coast, having left Southeast Missouri State University on Monday. The full symphony orchestra of about 50 musicians will be traveling on the tour, along with Southeast Missouri State University faculty members Dr. Timothy Schmidt, bass-baritone soloist; Dr. Brandon Christensen, violinist and concertmaster; and Paul Thompson, flute and keyboard. Dr. Sara Edgerton is the conductor on the concert tour. The first concert was Wednesday at the Hylton Performing Arts Center in historic Manassas, Va., just outside Washington, D.C. The second concert will be in St. Peter's Evangelical Lutheran Church, in Midtown Manhattan, New York City, today.

Big Library Read offers eBooks

The Cape Girardeau Public Library invites the public to take part in the Big Library Read, a pilot program in which libraries worldwide offer a single eBook to their cardholders. The program is designed to unite library patrons from around the world. Through June 1, anyone with a valid Cape Girardeau Public Library card may borrow the eBook "The Four Corners of the Sky" by New York Times best-selling author Michael Malone for free from the library's website capelibrary.org and read on all major devices. Readers are invited to join the book discussion on Twitter using #BigLibraryRead. For more information about the Big Library Read, visit overdrive.com/big-library-read/.

Hamblin to keynote Faulkner conference

Dr. Robert Hamblin, director of the Center for Faulkner Studies at Southeast Missouri State University, will deliver the keynote address at "The International Faulkner," a conference being hosted by Lucian Blaga University in Sibiu, Romania, May 31 to June 1. Hamblin also will conduct a "Teaching Faulkner" workshop for conference participants. Hamblin's keynote address will focus on what he has learned about reading Faulkner from international scholars who have visited Southeast's Center for Faulkner Studies over the years to conduct study and research. Hamblin accompanies every international visitor of the Center for Faulkner Studies on a visit to Faulkner's hometown, Oxford, Miss., and its environs to give them a sense of the locale in which Faulkner lived and wrote.

Country festival at Mark Twain Forest

WILLIAMSVILLE, Mo. -- The 13th annual Old Tyme Country Festival will begin at 9 am., June 1, at the Markham Springs Recreation Area in the Mark Twain National Forest, located 3 miles west of Williamsville on Highway 49. Ian Michaels, Heartland Rhythm Band, 3 Degrees, Jack and Ben Becker, Seed Tick Ridge, Brandi LaRae and Jack, Second Time Around, Acoustic Crossroads, Otter Creek Band, Hoof Beats, Bob and Barb Lewis with the Joy Scott Family and Kate and Company will provide live music throughout the day. In addition, the festival will feature food, crafters, antique tractors and cars, a bounce house, water slide, children's games, rail splitting and old time photos. There will be demonstrations and an art show, as well as shuttle hay rides. Camping is available. Admission and parking are free. For more information, call 573-998-2875, 573-776-3574 or 573-998-2337, or visit markhamsprings.zohosites.com.

Spaces open for Theatre and Dance Academy

There is still time to register for Southeast Missouri State University's third annual summer Theatre and Dance Academy, an intensive theater and dance educational experience for students in kindergarten through high school. The academy, which offers an array of classes in a professional environment, will be offered in two sessions: June 3 to 7 and June 10 to 14. Classes will be held at Southeast's River Campus and in the Parker Dance Studio on Southeast's main campus. Southeast faculty members and qualified senior-level theater and dance students will teach the classes, accompanied by a student assistant. Classes will meet for one week Monday through Friday. Contact Kim Lanning at 651-2149 for more information. Deadline for registration is May 31 or until all classes are filled. For more information about the academy, call the Department of Theatre and Dance at 651-2149 or visit semo.edu/theatreanddance.

Crisp Museum to host youth academy

The Crisp Museum at Southeast Missouri State University's River Campus is hosting UZ-2-B, a four-day, summer academy for youth June 4-7. Participants ages 4 to 15 will see and explore how things "used to be" before the inception of today's technology with fun activities and lessons focusing on regional history. Activities will include stories, role play, prehistoric and historic museum artifacts and more. Because of limited seating, pre-registration is required for this free event. Adult supervision is required with preschoolers, and children must be at least 4 years old. A morning session for ages 4 to 8 is scheduled from 9 to 11 a.m. An afternoon session for ages 9 to 15 will be held from 1 to 4 p.m. For more information, contact Ellen Hahs at ehahs@semo.edu or 651-2301.

Bikers' street party set for Perryville

PERRYVILLE, Mo. -- The Bikers on the Square will be June 22 at the courthouse square in Perryville. The inaugural street party will include a parade, poker run, DJs throughout the day, live bands at night, a motorcycle show, a motorcycle light show, vendors, food and beverages. The event also will honor military veterans. For more information, contact event organizer Lorna Gibbar at 573-768-2330, or visit the event website at bikersonthesquare.com/home.html

Poster design competition announced

Around Town Cape Girardeau is holding a poster design competition for its first Taste of the Arts event. The competition is open to all Cape Girardeau County residents ages 21 and older. All original 2-D artwork will be considered. Submission deadline is July 1. The winning design will be used for advertising the event, both online and in print. The winner will receive two free tickets to the Taste of the Arts fund-raising event, Sept. 20. For more information, call the Arts Council of Southeast Missouri at 334-9233 or visit the Bilderbach Art Plaza, 5 N. Main St., or the Artist Studio, 38A N. Main St.

-- From staff reports