Get Out: Poetry in Windsor; Halloween Treat in West Hartford, Rocky Horror in Rockville

Poetry on the Line at Windsor Art Center

Poets Elizabeth Kincaid-Ehlers and Sherri Bedingfield read from their work on October 23 when the Windsor Art Center in Windsor hosts another round of Poetry on the Line. Also featured on October 23 is tea, served at 3 p.m., and a musical interlude with fiddler Gan Gardella and banjo player Fran Block.

Starting time is 2 p.m. Admission is free. The Windsor Art Center is at the corner of Central and Mechanic streets in Windsor. For more information, visitwww.windsorartcenter.org or call 860-688-2528.

Spookley the Square Pumpkin at Children's Museum

West Hartford's Children's Museum has a Halloween treat in store for youngsters, a planetarium show called Spookley the Square Pumpkin. In a world where "the only good pumpkins are round" ones, Spookley gets teased because of his square shape. Enter three spiders, Edgar, Allan and Poe, who teach Spookley that, square or not, he has a right to be the pick of the patch on Halloween.

Showings run October 21 through 23 and October 28 through 30 at 4:30 p.m. Tickets cost $5; $4 members. To register, call 860-231-2830 ext. 44, or sign up online atwww.thechildrensmuseumct.org. The Children's Museum is at 950 Trout Brook Drive, West Hartford.  

1934's The Thin Man Screens Free at West Hartford's Noah Webster Library

The 1934 film comedy The Thin Man features William Powell and Myrna Loy as a married couple with a penchant for detective work. The delightful film spawned a series of sequels and was nominated for four Oscars, including best picture.

Screening time is 2 p.m. sharp. No late entry. The library is at 20 South Main Street, West Hartford. For more information, phone 860-561-6990 or visit www.westhartfordlibrary.org. 

Fright Nights at Noah Webster House 

It's Halloween season, and that means it's time for West Hartford Hauntings, the theatrical, nighttime tours of West Hartford's North Cemetery. Produced by the Noah Webster House in West Hartford, the tours are back for a seventh year, and reservations are highly recommended. Among this year's cemetery stories are tales of a husband and wife who are victims of a train accident, a Revolutionary War prisoner, and a runaway apprentice.

The lantern-lit tours depart from North Cemetery, Main Street, West Hartford. Dates are October 21 and 22, and 28 and 29. Tours step off every 15 minutes between 6 p.m. and 8:45 p.m.  Tickets cost $9, children 17 and under; $13, adults. Call 860-521-5362 ext. 21 or visit www.noahwebsterhouse.org.

Book Buzz at West Hartford's JCC

Roxanne Coady, president of RJ Julia Booksellers in Madison, returns to West Hartford's Mandell Jewish Community Center for an evening of insight into books. The October 27 event features Coady and some of her friends from the publishing industry. Coady and company will discuss their favorite new titles,tips for making book club get-togethers more exciting, and more.

Starting time is 7 p.m. Tickets are $5 per person in advance; $10 at the door. For more information, phone 860-236-4571 or email aboutcart@mandelljcc.org.

Faculty Exhibition at West Hartford's Joseloff Gallery

Faculty members who teach and work in a variety of mediums are featured when West Hartford's Joseloff Gallery presents its 2011 Hartford Art School Faculty Exhibition. Participating in the show are faculty members who work in ceramics, drawing, illustration, media arts, sculpture, painting, photography, printmaking, visual communication design, and foundation studies. 

The exhibition runs October 20 through December 18 at the Joseloff Gallery, 200 Bloomfield Ave., West Hartford. An opening reception is scheduled for October 20 from 4:30 p.m. to 7 p.m. For more information, visit www.joseloffgallery.org or call 860-768-4090.

Stanley-Whitman Presents Witchcraft Drama

A Farmington woman accused of witchcraft is the subject of The Witchcraft Trial of Mary Barnes; A Play. The production is to be staged October 28 at Hartford's historic Old State House. Featured in the drama are Stanley-Whitman's Roundabout Players.

Curtain time is 6 p.m. Admission is free. Reservations are not required but seating is limited. For more information, visit www.stanleywhitman.org or call860-677-9222. Hartford's Old State House is at 800 Main St., Hartford.

Patti Smith: Camera Solo at Wadsworth Atheneum

Works by pioneering artist, musician and poet Patti Smith are presented when Hartford's Wadsworth Atheneum unveils Patti Smith: Camera Solo. The show is the first large-scale presentation of artist Smith's visual work in the United States in nearly ten years.  It includes approximately 60 black-and-white photographs and two multi-media installations.

The exhibition runs October 21, 2011, through February 19, 2012. The Wadsworth Atheneum is at 600 Main St., Hartford. For more information, visit www.wadsworthatheneum.org or call 860-278-2670.

Kathy Griffin on the A List at Foxwoods

Kathy Griffin has a sense of humor, of course, and it shows in her laugh riot performances. But it's clear she has one about her career choices as well. She made her Broadway debut in March this year in Kathy Griffin Wants a Tony, her bid to add to her Emmy and Grammy honors. She will appear at 8 p.m., Saturday, Oct. 22, in the MGM Grand Theater at Foxwoods.

Griffin's reality show “Kathy Griffin: My Life on the D-List,” met with immediate popularity when it first went on Bravo. It was nominated for an Emmy for Outstanding Reality Program that first season, and won the category in its second and third seasons. In consecutive years, 2009-11, she was nominated for a Grammy for Best Comedy Album. And now she's making her Tony bid. You gotta admire her pluck.

Tickets are $35-55. For information, visit the Foxwoods site or call 1-800-200-2882.

Family of Christians to Perform

Three generations of Needhams make up the band of Christian performers by the same name who will come Friday, Oct. 21, to Union Congregational Church in Vernon Rockville. This group has been touring the Northeast and offering its music to fans -- the most intense are called Nedheads – for a decade. The Needhams write many of their own songs but also deliver strong arrangements of beloved tunes by other songwriters.

Their message is focused on two things: family harmony and the word of God. “Christian music for the whole family,” their Web site proclaims.

The concert starts at 7 p.m. and is free, but an offering will be collected.

Scarecrows in Downtown Manchester

This time of year you see a lot of characters in downtown Manchester. And they're pretty creative. If you haven't noticed them yet, get new glasses and go to the Downtown District anytime from today through Oct. 30 for the 3rd Annual Downtown Scarecrow Festival.

The public will be asked to vote for their favorites, so look for the drop boxes in downtown businesses or “like” a favorite on Facebook. Prizes will be awarded.

Rocky Horror in Rockyville

Dammit, Janet, wouldn't it be fun to see “The Rocky Horror Picture Show” for free at Rockville Public Library? We can go at 6 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 25, and eat popcorn, also for free. The film stars Barry Bostwick, Susan Sarandon and Tim Curry. And this just in: on Oct. 18, for the first time, all of the songs from the movie were released together on one album, called “Absolute Treasures.”

We've already missed “Dracula,” “The Addams Family” and “Frankenstein” in the Halloween Horror Movie Fest. Let's not miss this one, a true opportunity to keep Halloween in its place – a night more about fun than fright.

For information, visit the library Web site or call 860-875-5892.

Domestic Pack Mentality, Demystified

In the modern world, aren't we all a little confused about our place in the pack? Doesn't it sometimes cause us to act out or lash out? Well, pity the poor pooch, whose hard wiring is more wolf than anything else. Well-known dog listener Pat Wright of Willington understands canine language and will answer all questions on the subject Tuesday, Oct. 25, at Hall Memorial Library in Ellington.

Wright, owner of Baywood Kennels in Willington, writes the column “Dear Abbeedog” for Horizonsmagazine and hosts a radio show on dog behaviors. She has studied with British trainer Jan Fennel and has met with dog listeners in Yellowstone National Park to study wolf behavior alongside knowledgeable biologists. Her research has been an eye opener to the relationship between human and domestic dog.

The presentation begins at 7 p.m. Registration is required, so please call the library at 860-870-3160.