April 2018 program listings at the Great Falls Discovery Center

The Great Falls Discovery Center current seasonal hours are that we are open 5 days a week, Wednesdays through Sundays, 10am to 4pm. All programs are free to the public unless otherwise noted. Free admission to the museum. Facilities are accessible.



April 6—May 30 Great Hall Exhibit: Seen/Unseen, portraits by Cindi Oldham
A conceptual watercolor portrait series that explores what it means to be seen, yet unseen at the same time.

Three Fridays in April
10:30-11:30am
Kidleidoscope Story Hour
4/13: Ducks; 4/20: Bobcats; 4/27 Who Lives in a Tree?
Come learn about our wildlife neighbors who share our home in the Connecticut River Watershed. Program includes a story, interactive games, and a craft to introduce young children to wildlife along the river. Meet in the Great Hall. For ages 3-6, accompanied by an adult. Siblings and friends welcome.

Friday, April 13
7-9 pm
Great Falls Coffeehouse presents: Lenny Zarcone
Frank Sinatra tunes, the great American songbook, jazz standards, and pop music. Long time internationally acclaimed singer/songwriter folk musician. Each month the Friends of the Great Falls Discovery Center host an evening coffeehouse with local talent. Refreshments available. Suggested donations to support educational programming at the Center. Museum and store open during intermission.

Saturday, April 14—Sunday, April 22
April School Vacation Week—Open Every Day All Week!
We are expanding our spring hours this week so stop by the welcome desk for Earth Week investigation stations, habitat diorama scavenger hunts, and games to explore the grounds. Bring your bike for the Canalside Rail Trail.

Saturday, April 14
10:30-11:30am
Teaching Creatures presents: Animals of Spring
Hurray for Spring! Join Rae Griffiths of Teaching Creatures as she talks about what animals were doing all winter and what they are up to now that spring has arrived. Meet in the Great Hall, as Rae brings amphibians, reptiles, and a mammal or two to help us all celebrate the new season. This program is free and for all ages. Children must be accompanied by an adult. Sponsored by the Friends of the Great Falls Discovery Center. Come early as seating may be limited.

Saturday, April 14
4-5 pm
Full Disclosure Festival: RADICAL INTERCONNECTEDNESS
“from Walt, from me, to You” by Katherine Adler
Tickets are $15 for this festival happening all evening in Turners Falls. One ticket is good for the whole festival! Art includes original dance, theater, music, spoken word, and installation art in downtown Turners Falls. “from Walt, from me, to You” by Katherine Adler explores the universality and depth of one of America’s most revered poets, Walt Whitman. For a full schedule to RADICAL INTERCONNECTEDNESS visit http://www.eggtooth.org or www.turnersfallsriverculture.org.

Friday, April 20
1—2 pm
Meet Toto the Tornado Kitten
After a terrible tornado in 2011 in Brimfield, MA, the clean-up crew found an itty-bitty kitten in the wreckage. The courageous kitten was named Toto and nursed back to health by a rescue worker named Jonathan and by others. Jonathan went on to write a children’s book about Toto’s adventure. Join the author and Toto too for a read-along of Toto the Tornado Kitten and celebrate those who help others! Sponsored by Montague Public Libraries.

Sunday, April 22
10 am -2 pm
Earth Day Open House: Put Yourself in the Big Picture
All ages are welcome to join us for activities and games to help you make a difference in the Connecticut River Watershed. Our exhibits ask: how have people helped or hurt the habitats in our watershed? What will you do to help?

Saturday, April 28
10 am—12 pm
Park Serve Day: Give a Day, Make a Difference
The Department of Conservation and Recreation invites you to the Great Falls Discovery Center to lend a hand during this day of volunteer service to our state parks. To discuss any special accommodations or needs you may have for the day, please call (413) 863-3221. To register please visit www.mass.gov/dcr.

Saturday, April 28
1:30—3:30 pm
Great Hall Exhibit Artist Reception: Cindi Oldham’s Seen/Unseen
Seen/Unseen is a conceptual portrait series that explores what it means to be seen, yet unseen at the same time. The viewer can see the subject’s likeness in their portraits while learning a little bit about each one of them by reading the narratives that correspond with them. You may learn something about them that is often overlooked, something that one can only notice when they take a second look, or something that has been right there in plain sight, yet invisible. Until now. Sponsored by The Western Mass Recovery Learning Community.

Sunday, April 29
10 am—4 pm
Celebrate Massachusetts Art Week with “Your Exquisite Corpse”
Join Nina Rossi for a collaborative and interactive exhibit based on the Surrealist game of Exquisite Corpse. Figure paintings with the Head/Shoulders and Legs/Feet executed by two different artists will be exhibited. Accompanying each figure will be a short text or poem also created by multiple writers and poets. Visitors will have opportunities to interact with the event, including a chance to have the artists and writers use them as inspiration. They may have their head/Shoulders or Legs/Feet photographed by the artists for use in the Exquisite Corpse project. Visitors can watch artists create Exquisite Corpse paintings from photo sources during event. They may contribute random text for use in the stories that complete each Exquisite Corpse.