The Week on the Lower Cape

Three Memorial Day services. Two closing weekends. One Saturday that runs long. 3.0

Memorial Day has a sound. A trumpet, a long pause, and then nothing. Most of us have heard it more times than we can count and never the same way twice. Monday the bugler plays for three towns again. This week the Lower Cape holds its breath between the quiet morning and the loud summer that follows.

Saturday earns the most planning. The Harwich by the Sea Plant Sale opens at Doane Park from 9 to noon. The Orleans Farmers Market is at Old Colony Way for the same window. Kami Lyle and Friends play a free one-hour set in Parish Park at 1:00. The Lighthouse Chamber Players take the Orleans Historical Society Meetinghouse at 3:00. Addison Art Gallery opens "On and Off the Walls: Meet Cape Rep" at 5:00. The Rock Harbor New England Soccer Classic takes over the Harwich rec fields all weekend. And the Brewster Wind Ensemble plays its America 250 program "Liberty" twice — 3:30 and 7:30.

Monday is the weight. Memorial Day services in Orleans and Chatham at 10:00. The Harwich Town Band plays from 8:30. Town halls are closed in Brewster and Orleans. Before the parades — at 8:30 — Friends of Monomoy leads a Horseshoe Crab Walk at Morris Island. The animals existed before the dinosaurs.

Sunday closes two shows. 9-Ball runs its final matinee at Cape Rep at 2:00. The Importance of Being Earnest closes at Harwich Junior Theatre at 4:00. Tuesday brings the Chatham Farmers Market and a Snow Library talk titled "The Loss of Humanity in the Age of A.I." Wednesday brings the Sound Dunes Spring Concert in Harwich and an Author's Talk on grief at Snow Library.

This is an issue worth coming back to before the weekend gets loud.

✦ Don't Sleep On This

Three events this week that are easy to miss and hard to forget.

✦ Wind Ensemble: "Liberty" — America 250 Concert — Memorial Day Concert · May 22 · 7:30 PM / May 23 · 3:30 PM + 7:30 PM · Performing Arts Center, Brewster · From $30

The Brewster Wind Ensemble plays the same program three times this weekend. "Liberty." Sousa marches, American composers, the music a Memorial Day band concert is actually supposed to sound like, in a room with proper acoustics and a community that fills it. The America 250 framing is not a banner — the country's first 250 years run straight through this music, and a Cape Cod ensemble playing it on the weekend we honor the dead is the closest a Lower Cape audience gets to hearing those threads connect. Three chances. Pick one. If you can only make one Memorial Day event, this is it.

✦ Lighthouse Chamber Players at the OHS Meetinghouse — Chamber Concert · May 23, 2026 · 3:00 PM · Orleans Historical Society Meetinghouse, Orleans · Check listing

Saturday afternoon is the chamber slot now. The Lighthouse Chamber Players play the Orleans Historical Society Meetinghouse — small room, hard wooden floor, the kind of acoustic chamber music was actually written for. An hour of music written by people who knew what a small room could do. Last Sunday was Joe Marchio on a pipe organ in Chatham. The Sunday before was Ken Cowan in Orleans. This is a different scale of music in the same season of careful afternoon listening. If you have an hour, give it to this.

✦ Horseshoe Crab Walk at Morris Island — Naturalist-Led Walk · May 25, 2026 · 8:30 AM–10:30 AM · Morris Island / Monomoy Refuge Trailhead, Chatham · From $10

Monday morning, before the parade. Friends of Monomoy leads a walk along the trailhead where horseshoe crabs come ashore to spawn in late May — an event that has been happening on this coast for roughly 450 million years. The animals existed before the dinosaurs and will likely outlast us, which is one of the reasons walking past them in May is what it is. Two hours. Ten dollars. The kind of thing you'll remember in November.

Arts & Culture — A room worth being in

🎭 9-Ball at Cape Rep Theatre — Final week of Art Devine's 25th-anniversary production; swapped identities, prison, war, and one game of pool that decides everything May 21 · 7:30 PM / May 22 · 7:30 PM / May 23 · 2:00 PM + 7:30 PM / May 24 · 2:00 PM / May 27 · 7:30 PM · Cape Rep Indoor Theatre, Brewster · From $30

🎭 The Importance of Being Earnest — Closing weekend of Oscar Wilde's comedy of mistaken identities at Cape Cod Theatre Company May 22 · 7:00 PM / May 23 · 4:00 PM / May 24 · 4:00 PM · Cape Cod Theatre Company – Harwich Junior Theatre, Harwich · From $21

🖼️ On and Off the Walls: Meet Cape Rep — opening reception bringing Cape Rep's artists and designers into Addison Gallery for an evening of conversation and new work · May 23 · 5:00 PM–7:00 PM · Addison Art Gallery, Orleans · Free

🖼️ LIGHT/LINE/MEMORY — photography and paintings that make ordinary scenes into studies of memory and light · Running through May · Brewster Ladies' Library, Brewster · Free

📸 By the Water: A Cape Cod Portfolio — John Kudukey's black-and-white photography of Cape Cod's waterside landscapes; quiet and unhurried · May 21–27 · Cape Cod Museum of Natural History, Brewster · Free w/ Admission

📷 EYEWITNESS Photography Exhibit — final stretch of photojournalists Henry D. Moore, Chris Szwedo, and Heather MacKenzie; runs through May 30 · The 204, Harwich · Free

🖼️ Galley West Spring 2026 Show — juried original work from Lower and Outer Cape artists at the East Orleans gallery · May 21–27 (Thu–Sat 10–2, Sun 11–2) · Galley West Art Gallery, Orleans · Free

🎬 Art Film Series: Sunflowers — Saturday-morning art-film screening on the Orpheum's main screen · May 23 · 10:00 AM · Chatham Orpheum Theater, Chatham · $13

🎬 The Mandalorian and Grogu — opens this weekend at the Orpheum; multiple daily showings through Memorial Day weekend · May 22–27 · Chatham Orpheum Theater, Chatham · From $10

🎭 Cape Cod Unofficial Summer Improv — local long-form improv on the Junior Theatre stage between Earnest shows · May 23 · 7:00 PM–8:00 PM · Cape Cod Theatre Company / Harwich Junior Theatre, Harwich · $10

✍️ Local Author: Michelle Ferguson — reading and conversation with a Lower Cape author at Eldredge · May 21 · 2:00 PM–3:00 PM · Eldredge Public Library, Chatham · Free

📚 "Dad, Barbie & Me" Book Signing with Ann P. Ryan — author signing at one of Main Street Chatham's reliable bookshops · May 23 · 12:00 PM–3:00 PM · Yellow Umbrella Books, Chatham · Free

Classes & Workshops — An hour that teaches you something you'll actually use

🌿 Forest Bathing at the Museum of Natural History — Carol Marcy leads a Shinrin-yoku-inspired walk through the museum landscape; ages 15+ · May 22 · 10:00 AM–12:00 PM · Cape Cod Museum of Natural History, Brewster · $12 + admission

🌱 The Ecology of Crosby Landing — early-morning naturalist-led field class at Crosby Landing Beach; tides, dunes, and what spring is doing on the bay shore · May 22 · 8:00 AM–10:00 AM · Crosby Landing Beach, Brewster · $20

📷 Walking Photography Workshop — two-hour guided walk between Chatham Bars Inn, the Fish Pier, and Seaside Vista; composition, light, and the village from new angles · May 23 · 10:00 AM–12:00 PM · Chatham · $50

🪴 Patio Planter Class — hands-on container gardening on the CBI lawn; you go home with something planted · May 21 · 4:00 PM–5:30 PM · Chatham Bars Inn, Chatham · From $75

🪴 Herb Window Basket Class at CBI Farm — build a windowsill herb basket at the working farm in Chatham · May 23 · 1:00 PM–2:30 PM · Chatham Bars Inn Farm, Chatham · From $75

🏺 Beginner Pottery with Amy Bourbon — centering, shaping, handles, and hands-on wheel time · May 21 · 12:15 PM–3:15 PM · Creative Arts Center, Chatham · Check listing

🎨 Pastel Painting Intro with Wendi Smith — one-day workshop introducing soft pastels for beginners · May 22 · 9:15 AM–3:00 PM · Creative Arts Center, Chatham · Check listing

🎨 Painting 101/102: Getting Started in Oils & Acrylics — Marian Strangfeld's four-week starter series begins this Tuesday · May 26 · 12:30 PM · Creative Arts Center, Chatham · Check listing

🩹 CPR / Stop the Bleed: Basic First Aid Steps — Cape Cod Hospital Auxiliary teaches the essentials · May 26 · 10:00 AM–12:00 PM · Chatham Community Center, Chatham · Free

🪡 Boomerang Bags Sewing Bee — sew reusable bags out of donated fabric, no skill needed · May 22 · 1:00 PM–4:00 PM · Brewster Ladies' Library, Brewster · Free

🌿 Ask a Master Gardener — drop in with a soil sample, a sick houseplant, or a plan; Master Gardeners on hand at the library · May 26 · 10:00 AM–12:00 PM · Brewster Ladies' Library, Brewster · Free

Community & Social — The rooms where the Cape overlaps

🇺🇸 Memorial Day Service ✦ Monday — May 25 · 10:00 AM · Town of Orleans · Free

🇺🇸 Memorial Day Observance ✦ Monday — May 25 · 10:00 AM–11:00 AM · Chatham Community Center, Chatham · Free

🎺 Harwich Town Band Memorial Day Concert ✦ Monday morning — May 25 · 8:30 AM–11:30 AM · Harwich · Free

🌾 Orleans Farmers Market — second Saturday of the season at Old Colony Way; farmers, fishermen, bakers, growers · May 23 · 9:00 AM–12:00 PM · 19 Old Colony Way, Orleans · Free

🌾 Chatham Farmers Market — now in its second week of the 2026 season in South Chatham · May 26 · 3:00 PM–6:00 PM · Our Lady of Grace Catholic Church, Chatham · Free

🌱 Annual Harwich by the Sea Plant Sale — the Garden Club of Harwich opens its season with locally grown plants on the Doane Park lawn · May 23 · 9:00 AM–12:00 PM · Doane Park, Harwich · Free

🎀 Cape Cod Chokers Ribbon Cutting — a new Orleans business officially opens its doors Saturday morning · May 23 · 10:00 AM · Orleans · Free

🤝 Business After Hours at Oceana — Orleans Chamber's weekly networking stop at a downtown restaurant · May 21 · 5:30 PM–7:00 PM · Oceana, Orleans · From $10

🏡 Community Yard Sale — a long Sunday afternoon at the Old Northwest Schoolhouse; tables in the yard, conversation in the side door · May 24 · 12:00 PM–4:00 PM · Old Northwest Schoolhouse / OddFellows Hall, Orleans · Free

🏫 Older Americans Month Celebration — Brewster's annual tribute afternoon at the Sea Camps Boat House · May 21 · 1:00 PM–3:00 PM · Brewster Sea Camps Boat House, Brewster · Free

📚 Thursday Story Time at Brooks — songs, scarves, and stories for babies through preschoolers · May 21 · 10:30 AM–11:00 AM · Brooks Free Library, Harwich · Free

📚 Babies & Books Storytime — toddler-friendly Thursday morning at the library · May 21 · 10:30 AM–11:00 AM · Brewster Ladies' Library, Brewster · Free

📖 Banned Book Club — reading and discussing books that have faced challenges; new members welcome · May 21 · 3:00 PM–4:00 PM · Brewster Ladies' Library, Brewster · Free

🧠 Cozy Murder Mystery Club — pour a tea, talk through a quiet murder · May 26 · 3:00 PM–4:00 PM · Brewster Ladies' Library, Brewster · Free

💻 Tech Drop-In — bring a phone, a laptop, or a question; volunteers help · May 26 · 4:00 PM–5:00 PM · Brewster Ladies' Library, Brewster · Free

🏛️ CFAL Open House — tour Chatham's Center for Active Living, meet staff, learn the programs · May 27 · 11:00 AM–2:00 PM · Center for Active Living, Chatham · Free

Food & Drink — Tables worth sitting at

🌾 Orleans Farmers Market — Saturday outdoors at Old Colony Way · May 23 · 9:00 AM–12:00 PM · 19 Old Colony Way, Orleans · Free

🌾 Chatham Farmers Market — now into the season in South Chatham · May 26 · 3:00 PM–6:00 PM · Our Lady of Grace Catholic Church, Chatham · Free

🐚 Clamming with Captain John — Wequassett's resident guide leads a Saturday clamming session; bring sneakers and a willingness to get wet · May 23 · Time varies · Wequassett Resort & Golf Club, Harwich · From $30

🃏 Cape Cod Trivia at The Barley Neck — Memorial Day night, Nic Chad hosting, with prizes for first and second · May 25 · 7:00 PM–8:00 PM · The Barley Neck, Orleans · Free

🔥 Leisure Bonfire at CBI — four nights of fire on the beach this weekend at Chatham Bars Inn · May 22 / May 23 / May 24 / May 25 · 7:00 PM–10:00 PM · Chatham Bars Inn, Chatham · $350

Games, Hobbies & Clubs — Familiar rituals. Low pressure. No explaining.

🎤 Karaoke at The Squire — Thursday night at The Squire · May 21 · 8:00 PM · The Chatham Squire, Chatham · Free

🎤 Trivia Night at Jake Rooney's — low-key dinner-and-game-night stop in Harwich Port · May 21 · 6:30 PM · Jake Rooney's, Harwich · Free

🎤 Karaoke at Jake's — Friday night singing in Harwich Port · May 22 · 8:00 PM · Jake Rooney's, Harwich · Free

🎵 Music Bingo at Jake's — Tuesday night cards-and-songs · May 26 · 6:00 PM · Jake Rooney's, Harwich · Free

🏒 Public Skating at Charles Moore Arena — drop-in skating with rentals available · May 21 · 11:30 AM–1:30 PM / May 22 · 11:30 AM / May 24 · session / May 26 · session · Charles Moore Arena, Orleans · $10

🥒 Outdoor Pickleball Member Play Opens — Chatham opens its outdoor pickleball courts for member play; Memorial Day Monday at 8:00 AM · May 25 · 8:00 AM–12:00 PM · Stepping Stones Lane Pickleball Courts, Chatham · From $50

🎱 Pool Tournament at The Squire — Monday night cue sticks · May 25 · 7:00 PM · The Chatham Squire, Chatham · Free

🃏 Magic: The Gathering Club — experienced players and curious beginners both welcome · May 26 · 3:30 PM–4:30 PM · Brooks Free Library, Harwich · Free

🧠 Trivia at The Squire — Tuesday night teams testing what they know · May 26 · 7:30 PM · The Chatham Squire, Chatham · Free

🎵 Musical Bingo at The Squire — Wednesday-night songs and bingo cards · May 27 · 7:00 PM · The Chatham Squire, Chatham · Free

⚽ Rock Harbor New England Soccer Classic — three-day youth soccer tournament fills the Harwich rec fields all weekend · May 23–25 · Harwich Recreation Fields, Harwich · Free to watch

Health & Wellness — Small resets that keep you functional

🧘 Restorative Yoga with Sound Healing — floor postures, deep relaxation, and a calm end to a Thursday · May 21 · 7:00 PM–8:00 PM · Chatham Community Center, Chatham · $12

💫 Sound Healing & Salt Therapy Experience — crystal singing bowls in a Himalayan salt cave; 60 minutes of full reset · May 21 · 5:30 PM–6:30 PM · Oceanair Himalayan Salt Cave, Orleans · $45

🌊 Floating Sound Bath at Ocean Edge — float on the surface of the Bayside Indoor Pool while crystal bowls play · May 22 · 7:00 PM · Bayside Indoor Pool at Ocean Edge Resort, Brewster · From $20

🌿 Forest Bathing — Carol Marcy's Shinrin-yoku walk through the museum landscape; ages 15+ · May 22 · 10:00 AM–12:00 PM · Cape Cod Museum of Natural History, Brewster · $12 + admission

🛐 Sound Bath at Brewster COA — free midday sound bath at the Council on Aging · May 22 · 3:00 PM–4:00 PM · Brewster Council on Aging, Brewster · Free

🌙 Sound Bath Meditation with Ashley Woodworth — ninety minutes of guided sound and breath at Power Yoga · May 23 · 4:00 PM–5:30 PM · Power Yoga of Cape Cod, Harwich · Check listing

🧘 Weekly Mat Yoga at First Congregational Harwich — donation-based weekly mat yoga at the parish house · May 21 · 5:00 PM–6:00 PM · First Congregational Church of Harwich, Harwich · Donation

Music & Live Entertainment — Early sets, late nights, and places that stay open

🎼 Wind Ensemble: "Liberty" ✦ See above — Don't Sleep On This · May 22 · 7:30 PM / May 23 · 3:30 PM + 7:30 PM · Performing Arts Center, Brewster · From $30

🎵 Lighthouse Chamber Players at OHS ✦ See above — Don't Sleep On This · May 23 · 3:00 PM · Orleans Historical Society Meetinghouse, Orleans · Check listing

🎵 Pop-Up Practices: Kami Lyle and Friends — free outdoor Cape-grown music in the heart of Orleans village · May 23 · 1:00 PM–2:00 PM · Parish Park, Orleans · Free

🎸 Lonely Parrots Folk-Pop Duo — folk-pop on the CBI lawn · May 22 · 6:30 PM–8:00 PM · Chatham Bars Inn, Chatham · $60

🎸 Funktapuss at The Squire — Friday-night funk-rock at The Squire · May 22 · 9:30 PM · The Chatham Squire, Chatham · Free

🎧 DJ Press at The Squire — late-night dancing in Chatham · May 22 · 10:00 PM · The Chatham Squire, Chatham · Free

🎸 Right to Go Left at The Barley Neck — Friday-night rock at The Barley Neck · May 22 · 8:30 PM–10:30 PM · The Barley Neck, Orleans · Free

🎹 Monica Rizzio at Bayzo's Pub — Cape-favorite songwriter at Ocean Edge · May 22 · 8:00 PM–10:00 PM · Ocean Edge Resort, Brewster · Free

🎹 Donny Nolan: Piano in The Mansion — two nights of solo piano in the Grand Hall · May 22 · 6:00 PM–9:00 PM / May 23 · 6:00 PM–9:00 PM · Ocean Edge Resort, Brewster · Free

🎸 Power Load at Hog Island — Friday-night live music at the Orleans brewery · May 22 · 6:00 PM–9:00 PM · Orleans Hog Island Brewery, Orleans · Free

🎵 Live Music at Hog Island Beer Co. — Saturday-evening set at the Orleans brewery · May 23 · 6:00 PM–9:00 PM · Orleans Hog Island Brewery, Orleans · Free

🎸 Doreen & Les at The Barley Neck — Saturday-night duo on The Barley Neck stage · May 23 · 8:30 PM–10:30 PM · The Barley Neck, Orleans · Free

🎸 Life After Dark at Jake's — Saturday-night rock in Harwich Port · May 23 · 8:00 PM–11:00 PM · Jake Rooney's, Harwich · Free

🎵 South Pleasant Revival at The Squire — Sunday-night blues-Americana in Chatham · May 24 · 10:00 PM · The Chatham Squire, Chatham · Free

🎵 Derek Dibbern at Bayzo's Pub — singer-songwriter night at Ocean Edge · May 24 · 8:30 PM–10:30 PM · Ocean Edge Resort, Brewster · Free

🎤 Krisanthi Pappas at Bayzo's Pub — Memorial Day jazz vocalist · May 25 · 8:30 PM–10:30 PM · Ocean Edge Resort, Brewster · Free

🎵 Graham Hempstead at Bayzo's Pub — Tuesday-night songwriting set at Ocean Edge · May 26 · 8:30 PM–10:30 PM · Ocean Edge Resort, Brewster · Free

🎵 Sound Dunes Harwich Spring Concert — Cape Cod's community wind ensemble plays its spring program at the Harwich Community Center · May 27 · 6:00 PM–8:00 PM · Harwich Community Center, Harwich · Free

Nature & History — Old ground. Shifting edges

🦀 Horseshoe Crab Walk at Morris Island ✦ See above — Don't Sleep On This · May 25 · 8:30 AM–10:30 AM · Morris Island, Chatham · From $10

🦅 Birding By Ear with Mass Audubon — identify spring migrants by song; one-hour Mass Audubon presentation at CFAL · May 21 · 10:00 AM–11:00 AM · Center for Active Living, Chatham · Free

🦅 Birding Field Class at Bell's Neck — two-hour field session in the Cold Brook Preserve / Bell's Neck Conservation Lands · May 26 · 8:00 AM–10:00 AM · Bell's Neck, Harwich · $20

🌲 Newbies in Nature — easy guided walks on Harwich conservation land for people who want to learn what they're looking at · May 26 · 8:00 AM / 4:00 PM · Harwich Conservation Trust, Harwich · Free

🌿 Preschool Explorers — hands-on outdoor adventure for ages 2–5 on HCT land; multiple sessions across the week · May 26 · 9:30 AM + 2:00 PM / May 27 · 9:30 AM + 3:00 PM · Harwich Conservation Trust, Harwich · Free

🌊 The Ecology of Crosby Landing — early-morning field class on tides, dunes, and the spring bay shore · May 22 · 8:00 AM–10:00 AM · Crosby Landing Beach, Brewster · $20

🐦 Birding Around Brewster: Mother's Bog — spring migration walk at Mother's Bog Conservation Area · May 21 · 8:00 AM–10:00 AM · Brewster · From $35

🌿 Volunteer Workday at OCT — bring gloves and help with trail and habitat work on Orleans Conservation Trust land · May 21 · 9:30 AM–11:30 AM · Orleans Conservation Trust, Orleans · Free

Talks, Books & Big Ideas — Conversations that earn their hour

🤖 The Loss of Humanity in the Age of A.I. — a Tuesday-night talk at Snow Library asking what we're trading away; the kind of conversation that gets sharper the closer you live to community work · May 26 · 6:00 PM · Snow Library, Orleans · Free

📖 Author's Talk: Grace, Grief & Gratitude — a grief-themed reading and conversation at Snow Library midweek · May 27 · 6:00 PM · Snow Library, Orleans · Free

🧠 Practical Philosophy: Navigating Life's Big Questions — Wednesday-afternoon group conversation at Eldredge · May 27 · 1:30 PM–3:00 PM · Eldredge Public Library, Chatham · Free

✍️ Poetry Group at Snow Library — bring a poem you wrote or one you love · May 27 · 6:00 PM–7:00 PM · Snow Library, Orleans · Free

📚 Memoir Group at Eldredge — Friday-morning memoir writers' circle at the library · May 22 · 10:30 AM–12:30 PM · Eldredge Public Library, Chatham · Free

🐜 Farming Edible Insects — a late-afternoon library talk on the future of food in a way that will make you think · May 22 · 4:00 PM–5:00 PM · Eldredge Public Library, Chatham · Free

Theater & Classical — Give the night somewhere to land

🎼 Wind Ensemble: "Liberty" ✦ See above — Don't Sleep On This · May 22 · 7:30 PM / May 23 · 3:30 PM + 7:30 PM · Performing Arts Center, Brewster · From $30

🎵 Lighthouse Chamber Players ✦ See above — Don't Sleep On This · May 23 · 3:00 PM · OHS Meetinghouse, Orleans · Check listing

🎭 9-Ball at Cape Rep — final week of Art Devine's 1960s drama; Sunday matinee is the last chance May 21 · 7:30 PM / May 22 · 7:30 PM / May 23 · 2:00 + 7:30 PM / May 24 · 2:00 PM (final) / May 27 · 7:30 PM · Cape Rep Theatre, Brewster · From $30

🎭 The Importance of Being Earnest — closing weekend of Oscar Wilde at Harwich Junior Theatre · May 22 · 7:00 PM / May 23 · 4:00 PM / May 24 · 4:00 PM (final) · Cape Cod Theatre Company, Harwich · From $21

Community Openings & Civic Moments — The Cape's ongoing business

🇺🇸 Memorial Day Service ✦ Monday — May 25 · 10:00 AM · Town of Orleans · Free

🇺🇸 Memorial Day Observance ✦ Monday — May 25 · 10:00 AM · Chatham Community Center, Chatham · Free

🎺 Harwich Town Band Memorial Day Concert ✦ Monday morning — May 25 · 8:30 AM–11:30 AM · Harwich · Free

🏛️ Memorial Day Town Hall Closures — Brewster and Orleans town halls closed Monday for the holiday · May 25 · All day · Brewster, Orleans · n/a

🌾 Chatham Farmers Market — second week of the 2026 South Chatham season · May 26 · 3:00 PM–6:00 PM · Our Lady of Grace Catholic Church, Chatham · Free

🏢 Harwich Select Board & Charter Commission Meeting — public meeting in the Griffin Room · May 21 · 6:00 PM · Harwich Town Hall, Harwich · Free

🏢 Harwich Planning Board Meeting — Tuesday-night Planning Board hearing · May 26 · 6:00 PM · Harwich Town Hall, Harwich · Free

🏢 Harwich Historic Commission Meeting — Wednesday-evening Historic Commission hearing · May 27 · 6:00 PM · Harwich Town Hall, Harwich · Free

Last week on the Lower Cape

Both Brewster and Orleans elected their boards Tuesday after Chatham voted Thursday — three town elections in five days, none of them dull. Joe Marchio filled First Congregational of Chatham on the Casavant Frères organ Sunday afternoon. The first Harwich Garden Expo opened at The 204 to a strong Saturday morning crowd. Brewster Bike Fest held the Bay Property field at full attendance. Mass Audubon led a five-mile walk from Nauset Beach toward Pochet Island under low clouds. The Bitter and Broken Men's Chorus drew standing-room at Parish Park and then again at Brick Hill that night. The Orleans Farmers Market opened its 2026 season. The Chatham Farmers Market opened Tuesday and is now into its second week.

Your event belongs here

This list exists because people in Brewster, Chatham, Harwich, and Orleans are doing things worth knowing about. If you're running one of them — a class, a concert, a walk, a workshop, a dinner, an opening, a town meeting, a kids' program, a community gathering — send it to us.

We read every submission. We don't charge for listings. We don't favor big venues over small ones. If it's happening on the Lower Cape and it's worth a neighbor's time, it has a real shot at being in the next issue.

What to send: event name, date, time, location, price (or free), and a link or a few sentences about what it actually is. That's it.

Deadline: Monday at noon for that Thursday's issue.

Send to: [email protected]

The people who read this newsletter are locals. They show up. Getting in front of them costs you nothing but two minutes and an email.