Published: November 06, 2009 07:24 pm      

The Happening at Cedarhurst

By RORYE O’CONNOR

rorye.oconnor@register-news.com

MT. VERNON— The Happening is what’s happening at Cedarhurst these days.

The Happening, a recently conceived gathering of people over 21 at the Cedarhurst Center for the Arts, 2600 Richview Road, is “focused on bringing together young contemporaries for social events, networking and cultural opportunities,” said Carrie Schott, Shrode Art Center director and Happening committee chair.

The new group has hosted two events at Cedarhurst, including a Halloween gathering last Thursday. The Happening’s Halloween party featured offerings of hot dogs and other food, drinks, candy and music from Eastwood Frisch, a band comprised of Joe Frisch and Joe Simpson. The Halloween party suffered a minor setback from the drizzly weather, and was held in Cedarhurst’s performance hall instead of the center’s “backyard,” as planned, but about 100 people mingled and sampled in the performance hall at different times.

The goal for the group, whose committee is comprised of seven people, is to host events like the Halloween party every other month and get people to come to Cedarhurst. People can come to The Happening events without being members of Cedarhurst, Schott said.

“We hope people would join Cedarhurst and come to events,” she said. “You don’t have to be a member, but we hope people will come get to know Cedarhurst.”

The committee for the Happening saw a need to create a group to introduce the 21-and-up age bracket to art available in the community, said Jayanna Weaver, committee member.

“The younger crowd doesn’t know about the museum,” she said. “There are classes and concerts here all the time. The younger people need to know about this place.”

The group aims to bring in everyone in the community for networking and for a fun way to introduce people to art, Schott said.

“(Ideally) Cedarhurst would be a place you could come hang out and enjoy the arts as much as we do,” she said.

The next Happening, December 10, is planned to be a holiday party with a unique angle, Schott said.

The Happening events are free and open to the public over age 21.