Week in Review: Protect Your Farmer

Arts in the Spotlight

Author

Beth Young
April 19, 2026

On the Forks

A Loud Cry to Protect Your Farmer

Joann Zilnicki with her family’s potato bag.

Just as the North Fork was waking up from a brutal winter and right before tractors begin working the fields, several local farmers joined in community conversations to share a loud and clear message — “Take care of your farmer — there aren’t that many of us left.”

Who Are The Mudflats?

If you live in Orient, you’ve heard the fiddles, driving drumbeat and tight rural harmonies of The Mudflats, echoing out of Poquatuck Hall or spreading on the breeze across the Oysterponds Historical Society’s grounds.

This band appears to have blossomed onto the North Fork music scene over just the past couple years, but many of its members’ lives have been woven together for decades, from Nashville to Washington DC to New York City and then out to the far tip of the North Fork, where their sound finally melded in a series of impromptu concerts on an Orient porch at the height of the Covid pandemic in mid-2020.

North Fork

As Development Fears Reach Fever Pitch, Southold Highlights Protections in its Subdivision Code

The recent spate of community concerns about subdivisions and development in Southold Town isn’t the first time this rural town has been shocked by the potential for change.

But people in town government believes decades of planning have put Southold in a good position to keep the rural character that has defined this place, and has drawn visitors here.

Arts

The Forward Frame: East End Arts Holds Last Hurrah Before Gallery Relocation

East End Arts in Riverhead said a temporary farewell to its East Main Street Gallery April 11, as the campus of the non-profit community arts group is expected to undergo a major overhaul as part of Riverhead Town’s Town Square redevelopment project.

Theater

A Suffragist’s Eye Meets Modern Times

Northeast Stage Makes Susan Glaspell’s Work New Again

Even though playwright Susan Glaspell was considered at the forefront of modern theater when she co-founded the Provincetown Players on Cape Cod in the early 1900s, few theater mavens working today have even had the chance to see her work.

“Mockingbird” Brings Timeless Themes Back to The Suffolk

For the second year in a row, The Suffolk theater in Riverhead is putting up a play exploring the weaknesses and strengths of the American justice system on the former movie theater’s stage.

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Music

This Year’s Rites of Spring Is An Immersion in Opera, Nature and Classical Works

Now in its 11th season, Paolo Bartolani’s Rites of Spring Music Festival is branching out this year, with eight subprograms and 26 concerts on both the North and South Forks, and a growing partnership with the music department at Stony Brook University.

Dave’s Desk@Ditch

Bin There, Done That

Have you ever accumulated so much ‘stuff’ that it literally seems to jump out and tackle you when opening up a closet door? Maybe you’ve assembled a shelving unit in your garage to accommodate decorations for every holiday and the various lawn accoutrements that correspond to each. Or, maybe you’re just like me, and literally have three dozen labelled bins stacked against a basement wall, which have not been opened since who knows when.

Submariners Pay Tribute at New Suffolk Beach

The United States Submarine Veterans’ Long Island Base met on New Suffolk Beach April 12, for their annual Tolling of the Boats ceremony honoring their fallen fellow submariners.

UPCOMING EVENTS

Sunday, April 19

Envision Plum Island Preserved

Louise Harrison of Save The Sound will discuss the latest on Plum Island preservation efforts in this forum at 4 p.m. at Poquatuck Hall in Orient.

Thursday, April 23

The Jazz Loft@Southampton: Afro-American Sketches

The Avram Theatre at Stony Brook Southampton hosts a sweeping jazz journey from Africa to America—Afro/American Sketches — originally titled by Oliver Nelson in 1961 — which tells a story of struggle, resilience, and hope that resonates across generations.

April 24-26

Docs Equinox at Southampton Arts Center

Hamptons Doc Fest and the Southampton Arts Center welcome spring and kick off a celebration of Earth Day with their annual Docs Equinox program that this year revolves around the theme of “Wildlife 360∞: Celebrating All Creatures Great and Small.” 

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Words

“Live in each season as it passes; breathe the air, drink the drink, taste the fruit, and resign yourself to the influence of the earth.”

— Henry David Thoreau

See you next Sunday,

Beth