CapeMay.com - Cape May New Jersey Visitor Information Vacation Planning

Don’t be a shoulder-season couch potato. Why sit home just because it’s November? Come on down to Cape May for the weekend or, even better, why not spend Thanksgiving here? We’re tons of fun. Most of your favorite B&Bs are still open and some of your favorite restaurants (see list at the end of this piece), are taking reservations for Thanksgiving. Why even locals can be seen in these favorite haunts feasting away instead of slaving away in the kitchen. But even if you don’t come down for the holiday, spend a weekend here and you’d be amazed at the things you can do. Like what?

The Cape May Jazz Festival

Well, for one thing there are two key cultural events happening in November beginning with the Jazz Festival. This year’s 32nd Cape May Jazz Festival (November 6-8) is “A Tribute to the Count.” That’s Count Basie for those of you not in the know. Swing with the timeless, priceless and still genuine Count Basie Orchestra at the Cape May Jazz Festival Friday, November 6th at 8 p.m. in the Theatre at Lower Regional High School. The current Count Basie Orchestra is comprised of 19 performers committed to upholding the Basie tradition. Saturday night’s main event is also at the Theatre and features Ravi Coltrane, a true Renaissance man who is at the forefront carving up new paths within jazz. There will be two shows beginning at 6:30 and 8:30 p.m.  Coltrane is a modernist who has absorbed a wealth of jazz ranging from his father John Coltrane and Sonny Rollins to contemporary figures such as Steve Coleman, Wayne Shorter and owes equal debt to Joe Henderson.

There are many other Jazz Fest events throughout the weekend in Cape May at various venues such as Cabana’s, Carneys, and Victorian Gardens at the Marquis de Lafayette along Beach Avenue, as well as the Boiler Room in Congress Hall and Aleathea’s at The Inn of Cape May. For more information, call 609-884-7277 or go to www.capemayjazz.com/festival.cfm.

The weekend before Thanksgiving is the 9^th Annual Cape May Film Festival, November 20-22. A reception will be held Friday evening at the Inn of Cape May. Various venues, including Congress Hall and the Church of the Advent at Franklin and Washington streets,  will be showing films thought the day on Saturday. Highlights include the award-winning PSA film The Outsider by Teitelman Middle School & Cape May Film Academy, as well as a video tribute from Oscar Nominated Director Michael Mann. Independent films such as Unstrung, a documentary about international jazz guitar legend Pat Martino, who will be in Cape May for the event, and the New Jersey premiere of Strongman, a recipient of the Slamdance Film Festival’s Best Documentary award will also be among the film offerings. For locals or those who get to Cape May a little early, a special highlight will include the one-night only showing of TSOTSI, which won the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film. It will be shown Monday, November 16 at Cape May Stage, Lafayette and Bank streets, at 8 p.m. For more information and to purchase tickets, call 609-884-6700 or visit www.njstatefilmfestival.com.

Holiday Preview Weekend, November 20-22, is the official kick-off to Cape May’s holiday season. Santa and his elves have decked out the Physick Estate, 1048 Washington Street, with thousands of lights and holiday trimmings and will be hand Saturday, November 21 at 7 p.m. to flip the switch for the festive Tree-Lighting Ceremony (sponsored by Sturdy Savings Bank). That evening the Estate will be open for free, self-guided tours.  For kids, there are Santa’s Trolley Rides and a chance to visit with old St. Nick himself. Grown-ups will enjoy holiday ghost tales during Ghosts of Christmas Past Trolley Rides.

Enjoy a wide variety of holiday tours and food and wine events to get you into the Christmas spirit.  The Physick Estate becomes a Christmas wonderland during the holiday season. The Carriage House Gallery exhibit, An Old-fashioned Christmas: Holiday Traditions through the Years, captures the feeling of Christmas past with a Dickens Village collection, toys, trees from different eras and more (through January 3). Monday through Thursday, November 23-December 31.  Not offered November 26.

See Cape May’s Historic District decked out for the season from a heated trolley, then take a guided tour of the Emlen Physick Estate, an authentically decorated Victorian mansion, and finally tour the 2009 Cape May Designer Show House dressed up for the holidays. Admission includes the “An Old-fashioned Christmas” exhibit in the Carriage House Gallery and a trolley shuttle to the show house. Call 609-884-5404 or 800-275-4278 for more information or visit capemaymac.org.

For the more athletic, don’t forget the Big Bass Open, Friday, November 6-7. To register, call South Jersey Marina. 609-884-2400.

Why not venture off the island and visit Historic Cold Spring Village for their annual Candlelight Walk Saturday, November 7. Stroll the Village at dusk, led by luminaries lining the clamshell lanes. Visit select buildings and enjoy fireside wine and light fare. Dessert will be served in the warmly lit Pavilion and the Country Store will be offering special discount sales on holiday items and heritage goodies. Tickets are $20, advance sales only. Please call 898-2300, x10.Visit hcsv.org for more information.

Two HUGLEY popular November events which involve food, murder and mayhem, but not necessarily all at once are Sherlock Holmes Weekend Friday, November 6 through Sunday, November 8.  Join Sherlock Holmes for a weekend of mystery and intrigue. The package includes performances, tour, brunch and prizes. Sponsored by the Mid-Atlantic Center for the Arts (MAC). The event sells out very quickly so for more information, call 609-884-5404 or 800-275-4278 or visit www.capemaymac.org. A companion event which should not be missed is East Lynne Theater’s offering of a 1930 radio play, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s Sherlock Holmes’ Adventure of the Blue Carbuncle. Step back in time, on Friday, Nov. 5 and Saturday Nov. 6 at 8:00 p.m., when the Equity professional  East Lynne Theater Company presents production in the style of a radio broadcast, complete with live  sound effects and commercials, just like the Sherlock Holmes’ radio series on  NBC. The performances are at the First Presbyterian Church of Cape May, at Decatur and Hughes streets. For information and reservations, call 884-5898 or go online at www.eastlynnetheater.org.

Get your chocolate fix at the Chocolate Fantasy Buffet!

And the second hugely popular event? Are you kidding? The Chocolate Fantasy Buffet, Saturday, November 21 of course. Indulge your dark side or your lightest desires… in the decadence of a completely Chocolate Buffet.  Kathleen Cressman-Pastiu, Executive Pastry Chef of the Washington Inn, Washington Street, presents this tantalizing gastronomic fete, a seemingly endless buffet that includes white, milk and dark chocolate fondues, pies, cakes and pastries. It all takes place at 2 p.m. Coffee, tea, hot chocolate, water and milk will also be served. Admission is $35 per person. Again, this REALLY is an event which sells out quickly and with a limited attendance. Advance ticket purchase is necessary.  For more information, call 609-884-5404 or 800-275-4278 or visit CapeMayMac.org.
Before I leave the subject of murder and mayhem, if you can’t make the Sherlock Holmes Fest or if it is sold out, try the Looking Glass Mysteries, Friday November 20 through Saturday November 21. The Cape May Detective Agency and the MAC present the series. Join the mystery weekend where poison, blackmail, and bribery are part of the game…and where the killers actually hunt the guests! These little adventures are designed by Shadow Stalkers. They’ve had 13 guests murdered in a single night! Sound like fun? It is… if you survive! The Carroll Villa Hotel will be Mystery Head Quarters, with the Bedford Inn, Bacchus Inn, and John Wesley Inn also fielding teams of detectives. The first cases will include Arsenic and Plum Pudding. But wait, there’s more to coming next month and even next year. Call 609-884-5404 for reservations or visit MAC website.

Master Harold and the Boys

And Cape May’s two professional equity theaters do not shut down for the holidays either. In fact, just the opposite. Cape May Stage’s production of Athol Fugard’s masterpiece Master Harold and the Boys continues at the Robert Shackleton Theater on Lafayette Street through November 28. Winner of both the Drama Desk and Critics’ Circle Awards for Best Play, Master Harold and the Boys is a coming of age story set in 1950s South Africa. It is a powerful examination of the impact of apartheid on the relationship between Hally, a young white man, and Sam, the black man who has been his lifelong friend. The show runs Wednesdays through Sundays at 8 p.m. For more information please visit www.capemaystage.com for more information.

A Christmas in Black and White

East Lynne Theater Company, located at the First Presbyterian Church on Decatur Street, presents Christmas in Black and White, Friday, November 27 and Saturday, November 28. The premier of In Black and White presents the American Christmas experience from the point of view of freed slaves to newly-arrived immigrants, told by two master storytellers, Stephanie Garrett and Gayle Stahlhuth. Curtain at 8:30 p.m. For more information please visit http://www.eastlynnetheater.org .

If you are interested in a cocktail and some low-key musical entertainment be sure to check out the following venues:

-          Barry Tischler sings folk, country and Rockabilly songs at the Pilot House on Decatur Street every Sunday from 4-6, unless the Eagles are playing of course.

-          Jay Bethel Unplugged is also at the Pilot House Wednesdays and Thursdays from 9-11 p.m.

-           “Terry-oke,” that’s karaoke with Terry O’Brien, can be found in the Boiler Room, at Congress Hall at 9 p.m. on Thursdays November 5, 12, 19, and 26. There are a variety of entertainers appearing every Friday and Saturday in the Boiler Room and the Brown Room, including the Ann Oswald Band and Geno White’s Top Heat. For specifics visit http://www.congresshall.com/content/calendar.html

Barry Tischler

-          At The Virginia Hotel on Jackson Street, Paul Sottile will be on piano beginning at 6:30 in the Ebbitt Room November 5-7, November 14, and November 19-21.

-          Piano Man Doug Williams will be at Aleathea’s at the Inn of Cape May on Beach and Ocean streets Tuesday- Saturday evenings from 6-10 p.m.

-          And let’s not forget one of our favorites, George Mesterhazy who will be at the Merion Inn Friday through Sundays beginning at 5:30 p.m., unless of course he has a gig at Carnegie Hall.

Last and certainly not least, if you happen to be on the Island Veteran’s Day, Wednesday, November 11, the Veterans Day Ceremony begins at 11 a.m. on Columbia Avenue – at the Memorial in the center block.

Now, didn’t I tell you there are tons of things to do? So, come on down. Spend the day, spend the week, spend the weekend. We’d love to see ya. Until next month, Happy Trails and Gobble, Gobble.

Who’s serving Thanksgiving dinner?

Don’t feel like cooking? These Cape May restaurants will be serving up turkey:

Ebbitt Room  2-7 pm
Harbor View
The Merion Inn
Peter Sheilds
Union Park
Washington Inn 1-7pm