Monday, April 3 — Pruning Fruit Trees workshop, 5:30-6:30 p.m., Jaques Avenue Orchard, 9 Jaques Ave. Trees have feelings too, you know! (Seriously, some experts believe they do.) So you can’t just go hacking away willy-nilly at the spindly, winter-ravaged limbs of the pear tree your grandmother made you plant in the backyard. No, you need expert hands to make sure your Boscs or Bartletts or Harrow Sweets will come back to you in late summer. That’s where the pros from Tower Hill Botanic Garden come in.
For $20 ($10 for Tower Hill members), “learn the best way to prune fruit trees for health and production.” With the unpredictable nature of New England weather and, well, nature, every little bit helps. Registration is required.
Tuesday, April 4 — Worcester is America! Opening Ceremony, 6 p.m., Saxe Room, Worcester Public Library, 3 Salem Square “Worcester is America” — well, I guess that would make for a better city slogan than “Come for the potholes, stay for the dual tax rate!”
Sanctuary city or not, Worcester has long been a destination for immigrants and refugees from around the globe. This month-long exhibit centers on the history of Armenian immigration in America with a focus on the large population that has settled in the Heart of the Commonwealth.
Free and open to the public, the reception will highlight an exhibition of 10 display cases throughout the library that strive to put in context the “struggles, hopes and dreams, and eventual new lives” of Armenian-Americans.
Wednesday, April 5 — Clark baseball vs. Brandeis, 4:30 p.m., Granger Baseball Diamond, 97 Beaver St. Off to their best start in school history at 16-4, the Cougars were recently ranked among the top Division III baseball teams in the region. The Judges are off to a much slower start both on the schedule and the scoreboard, with a 1-5 record heading into back-to-back weekend doubleheaders at Case Western Reserve.
Clark junior outfielder Teddy Downing is swinging a hot bat, with a .423 average (33-of-78), 21 RBI and a 1.061 OPS. Senior slugger Adam Chochrek supplies the power with a team-best 5 home runs and 24 RBI. Junior shortstop Kyle Bonicki adds spark with 14 extra-base hits, including 4 triples, and leads the Cougars with 25 runs scored. Sophomore righty Cal Slepkow sports a tidy 2.61 ERA and 23-to-6 strikeout-to-walk total in four starts atop the Clark rotation.
Friday, April 7 — The Most Dangerous Woman, 6:30 p.m, Fletcher Auditorium, Worcester Historical Museum, 30 Elm St. For many of us — most of us, probably — Mother Jones is an informative, if left-leaning, online news source and bimonthly magazine producing in-depth political and investigative reporting on socially impactful issues. But for people who, like, know stuff, “Mother” Mary Harris Jones was a prominent turn-of-the-century labor organizer, who according to her namesake, “was a badass who fought for the underdog, battled child labor, and was sometimes referred to as ‘the most dangerous woman in America.’ ”
Find out in this theatrical tour-de-force by actor Robbin Joyce why authorities across the country came to fear the one-time teacher and dressmaker. Tickets are $20 ($17 for students, seniors and members).
Photo courtesy mass.historicbuildingsct.com
Mechanics Hall
Saturday, April 8 — WEC’Appella, Worcester’s Premier a Cappella Competition, 7:30 p.m. (doors, 6:45), Mechanics Hall, 321 Main St. Four high schools. Five colleges. One all-out brawl for singing supremacy! Saturday! Saturday! SATURDAY!! (Sorry, no monster trucks.) This is the signature fundraiser for Worcester Education Collaborative, a nonprofit supporting and advocating for further educational opportunities for city students. Burncoat, Doherty, South and Abby Kelley Foster Charter will represent the high schools, while Anna Maria, Assumption, Clark, Holy Cross and WPI bring their collegiate experience to the stage.
One-time “The Voice” contestant Noah Lis, of Palmer, will emcee the event. Tickets are only $20 ($10 for students and kids under 12), but you won’t need your seats!
Save the date!
Monday, April 10 — “Tools of the Trade,” National Baseball Hall of Fame artifacts and lecture, 5 p.m., Testa Science Center, Assumption College, 500 Salisbury St. OK, the most important takeaway here is that Assumption Professor Steve Corvi convinced the school’s muckety-mucks to place a “History of Baseball” course in the curriculum. That’s a class we might actually have attended! And with a new season freshly upon us, what better time to bring in the folks from Cooperstown to show off some dusty old mitts from the 1920s and wool uniforms?
Attendees will have the chance to get hands-on with some 50-75 artifacts from the museum’s vast collection while hearing about the evolution of the national pastime’s equipment and technology, with an eye toward what’s next. Free and open to the public.