Events

Novel Jazz is returning to the Skidompha Public Library in Damariscotta on Friday, 19 June, 2026, 7-9:30 PM, for a summer solstice celebration, jazz on a summer’s eve!  They play jazz out of the Great American Songbook, with special emphasis on the works of jazz icons, Duke Ellington and Billy Strayhorn.  The library is located at 184 Main St., Damariscotta, ME.  The evening will be in support of Skidompha’s “Little Food Pantry.”  The performance will feature Barney Balch (trombone), Bill Manning (drums), Mickey Felder (piano), David Clarke (guitar) and Nate Johengen (saxophone).  For this 2026 season, the septet welcomes two new members: Jim Lyden (bass) and Edward Mitchell (trumpet).

The band is celebrating its 22nd year in which Novel Jazz has been playing straight-ahead jazz for audiences throughout Maine (and beyond).  If you have never attended a NJS performance, come check them out to see why the Novel Jazz evenings at Skidompha have been so popular for so long!  Admission is free and all are welcome to this special concert.  In lieu of purchasing a ticket, the library requests that attendees bring either a financial donation (suggested $20/person) for the library, food or personal hygiene items for Skidompha’s Little Food Pantry, all to support other community members in need.  Pantry items must not be expired and must be unopened. Admission is otherwise free of charge and a donation is not required for attendance.  For more info, call 207-887-0919 or point your web browser to http://www.skidompha.org/ or the band’s web site www.mainejazz.net .

The Rotary Club of Damariscotta-Newcastle will hosting a new fair this summer, featuring live music, carnival games, and more.

“Summer Fest” will take place from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday, June 20 at the Coastal Rivers Conservation Trust Round Top Farm. Proceeds from the event will go towards charities, including those dedicated to ending child and domestic abuse.

“We’re trying to make this annual event,” said Tom Anderson, Damariscotta select board member.

The festival will have children’s games, food, music, craft vendors, a clown, a dunk tank, tug-of-war, raffles, and more to be announced later. During the board’s meeting on Wednesday, March 18, Anderson even joked the tug of war would be between Newcastle and Damariscotta select boards.

For more information or to sign up to volunteer, go to givebutter.com/c/rotarysummerfest.

Embrace the vibrancy of summer with a special Yin Yoga workshop!

This is a season of expansion, transformation, and passion. To deepen this connection, we’ll explore the element of Fire and how its qualities correspond with summer time. Maya will guide you through meditation, pranayama (breathwork), the heart and small intestine meridians, and a Yin Yoga practice curated for this time of year.

This workshop is part of a larger series that will meet once a season throughout the year to explore each of the elements.

Meet Your Teacher:

Maya Rook is a certified yoga instructor with nearly 30 years of meditation experience. She received her 200-RYT in 2019, completed additional certifications in Yin Yoga and Yoga with Seniors, and is the creator of Firefly Studio. Maya is passionate about making meditation and yoga practices accessible to everyone, breaking through misconceptions about mindfulness, and helping people connect with the present moment through breath and movement. Her yoga and meditation classes are also supported by her work as a cultural historian and college educator. Participants have described Maya’s approach to Yin Yoga as nurturing, relaxing, and meditative.

What is Yin Yoga?

Yin Yoga is a beautiful complement to our more active Yang lifestyles and practices. Here, we slow down and hold poses of stillness, typically for 3-5 minutes, using props to help support us. The intention of a longer hold on a physical level is to stimulate and nourish the connective tissues and fascia. We also work consciously with the breath and the mind-body connection through these poses of relative stillness and cultivation of awareness of sensations that arise. Yin Yoga draws from Daoism and the Five Element Theory in Traditional Chinese Medicine as different poses relate to specific organs and meridians in the body, supporting and balancing one’s energy.

Embrace an opportunity to let go this autumn with a special Yin Yoga workshop!

This is a season of release, drawing inward, and slowing down. To deepen this connection, we’ll explore the element of Metal and how its qualities correspond with autumn. Let’s cut away what no longer serves us just like the trees shedding their leaves. Maya will guide you through meditation, pranayama (breathwork), the lungs and large intestine meridians, and a Yin Yoga practice curated for this time of year.

This workshop is part of a larger series that will meet once a season throughout the year to explore each of the elements.

Meet Your Teacher:

Maya Rook is a certified yoga instructor with nearly 30 years of meditation experience. She received her 200-RYT in 2019, completed additional certifications in Yin Yoga and Yoga with Seniors, and is the creator of Firefly Studio. Maya is passionate about making meditation and yoga practices accessible to everyone, breaking through misconceptions about mindfulness, and helping people connect with the present moment through breath and movement. Her yoga and meditation classes are also supported by her work as a cultural historian and college educator. Participants have described Maya’s approach to Yin Yoga as nurturing, relaxing, and meditative.

What is Yin Yoga?

Yin Yoga is a beautiful complement to our more active Yang lifestyles and practices. Here, we slow down and hold poses of stillness, typically for 3-5 minutes, using props to help support us. The intention of a longer hold on a physical level is to stimulate and nourish the connective tissues and fascia. We also work consciously with the breath and the mind-body connection through these poses of relative stillness and cultivation of awareness of sensations that arise. Yin Yoga draws from Daoism and the Five Element Theory in Traditional Chinese Medicine as different poses relate to specific organs and meridians in the body, supporting and balancing one’s energy.