Tickets cost $15 per person and can be purchased here, at Joni’s or Willow in downtown [...]]]> Join us for the Jabali Acrobats at the Montauk Playhouse this Thursday, August 12. They will thrill with acrobatics, contortions, tumbling, human pyramids, chair balancing, dance, skip rope footwork, and comedy, all set to electrifying music. (45 minutes)

Tickets cost $15 per person and can be purchased here, at Joni’s or Willow in downtown Montauk, at the Montauk Playhouse, or by phone at 631.668.1124.

Tickets cost $15 and can be purchased here, at Willow or [...]]]> Don’t miss Thursday’s (July 29) performance of Peter and the Wolf at the Playhouse! In this production, Sergei Prokofiev’s symphony will be brought to life by the Hampton Chamber Orchestra, dancers from the Hampton Ballet Theatre School and narration by local radio personality Bonnie Grice.

Tickets cost $15 and can be purchased here, at Willow or Joni’s in downtown Montauk, at the Montauk Playhouse, or by phone at 631.668.1124. Tickets are selling fast!

Peter and the Wolf is the second performance in the Foundation’s FamilyFest summer series.

As written in the July 15 edition of the East Hampton Star:

“….a quirky to say the least, musical event will take place at which the sounds of the cafooba, a [...]]]> Don’t miss Bash the Trash: Family Bash + Recycling Remix – the first event in our inaugural FamilyFest series – this Thursday, July 22.

As written in the July 15 edition of the East Hampton Star:

“….a quirky to say the least, musical event will take place at which the sounds of the cafooba, a styrobass, and bendjo will fill the air.

Not only will the family-friendly, toe tapping concert strike a few unfamiliar cords, the sounds will also include clatterings and bangings and twittings, and an assorted array of music made with instruments fashioned from cat-food and coffee cans, spaghetti pots, cookie tins, Styrofoam, and whatever discarded item the band members come across.“

Tickets cost $15 per person and are available online, at Willow or Joni’s in downtown Montauk, by calling 631.668.1124 or at the door of the event.

There is something for everyone at FAMILYFEST, which will be held weekly on Thursday nights from July 22 to August 12. Tickets cost [...]]]> The Montauk Playhouse Community Center Foundation is excited to present its first annual FAMILYFEST – a four-part summer series of affordable and unique family-friendly programming designed to reflect Montauk’s artistic and imaginative spirit.

There is something for everyone at FAMILYFEST, which will be held weekly on Thursday nights from July 22 to August 12. Tickets cost $15 per person per performance or $50 per person for the  full series.  Click here to learn more and to purchase tickets.

FAMILYFEST is sponsored by

About the book:

Montauk Tango: From the Ashes of 9/11 [...]]]> Join author and tango-dancer extraordinaire Dr. Lewis Gross on Saturday, June 5 at 5pm at the Montauk Playhouse Community Center for a reading from his book, Montauk Tango, followed by tango lessons and treats from his family restaurant 668 The Gig Shack.

About the book:

Montauk Tango:
From the Ashes of 9/11 to the Frying Pan of a Hampton’s Restaurant
by Lewis Gross

NEW BOOK EXPLORES HOW ONE LOWER MANHATTAN FAMILY REINVENTED ITSELF AFTER 9/11

The events of September 11, 2001 rendered 30,000 apartments eligible for asbestos abatement, destroyed or displaced nearly 18,000 small businesses, caused the loss of 140,000 jobs and the displacement of approximately 20,000 residents of Lower Manhattan.

Where did these residents go? How did they move on with their lives?

Holistic dentist and author, Lewis Gross, a member of the Community Board, founder and president of the Downtown Little League, and self-described ‘mayor’ of Tribeca was one of those residents. Forced to decamp to his family’s summer home in Montauk, he describes his family’s journey after that fateful day in his new book, Montauk Tango: From the Ashes of 9/11 to the Frying Pan of a Hampton’s Restaurant.

“We were the lucky ones,” says Gross, “we had a second place to call home. Most people didn’t. But it was no less traumatic for us, especially for my young son whose school had to be closed. He didn’t want to go, and we didn’t want to leave.”

After the shock of their unscheduled move, the family had to establish themselves as residents in what was previously their weekend escape and begin to reclaim some semblance of normalcy to their shattered lives. Gross’ wife, an amateur chef and yoga instructor, had an idea: she’d trade in her yoga clothes for a chef’s apron. The family set their sights on owning a restaurant and with no prior experience, purchased a run-down ice cream parlor that they converted into a Bohemian bistro, befitting their idyllic seaside resort.

But Montauk Tango is much more than an account of a family’s foray into the restaurant business. With Gross’ dental practice in Lower Manhattan, he faces another transition: weekend fatherhood. During the week, he enjoys a single life in the city and falls in love with the tango. Back on the island, his wife spreads her wings — it is her restaurant after all, he is only a silent partner — and his boys try to find theirs. Ever the modern husband, he strives to be supportive and celebrate her accomplishments but questions about his definition of happiness nag him.

“In the final analysis,” says Gross, “owning the restaurant was an investment in marriage, parenting and community.”

About the Author

Like the striped bass, author and holistic dentist, Lewis Gross migrates seasonally between the coasts of Tribeca and Montauk. In between tango lessons, he finds time to work on his second book, The Amalgamist – the Da Vinci Code of Dentistry, a medical mystery exposing the mercury cover-up in dentistry.

Montauk Tango is available on iuniverse.com, montauktango.com and amazon.com.