Kidsday: A visit to Westhampton PAC
The Westhampton Beach Performing Arts Center (76 Main St., 631-288-2350) is a lot of fun. Julienne Penza, its managing director of arts education, went to Boston College, where she totally fell in love with theater. She then went to graduate school for theater.
When she finished grad school, she was looking for a theater-related job and fell in love with the performing arts center. The staff hired her, and she has been working there for about three years.
Her favorite show to put on was "Our Town," she said. She never acted in any of the plays there, but she has acted in other places.
The building was founded in 1932 as a one-room movie theater. In 1990, it closed for about seven years.
Then, a group of people decided they should turn it into a performing arts center. In 1997, it was officially reopened to the public. Performances there go on all year round.
Besides shows, they have movies. There are many in the summer, and in December there is a "Nutcracker" ballet.
The center's staff works with people of all ages. They also have a lot of surprises, especially for kids. You can visit them at whbpac.org. Click on arts education. You can reach Julienne at 631-288-2350, ext. 144.
Red Creek Skate Park
Do you like to skateboard? If you do, the Red Creek Skate Park in Hampton Bays (102 Old Riverhead Rd.) is open to anyone.
It has about 20 awesome ramps. It also has a bowl that is like a pool, but you can skate in it. This is my favorite part. All the wooden ramps are smooth for great skating. Behind the big ramps is a beginner area. In that area, there are two ramps. There also are half pipes and rails to grind on, and steps to jump over. And in the summer, there are competitions.
-- Matthew Canavan
Stomple
Stomple (Spin Master) is a board game that is fun to play. The object is to have the last stomper, or marble, on the game board.
When you play, you stomp your opponent's marbles into the game board, and you have to do it before they can get to yours. You can move backward, forward, side to side and diagonally. You also can hop if the color of your stomper is the color of the marble you are going to hop to.
This game can be played with two to six players. The actual game is fun, but assembling it isn't. This game is a good family game; it is for kids 8 and older.
-- Matthew Canavan