Arts & Leisure

Guild Hall is pleased to inaugurate the John Drew Backyard Theater (JDBT), a space in the Furman Garden that allows for socially-distanced outdoor performances. Recently, Guild Hall premiered its first shows: a performance by artist Katherine McMahon and musician Ray Angry, and a concert with Salieu Suso & World Music Collective. Throughout August and September, there will be a range of offerings — from intimate concerts to staged readings.

“Africaville,” a powerful debut novel by Jeffrey Colvin, tells the story of the black experience in parts of Canada and the United States and offers insights into the outrage against racism and oppression that has sparked protests not only in America but around the world. On August 15 and 16, a series of events that offer a unique opportunity to experience many of these insights. “Present Tense: Black Lives Matter(ed)” is a weekend of theater, art, literature, history and activism education centered around Colvin’s novel. Co-hosted by Guild Hall in East Hampton, The Church in Sag Harbor, and the Arts Center at Duck Creek in Springs.

Sag Harbor Cinema’s Drive-in series continues at Havens Beach with films every Sunday night that offer a true salute to the summertime spirit, brought to the comfort of one’s car. On August 16, head to the summer of 1987 with “Adventureland,” Greg Mottola’s bittersweet comedy that follows recent Oberlin College graduate James (Jesse Eisenberg), whose summer plans to explore Europe before graduate school are thwarted by his parents’ financial problems.

Bay Street Theater has opened its outdoor patio and bar to the public five days a week — Thursdays through Mondays — from 1 to 8 p.m. daily, with live music performed outdoors (weather permitting) by local artists.

At the age of 50, Geraldine Brown had reason to doubt she would ever find love. After all, she had been involved in a series of disastrous relationships that would have been enough to leave most people dejected. But instead, she held on to faith sparked by her late grandmother, Rosaria Gentile, who had died several years earlier.

Mountainfilm on Tour Southampton returns to the Southampton Arts Center again this year, with films presented live, outdoors on the SAC lawn on Sunday, August 23, at 8 p.m. A virtual screening, available August 24 to 31, will complement the program. This year’s show was curated to take viewers on a trip around the world.

For the week of August 12 and continuing, Hamptons Doc Fest is adding “Denise Ho: Becoming the Song,” to the hamptonsdocfest website. The film, widely reviewed in the media, had its virtual release on July 1, the anniversary of the British handover of Hong Kong to China in 1997.

Bay Street Theater is pleased to announce the virtual staged reading of “The Letters of Noël Coward,” directed by Bob Balaban, on Tuesday, August 25, at 8 p.m. at baystreet org. Academy Award and Golden Globe-winning actor Richard Dreyfuss and Academy Award-nominated and Golden Globe-winning actor Marsha Mason read the correspondence in conversation.

Pace Gallery, Acquavella Galleries, and Gagosian are pleased to announce a joint exhibition of works on paper from the Donald B. Marron Collection, belonging to one of the 20th and 21st centuries’ most passionate and erudite collectors. The exhibition will be on view August 12 to 20, at Pace’s recently opened gallery, located at 68 Park Place in East Hampton village.

The guitar/cello duo Boyd Meets Girl, featuring Australian classical guitarist Rupert Boyd and American cellist Laura Metcalf, will perform a diverse, creative program of music on the covered terrace at the Parrish Art Museum on Thursday, August 13, at 6 p.m.

The Parrish Art Museum and the Bridgehampton Child Care & Recreational Center (BHCCRC) continue their history of partnership with a new, two-day Black Film Festival, which will be offered outdoors at the museum, on two consecutive Fridays — August 14 and 21, from 8 to 11 p.m. both nights.

Alone Gallery in Wainscott is now presenting its Spotlight 4 exhibition, the final presentation of the summer season. Title “Reflection,” this is a group exhibition of representational painting featuring artists both new to the gallery space as well as artists previously exhibited.

The Arts Center at Duck Creek in Springs is pleased to announce “Promised Land,” an exhibition of five mixed media paintings by Peter Gregory, on view in the little barn at Duck Creek Farm. This exhibition will be on view August 15 to September 15, Thursday to Sunday, 2 to 6 p.m.

After Guild Hall was forced to cancel its annual summer gala and auction, artist Robert Longo suggested postponing his own show until 2021 in lieu of a benefit exhibition, “All for the Hall,” featuring donated work from 60 artists ranging from established powerhouses to burgeoning names, on view starting Saturday, August 8.

Perhaps it’s a sign of the times, but world-wide pandemics have a way of altering the normal flow of things. For example, while usual air traffic may be down somewhat these days at Francis Gabreski Airport in Westhampton Beach, the tried and true drive-in has popped up in its place.