The South Orange Downtown Farmers Market ends its 35th season on Wednesday, October 28. It runs every Wednesday from June 3 through that date, 1 to 6 p.m., rain or shine, in the Sloan Street Parking Lot at 12 Sloan Street. That's 22 straight Wednesdays of artisan bread, house-made pickles, cold-pressed juices, local cheeses and grab-and-go lunch and dinner in the middle of downtown. In November, 12 Sloan Street goes back to being just a parking lot.
From the market's last Wednesday until the Hometown Holiday & Tree Lighting on December 12, almost every public event in the village is hosted by one of two institutions a few blocks apart. One is the South Orange Performing Arts Center. The other is the Baird Community Center on Mead Street. Both are running some of their least expensive programming of the year this season.
The Handoff Weekend
You can see the shift in the weekend of October 24 and 25. On Saturday, October 24, the Adult School teams up with local band The Brand New Steadys for its annual Monster Bawl at the Baird, 7:30 to 10:30 p.m. The next morning, Spooky Spiotta takes over Spiotta Park from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. with a costume contest, a Halloween obstacle course, face painting, fairy hair by SOMA Pop Party and trick-or-treat stations, all free. That same Sunday morning, the Village Council holds public office hours at The Baird Cafe from 9:30 to 10:30 a.m.
That's a downtown park event, a Saturday night dance on Mead Street and a civic hour in the Baird's cafe in one weekend, with the market's final Wednesday still to come. It's the last week all of those overlap. After that, the indoor venues carry the schedule.
Shakespeare for Five Dollars or Nothing
The first event after the market's final Wednesday comes the next night, Thursday, October 29. Seton Hall Theatre opens William Shakespeare's Twelfth Night at SOPAC, presented by the Seton Hall Arts Council and directed by Stephanie ila Silver-Silberstein, with a cast and crew of Seton Hall University Theatre students.
| Performance | Time |
|---|---|
| Thursday, October 29 | 8 p.m. |
| Friday, October 30 | 8 p.m. |
| Saturday, October 31 | 8 p.m. |
| Sunday, November 1 | 2 p.m. |
The ticket terms are what make this run stand out. According to SOPAC's event page, advance seats cost $5 online, and tickets are free at the box office on the day of the show. SOPAC calls the student productions "A SOPAC and Seton Hall Tradition" and part of its commitment to "lifting up emerging performers from our neighboring communities." For four performances, the village's main stage costs less than a coffee and pastry, and you can walk up and get in free.
The Saturday performance falls on Halloween night. If your family is trick-or-treating early in the evening, the 8 p.m. curtain leaves room for both.
Mead Street Picks Up Where Sloan Street Left Off
The Baird Community Center at 5 Mead Street is the other half of the late-fall calendar. The Village describes it as a multi-room recreational facility and the home of the South Orange Village Department of Recreation and Cultural Affairs. Its listed features include art classrooms, a cafe, meeting rooms, the Pierro Gallery, a basketball court and a tennis court. Because the department that runs village recreation works out of this building, a lot of seasonal programming starts here once the outdoor market season ends.
The Sunday matinee of Twelfth Night isn't the only thing on November 1. The Recreation and Cultural Affairs calendar lists a Watershed Literary Event that day from 3 to 4:30 p.m. at the Skate House in Meadowland Park, "next to the duck Pond on Mead Street." So the first Sunday of November gives you a choice of two cultural afternoons: student Shakespeare at 2 p.m. at SOPAC, or a reading by the duck pond at 3.
The November Weekend When Both Venues Are Busy
Mid-November is when SOPAC and the Baird overlap most. On November 14 and 15 they run back to back, and SOPAC keeps going through the following week.
| Date | Event | Venue |
|---|---|---|
| Saturday, Nov. 14, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. | SOPL Friends Holiday Jewelry Sale | The Baird, 5 Mead Street |
| Saturday, Nov. 14, 1 p.m. | PANTO's Cinderella, all ages | SOPAC |
| Sunday, Nov. 15, 1 to 4 p.m. | SOPL Friends Holiday Jewelry Sale | The Baird |
| Sunday, Nov. 15, 7:30 p.m. | The Last Waltz Celebration | SOPAC |
| Thursday, Nov. 19, 7:30 p.m. | Ladies of Laughter | SOPAC |
| Friday, Nov. 20, 7:30 p.m. | Remember Jones's Amy Winehouse Back to Black celebration | SOPAC |
| Saturday, Nov. 21, 7:30 p.m. | Shemekia Copeland and Jontavious Willis | SOPAC |
The jewelry sale is the event most tied to the village. The Friends of the South Orange Public Library describe it on the South Orange Downtown calendar as "a huge amount of jewelry, from fun to fancy," with gold and silver, fine and vintage pieces and costume jewelry "priced to sell." Proceeds benefit the library. The Friends of SOPL page has more on the group.
The Saturday timing works well for families. The sale opens at 10 a.m. and Cinderella starts at 1 p.m., so you can do some holiday shopping on Mead Street in the morning and still make the matinee. Sunday's sale hours are shorter, 1 to 4 p.m., so plan for Saturday if you want the best selection.
Village Plaza Keeps the Weekday Going
With no Wednesday market, the steadiest daytime spot downtown is the block around Spiotta Park. The South Orange Downtown business directory lists a small cluster of places to eat on Village Plaza:
- Jus' Tacos, 6 Village Plaza
- Pandang Asian Bistro, 8 Village Plaza
- Orange House Cafe, 9 Village Plaza
- Walia Ethiopian Restaurant, 11 Village Plaza
AIR Aerial Fitness and Rejuve Wax Center share 15 Village Plaza on the same block.
Orange House Cafe is the newest of the group. The Village Green reported that the cafe opened its second location on May 6, in the former Sparkhouse Kids shop next to Spiotta Park. The cafe's own site lists the South Orange Village location as open 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily. That's longer than the market ever ran on a Wednesday, and it's every day of the week.
The grab-and-go lunch and dinner vendors that set up on Sloan Street each Wednesday will be gone until next season. Village Plaza has four restaurants within a few doors of each other, open all week, a block from the park that hosts Spooky Spiotta.
The Season Closes at the Tree Lighting
The last holiday celebration on the downtown calendar this year is the Hometown Holiday & Tree Lighting Ceremony on Saturday, December 12, from 2 to 6 p.m. South Orange Downtown's event listing still says details are coming soon, so check back for the program and location before you go.
Looking at the whole stretch, the public calendar from late October to mid-December comes down to a short list of hosts. SOPAC handles the evenings and matinees. The Baird and the Recreation and Cultural Affairs department handle the community fundraisers, the readings and the civic hours. Village Plaza covers weekday meals. Between the market's last Wednesday and December 12, the most affordable things on the schedule are the free day-of seats for Twelfth Night and a library fundraiser sale on Mead Street.
If a quieter season has you thinking about which part of the village puts you closest to the places that stay busy all year, Mead Street, Village Plaza or the blocks near SOPAC, we're glad to talk it through. Reach out to Liz Morris and the Liz + Vikram Team anytime. Contact Us.
