In the Arts

The Monmouth Conservatory of Music Children’s Opera Chorus will hold auditions in late August for membership in the fall semester. The chorus, for grades 2-12, offers performances, vocal training and development of musical skills. Weekly rehearsals in Red Bank are held Monday evenings for grades 2-6, and Wednesday evenings for grades 7-12. Tuition is $150 per semester plus a $75, one-time materials fee. For information, call (732) 741-8880.

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The work of another New Jersey playwright will be premiered by Over the Rainbow Productions, an Eatontown community theater company that is building a reputation for providing a venue for original works.

Pot Luck, an original comedy by Erica Fineman Bertoli, Beachwood, will debut Aug. 8 and run through Aug. 31 at the Eatontown Playhouse, on Route 35 north. Performances will be Friday and Saturday at 8 p.m., and Sunday at 3 p.m. Tickets are available at the door or in advance at the box office at (732) 460-0100.

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In what has become a Labor Day tradition, the Art Topilow Jazz Ensemble will perform at the Ruth Hyman Jewish Community Center of Greater Monmouth County, Deal Park. The Aug. 31 performance will begin at 7:30 p.m., and will feature classic songs with lyrics by Johnny Mercer. Song stylists Annette Sanders and Howard Tavin will sing with the ensemble. Members of the ensemble, in addition to Dr. Topilow, who is a hematologist/oncologist with a practice in Neptune, are Bernie Berger, reeds; Gary Mazarroppi, bass; Barry Lazarowitz, drums; and Frank Vento, guitar. Admission is $20, $15 for seniors, or $8 for students. For more information, call the JCC at (732) 531-9100, ext. 129.

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A group exhibit of paintings, photographs and sketches created by New Jersey artists during travels to the French countryside will be on display at the Red Bank library Aug. 5-Sept. 26. "Discovering Beauty Through Art and Travel" will feature works created by participants of Artscapes, which sponsors workshops and trips to Giverny in Normandy, France. An artists’ reception, open to the public, will be held at the library, 84 W. Front St., Aug. 21 from 6-8 p.m. Library hours are Monday, Wednesday and Thursday, 9 a.m. to 8 p.m., and Tuesday and Friday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., through Sept. 13. Saturday hours will resume Sept. 20.

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On Aug. 18 at 6 p.m., the Red Bank library will host a reading and book signing event by the authors of More Than Petticoats: Remarkable New Jersey Women. Lynn Wenzel and Carol Binkowski will discuss the stories of the 12 exceptional women born prior to 1900 who are featured in the book. The women profiled represent a wide range of careers and interests in medicine, women’s rights, theology, music, art and literature.

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The First Avenue Playhouse will hold auditions for The Mummy’s Claw Aug. 12 and 13 at 7:30 p.m. at the playhouse, 123 First Ave., Atlantic Highlands. Men and women in their early 20s through late 50s are needed for the production, which will run in October. Scripts will be provided for reading. For information, call (732) 291-7552.

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A retrospective of the work of photographer George Tice is on exhibit at Red Bank art gallery Art Forms through Aug. 17. The author of 13 books on photography, Tice has had a career now spanning five decades, and his photographic collection is considered among the most important visual documentaries of late 20th century America. Hours at Art Forms, 16 Monmouth St., are Tuesday through Saturday, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., and Sunday, 1-4 p.m. For information, call (732) 530-4330.