May 29, 2024

With Senior Christie Showing Grit, Skill in Smoyer Finale PHS Girls’ Lax Tops Newark Academy in NJSIAA Opener

IN CONTROL: Princeton Day School girls’ lacrosse player Kelly Christie, right, goes after a ground ball in recent action. Last Thursday, senior star Christie tallied four goals and two assists and scooped up 11 draw controls to help fifth-seeded PDS top 12th-seeded Newark Academy 19-7 in the first round of the New Jersey Interscholastic Athletic Association (NJSIAA) Non-Public Group B tournament. The Panthers, now 15-5, will play at fourth-seeded Saddle River Day on May 30 in a quarterfinal contest. (Photo by Frank Wojciechowski)

By Bill Alden

Kelly Christie beamed with a large chain draped around her neck after the Princeton Day School girls’ lacrosse team defeated Newark Academy 19-7 last Thursday in the first round of the New Jersey Interscholastic Athletic Association (NJSIAA) Non-Public Group B tournament.

Senior attacker/midfielder Christie was awarded the chain in the PDS postgame huddle in recognition of her gritty play in the victory more

Princeton FC Produces Special Championship Double As Barcelona 18U, United 15U Teams Earn State Titles

UNITED THEY STAND: Members of the Princeton FC 2009 United 15U enjoy the moment after they placed first in their division at the New Jersey Youth Soccer (NJYS) Presidents Cup earlier this month. PFC United topped NJ Stallions 09 Valencia 2-0 in the final on May 18. The club is next in action when it competes in the US Youth Soccer Eastern Regional in Charleston/Barboursville, W.Va., from June 14-18.

By Bill Alden

Achieving a historic championship double, two Princeton FC squads, PFC 2009 United 15U and the PFC 2006 Barcelona 18U, won New Jersey Youth Soccer (NJYS) boys’ state titles earlier this month.

The PFC United 15U team started its title run on April 6 at Princeton Day School by defeating the SPF Raiders Gold 8-0 in the Round of 32 in the NJYS Presidents Cup. United got goals from Oscar Klein, David Gajewski, Rayyaan Mohiuddin, Kingston Lipsey, Yash Thakur, and Gregoire Stefani in the victory. more

May 22, 2024

Triple Crown

Members of the Hun School baseball team are all smiles after they defeated Lawrence High 10-2 in the Mercer County Tournament championship game last Thursday night at Trenton Thunder Ballpark. Hun, which won the Mid-Atlantic Prep League (MAPL) title earlier this spring and went on to win the Prep A state championship last weekend, became the first team in program history to win all three crowns in the same season. For more details on the postseason run by the Raiders, see page 32. (Photo by Steven Wojtowicz)

Planning Board Postpones Special Jugtown Meeting

By Anne Levin

Now that the May 23 special meeting of the Princeton Planning Board devoted to the proposal for a 15-unit apartment building in the Jugtown Historic District has been postponed, residents who oppose the plan and the developer in favor of it will have to wait until a future meeting is scheduled before a final decision on the project is reached.

The Princeton Historic Preservation Commission (HPC) spent two nights last week, May 13 and 14, listening to testimony from both sides of the issue, ultimately recommending that the Planning Board turn down the proposal as presented. The developer, 344 Nassau LLC, has proposed to build an attachment to the rear of the 18th-century Joseph Hornor House at 344 Nassau Street, which was recently recognized by Preservation New Jersey as one of the 10 most endangered historic buildings in New Jersey. The project would include three units that are designated as affordable. more

Gaza Protesters Depart; Seminary Students Make Similar Demands

By Donald Gilpin

After a continuous sit-in of nearly three weeks — first in the McCosh courtyard then on Cannon Green behind Nassau Hall — Princeton University’s Gaza Solidarity Encampment dispersed on the evening of May 15 following a final rally.

In a statement issued on the last day, the demonstrators declared, ”Our fight for divestment and Palestinian liberation continues undeterred.”

Described by The Daily Princetonian student newspaper as “both a protest and a community space,” the Gaza Encampment from April 25 to May 15 was a place for speeches and rallies, singing and chanting and poetry reading, town hall gatherings, conversations, meeting and eating together, and sometimes quietly reading or studying. Through rain and shine, cold and hot weather, the numbers of demonstrators fluctuated widely. The University administration did not allow tents or sleeping.

Princeton University President Christopher L. Eisgruber sent a message to the University community on May 13 warning that the protesters must leave Cannon Green. Signs and barriers were put in place around the green stating, “This space is closed in preparation for University events,” and Eisgruber noted, “To continue the sit-in would involve significant and impermissible disruption of University activities. The protesters are of course free to express their views in many other permissible, non-disruptive ways.” more

2024 Primary: Early Voting Next Week, New Block Ballot Design for Democrats

By Donald Gilpin

As Princeton voters go to the polls for the 2024 primary elections — in only one week for the first day of early voting on May 29 (through June 2), and in less than two weeks for Election Day voting on Tuesday, June 4 — Democrats and Republicans will vote for candidates to represent their parties in the November election for president, as well as candidates for U.S Senate and for the House of Representatives in New Jersey’s 12th District. They will also select candidates in races for three Mercer County Commissioners, Princeton mayor and two Council members, and two County Committee members.

The two spotlighted races include the competition for the U.S. Senate seat currently held by Robert Menendez, who is not running, with Andy Kim, Lawrence Hamm, and Patricia Campos-Medina on the Democratic ballot and Curtis Bashaw, James Murphy, Albert Harshaw, and Christine Serrano Glassner on the Republican ballot; and the race for a seat in the U.S. Congress, with Princeton resident Daniel Dart challenging incumbent Bonnie Watson Coleman for the Democratic nomination, and Republicans Theodore E. Jones Jr. and Darius Mayfield competing for their party’s nomination. more

Sunday Afternoon Carillon Recitals Are Popular Attraction for Local Residents

CELEBRATING 30 YEARS: Lisa Lonie, Princeton University carillonneur, has planned a special summer season of performances by carillonneurs from all over the world. The festival, titled “Music that Paints the Silence,” marks three decades of concerts for the public outside Cleveland Tower on the Graduate College campus. (Photo by David Kelly Crow)

By Anne Levin

On most Sundays starting at 1 p.m., a sound described as “wind chimes on steroids” rings out across the area surrounding Princeton University’s Graduate College campus. On a good day, “It can go up to half a mile,” said Lisa Lonie, the woman often responsible for creating that sound.

Lonie is Princeton University’s fourth University carillonneur, and its first female. On the job since 2012, she is the principal player of the school’s 70-year-old carillon, an instrument that produces music by the striking of its 67 bronze bells — the largest of which weighs 12,880 pounds. Housed in a console room atop the Cleveland Tower, the instrument is one of only about 180 manually played carillons in North America. It was dedicated in 1927 by the University’s class of 1892, and is part of the program of University Chapel Music. more

Grad Students Vote “No,” Postdocs “Yes” on Unionization at Princeton University

By Donald Gilpin

In two days of elections held last week, May 13 and 14, Princeton University graduate students voted against joining the United Electrical, Radio, and Machine Workers of America (UE) by 652 votes to 391, a 63-37 percent split with more than 73 percent of the 1,523 eligible voters turning out. The previous week the University’s postdoctoral researchers voted by a margin of 484 to 89 to join a union with the United Auto Workers (UAW).

On April 12 Princeton Graduate Students United (PGSU), looking “to improve working conditions for everyone,” filed for an election with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB). Established in 2016, PGSU claimed to have widespread support and a “strong majority” of graduate students who had signed union cards. more

National Nonprofit Partners with University to Open Libraries in New Jersey Prisons

FREEDOM THROUGH LITERATURE: New Jersey Department of Corrections Commissioner Victoria L. Kuhn, left, and poet and Freedom Reads founder and CEO Reginald Dwayne Betts admire a new bookcase in a housing wing of Garden State Correctional Facility.

By Anne Levin

Before he graduated from Yale Law School and became a MacArthur Fellow, Reginald Dwayne Betts spent nine years in prison after pleading guilty to carjacking. He was only 16. It was the availability of books, and the engagement with literature, that got him through those years without crushing his spirit.

An award-winning poet, Betts was a resident artist at Princeton University’s Lewis Center for the Arts in 2021. In a new connection with the University, Betts’ national nonprofit Freedom Reads has just opened nine Freedom Libraries at Garden State Correctional Facility, a state prison for adults in Chesterfield, Burlington County. Princeton University Library is a supporter. more

Highsmith’s Nonstop New York: Bringing the Map to Life

Everybody here was someone else before
And you can want who you want
Boys and boys and girls and girls ….

—Taylor Swift, from “Welcome to New York”

In the thicket of super high-rises going up near Central Park South, it’s anything but rare to read of apartment sales like the $95 million recently fetched by the penthouse at 432 Park Avenue, a ninety-six-story needle in the sky….The tower casts a shadow on Central Park, making it all too perfect an emblem of the sacrifice of the public to the private in the neoliberal age.

—from Nonstop Metropolis

I’m beginning my journey through 20th-century New York City with a 21st-century boost from Taylor Swift ahead of a dose of “ninety-six-story-needle” reality from Rebecca Solnit’s introduction to Nonstop Metropolis: A New York City Atlas (University of California Press 2016), edited by Solnit and Joshua Jelly-Schapiro.

Although I live only an hour’s drive away from Manhattan, the last time I was there was four and a half years ago for the New York Public Library’s centennial celebration of J.D. Salinger, whose own New York lives on in his fiction. All this year I’ve been missing the city where Swift says “everybody’s searchin’ for a sound we hadn’t heard before,” and where in the 1940s novelist Patricia Highsmith (1921-1995) lived life to the hilt and wrote about it in her diaries and notebooks.

Meanwhile I’ve been admiring the handsome, inventive, intricately detailed maps in Nonstop Metropolis. The first map, “Singing the City: The New York of Dreams,” is layered with the names of songs and singers according to their respective neighborhoods (Bob Dylan’s “Positively 4th Street,” Ben E. King’s “Spanish Harlem”). What worked for me was “53rd & 3rd,” not the Ramones song noted on the map but the neighborhood I knew as a ninth grader and when I bonded with the city a decade after Highsmith.  more

Princeton Singers Celebrates Double Anniversary with Concert of Diverse Music

By Nancy Plum

For 40 years, Princeton Singers has presented chamber choral concerts of unique repertoire in some of the more unusual spaces in the area. Comprised of 16 professional choristers, the Singers has maintained a strong commitment to high-level presentation of music of all periods, especially advocating for the creation of new choral works. Led by conductor Steven Sametz (celebrating his 25th year as artistic director), the ensemble observed both its commendable history and Sametz’s significant anniversary this past Saturday night with a concert of “The Best of The Princeton Singers” at Trinity Church in Princeton.  more

A Writer’s Article Challenges Her Decisions and Relationships in “Choice”; McCarter Stages “Wicked” Librettist’s Empathetic, Often Humorous Drama

“CHOICE”: Performances are underway for “Choice.” Written by Winnie Holzman, and directed by Artistic Director Sarah Rasmussen, the play runs through June 2 at McCarter’s Berlind Theatre. Above, from left: The friendship between Erica (Kate A. Mulligan) and Zippy (Ilana Levine) is tested by an impassioned disagreement over the latter’s approach to writing an article about a very controversial subject. (Photo by T. Charles Erickson)

By Donald H. Sanborn III

American political discourse, which already is fraught and polarized, only intensifies when the subject has a religious or spiritual aspect to it.

With Choice, playwright Winnie Holzman examines one of the most polarizing subjects: a woman’s right to choose. On the surface, the play is about reproductive freedom — and the possible ramifications of the decision that is made. But the piece also examines a woman’s a right to choose something else: how to engage with complex moral issues. more

Princeton Festival Opens with Opera, Rock, and Latin

“PROUD MARY”: “The Music of Tina Turner” is among the events taking place inside the tent at Morven during opening weekend of the 2024 Princeton Festival, June 7-9. LaKisha Jones plays the iconic rock star. (Photo by Eric McCue)

Two-time Grammy award-winning soprano Angel Blue opens this year’s Princeton Festival on Friday, June 7 at 8 p.m., The festival also includes a fully-staged performance of Mozart’s comic opera Così fan tutte, Broadway cabaret with Santino Fontana, orchestral music, Baroque and chamber concerts, dance with American Repertory Ballet, and a Juneteenth celebration, through June 22 in a tent on the grounds of Morven Museum and Garden, 55 Stockton Street.

Rounding out opening weekend are “The Music of Tina Turner” on Saturday, June 8 at 7 p.m.  and a Family Day, culminating with a concert featuring Latin Grammy-award nominee Sonia De Los Santos, on Sunday, June 9 at 4 p.m.  more

Filmmakers Join Faculty of Lewis Center for the Arts

Filmmakers Christopher Harris and Nicolás Pereda will join the Lewis Center for the Art’s Program in Visual Arts faculty at Princeton University in July.

Christopher Harris
(Photo by David Hermantas)

Harris, appointed as a professor of visual arts, makes films and video installations that read African American historiography through the poetics and aesthetics of experimental cinema. Pereda, appointed as an associate professor in visual arts, makes films that explore the everyday through a weaving together of scripted narratives and documentary observation. They will begin teaching in the fall 2024 semester. more

State Theatre Announces “Jersey Talent” Show

YOUNG AND GIFTED: Claudio Mir, left, and Sarah Ferreira host a new talent competition for ages 5-25 at the State Theatre New Jersey on June 1.

State Theatre New Jersey presents “Jersey Talent” on Saturday, June 1 at 8 p.m. Hosted by Claudio Mir and Sarah Ferreira, the new talent show is for ages 5-25. Ten finalists, including singers, dancers, a pianist, a rock band, and more, will perform live. The winner gets a spot as a featured performer at the New Brunswick Heart Festival on August 10.

Video auditions for the show began in early March. From the video submissions, 26 acts were chosen to audition live at the State Theatre. Of the 26 acts, 10 were selected to move forward to the live performance on June 1. Four judges from the New Brunswick community will select the top three finalists. The winner will be chosen based on audience applause. more

MCCC Gallery Hosts “Mercer County Artists Exhibition 2024”

“ODE TO THE RING-NECKED PHEASANT”: This work by Laura Beard is featured in “Mercer County Artists Exhibition 2024,” on view through July 22 at the Gallery at Mercer County Community College in West Windsor.

The talents of 27 Mercer County artists are on display through July 22 at the Gallery at Mercer County Community College (MCCC) in “Mercer County Artists Exhibition 2024,” a juried exhibition open to visual artists who live, work, or attend school in Mercer County. The MCCC Gallery is located on the second floor of the Communications Building on Mercer’s West Windsor Campus at 1200 Old Trenton Road.

In collaboration with the Mercer County Cultural and Heritage Commission, the exhibition, which features 32 works in a variety of media selected from 44 pieces submitted by 27 artists, is dedicated to celebrating all artists of Mercer County from hobbyists to professionals. more

Hopewell Valley Arts Council Names New Board Members

NEW BOARD MEMBERS: From left, Susie Henkel, Lynn DeClemente Losavio, Stephen Webb, and Grant Peterson have joined the board of directors at the Hopewell Valley Arts Council.

The Hopewell Valley Arts Council has welcomed Stephen Webb, Lynn DeClemente Losavio, Susie Henkel, and Grant Peterson to its board of directors. These professionals bring a wealth of experience, expertise, and passion for the arts, enriching HV Arts Council’s mission to foster creativity and cultural engagement in the community bringing “art in the everyday!”  more

“Beyond Boundaries” at Artists’ Gallery This June

“MOONLIGHT FANTASY”: This oil on canvas painting by Jane Adriance is featured in “Beyond Boundaries,” her joint exhibition with Joe Kazimierczyk, on view June 6 through June 30 at Artists’ Gallery in Lambertville.

Artist’s Gallery will present “Beyond Boundaries,” an exhibition showcasing the abstracted realities of painter Jane Adriance and the inspiring landscape paintings of Joe Kazimierczyk, June 6 to June 30 at Artists’ Gallery, 18 Bridge Street, Lambertville.

Viewers are invited to witness how these artists are pushing the boundaries of imagination, offering fresh perspectives for all to explore, and meet the artists at their opening reception on Saturday, June 8, from 5 to 7 pm.  more

“Garden Patch”

Paintings by Michael Schweigart  are on view in the dining room at Bell’s Tavern, 183 North Union Street, Lambertville, through June 30. An exhibiting member artist at Artists’ Gallery in Lambertville, Schweigart relishes taking the road less traveled when possible, creating paintings inspired by scenes along the way.  

Johnson Park Elementary School’s Koko Fund Helps Students Engage in After-School Programs

“SMALL FUND, BIG IMPACT”: “‘Small Fund, Big Impact’ is our motto, and it’s so true! For 18 years, our Johnson Park Koko Fund has assisted Johnson Park students experiencing financial hardship by subsidizing enrichment programs they can join.” Koko Fund co-chairs Philip Arnold and Deirdre von Roemer are proud of the fund’s contributions in offering students an opportunity to participate in a variety of activities.

By Jean Stratton

If you don’t have students attending Johnson Park (JP) Elementary School, the Koko Fund may be unknown to you.

But it is such an important program, providing opportunities and enrichment to so many children, that it won’t remain unknown for long. Its impact continues to grow, as new students become involved and the community helps provide needed support.

What is it and how did it begin? First of all, Koko is a gorilla! That is: the large stuffed animal version which is the Johnson Park mascot. It reminds the students to: “Be Responsible. Be Respectful. Be Safe. Be Kind. Be Successful.” more

Maintaining Focus as it Juggled Training with Exams, PU Women’s Open Crew Wins Ivy Title, Makes NCAAs

OPENING UP: The Princeton University women’s open varsity 8 churns through the water in recent action. Last Sunday, the varsity 8 placed first in its grand final at the Ivy League Championships in Pennsauken, N.J. The top boat’s victory helped the Tigers win their seventh straight Ivy title and earn the league’s automatic berth to the upcoming NCAA Rowing Championships. The NCAA regatta is taking place from May 31-June 2 at the East Fork/Harsha Lake in Bethel, Ohio. (Photo by Ed Hewitt/Row2k, provided courtesy of Princeton Athletics)

By Bill Alden

Although the Princeton University women’s open rowers had to juggle exams last week with preparing for the Ivy League Championships, they didn’t let that detract from their training.

“They did a really nice job balancing the academic demands with testing and rowing,” said Princeton head coach Lori Dauphiny. “They were just very focused in their approach. I think that is a testament to the team.” more

Lifted by Junior Star Barlag’s Finishing Touch, PHS Boys’ Lacrosse Makes Run to MCT Final

FINISHING TOUCH: Princeton High boys’ lacrosse player Braden Barlag heads past two Lawrenceville B players last week in the Mercer County Tournament semis. Junior attacker Barlag scored a career-best seven goals in the May 14 game as third-seeded PHS topped the Big Red 19-11. Two days later, Barlag tallied four goals and one assist but it wasn’t enough as the Tigers fell 16-11 to fifth-seeded and host Hopewell Valley in the MCT final. PHS, now 11-7, will be starting action in the New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association (NJSIAA) North Jersey Group 3 tournament this week where they are seeded ninth and will play at eighth-seeded Northern Highlands in a first round contest on May 24. (Photo by Frank Wojciechowski)

By Bill Alden

While Braden Barlag has piled up a lot of goals this spring for the Princeton High boys’ lacrosse team, he readily acknowledges that his production results from a group effort.

“It is amazing having two of the best players in the state,” said junior attacker Barlag, referring to Tiger senior star attacker Patrick Kenah and junior standout midfielder Brendan Beatty. “They are the best teammates you could ask for, and two of the best leaders. We have some other great players like Jason Singer and Alex Famiglietti. They are great dudes to play with and great guys. I love being on the team with them. They hit me on the stick every time so I can just step and shoot it. It is just an honor to play with them.” more

Trkov Displays Her Versatility for PHS Girls’ Track, Anchoring 2 Relays at Mercer County Championships

By Justin Feil

Mila Trkov has been adjusting to her first year of track and field with the Princeton High girls’ squad.

The freshman took another big step by anchoring two of the Tigers’ highest placing events at the Mercer County Championships on Friday and Saturday at Robbinsville High, the 4×800 and the 4×400 relays. She has toggled between the sprints and the distance group as a runner who can help both relay teams.

“It was definitely really scary because there was like that pressure that now we can score points,” said Trkov. “I was in the relays for the 4×8 and the 4×4 so I didn’t want to let my team down, and you know my group down. So there was definitely some nervousness from that as well as my additional pre-race anxiety.” more

With Balewitz Starring in Stretch Run for Hun Baseball, Raiders Earned Triple Crown of MAPL, MCT, Prep A Titles

HAVING A BLAST: Hun School baseball player E.J. Balewitz makes contact in the Mercer County Tournament final last Thursday at Trenton Thunder Ballpark as second-seeded Hun defeated top-seeded Lawrence 10-2 to win the title. Senior catcher Balewitz, who blasted a walk-off homer as Hun edged Robbinsville 5-4 in the MCT semis, helped Hun end the season with the Prep A state title as it defeated Lawrenceville 8-7 in the final round of the double-elimination competition last Saturday. The Raiders, who finished the spring with a 20-5 record, became the first team in program history to win the MAPL (Mid-Atlantic Prep League) title, MCT crown, and Prep A championship in the same season. (Photo by Steven Wojtowicz)

By Bill Alden

From May 11-18, the Hun School baseball team faced a playoff gauntlet as it competed in both the Mercer County Tournament and Prep A state tourney.

Rising to the occasion and getting contributions throughout its roster, Hun ran the table, going 3-0 in the MCT on the way to winning its second county crown in three years and 3-0 in the Prep A as it earned its second straight title in the competition. more

Sophomore Jolly Provided Spark at Leadoff Spot As Hun Softball Advanced to Prep A State Final

LEADING ROLE: Hun School softball player Sam Jolly lays down a bunt in a 2023 game. Last week, sophomore second baseman and leadoff hitter Jolly starred as top-seeded Hun defeated fifth-seeded Lawrenceville 3-0 in the Prep A state semis. Jolly went 2 for 2 with a walk, run, and RBI in the May 14 contest. Two days later, Jolly went 1 for 3 with a run in a losing cause as the Raiders feel 3-2 to third-seeded Pingry in the Prep A final. Hun ended the spring with an 18-3 record. (Photo by Frank Wojciechowski)

By Bill Alden

Sam Jolly’s uniform was covered with dirt stains after the Hun School softball team defeated visiting Lawrenceville 3-0 in the Prep A state semi last week.

Those stains were badges of honor for Jolly as she sparked the Hun hitting attack from her leadoff spot, going 2 for 2 with a walk, run, and RBI helping the top-seeded Raiders edge the fifth-seeded Big Red. more