The Hebrew Center is hosting a Shabbat entitled A Different Friday Night tonight, Feb. 10, from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m. This service, led by Rabbi Caryn Broitman, is designed to meet the needs of those raised in a Classical Reform Jewish tradition with a liberal mix of Hebrew and English language prayer. There will be time for questions and melodies from the Classical Reform repertoire.

The sea dogs are headed to the bank, the Chilmark bank to be specific.

This month, through March 2, Lisa Vanderhoop will be holding an exhibit of her photography at the Sovereign Bank located across from the Chilmark Community Center.

She is also branching out. The exhibit features numerous valentine cards of the dogs, cats (what will the sea dogs say?), birds and a host of other animals.

High School Play Airs Good Gossip

Each year the Martha’s Vineyard High School drama department creates an original play from scratch to be taken to the annual METG high school theatre competition. The play is created by the students, alumni and staff at the high school. This year the troupe is traveling with its largest ensemble to date, 32 students.

Love Letters on Stage

On Saturday, Feb. 11, at 7:30 p.m. a production of A.R. Gurney’s play Love Letters will be held at the Unitarian Universalist Society located at 238 Main street in Vineyard Haven.

Love Letters was first performed in 1989 and has since been translated into more than 12 languages and presented all over the world.

Beach Clean-Up

That beach isn’t going to clean itself.

This Saturday, Feb. 11, from 9 a.m. to noon The Trustees of Reservations are hosting a cleanup at Leland Beach on Chappaquiddick. The morning’s work will focus on clearing logs and limbs that have washed up due to the erosion at the southern side of the Island. Volunteers can also walk the beaches to assist with the removal of harmful marine debris.

Volunteers are urged to bring a steel rake if possible, and gloves are advisable.

Short Film Festival

This Saturday and next the folks at the Martha’s Vineyard Film Society are bringing to the Island a cast of short characters. It’s their annual screening of all the Oscar nominated short films.

On Feb. 11, beginning at 7:30 p.m. at the Katharine Cornell Theatre in Vineyard Haven, is a program featuring the five nominees for animated short films, none of which are longer than 15 minutes.

Vintage Voices Show

Vintage Voices are presenting a variety concert on Tuesday, Feb. 14, beginning at 1:30 p.m. at the Tisbury Senior Center. The show features selections from Carousel, Show Boat, Gentlemen Prefer Blondes, Sesame Street, Gigi, Brigadoon, Fiddler on the Roof, Pajama Game, Guys and Dolls, The Sound of Music, and hits from the 30’s, 40’s and 50’s.

Poetry in Chilmark

Valentine’s Day starts on Sunday afternoon, Feb. 12, when the second annual Valentine’s readings gets under way at the Chilmark Tavern. The program is hosted by West Tisbury Poet Laureate, Fan Ogilvie. This is the first in a series of six readings to be presented by the Pathways Projects Institute, a nonprofit organization dedicated to enhancing and catalyzing creative projects in the arts, writings and collaborative forms on the Vineyard.

The five women range in age from 66 to 84, and their goal is to hike every single one of the Martha’s Vineyard Land Bank walking trails. Thus far they have checked off twenty of them, even repeating a few favorites.

Last Sunday the women allowed this reporter to join their hike. We met at 9 a.m. in the parking lot of the Up-Island Cronig’s. The temperature that morning was 29 degrees.

Never mind what the groundhog predicted. Spring is on the way.

Peter Herrmann of Edgartown reports that crocuses are blooming in his yard at 12 South street. Mr. Herrmann said four crocuses are already in full bloom, with several more not very far behind. “They’re lovely,” he said.