Artistic creations that depict protecting and caring for open spaces will be the centerpieces of a show at the Cooperative Gallery of Westerly beginning tomorrow. The works above and below will be among those shown.

Theater

The Producers: Theatre By the Sea, 364 Cards Pond Rd., Matunuck, presents its last performances of The Producers, based on Mel Brooks’ Academy Award-winning 1968 film, through Sunday.

Performances are scheduled for Wednesday and Friday at 8 p.m.; Thursday at 2 and 8 p.m.; Saturday at 4:30 and 8:30 p.m.; and Sunday at 5 p.m. Tickets range from $39 to $49, with student rush tickets, at $15, available on a limited basis one hour prior to curtain time the day of the performance. For reservations, call 782-TKTS (8587). In addition, discounts are available for groups of 20 or more by calling 782-3800, ext 18.

Granite Theatre: The Long Weekend, a comedy by Canadian playwright Norm Foster, is on stage at Westerly’s Granite Theatre, 1 Granite St., through Sunday.

Performances are at 8 p.m. Thursday, Friday and Saturday, and Sunday at 2 p.m. Tickets are $18, $15 for senior citizens and $11 for children. For reservations, call 596-2341.

Foster’s comedy Opening Night will run Sept. 5 through 28, while My Fair Lady opens Oct. 10.

URI auditions: The University of Rhode Island Theatre Department will conduct auditions Sept. 2 and 3 for its fall productions of Small Tragedy, by Craig Lucas, and Rodgers and Hammerstein’s Oklahoma!

Auditions for the former will run from 6 to 10 p.m., in Studio J of the Fine Arts Center, 105 Upper College Rd., Kingston, and from 7 to 10 p.m. in G Studio for Oklahoma! Callbacks will be Sept. 4 from 6 to 10.

Rehearsals will begin Sept. 9 for Small Tragedy, with performances Oct. 9 through 12, and 16 through 19. Oklahoma! will begin rehearsing Oct. 6.

Actors should prepare and memorize a 1- to 2- minute contemporary monologue that emphasizes simple, plain speech, telling a story with a sense of humor and displaying a tendency towards youthful honesty and directness. Music should be in the proper key; a pianist will be provided. Auditioners for Oklahoma! will also be asked to perform a brief choreographed dance routine in a group of eight.

For information or to sign up, call 874-5921.

Music

Rhythm & Roots: Charlestown will host its annual Rhythm & Roots Festival this weekend at Ninigret Park, 4813 Old Post Rd. Hours are 4 p.m. to midnight Friday, and noon to midnight Saturday and Sunday. Tickets are $30 to $160, with senior discounts, and free to children 12 and under.

The host band will be the Pine Leaf Boys, playing all three days. Friday’s lineup includes Bill Kirchen & Too Much Fun, Paul Geremia, Johnny Nicholas & the Texas All Stars, Great American Taxi w/Vince Herman of Leftover Salmon, and Scythian. Performing Saturday will be the Keb’ Mo’ Band, The Waybacks, Marcia Ball & the LA/TX Revue, Red Stick Ramblers, Steve Riley & the Mamou Playboys, Nathan & the Zydeco Cha Chas, and Dan Hicks & the Hot Licks. Sunday will feature the Robert Cray Band, Ed Poullard, Preston Frank & Corey Ledet, the David Bromberg Quartet, Curley Taylor & Zydeco Trouble, Donna the Buffalo, Steve Riley & the Mamou Playboys and The Gourds. The festival will also feature children’s performances and activities, dance lessons and evening dances to Louisiana dance bands, and Cajun food.

For information or advance tickets, call 1-888-855-6940.

Concert at Towers: The Towers, 35 Ocean Rd., Narragansett, will host its last summer evening of music for dancing when Steve Riley and the Mamou Playboys, with the Pine Leaf Boys, play Cajun/Zydeco and more, tomorrow night from 7 to 10. Admission is $20, free to children under 9. For information, call 782-2597.

Men’s chorus performs: The Men’s Chorus of Jamestown will present its annual summer concert Saturday night at 7:30 at the Jamestown Community Center, 41 Conanicus Ave., Jamestown. Admission is $5.

Free concert: The Ted Collins Band will perform next Monday from noon to 1:30 p.m. at the Narragansett Town Beach’s North Pavilion. Admission is free.

Choral auditions: The Chorus of Westerly is conducting auditions for new singers Sept. 2 and 3 at its hall, 119 High St., Westerly.

Singers will be judged on sight-reading ability, intonation, tonal quality, range and general music response. The group rehearses Thursday evening, Sept 4 through June. For information or to schedule an audition, call 596-8663.

Exhibits

Hera show: Hera Gallery, 327 Main St., Wakefield, presents “Troy West: Portraits, a Six-Decade Retrospective,” running Sept. 4 through Oct. 9. An opening reception is scheduled for Sept. 6 from 6 to 8 p.m., with a gallery talk Sept. 20 at 1 p.m.

Winning photos displayed: The winning entries from the South County Tourism Council’s seventh annual photo contest are on view at the Courthouse Center for the Arts, on Route 138 in West Kingston, through Sept. 10.

Wickford exhibit: The Wickford Art Association Gallery, 36 Beach St., Wickford, presents “An Exhibition of Collage,” an open juried show featuring work selected by collage artist Kim Salerno, running Aug. 29 through Sept.17, with an opening reception Sunday from 1 to 3 p.m.

Gallery hours are 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., Tuesday through Saturday; and Sunday from noon to 4 p.m. For information, call 294-6840.

Westerly shows: “Transmutations: An Exhibition of Four Westerly Artists,” featuring work by Charlie Clough, Marcia Felber, Pamela Markham and Read McKendree, will be on display through Sept. 26 at the Industrial Trust Bank Building, 14 High St., Westerly, beginning with an opening reception Friday from 6 to 9 p.m. Clough will present a talk Sept. 3 at 8 p.m.

Gallery hours are 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., Wednesday through Saturday.

The September show at the Artists’ Cooperative Gallery of Westerly, 12 High St., Westerly, is entitled “A Poem Lovely as a Tree,” and has a theme of protecting and caring for our open spaces, parks and land trusts. It will run tomorrow through Sept. 20, with an opening reception Sept. 3 from 5 to 8 p.m.

Art stroll: Westerly’s monthly art stroll runs from 5 to 8 p.m. the first Wednesday of the month, when downtown studios and galleries are open to the public.

Museum show: Watercolors by Jane Dean of Wickford and oils by East Greenwich artist Tom Martino will be on view at the Gilbert Stuart Museum, 815 Gilbert Stuart Rd., Saunderstown, through next Monday.

Gallery hours are 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., Thursday through Monday.

Library exhibits: The Cross’ Mills Public Library, 4417 Old Post Rd., Charlestown, will feature the works of Frances Topping, through August.

Work by West Kingston resident Lois James is on display at the Kingston Free Library, 2605 Kingstown Rd., Kingston, through September.

Native American exhibit: Exeter’s Tomaquag Museum, 390 Summit Rd., is hosting an exhibit, entitled “The Pursuit of Happiness: An Indigenous View.”

The exhibit was developed in response to the Rhode Island Council for the Humanities’ call for proposals looking at the Declaration of Independence’s claim of every American having the “inalienable right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.” It is a collaborative effort between Narragansett tribal leaders, Tomaquag Indian Memorial Museum professionals, historians and educators, who share their views on the notion of what happiness is today for the indigenous people of Rhode Island.

Also on view is a special exhibit entitled “Promoting Dialogue: Lessons Learned From Ellison ‘Tarzan’ Brown.” Brown, a Narragansett Indian, won the Boston Marathon in 1936 and 1939, and competed in the 1936 Olympics.

For information, call 491-9063 or 364-7773.

Education exhibit: “Education for All: Schools and Schooling in South Kingstown, 1780-1920” is an exhibit featuring photographs, books, documents and artifacts from the collections of the Pettaquamscutt Historical Society, on display at the Old Washington County Jail, Route 138, Kingston, through Oct. 16.

The exhibit documents the establishment of a public school system in South Kingstown, through the 18 and 19th centuries.

Art association show: The South County Art Association, 2587 Kingstown Rd., Kingston, will host its members’ annual through August.

The association is also taking donations of artwork for its annual “Great Art Heist” fundraiser, scheduled for Sept. 20, through August, during gallery hours of 1 to 5 p.m., Wednesday through Sunday.

Rehearsals

Choir rehearsals open: The choir of St. Paul’s Episcopal Church is open to high school students and adults, and rehearses at the church, 55 Main St., Wickford, Thursdays from 7:30 to 9:30 p.m., and Sunday at 10 a.m., prior to the morning service. For more information, call Mark Steinbach at 294-4357, ext. 106.

Rehearsals in Jamestown: The Jamestown Community Chorus rehearses each Monday at 7 p.m. at Central Baptist Church, 99 Narragansett Ave., Jamestown. There are no auditions. For more information, call 423-1574 or 423-3342.

Choral rehearsals: The North Kingstown Community Chorus rehearses each Tuesday from 6:30 to 9 p.m. at Forest Park Elementary School, 50 Woodlawn Drive, North Kingstown. The group’s Youth Chorus rehearses from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m., also at the school. For information, call 294-3003.

Lafayette Band: The Lafayette Band rehearses every Wednesday from 7 to 8:30 p.m., except summer, at the North Kingstown High School Band Room, 150 Fairway Drive, North Kingstown. New musicians are welcome. Information is available at www.lafayette-band.com.

Westerly Band: The Westerly Band rehearses each Wednesday night from 7:30 to 9:30 at the Westerly Armory. For more information, call Hope Benn at 596-9224.

Wakefield Civic Band: The Wakefield Civic Band rehearses each Monday night at 7, except summer, at South Kingstown High School, 215 Columbia St., Wakefield. For information, call 294-7101.

Wakefield Chorus: The Wakefield Chorus rehearses at Peace Dale Elementary School, on Kersey Road, Peace Dale, each Tuesday and Thursday from 7 to 8 p.m. For more information, call 783-6110.

Jamestown Band: The Jamestown Community Band rehearses each Tuesday night at 7 at the Portuguese American Citizens Club, on Narragansett Avenue in Jamestown.

Art classes

Open studio: The Wickford Art Association gallery hosts an open studio each Monday that features long-pose figure drawing on even dates, and portraiture on odd. Each runs from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., and the fee is $10.