Reported by us | Fall River

Beyond Halloween: blues, bluegrass, poetry and moonlit walks on the South Coast, Oct. 26 to Nov. 1

Eight picks for the week that have nothing to do with costumes, from back-to-back nights of live music in Fall River to a free authors gathering at the Whaling Museum.

By the SC360 Community Desk | Published Oct. 25, 2026 | Last verified Oct. 25, 2026, 8:16 p.m. ET

FALL RIVER The Narrows Center for the Arts in Fall River has live music two nights running this week: Texas blues-rock guitarist Ally Venable on Wednesday, Oct. 28, and East Nash Grass, the Nashville band that won the International Bluegrass Music Association's best new artist award in 2024, on Thursday, Oct. 29.

They lead our picks for Monday, Oct. 26, through Sunday, Nov. 1, in Fall River, New Bedford, Westport and Dartmouth. Our two Halloween guides already cover the costume parties, story times and the Zeiterion's Halloween week shows, so this list sticks to music, words and the outdoors.

How we chose

The picks are public events in the towns South Coast 360 covers between Oct. 26 and Nov. 1 that are not Halloween events, sell tickets to the public or are free, and were listed on the organizer's own page when we read it Sunday, Oct. 25. Some programs cap sign-ups at 20, so register early. No organizer paid to be listed.

Music

• Ally Venable, Fall River Narrows Center for the Arts, 16 Anawan St. Wednesday, Oct. 28. Doors open at 7 p.m. and the show starts at 8 p.m. Tickets are $35 in advance and $38 the day of the show, with fees included. Venable, a singer, songwriter and guitarist from Kilgore, Texas, picked up the guitar at 12 and names Stevie Ray Vaughan as an early influence, the venue says.
• East Nash Grass, Fall River Narrows Center for the Arts, 16 Anawan St. Thursday, Oct. 29. Doors open at 7 p.m. and the show starts at 8 p.m. Tickets are $30 in advance and $32 the day of the show, with fees included. After its 2024 award, the band was nominated for the association's entertainer of the year in 2025, and fiddler Maddie Denton was named fiddler of the year, according to the venue.

Words

• The People's Poetry, New Bedford New Bedford Art Museum, 608 Pleasant St. Wednesday, Oct. 28, 6 to 8 p.m. Free. Poets and spoken word artists are invited to read original work or poems that move them, and listeners are welcome too. The open night runs the last Wednesday of every month, and the museum asks guests to RSVP.
• National Authors Day, New Bedford New Bedford Whaling Museum, 18 Johnny Cake Hill. Sunday, Nov. 1, 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Free. The writing group Write With Community hosts local authors Gail Braccidiferro MacDonald, Elizabeth Sylvia, Melinda Green, Marjory O'Toole and Linda Coombs, who will talk about how they write. A place-based writing workshop for all skill levels follows.

Outdoors and nature

• Evening Hike Under the Hunter's Moon, Westport Westport Woods, Monday, Oct. 26, 6:45 p.m. The Westport Land Conservation Trust leads an all-ages hike of about 1.5 miles under the full Hunter's Moon. The ground can be wet with exposed roots, so wear sturdy closed-toe shoes and bring a headlamp. No pets, a limit of 20 people, and registration is through the trust's site.
• Save South Coast Wildlife from Rodenticides, Dartmouth Dartmouth Natural Resources Trust, 318 Chase Road, or online. Tuesday, Oct. 27, 5:30 to 7 p.m. Free; the program is for adults. Mass Audubon's Rescue Raptors team, the local group Save South Coast Wildlife and wildlife rehabilitator Susan Siegel of Return2Wild lead the program on rat poison, which Mass Audubon says sickens and kills raptors, foxes and other predators that eat poisoned rodents. Register with Mass Audubon to attend in person, or join by Zoom.
• Trail work party, Dartmouth Destruction Brook Woods, 205 Slades Corner Rd. Wednesday, Oct. 28, 9 a.m. to noon. Volunteers with the Dartmouth Natural Resources Trust trim hedges, clear any downed trees and fix up an access point before the trust's 12th annual trail race on Saturday, Nov. 14, which has a 5K and a 10-mile course.
• Bats Before Bedtime, Westport Westport Woods Learning Center, Wednesday, Oct. 28, 6 p.m. A short indoor talk on the bats that live in New England, a bat craft and a short walk around the garden at dusk, for families with school-age children. No pets, a limit of 20, and registration is through the trust's site.

Before you go

Daylight saving time ends at 2 a.m. Sunday, Nov. 1, so set clocks back an hour Saturday night.

Ticket prices and times are as the organizers listed them Sunday. Weather can cancel the outdoor programs, so check the organizer's page the day of the event.

Label: Reported by us, from the town's posted records.

Notes

Every listing comes from the organizer's own page: the Narrows Center's box office pages, the New Bedford Art Museum, Mass Audubon, the Westport Land Conservation Trust and the Dartmouth Natural Resources Trust. The authors day comes from Write With Community's own page, with the free admission from Viva Fall River's events calendar, and the clock change from the National Institute of Standards and Technology. We read them all on Oct. 25. We checked each date and weekday against a calendar.

Corrections

No corrections to this story. If something here is wrong, tell us. Every correction is dated on the story and listed in our public log.

Sources (12)

1. Narrows Center box office: Ally VenableWednesday, Oct. 28, 2026; doors 7 p.m., show 8 p.m.; $35 advance, $38 day of show, all-in pricing; artist description. Read Oct. 25, 2026.
2. Narrows Center box office: East Nash GrassThursday, Oct. 29, 2026; doors 7 p.m., show 8 p.m.; $30 advance, $32 day of show, all-in pricing; the 2024 IBMA award, the 2025 nomination and Maddie Denton's fiddler of the year win. Read Oct. 25, 2026.
3. Narrows Center for the Arts: upcoming eventsLists Ally Venable Oct. 28 and East Nash Grass Oct. 29. Read Oct. 25, 2026.
4. New Bedford Art Museum: The People's PoetryWednesday, Oct. 28, 6 to 8 p.m., free, every last Wednesday of the month, RSVP. Read Oct. 25, 2026.
5. Write With Community: Celebrate National Authors Day with Write With CommunityOrganizer's page: Sunday, Nov. 1, 2026, 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., New Bedford Whaling Museum, 18 Johnny Cake Hill; the five authors; the two-part program, open to the public, all skill levels. Read Oct. 25, 2026.
6. Viva Fall River: Celebrate National Authors Day with Write With CommunitySunday, Nov. 1, 2026, 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., free, at the New Bedford Whaling Museum; the five authors and the two-part program. Read Oct. 25, 2026.
7. Westport Land Conservation Trust: Evening Hike Under the Hunter's MoonMon. Oct. 26, 6:45 p.m., Westport Woods; about 1.5 miles, all ages, what to bring, no pets, limit 20. Read Oct. 25, 2026.
8. Mass Audubon: Save South Coast Wildlife from RodenticidesTue., Oct. 27, 2026, 5:30 to 7 p.m., free, hybrid; in person at Dartmouth Natural Resources Trust, 318 Chase Road, or Zoom; partners named. Read Oct. 25, 2026.
9. Dartmouth Natural Resources Trust: eventsDestruction Brook Woods Trail Work Party, Oct. 28, 9 a.m. to noon, 205 Slades Corner Rd.; 12th Annual Trail Race, Nov. 14, 5K and 10-mile courses. Read Oct. 25, 2026.
10. Westport Land Conservation Trust: Bats Before BedtimeWed. Oct. 28, 6 p.m., Westport Woods; talk at the Learning Center, craft, dusk garden walk; school-age families; no pets, limit 20. Read Oct. 25, 2026.
11. NIST: Daylight Saving TimeDuring 2026, daylight saving time runs from March 8 at 2 a.m. to Nov. 1 at 2 a.m., local time. Read Oct. 25, 2026.
12. Wikimedia Commons: APC Storehouse, lowerLead photo: the American Printing Company's lower storehouse on Anawan Street, home of the Narrows Center for the Arts, March 24, 2013, by Marc N. Belanger (Marcbela), CC0. Read Oct. 25, 2026.

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