By Craig Horleman

EDITOR'S NOTE: Tickets for Saturday's events are sold out.

After a two-year hiatus, one of the area’s most anticipated events is back this weekend.

Harvest Ridge Winery will host its largest annual event, the Food Truck Competition, today and Saturday.

It is the Marydel winery’s sixth year of hosting the event, which hasn’t waned in popularity in the two years it had to be canceled due to the pandemic.

“We just hit 3,000 tickets purchased and we’re hoping for a sellout by the time people come through the door,” said Shannon Martin, Harvest Ridge Winery social media manager, Wednesday afternoon.

“People seem very interested.”

She said this is a good time to have such an event.

“It’s happening during the time of year before people go on vacation but after the long, hard winter. So they are looking to get out and sample food and also some wine or cider,” Ms. Martin said.

She said they hope to have a record 30 food trucks this year vying for bragging rights and a trophy.

The event features a diverse group of trucks — serving up everything from Southern comfort food to Mediterranean, pizza, cupcakes, ice cream and more. Event attendees vote on their favorite food truck in both sweet and savory categories.

Savory trucks include Field of Dreams, Mojo Loco, Polish Connection, Woody’s on Wheels, Ma & Pa’s Tex-Mex, Meatwagon BBQ, Delaware Provisions, Outlandish, Plum Pit, Crazy Rick’s and The Hungry Spork.

Sweet vehicles include Frozen Farmer, Cupcake Carnival and W.A. Treats.

VIP tickets for the event are sold out and online sales have ceased as of midnight, but daily and weekend passes will be available at the gate.

The competition will run today from 4 to 9 p.m. and Saturday from noon to 8 p.m.

Tickets are $20 for each day or $30 for a weekend pass. Daily ticket holders enjoy access to food trucks and entertainment, a logo glass, voting tickets and one drink ticket.

Nondrinker tickets are $10 with access to food trucks and entertainment.

The ever-popular Mike Hines and The Look will entertain from 6 to 9 p.m. today. Saturday brings the duo of Rivers and Rhodes from 1 to 4 p.m. and the eclectic sounds of Middle 8 from 4:30 to 7:30 p.m.

There will also be lawn games and an expanded kids’ area with games, activities, face painting and inflatables for the younger set. Kids under 16 are admitted free.

Through past food truck competitions, Harvest Ridge Winery has donated over $90,000 to local veterans organizations. In 2019, they raised more than $20,000 and this year they look to raise even more with a goal of $30,000.

Beneficiaries of the event are the Hero-Hunts Foundation and the local chapter of the Disabled American Veterans.

“These are charities near and dear to the (owner) Nunan family. It is a part of the Harvest Ridge culture. Our focus is the military and helping children,” Ms. Martin said.

The mission of the Hero-Hunts Foundation is to recognize those who have served and sacrificed for our country by providing them the opportunity to reconnect with the outdoors. In the past, the foundation has taken local military families on deer hunts. This year, Ms. Martin said the goal of the foundation is to take five families to Disney World.

The Food Truck Competition will be held at the winery at 447 Westville Road in Marydel. Full information can be found here  and on their Facebook page.

Old State House concert

Today, Delaware Friends of Folk will present the next event in their 2021-22 Old State House concert series, inside the Old State House on The Green in Dover.

This month’s show features local trio MGO. Musically Generated Organism is comprised of Mikel Campbell, George Harvey and Ossi Becke. The three members share common musical roots with influences spanning traditional folk and blues to pop and punk.

MGO puts forth a unique blend of Americana music. Mr. Campbell sings and plays bouzouki and bass, Mr. Harvey sings and plays guitar and bass while Mr. Becke plays a variety of hand drums and percussion.

This is the eighth season in the series, which is produced in cooperation with the Delaware Division of Historical and Cultural Affairs and First State Heritage Park and is supported by a grant from the Kent County Fund for the Arts.

The one-hour performance will begin at 7:30 p.m. The concert is free.

Evening with the Arts

Delaware Ballet will present An Evening with the Arts featuring innovative works by choreographers Meredith Rainey, Ryan Batchelor and more Saturday at 2 and 7 p.m. at the Kent County Theatre Guild, 140 Roosevelt Ave., Dover.

The 2 p.m. show is a matinee for all ages while the evening performance is for those 21 and over and will include a catered cocktail hour and cash bar along with live music by Chvnce.

Also featured at the theatre will be an exhibit by visual artist Yarissa Luna.

Tickets for the matinee are $10 for children and seniors and $15 for adults. Tickets for the evening show are $35.

A limited amount of tickets are on sale at the School of Delaware Ballet, 177 Old Camden Road, Camden, or by calling 302-698-1340.

Women’s Fest

CAMP Rehoboth’s Women’s Fest will bring entertainment and special events to Rehoboth Beach this weekend.

Tonight, Chely Wright, an American country music singer and LGBTQ activist, and opener and Delaware native Christine Havrilla will take the stage at the Rehoboth Beach Convention Center. Doors open at 6:45 p.m. for pass holders and sponsors and at 7:15 p.m. for general seating.

Then, on Saturday, the Funny Girlz show will take place at 7:30 p.m. in the Rehoboth Beach Convention Center. The trio of Lisa Koch, Vickie Shaw and Roxanna Ward will perform stand-up, sing, play piano and entertain.

Popular local author and humorist Fay Jacobs will be back with her one-woman show, “Still Aging Gracelessly,” Sunday at 3 p.m.

Women’s Fest will also bring new shows from singer and songwriter Regina Sayles, returning by popular demand.

Besides shows, Women’s Fest offers workshops; speakers; community service opportunities; art shows; sporting events such as the Fest Golf Outing, Nine-Hole Golf Scramble, Fest Pickleball Tournament and Beach Cornhole Doubles Tournament; and an auction.

For tickets and more information, visit here.

Mochrie at Grand

Colin Mochrie, a star of the long-running “Whose Line Is It, Anyway?,” joins forces with master hypnotist Asad Mecci for the return of their hit show “HYPROV: Improv Under Hypnosis.”

Tickets for the Saturday show at The Grand in Wilmington are on sale here.

The show begins with Mr. Mecci welcoming 20 volunteers on stage to be hypnotized. He whittles them down to four or five of the most susceptible and then brings Mr. Mochrie out to improvise with them — while they are under hypnosis.

Thirty volunteers are needed to fill 20 stage seats. Those interested in participating in the interactive show must sign up in advance through the venue after purchasing tickets. Volunteers must present proof of full vaccination to participate on stage or a negative COVID-19 test within 72 hours of the show.

Sons of Serendip

Vocal/instrumental quartet and “America’s Got Talent” Season 9 finalists, Sons of Serendip, are bringing their sound to Madden Auditorium at Seaford High School, 399 N. Market St., Saturday at 7:30 p.m.

The previously scheduled artist, Mark Kingswood, a British artist, canceled all of his North American performances, bringing Sons of Serendip to perform instead.

Sons of Serendip is a quartet featuring harp, piano, cello and vocals. Their ethereal and emotionally stirring orchestral acoustic interpretations of pop music, arranged with unique instrumentals, captured the hearts of fans, judges and audiences all around the world.

The Billboard charting quartet is gaining popularity by offering fresh interpretations of popular music with unique instrumentation.

The Seaford Community Concert Association has been providing Sussex County and the surrounding area with entertainment for 73 seasons. A donation of a canned food or foodstuff is requested.

For more information, call 302-841-2891 or go the SCCA website.

Mayfield milestone

Finally, Dover hip-hop artist and poet Amillion Mayfield recently reached a new milestone.

One of the new voices on iHeart Radio with his 1NA radio show, he recently reached 300,000 listeners Sunday, the same day as his daughter Aaliyah’s birthday.

Mr. Mayfield also plans to release a new NFT and music project titled “#1NAFlows” April 15.

The radio show has served as a platform for Mr. Mayfield’s record label, 1NA Records.

In addition, local businesses can sponsor commercials and promotions. “I wouldn’t be who I am and where I am without the local support of the city and state. It began with me being the voice of my community and now it’s evolving into giving the community a voice,” he said.

For more information on the radio show, contact 1NARadioShow@gmail.com. To find more information on Mr. Mayfield, visit linktr.ee/AmillionThePoet.

Now showing

New this weekend in theaters is the Jake Gyllenhaal action film “Ambulance” and the sequel “Sonic the Hedgehog 2.”