Myriad organizations and institutions have preserved its homespun
traditions, as well as collected and produced art, music, and literature
any city would be proud to claim. Here’s an intro to life beyond the
Bay Bridge.

The Eastern Shore Writers Association helps nurture aspiring
scribes. On April 6, Lynn Schwartz, founder of Writer’s Wordhouse, will
conduct a workshop titled: “Fiction: Ten Steps to a Great Tale”
in Easton to help others perfect their storytelling skills. ESWA is
also planning a poetry workshop with Oxford-based award-winning poet Sue
Ellen Thompson in May. easternshorewriters.org.

Photographs by Chestertown RiverArts artist Richard Hallwill be featured at Chestertown’s Imperial Hotel this month in Dishabille, a show highlighting Hall’s attempt to find beauty in abandoned places being “returned” to nature. Through April 7. chestertownriverarts.org.

The always-active Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum is winging it with Crisfield Carvings—Bird Hunting on Broad Water, pictured, an
exhibit highlighting the distinctive decoy-carving tradition of the
tiny Tangier Sound hamlet of Crisfield. The show will include decoys
representing a wide variety of birds, as well as artwork by renowned
carver Lem Ward. April 13-Nov. 3. cbmm.org.

The Academy Art Museum in Easton is a quiet gem having hosted work by Rothko and Mondrian, among others. This month, it opensJames Turrell Perspectives, an
exhibition of the famed light and space artist’s work, which is running
concurrent to the part-time Eastern Shore resident’s retrospectives at
the Guggenheim, the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, and the Los Angeles
County Museum. Apr. 20-July 7. academyartmuseum.org.

“Mr. Las Vegas” on the Eastern Shore? Believe it. Wayne Newton will play Easton’s historic Avalon Theatre on April 19, wooing the crowd with his smooth voice and charisma. 8 p.m. avalontheatre.com.

The 4th annual WineFestat St. Michaels returns
this month with hundreds of local, domestic, and international wines to
sample, as well as award-winning craft beers from Eastern Shore
Brewing. There will also be a celebration to commemorate the 200th
anniversary of the attack on the town during the War of 1812. The Sunday
finale called “JazzFest comes to WineFest,” will feature some of the
region’s finest jazz. April 27-28, 12-6 p.m. winefestatstmichaels.com.