PINEPITCH
PinePitch March 2026
Book It
The month’s series of author events begins on Thursday, March 12, with Mark Oppenheimer discussing his new biography, Judy Blume: A Life, at 6 p.m., at The Country Bookshop, 140 N.W. Broad St., Southern Pines. On Wednesday, March 18, Anita “Spring” Council will talk about her book Southern Roots: Recipes and Stories from Mama Dip’s Daughter, also at 6 p.m. and also at the Country Bookshop. Information can be found at ticketmesandhills.com or at www.weymouthcenter.org.
Dig This
The Sandhills Community College Horticultural Gardens launches its celebration of the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence by hosting Peter Hatch, author, gardener, former director of the gardens and grounds at Monticello and an alum of the SCC landscape and gardening program. Learn all about “Thomas Jefferson’s Revolutionary Gardens at Monticello” at BPAC’s Owens Auditorium on Thursday, March 19, at 1 p.m. You can register at www.sandhills.edu/gardenevents or go to www.ticketmesandhills.com.
It's Not Harvey
Kids ages 9 and under can scoop up all the Easter eggs they can fit in a basket at the village of Pinehurst’s Easter egg hunt at 10:30 a.m. on Saturday, March 28, at Cannon Park, 90 Woods Road, Pinehurst. Leave room for food, beverages and a visit from the Easter Bunny himself. No púcas allowed. For additional info go to www.vopnc.org.
Tristan und Isolde
An Irish princess and a love-drunk tenor — what more could you ask for? The Met Opera supplies both in Richard Wagner’s Tristan und Isolde on the big screen at the Sunrise Theater, 250 N.W. Broad St., Southern Pines on Saturday, March 21 at noon. For information go to www.sunrisetheater.com.
Blockbusters of the Old Sod
The Sunrise Theater will run a triptych of award-winning movies in an Irish film festival beginning with Riverdance on Tuesday, March 10, followed by The Commitments on Wednesday, March 11, and My Left Foot on Thursday, March 12. All films begin at 2 p.m. at 250 N.W. Broad St., Southern Pines. For more information got to www.sunrisetheater.com.
Don't Be Bashful
Enter a magical, fairytale world at a performance of the ballet Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, featuring the music of Bogdan Pavlovsky and the dancers of the National Opera and Ballet of Ukraine, on Wednesday, March 18, at 7 p.m., at BPAC’s Owens Auditorium, 3395 Airport Road, Pinehurst. Tickets begin at $46.01. Yes, we know they don’t make pennies anymore. Go figure. For info and tickets go to www.ticketmesandhills.com.
It's Not Easy Being Green
Except one day a year. In Pinehurst that day is Saturday, March 14, when the village turns every shade of green imaginable for its St. Patrick’s Day Parade, beginning at 10 a.m. The address is 1 Village Green Road W., but all you have to do is follow the crowd. If you need more info go to www.vopnc.org.
Cider House Rules
After the St. Paddy’s Day parade you can motor on down to the James Creek Cider House and Orchards for the North Carolina Cider Association’s March 14 spring fling, the Bloomtime Ciderfest, beginning at 1 p.m. The festival features live music from Whiskey Pines and Chip Perry, food trucks, tours of the orchard, and samples of ciders and meads from 15 producers including Barn Door Ciderworks, Botanist and Barrel, Bull City Ciderworks, Honey Girl Meadery, Noble Cider, Red Clay Ciderworks, Starrlight Mead, Urban Cider Company and, of course, your host James Creek. The address is 172 U.S. 1, Cameron. General admission is $40 with a $60 VIP package. For info go to www.jamescreekciderhouse.com/bloomtime-ciderfest.
Seven Questions with Sheena Easton
Q: When you look at your career now, what surprises you most?
Sheena: I’m always amazed I’m still working and that the fans are still there. I stepped back from the constant album–tour cycle to raise my kids, and I’m so grateful I didn’t have to sacrifice family to keep doing what I love.
Q: You’ve sung “Morning Train (Nine to Five)” for decades. What’s your relationship with that song today?
Sheena: Like any artist, I went through phases. At first it’s exciting. Then you only want to sing the new stuff. Now I look at the audience and see couples grab each other’s hands because it’s “their” song, and that makes me fall in love with it all over again.
Q: “For Your Eyes Only” is such an iconic Bond theme. What has being part of that world meant to you?
Sheena: It was huge for me. It came right after “Morning Train” and took my music to even more places because Bond fans will embrace the theme even if they don’t know the singer. As a kid I was always excited for the new Bond song, so being asked so early in my career felt surreal and still feels like a badge of honor.
Q: Songs like “Strut” and “Sugar Walls” definitely pushed the envelope. How do you see that chapter now?
Sheena: People say I “changed my image,” but really I just grew up. I started as a college kid. By the mid‑’80s I was a woman with more life experience and broader musical tastes. Some folks don’t like to see you change, but you have to pull them along and say, “I’m more grown up now — this is who I am.”
Q: There was controversy around “Sugar Walls” and that famous Tipper Gore list. How did you feel about that?
Sheena: We were on the list of songs kids “shouldn’t” hear and, honestly, I said that’s fine — if you don’t want your children listening, don’t let them. Parents should police what their little ones hear, but adults should decide for themselves. You can’t tell the whole world what art they’re allowed to like.
Q: You’ve worked with legends like Prince. What was he like in the studio with you?
Sheena: Everyone pictures this intense genius — and he was a genius — but in the studio he was relaxed. We laughed a lot, sang Joni Mitchell around the piano, and by the time we hit “record,” it felt like we’d known each other forever. He had a great sense of humor and loved to prank you.
Q: If you could talk to the little girl Sheena who just wanted to sing, what would surprise her most about you now?
Sheena: She’d probably be shocked that I’m “this old.” As a kid I fully believed it would happen; children are dreamers and haven’t been taught to be afraid of failure yet. It was my older self who became less sure it would last this long.
— By Stan Pillman
Sheena Easton performs live at BPAC’s Owens Auditorium, 3395 Airport Rd., Pinehurst, on Friday, March 20 at 7 p.m. For tickets and information go to www.ticketmesandhills.com.