The Flying Horse Carousel in Watch Hill listed its last 2026 weekend for September 12 and 13, open 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Paddy's Beach Club in Misquamicut posted that it is closed for the 2026 season and will see customers in the spring. Misquamicut FallFest usually fills the gap between summer and the holidays, but it isn't happening this year. NBC 10 reported on August 3 that the 2026 festival was canceled after its ride provider could not staff the event.
October in Westerly still has plenty going on. More than usual, it is happening on one stage downtown. Look at the United Theatre's fall calendar and you'll see a jazz band that lost its Wakefield venue, a Watch Hill conservation group, the library's Friends group, a local bookstore and a commercial fisheries research foundation. All of them are holding their programs at the United or with it this season.
Who's Booking the United This Fall
Most of the October listings are not the United's own productions. They are other local organizations using its rooms:
- Salt Marsh Opera presents Dvořák's Rusalka in the Black Box Auditorium on October 10 at 3 p.m. and October 11 at 5 p.m.
- Eating with the Ecosystem hosts "A Golden Opportunity: Reimagining Scup" on October 8 at 6 p.m. It's a UNITED Table event about a research project led by the Commercial Fisheries Research Foundation with Quonnie Fish Co. and the URI Food Science Lab.
- The URI Guitar and Mandolin Festival brings Noite Brasileira to the Black Box on October 22 at 8 p.m. The lineup is choro player Ian Coury and his trio, plus a premiere of a work by Yale professor João Luiz Rezende.
- Martin House Books co-hosts two author events. Sofia Warren talks about her debut graphic novel Film Nerds on October 21 at 6 p.m. Susan Lucci appears in conversation with Deborah Goodrich Royce on October 24 at 7 p.m.
- The Watch Hill Conservancy presents a Bat Boy film screening and talk on November 1 at noon.
The Conservancy usually works out at Napatree Point. This time it is holding a program downtown.
The Jazz Band That Needed a New Room
Dan Moretti & Brazilia shows best how the United ended up at the center of things. The band played monthly at Pump House Music Works in Wakefield until it closed in April. According to The Westerly Sun, the United reached out to them afterward. Moretti told the paper that the Pump House "was sold, and they're not going to have music there anymore." He also said the Westerly show "is the first attempt to do jazz there in the front of the house."
"The United's mission is to bring people together to experience live performances, so we reached out to Dan." Tim Cotter, United Theatre, to The Westerly Sun
The first show is Sunday, October 4, at 6 p.m. in the UNITED Gallery Events Space. The band has played together for more than three decades. Moretti, a former Berklee College of Music professor, leads on saxophone and flute, with Oscar Stagnaro on bass, Maxim Lubarsky on piano, Ernesto Diaz on percussion and Steve Langone on drums. Cotter has tentative plans to make the band a regular part of the schedule, so it's a one-off until a second date is posted.
The United has more jazz this month. Jazz on a School Night Open Jam, held October 6 at 7 p.m. in the Knick Music Lab, is open to young performers in grades 6 through 12.
The Book Sale Moves Downstairs and Gets a Window
The Friends of Westerly Library and Wilcox Park hold their annual Used Book Sale October 21 through 24. All proceeds go back to the library and the park. This year the sale is in the first-floor Reading Room, directly to the left of the main entrance. It's usually on the third floor, but Friends president Gail Kahover told The Westerly Sun that ongoing construction and other changes at the library forced the move.
The United is involved here too. Peg Murphy-Bright, the Friends' chair of special events, said the theater is helping broadcast the sale and will display memorabilia about it in its front window. The sale schedule:
| Day | Event | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Mon., Oct. 19 | Friends-only Sip & Shop Preview | 3 to 7 p.m. |
| Tue., Oct. 20 | Dealers Night | Not listed |
| Wed., Oct. 21 | Public sale opens | 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. |
| Thu., Oct. 22 | Public sale | 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. |
| Fri., Oct. 23 | Public sale | 9 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. |
| Sat., Oct. 24 | Bag Sale | 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. |
Westerly High School culinary arts instructor Jamie Finkelstein and his class are providing snacks, and Watch Hill Catering is providing drinks. The United is also running an event in Wilcox Park itself. The Michael DePaola Literary Salon & Open Mic, hosted by Jessica P. Wick, meets outdoors in the park on October 14 at 7 p.m.
The Days That Stack Up
With this many groups booking around the same downtown weekends, several dates now have two or three events back to back. These are the dates to plan around:
| Date | What's on | Where |
|---|---|---|
| Fri., Oct. 2 | Westerly Arts Crawl, 5 to 8 p.m. | Downtown studios |
| Sun., Oct. 11 | Columbus Day Parade, 1 to 3 p.m.; Chorus of Westerly with Chanticleer, 4 p.m.; Rusalka, 5 p.m. | Downtown Westerly and Pawcatuck; George Kent Performance Hall; United Black Box |
| Sat., Oct. 17 | Napatree natural history walk, 9 a.m.; Revolutionary history panel | Napatree Point; Babcock-Smith House Carriage House, 124 Granite St. |
| Sat., Oct. 31 | Halluween and Trunk or Treat, 5 to 7 p.m. | High Street |
| Sun., Nov. 1 | Bat Boy screening and talk, noon; Billy Gilman, 7:30 p.m. | United Theatre |
| Fri., Nov. 6 | Westerly Arts Crawl, 5 to 8 p.m. | Downtown studios |
| Sat., Nov. 7 | Veterans Day Parade, 9:30 to 11 a.m.; Napatree walk | Westerly; Napatree Point |
October 11 is the tightest day. The parade route runs from Westerly High School through downtown Westerly and Pawcatuck and wraps up an hour before the Chorus opens its 68th season. The Chorus season continues with Hodie on November 13 at 6 p.m. and November 14 at 3 p.m. The Babcock-Smith House follows its October panel with a talk on Westerly's World War II history on November 8.
Billy Gilman's show is on the list because of a postponement. It was originally set for September 26 and moved to Sunday, November 1, so check the date on any tickets bought earlier. At Halluween, The Pantry is sponsoring the trunk or treat. At 6 p.m., the UNITED Music School's Drum Corps and Anne Cubberly's Giant Puppets lead a costume parade, and awards go to the best costumes and spookiest screams.
Two programs fill in the stretches between event dates. The Westerly Museum of American Impressionism on Watch Hill Road is showing When Her Eye Met the Sea: Women of the Ogunquit Art Colony, 17 works on loan, through March 7, 2027. The Westerly Historical Society begins airing its documentary program Reflections on public-access television Tuesdays from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m., starting October 6.
What the Shore Still Offers in the Morning
Most evening events this fall are downtown, but the beach is still open in the morning. Rhode Island state beaches stay accessible year-round for coastal walks. Misquamicut State Beach moved to its off-season schedule on September 8, and swimming is now at your own risk. The Napatree Point Conservation Area is open 24 hours a day with no entrance fee, but it has no parking lot of its own.
The Watch Hill Conservancy's free natural history walks on October 17 and November 7 start at 9 a.m. at the Napatree entrance. Each topic, whether plants, birds or marine life, is chosen based on what participants want to see. The walks last about 90 minutes so people can use the free parking along Bay Street. Registration is required, and the Conservancy says light rain won't cancel a walk but a downpour will.
Places for breakfast or lunch near the walks:
- The Cooked Goose, 92 Watch Hill Road, reopened March 9, 2026, after rebuilding from the January 2025 fire. The schedule it reported when it reopened was daily, 7 a.m. to 3 p.m.
- The Bistro at Ocean House serves year-round. Breakfast runs 7 to 11 a.m. Monday through Saturday and 7 to 10 a.m. Sunday, and lunch runs 11 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. daily. Sunday jazz brunch runs from 9:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.
- COAST at Ocean House serves dinner Wednesday through Sunday, 5:30 to 9 p.m.
Paddy's Beach Club is closed for the season, but it still offers event catering year-round.
Fall weekends like these are part of what Kimberly and I keep in mind when we talk with Westerly homeowners about timing, presentation and how the town looks to buyers outside of summer. If you have questions about your Westerly property this season, contact Dan Contino and we'll give you a straight local answer.
