The Leland Township Public Library, the Old Art Building, The Suttons Bay-Bingham District Library and Bay Books, invite the community to a literary evening featuring author Kimberly Warner in conversation with her uncle, acclaimed Michigan filmmaker Rich Brauer. The event will be held on Wednesday, July 1, 2026, at the Old Art Building, in Leland. The evening will begin with a wine reception at 5:30 pm, followed by a conversation at 6.
Our story series celebrating songs inspired by Leelanau County and the Sleeping Bear Dunes continues with Seth Bernard’s “Manitou,” an instrumental that he wrote in June 2019 during a residency sponsored by the Old Art Building in Leland. “I wrote this simple piece on acoustic guitar looking out over the islands near Van’s Beach around sundown,” said Bernard. “It’s a little magic carpet ride to that peaceful, serene, early summer Leelanau sunset vibe. Bernard returns to the Old Art Building on April 24 at 7 pm for an Earth Week-themed concert.
It’s a movie house. It’s a venue for concerts. It’s a gathering place for members of the community. It’s a working non-profit. The Bay Theatre in Suttons Bay is all of those. “This building has so much history,” says Graham Powers, executive director of the Bay Community Theatre Organization. Built in 1920, it originally served as a livery stable and fire station. It wasn’t until 1946 that it was transformed into a movie theatre. “There’s a great need for keeping these spaces alive,” says Powers. Alive and live, as in the theatre’s “Live at the Bay” series. On March 16, the Bay welcomes Kennedy’s Kitchen for its annual St. Patrick’s Day show. “It’s the fifth year for Kennedy’s Kitchen. It’s become one of our annual favorites. It’s a fun show,” Powers says.
The Bay Community Theatre in Suttons Bay resumes its Made-In-Michigan film series on Sunday, May 19, at 4 pm with “The DJ on Wallaker Hill.” The movie, written and directed by Rich Brauer, is a suspense thriller and homage to Alfred Hitchcock. The film’s story demonstrates how the events that took place at a small wilderness radio station in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula on Christmas Eve 1963, make it difficult to distinguish between a law-abiding citizen and a criminal.