Old Lyme & Niantic Weekend Guide: Faeries, Van Gogh And A Jazz Legend

OLD LYME, CT — Old Lyme's two arts institutions carry the weekend's visual-art side almost entirely between them, while one historic inn's jazz club runs five shows across all four days for anyone chasing live music instead. Niantic, in East Lyme, rounds it out with its weekly farmers market and a standing Sunday brunch tradition.

This Weekend's Arts & Entertainment

• Wee Faerie Village 2026: Gemstone Station, A Town That Rocks — Opens Saturday, 10 a.m.; open Tuesdays through Sundays, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., through Nov. 1. Local artist teams build miniature faerie-sized installations from natural and found materials along a walking trail across the museum campus, a tradition that's drawn more than 250,000 visitors since 2009. Florence Griswold Museum, 96 Lyme St., Old Lyme.
• 44th Annual Benefit Auction — Saturday evening. A gala "night out under the stars" combining an online silent auction of artwork, décor, travel and experiences with a live auction, this year built around a new theme. Florence Griswold Museum, 96 Lyme St., Old Lyme.
• Van Gogh: A Portrait By The Postman Roulin — Saturday, 3 p.m. Actor Ted Zalewski performs a one-man play as Postman Joseph Roulin, one of Van Gogh's closest friends and frequent subjects. $10. Lyme Art Association, 90 Lyme St., Old Lyme.
• Hands-On Creativity & Gallery Tour: Patchwork — Sunday, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. (Hands-On Creativity); 1 to 2 p.m. (Gallery Tour). A drop-in art-making session paired with a guided walk through "Patchwork: Connecticut Artists Consider 250," the museum's exhibition of contemporary art marking the nation's 250th birthday. Florence Griswold Museum, 96 Lyme St., Old Lyme.

This Weekend's Restaurants & Bars

• Bill Charlap Trio — Thursday, Friday and Saturday, 8 to 10 p.m. (doors 7:15 p.m.); with bassist David Wong and drummer Dennis Mackrel on Saturday. The acclaimed jazz pianist brings his trio to the shoreline's premier jazz room for three straight nights of live sets, with dinner reservations available beforehand at the Inn's restaurant. The Side Door Jazz Club at Old Lyme Inn, 85 Lyme St., Old Lyme.
• Bill Charlap Solo Piano: A Conversation in Jazz — Sunday, 3 to 4:30 p.m. (doors 2:15 p.m.), all ages; plus a second trio show that evening, 8 to 10 p.m. Charlap closes out his four-night run with an intimate solo matinee before returning with the full trio. Free parking; no refunds. The Side Door Jazz Club at Old Lyme Inn, 85 Lyme St., Old Lyme.
• Sunday Brunch — Sunday, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. A standing weekly brunch tradition at this Niantic favorite, which otherwise serves dinner Monday and Thursday through Saturday. La Belle Aurore, 75 Pennsylvania Ave., Niantic.
• Niantic Farmers Market — Thursday, 3 to 6 p.m. Local vendors and produce fill the parking lot for the week's edition of the market. Niantic Main Street Association, Methodist Street lot, Niantic.

Between a faerie trail opening its gates, a Van Gogh confidant taking the stage, four nights of Bill Charlap at the Side Door and a Niantic brunch spot doing its Sunday thing, this shoreline stretch delivers a genuinely full weekend on both the arts and dining sides.