Port Orchard shines up ride, slicks back hair for Classics weekend

Classic cars, classic rock, classic, all part of four-day-long party on Bay Street, Aug. 7-10.

Every year for the past two decades, classic cars from Kitsap and beyond have rallied under the August sun for the annual Cruz in Port Orchard.

Bay Street rumbles with the sound of vintage Cadillacs and Chevies, Chryslers and Oldsmobiles, all tuned up for the Hot August Nights-like affair, hosted by the local Saints Car Club.

This year, The Cruz turns 21.

And along with that celebration, Kitsap Bank (Cruz sponsor and also sponsor of the adjunct Festival by the Bay) will be celebrating its centennial by throwing a party on the waterfront, while merchants, businesses and markets all along Bay Street will be getting into the classic fever.

On one end of Bay Street, the historic Orchard Theater will be screening the 1962 seminal George Lucas film “American Graffiti,” opening Thursday, while at the other end, the town playhouse — Western Washington Center for the Arts — will be staging the rock musical version of Roger Corman’s 1960 film “Little Shop of Horrors,” premiering Friday. (See breakout stories below).

Just up the way, on Sidney Avenue, the Sidney Museum and Art Gallery is giving props this month to the classic art of crochet, hosting its fourth annual “Art of the Quilter” exhibition.

And then, there’s the classic Festival by the Bay, a carnival and vendor fair, from the folks who brought you Fathoms of Fun, Sunday.

All together, it’s slated to be the biggest bash of the year, Port Orchard Chamber of Commerce Director Coreen Haydock Johnson said, noting the party really gets started with “Rock Around the Block,” a classically titled block party featuring a classic car cruise, classic rock from the band Dance Factory and a beer garden down on Bay Street, starting at 6 p.m. Saturday.

It all culminates with “The Cruz” on Sunday.

GRAY BOX / ITALIX

Port Orchard’s Classics Weekend

The Skinny

THURSDAY, Aug. 7

• “American Graffiti” opens for a four-day run at The Orchard, 822 Bay St.

• Concerts on the Bay concert series continues at 7 p.m. at Marina Park.

FRIDAY, Aug. 8

• Kitsap Bank celebrates its centennial with community barbecue at 4 p.m., at its Bay Street location.

• WWCA premieres its summer production “Little Shop of Horrors” at 6:30 p.m., 521 Bay St.

SATURDAY, Aug. 9

• Port Orchard Farmers Market, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., on the waterfront.

• Rock Around the Block, pre-party for The Cruz, at 6 p.m. on the waterfront.

• Long Lake Daze, all day, a short drive away at Long Lake.

SUNDAY

• Festival by the Bay, carnival and vendors fair, 10 a.m.-5 p.m. on the waterfront

• The Cruz, hundreds of classic cars hosted by the Saints Car Club, all day long on the waterfront.

Info: Call the Port Orchard Chamber at (360) 876-3505.

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