It’s cold…but that doesn’t mean you need to stay at home! We rounded up some fun events in Newton in January and February to enjoy. Learn about Elvis Presley’s Jewish heritage, make your own paper leaf bookmark, enjoy music from Sweden, Scotland and Turkey, watch a marionette show—and much more. Don’t miss out on Spark Newton’s WinterFEST, which is the weekend of January 24 and 25. (Some WinterFEST events are already full and are not included on this list).

Wednesday, January 7, 10:30 to 11:00 a.m.: Join Matt Heaton and sing along to guitar and banjo music at this family sing-along at the Newton Free Library, 330 Homer Street.

Thursday, January 8, 1:30 p.m.: Sing along with singer and yodeler Roger Tincknell to 1960s and 1970s British and American pop and rock music at the Cooper Center, 345 Walnut St. RSVP requested.

Thursday, January 8, 7 p.m.: Learn about Elvis Presley—including his Jewish heritage—from local writer Judie Magidson, at the Community Hub at Center Makor, 1320 Centre St.

Friday, January 9, 6 to 8 p.m.: Attend the reception for Ryan Horton’s art showcase, Continuum II, which focuses on the power of social connection. The show runs through January 25 at Newton City Hall, 1000 Commonwealth Avenue.

Saturday, January 10, 1 p.m.: See Top 10 Must, a 2024 Icelandic film about a prison escapee trying to reach her daughter and a disillusioned artist trying to fulfill her bucket list, at the Scandinavian Cultural Center at 206 Waltham St. Tickets are $5 for members and $10 for non-members.

Sunday, January 11, 2 to 3 p.m.: Listen to Isabel Oliart and her band play Celtic fiddle music at the Newton Free Library, 330 Homer Street.

Thursday, January 15, 7 to 8 p.m.: Hear Kimberly Toney, a member of the Nipmuc tribe and Curator of Native American and Indigenous Collections at Brown University, talk about Native American land deeds in Massachusetts during the colonial period. Located at the Newton Free Library, 330 Homer Street. 

Friday, January 16 at 8 p.m.: Watch the Newton Theatre Company’s performance of Our Town, Thornton Wilder’s 1938 play about Grover’s Corner, New Hampshire, at 96 Otis St. Additional performances: Saturday, January 17 at 2 and 8 p.m., Friday, January 23 at 8 p.m., Saturday, January 24 at 2 and 8 p.m., Friday, January 30 at 8 p.m., and Saturday, January 31 at 2 and 8 p.m. Tickets are $35.

Saturday, January 17, 2:30 to 4:30 p.m.: Sing along to folk music with Newton Folk Music at the Newton Free Library at 330 Homer St. This event is meant for adults.

Monday, January 19, 9 a.m.: Celebrate the legacy of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., at the First Unitarian Universalist Society, 1326 Washington St. There will be music, a speaker, and children’s programming. Free, but registration required.

Tuesday, January 20, 7 to 9 p.m.: Listen to Luvaghn Brown and Lew Zuchman talk about their experience as Freedom Riders in Mississippi during the Civil Rights Movement in 1961, at Hebrew College, 1860 Washington St. Free, but registration required.

Thursday, January 22, 3 to 4 p.m.: Make your own paper leaf bookmark at the Newton Free Library, 330 Homer St. Registration required. For all ages, but children under 9 must be supervised by an adult.

Friday, January 23, 5 to 6:30 p.m.: Enjoy music and ice sculptures on the Newton Centre Green at 1221 Centre St. for the kickoff of WinterFEST. 

Saturday, January 24, 2 to 3 p.m.: Learn how to press flowers at Derby Flowers, 1280 Centre St. Registration requested but not required. 

Saturday, January 24, 2 to 3 p.m.: Listen to Women in World Jazz at the Newton Community Stage, 15 Walnut Park. 

Saturday, January 24, 3 to 4 p.m.: Drop in at WinterFEST at the Newton Free Library at 330 Homer St. where there will be activities for children of all ages. 

Saturday, January 24, 5:30 to 7:30 p.m.: Eat soup and ice cream at the WinterFEST Soup Social at the Hyde Community Center at 90 Lincoln St., and meet Newton Police’s comfort dog Leo. Registration requested but not required.

Sunday, January 25, 10 a.m. to 12 p.m.: Watch Abominable, a 2019 film about a girl finding a Yeti on her Shanghai rooftop and becoming friends, at West Newton Cinema, 1296 Washington St. Registration encouraged but not required. 

Sunday, January 25, 1 to 2 p.m.: Dance to the music of the Stacey Peasley Band at the New Art Center, plus enjoy family arts and crafts time. Located at 61 Washington Park. Registration encouraged but not required.

Sunday, January 25, 2 to 3 p.m.: Listen to Boston Meshk Ensemble play classical Turkish music from the 17th to the 20th century at the Newton Free Library at 330 Homer St.

Wednesday, January 28, 6 to 8 p.m.: Watch The Librarians, a documentary about how book review policies are shaping American libraries, at the Newton Free Library at 330 Homer St.

Saturday, January 31, 1 p.m.: Watch Jarrett McPhee’s documentary, Greetings from New England, about New England identity, and stay for his talk on Icelandic stone lifting at the Scandinavian Cultural Center, 206 Waltham St. Tickets are $10. 

Sunday, February 1, 3 p.m.: Enjoy cello music performed by Sara Wilkins accompanied by violinist Aaron Packard at the All Newton Music School, 321 Chestnut St. Free, but space is limited.

Wednesday, February 4, 7 to 8 p.m.: Listen to Kelly Foster Lundquist talk about her memoir, Beard: A Memoir of a Marriage, about her experience of reckoning with her husband (whom she met at a church camp as a teenager) coming out as gay, at Hummingbird Books, 55 Boylston St.

Saturday, February 7, 1 p.m.: Hear Oskar Stenmark play a mix of Swedish folk music and more contemporary fare, and watch footage from his grandmother’s 1976 fiddle tour, at the Scandinavian Cultural Center, 206 Waltham St. Tickets are $20, $10 for members.

Saturday, February 14, 1 p.m.: See Let the River Flow, a 2023 Norwegian film about a young Sámi woman hiding her ethnic minority status but then being drawn into a protest over a hydroelectric dam, inspired by real events of the 1970s. At the Scandinavian Cultural Center, 206 Waltham St. Tickets are $10. 

Tuesday, February 7, 11 a.m.: Watch The Dragon King, a marionette show based on Chinese folklore, at Newton Community Stage at the Lincoln-Eliot School, 15 Walnut Park.

Friday, February 13, 7 to 8:30 p.m.: Watch a circus performance at the Circus Complex Corporation at 86 Los Angeles St. Doors open at 6:30 p.m. Tickets are $33.85. 

Thursday, February 19, 6:30 p.m.: Hear Gerry O’Connor play Irish fiddle music, joined by singer Kevin McElroy, at the Connolly House at Boston College (300 Hammond Street). 

Thursday, February 19, 7:30 to 9 p.m.: Hear the Lydian String Quartet play Beethoven’s music at an open rehearsal at The Allen Center, 35 Webster St. Tickets are $30.

Friday, February 20, 7 p.m.: Listen to the Boston College University Chorale and Chamber Singers perform ‘elements’ at St. Ignatius Church, 28 Commonwealth Avenue. Suggested donation $20.

Saturday, February 21, 1 p.m.: See The Painter and the Thief, a 2020 Norwegian film about an artist tracking down the man who stole her work and the unlikely friendship that developed, at the Scandinavian Cultural Center, 206 Waltham St. Tickets are $10. 

Saturday, February 28, 1 p.m.: Watch Lewerentz—Divine Darkness, a documentary about the mysterious Swedish modern architect Sigurd Lewerentz, and stay for a Q&A session with the film’s director Sven Blume. At the Scandinavian Cultural Center, 206 Waltham St. Tickets are $15, $7 for members.