The Stories That Shape Us: Sag Harbor's Cultural Heritage Festival is May 3 To 5.

Since 2016, the 12 member-institutions of the Sag Harbor Cultural District have sponsored a weekend of events in early May to highlight the broad range of cultural and artistic resources available in Sag Harbor.

This year is no exception. The 2019 “Cultural Heritage Festival” runs May 3 to 5 throughout the village and the theme of “Sag Harbor: The Stories That Shape Us,” will highlight the community’s wealth of stories and storytellers through literature, art, music, theater and history.

The events include “Title Wave,” a weekend of free readings of new plays and musicals at Bay Street Theater; a talk at Canio’s Books by Mary K. Edwards, Melville scholar and sailor, about her adventures aboard the 1841 whale ship Charles W. Morgan; a free concert by Long Island singer-songwriter Rorie Kelly, sponsored by the Sag Harbor American Music Festival, at the John Jermain Memorial Library; and a screening of the Oscar-winning John Huston film “The Grapes of Wrath” sponsored by the Sag Harbor Cinema Arts Center in the Pierson High School auditorium.

“Because we rely on stories to better understand our place in the world and our relationship to other people and other times, we’ve developed myriad ways to tell stories—the written word, theater, movies, art, photography, music, oral history and more,” said Eric Cohen of the John Jermain Memorial Library who is also one of the event’s organizers. “For this year’s festival, we’re exploring the many ways Sag Harbor has contributed to and inspired countless stories and storytellers in every medium.”

The full schedule includes more than 20 events spanning three days. Sag Harbor Cultural District member organizations are Bay Street Theater, Canio’s Books, Christ Episcopal Church, Eastville Community Historical Society, First Presbyterian (Old Whalers’) Church, John Jermain Memorial Library, Custom House, Sag Harbor American Music Festival, Sag Harbor Cinema Arts Center, Sag Harbor Historical Society, Sag Harbor Whaling and Historical Museum, Temple Adas Israel.

In addition to the cultural events, several Sag Harbor restaurants —Dockside, Golden Pear, Harbor Market, Il Cappuccino, Page and Sen—are offering discounts or a free item for those who attend the festival.

A full schedule of events can be found at bit.ly/CHF2019Schedule.