The versatile folk variety duo King Platypus will play an outdoor benefit concert, Saturday, May 11, at 4 p.m. outside Walk a Crooked Mile Bookstore at the Mount Airy train station, 7423 Devon Street. The rain date for the concert is May 12 at 4 p.m.

Donations for the concert will go to the Playground-Raising Project (PRP) at Houston School, a volunteer group of parents and Mt. Airy community residents who have joined together to erect a community-built playground at the Henry Houston Elementary Houston School, in Mt. Airy. The playground, to be open to Houston students and children of the surrounding community, will be built by 1,000 volunteers over a five-day period, June 12 to June 16.

King Platypus consists of Jim Harris (left of photo) and Jake Michael, two Philadelphia area songwriters who perform folk and rock covers, and original compositions using classical and traditional acoustic instruments. Jim plays bass, jazz guitar and classical cello, while Jake plays folk guitar, banjo, bass and Appalachian dulcimer. By playing familiar tunes on "unfamiliar" instruments, they provide a performance that is unique but can still be appreciated by a wide variety of audiences.

Jim Harris, who was a backup musician for Chubby Checker and the Delfonics, also played with the Unbelievables, an oldies dance band, and was a co-founder of the Wissahickon String Quartet. Jake Michael, who has played at the Tin Angel and the Mermaid Inn, won a songwriters contest sponsored by the Mid-Atlantic Songwriters Association in 2001. King Platypus is frequently heard on WXPN-FM.

Concert-goers are encouraged to bring a lawn chair or blanket for the show, one of a series of community concerts scheduled by Greg Williams, owner of Walk a Crooked Mile Books.

For more information about the concert, call the Bookstore at 215-242-0854. For details about the Playground-Raising Project, including information about volunteering, click here!