‘Summerfest’ to offer pops and picnics on the Peninsula.

A balmy afternoon of picnicking, symphonic renditions of Broadway show tunes and the jumping rhythms of jazz will provide easy enjoyment for a few hundred people Sunday on the Palos Verdes Peninsula.

“This time of year, people look forward to a pops concert,” says Joseph A. Valenti, music director and conductor of the Peninsula Symphony Orchestra. And to accommodate them, the orchestra association is putting on “Summerfest” on the grounds of Chadwick School on South Academy Drive. Gates for the free event open at 2:30 p.m., with music starting at 3 p.m.

The 80-piece community symphony will get people’s feet going with John Philip Sousa marches, will salute Broadway with music from such shows as “Oliver” and “The Man of La Mancha,” and bring back a few movie memories with songs from MGM musicals.

The Dixie Doodles band will get in a few hot licks of Dixieland jazz. And to top off the day, Valenti--a pretty mean trumpeter as well as conductor--will play music to dance by with his Jazz All Stars.

The dress code is casual, and people may bring a picnic or buy $15 suppers featuring stuffed chicken breasts and vegetable pasta. (The deadline for reserving suppers has passed, but some will be available for purchase at the event.)

“We get lots of kids, lots of families,” Valenti said. “We want people to have a good time in the good old summertime.”

Formed more than 20 years ago to give serious South Bay musicians an opportunity to play, the Peninsula Symphony gave an outdoor summer “Picnic and Pops” concert for years on the Rolling Hills High School athletic field.

Three years ago, the event was moved to the rustic Chadwick campus and became “Summerfest.” Summer music fans not only got more room and a respite from traffic whizzing past the high school, but jazz was added to the bill.

Valenti said the jazz music for dancing has become the post popular attraction of the day. The All Stars specialize in old standards of the 1940s and ‘50s. Last year, the musicians played for an hour after the official wrap-up time of 8 p.m. “Everyone was having fun dancing,” Summerfest chairman Ben Loughrin said.

Valenti likens the Chadwick setting to a miniature Hollywood Bowl because of its outdoor amphitheater surrounded by lawns for picnicking. There are plenty of shade trees to provide refuge from the sun.

“It’s very, very informal, like an old-fashioned afternoon on the lawn when people used to sit around the gazebo and listen to the city band,” said Capt. Dennis Gillard, commander of the Lomita Sheriff’s Station and a member of the symphony association board.

“Summerfest” is a fund-raiser for the orchestra, which is supported largely through association memberships and foundation grants. The orchestra presents four free symphonic programs a year at Rolling Hills Covenant Church in Rolling Hills Estates. The orchestra also encourages young musicians through a competition with cash awards and a chance to appear as soloists with the orchestra.

The Norris Foundation has given $10,000 to help defray costs of “Summerfest.” Bristol Farms market has donated the dinners, and the sale price goes to the orchestra association, which also will sell wine, soft drinks, ice cream and popcorn. There’s also a raffle: For $2 a ticket, people may try their luck at winning a dozen dinners for two at South Bay restaurants.

Loughrin and Valenti describe the day as a festive way for people to enjoy music, have fun and support the orchestra at the same time. “People can buy a dinner once a year to help us,” Valenti said.

Longtime pops concert-goer Virginia Twohy says it’s like a giant picnic on the green. “It’s always a lovely, great family day.”