Festival Seson Is Upon Us
This weekend CumberlandFest will kick-off “festival season” in Rhode Island’s Blackstone Valley. From carnival rides, to arts & crafts and performance groups, food trucks and cultural cuisine, there is something for everyone.
What’s even more fun is that festival season will continue right into the Fall harvest season. Below is a list of upcoming festivals to look forward to.
Friday August, 6 – Sunday, August 8 – Cumberlandest – Diamond Hill Park – Blackstone Valley’s celebrated summer event features live musical entertainment, carnival rides and a place to sample culinary delights from some of Rhode Island’s premiere food trucks. Admission is free and for $30 you can enjoy unlimited rides on the day of purchase. The whole event is capped off with a giant fireworks display that takes place on Saturday, August 7 @ 10 pm. MORE INFO
Saturday, August 7 @ 4 – 9 pm – First Central Falls Food Truck Festival – This Culinary festival at Higginson Sports Complex in Central Falls will bring live music, food trucks and arts & crafts together to highlight the City’s diverse culture and flavors. MORE INFO
Friday, August 6 – Sunday, August 8 – St. Basil’s Eid El Saydeh Summer Festival, Lincoln – Eid El Saydeh is also known as the Feast of the Assumption of the Virgin Mary. The festival will feature Middle Eastern Food and activities for the whole family. MORE INFO.
Tuesday,
August 10 @ 7:30 pm – The Rhode Island International Film Festival kicks off at the Rustic Tri-View Drive-In in North Smithfield with a memorable selection of Premiere short films with a retro double feature format. The event will highlight the Rhode Island Film Festival’s status as one of six qualifying festivals with the Academy of Arts and Sciences, the Oscars, for live action, animation and documentary short categories. It is the only film festival in New England with this distinction. There are several other events scheduled for the Rustic during this week-long festival. MORE INFO.
Saturday, August 14 @ 3 – 7 pm – Augtoberfest Foolproof Brewery, Pawtucket – If it’s beer you’re looking for and you don’t want to wait until next month’s Oktoberfest (see below), Foolproof’s Augtoberfest is for you with a day full of beer, music, and fun with event contests like Stein Hoisting, Chicken Dance and Keg tossing. MORE INFO
Saturday, August 14 @ 11 am – 6 pm – The Looff East Providence Arts Festival – Rose Larisa Park, East Providence – This annual arts festival takes place along the beautiful East Providence waterfront and showcases all types of art including fine paintings, sculpture, metal works, fiber and much more, “a whirlwind of art, music and life” (East Providence Arts Council definition of Looff). MORE INFO
Friday, August 20 – Sunday, August 22 – Assumption of the Virgin Mary Grecian Festival, Pawtucket – This 94th annual cultural festival is one of Pawtucket’s premiere events and often considered the lead-in event to the Pawtucket Arts Festival. It highlights the city’s Greek Culture in song, dance and of course, traditional foods like Spanakopita and Greek pastry sweetened with honey. MORE INFO
August
29 @ 12 – 6 pm – RI Folk Festival, Rose Larisa Park, East Providence – Formerly the Providence Folk Festival, this annual folk festival is a free music event featuring the finest in folk, acoustic and Americana singer-songwriter acts in Rhode Island. The festival will feature three stages of acoustic music in a beautiful setting along East Providence’s waterfront. MORE INFO
September 10 – 19 – Pawtucket Art Festival, Pawtucket. This is one of the valley’s premiere arts festivals that features arts of all kinds from visual to performance and includes children’s activities, arts and crafts closing with the Rhode Island Philharmonic Pops and fireworks. Within this festival resides a few connected smaller festivals including the Slater Park Fall Festival, Lorraine Mill’s Fest (new this year), and River Bend East Songwriters Festival.
This year’s theme is “Plein Air.” Most, if not all events, will take place outdoors featuring several downtown neighborhood block parties and a new Plein Air art exhibit. Artist, Nick Paciorek, has invited twelve artists to showcase “Plein Air” painting and capture the spirit of Pawtucket in various locations around downtown. MORE ABOUT PLEIN AIR.
For a full listing of Pawtucket Arts Festival events, dates, times and locations visit PAWTUCKETARTSFESTIVAL.ORG/2021EVENTS
As summer comes to an end and the crisp cool air of autumn sets in, the fall festivals begin with everything that rings of celebrating the fall harvest.
September 11 @ 10 am – 4 pm
Seven Cedars Farm Fall Festival, Smithfield. This festival will have plenty of arts & crafts to pick from to get a headstart on your Christmas shopping. Be sure to check out the Farm’s special hot peppers for sale. They were a hit last year. MORE INFO
September 25 & 26 – Oktoberfest, German American Cultural Society, Pawtucket – Celebrate the traditional Oktoberfest and experience a sense of Bavarian Gemütlichkeit (coziness) with live music, dancing, German Festbier, and traditional food offerings. MORE INFO
October 9 – 11 – Autumnfest, Woonsocket – Considered the largest festival in Northern Rhode Island, the 43rd Annual Autumnfest returns for 2021 even better than before with live music, crafts, amusement rides and food for the whole family. The event will culminate with the popular Autumnfest Parade on Monday, October 11. MORE INFO
October 16 @ 12 – 5 pm- Scarecrow Festival, Glocester, – Scarecrows (contributed by local businesses and organizations) will dot the landscape around Chepachet Village for this annual fall festival that also features live music, a marketplace, and food trucks. This year Big Nazo puppets will join the fray to entertain the whole family. Scarecrows will remain up for public viewing through October 30. MORE INFO.
We hope to see you around the valley at one of these fun festivals!
Image: CumberlandFest courtesy Courtesy CumberlandFest Facebook