Explore arts & culture happenings across Massachusetts.

Fan and follow us!


 

 

 

 

Sign up today to receive the monthly 

Arts & Culture Bulletin!

 

 

 

Header Photos

 

Clockwise from top left: Strange Fruit, Outside the Box festival; Thomas Ortiz Dance, Jacob's Pillow Dance Festival; Redcoats & Rebels, Old Sturbridge Village; Mashpee Wampanoag Tribal Pow Wow; Lowell Folk Festival  

  

 

 

June 2017

 

Massachusetts is rich in arts & culture, so it's no surprise that exciting events, exhibits and festivals are held in the state's 16 regions all year long. Find out more!

 

Festival season is here!

As we enter the warm weather months, a peculiar trend starts to emerge. While the pace of life slows down a bit, smiles get bigger, energy levels rise, and weekends brim with activities. Festival season is systems are go, with headline-making culinary, arts, and maritime events. From the Berkshire International Film Fest to Boston Pride Week, the Salem Arts Festival to the New Bedford Jazz Fest, and more, Massachusetts is dishing up fun-loving entertainment across the board. And perhaps most notably, the Rendez-Vous 2017 Tall Ships Regatta will be bringing in over 50 spectacular vessels from 13 nations to Sail Boston. However you choose to explore the Bay State in June, take a moment to savor the experiences and make the memories count. For more on what's happening in June into summer, visit massvacation.com

Plan your next getaway to Massachusetts.  

 

 

Featured Region: Central Massachusetts

Summer is just around the corner in Central Massachusetts! Come celebrate New England's Food Truck & Craft Beer Festival in Worcester on June 3rd. If you're a science lover, stop by WPI's Touch Tomorrow, a free hands-on technology festival with NASA exhibits, robot demonstrations and more on June 10th. Calling all Mark Twain fans! The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, an outdoor musical performance, retold on the shores of Quinebaug River at Old Sturbridge Village, will run June 14-July 9. Take your picture with the Patriots' 5th Lombardi Trophy on June 16th at City Hall in Worcester. And bring your favorite guy to a Father's Day Tractor Show with tractor pulls, a parade, food and a petting zoo at Hardwick Vineyard & Winery on June 18th.  Learn more here!

Find more information on Central Massachusetts.

 

 

Franklin County

Double Edge's Ashfield Town Spectacle and Culture Fair will be held June 3 & 4 from 1 to 9 pm, with the parade starting at 7 pm. Explore how active participation defines the intersection of art, culture and democracy! Grown directly from the theatre's questions about the roots of identity, the Town Spectacle extends this search to include the whole community through a kaleidoscope of history, art, and spectacle. This performance will not take place in a theatre - the territories of the town will be the stage map, and the ensemble will be joined by all walks of the Ashfield, Hilltown, and western MA community. Find more information on Franklin County.

 

 

Greater Boston

BOSTON - Simply ARTrageous! June finds our performing arts venues filled with old favorites and newly popular productions: Ripcord, Hedwig, Arrabal, Wicked, Mama Mia, Diana Krall and Camelot. It's also perfect for outdoor festivals: Cambridge Arts, PRIDE and Sail Boston. Additionally, the good weather brings an explosion of public art and performances across the city. The sounds of Concerts in the Courtyard at the BPL, Berklee student melodies on The Steps and tunes from the annual Donna Summer Disco Party can be heard throughout Boston. Meander along the Greenway for the interactive Make and Take, the optimistic Spaces of Hope, the playful "confetti hug" by Virdee, the rising (or sinking) Meeting House and Playful Perspectives, delightfully exposing the frailty of one's perspective. And take time to smell the flowers. Find more information on Greater Boston

 

 

Cape Cod

Kick off summer in true Cape Cod fashion at the 9th Annual Quahog Day! Come hear our mascot Doug the Quahog make his annual prediction for how many weeks of beach weather lie ahead at 2 pm Wednesday, June 21st at the oceanfront Blue Water Resort in South Yarmouth. A Cape Cod tradition!  Also in June, over 300 classic cars will be on display Sunday, June 18th at the Father's Day Car Show in Hyannis, and the prestigious Provincetown International Film Festival is set for June 14-18!  Find more information on Cape Cod.

 

 

Greater Springfield

The Amazing World of Dr. Seuss - opening June 3, 2017 at the Springfield Museums - is a permanent, bilingual museum designed to commemorate  beloved author/artist Ted Geisel, aka "Dr. Seuss." This 3,200-square-foot space lets visitors explore new sounds and vocabulary, play rhyming games, invent stories and much more. The second floor showcases Geisel's personal memorabilia including original oil paintings, zany hats and bowties, and furniture from Ted's sitting room and studio, including his drawing board, breakfast table, sofa and armchair.  Find more information on Greater Springfield.

 

 

Hampshire County

Celebrate the art of local craft beer during Western Mass Beer Week, June 10-17, with daily events at breweries, restaurants, and shops in all four counties of western Massachusetts! Events include beer dinners, collaboration releases, outdoor beer gardens, and so much more. For a taste, check out BLDG8's Courtyard Party (6/10), Abandoned Building  and Beerology's Manhan Trail Pale Ale Release (6/12), or The Foundry's famed "Firkin Faceoff" (6/14)! Sign up for our newsletter to stay on top of a full summer of festivals visithampshirecounty.com.  Find more information on Hampshire County.

 

 

Johnny Appleseed Country

Grab a blanket or lawn chair and head to Johnny Appleseed Country for a summer packed with outdoor concerts! From Ayer to Orange, local musicians take to the stage in parks and on town commons across the region. You can find an outdoor music experience just about every day of the week - and the variety is fabulous! Check out concerts from the Townsend Military Band or the Leominster Colonial Band, or the lakeside performances at Fitchburg's Coggshall Park. Relax at Butterfield Park in Orange or at Monument Park in Gardner. Music is in the air - enjoy! Find more information on Johnny Appleseed Country.

 

 

Martha's Vineyard 

Oak Bluffs Harborfest will be held Saturday, June 17th from 11 am to 8 pm! Come enjoy this Vineyard gateway town's charming annual Harborfest.  Over 40 vendors from near and far, including many of the Vineyard favorites plan to return for one of the Island's most popular events. Local artists, craftsmen and antique dealers, as well as non-profit organizations offering a tempting array of baked goods, raffles and information about their causes, will be on hand.  Free to all!  More info at oakbluffsmv.com, and all the info you need to plan your Martha's Vineyard getaway is at MVY.com. Find more information on Martha's Vineyard.

 

 

Mohawk Trail Region

Alma-Tadema Model D

Steinway Pianoforte and Stools

The Clark Art Institute's summer season opens on June 3 with two special exhibitions! Picasso: Encounters looks at Pablo Picasso's collaborations as he experimented with large-scale printmaking. The exhibition also includes two important paintings on loan from the Musée national Picasso-Paris: his seminal Self-Portrait from his Blue Period and Portrait of Dora Maar, one of Picasso's favorite muses and models. Orchestrating Elegance: Alma-Tadema and Design reunites most of the original furnishings of one of the most opulent Gilded Age rooms ever created and provides an opportunity to study the fascinating story behind Sir Lawrence Alma-Tadema's designs. Find more information on The Mohawk Trail Region

 

 

MetroWest

Celebrate the richness, diversity, food, and fun of MetroWest at the 4th Annual MetroFest, with free admission this year!  On June 17, enjoy 20 food trucks and local food purveyors, live music on two stages, a craft beverages sampling tent, a classic car show, touch-a-truck, the Escape Room, Xbox dance booth, and exhibits, activities, and handmade products from more than 100 artisans, crafters, local retailers, and cultural and community groups. 11 am to 4 pm at Bowditch Complex in Framingham. Find more information on MetroWest.

 

 

Nantucket Island

Cruise over for Nantucket's Spring Restaurant Week (June 5-11) when a number of acclaimed restaurants offer attractively priced prix fixe menus.  Nantucket Book Festival (June 16-18) - a celebration of the written word - features renowned literary figures, lectures, staged readings, and meet-the-author events; we welcome Alice Hoffman, Jodi Picoult, Robert Pinsky and others.  From June 21-26, the Nantucket Film Festival delivers a variety of eclectic films and features Late Night Storytelling, staged readings, and a glittering Screenwriter's Tribute.  Find more information on Nantucket Island.

 

 

North of Boston

Cape Ann Artisans' Open Studios Tour takes place on June 3rd & 4th! Come explore the artisans exquisite natural surrounding and see the fine art and craft inspired by the scenic North Shore. Later in June, don't miss St. Peter's Fiesta, a five day festival honoring the patron saint of the fisherman, on June 21-June 25. Find more information on North of Boston.

 

 

Plymouth County

Now on display at Pilgrim Hall Museum in Plymouth is "Wedding 396: Four Centuries of Wedding Fashion from the First Plymouth Colony Marriage in 1621 to the Present." Trace the evolution of wedding fashion from the first Plymouth Colony wedding in 1621 to today! Over two dozen vintage wedding gowns and hundreds of South Shore wedding images gloriously displayed to reveal the interplay of tradition and innovation over 396 years of New England wedding history. Find more information on Plymouth County.

 

 

Southeastern Mass

Don't miss the annual Strawberry Country Festival at Carpenter Museum in Rehoboth on Sunday, June 4th from 1-5 pm! Basket-weaving, corn-grinding, butter-making and (of course) strawberry shortcake! Then, Attleboro presents its 9th Annual Expo for the Senses on Saturday, June 10th from 12-5 pm at Capron Park! The five hours of free fun include live music, crafters selling handmade pieces of art, local jewelers, food by local eateries, kids activities and a Ferris wheel.  FFind more information on Southeastern Massachusetts

 

 

The Berkshires

Come and celebrate 85 years of dance in the Berkshires at the Jacob's Pillow Dance Festival this summer!  Their 85th anniversary season will be filled with performances by dance artists from around the world, including world premieres and U.S. debuts, plus over 250 free performances, talks & tours, exhibits, community events, classes, and more.  Free performances take place on the outdoor Inside/Out stage every Wednesday-Saturday at 6:15pm.  Be sure not to miss their Pillow Pop-Up performances at every Third Thursday street festival in Pittsfield through September.  Find more information on The Berkshires

 

 

Greater Merrimack Valley

Outside summer concerts are right around the corner here in the Greater Merrimack Valley! The Lowell Summer Music Series kicks off June 10th at Boarding House Park with Trombone Shorty and Orleans Avenue. For a complete list of shows, dates and times, click here!  Find more information on Greater Merrimack Valley. 

 

Regional Tourism Councils  

   
Funded by the Massachusetts Office of Travel & Tourism