In the good ol’ Summertime, Cleveland is a festival kind of town. Whether the occasion
be ethnic food or the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin, we like to gather in the street for
a good time. Cleveland is also a manufacturing town: a creative place where we like to do
something with raw materials. And these days, what we do is make a whole lot of art. Put
those two ideas together, and you get a summer season packed with events that show you
some of what your most creative neighbors have been up to lately. What’s not to celebrate?

 

 

PARADE THE CIR CLE
June 9, 11am– 4pm
Wade Oval, 10820 East Blvd.
Cleveland, Ohio 44106
216.707.2483
universitycircle.org
Now in its 23rd year, this annual favorite eschews predictable Disneyesque culture icons and instead enchants with the magic of imagination. Balloon arches announce the likes of menacing harlequins and whirling dancers while beautiful  ladies float above it all on stilts. Circle Village thrums with live performances and kidfriendly activities. Snacking is top
notch and irresistible, with choices from Murray Hill Market to Rascal House Pizza, and plenty of stops in between. Insider’s tip: forego the parking nightmare and take the free Lolly the Trolley shuttle service from ultra-hip Gordon  Square.

 

 

AVON HERITAGE DUCT
TAPE FE STIVAL
June 15, 4–11pm
June 16, 11am–11pm
June 17, 11am–5pm
3701 Veteran’s Memorial Parkway
866.818.1116
Avon, Ohio 44011
ducttapefestival.com
Festival goers willing to brave vendors hawking politically charged bumper stickers will be duly rewarded when they arrive at the craft tents, which are brimming with kids utterly engrossed in transforming duct tape into flowers or wallets or whatever new craft the folks at Duck Brand duct tape have dreamt up. Perusing duct tape prom dresses also holds  untold appeal for the tween set. Past food selections have included the French Fry Boat, a Taco-in-a-Bag and the  inscrutable BBQ Pork Sundae.
BAYART S ART AND
MUSIC FESTIVAL
June 16, 10am–4pm
Cleveland Metroparks Huntington
Reservation
28795 Lake Road
Bay Village, Ohio 44140
440.871.6543
bayarts.net
With approximately 40 artists displaying and selling their wares, this festival serves up a diverse mix of arts and crafts to westsiders and those willing to venture across the river and down the shore. “We’re in a botanical setting. It’s all gardens—and right across from Huntington Beach,” says BAYarts Executive Director Nancy Heaton. “We like to think of it as an affordable alternative to a lot of the other festivals.” Mojo’s Coffee and Vento La Trattoria will be on site and the five-piece alternative rock band Uzizi will headline the musical acts. Now in its fourth year, this festival is a dream come true for the laid-back crowd with plenty of free easy-access parking.

 

CLIFTO N ART S AND
MUSICFE ST
June 16, 10am–6pm
Clifton Blvd between West 112th
and West 117th Streets
Cleveland, Ohio 44102
216.228.4383
cudell.com
With an explosion of color, texture and sound rocking this eclectic neighborhood, and $7,500 in prize money, this juried show draws top talent and a kaleidoscope of offerings. Shoppers can peruse handcrafted jewelry, soaps, ceramics, woodcrafts and textiles as well as traditional drawings and prints. In its 25th year, the festival will feature a host of entertainment options such as steel drum band PANIC!, Grupo Chakai Manta for a Latin sound, and the Polka Pirates. Performances and activities abound and offer something for everyone, from chalk art to Jocko the Clown and sand sculptor Carl Jara.

 

 

SHAKER HEIGHTS ART S
AND MUSIC FESTIVAL
June 16, 10am–10pm
June 17, 11am–5pm
Farnsleigh Road between Van
Aken and Warrensville Roads
Shaker Heights, Ohio 44120
614.486.7119
shakeronline.com
Shaker Heights Arts Council gives a proper nod to the summer solstice during this, the group’s 3rd annual festival. More than 150 members from Ohio Designer Craftsmen will display and sell their handiwork during the event, which will take visitors around the world in a weekend. Sights and sounds will include salsa dancers, Irish songsters, and Santana
tribute band Evil Ways. Eats will range from a Touch of Italy to the Saffron Patch to Dewey’s Popcorn shop. The tots will delight in balloon animals, stilt performers and strolling performances.

 

 

 

CMA SUMMER
SOL STICE FETE
June 30, 7:30pm–2am
Cleveland Museum of Art,
11150 East Blvd.
Cleveland, Ohio 44106
216.421.7350
clevelandart.org
Admission $20, $60
No event lights up Cleveland like this celebration of the longest day of the year, when one of the world’s most spectacular
art collections plays host to a confluence of sophistication, funk and style. The Debo Band will kick off the festivities with
“trance-like African grooves,” while Novalima ends the night with their Afro-Peruvian beat, but not without a fusion of norteño and banda, a healthy serving of Gang Gang Dance and a jazzy Jelly Roll courtesy of Steven Bernstein’s Millennial Territory Orchestra in between. Small plates will be available for purchase throughout the evening. A perennial sell out,
wine and fireworks will sparkle the crowd while one damaged and very quiet fellow floats above the spectacle, thinking it all over.

 

 

 

WATERLOO ART S FE ST
June 30, 12–7pm
Waterloo Road between East
156th and East 161st Streets
Cleveland, Ohio 44110
216.692.9500
waterlooartsfest.com
Diversity, authenticity and a whole lot of heart are perennial headliners at this culture blowout, now in its tenth year.  Performances both scheduled and impromptu will dazzle multiple stages while visiting and local vendors and artisans offer up an array of wares. Past participants have included the Lake Shore Garden Club, The Helper T-Cells band and fresh produce vendors. Local food trucks have been known to set up shop at the event, while neighborhood institutions such as R&D Sausage dish out favorites. The Beachland Ballroom will roll out the red carpet for the ever popular Rock ‘n Roll Flea Market. Storytelling, poetry, dance and music round out the day. Insider tip: the KABOOM mural is a reminder that the home of notorious gangster Danny Greene’s was blown to pieces on this site 37 years ago.

 

 

 

CAIN PARK ART S
FE STIV AL
July 13, 3–8pm
July 14, 10am–8pm
July 15, 12–5pm
Cain Park,
Lee and Superior Roads
Cleveland Heights, Ohio 44118
216.291.3669
cainpark.com
Free on Friday $5 Saturday and Sunday, with kids 12 and under free Back for the 35th year, this event draws 20,000  attendees who come to marvel over the work of more than 150 artisans that hail from points across Ohio as well as the country. Selections are dizzying, ranging from traditional two-dimensional art to a host of offerings in ceramics, wood, glass, and leather. Organizers boast “the best quality art in all price ranges,” so whether it’s a thank-you trinket for the  babysitter or a loftier have-to-have-it item, shoppers will find it at Cain Park. Music? Try zydeco, big band and rock. As  for the kids: the Spoon Band will dish out interactive comedy and juggler David Kaplan will toss out plenty of fun. Previous food vendors have included Raintree Restaurant and Pearl of the Orient.

 

 

INGENUITYFEST
September 14–16
Docks 30 and 32, Lakefront
Cleveland
216.589.9449
ingenuitycleveland.com
This year’s edgiest arts event will play out in the Clevelandiest of all Cleveland spaces—on the lakefront at docks 30 and 32 behind the Cleveland Browns Stadium. “It’s an industrial space,” says IngenuityFest Program Director James Krouse of the new location. “There are two warehouses with a total of about 120,000 square feet of internal space. There are these large garage doors that open up to the lake to create an indoor/outdoor environment. It’s really unique.” And big enough to accommodate a 20-by-20 foot dance cube that will project the movement inside onto the cube’s exterior walls. It’s too early to tell what else will shape this year’s IngenuityFest, but it doesn’t matter. It. Will. Be. Cool. In its e eighth year, previous events have featured attractions such as a lighted waterfall cascading from Cleveland’s real-life catacomb in the sky (the streetcar level of the Veterans Memorial Bridge), the Screaming Tiki Cleveland Super-Con, and a giant interactive labyrinth puzzle. Performances are constant, diverse and unpredictable. Food ranges from carnival
fare to hipster grub with potent potables available for the over-21 set. Come and behold what comes to fruition when the weird brilliant people are left to their devices.

 

 

 

TREMONT ARTS AND
CULTUR AL FESTIVAL
September 15, 11am–6pm
September 16, 12–5pm
Lincoln Park
1208 Starkweather Ave
Cleveland, Ohio 44113
216.575.0920
tremontwest.org
Nestled between Ohio City and the Industrial Valley, Tremont is one of Cleveland’s oldest neighborhoods while being home to plenty of the city’s newest cultural trends, and this annual festival celebrates all of it. Local artists and crafters will sell their wares—including plenty of wearable art and jewelry, while area churches, organizations and restaurants serve up irresistible favorites. Past offerings have included crepes, rice and beans, spinach pies and ribs. Art for kids will be offered throughout the weekend, as will information on historical, educational and area non-profit organizations and  projects. Last year’s tenth annual event featured chalk art, belly dancing and reggae performances. Insider’s tip: Film buffs can take a quick stroll down to 733 Starkweather for a closer look at St. Theodosius Orthodox Cathedral, a prominent feature in the 1978 iconic film The Deer Hunter.