New Bedford Guide Your Guide to New Bedford and South Coast, MA
The Zeiterion Performing Arts Center presents the 23rd Annual New Bedford Folk Festival on Saturday, July 7 and Sunday, July 8, from 11:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m., with an impressive line-up of the best in contemporary, Americana, traditional, blues and Celtic folk music. This year’s artists include folk legend Tom Rush, singer-songwriters Cheryl Wheeler and John Gorka, Americana-bluegrass band The Mammals, Hubby Jenkins of the Carolina Chocolate Drops, and many more.
In addition to the ticketed stages, the festival also features non-ticketed areas open to the public, including six blocks of craft vendors, a gourmet Food Court & Beer Garden, the Family Music and Activities Park, and the local-performer Southcoast Stage. The festival takes place at the Zeiterion Performing Arts Center and throughout the 11 blocks of historic downtown New Bedford and the Whaling National Historical Park. Early-bird tickets are $125 for Premium Pass Holders, $30 for a weekend pass and $22.50 for a single day pass through June 23. Children under 12 are free. Tickets are available by calling 508-994-2900, online at www.newbedfordfolkfestival.com or the Zeiterion Box Office at 684 Purchase Street in New Bedford.
The New Bedford Folk Festival presents over 90 performances on 8 stages that range from the 1,200 seat Zeiterion Performing Arts Center to the intimacy of the Meet the Performer stage. In addition to the traditional performances, the festival also includes the popular “workshop performances” that combine several different artists who seldom, if ever, share the same stage, in uniquely themed concerts like “A French-Canadian Kitchen Party” and “Troubles Melt Like Lemon Drops: Music to Get You Through Tough Times.”
Thousands of people from New England and across the nation attend the festival over the weekend, making it a major destination for this summer weekend. This year’s festival promises an exciting and memorable celebration which shows the city of New Bedford at its best.
The lineup of performers for the 2018 festival includes: Kristin Andreassen, Bon Débarras, Bourque Émissaires, Matthew Byrne, Connla, J.P. Cormier, Ronny Cox, Cliff Eberhardt, Bob Franke, Dori Freeman, Beppe Gambetta, John Gorka, Hubby Jenkins, Reverend Robert B. Jones, Sr., James Keelaghan, The Kennedys, Jeremy Kittel Trio, Laura Love Duo, The Mammals, Mile Twelve, Grace Morrison, Peter Mulvey, Keith Murphy, Musique à Bouches, Mustard’s Retreat Trio, Emerald Rae, Paul Rishell and Annie Raines, Garnet Rogers, Tom Rush, Claudia Russell and Bruce Kaplan, Amy Speace, Art Tebbetts, Cheryl Wheeler, Brooks Williams. All performers are subject to change.
The festival will feature many areas open to the public including the Family Music and Activities Park at Wings Court. This area will feature festival performers in family concerts, music sessions, sing-a-longs, and hands-on activities. The festival also presents a major juried arts and crafts show featuring more than 80 artisans and crafts makers lining the cobblestone streets between the performance tents and venues. They include jewelers, instrument makers, tie dyers, local honey purveyors, ceramic artists and more, all representing a rich culture of handmade wares from the Southcoast region and beyond.
The Food Court and Beer Garden will fill two blocks of Purchase Street in front of The Zeiterion Performing Arts Center. Festival ticket holders and the non-ticketed public are invited to dine from a variety of food vendors and have a drink from a full bar, all while listening to the musicians on the nearby SouthCoast Stage. This stage features performers from the vibrant local music scene including The Jethros, Seamus Galligan, Dori Rubbicco, Chuck Williams, and Fourteen Strings, among others. Food vendors include Seafood Hut featuring the justifiably world famous New Bedford landed fish and scallops, Acushnet Creamery, Dorothy Cox’s Candies serving Del’s Lemonade, Fancheezical, Timi’s Greek and Middle Eastern Food, Wicked Good Kettle Corn, Big T’s Jerky, Teddy’s Lunchbox and Wursthaus III.
The New Bedford Folk Festival has been recognized as a “Critic’s Pick” and one of “New England’s Greatest Celebrations” by the Boston Globe. Yankee Magazine has selected the festival as an “Editor’s Choice.”
Community Partners with the New Bedford Folk Festival are The City of New Bedford, and the New Bedford Whaling Museum. The New Bedford Folk Festival is supported in part by a grant from the Cultural Councils of New Bedford, Acushnet, Dartmouth, Fairhaven and Westport, local agencies which are supported by the Massachusetts Cultural Council, a state agency.
The presenting organization is The Zeiterion Performing Arts Center, a non-profit with a mission to provide New Bedford and the region with performing arts programming of excellence that inspires, educates, engages and entertains. Tickets are available for purchase at www.zeiterion.org, by calling 508-994-2900, or in person at the box office at 684 Purchase Street, New Bedford, Mass. Zeiterion Box Office hours are Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday, 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., Thursday 10:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m., Saturday 10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.
